"That's not an answer."
"No."
He leaned forward.
"I think Vale knows who is responsible."
"Then why isn't he talking?"
"Because someone sent him a message."
Moretti played another recording.
A distorted voice said:
"Talk, and your family disappears."
Ela's expression hardened.
"Where is his family?"
"Under protection."
"And the prosecutor?"
"Also protected."
Ela stood.
"Then we're running out of time."
Moretti looked at her.
"For what?"
"To find whoever is behind this before they attack again."
They worked through the night.
By 3:00 a.m., they had connected dozens of transactions.
Money moved through shell companies.
Shell companies paid contractors.
Contractors paid security firms.
Security firms paid consultants.
And at the center of it all was one name.
Not Jonathan Vale.
Not Northstar.
Someone much closer.
A senior federal official.
Ela stared at the screen.
"No."
Moretti looked at her.
"You know him?"
Ela nodded slowly.
"I've sat across from him in meetings."
"Who?"
She whispered the name.
"Deputy Secretary Malcolm Vane."
Moretti's face went still.
"You're sure?"
"The financial records are circumstantial."
"But?"
"But his office had access to the databases."
Moretti stared at the screen.
"And the detention schedules."
"Yes."
"And your travel calendar."
Ela nodded.
Moretti stood.
"We need evidence."
Ela looked at him.
"Then let's get it."
At 5:11 a.m., they received a message.
An unknown source had offered them a complete copy of the trafficking network's database.
But there was a condition.
They had to meet at an abandoned train station outside the city.
Alone.
Ela looked at Moretti.
"Trap?"
"Probably."
"Then why do we go?"
"Because sometimes the only way to catch a trap is to walk into it knowing it's there."
The Hearing
The abandoned station was empty.
At least, it appeared empty.
Ela and Moretti arrived at 6:30.
They did not go alone.
Federal agents surrounded the area from a distance.
Ela carried no weapon.
She carried something more important.
A recording device.
A man stepped out of the shadows.
He was wearing a dark coat.
"It's me," he said.
Ela recognized him.
The federal prosecutor from the list.
"You were supposed to be in protective custody."
"I left."
"Why?"
"Because they found me."
He handed her a small drive.
"Everything is on there."
Ela looked at it.
"Who ordered the operation against me?"
The man swallowed.
"Vane."
Moretti's eyes hardened.
"Proof?"
"It's on the drive."
"Why help us?"
The prosecutor looked at Ela.
"Because I signed one of the first authorization documents."
Ela stared at him.
"I didn't know what it was."
"What did you think it was?"
"An emergency detention program."
He shook his head.
"I realized too late what they were doing."
"What were they doing?"
"Using immigration databases to locate people who had no political power."
His voice cracked.
"They threatened families. They forced people into labor. They sold information."
Ela's hands tightened around the drive.
"And my abduction?"
"They needed you gone before you testified."
"Why impersonate ICE?"
"Because people would believe it."
Silence.
Then Moretti's radio came alive.
"Movement."
The prosecutor's face went pale.
"He's here."
"Who?"
"Vane."
A black SUV entered the far end of the station.
Moretti raised his hand.
Federal agents moved.
The SUV stopped.
Malcolm Vane stepped out.
He was wearing a dark suit.
No mask.
No disguise.
He looked completely ordinary.
That was the most frightening part.
He walked toward them.
"Congresswoman."
Ela stared at him.
"Deputy Secretary."
He smiled.
"You've caused quite a problem."
"Did you send them?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You sent two men to my house."
He shook his head.
"That's an accusation."
Ela held up the drive.
"Then you'll have an opportunity to deny everything under oath."
Vane's expression changed.
Only slightly.
But enough.
Moretti stepped forward.
"You're under arrest."
Vane laughed.
"You think this ends with me?"
"No."