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I glanced at Sienna, completely bewildered by the current situation, but she wouldn’t meet my gaze. I set my questions aside and focused on what mattered: helping Lulu.
With faltering speech, the battered woman recounted how her former boss had beaten her up because she had told him she wouldn’t return to work for him. It seemed straightforward until Perrault dug for more details, specifically where Lulu had worked for this guy and why she wouldn’t want to return.
“I had a drug problem,” Lulu finally admitted. “I just got out of rehab, and I know that if I go back to that … job, I’ll use again.”
“Does your dealer work with you?” Perrault probed. “Or is he the one who did this to you?”
“She’s a whore, Perrault,” Putnam finally interjected, clearly annoyed by his partner’s line of questioning. “Her pimp beat her up. That’s all this is.”
Lulu looked down, and Sienna shot daggers at the cops.
“Don’t be an ass,” she snapped. “Yes, Lulu worked for RC’s Escorts. But she wanted to leave that line of work, and that’s why Ralf assaulted her. Happy?”
Putnam scowled at Sienna, and I had to restrain myself from stepping between them.
“Sounds to me like you’re taking my questions a little personal,” Putnam retorted, his voice sharp. “Maybe you’re a little more involved than you’re letting on.”
“I came to Sienna because I knew she’d help me,” Lulu said, her voice steady.
“And how did you know that?” Perrault asked. “You said you are friends, but you’re talking about protecting someone from a clearly violent pimp.”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Putnam added, a condescending smirk on his face.
I wanted to knock it off.
“They work together,” he finished, clearly relishing his so-called cleverness.
I opened my mouth to tell him he’d crossed a line, but then I caught the look on Sienna’s face, and the words died on my tongue.
“Worked,” she corrected, lifting her chin and pointedly avoiding my gaze. “Ralf Crosse trafficked me and Lulu and tons of other women, labeling us high-end ‘escorts’ while our clients were just ‘dates.’ He tries to make it sound like we choose that life, but it’s bullshit because we can’t choose to stop.” She gestured to Lulu. “At least, not without consequences.”
“You said ‘worked,’” Perrault noted. “Past tense.”
“Yeah, because I got out.”
“Did you look like this when you told him?” Perrault pressed. “Something that shows he’s done this before?”
Sienna shook her head, and I felt a surge of relief. “I think he was too scared of the man who offered me a new job. One where I really could choose what I wanted to do.”
“Where do you work now?” Putnam asked, his skepticism noticeable. “I can’t imagine there are many high-paying jobs that require your particular … skill set.”
“My job has nothing to do with what happened to my friend,” Sienna said, standing up with a fierce expression. “But your job is to investigate her assault. That’s what you need to focus on.”
Putnam’s face flushed crimson. “Listen to me, you little?—”
“You’re going to want to reconsider how you end that sentence,” I warned, advancing a step.
I fought to rein in my anger. I wanted to slam him down, but I knew that would only escalate the situation. Not only would I get arrested for assaulting an officer, but I had a feeling my actions would draw more attention from them than the actual crime they’d been called to investigate.
“I don’t know who you?—”
This time, it was Perrault who cut in. “Ease off, Wyatt. You don’t want to tangle with a guy wearing a watch that costs more than both of us make in a year.”
Sienna’s eyes darted to my wrist, and I could sense the weight of her scrutiny.
“This watch is a family heirloom.” I kept my gaze fixed ahead, refusing to meet her eyes, but I could feel her stare drilling into me. “But you should listen to your partner. I’m not someone you want to mess with.”
“I think we have enough,” Putnam said, flipping his notebook closed and stepping back, his posture exuding bravado. “Let’s go, Cassie.”
