Alice laid the printed files across the table between them. Fenwick's face went pale as he flipped through the pages, recognizing the same pattern Alice had seen the night before. "I had no idea there were others," he said quietly. I thought your case was one bad decision by one supervisor covering their own mess. It wasn't, Alice said.
It was a system, and Osmar's been running it for years. Fenwick sat back, rubbing a hand over his face. Alice could see the guilt sitting heavy on him, the same guilt she remembered seeing the day he told her, ashamed that her file had disappeared from the system. "I want to help," Fenwick said finally. Whatever you need.
I still remember the case number I logged for you. If there's any trace of that original file left anywhere in the old servers, I'll find it. That would mean everything. Alice said, "If we can prove my original complaint was formally filed and then deliberately deleted. That's not just a cover up.
That's evidence tampering. That's something a commission has to take seriously. " Fenwick nodded slowly, folding the printed pages closed. Give me some time. I'll start digging tomorrow. Quietly.
Alice reached across the table and shook his hand. Thank you, Logan. I mean that. I owe you this, Fenwick said. I should have fought harder for you back then.
You're fighting now, Alice said. That's what matters. They parted outside the diner. Fenwick heading toward his car with the weight of a promise on his shoulders. Alice standing under the parking lot, lights a moment longer, watching him go.
She finally had a paper trail forming. Somewhere out there, buried in old servers and forgotten files, was the proof that would bring this whole rotten system down. She just needed a little more time to gather it all. 3 days after her meeting with Fenwick, Alice arrived at her office to find a message waiting for her. Deputy Chief Osmar wanted to see her immediately.
Alice walked upstairs with a knot forming in her stomach, running through everything she'd done recently, trying to guess what this could be about. She hadn't mentioned Fenwick. She hadn't mentioned the old files. As far as anyone in this building knew, she was simply running her precinct the way any new captain would. Osmar's office door was already open when Alice arrived.
Osmar sat behind her desk. An evidence log printout spread out in front of her, her expression unreadable. Sit down, Osmar said. Alice sat, keeping her face calm even as her pulse quickened. We have a problem, Osmar said, sliding the print out across the desk.