“Not legally.”
Owen smiled.
“Then call him back.”
Garrett stared.
Owen explained the plan.
It was simple.
Too simple, Garrett thought.
Which was exactly why it might work.
Garrett called Mason.
At first, Mason refused to answer.
Then, on the third attempt, he picked up.
“What?”
Garrett’s voice was calm.
“Why did you do it?”
Mason laughed.
“Do what?”
“Mess with my bike.”
“You really want to blame me because your mechanics can’t fix an engine?”
Garrett looked toward Owen.
Owen gave him a signal.
Keep talking.
Garrett leaned back.
“You sold me the seat.”
“So?”
“You had access.”
“Maybe.”
“And you sabotaged the bike.”
Mason was quiet.
Then he laughed.
“You always were arrogant.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means you deserved it.”
Garrett’s eyes narrowed.
“Deserved what?”
Mason’s voice changed.
“You took everything from me.”
Garrett stared.
“You stole from me.”
“No.”
“I had the footage.”
“You had what you wanted.”
The room became silent.
Garrett looked toward Ray.
Something was wrong.
Mason continued.
“You ever actually watch that footage closely?”
Garrett said nothing.
“No, you didn’t.”
Owen leaned forward.
Garrett asked quietly, “What are you talking about?”
“You fired me.”
“You stole money.”
“You blamed me.”
Garrett’s face changed.
Mason laughed.
“You never bothered asking who had access to the security system.”
The call ended.
This time, Garrett did not move.
Owen looked at him.
“What security footage?”
Garrett sat down slowly.
Years earlier, when Mason had been fired, Garrett had believed the evidence was clear.
A video showed Mason taking cash from a desk.
Garrett had confronted him.
Mason denied it.
Garrett fired him.
The friendship ended.
Now Mason was suggesting that Garrett had been wrong.
Owen looked toward Ray.
“Do you still have the old files?”
Ray nodded slowly.
“Maybe.”
They spent the next several hours searching through an old computer.
Finally, Ray found a backup drive.
The video was still there.
Owen watched it carefully.
Mason entered the office.
He walked to the desk.
He removed an envelope.
The video ended.
Garrett folded his arms.
“See?”
Owen leaned closer.
“Play it again.”
Ray did.
Owen pointed.
“Who installed the camera?”
Garrett frowned.
“A security company.”
“No. Who had access?”
Garrett thought.
“The shop manager.”
“What was his name?”
“Victor.”
Owen stared at the screen.
“Where is he now?”
Nobody knew.
That was the problem.
Victor had disappeared shortly after the business closed.
Owen replayed the footage.
Again.
Again.
Then he stopped it.
“There.”
Ray leaned closer.
“What?”
“The timestamp.”
Garrett frowned.
“So?”
“It jumps.”
Ray looked carefully.
The timestamp skipped several seconds.
Owen leaned back.
“The video was edited.”
Garrett stared at him.
For the second time, an eighteen-year-old had shown him something he had failed to see.
And suddenly, the story between Garrett Steel and Mason Vance became more complicated.
Perhaps Mason had sabotaged the motorcycle.
Perhaps he had done it for revenge.
But revenge against what?
The question would eventually lead Garrett, Owen, and Ray toward a truth that had been buried for years.
Finding Victor took three weeks.
Garrett wanted to search immediately.
Owen convinced him to be patient.
“People make mistakes when they’re desperate,” Owen said.
Garrett looked at him.
“And?”
“If Victor did something, eventually somebody knows where he went.”
They started with old employees.
Then suppliers.
Then customers.
Eventually, Ray found an old forwarding address connected to Victor’s sister.
Victor had moved two states away.
Garrett drove there with Owen.
The trip was almost six hours.
For most of the drive, Garrett said nothing.
Owen stared out the window.
Finally, Garrett spoke.
“You think I was wrong?”
Owen looked at him.
“About Mason?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know.”
Garrett tightened his grip on the steering wheel.
“That’s not what you think.”
Owen smiled slightly.
“You want me to tell you that you’re innocent.”
Garrett glanced at him.
“Aren’t I?”
Owen looked back out the window.
“My father used to say being wrong doesn’t make you evil.”
Garrett waited.
“But refusing to admit you were wrong can.”
Garrett drove in silence.
When they finally found Victor, he was working in a small warehouse.
He was older.
Thinner.
And terrified when Garrett appeared.
“I don’t want trouble.”
Garrett stepped forward.
“You already have it.”
Owen placed a hand on Garrett’s arm.
“Let him talk.”
Victor looked at Owen.
Perhaps because Owen was younger.
Perhaps because he looked less threatening.
Eventually, Victor told them everything.
Years ago, the shop had been losing money.
Not because of Mason.
Because Victor had been stealing.
He had access to the security system.
When Garrett began asking questions, Victor created footage that pointed toward Mason.
He removed sections.
Changed timestamps.
Made it appear as though Mason had taken the money.
Garrett had believed it.
Victor disappeared before anyone could discover the truth.
Garrett stood completely still.
For years, he had believed Mason betrayed him.
For years, Mason had believed Garrett destroyed his life.
And now Garrett understood why Mason had wanted revenge.
That did not excuse what Mason had done.
But it explained it.
On the drive home, Garrett barely spoke.
When they reached Iron Rail, Owen got out.
Garrett remained in the truck.
Owen looked back.
“You coming?”
Garrett shook his head.
“No.”
“Where are you going?”
Garrett looked toward the road.
“To talk to Mason.”
Owen nodded.
“Alone?”
“Yes.”
This time, Owen did not stop him.
Sometimes a fight could not be avoided.
Not a physical one.
A conversation.
Garrett found Mason at his shop.
The two men stood facing each other among half-built motorcycles.
For several minutes, neither spoke.
Then Garrett placed an envelope on a workbench.
Inside was a copy of Victor’s written statement.
Mason read it.
His hands began to shake.
“You knew?”
“I found out yesterday.”
“And?”
Garrett looked directly at him.
“I was wrong.”
Mason laughed bitterly.
“That’s it?”
“No.”
Garrett took a breath.
“I’m sorry.”
Mason stared.
“You fired me.”
“I know.”
“You destroyed my reputation.”
“I know.”
“You believed a video without asking me one question.”
Garrett’s face tightened.
“I know.”
Mason’s anger rose.
“And now you want forgiveness?”
Garrett shook his head.
“No.”
That stopped him.
“I came to tell you the truth.”
Garrett turned toward the door.
“And because I owe you more than that.”
Over the next several months, Garrett helped Mason clear his name with former business partners.
He could not undo everything.
Some damage could not be repaired.
But he tried.
As for the sabotage, Mason admitted what he had done.
He had damaged Garrett’s motorcycle because he wanted him to suffer.