I made a note of that in my notepad, careful to keep my expression impassive. Those were not the actions of an unconcerned fiancé and father, despite whatever he might have said to Juliet. Until I spoke to him, and investigated further, I didn't plan on frightening her, which I would have by suggesting he seemed to consider her stalker very real. I tried to react in a way that would not frighten her. Instead I said, "That sounds sensible."

"He's a very sensible, practical man. I guess that's why I didn't get so worried until recently. Rob always found a perfectly rational solution to the things that were happening."

I made another note with a large question mark next to her fiancé’s name. I didn't want to suspect it, but my training insisted that I did. Just because this Rob guy seemed like the perfect guy to Juliet didn't mean he wasn't insecure and controlling. Who really knew if he wouldn't stoop to terrifying a woman in order to dominate her? Again, it wasn't a thought I voiced to my client. He could also be just as concerned as she, and just as innocent. I hoped to confirm my original supposition about him that he was merely worried.

"How long have you held your job?" I asked, glancing at my folder. She listed her job as finance manager. I wasn't sure what that meant.

"Six years. Two years in the position I have now. I was promoted the same week we moved and got engaged actually."

I looked up at the triple whammy good news. If someone were jealous of Juliet, her rush of good luck would definitely be seen as something despicable. It might have been two years ago, but someone could have let that jealousy fester. "Are you happy there?"

"It can be a tough job at times, but I enjoy it. Yes, I'm happy."

"Have you had any problems? An altercation with a colleague, for example, or your boss?"

Juliet shook her head. "No, I've always gotten along with everyone just fine. I was promoted after some very hard work and over-achieving, to the tune of two hundred percent above target."

"Was anyone else in the running for your job?"

"Yes, a guy called Olly. When he didn't get the job, however, he left and started his own firm."

"Do you think he became bitter about that?"

"Not at all. He became a huge success and just sold it for fifty million."

I dropped my mouth open. "Wow!"

"I don't think jealousy crosses his mind now, not while he’s sailing the Mediterranean on his mega-yacht," laughed Juliet.

"Poor guy!" I laughed along with her.

"I know!" Juliet paused, the worry returning to her face. "Lexi, is any of this helping?"

"It's a start," I told her truthfully, pausing my pen for a moment. "I'd like to speak to the people in your life. Perhaps they have some perspective that would prove useful to your case."

"You mean like Rob?"

"Yes, but also your family and close friends. Will that pose any problems?"

"Not at all but my parents are away on vacation in Europe until a week before our wedding and my brother lives in Canada so he can't help. They'll probably find it thrilling to talk to a real PI."

"Not everyone feels that way."

"Well, you're helping me, so I don't think anyone will mind. Everyone knows what's going on, and how much it’s worrying me. That is..." Juliet trailed off.

"Are they all being supportive?" I asked, my intuition telling me something was off.

"Yes and no. They listen, but what can anyone of them say? It's just... everything seems so little and insignificant, you know? Like, individually, it's easy to say 'I forgot this' and 'I must have not remembered that' or 'it was a technical error,' but put them all together... And some friends won't even return my calls! Lexi, I'm either going out of my mind, or someone is deliberately doing this to me." Juliet sat up a little, looking around me. I heard a car door slam, realizing she caught sight of something behind me. Whatever it was didn't seem to panic her. "Here's Rob. Sweetheart, we're in here," she called as the door opened.

"Hi," said the man who entered. He was six feet with dark red hair and a closely clipped beard. His eyes were warm green, and his face gentle. His suit looked expensive, as did his leather shoes.

Juliet reached a hand out to him and he took it, giving me a worried look. "Sweetheart, this is Lexi Graves, the PI. I asked her to look into things for me."

"Okay," he said, gazing from Juliet to me, apparently unsure what to say even if the news that I was a PI clearly came as no surprise. After a long moment, he held out his other hand and I rose to greet him, shaking it. "Sorry, I guess I was caught offguard. Juliet mentioned consulting someone. Are you able to help?"

"I think so, but I can't promise anything."

"How long will it take you to investigate?"

"That's not a question I can answer. I'm going to look into Juliet's background and I'd like to run some surveillance on you, Juliet... with your permission," I added, turning to her.

"Why on me?" she asked, frowning.

"I'd like to see what goes on around you when you're unaware. Perhaps I can match a face from the grocery store to someone skulking outside your workplace, that sort of thing."

Rob perched on the edge of the couch, next to Juliet and rested his arms on his crossed leg. "Forgive me for being so blunt, but isn't that kind of a crapshoot?"

"I never said it was going to be easy. Statistically speaking, most stalkers are known to their victims; but sometimes, it's a total stranger. Based on what Juliet told me, I think if she has a stalker, and there's enough strong, anecdotal evidence to suggest she does, then it's most likely someone she interacts with on a daily basis, or someone who sees her regularly. Whoever it is regards Juliet as very important and someone they are personally connected to, although they might be relatively insignificant in Juliet's world."

"So… it could be anyone?" Juliet asked, looking from me to Rob. "It could be a... a... grocery store clerk, or the man who walks the little dog past our house every morning... or... or..." she faltered.

"Here's what we'll do to start," I began before Juliet panicked. "I need you to give me a list of all the incidents you remember, including where they took place, and the date and time, as much as you can recall. Additionally, I'd like a list of your friends and family members, and your employer, if any incidents happened there, plus the names of anyone you might have had any altercations with. I'm going to start looking into those events and see if there are any connections."

"What about the surveillance?" asked Juliet.

"I'll start in a couple of days, after I've mapped the stalking events. We can try coordinating your activities with past incidents to see if that sparks anything else in your memory."

"Like retracing her steps?" asked Rob.

I nodded. "Like that."

"I can email you everything within a couple of hours. I already started keeping a log," Juliet told me. "I really appreciate you taking this on. I can't live like this anymore, not when I feel so suspicious of everyone. I just don't understand why this is happening."

"Don't worry about the why. Let me work on that. I'd appreciate the list as soon as it’s ready. You have my details."

"I'll walk you out," offered Rob. "Do you think this is serious?" he asked after Juliet and I said our goodbyes and he walked me to the curb. It was entirely unnecessary in a safe neighborhood like this, but he obviously wanted to talk out of earshot, and I couldn’t turn the opportunity down. Rob could have valuable insights, and I needed everything I could get. Juliet was right about her stalker being anyone, but I still hoped I could find some connections in the incidents that she reported.