“Aria!” Ella called, spying Aria under her hood. She started to wave, signaling for Aria to come over. Xavier had a sheepish expression on his face. As soon as Xavier got a second with her alone, Aria was certain he would apologize. But she was too overwhelmed to deal with it today, on top of everything else.
She grabbed Spencer’s arm, turning away from her mother. “Let’s go in,” she said urgently. “Now.”
Spencer shrugged. They faced the throng on the steps. Aria pulled her hood over her head again and Spencer covered her face with her sleeve, but the reporters still descended on them anyway. “Spencer! What do you think will happen at today’s trial?” they screamed. “Aria! What kind of toll has all this taken on you?” Aria and Spencer clutched hands tightly, moving as fast as they could. A Rosewood cop stood at the courthouse door, holding it open for them. They ducked inside, breathing hard.
The hallway smelled like floor wax and aftershave. Ian and his lawyers hadn’t arrived yet, so a lot of people were milling outside the courtroom. Many of them were Rosewood cops and city officials, as well as neighbors and friends. Aria and Spencer waved to Jackson Hughes, the distinguished-looking D.A. When Jackson stepped out of the way, Aria’s minty gum slid down her throat. Ali’s family was standing behind him. There was Mrs. DiLaurentis, Mr. DiLaurentis, and…Jason. Aria had seen him not all that long ago—he’d come to Ali’s memorial and Ian’s arraignment—but each time she saw him she was floored by how gorgeous he still was.
“Hi, girls,” Mrs. DiLaurentis said, walking over. The lines by her eyes were more pronounced than Aria remembered, but she was still svelte and elegant. She assessed Aria and Spencer. “You’ve both gotten so tall,” she said sadly, as if to imply that if Ali were still alive, she would’ve gotten taller too.
“Are you holding up okay?” Spencer asked in her best adult voice.
“Best we can.” Mrs. DiLaurentis smiled bravely.
“Are you staying in the city again?” Aria asked. The family had stayed in Philadelphia for Ian’s arraignment a few months ago.
Mrs. DiLaurentis shook her head. “We’ve rented a house a few towns over for the duration of the trial. We thought it might be too difficult to commute back here every day from the city. We’d rather be somewhere close.”
Aria raised an eyebrow, surprised. “Is there anything we can do for you?” Aria asked. “Like…help around the house? Do you need your driveway shoveled? My brother and I could come over.”
An ambiguous expression flickered over Mrs. DiLaurentis’s face. Her hands fluttered to the freshwater pearl necklace at her throat. “Thanks, dear, but that won’t be necessary.” She gave them a tight, distracted smile and excused herself.
Aria watched Mrs. DiLaurentis walk back across the lobby to her family. She held her head so stiff and straight, as if she had a book balanced on top of it. “She seemed…weird,” Aria murmured.
“I can’t imagine what this is like for her.” Spencer shivered. “This trial is probably hell.”
They pushed through the heavy wooden doors into the courtroom. Hanna and Emily were already sitting in the second row, right behind the big tables for the lawyers. Hanna had taken off her Rosewood Day blazer and slung it over the back of her chair. Emily was picking at a piece of lint on her pleated plaid uniform skirt. Both girls nodded quietly at Aria and Spencer as they slid into seats next to them.
The courtroom filled up fast. Jackson had set up a bunch of folders and files on his table. Ian’s lawyer arrived and took his place across the aisle. Off to the side the jury box was filled with twelve people Aria had never seen before, handpicked by both lawyers. The actual courtroom was closed to the media and most of Rosewood, and only close family and friends were allowed in, along with police and witnesses. When Aria looked around, she saw Emily’s parents, Hanna’s dad and soon-to-be step-mom, and Spencer’s sister, Melissa. On the other side of the courtroom Aria spied her father, Byron. He was slowly helping Meredith into a seat, even though she wasn’t that pregnant.
Byron looked around the courtroom, as if he sensed Aria’s gaze. He found her and waved. Hi, Aria mouthed. Byron smiled. Meredith noticed her too, widened her eyes, and mouthed, You okay? Aria wondered if Byron knew Ella was here—and that she’d brought her new boyfriend.
Emily poked Aria’s side. “You know the night you called me saying you got a note from New A? I got one that night too.”
A shiver ran up Aria’s back. “What did it say?”
Emily ducked her head, fiddling with a loose button on her blouse. “Just…nothing, really. Did Wilden ever get back to you about who they could be from?”
“No.” Aria scanned the courtroom, thinking Wilden might be here. She didn’t see him. She peered around Emily to look at Hanna. “Have you gotten any?”
Hanna’s expression became guarded. “I don’t really want to talk about it right now.”
Aria frowned. Did that mean she had or she hadn’t? “What about you, Spencer?”
Spencer looked at them nervously. She didn’t answer. A sour taste welled in Aria’s mouth. Did this mean they’d all gotten more notes from this new A?
Emily chewed nervously on her bottom lip. “Well, I guess it won’t matter soon, right? If it’s Ian, it’ll be over as soon as he’s back in jail….”
“Hopefully,” Aria murmured.
The DiLaurentises finally paraded in and sat on the bench right in front of them. Jason settled next to his parents, but he kept fidgeting, first buttoning his jacket, then unbuttoning it, then reaching for his cell phone, checking the screen, turning it off, and turning it on again. Then, suddenly, Jason turned around and stared right at Aria. His blue eyes lingered on her for a good three seconds. He had the same exact eyes as Ali—it was like looking at a ghost.