“We’re totally in the clear,” Lili affirmed. “And we told everyone to park far away so the cars won’t attract attention.”
Charlotte grinned at Emma. “Our own dance, sponsored by the Lying Game!”
“Mm-hmm,” Emma said vaguely. She reached over to pull Sutton’s phone out of her bag, but the whole thing tipped over instead. Books spilled onto the carpet. Her water bottle rolled under the next table. Instantly, two girls sprang up and scooped her books into their arms. A guy she didn’t recognize saved her bottle and gathered Sutton’s makeup. Everything was returned neatly to her purse without Emma having to move a muscle.
“Typical,” Gabby said, rolling her eyes. “We’re back on top, now that everyone knows about the secret dance and wants an invite.”
“Is something distracting you, Sutton?” Charlotte asked, looking concerned.
“Of course not,” Emma said quickly, though she knew it sounded like a lie. She’d been thinking about Mr. Mercer all day, turning the case over and over in her head.
“So I’ve invited the usual people, plus a bunch of kids from the newspaper, student council, the fashion club, the crew team, and yearbook,” Gabby reported, smoothing down her plaid pleated skirt. “Lili sent invites to juniors, sophomores, and a few freshmen. We’re trying to keep it exclusive so we don’t get busted. The Devious Four are going to be so pissed, though—obviously, they weren’t on the list.”
“But we’ll make it easy for them to crash, right?” Charlotte asked.
“Uh-huh.” Lili tapped away on her phone. “And then we’ll nail them.”
Charlotte looked at Emma. “How’s Ethan coming on that video footage? I love your idea about projecting it onto the gym wall.”
“I think he’s getting pretty close,” Emma said. Actually, she wasn’t sure how Ethan was doing with the footage—it hadn’t exactly been at the top of her priority list. They’d spent the rest of last night in silence, looking up at the stars, and holding hands until Emma had to drag herself back to the Mercers’.
Emma shook her head. Mr. Mercer was certainly a good actor—he’d behaved like he had no idea where Sutton’s car was, going along with Emma’s story that it was at Madeline’s. He’d played the loving, if occasionally awkward, father to a T. Was it possible he was used to lying about things, covering up secrets? Was it possible he had a criminal past?
She thought about what Grandma Mercer had said about Mr. Mercer living in California for years before abruptly moving to Tucson shortly after they adopted Sutton. Perhaps he had a criminal record there. People didn’t become murderers out of nowhere, after all. Waiting until Thursday to search Mr. Mercer’s office felt so far off. Maybe if she looked into Mr. Mercer’s past, she could find some previous incidents that would help prove that Mr. Mercer had a violent streak.
A violent streak. I couldn’t stomach it. Had I ever seen my dad be violent before that night? If only I could just remember.
“Earth to Sutton,” Gabby said, waving her hands in front of Emma’s face. “Did you even hear what I said?”
When Emma looked up, Gabby, Lili, and Charlotte were staring at her quizzically. She wondered how long she hadn’t been paying attention. She brushed a lock of hair behind her shoulder and straightened up. “Um, totally,” she fudged.
The shrill blare of the bell startled them. Everyone rose from their seats and headed for the door, chattering excitedly, as this was the last period of the day. Buses idled on the curb outside. A line of cars had already begun to form at the exit.
Madeline was waiting in the hall, her coat on. Charlotte quickly filled them in on the plan to coordinate outfits.
Madeline’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, shopping! Want to go tomorrow when you guys are done with practice?”
Everyone nodded. Charlotte turned to Emma. “I guess we’ll fill Laurel in at practice.”
Madeline made a face. “I don’t know if we should include her—she seems to be a little too busy hanging out with my brother to help us plan. I think someone might need her Lying Game privileges revoked.”
“That might be a tad dramatic, Mads,” Charlotte said in a soothing tone. She shifted her weight. “Right, Sutton?”
Emma nodded quickly. Now that Laurel wasn’t a suspect, she saw the situation for what it was: a girl who had a massive crush on her hot best friend. Laurel wanted to spend as much time as possible with Thayer in order to win him over—or maybe to keep him away from her older sister.
Madeline shrugged, then spun on her heel and marched in the opposite direction. Lili and Gabby followed, still texting. Charlotte touched Emma’s arm and steered her down the hall the other way. “Is something bothering you?” she asked softly.
Emma took out her hair tie and let her long hair spill over her shoulders. “I’m fine,” she said. “Just a little stressed out lately, I guess.” Even if she couldn’t tell Charlotte what was really wrong, it felt good to admit that she was struggling.
“Can I ask you something?” Charlotte said as they skirted around a bunch of girls looking at something on their phones. Emma overheard the words invite and secret dance. “You weren’t really sick with food poisoning at your dad’s party, were you?”
Emma’s head shot up. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
“Someone said they saw you outside with Thayer,” Charlotte said out of the corner of her mouth.