As Rebecca drove carefully through the swirling fog, she stole a glance at her unconscious and unexpected passengerâ¦.
Although his color was ashen, his clothes stained and rumpled, she could tell that he was handsome in a rugged sort of way. His strong profile and jaw seemed to speak of character and integrity. Yet there was a worn look about his faceâa sort of deep weariness that had nothing to do with his injuries. For some reason Rebecca had the impression that he was a man who had seen it all and now viewed the world with cynicism.
Rebeccaâs gaze snapped back to the road. She was letting herself get way too fanciful. Looks could be deceiving. She knew that from experience. In a few minutes sheâd leave him at the hospital and probably never see this man again.
But oddly enough, the thought didnât give her much comfortâ¦.
âThatâs a lie!â Zach Wright shot to his feet and glared at the managing editor, bristling with rage. He leaned on the desk that separated them, palms flat, eyes flashing. âThatâs a lie!â he repeated furiously.
âIâm sure it is,â Ted Larsen replied calmly, not at all intimidated by Zachâs threatening posture. âBut are you willing to reveal your sources to prove it isnât?â
âYou know I canât do that!â
Ted shrugged. âThen weâve got to play it their way. For now.â
âWhy?â Zach demanded hotly. âIâm telling you, this information is solid. I wouldnât use it if it wasnât.â
âI know that,â Ted conceded. âBut Simmons is getting pressure on thisâbig-time. Theyâre threatening to sue.â
âItâs just a scare tactic,â Zach retorted scornfully, waving the excuse aside dismissively with an impatient gesture. âMy information is good.â
âYouâre probably right about the scare tactic. But it worked. For the moment, anyway. Itâs not easy being a lucrative publisher in this day and age, Zach. You know that. Simmons is just being cautious.â
Zach gave a snort of disgust. âI can think of a better word for it.â
âLook, weâll work this out. I know your information isnât falsified. We just have to prove it.â Ted paused, as if carefully weighing his next words, anticipating the reaction. âAnd until we do, weâre going to kill the series.â
With a muttered oath, Zach turned away in frustration, jamming his hands into his pockets as he strode over to the window and stared out at the city streets. St. Louis could be a beautiful city, he thought. But on this dreary February day it was just plain uglyâthe same as his mood. This whole experience was leaving a decidedly bad taste in his mouth. âWhatever happened to printing the truth?â he asked bitterly. âI thought that was our job.â
âIt is,â Ted acknowledged. âBut Simmonsâs job is to keep the paper solvent. Heâs not willing to risk a lawsuit.â
âSo we just let them get away with it?â He turned back to face the editor, his eyes still blazing. âTed, the corruption in that office is rampantâmisuse of public funds, a rigged bidding process based on nepotism instead of price, blatant briberyâwhat am I supposed to do, forget about it?â
âNo. Just lie low for a while. In fact, why donât you take some time off? How many weeks have you accumulated, anyway? Five, six?â
âEight.â
âWhen was the last time you took a real vacation?â
Zach shook his head impatiently. âI donât know.â
âMaybe youâre due.â
âI donât want to take a vacation!â Zach snapped. âIâm not running away from this story, Ted! Iâll stand behind my coverage even if the paper wonât!â
âWeâre not asking you to run away,â Ted replied evenly. âJust give it a little time. If you donât want to take some time off, we can assign you to another story while we straighten out this mess.â