Andrea Gunning

There's also the guilt her friends feel about what happened to Saskia.

Looking back now, knowing what Mike was doing, Heather feels a lot of anger at herself.

Remember, she was the friend that told Saskia to go through with the wedding after the first time Saskia saw something on Mike's laptop.

It's uncomfortable to look back and wonder if you could have done anything differently.

That guilt can make it hard to talk about what happened.

But there's one more reason I think these friends don't talk about what Saskia went through.

It's the reason why, for years, there weren't stories like this one out there.

And it's a big part of why it took so long for men like Jeffrey Epstein, Harvey Weinstein, and Bill Cosby to be held accountable.

We've all been taught not to talk about rape.

It's too violent, too gross, something meant to be kept private, especially when it's perpetrated by a good guy, a powerful guy, or a partner.

And in Saskia's case, there's digital evidence

The photos and videos of her rape that will live on on the Internet forever.

It's a horrific, ongoing part of Mike's crimes, one that is hard for anyone to talk about, even Saskia.

Marisa can see the effect these images have on Saskia.

Saskia knows the shame isn't hers to carry.

She wants to talk about what happened to her.

That's why she's doing this podcast, dragging all this out into the light, despite how upsetting it can feel.

She's being brave.

For their part, her friends are starting to do the same.

They're showing up for Saskia and talking more about what happened on the podcast, but even more so with each other.