ROSA MARTINEZ: "When you're older, sometimes people act as though your words don't matter."
Ethan looked at her thoughtfully.
ETHAN BROOKS: "Your words matter. That's why the sergeant is listening."
Rosa gave a small nod.
The simple reassurance meant more to her than Ethan realized.
For several minutes after the slap, she had felt invisible.
People had watched, but she had not known whether anyone would help.
Now several strangers had come forward to describe what they had witnessed.
The experience remained painful, but she was no longer facing it alone.
Victor stepped away to speak with the responding officers.
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Officer Lawson, is Cole remaining cooperative?"
OFFICER PETER LAWSON: "He is still upset, Sergeant, but he is remaining in place."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Continue supervising him until the next officer arrives to take over."
OFFICER PETER LAWSON: "Understood."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Officer Grant, please make sure the witnesses know how their statements will be handled."
OFFICER AISHA GRANT: "Yes, Sergeant."
Victor looked back toward the courthouse entrance.
The crowd had begun to disperse.
Some people returned to their vehicles.
Others continued toward the bus stop or walked back inside the building.
Yet a few witnesses remained because they wanted to make sure their accounts were recorded.
The afternoon sunlight had shifted across the pavement, casting longer shadows from the courthouse columns.
Rosa noticed the change.
She had originally expected to be home long before that hour.
Instead, she had spent much of the afternoon trying to explain why she had been frightened by someone whose job was supposed to include protecting the public.
The thought made her tired.
But she also knew that leaving without providing her statement might mean that an important part of the incident would go unrecorded.
She looked toward Victor.
ROSA MARTINEZ: "Sergeant, will I need to come back here?"
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "You may be contacted for additional information. We will explain the process and make sure you know whom to contact."
ROSA MARTINEZ: "I don't mind answering questions. I just don't want to go through another confrontation."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "You should not have to. Any further contact will be handled through the appropriate channels."
Rosa nodded.
Nearby, Ethan checked his watch.
He had missed several work calls, and his afternoon schedule had been disrupted.
But he did not regret stopping.
He looked at the loose button on his jacket, then toward the place where Cole had grabbed him.
The memory was unsettling.
He had not expected that asking a question could provoke such an aggressive response.
Nevertheless, he knew that walking away without speaking would have troubled him more.
Victor approached him once more.
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Mr. Brooks, thank you for remaining available."
ETHAN BROOKS: "Of course."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "We have your preliminary statement and contact information. If you remember anything else, please report it."
ETHAN BROOKS: "I will."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Are you experiencing any pain from the confrontation?"
ETHAN BROOKS: "My shoulder is a little sore where he pulled my jacket, but I don't believe it's serious."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "If that changes, please seek medical attention and document any injury."
ETHAN BROOKS: "Understood."
The sergeant thanked him and returned to the officers near the patrol car.
Cole remained under supervision.
His earlier shouting had diminished, but his posture was still rigid.
He watched Victor approach and immediately began speaking.
OFFICER TRAVIS COLE: "Sergeant, I want to explain myself."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Your account will be taken through the appropriate process."
OFFICER TRAVIS COLE: "I was trying to maintain order."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "That explanation does not change what I personally witnessed."
Cole looked away.
OFFICER TRAVIS COLE: "He shouldn't have interfered."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Mr. Brooks was standing several feet away when I arrived. You moved toward him, grabbed his jacket, and raised your hand."
Cole said nothing.
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "You were instructed to stop. You did not comply immediately."
OFFICER TRAVIS COLE: "I was angry."
SERGEANT VICTOR CHEN: "Being angry does not remove your responsibility to control your actions."
The words hung between them.
Cole looked toward the courthouse entrance, then at the officers standing beside him.
His expression suggested that he was beginning to recognize the seriousness of the situation.
Victor did not continue arguing.
He had already made his instructions clear.
The next steps would depend on the formal review, the witness statements, and the available evidence.
A supervising officer arrived to take responsibility for the administrative response.
Victor provided a concise summary of the incident, including the reported slap, the confrontation with Ethan, his own intervention, and the restraint of Cole beside the patrol car.