Chapter 7 - The Snap
The night before the 'emergency' was supposed to take place, the house felt like a pressure cooker. I was packing a small bag in our bedroom when I heard the heavy, purposeful tread of boots on the stairs.
Meredith stood in the doorway. She was holding my laptop—the one connected to the security cameras.
"I found it, Logan," she said, her voice devoid of any pretense now. It was flat, monotone, and terrifying. She held the laptop out, the screen glowing in the dark hallway. "You’ve been playing detective. How quaint."
She dropped the laptop. It hit the floor with a sickening crunch.
"I saw the hospital files," she continued, stepping into the room. She pulled a kitchen knife from behind her back, the blade glinting in the moonlight. "You think you’re so smart. You think you can save her. But you're just like the rest—you're just another obstacle to be cleared."
Down the hall, a door creaked. Lily stood in her doorway, clutching her teddy bear. She looked at the knife, then at me, then at her mother.
"Mommy, stop," Lily whispered.
Meredith didn't even look back. "Go to your room, Lily. Daddy is leaving us tonight. Permanently."
I stepped forward, my hands raised. I wasn't looking at the knife; I was looking at Meredith’s eyes—the dilated pupils, the erratic pulse in her neck. She was having a psychotic break, fueled by the encroaching reality that her life of arson and manipulation was ending.
"Meredith, put it down," I said, my voice steady, pulling on every ounce of de-escalation training I possessed. "There's no need for this. Let's talk about the fire. Let's talk about why you're really doing this."
May you like
She laughed, a jagged, broken sound. "You want the truth, Logan? I burn things because the fire is the only thing that's ever been honest. It doesn't ask me to be anything other than what I am."
She lunged.
