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this whole girlfriend-thing, but I knew enough that he needed to tell me what the hell was going on.
    Another ring sliced through the thick silence between Zach and me. I snatched the phone from the dashboard and tapped answer. “Yeah. I’m comin’.”
    “Mandy. Hurry up. Georgia’s here.”
    “What?” I sat straight. “What’s wrong?”
    “Her mom’s gone.”

 
     
    Chapter 5
     
    “Georgia?” I yelled as I stormed into the apartment.
    “We’re in here,” Scott said from the kitchen.
    I slammed the door and hurried through the living room to the kitchen. Georgia sat slumped in the chair, elbows resting on the tile-top table.
    “What happened?” I sat on the tabletop and grabbed my sister’s hand.
    Her blood-shot eyes bobbed in a pool of tears. She handed me a crumpled sheet of paper. I glanced at Scott. He shook his head and looked down.
    Oh great. Now what had happened? It was bad enough that something was going on with Zach. Now something was spooking my brother and sister.
    I smoothed out the sheet against my lap then read it.
    Dearest Georgia,
    I cannot stay here any longer. I had to leave to find my own life. Things have been bad between me and your dad for several years, and I tried to hold on. But I can no longer do so. Please don’t try to find me. I’ll be in touch with you after I’ve had some time to think.
    Love, Mom.
    “Are you kidding me?” I re-read the letter twice. The blue, cursive writing was shaky, like she’d been writing it while driving or something. “She left you and your dad?”
    “And right before the dinner date where we thought she was going to tell me everything,” Georgia said.
    I looked at Scott.
    He shrugged. “Timing’s a little peculiar.”
    “A little?” I hopped off the top of the table and pointed my finger at him. “You’re the one who decided we should wait! After California I wanted to confront them right away. But you wanted to let things play out. Now we’re totally screwed, Scott.”
    Georgia tunneled her fingers through her hair. “I went to the safe. The door was the same as before. I don’t think she even checked it.”
    “How is that possible? She had to have known that stuff was in there. Hell, she probably put it in there.” I jerked the fridge door open and snagged a can of Pepsi. “This totally and completely sucks.”
    “Tell me about it.”
    My heart crashed to the floor. “Oh, God. I’m such an idiot.” I stepped to Georgia’s side. “I’m sorry. Your folks are getting a divorce, and I’m whining about my shit. I’m a total jerk.”
    “It’s okay. Ever since I found out they weren’t my birth parents things have been weird. I was just buying time ‘til we move into our own place.”
    I squeezed her shoulder. “But still. This is huge.”
    “What’d you say to your dad?” Scott asked.
    “After you dropped me off, Mandy, I hung out in the kitchen for a while. Watched some TV while I ate a bowl of cereal. You know. Junk like that.” She stood from the table and stepped to the counter next to the fridge and crossed her arms over her chest. “I hopped online and chatted with Facebook people, posted on some blogs, then got ready for bed. I yanked my covers back and there was this freaking note.”
    I gulped some soda, and my eyes watered. I didn’t have a good feeling where this was going. Or it was the caffeine and bubbles cramping my stomach.
    “Well, I was stunned, needless to say, so I stormed into their bedroom.” Georgia’s nostrils flared, and her jaw clenched. “Um—well, Dad sat on the bed, holding a piece of paper.” She looked down, and her shoulders shook.
    I moved to her and yanked her into my arms. Scott’s wove around us, too. Georgia buried her face in my neck, and I held her vibrating body close to me.
    “He was crying. Bawling like a little kid. It was still horrible to see. You know?”
    “Trust me. I know,” I said. How ‘bout seeing him sliced and diced, eyes fixed on the ceiling? I