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Emily shifted into drive and gunned down the street. Only at the corner did she turn her lights on
again. And then she heard her cell phone beep. She rifled through her purse, grabbed it, and looked
at the screen. One new text message.
What do you think HE S so angry about? A
Killer
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Killer
NOTHING LIKE AN ULTIMATUM TO KICK OFF THE WEEKEND
There it was. The big Victorian house at the corner of the cul- de- sac, the one with the rose
trellises along the fence and the wraparound teak deck in the back. Yellow Do Not Cross police tape
was supposed to be around the half- dug hole in the backyard& only there was no tape anywhere.
As a matter of fact, there wasn t a hole anywhere. The yard was a wide, flat expanse of freshly
mown grass, untouched by backhoes or bulldozers.
Hanna looked down. She was on her old mountain bike, the one she hadn t touched since she
got a driver s license. And her hands looked swollen. Her jeans strained across her butt. Her thighs
bulged. A strand of poop- brown hair fell over her eyes. She ran her tongue over her teeth and felt
rough, metal braces. When she gazed into Ali s backyard, she saw Spencer crouched behind the
raspberry bushes that bordered Ali s house and hers. Spencer s hair was shorter and a little lighter,
the way it looked in sixth grade. There was skinny, baby- faced Emily behind the tomato vines, her
eyes darting nervously back and forth. Aria, with big pink streaks in her hair and wearing a freaky
German tunic, ducked next to a big oak.
Hanna shuddered. She knew why they were here they wanted to steal Ali s flag. This was the
Saturday after Time Capsule had begun.
The four girls marched to one another, annoyed. Then they heard a thud, and the back door
opened. Hanna and the others crouched behind the trees while Jason stormed across the yard. The
patio door slammed again. Ali stood on the porch, her hands on her hips, her blond hair spilling
down her shoulders, her lips pink and shiny. You can come out, she called.
Sighing, Ali marched across the yard, her wedge heels sinking into the wet grass. When she ap-
proached Hanna and the others, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a shiny piece of blue
cloth. It looked exactly like the piece of the Time Capsule flag Hanna had found at Steam a few days
ago.
But hadn t Ali lost her flag? Hanna looked at the others, confused, but her old friends didn t seem
to notice that anything was amiss.
So this is how I ve decorated it, Ali explained, pointing at the different drawings on the flag.
Here s the Chanel logo. And this is the manga frog, and here s the field hockey girl. And don t you
love this Louis Vuitton pattern?
The flag looks like a purse, Spencer oohed.
Hanna regarded them uneasily. Something felt scrambled. This wasn t happening like it was sup-
posed to. And then, Ali snapped her fingers, and Hanna s old friends froze. Aria s hand hung motion-
less, almost touching Ali s flag. A few strands of Emily s hair were suspended in air, caught by a
breeze. Spencer had an odd expression on her face, something between a fake smile and a grimace.
Hanna wiggled her fingers. She was the only one not frozen. She stared at Ali, her heart pound-
ing hard.
Ali smiled sweetly. You re looking much better, Hanna. Completely recovered, huh?
Hanna gazed down at her too- tight jeans and ran her hands through her limp hair. Recovered
wasn t the word she d have chosen. Her recovery from loser to diva wouldn t happen for another
few years.
Ali shook her head, noting Hanna s confusion. From the accident, silly. Don t you remember me
from the hospital?
H- hospital?
Ali brought her face close to Hanna s. They say people should always talk to coma patients.
They can hear. Did you hear me?
Hanna felt dizzy. Suddenly, she was back in her hospital room at Rosewood Memorial, where the
EMTs had taken her after her car accident. There was a round, bright fluorescent light above her
head. She could hear the hiss of the various machines that monitored her vital signs and fed her in-
travenously. In the hazy space between coma and consciousness, Hanna thought she saw someone
looming over her bed. Someone who looked startlingly like Ali. It s okay, the girl lilted, her voice
exactly the same as Ali s. I m okay.
Hanna glowered at Ali. That was a dream.
Ali raised a flirtatious eyebrow as if to say, was it? Hanna glanced at her old friends. They were
still immobile. She wished they d unfreeze she felt way too alone with Ali, as if they were the only
two people left in the whole world.
Ali waved her Time Capsule flag in Hanna s face. See this? You need to find it, Hanna.
Hanna shook her head. Ali, your piece is lost forever. Remember?
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Killer
Uh- uh, Ali protested. It s still here. And if you find it, I ll tell you all about it.
Hanna widened her eyes. All about& what?
Ali put a finger to her lips. The two of them. She cackled eerily.
Two of them& what?
They know everything.
Hanna blinked. Huh? Who?
Ali rolled her eyes. Hanna, you are so slow. She stared right at her. Sometimes, I don t notice
I m singing. Remember that?
What do you mean? Hanna asked, desperate. Singing& what?
Come on, Hanna. Ali looked bored. She tipped her head to the sky, thinking for a moment.
Okay, how about& go fish?
Go& fish? Hanna repeated. The card game?
Ali grunted, frustrated. No. Go fish. She waved her arms, trying to make Hanna get it. Go
fish!
What are you talking about? Hanna cried desperately.
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