Chapter 5 - THE DEAD FEDERAL AGENT
Daniel Reese’s death had been reported as a traffic accident.
Thomas had seen the alert during his shift.
His car went through a guardrail outside Waterbury.
Marian shook her head.
“That wasn’t an accident.”
“How do you know?”
“He called me ten minutes before it happened.”
Thomas paced across the tiny station.
“What did he say?”
“That someone inside his task force knew about our meeting.”
Sarah looked toward the windows.
“So there’s a traitor with the police and another one with the federal agents?”
Thomas answered quietly.
“Maybe they’re connected.”
Marian removed a small brass key from her pocket.
“Reese gave me this two months ago.”
“What does it open?”
“A locker at the old Union Station.”
“He said if anything happened to him, take the evidence there.”
Thomas examined it.
“We can’t drive into the city with half the county looking for us.”
Sarah looked at the laptop.
“What if we upload everything?”
Marian shook her head.
“The files are incomplete.”
“Rebecca’s video is only the introduction.”
“There are references to ledger pages that aren’t on the card.”
Thomas studied the file directory.
“She split the evidence.”
“To prevent one person from destroying it.”
Lucy started crying.
Sarah held her close.
For the first time since leaving the hospital, she wondered whether someone had watched them every moment since Lucy’s birth.
The flowers.
The visitors.
The nurse rotations.
Evan bringing coffee.
Evan holding Lucy for almost five minutes while Thomas took a phone call.
Sarah’s stomach tightened.
“He held her.”
Thomas looked up.
“Who?”
“Evan.”
“At the hospital.”
“He asked to hold Lucy.”
Marian’s face changed.
“Did he touch the bracelet?”
Sarah remembered.
“He adjusted her blanket.”
“Then he looked at her ankle.”
Thomas swore.
“He was checking for the code.”
A police radio crackled from outside.
Everyone froze.
A voice announced a search perimeter.
Then Thomas heard his own name.
OFFICER THOMAS HALE IS CONSIDERED ARMED AND DANGEROUS.
Sarah stared at him.
“They’re saying you’re dangerous?”
The transmission continued.
REPORTS INDICATE OFFICER HALE ABDUCTED HIS INFANT DAUGHTER FOLLOWING A DOMESTIC INCIDENT.
Sarah nearly laughed from disbelief.
“They’re saying you kidnapped Lucy.”
Marian whispered.
“They’re changing the story.”
Thomas looked at Sarah.
“And they’ll make you unstable.”
“Just like Rebecca.”
A second voice came over the radio.
Female.
Official.
Cold.
“All units are instructed to transport Sarah Hale and infant Lucy Hale directly to temporary protective housing.”
Thomas looked toward Marian.
“What housing?”
The dispatcher answered the question.
VEIL HOUSE.
Sarah felt cold spread through her body.
The Circle wasn’t waiting for them to make a mistake.
May you like
It was using the entire police department to drive them exactly where it wanted them.
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