The Neighbors

2.11 Threats

I flew home feeling anxious. And irritated that Harry hadn't made more of an effort to come with me. I knew that he was just getting started with Urbane Records and he didn't want to take advantage of their generosity, but I still thought that if he had told Liam about the situation, he might have been able to get a few days off.

I had phoned my father ahead of time and asked him to pick me up at the airport. I wanted to go to the school and get my kids just because I was still so shaken up.

I went into the front office of the school to let the secretary know that I would be signing my kids out early. She called to each of their classrooms to have them sent down. And then she told me about a parent who had been asking about my kids.

"Oh, was it Bonnnie Fredericks? I just met her the other day," I said, smiling.

"No," she answered. "This was a parent who was checking into enrolling her kids here at the school. She just came by to get some paperwork. But she made it seem like she knew you."

"Did you get her name?" I asked, feeling fairly alarmed at that point. "What did she look like?" I was on the verge of becoming hysterical again and I could tell that the secretary thought I was over-reacting, but I didn't care.

"No, I'm sorry I didn't get her name, Mrs. Styles. But she was kind of petite, very well dressed and she had long, straight brown hair."

I blinked hard, trying to figure out who I might know who fit that description. I tried to keep my cool and told her in a shaky voice, "If anyone but my family asks about my children, call the police!"

She looked a little startled at my request, but she politely agreed. The girls came in and hugged me fiercely, as if they hadn't seen me in weeks. They asked why I was picking them up early, but I just told them, "I missed you and wanted to see you when I got home."

When I got back into the car, my dad could tell I was shaken. He gave me a questioning look, but I just told him I would fill him and mom in when we got home.

As promised, as soon as we arrived home, I snuggled Danny and then pulled my parents into the den and closed the door.

"The secretary at school said that someone was asking about my kids, and she didn't have students enrolled there," I told them.

My parents gasped and then my father asked, "So they didn't get a name? Or a description?"

"No name, but she said it was a woman with long brown hair. I can't even imagine who that would be."

"Well, I think we should call Detective Horan" my mom said. "He's the officer who came by yesterday to make sure everything was okay. He wanted you to call him anyway. He wanted to find out if you might have any more information about this stalker person." She said the word as if it tasted sour in her mouth.

I nodded and my father dialed the phone. He had the detective's direct number, so he got right in touch with him. The conversation was quick and concise.

"He'll be here in about an hour. We won't leave until you're finished talking to him."

I breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Okay." Then I brought my bag to my room and started unpacking. Danny toddled in shortly afterwards, clearly looking for me.

"Mamamamama mamamamama!" He was chanting.

"Hey, lovey, did you miss mama?" I asked, picking him up and kissing his cheek. He squeezed my cheeks lightly and then placed a sloppy kiss on my nose. I started laughing and said, "Your kisses are messy!"

That statement must have seemed like an invitation to him because he then planted repeated kisses on my nose, causing me to laugh every single time. I felt so overwhelmed with love for him at that moment, I eventually pulled him into a tight squeeze, but he didn't tolerate it for very long. Soon he was struggling to get down. As soon as I set him on the floor, he ran off to find Grandma and Grandpa.