Evan picked up his radio.
Mara continued.
“Do not lock anything else.”
Colter frowned.
“Why?”
“Because if we shut everything down, we lose the trail.”
The sheriff stared at her.
For the first time, he was beginning to understand why someone had sent this woman.
She wasn't a politician.
She wasn't an attorney.
She wasn't an inspector there to write a report.
She was an investigator who understood systems.
People.
Behavior.
Fear.
She had walked into his jail knowing that someone might be watching.
And she had allowed him to reveal himself.
They reached the evidence-room corridor.
Two deputies were already there.
One stood beside the locked door.
The other held a radio.
“Sheriff.”
Colter nodded.
“What's happening?”
“Access alarm triggered three minutes ago.”
“Who attempted entry?”
The deputy held up a tablet.
“Your credentials.”
Colter stared at it.
“Impossible.”
Mara stepped closer.
“Show me the timestamp.”
“8:58.”
“That's twenty minutes ago.”
“Yes.”
Mara looked at Colter.
“You were in the booking room.”
“I was.”
“Who had access to your office?”
Colter hesitated.
“My chief deputy.”
“Name?”
“Harold Benton.”
“Where is he?”
Colter looked at the hallway.
Nobody answered.
Evan said quietly, “I haven't seen him since seven.”
Mara's eyes narrowed.
“Call him.”
Colter took out his phone.
He dialed.
The call rang.
No answer.
He tried again.
Still nothing.
Mara walked toward the evidence-room door.
She crouched.
She examined the lock.
Then she stood.
“Someone didn't try to open this.”
Colter frowned.
“What?”
“They tried to make the system think they did.”
She pointed to the keypad.
“There isn't a scratch.”
“Then how?”
“Remote access.”
Colter looked confused.
“This is an evidence room.”
“Your locks are connected to the building network.”
“Yes.”
“So is your dispatch.”
“And the cameras.”
“And the booking system.”
“And the administrative computers.”
Mara looked at him.
“Exactly.”
Evan slowly understood.
“If someone controls the network…”
“They can make records say whatever they want,” Mara finished.
Colter looked sick.
“How long?”
Mara's expression hardened.
“That's the question.”
A sound came from the end of the corridor.
Footsteps.
Everyone turned.
A deputy appeared.
“Sheriff!”
“What?”
“We found Chief Benton.”
“Where?”
“In the parking garage.”
Colter started walking.
Mara followed.
They reached the garage.
Benton's cruiser sat under a fluorescent light.
The driver's door was open.
The chief deputy was nowhere inside.
A phone lay on the ground beside the driver's seat.
Mara crouched and picked it up.
The screen was cracked.
A single message was visible.