The recording would either support the accounts given by the witnesses or reveal details that had not yet been discussed. Either way, it was better to preserve it than to rely on the competing memories of people who were now under considerable pressure.
As Marcus returned to the main floor, Natalie reached into the pocket of her charcoal-gray jacket and checked her phone.
There were several messages waiting for her.
She read them without changing her expression, then locked the screen and slipped the device back into her pocket.
Tiffany noticed the movement.
Tiffany: "Who are you contacting?"
Natalie looked at her.
Natalie: "No one you need to worry about."
Tiffany gave a short laugh.
Tiffany: "You seem very confident for someone who has just been involved in an incident with me."
Natalie: "I am confident that the truth can be documented."
Tiffany: "You think a few witnesses and a security camera are going to frighten me?"
Natalie: "I did not say that."
Tiffany: "Then what exactly do you think you are doing?"
Natalie held her gaze for a moment.
Natalie: "Making sure this is handled properly."
Tiffany's expression hardened.
Tiffany: "You should be careful about the kind of attention you attract."
Natalie: "I think you should consider that advice yourself."
The words were quiet, but they carried enough weight to make Tiffany pause.
She had expected Natalie to sound angry, defensive, or desperate to prove that she deserved to be there. Instead, Natalie spoke as though the incident were a matter to be resolved, not a battle she needed to win in front of an audience.
Tiffany could not decide whether the woman was pretending to be calm or whether she genuinely believed that the outcome was no longer in Tiffany's hands.
Either possibility was unsettling.
The boutique had gradually returned to a kind of uneasy activity. Some customers resumed browsing, although many continued watching from a distance. The sales assistants moved carefully around the scene, their voices softer than before. The background music played on, creating an almost absurd contrast with the tension near the center of the store.
Bellgrave House was designed to make every visitor feel that nothing unpleasant could happen inside its walls.
Yet the polished surfaces and expensive displays offered no protection from the consequences of ordinary human behavior.
A slap was still a slap, whether it happened in a crowded street or beneath a chandelier. An injury did not become less real because the person who caused it wore designer clothing. And a witness did not become less credible simply because her account threatened the reputation of a wealthy customer.
Natalie understood those things.
Tiffany appeared determined not to.
Officer Reed returned to the conversation after speaking briefly with his colleague.
Officer Reed: "Ms. Whitmore, we are going to need your account of the incident as well. Please explain what happened from your perspective, beginning with your first interaction with Ms. Brooks."
Tiffany lifted her chin.
Tiffany: "I came here to take care of a private matter. I was already dealing with a difficult situation, and she chose to interfere."
Officer Reed: "What did she do that you considered interference?"
Tiffany hesitated.
It was the first time someone had asked her to identify a specific action rather than accept her general description of Natalie as difficult.
Tiffany: "She was standing where she shouldn't have been."
Officer Reed: "Was that area restricted to customers or employees?"
Marcus answered before Tiffany could.
Marcus: "No. The accessories display is in the public shopping area."
Tiffany shot him an angry look.
Officer Reed: "Did Ms. Brooks prevent you from accessing anything?"
Tiffany: "She was being rude."
Officer Reed: "What did she say?"
Tiffany opened her mouth, then closed it.
She remembered the conversation differently now that she was being asked to describe it in detail. She remembered approaching Natalie and asking why she was there. She remembered Natalie answering that she was waiting for someone. She remembered disliking the tone of that answer, although Natalie had not raised her voice.
Most of all, she remembered the moment when she had decided that the woman needed to be put in her place.
Tiffany: "She spoke to me in a disrespectful manner."
Officer Reed: "Can you tell me the exact words she used?"
Tiffany: "I do not remember every word."
Officer Reed: "That's fine. Please tell me what you remember."
Tiffany glanced toward Natalie, hoping to find some sign of anxiety or uncertainty that she could use to strengthen her own account.
Natalie simply waited.
Tiffany: "She told me she was waiting for someone from management. I told her she had no reason to be there, and she refused to leave."
Marcus frowned slightly.
Marcus: "I have not received any request to remove Ms. Brooks from the premises."
Tiffany turned on him.
Tiffany: "Because you were not here when it happened!"
Marcus: "That is correct. Which is why I am relying on the statements and the footage rather than making assumptions."
Officer Turner wrote down the response.