Price glanced at her wrists. Did you check her identification? We're working on it. Price held his gaze. Do it now.
Ellis reached into Nami's handbag and pulled out the credential wallet he had ignored. For a moment, nobody spoke. Mercer lowered the forklift, not gently. The platform jolted and the car rocked as it reached the pavement. Ellis read Naomi's name twice.
Then his radio crackled. Dispatch confirmed that the Lamborghini was registered to her, that no stolen vehicle report matched it, and that the call which had brought the officers there had come from an unlisted number. Take the cuffs off, Price said. Ellis did, his hands suddenly uncertain. Naomi rubbed her wrists, but stayed where she was.
She asked Mio's manager to keep the loading bay footage and asked Price to arrange for another officer to secure the scene. Then she looked at Ellis. Who told you to take my car? Nobody. We had a report.
That isn't what I asked. Ellis said nothing. A black tow truck was turning into the lot. Its driver slowed when he saw the crowd, then stopped well short of the Lamborghini. Across its door were the words CRB and Land Ravawaii.
Naomi recognized the name. Crownland was the contractor in the case scheduled at the courthouse. For months, drivers had complained that their vehicles were seized on questionable reports, stored in a private yard, and returned only after they paid thousands in fees. The case before Naami concerned access to records that Crownland had refused to release. She had seen the company name on court papers.
She had never expected to see it on a truck sent for her own car. Why is Crownland here? Price asked. The driver kept both hands on the wheel. Got a dispatch for a red Lamborghini.
He said, "Who sent it? " The driver looked at Ellis. Ellis looked at Mercer. Mercer said, "Routine impound. " The driver swallowed. That's not what the message said. He showed Price the Dispatch on his tablet.
It had arrived 11 minutes before Ellis claimed to have received the stolen car report. It listed Naomi's license plate, the precise parking space, and an instruction to move the car before its owner came back outside. Naomi felt a chill that had nothing to do with the morning air. They had known which car she drove. They had known where she would stop.
Ellis had been waiting for a reason to hold her long enough to take it. Price asked the driver to remain. Ellis protested that a misunderstanding was being turned into a spectacle. Then you'll want the records preserved. Naomi said he had no answer to that.