Page 39 of Dead Air
HUTCHINSON:Without question. Monica was methodical. Thorough. If she found a connection between Rafferty and people in the justice system, she documented it. That made her dangerous to someone with everything to lose.
[Brief pause]
LEAH:Detective Erin Lawson declined to comment when presented with Detective Hutchinson's account of his relationship with her partner. However, sources close to the investigation report Detective Lawson was unaware of the relationship at the time of Detective Landry's death.
LEAH:This creates a troubling scenario: Monica Landry keeping secrets from both her professional partner and her romantic partner in the weeks before her murder. Withdrawing from everyone close to her while pursuing evidence of corruption that potentially reached into the courthouse itself.
LEAH:The warehouse meeting where she died now appears increasingly like a trap, one set by someone who knew exactly where she would be standing. Someone with access to resources that could install an independently powered floodlight. Someone who could ensure evidence would disappear afterward.
[Music softens]
LEAH:Tomorrow, I'll be sitting down with forensic experts who've reviewed the available evidence from the crime scene. Their analysis reveals discrepancies in the official autopsy report that further challenge the narrative of a random shooting.
LEAH:In our next episode, we'll examine Detective Lawson's official statement about that night—and why key details contradict physical evidence from the scene.
[Music builds]
LEAH:This is Dead Air. The truth doesn't stay buried forever.
[Theme music plays out]
chapter
fifteen
Lawson spreadMonica's documents across her kitchen table. Bank statements from Monica's final six months, mixed in with utility bills and credit card receipts, all tucked away in a manila envelope that anyone else would have overlooked.
She organized the papers chronologically. Monica's regular paycheck deposits appeared every two weeks, matching department pay scales exactly. Rent payments on the fifteenth. Grocery purchases at the same three stores. The predictable financial rhythm of a working cop's life.
Then she found the irregularities.
Five deposits over Monica's final three months. Each for exactly $5,000. Each from a source listed only as "Private Transfer - Account #472891." No name. No institution identifier. Just numbers that provided no context.
Lawson checked the dates against her memory of Monica's investigation timeline. The first deposit coincided with Monica's assignment to the Rafferty case. The last appeared three days before her death. Thousands of dollars in unexplained income during the period when Monica was documenting departmental corruption.
Her phone buzzed. A text from Fiona:Need comment on Blackwell's latest episode for Chronicle story. Coffee?
Lawson stared at the bank statements, then at Fiona's message. She needed someone with investigative resources that wouldn't raise red flags.
Someone who might prove useful despite her reservations about trusting any journalist.
Perimeter Coffee. One hour.
The response came quickly:I'll be there.
Fiona had claimed the corner booth again, laptop open, notepad covered in her precise handwriting. She looked up as Lawson approached, closing the computer with care.
"Thanks for meeting."
Lawson slid into the opposite seat, placing the bank statements face-down on the table. "Need your help with something."
"What kind of something?"
Lawson flipped the documents over. Fiona's eyes immediately focused on the highlighted deposits, journalist instincts activated by the sight of potential evidence.
"Monica's financial records. Found them mixed in with her personal effects." Lawson pointed to the mysterious transfers. "Five payments over three months. Same amount each time."
Fiona leaned forward, scanning the numbers with practiced efficiency. She pulled out her phone, opening a note-taking app. "This account number provide any leads?"
