She loosened one end of the shirt and attached it higher, inched up and repeated the process on the other side, ignoring the painful pricks to her palm as the steel splinters dug into her skin. If only he’d go back into the penthouse again for a while. It turned silent. Not hearing any sounds from Tyler made her wonder what he was planning. Though his voice had sent chills racing down her spine, at least then he’d telegraphed his intentions. Now she had no idea what he was up to. Should she chance trying to get to the ladder or stay put?
A creaking sound signaled he was back. The cable beside her moved slightly. She flattened herself against the guide rail, holding as tight as she could to the slippery metal.
“Where are you, mother,” Tyler asked in a bewildered, little boy’s voice.
She didn’t know which was more terrifying: his regressive voice or his hard cold adult one.
“Why are you hiding from me?”
His mind seemed to seesaw, blocking out things he couldn’t handle. Now he was looking for his apparently dead mother, whom he thought was Julie.
She was tempted to answer him, but then remembered his last reaction. She had enough to handle without witnessing a repeat of his fury.
“You can’t fool me. I know you’re there. If you come out now, I promise to be good and not hurt you.”
His tone was wheedling, almost sincere. It almost made her believe him.
“Be that way. Just for that, I’m coming down to get you. Then we’ll go to the garage. I’ll hang you in there again, just like I did before, right where you killed Dad.”
A shadow blocked the dim light above. Tyler was making good on his promise. The guide rail Julie leaned on shook, as he shimmied down. If she didn’t move, his weight would topple her.
Julie reached out for the cable beside her, then swung over, grasping it tightly with her arms and knees. Tyler suddenly appeared beside her on the guide rail. He reached over and grabbed her shoulder, pinching it. She shook him away, almost slipping off the cable.
“There you are. Why don’t you come closer? Aren’t I good enough for you anymore?”
Tyler’s putrid breath invaded her space. In the darkness, the corneas of his eyes and his ivory shirt were all she could make out of him. He looked like a specter of death evolved from every elevator nightmare she’d ever had, ready to fling her into eternity.
It mustn’t end like this. She had too much to live for. She must get to Dade. She must help him.
That seemed an impossible dream as she perched on the cable awaiting Tyler’s next move. She must stay put, keep vigilant and watch for an opportunity to escape.
“Answer me. Don’t you love me anymore?”
“Of course I do,” she said in her most reassuring voice. “I always have.”
“Then why do you see other men when you can have me? I don’t understand.”
His mother must have been a prostitute, not only using her son as a sex toy, but also dispensing sexual favors on members of her own age group. Julie ached for the little boy who’d tried to make sense of a mother whose only interest was gratification. The trick now would be to make him feel better and deflect his wrath.
“It’s always been you. They never meant anything to me,” she reassured him.
“You’re a liar.” His yell blasted her ear drums, causing her to almost loosen her grip. Its painful cry echoed down the shaft and back up to her.
“No, I’m not lying. I love you. I always have.”
“Momma, momma, I love you, too.”
Tyler’s sobs were heartrending, cutting to her soul. Though in this situation, emotions were dangerous. Her eyes welled up.
“Robbie, let’s go back inside. Everything will be all right,” she said, instinctively reaching out to touch his hair and soothe him.
“No. It’s too late for that. Nothing is right. Dad’s dead. You’re dead. What are you doing here?”
She couldn’t handle his mood swings. Just when Tyler seemed malleable, he swung back in the opposite direction. Now what should she do? She’d have to try more psychology. “I’m here because you let me be. You’ve never gotten over what you did. You’ll never feel at peace until you make it up to me.”
“No, you’re wrong. I hate you,” he said in a hard voice, reaching out and yanking Julie’s left shoulder off the cable, leaving her dangling by her right hand. She was slipping. She had to do something. She reached out for balance, and almost recoiled at the feel of his sweaty arm.
“Get away, you slut.” He swatted at her face. She ducked, dodged the blow and slipped. By some miracle she caught hold of the cable before falling further.
“You don’t learn, do you?” His voice rose, as he reached again to strike her.
Tyler missed. This time he lost his balance, tried to right himself, but his shoes slipped on the guide rail.
“You bitch. You’re coming with me,” he yelled, clutching for her, knocking Julie off her precarious perch.
Chapter Thirty-Four
She was free-falling, reaching frantically for the cable. It slid through her fingers burning her skin, slowing her speed, but not preventing her descent.
Tyler was first, toppling below her onto the top of the cab with its open hatch and metal sides. His rage-filled bellow turned into a squeal of pain. Julie catapulted after him, her stomach doing somersaults as if she were on a roller coaster. After what seemed an eternity, she landed stomach first on Tyler, with the breath knocked out of her.
He’d gotten his wish. Panting for air, with every muscle screaming, Julie lay on top of him. It wouldn’t take much effort for him to have her. In her present state, out of breath and aching in every bone, it would be next to impossible to resist,
Trying desperately to fill her lungs, she heaved in gulps of air. Tyler, who’d fallen just as far, didn’t seem to have any such problem. He lay silent and still, as if not breathing at all. His foul breath, which moments before had blown into her face, was now surprisingly absent.
Maybe he wasn’t breathing. Impossible. He couldn’t be dead, could he? How could she be sure? If he was, that meant she was lying on top of a dead man.
It was silly to care anything about Tyler after all he’d done to her, but instinctively Julie placed her fingers on his neck to feel for a pulse. She found none. Her hand came back wet and slimy. My God, she was lying on top of a dead man. Repugnance warred with relief. It was ironic that the once abused boy who’d hungered for his mother’s love had died in the impossible process of trying to reconcile her cavalier treatment of him. A victim of genetics and behavior, Tyler hadn’t stood a chance.
What about Dade? Did he still have one? She had to get to him and find out. Tyler’s body blocked the escape hatch, but even so the elevator was useless. The motor controls from the penthouse were still set in the braking position where they’d need to be released. Instead of the luxury of riding the elevator, she must continue her journey up the guide rail, then over to the ladder on the wall, until she reached a door from which she could exit. Then she could summon help. The shirt, her safety net, was under Tyler. He was too heavy to lift. That meant going without it. One less prop at hand when she needed as many as she could get. She’d manage. Adrenaline made her heart pump fast. Ignoring the searing pain in her palms, and the throbbing sensations from her knee and hip, she climbed back onto the guide rail and began the slow process of inching her way up.
The journey took forever, though if she were walking the same distance on the sidewalk it would have taken a few minutes.
No landings with doors presented themselves as she climbed. The dim light became brighter. Finally, her groping fingers felt the metal indentations of the open penthouse doors. Almost weak with relief, she lost her balance and had to quickly right herself.
Taking a deep breath, she hoisted herself up again, then fell onto the carpet in Tyler’s lobby. She’d done it. She’d faced her demon and survived, but she had no time to waste on congratulations.
She stumbled upright,
then rushed to the master controls alongside the elevator shaft, located the call button and quickly pressed it. No one answered like before. Of course, they wouldn’t. Everyone believed Tyler’s story about the malfunction. She needed to use a land line.
She dashed into the foyer, searching for a phone and found one on an antique table. She dialed nine-one-one. A female voice answered and Julie gave the address, telling her someone in the private garage on the south side of the building was trapped with the motor running. Also, another person had had an accident in the private elevator shaft to the penthouse and may have died.
That done, she rushed out into the hallway, located the emergency stairwell and raced down as fast as she could, testing the doors on each landing along the way, hoping one of them would give.
Ten floors below, on the sixtieth floor, when she turned the knob, the door swung open. She darted around the corner to the main elevator bank and jabbed the button. Within minutes, an elevator appeared.
In her downward descent, building occupants stepped on and off at various floors, casting curious glances in her direction. Considering how disheveled she looked, with her face and hair dirty and scratched, her suit torn and her feet shoeless, she didn’t blame them.
They were probably wondering how a bum like her could have gained entry to their exclusive residence. Let them think what they wished. Such superficialities didn’t matter. What counted was Dade.
God, please let him be all right, she prayed silently.
Just as she made it to the main floor, she heard sirens in the distance. Help might be on its way, but she couldn’t wait. It could already be too late.
She hobbled to the security guard. Gulping out the words, she said, “Someone’s passed out in Tyler Jensen’s garage. Also, Tyler Jensen’s fallen into his elevator shaft and landed on the top of his elevator. It’s stalled around the seventieth floor. I called for help.” “Are you serious?”
“I wouldn’t lie about something like that. Please, where’s the stairs to Tyler Jensen’s garage? Someone might be down there in serious trouble.”
“You can’t go there without permission.”
“I’ve got to. It’s a matter of life and death.”
He didn’t look totally convinced, but gave in and pointed to a recessed door. “Okay. Over there, Miss.”
* * *
Julie coughed as she stepped into Tyler’s garage. The air was thick with fumes. The roar of a motor hurt her ears. The source was the BMW in the middle of the garage.
She ran to it and peered inside. At sight of Dade’s figure slumped over the steering wheel, her heart squeezed. He looked so still and white. The windows were closed. She tried to open the doors, but they were locked. How could she get him out? Somehow she had to get fresh air in to him.
She ran to the front of the garage and pressed the entry button. The door opened, letting in a burst of cold air.
Sirens blared as a squad car and ambulance pulled up. Thank God, reinforcements had arrived. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be too late.
Julie apprized the officers of the situation, then stood to the side, shaking, while one of them applied a Slim Jim to the driver’s side door of Dade’s car. It slowly opened, letting out a strong smell of alcohol in the process.
Strange. Dade wouldn’t drink at this time of day. In fact, because of his father, he rarely drank at all.
Shaking his head, the medical technician felt for Dade’s pulse. With a grim look, he turned to Julie.
“Is he?” With fingers dug into her palm, she awaited the verdict.
Chapter Thirty-Five
It was over. Julie reached down to pick up a stray paper clip from the floor before taking one last look at her office. The room was strangely still. Normally, on a Monday morning, it was teaming with life, yet today it lay dormant.
Her dear office held so many memories, happy and sad. It was almost like a person. She hated to pass it over to Tony Romero, Dade’s new partner. She must if she were to follow her dream.
So much had happened here. Through it all, Dade had been with her every step of the way. She’d done her best to reciprocate, which she hoped he’d realized.
Triumphs and disappointments, cases won and lost, late hours together, working side-by-side to make a name for themselves, those kind of memories could never be replicated. She’d always have them to fall back on. With a sigh, she reached for the light switch.
A warm hand crossed over hers. “Are you absolutely sure you want to go through with this,” a familiar voice asked.
“Yes. It hurts, but I’ve got to.” She blinked back sudden tears.
Dade gave her a look of sympathy. He understood what this meant to her. “Well, then if you insist.” He slid his arm around her waist. It felt so right, standing here beside Dade, as she closed out another chapter of her life. Throughout most of her important decisions, he’d been there alongside her, guiding her along, yet leaving room for her to grow, making sure she didn’t settle for anything less than she deserved. He, as well as Dad, had given her the courage to follow her dream.
Thank God, Dade had pulled through Tyler’s murder attempt four months ago. A bit more of the laced coffee, maybe half an hour more in the locked car, and he may not have been standing with her now. She shuddered at the thought, before pushing it from her mind. The important thing was he had survived. He was alive and with her now. What tomorrow would bring she had no idea.
After today, her status would change. She’d journey alone into uncharted territory, without Dade to lean on. The idea frightened and excited her. Would reality live up to her long held dream?
And what of the other dream? The one she’d kept buried in her heart? Did it stand a chance?
“Ready to leave,” Dade asked gently.
Julie nodded, taking one last look at her cherished office - - the desk that would pass on to the new partner, the barren walls that were stripped of her favorite pictures, the windows she’d often looked out from.
Somehow in the mad shuffle her wooden paperclip holder with her friends, the loons, had disappeared. Its loss seemed a symbol of everything she was giving up. Eyes bright with tears, she turned away, only to be stopped by Dade’s hand on her wrist.
“Did you find your paper clip holder?”
“No, I don’t know where it went. I hope it turns up somewhere.”
“Did you check all of your desk drawers?”
“I emptied them yesterday.”
He switched the light back on. “Look again, just in case.”
She knew it was useless. Partially to appease Dade and also because she hated to leave, she walked back with him to her desk. One last time she’d open her desk drawer. She couldn’t help feeling sad at the thought.
She slid it open. “It can’t be in here.”
“Sure about that?”
Just to make certain, she glanced down into the drawer, then did a double take. He was right. There it was, nestled safely inside. The small box was open as if to allow her to remove a paperclip, but that wasn’t what sparkled back at her. Her heart pounded madly.
With shaky fingers she reached down inside the drawer. Dade’s hand closed over hers. His look was tender and solemn.
“Can I do that for you?”
Biting her lip over a quavering smile, Julie numbly nodded.
He carefully placed the paperclip holder on top of her desk. Just as carefully, he removed the ring. He bent down on one knee and looked up at her. “I can’t let you leave me. I love you, Julie. I always have, but I was too busy making money to realize it. Almost losing you to Jensen showed me what a fool I was for getting my priorities wrong. If you won’t be my law partner, will you consider being my life partner? I know it’s a more demanding job, but I promise to let you write whenever you feel like it.”
Her mind whirled as she gazed down at him. This couldn’t be happening, but it was.
The dam broke. Laughing and crying at the same time, she managed to get out, “Yes, yes, I�
��d be glad to accept your offer, Dade. I love you, too.”
She couldn’t believe it. The best of her dreams had come true. Dade loved her.
He slipped the diamond ring onto her trembling finger, gathered her gently into his arms and kissed her.
When she could breathe again, she said, “I won’t spend every minute writing.”
“I was counting on you to say that.”
* * *
As congratulations and goodbyes echoed in her ears, Julie passed through the office’s reception area with Dade.
“Ready,” he asked.
She nodded, straightened her shoulders, and stepped out into the hallway. She’d done it. She was free, but not of everything that mattered. She still had Dade, the most important part of the partnership. The realization made her heart glow.
Inside the elevator, he gave her a searching look. “Where should we live? You hate elevators, so if you want, I could move in with you, or we could pick out a house somewhere.”
“I’ve got a better idea. We can stay at your place during the week and mine on weekends.”
“That would mean a lot of elevator riding. Sure you’re up to it?”
“It’s not a problem. I know my way around elevators now. They don’t bother me like they used to.”
“What you did took guts.”
“It wasn’t a pleasant experience, but I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“I wasn’t anywhere near.”
“True, but you were the one that kept me going. I had to make sure you were all right. I’m kind of used to having you around, you know.”
“That makes two of us,” he said, crushing her in his arms.
Killer Career Page 24
