Horus

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Tybalt was upset, and he had half a mind to just slap Angelo's hand off his shoulder when he gave him that squeeze. He figured it was supposed to be reassuring, but there was really nothing too reassuring so far about their current situation. Still, he had to repeat to himself that Angelo was trying, and at the least he said all the right things. Go through the proper channels, they couldn't just spit information at a whim, contact someone you trust...

That helped hush his mind, but not by much.

"He's right. If you don't feel safe telling us, you should at least tell someone you trust." Whether it was here, or the school... But he had the name in mind. He'd look it up on his own time later, see if he actually knew it or not, or if he recognized any faces that might have popped up.

Tybalt was still uneasy, though it didn't show in his face or posture. The only sign was in the tension of his shoulders and probably knew that would mean a whole lot of questions later. Not at the station, but the angel would probably just tail Angelo all the way home until he told him something.
 

Sarrain

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Shay looked down at her feet, face set in very careful and brittle neutrality. Angelo didn't want her here. She'd probably just gotten him in a heap of trouble, though she hadn't meant to in the slightest. How unfair, that it felt even her mere presence was enough to cause him difficulty?

And Shay couldn't talk with Klaus and Vito about it. They knew already, and she didn't want people to get hurt. Or die. Vince couldn't die, but there was something about him being locked in a box at the bottom of the ocean. And what if they targeted Milo? Or, less likely but still possible, Val and Jack? And yet... there wasn't much else she could do. Ask the school. Maybe. She could try to get Milo or Val's help.

Shay sighed heavily and ran her hands down her face, glad for the reprieve when she didn't have to look at either of them, and they couldn't see her face, no matter how brief those few seconds were.

And now, what if she went and told Klaus and Vito about this conversation? They were bound to find out anyway. They would... -- hrm. The little girl couldn't help herself. She sniffled.

"I'm sorry for bothering you, Officer Angelo." She paused, looked at Tybalt. "And you, too." She didn't stare at him for long, opting to look anywhere but at either of them. Shay felt like she was about to do the death march, which could have been overdramatic on her part, except that Shay wasn't entirely certain it was.

She still didn't leave yet. Walking out that door meant something bad. What that bad thing would be, was up for debate and really just depended on who she went to next, but it would be bad no matter what. At least, Shay assumed it would.
 

Romi

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Angelo was already trying to decide how to spin things and running into trouble. There really wasn't much room to spin. He could certainly lie, but doing so would violate all three of his natural rules about lying.

One: Don't lie to loved ones.

Two: Don't lie when saying nothing would do just as well.

Three: Never lie about something that someone could find out naturally.

All it would take was Shay saying her full name, and then he'd be up shit creek without a paddle.

That said, it was hard not to squirm at the way Shay was reacting. She was obviously upset about something, and it was extremely hard to dance around what it was without opening himself up to a lecture by Tybalt.

Dropping his hand, Angelo stepped forward, bending down a bit to be a bit more on Shay's level.

"Listen. Obviously somethings wrong - why don't we duck into a private room and you can tell me what's going on?" He had no idea what was going on, but something so obviously was that letting her just leave would be a bad, bad idea.
 

Horus

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It was very quickly becoming obvious that nothing was going to happen with him around. She looked like she was on the verge of tears and, though Tybalt usually had a very soft spot for children, it was because of their light souls. He didn't know how old she was, but her soul wasn't as bright as he thought it was and the judgement was coming down hard. He remained professional, but it lingered in the back of his mind. What had this girl done?

Angelo suggested it before he could. Without him, the job could be done a lot better. The girl obviously trusted his partner in some capacity where she didn't trust him, and that was common. Officers were people, too, and forged bonds with others where they felt more trusted. No matter, if it meant the girl would be safe then he'd step aside.

He needed a smoke.

"That sounds like a good idea." He gave Angelo a gentle pat on the shoulder. "I'll be at my desk if you need me."
 

Sarrain

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Once Tybalt was gone, Shay felt a bit better, but only a bit. She was pretty confident she wasn't wanted here. She was creating a problem. She stared at Angelo, eyes wide and debated how much she should tell him. If she told him too much, she was implicating him, but if she didn't tell him enough, he might be annoyed by that, too.

"If I tell you, you'll have to tell everyone else." That was the first thing Shay said. She breathed out slowly and leaned away from Angelo, shirking away from any touch like it might burn her. "You'd have to do something, and I --" Shay didn't know exactly what she wanted, so instead she said, "I don't know what to do, Angelo. Rock and a hard spot." Shay closed her eyes before rubbing at that, barring any tears from escaping. "Are you going to get in trouble now?"
 

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There was no way he was going to end the day not in trouble. He could practically feel Tybalt burning a hole in him as he left, and he let out a sigh as Tybalt finally vanished into the back.

"If you're in danger, yes, I would have to do something. And yes, I am going to be in trouble--just only with Tybalt." He didn't think Tybalt would be reporting him for it or anything, but he was definitely going to get an earful.

"What matters here is your safety, not anything else. I'm an adult--I can handle a lecture from my partner over this."
 

Sarrain

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"I told your partner nothing had actually happened, well, that's not... one hundred percent accurate." Shay rubbed the back of her neck. She felt like an animal backed into a corner. "I don't know his reasoning for it, but last weekend Vince took me from the carnival to his home and kept me in the basement for the weekend." She watched Angelo's face, careful and quiet, letting that sink in.

Shay wished she had something to play with and keep her hands busy. Her cheeks were hot, entire face and neck red, and trying hard to hold the tears back, because she was no baby, thank you. "I wasn't starved, and he didn't hurt me.... not really." He'd sure let Shay know he could have hurt her, though, oh my, how he'd wanted her to see that. "I mean, there was a very angry minor Demon in a cage down there with me."
 

Romi

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Angelo needed a nap. A nice lie down in the break room. Anything but standing in front of Shay, trying to process what he'd just heard.

If Tybalt tried to give him shit he was going to break someone's arm.

"Shay - Shay, jesus christ. No. That's - no." It was a testament to just how fucked up things were that he couldn't even manage a coherent sentence, sucking a breath in through his nose as he tried to put his thoughts in order.

"Shay, what happened was wrong. I know you're trying to play it tough with your new family and all, but you're a kid. Even if you weren't a kid, that's not something that should have ever happened to anyone. I know it's easy to try and fall into that routine of trying to act like you aren't bothered by things--because hell, I certainly did that a lot--But this is really something that should be reported. If he's grabbing you, what's to say he isn't grabbing other people as well?"

There were way too many details he didn't know, but her own well being had to come first.

"You need to report this so we can intervene." Officially--not just with him.
 

Sarrain

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She cringed at the no. Why no? Look, she -- Ugh. Her hands shook (fear? Anxiety? Who knew?) and Shay wanted to be resolute on her idea NOT to file a report. Then the police would be sniffing around while Vito and Klaus were trying to take care of things and what if Vince denied it? He was smart enough to get away with it, wasn't he? He'd torment her more. But.... Angelo was right. What if Vince was grabbing other people? That wasn't farfetched in the slightest.

"I can't -- Then Klaus and Vito would know and Vince, you'd have to go talk to him, right? So he'd know, too. And if he's bothering me now, just wait until the police are knocking on his door. He's insane, Angelo! Who knows what he'll do."

The fear Shay had been hiding was evident now. It came flooding out, and anything she'd been concealing was visible to everyone. Tears finally rolled down her cheeks, as few as there were. Shay clung to Angelo's arm.

"I need to find a different way! A way that won't get me in trouble and won't get Vince...." Shay made a face. Did she have to say it? Taken care of. At the bottom of the ocean in a box.
 

Romi

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Angelo could practically feel his hair greying with every word she spoke. He just wanted to lie down and have some time to process things, but he wasn't going to get any of it.

God help him, was he about to agree with Klaus Rosales?

Angelo stood up, wrapping his arms around Shay and pulling her into a hug. It didn't last very long--before anyone could stare at them any harder he pulled back, ushering her into the back and into a side room. There was a camera and a mic, but he left it firmly on as he guided her into a chair, pulling his own chair around the table so he could sit beside her.

"Shay..." He had to take a moment, had to pull his thoughts together, because fucking up could be very bad. The fact that he was a mandatory reporter was a secondary issue. What mattered was that she be willing to testify, because if she wasn't it was going to be the absolute worst case scenario.

"I know this is really frightening, but the thing I need you to think about now is Klaus. You live with him. If someone like me--someone who doesn't live with you and has only seen you a few times--can see you and know something is wrong, do you really think that Klaus isn't going to notice? Klaus will notice, and then it'll be pretty close to the worst case scenario. If you let us handle it, Klaus stays out of it. We can intervene and arrest Vince before Klaus ever gets involved, and Klaus won't put anything at risk as a result. We don't need to warn him, in this case. Testimony from a victim like you would let us go straight to arresting first and asking questions later so he doesn't have time to hide any more evidence, so there'd be almost no chance of him going on the run. And even if he does--even if he does slip away--you'll still be safe, alright? I promise you."

And god, did he mean it.