Chapter 56

The Hadrian's Wall Trail, just outside Chollerford - Northumberland, England

Someone was following her.

Sloane felt it like a tickle on the back of her head, like a shiver at the base of her spine. It had been with her for some time now - that creeping sensation of someone watching her, that dancing little awareness of some other presence, always just beyond her sight.

You're paranoid, she told herself as she trekked across a muddy pasture, her shoes sinking into the damp earth. It's probably just a cow.

She'd seen dozens - no, hundreds - of cows over the past few days, and just as many sheep. In fact, there were at least five cows watching her right now, their jaws working in hypnotic, circular motions as they chewed and stared. Beyond them, the crumbling ruins of Hadrian's Wall rose from the crest of the hill, silent and still.

One of the cows gave a low, almost-annoyed moooooo.

What did you expect? she thought, hiking past their dull-eyed gazes. You're intruding on their break