The ordinary nature of the task seemed to frustrate Ryan even more. Daniel was behaving as though the confrontation had not changed his priorities. He was injured, but he was still thinking clearly, organizing his papers, and paying attention to the details around him.
Ryan had expected anger.
Instead, Daniel was giving him composure.
RYAN MITCHELL: "You really think you can just ignore me?"
Daniel placed the final sheet inside the folder.
DANIEL BROOKS: "I'm not ignoring you."
RYAN MITCHELL: "Then look at me when I'm talking."
Daniel raised his eyes.
DANIEL BROOKS: "I'm listening. That doesn't mean I agree with you."
Ryan's mouth tightened.
RYAN MITCHELL: "You have a lot to learn about this place."
DANIEL BROOKS: "Maybe. But I already know that hitting a colleague isn't an acceptable way to teach someone."
David glanced toward Emily.
Emily had stopped typing and was watching the exchange again. Her computer screen displayed the dispatch system, but her attention was entirely on the reception area.
She had begun to wonder why Daniel's presence seemed to unsettle Ryan so deeply.
It was not merely that Daniel refused to back down. There was something about his manner that made him seem unusually certain of himself, even in a situation where he had every reason to be angry.
He did not speak like someone desperate to impress the people around him.
He did not appear concerned about winning Ryan's approval.
And he did not seem frightened by the possibility of an argument with someone who had spent years working at Riverside.
Emily tried to place him.
She had reviewed employee schedules, processed personnel-related communications, and assisted with administrative requests from officers across the department. She had a reasonably good memory for names and faces.
But Daniel was unfamiliar to her.
Perhaps he had transferred from another district. Perhaps he worked in a specialized unit. Perhaps he was visiting for an administrative meeting.
She could not tell.
Before she could consider the question further, Ryan spoke again.
RYAN MITCHELL: "You know what your problem is?"
Daniel waited.
RYAN MITCHELL: "You walk into a place where people have been working for years, and you act like you know better than everyone else."
DANIEL BROOKS: "I haven't criticized anyone's experience."
RYAN MITCHELL: "You don't have to. It's written all over your face."
DANIEL BROOKS: "You're making assumptions about me."
RYAN MITCHELL: "I'm making observations."
DANIEL BROOKS: "Then observe what you actually see."
Ryan frowned.
DANIEL BROOKS: "You see a man standing beside a desk. You don't know why I'm here, what I've been asked to do, or what my responsibilities are. You decided you didn't like me before asking a single reasonable question."
Ryan stared at him.
DANIEL BROOKS: "And when I refused to accept your behavior, you used force."
The room fell quiet again.
Daniel had not raised his voice, but every sentence made it harder for Ryan to portray the confrontation as a simple misunderstanding.
David slowly unfolded his arms.
Emily looked down at her keyboard, then began typing the time and a brief factual description of the incident. She made no assumptions about motives and did not attempt to determine what disciplinary action should follow.
She recorded what she had personally witnessed.
Ryan noticed her typing.
RYAN MITCHELL: "What exactly are you writing?"
EMILY CARTER: "The time and circumstances of the incident."
RYAN MITCHELL: "Delete it."
Emily stopped typing.
For a moment, she looked as though she had not understood him.
EMILY CARTER: "What?"
RYAN MITCHELL: "I said delete it."
EMILY CARTER: "I'm not deleting a record of something I witnessed."
RYAN MITCHELL: "You don't know the full story."
EMILY CARTER: "Then the report can include everyone's account."
RYAN MITCHELL: "You're making a serious mistake."
Emily's hands tightened around the edge of the desk.
The words were almost identical to those Daniel had spoken earlier, but the meaning was different now. Ryan was no longer merely arguing about the confrontation. He was pressuring a colleague to stop documenting it.
Daniel watched Emily carefully.
DANIEL BROOKS: "Emily, record only what you know to be true. Don't change anything because someone is pressuring you."
Emily nodded.
EMILY CARTER: "I understand."
Ryan turned toward Daniel.
RYAN MITCHELL: "You really enjoy telling people what to do."
DANIEL BROOKS: "I enjoy people being allowed to do their jobs without intimidation."
RYAN MITCHELL: "You think you're better than me?"
DANIEL BROOKS: "This isn't about being better than you."
RYAN MITCHELL: "Then why are you acting like you're above everyone in this room?"
Daniel took a breath.