"Financial irregularities."
Daniel's eyes narrowed.
"How serious?"
"Serious enough that we couldn't move without evidence."
She placed several documents on the table.
Payments.
Bank transfers.
Shell companies.
Unknown accounts.
Daniel looked at the names.
Then he saw one he recognized.
A local contractor.
The same contractor who had recently won several city contracts.
Daniel asked:
"Is this connected to Reed?"
"Possibly."
"And my traffic stop?"
Elena looked at him.
"We don't know."
Daniel sat down.
Elena continued.
"But there is one thing we do know."
She opened another folder.
"The old Special Integrity Division was investigating a network of bribery before it was shut down."
Daniel's expression hardened.
"Marcus Vale?"
"Yes."
"What happened to him?"
Elena looked away.
"My father discovered something."
"What?"
"He believed someone inside the department was selling confidential investigation information."
Daniel's jaw tightened.
"Did he identify the person?"
"Not officially."
"Unofficially?"
Elena looked directly at him.
"He suspected Reed's father."
Daniel felt a chill.
The badge.
The missing investigator.
The financial records.
The traffic stop.
The black SUV.
Everything was beginning to form a picture.
But one question remained.
Where had Marcus Vale gone?
Elena handed Daniel a small storage device.
"My father left this."
Daniel looked at it.
"What's on it?"
"A recording."
They connected it to a computer.
An old audio file appeared.
The recording began with static.
Then a man's voice.
Marcus Vale.
"If you're hearing this, something went wrong."
Daniel leaned closer.
Marcus continued.
"I discovered payments being made to officers through private companies."
A pause.
"The money wasn't for protection."
Another pause.
"It was for information."
Daniel looked at Elena.
The recording continued.
"Someone inside the department has been selling investigation files. Names. Addresses. Evidence. Everything."
Marcus's voice became quieter.
"I don't know who I can trust."
Daniel felt his stomach tighten.
Then Marcus said:
"I found the financial records."
A sound in the background.