He tossed them onto the hood.
The metal frames struck the paint.
The Incoming Chief looked at them.
Then back at the Sergeant.
Still no anger.
That calmness was becoming unbearable to the officer.
“Pick them up.”
The Incoming Chief did not move.
The Sergeant pointed.
“Pick them up.”
“No.”
The Sergeant laughed.
“No?”
“No.”
The officer stepped closer.
Their faces were less than a foot apart.
“What exactly do you think happens next?”
The Incoming Chief looked into his eyes.
“Whatever you choose.”
The Sergeant’s expression changed.
The words sounded like a threat.
They were not.
They were an observation.
The Incoming Chief added quietly:
“But I suggest you remember this exact moment.”
The Sergeant grabbed his shoulder.
Spun him partly toward the vehicle.
One forearm pinned him near the roofline.
Another officer finally moved.
“Sergeant, maybe we should—”
“Back off.”
The younger officer stopped.
The Incoming Chief turned his head.
Saw him.
Remembered him.
The Sergeant said:
“You don’t challenge a police officer and decide how the interaction goes.”
The Incoming Chief answered:
“Neither do you.”
That was the sentence.
The Sergeant released one arm.
Turned him back around.
Then slapped him.
Open hand.
Hard.
The sound cracked against stone.
Every officer nearby froze.
The Incoming Chief’s head turned to the side.
His cheek burned.
For three seconds, nobody moved.
The driver pushed open his door again.
The Incoming Chief lifted one finger.
Stay.
The Sergeant stood breathing heavily.
His own expression briefly revealed surprise.
He had crossed farther than he intended.
But once crossed, pride offered only one direction.
Forward.
He pointed toward the Incoming Chief.
“You remember that.”
The suited man slowly turned his face back.
No raised fists.
No shouting.
He touched his cheek once.
Then straightened his tie.
Smoothed the lapel the Sergeant had crumpled.
Reached toward the hood.
Picked up his sunglasses.
One lens had scratched against the paint.
The Incoming Chief examined it.
Then looked toward the Sergeant.
“You finished?”
The Sergeant stared.
That calm voice somehow made the slap look worse.
The courthouse doors opened behind them.
Someone shouted:
“Chief!”
The Sergeant glanced over his shoulder.
A Police Captain was running down the steps.
Behind him came the Deputy Chief.
The City Administrator.
Two command staff members.
A uniformed aide.
The Sergeant smiled.