Cole moved with an unhurried stride, one hand resting near the pocket where the cash had disappeared. He did not look like someone carrying out a difficult decision. He looked like someone who expected the world to continue behaving exactly as he wished.
The second officer waited near the front of the patrol car.
When Cole approached, the two men exchanged a few words that Walter could not hear over the traffic. Cole made a small gesture with his hand, then glanced back toward the sedan.
The other officer followed his gaze.
Walter could not determine what they were discussing. He did not pretend otherwise.
But he noticed that neither man appeared particularly alarmed by what had just occurred.
That observation troubled him more than he wanted to admit.
If the second officer had witnessed an unexpected mistake, Walter would have expected at least some sign of concern. A question. A disagreement. A request to return to the vehicle and clarify the situation.
Instead, the two men stood together beside the patrol car as though they were discussing an ordinary matter.
Walter looked down at his empty wallet again.
He had once believed that most people, when confronted with a clear wrongdoing, would eventually recognize it. Some might become defensive at first, and others might need time to understand the consequences, but the facts would ultimately make a difference.
That belief had guided him through many difficult situations.
Now he wondered whether he had been too generous in assuming that everyone cared about the facts in the first place.
The patrol car's engine continued to rumble quietly.
A car passed in the far lane, followed by a delivery van. The wind moved a few dry leaves along the edge of the pavement.
Walter remained in the driver's seat.
He could feel his pulse in his wrists, but his hands were steady. The anger was still there, growing more focused with every passing second. Yet beneath it was something colder: the realization that he needed to protect himself from whatever might happen next.
He glanced toward the rearview mirror.
The patrol vehicle was directly behind him. Its position blocked the easiest route back onto the road, and he had no intention of driving away without understanding what the officer planned to do.
He also had no intention of giving Cole an excuse to accuse him of fleeing.
So he waited.
At the patrol car, Cole opened a door and leaned inside briefly. His colleague remained outside, looking down the road.
Walter tried to see what the officer was doing, but the angle offered little information. The patrol car's dark interior reflected the afternoon light, concealing most of its contents.
A few moments later, Cole straightened and closed the door.
He turned toward the sedan.
The second officer said something to him.
Cole answered without looking back.
Then he began walking toward Walter again.
The officer's expression had changed. The smile was gone, replaced by a carefully neutral look that seemed more deliberate than natural.
Walter straightened slightly in his seat.
Cole stopped beside the open window.
OFFICER COLE:
"Let's get a few things straight."
Walter looked at him.
WALTER:
"I'm listening."
OFFICER COLE:
"You're going to cooperate, and you're going to stop making accusations."
WALTER:
"I'll answer reasonable questions. I won't pretend you didn't take my money."
Cole's eyes narrowed.
OFFICER COLE:
"You keep bringing up that money."
WALTER:
"Because you still have it."
The officer gave a small shake of his head.
OFFICER COLE:
"You don't seem to understand the position you're in."
Walter considered that statement carefully.
He understood that Cole had a badge, a uniform, a patrol vehicle, and the ability to make the encounter considerably more difficult. He understood that a dispute with a police officer on the side of a road was not a situation to approach carelessly.
But he also understood that none of those things transformed another person's property into the officer's property.
WALTER:
"I understand exactly where I am."
OFFICER COLE:
"Then act like it."
WALTER:
"I have been."
For a moment, Cole seemed unable to decide how to respond.
He looked at Walter's hands, then at the wallet on his lap. His attention lingered on the empty compartment where the cash had been stored.
OFFICER COLE:
"Anything else in that wallet?"
WALTER:
"Identification, receipts, and a photograph."
OFFICER COLE:
"Open it again."
Walter hesitated.
WALTER:
"Why?"
OFFICER COLE:
"Because I told you to."
Walter opened the wallet and held it where the officer could see its contents.
Cole leaned toward the window, examined the compartments, and appeared disappointed that there was no additional bundle of money waiting inside.