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  “And you’re acting like a kid. I’ve found in order to get any nutritional value you have to put the food in your mouth, chew and swallow.” Keile demonstrated.

  Giving a reluctant laugh, Summer sampled the mac and cheese, found it more than palatable and took another bite, then another.

  “Good, huh?” Keile asked with a knowing smile.

  She swallowed and wiped her mouth with a paper napkin. “More than good. I love mac and cheese. More than I used to, I’m told.”

  “You and Kyle could be related. If he had his way, it would be on the menu for every meal. That includes breakfast.”

  Summer polished off her portion with a little regret. “I don’t see a problem if it’s this good.” Suddenly found hunger had her reaching for a chicken thigh. She managed to finish it and the collard greens before pushing her plate to the side. “I think that’s the most I’ve eaten in forever. And I didn’t think I was hungry.” She patted her full stomach.

  “Jack’s will do that to you. Try the peach cobbler. It’s very good.”

  Her eyes widened as the tastes of peaches, cinnamon and sugar mingled together on her tongue. “Better than the mac and cheese.” She took a couple more bites before reluctantly pushing the rest away. “Any more and I might explode.”

  “Not a problem for me.” Keile licked her spoon and dropped it into her empty bowl.

  “You want the rest of this?”

  “Better not or I’ll be the one exploding.”

  “Can’t have that. Thanks for bringing me here and listening. I can’t begin to understand why you believe me, but I’m grateful.”

  “Well, a few years ago I admit I would have dismissed your vision as…okay, craziness. But how can I believe fate had a hand in my life and not believe you? It’s possible someone on the force would listen, believe you.”

  “Doubt it. And if one did, there’d be plenty of others making that circle for crazy gesture behind his back. You knew me before, so I’m thinking that you will give me the benefit of the doubt. From their perspective—I can’t remember important parts of my life, but I magically have information about a girl I don’t know who went missing ten years ago? No. No.” She shook her head. “I already feel like a freak. No way I need them piling it on.”

  “What if I broached the subject with a cop I know? Would you be willing to talk to her if she’s receptive? It wouldn’t have to be a formal interview.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe.” The pressure in her chest didn’t lessen until she reached ten times ten. “Would you be there?”

  “If that’s what you want.”

  What Summer wanted was for this to never have happened. She pressed her fingers against the first sign of throbbing in her temples. “Yeah. I do.”

  Keile dropped some ones on the table. “Then I’ll be there. You ready to head back?”

  “Tell me really—why do you believe me?” Summer asked as they climbed the short flight of stairs back up to the alley.

  “You were the first person who tried to be my friend. I wasn’t able to accept that back then, but it didn’t stop you from trying. You always asked me if I was okay, if I needed anything. Nobody else did. Now it seems like you’re the one who needs me to ask if you’re okay, if you need anything.”

  Summer blinked back tears. “You’re exactly right. Only I won’t be stupid like you and blow off the offer of friendship.”

  * * *

  Despite the threat of rain and the blustering March wind, Summer took the long route home from work, going there by way of the park. It might be Friday night, but she didn’t have any plans to rush home for. And with the dread of having to deal with the police firmly lodged in the back of her consciousness, she wanted, no, needed to gather more information. To have something tangible for them, something they could follow up on.

  As she expected, the playground was deserted. After propping her bike against a tree, she walked a wide circle around the swing set, searching for a place the abductor might have hidden to wait for a child. She figured he would have watched her for a time before approaching, making sure she was alone. To do that, he would have had to stay out of sight. A man loitering near a playground would have been noticed, remembered.

  She wondered if he came to the park often. The girl being alone had been a fluke. He couldn’t have predicted she would be there. And yet he’d had the puppy and a story all lined up. Which she thought meant he was a planner and that if he hadn’t found her girl he would have waited for a chance with another child. That meant no job or a job where he had pockets of free time. So maybe he did do heating and air type stuff.

  She closed her eyes, focused on what she remembered of him. There hadn’t been any signs of nervousness, no effort to hurry the move to the van. He’d let the girl set the pace, probably hoping she’d drop her guard. And it had worked. He’d practiced, or, worse, he had experience in ingratiating himself with little girls. If he’d been passing through town, he’d been passing through with the idea of snatching a girl.

  As the wind picked up she hugged herself and looked around, suddenly uneasy. Not that there was anything to be nervous about. He wouldn’t be here now, over ten years later. Still, the darkness was creeping in, giving the trees and bushes a sinister air. She walked toward her bike, then picked up the pace until she was running. She couldn’t help but look back to make sure she wasn’t being followed, then she was tumbling toward the ground, tripped up by a mountain of fur. Fighting back a scream, she scrambled to her feet, intent on getting away while she could.

  “Chazz! Chazz, come here, boy.”

  The sound of clapping broke through the haze of fear that had Summer’s heart hammering like the pistons of a steam locomotive. Feeling more than a little ridiculous for letting her imagination get the best of her, she identified the mountain as a dog. He nudged her with his big head, then licked her face with his enormous tongue.

  “Some serial killer you turned out to be.” She stroked his silky strands, waiting for someone to claim him.

  Huffing sounds preceded the arrival of Chazz’s owner. She was bundled in a thick coat. A scarf covered her hair and most of her face. “Chazz.” The word was full of exasperation. “Oh. Summer. Hey. Thanks for stopping him. I hate to think where he would have ended up.”

  “Renny?” Now she remembered the dog. He’d saved her from Renny’s accusatory questions the day before. “Uh, we sort of stopped each other.” She watched as Renny clipped a thick leash to his collar, then quickly looked away when Renny’s attention returned to her. “I, uh, was just, you know, leaving.” This woman had a way of making her feel stupid, something she definitely didn’t need help with.

  “Are you out here in this weather on your bike?”

  “It’s not so bad,” she said defensively. “I’ve got on layers.” She obliged Chazz with a stroke when he butted against her leg.

  “Sorry. I can’t believe I said that. I sounded like somebody’s mother. Which I guess I am now. Let me officially introduce you to Chazz Jamison, the newest addition to my family.”

  “He’s a sweetie pie. Is he part Saint Bernard?”

  “A good part of him appears to Leonberger, which accounts for his size.”

  “Never heard of them. Is that like a new breed?”

  “I hadn’t either until Jo, you remember her, right? Well, she convinced me to adopt him. Leonbergers have been around for a long time. The one drawback is he’ll be huge when he’s full grown. That and the hair. I’ll be passing out sweaters for Christmas.”

  “He’s still a sweetie. Has he tried to adopt any more smaller dogs?”

  Renny threw back her head and laughed. “Don’t remind me. I keep a close eye on him. Not all dog owners have a sense of humor. I was advised to get him a stuffed animal, which we’ll do when we go to the pet store tomorrow. Won’t we, boy?” She scratched behind his ears, sending him into a spasm of wiggles.

  Seeing the woman’s obvious affection for her pet, Summer thought maybe Renny was
n’t all bad. “How long have you had him?”

  “Since Sunday. We’ve taken to each rather well.”

  “I can tell. Congrats to both of you. I should go.”

  “Oh. Okay. Maybe I’ll see you around here again.” Renny pulled on Chazz’s leash as he tried to follow Summer.

  “Yeah.” She smiled as she slung her leg over the crossbar. That hadn’t been so bad. Maybe she could be around other people and not totally piss them off.

  Summer fought a headwind as she took the side streets back downtown to her condo. The closer she got to the bar and restaurant district, the more crowded the streets and sidewalks became. A pinch of loneliness prickled her skin as she watched the groups, chatting, laughing and having a good time. Fitting in—that’s what they’re doing, she thought wistfully.

  Making a left, she rode onto the sidewalk and came to stop in front of her building, a fifteen-story edifice of rose-colored brick. She didn’t think of it as home but more like a place to park herself while she figured out the next stage for her life. She was grateful to be here. As a non driver, she loved it for its access to nearby amenities. Had she been a normal single, she no doubt would have loved it for its trendy location too.

  “Hey, Summer. Let me get that for you.” Stu Kurtz, a buff six-four and two-fifty, opened the door. He was one of the few residents who she spoke with regularly. Or rather, who always spoke to her.

  “Thanks. You just getting in from work?” Stu was a personal trainer at a gym catering to women. According to him, they loved him as much as he loved them. Summer thought they couldn’t possibly love him as much as he loved himself.

  He nodded. “When am I going to have a chance to put some bulk on your bones?”

  “I’m still thinking about it” was her pat response to his pat question.

  “See that you do,” he said and used his key card to access the door leading to the elevator and stairs. “Later.” He gave her a nod and went bounding up the stairs.

  Summer wheeled her bike to the bank of four elevators. She wasn’t up to carrying her bike up fifteen flights of stairs and the garage didn’t have a bike rack. As she was getting on the elevator, another resident rushed on behind her. She tensed, then forced herself to relax and return her casual nod of greeting. The elevators were new. Everything would be fine. She quickly squashed the thought that the elevators at work were new as well.

  As the past two sleepless nights caught up with her, she halfway listened to the other woman’s phone conversation. She was amused and slightly horrified at the information being shared with her. The type of underwear the attractive twenty-something was going to change into for bar hopping was really not something she wanted to know. But now that it was in her head, she’d remember it every time she saw the other woman.

  Still, it was better than head hopping, she decided. So much better than reliving some dark terror. Could her elevator jinx be turning? She smiled as the woman got off on ten. The day was going to end on an upswing.

  Her mood faltered when she checked her cell for messages. Keile hadn’t contacted a cop, but she had gone to a friend who used to be a cop. She wanted Summer to come for dinner tomorrow and tell her story.

  “So soon,” she muttered as she erased the message. She’d figured on having a couple of weeks to get used to the idea of having to discuss her new abilities with anyone other than Keile, whom she knew she could trust. She wished again that Dr. Veraat was available for a session. Dr. Veraat knew how to help her when she couldn’t help herself. No way that would happen with the replacement shrink.

  She thought briefly about calling her mother, then sighed. Her mother had enough worries without adding this. She’d just have to suck it up and trust that Keile’s faith in her friend was justified. If it helped solve a case, some parents might get some closure. That would be worth any price of humiliation.

  Chapter Ten

  Surprisingly Summer awoke the next morning feeling refreshed. For the first time in a week there was no leftover unease, no remnants of bad dreams. As she stretched in preparation for her morning workout, hunger reared its ugly head and her stomach reminded her that she’d skipped dinner the night before. Unbidden, the desire for a doughnut popped into her head. She never did get to eat the one she’d ordered last week. If she got it to go, she wouldn’t have to worry about someone dumping their own order on it.

  Visions of croissants and doughnuts got her through her treadmill workout, ten more minutes of stretching and a relaxing shower, then out the door and down the street through the weekend crowd. The line at the bakery was even longer than it had been the week before. Summer was glad she’d grabbed a book. The lighthearted quirky tale of five lesbians seeking love kept her entertained while she waited her turn. She was giggling over the antics of a miniature German shepherd when someone tapped her shoulder. She looked up to see Renny smiling at her. “Oh. Hey.”

  “Good choice,” Renny said, pointing at the book.

  “My mom claims she picked it because of the cover.” The cover consisted of a large martini.

  “She wants you to drink?”

  Summer’s loud laughter turned some heads. “I think she picked it because it had the word ‘date’ on the cover.”

  “She wants you to date?”

  She managed to shrug as her cheeks grew warm. Why hadn’t she kept her mouth shut? “It’s complicated.”

  “No. It’s cool she cares. Does she pick out the women? I assume it would be women.”

  “Just books.”

  “So, was that no to the women or no to dates?”

  Summer’s insides fluttered at the gentle teasing in Renny’s voice. It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation. “Books only. That is no women, so far.” But now that Renny mentioned it, she wouldn’t put arranging dates for her past Sandra Baxby.

  “Any chance you’d like to share a table? I don’t mind eating alone, but it’s more fun with company.”

  “Uh…yeah, sure,” she said slowly. “You, uh, you come here often?”

  “More than I like.” Renny sighed. “I only get to order food once a month. Other times I come, take a deep sniff, order a skinny latte and run out. And even that adds pounds. What about you?”

  “My second try. The first didn’t go so well. Someone accidentally dumped their food on me.”

  “You’re brave to come back.”

  “It’s the doughnuts,” Summer said before giving her order. “I’ll grab us a table, if that’s okay.” She found one where she could have her back to the wall. No surprise attack for her today.

  “I gotta wonder why someone who likes doughnuts and who does not have to worry about her weight doesn’t order them,” Renny said, pulling out the chair opposite Summer.

  “Oh. Uh, yeah.” Summer checked her number. “I just thought it would be rude to, you know, eat one in front of you.”

  “I appreciate the sentiment, but how can I enjoy them vicariously if you don’t order any?”

  “Next time?”

  “At least two. And one has to have chocolate icing. Maybe cream filling.”

  Summer couldn’t help but laugh. “Should I be writing this down?”

  “Don’t worry, I won’t let you forget. Me and doughnuts are like that.” She held up two fingers squeezed close together.

  “Now I feel guilty.”

  “Then my mission is accomplished. But seriously, have I made up for being a total diva about my mother and Oprah?”

  Summer nodded. “I looked you up on the web so if you want to quiz me, I’m ready. Wait. I should have said ‘bring it.’”

  “Oh, yeah.” Renny rubbed her hands together. “Book three, page twenty, the MC—”

  “What?”

  “Gotcha.” Renny’s shoulders shook with laughter. “Okay, easy question. Is your mother the Oprah fan?”

  Summer snorted. “My mother? No way. She didn’t buy the book when it first came out just because of Oprah’s endorsement. My mother considers herself one of the last of the h
oldout hippies. In a seriously rich kind of way,” she added with a fond smile. “For her that means that not doing what Oprah says is ‘sticking it to the man.’ Uh, I hope that didn’t offend you?”

  Renny shook her head. “I’d love to meet your mother. Do I dare ask why she finally bought it, then?”

  “Umm, well…” A spot over Renny’s shoulder was easier to look at. “They’re slow today.”

  “I know a stall when I hear one.” Renny tapped Summer’s hand. “Let me guess. She bought it with the cover torn off?”

  “No. No. The sale table,” she admitted reluctantly. “She liked the cover. Started flipping through the pages and before she knew it had read the first three chapters. On the better side, she picked up your second one too. For full price. And bought the third and fourth when they came out.”

  “That makes up for the sales table. Seriously, I’m thrilled she got hooked in by the cover. My publisher and I went back and forth, me advocating for the simple. Rowboat, lake, shoe said it all for me.”

  “I have to admit covers aren’t the draw for me. I’m more into scanning the blurb, then reading the first few pages. If I’m not caught by the author’s writing style by then, I won’t get caught.” Summer lifted her head and listened. “Finally. That’s my number. Be right back.” Renny’s number was called while she was picking up her order, so she grabbed that one as well.

  “They apologized for the delay,” Summer said, placing a basket in front of Renny. “They offered free doughnuts, but I thought you might kill me if I brought one back for you.”

  “Probably, but I would regret it after the fact. Killing you that is, not eating the doughnut.”

  “That’s all I can ask for. I did accept a coupon for our next visit.” Pleased with her own quick comeback, Summer picked up her fork and speared a potato wedge. She was holding her own. Even Dr. Veraat couldn’t ask for more.

  As they ate, they talked more about books and Renny’s life as a child star. Summer had managed to catch Renny’s show on one of the sleepless nights. She understood why Ree had been popular.