Chapter 14 – Dominic
DOMINIC
Ileaned against the wall of the police station, eyes tracking the chaos around me as I waited for Evelyn Harper to arrive.
Mike had called me early this morning demanding that we bring her in today to discuss the recording.
His insistence set off every warning bell in me, so when he went to call her, I intervened.
I wasn’t sure why he was demanding she come in this morning.
I hadn’t even had a chance to listen to the recording yet or analyze it.
He said it came in on the FIA tip line, but even that was odd.
I wasn’t sure what was going on or what to think, but I didn’t want Evelyn facing him alone.
If she was innocent, then Mike was determined to pin this on her. And if she wasn’t innocent…
Well, I had a hard time thinking about that. My interaction with Adrian Cross had raised doubts in me, but I was torn between duty and understanding.
Speaking of Adrian, he opened the door to the station, scanning the room before he ushered her inside. Their lawyer, Julie something, followed them, and I was glad I’d given her an hour to get here.
Adrian spotted me, and his mouth tightened, but he guided Evelyn my way.
I didn’t miss how he hovered behind her protectively.
Were they dating? I thought she might be dating Alexander, but Adrian’s protective behavior had me second guessing.
Evelyn wore cream pants and a black blouse, and her curly brown hair was pulled up into a messy bun with a few curls framing her face.
She looked like she was ready to step into a boardroom, not a police station.
I pushed off from the wall as they approached.
“Good morning, Miss Harper, Mr. Cross. I’m glad you could make it this morning.” I held out a hand to Evelyn.
Her handshake was firm but warm, and her eyes dilated slightly as I laid on the charm with a wide grin. Evelyn Harper was an attractive woman for sure, but I would never act on that attraction. Especially not when she was still a suspect in an active case, even if it was an unconventional case.
“Good morning, Agent Hayes,” Evelyn greeted politely. “How are you this morning?”
“I am good, Miss Harper. How about yourself?”
“Better if we hadn’t been called down here first thing,” Adrian grumbled, his green eyes glaring at me.
I shrugged. “I’m sorry for the inconvenience, but there’s been some evidence brought to light that we need to ask Miss Harper some questions about.”
He frowned. “What evidence?”
I paused, duty and understanding warring within me as I thought about how to answer.
I had spent the weekend diving into the Archers a bit more.
It was clear from the little snippets I could gather that the Archers did a lot of good in the city.
But did that justify the means they used to do it?
I wasn’t sure yet. The FIA was supposed to do good, but evidence was pointing to someone in the FIA being corrupt, so it was hard to judge the Archers too harshly. I blew out a breath and took a gamble.
“I don’t know,” I said, staring at Adrian and then Evelyn. Evelyn’s breath hitched slightly, and Adrian’s eyebrows shot up before he schooled them.
“I see,” Evelyn said slowly, and I had no doubt that she did. “Well, let’s get this over with then.”
I escorted them back to the interrogation rooms, opening the door for Evelyn and revealing my partner, Mike.
“Finally,” he grumbled, rising to his feet. “It’s about time.”
“I’m sorry,” Evelyn said, her brown arching, “I thought we said 9:30 a.m.” Her eyes pointedly moved to the clock on the wall, which read 9:28 a.m., and I stifled my grin.
Mike grumbled something again under his breath but reluctantly gestured to the seat across the table from him.
There were two seats on Evelyn’s side of the table and three on Mike’s.
I frowned and stepped forward to move a chair over to the other side, so all three of them could sit. The door opened behind me.
“Ah, Director Keller, right on time,” Mike greeted.
Director Keller was here? Why? He was the FIA director and didn’t get involved in field cases. What was he doing here, and why was Mike not surprised to see him?
“Sorry to drop in like this,” Director Keller said, his grin wide. “But I just wanted to check in on this investigation, make sure everything was going smoothly.” He winked at Evelyn, clearly trying to put her at ease.
The furrow in her brow eased, and she looked at Adrian.
They had a silent conversation before she looked at Julie, who nodded.
Adrian pulled out Evelyn’s, then Julie’s chairs before taking up a spot on the wall behind them.
His presence was intimidating, and the director’s smile dipped slightly before he spoke.
“Please act like I’m not here.”
I took a seat next to Mike while Director Keller pulled his chair off to the corner of the room. It was really fucking strange having him here in the room, and I shifted in my chair. Mike seemed totally comfortable, though. Had he known the director was coming? Had he asked him to come here?
“Do you know why you’re here?” Mike started out, his tone hostile as he glared at Evelyn.
Evelyn simply arched an eyebrow. “Because Agent Hayes requested that I come in and speak with you,” she said simply.
I felt the director’s eyes on me, so I stifled my grin.
“Gentlemen,” her lawyer said, “my client is giving up her valuable time this morning to come down here. Can we get to the point of this meeting?”
“Sure,” Mike said, pulling out a laptop. “Can your client tell us what this is?”
He pressed play on an audio file.
“And it just made sense for Citadel to go after your bosses without warning?”
Evelyn’s eyes widened slightly at the sound of the voice on the tape. The voice didn’t sound familiar to me, but it was clear she recognized it. Where was this audio from?
“With what Citadel has been involved in over the years, it wouldn’t be out of character.”
I recognized Evelyn’s voice. Was this from the night she was kidnapped? Who was recording the audio? There was some rustling, like it was taken on someone’s phone in their pocket.
“Ah, yes. The Archers have had their fair share of run-ins with Citadel before, yes? You probably more than most as their leader.” The first speaker spoke again, and I realized where Mike was going with this the same moment Adrian did.
He straightened from the wall, ready to throw down and, I was sure, to get Evelyn out of there.
There was a long pause before Evelyn’s voice crackled through the laptop’s speakers again. “Yes, we have,” she said.
Mike pressed a key on the laptop, and the audio cut off. “So you admit that you’re the leader of the Archers?” he said, a gloating grin on his face.
Evelyn just stared blankly back at him. She looked over at her lawyer, who nodded. How much did her lawyer know about that night?
“I was taken at gunpoint,” Evelyn said slowly, like she was speaking to a child. “I had already been hit once. So hard that I had a concussion. I would have said anything to stay alive.”
“So you’re saying that’s not you on the audio,” Mike snapped at her.
Evelyn shook her head. “That’s not what I’m saying. That is me on the audio. I’m telling you that I would have said anything to stay alive. Including lying to my obviously very deranged kidnappers.”
Mike’s face turned red, and he glared at her.
“That makes sense,” I cut in before he could speak. “But you can see why the audio could be misleading. Is there any reason why this person would assume you are the leader of this vigilante group?”
Evelyn regarded me quietly while she thought. “I mean, I believe they thought that my bosses at SDS run it, so I’m not sure how they jumped to me running it.”
“Why did they think your bosses run it?” Mike asked, his eyes gleaming with interest at this new bit of information.
“Probably because SDS has a code of ethics and morals, and Citadel does not,” Evelyn said, a small smirk playing on her lips. “They assumed that just because SDS doesn’t take morally corrupt jobs means that they must run the Archers.”
“Do you have any proof of that?” Mike pressed her. “Because it sounds like you’re just trying to throw us off the trail.”
“The trail of what, Agent Holden?” her lawyer interceded.
“Miss Harper was a victim of those men’s vicious attack, and now you’re trying to victim blame by spinning her into a vigilante leader?
How about you investigate those men and figure out how they went unchecked for so long right under the FIA’s noses? ”
Damn, their lawyer didn’t come to play. I would normally be irritated with a lawyer present shutting us down. But I couldn’t help but root for Evelyn.
I had no proof other than a strong hunch that she was the leader of the Archers, or at least closely involved with them.
Probably SDS was too. If she truly was the leader of the Archers, that meant her organization had done a lot of good in the city.
And even beyond the city, if the rumors were to be believed.
I had been using this case to expose corruption at the FIA, but maybe I was going about it wrong.
Maybe it wasn’t using the case to prove corruption at the FIA but using the case’s focus.
Maybe I could get some allies in helping to expose the FIA’s corruption.
There was something about Evelyn that called to me. Not to protect her but just to be in her presence. If Evelyn was the leader of the Archers, would she help me? And even if she wasn’t, maybe SDS could?
“Is that it?” her lawyer said when Mike didn’t say anything.
His eyes darted over to Director Keller before he answered. “That’s it. For now.” He stressed the last two words, and the lawyer huffed at him.
“I’ll walk you out,” I offered.
The lawyer exited the room first, followed by Evelyn and then Adrian. I fell into step alongside Evelyn as we walked toward the front of the station. Adrian dropped back as if he were guarding our backs. The lawyer, Julie, was already on her phone, and she strode ahead of us.
“How long are you going to be in town, Agent Hayes?”
I grinned at the subtle probing. “Not sure yet, Miss Harper.”
“Please, call me Evelyn,” she said.
That was a good sign, right? We walked through the door into the lobby. I was running out of time if I wanted to ask her for help.
“We’ve definitely been here longer than I thought. We’ve started exploring some local places, though.”
“Really? Which ones?”
I saw my opening. If there was a chance that Evelyn could help me take out the corruption at the FIA, I had to take it.
“My partner likes the local sports bar Declan’s Pub. In fact, we’re going to be there tonight. You should come if you don’t have plans.”
If the Archers were half as smart as I thought they were, they would have already staked out our offices.
Hell, if SDS was half as good as their reputation, they would also already know where our offices were.
It was just Mike and me in the office right now.
I wasn’t sure about the director’s plans, but if he was staying in town, I could invite him out for some drinks.
“Agent Hayes, are you asking me out?” She played off the question, but I noticed the interest in her eyes. Whether it was interest in me or in the tidbit of information I just dropped, I wasn’t sure. Maybe she wasn’t dating Adrian?
“Please, call me Dominic. And maybe.”
Her eyes flashed to Adrian quickly before she bit her lip. “I’m flattered, but I’m not free tonight.” Okay, maybe she was dating Adrian? Or was she taking the lead I was handing her?
“That’s too bad,” I said. “I think we’re going to be there until close if you change your mind.”
She nodded, and I extended my hand to her. “Well, thank you for your time, Evelyn.”
Her eyes widened briefly as I pressed my key into her palm. The old office building we were in didn’t have electronic locks, just regular keys. We had definitely rushed in getting it set up, which only added more suspicion to the case’s circumstances.
“You’re very welcome, Dominic,” she said, sliding her hand to her side and palming the key in a move so smooth that I would have never seen it if I hadn’t been the one to give it to her. I knew I was taking a risk, but my gut told me she could be trusted.
“Mr. Cross.” I nodded at Adrian, who nodded stiffly back at me.
“Evelyn.” I nodded at her and then left them in the lobby.
With one part of my plan in motion, it was now time to see if I could figure out why the director was here.
I walked back down the hallway, headed for the interrogation room. Almost unconsciously, I slowed and softened my steps as I approached the cracked door.
“It’s not enough. We need more.” The director’s voice was low and urgent.
“I know, sir. I’m trying. They have to know we’re on to them, though.” Mike’s nasally whine was distinctive.
“I don’t care how you prove it’s her, just do it.”
“Hey, Agent Hayes. How are you?” An officer greeted me as he walked past.
I grimaced but quickly pasted on a smile.
“I’m good, Officer Jeffries. How’s your day going?”
“Pretty steady. You have a good one now. See you tonight.” The sports bar we were going to was a favorite hangout for cops.
With my cover blown, I pushed open the door.
“Ah, Agent Hayes, we were just talking about the case.” Director Keller looked up from his phone. “You all are doing good work.”
“Thank you, sir, just trying to get to the truth,” I said simply, folding my arms over my chest.
Director Keller smiled, but his eyes remained cold. “It looks like you’ve already discovered the truth. Now you just need the evidence to make it stick.”
My brow furrowed, but I kept my thoughts to myself. That was not how cases worked. Or not how they were supposed to work. My father had always cautioned me to not get locked onto a single person too quickly. “That’s how innocent people go to jail,” he used to say. “Work the case, not the suspect.”
“Well, I have to get back to DC,” the director announced. “I want daily updates, though.”
Daily updates? Standard protocol was weekly updates, especially when a case was this early. The more I paid attention, the more things weren’t adding up. I just hoped that Evelyn could put the pieces together better than I could.