Marcus looked up.
“No.”
“Anything illegal in the vehicle?”
“No.”
“Mind if I look?”
“Yes.”
Mosler blinked.
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, I mind.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s nothing illegal in my truck and I’m trying to repair it.”
Mosler’s jaw moved slightly.
Marcus returned to his work.
A minute later Wexler came back.
“Everything clear.”
Mosler still looked dissatisfied.
Eventually they left.
Marcus made another entry.
9:16 A.M.
Mosler returned with Officer Trina Wexler.
Plate checked again.
Asked permission to search truck.
I declined.
No citation.
He checked his phone.
Time was becoming important.
At 9:43, the replacement pump was fitted.
Marcus began reconnecting the lines.
9:51.
Electrical connection.
9:57.
He cycled the ignition.
The truck cranked.
Did not start.
“Come on.”
Again.
Nothing.
Marcus checked underneath.
A connector was not seated correctly.
9:59.
He fixed it.
10:03.
The engine started.
For about twelve seconds.
Then died.
Marcus swore quietly.
The parking exception had technically expired.
He knew it.
He also knew he had made substantial progress and the safest thing was now to call a tow if he could not get the truck moving quickly.
At 10:07 he called Miller Roadside.
Estimated arrival:
Thirty-five to fifty minutes.
Marcus wrote it down.
10:07 — tow requested. Confirmation #7714.
Then he placed the phone on the dashboard.
At 10:11, he moved the reflective triangles farther out to improve visibility.
At 10:19, he tried one final connection.
The truck started.
This time it stayed running.
Marcus smiled.
Then the engine sputtered again.
He shut it down rather than risk stalling in traffic.
Tow truck it was.
All he had to do was wait.
At 10:47, Mosler returned.
Alone at first.
The cruiser stopped hard behind the truck.
Mosler got out before the vehicle seemed fully settled.
“Move away from the truck.”
Marcus was kneeling beside the toolbox.
He stood slowly.
“Is there a problem?”
“You’re obstructing a public way and violating the parking restriction.”
“I called a tow.”
“When?”
“Ten-oh-seven.”
Mosler looked toward the truck.
“You were ordered to move it.”
“You told me to get it moved. I attempted the repair. When that failed, I called a tow.”
“You were told the deadline.”
“Yes.”
Marcus gestured toward the sign.
“I understand the restriction.”
Mosler stepped closer.
“Apparently you don’t.”
“Disabled vehicle exception was until ten. I called a tow seven minutes later because the repair failed.”
Mosler’s face tightened.
“That’s not how this works.”
Marcus looked at him.
“How does it work?”
“I decide what that sign means.”
Marcus stopped.
Behind the windshield, the dash camera continued recording.
Mosler did not know it was there.
Its lens caught the officer’s face almost perfectly.
Marcus kept his hands visible.
“Am I being detained?”
“You are now.”
“For what?”
“Obstructing a public way.”
“The truck is completely on the shoulder.”
“Arguing isn’t helping you.”
“I’m asking a question.”
Mosler reached for his handcuffs.
Marcus looked down.
Then back up.
“Am I being arrested?”
“Yes.”
“For repairing my disabled vehicle while waiting for a tow?”
“Turn around.”
“I’d like the probable cause stated clearly.”
Mosler grabbed his right arm.
Marcus did not pull.
“Turn around.”
“I am turning.”
Mosler twisted his arm behind his back.
The first cuff closed.
A second cruiser arrived while Mosler was applying the second.
Officer Wexler again.
She stepped out and froze.
“What’s happening?”
Mosler answered:
“He refused repeated lawful orders and obstructed the roadway.”
Marcus looked at her.
“No, I didn’t.”
Mosler shoved him lightly toward the cruiser.
“Quiet.”
Marcus deliberately turned his face toward his own windshield.
Toward the camera.
“I am not resisting.”
Mosler tightened his hand on Marcus’s arm.
“I am complying.”
Then Marcus looked at the digital clock visible on the truck’s dashboard.
10:52.
He spoke clearly.
“The time is 10:52 a.m.”
Mosler gave him a strange look.
“Congratulations.”
Then pushed him toward the patrol car.
Marcus did not answer.
Behind them, the tiny dash camera kept recording.
The tow truck arrived at 11:01.
Its driver, Samuel Ortega, found a disabled Ford pickup, two police cruisers, and no owner.
Mosler instructed him that the vehicle was being impounded.
Samuel asked why.
“Arrest.”
“Can I tow it to the owner’s requested shop?”
“No. Police impound.”
Samuel documented the pickup condition, loaded it, and drove away.
The dash camera continued running.
Its battery was designed for overnight parking surveillance.
Marcus had more than enough power left.
That turned out to matter almost as much as the video itself.
Marcus was released just after three that afternoon.
The charge on the paperwork was:
Obstruction / Failure to Obey Lawful Order.
The parking citation was separate.
His wife Elena was waiting outside.
She was five-foot-four and furious enough to look seven feet tall.
“What happened?”
Marcus rubbed his wrist.
“Mosler happened.”
“Who?”
“The officer.”
“Did you do anything?”