"She found evidence that Robert Harlan had been selling information about witnesses."
Olivia exchanged a glance with Walker.
"Do you know where your sister is?"
Jason shook his head.
"No. But I know she's alive."
Olivia felt her heart beat faster.
"How do you know?"
"Because she contacted me yesterday."
He reached into his jacket and removed a folded piece of paper.
It contained a handwritten address.
And a message.
If Olivia Bennett is still investigating, tell her the woman in the photograph is not the real target.
Olivia stared at the words.
"What photograph?"
Jason looked confused.
"The photograph they sent you."
She slowly remembered the image of her apartment.
"How do you know about that?"
"Because my sister sent me the same photograph."
Walker stepped forward.
"When?"
"Yesterday afternoon."
Jason looked at Olivia.
"She told me someone was watching you. But she also said they weren't trying to scare you away from the investigation."
"What were they trying to do?"
Jason swallowed.
"They wanted you to believe you were the target."
Olivia felt a cold sensation move down her spine.
"Then who is?"
Jason looked at the floor.
"My sister."
At 4:30 a.m., Olivia sat inside the federal office, staring at Sarah Miller's photograph.
Sarah was twenty-eight years old, with dark hair, brown eyes, and a small scar above her left eyebrow.
She had worked as an administrative assistant in the police department's evidence division.
According to her personnel records, she had resigned eight weeks earlier.
But her brother claimed she had never submitted a resignation.
Instead, she had discovered that evidence was being removed from the department and replaced with altered documents.
She had attempted to report the misconduct.
Three days later, she disappeared.
"Why didn't anyone investigate her disappearance properly?" Olivia asked.
Walker was reading the case file.
"Her supervisor reported that she had taken an extended leave. Her apartment was empty, and her phone was switched off."
"Did anyone speak with her family?"
"According to the official report, yes."
"According to the official report," Olivia repeated. "Which means we need to verify everything."
She opened the financial records.
Sarah's salary had continued to be deposited into her bank account for six weeks after she disappeared.
Then the payments stopped.
But there was something else.
Two days before her disappearance, Sarah had transferred $18,000 into an account belonging to an unknown person.
The account was registered to a private security company.
Victor Kane's company.
Olivia looked at Walker.
"We need to find that address."
Walker read the note Jason had provided.
It identified a small residential property outside the city.
No name.
No telephone number.
Just an address and a handwritten instruction.
Come alone. Do not trust anyone from the department.
Walker shook his head.
"That's not happening."
"I know."
"Then why are you looking at me like that?"
"Because we're going to need to convince Sarah that we're different from everyone she's been running from."
Walker folded the note.
"We'll send a team ahead."
"No uniforms. No marked vehicles. And nobody contacts the local police."
"Agreed."
Olivia looked at the clock.
The sun would rise in less than two hours.
For the first time since the nightclub incident, she felt that the investigation was moving toward something concrete.
They had a notebook.
A memory card.
A missing witness.
And a direct connection between several senior officials.
But she also knew that every piece of evidence they discovered made the people behind Project Nightfall more dangerous.
She had spent years believing that the greatest threat to justice was corruption within the system.
Now she was beginning to understand something worse.
The greatest threat was a system in which honest people could no longer tell whom they were supposed to trust.
At 6:10 a.m., the federal team arrived at the address.
The property was a small house surrounded by tall trees. The curtains were closed, and the mailbox was overflowing with letters.
Walker signaled the team to remain outside.
Olivia approached the front door.
She knocked three times.
No answer.
She waited.
Then she knocked again.
A small light appeared behind the curtains.
Someone was watching.
Olivia stepped back and raised both hands.
"My name is Olivia Bennett. I'm a federal prosecutor."
Silence.
"I know you're afraid. I know what happened to you. But I have evidence that someone inside the department has been trying to destroy the truth."
A voice came from behind the door.
"How do I know you're not working for them?"
"You don't. Not yet."
"Then leave."
Olivia looked toward Walker.
He remained several yards away.
She turned back to the door.
"Your brother is safe."
Nothing.