"I heard the question."
Mercer moved closer. "Name?"
Vanessa's expression remained neutral. "Why?"
His face hardened almost immediately. "Because I'm the sheriff, and I'm asking."
Vanessa had conducted hundreds of interviews with officers accused of overstepping authority. She knew the moment when conversation stopped being about safety and became about obedience. Mercer had reached it within thirty seconds.
"Am I suspected of committing an offense?"
His eyebrows rose.
"You always answer questions with questions?"
"When the question concerns my legal obligation to identify myself, yes."
Mercer glanced toward her car. "Rental?" Vanessa said nothing. "I asked if it's a rental." "You can read the plate." His mouth tightened.
Two deputies arrived in another cruiser and parked behind him. Neither activated emergency lights. They stepped out slowly, watching Vanessa as though Mercer's attention alone had transformed her into a threat.