She shook her head. “No, just one of those déjà vu moments. It’s nice to meet you. I appreciate you taking the time to come.”
“It’s not a problem. Gabe gave me the envelope and its contents you received yesterday. I’m having a friend in the lab run it through some tests, but I’m not overly hopeful we’ll find anything. Might I ask you some questions?”
“Sure? Won’t you have a seat? Can I get either of you coffee or tea?”
“Coffee black would be good for both of us,” the DSI said.
Of course it would. That’s how Holmes took it in the novels. She’d have to remember to check if he had been replaced as well.
“Do you have any enemies?” Holmes asked.
“I don’t know I’d say enemies. My ex-fiancé and soon-to-be ex-publisher aren’t overly fond of me, and there are a number of authors who feel I’ve come too far too fast and haven’t paid sufficient dues, but I can’t see any of them doing anything like this,” she said in all candor.
“I took the liberty of speaking with the Sheriff’s Department back where you live, and they are convinced someone is trying to spook you and perhaps has some serious intent. When they heard about the latest incident, they were quite concerned, as am I.”
“That’s what Gabe thought… if someone was willing to follow me across an ocean, they weren’t just doing this for a laugh.”
Holmes nodded. “The problem is officially, even if I knew who it was, there’s little I could do.” Holmes paused and looked at Gabe, who shook his head. “Gabe says I’m wrong and talking to you, I think he’s probably right, but I feel I have to ask; this isn’t a publicity stunt, is it?”
Sage sat back, shocked and angry, then slowly stood.
“No, DSI Holmes, it isn’t a stunt…”
“Calm down, Sage. Michael had to ask,” Gabe said.
“No.” Sage shook her head. “I’m not going to calm down. Some wacko is sending me weird and upsetting mail, and I get accused of doing this for fun? Thanks for your help, DSI Holmes. You’ve fulfilled your obligation to your friend, but you can leave now. I won’t trouble you again.”
“Sage…” Gabe started.
“Do you think I’m doing this?” Sage asked him.
“No, and neither does Michael, do you?”
“No, I don’t, and unless you’re an excellent actress, your response to the question settled any doubts I might have had. Please sit down and understand any questions I ask you are ones I’ll need to answer for my superiors at the Yard. I think you have a stalker who is escalating. The way the laws are written, there isn’t a lot we can do about it… officially, but I can do some nosing around unofficially. I don’t think it would be a bad idea for you to hire a security detail.”
“I can step up security for you here at the hotel, and I don’t mind driving you back and forth to the Four Seasons and speaking to their security people, but I don’t know that it’s safe for you to wander around London on your own.”
“I won’t be made a prisoner or recluse by this jerk. I understand what you’re saying because it’s basically the same thing I was told in the States. There’s little anyone can do without this asshole physically harming me, but he doesn’t get to make me his victim. I’d appreciate any help either of you can give me, but I’m not going to hole up in my room in fear,” Sage said with some finality. “Now, I need to get to the event.”
Damn, she was stubborn. Holmes and Felix had managed to escape. They’d better find a way to help her and keep her safe. All Hallows Eve was just a few days away. The veil between the two planes of existence would be at its thinnest. If he was going to find a way to break free, it had to be then.
Sage approached the laptop and flipped through two different manuscripts. Smart girl. The DSI in her books was no longer named Holmes and bore little resemblance to her description of him. The expression on her face registered as grim resolution. It was easy to see she knew there was something weird going on. She didn’t know what it was yet, but she was determined to find out what it was.
She escorted Holmes and the hotel’s head of security to the door—or at least that’s what it sounded like. He couldn’t see the whole room, but he could hear everything that went on.
He focused on gathering strength. If he was going to pierce the veil once and for all, it needed to be tomorrow night—with someone stalking Sage, it had become imperative.
“He’s only trying to help,” Gabe said to her once they were in the SUV.
“Really? Hot news flash… accusing me of making this up is not helpful.”
“Sage, look at it from his point of view. He doesn’t know you. You’re an author, and a story like this could bring you a lot of publicity, which would boost your sales.”
“I wouldn’t do that,” she hissed.
“I believe you, but you have to admit, it’s been done before. Unofficially, Michael can do some things, but if he really starts to get into it, his superiors are going to want to know he considered all the angles and asked you.”
“I suppose so,” Sage sighed. “This trip has turned
