Ramsey never stirred.
39
Sullivan was attemptingto set the dash plate in place when someone tapped at the window. He gave a start, saw it was Ramsey, and grinned. “You can open the door. My hands are full.”
“I see that. Going around to the other side.”
Sullivan managed to balance the dash on the column and unlock the passenger door from his side. “If you’d slept a little bit longer, I’d be done.”
“That was embarrassing. I think a snore is what woke me up. The chief is too much of a gentleman to say.”
He lifted the dash plate into position and applied equal pressure to each side until it snapped into place. Satisfied, he sat back. “That’s it.” He pointed to one of the cup holders in the console. “There’s your tracker.”
Ramsey stared at the black box a moment before she picked it up. It wasn’t as big as the palm of her hand. A couple of thin wires were still attached, and a small rectangle of red double-sided tape had been applied to one side. “What’s the tape for?”
“Helps to keep it in place. There’s a second piece of tape that hides the indicator lights that shows the tracker is working. Jay was being cautious. You might have seen the lights flashing and wondered about them enough to take your car to the dealer.”
“After going to all the trouble, you’d think he would be more careful about showing up suddenly. I thought it was pure dumb luck that he spotted my car when I was at your house, but the trail? He shouldn’t have done that.”
“He’s desperate, don’t you think?”
“Desperate? Jay? If he is, it’s an adrenaline rush.”
“If he is, it’s dangerous. What did he say when he caught up with you at the trail?”
“He wanted to know about the phone call to Finch. I put him off. I lied and told him it didn’t happen. I said it was rescheduled for tomorrow.”
“He believed you?”
“Uh-huh. I can’t recall ever lying to him before. I’m fairly certain he doesn’t think I’d dare.”
“What did Mr. Finch have to say?”
“Are you off duty? I’m just asking. I can tell you about Finch later.”
“Yes, but I’d like to shower and change.”
“Did you get my message?”
“Um. No.” He started to go for his phone but she stopped him. “It was voicemail, not a text. I figured you were busy when I called.”
“I had the phone on vibrate. Never felt it. Another overdose.”
“Paint job?”
He nodded. “I’ve got the task force on board now.”
“Good. You feel like takeout at my place? That was the message.”
“Sounds good. I’ll bring the takeout. How about ribs?”
“Excellent. Text me when you’re in the driveway.”
“I will. And so you can be on the lookout, Jay’s driving a pearl white Nissan Rogue with a PA plate. The chief tracked that down today.”
“I wonder why he didn’t tell me.”
“My fault. I said I would do it. He probably thought you already knew.”
