She had risked everything to bring us those documents.
And somebody had tried to stop her.
I turned toward Adrian.
“Then we have a leak.”
He nodded slowly.
“Maybe.”
I looked toward the folders again.
“And we need to find out whether it's coming from inside our own operation.”
The first public statement came from Sheriff Graham Whitlock the following morning.
He stood in front of the Ashford County Sheriff's Department beneath a row of American and Alabama flags. Three county officials stood behind him, and a cluster of reporters faced the podium.
Whitlock wore a perfectly pressed tan uniform.
His silver hair was neatly combed.
His expression was solemn.
He looked like a man who had been deeply inconvenienced by circumstances beyond his control.
I watched the statement from a small conference room at the federal field office.
Adrian stood beside me.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Leah Benton sat at the end of the table with a legal pad.
Leah was forty-one, a meticulous prosecutor with short natural curls and a voice so calm that witnesses sometimes underestimated how carefully she listened.
She had worked with our task force since the beginning.
And she had repeatedly warned us that a corruption case could be destroyed by impatience.
On the television, Whitlock approached the microphone.
“Yesterday afternoon,” he began, “two of our deputies conducted a traffic stop involving an individual who later identified herself as a federal investigator.”
I folded my arms.
He continued.
“Our department respects federal law enforcement and has a long history of cooperation with state and national agencies.”
Adrian gave a quiet, humorless laugh.
Whitlock looked toward the reporters.
“However, I want to remind everyone that no individual, regardless of professional title, is exempt from the laws of Alabama.”
Leah glanced toward me.
I didn't speak.
The sheriff continued.
“Our deputies were acting on information that warranted further investigation. Unfortunately, the encounter became unnecessarily confrontational.”
I felt my jaw tighten.
Confrontational.
The word sounded almost harmless.
As though two people had simply disagreed about a parking space.
Whitlock took a breath.
“We are reviewing the circumstances and expect everyone to refrain from making premature judgments.”
A reporter raised a hand.
“Sheriff, video circulating online appears to show Deputy Mercer pushing the woman against her vehicle. Was that appropriate?”
Whitlock's expression remained steady.
“Video clips rarely provide the full context of an officer's safety concerns.”
Another reporter asked whether he knew the woman was part of a federal investigation involving his department.
The sheriff smiled faintly.
“I won't comment on rumors concerning confidential matters.”
He was good.