WILLIAM CARTER: Chief, I need to speak with you privately.
ELENA MARSHALL: That won't be necessary.
WILLIAM CARTER: I wasn't speaking to you.
ELENA MARSHALL: You're now part of an active federal investigation. Any conversation concerning the evidence should take place through the appropriate procedures.
Carter looked at her with open hostility.
WILLIAM CARTER: You seem to believe you can walk into this department and take control of everything.
ELENA MARSHALL: I believe that evidence connected to federal crimes must be preserved.
WILLIAM CARTER: You don't understand the internal structure here.
ELENA MARSHALL: I understand the structure well enough to know that someone used your credentials to access restricted records.
Carter's smile disappeared.
ELENA MARSHALL: I also understand that your name appears in communications instructing officers to remove evidence before my arrival.
Carter looked toward the chief.
CHIEF RICHARD DONOVAN: William, I think you should cooperate.
WILLIAM CARTER: You have no idea what you're talking about.
ELENA MARSHALL: We recovered the messages from the phone belonging to Daniel Price.
Carter went completely still.
ELENA MARSHALL: We also recovered the Project Clean House document.
WILLIAM CARTER: That document is fabricated.
ELENA MARSHALL: The original metadata says otherwise.
Carter looked toward the exit.
Two federal agents moved slightly closer.
WILLIAM CARTER: I want my attorney.
ELENA MARSHALL: You are entitled to legal representation.
WILLIAM CARTER: Then I have nothing else to say.
ELENA MARSHALL: That's your choice.
Carter looked at Donovan one final time.
WILLIAM CARTER: You need to remember who kept this department running.
The chief did not answer.
Carter was escorted to a separate interview area while investigators continued preserving his office and electronic records.
The operation that had once appeared untouchable was beginning to collapse.
But Elena knew that one important question remained unresolved.
Marcus Hale.
She turned toward him.
He had been standing quietly near the reception counter throughout the confrontation.
His face looked exhausted.
ELENA MARSHALL: Officer Hale.
MARCUS HALE: Yes?
ELENA MARSHALL: I need to speak with you about your involvement in the warehouse deliveries.
MARCUS HALE: I already told you what happened.
ELENA MARSHALL: I have some additional questions.
MARCUS HALE: Am I being arrested?
ELENA MARSHALL: That depends on the evidence and the results of the investigation.
Marcus swallowed.
MARCUS HALE: I was following orders.
ELENA MARSHALL: That doesn't automatically excuse unlawful conduct.
MARCUS HALE: I didn't know what was inside those packages.
ELENA MARSHALL: Did you ask?
MARCUS HALE: No.
ELENA MARSHALL: Why?
MARCUS HALE: Because Foster was my supervisor.
ELENA MARSHALL: Did you ever receive money?
Marcus hesitated.
MARCUS HALE: No.
Elena waited.
MARCUS HALE: Not directly.
ELENA MARSHALL: What does that mean?
Marcus looked down.
MARCUS HALE: Foster occasionally gave me cash for overtime. He said it came from an operational budget.
ELENA MARSHALL: How much?
MARCUS HALE: A few hundred dollars at a time.
ELENA MARSHALL: How many times?
MARCUS HALE: I don't remember exactly.
ELENA MARSHALL: Did you report those payments?
MARCUS HALE: No.
ELENA MARSHALL: Did you know the payments were unauthorized?
Marcus said nothing.
Elena continued.
ELENA MARSHALL: Officer Hale, you have two choices. You can provide a complete and truthful account of your involvement, or you can continue withholding information while investigators establish the facts independently.
Marcus looked toward Thomas.
Thomas did not speak.
He simply watched.
For the first time, Marcus seemed to understand that his position and his uniform would not protect him from the consequences of his decisions.
MARCUS HALE: I want to cooperate.
ELENA MARSHALL: Then start from the beginning.
Marcus took a deep breath.
MARCUS HALE: Foster approached me about six months ago. He said the organized crime unit needed help moving some administrative materials. He told me the department had a special arrangement with a private contractor.
ELENA MARSHALL: Did he mention the missing evidence?
MARCUS HALE: No.
ELENA MARSHALL: What happened next?
MARCUS HALE: I delivered several packages. Sometimes to the warehouse, sometimes to a vehicle outside the building.
ELENA MARSHALL: Who received them?
MARCUS HALE: Price, Foster, and occasionally Carter.
ELENA MARSHALL: Did you ever see the chief?
Marcus hesitated.
MARCUS HALE: Once.
ELENA MARSHALL: Where?
MARCUS HALE: At the warehouse.
Elena wrote down the information.
MARCUS HALE: I didn't think it was anything illegal. Everyone involved was senior to me.
ELENA MARSHALL: And when you were asked to throw away my identification?
Marcus looked at her.
MARCUS HALE: I was angry.
ELENA MARSHALL: Why?
MARCUS HALE: You questioned me in front of everyone.
ELENA MARSHALL: I asked you to verify my credentials.
MARCUS HALE: I know.
ELENA MARSHALL: And you chose to humiliate me instead.
Marcus lowered his head.
MARCUS HALE: Yes.
ELENA MARSHALL: Was that how you usually treated people who questioned your authority?
Marcus did not answer.
ELENA MARSHALL: You don't have to answer that question immediately.
She closed her notebook.
ELENA MARSHALL: But you should understand something. Respect is not something an officer can demand through intimidation. It comes from the way that officer treats the people they're supposed to protect.
Marcus looked away.
For once, he had no response.
The formal interviews continued for several hours.