Never Have I Ever (19 page)

Chapter 29
The Darkest Place in the World

Emma peered into the tiny opening. “Gabby!”

The rocks must have shifted when she fell, walling her inside. She stepped back and blinked into the darkness. “Laurel? Charlotte?” No one answered.

Another weak cough emerged from inside the cave. Emma tried 911, but her phone refused to dial out.

The temperature had dropped at least ten degrees since Emma had descended into the gulch, but sweat ran down her face and back. She assessed the opening again. There was a space in the rocks just wide enough for a body to slip through. She could do it. She
had
to. She was the one who’d shoved Gabby off the cliff. Even though Gabby had killed Sutton, Emma wasn’t a killer, too. She had to make this right.

“I’m coming, Gabby,” she called.

She dropped her backpack to the ground and rolled up her sleeves. Taking a deep breath, she hoisted herself up to the small hole and wriggled through. The inside of the space smelled musky, like an animal. The rocks felt slick and cold on her skin. Her shoulders bent inward, her arms out in front, feeling the way. Her hip bones ground against the sides of the tiny tunnel as she moved forward a few feet.

“Gabby?” she called. Her voice sounded so loud inside the cave. “Gabby?” she tried again. But Gabby didn’t answer. Had she passed out? Had she had another seizure? Was she dead?

Tiny pebbles fell on her head with even the slightest provocation as she squirmed forward. Dust clogged her lungs. At one point, she glanced over her shoulder and could barely see the tiny crack she’d slithered through.

I crawled along with her, the small, confined space feeling like a coffin with the lid closed.

“Gabby?” Emma cried again. Her knees banged on a rock. Her shoulders squeezed through two tightly compacted boulders, and she emerged into a wider pocket inside the cave where she could almost stand. “Gabs?” Still no response. Where had she gone? Had Emma’s ears played tricks on her?

Suddenly, a loud
boom
filled the air. Dust whipped across her face and up her nose. A loud whooshing sound roared in her ears. Pebbles pelted Emma’s back and head and ran down her shirt.
It’s an avalanche
, she thought, covering her head and flattening herself to the bottom of the tunnel.

The noises continued for a few moments more. When they petered out, Emma carefully raised her head and looked around. Dirt swirled everywhere. She squinted in the direction she’d come. The hole she’d climbed through was
gone
. She was walled in.

“Oh my God,” I whispered.

Panic rose in Emma’s chest. “Help!” she screamed, but her voice didn’t seem to carry, bouncing off the close, thick walls. “Help!” she cried again, but it was no use. No one called out from the other side. Why weren’t Sutton’s friends back by now? Why didn’t they hear her?

She looked into the wider opening again, pricking up her ears for another one of Gabby’s moans. “Gabby?” she whispered, looking right and left. Her heart pounded so loudly in her head she feared its vibrations might cause another landslide. Her eyes began to play tricks on her, forming shapes she knew weren’t there. A chair. A seated figure. A tennis racket propped up against the rocks. Her head spun; she had to be losing oxygen in the sealed space.

And then a cold, strong hand grasped Emma’s wrist.

Emma screamed out. She tried to wrench free, but the hand wouldn’t let go. The flicker of a dim flashlight illuminated the lower half of a girl’s face. “G-Gabby?” Emma stammered.

The figure in front of her smiled. But those weren’t Gabby’s lips. Emma drew in a breath. Was that . . . ?

“Hi, Sutton,” said the girl, followed by a maniacal giggle. “Glad you could drop in.”

The dank air chilled the back of Emma’s neck. Her free hand dug into dirt and rocks to steady herself. “Lili?” her voice quivered. “W-what are you doing here?” Hadn’t they left her at the Super Stop station? Hadn’t she refused to come?

“Come on, Sutton.” Lili cackled. “You know the answer to that, don’t you?”

The words sliced through Emma’s chest. All at once, she understood what was going on: Gabby and Lili’s fight, Gabby’s fall, Lili’s moans inside this cave, even the walls crumbling down around Emma—all of it had been orchestrated by Gabby and Lili as a way to get Emma in here alone. They weren’t mad at each other. Gabby wasn’t hurt. The Twitter Twins knew Emma would crawl into this cave to rescue the girl she’d thought she’d pushed—because she wasn’t Sutton, because she would feel terrible about what she’d done
.
And now, they had her right where they wanted her. They
had
warned Emma, hadn’t they? Countless times, countless ways.
Keep being Sutton. Say nothing. Stop sleuthing. I mean it. Or you’re next.

She’d fallen right into their trap.

“Please.” The word spilled from Emma’s lips. Her body bucked and her head spun; she thought she might throw up. “Can’t we talk about this?”

“What’s there to talk about?” Lili asked in a low voice.

“Please let me go,” Emma begged, trying to pull away. Lili gripped her tightly. “I screwed up, Lili. I’m sorry. But I won’t do it again. I promise.”

Lili made a
tsk
noise with her tongue. “I warned you,
Sutton
. But you didn’t listen.” She shifted on the rocks, edging closer to Emma. With a swift, violent motion, Lili grabbed Emma by Sutton’s necklace, just as she’d done that night in Charlotte’s kitchen. Emma kicked with all her might, banging her knee on the rocks over her head, feeling blood run over her shin. She tried to scream, but Lili had clapped a hand over her mouth, and it only came out as a muffled gurgle. Lili pulled at the necklace, stretching the chain tight against Emma’s throat. Emma began to cough, flailing her arms and legs, thrashing with all her might. Lili pulled harder, the chain cutting into Emma’s skin.

“Please!” Emma croaked, barely having enough air to cry out. Her lungs screamed, and she desperately tried to inhale. Lili giggled.

Suddenly, there was a prick of pain at the side of Emma’s neck, and the necklace broke free. The heavy locket released from the chain and dropped down the front of Emma’s shirt, landing in the waistband of her jeans. Lili’s eyes blazed. Her teeth were bared in a crocodile smile. A vein stood out on her forehead, and she leered at Emma with hatred and vengeance. It was the face of a killer.
Sutton’s
killer . . . and hers, too.

I wanted Emma to run. I wanted her to fight. But instead, I steeled myself for the worst. Suddenly, the strange snapping sensation I always got when I was about to relive a memory whipped through me like a freight train. I saw bright, whirling lights. Widened eyes. A girl on a gurney. The word
EMERGENCY
glowing in red on top of a porte cochere. My nose tickled with the scent of antiseptic and sickness. My ears tingled with the sounds of moans—maybe my own.

And just like that, I fell headfirst into another memory. . . .

Chapter 30
The Aftermath

The emergency-room waiting area is crowded with people: sick babies screaming, a greasy guy in a hard hat with the mother of all splinters in his fleshy, dirty thumb, a bunch of old people who look like they’re already halfway in the grave. The five of us sit upright in our chairs, not leafing through old magazines, not watching the lame-ass local news on TV, just staring at the double doors that divide us from the emergency room and Gabby.

By the time we arrived at the hospital, Gabby had already been taken into the treatment area. The only thing the nurses told us when we burst through the doors was that we had to wait, and they pointed us to the seating area where Lili was already pacing.

Mr. and Mrs. Fiorello arrive, leaving me terrified Lili’s going to tell them what really happened. She doesn’t. Instead, she clutches them, sobbing into their chests. They sit a few chairs away from us, fidgeting, staring at paperback books without turning the pages. Mrs. Fiorello has curlers in her hair, and Mr. Fiorello is wearing shoes that look suspiciously like bedroom slippers. Then again, it
is
almost one in the morning.

About a half hour into the wait, Lili jumps up and approaches one of the triage women behind the thick panes of glass. Mrs. Fiorello follows her; Mr. Fiorello leans his head back on the chair and closes his eyes. When the woman tells Lili she can’t see her sister for the fifth time, Lili screams, “What if Gabby’s dead? What if she needs my blood?”

Laurel bursts into tears. Madeline bites off the last of her manicure. Charlotte keeps making these gagging, puffed-cheeks faces like she’s about to throw up.

“I’m sorry,” I say quietly to them, knowing that they’re all privately thinking that I’m a huge bitch. “I didn’t know this would . . .”

“Just shut up about it, okay?” Charlotte hisses, digging her nails into her thighs. “Don’t make me regret not saying anything to the cops.”

A balding, middle-aged male doctor in blue scrubs and a surgical cap emerges through the ER doors, spies Lili and her mom, and walks to them. Mr. Fiorello and the four of us jump up and rush to their side. My stomach churns. The doctor’s face is drawn, as though he’s about to deliver bad news. He clicks and unclicks a pen and twists his mouth. “You’re Gabriella Fiorello’s family?” he asks.

Lili’s parents nod. Mr. Fiorello wraps his arms around Mrs. Fiorello and Lili’s shoulders, pulling them tight.

“Gabriella had what’s called a grand mal seizure,” the doctor says. “It’s when the electrical activity over the surface of the brain is altered. She’s a little shaken up, but she’s resting now and is doing just fine.”

Lili’s eyes are round. “She’s fine? But why did she have a seizure?”

On and off goes the pen with nonstop clicks. “A seizure can be caused by an infection, but we tested her blood, and she showed no signs of infection. It can also be caused by a brain tumor, but we’ve done an MRI to rule out that possibility. More than likely—”

“What about fear?” Lili cuts him off.

The doctor’s eyebrows shoot up questioningly.

“Can a seizure happen out of fear?” Lili asks. “Like if someone really, really scared her?” She turns and looks pointedly at me. I shrink down a little in my shoes.

“That’s very unlikely,” the doctor says. “We think Gabriella has epilepsy. She’s probably had it since birth, but the disease can lay dormant in people for a long time before manifesting itself. Why it chose tonight to rear its ugly head, we’ll never know.”

“Epilepsy?” Lili repeats, looking like she doesn’t believe him. “But . . . that’s, like, a serious disease! Only freaks have epilepsy!”

“Lilianna.”
Mrs. Fiorello shoots Lili an irritated look.

“That’s not true,” the doctor says gently. “Epilepsy is very manageable. Many patients who have it don’t ever suffer a grand mal seizure again. But to make sure, Gabriella will have to be on medication for the rest of her life. We’re lucky she didn’t have a seizure when she was driving a car, or when she was somewhere alone. It’s great that all five of you were with her and knew to call an ambulance.”

I sneak a peek at the others, wondering if they’re going to speak up. The ambulance wasn’t called because of Gabby, after all, but because I’d stalled the car on the tracks. But no one says a word.

The Fiorello parents nod, taking this in, and thank the doctor. He gestures to the swinging white doors. “You can go see her now if you want. She’s a little sleepy, but she’s been asking for you.”

We shove through the ER doors, pass a nurses’ station and a couple of empty beds, and find Gabby on a small cot in a curtained-off cubicle. She’s dressed in a faded, polka-dotted hospital gown, and her face is pale and drawn.

Lili runs to Gabby and throws her arms around her, making the bedsprings squeak. “I’m so glad you’re okay,” she whispers, her voice choked with tears.

“I’m totally fine,” Gabby says, looking exhausted but okay.

After she hugs her parents, she gives us a small smile. “Hey, guys.”

We each hug Gabby. Her body feels so tiny under the thin hospital gown. Then we hug each other, all of us filled with relief and gratitude and nervous energy. Lili even hugs me, squeezing me tight. “Mark my words,” she murmurs into my ear. “The prank might have ended okay, but Gabby and I are going to get you. You aren’t going to know when, you aren’t going to know where, but we’ll get you back one way or another.”

I wave my hand dismissively. The Twitter Twins, pranking
me
?
Right.
I’m no longer that scared, needy girl from the waiting room. I’m Sutton Mercer again, the girl everyone looks up to. The girl everyone fears. The girl who gets away with everything.

“I’d like to see you try,” I challenge.

Lili doesn’t blink. “Game on, Sutton.”

“Game on,” I answer back.

Chapter 31
Clever Little Bitches

“Please,” Emma whispered as Lili loomed close, her body weak from Lili’s choke hold and the lack of oxygen. “Please don’t hurt me.”

“Say goodbye,” Lili growled.

Emma closed her eyes and pictured all the people she would say goodbye to. Ethan—she’d never even gotten to kiss him. She never realized exactly how much she
wanted
to kiss him until right now. Madeline, Laurel, and Charlotte—no more laughing with them, no more gossiping. It struck her, suddenly, that these were people she knew in Sutton’s life, not hers. Was there anyone who would miss her from when she was Emma? Who did she have who would mourn
her
? Even Ethan couldn’t grieve for Emma in public. He would have to know her as Sutton Mercer, not Sutton’s secret twin. And Alex didn’t know she was pretending to be Sutton, wouldn’t realize that it was Alex’s friend who was now dead.

Sutton’s face, a face so identical to hers, flared in her mind. She’d wanted to know Sutton more than anything else in the entire world. And she’d wanted to solve this for her sister, to put this horrible crime to rest. Who knew what would happen now.
I’m sorry, Sutton
, she thought.
I tried my best.

I know, Emma.
I tried to place my hand over my sister’s to comfort her, to let her know I was right there.

The cave was tomb-silent. Lili leaned down so her lips were next to Emma’s ear. And then, quietly, joyfully, she whispered, “
Gotcha.
”

Her hands went slack from Emma’s neck. When Emma opened her eyes, Lili was giggling hysterically. “Gotcha!” she cried again, louder this time, as though she were calling to someone.

Rocks began to shift, and suddenly, the big boulder that had walled Emma in disappeared. A bright flashlight shone into their faces. “Gotcha!” another voice cried from outside the cave. Emma shielded her forehead and stared at the willowy blond. Was that . . . Gabby?

Emma scuttled out of the cave. As soon as her feet hit solid ground, Gabby cuffed her playfully on the shoulder. “You were so scared! We got you so good!”

Madeline, Charlotte, and Laurel appeared behind Gabby, contrite looks on their faces. Emma’s heart raced, and she gasped for air. “Did you guys know about this?”

Laurel smiled sheepishly. “We found out at the dance.”

Emma gaped. She turned to Lili, who was climbing out of the cave, then back to Gabby. She tried to settle her nerves with a deep breath, but it caught in her throat. “How long had you been planning this?” she sputtered.

The Twitter Twins exchanged a glance. “Lili and I scoped this place out a couple of weeks ago on a camping trip with our dad,” Gabby admitted. “And then when you invited us to go camping, we put everything into action.”

Lili grabbed Gabby’s flashlight and shone it up the ridge. “There’s a ledge just below where Gabs fell. She jumped there after you pushed her.” She put
pushed
in air quotes. “I made lots of noise down here to make it sound like she’d had a bad fall.”

“So you were here the whole time?” Emma asked.

“Yup. I only pretended to call a cab,” Lili said. “I hid my car in the back of the Super Stop earlier today.”

“Oh, and we weren’t really fighting about Kevin, by the way,” Gabby said with a grin. “Lili isn’t into him.”

Lili made a face. “He smells like smoked salmon.”

“He does not!” Gabby’s plump lips pursed.

Lili shrugged and turned back to Emma and the others. “When you guys left, I drove here and hid at the bottom of the ravine—there’s another parking lot nearby that got me here much faster. Once I knew Gabby pretended to fall, I climbed into the cave”—Lili pointed at the rocks—“which we actually made. Wait ’til you see it in the daytime. It looks
so
fake and cheesy.”

“Lili waited for you guys,” Gabby went on, proudly rocking back and forth on her heels. “And then, when Sutton climbed in, I came out from my hiding place and walled you in together.” She wiggled her hands in front of her face as if to say
Spooky
.

“You should have heard Sutton!” Lili’s eyes gleamed. “She was begging for her life! It was priceless!” Lili shone her flashlight on her iPhone. “I got a recording of it. We can
all
hear Sutton. ‘
Please! Don’t hurt me, please! Can’t we talk about this?
’”

Gabby grinned at Emma. “You’ve been freaked for weeks, waiting for us to prank you. I swear you were going to pee your pants when we drove you to the impound the other day.”

Lili wagged her finger at Emma. “I told you we were going to get you back for that car-stalled-on-the-tracks prank.”

“Speaking of which, did you like our little choo-choo charm?” Gabby flicked Lili’s charm bracelet and it jingled. She turned to the others. “We sent Sutton a little present at the country club a couple of weeks ago. A little reminder that we weren’t even yet.”

“So it was you,” Emma said, more of a statement than a question.

“Of course it was us.” Lili grinned. “Who else would have?”

Gabby giggled. “Who knew the unflappable Sutton Mercer could get so frightened?”

Everyone turned and looked at Emma, waiting for her response. Her heart was still thrumming fast. Her blood coursed with adrenaline. Just moments ago, she’d believed this was the end. She could have sworn Gabby and Lili were Sutton’s killers and the case was solved. But now, everything felt turned upside down. This was all just a prank? There was no malice, no murderous revenge? Her relief mingled with the sinking realization that once again, she had no idea who had killed Sutton.

But for the first time in weeks, I relaxed. Emma was safe—for now. Gabby and Lili just wanted to be in our clique. My killer was still out there, but the five girls who stood staring at Emma—thinking she was me—weren’t killers. They were my friends.

Finally, Emma straightened up and took a deep breath. “You definitely got me,” she admitted. “It was a good prank.”

“It was an
awesome
prank,” Charlotte agreed. “How did you think of it? Did you guys have help?”

“Believe it or not, the idea came out of our tiny brains,” Lili pointed just above her ear. “We’ve told you a million times, we have tons of ideas for pranks. But you snobs didn’t listen, so we decided to take matters into our own hands.”

Charlotte crossed her arms over her chest. She glanced at Emma. “I think this might’ve been the best prank
ever
.”

“Much better than the train tracks,” Madeline piped up.

“Better than the snuff film, too,” Laurel added. “And even better than what Sutton did to . . .” She peeked at Madeline and shut her mouth.

Gabby and Lili turned to Emma. They looked so hopeful and eager, two puppies desperate to impress the alpha dog. All at once, Emma felt for Gabby, for all she’d been through.

I felt badly for Gabby, too. But more than that, I felt embarrassed. I’d callously brushed off her seizure. I’d insisted, over and over, that no one dare tell what
I’d
done, like I was the most important person in the room. Was it possible I’d treated my murderer cruelly like this, too? Had I crossed the wrong person, someone who’d sought revenge with more than just a prank? Someone who’d paid me back by taking my life?

Finally, Emma cleared her throat. “I know I said there was only room in the Lying Game for four people, but I think we can make an exception.”

“Maybe even
two
exceptions,” Charlotte added.

Laurel nodded.

The Twitter Twins clasped hands and jumped up and down as if they’d just won
American Idol
. “We knew it! We knew you’d let us in!”

“I suppose we have an induction ceremony to perform,” Charlotte announced. “Your official entrée into the Lying Game.”

“You’ll get to pick executive titles,” Madeline said. “I’m Empress of Style. Sutton’s Executive President and Diva.”

“I want to be Mistress of Awesomeness,” Gabby piped up immediately, as if she’d been thinking about this for a while.

“I’ll be High Princess,” Lili chimed in.

“There are a bunch of rules, too,” Charlotte said. “Which includes no lying during games like Never Have I Ever and Two Truths and a Lie.” She fake-coughed out the name
Gabby
into her palm.

“I didn’t lie!” Gabby protested. “I told two truths! The false one was the dead body. I would never touch something
dead
.” She shuddered.

Madeline shifted onto one hip. “So you cheated to get on the Homecoming Court?”

Lili made a small, embarrassed
eep
, but Gabby shrugged. “Guilty as charged. We hacked into the site and voted for ourselves hundreds of times. Told you guys we’re smarter than you think.”

“I guess you are.” Emma hiked her backpack higher on her shoulder. “I don’t know about you, but I’ve had enough camping for one night. I think the hot springs can wait for another day.”

“Let’s get the hell off this freaky mountain.” Madeline grabbed Gabby’s flashlight and shone it on the trail. “You know the way back, right?”

“But of course!” Gabby trilled.

As they started up the ridge, another thought popped into Emma’s mind. She pulled Gabby aside. “It
was
an awesome prank. But, um, next time? Maybe don’t cut a light fixture quite so close to my head.”

Gabby stopped. Even in the blue-black darkness, Emma could see consternation wash over her face. “You mean that light in the auditorium? We didn’t do that! God, Sutton! We’re not insane!”

Then she moved ahead of Emma, her long ponytail swishing. Emma stood still a moment, a cold realization vibrating all the way down to her fingertips. Of course Lili and Gabby hadn’t cut that light to fall on her. Someone else had.

My killer.