The suggestion made Harrison pause briefly. There were cameras positioned near several businesses around the parking area, and some might have captured the interaction. Camille had not thought about them until now, but she knew that independent footage could help establish the sequence of events.
Harrison, however, seemed more interested in maintaining control of the conversation than considering her suggestion.
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "I'll decide what evidence is relevant."
CAMILLE BROOKS: "That is your responsibility. So is making sure you examine it fairly."
He leaned back in his chair, visibly irritated.
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "You seem to know a lot about investigations."
CAMILLE BROOKS: "I work in the legal field. I understand the importance of verifying information before drawing conclusions."
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "What exactly do you do?"
Camille looked directly at him.
CAMILLE BROOKS: "I'm a senior prosecutor for the state."
For a moment, Harrison appeared surprised. Then he gave a dismissive smile, as though he believed she had offered the answer to impress him rather than provide a verifiable fact.
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "A prosecutor? Is that what you're telling me?"
CAMILLE BROOKS: "Yes."
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "And I'm supposed to believe that?"
CAMILLE BROOKS: "You don't have to rely on my statement. Contact the state legal office and verify my credentials."
Harrison closed the folder.
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "People claim all sorts of things when they're in trouble."
CAMILLE BROOKS: "My employment can be confirmed independently. There is no reason to guess."
The officer's expression hardened. Instead of treating her statement as another detail to verify, he appeared to take it as a personal challenge. Camille could see that her professional background had not changed his approach. If anything, it had given him another reason to question her.
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "You expect everyone to believe you're important enough that the rules shouldn't apply to you."
CAMILLE BROOKS: "That isn't what I said. The rules apply to everyone, including me. They also apply to the people investigating me."
Her response left him silent for a moment.
Camille continued, choosing her words carefully.
CAMILLE BROOKS: "I am not asking you to release me because of my job. I'm asking you to verify the information that was available before you placed me in handcuffs. If the evidence supports your suspicion, document it. If it doesn't, you need to reconsider your decision."
Harrison stood abruptly and pushed his chair back.
OFFICER BRETT HARRISON: "I'm not going to take legal instructions from you."
CAMILLE BROOKS: "Then please take the documents seriously."
He picked up the folder and walked out, leaving Camille alone again.
She watched the door close and slowly exhaled. The conversation had confirmed what she had begun to suspect in the parking lot: Harrison was not simply investigating a possible vehicle theft. He had become personally invested in proving that his initial judgment had been correct.
That made the situation more difficult, because evidence could not resolve a disagreement if the person responsible for examining it refused to accept what it showed.
Camille looked toward the security camera.
She hoped the recording would preserve her words accurately. She had answered questions, offered to provide documents, and repeatedly asked for the vehicle information to be checked. If the incident was reviewed later, those details would matter.
She also knew that the written report could influence how others understood the encounter. If Harrison described her as uncooperative, people who had not witnessed the interaction might accept his description without questioning it.
That possibility troubled her more than the uncomfortable chair or the restraints around her wrists.
She had spent years reviewing cases in which a person's fate depended partly on whether an official report accurately reflected what had happened. She knew that language could subtly change the meaning of an event. A person who asked for an explanation could be described as argumentative. Someone who appeared frightened could be characterized as evasive. A request to see evidence could be interpreted as an attempt to interfere.
The facts needed to be recorded carefully, particularly when the person being investigated had little control over the process.
A few minutes later, the door opened again, but this time the person entering was not Harrison.
A middle-aged desk sergeant stepped inside carrying a clipboard. His name was Martin Hale, and he had worked at Central Precinct long enough to recognize when a routine intake was becoming unnecessarily complicated. He had a practical manner, a measured voice, and little patience for incomplete paperwork.
Hale glanced at Camille's restraints before taking the chair opposite her.