Vanessa swallowed.
"All right. Thank you."
She recorded the final reference number, confirmed the instructions for documenting the result, and ended the call.
For several seconds, the conference room remained silent.
The answer was no longer uncertain.
Daniel had not fabricated his identity. His badge was not fake. The claim Vanessa had repeated throughout the confrontation had been disproved by the very process she had refused to initiate at the beginning.
Ethan let out a quiet breath.
Renee looked down at the notes she had been preparing.
Vanessa remained seated, staring at the telephone.
Daniel spoke first.
"Thank you for completing the verification."
Vanessa raised her eyes.
"Don't."
Daniel paused.
"Don't what?"
"Don't act as though you have won something."
"I'm not celebrating."
"You've been waiting for this moment since you walked in."
"I've been waiting for my identity to be verified."
Vanessa pushed the paper away from her.
"You knew this was going to happen."
"I knew the badge was genuine."
"And you couldn't have made that clearer from the beginning?"
"I gave you my name, the agency information, and the credential details. I asked you to check them."
Vanessa's face tightened.
"You could have been more cooperative."
Daniel looked at her steadily.
"Lieutenant, the verification is complete. We don't need to keep arguing about whether I asked for it correctly."
Ethan glanced toward Renee.
The remark was restrained, but it marked a turning point. Daniel was no longer trying to persuade Vanessa that the check should happen. The check had happened, and the result was now part of the official record.
The remaining questions concerned what Vanessa would do with that information.
She stood and moved toward the chair where Daniel was sitting.
"Your identification is authentic," she said. "That establishes who you are. It doesn't mean you can ignore local procedures."
"I haven't asked to ignore them."
"You have questioned almost everything I've told you."
"I questioned the claim that my badge was fake."
Vanessa folded her arms.
"You questioned my authority."
"I asked you to verify my identity."
"That's your version."
Daniel glanced at the reference number on the desk.
"It's the version supported by the calls we just made."
Vanessa looked toward Ethan and Renee, apparently hoping that one of them would reinforce her position.
Neither did.
Renee spoke calmly.
"Lieutenant, the verification result needs to be added to the record."
Vanessa turned toward her.
"I know that."
"We should also document the time of the confirmation and the reference number."
"I said I know."
Renee nodded and returned to the computer.
Ethan stepped closer to the desk.
"Lieutenant, we also need to review the basis for continuing the detention now that his identity has been confirmed."
Vanessa's expression hardened.
"Are you giving me instructions?"
"No, ma'am. I'm identifying the next procedural step."
"You've become very comfortable telling me what the procedure requires."
"I'm trying to make sure we follow it."
Vanessa stared at him for several seconds.
Then she looked toward Daniel.
"Mr. Brooks, are you going to cooperate with the next steps?"
Daniel answered without hesitation.
"Yes. I will cooperate with a lawful process."
"Then remain seated while we sort this out."
Daniel glanced down at the handcuffs.
"Am I still being detained?"
Vanessa did not answer immediately.
She looked toward the paperwork, then at the telephone, then at the supervisor's contact information she had written down earlier.
The question was no longer abstract. The verification had established Daniel's identity, but she still needed to identify a lawful basis for keeping him restrained.
She could not simply continue the detention because she had begun it.
"I am reviewing the circumstances," she said.
Daniel nodded.
"Then please include that question in the review."
Vanessa looked irritated.
"You don't need to remind me of every responsibility I have."
"I'm asking you to address the one that affects me directly."
Ethan spoke carefully.
"Lieutenant, I think we should contact Lieutenant Mercer now and provide the result."
Vanessa looked toward him.
"He's already aware that verification was pending."
"Now we have the final result. He should be informed."
Renee added, "And we should document that the identification was confirmed before making any further decision."
Vanessa exhaled sharply.
For a moment, she seemed tempted to insist that she could finish the matter without additional supervision. But the room had changed. The verification result had removed the uncertainty that had allowed her to defend her original assumption.
Now the record contained a clear answer.
She picked up her phone and contacted Lieutenant Daniel Mercer.