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Sweet dreams.”

 
     
     
    Chapter Five
     
    Xandi found Keisha at the kitchen table in the morning. She stared blankly out the window, but turned when Xandi entered the room. Her lips were trembling, and her hand holding the half empty coffee cup shook.
    “I heard the phone ring. What’s wrong?”
    Keisha sighed. “I just talked to Anton. I called him first thing, told him about Carl Burns. He contacted Burns’s publisher to complain. Anton just now called me back to say the paper fired Burns over a month ago. It looks as if he’s not working on a story. He’s stalking me.”
    “Have you called the police?” Xandi poured herself a cup of coffee and sat across from Keisha. “Is Anton coming out?”
    “Anton’s stuck in meetings until Friday… he may even have one Saturday morning. I told him not to come.”
    Xandi snorted. “You mean he listened?”
    “I don’t think he’s got a choice. This deal involves millions of dollars. It’s a huge investment for him. I’ve got a call in to the detective who worked my assault case. I’m hoping he can tell me how to keep Burns away from us.”
    “In the meantime?” Xandi took a sip of her coffee.
    “In the meantime, I need to check on my project, make sure we’re still on schedule. The next couple days are going to be really busy.” She smiled sadly at Xandi. Her amber eyes filled with tears. “Why won’t he stop following me? Why won’t he leave me alone? It doesn’t make any sense.”
    “When was the first time you were aware of him?”
    Keisha frowned. “Not until the article came out in the paper, the story about my assault.”
    “How did he get there so soon? He was at the crime scene really fast. I saw the pictures. There were still bodies in the room.”
    “I don’t know. I was so out of it. I never saw Burns, at least that night. At first I thought the photos were from the police files, but I learned later they weren’t.”
    “Did the police let him in?” Xandi recalled the lurid black and white photo, the torn and mutilated bodies of three men, the superimposed photo of a rabid, snarling wolf covering the picture. “Could he have been there before the police arrived?”
    Keisha slowly raised her head. “I don’t know. I can’t imagine the police letting him take pictures. It was a crime scene, but he had to have been there right after it happened to get those shots. How could he have known?”
    Xandi reached behind her and grabbed the phone. “Call the detective. Now.”
    * * *
    Early Friday morning, Keisha surveyed the stark stone monument, its sharp edges softened by the gently swaying grasses she’d carefully selected for the design. They were the same grasses that gave her Chanku abilities life. She leaned over and plucked a single golden stem and slipped it between her lips, then straightened up, chewing thoughtfully, to study the finished project.
    The sun chose that moment to break through the morning fog and cast shadows exactly as she’d planned, reflecting a jagged silhouette reminiscent of the Himalayas. She nibbled on the stem of grass and studied the dark line of stone.
    Xandi slipped her arm around Keisha’s waist. “It’s a fitting tribute. Absolutely gorgeous. I can see why your design won the competition.”
    Xandi’s praise should have filled her with pride. All Keisha could think of was her brief and unproductive conversation with the detective. She’d finally reached him after two days of calls, only to learn there wasn’t anything they could do to stop Carl Burns from following her. Not until the reporter broke the law.
    She sighed, pushing Burns and the San Francisco Police Department from her mind. “At least the project’s done, under budget and on time. I just wish I could feel more excited about it.”
    “You will. Once everyone shows up for the dedication. Now let’s clean up around here so it’s perfect for Sunday. Your rake, m’dear?”
    Sighing, Keisha took the rake from Xandi and began