Hidden Summit

now. Not such a big change, really. More of a reversal. So—when I order the household goods packed, where should I have yours shipped? Vermont?”
    She was quiet for a moment. “Hold off on that, can you?”
    “Changing your mind?” he asked hopefully. “Second thoughts?”
    “Not so much changing my mind as putting off making a decision. Can you have my stuff stored in Sacramento until I make a final decision?”
    “What’s happening, Katie?” he asked. “Are things cooling with the dentist?”
    “Not so much cooling as not heating up, but then you knew that. No, it’s more about you, I’m afraid. While you were here with us, it felt so right. So comfortable. Since you left, I’ve been asking myself if I can really be this far away. I don’t want to move in with you again, to be that kind of burden. But I might just have to make the hard choice. I might have to decide who I’m willing to give up—you or Keith.”
    He took a deep breath. “A lot of that is going to depend on Keith,” he said. “And, Katie, if I could, you know I’d consider Vermont. I’m not real big on shoveling snow, but…”
    “No! You’ve found where you want to be. And who you want to be with. Unless I misunderstood—you have no doubts. And you so deserve this. You’ve waited long enough.”
    But so had Katie waited, he found himself thinking. She’d had such a hot young love with Charlie, that whenever they’d been in the same room, there’d been steam. No surprise he not only got her pregnant on the honeymoon, but with twins. In losing him, Katie had lost her taste for passion, apparently. In thinking over the past five years, the few dates she had had were with men who failed to bring that flush to her cheeks the way her young husband had.
    He wanted that for her. But he wasn’t about to say any more about her losses.
    What a team, he thought. As brother and sister they had held each other up through all sorts of strain. And he, for one, had had about enough of that!
    “Don’t do anything hasty, Katie,” he lectured. “Make sure Keith is completely right for you before you take that next step.”
    “I will. Of course I will.”
    They talked a little bit about the upcoming trial, although Conner wasn’t at liberty to discuss the prep. He did tell her he hoped to be back in Virgin River on the weekend. Worst case, he might be driving back to the city the following week. And when the conversation was done, he made a couple of phone calls—one to a cleaning service and one to a painter he knew and trusted. Then he called the D.A.’s office and asked Max’s trusted assistant to arrange for the packing and storage of household goods to commence immediately. The cleaners and painters would follow the movers, leaving the homes ready for sale.
    Jack Sheridan was puttering behind the bar in the afternoon, making his supply lists and balancing his cash drawer. When no one was in the bar, like now, he had the national news on the TV. He wasn’t a news fanatic and didn’t have anyone close in the wars right now, but he checked in from time to time. He got a little news about the economy—hardly ever good these days—some major national stories from kidnappings to shootings. Nothing big from Humboldt County, usually, unless they had an earthquake or something. Or maybe that occasional giant pot bust.
    He was crouched behind the bar, counting bottles, when he heard the news anchor talking about a big murder trial in Sacramento. He went on to say that the arresting officers and forensic experts had testified for the prosecution, but there was only one eyewitness to the crime.
    It was pure coincidence that he happened to stand up at that time and see, on the screen, the face of someone he knew. Conner Danson. He didn’t catch the name, but the face was unmistakable—except for the absence of the neatly, tightly trimmed and sculptured mustache and goatee. And he caught the last of the broadcast.
    …will testify for the prosecution tomorrow. The trial is not televised but our reporters will be on the scene for any breaking news....
    What the hell, he thought. That was the breaking news.
    He went to the kitchen and picked up the phone. He called Paul’s office in the trailer even though he knew catching him there was iffy. Leslie answered, and he said, “Hey, Leslie, it’s Jack. Did you know your boyfriend is testifying in a murder trial in Sacramento?”
    There was a moment of silence before she laughed just a