2-3-4 Challenge Book Discussions #1 discussion

Ken Chastain apologizes to Ballard for not backing up her harrassment claim against Olivas. Should she have accepted his apology or was her reaction appropriate (too little too late). Should she have regrets about what turned out to be their last encounter?

If I was Ballard, I would be trying to figure out why he wants to apologize now. He had her phone number. He was her partner for a while and probably knew how to track her down. He could have apologized anytime. It just felt like he decided to apologize because he was going to ask for a favor. I probably would have had the same reaction that she did.

I think he apologized because he knew he was chasing down a cop and didn’t have anyone he could trust except her. Maybe if she’d accepted his apology Ken might have confided in her in that moment. Maybe not. But, he had to have felt so alone at the time. I think her response was perfect and she should have no regrets. Let’s face it, he wasn’t willing to tell anyone he lied.

Why do you think he lied about it to begin with? Did he not want to make Olivas mad at him for backing up his partner? Did he think he would get a promotion out of it?

He definitely benefited from protecting Olivas. It got him on his Homicide Special team and became his partner.