Chapter 6: Her Way
He found out what Diane meant four days later.
He came home from work to find Rachel standing in the kitchen doorway, arms crossed, with the expression she wore when she was deciding how angry to let herself be.
"Your mother called the school," Rachel said.
He set his bag down.
"Which school?"
"Mia's school.
She called Mrs.
Petersen this morning and told her that Mia has been having behavioral problems at home.
That she's been acting out, lying, making up stories for attention." Rachel's voice was controlled and precise.
"She told the teacher that Mia has been struggling since we started having marital problems."
The kitchen was very quiet.
"She said what?"
"She also suggested that Mia might benefit from speaking to the school counselor.
Because of the instability at home."
Daniel pulled out a chair and sat down.
He needed a moment.
"She is trying to get ahead of it," Rachel said.
"She knows Mia might say something at school.
So she's planting the seed that Mia is a liar and we're a family in crisis.
That way, if Mia tells anyone what's been happening, it looks like attention-seeking."
"How do you know she called?"
"Because Mrs.
Petersen called me." Rachel sat down across from him.
"She wanted to let me know, because she said something felt off about the conversation.
She said your mother seemed — her word — rehearsed."
Daniel stared at the table.
"She's protecting herself," he said.
"She's trying to protect herself.
There's a difference." Rachel leaned forward.
"Mrs.
Petersen doesn't believe her.
But that's not the point.
The point is she went to our daughter's school and lied.
About our marriage.
About Mia."
He thought about what Diane had said.
Her way has never been honest.
"I need to call the school," he said.
"I already did.
I spoke to the principal.
I explained the situation.
I told her about the footage." Rachel paused.
"She asked if we wanted to file a formal complaint."
"Do we?"
Rachel looked at him steadily.
"I want her out of this house, Daniel."
He had known it was coming.
He had felt it building since the dinner table, since the crackers in the hallway, since his mother had said Liam carries the family name with the calm certainty of someone reading a fact from a page.
"She owns half —"
"I know what she owns.
I'm not asking you to put her on the street.
I'm asking you to make it clear that she does not have unsupervised access to our children until this is resolved." Rachel's voice didn't waver.
"She went to Mia's school, Daniel.
She tried to make our six-year-old daughter look like a troubled liar before she could tell anyone the truth."
He looked at his wife.
"I'll talk to her tonight," he said.
"Don't talk," Rachel said.
"Decide.
And then tell her what you've decided."
He nodded slowly.
Upstairs, a door opened.
Small feet on the hallway floor.
Mia appeared at the top of the stairs in her school uniform, backpack still on, looking down at them both.
"Is Grandma here?" she asked.
"Not right now, sweetheart," Daniel said.
Mia looked at him for a moment.
Then she nodded, very seriously, the way children nod when they understand more than you think they do.
She went back to her room.
May you like
Daniel looked at Rachel.
"Tonight," he said.
