Unfinished
Business Chapter
Twenty-two Jeff
Sommers shot a brief appraising look at the tall,
dark-haired man who opened the door before introducing
himself. Out of habit, he tried to rid himself of
preconceived ideas when meeting a person. But he couldn't
help the opinions that he had formed when talking to his
daughter about Samuel Wright. Robyn's opinions had always
affected his perceptions. "It's
good to meet you." Sam responded to his introduction
with a handshake, and a gestured invitation to enter his
home. "Robyn should be back any minute now. She took
Beth, my daughter, to school. She thought that I should
be the one here if you arrived before she got back."
Jeff
offered a small smile in acknowledgement of the statement
and preceded the taller man inside. Sam's sleeves were
rolled up, and judging from the water in the sink in the
kitchen to the left and the towel that appeared to have
been tossed on the table, he had been in the process of
clearing up the kitchen. "Would
you like a cup of coffee while we wait?" Sam asked
after having pushed the door closed and locking it.
"Or did you want to go ahead and get started?" "How
about both?" Jeff suggested "Okay.
Sounds good. How do you like your coffee?" "Black."
Jeff followed him into the kitchen, removing his suit
jacket as he went. Despite the fact that the kitchen was
warn, it was still a calculated maneuver to make himself
appear on more relaxed, less formal terms. It was a move
designed to put Sam at ease. He smiled at the other man
as he continued, "Robyn filled me in on a few
things, but I'd really like to hear them from you." "Oh,
she must have told you last night." Sam glanced back
at him, pausing briefly in his task of filling two mugs. Had Jeff
not been so well trained in not revealing his reactions,
his brows might have been raised slightly at the comment.
As it was, his lack of reaction in and of itself would
have raised flags with Robyn. Apparently Sam felt as if
Robyn would have had no other opportunity to speak with
him. Curious. "Yes,
she did," he replied in response to Sam's statement.
"Robyn is a very good listener. I'd have to say she
takes that after her mother." Sam had
grabbed up the two mugs and was moving toward the table
as Jeff spoke. An expression flickered quickly over his
face and then was gone. "She's a very caring
person," he said softly almost to himself. He then
cleared his throat and changed the subject. "How
long have you been doing this kind of thing?" He
settled himself in the other chair and assumed an air
that Jeff was certain he used with business associates. Jeff took a
sip of the hot liquid before him and played along.
"Security in general? For nearly thirty years.
Running my own firm, about eighteen. I would be happy to
furnish references if you'd like." Sam shook
his head, and Jeff noticed an increasing edge of
discomfort. "That won't be necessary. It just seems
like an odd profession to just fall into." "I
assure you that it didn’t happen that way. Once I
found myself attempting to raise a daughter alone, I took
very deliberate steps to provide for her future. You see,
before I formed Personal Security Services, my end of the
business was much more dangerous." "Dangerous?
Dangerous how?" "Higher
profile." Sam nodded,
though Jeff was sure he really didn't understand. Unless
he had been a part of the business, he never would. "How
long ago did you lose your wife?" Sam asked. "Robyn
was nine." "I
understand how difficult that can be." "I'm
sure you do." Jeff looked back at him, taking his
measure. He thought he saw something of himself in him. "So .
. . uh . . . where would you like to start?" Jeff very
smoothly switched gears. "At the beginning. Where
you first had any hint at all that there might be a
problem." Sam ran a
hand through his hair and looked off into the distance.
He obviously knew where to start, but Jeff figured that
he was fighting with himself over whether it was truly
relevant. "Even
if it doesn't seem important, it's better to include
it," he prompted. An
unexpected smile spread across Sam's face. "Robyn
was right about you. You are like Professor X." Jeff was
momentarily taken aback; he hadn't expected that comment
at all. Then his mind made the connection. He couldn't
help smiling in return. "So my daughter has been
comparing me to a comic book hero? That's good to
know." Sam looked
a little embarrassed. "Well, if it's any
consolation, she mentioned that Jean Grey was her
favorite X-man. If I remember correctly, Jean and the
professor worked closely together and made a great team.
I'm sure it was meant as a compliment." "I'll
take it that way," Jeff assured him. "My
daughter is pretty good judge of character." "Yeah"
"Shall
we get back to it, then?" Jeff reminded Sam of their
previous discussion. "Right.
Okay, the first hint that there was a problem was the
night after I'd signed a contract with Neilson
Sauderbrandt. When I returned to my office that night, I
was attacked." "Was
anything taken?" "Not
that I could tell --" The sound of a key in the lock
of the front door interrupted Sam's statement.
"That'll be Robyn." He half rose from the
chair, but settled back down when the sound of the
opening door reached them. Jeff
didn’t miss the way that both Robyn and Sam smiled
at one another with their eyes, as if they had a secret.
He filed that observation away for later exploration as
he bid his daughter good morning. "Would
you like a coffee?" Sam asked her, starting up from
his chair again. "No,
sit down. I'll get it." She waved him back to his
seat and moved past him toward the coffee maker. Sam
followed her motions. Jeff thought it was unconscious.
Just like that secret smile and the low-level hum that
seemed to exist between the two of them. This, Jeff
decided, was something new. Something about Robyn had
changed since he'd had dinner with her at the beginning
of the week. Something significant. |