Greenwood Holdings controlled a major portion of Greenwood Mall.
Her expression hardened.
"If security generates arrests..."
"And those arrests generate plea agreements..."
"And those agreements send people to a probation company financially connected to the mall..."
Carla finished the thought.
"Then arrests become revenue."
Denise shook her head.
"That's a theory."
"Yes."
"We need evidence."
Denise spent the afternoon reviewing department statistics.
The numbers were disturbing.
Greenwood Mall produced an unusually high number of resisting and disorderly conduct cases compared with similar commercial properties.
Then she found a department memo.
COMMUNITY SAFETY PARTNERSHIP — GREENWOOD COMMERCIAL DISTRICT
One name appeared repeatedly.
James Reigns.
Another name appeared too.
Lieutenant Mark Harris.
Denise stopped reading.
Harris had been her friend for fifteen years.
He had supported her promotion.
Defended her when people questioned whether a Black woman could command a precinct.
She closed the file.
Then opened it again.
Something was wrong.
The Warning
Denise brought the documents to Harris.
He read them carefully.
"This could shake the department."
"Maybe it needs shaking."
He looked at her.
"You believe officers are generating arrests for private profit?"
"I believe the numbers justify an investigation."
Harris promised to help.
For a few days, everything was quiet.
Then Denise's car was vandalized.
Red paint covered the doors.
One word:
TRAITOR.
Beneath it, scratched into the metal:
KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT, CAPTAIN.
Denise stood in her driveway.
Only a small number of people knew about her investigation.
She photographed the damage.
Preserved the evidence.
Filed a report.
Then she made a decision.
She would stop trusting people simply because they wore the same uniform.
The next morning, journalist Maya Lopez contacted her.
Maya worked for the City Herald.
She had been investigating Greenwood Mall for six months.