Page 20 of Good Girls Don't Cry

“I’m not happy going with either of you.” Emily winced. “Don’t take it personal. I’m scared to death.”

“I won’t, but we need to move fast, Em.” He unclipped a harness and helped her climb into it. “Do you have the evidence you collected in your backpack, the images and samples?”

“Yeah.” Emily looked up at the chopper high in the sky and shuddered. “Is my dad up there?”

Kane nodded. “He’s sitting on the edge of the door. He’ll grab you and so will I. You’ll be very safe. Come here and I’ll attach your harness to mine. Hold on to my straps and I’ll wrap my legs around you. You can’t possibly fall. Okay?”

“No, not really.” Emily trembled so much her teeth chattered. “I’m terrified and I’ll probably scream like an idiot.”

Trying not to laugh, Kane rubbed her back, like he did Duke’s when his dog was frightened of the storms. “It’s a maybe once-in-a-lifetime experience. Keep your eyes open and look at the scenery. Think about it as a ride at a fairground. People would pay a fortune to do what we’re going to do.” He looked into her scared eyes. “I love doing this. I’m never scared because I know my team will keep me safe. Take deep breaths and enjoy the ride. It will leave you wanting more.”

Unclipping two harnesses and handing them to Raven, Kane indicated to the sky. “There’s a storm on the way. Be ready to move as soon as I send down the rope. If it’s too windy to get you into the chopper, we’ll drop you into the ski resort parking lot. Jenna is there with Rowley.” He frowned. “I’m assuming you’ve done this before?”

“Too many times.” Raven took the harnesses. “This is like the old days without the gunfire.”

Tapping his mic, Kane gave Raven a nod. He put his arm around Emily. “Okay, Shane, haul us up.”

“Wait! Wait!” Emily’s heart thundered against Kane’s chest. “I can’t do this.”

“Yes, you can.” Raven moved close to her. “You trust Dave, don’t you? You trust me?”

“Yeah.” Emily bit her bottom lip as they lifted from the ground. “I guess.”

They rose higher and Kane wrapped his legs around her as they reached the tree line. “Look, you can see the falls and the rivers. Soon you’ll be able to see the town.”

A gust of wind made the chopper sway and they went into a wide arc swinging across the treetops. On one side they swung so close to the rock face Kane dropped his legs to propel them away. Against him, Emily screamed and buried her face in his chest. The wind whistled around them, tearing at their clothes. He wrapped his legs around her again and raised his voice to be heard. “It’s okay, just the wind. Carter has everything under control. Not far to go now. You’ve been on a swing as a kid, right? Talk to me, Em.”

Lightning cracked and Emily gasped. Her trembling had become shudders and Kane glanced up. The chopper was still some distance above them. Carter had risen higher to keep them away from the rock face. “Emily, open your eyes. Look at the scenery. We’re almost there. Isn’t it a lovely view from up here?”

“You can stick your view where the sun don’t shine.” Emily screwed her eyes shut. “I’m never getting into a harness like this ever again.”

Kane laughed. “Now that’s the Em I know. I’ve seen you face serial killers and this little ride scares you? Come on now. As an ME, you’ll be expected to do this all the time.”

“I might change my mind about being a ME, after all.” She lifted her chin to look at him and scowled. “No one told me I needed to be swinging over a ravine to become a medical examiner.”

Glad he had her talking, Kane shrugged. “Your dad has dropped into crime scenes many times, or dropped me. After this, you’ll be able to do anything. This is a rough ride. It’s not always so bad. Next time, maybe you can try alone.”

“No way.” Emily shot him a look of horror. “You wouldn’t expect me to do this alone, would you?”

“Not for a while, no. I’ll teach you, or Raven will, to learn to rappel from a chopper. You start from a short distance and then work up to it. It’s fun. You’ll enjoy it once you start trusting your team.” The noise from the chopper’s engine made it hard to hear her reply, but in his ear Wolfe came through loud and clear.

“I see this wasn’t easy. I know that look.” Wolfe chuckled. “We’ll get her inside first.”

Kane unlocked his legs. “Turn around, your dad is right there. Grab his hands and I’ll push you inside the chopper.” He unclipped her and she slid away from him.

Her words carried away on the wind, but Kane grabbed her and thrust her inside the chopper. Wolfe had her harness clipped to the D ring in seconds and gave him the thumbs-up. Kane pulled himself inside and clipped on before unhitching his harness from the fast rope and sending it back down for Raven.

Thunder rolled and lightning cracked across the darkening sky. The wind had increased and Carter was fighting the sudden updrafts. Kane dropped into a seat beside him and tapped his com. “You won’t get Raven and the dog up before the storm hits. I suggest you lift him to the ski resort parking lot, where Jenna is with Rowley. I’ve told him we might do that and he’s cool with it. He’s military.”

“Yeah, so I hear.” Carter took the chopper around in a circle. “Okay, let’s try and get lower and do the pickup. This darn wind is pushing me into the mountainside. It’s gonna be a rough ride.” He glanced at the sky. “I figure we have ten minutes max and then we need to get out of Dodge.”

“Everything is ready.” Wolfe came through Kane’s com. “I’m lowering the fast rope now.”

Behind him Emily, still sheet white, was gripping the back of his seat. He stood to assist Wolfe and patted her on the shoulder. “Not long now and we’ll be home.”

“I hope so.” Emily’s voice squeaked through his earpiece. Poor kid had screamed herself hoarse.

Impressed by the speed in which Raven had clipped Ben and himself onto the rope, Kane indicated with a twirling hand signal for Wolfe to winch them up. Through his com, Carter’s voice for once sounded anxious.

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