Chapter 48 - Talking with Leo
Trey led Cat into the station. When they walked in, everyone stopped what they were doing and stared. Cat immediately felt nervous, like she was somewhere she shouldn't be.
"Why is everyone looking at us?" She whispered to him.
"This is their first time seeing you in person. Everyone in this room is working on your case." Cat looked around at the faces staring back at her.
"All these people? Why did I only meet you, Ellie, Roger, and Marc?" She intentionally left out Caleb because he was never a genuine part of their team.
"When we returned to Sacramento, they wanted to make sure not to overwhelm you with too many people. So we only let a few near you." Trey looked around, smiling at everyone as he kept his arm around her shoulders. He was proud of Cat, but if anyone came too close, he might let Atlas bite their hand off.
"Should I say something? The way they're looking at me, I feel like they're waiting for a speech." Cat wasn't big on public speaking, but she felt like she should say thank you.
"This is our job. You don't have to say anything. Let's go to Roger's office." He started to lead her away, but she turned back to the men and women looking at her. She moved in front of Trey a little before speaking.
"I want to thank you all for your hard work catching Leo and rescuing the children. You saved many lives." Cat kept it short and sweet. She felt better when she saw most of them smile at her before they got back to work.
"Hi, Cat. It's good to see you again." Ellie walked up to them, and Cat smiled at her.
"Hi, Ellie. It's nice to see you too. I hear you're going with us to talk to Leo." Cat walked with Ellie and Trey in the direction she assumed was Roger's office.
"Yes. I have to give it to you; most people wouldn't want to lay eyes on that piece of shit again." Ellie was surprised when Cat chuckled under her breath.
"Honestly, I don't want to see him, and what you just said is what I told his attorney when he said Leo wanted to talk to me. However, after everything you learned about my family tree and my mother's death, I wanted to see him. I have some questions, but I also want to look him in the eye so he can see that he no longer has any control over me. Leo and what he did has dictated my entire life. It's time for that to change, and the only way I can get past this is by facing the bastard head-on." Cat smiled up at Ellie's shocked face.
"Wow, when you say it like that, I understand what you mean. Let's talk to Roger and then head over there. I saw Susan outside, I figured she would tail you in here, but I guess not." Ellie saw Trey and Cat look at each other before they started laughing.
"I wish you could have seen it. Susan tried to imply that she and I had a relationship. Cat shoved it all back in her face and told her off. I think Susan is outside still trying to pick up some pieces of her pride." Ellie looked at Cat, who looked tiny and innocent. She started laughing as she thought about how Susan must have felt having Cat put her in her place.
"I would have paid to see that and brought the popcorn." They all walked into Roger's office laughing. Cat was getting good vibes from Ellie and hoped they could be friends one day.
"I wasn't expecting to hear all this laughter. What's so funny?" Ellie quickly relayed to Roger what Cat had done to Susan, and he laughed too.
"I think the whole station would have liked to witness you taking her down a notch or two." Cat was happy they could have a few minutes of laughter before the task at hand. She wasn't looking forward to seeing Leo, but what she'd said to Ellie was true. She needed him to know that she no longer feared him. She also needed to prove to herself that she was in control of her life.
As Cat, Ellie and Trey walked out of Roger's office, Susan was standing there with an older man. He was short and round with slick-backed brown hair and wire-rimmed glasses. The man gave Cat the creeps, so she knew he must be Leo's attorney. One scumbag representing another seemed appropriate. Susan wouldn't meet Cat or Trey's eyes as she made introductions.
"Caterina, this is Earl Tipton." Susan indicated the man next to her, who looked at Cat with a smile. She didn't return it, and when he held out his hand, she refused to take it.
"I don't shake hands with those that represent the scum of the earth." The attorney's smile faltered at Cat's icy demeanor. Those that were in earshot snickered at the exchange.
The group left the unit and headed outside to the jail next door. Ellie looked at Trey with a smile. She was impressed by Cat. She would have never thought the young woman they had been following for weeks could have so much grit in her.
When they arrived at the jail, they had to leave their belongings in lockers before being shown to a room with a table and four chairs. Trey led Cat to one of the chairs and took the one next to her. Ellie stood behind the couple with her arms crossed.
Susan stood at one end of the table while Leo's attorney took the seat opposite Trey. Cat took Trey's hand under the table and squeezed. She needed his strength to get her through this.
When she heard the door open behind her, Cat knew they were bringing Leo in. As two guards brought him around the table, she started laughing.
Leo had two black eyes; one was so bad it was swollen shut. His face looked like it had been someone's punching bag, and she could tell his nose was broken. She didn't miss the fact that he winced when he sat down, either.
"Wow, Leo, it looks like you finally got a taste of your own medicine. Did you piss someone off, or was it your natural shit personality that won them over?" Cat smiled as Leo glared at her. She felt her nervousness leaving. In this environment, he was not the monster she saw in her nightmares; he was nothing more than a maggot.
"You, bitch, someone let them know what I was accused of, and the other inmates jumped me. They don't know you were nothing more than a prostitute when you were with me. You loved everything you got." Leo was almost spitting on her, and Cat felt the fury building in her as she clutched Trey's hand.
"I didn't come here to hear your lies, but I did come here for answers. You see, I found out that your piece of shit dad raped my mother, and I'm the product of that rape. I also found out that he most likely killed my grandmother. You stopped my mom's treatments and sent her to a hospice facility after you told me she had died. Why did you do all this? My mom never did anything to you. Why did you insist on hurting us?" Cat was speaking through clenched teeth as she spoke to him and repeated each terrible thing he and his father were responsible for.
Leo looked at Cat with pure hatred in his eyes. How did she know all of this? He glanced at the large man beside her and knew he was responsible for opening her eyes and giving her a backbone.
"You don't know anything. Your mom was a whore who pranced around in front of my dad in her mini skirts and tight clothes. When she turned eighteen, he took what she had been flaunting, but she got mad and ran to the police. After he was arrested, she went to live with her friend, and I was sent to foster care. My foster parents found me in bed with a five-year-old and assumed I had hurt her, but it was her fault, not mine. The police sent me to juvenile detention. My records were sealed because it was my first offense, and I was a minor. Your mom was to blame for all that happened. Everything would have been fine if she had kept her mouth shut."
Cat stared at him in disbelief. He blamed everyone but himself for his actions. He was even sicker than she thought.
"You're an idiot. No one is to blame for what you did other than you. Why did you look my mom up when you were eighteen? Why not just leave her alone and start your life over?" Cat didn't understand if he hated her mom so much; why did he want to find her?
"I planned on paying her back for taking my dad away from me. However, when I saw you, I had a better plan. Once she told me she had cancer and may die, I decided to pretend to be the best brother I could be. When she went into the hospital, I convinced her that she should sign you over to me so you didn't get sent to foster care. I also told her to let me make all her medical decisions so she wouldn't have to worry about them. Before the ink was dry, I made the hospital stop her treatments and sent her to this nasty hospice center that would ignore what she said as long as I paid them. You were all mine after that. I showed Emma the pictures I took of you the one time I visited her. I wanted her to know that I was taking out my revenge on her precious daughter." Leo laughed sickly, and everyone in the room, including his attorney, looked at him in disgust while Cat looked at him in anger.
"You're one sick son of a bitch, but you know what? I have grieved my mother's death and have come to terms with what you did to me. Thank you for answering my questions; now you're free to rot in hell. See you in court." Cat stood up, and Trey stood up with her. She turned to leave out of the room as Leo yelled at her.
"Come back here, Caterina. I'm not done talking to you. I own you. You should kiss my feet for taking you in when no one else wanted you." Cat stopped and turned to Leo with a smirk.
"I'm done talking to you, and you don't own me. No one owns me. I do have one piece of advice for you, though. Don't drop the soap." Trey opened the door, and she walked out with Ellie behind her.
"I almost laughed out loud when you told him not to drop the soap. The look on his face was priceless. Just so you know, I made sure the guards let the other inmates know what he was in there for so they could give them their own type of justice. You did great, I don't know how you have so much strength, but I admire you." Ellie wanted to hug her, but she knew she didn't like to be touched.
"Thank you. That felt really good, even better than I imagined." Cat looked over at Trey, who was beaming at her.
"What did I tell you, Ellie, is she tough or what?" Trey wrapped Cat in his arms as she grinned up at him.
They walked next door, and Ellie went inside while Trey and Cat got into the truck. Cat was smiling the whole way home. She had finally faced her demons and lived to talk about it. Now she felt like she could take on the world.
