A man seated near the wall lowered the newspaper he had been reading. Two women standing beside the courtroom entrance exchanged uneasy glances.
Bradley noticed that people were watching.
Rather than lowering the tension, their attention seemed to make him more determined to establish control.
BRADLEY: "You need to learn how things work around here."
JOSEPHINE: "Then perhaps you should begin by explaining the rules you're claiming I have broken."
For a moment, neither spoke.
The courthouse continued moving around them. Footsteps echoed across the marble floor. Somewhere behind a closed door, a clerk called out a case number. A security scanner beeped near the main entrance.
But the space immediately surrounding Bradley and Josephine had become unusually quiet.
The officer's jaw tightened.
BRADLEY: "I've had enough of your attitude."
JOSEPHINE: "And I've had enough of being treated as though I've committed a crime simply because you decided you don't like my answers."
Bradley's eyes narrowed.
He reached toward the documents she was holding.
Josephine pulled them slightly closer to her body.
JOSEPHINE: "Do not touch my papers."
BRADLEY: "Give them to me."
JOSEPHINE: "Tell me what authority you have to take them."
Instead of answering, Bradley grabbed the front of her blazer.
The movement was sudden enough that Josephine's documents slipped from her grasp. Several sheets fluttered to the floor, landing across the polished marble between their shoes.
A sharp gasp came from the nearby benches.
Josephine looked down at the papers, then back at the officer.
Her expression was no longer merely patient.
JOSEPHINE: "Take your hands off me."
Bradley held on.
BRADLEY: "You're going to do what I tell you."
JOSEPHINE: "Release me. Now."
Her voice was firm, carrying farther down the corridor than before.
A young attorney who had been walking toward the elevators stopped completely. An older man near the courtroom doors rose from his seat, uncertain whether to intervene.
Bradley noticed the growing audience.
He should have recognized that the situation was becoming serious. He should have stepped back, released her clothing, and explained what he believed had happened.
Instead, he mistook the attention for a challenge to his authority.
BRADLEY: "You think you're special? You think the rules don't apply to you?"
JOSEPHINE: "I have not claimed that."
BRADLEY: "Then stop acting like it."
JOSEPHINE: "You are the one making this situation worse."
The officer's grip tightened for an instant.
Josephine looked directly into his eyes.
There was anger in her expression now, but it was accompanied by something that made her seem far less intimidated than he expected.
She was not begging him to let her go.
She was not attempting to flatter him.
She was demanding that he account for his behavior.
JOSEPHINE: "You are standing in a courthouse. There are cameras in this building, and there are witnesses all around us. Think very carefully about what you are doing."
Bradley released a harsh breath through his nose.
BRADLEY: "Are you threatening me?"
JOSEPHINE: "No. I am telling you to stop."
He stared at her, his face flushed.
Then, before anyone nearby could intervene, he struck her across the face.
The sound cracked through the corridor.
Josephine's head turned with the impact. Her documents lay scattered at her feet, and for one suspended moment, she appeared unable to process what had happened.
The people watching fell silent.
A woman near the benches covered her mouth.
The young attorney took a step forward, then stopped when Bradley turned sharply in his direction.
Josephine slowly brought one hand to her cheek.
Her eyes widened, not only from pain but from disbelief.
She looked at the officer as though she were seeing the full extent of his arrogance for the first time.
JOSEPHINE: "You just struck me."
Her voice was quieter than before.
Bradley did not immediately answer.
His breathing was heavy, and his hand remained suspended near his side. For the briefest moment, uncertainty crossed his face.
Then he seemed to remember that people were watching.
Instead of acknowledging what he had done, he tried to regain control of the scene.
BRADLEY: "You should have listened when I told you to cooperate."
Josephine continued holding her cheek.
JOSEPHINE: "I asked you a question. You responded by putting your hands on me."
BRADLEY: "You were being difficult."
JOSEPHINE: "That does not give you the right to strike me."
BRADLEY: "You don't get to tell me how to do my job."
JOSEPHINE: "And you do not get to use your position as an excuse for this behavior."
Her words were measured, but every person in the corridor could hear them.