In August of 1997, Holly and her boyfriend, Chris Maier, were walking down railroad tracks just outside of UK's campus late at night. Angel Maturino Resendiz approached them asking for money. He then tied Holly and Chris up. Holly watched as Resendiz killed Chris by hitting him in the head with a 52-pound rock. He then stabbed, beat and raped Holly.
“I somehow survived a walked to a house about 200 yards away for help,” Holly said.
Resendiz, later known as the railroad killer, was executed in Texas in 2006. He was connected to about 15 different murders, including Holly's boyfriend. Twenty years later, Holly still tells the story.
“I had to tell it. And then I started to realize that by telling it, it was losing it’s control over me. It was losing its power,” Holly said.
Now, it's a story that she's decided to share with the world. Titled Sole Survivor, Holly has released her first book.
“It put it all down in words so now the story doesn't just lie with me anymore, the story is out there for everyone,” Holly said.
It's a chapter that will never be completely closed for Holly, but it's a wound that will continue to heal as others are able to now share her story. Something she knows Chris Maier would've been proud of.
“Chris' last words to me were 'everything is going to be okay.' And he's right. They weren't for him. But that's what he said to me and he was right. Everything has been okay. He was right,” Holly said.Holly is now married and says her favorite title now is mom. She has two young boys and she has dedicated her life to helping people overcome intimate crimes--creating Holly's House--a resource center in her hometown of Evansville, Indiana.