A police chief did not normally wait for his deputy to tell him how to respond to an authorized inspection.
Unless the deputy knew something the chief did not.
Or unless both men were involved.
Alina turned toward Ryan.
ALINA BROOKS: "Officer Mitchell, I need you to remain available for a formal statement."
RYAN MITCHELL: "About what?"
ALINA BROOKS: "The incident involving my identification, your physical contact with me, and your refusal to cooperate with the inspection."
RYAN MITCHELL: "I already explained what happened."
ALINA BROOKS: "You gave your version. It will be compared with the video recording and witness statements."
RYAN MITCHELL: "You keep acting like you're going to ruin my career."
ALINA BROOKS: "Your career is not my concern. The truth is."
Ryan looked away.
For the first time, he seemed unable to find an answer that would make him look powerful.
Meanwhile, Captain Whitaker had reached the security office.
He instructed the security supervisor to preserve the camera recordings covering the operations floor, the reception area, and the evidence administration corridor.
The supervisor confirmed that the cameras were functioning.
But when he attempted to access the recording from the previous thirty minutes, an error message appeared.
The file could not be retrieved.
Captain Whitaker frowned.
CAPTAIN HAROLD WHITAKER: "Try the backup system."
SECURITY SUPERVISOR: "I'm trying, sir."
A few seconds passed.
SECURITY SUPERVISOR: "The backup file is missing too."
Whitaker looked at him.
CAPTAIN HAROLD WHITAKER: "What do you mean missing?"
SECURITY SUPERVISOR: "The system shows that the footage was scheduled for deletion."
CAPTAIN HAROLD WHITAKER: "Scheduled by whom?"
The supervisor opened the audit record.
His face changed.
SECURITY SUPERVISOR: "The request came from an administrative account."
CAPTAIN HAROLD WHITAKER: "Whose account?"
SECURITY SUPERVISOR: "Deputy Chief Lawson's."
Whitaker stared at the screen.
He immediately called Alina.
A few moments later, she entered the security office with Nathan Brooks, a federal technical investigator who had arrived with the response team.
Nathan examined the screen.
NATHAN BROOKS: "This isn't an ordinary deletion."
ALINA BROOKS: "Explain."
NATHAN BROOKS: "The footage was not simply removed from the active directory. Someone submitted a request to purge the backup copy as well."
ALINA BROOKS: "Can it be recovered?"
NATHAN BROOKS: "Possibly. The system may retain fragments in its temporary storage."
He examined the access history.
NATHAN BROOKS: "The request was submitted at 10:29."
ALINA BROOKS: "Three minutes after the first inventory access."
NATHAN BROOKS: "Correct."
ALINA BROOKS: "And the account?"
NATHAN BROOKS: "Deputy Chief Lawson."
Alina looked at Whitaker.
ALINA BROOKS: "Did you authorize him to delete security footage?"
CAPTAIN HAROLD WHITAKER: "No."
ALINA BROOKS: "Does he normally have authority to delete recordings involving an active inspection?"
CAPTAIN HAROLD WHITAKER: "No. The department's policy requires a separate retention approval. Even the chief cannot authorize deletion when a formal preservation notice has been issued."
Alina looked back at Nathan.
ALINA BROOKS: "Recover whatever you can. Make a forensic copy of the entire system before anyone attempts another access."
Nathan nodded.
NATHAN BROOKS: "Understood."
Alina returned to the operations floor.
Lawson was still standing beside the chief.
When he saw her, he straightened.
ROBERT LAWSON: "I understand you've been asking about the security footage."
ALINA BROOKS: "Yes."
ROBERT LAWSON: "There may be an explanation. The system automatically deletes older recordings."
ALINA BROOKS: "The footage was scheduled for deletion three minutes after the evidence inventory was accessed."
ROBERT LAWSON: "That doesn't prove anything."
ALINA BROOKS: "I agree. That's why we're preserving the access records."
ROBERT LAWSON: "You're making this personal."
ALINA BROOKS: "I haven't mentioned anything personal."
Lawson lowered his voice.
ROBERT LAWSON: "You need to understand something, Agent. This department has been operating for decades. We have procedures, responsibilities, and a chain of command. You cannot arrive here and expect everyone to abandon their work because you have a federal document."
ALINA BROOKS: "I don't expect anyone to abandon their work. I expect them to stop interfering with an authorized inspection."
ROBERT LAWSON: "And what if your inspection disrupts active investigations?"
ALINA BROOKS: "Then the affected cases will be protected through proper procedures."
ROBERT LAWSON: "You could damage innocent officers."
ALINA BROOKS: "The best way to protect innocent officers is to preserve the evidence and establish what actually happened."
Lawson stepped closer.
ROBERT LAWSON: "Some of these officers have families. They have served this city for years."