By 9.30pm, the last of my friends headed home.
We had a couple of beers, shared a bottle of wine over the meal, then sat around in the pub chatting and reading the papers.Īs the afternoon turned into evening, people began peeling off from the group. We were a small group of settled, sorted, middle-aged men, some single, some in relationships, but none of us looking to do anything other than spend some quiet leisure time together. I had gone out with friends for a Saturday brunch. It's hard to accept that a couple of weeks ago everything was normal. To be on the other side of the table has been a shock – if I investigated a sexual crime now, there are things I would do differently. I've always been the one asking the questions. I also never anticipated using the service the police provide to rape victims.
