Director Cross turned slowly on his heel to face Vance and Miller. His eyes were cold enough to freeze the humid afternoon air.
“Deputy Vance. Officer Miller. Unbuckle your duty belts and place them on the hood of your cruiser immediately.”
Vance tried to step forward, his voice strained and desperate. “Director, listen to me—she was non-compliant! She refused to step out of the car when ordered, and she reached for her pocket—”
“We have sixty-four minutes of continuous, high-definition audio recorded directly to the State Attorney General’s evidentiary vault,” Cross interrupted smoothly, his tone cutting off Vance’s excuse like a blade. “We heard your refusal to identify. We heard your threat regarding ‘teaching her manners.’ We heard the physical assault, and we heard the clear absence of any articulable reasonable suspicion.”
Cross gestured to the two state troopers standing nearby. “Take their sidearms.”
The troopers moved in with swift, practiced efficiency. Vance did not resist as his heavy leather duty belt was unbuckled and removed from his waist. Miller looked as though he were on the verge of tears, his shoulders slumping forward as a trooper stripped his badge and firearm from his uniform.
