Read Online Where the Truth Lies by Jessica Warman - Free Book Online

There’s nothing.” To me, she says, “Sit down, Emily. Let me braid your hair.”
    “Well, there has to be some way to find a phone number for her, at least,” Hillary says. “She’s probably at another school, right?”
    “ Obviously she’s at another school,” I say. “Where else would she be? Come on, let’s think about it. I want to help.”
    “Keep looking,” Hillary tells Renee. “You’ll find something. And, Emily, you weren’t even great friends with her. Aside from getting some private information from your dad, what help can you possibly be?”
    I frown at Hillary. But when I think about it, I realize that she’s right. I didn’t know Madeline all that well. Since I’ve been going to school here, I’ve hung out almost exclusively with Steph, Franny, and Grace. I wish I’d taken the time to get to know Madeline better. Now that she’s gone, I’ll never have the chance.
    There’s one thing I remember, though. “You know what’s weird?” I ask. I try to keep my head steady as Renee tugs at my hair with a brush.
    Hillary sits up. She goes to her own mirror on her closet door and begins to dab foundation over a faint hickey on her neck. “What?”
    “I never met her parents. In all the time she was going here, never once did I see Madeline’s parents. Did either of you? Renee, you were her roommate—did you ever meet her mom or dad?”
    Renee is quiet, thinking. “Umm … no,” she says, “I don’t think I ever did.”
    “Well, that’s kind of strange.” Hillary peers into the mirror, squinting as she blends the foundation. “I mean, lots of parents aren’t around much—but to never have seen them? Weird.”
    I feel goose bumps on the back of my neck as Renee winds my hair into two long braids. “That’s enough about Madeline,” she says. “We shouldn’t talk about her like this.”
    “Fine. But you spoil everything fun, you know?” Hillary is at the door. “I’m going to see Max. I’ll be back later.”
    “Take your time,” Renee says.
    “Put my hairbrush back where it belongs,” Hillary tells her.
    I glance down at the bed, where the brush is sitting beside me. “Hillary” is written in permanent marker on the handle.
    “Why are you using her brush?” I ask, once Renee and I are alone.
    “No reason. I just don’t have one of my own.” Renee stands up to look at me. “You look great.” She smiles. “You look ready for your date.”
    I feel my face growing warm. “It’s not a date. We’re just going for a walk.”
    “Okay. Right.” She winks. “Come see me when you get back. Then you can tell me if it wasn’t a date.”
    When I get to Winchester, Del isn’t in the common room; nobody is. Ethan’s drums are still set up, and for a moment I stand there looking at them, part of me wishing I had the nerve to sing with him.
    “Emily.”
    It’s Max. Hillary is standing beside him, her arm around his waist. “Are you looking for Del?” he asks.
    “Yes.”
    “He’s behind the building. He told me to send you back.”
    “Oh. Okay. Thank you.”
    Max gives me a suspicious grin. “Whatcha doing, Em?”
    Hillary stands on her tiptoes and whispers something into his ear. He nods, listening. Then he says, with a knowing smirk, “Ohhh … I see how it is.”
    “I’m not doing anything!” I almost shriek the words. “Hillary, what did you tell him?”
    “What?” She looks at me innocently. “I didn’t tell him anything.”
    “You’d better be a good girl, Emily,” Max says, tugging Hillary toward the door. “We wouldn’t want you doing anything to disappoint Daddy.”
    When I find Del, he’s leaning up against the brick wall of his dorm, smoking a cigarette. I fan the air as I approach him, wrinkling my nose at the smell.
    “I wish you wouldn’t smoke,” I say. “It’s disgusting.”
    To my surprise, he says, “Oh. Okay.” And he flicks the lit cigarette butt into the woods. He smiles. “Better?”
    I’m impressed. Even my