Page 159 of Hidden Tide

“Don’t announce where it’s going.”

She studies him.

“Simon may be listening to police communications.”

“He doesn’t need to,” Ben says. “He knows the trunk is connected to an active federal investigation. There are only a few places you can take it.”

“He wants us to move it,” I say.

Marquez’s expression hardens.

“Then we won’t move the real one.”

Keating nods as he understands her plan.

“You want a decoy transport.”

“I want two.”

Hazel turns toward her. “What happens to my trunk?”

“It will remain inside the apartment until we can secure the building and bring in a federal evidence team without drawing attention.”

“You can’t leave it there.”

“We’ll leave officers with it.”

“If Simon has people inside the police department⁠—”

“We have no proof of that,” Keating says.

“But Donald Cross had people inside the Coast Guard,” Storm reminds him. “Kessler became director of investigations because someone wanted access to everything your people discovered.”

Keating doesn’t flinch from the accusation.

“We don’t know whether Kessler was working with Donald Cross or investigating him.”

“He locked my family in a holding room,” I say.

“Yes.”

“He tried to seize Grandpa’s evidence without documenting it.”

“Yes.”

“He sent armed men onto this base.”

Keating’s jaw tightens. “And that is why he is being questioned by the inspector general.”

Marquez looks around the room.

“No one outside this conference room learns that the trunk is staying in place.”

She contacts the officers inside Hazel’s apartment through a secured channel and orders them to disconnect their body-camera audio before giving further instructions.

Two empty steamer trunks will be brought into the building.

One will leave through the front entrance in an evidence vehicle.