The Twin

by Natasha Preston

  My spine stiffens. I hear her before I see her. The front door opens and then slams shut. Iris skips to her car that she finally got Dad to buy her. I watch as she drives off; then I run downstairs.

  “Morning, Dad,” I say tightly as I walk into the kitchen and grab a coffee mug.

  He looks up from his paper. It’s a little late for him to still be sitting there. He’s waiting for me. “Ivy,” Dad says, the exasperation in his voice cutting through me. “Look at me. Please.”

  I meet his eyes.

  “I’m worried about you. Maybe you should take some time off school. I think we should speak with Meera about getting some more help.”

  He might as well just stick a knife in my heart. “Excuse me?”

  “You’re not sleeping. I don’t know what to do to help you.”

  “All you have to do is believe me,” I whisper.

  I feel like screaming. The desperate need to fix this and have everything go back to normal itches at my skin. I’m being accused of horrible things, I’m losing friends, losing my dad, and none of it is my doing.

  “I’m trying to understand.”

  No, he’s putting me in the box that Iris has created. I have been so deeply affected by Mom’s death, but it hasn’t made me seek out attention. How can he not see that? I wasn’t invisible before, but I sure wish I was now.

  “I want you to think about taking some time off. Half a semester. We can work with school so you don’t fall behind.”

  My toast pops up. I turn back. “Dad, can we talk about this later?” I ask, my voice rough with betrayal.

  If only he knew what I found on Iris’s old cell. I want to get it and shove it in his face. At least let him start doubting her. But I’m not going to underestimate her.

  The girl with all the secrets will only get better at hiding them if challenged.

  Sighing, I hear him shuffle his paper. “Fine. You need to think about taking time off so that we can focus on your healing. Then we can get back to normal.”

  He’s painting a pretty picture now. Make it all sound like a beautiful fairy tale so I’ll go along with it. I don’t even recognize normal.

  What choice do I have if that’s what he wants me to do? I’m a minor. I’m not in charge of my life.

  Well, I already knew that. Iris has got her grubby little hands firmly on my present. She won’t have my future.

  God, I just need to get through the day.

  I pick up my plate and sit at the table. I would walk out, but I don’t want him to think I’m sulking. Meera is my only hope right now. Until she talks with him, I have to let Iris’s games go over my head. I won’t get sucked in. Later, I’ll call Meera and explain what’s going on, get her to talk to him.

  Dad’s eyes are on me as I take small bites of toast between long sips of coffee. His gaze is full of sadness, and it breaks me.

  Iris is making me out to be the evil twin, and Dad believes her.

  41

  Walking down the hallway at school, I keep my eyes forward and my head high. Classmates stop and stare, and whispers echo behind me as I plant my feet one in front of the other.

  I can’t believe I ever worried about people talking about me when Mom first died. This is much worse.

  On top of stressing that Iris has killed my mom, I do not need all the gossip to be about how Ivy has “changed.” I’m sorry that I’m sad and grieving.

  My heart races with every step. When I reach my locker, I almost fall into it. My legs are like jelly. Bracing myself with my palm against the door, I take a breath to try and inflate my lungs.

  I look up. What the…? Four teachers and the principal swarm the corridor, one with a clipboard, another opening lockers. The principal standing behind, his shoulders tense and hands on his hips.

  Haley stops beside me, her eyes wide.

  “What is going on?” I ask.

  She glances at me out of the corner of her eye.

  “They’re searching lockers,” she replies.

  “I can see that, but why?”

  “A test was taken from Mrs. Lewis’s office apparently. I overheard her and Principal Grant talking about it.”

  My eyebrows shoot up. “Someone stole a test?”

  “It was probably Leo,” she says. “Only way he’s going to pass and stay on the team.”

  I scoff. “Like he’ll get kicked off even if he does cheat. The football team gets all kinds of preferential treatment.”

  “Really, Ivy?”

  Wincing, I turn around. Ty is behind me with his arms folded over his chest.

  Great.

  I groan inwardly. “Ty, you know I wasn’t talking about you.”

  “That’s what you think of us, huh?”

  “Come on, Ty,” Haley says. “You know this happens.”

  “That’s not what I think of you,” I tell him, and pull open my locker with a little more force than necessary. A white booklet flies out and whacks onto the floor.

  “What the…” I bend down and pick it up and my eyes widen as I realize what it is. The stolen test paper.

  “Ivy, oh my God!” Haley screeches.

  I glance up, my heart racing and face heating to a hundred degrees.

  Principal Grant swings his head in my direction. His jaw hardens as he sees me frozen, holding the test.

  “Ivy Mason, come with me,” Principal Grant says.

  “No.” I look to Ty and Haley. Both are watching me with wide eyes and open mouths. “I didn’t do it,” I tell them. “I don’t know how this got in my locker, but I did not put it there.”

  Principal Grant clears his throat and takes the test from my hand. “Ivy, come on.”

  My legs feel like jelly as I take small steps toward him. With burning lungs, I suck in air. “Sir, I didn’t take that. I swear.”

  “My office, Ivy. I’ll call your dad.”

  “What? No. I didn’t do anything!”

  Around me the hall erupts into a chorus of echoes as I become today’s gossip.

  My heart pounds so hard my head feels cloudy, like I’m floating. Or about to faint. This is serious. I could be suspended. This will be on my permanent record. I can kiss college goodbye.

  “Wait! Stop!” Iris shouts. “Ivy, what’s going on?”

  “Did you do this?” I ask her.

  She scrunches her nose. “Do what? Where are you going?”

  “Ivy, keep walking,” Principal Grant orders, his voice firm and unforgiving. He’s not going to give me any time at all to speak to Iris.

  “Tell the truth,” I hiss, and dash to catch up with the principal. If she doesn’t come forward, I’m screwed. How do I prove that I didn’t take it?

  His eyes look through me, and I can tell that he believes I’m guilty. “Take a seat, Ivy. We’re trying to get hold of your dad.”

  “I didn’t take that paper. Please believe me.”

  “I rarely see you, Ivy. You don’t get into trouble and I will admit, this seems out of character, but I cannot ignore the fact that the paper was in your locker.”

  “Someone else put it in there. I changed my code to my damn birthday!” Oh my God, I’m so stupid.

  The phone rings and Principal Grant takes the call. “He is? Good. Thanks for letting me know.” Hanging up, his eyes rise to mine. “Your dad is on his way.”

  Great, another day he’s had to drop everything to race to school.

  Slumping against the back of my seat, I close my eyes. “I didn’t do this,” I whisper.

  “The test was in your locker, Ivy.”

  “I know, but that doesn’t mean I took it. Someone put it there. Please, you have to believe me.”

  “You won’t be rejoining class before your dad arrives. I’ve canceled my meeting with Mrs. Lewis so we can talk. I would like f
or you to tell me exactly what happened.”

  I scrub my palm over my face. “When I got to school, I noticed you and other teachers in the hallway. Haley told me you were looking for a test paper that was stolen from Mrs. Lewis’s office. I opened my locker and it fell out.”

  “And you have no idea how it got in there?”

  “No! I swear.”

  “I think you can appreciate how serious this is, Ivy. You have had a test paper in your locker overnight.”

  “But I didn’t know that!”

  His lips press together in a grim line.

  “Principal Grant, I didn’t steal anything. I have no idea how the test got into my locker.” I exhale. I have a very good idea who put it there. I don’t want to tell him that before Dad gets here, though.

  He holds his palms up. “Perhaps you have some homework to complete before your father arrives.”

  My shoulders slump and I pick up my backpack as my heart sinks.

  He doesn’t believe me.

  Not that I’m surprised. Maybe I should try and get ahold of Iris’s current cell. Her Internet history will probably show a search for how to set someone up.

  My teeth cut into my bottom lip as I force myself to remain silent.

  Bide. Your. Time.

  The door opens, and I tense. I don’t turn around, but I feel the anger radiating from Dad. He thuds over and sits down beside me. “Why, Ivy?”

  “Dad, I didn’t do this.” My eyes widen, and I turn my body to face him. He’s always been able to tell when I’m lying. He’ll know that I’m telling the truth now.

  “How did the paper get into your locker?”

  “I have no clue, but that doesn’t mean I’m guilty.”

  “Who have you shared your combination with, Ivy?” Principal Grant asks.

  “Just Ty. But I’ve unlocked it in front of my friends and my sister loads of times.”

  The principal and teachers know us all. They don’t know Iris well. Surely someone can see that things began to go wrong for me when she arrived? That’s not a coincidence.

  “Do you think Tyler or your friends could have done this?”

  “Not Ty or my friends, no.”

  Dad stares into the side of my head. “What are you saying, Ivy?”

  “Oh, come on! It was obviously Iris! How blind are you people?”

  “Ivy,” Dad snaps.

  I take a breath. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude.” My heart thumps painfully fast. “Things have been different, Dad, you know they have. But can you please think about the one thing that’s different.”

  “Your mother died, Ivy, and we understand how traumatic that is—” Principal Grant says.

  “No,” I say, cutting him off. “That’s not what’s happening here. I’m not having some sort of breakdown because my mom died. I’m not acting out because I want attention. I’m not jealous because Iris is living with us now. My life has changed in a way I could never have imagined, but I haven’t changed. Please believe me.”

  “Honey,” Dad says in a soft voice like he’s talking to a toddler. “You’ve had a hard time, we all have, but I need you to think about what you’re saying. And I need you to be honest with us.”

  “Dad, I am being honest with you. Iris is behind this.”

  Principal Grant looks at my dad. “There will be an investigation. Ivy will need to take the rest of the day off.”

  And that’s where I stop listening because my ears ring. A roaring fills them and black dots dance in front of my eyes. I’m being kicked out of school.

  Is this what she wanted? What would be the point? My friends have welcomed her, everyone has. Why do I need to be out of the way?

  “Ivy, come on,” Dad says, rising to his feet.

  I have to go. We’re going to leave this school, and I won’t be allowed back until they figure out I didn’t take that paper. If they figure it out.

  By now everyone in school will be talking about me. They already think I’ve done some pretty shady things recently. Nothing as serious as this. Maybe they won’t believe I’ve stolen test papers. Ty, Haley, and Sophie should know that I would never do that.

  Mom and Dad taught me about hard work. I would rather fail than cheat.

  Dad walks a step in front of me, hands fisted like he’s about to snap. When we get home, he’s probably going to shout a lot. He never shouts. But then, I—or Iris—have never given him reason to.

  Everyone is in class, so thankfully I don’t have to endure even more whispers.

  My shoulders slump as I follow Dad out to the parking lot. I don’t know what happens now because I spaced in there when Principal Grant told me I can’t come back until they’ve investigated, but I know more people will have to be involved. I doubt this can be contained within the school.

  The worst part is that I can’t do anything to fix it yet. I don’t have enough evidence, and no one believes me.

  42

  Sitting at the table, I watch Dad make two coffees. He walks to me slowly, like he needs the extra time to figure out how to deal with me. He’s never had to play the disciplinarian much.

  He places my coffee in front of me and sits down.

  “I don’t know where to start, Ivy.”

  “You could start by hearing me.”

  His intense gaze pins me to the spot. “Why do you not think I’m hearing you?”

  “Because you’re blaming me.”

  “The test was found in your locker.”

  “I’m not denying that. But it wasn’t me who put it there. Why would I leave it in my locker? I had just gotten to school when they found it. How would I have had time to steal it, put it in my locker, get outside, and pretend to come in again? It makes no sense because I didn’t do it.”

  He clears his throat. “The test was in Mrs. Lewis’s office on Friday, and when she looked again this morning, she found it to be gone.”

  “Oh right, so I broke in over the weekend, stole it, and left it in my locker.”

  “This is not the time for sarcasm, Ivy.”

  “When you’re sitting on this side of the table, innocent with no one believing you, it is.”

  “So you think Iris did it?”

  “Yeah, that’s exactly what I think.”

  “Why, Ivy?”

  “I don’t know exactly. She hasn’t been right and you know it.”

  He curls his hands around his mug. “She hasn’t spoken about your mom or grieved. I’ll give you that.”

  I narrow my eyes. “But…”

  “But it’s you I have seen the most change in. Ivy, you aren’t sleeping well, you’re distracted at school, you’ve shouted out and been disruptive in class—none of this is like you.”

  “Because it’s not me. Dad, hear me. Please.”

  “You want me to believe that Iris is setting you up?”

  “It’s that or you think I really did steal a test.”

  This is looking more and more like one of those pick-a-side moments, which I think are in poor taste, but he has to believe one or the other. He either takes my word or believes Iris.

  Sighing, he glances down at the steam rising from his coffee. “I don’t want to think either of you is capable of any this.”

  He’s going to have to, though.

  “Dad, you know me.”

  “I do, Ivy, and that’s why I’m so worried about you. On my way to the school, I called Dr. Rajan.”

  “You called Meera? What for?”

  “For her professional advice.”

  “And what advice did she give you?”

  “We’ve decided that you will be taking a break from therapy sessions with her while I look for someone more suitable.”

  My heart skips a beat. “What? What do you mean by that?”

>   School isn’t that far away. How did they decide all that in ten minutes?

  “Dad, I want to keep seeing her. She helps.”

  “I don’t know if she does, Ivy.”

  It’s decided, then. He’s Team Iris.

  I turn my head away as his betrayal punches a hole in my chest. He’s my dad.

  “Wow,” I whisper.

  “This isn’t a personal attack on you, Ivy. I’m trying to do what’s best and get you the help you need. Once you’re settled here, I’m going back to school to speak with Principal Grant.”

  “Why are you going back?”

  “Because I don’t want you to be expelled from school.”

  “I should move to a different school anyway, one Iris is nowhere near. You’ll see how things are miraculously better then.”

  “I don’t want to have an argument about your sister right now. Let’s focus on you.”

  “Bloody hell, she really has got you wrapped around her finger.”

  “Ivy!” he snaps. “That’s enough. I don’t have time for this. I need to do damage control with your school. Do not leave this house.”

  He stands, leaving behind his untouched coffee, and walks out of the room.

  I sip my drink, fuming on the inside but knowing there is no point in showing it. Dad has made up his mind. Iris has probably been in his ear, whispering lies about me the whole time.

  The school has CCTV on the outside. They’ll soon see that I didn’t come in over the weekend. Maybe they’ll find that Iris did. Or maybe she stole the paper and planted it in my locker before she left on Friday. We both hung around a while, her at cheer practice, me to finish up some reading because I couldn’t focus in class. I left first because of my session with Meera.

  I finish my coffee and try not to stress. Iris can’t keep this up forever.

  She’s already caused me to lose so much, and now I have to do this without Meera. What did she say to my dad that made him pull me out of therapy with her? Or maybe Dad removed me because he doesn’t think she’s helping.

  Hopefully Dad will fill in the blanks for me later.

  Someone pounds on the front door.

  I let go of the mug that has turned cold in the thirty minutes I’ve been sitting here.