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Eh the whirling vines and bushes and saw Carolyn and a few other swilared right at theusted look on her face
Eo Carolyn sees us"
She took a few steps away, pretending to be fascinated by a planter of olds, but Maya didn’t move "Hurry!" Emily hissed "Get out of here!"
She felt Maya’s eyes on her "I’ to Mona’s party to to be there or not?"
E Maya’s eye "I’e"
Maya violently yanked up her green-and-white canvas tote "You can’t change who you are I’ve told you that a thousand times"
"But maybe I can," Emily answered "And maybe I want to"
Maya dropped Emily’s rose on the bench and stoh the rows of planters past the foggy s for the exit and wanted to cry Her life was a horrible mess Her old, simple life--the one she’d had before this school year started--seeirl entirely
Suddenly, she felt soernails trace the back of her neck A chill ran up her back, and she whirled around It was only a tendril from another rosebush, its thorns fat and sharp, the roses plu on one of the s a few feet away Herin the condensation I see you Tide-open, heavily lashed eyes were drawn next to the words It was signed A
E to wipe it aith her sleeve Had it been here all along? Why hadn’t she seen it? Then, soreenhouse’s humidity, water only condensed on its inside walls, so whoever had written this had to be…inside
En, but the only people glancing in her direction were Maya, Carolyn, and the lacrosse boys Everyone else wasfor lunch period to end, and E them
24
AND IN ANOTHER GARDEN ACROSS TOWN…
Friday afternoon, Spencer leaned over herout the thick, stubborn weeds Herherself, but Spencer was doing it in an atteh she wasn’t sure what
The o to celebrate the Golden Orchid were still tied to the patio rail Congratulations, Spencer! they all said Next to the words were pictures of blue ribbons and trophies Spencer glanced into the balloons’ shiny Mylar fabric; her warped reflection stared back It was like looking into a funhouseinstead of round, her eyes were se, and her button nose looked wide and enorirl, not Spencer, who’d cheated to become a Golden Orchid finalist And ht with Ali the night she disappeared, too
The sprinkler system came on next door at the DiLaurentises’ old house Spencer stared up at Ali’s oldIt was the last one at the back, directly across from Spencer’s She and Ali had felt so lucky their roonals when it was past phone curfew--one blink of the flashlight ht Three meant, We need to sneak out and talk in person
The ain Spencer tried to push it down, but it bobbed right back up You care way too much, Ali had said And that far-off crack Where had it come from?
"Spencer!" a voice whispered She whirled around, heart pounding She faced the woods that bordered the back of her house Ian Thowoods
"What are you doing here?" she hissed, glancing toward the edge of the yard Melissa’s barn was just a few hundred yards away
"Watching razed down her body
"There’s a stalker running around," Spencer warned hi in her stoot when Ian looked at her "You should be careful"
Ian scoffed "Who’s to say I’ you froainst the tree
"Are you?" Spencer asked
Ian shook his head "Nah I actually cut through here fro his hands into his jeans pockets "What do you think of ged "It’s none of aze, not even blinking Spencer looked away, her cheeks hot Ian wasn’ta reference to their kiss He couldn’t be
She revisited that hly that their teeth had sether Afterward, her lips had felt achy and sore When Spencer told Ali the exciting news, Ali had cackled "What, do you think Ian’s going to go out with you?" she taunted "Doubtful"
She eyed Ian now, calm and casual and oblivious that he’d been the cause of all that strife She sort of wished she hadn’t kissed him It seeht in the barn, which had led to Ali leaving, which had led to…what?