“Then the access records should help establish when it was last used.”
Mercer shook his head.
“I have been chief for three years. I inherited a lot of these systems. I trusted the people responsible for them.”
Claire did not interrupt.
He continued.
“If someone has been moving evidence without authorization, I need to know.”
“You will receive the findings supported by the investigation.”
“Can I suspend Cole?”
“That is an administrative decision for your department, subject to applicable procedures. I cannot direct your employment decisions.”
Mercer looked frustrated.
“Then what can you tell me?”
“I can tell you that the records require further review, that the relevant materials are being preserved, and that no one should alter or remove anything connected to the cases under examination.”
Mercer leaned back.
“Do you think this goes higher than Cole?”
Claire considered the question.
“We have not established who else, if anyone, was involved.”
Mercer looked down at his desk.
Then he said something quietly.
“I remember the previous inspector.”
Claire looked up.
“Robert Hayes?”
Mercer nodded.
“He came here last year. He asked about the evidence room.”
“What happened?”
“He had questions about some old transfers. Pike handled most of it.”
“Did Hayes complete his inspection?”
“I don't know.”
“Did he leave voluntarily?”
Mercer hesitated.
“I was told he had been reassigned.”
“By whom?”
“Pike said it was an administrative decision.”
Claire wrote that down.
“Did you speak with Hayes directly?”
“Once. Briefly.”
“What did he say?”
Mercer looked toward the window.
“He told me there were records he couldn't reconcile.”
Claire waited.
“Did he explain which records?”
“No. He said he needed more time.”
“Was he granted access?”
“I don't know.”
Claire closed her notebook.
“Chief, I need you to provide a formal statement about that conversation.”
Mercer nodded slowly.
“I will.”
24. The Second Anonymous Message
At 5:06 p.m., Claire's phone vibrated again.
Another message from the unknown number.
This time, it contained a photograph.
The image showed a page from an evidence ledger.
Claire enlarged it.
The case number was partially visible.
NR-23904.
Below it was a handwritten notation:
TRANSFER COMPLETED — R.P.
The initials were followed by a date.
The date was six months earlier.
Claire stared at the image.
She sent it to Olivia Grant.
Then she called Martin Shaw.
“Sir, I have another anonymous message.”
“What is it?”
“A photograph of a ledger page associated with NR-23904. It includes a handwritten transfer notation and the initials R.P.”
“Raymond Pike?”
“Possibly.”
“Don't assume that yet.”
“Understood.”
“Has the image been authenticated?”
“No.”
“Then treat it as an investigative lead only. Preserve the message and original file. We need to establish where it came from and whether it is genuine.”
Claire looked at the photograph again.
The initials could belong to Pike.
They could belong to someone else.
The date might be accurate or fabricated.
But the image raised a question that could no longer be ignored.
If the package had been transferred, where was the corresponding receipt?
And if the notation was genuine, why did the official ledger contain no record of the transfer?
Claire saved the file.
Then she returned to the conference room.
Olivia was waiting.
“I've sent the image to our digital team,” Grant said. “They'll examine the file metadata and source information.”
Claire nodded.
“Good.”
Grant looked at her.
“Do you think someone inside the department is trying to help us?”
“Possibly.”
“Or trying to mislead us.”
“Also possible.”
Grant smiled faintly.
“You really don't like assumptions.”
“I've seen too many investigations damaged by them.”
The two agents returned to the records.
Outside, the precinct continued operating.
Phones rang.
Officers came and went.
People were booked, processed, and released.
But behind the ordinary activity of the building, the investigation was beginning to uncover a second history—one that did not appear in the official ledger.
And somewhere inside North River Police Division, someone knew exactly what had happened to the missing evidence.
25. The Decision to Expand the Investigation
At 6:20 p.m., Martin Shaw joined a secure conference call with Claire and Olivia.
He had reviewed the preliminary preservation results.
“We have enough to expand the review,” he said.
Claire listened.
“The current discrepancies involve multiple cases, multiple dates, and at least two storage locations. We also have evidence that a prior inspection was left incomplete.”
“Agreed,” Claire said.
Shaw continued.
“We will request an independent forensic review of the evidence-management system. We will also seek the relevant access logs, archived communications, and transfer records through the appropriate process.”
“What about the lockbox in B-4?” Olivia asked.
“We will determine the proper authority to examine it. Nobody opens it informally.”
Claire nodded.
Shaw looked at her.
“Bennett, I want you to prepare a detailed chronology of the inspection, including the conduct incident involving Cole.”
“Understood.”
“Keep it factual. Include the witnesses, camera locations, preservation steps, and every record you reviewed.”
“I will.”
“Grant, coordinate the digital review and the anonymous messages.”
“Understood.”
Shaw paused.
“One more issue. We have received a request from the regional prosecutor's office asking whether the task-force evidence discrepancies may affect pending cases.”
Claire looked at Olivia.
“That is possible.”
“We cannot speculate. We need to identify which cases are affected and whether the chain of custody is reliable.”
Claire understood the significance.
If evidence had been improperly handled, the consequences could extend beyond the officers involved.
Prosecutions might be challenged.
Defendants might have grounds to question the integrity of evidence.
Cases could be delayed or dismissed.
And if narcotics had been diverted from official custody, the problem might extend beyond the precinct.
Shaw ended the call.
Claire opened a new document.
She began with the first event.
09:07 — Agent Bennett entered North River Police Division.
Then:
09:18 — Officer Daniel Cole made physical contact with Agent Bennett.
09:19 — Officer Cole took possession of Agent Bennett's federal credential wallet and discarded it in a precinct trash receptacle.
09:20 — Chief Warren Mercer intervened and directed Officer Cole to retrieve the credentials.
She continued through the records review, the discrepancies, the archive box, the basement storage room, and the anonymous messages.
She did not write that Cole was guilty.
She did not write that Pike had stolen evidence.
She did not write that the chief had knowingly concealed anything.
She wrote what she could prove.
And she identified what remained unknown.
By the time she finished, it was almost 8:00 p.m.
Olivia looked over the chronology.
“That's a lot for two days.”
Claire closed the document.
“It's a lot for one precinct.”
Grant looked toward the glass wall.
“Do you think Cole knew what he was interfering with when he threw your badge away?”
Claire considered the question.
“I think he knew I was asking for access to records he didn't want me to examine.”