“Dorian,” Sebastian began, “this is Lieutenant Dallas.”
“Yeah, I know. If you try to send me back—”
“Dorian.” Sebastian spoke again, gently.
She only shrugged.
“Let’s get you a drink.” Leonardo, obviously struggling to play host, gave her a wide smile. “Do you like fizzies?”
“I like them okay. Cherry mostly.”
“All right. Sebastian?”
“Just water, thank you.” He aimed a look at Dorian.
She did a half eye roll. “Yeah, thanks.”
“Take a seat.” Eve gestured Dorian to the chair. “Sebastian.” And to the next. Though it grated, she nodded to him. “I appreciate you bringing Dorian here to talk to us.”
“She’s been through an ordeal.”
“I’m aware. We’ve been looking for her for a couple days because we’re aware.”
He simply held up his hands, let them fall, then took his seat.
“You can just blow off giving him grief about it,” Dorian snapped. “I’m only here because he talked me into it. And he said you swore you wouldn’t send me back to Freehold. I’m not living in that rathole with my mother anymore. If you try—”
“Your mother’s not living in that rathole anymore because I arrested her, and she’s currently living in a jail cell. Take a seat.”
Dorian’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean you arrested her?”
“I mean I put her in cuffs, charged her with multiple offenses, and handed her over to the Freehold PD. Now sit down.”
“What offenses?” But she sat, and so did Eve.
“Child abuse and neglect, and since she continued to collect the professional parent stipend after you took off, failed to report you missing, fraud. You should know your neighbors stood up for you.”
“Tiffy, sure, but—”
“All of them. They’d also reported the abuse and neglect to CPS through Truman.” At Dorian’s snort, Eve nodded. “And now Truman’s been fired. It’ll be up to the PA, following an internal investigation at CPS, if she’s also charged and arrested.”
Dorian took the fizzy from Leonardo, muttered a thanks, but kept narrowed, suspicious eyes on Eve.
“It’s easy to say all that shit. Cops lie all the time.”
“Believe it or don’t. You left home sometime in August. We’re unsure of the exact date.”
“I don’t know. Who remembers? I’d had enough of getting knocked around, and getting the eye from the guys she dated. I can take care of myself.”
“If that were true, you wouldn’t have been grabbed off the streets. When and how did that happen?”
“It wasn’t my fault a couple assholes jumped me.”
“When and how?”
“How the hell do I know? I was just walking.”
“Night or day?”
“Night. I was just looking at the Christmas lights and all, minding my own. Somebody jabbed me with something from behind, and … I don’t remember, okay? I think I tried to run, but my legs wouldn’t work, and I passed out. In a van or truck. I don’t know. Nobody gave a shit anyway. Nobody until…”
“Mina?”
“You don’t get to talk about her.” Rage reared up, burning at the tears. “You don’t know anything about it. You don’t know what it’s like and don’t give a flying fuck. She’s dead. And you’re just another asshole cop who thinks she’s some big deal and can do whatever the hell she wants. I got beat most days all my life, then I got out, and I could do what I wanted. Then I got smacked and shocked and had stuff stuck up inside me, and you don’t know. You don’t care. You’re just one more bitch trying to push me around because you can.”
“Where did they take you?”
“Just fuck you.”
“That’s it.” Mavis, leading with her baby belly, surged off the sofa and rounded on Dorian. “You don’t get to speak to her that way, not in my home.”
“I don’t want to be in your damn home.”
“Well, you are, and you’ll show some goddamn respect.”
“Mavis,” Eve began, but Mavis snapped back at her.
“You be quiet.” And to Dorian she continued. “She puts her life on the line every single day. She works herself into the ground to help someone like you because she does know. You think you’ve had it rough, well, join the crowd. I asked her to give her word, and she did. If she wasn’t who she was, Sebastian would be in lockup right now, and you’d be in a box at Cop Central.”