SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "I told him the matter would be handled according to policy."
ADRIAN COLE: "That was the correct answer."
Daniel glanced toward the monitor showing the archived visitor records.
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "Is that related to the incident outside?"
ADRIAN COLE: "I don't know yet. But I have reason to believe there may be a larger problem with how complaints are handled here."
Daniel's expression became serious.
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "There have been rumors, sir."
ADRIAN COLE: "What kind of rumors?"
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "That certain complaints never make it beyond the front desk. Some officers believe the administrative office decides which cases deserve attention."
ADRIAN COLE: "Who told you that?"
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "I've heard it from several people over the last year. Nobody has been willing to put it in writing."
ADRIAN COLE: "Why not?"
Daniel looked toward the open doorway before answering.
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "Because people are afraid of losing their assignments. Some have been transferred after raising concerns. Others were told they were creating unnecessary problems."
Adrian slowly closed the notebook he had been holding.
ADRIAN COLE: "If an employee reports misconduct in good faith, retaliation against that employee is itself a serious matter."
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "I understand, sir."
ADRIAN COLE: "I want to know whether those rumors have a factual basis. But we will establish that through records and testimony, not assumptions."
Daniel nodded.
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "Understood."
Adrian looked once more at the visitor records.
ADRIAN COLE: "Sergeant, I want you to help preserve every complaint-related document connected to Officer Turner. Include records that were closed, withdrawn, marked resolved, or transferred to another office."
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "Should I request them from Deputy Chief Voss?"
ADRIAN COLE: "No. Send the preservation request directly to the records custodian and copy the independent oversight office."
Daniel looked surprised.
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "The independent oversight office?"
ADRIAN COLE: "Yes. I want the evidence preserved outside the normal chain of command."
Daniel understood the implication.
If the investigation concerned the administrative office itself, allowing that office to control the evidence would create an obvious conflict of interest.
SERGEANT DANIEL KIM: "I'll prepare the request."
After Daniel left, Adrian remained beside the monitor.
He had arrived that morning expecting to inspect the department's operations, meet the senior leadership team, and begin reviewing the budget for the next quarter.
Instead, he was already facing allegations involving an officer, a missing envelope, a woman who had repeatedly been denied access to the department, and a deputy chief whose name appeared in several suspicious records.
The problem was no longer simply about Blake Turner.
Adrian needed to understand what had happened to Iris Whitcomb.
He needed to find the original documents.
And he needed to know why Graham Voss had received them.
At 9:35 a.m., Adrian entered the commander's temporary office.
The room was on the second floor, overlooking the main plaza. A large wooden desk stood near the windows. Behind it was an empty bookshelf, a computer terminal, and a framed photograph of the department's former leadership team.
Adrian placed his wet jacket over the back of a chair.
A few minutes later, the door opened.
Lieutenant Samuel Price entered.
He was a white man in his early forties, with short brown hair and a neatly pressed uniform. His expression was professional, but his shoulders were tense.
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "Commander Cole. Thank you for seeing me."
ADRIAN COLE: "Please sit down, Lieutenant."
Price took the chair opposite the desk.
For several seconds, neither man spoke.
Price glanced at Adrian's damp shirt.
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "I heard about what happened outside. I'm sorry you had to experience that on your first morning."
ADRIAN COLE: "Thank you."
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "Officer Turner has always been a difficult personality, but I never expected him to behave that way in front of headquarters."
ADRIAN COLE: "How long have you supervised him?"
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "A little over two years."
ADRIAN COLE: "Have there been previous complaints about his conduct?"
Price paused.
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "There have been some disagreements."
ADRIAN COLE: "I'm asking about formal complaints."
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "I believe there were a few."
ADRIAN COLE: "How many?"
Price shifted in his chair.
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "I would need to check the records."
ADRIAN COLE: "Were you responsible for reviewing them?"
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "Some of them came through my office."
ADRIAN COLE: "And what happened?"
Price looked down at his hands.
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "They were handled administratively."
ADRIAN COLE: "What does that mean?"
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "Usually, the complainant was contacted, the officer was reminded of department policy, and the matter was closed if there wasn't enough evidence to proceed."
ADRIAN COLE: "Was that process documented?"
LIEUTENANT SAMUEL PRICE: "It should have been."
ADRIAN COLE: "Should have been, or was?"
Price did not answer immediately.
Adrian opened a folder on his desk.
Inside were copies of the visitor records Aaron had located.