It came as it had to the next morning.
Wrapped tightly in their overcoats to ward off the brutal winds coming off the bay; Mike and Steve found themselves following two divers around the perimeter of the dock of Gashouse Cove Marina, looking for a body suspected in a car that had been seen racing from the parking lot into the churning waters.
Despite locating the vehicle earlier, a late model convertible, they hadn't been able to find the victim that had been described as an African American woman in her mid-twenties, presumably unconscious and draped over the front seat.
On the account that there had been no driver in the car, they'd been called in to investigate, just to rule out any foul play. Considering that dumping cars and bodies alike in the bay was a fan favorite among many of the shady characters living in town, Mike could only agree.
Their sole witness was scared to death, shaking like a leaf as he gave them his testimony of what happened in the early morning hours, adamant that his identity be kept confidential for fear of the killer seeking revenge.
It had taken all of Mike's power of persuasion to calm the older man down, reassuring him that until there was a court date set, nobody would even know of his existence.
Thus, they'd resumed their somber task of calling in divers in hopes of finding, and identifying the body while their request for a plate ID with R&I was pending.
The car itself was a Mercedes, likely belonging to somebody in the Presidio Heights or Marina District, possibly stolen before it was used in a crime, then dumped to cover up evidence.
Then again, this early into the case, it would be hard to tell just what exactly they were looking at.
"You don't suppose that getting thrown into the cold water made her come back to and she swam out of here unseen?"
Steve's question remained unanswered for several moments as both detectives stepped aside to make room for the incoming crane used to pull the car out of the water.
The large semi carefully backed up to the concrete ledge of the main dock, its wheels barely turning as the driver gauged the distance needed, before putting on the brakes with a loud squeak.
"That would be the best possible outcome.", Mike replied, although his voice gave away that he held little hope of that happening.
"With those waves, the body could be anywhere…"
Steve hadn't meant to sound so disheartened but under the circumstances, things didn't look too well.
"You guys the cops?"
A tall man in blue overalls appeared around the hood of the semi, wiping his palms on his chest before reaching out a hand to greet them.
"We are. Lieutenant Stone and Inspector Keller.", Mike introduced them, before cocking his head at the impressive vehicle, "We've got a car in the water, about twenty feet down."
Nodding understandingly, the driver sucked in a deep breath before nervously tucking on the visor of his baseball cap.
"I got two of my guys in a dinghy on their way; they're about half an hour out yet. I'm gonna need them to attach the chains. Might be an hour or so before we get it out in this weather."
"An hour, eh?"
Squinting against the strong gusts threatening to blow away his fedora, Mike tried to hide his disappointment to no avail.
"Yeah, sorry about that, guys. We just gotta be careful. I don't want that car to get unhooked halfway up. I figured instead of waiting around, you might want to go back to the office and do police stuff and all."
Smiling at the underlying mockery, Steve watched his partner fight an internal battle gauging his reply, eventually resorting to a discontent grunt as he turned around to face him.
"You heard the man, buddy boy. Why don't we head back to the office to do police stuff and all."
