Conversation · Sylvie

Yes, you absolutely should. It's awful that you lost it.

It feels like you haven't worn yours in a long-long time.

I'm going to let it slide. I don't need answers for every little thing.

Right. It's better to not ask too many questions, lest people start thinking you're a cop or something.

This exact conversation has happened before. Establishing authority before this young girl seems to have been important to you in the past. Don't go there again.

"Have you seen my gun?"

"Please, no. Not this again -- everyone saw your 'cool gun', detective..." She sounds beyond exacerbated.

"I showed you my gun? When did it happen?"

"You were trying to impress some people with it. Everyone was eating and..." She stops hesitantly, not sure if she should continue.

Sounds like it's going to be bad. Do you really want to know?

"And what? What did I do?"

"You were waving it around in everyone's face, begging them to describe it. You said it 'calms you'. And then you started making suicide jokes. It got pretty graphic."

Oh, those again? I have been trying to wean you off them.

Off of what?

You know, when you put your gun, your actual gun, on your temple and pretend to shoot your brains out? Off of that. People don't like that.

Hm, I remember this. You were screaming things like "My brains are all over the walls, painting them red. I won't be seeing it, cause these are my brains. I can't see without my brains!" Very nice visuals there.

Some poor sod was trying to eat his pudding, while you were screaming, spit flying, imitating the mercy shot right next to him... Spat some in his food, I don't think he touched it after...

People tried to back away from you or even slip out of the door, but you screamed: I AM THE GODDAMNED LAW AND YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO ME, YOU ARE ALL SUSPECTS IN A MURDER INVESTIGATION!

"Why would I threaten to kill myself?! I mean, look at this world, I would love to stay!"

There is silence on the other end of the line.

"Okay. I don't know what to say."

"Me neither."

"Yes, but what happened to my gun?" (Just conclude.)

"No idea. All I know is, next you were waving around money instead. Saying things like 'Big bucks cannot lie' and 'Guns can't buy money, but money can always buy guns'."

"It almost looked like you pawned it, but believe me, I did not ask." She sighs.

"I should have killed myself..."

"No, please, no more suicide threats! Thank god you don't have that stupid gun anymore..."

There are way more inventive ways than a gun to leave this world.

"Actually, I don't want to know. I don't want to know what happened."

"Great." There's relief in her voice. "Anything else?"

"Was it you who called the police?"

"No, not me."

"But why didn't you call? Didn't a corpse behind your workplace bother you?"

"What? Of course it bothered me! But I thought the Union already knew about the corpse."

"I meant us. You should have called the police."

"No one calls the police." You can hear her adjust the receiver in her hand. "The Union would get angry."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You know..." She seems to be looking for words. "What the Union says, goes. People listen to them and they take care of their own, which is, like, everyone here."

Garbage!

"Wait, Kim," (Lower your microphone.) "Is she speaking truth? The Union is the law around here?"

"Legally, no. In reality, yes." He looks around. "Martinaise is de facto policed by the Dockworkers' Union."

Words are not necessary to feel the lieutenant's discontent for the situation.

"I see. Maybe there's something else you can tell me about?" (Back off.)

"I don't know what to tell you, officer. I didn't call you, because I didn't want to get in trouble with the others, with the Union. I'm sorry about that."

"Tell me, why exactly did you let a corpse hang in your own backyard for weeks instead of calling us?" (Push on.)

"I... I didn't want to get in trouble with the others..."

Push her further. Show her the error of her ways.

No, don't push her. It sounds as if she's about to cry.

"Let me get this straight, you ignored the law to save your own skin?"

"I... I didn't know I had to report it... I... I thought someone would take him down eventually..." Her voice breaks.

The fucking nerves on her?! Trying to hide behind WEAKNESS. You're a GOD. An angry but JUST God.

"It's a little late for tears, isn't it? Should have used them to summon the police earlier."

You can almost hear the girl getting smaller on the other end of the line, until she almost drowns in static.

"It's okay, things happen. Not really your fault."

"Yes... I know, it's just..." She takes a deep breath before continuing. "Was there anything else?"

(Yell:) "I'M A GOD. YOU REPORT TO ME, NOT TO THE UNION -- IS IT CLEAR?"

"Hey!" The lieutenant interrupts with a flicker of anger in his eyes. "If you cannot restrain yourself then I'll be handling the interviews from now on and you can quietly take notes."

"Sorry, I don't know what came over me, I just lost it -- I might have an anger issue."

"Apparently so. Please do try to control yourself." The anger is gone from his eyes and it's almost as if his voice is softer than before.

Cop with an anger issue, underpaid, overworked and on the verge of collapse in both personal and professional life -- that's more of a rule than an exception. And the lieutenant knows this. He understands.