“You’re sure she didn’t?”
“She promised me she wouldn’t until after the wedding.Baz wanted her to wait until after the babies were born.There was a lot goin’ on.”
“You don’t have to defend your decision,” he told Reese.“I get it.”
“Are you sure?Honest to God, I wasn’t tryin’ to cut you out of the loop.”
“I know.”And he did.It hurt a bit, but he trusted Reese would never betray him like that.
Reese still didn’t appear convinced.
“I get it,” Brantley continued.“There was a lot goin’ on.And I know you.If you’d found a legitimate lead, you would’ve dealt with it then.So where’s the information?”
Reese pointed toward the ceiling.“I’ve got it on my computer.I can send it to you.”
“No need to do that.Just show me what you’ve got.”
Slade could feel the curious glances beforehe ever reached the door to Hank’s Towing.
The place was small.Little more than an old converted gas station with the pump still in place, although listing a little to the left.The white awning overhead had seen better days.One good windstorm like they’d seen back in 2018, and the thing would be in their neighbor’s lot along with half a dozen beat-up old junkers Hank had lining the perimeter.
Before he could reach the main door with the little plastic sign that said they would be back in fifteen minutes, a man wandered out from the single-bay garage, a red rag in his hands.
“What can I do you for?”The man’s voice was rough, likely from the Marlboro Reds he pulled out of the bib of his overalls.
“Are you Hank?”
The man adjusted his grease-stained trucker cap.“Could be.Depends.”
Slade fought the urge to roll his eyes.As amusing as this could be, he wasn’t really in the mood.
“Any chance one of your tow trucks went missing on Monday night?”
The guy looked around like he was expecting someone to jump out and tell him he was being punked.
“Seriously, boy?”
“Slade,” he corrected the guy.“And yes, I’m serious.The statue at Coyote Ridge High School went missing on Monday night, and we’re lookin’ to see if someone might’ve relocated it with one of your tow trucks.”
The guy’s thick, dark eyebrows angled down.“Naw.My boys run calls on Monday and Friday nights.We didn’t have any trucks left on the lot.”
Although he couldn’t be positive Could-Be-Hank wasn’t blowing smoke up his ass, the man sounded honest.
“That’s all I needed to know.Thanks for your time.”
Slade headed back to his truck.He climbed in and turned on the A/C before checking off another shop on his list to visit.This was the third one he’d been to, none of which had been any more helpful than Could-Be-Hank.
Now he was wondering whether this was a waste of time.What if they hadn’t used a tow truck?But how else would they move it?
As he stared out the windshield, he tried to envision various scenarios.A flatbed with a wench?That seemed like the most logical way.Unless they had access to a crane.That would’ve done the job in no time at all.But who had a crane besides Walker Demo?And if they got a crane, who would operate it?It wasn’t as simple as it looked, he was sure.
Did they do it alone?Were there adults around to help?
And that was assuming some of the kids had done it as a prank.
Or hell, maybe his cousin Callie was pranking him.It didn’t seem like something she would do, but who knows anymore?
When Slade didn’t come up with an answer to any of the questions, he decided to drive over to the high school.Maybe he would see things from a different perspective if he went back to the scene of the crime one more time.
