Chapter 21: Administrative Leave and Psychological Counseling

“Name?”
“Ausi.”
“Age?”
“Twenty-three. Wait, don’t you already know all this? Why bother asking?”
“It’s just procedure, you know. Bear with it.”

It was the same conference room as last time. Ausi sat in the same seat, waiting for the Bureau of Internal Affairs’ review. Only this time, the hearing was presided over by Sam, the same agent who managed the previous investigation.

Ausi asked curiously, “Why is it you this time? Where’s Steve? He didn’t get fired, did he?”
“You’re overthinking it. A single report isn’t enough to get an Internal Affairs agent dismissed. We get one or two every day. Steve just doesn’t want to see you, so they switched him out for me.” Sam had received Ausi’s complaint, but he acted as if it meant nothing. “Steve’s young, thin-skinned. I’m different—older, so I don’t care.”
That made sense; these people specialized in offending others. They were hardly likely to be taken down so easily—otherwise, who would dare work for Internal Affairs?

Sam, always smiling, was clearly not as harmless as he looked—a real wolf in sheep’s clothing.

“Let’s get started. I promise to cooperate and answer any questions,” Ausi said, bracing himself for interrogation.

Sam closed the folder. “No need. We already have a clear understanding of what happened. There’s no issue—you had legitimate grounds to fire your weapon, so there’s nothing else to ask.”
You’re definitely up to something, Sam!

Seeing Ausi’s skeptical expression, Sam smiled. “We’re here for internal reviews, not to s