Micah came in next, confusion written all over his face. “What's going on? Your text sounded serious.”
“It is serious.” I handed him a mug of coffee and gestured toward the living room. “Sit. We'll explain when everyone's here.”
Poppy emerged from her room a few minutes later, having changed into sweatpants and a hoodie that made her look about twelve instead of seventeen. She curled up in the corner of the couch with her knees pulled to her chest, and I resisted the urge to go sit next to her and check if she was really okay or just performing okay for everyone else's benefit.
Once we were all settled—Talia in the armchair, Micah on the floor with his back against the couch, Poppy in her corner, and me pacing because sitting still felt impossible—I took a breath and laid it out.
“This is escalating. We need to tighten up.”
“Tighten up how?” Micah asked, and I could hear the worry threading through his voice.
“We need to be more careful. More vigilant. Don't assume they'll back off just because we tell them to. If either of them shows up, you call me immediately. You don't engage, you don't try to handle it yourself, you just get somewhere safe and call.”
“What if you're at work?” Poppy asked. “Or at a gig? We can't just shut down our lives every time they decide to pull this shit.”
“Then you call Talia. Or each other. The point is you don't deal with them alone.” I stopped pacing long enough to look at her directly. “They're getting bolder, and I need to know you're all being smart about this.”
Talia leaned forward, elbows on her knees, and slipped into the competent problem-solving mode that made her so good at her job. “We should document everything. Dates, times,locations, what was said. If this keeps escalating, we might need a restraining order, and having a paper trail will help.”
“Good idea.” I grabbed my phone and started a note. “Poppy, I need you to write down everything that happened today. Where she showed up, what she said, how long she followed you. Be as specific as you can.”
“On it.” She pulled out her own phone and started typing.
“We should also have a code word,” Micah said, and when everyone turned to look at him he shrugged. “What? If one of them shows up and you can't talk freely, you need a way to signal that you need help without tipping them off.”
“That's smart,” Talia said, sounding surprised. “What should it be?”
“Pineapple,” Poppy said immediately.
“Why pineapple?”
“Because it's random enough that we'd never say it by accident, and it sounds ridiculous enough that nobody would guess it's a distress signal.”
“Pineapple it is.” I added it to the note. “If any of us says pineapple in a text or a call, that means we need immediate help.”
“This is so fucking weird,” Micah muttered. “We're sitting here planning emergency protocols for dealing with our own parents like they're dangerous strangers.”
“They are dangerous,” Talia said bluntly. “Maybe not physically, but they'll bleed us dry financially and emotionally if we let them. This isn't paranoia, Micah. This is survival.”
“I know.” He rubbed at his face with both hands. “I just hate that this is what our lives look like.”
“Yeah, well. Welcome to the family business.” Poppy's voice was exhausted.
The room went quiet for a minute, all of us sitting in the weight of what we were planning for, and I felt the familiar acheof guilt settle into my chest. They shouldn't have to deal with this. Shouldn't have to create emergency codes and document harassment and live in constant vigilance against people who were supposed to love them. But this was the reality we'd been handed, and the only thing I could do was make sure they had the tools to handle it.
“Alright,” Talia said, breaking the silence. “What else?”
“I'll talk to June and the band, let them know I can't make the Montreal gig next week.” I said it casually, like it wasn't a thing, but I saw Talia's head snap up immediately.
“The hell you will.”
“Tal—”
“No. Absolutely not.” She stood up, crossing her arms in a way that meant this was not up for debate. “You are not canceling Montreal because Mom decided to be a nightmare today.”
“If she's escalating, I need to be here. What if she shows up again? What if Dad comes back? I can't just leave you guys to handle that alone.”
“Yes, you can. We're not children, Soren. We can handle ourselves for a weekend.”
