Chapter 4 - An Empty Space on the Inventory
The service adviser's name was Luis Vega. He'd worked for Jax less than a year and looked frightened when Priya later called to ask whether he would speak voluntarily.
"I don't want to lose my job," he said. "My wife is in school. I can't just walk away."
"You don't have to decide anything today," Priya told him. "You may want independent advice about your rights and obligations. We won't put your name in a public statement without discussing it with you."
Luis agreed to meet in a neutral location. He brought a copy of the vehicle intake photograph showing Ben's truck on the dealership lift, still red, with the dashcam mounted beside the mirror. It had arrived eight days before the auction sale listed in Jax's paperwork.
Lena stared at the date. "How can a dealership have a truck before it bought it?"
"Sometimes we inspect potential auction vehicles before bidding," Luis said. "I don't know if that's what happened. I logged it as an outside assessment. Jax told me the vehicle wasn't formally ours yet."
That explanation was possible. But Jax had told Lena the truck came without a camera, which the photograph contradicted. Luis said he saw a technician remove the device, place it in a labeled plastic bag, and take it toward the manager's office.
"Did you see anyone open it?" Priya asked.
"No."
"Do you know where it is now?"
"No."
His limited information mattered. Lena thanked him without pressing for guesses, even though she wanted to know every sound captured by that camera.
The detective took a copy of the condition photograph and arranged to speak with Luis. He also requested additional records through appropriate investigative procedures. Lena's video and the vehicle's chain of custody were now part of a review of the collision, but he cautioned that an irregular auction timeline did not identify the hit-and-run driver.
At the shop Lena and Rosa worked after hours to retrieve old invoices from a failed server drive. They found several North Creek bills with inconsistent rates for towing the same types of vehicles. Ben had highlighted one duplicated vehicle identification number and written, Ask Walter why charged twice. There were notes about unnecessary impound storage, questionable release forms, and a disputed truck Lena couldn't identify.
The last note was in his handwriting: JAX SAW THE FIRST LIST. DON'T LET HIM SAY HE DIDN'T.
Lena sat down on the garage floor.
"He knew something was wrong," she said.
Rosa crouched beside her. "He was trying to untangle their invoices."
"And I was angry he kept working late. He told me he was doing favors for people who wouldn't pay him. I thought he was avoiding being home."
Rosa put a hand on her shoulder. "Both things can be true. You can have been angry and he can have been in danger."
Lena wished grief didn't constantly rewrite ordinary arguments as missed warnings. She had loved Ben and sometimes been exhausted by him. Neither fact canceled the other.
That evening Priya received a letter from Jax's lawyer saying the dealership had followed normal salvage practices and denying that its staff concealed any vehicle equipment. It did not address the photograph Luis had provided. The lawyer offered to arrange a sale of the truck back to Lena "for sentimental reasons" if she signed a release of all claims against the dealership.
The offer was tempting. She imagined driving Ben's restored pickup down their street and parking it beside the shop, a piece of their marriage returned. She could almost smell his old cologne in the cab.
Priya warned that a broad release could affect claims Lena hadn't yet understood. The proposed sale price was far above the auction amount and did not account for the disputed camera or records.
"Don't sign while you're grieving," Priya said.
Lena stared at the agreement for a long time. Then she put it away without answering.
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In the morning a familiar black tow truck stopped across the street from the repair shop. The driver remained behind the wheel, watching the service bay. Lena had seen the same shape in Ben's dashcam video.
On its door, in white letters, was the name NORTH CREEK RECOVERY.
