Chapter 9 - School’s Rules
The next morning, Lily stood in the center of her bedroom, scanning the walls like an artist preparing a gallery showing.
Every inch was covered. Matt at the grocery store, Matt jogging, Matt walking to his car.
Matt in sunglasses. Matt in a suit. Matt laughing with his head tipped back.
Some photos were printed and tacked in neat rows, others taped over mirrors, the edges curling. A few she had framed.
It was a shrine, and she knew it. She didn’t care.
She walked the perimeter slowly, touching each image with the tips of her fingers.
On some, she lingered. A candid shot of Matt sipping coffee in his driveway, she pressed her lips to it, whispering his name.
Another of him leaned into his car with his tie loosened, she blew it a kiss. The sound was soft, almost reverent.
“You’ll understand soon,” she murmured, as if the photos could hear her. “You’ll see what she’s done to you.”
On her dresser sat a single photo of Matt with the kids, framed in silver. She picked it up and stared at their little faces. Innocent. Clueless. It made her smile and clench her jaw all at once.
“They’re in the way,” she murmured. “They always have been.”
She set the photo back down gently, as if the image were fragile, though the thought in her mind was anything but.
She turned up Confident by Demi Lovato and got dressed with precision. Navy pencil skirt, crisp white blouse, low heels. Hair pulled into a sleek bun. Minimal makeup, professional, respectable. Exactly the kind of woman a school secretary wouldn’t hesitate to hand children over to.
A final glance in the mirror. She straightened her collar, smoothed her skirt, and smiled at herself. “Matt’s sister,” she rehearsed. “Family emergency. No time to explain.”
By the time she walked into the elementary school office, she had the script down cold.
The receptionist, a woman in her fifties with reading glasses perched on her nose, looked up from her computer. “Can I help you?”
“Yes,” Lily said, adopting a concerned tone. “I’m here to pick up Tommy and Emily Taylor. Their mother had an accident. I’m Matt’s sister. He asked me to get them right away.”
The receptionist’s brow furrowed. “I’m sorry… you’re Matt’s sister?”
“Yes,” Lily said, nodding. “Half-sister, actually. We don’t really look alike.” She laughed lightly, the sound brittle. “I just need to get them before they hear anything scary from someone else.”
The receptionist didn’t smile back. “Do you have ID?”
“Of course.” Lily slid her driver’s license across the counter.
The woman studied it, then typed something into her computer. Her expression didn’t change, but the room seemed to cool. “I’m not seeing you listed as an approved contact.”
Lily leaned in, lowering her voice like she was sharing something confidential. “It’s an emergency. Their mother might be dead.”
The receptionist looked up sharply. “I just spoke with Sarah Taylor this morning. She seemed perfectly fine to me.”
For a split second, Lily’s smile faltered. “Maybe it happened after that. Things change quickly.”
“I’ll need to call the Taylors to confirm,” the woman said.
“That’s not necessary—”
“It is,” the receptionist interrupted. Her tone had lost any trace of warmth.
Lily’s fingers curled on the edge of the counter. “If you call them, you’ll just scare the kids more.”
“The kids are fine,” the woman said, already picking up the phone. “Please have a seat.”
Lily sat, but her gaze was fixed on the office door as if she could will the children to appear.
Heat rose under her collar. What if the woman actually called Sarah?
What if she answered? The whole thing could collapse in seconds.
For half a heartbeat, she considered walking out, abandoning the plan.
Then her eyes caught the reflection in the office glass.
Polished smile, crisp blouse, perfect hair.
She looked every bit the woman who belonged here. She wasn’t leaving without those kids.
The receptionist dialed a number, her voice bright and casual when the other end picked up. “Mr. Taylor? Hi, it’s Pam at Highland Park Elementary. I have Lily Thompson here saying there’s a family emergency and she needs to pick up Tommy and Emily.”
A beat of silence. Then Matt’s voice came through low and hard, every word sharp. “Keep her there. Tell her the kids will be right out. Do not let her leave.”
Pam straightened slightly, her eyes flicking back to Lily’s polished smile. “Of course, Mr. Taylor. I’ll keep her here.”
Matt’s tone left no room for question. “She is not supposed to be anywhere near my kids. I’m calling the police. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
He hung up without another word.
Pam set the phone down slowly, forcing her face into its usual calm. “If you’ll just give me about ten minutes, Ms. Thompson, I’ll make sure they’re brought right to you.”
Lily’s smile widened, the corners of her mouth twitching with something just shy of glee. “Thank you. They’re going to be so happy to see me.”
She squirmed in her chair, crossing her legs, drumming her manicured nails lightly on the armrest.
Across town, Matt was already in his car, one hand white-knuckling the steering wheel while the other punched in the number for the police dispatcher. He didn’t call Sarah. Not yet. If she knew Lily was at the school, she’d be there in five minutes with no concern for who got in her way.
By the time the flashing blue lights pulled up to the front of Highland Park Elementary, Matt was just a block away, and he had no intention of letting Lily walk out on her own.
The bell over the front office door chimed. Two police officers stepped in, scanning the room. Lily clocked them instantly, heart giving one hard kick in her chest. She didn’t move.
Pam stood and waved them over. Their voices dropped low, but Lily strained to catch fragments. “…call came in… not authorized…”
She kept her expression neutral, leaning back in the chair like she had all the time in the world. Inside, her pulse was a war drum.
The bell chimed again. Matt stepped inside.
For one brief, stupid second, she almost smiled. Then she noticed the way his eyes slid right past her and locked on the officers.
“Matt.” She stood, eyes shining. “I knew you wouldn’t let them keep us apart.”
He didn’t react. He walked to the police, spoke in low tones, and pointed. At her.
The air went cold.
Lily’s mind flashed to the side hallway she’d scoped out when she first walked in. One push bar, a quick jog down the walkway, and she’d be gone.
She moved before the officers turned. The push bar gave under her hands, spilling her into the sunlight. Gravel crunched under her heels as she sprinted down the side path, the wind tearing at her hair. She made it twenty feet before the heavy thud of boots closed in.
Hands grabbed her arms. She twisted, kicked, but the grip was iron.
“Stop resisting,” one of them barked. Cold metal bit into her wrists.
“I need to see Matt!” she gasped, stumbling as they walked her toward the cruiser. “Please, get Matt, he’ll explain everything! We’re in love! You don’t understand, he’s being brainwashed by a woman named Sarah Taylor! She’s poisoning him against me!”
“Keep moving,” the officer said, guiding her into the backseat.
“I’m trying to save him! You have to help us!” Her voice cracked, breaking into sobs. “Please, he’s not safe with her!”
They shut the door on her words.
From behind the glass of the school’s front doors, Matt stood with Pam and the officers who’d stayed behind. Lily couldn’t see him, but he heard every word, each one confirming what he’d been fighting to admit: she wasn’t just obsessed. She was dangerous. And there was no saving her.
The cruiser pulled away.
Matt stayed at the window until the taillights disappeared.
Matt’s phone buzzed in his hand. Jim Holloway’s name lit the screen. He answered immediately.
“Hey, Jim.”
Jim’s voice came fast, tight. “Matt, God, please tell me everything’s okay.”
“Yes, we’re fine. Thank you for checking in.” Matt’s gaze drifted toward the parking lot where the cruiser had disappeared. “She tried to get my kids from their school. She’s heading to jail right now.”
There was a sharp exhale on the other end, followed by a beat of silence. “Matt, this is too much. I’m getting a little scared for you and Sarah… hell, for your entire family.”
Matt rubbed the back of his neck, the weight of it all pressing heavier.
“Yeah. Me too at this point.” He hesitated, already knowing what Jim’s reaction would be.
“I’m going to visit Lily in jail. Maybe if I confront her, she’ll get the message.
She thinks Sarah’s holding me hostage, or that I’m not in control of my own life. ”
“I’m going with you,” Jim said immediately. “There is no way you can be alone with that woman.”
Matt didn’t argue. “Alright. I’ll call you when I know visiting hours.”
They hung up, but the echo of Jim’s urgency stuck with him. Even with Lily in cuffs, the danger didn’t feel over. If anything, it felt like she was just getting started.