At 10:05 a.m., the command center had become the operational headquarters of a federal investigation.
Two technicians were examining the network infrastructure. Another team was reviewing surveillance footage. Uniformed officers guarded the entrances while Special Agent Miller coordinated the external response.
Agent Bennett stood in front of a large digital display.
Twenty-three missing evidence files appeared in a numbered list.
Beside each file were details about its original case, transfer history, and last known location.
She pointed toward the seventh entry.
"This one matters most."
Miller moved closer.
"What's inside?"
"Financial records from a private security contractor called Westbridge Protective Services."
"Why is that important?"
"Because Westbridge received government contracts worth more than eighty million dollars over four years. Investigators found evidence that several contracts were awarded through manipulated bidding processes."
Collins looked up.
"That company provides security for public buildings."
"Exactly."
Bennett displayed another document.
"Three senior executives were suspected of paying bribes to secure those contracts. The investigation was about to move toward a series of public officials when the evidence disappeared."
Miller crossed his arms.
"Who was responsible for the original evidence transfer?"
Bennett looked at the screen.
"Detective Aaron Mitchell."
"Then we find Mitchell."
"That's the problem. His last known location was a parking structure near downtown Los Angeles. His vehicle was discovered abandoned the following morning."
Collins looked increasingly distressed.
"Do you think he's dead?"
"I don't know."
Bennett refused to make assumptions.
She turned toward the technicians.
"Any progress on the deleted footage?"
One of them raised his hand.
"We recovered a fragment from the secondary backup server."
"Play it."
The screen displayed a grainy hallway.
A figure wearing a dark jacket entered the evidence archive.
The person carried a small black equipment case.
At first, the face was hidden.
Then the individual turned toward the camera.
Collins leaned forward.
"That's Mercer."
The footage continued.
Mercer approached a storage cabinet, entered a code, and removed a rectangular device.
He then looked directly toward the camera.
For two seconds, he stood completely still.
Then he raised one hand and covered the lens.
Miller paused the recording.
"Timestamp?"
"Three weeks ago. Tuesday, 1:42 a.m."
Bennett stared at the frozen image.
"Can you identify the device?"
The technician enlarged the footage.
"It looks like an encrypted storage drive."
Collins shook his head.
"Why would he have access to that cabinet?"
Bennett answered without looking away.
"Because somebody gave him access."
She turned toward the commander.
"Who was responsible for supervising the evidence archive during that period?"
Collins thought for a moment.
"Deputy Chief Robert Harlan."
Miller immediately wrote down the name.
"Where is he now?"
"Administrative headquarters. He was promoted last year."
Bennett exchanged a look with Miller.
"Get his location."
A technician interrupted them.
"Agent Bennett, we have another problem."
"What?"
"The deleted access records were remotely synchronized with an external server."
"Where?"
"We're tracing the connection."
"Can you identify the account?"
The technician hesitated.
"It's registered to an individual named Daniel Mercer."
Collins shook his head.
"That doesn't prove he personally operated it."
"No," Bennett replied. "But it tells us the account was being used to control the system."
Suddenly, the building's emergency phone rang.
Everyone turned toward the sound.
Olivia picked it up.
"Central Division."
A distorted voice answered.
"Tell Agent Bennett to stop looking."
Olivia froze.
"Who is this?"
"She has no idea what she's dealing with."
Olivia looked toward Bennett.
The agent approached and activated the recording function on her phone.
"Agent Bennett speaking. Identify yourself."
A short laugh came through the line.
"Ask Commander Collins what happened to the original witness."
Bennett's eyes narrowed.
"Which witness?"
"The woman who signed the first report."
The line went dead.
Collins slowly sat down.
Bennett turned toward him.
"Who was the woman?"
The commander looked as though he had aged ten years in a single minute.
"Her name was Emily Parker."
"Where is she?"
"She worked in the department's evidence administration office."
"Did she disappear?"
Collins nodded.
"Two months ago. Her resignation was processed, but nobody could contact her afterward."
Miller looked at Bennett.
"Did she report anything?"
Collins swallowed.
"She told me that someone had been changing evidence records."
"Who?"
"I never found out."
Bennett placed both hands on the table.
"Commander, you need to tell me everything you remember."
Collins stared at the screen displaying Mercer's face.
Then he spoke quietly.
"Emily didn't just report missing evidence."
He paused.
"She said someone inside this building was preparing to destroy the entire investigation."