"You're going to learn when to keep your mouth shut."
Emily stopped walking.
Daniel pulled at her arm, but she remained in place.
He turned sharply.
"What now?"
"I want you to call your supervisor."
His face reddened.
"You don't get to make demands here."
"Then I want you to explain why you removed me from the main road, questioned me in a private parking lot, and brought me through a restricted entrance instead of following the normal arrest procedure."
A nearby door opened.
The officer carrying the folder had returned, apparently having forgotten something. He stopped when he heard Emily's words.
Daniel noticed him.
"Everything's fine," Daniel called.
The officer looked between them.
"Who have you got?"
"Drug possession. Suspect was uncooperative."
Emily immediately spoke.
"That is not true. He planted the evidence."
The officer's expression shifted.
He looked at the packet in Daniel's hand, then at Emily's restrained wrists.
"Did you find it during a search?"
"Yes," Daniel replied quickly.
"Where?"
"In her back pocket."
The officer glanced at Emily.
"Was the search recorded?"
Daniel hesitated.
"Of course."
"Then there shouldn't be a problem."
The officer's words were ordinary, but Daniel reacted as though they had placed him under a spotlight.
He looked toward the camera mounted above the corridor.
Emily followed his gaze.
The station had cameras everywhere.
If Daniel's body camera had recorded the encounter, the footage could be compared with the security recordings from the street, the parking lot, and the station entrance. The packet's supposed discovery could be examined frame by frame. The officer might have believed he could control the written report, but the existence of multiple recording systems made that considerably more difficult.
The other officer seemed to recognize the tension.
"Reed, you want me to take over?"
"No," Daniel answered too quickly.
The officer raised an eyebrow.
"Are you sure?"
"I've got it."
"All right."
The man continued down the corridor, but Emily noticed that he looked back once before disappearing through the doorway.
Daniel waited until they were alone again.
Then he leaned toward her.
"You need to stop talking to other officers."
Emily looked at him with disbelief.
"We're in a police station."
"I don't care."
"Then you should reconsider your career."
He seized her arm and pulled her through the doorway.
The corridor beyond was narrow and brightly lit. A row of offices stood along one wall, while a security desk and several interview rooms occupied the other side. Voices drifted through partially closed doors. Phones rang, keyboards clicked, and radios crackled with routine dispatch traffic.
To anyone unfamiliar with the department, it was an ordinary workplace.
To Emily, it was a building full of potential witnesses, records, cameras, and procedures that Daniel had already begun to disregard.
He guided her toward an unmarked interview room at the end of the corridor.
"Inside."
Emily stopped at the doorway.
"Am I being formally booked or questioned?"
"Inside."
"Will I be allowed to contact a lawyer?"
Daniel stepped closer.
"You can worry about that later."
"No. I need to know now."
His face tightened.
"You're not going to turn this into some kind of performance."
"I'm asking a straightforward question."
He pushed the door open and motioned her inside.
Emily entered the room.
It contained a metal table, four chairs, a wall-mounted camera, and a narrow window that looked into the corridor. There were no personal belongings, no paperwork, and no sign that anyone had prepared the room for a formal interview.
Daniel closed the door behind them.
For the first time since the arrest, Emily was alone with him in a room where he could speak without being overheard by the people passing through the hallway.
He pulled out a chair.
"Sit."
She sat down.
Daniel remained standing for several seconds, studying her face. Then he placed the packet on the table and took the chair opposite her.
"Let's start again," he said.
Emily looked at the packet.
"Are you going to explain how that appeared in my pocket?"
Daniel ignored the question.
"Who are you?"
Emily met his eyes.
"You've asked me that several times."
"And you haven't answered."
"Because you've never asked for my name. You've asked who sent me, who I'm working for, and what I know about the department."
"Then answer those questions."
"Why?"
"Because I want to know."
"That's not a legal justification for detaining me."
Daniel leaned forward.
"Do you have any idea how many people would be grateful to have a conversation with me instead of sitting in a cell right now?"
Emily said nothing.
He continued.
"I can make this situation easier for you. You tell me what you're doing here, and I'll see what can be done about the charges."