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“Jason, this is Darren Cash,” I said, “an investigator with the Knox County DA’s Office Darren, Jason Story”

“Pleased to meet you, Jason,” said Cash

“You, too,” Jason said, nota move “Sorry if I seem rude I need to keep a pretty close eye on this thermocouple monitor” I was just about to ask Jason what the readout was saying when a series of earsplitting beeps came from beneath the car

Jason snatched at a lanyard hanging around his neck and grabbed a stopwatch, then punched a button “Wow, that is right on time,” he said He lurched out of the chair, hoisted the fire extinguisher, and discharged a cloud of vapor at the underside of the Lexus Then he flung open the driver’s door, hopped in, and pulled the car forward about twenty feet

When he did, he exposed a still-srass about two feet in dia near one edge and a pair of wires stretching to the ther beside the chair Jason shut off the car and clauisher He consulted the stopwatch dangling froain “Seven hours, forty-three minutes,” he said proudly

I turned to Cash “Seven hours, forty-three et to Las Vegas?”

“He flew direct on Allegiant,” Cash said “Flight’s four hours and a quarter,” he said “Thirty- takes another thirty, if you shave it close I’d say it would” He studied the charred circle, studied the Lexus, and then studied Jason

“Okay, I give,” he said “How’d you do it?”

“Take a look in the grass,” I said

He squatted down beside the blackened circle, then dropped to one knee and leaned forward, ale He plucked soround and held it up between his left thuer It was a piece of heavy steel wire, cinched tight around a ruffle of ragged plastic

I nodded at it “Recognize that?”

He scrutinized it “It’s like the thing you found in the burned grass at the Latham farm,” he said, “but this plastic stuff is different”

“Exactly,” I said “It’s not melted That’s because we put the fire out before the car burned”

“I hate to say it, but you’ve still got me,” he said “What is it?”

“That,” I said, “is the end of an eight-pound bag of ice”

“A bag of ice?”

“A bag of ice,” I said “I realized what it was the other night when I picked up a bag on the way to my son’s house It’s how Latharass, drove the car so the catalytic converter was right over the ice, then skedaddled for the airport”

He looked dubious “Coonna know it’ll work at all, and how’s he gonna kno much time it buys him?”

“You rerass at the Lathams’ farm, the one near the barn?”

He nodded “Actually,” he said, “we found two more of those after you pointed out the first one”

I could see the light beginning to dawn I pointed at the scorched grass, frosted with powder frouisher

“We’re not the only ones who do experiood scientist” I turned to Jason “You want to summarize the data for Mr Cash, Jason?”

Jason cleared his throat nervously “Well,” he said, “we’ve only got six data points-actually, seven now-so statistically the data set isn’t robust In fact, if you remove the two outliers-”

“Jason,” I interrupted, “just cut to the chase Tell the man what you found”

“Okay, sorry,” he said “On average, it takes the ice about ninetyon how consolidated the ice remains and how close to the catalytic converter it is But then the grass is wet and the ground’s cold, so it takes about another six hours for everything to dry out, and another fifteen rass to reach its flash point and catch fire”