Jonathan was in the penthouse, waiting on Jennifer.
He had just finished making them dinner when the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Mr. Hart, this is Linda at the front desk. Our records indicate that you just took the elevator to the penthouse, but it seems to have malfunctioned. Can you tell us what happened?"
"I've been home for 2 hours. Everything was fine when I rode the elevator earlier".
"Oh, well then it must have been someone coming to see you. Did they make it to the penthouse?"
"No, nobody has come up here. My girlfriend is about to be home though, maybe it's her".
"Ok, well the elevator maintenance men will have her out of there as soon as possible. They are going to send the elevator to the lobby floor, so take the other elevator to the lobby if you need to".
"Thank you".
He turned the stove off and walked down the hall to the elevator. He figured out which one was stuck and took the other one down to the lobby.
He got downstairs just before the other one opened.
Jennifer was laying on the floor of the elevator and one of the maintenance men was holding her hand.
"She's out cold".
"Jennifer! Darling, I'm right here, can you hear me?"
He knelt down next to her and gently picked her up and carried her to the sofa in the lobby and laid her down.
The front desk called the paramedics, and Jonathan held her till they arrived.
Jennifer had a nice knot on the back of her head that he was careful to not touch.
He laced his hand through hers and rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb.
The paramedics got there and asked him some basic questions, and put an oxygen mask on her. They handed him the paper that was in her blouse, and he put it in his pocket. A few minutes later, she woke up.
"Ms. Edwards, let us take you to the hospital".
"No, no. I don't want to do that. I just want to go home".
"Darling, are you sure? You have a nasty bump on the back of your head".
"I'm positive. I hate hospitals".
"Ok, well you are going to need some ice and rest, if you don't go to the hospital".
"I'll make sure that she rests, I promise".
"Any double vision, throwing up, or headaches that can't be controlled with medicine, take her to the hospital".
The paramedics left, and the building manager came over to them.
"Ms. Edwards, do you remember anything?"
"Just that I was on the elevator and then someone tapped me on the shoulder".
"Did you see who it was?"
"No, I didn't".
"Ok, well we will pull the surveillance tape, and then file a police report on your behalf".
"Thank you".
He helped her up and they headed back up to the Penthouse.
As soon as they came in, he helped her to the couch and got her an ice bag.
He dug through the medicine cabinet and got her some Aleve and then made her a glass of water.
"Thank you".
She took the pills and then leaned over and hugged him and kissed him.
He hugged her back as he held the ice on her head.
"I'm sorry, honey".
"Darling, this wasn't your fault. You don't have anything to be sorry for at all".
He held her for a minute and just loved on her some.
"How about a hot bath while I salvage dinner?"
She sat back and looked at him.
"You made dinner?"
He nodded.
"You made dinner and I ruined it. I'm so sorry".
"Jennifer, it's just dinner. It's ok. If I can't salvage it, I will just order us a pizza or something. You are more important than anything else".
She kissed him and then went to take her bath, while he went and tried to salvage dinner.
He came to check on her a little while later.
"How are you feeling?"
"Better, the bath is helping. Were you able to salvage dinner?"
"One large pepperoni pizza and one large salad is on the way".
"What was dinner?"
"Shrimp fettucine and stuffed mushrooms".
"I'm sorry, honey".
"It's ok. It's just a meal."
He helped her out of the bath and she dried off and put on her pajamas.
They climbed in bed and he gave her a back rub while they waited for their dinner.
"How was your thing with Morgan?"
"Strange."
"How so?"
"Well, the other day when I went to breakfast with everyone and you were sleeping-while Ava and I were shopping, she and I had an argument and I left and came home. And tonight, Morgan kept flipping back and forth between defending her and defending me".
"What was the argument about?"
"Ava thinks that I shouldn't have given you the time of day when you came back from Japan, and she keeps insisting that you are going to purposely break my heart again, even though I know you would never do that. Part of the problem is that they don't know you, and are judging you without knowing you first, and it just made me angry".
"Why don't we throw a dinner party for everyone?"
"I thought about it. But why have everyone over when they are being rude and judgmental?"
"Why don't you bring it up and see if they are open to the idea? If they aren't, then we can do something different. But if they are, it might help to smooth things over".
"Yeah, that's a good idea".
Their dinner arrived, so he went and paid for it and made them plates.
She slowly walked into the kitchen to help him.
As she approached him, she lightly scratched his back.
"Darling, what are you doing out of bed?"
"I came to help you".
He turned and kissed her.
"I can't wait on you hand and foot if you don't stay in bed".
"I'm sorry honey, I'm probably the world's worst patient".
After they ate, he made her a fresh ice pack and they headed back to bed.
He was changing out of his clothes and into his pajamas and getting his clothes ready for the dry cleaners when he found the note that had been in her blouse.
"Darling, this was in your blouse in the elevator. I forgot to give it to you".
He sat down on the bed and unfolded it and she leaned over his shoulder to read it.
"I told you to stop investigating. Next time, you'll really have a headache when I get done with you".
"Jennifer, this guy means business."
"Well, hopefully the police will catch him and it won't be an issue".
"What were you going to tell me at lunch today?"
"Well, I did some digging. And I discovered that Regent airlines used to be Priority Airlines. They changed their name because they were named in a wrongful death lawsuit."
"That's not so unusual. Companies change their names all the time, especially if they are looking for a fresh start after bad publicity".
"Jonathan, they were convicted in the wrongful death lawsuit. They had to pay the victim's family over 4 million dollars. Also, my source has information that indicates they knowingly let pilots fly the plane intoxicated. So what do we have? Faulty airline pieces being purposely used and reused, allowing pilots to fly intoxicated, paying off the FAA to allow them to fly when the planes won't pass inspection, and changing their name when they are found liable in a wrongful death suit. Tell me that doesn't scream defrauding customers to you".
"I admit it looks bad".
"Thank you".
"But Jennifer-your life is at risk here. I'm worried they are really going to step it up".
"It's a risk I have to take, Jonathan. I tell you what. What if I ask my boss if I can have some days off after I publish the next one? You and I can get out of here for a couple days and lay low somewhere".
"That's an idea but we can't do that forever".
"Like I said, hopefully the guy will get caught and the situation will resolve itself".
He put his clothes away and climbed into bed next to her.
She snuggled up to him and let him hold her for a minute.
"I tell you what. I want you to call me before you leave work. I will call the car service, and I will be in the car when it picks you up. That way I can be close by if something happens".
"And I get extra moments with you. I like that".
She leaned up and kissed him.
He laced his fingers through hers.
"I just want to keep you safe. You know that, right?"
"I do know that. And I love you for it".
She leaned up and kissed him.
"How's your head?"
"Still throbbing."
"Well, how about a movie to take your mind off it?"
"Great idea".
They turned on a movie and snuggled up and a few minutes later, Jennifer was fast asleep.
***The next day***
Jennifer woke up first and headed for the shower.
Jonathan heard the shower start and got up and went to make coffee.
He took her a mug of coffee as soon as it was ready.
"Darling, are you sure you don't want to stay home today, take it easy?"
"I'm positive. My head doesn't even hurt anymore".
"Darling, I've been thinking. Is there a closet or a room at the Times where equipment is stored?"
"Equipment? Like what kind?"
"Phones, typewriters, etc".
"Yes, there is".
"Ok, here's what I want you to do. When you get to work, I want you to act like everything is normal. And then when nobody is looking, unscrew the bottom part of the receiver. If you see anything that resembles a black circle, that's a listening device. If you find that, disconnect that phone from the phone line, and go get another one from the closet. Cut the receiver cord if you have to".
"Ok, I will do that".
They rode to the office together, and he asked the car service to wait till she was completely inside.
"I love you, have a good day. Call me when you are ready to leave".
"I love you too".
A few kisses later, she was walking inside.
She went to her desk and put her stuff down, and then went to the breakroom to get some water.
When she got back to her desk, she nonchalantly unscrewed the bottom part of her receiver. Sure enough, there was a listening device. She pulled it out and put it in her desk drawer.
She quietly screwed the receiver lid back on, and then unplugged the phone.
She took it to the equipment room, labeled it as defective, and grabbed a new one.
After she was all plugged in, she went back to her desk.
She noticed for the first time that things on her desk were a little out of place. Her plant that she kept next to her computer was farther back than she kept it. And her pictures had been rearranged.
She made note of that, and then sat down and hooked up her phone again.
She called Jonathan, and asked his secretary to ask him if they could meet for lunch, and to send the car service for her at 11:45.
When she hung up, she noticed a little tiny red light in the corner of her desk, attached to the fabric of her cubicle. She examined it and saw that it was attached to the fabric with a staple. She unattached it and followed the wire all the way under her desk, to the back of her computer.
She decided to leave it connected but tossed it behind her computer.
She thought a moment and then took the listening device out and put it in her purse.
She worked on her other articles till 11:30, and then Jessica, the receptionist informed her that her ride was there.
"Thank you".
She gathered her things and headed outside and climbed into the car.
"Hi".
"Hi gorgeous".
He leaned over and kissed her.
She opened her purse and pulled out the listening device.
"I figured as much".
"Also, there was this red light thing in the corner of my cubicle".
"Describe it to me."
"It was silver, and about the size of a match, and had a red light on it. It was attached to my cubicle with a staple, and had a thin wire that came off it. The wire was taped to the underside of my desk at the back, and then it fed up into the back of my computer".
"What did you do with it?"
"I left it connected to the computer, but I tossed it behind the computer in case it was a camera".
"Good idea. I tell you what. My employee knows how to remotely access other people's computers. So, when you get back to the office, go to the website on this business card, and then call me. I'll have him do it and take a look, and tonight I'll let you know what he finds".
He handed her the business card.
They had a nice lunch and then he dropped her back off at the times.
Jennifer had a meeting with her boss when she got back, where she told her she was turning down the international assignment.
When she got back to her desk, she noticed that her pictures had once again been rearranged.
She decided to just remove all of them. She went to the breakroom and got a box, and then put her sensitive files in the box, and all her pictures.
She got out the business card that Jonathan gave her and logged onto the website on the back, and then picked up the phone.
She unscrewed the bottom, checked to make sure there was no listening device, and then on a whim, superglued the lid back on.
She dialed Jonathan's number.
"Hello?"
"Hi. I'm in."
"Ok, open up something else, like a word document or something, and work on that. Let your computer do it's thing, and I'll call you back if there are any updates".
"I love you".
"I love you too".
She blew him a kiss as she hung up the phone and got to work.
Morgan came by her desk.
"Hey, did you see the note I put on your desk?"
"No, there wasn't a note on my desk".
"Oh. Well, I found us a new brunch spot. I was thinking we could try it out Saturday morning. It's called Magellan's, on 85th. I made us reservations for 9".
"Perfect".
"Great, see you there".
Morgan walked back to her desk and Jennifer got back to work.
Around 4, Jessica walked over with a message for Jennifer.
"Thanks".
She looked at it.
"Call Jonathan-urgent".
She picked up the phone and called him.
"Hey, my employee found some things on your computer that are suspect. So, he's going to come to the penthouse tonight. Can you leave your computer logged in when you go home?"
"Yes".
"Ok, do that. And unhook the camera thing if you can and bring it too. Are you ready to leave yet?"
"Yeah, I am".
"Ok, I'll be there in 20 minutes. I love you".
"I love you too".
She gathered her things together and headed towards the door.
She was waiting just inside the door for Jonathan when Ava approached her.
"Hi. Can we talk a second?"
"I suppose so".
"Can we have lunch tomorrow?"
"I don't see why not".
"Great. Well, I'll see you in the morning".
Jennifer nodded.
The car pulled up so she headed to the car and got in.
"Hi darling".
"Hi beautiful".
He gave her a few kisses.
They picked up dinner and then made it home just as it was starting to rain.
He could tell she was a little apprehensive about getting on the elevator.
"It's alright, I'm right here with you".
They got on the elevator and she was glad they were alone on the elevator.
They got out at the penthouse and went inside.
She went to change clothes while he got their dinner set up.
He had ordered a dinner for his employee as well.
The doorbell rang and he went to open it.
"Hi, come on in. Thanks for coming".
Jennifer got up and came over.
"Hi I'm Jennifer".
"Hi, I'm Stanley Friesen. Nice to meet you".
They shook hands, and then Jonathan showed him to the table.
Jennifer filled him in over dinner.
"So what kind of office setup do you have?"
"We are in cubicles. Each desk has 3 drawers on both sides and one middle drawer. We have a computer and a phone, and that's it".
"Do your drawers lock?"
"Yes. But we all have our own keys and they fit all the other desks as well".
"Miss Edwards, from what I can tell from your computer so far, someone in your organization has put spyware on your computer. Mr. Hart described the device to me and if I'm not mistaken, that sounds like a motion activated camera. If I'm right, it records when you pick up the phone, and the keystrokes on your computer".
"Who would do that?"
"It would have to be someone at the Times, I'm afraid".