Maya memorized it.
"Who reported me?"
"Anonymous caller."
"Reported me for what?"
Price frowned.
"Suspicious activity."
"What activity?"
"Walking."
The silence between them became almost absurd.
Maya nodded slowly.
"Understood."
Price opened his door.
"Ma'am, I need you to come over here."
Maya did not move.
"Am I being detained?"
The officer's jaw tightened.
"You're not under arrest."
"That's not what I asked."
Price looked uncomfortable.
"At this point, no."
"Then I'm going to continue my run."
She turned.
"Ma'am."
Maya stopped.
Price stepped out of the cruiser.
"I'd rather you cooperate."
Maya slowly turned around.
Something in her expression changed.
Not anger.
Recognition.
She had seen this exact moment hundreds of times.
A person with authority deciding that cooperation meant obedience.
A person without authority being expected to prove they deserved to leave.
Maya looked directly into Price's eyes.
"Officer, I'm going to ask you one more time."
She spoke calmly.
"Am I free to go?"
Price stared at her.
Finally, he nodded.
"Yes."
"Thank you."
She began running again.
Behind her, the cruiser remained parked.
Maya did not look back.
But she remembered the badge number.
And she remembered the feeling.
Because less than four hours from now, she would become Chief of Police.
And she had just learned something about her department before she had even walked through its front doors.
The Stop
At 9:37 AM, Maya entered Oakridge City Hall through the side entrance.
The ceremony was scheduled for ten.
She had barely made it inside before Mayor Thomas Sterling approached her.
"There she is."
Maya smiled.
"Good morning, Mayor."
"Big day."
"Apparently."
Sterling laughed.
"You nervous?"
"No."
"Not even a little?"
"I've been nervous before. This isn't nervous."
"What is it?"
Maya looked toward the packed hallway.
"Awareness."
Sterling studied her.
"You've already noticed something."
"I noticed several things."
His smile disappeared.
"Such as?"
Maya hesitated.
"Your officers are stopping people without clear justification."
Sterling's expression changed.
"Who?"
"Officer Daniel Price."
The mayor blinked.
"You've met him?"
"At 6:00 AM."
"Where?"
Maya told him.
Sterling's face became serious.
"Did he know who you were?"
"No."
"Good."
Maya looked at him.
"Why is that good?"
"Because now you know what the experience feels like from the other side."
"I didn't need the demonstration."
Sterling sighed.
"I know."
Maya checked her watch.
"Let's get through the ceremony."
At 10:00 AM, the city council chamber was full.
Local reporters lined the walls.
Police officers stood in formal rows.
Members of the public sat behind them.
Maya walked to the podium.
The room became silent.
Mayor Sterling raised his hand.
"Maya Renee Jenkins, do you solemnly swear..."
Maya repeated the oath.
When she finished, applause filled the room.
Some officers clapped enthusiastically.
Others barely moved.
One senior lieutenant, Robert Gaines, stood in the back with his arms crossed.
Maya noticed him.
She had already heard his name.
Twenty-eight years with Oakridge PD.
Former union representative.
Popular among officers.
Not particularly popular among reform advocates.
After the ceremony, reporters surrounded Maya.
"Chief Jenkins!"
"Chief!"
"Over here!"
"Do you intend to change the department's use-of-force policies?"
"Will you support the officers accused of misconduct?"
"Do you believe Oakridge has a racial profiling problem?"
Maya raised one hand.
The room quieted.
"I believe the citizens of Oakridge deserve a police department that is both effective and worthy of their trust."
A reporter shouted.
"Does that mean you think the current department isn't trustworthy?"
Maya looked directly at him.
"It means trust is not something a police department gets to demand."
She paused.
"It is something we earn."
The statement appeared on every local news website before lunch.
By noon, Maya was sitting in her new office.
The room was larger than she expected.
A wooden desk.
Two chairs.
A city map.
A framed photograph of every Oakridge police chief who had come before her.
All men.
All white.
Maya stared at the photograph.
Then she took it down.
Her assistant, Carla Bennett, looked surprised.
"You're removing it?"
"I'm not removing history."
Maya placed the photograph in a cabinet.
"I'm making room for the future."
Carla smiled.
"I think we're going to get along."
The door opened.
Lieutenant Gaines entered.
"Chief."
Maya stood.
"Lieutenant Gaines."
He shook her hand.
His grip was firm.
Almost deliberately so.
"Congratulations."
"Thank you."
"I suppose you'll want a briefing."
"I would."
He handed her a thick folder.
"Complaints."
Maya looked at it.
"These are all?"
"Most."
She opened it.
Pages.
Names.
Dates.
Traffic stops.
Searches.
Use-of-force incidents.
Civilian complaints.
Dismissed cases.
Sustained cases.
Then she saw a familiar name.
Daniel Price.
Maya looked up.
"Officer Price."
Gaines's expression barely changed.
"Young officer."
"Three complaints in eleven months."
"Two were unfounded."
"And the third?"
"Pending."
"What was it?"
"Improper stop."
Maya nodded.
"Interesting."
Gaines leaned back.
"Chief, I'm going to give you some advice."
"Please."
"Oakridge is not your old city."
"I know."
"Our officers aren't criminals."
"I didn't say they were."
"They're being attacked constantly."
"By whom?"
"The media. Activists. Politicians."
Maya closed the folder.
"Lieutenant, I'm not here to attack officers."
Gaines smiled.
"Good."
"I'm here to protect good officers from bad officers."
His smile vanished.
"And I'm here to protect citizens from both."
Silence.
Gaines stared at her.
Then he nodded.
"Understood."
He turned to leave.
Maya stopped him.
"One more thing."
"Yes?"
"Officer Price."
Gaines looked back.
"He made a stop this morning."
Gaines's face changed slightly.
"I'll look into it."
"No."
Maya shook her head.
"I will."
That afternoon, Maya requested every body-camera recording involving Price during the previous six months.