“It’s too dark in here,” Spencer said, reaching for the dowel that would twist open the blinds. She opened them, and Ali winced. Her twin was gone, though.
“It’s got to be dark,” Ali demanded, rushing toward her. She had no idea if Courtney would reappear, but she wasn’t taking any chances. “That’s how it works.”
Spencer paused, her hand on the rod. “No, it doesn’t.”
“It does,” Ali growled, her heart beating fast. There was no way Spencer was opening that window. Her sister would be on the other side, like a perverse reflection in a mirror.
Spencer turned from the window and placed her hands on her hips. “It doesn’t always have to be the way you want it, you know.”
“Close them!” Ali roared, trying to control the desperation in her voice.
Spencer rolled her eyes. “God, take a pill.”
“You take a pill!”
Ali stared at her. Something suddenly hit her: What if Spencer knew? Maybe she’d figured it all out—she was the smartest of all of them. Maybe she’d even seen Courtney at the window just now and had put all the pieces together. She was messing with Ali because she could; she knew exactly what Ali was afraid of.
In one defiant gesture, Spencer reached across, yanked the string, and pulled every single slat up, revealing the outside world. Ali let out a yelp and hid her eyes, preparing for the worst. She peeked through her fingers. The view was only of the thick woods behind the barn.
Ali turned to Spencer. Spencer stared out the window blankly, but perhaps there was a tiny hint of disappointment on her face. Spencer pointed to the door. “Leave.”
“Fine,” Ali said. And it was fine. She needed to tell her parents what was happening. Spencer had given her the perfect excuse.
Throwing back her shoulders, she strode for the exit, twisted the lock, and stepped into the evening twilight. The ground was wet with dew. The sky was navy blue. The cars swished on the distant highway.
“Wait a second!” Spencer called behind her. “Alison!”
But Ali kept going, swiveling her head from side to side to check for signs of her sister. Lights blazed in the Hastingses’ house as well as the DiLaurentises’. The guest room window was lit up again. She didn’t see her sister anywhere.
But Ali doubted she was inside. Courtney was out here somewhere. She just had to find her and drag her back to her parents. That bitch was going back to the Preserve once and for all.
32
THE LOST PUZZLE PIECES
Ali ran down the slippery slate path, looking right and left for a familiar shape in the darkness. Her sister had to be close, but where?
A horrible vision appeared in her mind: a stark, antiseptic hospital bed. Being shoved into a tiny room, the door slamming. We’re never letting you out again, a voice taunted. She pictured herself pressing her hands against a window at the Preserve, watching her parents—and Courtney—drive away.
It couldn’t happen.
A whiff of something stopped her, and she cocked her head. It smelled like a cigarette. But before she could figure out where it was coming from, the smell was gone.
“Ali!” a voice cut through the night. “Ali, come back!”
Ali paused on the slate path and looked over her shoulder. The pagoda-shaped lanterns on the footpath didn’t provide much in the way of light, but she could just make out Spencer coming toward her. A new fire sparked in her stomach. Spencer wasn’t supposed to be outside. She might see something—or, more accurately, someone.
She squared her shoulders, waiting as Spencer caught up with her. Spencer’s cheeks were flushed, and there was a guilty expression on her face. “Where are you going?” she asked in a wounded voice.
Ali blinked. All of a sudden, it seemed like Spencer maybe didn’t know. She looked so worried right then, like she was afraid Ali was going to ditch her forever. But Spencer couldn’t be out here right now, not with her twin hanging around. Ali said the first thing she could think of that would make Spencer turn around and go back into the barn. “I’m going somewhere way cooler than hanging out with you guys.”
Spencer’s features hardened. “Fine. Go.” And yet she didn’t move.
Ali gritted her teeth, scrambling to think of something else. Something rustled in the woods, and her eyes flicked toward the trees. Ian? Her sister? Spencer needed to get out of here. Now.
“You try to steal everything away from me, Spence,” she teased, trying to keep the desperation out of her voice. “But you can’t have this.”
Spencer squinted. “Can’t have what?”
Ali laughed nastily. “You know.”
Spencer waved a hand. “You’re delusional.”
“No, I’m not.” There was another flutter in the woods; Ali stepped closer to Spencer, boxing her in so she couldn’t see. “You are.”
Anger flashed in Spencer’s eyes, and she pushed Ali hard on the shoulder. Ali staggered back, surprised by the forcefulness of it. Her feet slipped on the path, and she twisted to the right, grabbing a tree branch for balance.
She straightened up and gawked at Spencer. “Friends don’t shove friends.”
Spencer stood tall. “Well, maybe we aren’t friends.”
“Guess not,” Ali said. She wanted to add, So go back to the barn.
But still Spencer lingered. It had gotten past the point of annoyance. Now Ali wanted to hurt Spencer. She suddenly realized how. She licked her lips, the twist to the secret like rich juice on her tongue. “You think kissing Ian is so special,” she teased. “But you know what he told me? That you didn’t even know how.”