“No.”
“Listen first.”
“You told me that camera was for insurance.”
“It was.”
“You installed it.”
“Yes.”
“You told me every veteran over sixty should have one because scammers target older drivers.”
“That was true.”
“Was?”
Reyes looked at him.
Walter felt the cold in his stomach again.
“What did you put in my car?”
“A dash camera.”
“Only a dash camera?”
“Yes.”
“Then why do you sound like I’m sitting inside an evidence locker?”
Reyes didn’t answer.
Walter leaned toward him.
“Who are you working for?”
Before Reyes could respond, a black SUV entered the parking lot.
Walter turned.
Another vehicle followed.
Neither had visible police markings.
Three people stepped out.
Two men.
One woman.
The woman walked directly toward Walter’s sedan.
She appeared to be in her early forties, with dark hair tied back and a navy coat buttoned to her throat.
Reyes opened his door.
Walter caught his sleeve.
“Who is she?”
Reyes looked at him.
“Her name is Elaine Mercer.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
“She’s with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.”
Walter stared at him.
Then at the approaching woman.
Then back at Reyes.
“What did you get me into?”
Reyes didn’t answer quickly enough.
Walter understood.
His voice dropped.
“Daniel.”
“I didn’t know Cole would stop you.”
Walter’s hand remained on his sleeve.
“But you knew somebody might.”
Reyes closed his eyes.
And that was the moment Walter realized the robbery had begun long before the flashing lights appeared in his mirror.
Elaine Mercer introduced herself without reaching for Walter’s hand.
That told him she understood his mood.
“Mr. Bennett,” she said, “I’m sorry.”
Walter stood beside his car.
The feed store lot was empty except for their vehicles.
“Which part?”
Mercer glanced at Reyes.
“All of it.”
“That’s a broad apology.”
“It needs to be.”
Walter folded his arms.
“You used me.”
Reyes stepped forward.
“Walter—”
“Don’t.”
Reyes stopped.
Mercer removed a small credentials wallet from her coat and showed it to Walter.
He barely looked.
“Tell me why three thousand dollars disappeared from my pocket.”
Mercer took a breath.
“For the last six months, we’ve been investigating complaints involving roadside cash seizures in this county.”
“Seizures?”
“The officers describe them as seizures when they bother documenting them.”
Walter laughed once.
There was no humor in it.
“And when they don’t?”
Mercer looked at him.
“We believe some money is simply being stolen.”
“By Cole?”
“We suspected Officer Eric Cole was involved.”
“Suspected.”
“Yes.”
“And today?”
Mercer glanced at the camera.
“Today may be the first time we have direct video evidence.”
Walter looked at Reyes.
“You knew.”
“I knew they were investigating Cole.”
“You installed that camera.”
“Yes.”
“For me?”
Reyes hesitated.
“For you and two other veterans who drive this route frequently.”
Walter stared at him.
The parking lot seemed to tilt.
“You planted cameras in old men’s cars?”
“No. I recommended upgraded cameras and paid for them through the veterans’ legal fund.”
“You didn’t tell us why.”
“No.”
Walter took a step toward him.
“You let me drive through an area where you thought police officers were robbing people.”
Reyes did not back away.
“Yes.”
Mercer interrupted.
“We never expected you to be targeted.”
Walter turned sharply.
“Then why put the camera there?”
She had no immediate answer.
Walter pointed toward the highway.
“Because you expected somebody to be targeted.”
Mercer’s jaw tightened.
“Because every previous complainant had one thing in common.”
“What?”
“They were older, alone, and carrying visible cash.”
Walter felt a chill.
“My cash wasn’t visible.”
Mercer’s eyes moved to Reyes.
Walter followed them.
The look between them lasted less than a second.
But Walter saw it.
“What?”
Reyes said nothing.
Walter’s voice rose.
“What?”
Mercer spoke carefully.
“Did anyone know you were withdrawing money today?”
Walter looked from one to the other.
“My contractor.”
“Anyone else?”
“The bank teller, I suppose.”
“What branch?”
Walter told her.
Mercer turned to one of the men beside the SUV.
“Call it in.”
Walter caught her arm.
“What does the bank have to do with this?”
She looked at his hand.
Walter released her.
Mercer lowered her voice.
“We think information may be getting passed to the officers.”
Walter stared.
“From the bank?”
“We don’t know.”
Reyes looked sick.
Walter looked at him.
“You knew that too?”
“No.”
“You better think carefully before you answer me again.”
“I swear to you, Walter, I didn’t.”
Mercer continued.
“Three previous victims withdrew significant cash shortly before they were stopped.”
“How significant?”
“More than five hundred dollars.”
Walter’s thoughts raced backward.
The bank.
The teller.
The envelope.
The drive.
He remembered a man standing near the counter.
Baseball cap.
Phone in hand.
Had he looked at Walter?
Walter couldn’t remember.
Mercer said, “We need the footage now.”
Walter looked at the camera.
“You’ll get a copy.”
“A copy?”
“The original stays with me.”
Mercer nodded slowly.
“That’s fair.”
It was the first thing anyone had said that afternoon that Walter believed.
The recording changed everything.
Cole’s face was clear.
His hand entering Walter’s jacket was clear.
The wallet was visible.
The cash was visible.
Even the second officer could be seen standing beside the cruiser.
And Cole’s words were recorded almost perfectly.
“What matters is there’s money.”
The investigators replayed that sentence six times.
Walter sat in the back seat of one of the SUVs while Mercer watched the video on a laptop.
Reyes remained outside.
Walter didn’t want him nearby.
At one point Mercer paused the footage.
She enlarged the image of the second officer.
Her face changed.
Walter noticed.
“You know him.”
Mercer didn’t answer.
“You know him.”
She zoomed closer.
“Yes.”
“Who?”
“Officer Nathan Vale.”
“Cole’s partner?”
Mercer shook her head.
“No.”
Walter waited.
Mercer looked at the frozen image.
“Vale isn’t assigned to Cole.”
“So why was he there?”
“We don’t know.”
“Maybe he was helping.”
Mercer said nothing.
Walter leaned forward.
“What?”
She closed the laptop halfway.
“I need to make a call.”
Walter stared at her.
“You people like saying that.”
Mercer stepped out.
Walter watched through the window as she moved away from the SUV.
She spoke urgently into her phone.
Reyes approached her.
She pointed toward him, clearly telling him to stay back.
Walter’s suspicion grew.
Five minutes later Mercer returned.
Her face had gone pale.
“Mr. Bennett, I need you to come with us.”
“Where?”
“Columbus.”
“No.”
“This is important.”
“So is my contractor.”
Mercer blinked.
Walter continued.
“He’s expecting three thousand dollars.”
“We can arrange reimbursement.”
“That’s not the point.”
“What is?”
Walter looked at her.
“You keep treating my day like it belongs to you.”
Mercer absorbed that.
Then nodded.
“You’re right.”
Walter expected another argument.
Instead she sat beside him.
“Nathan Vale isn’t just a patrol officer.”
Walter waited.
Mercer glanced toward the closed door.
“Eight months ago, Vale contacted our office.”
Walter’s eyebrows rose.
“He’s an informant?”
“A cooperating witness.”
“Against Cole?”
“Against people above Cole.”
Walter leaned back.
The picture changed instantly.