~~Carson's POV~~
"How about we plant a spy around him?" Knox suggested
We were currently putting heads together to figure out how we'd break through the colossal walls I encountered last night at Daniil's.
"No, that would be too risky," I dismissed.
"What if we turn one of his to a spy instead?" Sawyer chirped, calling my attention. That wasn't a bad idea.
"Planting one around will be better than doing that. We would not know when and how they'd turn their backs on us and snitch. We need someone loyal," he insisted.
"And who is this "someone loyal?"" asked Griffin.
With eyes shimmering with a firm resolve, Knox turned to me. "I'm ready to be the spy, Detective Carson."
Griffin scoffed. "You wanna be Isaiah? 'Here I am, send me?'"
"At least, you know your scriptures," Knox retorted, never taking his eyes off mine.
"Knox this is going to be risky. What if he is indeed a murderer? The serial killer we're all after? What then?" I wanted to knock some sense into him.
"For now, we're not sure. If I sense I'm in danger, I'll be sure to abort the operation and get back to you."
"And who do you think you are? Superman?" Sawyer taunted. "You're toast if Daniil turns out to be the killer we're all searching for. You know that, right?"
"I do," he replied in an impassive tone, facing him for a moment. "This is the only way, Carson," he told me in hushed tones, his resolution remaining unshaken.
Now I stared at him with pity and fear. For the first time since Daniil's involvement in this case, I hoped and prayed my instincts were wrong. To put it more accurately, I had mixed feelings now. I knew for a fact that if he was who I painted him to be, it would take him nothing to murder Knox and parcel his corpse to me.
"I could easily apply for being his driver with a forged resume," he added probably to try and convince me. However, falsifying a resume was a walkover. Yes, it was illegal and all but we could easily maneuver our way through. The issue here was that if Daniil was indeed who we were thinking he was, that'd be too shabby a ploy to go by his knowledge. Someone who managed two clean murders with zero leads isn't to be taken lightly. I had serious thinking to do.
I folded my arms above my bosom, leaning back on the table behind me, and heaved a sigh. I was having a hard time reaching a conclusion. I didn't want to push Knox to the edge of a cliff and at the same time, didn't want to jeopardize our chances of getting close to the truth.
I finally heaved a deep sigh after remaining mute for pretty long. "Knox. It's a good idea to have an informant around him." I paused. "But I still think it's a bad idea that you have to be the spy," I completed, knocking off the relief that settled on his face after my first statement.
Then abruptly, they straightened up. I veered in the direction they were all looking and saw the Superintendent walk in with the Chief of Police in charge of our station.
We all stood straight and in perfect unison, saluted the prominent figure now in our midst.
As the team leader, I stepped forward.
"Good day sirs."
"Detective Carson," the Superintendent addressed formally. "How's your team going with the investigation?" He was speaking of Anna's case.
"We're doing our very best sir," I put simply.
He looked at me – like he bore something weightier in mind to say – then swept through my teammates with studying eyes before returning them to me. "The president is now involved." He dropped the bombshell and a few degrees in the room with it.
How? Why? Why would the U.S. president be involved? Was Anna a prominent figure? Given the subtle whispers coming from beside me, I could tell the confusion hit all four of us equally.
"Mr. Donovan the victim's father is currently a member of the state assembly and was a member of the state Senate. Of course, this isn't for the public's knowledge so it wasn't revealed. But the fact that this case keeps meeting roadblocks after two consecutive deaths questions your abilities. Not just yours, but the whole American police force at large. Now Mr. Donovan has involved the president to put the squeeze on every team involved for good results," he detailed. "The bounty placed on the killer had been tripled. And any team that succeeds in solving this case will be promoted instantly to the headquarters," he added, watching us closely for a reaction.
"What do you think is the most vital to entirely change the course of this investigation?" he asked like he was addressing students.
"Leads?" "Concrete evidence?" Sawyer and Griffin guessed in sequence.
"A suspect?"
"Bingo!" He affirmed Knox's guess almost immediately. "With that being said, every team is expected to bring at least one suspect to the table. The fact that I am relaying this personally should tell you the severity of this case now."
I tilted to my right only to find Sawyer and Griffin exchanging glances already. I feared they were going to spill the beans now the president's involved but decided to act as naturally as possible.
Just when I shoved my fears aside, Sawyer spoke up.
"Sir there..."
"There is nothing to worry about, sir. Like my colleague said earlier, we'll make sure to give our very best."
My heart already sunk but then I breathed a silent sigh of relief when Knox stepped in to save the day. Again. 'Looks like I have to lecture them again on why they need to remain tight-lipped about Daniil.'
"I'd appreciate that. Let's show him what our district is made of."
We bowed slightly and then saluted while he walked out.
"What was that for?" Griffin fired the moment he left eyeshot.
"Don't you think now is the perfect timing to gain Mr. President's favor?" Sawyer concurred. I stayed quiet to see how Knox would handle the criticism.
"Daniil is our suspect. He only becomes the case's when we have secured a good reason to label him a "suspect." Until then, this remains within the four walls of this room." His emphatic statement sounded more like an order they couldn't refute. I was quite impressed that I didn't know when an acknowledging smile escaped my lips. Maybe I didn't have to worry much about him. He would take good care of himself, I deduced. Moreover, if those two were itching to spill the beans, we might as well hasten things up.
"Knox," I called. "You have my consent. Sawyer get right to forging a perfect resume for him. I'll come up with an excuse to explain your absence."
"I promise I won't let you down." He shot me a reassuring smile.