by Sara Shepard
She scuttled back to the dining table just as Mrs. Chamberlain brought out chocolate mousses in individual goblets. “Cornelia’s specialty!” she exclaimed. “It’s going to be soooo good!”
The girls made appreciative coos and dug in. When Mrs. Chamberlain returned to the kitchen, Laurel leaned across the table, a hint of chocolate on her lips. “You know what else is going to be good? Our prank on Ethan Landry.” She glanced at Emma, raising her eyebrows. “I hope you asked him to come help us set up tonight.”
“Seriously.” Charlotte clapped her hands together. “The prank’s going to be amazing!”
Madeline cackled with delight. Only Emma stared at her plate, a queasy feeling trickling through her stomach.
Laurel pouted at her from across the table. “What’s wrong, Sutton? Don’t you think it’s a perfect prank?”
Emma swallowed a sip of Perrier, its bubbling tartness tickling her nose. The way she saw it, she had two options: buckle to Laurel’s whims and go along with this, or stand up for herself and make Old Emma proud. She took a deep breath.
“Actually, I think it’s a horrible idea,” she said. “We already got Ethan once, remember? I’ve decided. I’m not being part of the prank. You girls will have to go it alone.”
Madeline’s face fell. Charlotte wrinkled her nose. Laurel’s cheeks reddened. “You what?” she snapped.
Emma knew she was doing a little bit of damage to Sutton’s reputation, but she didn’t care. She stood, placing her spoon to the side of her untouched mousse. “Charlotte, please tell your mom thanks for the delicious dinner. There’s someplace I need to be right now. I’ll see you ladies at the party.” She glanced at Laurel. “I assume you can get a ride with one of them?”
Laurel stared back at Emma, her mouth hanging open. She didn’t say a word as Emma sailed from the room and out the front door, her head held high. Sutton’s friends watched her the whole way. No one said a word.
And that, I thought, was how you make a dramatic exit.
26
FORECLOSED BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
When Emma pulled up to Ethan’s driveway, she was still flying high from finally standing up to the girls about the prank. She had a big smile on her face as she exited the car, but her expression quickly shifted when Ethan slunk out his front door and slammed it shut, his stealthy, guilty posture that of someone sneaking out.
“Everything okay?” Emma asked as Ethan jogged across the lawn.
“Sure.” Ethan ran a hand over his close-cropped hair. “My mom was just giving me shit about chores. That’s all.”
“Been there,” Emma said. “Should I go in and say hi? I’d like to meet her.”
There was a miniscule pause. “Another time,” Ethan finally said. Then he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “You look gorgeous. Love that dress.”
You noticed, Emma thought, butterflies sweeping through her stomach. She smoothed down the skirt of the emerald green dress. “You look pretty good yourself.” Ethan was wearing dark-wash Levi’s and a fitted, olive green button-down that showed off his trim waist and broad shoulders.
Emma gestured to Sutton’s car, and Ethan let out a low, appreciative whistle and got into the passenger seat. “I’ve only seen this ride from afar—Sutton used to freak if anyone but her friends got near it in the parking lot. I never thought I’d actually get to sit in it.”
“Well, there’s a new Sutton in town,” Emma giggled.
That didn’t mean the new Sutton could mess up my car, I thought in annoyance. Emma better maintain it.
“So the party’s in a foreclosed mansion in the foothills, apparently somewhere called Legends Road,” Emma said. “Do you know where that is?”
“I’ll show you the way.” A grin spread across Ethan’s face. “An abandoned house. It’s crazy. Sounds much more interesting than the usual Hollier parties.”
Emma smirked. “How many Hollier parties have you actually been to, loner boy?”
“You got me.” Ethan ducked his head. “Not many.”
There was a long pause. Something pulsed in the air between them. Maybe it was that tonight was their first appearance as an actual couple. As Emma shifted gears and sped down Ethan’s street, she realized that her stomach was humming with nerves. She peeked at Ethan, noticing how he was repeatedly licking his lips. Maybe he was nervous, too.
“So what’s wrong with your car?” Emma asked.
Ethan shrugged. “It probably just needs to be jumped. I’ll deal with it tomorrow.”
They turned onto the main road and passed Sabino Canyon. Emma felt a twinge of dread—it was the spot where she’d first arranged to meet Sutton, and where the cops had found Sutton’s car.
And maybe, I thought, where I hit Thayer… and he killed me.
Emma drove higher into the foothills, the Catalina Mountains shimmering red in the setting sun. The road twisted, and Emma gripped the steering wheel to navigate the turns. The farther north they went, the bigger and grander the houses became. The sky darkened as they passed a luxury strip mall consisting of a wine shop, a Pilates studio, and a bunch of real-estate agencies, another marker for a trailhead, and dozens of Southwest-style mansions tucked into the rocks.
“Hey, is that the street?” Emma interrupted, pointing to a yellow-and-green painted sign marked LEGENDS ROAD.
“Looks like it,” Ethan said, squinting into the semidarkness.
Emma turned onto the road and almost hit a roadrunner that darted across the lane. Desert brush lined the side of the pavement and Emma steered the car around a rock that must have fallen from the bordering cliffs.
“We have to find somewhere secluded to park,” she explained, looking for a good spot on the shoulder. “Mads says we can’t park in front of the house—that’ll tip off the police that we’re throwing a party there.” But she didn’t want to park just anywhere, either—Sutton’s car had been impounded, partly, for unpaid traffic violations. All she needed was Detective Quinlan finding yet another reason to drag her down to the station.
The road zigged and zagged, the land barren on either side of them. “There aren’t any other houses here?” Emma said aloud.
“Strange.” Ethan glanced out the window at a tangled tree branch that reached like fingers toward the windshield. “Maybe whoever had this place owned the surrounding land, too. It’s one way to guarantee the view.”
Emma drove another half mile before a towering white stone mansion came into sight. Oval arches shot high into the evening sky, and immaculate black shutters framed wide, illuminated windows. A massive balcony jutted from the side of the house and soared over a cliff that dropped at least one hundred feet to a rocky bottom. A FOR SALE sign was tipped over in the front lawn, long abandoned. The circular driveway was empty. So was the road around it.
“It’s gorgeous,” Emma breathed, pulling over. “But where are the other girls’ cars? They should have been here by now to set up.” She checked her watch. She was late—it was almost 9:30.
“Maybe there’s another route around the back? Or maybe they parked even farther away to avoid suspicion.” Ethan unbuckled his seat belt and they both got out of the car.
A silver slice of moon hung high in the sky. A gust of wind whistled between the rocks and tossed Emma’s hair across her shoulders. She followed Ethan along crooked stone steps embedded into a small hill that led to the house.
They climbed along the final yards of the path and onto a smooth porch made of solid granite. Ethan’s knuckles pounded the front door. He glanced at Emma while they waited and angled his ear close to the door. “Weird. I don’t hear anyone inside,” he said, narrowing his eyes. “No music, no nothing.”
Emma knocked again. “Hello?” she called. When no one answered, she tried the golden knob and pushed against the oak. The door swung open, revealing a double staircase that circled upstairs to an open-air second level. An unlit crystal chandelier hung in the foyer. Bright stars were visible through massive skylights. A grandfather clock
in the far right corner of the entranceway was the only visible fixture—otherwise, the house was completely empty.
“Hello?” Emma called again. The girls should have been here already. Her voice echoed through the empty house. In the dim moonlight, she could see cobwebs glistening in the corners. She turned to glance at Ethan. “Maybe they’re not here yet?”
“Maybe?” Ethan stepped back and gazed up the stairs.
Thwap.
Emma and Ethan wheeled around. The front door had slammed behind them.
Emma ran to the door and tried the knob. It wouldn’t budge. “Who’s there?” she cried. Something electric snapped along her body. There was no window facing out onto the front porch, so she couldn’t tell who’d just shut them inside.
Ethan yanked Emma closer to him. Scraaaaatch. A sound like fingernails down a windowpane echoed through the air. “What is that?” Emma screeched.
“Someone’s outside,” Ethan said. He pulled at the doorknob again, but it still wouldn’t give. “Who’s there?” he boomed. “Let us out!”
“Oh my God,” Emma whispered into Ethan’s chest, gripping the sides of his shirt. “What if it’s Thayer? What if he got out of jail early and followed us?”
A sinister feeling passed through my weightless form as a horrible idea occurred to me. Maybe it was Thayer. What if he’d found out that Emma had called his old hospital and was coming to shut her up for good?
“I won’t let him hurt you,” Ethan said, hugging Emma tight. “I promise.”
Another groan sounded from outside. Then there were scraping sounds, like someone was trying to get in. “We have to hide, Ethan!” Emma screamed, looking around at the bare rooms, the blank walls. She grabbed his hand and started up the stairs, but her heel caught on the first riser. She tumbled into Ethan, and he caught her around the waist. Another thud sounded from outside. More horrible scratches. A shadow passed across the back wall. And then, a scream.
Emma answered with a shriek, but when a second scream came, she stood up straighter. That wasn’t a guy’s voice, but the high-pitched wail of a girl. Giggles sounded from outside. And suddenly, Emma smelled the distinct fragrance of Chanel Chance.
Suddenly everything clicked into place. Of course.
Emma grabbed Ethan’s hand. “This is a prank. We’re the prank. Sutton’s friends are messing with us.”
Confusion settled across Ethan’s fingers. “You’re sure?”
“Positive.”
Ethan’s shoulders dropped with relief. He stepped closer to Emma and slipped his hands along Emma’s dress onto the smooth skin of her back. He pulled her close. “Well, then this is the best prank ever. I wouldn’t mind spending all night locked up alone with you in here.”
Emma felt her nerves spike for an entirely new reason. Her body was so close to Ethan’s she wondered if he could feel her heart beating through the thin silk of her dress. She looked up into Ethan’s face just as he tilted his chin to kiss her. She felt herself come alive as his lips met hers. She wrapped her arms around Ethan’s neck and returned his kiss, wishing the moment never had to end.
The door flew open with a creak and a swell of cool night air pushed against Emma’s back. Madeline stomped into the house, flanked by Charlotte, Laurel, and the Twitter Twins, who were dressed in head-to-toe black and snapping pictures rapid-fire on their iPhones.
“Gotcha!” Madeline cried.
Charlotte clapped her hands together and the Twitter Twins let out excited squeals. “You were so scared!” Gabby cried.
“I was not,” Emma said quickly.
“Were too.” Laurel smirked. “Your new guy didn’t make you feel safe?” Her eyes flickered to Ethan.
“At least this explains why you didn’t want to pull a prank on him,” Madeline said, shaking her head. “Are you going to introduce us, Sutton?”
Emma looked at Sutton’s friends. They didn’t look particularly annoyed or disgusted that they’d just caught her kissing Ethan—just left out of the loop. She grabbed Ethan’s hand. “This is Ethan Landry. My… boyfriend.” Her voice rose at the end, a tiny question mark. She glanced at Ethan to make sure this title was okay. Ethan nodded as a slow grin spread across his face.
“So, are you two, like, in love?” Lili asked. Her raccoon-ish eyeliner was even more dramatic than usual, making the whites of her eyes glow bright. Gabby made kissing noises with her pouty lips and Laurel and Charlotte giggled.
Emma laughed despite herself. “How long have you guys been planning this?” she asked.
“Ever since Laurel explained a few days ago why you weren’t totally up for the Ethan prank.” Charlotte curled a red tendril around her finger. “We’ve been teasing you all week. As soon as you left dinner, we flew into action. Lili and Gabby stood at the base of the road to make sure no one got here early. We wanted you to get here when the house was empty—and super-scary.”
“And we disconnected Ethan’s car cables so you’d have to give him a ride,” Lili said proudly.
“You did what?” Ethan gaped.
Gabby waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t worry. You just need to reconnect the cables. I saw a YouTube video on it.”
Ethan shook his head but laughed.
“So the real party is still here?” Emma asked.
“Yep!” Laurel chirped. She pointed to two plastic bags hidden in the corner of the dining room Emma hadn’t noticed before. And then, as if on cue, the door swung open, and a bunch of kids spilled inside. The entire boys’ baseball team. Nisha and her tennis cronies. A bunch of kids who always said hello to Emma in the halls, and a lot of people Emma didn’t recognize. Last but not least, Garrett stepped through the door, carrying a massive keg. When he set eyes on Ethan and Emma, who were still holding hands, his expression soured.
“Hi, Garrett,” Emma tried, knowing just how futile her attempt at friendliness was.
Garrett’s muscled arms tensed as he adjusted his grip on the keg. “So now you’re with Ethan?” he growled.
“I am,” Emma answered proudly, ignoring Garrett’s hateful gaze. She wasn’t going to let anything bother her tonight. Things suddenly felt perfect.
A techno song suddenly blared over a portable stereo someone had brought. Plastic cups were passed around, and drinks were poured. “Whoooo!” Charlotte cried, waving her hands over her head to dance. Emma pulled Ethan into the circle and started to dance, too.
The party had begun.
27
ONE FLEW THE COOP
The mansion filled to capacity in no time. Warm bodies mingled and flirted, red plastic cups in hand. Emma snaked through the crowd with Ethan on her arm, feeling happier than she had in ages.
“I’m going to get a beer,” Ethan said, glancing at his phone before shoving it into his pocket. “Want one?”
Emma shot him a smile. “I still have to drive us home, remember? Unless you want to camp out tonight in the middle of nowhere …” She gestured outside to the rocky cliffs surrounding the mansion.
Ethan grinned and leaned forward. His lips brushed her cheek as he whispered, “What exactly are you suggesting?”
Her cheeks flushed at what she’d implied—a sleepover with Ethan. “Some of us have a curfew,” she whispered.
“Too bad,” Ethan whispered back. His lips touched hers. A bunch of kids whistled. Emma sensed a flash of a phone camera. That Sutton Mercer was dating Ethan Landry was a huge deal. But no one was laughing at them—instead everyone was staring at Ethan, like they’d suddenly realized just how cute he was.
As a bunch of boys did shots in the corner and a crowd of kids danced to vintage Michael Jackson on the makeshift dance floor, Emma felt Sutton’s clutch vibrate. She dropped Ethan’s hand and asked him to grab her a Sprite. Then, she stepped away from the stream of partygoers and pulled Sutton’s iPhone from her clutch: ONE MISSED CALL.
There was a number she didn’t recognize in the call log along with a voicemail alert. Emma caught Ethan’s eye across the room and motion
ed that she’d be right back. Then she negotiated her way through the sweaty crowd toward the back of the house, where it was hopefully quieter.
She rounded a corner into the kitchen, where liquor bottles lined the counter along with half-eaten bags of Fritos and abandoned plastic cups. A girl with short black hair poured tequila and margarita mix into a blender and pressed a button, sending the contents whirling. The shrill buzz of the blender and the sweet smell of lime filled the kitchen and followed Emma down a dark hallway. She trailed her fingertips along the wall to get her bearings and ducked into a back room. Moonlight spilled through an open window to illuminate dark wooden floors and long windows. There were only two objects in the room: a long, cracked mirror propped up in the corner and a small doll with marble eyes sitting on the windowsill. Emma turned away from the doll, an eerie feeling washing over her.
Pressing the voicemail icon, she lifted Sutton’s phone to her ear. A loud voice boomed through the speaker. “Hello. This message is for Sutton Mercer. It’s Detective Quinlan. I need to speak to you. Please call me at this number—it’s my cell. I’ll have it on me all night. It’s urgent, so call me as soon as you get this.”
An emergency? Emma’s fingertips prickled. She gripped the phone, ready to dial the number, when a loud crash sounded outside the room. She jumped and turned around. Bass reverberated through the house. Laughter echoed off the walls. Even though she was alone, it was still too loud for her to have a real conversation. She let herself out of the room, glancing once more at the eerie, glassy-eyed doll, and headed for the back door.
The back of the house boasted a patio that butted up to the mountains. There was a small trail at the edge of the property; Emma walked toward it, wanting to put as much distance as possible between herself and the loud party. Twigs and dried leaves cracked beneath her feet. She scrolled through Sutton’s phone and selected the most recent missed call.
Quinlan answered on the first ring.