Chapter 5
The interrogation room at the county precinct smelled faintly of old floor wax and cheap disinfectant. A single metal table sat bolted to the center of the linoleum floor, flanked by two plastic chairs. Elena sat with her hands folded neatly in front of her, the fluorescent pink paint still faintly staining the cuticles of her fingers despite her hurried attempt to scrub them off in the precinct restroom.
The heavy steel door swung open with a metallic groan, and Officer Miller entered, followed closely by a tall man in a rumpled brown suit. Detective Vance. He dropped a thick manila folder onto the metal table with a sharp slap that echoed in the small space. Vance didn't sit down immediately; instead, he leaned against the doorframe, studying Elena with the tired, cynical eyes of a man who had seen every variety of human folly.
"Vandalism, trespassing, and resisting polite cooperation," Vance recited, reading from a handwritten note on the folder. "That's a nice little trilogy of charges you've racked up today, Ms. Vance. Wait, your last name isn't Vance. It's Hayes. Elena Hayes. Former senior compliance auditor for GreenHorizon Energy."
Elena looked up, her expression calm and unyielding. "I was a compliance auditor until I found out they were falsifying soil toxicity data to fast-track residential solar installations on contaminated industrial runoff zones. When I tried to file an internal stop-work order, they fired me and threatened my family."
Detective Vance sighed, pulling out the chair opposite her and sitting down heavily. He rubbed his eyes with thumb and forefinger before looking back up. "That's a very serious accusation, Ms. Hayes. But dropping pink paint on a private citizen's roof doesn't make it true. In fact, it makes you look unstable."
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"The homeowner—Leo—he knows about Oakridge," Elena said, leaning forward. "His brother was Marcus Thorne. Marcus was the lead inspector who cleared that site before the cover-up began. Leo thinks his brother vanished because he took bribes. I have the digital ledger proving Marcus was murdered to keep him quiet."
The room went dead silent. The heavy air seemed to press down from the ceiling as Detective Vance slowly lowered his hands from his face. He stared at Elena for a long, agonizing moment, his cynical demeanor evaporating to reveal a sudden, sharp intensity. Before Vance could respond, the door pushed open again, revealing Leo standing in the hallway, still wearing his grey t-shirt, looking pale and resolute.
