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The cop holding me in custody lifted my mangled knuckles and added, "Think before you perjure yourself, lady."
She narrowed her eyes at him and then lifted her chin self-righteously. "Like I said, Pick only gets into fights to defend someone. So I hope you'll excuse him for hitting the man who forced his way into our apartment and was trying to . . . " She paused and had to swallow before shakily adding, "rape me. Pick was my hero, not my tormentor. He saved me."
"Someone broke in, huh?" Pissy Cop asked, totally not buying it.
She must not have liked his tone of voice because she snapped, "That's what I just said, isn't it?"
"Tink," I warned. She'd get hooked up too if she wasn't careful. "Easy, babe."
She spun toward me, her heated blue eyes flashing. "What? He's being a total dick. Why the hell are they arresting you when we're the victims here?"
"If someone broke into your home, then why didn't you call us instead of leaving it to complaining neighbors?"
"And why isn't there sign of forced entry?" Pissy Cop motioned toward the opened door of the apartment.
Eva's gaze dropped to the perfectly intact doorjamb. Her eyes glazed with horror. My gut twisted, pissed these fuckers were making her relive what had happened.
"We were busy trying to calm the babies after Pick threw him out. You showed up before we had a chance. Thanks for your quick response time, by the way."
Neither cop cared for her dry appreciation. "And the doorjamb?" Pissy Cop prodded.
Across the hall, the neighbor's door cracked open a few inches. "He wore a fancy suit," a timid voice from inside said.
The good cop stepped toward the hallway. "What was that?"
"The guy who showed up wore a real nice suit. He knocked on the door and she opened it for him."
I ground my teeth, wishing to hell the snoopy neighbor would shut the fuck up.
But the witness's account kept flooding across the hall. "She told him to leave and tried to shut the door in his face, but he stuck out his foot, stopping her, and finally got his way inside."
I drew in a sharp breath. "That son of a bitch," I muttered, wanting to find Eva's father all over again. And kill him at least three or four times.
"He was only in there a few minutes. Something banged against the wall once and there was shouting inside. Then this one came home." A finger appeared from the crack, pointing at me. "He had a couple with him. They all went inside. More shouting and banging followed. Then the fancy guy limped out, holding his side with one arm and his pants up with the other hand because they were unbuttoned. The other couple left a few minutes later. They looked upset."
Suddenly believers, the cops turned to Eva. "Did you know who he was?"
She hesitated before shaking her head. Then her gaze slid to me, her eyes begging me to back her up. "I'd never seen him before in my life."
"He had an old scar slashed across his cheek," I said helpfully.
Eva shifted the babies in her arms as if they were growing heavy, but her attention was focused on me.
"Anything else?" The good cop asked, tugging a notepad from his front pocket.
I shrugged, holding Eva's stare. "Like the neighbor said, he was in a fancy suit. I didn't notice much else, except he was white, mid-fifties, gray hair. Frankly, I wasn't paying much attention to detail because I was busy trying to rein in my temper enough to not kill him for touching her."
"Pick saved my life tonight." Eva shivered and kissed the top of Julian's head before she snuggled her cheek against Skylar's. "And maybe the lives of my babies, too. That guy just . . . he had a crazy look in his eyes."
From there on, we were deemed innocent. The cops asked a few more questions. I let Eva answer. And she rushed to me as soon as they took the handcuffs off. I lifted Fighter from one of her arms, and hugged the four of us together.
Pissy Cop left first. The other lingered a second longer, his gaze on Eva before he glanced at me. "Traded up, huh?"
My lips twitched as I looked at Eva. "Hell yeah, I did. And the other one left her kid with me, so I got the best of both worlds."
The cop chuckled and started from the apartment. "Don't forget to call if that guy shows up again."
"Will do." After I shut the door behind him, I rested my back against it, blew out a breath, and met Eva's gaze.
