Megan squealed and hugged her hard.
Chapter 3
His palm resting on the hand brake, Walker paused to gather his thoughts as he looked out at the building through the tinted window.
He wasnt certain exactly what hed been expecting. He supposed that in his mind, hed thought any place that numbered a clairvoyant among its active employees would look like something out of a second-rate, melodramatic movie, maybe even one of those simpleminded screamers that dealt with the supernatural. The entrance to the building would come with a fog machine billowing out dry ice to create the proper surreal atmosphere.
That ChildFinders, Inc. had an address that put it squarely in the heart of one of Bedfords most upscale business plazas was almost as encouraging as the verbal voucher Jason had given him over the phone regarding the agencys sterling reputation.
A place that dedicated itself to finding missing childrenand continually succeeding at it, if he was to believe the publicitycouldnt be all bad, he told himself.
Braced for anything, Walker got out of his car and entered the building.
ChildFinderss offices took up the entire top floor of the five-story building. The rent on that had to be a pretty penny, Walker mused, getting into the elevator whose outer wall was made of Plexiglas. It allowed him a view of the parking lot hed just left as he got in.
If the rent was high, that meant that altruistic publicity notwithstanding, ChildFinders had to charge astronomical rates to stay ahead of the game, he decided, pressing for the fifth floor.
Not that money was a problem for him. It hadnt been for almost ten years now. It was everything else that had become a problem, Walker thought darkly, watching the cars below become progressively smaller as he drew closer to the fifth floor.
When the elevator came to a smooth halt, Walker found himself stepping out into a tastefully decorated reception area. Looking around, he half expected the walls to be decorated with prominent citizens and celebrities the agency had helped, a visual testimonial to its incredible success rate.
Again, he was wrong.
Instead of photographs of grateful parents, there was a gallery of childrens photographs. Children, he assumed, that the different operatives had recovered and reunited with their families. Beyond that were several large, colorful pastels scattered about in understated frames. The two blended in to create an atmosphere that was at once soothing and brightly encouraging.
It was a place meant to put a person at their ease, not impress them.
Good business sense, he noted absently. Whoever had done this knew what they
were doing.
He looked around for someone to talk to.
The young woman behind the reception desk at the entrance to the offices hardly looked old enough to be out of high school without a written excuse note from her mother. He vaguely wondered if she was one of the agencys success stories.
Approaching the desk, Walker cleared his throat. He was nervous, he realized. Was he was making some sort of ridiculous mistake in coming here?
Maybe yes, but Jason was right. If he didnt come here, if he didnt follow up this absurdfor lack of a better wordlead, he would always wonder if hed turned his back on the only and last chance he would ever have of finding Bonnie. As far-fetched as this seemed, he couldnt ignore it.
Walker stopped short of the desk. Somewhere during the ride here from his corporate offices at the other end of Bedford, he realized, he had given himself permission to think of his daughter as being among the living again.
The thought startled him.
He feared that he would live to regret this. But his heart wanted so badly to believe that it was really truethat Bonnie was alive somewhere and that he would find her if only he tried hard enough.
As if he hadnt tried hard before, doing everything in his power, hiring everyone he could
And it had all come to nothing.
The girl at the reception desk flashed a thousand-watt smile. May I help you?
Is Ms. His mind suddenly blank, Walker had to pause and look at the card hed shoved into his jacket pocket just before hed gotten out of the Jaguar. Funny, he was usually so good with names. Why did hers keep eluding him? Probably had to do with the fact that he was so skeptical. Is Ms. Eldridge in?
She answered his question with a question. Do you have an appointment?
No, I dont. I
Fear leaped in from nowhere. Fear of going on the same gut-wrenching roller-coaster ride hed been on before to the same spirit-destroying destination. Fear of subjecting himself to all the same emotions, to the same heartache.
He just couldnt do it to himself again. Coming here was a mistake.
Never mind, Ill come back when I have an appointment. Turning abruptly on his heel, Walker started for the elevator.
You could make one now.
Her words reached him just as he was about to press for the elevator.
It was the same low, melodious voice hed heard coming from the other side of his front door two days ago. The clairvoyant. He hadnt seen her come out.