"I was arrested last night."
"I know."
"They tried to frame me."
"I know."
"They've been watching me for months."
"I know."
Evelyn closed her eyes.
"Then tell me who is behind this."
Naomi finally answered.
"You are."
Evelyn opened her eyes.
"What?"
"You think you were investigating Mercer."
"I was."
"No. You were investigating the visible part of something that was already being investigated."
"By whom?"
"By people who needed someone outside the department."
Evelyn's heart began to pound.
"Who?"
Naomi said a name.
Then the call ended.
Evelyn sat motionless.
She knew that name.
Everyone in federal law enforcement knew it.
But that wasn't the part that frightened her.
The frightening part was that the person Naomi had named had been officially dead for almost four years.
Three days later, Evelyn returned to court.
The prosecution expected her to look defeated.
Instead, she arrived carrying a folder.
Mercer was already on the witness stand.
The judge instructed the prosecutor to continue.
"Detective Mercer," the prosecutor said, "did you have any personal dispute with Ms. Carter?"
"No."
"Did you know she was investigating you?"
"No."
Evelyn smiled.
There it was.
The lie she had been waiting for.
Her attorney stood.
"Your Honor, the defense requests permission to introduce newly obtained evidence."
The prosecutor immediately objected.
The judge asked what kind of evidence.
Evelyn's attorney handed over the folder.
The judge reviewed the first page.
Then the second.
His expression changed.
"Where did this come from?"
"My client received it from an independent investigator."
The prosecutor stepped forward.
"Your Honor, we have serious concerns about authenticity."
Evelyn's attorney nodded.
"That's why we brought the original metadata."
The judge looked at Mercer.
Mercer was no longer relaxed.
The body-camera footage was played.
The courtroom became completely silent.
There was Evelyn walking through the parking structure.
There was no envelope.
There was no package.
There was no attempt to flee.
Then the footage showed Mercer approaching her.
His voice was clear.
"You should have left this alone."
The jury turned toward him.
The prosecutor stood frozen.
Mercer's attorney whispered something in his ear.
Mercer shook his head.
But the recording continued.
Evelyn asked:
"What are you talking about?"
Mercer replied:
"You know exactly what I'm talking about."
Then he reached toward her bag.
The footage showed Evelyn stepping backward.
Mercer grabbed her wrist.
She said:
"Take your hand off me."
He didn't.
The prosecutor's face went pale.
But the footage had one more surprise.
A second officer appeared.
Officer Tyler Grant.
He walked toward Mercer.
"Boss," Grant said, "we've got a problem."
Mercer turned.