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always did as girls and teenagers, then crossed the street and walked down Piper Lane to Lizzie’s house.
    The moment Lizzie opened the front door, she broke into a huge smile. “Dylan is so sweet! He left a trail of rose petals!”
    Holly followed Lizzie inside the cozy home, and there, indeed, was a line of rose petals leading to a door at the end of the hall. She felt so happy for her cousin. “Lizzie, you’ve got one romantic guy.” She glanced around the bungalow. “Your home is so cozy and wonderful. I love how you decorated the place.” Lizzie’s favorite color, fuchsia, was everywhere, in accent pillows and rugs and even on the walls.
    â€œThanks, honey,” Lizzie said, picking up a rose petal and bringing it to her nose. “Ahhh, I could smell roses all day.” She gestured toward the end of the trail of rose petals. “That’s my bedroom,” Lizzie said, grinning. “I’ll bet Dylan’s covered my bed with dozens and dozens of roses! Oh, Holly, he is so romantic.”
    Lizzie ran down the hall and threw open the door. But there were no roses on the bed. Only a pile of dirt, on which was a note:

    You’re nothing but dirt.

    Lizzie gasped, then dropped to her knees. In an instant, Holly was beside her.
    â€œCome on,” Holly said gently. “Let’s get out of here.”
    Lizzie let Holly lead her into the living room. She fell back against the couch. “I can’t take this!” She covered her face with her hands. “Who’s doing this?”
    â€œI don’t know, honey,” Holly said. “But whoever it is is very jealous. And very immature.”
    Lizzie nodded. “Maybe I should just cancel the wedding. Who knows what this person is capable of doing? Whoever it is is going to a lot of trouble to make my life miserable.”
    â€œSo you are worried,” Holly said. “The way you sounded in the diner, I didn’t think you were taking any of it seriously.”
    Lizzie took a deep breath. “I really wanted to believe everything that’s happened was just coincidence. Just silly stuff. The usual crap. But I can’t deny it any longer. This is the first time someone’s come inside my home . Notes in my mailbox are one thing, but someone came into my bedroom. Whoever’s behind this is serious. I don’t want my friends or family to get hurt. I’m canceling the wedding.”
    â€œYou are doing no such thing,” Holly said, surprising herself with her vehemence. “You have every right to marry the man you love, and no one’s going to stop you! Not some jealous lunatic. Whoever’s behind these incidents isn’t going to win the way those who treated us like trash in school won.”
    Tears welled in Lizzie’s eyes. “I am trash and I’m always going to be trash.”
    â€œLizzie Morrow,” Holly scolded gently, “you are not trash! People treated us that way and we were too young and too confused and too insecure to know how to handle it. But we knew who we were then and we know who we are now. You are a beautiful, intelligent, wonderful person, Lizzie. Whoever’s behind this is the one who’s trash!”
    Lizzie took a deep breath. “I’m just so overwhelmed, Hol. Ever since Dylan and I announced our engagement, I’ve been besieged by hatred. Everything from terrible stares and comments on the streets to hateful notes.”
    â€œOh, Lizzie, you made everything sound so nice on the phone,” Holly said. “Why didn’t you tell me how bad it was? I could have helped.”
    â€œHow?” Lizzie asked, tears falling down her cheeks. “You’re so far away. So removed from all this.”
    â€œBut not from you, Liz,” Holly said. “I love you so much. You’re my family. My blood. My best friend, no matter how far away I am.”
    Lizzie flew into Holly’s arms, her chest