Chapter 4: The Other Drivers
Elena walked toward the waiting vehicles.
She asked the drivers to continue using the charging queue once Daniel finished.
Then she returned to the management office to check the station records and recent complaints.
Daniel remained beside his car.
Karen remained beside hers.
Neither spoke.
For the first time, the parking lot felt almost normal.
Then Daniel noticed an older couple sitting inside a nearby electric SUV.
The husband lowered his window.
“Did she really ask you for twenty dollars?”
Daniel nodded.
“She did.”
The woman in the passenger seat shook her head.
“We thought we were misunderstanding what was happening.”
Daniel smiled faintly.
“You weren’t.”
The couple explained that they had been waiting nearly ten minutes because they weren’t sure whether Karen actually had some authority over the station.
That detail stayed with Daniel.
Karen hadn’t merely delayed him.
Her confidence had caused several other people to doubt their own right to use a public service.
Daniel looked toward her.
Karen was checking her phone.
She seemed less angry now.
More calculating.
A few minutes later, Elena returned.
She held a tablet in one hand.
“Daniel?”
“Yes?”
“We checked the station records.”
Daniel waited.
Elena explained that management had received two earlier complaints that week about someone approaching drivers near the chargers and telling them the spaces were “reserved.”
Neither complaint had included a name.
Neither had been formally investigated because the drivers left before staff arrived.
Daniel looked toward Karen.
Karen’s head snapped up.
“That wasn’t me.”
Elena didn’t accuse her.
“I didn’t say it was.”
Karen looked uncomfortable.
Elena continued.
“We’re going to review the security footage from those incidents.”
Karen immediately became defensive.
“Why?”
“Because today you told a driver that you were authorized to control the charger.”
“I was confused.”
“You were very specific.”
Karen looked at Daniel.
Then at the security officer.
Then back at Elena.
“I was trying to keep people from abusing the station.”
Daniel frowned.
“You demanded twenty dollars.”
“I was trying to discourage people from taking the space.”
“That’s not your job,” Elena said.
Karen’s shoulders rose.
“And what happens when people misuse the charger? Who deals with that?”
Elena answered simply.
“Management does.”
Karen looked at the charger.
Then at the line of cars.
For a moment, Daniel thought she might finally walk away.
Instead, she asked Elena a different question.
“So what are you going to do about him?”
Daniel looked up.
“About me?”
Karen pointed toward the charger.
“He took the spot after I told him not to.”
Elena looked at Daniel.
“He followed the posted charging procedure.”
Karen stared at her.
Then something in her expression changed.
She wasn’t fighting for the charger anymore.
She was fighting to preserve the story that she had been entitled to control it.
Elena’s tablet chimed.
She glanced down at the screen.
Her expression became serious.
“We found the footage.”
Karen went completely still.
