The voice of Gavin Monroe didn’t just come through the phone; it seemed to resonate from the very foundations of the building. In the cramped, silent hallway of the Lakeport station, his words fell like rhythmic hammer blows, each one shattering a piece of Gerald Gaines's carefully constructed world.
"And as for you, Director Gaines," Gavin’s voice dropped into a register of absolute, cold-blooded finality. "As the head of the Lakeport Police Sub-bureau, the responsibility for this debacle rests squarely on your shoulders. Your decision-making was irrational, your actions were unauthorized, and your 'oversight' was nothing short of a criminal lack of judgment. You acted on a whim, throwing the weight of your office around like a blunt instrument."
Gavin paused, and the silence on the oth
