"Now see here, Colonel!" she shrilled, though her voice shook uncontrollably. "You may be a big shot on your base, but you don't intimidate me. This is my son's apartment. We have done nothing but slave away taking care of your dramatic, hysterical daughter! She’s ungrateful, and if she has bruises, it’s because she throws tantrums—"
"Captain Vance," my father interrupted, his voice dropping into a register that signaled absolute danger. "Remove the civilian female from my sight. If she opens her mouth again on these premises, detain her for obstructing a military investigation involving dependents."