I stepped inside the Commisioner’s office and entered another world. Leather couches, windows with curtains, and a bowl full of Hershey’s kisses placed neatly on a glass coffee table.

I felt like I was in an office at Trump Tower.

“Can I help you?” A detective approached me.

“Yeah, I have a letter here for the Commissioner requesting an urgent meeting?”

“Hmm, let me get one of our secretaries here.” He got on his phone and buzzed her. When she came in and spoke with me, I learned I didn’t even have to write a letter, I could have just shown up in person and requested a meeting right then and there.

“Are you kidding me??” Man, I was getting jerked around by everyone. Whoever I spoke to earlier about getting a meeting must have thought I was the press and made up that B.S. excuse about a letter just to get rid of me. The secretary I was speaking to now buzzed in one of the chief detectives, who read my letter and asked me a few questions. He then told me the commish was unavailable but that I would be getting a call back soon.

My hopes bolstered a bit, I left and stopped by my union office. Even though I didn’t show up in my section, I was dressed and ready to work, I wanted my union president to note that I had shown up at their office ready to work, and to inform my supervisors where I was.

The union president wasn’t there though, and not quite sure what to do with me, the secretary there led me to the vice president, who then took me into the conference room so we could discuss the problem. They tried to call my union rep several times, but she apparently disappeared off the face of the earth, so it would just be me and the VP. After we sat down, once again I was being subjected to the same tired old arguments: she hadn’t done anything to me yet, I had no standing, I’m putting myself in jeopardy by not coming to work, blah blah blah…

Whatever. I did take their advice and called in Time Office to let them know I’d be taking off another day. They had to clear it with the head of my division first, who let them know that while they’ll approve more vacation time, they wanted me to know that I was being foolish burning up time like I was. No indication at all that they would move Devil Woman either. It was just something I had to accept, and I could either continue to burn up time, or get AWOLed, or worse.

At that point it occurred to me that the Commish’s office may have been blowing me off too. All I had was the promise that they would call me up, but I had no idea when. Meanwhile I was still burning up time here. I decided to go back, and simply squat there until I got some attention. They did have nice leather couches after all, so I could wait all day if I had too.

I went back, spoke to the same detective I met earlier, and it finally began to dawn on him that I simply wasn’t going away. He got up to go get the Chief of Police. Chief of Police comes down, asks me to walk with him back to his office.

And that’s when the real confrontation began.