The sheriff kept the receiver pressed against his ear, listening carefully to the voice on the other end.
He had expected another complaint from a relative, perhaps a lawyer threatening to file a lawsuit. Instead, the caller spoke with the calm precision of someone who had already reviewed the available information.
CALLER: "Sheriff Hollister, we understand that Walter is currently in your custody. We need confirmation that he is safe, that his injuries have been documented, and that he has access to medical care."
VANCE: "He's being held for questioning. He's not in danger."
CALLER: "Then confirming his medical condition should be straightforward."
Vance looked through the glass panel toward the interview room. Walter was still seated, his posture slightly hunched because of the pain in his shoulder. His face was pale, and the blood near his temple had begun to dry.
VANCE: "We're handling it internally."
CALLER: "Given the nature of the allegation, an independent medical assessment would be appropriate."
VANCE: "What allegation?"
CALLER: "The report we received indicates that Mr. Walter was injured during an encounter involving your officers."
VANCE: "He resisted lawful instructions."
CALLER: "That is one account. We are asking for the available evidence before drawing conclusions."
Vance's jaw tightened.
VANCE: "You people seem to have already decided I'm guilty."
CALLER: "Nobody has made that determination. We are asking you to preserve the records and cooperate with the appropriate review."
Vance stared at the wall.
CALLER: "Can you confirm that the station recordings have been preserved?"
The sheriff hesitated.
It was a small hesitation, but it was enough to make the caller repeat the question.
CALLER: "Sheriff?"
VANCE: "The recordings are part of our normal system."
CALLER: "That wasn't my question. Have they been preserved?"
Vance looked toward the camera monitor on his desk.
VANCE: "I'll make sure they are."
CALLER: "Please do so immediately."
The caller ended the conversation.
Vance slowly lowered the receiver.
For several seconds, he remained motionless.
He had spent years dealing with complaints from residents who believed that a conversation with the county administrator or a local attorney could force him to change his decisions. Most of those complaints disappeared after a few days.
This one felt different.
He turned toward Deputy Cole.
VANCE: "I want the recording system checked."
DEPUTY COLE: "Which recordings?"
VANCE: "All of them. The corridor, the interview room, booking, and holding area."
Cole looked confused.
DEPUTY COLE: "Are we preserving the footage?"
VANCE: "That's what I said."
DEPUTY COLE: "Understood."
Vance pointed toward the office door.
VANCE: "And get medical personnel here. Now."
Cole nodded and left.
The sheriff remained in the corridor, looking through the glass at Walter.
He had imagined that the old man would eventually become frightened. He had expected him to beg for release, apologize, or agree to sign the statement.
Instead, Walter had made one phone call and returned to silence.
That silence was beginning to irritate Vance more than any argument could have.
He opened the interview-room door.
VANCE: "You seem very comfortable sitting there."
Walter raised his head.
WALTER: "I'm trying not to make my shoulder worse."
VANCE: "You could have avoided all of this."
WALTER: "By letting you write something that wasn't true?"
Vance pulled out the chair and sat down.
VANCE: "By cooperating."
WALTER: "I cooperated when you told me to leave the diner. I cooperated when your deputies brought me here. I cooperated when you asked me questions."
VANCE: "You kept challenging me."
WALTER: "I answered your questions."
Vance leaned forward.
VANCE: "You have no idea what kind of situation you're creating."
Walter looked at him.
WALTER: "I think you do."
The sheriff's face tightened.
VANCE: "You think your daughter can walk into this building and tell me how to do my job?"
WALTER: "I never said that."
VANCE: "Then what do you want?"
Walter took a moment before answering.
WALTER: "I want to know why you thought it was acceptable to put your hands on an old man who was having breakfast."
Vance looked away.
WALTER: "I want to know why you let your deputy put his hands around my throat. I want to know why nobody called a doctor when I was bleeding. And I want to know why you wrote a statement saying I attacked your officers."
VANCE: "You were being difficult."
WALTER: "That isn't an answer."
Vance stood.
VANCE: "We're done talking."
He walked out and shut the door.
Walter lowered his head again.
He did not know how much longer he would remain at the station, but he knew that the next stage of the incident would not be decided by the sheriff alone.
Across the county, Darcy was preparing to leave the diner.
She had copied the security footage onto two separate storage drives. One was inside her handbag, and the other was secured in the small office safe.
She had also written down the names of the customers who had witnessed the incident.