Although the woman sensed something, only her husband who could see the man who threatened them.
The stalker seemed to know when and where their family would be every minute of their spring-break. He spied on them while they were in the rooftop pool at their Los Angeles hotel. He was hiding in a men’s room stall at Universal Studios. He skulked through the Getty.
As the family made its way north on I-5, he was waiting at the Hearst Castle and pretended to photograph sea lions on the Monterey Peninsula.
The children were thrilled to get away. Their father was desperate to get away too. Away from the news of the invasion their country was about to launch. He had lived though one bad war.
The man made his living by shaping opinions. He had a nose for weasel words and he knew how false claims are planted. He knew about anonymous sources and false equivalences. His government was playing fast and loose.
The family spent Wednesday in Noe Valley with Auntie Lorilie, Uncle Vincent and Max. When they went out for Vietnamese that night the invisible man no longer bothered to keep his distance, he was at the next table.
Early on March 20 of 2003, which happened to one of the kids’ birthday, the 1st Marine Division crossed the Iraqi-Kuwaiti Border while the family rode a cable car to Fisherman’s Wharf. The stalker stared out at them from a cell at Alcatraz.
The family liked road trips and the man enjoyed driving his charges from stop to stop. But this trip was different.
By the end of the week the stalker had installed himself in the back seat between the children who had no idea he was there. Every time their father checked the rear view mirror, the stalker met him with a smile. He seemed pleased with himself.
