The following day, the bell rang in Art History class, and all twenty-two students stood en masse. “Read chapter eight for tomorrow!” Mrs. Kittinger called after them.
Aria shoved her books into her backpack and followed the herd out the door. As soon as she was in the hallway, she glanced at her cell phone, which had been blinking for the last hour. New Google alert for Tabitha Clark, said the screen.
Her stomach twisted. She’d been tracking Tabitha-related news, reading accounts of bereft friends, grieving relatives, and angry parents protesting drunken spring break trips. Today, there was a story in a newspaper. The headline read FATHER OF DECEASED SPRING BREAK TEEN TO SUE JAMAICAN RESORT THAT SERVED HIS DAUGHTER ALCOHOL.
She clicked on the link. There was a picture of Tabitha’s father, Kenneth Clark, a tall, bespectacled man who was a captain of industry. He wanted to crack down on teenage drinking and punish bars that served underage drinkers. “I’d be curious to know what her blood-alcohol level was when she died,” he said. There was also a quote from Graham Pratt, who’d been Tabitha’s boyfriend when she died. “I think it’s very possible The Cliffs resort served her, even though she was visibly drunk.”
Whoa. What if Tabitha’s family and friends somehow found out Tabitha hadn’t died from an alcohol overdose? Aria’s throat felt dry, and her heart started to pound. It was hard enough getting through the day without thinking about the innocent girl falling to her death—she hardly slept some nights, and she wasn’t eating much. But if Tabitha’s father found out, if the police linked it to them, if Aria’s friends’ lives were ruined because of something she technically did . . . well, she wouldn’t know how to go on.
“Aria?”
Aria whirled around and saw Emily behind her. She was wearing a Rosewood swim-team parka, skinny black jeans, and had a curious look on her round, pleasant, freckled face.
“Um, hi.” Aria slipped the phone into her pocket. There was no use showing this to Emily and getting her worried over what was probably nothing. “What’s up?”
“I was wondering if you were going to Hanna’s dad’s town hall meeting on Tuesday.” Emily moved out of the way as some guys on the crew team shouldered past. “She asked if I’d be there.”
“Yep.” Aria had already told Hanna she’d attend her dad’s political events. “Want to sit together?”
“That would be nice.” Emily gave Aria a small, watery smile that Aria recognized instantly. Back when they were part of Ali’s clique, Aria had dubbed it Emily’s Eeyore smile. She’d seen it on Emily’s face a lot after Their Ali disappeared.
“What’s the matter, Em?” Aria said softly.
Emily stared at her gray New Balance sneakers. Behind her, a bunch of sophomore boys shoved each other playfully. Kirsten Cullen gazed into the trophy case glass, fixing her lipstick. “I drove by that house on Ship Lane yesterday,” Emily finally said.
Aria blinked, remembering Ship Lane’s significance. “How did it go?”
Emily swallowed hard. “There was a FOR SALE sign on the lawn, and the house looked empty. They moved.” Her jaw trembled like she was going to cry.
“Oh, Em.” Aria wrapped her arms around her friend. Words couldn’t describe how shocked she’d felt last summer when Emily told her she was pregnant. She’d called Aria out of the blue and begged her not to tell the others. I’ve got it under control, she’d said. I’ve picked out a family for the baby once it’s born. I just had to tell someone.
“I wish I knew why they left,” Emily murmured.
“It makes sense, don’t you think?” Aria asked. “I mean, they suddenly had a baby. It probably looked strange to the neighbors. Maybe they moved to avoid questions.”
Emily considered this. “Where do you think they went?”
“Why don’t we try to find out?” Aria suggested. “Maybe the realtor knows.”
Emily’s eyes lit up. “The FOR SALE sign did say there’s an open house this weekend.”
“If you want company, I’ll go with you,” Aria offered.
“Really?” Emily looked relieved.
“Of course.”
“Thank you.” Emily threw her arms around Aria again and squeezed her tight. Aria squeezed back, grateful that they were close again. They’d spent so much time avoiding each other, shying away from the secrets they shared, but it hadn’t done them much good. It was better to fight A together. Plus, Aria missed having good friends.