“Thank you. Before we leave, I want the vehicle inspected and the condition of the truck documented.”
TACTICAL TEAM LEADER:
“Understood.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Also, make sure my father's original property documents remain untouched. I don't want anyone entering the farmhouse or removing anything without the appropriate authorization.”
FEDERAL OPERATIONS OFFICER:
“We'll coordinate that request.”
Marcus looked toward his truck.
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“I don't want to leave it here.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“We'll make arrangements. Nobody is taking your truck without proper documentation.”
He nodded.
For the first time that afternoon, his shoulders relaxed slightly.
But Simone was still thinking about the phone call.
Richard Vance.
Captain Reeves.
The departmental network.
And the reference to her father's property.
There were too many connections to dismiss as coincidence.
She turned toward the captain.
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Captain Reeves, I want to ask you one final question before we leave.”
CAPTAIN THOMAS REEVES:
“What?”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Did Richard Vance know I was returning to Georgia?”
Reeves looked at her.
CAPTAIN THOMAS REEVES:
“I have no idea.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Did you tell him?”
CAPTAIN THOMAS REEVES:
“No.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Did anyone in your department tell him?”
CAPTAIN THOMAS REEVES:
“I can't speak for every employee.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Then I suggest you begin by reviewing who accessed the relevant records.”
Reeves said nothing.
Simone turned away.
The federal operations officer walked beside her and Marcus toward the secure vehicle.
Behind them, the tactical team continued documenting the scene.
Kessler stood near the patrol vehicle, visibly shaken.
Reeves remained beside him, looking down at his phone.
The same phone that had received the call from Richard Vance.
And the same phone that might now become an important part of an investigation neither man had expected.
***
By the time Simone and Marcus reached the secure vehicle, the sun had begun disappearing behind the clouds.
Marcus climbed into the passenger seat and looked through the window toward his old truck.
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“I never thought a simple trip down the road would turn into something like this.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Neither did I.”
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“Do you think those people will finally leave the property alone?”
Simone looked at him.
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“I can't promise that yet. But we now have a reason to examine the entire chain of events.”
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“I don't want to sell, Simone.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“I know.”
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“Your grandfather worked that land. I worked it after him. I don't want someone turning it into another parking lot and warehouse.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Then don't sign anything because someone is pressuring you.”
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“They offered more money than I ever expected to see.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“An offer doesn't give them the right to threaten you.”
Marcus looked down at his hands.
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“I thought if I kept refusing, eventually they'd stop.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“People who rely on pressure often mistake patience for weakness.”
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“That's what happened to me.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Not anymore.”
The vehicle began moving.
Simone looked through the rear window.
The tactical team was still at the roadside. Kessler and Reeves remained separated while the initial documentation continued.
She took out her phone and reviewed the information that had been transmitted.
There was a preliminary recording, a location report, and a list of system events.
She opened the timeline.
The first alert had been generated shortly after Kessler approached the truck.
The second had been triggered when the device detected a rapid change in Simone's physical position.
The third was associated with the loss of normal communications.
But one entry caught her attention.
A communication request had been received through a network associated with the county government.
It had been routed shortly before the traffic stop.
The destination field contained an incomplete reference to a property acquisition project.
Simone read the entry twice.
Then she handed the device to the federal operations officer sitting opposite her.
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Look at this.”
The officer examined the screen.
FEDERAL OPERATIONS OFFICER:
“This is the same network reference we identified earlier.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Can you establish whether the message was sent before or after Kessler received the instruction?”
FEDERAL OPERATIONS OFFICER:
“We'll need to compare the server timestamps with the dispatch records.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“Do that. I want the original timestamps, not a summary.”
FEDERAL OPERATIONS OFFICER:
“Understood.”
Marcus looked at his daughter.
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“Does that mean the people trying to buy the land were involved?”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“It means we have a possible connection. We still need evidence.”
MARCUS HARTWELL:
“I'm tired of waiting for evidence while they keep making trouble.”
SIMONE HARTWELL:
“I know, Dad. But if we want the truth to hold up, we need to establish every detail.”
She closed the device.
Her thoughts moved to the name Richard Vance.
She remembered seeing his company in a preliminary report about regional infrastructure development.
The company had acquired several parcels of land along the proposed logistics corridor. Most owners had accepted the offers.
A few had refused.
The Hartwell property was one of the remaining parcels.