A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the street. Melissa Adams’s jaw dropped, her pale face suddenly flushing a deep, embarrassed crimson. Officer Collins froze, his hand still resting on Kendrick’s shoulder.
"Wait... he saved your bike?" Collins stammered, looking down at the child.
"Yes!" the boy insisted, running over to the red bicycle on the grass and picking it up. "He chased the bad guy away!"
The clicking and murmuring of the neighbors recording the scene grew louder. Officer Collins swallowed hard, suddenly very aware of the cell phone cameras pointed at him. He fumbled for his keys, his hands shaking slightly as he unlocked the handcuffs.
"I, uh... I apologize, son. There was a misunderstanding," Collins muttered, refusing to make eye contact with Kendrick.
Melissa Adams took a step backward, looking at the ground, and began a hasty retreat toward her manicured lawn. "Well, he shouldn't have been walking around looking so suspicious," she muttered under her breath.