"Understood, ma'am," Vance replied, giving a sharp nod. He finally turned his head, his cold, dead eyes locking onto Officer Griggs. "Do we have a hostile situation with the local element?"
Griggs physically shrank back. He looked at the two dozen highly trained security operatives forming an impenetrable wall around the woman he had just threatened to throw in jail. He looked at the fleet of armored vehicles that probably cost more than his precinct's entire annual budget.
"N-no," Griggs stammered, his voice cracking, his previous roar reduced to a pathetic squeak. "No, sir. There's... there's no hostility. Just a... just a traffic accident."
Evelyn stepped forward, closing the distance between herself and the disgraced officer. The smirk was gone, replaced by a look of absolute, crushing dominance.
"You were right about one thing, Officer," Evelyn said quietly, her words slicing through the air like a scalpel. "You write the report. But I highly suggest you write it very, very carefully. Because my legal team will have the telemetry data, the multi-angle 4K video footage, and the audio recording of your threats on the desk of the Chief of Police, the Internal Affairs Bureau, and the District Attorney by eight o'clock tomorrow morning."
Griggs swallowed hard. The rain plastered his thinning hair to his forehead. He looked down at his boots, completely broken. "I... I understand, ma'am."
"Vance," Evelyn said, turning her back on the officer without another word.
"Ma'am?"
"Leave the Camry for their insurance adjusters to weep over. Bring Tahoe actual around. I want to go home."
"Right away, Miss Carter."
Vance snapped his fingers. The outer ring of SUVs parted flawlessly, allowing the lead Tahoe to roll forward and stop directly beside Evelyn. A security agent immediately opened the heavy, ballistic glass rear door, holding an umbrella to shield her from the rain.
Evelyn stepped into the luxurious, dimly lit interior of the SUV. The door closed behind her with a heavy, satisfying thud, sealing her away from the cold, the rain, and the pathetic corruption of the man on the street.
As the motorcade began to pull away, leaving the ruined police cruiser and the stunned officer alone in the dark, Griggs fell back against the hood of his car. He slid down the wet metal until he was sitting on the asphalt, his hands shaking uncontrollably as he watched the glowing red taillights of the eleven Leviathans disappear into the night.
He realized then, with absolute certainty, that power did not wear a cheap uniform. Power did not need to shout in the rain. Power simply arrived, rearranged the world, and drove away.