She didn't need to hear the words. She already knew what men like Corbin said to each other when they thought nobody important was listening. Alice sat down at her new desk, pulled out her old notebook, and opened it to the first page. Where Fenwick's case number still sat in faded ink. She had a lot of work ahead of her, and this time she wasn't leaving until it was finished.
Two weeks into her captaincy, Alice called every officer in the precinct together for a mandatory meeting. She stood at the front of the room, arms steady behind her back, watching the same faces from roll call settle into their seats. Corbin and Miller sat near the back this time. No longer upfront, no longer loud. "Starting next Monday," Alice said.
"Every officer in this precinct will wear a body camera during every shift. No exceptions. " A murmur ran through the room. "This isn't optional," Alice continued. "It's not a suggestion. Cameras protect you when you do your job right.
They protect the public when things go wrong. Either way, we're moving into a department that documents everything. No more he-said, she-said. No more disappearing paperwork. She let that last part hang in the air a second longer than necessary.
From the back row, Corbin shifted in his seat. Miller leaned toward him, whispering something behind his hand. Alice didn't look their way, but she saw them anyway. The way you see movement out of the corner of your eye, even when you're staring straight ahead. Any questions?
Alice asked. Nobody raised a hand. Good, she said. Dismissed. Officers filed out slowly, some already grumbling about the extra gear, most just glancing toward Corbin and Miller like they were waiting for a reaction that never came out loud.
Alice went back to her office and sat down, letting out a breath she'd been holding since the meeting started. Cameras wouldn't fix everything, but they were a start, a way to make sure nothing that happened in this building could ever get quietly erased again. A knock sounded at her door a few minutes later. Alice looked up to find Officer Dove Whitlock standing there, glancing back over her shoulder before stepping inside and closing the door behind her. Captain," Dove said quietly.
"Do you have a minute? " "Of course," Alice said. "Sit down. " Dove sat, hands folded tightly in her lap, looking nervous in a way Alice recognized. She'd looked that same way once years ago, standing outside Fenwick's office, trying to work up the courage to walk in. "I need to tell you something," Dove said about the day it happened in the breakroom. Alice's chest tightened, but she kept her face calm.
"Go on. " "I was there," Dove said. "Not in the room, but close enough. I saw Miller drag you toward that hallway. I heard Corbin laughing before I even got to the door. I saw the whole thing happen through the little window, and I didn't do anything.