Chapter 27
After the police car passed in front of our house holding an ashen looking Spencer who had enough sense to not look at us Charlie ushered everyone inside before taking his leave to follow the cops. Jessica was only able to sleep with the help of a sedative and much persuasion Ken took one as well. When everyone was asleep and the twins were snoring peacefully in their cribs I plopped down in my little hideout following the proceedings.
Not long time had passed before the door was pushed over creaking slightly. Within the blink of an eye I had turned around pointing a gun straight between the eyes of the taller, ragged, freshly showered Jason who was holding a tray with two cups of warm tea and a bowl.
"A gun? You have a gun?"
"I'm more lethal without it"
I shrugged and like a any good Mary Sue I put the gun back down and turned around to face my monitors. Jason was taking the room in. During some downtime I had painted in soft lavender and had added heavy midnight blue curtains.
The circular curved wall around the room was separated in four different categories. One part was occupied by a large cork board and filled with photographs of all the people I knew Ali was involved with and next to them were notes about them.
Another part had a large Rosewood map with yellow pins showing the places I had been the night I was Ali and who I had met there and with white the places Ali had been when she died.
The third part had information about the Liars and Ali's major enemies while the forth was blissfully empty.
A long white desk housed two flat screens, one hooked to the traffic cams of Rosewood and the other was separated in four showing the Liars' houses. Kind of overkill I know, but knowledge was power. I was sitting on the matching white chair observing the interview Spencer was giving the cops when Jason dropped down on a low sofa bed pushed up near the desk
"Like what you've done with the place"
"Thanks"
"Ever been printed with a psychopath?"
His tone I was light and while I smiled I replied at once
"Once. It was your sister"
I felt more than saw him rolling his blue-green eyes and he reached the small black owl that was sitting on a piece of pink paper
"Gift?"
His tone was strained. I threw the owl a look before shaking my head
"no. I'm gonna hand it over to someone to see if they have something of mine"
I reached for it and uncapped the head of the owl
"See? it's a USB device. It only looks like a pendant"
"oh"
I put it back in the pink wrapping paper to hand to Caleb the next day. It didn't matter if he suddenly had decided he wanted out, he'd be out when I, or rather Jenna as he thought his anonymous employer was, decided.
"You're not going to tell me more, are you?"
Jason asked sounding resigned. I rolled around in my chair to face him and took one of the mugs with the steaming tea
"You won't know until you ask"
I smiled. In the quiet night, in the den tower above the garage with the twins' soft murmurs and noises coming from the baby monitor on the floor, I told Jason everything about my plans. I held back nothing and answered all his questions.
Next day I stopped quickly in front of Hanna's house and put in the mailbox the owl, before texting Caleb to come find it. Then remembering the conversation I had with Emily about how reluctant her new girlfriend had been about them going public, I called Sean and asked for his help. He was a major believer of 'True Love' and agreed to help me out. We agreed that he'd flirt with Paige enough to cause friction between her and Emily causing them both to admit their feelings.
As far as we went publicly, we'd say we were on a break. Hey, it worked for Ross and Rachel!
So when at lunch Hanna was gushing about the pretty owl she had found in Caleb's stuff, Sean put our plan in motion and I sat with Angelica both of us watching Emily get upset and jealous. It was a fun 40 minutes. It was even funnier when Spencer joined them going on an Elena rant about all the stuff the cops took from her room.
"I should have known the trophy was a set up. I could hear -A laughing in my head"
Spencer moaned. She wasn't wrong about the last part, I was laughing. Next to me, completely oblivious to my inner thoughts, Bit was going on about her next few tutorials tapping away stray thoughts in her notebooks.
"What are you thinking about so intently?"
I tried to take a peek but she laughed and shooed me away.
"Okay, don't laugh"
"Promise"
She tilted the notepad to me. The page was filled with doodles and a long list of screen names, quantities and prices
"You're turning tricks?"
The strawberry blond girl swatted me with the notebook
"No moron. It's clients alright but clients about my products"
"Really? That's great Bit"
I gave her a hug genially happy for her.
"Wanna go out dancing? I haven't been out in far too long"
I nodded
"Two single gals on the prowl. Be careful Rosewood"
"What happened to Sean?"
"Sean's ancient news"
I gave her a daring wink and laughing we made out way to class. My phone rang in a dark funeral rhythm
"I gotta take it, cover for me?"
"Sure"
Ducking in the girls bathroom I hid in a stall, slapping an out of order sign and pressed the green phone and immediately the number 1. I knew my voice would come out all low and breathy, impossible to be recognized
"if it isn't Caleb. How are the woods? I hear it's really uncomfortable for fall romps"
"Hey. Stop. Listen to me"
"Do you have what I want? If not there is nothing to talk about?"
"We both made a mistake"
"you maybe. I don't do mistakes. Can it be done by tonight"
"no, I can't do it tonight"
"you said you'd have it ready. I thought you wanted to stop"
I said mockingly
"I know what I said but it's different now"
"sex with her is that good? I should put her in my black book"
"she is who you say she is"
"she's not Hefty?"
"don't call her that"
"I want it tonight. Or she finds out who you really are"
"no, I can't do it tonight"
"why?"
"because I say so"
"not good enough"
"because I live in her house and you can't call. it's gotta stop"
"you have one day"
I hang up before he could finish his sentence. Smirking I washed my hands thinking of all the ways I could out him to Hanna and settled on the most innocent one. Smiling to myself I took the long route back to class and settled in my seat after I sent a text to Jenna.
"I left something in your locker. Thank you for letting me copy your notes xoxo"
It was amazing to watch Hanna's expression as she saw Caleb's gift around Jenna's neck. Between that and Emily's hurt expression catching wind of Sean's impeding date with Paige, my inner Ali was whooping with glee.
Final nail to the coffin was Hanna realizing that 2-1-4 belonged to Caleb's locker. After a lengthy fight she threw him out. Not twenty minutes later I got a text from Bit canceling girls' night. She had a date.
