Read Online The Lying Game by Sara Shepard - Free Book Online Page B

roared by. I felt an achy longing to wrap my arms around his big neck and kiss his cold, wet nose.
    Mrs. Mercer set down a bottle of vitamins and walked over to Emma. “Drink.” She shoved a glass of orange juice toward Emma. “Do you have cash for lunch?”
    “I need to tell you something,” Emma said loudly andsharply. Everyone stopped and stared at her. She cleared her throat. “I’m not Sutton. Your daughter is missing. She might have run away.”
    A spoon clattered against a plate, and Mrs. Mercer’s eyebrows arched. Emma braced herself for something awful to happen—alarms to go off, fireworks to erupt, ninjas to emerge from the laundry room and take her down, anything that might indicate what she’d just revealed was very, very dangerous. But then Mr. Mercer just shook his head and took a sip of coffee from an ALOHA FROM HAWAII! pineapple mug. “And who, pray tell, might you be?” he asked.
    “I’m her … long-lost twin sister, Emma. I was supposed to meet Sutton yesterday. But she’s … gone.”
    Mrs. Mercer blinked rapidly. Mr. Mercer exchanged an incredulous look with Laurel.
    “Save the creativity for English class.” Mrs. Mercer plucked a croissant from a platter on the island and pushed it toward Emma.
    “I’m serious. My name is Emma,” she told them.
    “Emma, hmm? And what’s your last name?”
    “Pa—” Emma started, but Laurel slammed her coffee cup to the table. “You seriously don’t believe her, do you, Mom? She’s just trying to get out of school.”
    “Of course I don’t believe her.” Mrs. Mercer pushed a folded piece of paper into Emma’s hand. “Here’s yourschedule. Laurel, can you get Sleeping Beauty’s shoes and tennis bag from upstairs?”
    “Why do
I
have to do it? “ Laurel whined.
    “Because I don’t trust your sister.” Mrs. Mercer grabbed a set of keys from a pineapple-shaped holder by the cordless phone. “She might fall back to sleep.”
    “Fine.” Laurel groaned and scraped back her chair.
    Emma stared blankly at the shiny brass buttons on Mrs. Mercer’s business suit, then at the new-agey crystal necklace at her throat. How could this be happening? Why didn’t they believe her? Was it
that
crazy?
    Maybe. Even though I wanted my parents to believe what Emma was saying, it
did
kind of sound insane.
    Laurel walked across the room toward the stairs. “Thanks a lot for last night, jerk,” she hissed at Emma as she passed.
    Emma stepped back as if Laurel had just slapped her. Then she remembered Charlotte’s remark at the party.
Did you ditch Laurel again? You’re a bad, bad sister.
There was also the text from Laurel on Sutton’s phone: THANKS FOR NOTHING, BITCH.
    “I
didn’t ditch you.” Emma spun around and stared at Laurel’s receding back. “I was waiting for Sutton when Madeline dragged me to the party. I had no control.”
    Laurel backtracked and stopped right in front of Emma. “Sure, Sutton. Just blow off the one thing I asked you weeks ago to do. I was basically stranded at Red Door. I bet you rigged it so you knew my phone was about to die, too, huh?” She had natural highlights and tiny freckles across her nose. Her wide jaw worked a fresh piece of Juicy Fruit gum. “Where’s your locket?”
    Emma’s hand fluttered to her collarbone and she shrugged helplessly.
    Laurel’s lips parted. She let out a low scoff. “But I thought it was so
special
to you,” she said icily. “Something
no one
else has. ‘The only way someone’s getting this from me is if they chop off my head!'” Her voice took on a singsong quality as she mimicked Sutton’s.
    “Girls, don’t fight,” Mr. Mercer warned, reaching across the kitchen island to grab his leather briefcase and car keys.
    “Yes, don’t fight,” Mrs. Mercer urged. “Just get those bags, okay? You have thirty seconds.” Laurel whirled around and started up the stairs. “Whose car are you taking? Sutton, is yours still at Madeline’s?”
    Mrs. Mercer turned to Emma,