Dark Room (Pete 'Monty' Montgomery 2)

“I know.” Arthur grinned. “Then again, I can afford to be honest. I’m not the one who has to face his parents.”

By this time, the sound of the chopper reached their ears.

“Let’s go,” Rob instructed.

They removed their skis, and Rob motioned to Arthur to help him with Jonah. Slowly, they carried him down the mountain, Lane following just behind with their equipment.

After what seemed like forever, they reached a flatter section of terrain and headed over to where the helicopter had perched. Lane scrambled aboard and with Arthu

r and Rob’s help from the ground, he lifted Jonah and guided him into the nearest seat. Then Arthur climbed aboard while Rob quickly loaded their gear and joined them in the chopper for the descent down the mountain. Once they were safely aloft, the pilot radioed ahead for an ambulance.

“I feel so stupid,” Jonah muttered. “I’m just a little banged up, and we’re making such a big deal out of it. Plus, we cut the whole day short.”

“We were finishing up anyway,” Lane assured him. “The afternoon shadows were about to move in. And we’re not making a big deal. This is standard procedure. You’ll get checked out and we’ll be on our way home.”

THE DOCTOR AT Telluride Medical Center examined Jonah thoroughly. As expected, his left side was bruised and tender to the touch. But the acute pain had subsided—a positive sign that seemed to rule out internal injuries. When Arthur informed the doctor that he had a private jet at Telluride Regional Airport waiting to fly them home, the doctor gave the green light for Jonah to travel—on the condition that should he exhibit any worsening symptoms, he would immediately check into a New York hospital and have a CT scan performed to ensure there were no internal injuries. Lane and Arthur assured him there’d be no arguments on that score.

They were on their way within the hour. Arthur had called ahead to have the jet’s sofa made up into a bed. Jonah was lifted out of the car, placed on his back on the bed, and secured with a seat belt.

The doctor had given Jonah a dose of oxycodone, so that by the time the plane took off, he was fast asleep. Once they were airborne, Lane called Jonah’s parents and gave them a calm but thorough heads-up. He also told them that Arthur had already arranged for a car service to pick them up at home and drive them to Teterboro to meet their plane so they could see for themselves that Jonah was fine, after which he could ride home with them. Initially, they were upset, but Lane succeeded in putting their minds at ease. They were also very grateful to the congressman for his generous assistance.

With everything under control and all the necessary preparations made, Lane settled himself in one of the plush leather seats and made the personal phone call he’d been itching to make.

MORGAN AND JILL had just finished working out the night’s logistics. They’d made alternate provisions based upon differing scenarios, the variable being how Morgan’s date turned out. Now Jill was upstairs, packing an overnight bag before settling into her yoga ritual, and Morgan was shutting down her desktop computer for the night.

She was interrupted by the ringing of her cell phone.

Watching the computer screen to ensure it went into shut-down mode, she groped for her cell, punched it on, and tucked it in the cradle of her shoulder. “Hello?”

“Hey,” Lane greeted her. “Ready for our dinner?”

A smile curved Morgan’s lips and she perched at the edge of her desk so she could talk. “Not yet. It’s only seven-twenty here. I’ve got lots of time to get ready.” She paused as it dawned on her that the humming sound in the background was the jet engine. “Don’t I?”

“That depends on what you define as lots. I’d say you have a little over two hours. We’ve been airborne for a while. The winds are with us, so we should be landing by around nine-thirty.”

“That’s earlier than I expected.”

“Yeah, well, we cut the day a little short. Jonah took a fall on the last run. The doctor says he’s fine, but we wanted to get him home so he can take it easy.”

Morgan’s brows drew together. “You said he’s all right—nothing’s broken, I hope.”

“Fortunately, not. He just bruised his side. A little rest and he’ll be as good as new.” A pause. “I’ll be riding home separately with Arthur. His driver can drop me off at my place, or I can come straight to yours. Your choice.”

“Actually it’s not. It’s Arthur’s choice. He wants Jill and me at his and Elyse’s apartment in an hour, accompanied by our newly assigned, nondescript bodyguards.”

“Bodyguards—why?” Lane’s entire demeanor changed, tension lacing his tone. “What happened since Monday night that I don’t know about?”

She sighed. “I thought maybe Arthur would mention it. I guess not. He asked your father to hire security for Jill, Elyse, and me. Evidently, the guy who hit Rachel with that stolen van was tailing Elyse before he headed down to midtown. She spotted him across the street from her gym. On top of that, she’s been getting crank calls, actually just hang-ups. And she has the sense that she’s being followed.”

“Arthur didn’t say a word.” Lane’s wheels were clearly turning. “There’s no longer any question that you’re the link here. What did Monty have to say? Does he think the hit-and-run was intentional?”

“He thinks it was a scare tactic that got out of hand. He’s all over this, even without Arthur’s pressure. But Arthur felt better with the added security.”

“I don’t blame him.” Another pause, this one heavy with reluctance. “Would you rather postpone our date?”

“No,” Morgan replied bluntly. “I’ve been looking forward to it all day. I need to get my mind off things. Would you feel really uncomfortable picking me up at Elyse and Arthur’s place?”

“Not a bit. The only thing is, I won’t have a chance to change. Did you have your heart set on a jackets-required dinner?”