“Would that work?”
The man rubbed his jaw.
“If we’re careful about where the water goes, it’s a legitimate way to narrow down an intermittent moisture problem.”
Ace turned back toward Emma.
“How much water are we talking about?”
“Just a light mist.
Not enough to soak anything.”
He studied her for another moment.
“And you’re only testing that one area?”
“Get her a spray bottle.”
The younger mechanic who had laughed earlier stopped smiling.
Someone moved toward the utility sink.
Emma returned her attention to the wiring.
For the first time since she’d entered the garage, she sensed that the men around her were beginning to treat her question as an actual diagnostic possibility.
That didn’t make her feel triumphant.
It made her more careful.
If she was wrong, she would have embarrassed herself in front of an entire garage.
If she was right, she’d be demonstrating that one tiny defect had managed to defeat seventeen experienced mechanics.
Neither outcome was something she wanted to handle carelessly.
She examined the connector again.
The plastic casing was dark, and the seal was partly hidden beneath a narrow edge of protective material.
Nothing was visibly hanging loose.
No wire was separated.
There wasn’t even an obvious stain.
To Emma, that didn’t rule out the problem.
It made a controlled test more important.
The mechanic returned with a small spray bottle.
He handed it to Ace rather than Emma.
Ace accepted it, then looked toward the girl.
“You still want to do this?”
“Then tell me exactly what you’re going to do.”
She pointed toward the connector.
“I want to mist the outside of that connection while the engine is running.”
“And what should happen?”