Marcus waited.
"Who?"
Iris spoke quietly.
"Harold Bennett."
Marcus stared at the phone.
The regional deputy commissioner had been involved long before the Eastbridge case.
His father's investigation had apparently exposed the same operation years earlier.
And the records had been altered to erase the connection.
Marcus looked toward the office door.
The investigation had begun with a police officer attacking an unfamiliar visitor.
It had led to a hidden archive, forty-nine disputed cases, a forged signature, and a network of officials.
Now it had reached his own family.
He lowered his voice.
"Iris, listen carefully. Do not move. Do not contact anyone else. I will arrange for the independent team to verify your location and secure you."
"Please hurry."
"I will."
He ended the call.
Marcus immediately contacted Director Mitchell.
"I need to update you. We have reason to believe the investigation involves an older case connected to my father."
Mitchell listened.
"Do you have evidence?"
"Not yet. Iris says Daniel Price has a recorded statement and a letter."
"Then we need to locate those materials."
"Agreed."
Marcus paused.
"And I need to tell you something else. Someone may be attempting to impersonate members of the witness protection team."
Mitchell's voice became firm.
"Do not allow anyone to approach Iris until their identity has been independently verified."
"That's exactly what I told her."
"We'll send a verified team immediately."
Marcus looked toward the window.
Outside, the city was becoming dark.
The first day of his command had revealed more than he could have imagined.
But the most disturbing discovery was no longer the misconduct inside the department.
It was the possibility that his father had tried to expose the same people years earlier—and that the truth had been buried before Marcus ever understood what was happening.
He picked up the folder containing the Eastbridge records.
At the top of the page was his own name.
Beneath it was the forged approval.
And beside the approval was a handwritten note:
CLOSE THE FILE BEFORE THE NEW REVIEW BEGINS.
Marcus read the words again.
Someone had known that a new commander would eventually arrive.
Someone had prepared for the possibility that the old cases might be reviewed.
And someone had decided that the easiest way to protect the operation was to make sure Marcus never reached the entrance without being stopped.
He closed the folder.
Then he called Daniel Kim.
"Sergeant, I need you to come to my office immediately."
"On my way, Commander."
"Bring the latest information about Deputy Commissioner Bennett, Graham Voss, and Officer Turner."
"Yes, sir."
Marcus looked at the clock.
The meeting at the regional administration building was less than twenty-four hours away.
The remaining evidence might be moved before then.
The witnesses might be intimidated.
And the people responsible might already be preparing a story that placed all the blame on a few junior officers.
He had to establish the truth before that happened.
When Daniel entered, Marcus placed three documents on the desk.
The first was the surveillance photograph of Voss and Briggs.
The second was the evidence transfer ledger.
The third was the message warning that Marcus's name had already been placed on a list.
Daniel looked at the documents.
"What are we doing, sir?"
Marcus looked at him.
"We're finding out who ordered the original files to disappear."
Daniel nodded.
"And if the deputy commissioner is involved?"
Marcus paused.
"Then the investigation must go wherever the evidence leads."
He looked toward the window.
"Even if it reaches the highest office in the department."
Daniel stood quietly.
For the first time, he understood the full scale of the problem.
This was no longer a matter of one officer losing control outside the headquarters.
It was a question of whether the department could investigate the people who had spent years controlling its records.
Marcus gathered the documents.
"Let's get to work."
And somewhere across the city, in a locked office inside the regional administration building, Harold Bennett was already reviewing a list of names.
The list contained the officers, witnesses, contractors, and officials connected to the forty-nine disputed cases.
At the bottom was one final entry.
Marcus Reed.
Bennett stared at the name.
Then he picked up his phone.
"Is the remaining archive secure?"
A voice answered.
"For now."
"Can the files be moved tonight?"
"We can move them, but the preservation request may complicate things."
Bennett looked toward the dark window.
"Then we need another solution."
The voice on the phone hesitated.
"What about the commander?"
Bennett remained silent for a moment.
Then he spoke.
"He's already seen too much."
He ended the call.
On the desk in front of him was a photograph of Marcus standing outside Riverton Police Headquarters.
The image had been taken before the confrontation.
Bennett turned it over.
On the back, someone had written a single sentence:
MAKE SURE HE NEVER FINDS THE ORIGINAL FILE.
Marcus exposed the conspiracy, cleared his father's name, and restored all 49 cases. Voss and Bennett were arrested. Officer Briggs faced dismissal and criminal charges. Months later, Marcus stood outside headquarters, knowing justice had finally prevailed. This time, everyone knew exactly who he was.