Because outside the internet, his life still contained actual people.
People who knew him before a twenty-seven-second video made him recognizable.
He called Captain Ellis.
The captain answered immediately.
“How’s the shoulder?”
“Fine.”
“That means it hurts.”
“Only if I move it.”
“Jordan.”
“I’m joking.”
The captain sighed.
“Your mother already called me.”
Jordan closed his eyes.
“She did what?”
“At seven this morning.”
“It’s five forty-five.”
“I have regrets about answering unknown numbers.”
Jordan laughed.
Captain Ellis continued.
“Internal Affairs from the local department wants another statement.”
“I gave one last night.”
“They want a supplemental interview after reviewing dispatch audio.”
“Anything new?”
A pause.
“Yes.”
Jordan sat straighter.
“What?”
“The officer did not call dispatch to verify your organization.”
“I know.”
“There’s more.”
Jordan waited.
“He searched the state law-enforcement database for your last name after the convoy arrived.”
Jordan frowned.
“After?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“We don’t know yet.”
“So he refused to verify me while I was kneeling, then verified me after he realized the convoy was real?”
“Looks that way.”
Jordan stared at the wall.
That bothered him more than he expected.
“Jordan?”
“I’m here.”
Captain Ellis softened.
“You don’t have to do the interview today.”
“Yes, I do.”
“You really don’t.”
“I know.”
“Then why?”
Jordan looked toward the uniform.
“Because memory gets cleaner the longer people sit with it.”
The captain was silent.
Jordan continued.
“I want to give mine while it’s still ugly.”
Captain Ellis exhaled.
“Your father taught you that?”
“Some of it.”
“The rest?”
Jordan smiled faintly.
“Bad experiences.”
The supplemental interview lasted two hours.
Jordan sat across from two investigators and one civilian review officer.
No cameras from news outlets.
No governor.
No mother in the room.
Just facts.
The investigator asked:
“When Officer Hale first approached, did you believe you were free to leave?”
Jordan thought.
“At first, maybe.”
“What changed?”
“When he pushed the cart away.”
“Why?”
“He put himself between me and where I was walking.”
“Did he tell you that you were detained?”
“Not immediately.”
“Did you ask?”
“Yes.”
“What was the response?”
“He asked whether I was going to make it difficult.”
The investigator wrote.
“Did you interpret that as an answer?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Jordan smiled slightly.
“Because leaving after that seemed like an excellent way to get tackled.”
No one laughed.
He appreciated that.
The civilian review officer asked:
“Did Officer Hale use racial language?”
“No.”
“Did he refer to your age?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“He said I was too young to have the ribbons.”