“He told me nobody really loses anything,” she repeated. “He said the banks would fix it.”

Investigators examined the suspicious device and reviewed the available evidence.

With appropriate authorization, they also searched Kyle’s office.

Inside, they discovered additional electronic equipment, computer records, and documents that raised serious concerns about unauthorized payment-card activity.

A financial-crimes detective named Sharon Vance joined the investigation.

After reviewing the preliminary records, she spoke to me privately.

“Mr. Delgado, how long has Kyle been managing this restaurant?”

“Eighteen months.”

She pointed toward a sequence of dates.

“Some of these records appear to go back more than a year. We’re looking at potentially hundreds of compromised card transactions.”

I sat down.

“Hundreds?”

“That’s what we’ll need to determine.”

I felt physically sick.

My customers had trusted Rosie’s.

They’d trusted my employees.

And because I’d been too busy chasing expansion, I hadn’t noticed what was happening in my own restaurant.