Chapter 3 - THE ARREST
Two uniformed City Police officers stepped into the office. Behind them stood the City Marshal, his gold badge gleaming under the office lights.
Vance’s head snapped toward the door. "Officers! Arrest these two! They are fabricating digital evidence to blackmail a public official!"
"Save it for your arraignment, Vance," Officer Ramirez said, drawing a pair of steel handcuffs from his utility belt. "City Marshal received an anonymous tip with an uncompressed video file two hours ago. Federal forensics already verified the cryptographic signature. It's real."
Panicking, Vance lunged toward the glass door, trying to push his way into the hallway. "Get your hands off me!"
He didn't make it past the doorway. Maya stepped fluidly into his path, her athletic frame dropping into a low, unyielding center of gravity. Vance collided with her like a wave hitting a cliff, stumbling backward and catching his heel on the edge of the doorway trim. He fell hard onto his hands and knees on the cold concrete of the garage bay.
The entire on-duty shift—twelve firefighters in full turnout gear—had formed a silent, immovable circle around the office entrance. No one spoke. No one mocked him. They simply watched with cold, unified disgust as Officer Ramirez forced Vance’s arms behind his back.
CLICK.
The sound of the steel handcuffs locking around Vance’s wrists rang out clearly in the silent garage.
Vance was dragged to his feet, his thousand-dollar suit rumpled, his hair disheveled, and his face red with humiliation. As the officers marched him toward the police cruiser parked in the driveway, he found himself face-to-face with Maya.
May you like
"You ruined yourself, Vance," she said softly.
Maya didn't wait for his reply. She turned her back on him, walked over to where her red helmet lay on the concrete floor, and picked it up. She wiped a smudge of black grease off the visor, placed the helmet firmly on her head, and pulled the heavy leather chin strap tight until it clicked.
