Action.
Workstation.
Older entries became progressively less complete.
Some user fields were blank.
Some session relationships had disappeared.
Maya leaned closer.
“How long did this system retain administrative history before?”
“Six months locally, with archived layers beyond that.”
“And now?”
Lena opened the current configuration.
“Much less.”
“Who approved the change?”
“I didn’t.”
Mercer said:
“Storage optimization may have been part of the contractor maintenance program.”
Lena looked at him.
“Not one I approved.”
“Could Sloan have done it?”
“Yes.”
“Would it leave a record?”
“It should.”
Maya studied the screen.
“And the record is gone.”
“Yes.”
Rebecca spoke.
“Which again does not mean somebody intentionally erased it.”
Maya nodded.
“Correct.”
That answer silenced her a second time.
Maya had spent years watching investigators damage their own cases by becoming emotionally attached to the first theory that made sense.
A missing log was not proof of sabotage.
A strange configuration was not proof of fraud.
A contractor relationship was not proof of conspiracy.
The only thing evidence owed an investigator was the truth.
Not drama.
Not satisfaction.
Not speed.
“Preserve current state,” Maya said.
Mercer looked at her.
“You still have not explained the scope of your authority.”
Maya unbuttoned her coat.
“The department received a federally supported technology modernization grant.”
Mercer’s expression changed almost imperceptibly.
“Yes.”
“Body-worn cameras, digital evidence storage, encrypted retention, off-site redundancy, dispatch resilience.”
“Yes.”
“Federal reporting shows the project complete.”
“It is.”
Lena looked down.
Maya noticed.
“Is it?”
Mercer turned to Lena.
“What does that mean?”
Lena opened another report.
“The storage capacity online does not match the certified architecture.”
Mercer stepped closer.
“How large is the difference?”
“Large.”
“That is not a number.”
“Large enough that the equipment currently visible cannot provide the retention and redundancy capacity the city certified.”
Rebecca moved beside her.
“You’re certain?”
“I have been certain for months.”
“Why didn’t you report it?”
Lena looked at Mercer.
“I did.”
Mercer responded immediately.
“You reported storage irregularities. You did not report missing infrastructure.”
“I said the physical architecture didn’t match the contract.”
“And the vendor told us remote configuration was still being completed.”
Lena looked back at the monitor.
“Remote configuration doesn’t create storage hardware that isn’t there.”
Nobody answered.
Maya asked:
“How much federal and local money went into the project?”
Lena opened procurement.
The total covered equipment, licensing, installation, support, and long-term service.
Several million dollars.
Mercer said:
“That number is not the value of hardware sitting in one room.”
“I understand.”
Maya pointed to the screen.
“What was certified?”
Lena opened the final acceptance package.
Everything.
Installed.
Tested.
Operational.