OFFICER DANIEL REED: "He said I needed a reason to detain you."
JACK MORGAN: "That isn't the same as answering my question."
Daniel's fingers tightened.
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "He told me that if I found something suspicious, I should handle it before you reached the evidence office. I understood what he meant."
JACK MORGAN: "So you planted the packet yourself."
Daniel nodded.
For several seconds, no one spoke.
The admission was significant. It connected the false arrest directly to an instruction from a senior officer, although investigators would still need independent evidence to establish the full chain of responsibility.
JACK MORGAN: "Why did you agree?"
Daniel stared at the table.
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "Because I had already done it before."
Jack waited.
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "The first time, I was told a suspect was dangerous and that the case would collapse without stronger evidence. I thought I was helping put away someone who deserved it. After that, they kept asking me to do the same thing."
JACK MORGAN: "And when you realized the arrests were false?"
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "By then, I knew too much. They had records of my actions. If I refused, they could expose what I'd done and make sure I took the blame for everything."
JACK MORGAN: "You were still responsible for your decisions."
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "I know."
For the first time, Daniel's voice broke.
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "I know I had a choice. I just kept telling myself I didn't."
Jack studied him.
The officer's fear might have been genuine, but it did not erase the people he had harmed. Every false arrest had affected someone who had trusted the justice system to treat them fairly. Some had lost months of their lives. Others had lost opportunities they would never recover.
JACK MORGAN: "Who was the person giving the orders?"
Daniel hesitated.
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "Victor Cross. He never spoke to me directly, but Hale said Cross was paying for the operation. Shaw made sure the department stayed quiet."
JACK MORGAN: "Did you receive money?"
Daniel nodded.
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "Payments through a consulting company. I was told they were compensation for special assignments."
JACK MORGAN: "Did you believe that?"
Daniel looked up.
OFFICER DANIEL REED: "Not after the second time."
The interview continued for several hours. Daniel identified additional officers, described the process used to manufacture arrest reports, and explained how evidence was transferred between cases to create the appearance of a legitimate discovery.
His testimony was not enough by itself to establish every allegation, but it gave investigators a roadmap.
They now knew which records to seek, which witnesses to interview, and which transactions required further examination.
The next challenge was Victor Cross.
By the afternoon, investigators had confirmed that Cross's private aircraft had not departed as scheduled. His assistant claimed he was attending a meeting at a hotel outside Westbridge, but the hotel denied having a reservation under his name.
A search of company records revealed that several employees had resigned abruptly in the previous month. One had transferred overseas. Another had deleted professional accounts and stopped responding to colleagues.
Cross appeared to be preparing for the possibility that his business would be investigated.
Jack and Laura reviewed the latest intelligence in the command center.
LAURA BENNETT: "We have enough to request additional warrants, but we still need a direct connection between Cross and the instructions given to Reed."
JACK MORGAN: "Foster's records may establish that connection."
LAURA BENNETT: "If the missing files are intact."
JACK MORGAN: "Then we find them."
The breakthrough came from an unexpected source.
Melissa Grant, Shaw's executive assistant, contacted the federal prosecutor through her lawyer. She had learned that investigators were reviewing the department's administrative accounts and wanted to provide information before the inquiry expanded.
Her interview was arranged at a secure location.
Jack entered the room with Laura and found Melissa sitting beside her attorney. She looked exhausted and anxious, but she had brought a folder containing printed emails, calendar entries, and financial records.
MELISSA GRANT: "I didn't know what the payments were for at first."
JACK MORGAN: "When did you become suspicious?"
MELISSA GRANT: "When I was asked to schedule meetings that weren't entered into the official calendar. Shaw would meet with Victor Cross privately, and afterward I'd receive instructions to move certain files into restricted storage."
JACK MORGAN: "What files?"
MELISSA GRANT: "Evidence-transfer reports. Complaints against officers. Sometimes personnel records."