Chapter 8 - The Private Jet to Saranac
The cabin of the Gulfstream G650 was dead silent except for the steady, monotonous roar of the jet engines cutting through the frigid upper atmosphere above the Atlantic.
Elena sat by the window, staring out at the endless blanket of dark clouds illuminated by the pale moonlight. In her lap lay Julian Vance’s handwritten letter alongside the newly printed property registry map of Lake Placid.
According to Julian’s archive notes, the "second title" mentioned in the letter wasn't just a piece of paper—it was an original 1954 land grant signed when the surrounding forest was part of a federal watershed protection zone. If the boathouse floorboards concealed what Julian hinted at, the entire sale to Meridian Holdings was legally void under federal environmental statutes before the ink on the deed even dried.
The cockpit door slid open, and the pilot stepped out, walking down the aisle with a concerned expression.
“Ms. Miller,” the pilot said, leaning down slightly. “We’ve just received an automated weather advisory from the Adirondack regional control tower. A heavy, unseasonal ice storm has settled over northern New York. Visibility at the local airstrip is near zero, and the local county sheriff has issued a travel advisory for all mountain roads leading toward Lake Placid.”
Elena looked up from her maps without hesitation. “Can we still land?”
“We can put the bird down on the tarmac in Saranac Lake if we make our descent right now,” the pilot answered, weighing his words carefully. “But driving up to the lakehouse tonight? With black ice on those narrow mountain passes? It’s going to be treacherous, ma’am.”
“Good,” Elena said, snapping her briefcase shut and standing up. “That means Victor Vance’s agents won't be expecting anyone to be there tonight either.”
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Forty-five minutes later, the jet’s landing gear kissed the icy tarmac of the regional airstrip with a sharp shudder. Elena stepped out into the freezing alpine wind, wrapped in a heavy cashmere coat, and slid directly into the back of a rented four-wheel-drive SUV waiting by the private hangar.
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