6. Tanya and the Door That Opened
Two nights later, Aisha drove Marcus to a small church parking lot on the west side of the city.
Marcus sat low in the passenger seat, cap pulled down, hoodie shadowing his face.
Aisha parked near a flickering light.
“You sure she’ll come?” Marcus whispered.
Aisha glanced at him. “Tanya doesn’t scare easy.”
A car pulled in across from them.
A woman stepped out, early thirties, hair pulled into a bun, wearing a blazer that looked like it had survived a hundred long days. She walked toward them with a cautious stride.
Aisha got out first.
The woman’s eyes widened when she recognized Aisha, then narrowed when she saw Marcus slide out of the car.
Marcus pulled down his hood.
Tanya froze.
“Holy—” she breathed. “You’re alive.”
Marcus’s mouth twisted. “Apparently that’s inconvenient.”
Tanya stared at him like she was trying to decide if this was real or some elaborate con.
Then she looked at Aisha.
“If you’re involved,” Tanya said slowly, “I believe it.”
Aisha’s gaze softened for a brief second. “We need help.”
Tanya didn’t waste time. “Show me what you have.”
In the dim glow of the parking lot light, Marcus handed over the pill bottle, the receipt, his notes, and a small audio recording Aisha had managed to capture on her phone earlier that day: Veronica’s voice, sharp and irritated, saying, “Just keep him sleepy. I don’t care what it takes.”
Tanya listened, face tightening.
When it ended, she exhaled slowly.
“This is serious,” she said. “Attempted homicide. Conspiracy. But you need more. You need chain of custody. You need lab tests. You need something that survives defense attorneys with teeth.”
Marcus’s jaw clenched. “I can get more.”
Tanya held up a hand. “Not you. You’re compromised. Anyone watching you will move fast.”
Aisha’s gaze flickered. “So what do we do?”
Tanya’s eyes sharpened. “We do what your wife and brother didn’t count on.”
Marcus leaned forward. “Which is?”
Tanya’s voice was low, fierce. “We turn this into a federal case.”
Marcus blinked. “Federal?”
Tanya nodded. “Poisoning crosses lines. Financial crimes cross lines. If your brother bought a captain, there’s bribery. If they’re moving money, there’s fraud. We tie this to the money. We bring in people who don’t answer to Captain Reed.”
Marcus felt a strange, almost painful swell in his chest.
Hope.
Tanya looked at him hard. “But understand this, Mr. Hail. The moment we move, your life changes. You’ll lose control of the narrative. You’ll lose privacy. You’ll lose… comfort.”
Marcus almost laughed, but it wasn’t funny.
“I already lost my comfort,” he said. “It almost killed me.”
Tanya nodded once. “Okay. Then we go.”
