The Summit (5 page)

Ben swore as he hung up the phone and leaned back in his black leather chair.
Sonofabitch!
He didn't believe for a moment that A-1 wanted to operate a store in the area. But he believed completely that they would do it if they thought it would urge him to sell them the McKenzie chain. With their lower prices, A-1 was tough competition. People were suckers when it came to getting something for less, even if it meant sacrificing quality.

In the world of sports, cheap products not only didn't last, they could actually be dangerous.

A-1 was definitely a problem, one Ben was determined to solve.

His intercom buzzed. “Your five-thirty is here,” Jenn said.

“Remind me who it is.”

“A woman named Autumn Sommers. She said it was a personal matter. You said to schedule her at the end of the day.”

He tried to remember the name but it didn't ring a bell. He had dated any number of women since his divorce, though none of them seriously. He wasn't interested in a long-term relationship and he always made that clear from the start. But he enjoyed women and he liked sex. And the women he dated seemed to have no complaints. “Go ahead and send her in.”

He stood up as the door opened, saw a petite young woman in her twenties, pretty but not gorgeous like the models and movie starlets he occasionally spent time with. He preferred them blond and buxom and this one was petite and dark-haired, though she seemed to have a very nice pair of breasts.

She wasn't really his type and he was almost positive he had never been out with her. That was something of a relief.

“My assistant says you wanted to see me on a personal matter. I don't believe we've met, Ms. Summers. What can I do for you?” He motioned for her to have a seat in front of his desk, but she walked over to the window and looked out across the city. He could tell she was nervous. He wondered why.

“Spectacular view,” she said. “I live close to here but my condo looks over the city, not out at the water.”

“It's a very lovely view. Now as I said, what can I do for you?”

She turned to face him, but still didn't take a seat so neither did he.

“You can start by calling me Autumn, though you're right we haven't met. I've seen you at Pike's Gym a couple of times. I didn't even know who you were until a few days ago.”

He didn't remember seeing her, but she wasn't really the sort to catch a man's eye…not at first glance, at any rate. “Autumn Summers. Interesting name.”

“It's
Sommers
with an
O.
My parents thought it was cute.” She walked back his way and sat down and Ben sat down across from her. There was something intriguing about her. She had big green eyes that tilted up at the corners, a heart-shaped face and thick, short, softly curling hair that was almost red but not quite. In the overhead light, there were streaks of russet and gold—autumn colors, just like her name.

“So who are you, Autumn Sommers, and why are you here?”

She took a deep breath and released it slowly, as if she searched for exactly what to say. “I'm a fifth-grade teacher at Lewis and Clark Elementary School. I'm here to talk to you about your daughter.”

“Katie?”

Her russet brows inched up. They were perfectly formed, he noticed, adding a nice symmetry to her face.

“You have a daughter named Katie?” she asked.

“Yes. That's her photo over there.”

“She's lovely. How old is she?”

“Ten.” He was beginning to get annoyed. His time was valuable. Only his daughter took precedence over work. “You're a teacher. I figured Katie was the reason you were here.”

“I'm here because of your other daughter. Molly.”

For an instant, Ben couldn't breathe. No one had mentioned his older daughter in years. He wouldn't allow it, couldn't stand the shock it brought whenever he heard her name. The swift jolt of memories, the harsh stab of pain.

He stood up. “My daughter Molly is dead. She was abducted from our home six years ago. What the hell are you doing here?”

“I know about the abduction. I read the articles in the newspaper archives. As far as I can tell, they never found any trace of her and if that's the case—”

“Molly's dead!” Ben rounded the desk, his hands balling into fists as he tried to hang on to his temper. “Gerald Meeks killed her—along with God knows how many other children before he was captured and sentenced to life in prison. Now get out of my office!”

In an effort to avoid his wrath, Autumn slipped out of her chair and took a few steps backward as he advanced. “Please…I don't believe Molly was murdered. I think she may still be alive and if she is, she needs your help.”

His insides contracted into a painful knot. Just talking about Molly made his stomach roll.

“Are you telling me you've seen her? Because if you are, I don't believe you.” It had taken him years to convince himself but he had finally accepted the fact she was dead and no one was going to dredge up the awful heartbreak again.

“I haven't seen her…not exactly, but—”

“Why the hell did you come here? What are you, some kind of charlatan? Or maybe you're some kind of nut. Either way I want you out of here.” He walked past her and jerked open the tall mahogany door. “Ms. Sommers's business here is finished,” he said to Jenn. “See her down to the lobby, will you? Make sure she leaves the building. Make sure she doesn't return.”

“But I teach classes at the climbing gym,” she said quickly. “I'm also a member of the club. I'm there almost every day of the week.”

“Fine.” He fixed his eyes on Jenn, who was glaring at Autumn Sommers like a she-wolf protecting her cub. “See that she has access to the building, but not to any of the offices above the second floor.”

“I'll take care of it,” Jenn said. “Come with me, Ms. Sommers.”

“I didn't come here to cause trouble. I wanted to talk to you or your wife—”

Ben's temper snapped. “Joanne and I have been divorced for nearly four years. You call her, you bother my family in any way, I'll get a restraining order against you. Now get out!”

The woman said no more, just cast him a pitying glance and walked ahead of Jenn toward the elevator. Ben didn't release the breath he had been holding till the elevator door slid closed and Autumn Sommers disappeared.

He didn't know how long he stood there staring into space. Long enough for Jenn to return from her trip to the lobby.

“You all right, boss?” She had always been protective.

“I'm fine. I just…the woman's some kind of nutcase. Or maybe she was trying to extort money from me or something. I don't think she'll show up here again.”

At least he hoped not. His brief encounter with Autumn Summers—Sommers with an
O,
he mentally corrected—had his stomach churning with acid. He'd have to pop a Pepcid before he'd be able to eat.

“You want me to have her checked out?” Jenn asked.

“Let it go for now. Like I said, I don't think she'll be back.” The woman was gone, but the memories were stirring. They were hovering in his head, threatening to come to life. He couldn't afford to let that happen.

The best solution was to put his mind on something else…something that had nothing to do with his family or the past or involved his emotions.

Ben walked back into his office, sat down at his desk, opened the file on the Issaquah store, picked up the phone and went to work.

A
utumn trembled as she walked the few blocks to her apartment. She had known her meeting with Ben McKenzie wouldn't be easy, but she hadn't expected to be tossed out of the man's office into the street!

The jerk wouldn't even talk to her, wouldn't give her the least chance to explain. She remembered the article she had uncovered about Gerald Meeks, a pedophile and serial killer who had been active in the Seattle area. He had been arrested and eventually convicted.

First thing in the morning, she was going back to the library to run Meeks's name. Maybe she would find a reference to Molly, something that would explain Ben McKenzie's belief that Meeks had killed her.

If she found proof that Molly was dead, she would drop the whole thing. She would take a sleeping pill every night until she stopped dreaming about the girl. Even if it took the rest of her life.

The following morning she dressed and headed for the gym. She would have to wait until afternoon to go back to the newspaper files. She worked out, then began her climbing class. In the last session, they had talked about getting the body in shape and discussed proper nutrition, then she'd spent the rest of the lesson getting her students familiar with the climbing wall.

Today she discussed proper clothing and equipment then demonstrated some climbing techniques. Throughout the class, Autumn was careful to keep her mind focused on her students and helping them learn the best and safest methods for addressing the climb. She didn't allow her mind to stray toward little Molly McKenzie and what might have happened to her at the hands of Gerald Meeks.

Autumn suppressed a shudder, but the thought remained in the back of her head. As soon as class was over, she changed into street clothes and left for the library.

Running through the microfilm, she approached the search as she had before. Dozens of articles on Meeks surfaced in the newspaper files, from his arrest, all the way through his long, drawn-out trial. In the end, he had been sentenced to life in prison.

Autumn paused as Molly McKenzie's name popped up in one of the articles. It appeared again in several more.

Though Meeks has only confessed to the murders of the two children whose bodies were found in what appeared to be his dumping ground at the bottom of a ravine, it is believed he is also responsible for the death of six-year-old Molly McKenzie, who also went missing in the area around that time.

Apparently Meeks never admitted to the crime, but he never denied it either. One article mentioned that the description of the man given to police by witness only vaguely matched that of Gerald Meeks, but the age of the witnesses, all of whom were children under the age of seven, and the disparity of the descriptions were a factor in concluding that Meeks was the man responsible for Molly's abduction and murder.

In a later paper, Autumn saw again that efforts were made to get Meeks to give up information about the location of Molly's body. Though he seemed to be the man responsible, Meeks never confessed and he never gave the police the location of the victim's grave.

Because he didn't kill her!

The thought arose and wouldn't go away. The photos of Gerald Meeks convinced Autumn further. Though as near as she could guess, he was about the same height as the man in her dreams, he was thinner and had brown hair, a gaunt man with the sunken eyes of a predator, not the warm, friendly eyes of the man in her dream.

Also, according to the information, Meeks had used chloroform to render his victims helpless before dragging them into his car.

Not like Molly, who, according to her dream, had been lured away by a man with a puppy.

More determined than ever, Autumn vowed to convince Ben McKenzie to at least hear her out.

But how to reach him?

She was no longer welcome in his office. She could try to speak to his ex-wife, but that might involve their younger daughter, Katie. It wouldn't be fair to a child who must have already suffered a very great deal. And Autumn believed that if she approached the family, McKenzie would go after that restraining order.

Besides, Autumn was convinced Ben McKenzie was the link. She had never seen or met his ex-wife and she had only started dreaming about Molly after she had noticed Ben at the gym.

What to do?

It wouldn't be easy but maybe if she tried again, McKenzie would at least hear her out.

Since the gym was the most likely place to find him, she headed there first thing the following morning. She didn't usually work out on weekends, but she needed information and made a beeline straight for the sign-in desk.

To get into the gym, you had to flash a tag with a bar code over a lighted glass plate. The bar code reader analyzed the code and checked to see if your membership was paid up and active. Autumn knew Mike Logan, one of the staff guys who worked behind the desk. He was sitting a few feet away, inputting something into his computer.

“Hi, Mike.”

Mike looked her way, saw her and smiled. “Hey, sweet cheeks.” He jogged over to the counter in his white shirt and shorts, his dark hair neatly combed. The uniform was a requirement. All the guys on the staff looked like they just came off the tennis court at Wimbledon. The women dressed the same, in a white knit shirt and shorts with Pike's Gym embroidered in black letters on the pocket. The climbing instructors were the exception. To attack the wall, they needed to wear more flexible clothes.

“Listen, Mike, I've got a problem. I was hoping you might be able to help me.”

“Name it.”

She pointed to the bar code reader. “That machine keeps track of everyone who goes in and out, right?”

“Right.”

“I presume the information goes into a computer. Can you pull up a person by name, see what times he checks in each day?”

“Sure.”

“I need to know the days and times for Ben McKenzie.”

“Whoa! Wait a minute, Autumn. Ben's our landlord. I don't think he'd appreciate someone nosing into his business.”

“It's no big deal,” she lied. Again. “I just want to talk to him. It's about his daughter.”
Not the live one. The one he thinks is dead.

“Why don't you just go up to his office?”

“It's kind of personal. I'd rather make it less formal. Besides, I've seen him here before. He'll just think my bumping into him is a coincidence.”

“I don't know…”

“Come on, Mike. Didn't I give you a couple of free climbing lessons last month?”

“Yeah, but…you sure you aren't stalking him or something?”

She cast him a
you've-got-to-be-kidding-me
look. Everyone knew she hardly ever dated and mostly avoided men in general. She had even heard a rumor she was gay, which was definitely news to her.

“Okay, okay. Hang on a minute. I'll print out his sheet for the past two months and you can take a look at it. Just don't mention my name, okay?”

“Cross my heart.”

It didn't take long to figure out Ben's schedule. He came in every weekday and never on weekends, usually got there even earlier than she did. There were gaps, of course, several missing days clumped together. She figured those days he was probably away on business. In the past few weeks, he had started working out in the evenings on Tuesday and Thursday nights.

Autumn tapped the page. “Thanks, Mike. This is great.” She grinned. “I'll destroy the incriminating evidence as soon as I'm done with it.”

Mike looked relieved. He was a good guy. She didn't blame him for not wanting to risk his job and she had no intention of betraying his trust. She studied the list, trying to decide the best approach.

She remembered how furious McKenzie had been in his office and decided not to confront him at the gym, where there would be people around. Instead she would wait outside, hoping she could speak to him alone.

At seven-forty-five Tuesday evening, Autumn parked herself on Pike Street in a little coffee shop with a clear view of the McKenzie building. According to the log, Ben was a man who adhered to a very strict schedule. He went into the gym at seven p.m., probably coming straight from his sixth-floor office, and though she had no way of knowing what time he left, she figured he probably worked out for at least an hour.

Eight o'clock came but no Ben. At eight-thirty on the nose, he walked out the door, dressed in slacks and a shirt unbuttoned at the throat, sleeves rolled up, his coat and tie draped over one arm.

Autumn set her white porcelain coffee cup down in its saucer and scrambled for the door. She caught up with Ben at the corner, stood there beside him a moment before he realized she was there.

“Mr. McKenzie?”

His head turned. His square jaw hardened. “You!”

“Please don't be angry. I have to speak to you. I know you don't want to talk to me. I know how painful thinking about Molly must be, but you have to listen.”

Several people walked up and stood next them, waiting for the light to change. Ben took one look at them, gripped her arm and dragged her back against the wall of a nearby building.

“What the hell do you want? Money? Do you think you've found some way to extort me for cash? Because it isn't going to work.”

“I don't want your money! I just want you to listen to me!”

He took a steadying breath, let it out slowly. The set of his jaw said he was fighting for control. “You've got three minutes.”

Her mind spun, frantic to think where to begin. “I've been having this dream,” she started. “It isn't a regular dream, not like the kind we all have every night. This is different, so real it's as if it's actually happening. And it's the same dream every night.”

“This is bullshit. Everyone dreams.”

“This isn't just any dream. This is a dream about Molly.” Even in the faint yellow light shining down from the street lamp she could see his face go pale.

She hurried on, afraid he would walk away. “Of course, I didn't know who she was at first. In my dream, I saw this little girl get into a car with a man she didn't know and I was afraid for her. I thought this was something that hadn't happened yet but was about to and maybe I could find out who the little girl was and somehow prevent it.”

He checked his watch. “You're time is up, lady. I'm leaving and if you try to talk to me again, I'll have you arrested for stalking.”

Tears welled in her eyes. “You don't understand. I think Molly is still alive. Please…won't you at least hear me out?”

But Ben was already walking away, his broad shoulders slumped forward, perhaps against the breeze but Autumn thought it was the weight of his terrible memories.

Dear God, she had to reach him. Ben McKenzie was Molly's father and Autumn believed he was the key that had set the dreams in motion. With his help, maybe they could find her.

She wiped the tears from her cheeks, hating herself for crying. Dammit, why wouldn't he at least give her a chance?

But in her heart, she understood. She knew that every time she brought up Molly's name, the old pain surfaced. She needed proof—something that would convince Ben McKenzie there was at least a chance his daughter was still alive.

She went to bed that night, her mind still churning. She dreamed the kitchen dream again, saw the pain in Molly's face. By morning, she knew what she had to do.

 

Ben cancelled his late-night date with Delores Delgato, an exotic, Hispanic fashion model with the Allure Vreeland made any sort of statement?” Agency who had just finished a photo shoot down at the wharf. He had met Dee through a mutual friend when he was in L.A. on business and they had gone out a few times.

This week Delores was here in Seattle and tonight was the last night of her magazine shoot. She had called wanting to celebrate. At the time it had sounded like a good idea.

But after his encounter with Autumn Sommers, Ben wasn't in the mood to be sociable. He wasn't even in the mood to get laid.

He walked the few blocks to his penthouse apartment on the top floor of the Bay Towers in the trendy Belltown neighborhood. He had purchased the luxury condo last year. He could afford it and as he grew more and more successful the extra security the building provided had become a necessity.

He used his passcard to access his private elevator and rode to the twentieth floor. As he walked into the marble-floored entry, the lights of the city shone through the wall of windows in the living room. Down the hall to the left, there was a powder room and two bedrooms, each with a private marble bath. The master suite and bath and his home office were down the opposite hall.

Ben headed that way. As soon as he walked into the office, he picked up the phone on his desk. All the way home, he told himself the call could wait until morning, but he knew he wouldn't sleep if he left this business unfinished.

His mind strayed to the woman who had accosted him on the sidewalk. It was her tears that had gotten to him. Either the woman was a hell of an actress, a magnificent con, or she really believed the crap she was spewing about Molly.