Noel looped his arm in her elbow. “Let’s check out the food.”
They walked into the auditorium and down the aisles to the stage area, where a bar and food tables had been set up. Several rows of chairs had been removed to make room for a makeshift dance floor. As they maneuvered past a group of girls practicing a series of cheerleading tumbling passes, Aria punched Emily’s number into her phone once more. Voicemail again. This was the third time she’d tried Emily in the last few hours. She thought about the news alert on the TV screen when she’d left her room. PREPPY THIEF JUMPS OFF CRUISE SHIP IN BERMUDA, it had said. FBI AGENTS COMBING HARBOR. It certainly explained all the FBI ships in the harbor the last time Aria had looked out the porthole. Apparently, the girl hadn’t gotten off the boat at the last port, as Emily had said.
There was a beep, and then Aria said, “Em, I’m at the talent show. I hope everything’s okay and you’re still up to performing. Call me when you get this.” She dropped her phone back into her clutch, then scanned the masses of kids running in every direction. Spencer was missing, too, as was Hanna.
Noel grabbed an empty plate and waited in line at a table filled with silver tureens full of food. “So where’s Graham?”
Aria looked away, feeling a sharp pull in her stomach. “I don’t know.”
Noel raised his eyebrows. “I thought you guys were best buds.”
Aria fingered her grass skirt. “The hunt is over. I guess we didn’t have as much in common as we thought.”
“Did you get him that girlfriend like you promised?”
She kept her eyes fixed on the tray of shiny forks and spoons on the table. “Turns out she wasn’t his type.”
She could feel Noel’s gaze on her, trying to figure out what she wasn’t telling him. She probably should tell him the truth—it was part of their pact, after all—but if he found out the guy had practically grabbed her boobs, he’d probably bust his door down and try to beat him up. It was better that he thought Graham had just lost interest. If only that really was what happened. The muscles in her neck ached from when Graham had yanked her forward. His furious expression flashed in her mind again and again, and her stomach clenched when she thought about how he’d chased her to the stairs.
“Hey, party people!” Jeremy called from the stage. Shabby-looking guys in roadie T-shirts and ripped jeans scuttled behind him, setting up equipment. “I realize we’re still setting up, but to get you in the mood, I have a huge surprise for you. A special guest has joined us to perform a few songs as a pre-show event. Without further ado, put your hands together for … Vegan Sunrise!”
Aria looked at Noel questioningly; she’d never heard of them. Kids clapped halfheartedly, looking just as confused. But when four band members took the stage and started playing a guitar-heavy cover of “When I Come Around,” everyone shrugged and started dancing.
The food line moved, and Aria and Noel filled their plates. She checked her phone a few more times, but still no Emily or Spencer. The crowd got more raucous and excited, and a girl’s elbow flew out of nowhere, knocking Aria’s plate from her hands. She twisted to grab it, but her ankle turned awkwardly, and down she went, too. She felt herself falling but couldn’t do anything about it; in seconds, she was on the floor, vegetarian noodles in her hair. A ping sounded in her ear. At first, she thought it was the fork bouncing off the ground, but when she picked herself up, she realized that it was her locket. Its two halves had sprung open from the fall.
“Are you okay?” Noel asked, extending his arm to help Aria up.
“Sure,” Aria said, picking up her spilled food as best she could and tossing it into a nearby trash can. Then she turned back to the locket. Inside was a picture of two blond, smiling girls, their cheeks pressed together. As she squinted, she slowly realized that she knew the girls. The one on the right had a round face, big blue eyes, and faint burn scars on her neck. Tabitha.
Then she looked at the girl on the left. Her eyes slowly scanned her familiar heart-shaped face, her big blue eyes. She drew back, startled. No. It couldn’t be.
She held the locket away from her face, but the girl’s eyes seemed to follow her. She had a manipulative, winning smile that had entranced Aria for years. A scream froze in Aria’s throat. All of a sudden, she couldn’t breathe.
Ali.
“Aria?”
Aria looked up and blinked. Noel was staring at her from a few feet away. She gave him a tight, nervous smile and shut the locket fast. The catch had broken, though, and the locket sprung right back open. She stared at the picture once more. It couldn’t be. Surely her brain was playing tricks on her. She tried to close it again, then peered carefully at the front of the pendant. In the strong overhead stage lights, the initial inscribed into the silver wasn’t an I or a J. It was a T.