Joanne shrugged. “Well, I’ve worked as his personal assistant for six months, and I’ve never heard of you. All I know is I’m getting tired of this. All these so-called fans showing up at all hours, half the time in weird costumes. At least you’re dressed normal. Last month, there was some guy who’d had plastic surgery on his ears to make him look more like this elf named Car Umlaut or something.”

“Car Umass,” Bridget corrected. He’d played a key role in both Darkest Heart and Unicorn Wars.

“Whatever.” Joanne waved a hand. “I’ve never read any of the books. I have better things to do with my life.”

As Officer Albright nodded in agreement, Ajay said mildly, “It seems like Haldon makes a good living at it.”

“Good enough he can fly off to Flanders and look at castles,” Joanne said. “Which is where he is right now.”

“Nice work if you can get it,” Officer Albright said. He and Officer Rubio exchanged a look. “So tell me the truth, you two. Were you just trying to get a look at your favorite author’s home?”

Before Bridget could say anything, Ajay rushed in. “I’m sorry, officers. You’re right. We shouldn’t have done it. And I apologize that we did.”

Realizing he was attempting to extricate them, Bridget closed her mouth.

Officer Rubio looked at Joanne. “I’ve got their names and addresses in case you discover any damage after you get inside. But if you don’t, do you still want to press charges?”

“I think they’ve learned their lesson.” Joanne gave them a sour smile. “But if they show up here again, all that changes.”

AJAY

A Real Friend

The car was silent as they drove away from Bob’s house. Ajay was half turned away from Bridget, looking out the passenger side window. He didn’t want to, but he was busy recalculating. Trying to think with his head and not his heart, the way Aprita had said.

Finally, Bridget broke the silence. “I still think something’s wrong.” Her voice simmered with frustration.

Ajay sighed. “If there is, I don’t see what you can do about it. I mean, you already emailed him, and he hasn’t answered. If there really is something wrong with his health, hopefully someone in Flanders can help him.”

“Flanders!” Bridget slapped the steering wheel. “You didn’t really believe that Joanne person, did you?”

Instead of answering, Ajay reluctantly gave voice to one of the thoughts crowding his head. “Joanne didn’t even know about you.”

Bridget huffed. “Well, I didn’t know about her, so we’re even. Besides, why should Bob tell me about her or vice versa? We represent completely different aspects of his life.”