Chapter 17 - The Man Inside Headquarters
The approaching vehicles never reached Warehouse 12.
The moment they saw police units surrounding the building, they turned sharply onto a service road and disappeared into the darkness.
Officer Hale ordered every available patrol unit to pursue them.
None succeeded.
It was as if the convoy had vanished.
Back at Police Headquarters, frustration filled the Major Crimes office.
Another opportunity had slipped away.
Rachel sat quietly with Noah asleep across her lap while Lily rested beside Mrs. Evelyn Brooks.
For the first time in hours, the children looked peaceful.
Rachel watched them silently.
"They deserve a normal life."
Officer Hale nodded.
"And we're going to make sure they get one."
Just then the Digital Forensics analyst burst into the room.
"I found it."
Everyone turned.
"What?"
"The internal access logs."
He connected his laptop to the conference room monitor.
Every digital court document opened during the past month appeared in chronological order.
One username immediately caught everyone's attention.
SMARSHALL_ADMIN
Assistant Court Administrator Steven Marshall.
Nothing surprising.
Then another username appeared seconds later.
MHALE_INVEST
Officer Marcus Hale frowned.
"I never accessed those files."
The analyst nodded.
"I know."
Someone had used Marcus Hale's police credentials.
Every detective looked toward him.
Hale slowly reached into his pocket and removed his access card.
"I've had this card all week."
The analyst enlarged the login records.
"The access didn't come from outside."
"What do you mean?"
"It came from inside Police Headquarters."
The conference room became silent.
Someone inside the department had opened confidential court files...
Using Hale's identity.
Detective Ortega slowly closed her notebook.
"We've been looking for corruption in the courthouse."
She looked around the room.
"But we've been asking the wrong question."
Officer Hale understood immediately.
"There isn't just someone inside the courthouse."
His voice became quieter.
"There's someone inside this building."
No one spoke.
May you like
Because for the first time since Rachel answered that terrifying knock on her apartment door...
Every detective in the room had become a potential suspect.
