Hope considered this and touched the gold sticker. "Can I put a new star on it? A bigger one?"
"The one you made is perfect," he told her. "It stayed on through a puddle." She smiled for the first time since he got home. When she went upstairs, Erica took his hand and asked whether he intended to let the police forget the incident. Clayton glanced at the brass hook by the kitchen door where his father's keys should have been hanging.
"No," he said. "But I intend to find out why they wanted me to feel small before I decide what to do about it." He did not tell Erica he already suspected the incident was about more than a mistaken call. The charcoal sedan had left too slowly, and Sutcliffe had arrived too quickly. He wanted proof before he put fear into the rooms where his family slept.
He went to bed late. On his phone, he had photographs of the wrist marks, the badge, and the dealership lot before opening. Jaylen had sent him the short videos he took during the arrest, along with Margaret Ellis's telephone number. Clayton saved everything in a dated folder and wrote down the timeline as carefully as he would have recorded a fault in a vehicle's electronic system.
The last entry read: 7:19 a.m., Deputy Chief Sutcliffe arrived after the call and restraints. No receipt for keys. No report number supplied. Clayton stared at the line until the words blurred. Then he closed the notebook and turned out the light.
Monday, September 28, arrived cold and clear. Clayton was at the shop by seven, wearing a navy work shirt with REED AUTO SHOP embroidered above the pocket. The twelve cruisers stood in two polished rows, their diagnostic lights off and their inspection folders stacked neatly on Sherman's desk. The city was scheduled to sign final acceptance at nine, after which the vehicles could be delivered to the police fleet garage.
Sherman had prepared a binder with every serial number, parts invoice, camera test result, and acceptance signature. Jaylen placed fresh paper floor mats in all twelve cars because the municipal drivers had requested them. Even after Saturday, everyone kept working as though finishing the job correctly might somehow make the other problem smaller.
Nine o'clock came. Nobody arrived. At 9:04 Clayton received an email from Ingrid Sato, Halcott's director of purchasing, informing him that the city had suspended the contract under section 14.3, the contractor-conduct clause. Her letter cited an open criminal investigation involving the contractor and stated that if the matter remained unresolved, a public rebid would take place Thursday, October 15.
Clayton read it once, then again. It did not say he had been convicted, charged, or even arrested. It said he was the subject of an investigation, and that phrase alone was being used to stop the city from accepting work it had already inspected. At the bottom, the notice identified the other qualified bidder: Peton Motors.