“Right now my concern is that you made several irreversible decisions before completing a reversible verification process.”
Rebecca’s face changed.
“What did they tell you?”
Mercer looked toward the hallway.
“They asked for Maya Williams.”
Rebecca said nothing.
“By name.”
Ben’s head came up.
“Who called?”
Mercer did not answer.
“Stay here.”
He walked to interview room two.
Through the narrow observation window, Maya sat exactly where she had been placed.
Mercer opened the door.
“Ms. Williams?”
“Chief Mercer.”
The fact that she knew him caused him to pause.
“You know who I am.”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“I reviewed the command structure before arriving.”
Mercer stepped inside.
“I just received a secure call concerning you.”
Maya waited.
“Federal Bureau of Investigation. Charlotte Field Office.”
Her expression did not change.
“They want you placed on the line.”
“Then you should do that.”
Mercer pulled out the chair across from her.
This time he sat.
“Before I do, I need to understand what happened downstairs.”
“You have cameras.”
“I’m asking you directly.”
Maya nodded once.
“Officer Carter scanned my credential. It returned verified. Lieutenant Sloan asked for agency information outside the disclosure conditions attached to the authorization. I directed her to secondary validation. She ordered the verification screen closed, attempted to seize a secured federal case, destroyed the credential, and detained me.”
“Lieutenant Sloan believed you might be attempting unauthorized access.”
“That was a reasonable concern before verification.”
Mercer leaned slightly forward.
“And after?”
“She had two separate confirmation results and a validation number.”
“Why didn’t you simply say FBI?”
“Because the inspection was restricted notification.”
“You could have avoided this.”
Maya looked at him for several seconds.
Then she said:
“Your lieutenant could have avoided it by following the procedure displayed in front of her.”
Mercer’s expression tightened.
“What are you doing in Asheford?”
“Place me on the secure line.”
“This is my department.”
“Yes.”
“You’re sitting in one of my interview rooms because one of my lieutenants believes our systems may have been compromised.”
“Yes.”
“I need to know whether this is an investigation.”
“You need to put me on the secure line.”
Mercer had interviewed murder suspects who gave him more than Maya was giving him.
He recognized the difference.
She was not evading because she was frightened.
She was refusing because she had been told what she could disclose and what she could not.
He stood.
“Come with me.”
When Maya returned to the lobby, Rebecca was waiting.
Her posture remained rigid.
Her certainty did not.
Mercer handed Maya the secure phone.
She turned slightly away from the desk.
“Williams.”
The voice on the other end spoke for nearly twenty seconds.
Maya listened.
Then responded.
“Credential destroyed. Secure case locked under automatic seal. No contents compromised.”
A pause.
“Two local verification returns completed before detention.”
Rebecca looked toward Mercer.
Maya listened again.
“Yes.”
Another pause.
“Front desk video should capture the entire interaction.”
She listened.
“Understood.”
Then she handed the phone to Mercer.
Rebecca asked the question she had resisted asking until that moment.
“You’re actually FBI?”
Mercer answered.
“Special Agent Maya Williams.”
Ben lowered his eyes.
Rebecca looked at the torn credential.
For several seconds she said nothing.