“Then I suppose we should speak with someone above her.”
Evelyn closed the folder.
“You're welcome to contact the United States Attorney's Office.”
Grant's smile disappeared.
“I have already spoken to them.”
Evelyn looked at him.
“Then you know why you're here.”
For the first time, Grant seemed genuinely surprised.
He looked at Whitaker.
“Raymond, what have you told her?”
Whitaker didn't answer.
Grant's expression hardened.
“I asked you a question.”
Evelyn interrupted.
“Chief Whitaker is not required to answer questions from you.”
Grant turned toward her.
“Agent Brooks, I suggest you remember that you're operating inside a state law enforcement facility.”
“And I suggest you remember that your facility is not outside federal law.”
Grant stared at her.
Then he opened his briefcase.
“I brought something you may find interesting.”
He removed a thick brown envelope.
He placed it on the table.
Evelyn did not touch it.
“What is it?”
“A complaint.”
“From whom?”
“An individual who alleges that you have been impersonating a federal officer.”
Agent Carter frowned.
Grant continued.
“He claims you obtained confidential documents through unlawful means, threatened local officers, and attempted to interfere with an ongoing state investigation.”
Evelyn glanced at the envelope.
“Who filed it?”
Grant smiled.
“Someone who knows you.”
She looked up.
“Name?”
Grant opened the envelope.
He removed a printed statement.
Then he placed it in front of her.
The signature at the bottom belonged to a person Evelyn had not seen in eleven years.
SPECIAL AGENT THOMAS REED.
Her former partner.
The man who had supposedly died during an undercover operation.
Chapter 7 — The Dead Man's Signature
For the first time that morning, Evelyn's expression changed.
It was subtle.
A tightening around her eyes.
A brief pause before she breathed.
But Daniel Carter noticed.
He had worked with Evelyn for six years. He had seen her face threats, hostile witnesses, and powerful officials without losing her composure.
He had never seen her react to a name like this.
“Agent Brooks?” he asked quietly.
She didn't answer.
Grant watched her carefully.
“You recognize the signature.”
Evelyn lifted her eyes.
“Yes.”
“Would you care to explain?”
“No.”
Grant smiled.
“Interesting.”
He pushed the statement closer.
“Thomas Reed alleges that you have been conducting an unauthorized investigation under the protection of a federal appointment that was never properly approved.”
Evelyn looked down at the document.
The date was eleven days earlier.
The signature appeared genuine.
But something was wrong.
She studied the first paragraph.
Then the second.
She read the statement again.
Finally, she looked at Grant.
“Where did you get this?”
“Through official channels.”
“Which channels?”
“I don't believe that information is relevant.”
“Who delivered it?”
“That's confidential.”
Evelyn turned the paper around.
“Thomas Reed died eleven years ago.”
Grant's expression remained unchanged.
“According to your agency.”
“According to the official investigation.”
“Perhaps the official investigation was wrong.”
Agent Carter stepped closer.
“Deputy Commissioner, are you suggesting that Agent Reed is alive?”
Grant looked at him.
“I'm suggesting that you should not make assumptions.”
Evelyn slowly placed the document back on the table.
“Did you speak to him?”
Grant didn't answer.
“Did you receive this statement directly from him?”
“I received a document bearing his signature.”
“That's not what I asked.”
Grant leaned forward.
“Agent Brooks, I understand this may be personal.”
“It isn't.”
“Then why are your hands shaking?”
Evelyn looked down.
Her hands were perfectly still.
Grant smiled faintly.
“Perhaps I misread you.”
She closed the envelope.
“Deputy Commissioner, did you know Thomas Reed?”
“I knew of him.”
“Did you work with him?”
“No.”
“Did you participate in the investigation into his disappearance?”
Grant shook his head.
“No.”
“Then why do you possess a statement supposedly signed by a dead federal agent?”