The original Daniel Price arrest had taken place on a rainy evening in October.
According to the official report, Harlan and Officer Bell had stopped Price after observing him driving erratically near a closed shopping center.
The report claimed that Price became aggressive when asked to leave his vehicle.
It further stated that Harlan discovered a handgun beneath the driver's seat and narcotics inside a backpack.
Price was arrested.
The weapon and drugs were entered into evidence.
The case proceeded through the courts.
And Price went to prison.
But the arrest had one detail that had always troubled Olivia.
The shopping center had a private security system.
Its cameras covered the parking lot, the entrance roads, and almost every space surrounding the building.
If the arrest had happened where Harlan claimed, there should have been footage.
Yet the original case file contained only a short statement from a security employee saying that the cameras had been malfunctioning that evening.
No maintenance report supported the claim.
No technical explanation had been provided.
And the employee who signed the statement had left the company shortly afterward.
Olivia entered the records room and approached the computer terminal.
Sarah followed.
"You're looking for the Price evidence inventory?"
"Among other things."
Olivia accessed the department's digital case management system.
She entered the case number and waited.
The screen displayed a list of documents.
Arrest report.
Witness statements.
Evidence inventory.
Photographs.
Court submission.
Surveillance footage.
Olivia stopped.
"Sarah."
"What?"
"Look at the last entry."
Sarah leaned over.
The system showed a surveillance recording uploaded three years earlier.
Its status was marked:
FILE UNAVAILABLE β ORIGINAL STORAGE DEVICE NOT LOCATED.
Olivia clicked the entry.
A second window opened.
It showed the upload date, the user account, and a technical note.
The recording had been uploaded at 8:16 p.m. on the night of the arrest.
Its original filename was visible.
WESTBRIDGE_MALL_CAM_04_1017.
But the file had been deleted from the department server at 11:43 p.m.
Olivia stared at the timestamp.
The same time that the evidence inventory had been modified.
"That's not a coincidence," Sarah said.
"No."
Olivia printed the system log.
Then she opened the access history.
Three separate users had accessed the recording before it disappeared.
Officer Thomas Bell.
Sergeant Richard Harlan.
And an administrative account assigned to Captain Daniel Mercer.
Sarah stepped back.
"Why would Mercer access it?"
Olivia didn't answer.
She was examining another line.
The administrative account had accessed the file at 11:38 p.m., five minutes before its deletion.
"Maybe he was reviewing the case," Sarah suggested.
"Maybe."
"But?"
Olivia pointed to the next entry.
"The deletion command was executed from Harlan's workstation."
Sarah's mouth fell open.
"You're saying he deleted the recording?"
"I'm saying the system identifies his workstation as the source. We still need to establish who was using it."
Olivia copied the access log onto an encrypted drive.
Then she noticed something else.
The original recording had been uploaded by a civilian technician named Peter Lawson.
According to the employee directory, Lawson had left the shopping center two months after the arrest.
His current address was listed in an old personnel record.
Olivia wrote it down.
"Let's find him."
Before Sarah could answer, the records room door opened.
Captain Mercer entered.
"Detective Brooks."
Olivia turned.
"Captain."
"I need to speak with you."
Sarah immediately gathered her papers.
"I'll be outside."
Mercer nodded.
Once the door closed, he looked at the printed logs in Olivia's hand.
"What are you doing with those?"
"Reviewing the Price case."
"I thought that matter was assigned to Internal Affairs."
"It is. I'm assisting."
"Who authorized you?"
"Lieutenant Reed."
Mercer rubbed his forehead.
"Olivia, this is becoming complicated."
"It became complicated when evidence disappeared."
He looked at her sharply.
"Be careful about making accusations."
"I'm not making accusations. I'm identifying discrepancies."
Mercer pulled out a chair.
"Sit down."
Olivia remained standing.
He sighed.
"Richard Harlan is a difficult man. Everyone knows that. But he has served this department for twenty-six years. You cannot destroy someone's career based on an incomplete computer record."
"Then we should find the missing recording."
Mercer looked away.
"That recording doesn't exist anymore."
"How do you know?"
"Because it was lost."
"Lost or deleted?"
"Detective, I am telling you what the department's records show."
Olivia placed the printed log on the table.
"The department's records show it was uploaded, accessed, and deleted within three and a half hours."
Mercer stared at the page.
For a moment, something resembling fear crossed his face.
Then he stood.
"Do not contact Peter Lawson without coordinating with Internal Affairs."
"Why?"
"Because I said so."
Olivia studied him.
"Captain, did you authorize the deletion of this recording?"
His face hardened.
"That's enough."
He walked toward the door.
But before leaving, he turned around.
"One more thing. Sergeant Harlan has filed a formal complaint against you."
Olivia raised an eyebrow.
"On what grounds?"
"Insurbordination. Unauthorized access to restricted information. Interference with an ongoing departmental matter."
Olivia almost smiled.
"Interesting."
"What is?"
"That he filed a complaint after tearing open the report documenting his own investigation."
Mercer didn't respond.
He simply left.
Olivia looked down at the computer log again.
Then she noticed the smallest detail at the bottom of the page.
The original recording had been copied to an external device before deletion.
The device identification number was listed.
Someone had preserved a copy.
And that meant the truth might still exist.