Sisters, Secrets and The Stalker

Chapter 6: Hey There

Tiana’s POV

I sat at the plastic café table in Playzone, feeling entirely out of my depth. The harsh fluorescent lighting felt aggressive, washing out the room and making the tension between Mari and Ben feel even sharper – even rawer. I focused on managing the kids, keeping Henry entertained and Harry settled, grateful for the distraction from the suffocating atmosphere.

"I really am so sorry about the photo," Greg murmured, leaning across the table. "I feel like a total creep."

I smiled warmly, a forgiving light in my dark eyes. "Why don't we start again? Forget the whole thing?"

"I'd really like that," he smiled back.

Ben walked past our table then, heading towards the café counter. He had my phone in his hand – the one Mari had snatched to confront him with earlier – and he set it down on the table with a grim expression. "Tia, here. Mari wanted you to have this back."

"Thanks, Ben," I murmured, taking it from him.

He offered a polite, strained nod and continued on his way towards the counter. I placed the device on the table, and a second later, it buzzed. My embarrassment at the earlier conversation vanished, replaced by a deep, chilling frown as I glanced down at the screen.

"Greg, look at this."

I held the phone up. A new message from the 'B' profile: Hey there gorgeous. I've seen you around, and I just wanted to let you know you are amazing xx

"What the heck?" Greg whispered. We both glanced over to the sofa where Ben had returned to sit with Mari. He was perfectly still, holding Mari’s hands and talking earnestly. He definitely wasn't typing on a phone.

"It can't be Ben," I said, my voice shaking slightly.

"Well, it's definitely not Ben. Look," Greg said, reaching into his pocket and placing Ben's phone on the table. "He dropped this earlier by the toilets. It's been in my pocket ever since."

I stared at the phone. My own mobile buzzed again – a text from Mari. "She wants to know what's going on," I informed him.

Greg grabbed Ben's phone and stood up, his chair scraping loudly. "I'll go talk to them. It's time to move this whole circus somewhere more private."

I nodded, looking genuinely spooked. "Can you grab Harry's car seat so I can get Henry cleaned up?"

"No problem," he said.

I watched as Greg walked over to the sofa where Mari and Ben were sitting, watching him with hawk eyes.

"It's time to head back to yours," I heard Greg tell them, his voice low. "Something really odd is going on."

"What is it?" Ben asked, sensing the shift in his tone.

"You dropped your phone," I heard Greg explain, handing it back to him. "Which makes this all even more disturbing, because whoever is running that fake profile just messaged Tiana."

Mari gasped, her hand flying to her mouth.

"Let's go," Ben said instantly, his protective instincts overriding everything else.

They gathered the kids and marched to the exit. As we stepped out into the chilly Galencia car park, I stayed close to Greg. I clutched my velvet bag tightly, my eyes darting nervously across the rows of parked cars.

"Do you think they’re watching us right now?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

Greg looked around the nearly empty car park. Every shadow seemed to stretch. Every parked car felt like a potential blind spot.

"Possibly," he said, putting a protective arm around my shoulder. "But they won't get to you. Not while I’m here."

We loaded the kids into the cars in record time. Mari and Ben took the lead, with me and Greg following close behind. As we drove back to Fellsdello, the atmosphere in the car was thick with unspoken tension. I kept glancing at my phone, my fingers hovering over the screen, waiting for another notification that might provide a clue.

"Who would do this?" I asked, breaking the silence as we pulled up to Mari’s house. "Who would go to such lengths to ruin a marriage and stalk me?"

"I have a few theories," Greg said, pulling into the driveway. "But none of them are good."