"Understood."
Marcus extended his wrists.
"Now remove these."
Mercer unlocked the cuffs.
Red marks circled Marcus's wrists.
He rubbed them once.
Then adjusted his sleeves.
"Officer Mercer, don't leave the scene until relieved."
Mercer's eyes widened.
"Sir, am I being suspended?"
"I haven't made that decision."
Marcus looked at Rhodes.
"And I won't."
That surprised everyone.
Marcus could have ended Mercer's career with a phone call.
Instead, he chose procedure.
"Captain Rhodes will notify Internal Affairs."
Mercer stared at him.
"You're really going to destroy my career because of one misunderstanding?"
Marcus's jaw tightened.
"This sentence right here is why you should stop talking."
Mercer looked confused.
"You think the problem is that you accidentally handcuffed someone powerful."
Marcus stepped closer.
"The problem is that you believed the person in front of you was powerless."
Nobody spoke.
Marcus continued.
"You had a complaint. Fine. Investigate it."
He pointed toward his insignia.
"But investigation means verification."
His voice hardened.
"You skipped the only step capable of proving whether your suspicion was true."
Captain Rhodes lowered his gaze.
He knew Marcus was right.
The Original Complaint
Marcus entered the Whitmore estate nearly twenty minutes late.
Harold Whitmore had been watching from inside the gate.
The retired businessman stood beside two attorneys and his security director.
He glanced toward Marcus's wrists.
"Everything all right?"
Marcus adjusted his sleeve.
"Administrative delay."
Whitmore studied him.
"You've got handcuff marks."
Marcus looked down.
"They'll fade."