tears cascaded down Emma’s cheeks. “I’ll get on the first bus that comes along. I can’t stay. This is insane.”
Ethan sat back in the seat, the leather making a crinkling noise. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“What do you mean?”
He turned toward her, biting hard on his thumb. “It’s just . . . you tried to leave once already, and that didn’t work out. Who’s to say this time will go any better?”
“But . . .” Emma stared frantically out the window at the tall cacti silhouettes. “It’s my only chance.”
They were both silent for a moment. A police car whipped past on a road in the distance. Its blue and red lights punctuated the otherwise coal-black night. “But . . .” Ethan began, tentatively. “What if leaving is what the killer wants you to do?”
“No.” Emma crossed her arms over her chest. “The killer wants me to stay here and be her.”
“Hear me out. If Sutton’s really . . . dead, maybe whoever did this is trying to frame you for her murder. They know you’re a foster kid. They know your life was probably hard. It won’t be rocket science to prove. If you leave, everyone will know Sutton is missing. Don’t you think whoever did this will tip off the cops that you’ve been impersonating her for two weeks? And don’t you think you’ll be the person the cops will immediately suspect of killing Sutton?”
Emma let her hands fall limply to her lap. Would they?
“It’s just, Sutton had a really charmed life,” Ethan said quietly, gazing out the window at the crescent moon. “She’s popular, she’s well-off, she gets everything she wants. And from everything you’ve said . . . you’re not. While Sutton got a nice house in Scottsdale, you ended up in foster care. It’s seriously not fair, Emma. Lots of people in your position would do anything to switch places with their twin sister.”
Emma’s mouth fell open. “I’d never kill her!”
Ethan waved his hands in surrender. “I know you wouldn’t. But . . . some people are awful. Some people automatically assume the worst. They might make judgments about you without looking into who you really are.”
Emma blinked. The walls of the car began to close in on her. She certainly knew about the awful people in this world making judgments. Look at Clarice—she’d assumed Emma had stolen her money over her thuggish son, simply because she thought that was what foster kids always did.
“Oh my God,” Emma whispered, covering her head with her arms. Ethan was right. He leaned in and, after a moment, pulled her into a hug. He squeezed hard and buried his head into the crook of her neck. Sobs shook Emma’s body.
I watched as they stayed that way for minutes, clinging to each other. I wished I was Emma so badly. I wanted to hug someone—maybe Ethan—right now, too.
Then Ethan sat back and gazed at Emma. His light eyes crinkled with concern. The corners of his pink, kissable lips arced up in a compassionate smile. He had a sooty splotch on his cheek that Emma wanted to reach out and wipe away. “God,” he whispered. “You look exactly like her.”
“That’s how it works with identical twins,” Emma said softly. Her mouth wobbled into a smile, but then a new sob rushed in.
Ethan touched her chin. “Stay. If Sutton really was killed, we’ll find who did it.”
“I don’t know,” Emma murmured.
“You can’t let whoever did this get away with it,” Ethan insisted. “I’ll help you. I promise. And when we have proof, we can go back to the cops and they’ll have to believe you.”
The rain abruptly stopped. Far in the distance, a coyote howled. Emma felt like she’d been holding her breath for hours.
She gazed into Ethan’s endless blue eyes. “Okay,” she whispered. “I’ll stay.”
“Good.” Ethan leaned forward and squeezed her shoulder. Emma shut her eyes, the touch of his hands on her bare skin sending sparks down her back. She hoped this was the right decision. She hoped she hadn’t just made an enormous mistake.
I hoped so, too.
Chapter 33
LOOK OUT, SUTTON’S BACK
A while later, Ethan dropped Emma off at the foot of Sutton’s driveway. Most of the lights in the house were still on, though all of the cars were gone. When Emma opened the door, Drake bounded over to her and licked her arm. The same fear didn’t paralyze her muscles anymore. She supposed she was getting used to him.
“There you are!” Laurel ran in from