Sara Shepard - Twisted

But it was the weekend; no one was in the building. Hanna pulled out her phone again and called her father’s office number. The cell phone tried to dial out, but because she was in an elevator, the call couldn’t connect. She tried her mother’s cell, then Spencer’s, then Aria’s. She dialed 9-1-1. Nothing. Call lost.

Beads of sweat stood out on Hanna’s forehead. What if the elevator was stuck for days? What if the building caught fire and she was trapped in here? It was just like being locked in that bedroom in the Poconos when Ali had set fire to the house. Or being caught in the headlights of Mona’s car as Mona-as-A gunned forward and hit her. “Help me!” she screamed. “Help!”

And then, horrifyingly, she heard the voice.

I bet you weren’t always pretty, were you?

“No!” Hanna screeched, willing it out of her brain. She couldn’t think about it right now. She couldn’t let the memory in.

But Tabitha’s voice just got louder. I feel like I’ve known you girls forever!

All at once, Hanna could no longer resist. The memories of Jamaica slipped in sideways, longways, folded up and pressed flat. The voices of her friends swarmed in her ears, and suddenly she could clearly see the hotel room at The Cliffs.

“Do you think we should go see what she wants?” Aria held up the note Tabitha had pushed under the door.

“Are you crazy?” Emily stared at her. “That’s a death sentence! Ali’s setting us up!”

“Em, it’s not Ali .” Aria groaned.

Everyone else shifted awkwardly. “Actually, it really seems like Ali,” Spencer whispered. “We all think so, Aria. You’re the only one who doesn’t.”

Hanna looked at the note again. “Maybe Aria’s right, though. If we don’t go upstairs now, she’ll find us another way. She’ll get us alone. At least, this way, we’ll all be together.”

And so they went. Tabitha was waiting for them on the crow’s nest, which was a smaller, higher platform atop the roof deck restaurant that was perfect for tanning and stargazing. She sat on one of the chaises, sipping a piña colada. No one else was up there. Tons of potted palms swayed around the space, making the little balcony seem private and way too secluded.

When she saw them, she leapt to her feet, smiling broadly. “Hey, guys! I guess you got my note!”

The smile on her face had been twisted, diabolical. Hanna’s gaze drifted to the bracelet on her wrist—just like Emily said, it was an exact match to the one Ali had made for them after the Jenna Thing. It was frayed at the edges, just like Ali’s was. And it was that perfect, lake blue they’d all thought was so pretty.

It was Ali. It had to be. All traces of Tabitha were gone, and Hanna could see Ali so clearly it hurt.

Spencer wrapped her hands around the top of an empty chaise longue almost like she was going to use it as a shield. “Why did you want us to come up here?”

“Because I was going to show you something,” she said innocently.

Spencer’s eyes narrowed like she didn’t believe the girl for a minute. “Who are you?”

The girl put her hands on her hips and tilted back and forth teasingly. “Are you drunk, Spencer? My name is Tabitha. I told you that.”

“Your name isn’t Tabitha,” Emily said in a small, terrified voice. “You know things about us. Things no one else could know.”

“Maybe I’m psychic,” the girl said, shrugging. “And, okay, there’s something about all of you I can’t quite put my finger on. I feel like I’ve known you girls forever—but that’s impossible, isn’t it?” Her eyes sparkled mischievously. Hanna’s stomach swooped.

Then the girl fixed her gaze on Hanna, who was still standing by the stairs. “You can come closer, Hanna.” She beckoned, curling her finger. “I won’t bite. I just want to show you the incredible view. It’s amazing from up here.”

Hanna clamped her mouth shut, feeling immobile. Then, the girl took a lurching step toward her, seemingly crossing the crow’s nest in one step. Her drink sloshed in her glass. Her wide eyes didn’t blink. In seconds, she had pinned Hanna to the low wall that surrounded the deck. Up close, she smelled like vanilla soap and rum. When she gazed into Hanna’s eyes, she let out another lilting, familiar giggle. Hanna’s heart banged. She thought of the times she’d heard Ali’s giggle even after Ali had supposedly perished in the Poconos fire. The mornings she’d woken in a cold sweat, sure Ali was after them. Now, it was coming true.

“What do you want from us?” Hanna cried, shielding her face with her hands. “Haven’t you taken enough?”

The girl stuck out her bottom lip. “Why are you so afraid of me?”

“You know why,” Hanna whispered, staring into the girl’s crazed eyes. “You’re Alison DiLaurentis.”

A flicker of something—maybe surprise, maybe amusement—passed across the girl’s face. “The dead girl?” She pressed her hand to her chest. “The crazy murderer? Now why would you say something horrible like that?”

“Because of everything you’ve said to us!” Aria said behind Hanna. “Everything you know! A-and because of the burns on your body. Are those from the fire?”

The girl glanced at her burned arms and smiled playfully. “Maybe. But I didn’t survive that fire, did I?”

“No one really knows what happened,” Emily said shakily. “Everyone thought you died, but . . .”

“But what?” the girl interrupted in a teasing voice, her eyes gleaming. “But I escaped ? Any ideas how that could have happened, Em?”

Emily paled and took a step back. Hanna, Spencer, and Aria glanced at her for a moment, not knowing what the girl was getting at.

Then, the girl advanced toward Hanna. Hanna shrieked and jumped away. “What’s the matter?” The girl looked offended. “What do you think I’m going to do?”

“Leave me alone!” Hanna screamed, lurching back. The rough bamboo that lined the walls scraped against her skin. She sensed the open air behind her, the wall giving way to a thirty-foot drop. The ocean crashed far, far below.

“Don’t touch her!” Aria ran up to the girl, grabbed her arm, and spun her around. “Didn’t you hear her? She wants you to leave her alone!”

“Just tell us who you are, okay?” Spencer called behind Aria. “Just be honest.”

A slow smile spread across the girl’s face. “You want an honest answer? Okay. I’m Tabitha. And I’m fabulous .”

Everyone gasped. Hanna was pretty sure she screamed. Ali always said that.

Tabitha really was Ali.

Ali broke from Aria’s grasp and turned for Hanna again. Hanna tried to press against the wall, but her ankle turned and she lost her balance. She wheeled around, face-to-face with the crashing ocean below. With just one push, she’d fall down, down, down . . .

“Help!” Hanna screamed now in the elevator just as she’d screamed then. “Someone help me!”

Suddenly, the lights snapped on again. The car bounced once, throwing Hanna to the ground. The motor began to whir, dragging the car toward the lobby.

The bell dinged. The door opened smoothly at the ground floor, as if nothing had been amiss. Hanna stepped out into the empty atrium, her heart chugging fast, her body both sweating and shivering, and the horrible memories she’d long suppressed now flying around her head like a flock of geese caught inside a shopping mall. It had happened. All of it had happened. A was right—the past was never far away.

Something off to the left caught her eye. A small, gray utilities closet stood slightly open. ELEVATOR , said a sign on the door. Levers, gauges, and switches lined the wall. It certainly hadn’t been open when Hanna arrived a half hour ago. In fact, she’d never seen it open before today.