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more thoroughly than did his publisher or the reviewers who raved about him. “I concocted that jaguar story. Everything about you is a lie.”
    He made a tch ing sound and then said, “ Mi amor , what terrible thing has happened to make you so unhappy?”
    “Gee, I don’t know, Don Pedro, maybe some two-bit con artist took advantage of me, causing me to become bitter and cynical.”
    “Milagro, I am shocked that you think I planned this happenstance of success! My life’s work is to help others find their calling.”
    “Speaking of calling, why did you?”
    “I hoped you would want to collaborate with me again.”
    I burst out laughing. “Are you out of your twisted corkscrew of a mind? Why would I ever, ever want to see you again, let alone work with you?”
    “My publisher wants another book. It could be a quite enriching project for you, not only as an artist, but as a fellow soul who is responsive to our animistic nature.”
    “Nothing you can offer me would ever convince me to help you with fauxoir dos , the sequel.”
    “Are you sure?” he said, and then he named a significant sum, a sum that surprised me, and added, “Cash. I will be in London for a week, and I can fly you there to meet with me and explore our second adventure together, my little bat.”
    A trip to London would get me away from Ian. I’d be able to meet Wilcox Spiggott and he would show me another way, a better way, to live with this condition. “Okay, Don Pedro, I’ll meet you to talk about the book, but you have to fly me out first-class.”
    I called Mercedes before noon to tell her what I was doing.
    She said, “I can’t believe anyone is paying you that much to write. You can pay off your assessment fee.”
    “Exactly. It’s too bad my only success is with loony nonsense. It’s a sad comment on society and the literary world.”
    “I can watch Rosemary for you.”
    “Fabulous. Do you think you can dig up anything about that vamp I told you about, Wilcox Spiggott? I think I’ll drop in on him while I’m there.”
    “Why don’t you ask Gabriel? He’ll have the inside scoop.”
    “I don’t want the Vamp Council to hassle Gabriel because of me. Not that anything will happen, but you know the Council has a problem with me already.”
    There was silence on the other end of the line, and so I said, “And, no, I haven’t told Ian I’m going. I need to get away from him and clear my head. Sometimes I think that he could convince me to do anything.”
    I heard Mercedes sigh and she said, “Seriously? Because the only time I’ve ever seen you make compromises was when you were with Oswald.”
    “That time I was too compromising. Trying to please others made me vulnerable to their machinations. You’re the only one I really trust to look out for my best interests.”
    “That’s not true. There are others who love you and want the best for you.”
    “Do you mean Ian?”
    There was a pause, and she said, “I meant your dog.”
    People who said you couldn’t run from your problems had obviously never flown first-class to London seated in a private pod with their own movies, luxury gift bags, and a super-cute flight attendant who gave a great minimassage.
    After a tasty Bloody Mary, I put on my complimentary terry slippers, eyeshade, and headphones, and tried to sleep.

four

An American, a Broad
    I jauntily wheeled my chartreuse zebra-striped suitcase through the airport and to the stairs that led to the trains. Although I’d repaired one of the case’s broken wheels with a piece of wire coat hanger, it still looked very stylish.
    I liked the hustle and bustle of big-city public transportation, and I liked grabbing a window seat on a train and seeing billboards and scenery flashing by.
    Mercedes had recommended a hotel in Kensington that was close to the Tube. The hotel was a well-kept, renovated Victorian with moderately priced rooms, just the sort of comfortable, convenient place Mercedes would stay while checking