OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "I never intended to damage it."
VICTORIA HAYES: "Intent does not change what you chose to do with it."
He stared at her.
OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "You keep making it sound like I attacked you for no reason."
VICTORIA HAYES: "I am describing what happened. You are the one trying to make your actions sound like a security procedure."
For the first time since the captain arrived, Derek seemed genuinely unable to find a quick reply. His mouth tightened, and he looked toward the other officers as if searching for someone willing to step in.
No one did.
Captain Bennett turned to Sergeant Collins.
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "I want the initial incident documentation started now. Secure the footage, identify the witnesses, and make sure no one discusses or alters the recording outside the proper process."
SERGEANT LAURA COLLINS: "I'll handle it."
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "Also, check the appointment records. I want confirmation of who Agent Hayes was scheduled to meet and whether the meeting was communicated to the front desk."
SERGEANT LAURA COLLINS: "Understood."
Victoria opened her phone again and located the email confirmation. She showed the sender, the date, and the scheduled time without passing the device around.
SERGEANT LAURA COLLINS: "I'll record the details and request the corresponding office record. That should help establish the appointment independently."
VICTORIA HAYES: "That's fine."
Derek seized on the word "independently."
OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "Exactly. We should verify everything independently. That's all I was trying to do."
SERGEANT LAURA COLLINS: "You had the opportunity to do that before the confrontation escalated."
OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "I didn't know who she was."
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "Not knowing someone's identity is a reason to verify it. It is not a reason to humiliate them."
Derek's face reddened again.
OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "I never humiliated her."
The statement was so disconnected from the scene around him that even Ethan looked up from the computer.
Victoria did not respond immediately. She seemed to consider whether there was any value in explaining something that everyone present had witnessed.
VICTORIA HAYES: "You took my identification, threw it into a trash can, and made personal remarks about my authority while refusing to let me speak to a supervisor. You may disagree with how I describe it, but those are the actions I am reporting."
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "And they will be documented as actions, not dismissed as a disagreement over tone."
Sergeant Collins closed her notebook briefly.
SERGEANT LAURA COLLINS: "Captain, we should conduct the formal statements separately. It will reduce the chance of witnesses influencing one another's recollections."
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "Agreed. Start with the available witnesses. Agent Hayes can provide her statement in a separate room if she is willing."
VICTORIA HAYES: "I am willing."
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "Thank you. We'll make sure you have a private space and enough time to give a complete account."
Derek stepped forward half a pace.
OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "Captain, am I being accused of something?"
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "At this stage, we are documenting an incident and establishing what occurred. I am not going to conduct a disciplinary hearing in the lobby."
OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "Then I want to make sure my side is heard."
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "You will have the opportunity to provide your account through the appropriate process."
OFFICER DEREK MILLER: "Without her standing there correcting every word?"
CAPTAIN RICHARD BENNETT: "Your statement will be taken separately. You can describe what you remember without interruption, just as she will be able to do."
Derek appeared dissatisfied with the answer, but he had no obvious grounds to challenge it.
Sergeant Collins turned toward Ethan.
SERGEANT LAURA COLLINS: "Officer Brooks, please finish identifying the personnel who were present. Once you have done that, do not discuss the substance of your statement with other witnesses."
OFFICER ETHAN BROOKS: "Yes, Sergeant."
SERGEANT LAURA COLLINS: "And if you remember anything else, add it to your statement through the proper channel. Don't rely on a conversation in the hallway."
OFFICER ETHAN BROOKS: "Understood."
Ethan returned to the terminal. His shoulders remained tense, but he was working more steadily now. The captain's instructions had made it clear that the incident would not be handled through an informal exchange between officers.
Victoria followed Sergeant Collins toward a small interview room beside the administrative corridor. Before entering, she paused and looked back at the lobby. Derek was still near the reception desk, standing beneath the security camera. The trash can had been moved aside, leaving a clean patch of floor where it had stood.
For a moment, their eyes met.
Derek's expression carried anger, but beneath it was something less certain. He seemed to be calculating how much the other officers had seen, what the camera might have recorded, and whether there was a way to reshape the story before it became an official report.