I really don't want to discuss the plot of my novel, but feel I really need some outside input on this as I think I can sometimes become a little blinkered and blind to what the logical course of action would be, especially when I've already decided in my head what the character is going to do. Anyway, if you can read this and put yourself in a kind of 'what would I do' state of mind. You're on the run from a drug-dealing loan shark, with a friend who has had a tracker implant (the villain has a GPS which pinpoints the tracker's location). You stop off at a motel and perform a DIY procedure to remove the tracker. Once you've dug this thing out, you discover it's virtually indestructible. What do you do? There are a few (seemingly) obvious courses of action, and I'm not sure the one I've chosen is one of them. As it stands, my MC locks his recovering friend in the motel room, then gets in the car with the tracker with the intention of driving out into the middle of nowhere and throwing the thing into a river or even just the bushes... anywhere to throw the loan shark off their tracks. And then I began to wonder if that was all a bit silly. Would it not make more sense to bundle his friend into the car, then continue their escape and simply toss the tracker out of the window along the way? My thinking for the way I've written it so far, is that if he heads off, back off in the direction they came, making a few diversion here and there, he is effectively leading the loan shark on a wild goose chase, rather than just dumping the tracker en route.
Maybe tape it to the bottom of another car at the motel? The villain would be suspicious to see it in the middle of an empty field, but attached to a car would make more sense, because the target would be moving. Depending on the characters, though, they may be too concerned for the occupant of the other car to do that. If that method doesn't work, then optimally, the tracker should be somewhere where it will be moving, rather than stationary, or a stationary location that it's plausible for it to stay at, such as the motel room.
Throw the tracker in the back of a truck, or preferably start of a conversation with some sort of law enforcement and sneak it in their vehicle. Worst case scenario they just see that its a cop, best case the car goes back to the depot and these guys think that you're arrested and either try and start a fight with the police, sneak their way in, or give up.
Brilliant!! It scares me that the beautiful simplicity and dastardliness of these options never even occurred to me. Thank you!!
Alternatively, you could have them go to an airport and stuff it in someone's luggage. That way, the loan shark would think they were trying to flee the country. Seems the farther away you can get him to think you are, the better.
Another good idea, but I think logically they would want to get rid of the tracker as quickly as possible. They're already out in the country so traipsing to an airport would be a no-no. I've now gone with the secreting the device in another car at the motel, so there's no rush for ideas now. Thank you all again
You can also mail the tracker out of the country, by packing it in a parcel, and dropping it off to the nearest post office to be shipped far away. However, it may get flagged at customs, so in that case, just mail it to the furthest side of the country, so it does not have to go through international customs. But then at least they drug dealer may think they are on the other side of the country, if that works. Or if the character wants the drug dealer to get caught he can mail it to a far away police station. That way the drug dealer will think that he is moving. When it arrives at the station, the cops can find an anonymous note with it, saying "A drug dealing lone shark is tracking this tracker, thinking it's inside a person. You're welcome, and Good hunting".
^^ Damn that's another great set of ideas. However, I've moved on from this scene now and the tracker is currently tucked down the back seat of some old guy's car, heading off for destinations unknown. Poor old guy, maybe, but dog eat dog.
When I first read your OP I was thinking of placing the tracker to another vehicle as well . I thought about strapping it to another vehicle in the motel parking lot but chances are it would stay there all night. So, I thought a little more and figured that there is most likely an all night diner where people come and go all hours of the night. Maybe stake out the parking lot to the diner, see what direction someone comes in, and pick a vehicle heading in the opposite direction you are heading . . .
personally id take the tracker, put it on a greyhound bus or semi truck heading one direction, and then id go somewhere else. Id want to the tracker to be moving so that the people after me think that im still unaware of the trackers existence. By the time they catch up and catch on their search area would have become far to large to handle.
The issue with mail is that it will likely sit for an extended time at 1 location. (the drop box and then the mail processing hub). If this is a world with powerful GPS trackers, and im following a device that arrives at and is just sitting at the UPS hub, im going to figure out that the GPS has been discovered really quickly. I'm never going to fall for the GPS being shipped and will not embark on that wild goose chase.
Thanks for all the additional ideas, but can I just stress again that I've moved on from this scene and said tracker is down the back of some old guy's car heading for destinations unknown.
