Ben looked at the screen: it was preserving the transport routing history, including the unauthorized instructions sent toward Nathan's vehicle. "Sir, federal technicians are using that terminal."
"I know what they're doing. Shut it down."
Ben kept his hands at his sides.
Mercer's voice became firmer: "Officer Carter."
Ben looked directly at him. "Put the order in writing, sir."
The room became quiet. Mercer took a step toward him. "I gave you a lawful command during a cyber incident."
"Then put it in writing."
"You're refusing an order from your chief."
"I'm asking you to document it."
Mercer's expression changed. "Do you understand what this can do to your career?"
Ben swallowed before answering: "Yes, sir."
"Then shut it down."
Ben did not move.
Maya stepped between the command area and the terminal. "The routing system is under federal evidence preservation. Officer Carter will not disconnect it."
Mercer looked at her. "You cannot expect me to leave a compromised system running inside my own department."
"I expect you to stop changing evidence while we determine whether it's compromised."
"I'm protecting it."
"Then why is your protection protocol removing administrator relationships from the audit chain?"
Mercer did not answer.
Maya turned to Lena. "Who built this cyber response package?"
"Sloan Integrated Systems."
"Who has authority to activate it?"
"The Chief, the designated emergency administrator, and the city's external disaster recovery administrator."
"Who activated this one?"
The federal technician checked the command signature. "Chief Mercer's executive certificate."
Mercer said, "I've never denied activating it."
Maya nodded. "Good. Preserve that statement." One of the agents began taking notes.