Inspector Fredrick Nyanchama wore a displeased expression that was evident from the subtle crook in his upper lip. He asked Sandy Muiru to leave his office before turning to Preston and asking, "What are you doing?"

Preston was sitting on one of the wooden seats across from Fredrick's grand and polished desk, which was probably made of oak wood. The desk had a laptop, an open notebook, and a stack of papers in one corner.

"She requested to be part of the investigation," replied Preston.

"And you thought, bloody hell, why not!"

"That's not how I saw it."

"Tell me then how you saw it?"

Preston was aware that he tended to act impulsively without thinking through his actions. He believed that agreeing to let Sandy Muiru report to the police station on Monday morning was one of those impulsive decisions. He hadn't considered whether it was the right thing to do, but he felt guilty about Officer Edward's daughter wanting to be involved in the investigation.

"I didn't know how to refuse her request, especially since she's Officer Edward's daughter," he explained.

Inspector Fredrick seemed surprised by his honesty. After a moment of silence, he replied, "This is not a charity organization, Officer."

"I understand that, but I need all the help I can get," Preston replied. Since Officer Edward Muiru's death, he had not been assigned a partner. Investigating on his own was challenging, and there was a lot of work to be done.

"About that, well, I got a solution," Fredrick said.

Preston observed as Fredrick dialed a number on the office landline phone. After a few seconds, he spoke into the phone, "Tell him to come to my office." Soon enough, Officer Michael Tanui entered the room.

"You must be kidding me," Preston said almost immediately. Officer Michael was the last person he expected to see.

"What's Edward's daughter doing seated outside?" Michael Tanui questioned, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Sandy. Her name is Sandy Muiru," corrected Preston.

"What is she doing here, anyway?" asked Michael.

"The same thing I asked him. I'm not satisfied with his answer," replied the Inspector. Preston could sense from his tone that he didn't want Sandy Muiru anywhere near the station. Silently, Preston contemplated how he would break the news to Sandy.

He inquired, "Inspector, why did you summon Officer Michael?"

Preston was certain of the answer, yet he still wanted to confirm.

"I've assigned Officer Tanui to the murder investigation," Inspector Frederick announced.

Preston objected, "No offense, Inspector, but this is my case. I should have a say in choosing a partner."

Preston was apprehensive about working with Officer Tanui. He believed Michael to be arrogant and selfish. He was not a team player and would do anything for personal gain. Preston did not want to work with him.

"I understand your concerns, Preston. But your role will remain as the lead investigator, and I'm confident that Officer Tanui will support you in every way possible," the Inspector said. "Right, Tanui?"

Officer Michael replied, "Yes."

When Preston glanced at Michael for a second longer, he thought he caught a smug look on his face.

"Officer Tanui, please brief Preston on the information you shared with me earlier," the Inspector said.

Michael began, "Preston, I understand your reservations about working with me. However, I don't intend to take over your case. I want to help investigate because I believe that Officer Edward Muiru's death was not an accident. It was premeditated."

Preston was shocked. He felt his jaw drop to the ground. "What do you mean? Edward died in a car accident."

"Yes, he died in an accident, but I think it was staged. I believe he was killed because he had a piece of evidence that someone wanted to keep hidden," Michael explained.

"What kind of evidence?" Preston asked.

"A flash drive. Edward had it with him when he left his house, but it's missing from the accident scene. His briefcase, which contained the flash drive, is nowhere to be found," Michael said.

Preston recalled the briefcase; a small, black, box-shaped bag with leather stripes around its edges. "Edward always carried it with him," he said.

Michael nodded, "Yes, I'm aware. Edward had a fondness for that briefcase."

Preston realized that Michael could be right. But who would want Edward dead?

This revelation changed the entire angle of the investigation. It was no longer a cold case.

"What was on the flash drive?" he asked.

"I don't know, but it must have been important enough for someone to kill for it," Michael replied.

Preston was about to ask Michael how he knew about the flash drive when he finally realized what was happening. "Inspector, Michael has compromised the investigation. He's been talking to my suspect behind my back."

Michael interjected, "Gary Wako is no longer a suspect, Preston."

The Inspector's silence only confirmed Preston's suspicions. Preston felt more frustrated. "You were aware of this, weren't you?"

"Michael brought this to my attention last week," the Inspector confirmed.

"Listen, Preston," Michael began. "The investigation hasn't been compromised in any way. A few days ago, Gary Wako contacted me for a favor. He claimed someone was blackmailing him, so I offered to help. He confided in me, told me about his interrogation with Officer Edward, and mentioned a flash drive. I immediately thought that we might have found our person. He was cooperating, and I didn't want to miss that opportunity."

Preston wondered why Gary Wako reached out to Michael. Were they acquainted?

Interrupting Michael, Preston asked, "Did Gary give the drive to Edward?"

"Yes, he claimed he did. He said the drive had crucial evidence."

"What was on the drive?" Preston inquired.

"He wouldn't say. He refused to talk and even threatened to deny giving the drive to Edward. I could tell he was afraid of something."

Preston was feeling betrayed and wondered why Michael hadn't come to him in the first place. "So, the burglary at Edward's home was all staged?" he asked.

Inspector Fredrick stepped in, saying, "I gave the green light."

Michael then explained, "I had to make Gary Wako believe that I was on his side, so we staged the whole burglary thing. Gary was convinced that the flash drive was still in the house."

"Until you couldn't find it," Preston concluded.

"Yes. And now that we know it's missing, Gary Wako has refused to talk."

Preston was pacing around the office nervously. "I'm guessing you now know that I was the one who was blackmailing him," he said.

Michael responded, "I didn't know at first. I only found out this morning after running some checks on the unknown phone number that had texted him."

Preston chuckled dryly, "Well, look at where the blackmail has gotten us. Nowhere. The only lead we had on the investigation is not going to talk."

The Inspector disputed. "No. We got something, Preston. We now know the person responsible for Diane Rucho's murder knows that we are on his or her trail. He/she is bound to make a mistake along the way and that's where we come in."

Michael then asked, "Where do we start?"

Preston took a while before replying, "We start from the beginning."

Before he left the Inspector's office, Preston asked, "What do we do with Edward's daughter?"

"Keep her."