Chapter 4

"There's no one," Chloe sobbed. "My mom works three jobs just to pay rent. She doesn't have time for my problems."

Perfect victim story. No family support, money problems, completely alone in the world. Every woman in this crowd is going to relate to that. And every man is going to want to save her.

Sarah watched with obvious concern. "That poor child. No wonder she was so desperate."

The crowd around the bridge had grown. People were taking selfies with the "rescue scene" in the background. A few teenage girls were doing TikTok dances near Jake and Chloe, trying to get into the viral videos.

"This is insane," Kelly muttered.

Jake helped Chloe stand, keeping a protective arm around her shoulders as they walked toward the ambulance. She leaned against him like she could barely support herself.

The crowd started applauding.

"Hero!" someone shouted.

"Jake for mayor!" called out another voice.

Three news vans had arrived. Reporters were setting up cameras, interviewing anyone willing to talk. I could see Mrs. Patterson from the grocery store being interviewed, shaking her head sadly.

A reporter spotted our group and started walking over, camera operator in tow.

"Excuse me! Are you the bride from the incident?"

Kelly immediately stepped in front of me. "No comment."

"People online are calling for you to be fired from your teaching job. Any response?"

Fired. I could lose my job over this. Seven years of teaching, building relationships with kids and families, all gone because I wouldn't participate in Chloe Palmer's show.

"She's not commenting," Kelly said firmly.

Sarah suddenly appeared beside us, fierce and protective. "Leave her alone. Can't you see she's been through enough?"

The reporter turned to Sarah. "Are you family?"

"I'm the mother of the groom, and I'm telling you to back off."

Sarah. Even now, even after seeing me refuse to help a "suicidal" girl, she's still defending me. Still calling herself my future mother-in-law.

But the reporter kept pushing. "Ma'am, your son is being hailed as a hero. How do you feel about your daughter-in-law's actions?"

Sarah's face hardened. "My daughter-in-law is a good person who's having the worst day of her life. And you vultures are making it worse."

My phone started ringing. Unknown numbers, one after another. I declined them all, but they kept coming.

Kelly checked her social media feeds, her expression getting darker. "Emma, they found your Facebook. Your Instagram. They know where you work."

"What?"

She showed me the screen. Someone had posted screenshots of my teaching profile from the school website. My photo, my bio, everything.

"Millbrook Elementary should fire this monster"

"I wouldn't want her teaching my kids"

"Someone needs to warn the parents"

"They're doxxing you," Kelly realized. "Emma, this is really bad."

Sarah read over Kelly's shoulder, her face showing growing alarm. "This is harassment. We should call the police."

But before anyone could respond, my phone buzzed with a text from my principal:

"Emma, I'm getting calls about something that happened today. Please call me immediately."

Mrs. Davidson. My boss for seven years. She's probably seen the videos by now. Probably getting pressure from parents, school board members, maybe even the district office.

Another text, this one from my mother:

"Emma, what is happening? People are calling the house. I don't understand."

And another from my sister in Denver:

"OMG Emma are you okay? You're all over Twitter."

Sarah took my arm gently, leading me a few steps away from Kelly.

"Emma, I need you to be honest with me."

"There's something about that girl, isn't there?" Sarah's voice was very quiet. "Something that made you react the way you did."

I looked into her eyes—kind, smart, concerned. Not judgmental. Not angry. Just... knowing.

"Sarah..."

"I've been married for 28 years, Emma. I know when something doesn't add up." She glanced toward the bridge, where Jake was still comforting Chloe. "That girl knew Jake's name. She knew exactly when we'd be driving past. And the way she looked at you... there was recognition there."

Sarah sees it. She actually sees it. Maybe because she's been married so long, maybe because she's a woman, maybe because she knows her son better than anyone. But she sees through Chloe's act.

"I can't prove anything," I said carefully.

"You don't have to prove anything to me. I just need to know—is there something going on between that girl and my son?"

The question hung in the air between us. One word from me could destroy Jake in his mother's eyes. Could turn Sarah against her own son.

"I don't know for sure," I answered honestly. "But I have... suspicions."

Sarah nodded slowly. "Then we need to find out."

Jake finally left Chloe with the paramedics and walked back toward us. He looked tired but satisfied—the expression of someone who'd done good work.

"How is she?" Sarah asked.

"Stable. They're taking her to the hospital for evaluation, but she's going to be okay." Jake looked at me. "Thanks to God we were here."

Thanks to God? Not thanks to Chloe's perfect timing? Not thanks to her strategic choice of location? Jake really believes this was fate.

"Jake," Sarah said carefully, "how well do you know that girl?"

"What do you mean?"

"She knew your name. Before you introduced yourself."

Jake's face flushed slightly. "She... I've seen her around town. Small place, you know?"

"Around town where?" I asked.

"Just... around. The coffee shop, sometimes at fire department events."

"Which coffee shop?"

"Emma, what is this? An interrogation?"

Defensive. He's getting defensive because he knows exactly which coffee shop, and he knows exactly how often he sees her there, and he knows it's not as innocent as "around town" sounds.

Sarah and I exchanged a look. She saw it too.

My phone buzzed again. Text from the country club manager:

"Miss Sinclair, guests are starting to arrive for the reception. Should we proceed with setup?"

I stared at the message. 150 people expecting to celebrate my marriage. A marriage to a man who just spent an hour comforting another woman while his bride stood watching.

Kelly read over my shoulder. "Emma, you need to make a decision. People are going to expect answers."

Jake was talking to one of the reporters, describing his "rescue" in detail. He was loving the attention, the praise, the hero story.

Sarah watched him too, and I could see disappointment forming in her eyes.

"He's my son," she said quietly, "and I love him. But this... this isn't right."

Sarah gets it. She sees what I see—that Jake chose the drama, chose the attention, chose playing hero over staying with his bride. Whether or not there's something going on with Chloe, he made his choice clear today.

I scrolled through my contacts and found my mother's number.

"Emma, what are you doing?" Kelly asked.

"What I should have done an hour ago."

I hit call. Sarah watched me, understanding dawning in her eyes.

"Mom? It's me. I need you to cancel the reception."