Chapter 6 - The Corrupt Badge Falls
Before the moving crew could even deploy their ramps, the screech of tires echoed from the road outside the gate.
A marked county sheriff’s cruiser came skidding up the gravel, stopping crookedly behind the military Suburbans. Officer Ganon jumped out, leaving his driver-side door swinging open. He hadn't bothered to put on his duty hat; his uniform shirt was rumpled, and his face was slick with sweat.
"What the hell is going on here?" Ganon yelled as he sprinted toward the portico, his hand instinctively resting on the grip of his service Glock. "Robert! Cresa! I got an alert that unauthorized federal vehicles were on your drive—"
Ganon froze at the base of the limestone steps.
Standing directly at the top of the stairs was Sheriff Thomas Campbell, flanking Colonel Vance and four armed military investigators whose tactical rifles hung in low-ready slung positions.
Ganon’s face went dead white. The aggressive swagger evaporated from his limbs in an instant.
"S-Sheriff?" Ganon stammered, pulling his hand off his weapon as if the polymer grip had suddenly turned red-hot. "Sir, I... I was responding to a residential disturbance call from the Sterling estate. I didn't know you were on scene."
"You aren't on duty, Ganon," Sheriff Campbell said, his voice heavy with contempt. "In fact, you were specifically ordered two hours ago to report to internal affairs for an administrative surrender of your equipment."
"Sheriff, listen to me," Ganon pleaded, his eyes darting frantically toward Balthazar and Cresa. "This is a private domestic issue between the Sterlings. The sister, Vesper—she has a history of mental instability. She attacked the kid! I handled the initial triage at the hospital to keep the press from blowing it out of proportion! I was protecting the department from a frivolous civil suit!"
Sheriff Campbell pulled a digital recorder from his pocket and pressed play.
Ganon’s own voice echoed loudly across the driveway, crisp, arrogant, and menacing:
*“Your folks called it in, Vesper. Said you showed up blitzed on cheap gin, made a scene, grabbed the kid, and tripped over the planter box... If you start filing false assault reports against your sister? I’ll have you involuntarily committed to the county psych wing before midnight. Don’t ruin your life over a clumsy accident.”*
Ganon stopped breathing. His jaw dropped, his chest heaving as the words hung in the morning air like a noose.
"That recording was captured by the hospital room’s medical transcription feed," Sheriff Campbell said calmly. "Coupled with the patio surveillance footage, you are facing state charges for felony witness tampering, official misconduct, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy to conceal an aggravated assault. And because this involved the assault of a dependent of active-duty military personnel under Title 10 protection, the Department of Justice has already filed a civil rights deprivation warrant."
Two state troopers stepped forward from the flank of the cruiser.
One of them took Ganon’s duty weapon from his holster with practiced speed. The other pulled his arms behind his back, clicking the cold steel of handcuffs around his wrists.
"Sheriff! Balthazar, help me out here!" Ganon screamed as he was turned around and pushed down the steps. "I did this for you, Mercer! I covered your ass! You owe me!"
Balthazar didn't even look at him. He turned his face away, staring at the marble floor of the foyer, completely broken.
Cresa began to sob uncontrollably, sliding down the doorframe until she was sitting on the floor, clutching her knees. The arrogance, the pristine country-club superiority, the cruel vanity that had ruled my entire childhood—it was all dissolving into hysterical, terrified whimpering.
"Vesper..." a soft, trembling voice called out.
I turned my head slightly, the surgical wire in my jaw pulling tight against the bone.
May you like
My mother, Evelyn, was walking slowly down the portico steps toward me, her arms outstretched, tears streaming down her pale, wrinkled cheeks.
***
