Chapter 28 #2
She continues, “We knew someone else logging in was a possibility, but such a person would need his device and his biometrics because the login at that time used fingerprint verification, and there’s no password override.”
Enzo folds his hands on his desk. “We also confirmed user behavior. He logs in every Friday night at eight-thirty. Gabriel went over to Mount Hamilton and gathered intel on the family. Andy’s dad has bowling on Friday evenings, and his mom works.
Guess it’s what Andy does when he has the place to himself. ”
And that’s why these guys are the best in the world at what they do. I can learn from this. They, like Anton, like me now, don’t stop asking questions until there are no more to ask.
Only, I still have one. “This one hundred percent confirms that Andy has an alibi?”
Ava sighs. “Annoyingly, no. Maybe ninety-nine percent…”
Enzo chimes in. “There is the smallest chance he was at the quarry because IPs aren’t pinpoints. For the ISP to give us enough additional data to track down to Andy’s house? We’d need a subpoena.”
This is all leaning heavily into Andy not being at the quarry, but one percent is still enough to keep the thread open.
I can’t cross off Andy.
“Now the bigger issue,” Ava says, clicking into a second file. “Is Ingram’s bodycam image from the time Andy was pulled over.”
My heart fills my throat because this detail either makes Ingram a liar or it doesn’t. Anton shifts closer, leg warm along the length of mine.
“You said that Andy claimed the stop was less than a week ago, and Ingram said it was just days after Zoe’s death,” Ava confirms.
I nod slowly, sensing something big is coming.
Ava puts her elbows on the table, leaning toward me. “Well, here’s the thing. That timestamp, the white numbers in the corner of the image? That’s been altered.”
All the air leaves my lungs.
Enzo chimes in. “You were right to get a digital copy of the full footage from the case management system, so we didn’t rely on his printout. The metadata confirms Tarmigan’s story. Not Ingram’s.”
Holy shit. Ingram lied?
He brings up a window full of code lines. “This clip wasn’t filmed months ago,” he says. “It was filmed seven days ago.”
The room goes still. The world tilts.
Anton’s jaw tightens.
I have been working next to a man who deliberately tampered with evidence, who likely sent me in the wrong direction, who sloppily managed a woman’s death…for what?
I furrow my brows. “Did Ingram know Zoe?”
Would he have wanted her dead?
Enzo is the only one in the room who’s been in this town that long.
“Not that I know of. There’s a big age difference, so they never went to school together.
He has a family, and his kids are too young to be her friends.
No work connection or social groups they belong to that I know of.
We can dig if you’d like. It was our next thought to check into this, but we won’t do anything if you don’t greenlight it. ”
A cold ripple crawls down my spine.
“Ingram is lying about the timestamp to bury something,” Ava says, more pointedly than Enzo was willing, “or he was trying to bury someone.”
Anton’s hand slides into mine under the table. I glance over, and there in his gaze is that protective beast. He doesn’t want me near Ingram anymore.
And I don’t want to be near him either because I’ll have to pretend none of this happened. GhostEye hasn’t been sanctioned to do this work. I can’t bring this all forward to Callum…
But if Ingram was willing to cover his tracks by tampering with his bodycam, what else is he willing to do? All I have right now is that he lied about a timestamp and pulling someone over. I need more. I need why.
“I’m going to see Zoe’s parents,” I say. “Today. Feel free to dig into connections between Ingram and Zoe if you have time.”
Ava nods firmly. “We’ll make time.”
I’m doubtful that in a town of this size, Ingram would have been able to hide a deep association with anyone, but why would he obstruct justice?
He has to have a hell of a good reason because getting fired is the tip of the iceberg. This is a felony. He would only risk that to avoid a far bigger consequence.
Did he risk a felony to avoid a murder charge?
Concern blazes in Anton’s eyes. “I’ll come with you.”
He doesn’t want me to be alone anymore. Not with these lies swirling around me. Not if Ingram finds out I know about Andy…
He hedges his offer. “If that’s what you want?”
Something is off, and whether I meant to or not, I’ve put myself right at the center of it.
I’m capable, but I’m not just protecting myself; I have our baby to think about.
And when people have a lot on the line, or worse, nothing to lose, the threat heightens tenfold. So hell yeah, I want Anton with me.
I nod.
He takes my jacket off the back of my chair to help me into it.
“Before we walk out that door,”—he turns back to Ava and Enzo—“let’s all get something straight.”
All eyes are on him.
“Nobody shares this,” he orders. “No one. Not with patrol. Not with admin. Not with Callum.”
Ava blinks. “Even Callum?”
“I don’t give a damn if he’s chief of police,” Anton says, voice calm and terrifyingly firm. “Until we know exactly who we’re dealing with, Freya’s safety comes first—not hierarchy, not courtesy, not old partnerships. This town is small. If Ingram hears any of this…”
He plants one hand on the table, leaning forward slightly—unmistakably alpha. “When people try to cover up mistakes, they get desperate. And somebody, maybe Ingram, is desperate. You get me?”
Enzo gives a tight nod. “I’d feel the same way if it were Ava.” His thoughts are faraway, as if in some memory. “Caution isn’t optional.”
“Exactly.” Anton shrugs on his jacket.
Ava gives a thumbs up. “We’re locked down tight.”
Anton turns to me. “You ready?”
My heart is beating rapidly, and I hope it isn’t bad for the baby, but the only way this case is coming to an end is through me. I’m the lead officer.
“Let’s go,” I say.
We step out into the hallway together, and Anton keeps his voice quiet as if even a bluebird might be a dangerous spy. “Ingram lied for a reason. He expects you to be chasing Andy—not looking anywhere near him. Let him underestimate you. That buys us time.”
One of the reasons I fell for him in the first place is how damn competent and calm he is when everything else feels like shifting ground.
I nod, swallowing past the sudden lump in my throat. “Okay.”
We close the office door behind us, where Ava and Enzo are already focusing on the next steps.
This is safety.
This is backup.
This is partnership.
Courage finds its footing as I grip the railing and head down the steps.
When the cold air hits my lungs again as we leave the building, one thought echoes through me:
Whether Ingram misjudged me or not, one thing is clear.
He’s betting on time.
And time is the one thing I can’t afford to lose.