One Hundred and ninety four

CHAPTER 194

"Alright, our meeting is over for today," Nicholas said.

He smiled for a moment, perhaps too quickly for everyone to see. But Nicholas' thoughtful gesture was respected by everyone in the room.

"Thank you, you may back to your desks," Nicholas said, pointing at Peter. "Except for you, Peter. I want to ask for your report again and double-check it, so stay in, please."

Everyone was confused, but after Peter nodded in agreement, everyone left the room.

Peter got up from the chair he had been sitting in and moved near Nicholas. The young man was confused because he remembered that all these reports and information had already been given to Nicholas via email, so what else would Nicholas ask for?

"Here are my reports-" "No need, Peter."

Peter's eyes, adorned with square glasses, looked puzzled. He mumbled, then looked at the folder containing the report he had already emailed in confusion, then back at Nicholas. "I don't understand, Chief."

"I want to ask you a favor," Nicholas whispered.

Nicholas' brown eyes looked outside, at the transparent window that allowed him to see everyone outside the room. Nicholas watched Hendrick, assuring him that the man was back at his desk and working as usual. Nicholas nodded his head, then turned back to Peter.

"I need you to keep an eye on Hendrick."

The remark caught Peter by surprise. Both eyebrows were raised quite high, before he reacted back in front of Nicholas. "What do you mean?"

"The information we just shared might provoke Hendrick. I want you to follow him, if he calls, meets or communicates with anyone suspicious and he doesn't seem to be on our side, you must report it as soon as possible."

It took time for Peter to digest Nicholas' words. Nicholas looked at Peter expectantly, he knew he was being relied upon, but Peter then cleared his throat and said, "But Hendrick is my senior, and we are colleagues. Would it be all right if I did this to Hendrick, Chief? If he finds out, he might be disappointed in you."

Nicholas rolled his eyes lazily. The head of the New York City police did not know that Peter had so much empathy for his colleague. He then took out a cell phone from his coat-covered shirt pocket and placed it on the table. Peter watched curiously, while Nicholas scrolled through the screen and showed a video on it.

"Here. You have to see this video. This is the CCTV footage of the day Ace escaped from prison," Nicholas told Peter.

And Peter agreed to obey him. The bespectacled man watched the video intently, as if not wanting to miss a single second of the scenes that appeared on the screen. Until finally, the video stopped.

Peter looked at Nicholas, waiting to see what Nicholas would do next. And after that, Nicholas showed him another video, one that was at a different angle but at the same time. Nicholas ignin proved to Peter that Hendrick had done something there.

"Now, you should see this video too." Nicholas pointed at the screen, and pressed the icon on the screen to turn on the video. "You see this? This is Hendrick, he was outside the building, but in the previous CCTV, he was in his room. But you see, the time on the CCTV is the same. That means the video has been manipulated."

Hearing that, Peter was shocked. He pursed his lips, not expecting that Hendrick would do such a dirty thing behind his own team's back. But Peter also felt uncomfortable talking to Hendrick about it.

"You have to pretend you don't know about this. Hendrick might be provoked by the information we shared in the meeting, if he betrays us, he'll call his contacts and we'll arrest Hendrick and his contacts."

Peter's eyebrows furrowed deeply. "But what if we're wrong, Chief? He could be framed, or something?"

Nicholas grinned, he lightly tapped the shoulder of Peter sitting next to him and said, "You've got a lot of faith in your own partner, um? But this is what we need to find out, Peter. You can't take sides, if you want to see the truth."

When the weight of Nicholas was on Peter's shoulders, he couldn't shake the internal conflict going on inside him. The trust he had in Hendrick, his senior and colleague, clashed with the irrefutable evidence presented by Nicholas. Peter understood the gravity of the situation - espionage within their own ranks.

Nicholas leaned back, studying Peter's conflicted expression. "I know this is very hard, Peter. But we can't ignore it. If Hendrick is innocent, this will clear his name. If not, we prevent a potential disaster."

Peter nodded, determined to carry out his duty despite the discomfort in his heart. "I don't know what to do after this. What's my first step, Chief?"

Nicholas handed Peter a small device. "This is a secret communication device. Carry this with you at all times. If anything happens, contact me immediately. Stay inconspicuous; we don't want Hendrick to get suspicious. You need to focus on what Hendrick is doing, you always go together, if he shows any strange movements, or leads to someone outside the police force that we don't know, you need to report it to me immediately."

Peter looked at the small cell phone he had never seen before with a sense of dilemma.

Nicholas then spoke up again, he was trying to reassure Peter that everything would be alright. "I didn't ask you for a favor without calculation, Peter. I have evidence, but I need something stronger than just a manipulated video and I need you for that. You can do what's best for the police department, right?"

"Yes, Chief."

With the weight of responsibility now on Peter's shoulders, he left Nicholas' office, his mind racing with conflicting thoughts. When he returned to his desk, the hum of the office routine seemed unreal against the backdrop of the espionage drama that had just unfolded.