The officer got more serious. “These must be quite valuable,” he said. “How does someone like you come across such expensive items?” Jenny’s thoughts raced. The officer was insinuating that she, a history teacher, had stolen these materials, assuming they were valuable artifacts. The absurdity of the situation would have been laughable if it weren’t so terrifying.
Jenny’s palms grew clammy as she struggled to maintain her composure under the officer’s accusing gaze. The night air felt heavy around them, carrying the faint scent of pine from the nearby woods, a stark contrast to the tension that hung between them. This was wrong on so many levels. When was he going to realize that she wasn’t doing anything wrong? Why did he treat her like a criminal?