Page 5 of Stuart Woods' Smolder

“What about the cases you’re working on?” Stone asked Carly.

“I talked to Bill Eggers already, and he’s agreed to let me take a two-month leave of absence. He said he thought it would be a good opportunity for me, and that you would handle reassigning everything.”

Bill was the firm’s managing partner. Stone made a mental note to have a word or two with him later.

Seeing that it was a fait accompli, he said, “Promise me one thing. When you finish, don’t accept any job offer until you and I have talked through all the options.”

She thought for a moment, then nodded. “I promise.”

“Well, then,” Lance said and stood. “If there are no more questions, we’ll be off.”

“We?”Stone asked, as Carly rose from her chair.

“Lance is heading back to Langley tonight and has offered me a seat in his helicopter.”

“Of course he has.”

“Now, now, Stone,” Lance said. “No one likes a sore loser.”

Stone ignored him. “What about dinner?”

“No time,” Carly said. “Besides, I’m too excited to eat.”

She waved goodbye and followed Lance out.

The waiter appeared and nodded at Stone’s empty glass. “Another?”

“Bring him the bottle,” Dino said.

Chapter 2

Benji Madigan eyed the Zurn estate through his binoculars. Decorative exterior lights spread throughout the property, illuminating pathways and entrances, while interior lights glowed from several of the mansion’s windows.

On his right, Devin Barnes scanned the property while Lenny “Sticks” Martin, settled on the other side of him, picked at his teeth with the sharpened end of a match.

“Looks the same to me,” Benji said. This was their fourth night in a row checking the place out. Like the other nights they’d cased the place, there was no sign of security guards.

Devin lowered his binoculars and nodded. “Good to go as far as I’m concerned.”

The mansion was located outside Aspen, Colorado, and was the vacation home of financier Gordon Zurn and his family. The Zurns used it mainly for winter ski trips and the occasional summer getaway, usually around the Fourth of July. The latter hadbeen more than a month ago, and from the info Benji had obtained from a reliable source, they weren’t expected back for months.

When the family wasn’t in residence, the lodge was occupied by a middle-aged married couple who acted as the caretakers.

As for security, the property was woefully underprotected. While their alarm system was top-notch, given what was inside the house, Zurn really should have sprung for several full-time guards.

Sometimes rich people could be so stupid about what they did and didn’t spend their money on.

Benji glanced at the two other members of his crew. “Let’s do this.”

They returned to their Chevy Malibu. They’d stolen it in Denver and covered the outside in a preprinted vinyl wrap that made it look like it belonged to the local sheriff’s department. They’d even mounted an emergency light bar on the roof. To complete the charade, they wore uniforms similar to those worn by actual local sheriff’s deputies.

“Okay, Sticks, you’re up,” Benji said.

Grinning like a child on Christmas morning, Sticks put his phone on speaker and made a call. When it connected, three high-pitched tones sounded over the speaker. He tapped in a four-digit code, then the triple tone played again, triggering his devices to go off, and the line cut out.

Sticks looked up. “Done.”

Devin fired up a remote control and flew their drone high into the sky. Benji and Sticks leaned in on either side of him, so they both could see the drone’s camera feed on the screen.

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