Most colleagues considered him hardworking.
Some also found him unnecessarily confrontational.
During the previous year, he had accepted several approved off-duty assignments through the private security company.
The extra income helped him pay personal debts.
He enjoyed the work.
And he appreciated the attention he received from the company's president, who treated police officers as important men deserving special privileges.
Over time, the relationship became less formal.
The president invited certain officers to private events.
His managers paid for meals.
And a security coordinator sometimes contacted Cole directly about neighborhood complaints.
Not every contact was improper.
But the boundaries gradually weakened.
Cole began thinking of the company's priorities as extensions of his own policing responsibilities.
When the security coordinator complained about troublesome residents, Cole often accepted those descriptions without asking enough questions.
When he heard that Marcus was challenging the company, he assumed the former soldier was simply another angry man trying to make police work difficult.
He had never met Marcus.
He knew nothing about his daughter.
He knew nothing about the promises Marcus made to his dying wife.
He saw only a photograph of a muscular Black man speaking confidently at a council meeting.
Then the coordinator told him Marcus had been harassing security workers.
Cole accepted the accusation.
A few days before the birthday, the coordinator contacted him again.
There might be a disturbance at Marcus's home, he said.
Neighbors had complained about gatherings.
Marcus supposedly became hostile when challenged.
And if police needed to respond, they should be prepared for resistance.
Cole frowned.
“Is there an actual complaint?”
The coordinator smiled.
“There will be.”
The officer should have stopped the conversation there.
He should have recognized the warning signs.
A private contractor predicting a police complaint about a specific resident before anything happened.
A businessman angry with that resident.
And pressure to treat the man as dangerous.
Instead, Cole asked what kind of disturbance was expected.
The coordinator said loud music, possible disorderly behavior, and refusal to comply with neighborhood expectations.
Cole shook his head.
“Sounds like somebody needs a lesson.”
The coordinator smiled.
“That's what we're hoping you'll help with.”