The young man nodded.
"I said you're looking in the wrong place."
One of the older mechanics chuckled.
"Kid, we've been doing this longer than you've been alive."
The young man looked at him.
"Then you should be better at it."
A few riders laughed.
The mechanic's face hardened.
Marcus raised one hand.
Everyone went quiet again.
"What is your name?"
"Evan."
"Evan what?"
"Evan Mercer."
Marcus studied him.
"How old are you?"
"Nineteen."
"How long have you been working on motorcycles?"
Evan hesitated.
"Since I was eleven."
Someone laughed.
Marcus didn't.
"Who taught you?"
"My grandfather."
"What did he do?"
"He repaired engines."
Marcus glanced at the motorcycle.
"You think you can fix mine?"
Evan shook his head.
"No."
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
"No?"
"I think I can find out why it isn't running."
Marcus smiled.
"That's exactly what I offered."
He opened the envelope again.
"Five thousand dollars."
Evan looked at the money.
Then at the motorcycle.
Then back at Marcus.
"I don't want your money."
The garage became completely silent.
Marcus stared at him.
"Everyone wants money."
Evan shrugged.
"My mother needs a new roof."
Marcus's expression changed slightly.
"But?"
"But I don't need to prove anything to you."
One of the bikers laughed.
"Kid's got an attitude."
Evan ignored him.
Marcus pointed toward the motorcycle.
"Go ahead."
Evan walked over.
He didn't touch the engine.
He didn't open the fuel tank.
He didn't check the battery.
Instead, he crouched beside the motorcycle.
He looked underneath it.
Then behind it.
Then around the rear wheel.
Marcus watched.
"What are you doing?"
"Looking."
"At what?"
"Everything."
Evan stood.
He walked around the motorcycle once.
Then twice.
He opened the seat.
He checked a wiring connection.
He touched a fuel line.
He looked at the exhaust.
Finally, he asked:
"Who installed this fuel regulator?"
Marcus frowned.
"I did."
"When?"
"Three months ago."
"Did the problem start afterward?"
Marcus stopped.
Nobody spoke.
Evan looked at him.
Marcus slowly nodded.
"Two weeks after."
Evan smiled.
"Then I know where to start."
He reached for a wrench.
And for the first time that evening, Marcus Vale stopped laughing.
What the Young Mechanic Saw
Evan had learned something from his grandfather that most mechanics eventually forgot.
A machine usually tells you what is wrong with it.
The problem is that people rarely listen.
They hear a strange noise and replace the part they think is responsible.
They see an error code and replace the component associated with the code.
They see a failure and assume the broken thing is the cause.
But sometimes the broken thing is only the victim.
Evan had learned to ask a different question.
What changed?
That question had saved him many times.
He remembered his grandfather saying it when Evan was twelve.
"Never ask what broke first."
Evan had looked confused.
His grandfather smiled.
"Ask what changed before it broke."
Now, standing beside Marcus Vale's motorcycle, Evan remembered those words.
The fuel regulator had been installed three months earlier.
The motorcycle had run perfectly before that.
Two weeks after the installation, the problem began.
That did not prove anything.
But it was enough to investigate.
Evan removed the regulator.
Nothing looked unusual.
He inspected the fittings.
Then the fuel line.
Then the electrical connector.
Again, nothing.
One of the mechanics folded his arms.
"Told you."
Evan ignored him.
He removed the connector and examined the pins.
There.
A tiny discoloration.
Almost invisible.
He held it under the light.
Marcus stepped closer.
"What?"
"Corrosion."
Marcus frowned.
"That little thing?"
Evan nodded.
"Maybe."
"Would that shut down the whole bike?"
"Not necessarily."
He turned the connector over.
"Where does this wire go?"
Marcus answered.
"Engine control module."
Evan looked at the wiring.
"That's what I thought."
He followed the harness.
It disappeared beneath the frame.
Evan crouched again.
He noticed something.
The wiring had been routed too close to the engine casing.
The insulation was slightly melted.
Not enough to expose the wire completely.
Just enough to create an intermittent fault.
Evan looked at Marcus.
"Did the bike ever stop suddenly while riding?"
Marcus's eyes narrowed.
"Twice."
"Did it restart afterward?"
"After a few minutes."
"Same?"
"Yes."