Page 18 of SapphicLover69
“Yes, that’s right,” I answered. “Of course, this person was harassing me for months online before that. She just didn’t have my phone number; I never give it out to people. So, I don’t know how she got it.”
“You’d be surprised how easy it is to obtain a cellphone number,” he replied as he jotted down a note. “I need the phone so we can trace the messages back to their source.”
“I blocked the sender,” I said as I handed him my phone.
“That doesn’t matter. And do you have your computer with you?”
“Yes, but—” Surely, he didn’t want it too.
“I’ll need to take them back to the lab. Our tech guy can quickly discover where the threatening texts are coming from and track down the user going by SapphicLover69.”
My eyes widened, and my fingers curled into fists. “You can’t take my laptop!” I cried. “My whole life is on there. The phone is bad enough. Can’t you get what you need from it? I blocked the user from my social media accounts. It’s been months since I heard anything from her.”
He gave me a reassuring smile. “We’ll get them back to you safe and sound in short order—probably by tomorrow afternoon. Even if this perpetrator isn’t a member of the local hate group we’re dealing with, you want him or her caught, right?”
“Well, yes,” I confessed, as my face pulled into a tight wrinkle of defeat. I was the victim, so why were the police victimizing me all over again? Didn’t he understand that all my manuscripts,promotional images and materials, my notes, and pdf “how-tos” were on my laptop?
“Please be careful with it,” I pleaded. “Don’t delete anything. I need everything stored on there.”
“I’ll take extra care with it, ma’am. The NOPD isn’t in the business of losing or destroying personal property. Now, if all of you can vacate the room so my lab guy can finish his sweep, we should be out of your hair in about an hour and you can get some sleep,” Detective Campbell said as he steered me toward the door. “You could sit in the lobby or the lounge, and I’ll let you know when we’re through.”
“She’ll wait in our room,” Tammy decreed. “Two doors down on the right side.”
The detective nodded, and Tammy and Beth escorted me out.
“Is there anything else you need?” Catherine asked. Her fury had dimmed to fretful concern as she wrung her hands in front of her. I liked Catherine. She was both protective and pragmatic, inquisitive and inclusive, and an excellent president of the prestigious literary society. Being asked by her to present months ago left me stunned, but her response to my present situation warmed my heart. She had stayed after hotel security left, making phone calls and sending messages, ensuring everyone else attending her conference was safe and sound.
“You have been wonderful,” I answered in honest appreciation. “I’m so sorry, Catherine. I didn’t know my stalker would follow me here and cause trouble.”
She waved an exquisite hand at me and tutted. “It’s certainly not your fault, Aspen. It used to be outsiders—religious leaders and conservative columnists, men who wanted to keep us down, and women who were jealous of our success—who attacked us. Now we must contend with harassment from within our ranks, or at least someone who pretends to be. Who knows? Thisantagonist you’ve acquired could be anyone. The police will sort it out.”
Catherine patted my shoulder and forced a smile. “You get some rest tonight. I’ve asked hotel security to have someone stationed on the 23rdfloor all day while the panels and classes are going on, and the evening shift will keep a watch over our lounge karaoke. Hopefully, the culprit will be in custody by then.”
“Thank you.” I returned her smile and added, “You get some rest too.”
Once in her and Tammy’s room, Beth wheeled into a bathroom as luxurious as mine to get ready for bed while Tammy and I collapsed in their sitting area. “I can’t believe this is happening,” I moaned. “I’m not even a big deal.”
“Maybe not yet,” Tammy qualified, “but you are well on your way to becoming one. Maybe it’s because of hot, steamy romance novels that set women’s pants on fire, or maybe you’ve caught this deviant’s eye because of how young and attractive you are.”
I shook my head and gestured to myself. “This isn’t me. This is a front I wear, a persona I made up because the real me is too boring and ordinary for anyone to notice.”
“Is that what you think?” she smirked. “We’ll deal with your obvious delusions later; right now, we need to figure out who’s behind all this. It must be someone attending the conference, either an author or a reader. What do you know for certain?”
I let out a sigh and shifted in the cushioned armchair. “It isn’t you or Beth since you were both sitting at the table with me when the first text message came through. Winter had gone to the bathroom, but I can’t imagine it could be her. She’s too …” I flailed my hand, searching for the right word. “Wholesome. Can you fathom her ever using the word ‘fuck?’”
Tammy ran a hand down her face and her shoulder muscles rippled. “I’ve been working with her for about a year, helpingteach her the ropes like I did for you. I’ve never had a reason to suspect that she’s anything other than the nerdy girl next door. If Winter is SapphicLover69, she established a very convincing alter ego long before your stalker went psycho online. I would find her a most incredible suspect.”
“Plus, she was with us all night tonight,” I added. “She couldn’t have trashed my room even if a service delivered the roses. And Elaine was with us too.”
“I’ve known Elaine Parker for at least ten years,” Tammy said. “She’s never been other than a ray of sunshine. However, her partner of fifteen years died about six months ago in a tragic motorcycle accident. They were as tight as Beth and me, so it had to tear her up. Still, it would be totally out of character for her to do something like this.”
“I get a strong, positive vibe from her,” I mentioned. “The ray of sunshine aura like you said, but, man, how awful. I had no idea she’d lost her partner.”
“Aspen, do you have someone in your personal life who could use this as a ruse to get back at you?” Tammy inquired. “An ex, someone who’s jealous or bitter toward you for something?”
“My ex and I are good,” I said. “She’s moved on monumentally and gotten married to the love of her life. I’ve dated a few other women, but nothing serious and no raging breakups. Mostly, I keep a low profile. People who know me in Gulfport haven’t a clue I write sapphic romances, and most don’t even know I like women. No, I doubt it’s anyone I know offline. So, I guess we can cross the three fan girls off the list too since they were on the tour with us tonight.”
“Wait now, not so fast.” Tammy propped her elbows on her knees, leaning closer to me. Her intense gaze caught mine. “Any of them could have broken in here while we were at dinner—even left the flowers then.”
