‘What did I say to you just yesterday morning before you left on your road trip?’ Hill’s voice boomed across the walls.
Darnell, who had once again taken a seat before his manager’s desk, gulped. ‘You said that if I screwed this up anymore I’d be taken off the case and my career would be over.’
‘That’s right.’
‘But I haven’t done anything to mess things up in the last day. In fact we’re really onto a lead with Rick Spabrunt who we have in custody!’
Hill lifted up his hand and Darnell stopped talking. The Commander’s large chest expanded as he took a seat and put on his glasses while he read over a sheet of paper lined up in the centre of his desk.
‘I followed up with the newspaper who first reported the Lincoln exhumation story at Oak Ridge Park. I’ve found out who leaked the story.’
‘And? Who was it?’ Darnell asked, leaning forward towards his boss. He was sure it was that nosy witch Penelope Stokes in Indiana, who had basically blackmailed him into revealing the true reasons for their visit in exchange for him to see their personnel records.
‘It was you,’ Hill said calmly. ‘You are responsible for this mess.’
‘Sir.’ Darnell bowed his head. ‘I may have revealed a little bit too much to one of the park managers to help us get some leads…’
‘Park managers?’ Hill replied and shrugged his shoulders. ‘What are you talking about?’
‘I told one of the Lincoln park managers in Indiana about what we were working on in exchange for information on her employees. I’m sorry, sir, I thought I could trust her.’
‘It was no park manager who revealed this,’ Hill replied.
‘Not Lae Chang?’ Darnell gasped. The student appeared so gentle and quiet; did she really have it in her to break his trust?
‘No. My God, man, how many people did you tell?’ Hill shook his head.
‘Then who told the press?’
‘Detective Jackson, this leak came specifically from you. You sent the email to the newspaper telling them everything.’
The Commander handed his subordinate the document which sat before him. Darnell slid it towards himself and turned it over. At the top was his work email address and the recipient was an editor from a tabloid newspaper.
To The Editor,
The Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield Illinois has not been undergoing a refurbishment. It has been partially closed as the body of the late Abraham Lincoln has been stolen. The government and the police want to keep the details of this away from the American public.
I’d be grateful if you could keep my name anonymous for the purposes of my job. In exchange for my anonymity, I’ll gladly keep you informed of any progress within the case.
Yours,
Detective Darnell Jackson
‘There must be some mistake. This is clearly fraud.’ Darnell forced a lone laugh and scratched his head. All colour drained from his face. ‘I’d never do anything like this. You must see that clearly this is a set-up. Why would I email this from my own address? It would be career suicide. Someone must have broken into my email.’
‘I don’t want to hear it.’ Hill waved his hand. ‘Our servers are some of the best in the world. People can’t just intercept your emails and send out messages like this. Time and time again you have proven to be a liability.’
‘But, Commander Hill! I promise you!’
‘I can’t have you on this case anymore,’ Hill cut in. ‘Or any other case for that matter. I’m going to be kind to you, Darnell. You’ve worked here for a long time in this division. Therefore I’m going to suggest you take early retirement so that you can still get your pension. But as far as your career with the police force goes, it is over.’
Darnell silently nodded and he sat back, wiping away a sprinkle of moisture in the corner of his eye. There was no reasoning with his manager; he’d worked with him long enough to know that once he had made a decision he stuck with it. Arguing would not help him. He could even leave without a pension if he wasn’t careful, with his reputation in tatters. He had to find out who had hacked his emails and show his boss the evidence.
He departed his manager’s office, his head bowed, avoiding the curious looks from his colleagues. Small talk wasn’t something he was going to entertain now. Vanessa was eagerly waiting in the break-out room with a coffee.
‘What was that about?’ she asked, running over to his locker, which he was furiously emptying.
‘It’s over, Vanessa. I’m out.’
‘You’re out?’ Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open.
‘I’ll tell you later. But someone is stitching me right up here. And I need to find out who the hell is doing this. Someone has a severe vendetta against me and I’m sure as hell going to make sure they pay the price for it.’
On the drive home, he spun the events of the last few days around in his head. He had lost his wife, his children and now his job. Only a few days earlier, he’d considered leaving his thirty-year career behind but now he was being forced to leave.
In any usual circumstance, his wife Jasmine would be a rock of support, but even she was furious with him; there would be no sympathy from her. And it was all
