Daphne was grateful for the quiet in Dr. Crane's apartment as she began tidying up the living room. The elder Dr. Crane was at work, and his father had taken Eddie for a walk. Even though she loved both men dearly, she definitely got more done when they were not around. When she'd finished organizing the magazines on the coffee table as per Dr. Crane's specifications, she saw something else lying there on the table. It was a cellphone. More specifically, it was the younger Dr. Crane's phone.
For a moment, Daphne wasn't sure what to do. He'd been here earlier today, but he left quickly after bickering with his brother over some detail involving wines. Daphne hadn't heard the whole conversation, but she could easily guess how it'd gone. Apparently, Dr. Crane had been in such a huff, he hadn't realized he'd left his phone.
Knowing how both brothers valued their privacy, and remembering how she used to hate it when her own brothers went through her things, Daphne decided to turn the phone off. Not only would she not hear it ring if someone happened to call, but it would also save his battery. But before hitting the "off" button, she couldn't help noticing that this phone was far more high-tech than her own. On her salary, Daphne could only afford the most basic model. She rarely used it, except for emergencies. When she attempted to turn the phone off, Daphne accidentally hit the wrong button. To her surprise and horror, she had somehow opened the phone's camera. "Oh, bloody hell! Off!"
Before she could hit the back button, Daphne saw the entire roll of photos he'd taken since he'd bought the phone. She hadn't expected there to be many. But she was wrong. There were several dozen pictures on here. Even more alarming, they were all of her!
Soon, she had forgotten her plan to turn the phone off. Now she was going through the photos, one after the other. There were many he had apparently taken while she wasn't looking. Her heart began to race, and her mouth was suddenly dry. Her head was spinning, although she could not bring herself to speculate on why there were so many pictures.
Daphne was so in shock, she did not hear the front door open. "Daphne, what's the matter?" Frasier asked when he saw the look on her face.
"Your brother left his phone here," Daphne replied. Even she could hear the quiver in her voice.
"I'm sure he'll come by to get it soon. No need to panic," Frasier said, not knowing why Daphne seemed to so upset.
"I know," Daphne said. "I didn't mean to invade your brother's privacy. I was just trying to shut the phone off. I pressed the wrong button, and I opened up his camera. He's got dozens of pictures on here...all of me!"
Frasier wished his brother were here. How careless could he be? This infatuation with Daphne was bad enough, but to leave his phone lying around, with pictures of her? "Oh. I see," he said, trying to appear nonchalant.
"Do you have any idea why he'd take this many pictures? I hardly know what to think. If I didn't know better, I would say he..." The thought was too absurd to even say out loud.
"It's all right," Frasier said, coming over and putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'll call Niles at home and let him know we have his phone. I think it's best if you ask him about the photos."
"But what do I say? This is an awfully awkward subject to bring up. Your brother's been so lonely lately, with Mrs. Crane gone so much. Do you think that's why he's done this?"
Frasier wasn't sure how to answer. He didn't want to lie, but telling the truth would almost be worse. "I'm afraid Niles would be better able to answer that than I could, Daphne."
"All right. I understand. I'll have a chat with him. If I don't, I'll probably lose me mind!"
Frasier went to the phone and dialed. He only wished he could give some signal to his brother to alert him to the situation, but he knew that was impossible. Niles would just have to find out for himself when he arrived.
