Liar 12

After a lingering hug from Emily at the front door, Paige went back inside the house. Her heart pounding in her chest she pulled her phone from her pocket and dialed Spencer's number.

After three rings the call went to voicemail. Paige kept it simple. "Spencer, call me."

Unsure exactly what to do next Paige decided to cover her bases and send a message via text to the two numbers she had for the girls. The moment Aria and Spencer looked at their phones they would at least be aware that Emily had left.

Heading back down the hallway Paige made her way to the kitchen. It was time to take another pain pill. She wasn't much for taking medication and would have skipped it but she could feel the one from earlier wearing off and the pain was excruciating. Any progress she had made was reversed after smashing into Emily.

Reaching the kitchen, she found Mrs. Montgomery at the table grading papers. "How are you feeling?"

Paige immediately felt guilty for playing hooky from school. "Much better. Thank you." Walking to the sink, Paige filled a glass with tap water.

"You're welcome," Aria's mom put down the pen she was making notes with and looked up from her work. Catching a glimpse of the older woman Paige knew a serious chat was coming. "You know, Paige, if you ever need someone to talk to about things. I understand it's not exactly cool to open up to a friend's mom but I'm here if you, or any of the girls, need to talk."

"Thanks," Paige repeated as she took her prescription. "I'm better. It was just a rough day at school and with everything that's happened something set me off."

The partial truth didn't exactly help stop the concern. Worry crossed Mrs. Montgomery's face. "What set you off? You aren't having issues again with the basketball team? Are you?"

Rob Polar had been a jerk again and so he would have made a well-deserved fall guy but Paige found she couldn't lie. "It wasn't him."

"Then what?"

The parental sympathy was comforting and so Paige moved to the kitchen table and took a seat. She had intended to merely thank Aria's mom for her support but instead the truth poured from Paige's lips. "Did you ever feel so powerless it made you a little crazy for a short while?"

A sweet, small, smile crept onto Mrs. Montgomery's face. For a split second Paige saw the beauty in a woman old enough to be her mother in a way that wasn't exactly PG. Shaking off the realization Paige listened intently to the response.

"The final couple years of my marriage I often felt a little crazy."

It was interesting to hear an adult admit to the same feelings and the confession compelled Paige to share more. "I'm not sure if Aria's said anything, or if you've figured it out, but I really like Emily."

"I know." The answer was simple and without judgment.

"And between what happened to Maya and then what just happened to me, I can't help but feel like I'm causing Emily more pain."

"Emily's a strong, young woman."

"But had Jason's car done any worse than it did..."

Mrs. Montgomery interrupted, "Jason?"

Paige had opened a can of worms. "He stopped over last night and told me. It was his car that hit me but he was out of town at the time."

"His car? How does he know that?"

"Police ran some tests and figured it out. I'm assuming paint from my bike or something."

"If he was gone. Who was driving?"

"That's the question." Paige said to herself as much as to Aria's mom.

"Do they believe it was someone on a joyride or was someone trying to hurt you?"

"With things in Rosewood being what they are..." Paige added before trailing off.

Aria's mom looked worried. "You don't think it's connected to what's happened?"

"Which one?" Paige sadly reminded her.

Aria's mother nodded with an equal amount of grief on her face. It was like most of the adults in town; murder in a small community was hard enough but when it was a young person the wounds seemed to cut deeper and conversation was limited to vague references. "I know what happened to Maya is a mystery but I thought they had a strong case with Alison. The young man is in custody. So it can't be connected."

Paige stopped herself before she filled in any more blanks, "I don't know."

From the front of the house a door slammed. "Anyone home?" Shouted Aria.

Jolted by the slamming, or the conversation, or both, Mrs. Montgomery looked in the direction of the front door. "In here."

The sound of Aria's footsteps slowed a little and then she appeared in the kitchen doorway. "Everything, okay?" The question came with a look that signaled a greater unspoken question.

Paige took the hint. "Getting there."

"Good." Aria replied trying not to look suspicious but failing.

"I've got to finish grading these papers. Remember Paige, if you need anything."

And just like that the conversation was over. The abrupt shift was almost unsettling. It wasn't like Paige wouldn't have spoken in front of Aria but it seemed her new friend's mother didn't want to continue.

Standing, Paige forced a yawn. "My meds are kicking in. I'm going to go lay down before dinner if that's okay."

"Of course."

"And I have homework to do." Aria quickly offered up. "Yell, when dinner is ready?"

Mrs. Montgomery nodded and then returned to her schoolwork as Paige made her way out of the kitchen. As she walked out, she heard Aria whisper something unintelligible to her mother before heading out as well.

The two walked in silence down the hallway, up the stairs, and down the second floor hallway. It was the moment Paige reached the bedroom, where she was still staying, that Aria caught up and followed her inside the room, closing the door behind her. "What is going on?"

...

Sure Aria had concern in her tone but the fear, Paige assumed was bubbling up, could have easily been mistaken for anger.

"Text messages." Paige offered.

"There were more?"

"Yes and Emily happened to see me as I made my escape from school after getting one. I couldn't think fast enough to make anything up so she knows."

Aria put her bag on the floor. "She was bound to find out."

"So is Spencer with her now?"

"Why would she be with Emily?"

"When Emily left I texted you guys, like Spencer asked me to."

"I didn't get a text."

While fighting off an inconvenient yawn Paige reached into her pocket. Handing her phone to Aria she pointed at the screen while trying not to worry. "Group text. Right there."

"I never got this." Aria said as she pulled her own phone out and handed it to Paige.

On the screen was a list of texts from a variety of people but none from Paige. "What is going on?"

Aria didn't hesitate, "I think we should call Spencer." Taking back her phone, Aria punched the screen three times before putting it to her ear.

...

It was a good thing Aria had come home when she had. Spencer didn't answer when Aria called but Hanna was immediately sent over to find Emily and quickly checked in that the pair of them were enjoying a study session at Hanna's house.

Once Paige knew Emily was safe she politely told Aria that she really needed to sleep off the pain medication she had taken. Her eyes were barely staying open and the only solution was rest.

Her head hit the pillow and Paige was out like a light.

...

"Girls! Come down here," the voice of Aria's mom echoed up the stairs.

Startled by the urgent tone, Paige pulled herself from the comfortable bed, moved quickly to the door, and towards the stairs. She had always wondered what a fire alarm felt like. After being jolted so abruptly Paige had a pretty good idea she now knew.

As she reached the stairs Aria was coming out of her room with worry on her face. Something told Paige that this wasn't a normal tone from Aria's mother. They weren't being called to dinner.

The girls bolted down the stairs and exchanged glances as they headed down the hall at a quick clip. Arriving in the kitchen Mrs. Montgomery was on the phone with someone as the small television in the kitchen showed what looked to be a local news bulletin. As the story on the screen sunk in, Paige couldn't believe what she was watching.

"... Circumstantial evidence is never enough and what we have concluded is that we don't have ample evidence to assure a strong conviction against Garrett Reynolds."

The camera flashed on a woman Paige knew to be Spencer's mother. She had been serving as Garrett Reynolds' attorney despite her daughter's objection. "At this point keeping my client locked up only seems to be calming the fears of Rosewood residents. The fact is his unlawful incarceration could be putting more people at risk because the person, or persons', reasonable for Alison DiLaurentis murder are still walking free. This family deserves closure in the form of the prosecuting of the real guilty party."

The sound bite ended and the camera shot returned to the anchor in studio. "WRFF will bring you more during our 6:30 broadcast including a sit down with," Aria's mom couldn't take it and went to cut the TV off before the male anchor could finish his plug for the 6:30 news. Paige stopped her as the broadcast moved to coverage of a story of much greater interest. On the screen was the face of the man who Paige knew as Emily's new friend, Nate. "Leave it, please."

Aria exchanged confused glances with her mother but Paige didn't care. The person Emily had been spending time with was being shown on TV. He was being described as a dangerous young man with a history of drug addiction, who had a name other than Nate, and was wanted for questioning related to a hit and run on Main Street.

"Could this be the person that hit you," Aria's mother asked as the anchor continued onto another story.

"I don't know." Paige responded softly. It wasn't the fact that he might have hit her with a car but that he had been spending time with Emily, that had Paige scared. Reaching for her phone she scrolled through her photo stream to find the pictures she had taken of Emily talking with Nate at the 'coffee house.'

Before she could subtly hand the phone over to Aria it buzzed, as did the one Aria had in her jeans pocket. Both Paige and Aria reached for their phones to look at the message.

"Don't ever say I never gave you anything. - A"