39

“You doing okay, Violet?”

Michael Harris, the FBI agent who stayed with me in Big Bear last night and kept me in sight since we returned to Los Angeles, sat across from me in the bustling LAPD conference room. He was a large man—not overweight, just big. It didn’t intimidate me because I was tall for a woman, and if I was being honest? I felt safe with him. Safe for the first time since I found my mom living on the streets. It wasn’t that I thought I was in danger. It was that I kept waiting for bad things to happen because they kept happening.

People died in filth and garbage and the city kept running. My mom wouldn’t stop doing drugs and none of the programs were designed to truly help people quit. More people came to the streets and fewer people were leaving. And then my mom was dead and I felt...lost and alone.

But now, for the first time in years, I had hope. This roomful of people were all working to help me. Well, not specifically me. The police wanted to solve a murder. They cared about Craig Dyson and wanted justice for him. I talked to two FBI people on the phone, who worked with Michael, and explained what I had learned in city hall. They actually seemed to care and understand what I said. Even better, they thought my information and analysis would go a long way into exposing the fraud and corruption in the housing projects. They asked smart questions and listened to my answers.

Other than Will and Craig, no one had ever really listened to me. Maybe because I never had much to say.

That was then. Now I realized I needed to use my voice, join Will in speaking up.

“I’m okay,” I said to Michael. “Thank you for staying with me.”

“That’s my job.” But he didn’t smile.

“Are you okay?”

“I heard what happened to your mother. I’m really sorry.”

I didn’t want sympathy and automatically mumbled, “Thank you.”

“My mom died of a drug overdose,” he said quietly. “I was fourteen.”

I hadn’t expected that. Michael seemed to be so...levelheaded. Smart. Organized. He didn’t look like he’d grown up in a house full of ups and downs and chaos.

“Oh.” What else could I say? “I understand how you feel.”

“I don’t understand it. Logically, I do,” he said. “Logically, I see how people fall down the self-destructive path. But in my heart, I don’t get it. I’ve been angry with my mother for my entire life. I don’t like that in myself, but I can’t stop hating her for what she did to our family, what she did to herself.”

I reached over and took his hand. It surprised me—I don’t really like touching people. But he gripped it like a dying man and I realized he needed help. He was in pain. It didn’t show on the surface, but he hurt like every other survivor on the planet.

“I never hated my mom,” I said quietly. “She always had ups and downs, but it wasn’t until after my dad was killed in an accident that she started seriously using. She blamed it on her pain, but that was an excuse. Everything in an addict’s life is an excuse to keep using. I blamed myself—sometimes I still do. If I could have found the right words or the right treatment center, if I could have just let her live with me one more time...” I stopped. This wasn’t about me, this was about Michael. He’d been a child. Alone. Angry.

“It’s okay to be angry,” I told him. “I am. I just turn it to the people who cause the problem. The doctors who overprescribe. The drug dealers who push fentanyl. The people profiting off the homeless crisis. Yes, I blame my mom. Because I gave her every opportunity to get clean. I did everything in my power and it wasn’t enough.” For the first time, I believed it. For the first time in my life, I believed I did everything I could. Failure wasn’t on me.

“I admire you,” Michael said.

“I’m not anyone special. You’re the big, tough FBI agent,” I said with a little laugh.

He smiled. “I am. It helps, being able to do something good in the world. Like protecting supersmart computer nerds.”

I laughed for real and he smiled wider. “Thank you.”

“I just wanted to share because watching you and how you’ve handled what happened with your mother has helped me. You didn’t try, you didn’t even know, but I think for the first time I’m beginning to understand my mom better. I don’t know that I can forgive her, but I don’t want to hate her anymore.”

“Good,” I said. “Because hate is exhausting.”

Michael frowned and pulled his phone out of his breast pocket. “It’s my boss. Don’t leave the room, okay?”

“Roger that,” I said as he got up and walked to the corner for semiprivacy while he talked.

Lex, Peter and two cops were going over stacks of files on the table. Elena walked in and sat with them, motioned for me to join her at the table, so I did. “I just finished debriefing Campana and the chief of police.” I didn’t know who Campana was, but assumed this was someone high-ranking. “Campana himself is making the argument to the judge for the data center warrant, and as soon as it comes in, we’re rolling. I need you with us, Violet. You’re the only one who knows what we actually need, according to everything I’ve heard.”

“It’s more I’m the only one who knows how to retrieve the data without reinstalling the virus that destroyed it in the first place. But I’m ready. This will prove everything I’ve been saying from the beginning, and we’ll finally know exactly what was removed from the server.”

“That’s what we hope,” Elena said.

I didn’t hope; I knew. This was my world: computers and data. I knew what files had been removed, I just didn’t know what was in those files.

Now I would. Once and for all. Not only me, but the police, the DA’s office, the people of Los Angeles.

Everyone would know what was hidden...and who did the hiding.

“Something’s missing,” Lex said. “Look.” He pulled out Craig’s notepad. “He talks here about the photos Colton took, but there are no photos. Nowhere in these files are photos.”

“He could have emailed them,” Elena said.

“Colton only submitted physical files,” Lex said. “He was paranoid about leaks, considering that everyone thought he was dead.”

“We’re going to get so much shit when Campana sends out the memo about the investigation,” Elena said.

“There’s a lot of things missing,” Lex said. “Costa’s team was right—Dyson references information that isn’t here. Peter, what do you make of this?”

Peter glanced at the notepad Lex held up. I couldn’t see what was on it. Peter said, “We looked through his office, none of that was there.”

“It has to be somewhere.”

“Maybe he locked it up,” I suggested. “Does he have a safe or something?”

Will had been here earlier. He said something similar, that something was missing. He seemed worried, but left before I could talk to him about it.

“No one knew about this investigation except us,” Lex said.

“Not exactly no one,” Peter said. “Campana knew, probably his admin. Dyson’s legal secretary, even if she didn’t know specifics, she could have figured it out. The DA knew the goal of the investigation and he would have had to sign off on the grand jury and wouldn’t do that without more information. And don’t forget, even though the courthouse was locked down on Monday, people were still inside the building.”

Lex swore and shook his head. “Something is wrong. I just can’t put my finger on it. Elena, get Colton in here. Where is he?”

“He said he’d be here at noon,” Elena said with a glance at her watch.

I looked at the wall. It was twelve fifteen.

“I’ll bet he came in and made a big splash about not being dead,” Lex muttered. “Shit, I need him. He’ll know exactly what’s missing.” Lex pulled out his phone and dialed. A minute later he slammed the phone down. “Voice mail. I’m going to throttle him.”

“I’ll call Kara,” Elena said. A minute later she, too, said, “She’s not answering. Where the hell are they?”

Michael said, “Who are you trying to reach?”

“Colton and Kara aren’t answering their cell phones. They were at the press conference, but that was over thirty minutes ago. They should be here by now.”

Michael put up his finger and listened to whoever he was talking to on the phone. Then he ended the call and said, “Costa says they were going to First Contact to meet with Will. He’s on his way there, but still ten minutes out. We’re closer.”

“Not by much,” Elena said and pulled out her radio. She asked for a patrol to be sent to the First Contact office. “Something is wrong,” she said. “The closest patrol is more than ten minutes. They’re headed in, but I’m going, too. I don’t like this.”

“I’m joining you,” Michael said. He looked at me. “Violet, stay here. You’re safe in this building. I need to make sure my partner is okay.”

I nodded. “Go.”

Elena said to Peter, “Call me as soon as the warrant comes through.”

“Of course. And let me know what’s going on. There must be an explanation.”

Everyone left the room and I was worried. About Kara and Colton and Will. I wish I could have gone with them, but I wasn’t a cop. I didn’t want to be a cop, but I had a lot more respect for them now than ever before. I had never met anyone who cared so much about justice until I met Colton...and then Kara and Michael. They wanted justice as much as I did.

Two minutes after the room cleared out, Peter said, “We need to go.”

“I’m good here.” Michael had told me to stay, so I was staying.

Peter pulled a gun. I didn’t even know he had a gun, but why shouldn’t he? He was an investigator for the DA’s office. They probably all had guns.

“Violet, on my word, Kara Quinn and Colton Fox will either live or they will die. If you come with me now, they live. If you stall, they die—and so will you.”

I stared at this man. A man that Craig had trusted. Yet Peter Sharp had betrayed his boss. He’d betrayed everyone. I believed him in that moment when he said he would kill me; and I believed him when he said he could have Kara and Colton killed. Colton, who had helped me find out what happened to my mom. Kara, who had saved my life and gave me hope. They would be dead because I was scared.

My voice sounded off, but I whispered, “What do you want from me?”

“I have the warrant.” He grinned and looked evil. Like he was enjoying this. Except...his neck pulsed and his hand had practically crumpled the paper. “Took it right off the computer before Elena saw it. You and I are getting the drive from the data center and then this will all be over.”

“They’ll figure it out. They’ll know you took it. They’ll find you.”

“Doesn’t matter. I have an escape plan as soon as I get these files. They have no idea what’s in those files. They might suspect, but they don’t know, and as long as they never know, that’s all that really matters. Now, Violet. Walk. And if you try anything, you’re dead. Don’t test me.”