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“Tauri, what happened wasn’t my or Mommy’s fault.” Kane crouched in front of him. “Those bad people can’t hurt us again. In a little while, I’m going to court to make sure they’re locked in jail forever.”
“Yes, Atohi told me that you and Mommy put bad men in jail.” Tauri hugged Kane around the neck. “You saved us from the bad men, Daddy, but I’m scared they’ll come back.”
“They won’t.” Kane looked at Jenna over Tauri’s shoulder, his eyes filled with concern. “I promise.” He hugged him close. “I’ve shown you the safe room. If ever at any time you feel scared, you can go in there and lock the door. No one can get inside.” He held him away, and smiled at him. “You won’t need the safe room but it’s there to make us all feel better. We are mighty warriors. They will never hurt us or Mommy again.”
“Okay.” Tauri smiled at him and climbed into his seat. He took a long drink of his milk leaving a white moustache. “Are we having pancakes today? I love pancakes.”
FORTY-FOUR
At the office, Jenna called everyone in to view the footage Agent Katz had provided. They all stared in disbelief as Carter’s face was clearly visible on the screen. She looked at Kane. “Call him and see if he’ll come in voluntarily.”
“You at the cabin?” Kane put his phone on speaker.
“Nope just walked out of Aunt Betty’s. What’s up?” Carter sounded the same as usual.
“Drop by the office. I have something to show you.” Kane disconnected and looked at Jenna. “He doesn’t sound too worried.”
Five minutes later Carter walked into the office and smiled around a toothpick, Zorro at his heels.
“Please tell me you have a solid suspect.” Carter looked at Jenna and dropped his toothpick into the garbage.
Shaking her head, Jenna stared at him, unable to believe he was capable of murder. “I’ve already read you your rights. We have evidence implicating you in the murders of four women. Do you want me to call a lawyer?”
“What evidence?” Carter sat down and shook his head. “I haven’t killed anyone. This is crazy talk. Show me what you’ve got. You owe me that at least.”
Jenna turned around her computer screen and played the clips, the dates prominent on the screen. “You can’t deny that’s you.”
“Oh, yes I do.” Carter shook his head. “The last one, supposedly of me climbing into the pickup.” He pulled a thumb drive from his inside pocket and slid it across the table. “Kalo has copies of these as well. I took them through the library window at two yesterday afternoon. I figured someone was setting me up and when I saw that jerk who looks just like me climbing into the pickup, I took photos. I can’t be in the pickup and taking photos as well, can I? Something stinks here and it ain’t me.”
Jenna stared at the images, all date and time stamped. “Well, okay, but what about the others?” She scrolled through CCTV footage. “That’s you in the general store.”
“No, it can’t be because I wasn’t in town the day this was taken.” Carter shook his head. “I had to go back to the office, if you recall, to get files for the director.” He pointed to the next footage. “Or here.” He looked at Jenna. “What’s missing, Jenna?”
Concerned, Jenna stared once more at each set of footage. She lifted her gaze to him. “Zorro.”
“You saying someone put your face in this footage?” Kane stared at him. “How could they do that before Agent Katz collected it?”
“Call Kalo and ask him.” Carter shrugged. “He’ll know.”
Jenna made a video call and Kalo picked up. She explained the situation. “Agent Katz did mention she had trouble accessing the image files. Maybe someone tampered with them but they all look genuine to us.”
“This is the problem. It’s easy to tamper with video footage, but looping it back into the system without creating a stagger means this guy has a high level of expertise. Usually, we can tell if footage has been tampered with, but I can see from the files they are extensive. It might take some time to examine all of them.” Kalo’s brow creased into a frown. “Just a minute and I’ll take a look.” He looked at his screen array and nodded. “This is good. I’m thinking deepfake technology. As in using AI to change the face on an image or footage. It’s becoming easier and easier to use now. It’s even available on phones.”
Understanding the concept as she’d seen deepfake technology on TV, Jenna nodded. “Yeah, I know about it, but how do we tell the difference between fake and the real thing?”
“Some things aren’t quite right. For instance, speech may be delayed but not often.” Kalo’s gaze drifted from the screen and then back to her. “I’ll have to dig deep and see if I can locate the original footage. Agent Katz will need to be aware, so I’ll contact her. Between us we’ll be able to trace the source files, but it will take time.”
“Just do it before I’m charged with murder.” Carter leaned forward in his chair. “Ask Jo to come here as well. Get her a ride ASAP. I need her.”
“Okay, I’m on it.” Kalo disconnected.
“Here take this.” Carter removed his weapon and handed it to Kane. “Stick to procedure. Lock me up if you like but I’m not going anywhere. I want to find this killer and clear my name.”
Nodding, Jenna looked at him. “None of us believe you’re capable of murder, Ty. I’m sure if you were in my position, you’d want answers too. It certainly looks like someone is framing you.”
“From the evidence, I’d agree.” Kane gave Carter a long look. “You must understand that being part of a team, we must have absolute trust in each other.” He narrowed his gaze. “The problem for me is that I’ve seen the enemy infiltrate a team, live, fight, laugh, and cry together for years—and then murder everyone in their beds.” He placed Carter’s pistol on the desk. “My suspicion keeps me alive.” He met his gaze. “I’m sure you understand, being a SEAL and all.”
“I do and I can understand why y’all believe I’m implicated in the murders.” Carter tossed a toothpick into his mouth and moved it across his lips. “That sure looks like me in the footage, but if you figure I’ve been undercover for the last five years to bring down a deputy sheriff for heaven knows what, you’re batshit crazy.” He shook his head and then raised one eyebrow. “Your name was never mentioned, not at any meeting and not on any paperwork.”
