Dark Room (Pete 'Monty' Montgomery 2)

“Not far.”

“Too far to ask you to drop over?”

“Now?”

“If that’s possible.”

Monty’s eyes narrowed. “Is everything okay?”

A jittery pause. “I’m not sure. I could be overreacting. But I’d feel better if I ran this by you and got your opinion. And as long as you haven’t left the city yet…” Another pause. “This is ridiculous. It’s late. You and Lane are working—on my case no less. Forget I called. We’ll pick this up tomorrow—”

“I’m grabbing my coat,” Monty interrupted to inform her. “I could use some air. And Lane will be thrilled to have me off his back for a while. I’ll be there soon.” He punched off, lifting his head to meet Lane’s gaze. His son had swiveled around on the kitchen stool and was eyeing him quizzically—and with more than a touch of concern.

“What’s going on?”

“No clue. But whatever it is, it’s got Morgan pretty freaked out. I’m going to run over there and see what’s up.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“No, you won’t. You’ll go back into your lab and scrutinize those scans until you have something to tell me.”

Lane was about to protest, when his doorbell rang.

“Damn,” he muttered, coming to his feet. “It’s a moot point. I can’t leave. That’s Jonah. I completely forgot he was dropping by.”

“It’s a little late for a mentoring session, isn’t it?” Monty sounded annoyed. “Besides, much as I like the kid, I don’t want him distracting you from these scans.”

“He won’t. This will be quick. He finished developing the photos he took today of Arthur Shore, and he’s eager for me to look at them.” A pensive frown. “I also got the feeling something threw him for a loop, and he wants to talk to me about it.”

“Then I’m outta here.” Monty was headed toward the door. He strode through the hall, snatched his jacket off the hook, and was shrugging into it when Lane opened the door for Jonah.

“Hey,” Lane greeted him. “Come on in.”

Jonah hovered in the doorway, glancing from Lane to Monty. “Hi, Detective Montgomery.” He shifted awkwardly. “If this is a bad time, I can come back.”

“Not a bad time at all,” Monty assured him. “I’ve got an errand to run. I’ll be gone an hour or so. That’ll give you and Lane some time to talk before I drag him back to work.”

“Thanks.”

Monty zipped up his jacket, then shot Lane a purposeful look. “I won’t be long. Get back to those photos as soon as you can.”

“Will do.” Lane shut the door behind his father.

“Sorry.” Jonah kicked snow off his boot. “I hope your dad’s not pissed.”

A corner of Lane’s mouth lifted. “That wasn’t his pissed voice. That was his Dick Tracy voice. He’s in his get-it-solved mode. Don’t take it personally.” Lane extended his arm. “Give me your coat, and grab a seat anywhere—just not in the lab. It’s a zoo.”

“And off-limits. I get it.” Jonah handed over his parka, simultaneously whipping out an envelope and offering it to Lane. “Here are the photos. I got shots of the congressman at his meetings, among his constituents, and even in his office. I think a bunch of them work. But I want your opinion.”

“No problem,” Lane replied, taking the envelope. “Although I’m sure you did a great job. Now let’s get to what’s bugging you. I got the feeling there was something on your mind other than getting my professional opinion on your photographic assignment.”

A nod, as Jonah dropped onto the sofa. “I had kind of a weird experience at Congressman Shore’s office today. I need some advice. Maybe some perspective. Maybe some reassurance.”

“Go on.” Lane leaned against the wall, folding his arms across his chest.

“Like I said, I took some shots of the congressman in his office. Mostly they were candids of him with his staff. I zoomed in on one aide in particular—Heidi Garber. She’s about twenty-three, really photogenic, and she’s got a great rapport with the congressman. They were talking, going over his agenda. The interaction captured a side of him that worked. Warm. Tight with his staff. So I snapped six or seven shots in rapid succession. In the middle of it, Mrs. Shore walked in. She got ticked off, told me to pick another angle to focus on. I’m not dum

b. I get where it’s coming from. I’m just not sure how to handle it. This is my first big assignment. I don’t want to blow it. Do you think I did?”