Sand Witches in the Hamptons (9781101597385) Read Online Free PDF Page B

where the call came from, maybe where the phone was bought, but most times people pay cash at those no-name stores. No credit card receipt we can get the ID from. Our cyber guys can track down an Internet address, but we’d need to work with her server, and I just don’t think there’s enough evidence for them to kick it up so far. I mean, it’s not like this is some kind of terrorism. Without that, they’re all afraid of being sued on a freedom of speech charge or invasion of privacy.”
    â€œSo they won’t look until she cuts off my head?”
    â€œI’m not saying that, Willy. I know a couple of the guys who work Internet crimes, and I’ll ask one of them to take a look, see if he can come up with a name we can cross-reference. If there’s a prior, then we can move in. Or if the threats escalate.”
    Now that was something to look forward to.
    â€œDo you think I have anything to be afraid of?”
    â€œHonestly? Most times it’s all bluff and bluster, but I think you need to be careful. If she knows where you live, maybe you ought to stay with a friend for a couple of days, see if things settle down.”
    â€œI have a dog and my work. Neither travels well.”
    â€œThen have someone stay with you. You still seeing the Brit?”
    â€œNo, he was at the space station last I heard.”
    â€œYou putting me on?”
    â€œNo. He was chasing Abominable Snowmen in the Himalayas before that.”
    â€œMan, and I only get to chase pimps and gangbangers.”
    â€œYou get to help me.”
    â€œWe live to serve. Want to have dinner tonight?”
    â€œUm, I have . . .” I couldn’t come out and say I had an ugly rash on my lip.
    â€œI understand. You’re seeing someone. Good. Ask him to stay with you.”
    Matt was a better excuse than desert fever. “He’s not in town right now. He’s from Paumanok Harbor, actually.”
    â€œThen why don’t you go out there? I doubt a kid will follow you, or know where you are.”
    She’d guess if she read my mother’s website again. Mom listed the Harbor phone number there, too; a lot of her wealthy clients traveled to the Hamptons for the summer. They called the house all the time, looking for help with their unruly trophy dogs.
    â€œMaybe I will go in a couple of days. I’ll think about it. What do you think I should do in the meantime?”
    â€œMonitor your calls, keep a tape of the messages, save all emails and notes if they come to your door, but do not answer. That’s important, Willy. What you do not want is a confrontation with a nut job. No telling what they’re capable of. You’ll only throw fuel on the fire if you sound scared or angry. They feed on that. Sometimes these cranks just want to vent. They find another target when they don’t get a response. “
    And sometimes, I figured, they got madder when they got ignored. I thanked Van, wrote down all the contact numbers he gave me, and promised to forward any more emails to him.
    â€œDon’t worry. It’s probably nothing. But I’ll ask the guys to drive by your building a couple of times extra. Okay?”
    â€œYou’re a prince, Officer.”
    â€œSo put me in one of your books.”
    I laughed and told him I would. And I drew an Andanstan as a tiny, well-muscled, handsome Black man. Van Andanstan.
    Nope, I couldn’t see Officer Gregory stealing anything. I threw that page out, too. Then I retrieved it and filed the sketch for another time. You never knew when you were going to need a new hero.
    Speaking of heroes, Matt called during office hours, he was so worried about me.
    â€œIt’s only a nosebleed and a stupid kid.”
    â€œWhat nosebleed? What kid?”
    â€œIf you didn’t know about the nosebleed or the kid, why did you worry?”
    â€œI got a bad feeling.”
    God, was he getting to be like my father, sensing doom