Okay, I'm starting to get creeped out. My son Dash was born well after I finished drafts for both the first and second novels in the Mercutio series. The fact that he is growing up to become the lead in that series is eerie beyond words.

The physical part I can deal with. Blond curly hair, eyes that change color with his mood – fine, okay, it's just a coincidence.

But this last couple months he's started showing a fondness for puzzles. And yesterday he began creating a code on the computer. 1E 2M 6L 9D. I have no idea what it means, but he did it twice, that very sequence.

Puzzles. Codes. Next it'll be riddles, and my freak-out will commence in earnest.