Nina's cheeks flushed. She was suddenly aware of the customers watching the power move back and forth between them. She thought of her mother's prescriptions lined up on the kitchen counter and the tuition invoice her brother had brought home. She stepped back because she was afraid, and the stepping back made her angry with herself. Across the counter, Loretta saw both feelings pass through the young woman's face.
"Miss Alvarez has treated me respectfully," Loretta said. "She should not be punished for that."
"Mrs. Johnson, you are not in a position to discuss my staff," Harlon replied. "If you continue causing a scene, I will have security escort you out again."
Barnes shifted closer and accidentally brushed Loretta's shoulder with his equipment belt. She caught the edge of the counter and steadied herself. The guard murmured a brief apology, barely audible. Harlon did not seem to notice or care.
"You told me the check was suspicious," she said. "Now you tell me my account is suspicious. Are those accusations written anywhere that I can see?"
"We do not disclose sensitive fraud indicators to the subjects of an investigation."
"Then how am I supposed to correct an error?"
He leaned close enough that only she and Nina could hear his next words. "You don't correct it. You go away and let us decide whether we want to deal with you."
Loretta felt the impulse to reach for the cane she had left at home and point it at him like a schoolteacher. She had never carried it into the bank because she did not want to be treated as incapable. Instead she gathered the folder and stepped away from the counter.
"I have heard your position," she said. "Please note that I requested the documents and you refused."
Harlon's smile returned. "Have a pleasant day, Mrs. Johnson."
Loretta did not answer. She walked toward the entrance with her chin lifted. Nina came out from behind the counter, carrying a blank brochure in her hand as if she needed to replenish the rack near the door. As they passed one another, she whispered, "I need to speak to you away from here. Noon. Back parking lot, by the hedge."
Loretta barely nodded. She crossed the threshold and stood for a moment in the sun, breathing slowly. Darius was sitting on a bench across the street, wearing a plain cap and reading a newspaper he had not turned a page of in twenty minutes. He rose when he saw her.
"He won't tell me what the restriction is," she said before he could speak.
"Did you get the name of the person refusing?"
"Same man as yesterday. I got more than a name. I got his exact words."
She pulled a small notebook from her handbag. Darius took it only when she offered it, reading the concise lines she had written immediately after leaving the counter. He smiled briefly, despite the situation. "You still write like you're preparing a lesson plan."
"Children need to know what actually happened before they can understand why it matters. So do adults."