Ben’s locked backpack and confiscated phone at the cafe — Then the security camera footage reveals who actually started the fight
Chapter 4 — Ben points out the missing phone
Ben shook his head and kept his finger pressed near the corner of the Dell monitor.
“It skips right over what happened before you grabbed the backpack,” Ben said.
Mark pulled his hand back from the mouse.
“The system records in automated compressed loops,” Mark replied.
“Sometimes the frame rate drops.”
“That is not a frame rate drop,” Sarah said.
“That is four entire minutes missing.”
“The bag is all that matters here,” Mark insisted.
“It was sitting on the front counter in violation of closing rules.”
“My backpack wasn’t even the first thing you took,” Ben said.
The cafe grew noticeably quieter.
The hum of the espresso machine behind the counter sputtered out.
Sarah turned her full attention toward her nephew.
“What do you mean, your backpack wasn’t the first thing?” Sarah asked.
Ben looked directly at Mark across the wooden counter.
“He took my phone off the counter first,” Ben said.
“Before the backpack was even touched.”
Mark raised his chin.
“Your phone was sitting right next to the register,” Mark said.
“Personal devices are not allowed on the service floor during operating hours.”
“You didn’t just tell me to put it away,” Ben said.
“You walked over and picked it straight off the counter.”
“Sarah demanded to know where the phone is currently being held.”
“If you confiscated a minor’s personal property, I want it back right now,” Sarah said.
Her voice rose slightly, carrying across the empty dining area.
Mark crossed his arms and shook his head.
“I didn’t take any phone,” Mark said.
“It was left unattended on the counter.”
“I saw you pick it up,” a voice called out from the back hallway.
Karen, one of the afternoon shift bakers, stepped out through the swinging kitchen door.
She wiped her hands on a cloth and looked straight at Mark.
