The Challenge(26)

“I hope you’re right.” He gave her a hug and told her he’d be back in town in a couple of hours, and if she needed anything she should just call.

Then he hurried down the steps and headed to the airport to pick up Beth.





Chapter 7


Tom picked Beth up at Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport, which was less than two hours from Fishtail. It was the only flight she could get. Beth had had to change planes in Chicago, and had a long layover. She looked exhausted when she got there, with her dark hair pulled back tightly in a ponytail, in jeans and a safari jacket, and Chanel loafers. Beth always looked stylish whatever the occasion.

“Any news?” she asked Tom as soon as she saw him, before she’d even said hello. He didn’t blame her. She had been on planes all day. He had kept her informed by text, but she had been in the air most of the time. It had taken her nine hours to get there in all.

“Not yet.”

“For chrissake, what are they doing?”

“They’ve got forty rangers on the ground on horseback, covering all the trails, and two recon helicopters in the air. The area is heavily wooded. It’s not easy to see them if they’re there, and it’s a big mountain.” He didn’t say that they could be at the bottom of a ravine, but that was a possibility too. “I’ve been listening to the radio all day, between the rescue teams. They’re covering as much ground as they can.” He led her to the garage to get his truck while they talked.

“I still don’t understand how you could have let her go.” Her face was taut as she said it, with barely concealed fury.

“They went to a waterfall, pretty low on the mountain. The boys have been there a million times before. No one thought they’d head up the mountain, if that’s what they did. Apparently there was a dry riverbed, and everyone seems to think they crossed it, and a flash flood blocked them from coming back.”

“You couldn’t keep her with you? What were you doing?” The reproach in her voice was glaring, like the look in her eyes.

“I can’t keep her locked in the house, Beth. She met some nice kids her age. They invited her on a picnic.”

“All boys?” She sounded skeptical. He was on the carpet, and he had expected it.

“All boys. Good kids from nice families. You’ll meet the parents. Oddly enough, none of them have daughters. There’s a six-year-old with them, and one boy’s older brother. He’s seventeen. That may be a good thing. One of the boys Juliet’s age is diabetic, which is a serious problem.” She calmed down a little when she heard a six-year-old had been allowed to go, although it didn’t change anything. “I’m hoping to hear good news any minute.”

“I was hoping it would be all over by the time I landed in this godforsaken place. It takes less time to get to Europe. It’s pretty country, but I still don’t understand what you’re doing here. I never will.” He suspected that was true. “You were born in New York. Your father was successful in investments. Your mother was from a fancy family, and you want to be a hick, and live like a mountain man when you grow up. I guess that’s the whole point. You haven’t grown up yet.” He expected her to bash him, and she did, but given the fact that their daughter was missing on his watch, he let it go.

They got in his truck then and headed for Fishtail. He had reserved a room for her at a small guest lodge near the famous General Store. She wasn’t going to love the hotel, but there was nothing in town up to her standards. They had both gotten spoiled over the years. Comfort no longer mattered to him, and in the circumstances, he was sure she wouldn’t care about that either. All she cared about was Juliet. They both did.

“When can I talk to the head ranger?” she asked him.

“He’s probably still on the mountain with the others. You can reach him when he comes down. They can’t search after dark.” It was still light, but wouldn’t be for long. He handed her the radio then. “You can listen to the radio. The pilots in the rescue and recon helicopters are on the same frequency too.” She listened for a long time as they drove to Fishtail. There was nothing new in the exchanges, just a lot of reports about their position, and that they hadn’t seen anything. It had been the same all day.

It took them almost two hours to get to the hotel he’d booked for her. She didn’t comment but she didn’t look happy when she saw it.

“It’s not the Ritz in Paris or the Carlyle in New York,” he conceded, “but it’s about the best you can do here. There are some Airbnbs and a couple of guest ranches. I didn’t think you’d want to stay with me.”

“You’re right, I don’t.” She sounded hard with him, but he could see how terrified she was. She had cried most of the way on the plane, and her eyes were puffy. They were all facing the horrifying possibility that their children might not be alive. It was hard to consider, and she loved Juliet as much as he did, even if they expressed it differently, and wanted different things for her. They both loved her. “What happens if they don’t find them today?” she asked him before she got out.

“They keep looking,” he said quietly. “There’s a diner up the street if you get hungry. They have pretty decent food.”

“I’m not hungry.” She never ate when she was upset. She was always on a diet, and she had a slim figure. At thirty-nine, she had changed very little physically since they’d met in graduate school. She was studying journalism, and he was in business school at Columbia. They were native New Yorkers and were going to set the world on fire one day. They had, and it still mattered to her, but it had turned out to be meaningless to him. It was just fireworks with nothing behind it. Her beliefs and her goals hadn’t changed. He wondered how much money and how much success would have satisfied her. Maybe if he’d become the head of a company, or a startup, and she won a Pulitzer. It all sounded empty to him, which was why he was here.