“Ma’am.”
“Who knew my route?”
He did not answer.
She continued:
“You.”
“Your chief.”
“My executive assistant.”
“The driver I canceled.”
“Who else?”
“I don’t know.”
“Wrong answer.”
The officer looked toward the SUV.
The single father followed his gaze.
Then noticed something inside the open driver’s door.
A handheld device clipped near the center console.
He could see only a portion.
Small black transmitter.
Short antenna.
A red status light.
Similar shape.
Not identical.
He said quietly:
“Your security car has a remote controller.”
The CEO turned.
The officer moved instantly.
He reached toward the module in the hypercar.
The single father caught his wrist.
Not violently.
Firmly.
The officer shoved him backward.
“Do not touch me.”
The father hit the side of the hypercar with one shoulder but remained standing.
The CEO stepped between them.
“Enough.”
The officer pointed toward the module.
“That is company security equipment.”
The CEO stared.
“You said you didn’t know what it was.”
Silence.
There it was.
The officer’s jaw tightened.
He shifted.
The single father said:
“Ma’am, do not get in that SUV.”
The officer snapped:
“Stay out of this.”
The father looked at him.
“I was planning to.”
“Then you put hands on me.”
“You tried to take evidence.”
The officer moved toward him again.
The CEO stepped between.
“Back up.”
“Ma’am—”
“Back.”
He obeyed.
Barely.
The CEO raised her phone.
It was still recording.
She showed him the screen.
His face changed.
“Everything since you walked over is on video.”
The officer looked toward the highway.
A state patrol vehicle appeared in the far distance.
The single father saw it too.
The security officer stepped backward.
“We will wait in our vehicle.”
The CEO asked:
“For what?”
“Instructions.”
“From whom?”
No answer.
He returned toward the SUV.
The CEO watched him.
Then said:
“Tell the driver not to leave.”
The officer kept walking.
The SUV door closed.
The patrol car came closer.