Before she could begin, the telephone on Adrian's desk rang.
The display showed an internal extension.
Adrian answered.
Adrian Cole: "Chief Cole."
There was a brief pause.
Then a man's voice came through the receiver.
It was James Vance.
James Vance: "Chief, I think we need to talk immediately."
Adrian glanced at Elena.
Adrian Cole: "About what?"
Vance's voice became quieter.
James Vance: "Someone has been asking questions about the old financial records. I think you should know that certain files are not where they're supposed to be."
Adrian straightened.
Adrian Cole: "Which files?"
Another pause.
James Vance: "The ones connected to the archive you may have heard about."
Adrian looked down at Elena's notebook.
The words SHADOW VAULT were still visible on the open page.
Adrian Cole: "Where are you, Deputy Chief?"
James Vance: "In my office."
Adrian Cole: "Stay there. Don't touch any documents. I'll come to you."
He ended the call.
Elena watched him carefully.
Elena Alvarez: "He knows about it."
Adrian picked up the notebook and placed it inside his briefcase.
Adrian Cole: "It appears he does."
Elena stood.
Elena Alvarez: "Chief, if those records are what I think they are, you need to be careful. There are people here who will do anything to keep them hidden."
Adrian looked toward the office door.
Adrian Cole: "Then we'd better find out what they're protecting."
He stepped into the corridor.
For the first time that morning, the officers who saw him walking toward the deputy chief's office did not look away.
They watched him.
Some appeared curious.
Others appeared worried.
And somewhere inside the department, someone was already making a telephone call that was never supposed to be recorded.
The investigation had barely begun, but the people responsible for keeping Bellwood's secrets were beginning to realize that the new chief was not going to leave them alone.
Adrian reached the end of the corridor.
He stopped outside James Vance's office.
The door was closed.
Through the narrow glass panel, he could see the deputy chief standing beside his desk, holding a thick folder.
Adrian knocked once.
Vance looked up.
For a moment, their eyes met through the glass.
Then the deputy chief slowly placed the folder inside a drawer.
And Adrian opened the door.
Adrian opened the door and stepped inside.
James Vance stood behind his desk, one hand resting on a closed folder. His expression was composed, but there was something unusual about the way he looked at the new chief.
It was not the expression of a man welcoming his superior.
It was the expression of someone trying to determine how much the other person already knew.
James Vance: "Chief. I wasn't expecting you so quickly."
Adrian Cole: "You said there was a problem with the records."
Vance glanced toward the folder.
James Vance: "Yes. Some documents appear to have been moved from their original storage location."
Adrian walked toward the desk.
Adrian Cole: "Which documents?"
Vance hesitated.
James Vance: "Financial records. Several old investigative files. Nothing that should affect current operations."
Adrian looked at the folder beneath his hand.
Adrian Cole: "Then why did you sound so concerned on the telephone?"
Vance slowly withdrew his hand.
James Vance: "Because I don't want you making decisions based on incomplete information."
Adrian remained standing.
Adrian Cole: "That's exactly why I intend to examine the original records."
Vance opened the folder and removed several pages.
They contained inventory references, transfer dates, and signatures from officers who had supposedly authorized the movement of archived materials.
Adrian examined the first page.
Then the second.
Several signatures appeared repeatedly.
One belonged to a former evidence supervisor who had retired two years earlier.
Another belonged to an administrative employee who had been transferred to another city.
A third signature appeared to belong to an officer who had never worked in the evidence division.
Adrian placed the documents on the desk.
Adrian Cole: "Who authorized these transfers?"
James Vance: "The records department handled most of them."
Adrian Cole: "That isn't what I asked."
Vance looked toward the window.
James Vance: "Some of the transfers were approved at the command level."
Adrian Cole: "By whom?"
Vance did not answer.
Adrian moved closer to the desk.
Adrian Cole: "Deputy Chief, I need a direct answer."
Vance finally looked at him.