Gemotions

The park was usually a refuge for Leo. He loved the quiet, the feeling of being hidden in plain sight. But now, after the publication of *Leo Maxwell: Beneath the Surface*, the park felt wrong. Exposed.

He sat on a bench, his eyes darting from face to face. The children playing, the dog walkers, the elderly couples – each one a potential reader, each one knowing things about him that he hadn’t chosen to share. He kept glancing over his shoulder.

He tried to focus on the birdsong, but it was drowned out by the thrumming in his ears. He got up quickly, leaving his book on the bench. He had to keep moving, to find a place where he could be alone, again.