Just one cold bottle of water placed carefully where someone passing by would notice it.
And on Maple Avenue, the people most likely to notice anything unusual were the riders.
Motorcycles came through that stretch of road all the time because it connected two highways and cut fifteen minutes off a cross-town trip. By mid-morning in the summer heat, engines ran hot, helmets felt like ovens, and even the wind rushing past did little to cool a rider who had been on the road for hours.
So naturally, the bottle caught their attention.
At first, no one touched it.
Riders slowed down slightly as they passed, glancing at the ledge, exchanging curious looks through tinted visors, but no one stopped. Something about a free bottle of water sitting alone in the shade made people suspicious.
