"You were in it the moment you knew." He leaned forward and covered his face with both hands. "If I cooperate, we may lose everything."
She reached for the letter and folded it. "Then we face that honestly. I do not want my comfort paid for by something that prevents you from telling the truth."
Bennett looked at the clock on the wall. It was 9:18 p.m. He retrieved his phone from the kitchen drawer. More than a dozen missed calls appeared when he turned it on.
The first call he returned was Maya's. She answered immediately. "Officer Bennett?" "It is the Bellamy Textile Mill," he said. "The old property near the western county line."
Maya pressed the speaker button. Eleanor and Brooks were still in her kitchen. Brooks moved closer to the phone. "Give me the exact location."
"Bellamy Mill Road, past the closed feed warehouse. There is no active sign at the entrance. The property is registered through Bellamy Storage Holdings." "How do you know it is the right site?" Brooks asked.
"I drove records there twice last year. The high-value vehicles are kept in the eastern building." "What else is inside?"
"Paper files are in the upstairs office. Keys are kept in a locked cabinet near the dispatch desk. Curtis controls the main gate. Mercer usually checks the vehicle numbers before transport."
"Is Hale expected there tonight?" "Yes. He reviews the transfer sheets before anything leaves the county." Brooks took notes rapidly. "How many vehicles can they move?"
"Three enclosed transports and several towing trucks. The classic cars go first. Motorcycles are loaded together. If they follow the usual process, the first trailer leaves before midnight."
Brooks checked the time. They had less than 2 hours. "Will you speak to me in person?" he asked.
Bennett looked toward his mother. "Yes." "Stay where you are. An agent will pick you up."
"No. Hale has people who know my car. I can meet you at the old county library parking lot."
Brooks agreed and ended the call. He immediately contacted the federal prosecutor preparing the emergency application. The recovered database supported probable cause, but the reviewing judge required independent evidence connecting Kingsley Towing to the Bellamy property. Bennett's statement helped, but he had already recanted once. The judge wanted corroboration.
"We need something outside Bennett," Brooks said.
Ruth opened the roadside video on her laptop. The tow driver had an identification badge. She moved through the footage frame by frame until the driver turned toward the camera. The image was blurred, but the badge showed two lines of text. The first read Kingsley Towing. Beneath it was a smaller logo.