Deanna was about to say something more, but Haynes stopped her. "Mom, Keen is still in the hospital room by himself. Why don''t you and Callie go check on him?"


    Deanna was still fuming, but with Haynes stepping in, she knew she had no real justification to stay. She shot a withering re at Ste before turning to leave.


    Just then, Ste spoke up.


    "Hold on."


    Everyone turned to face her.


    Ste spoke calmly, "Thisdy here, knowing full well that I''m the child''s mother, made a false police report, spreading lies that have not only harmed my reputation but also severely breached thew."


    "Officer, this can''t be brushed aside. If she pulls a stunt like this during one of my important performances by calling in false reports again, what then?"


    The officer asked, "Ms. Cameron, are you intending to press charges?"


    False reports like Deanna''s could either be ignored or pursued.


    If the victim chose not to press charges, it could be dropped.


    But if they decided to pursue it, consequences would follow.


    "Yes," Ste replied coolly. "I want her to make a public apology for her nderous actions..."


    Before Ste could finish, Deanna interrupted with a sharp voice.


    "Ste, you''re dreaming!"


    Without even ncing at Deanna, Ste continued, "If she refuses to cooperate, I will retain all rights to take legal action against her."


    The officer quickly interjected, "Ma''am, it would be wise to apologize. If Ms. Cameron is a public figure, your actions could be deemed quite serious, potentially leading to detention."


    "Even if this goes to court, unless the intiff agrees to settle, you will undoubtedly lose."


    Deanna bristled, her fury akin to a cat whose tail had been stepped on.


    "I am her mother-inw! Her mother! Me apologize to her... never, absolutely never!"


    Ste replied steadily, "Deanna, as you mentioned earlier, Haynes and I are in the midst of a divorce. That makes us strangers."


    Haynes, exasperated, chimed in, "Ste, as long as we''re still married, she''s your mom. Do we have to keep this conflict going?"


    "Mr. O''Brien, she''s your mother, not mine. When your mother decided to call the cops on me, I didn''t hear a peep from you. Now that she''s facing the consequences, you rush to her defense."


    Ste added with a hint of sarcasm, "Even your mother understands that actions have consequences. I''m merely following her lead. What''s wrong with that?"


    "Of course, if you prefer not to have Deanna apologize, you can apologize on her behalf. Just say... ''My mother wrongly used Ms. Cameron, and I apologize on her behalf, hoping for your forgiveness.""


    The room fell into an ufortable silence.


    Forcing Haynes to make such an apology would be a double whammy, embarrassing both himself and his mother. It was a worse option than Deanna apologizing herself.


    Deanna almost passed out from anger, trembling as she pointed at Ste. Before Deanna could voice her anger, Ste calmly said, "Deanna, the officer is still here. If you hurl any more insults that damage my reputation, this won''t be solved with a simple apology."


    "If this goes to court, I will request a public trial. Then, Deanna, stories of a mother-inw attempting to kidnap her grandchild could very well be the next viral sensation."