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I nodded, understandingly. “What’s your real name?”
Her eyes widened and red splotches of color came into her cheeks.
“You’re safe now,” I told her. “Whatever has happened to you. I want you to know you’re safe. Let us help you.”
She was silent for a long time, and I didn’t think she was going to answer.
“Kateryna,” she said.
“It’s a beautiful name,” I said.
She laughed, but there was no humor in it. “It is cruel joke,” she said. “Given to me when I was six by the house mother. I do not remember my name before then. Kateryna means pure. I did not know why they all laughed so hard when they named me. Now I do.”
I wasn’t sure I could speak if I wanted to. There were some memories that were too painful to share, but I could still see them in her expression. She was a child.
“How old are you?” I asked.
“Eighteen,” she said.
“How old were you when you met David Sowers?”
“Fourteen,” she said. “He would come to Ukraine on business and request me. And then one day he bought me clothes and told me to pack and he paid the house mother. So I left with him and came here.”
Rage like nothing I’d ever felt welled up inside of me, and I worked hard to keep my voice calm and level.
“Did you give a statement to one of the policemen at the restaurant?” I asked.
Her cheeks colored again and she shook her head.
“I escaped out kitchen,” she said. “I was good at escaping the house mother. But they always find you. Just like you found me.”
“You’re safe,” I told her again.
“I’m not supposed to talk to police,” she said. “Mr. David said police are corrupt and they’ll put me in cell if I talk to them. I’m not supposed to talk to anyone. Go anywhere without Mr. David. I show my ID and that is all. No words.”
“Let me tell you a little secret,” I told her, not bothering to hide the passion in my voice. “Mr. David is a liar and a bad man. He told you that because if the police knew what he was doing to you then he would be the one put in a cell. The police in America will help you. My husband, Jack, is in the kitchen. He is the best man I know. He will help you.Wewill help you.”
“I think it is too late to help me,” she said.
Her eyes were dry and I wondered if she’d ever been allowed to shed tears.
“It’s never too late,” I said. “And I know you have no reason to trust me, but I would like for you to talk to Jack like you are talking to me. We are going to find who did this tonight. And we are going to find out more about David Sowers. There could be other girls he’s done the same to.”
“There are,” she said. “My friend Anna. He paid the house mother for her too, and he took her. Will your Jack help me find Anna?”
“Yes,” I said, knowing Jack would do everything he could to fulfill a promise I was making on his behalf.
Jack had been listening from the kitchen and he took that moment to come out and take a seat in the farthest seat from Kateryna. I saw her stiffen, and her gaze was one of distrust.
“What David Sowers did to you was wrong,” Jack said. “What any of the men did to you was wrong. You were just a child.”
Kateryna nodded, but she didn’t say anything.
“Did David Sowers live in this apartment with you?” Jack asked.
She shook her head and said, “No. He told me to stay here. I had to always be here when he came or he would be very angry. I took money from his wallet sometimes. I thought if I got enough I could…” She shrugged. “It is stupid.”
“No,” Jack said. “It’s very smart.”
