to avoid her, but that was not always possible. Whenever they crossed paths, she felt drained afterward.
The only person who understood was Valerie. While Dirk told Melissa she was overreacting, Valerie agreed she had good reason to be frightened. But Shanna had to remain in Melissa’s life because she was Peter’s mother, and he was Dirk’s child. Melissa was growing increasingly attached to Dirk, so it looked like they were all in the mess together, one big unhappy family! Melissa hoped that Shanna would settle down, but her rage seemed to just keep building.
“Whenever Peter was with us, Shanna was always getting stranded somewhere. She would call Dirk and say that her car broke down, and she needed him to come get her. She would do anything she could to interrupt our relationship. Sometimes she had Peter with her when her car broke down, and Dirk did not like the idea of his child being stranded in the middle of nowhere, so he’d rush to help.”
Melissa loved the fact that Dirk was such a devoted father, but she was bothered that Shanna used that to manipulate him. They had been together about two months, when they were jolted from a sound sleep at 2 A.M. “There was a big bang on the front door,” Melissa recalls. “Dirk said ‘Who was that?’ and I said, ‘Who do you think it was? It’s Shanna! Go get the door!’ But she wasn’t at the door.” Melissa glanced out the window and saw Shanna in the moonlight, running across the yard toward the parking lot. “She’s there!” she cried. “She’s running to her car!”
“Well, I guess she’s gone,” Dirk said, and they went back to bed.
The next morning Melissa went out to her car, a black Mitsubishi Eclipse. She took one look at it and gasped. “My car was keyed, and I mean, really, really keyed. The scratches went up and down and all around. I loved that car, so of course I was upset. It ended up being $3,700 worth of damage.” But no one had actually seen Shanna vandalize the car. “My mom used to work at the police station, so I asked her if anything could be done. She said I could report it, but nothing would come of it, because no one had witnessed the vandalism. I felt like there was no point in reporting it.” Melissa wanted Dirk to see the damage, but he was at work. She called to say she was on her way over.
“Shanna’s here, too,” he told her.
“Oh great!” Melissa snapped sarcastically. “That’s just wonderful!” Sure enough, Shanna was there, in the parking lot with her toddler in her car with her. Melissa parked her Eclipse, and Shanna approached and said, “I want you to know I didn’t do that to your car.”
“I think you did, Shanna!” Melissa responded with a concerted effort to stay calm. “I think you lie a lot. I think you are a confused, troubled woman.”
Soon another message was left on Dirk’s answering machine. “Melissa,” Dirk said. “I think you’re going to want to listen to this.” He pushed the button to replay the message, and Shanna’s remorseful voice filled the room, her apology punctuated with sobs. “I just want to let everybody know that I’m sorry for how poorly I’ve been reacting. I just remember what it was like when we were a family, and how you played with the kids, and I just miss you!”
“She sounded sincere,” Melissa recalls. “It was genuine. It made sense. The man you love had a family with you, and he doesn’t want to be with you anymore, and it hurts. I get it.” Was Shanna truly sorry? Melissa wondered if Dirk’s ex was mentally ill. Maybe she had no control over her actions. She had compassion for her, but that didn’t make her less afraid.
Shanna followed up on her apology with a special treat. Home-baked chocolate chip cookies, six in all. Four were in a container marked “Dirk and Peter,” and two were in a container labeled “Melissa.” All six cookies appeared identical, and a chill tiptoed down Melissa’s back as she considered a possible reason why Shanna had segregated two for her. “Dirk!” Melissa cried. “She’s trying to poison me!”
He laughed. “She’s just trying to show her nice side.”
“I don’t think so,” said Melissa. She threw her cookies in the trash. She has no idea if Dirk ate his cookies but doesn’t remember anyone getting sick. Shanna’s presence seemed constant. Sometimes she