At Hensley Recovery and Storage, Mercer was standing beside the Harley when Boone entered the warehouse carrying a printed draft.
"You changed it," Mercer said.
Boone stopped. "Changed what?"
"The roadside narrative."
"I corrected it."
"You took your name out."
"My name was never part of the roadside contact."
Mercer held up the draft. "You approved the tow."
"I approved nothing in writing."
"You told me what to do."
Boone looked toward the office where Maya was being held. "Keep your voice down."
Mercer stepped closer. "If this goes bad, you are putting it on me."
"You were the deputy on scene."
"You built this process."
Boone's expression hardened. "What process?"
Mercer stared at him. The answer had come too quickly. Neither man spoke for several seconds.
Inside the office, Maya could hear enough to know what had happened: Mercer had finally understood what Boone had already accepted—if the scheme failed, loyalty would end before the investigation did.
Miles away, Laura placed another case file beside the others, then another. The numbers were no longer isolated; they formed a pattern.
Mercer followed Boone into the small office beside the warehouse and closed the door behind them. "You removed yourself from the report."
Boone set the printed draft on the desk. "My name was never part of the roadside contact."
"You approved the tow arrangement."
"Not through county dispatch."
"You told me to bring the Harley here."
Boone looked at him. "Can you prove that?"
Mercer stopped.
Boone pulled out a chair and sat down. "You need to understand where we are. A federal agent was stopped on your road. You damaged her motorcycle. You opened her saddlebag. You found her credentials. Those are your actions."
"You knew what happened the minute I called you."
"And I told you how to prevent it from becoming worse."
Mercer gave a short laugh. "You told me not to bring her to the station because you had already created a problem. You built the seizure process."
Boone leaned back. "Be careful."
"I know how this works: find the right vehicle, create a reason to hold it, get the value down, then move it through Hensley."
Boone's voice became quiet. "Do not say another word."