Haskell picked up Terrence's overnight bag.
He unzipped the front pocket.
Nothing.
Second pocket.
Nothing.
Then the main compartment.
He dumped it upside down.
Shirts fell onto the road.
A pair of shoes.
A shaving kit.
A paperback book.
A charger.
And a small black leather case.
The case struck the pavement.
It opened.
A metallic badge caught the late-afternoon sunlight.
Everything stopped.
Officer Mills saw it first.
His eyes widened.
Haskell looked down.
The letters were unmistakable.
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION.
Below them was Terrence's identification.
For several seconds, Haskell didn't move.
Terrence watched the color drain from his face.
Mills whispered:
"Oh, no."
CHAPTER 6 — THE BADGE
Haskell bent down slowly.
Terrence spoke immediately.
"Don't touch it."
Haskell froze.
The authority in Terrence's voice was different now.
Not louder.
Just unmistakable.
Terrence walked forward.
Mills didn't stop him.
He picked up the leather holder, brushed dust from it, and closed it.
Haskell stared at him.
"You're FBI?"
Terrence slipped the credentials into his jacket.
"Yes."
"Why didn't you say something?"
Terrence looked around at the roadside.
At his clothes.
At his mother's crushed gift.
At the destroyed birthday cake.
Then back at Haskell.
"You never asked what I did for a living."
Haskell opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Mills stepped backward.
The third officer suddenly became very interested in the ground.
Haskell finally found his voice.
"Look, Agent Cole, if I'd known—"
Terrence interrupted.
"If you'd known what?"
Haskell stopped.
Terrence continued.
"If you'd known I was a federal agent, you would've treated me differently?"
"That's not what I meant."
"Then explain what you meant."
Haskell looked toward the other officers.
"This was a lawful traffic stop."
"Then my occupation shouldn't matter."
"It doesn't."
"Good."
Terrence's voice remained calm.
"Then let's continue exactly as if you still didn't know."
That sentence unsettled Haskell more than shouting would have.
Terrence took out his phone.
5:58 p.m.