Portal Read Online Free Page B

favorites: Mom, Dad, Harry, Ella, Kellan, Ali, and Maria. Who were these people (apart from Mom, Dad and Ella of course)?
    I decided to give Dad a call first. I needed some answers. So, I clicked on Dad and waited for him to pick up. A man answered on the second ring. It wasn’t my dad but I recognized the voice. It was Rupert. I disconnected quickly but he called me right back.
    “Arizona, you called?”
    “Just pressed your name by mistake, sorry,” I said apologetically.
    “Come downstairs, Grandma is leaving soon,” he said as he turned off his phone.
    I tapped my dad’s cell number into my phone and hit dial . It went straight through to an automated message telling me that the number was not in service. I have to try his office later, I thought to myself as I heard the loud honking of a car and went to investigate out the window. It was a taxi to take Grandma home. I rushed down stairs to hug her goodbye.
    As I walked back upstairs, I stole a glance at the various photographs on the wall. It was mostly pictures of me with Mom and Ella. Most of the pictures also included Rupert and a boy I didn’t recognize. These were mostly staged photographs taken during vacations (I recognized Paris and London) and artsy shots. I guess Mom was still into her digital photography thing. I looked so different in these photos, always smiling and not a blonde hair out of place.
    When I was back in the bedroom, I pulled a chair towards the full-length mirror on the wall and sat down opposite it to take a good look at myself. I started with my toes, pedicured. They looked so clean and tidy, not like my normally dirty, broken toenails, feet rough from hockey skates. Same story with my hands, beautifully manicured except for the nail I had broken yesterday while scrambling for the boots.
    I touched my face. My smooth skin had a sun-kissed warm glow, not a zit in sight. My eyebrows had definitely been plucked and my teeth whitened. I smiled at my reflection – who knew I could clean up so nice. My teammates were going to die laughing!
    My teammates. Maybe not? I certainly didn’t look like a hockey-playing, snarly teen girl. I looked more like a girl straight out of Gossip Girl .
    Time to investigate the closet. I opened the door to my walk-in and turned on the light. Jeans, pants, dresses, skirts, t-shirts… there was a varied selection. Mainly designer clothes, but I would manage to find a way to dress down. The shoes were more problematic. No skater sneakers, my main foot attire. All I could spot were ballet flats, sandals, heels… I spotted a row of flip flops, great! That would do for now.
    After a quick shower, I threw on a pair of Marc Jacobs (not sure why I even mention that!) jeans and added a Juicy hoodie. Really! Did they not have a Pacsun here in wherever we were? I needed to better pinpoint my location. I slid on a pair of flip flops and emptied the orange Hermès bag onto my bed: wallet, makeup, tissues, gum and a set of keys.
    I had heard Mom and Ella leave to do the weekly grocery shopping and I knew Rupert had left earlier. I was all alone in the house apart from Gertrude. It was a perfect time to do some snooping, starting with my sister’s room since it was closest to mine. Same story as mine, very nearly identical to the room she had in Princeton. She had her own bathroom and walk-in as well. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, Jonas Brothers posters on the wall and pink everywhere. I left her room untouched and walked toward the room at the end of the corridor, the one with double doors.
    It was an absolutely gorgeous suite, like the ones I had seen in magazines Mom liked to leave sitting around. There were two bathrooms, two walks-ins and a flat screen in the sitting area. Mom’s walk-in was the size of my bedroom. I was tempted to go through her drawers, but decided to do that later. I had no idea how long they were going to be away and certainly didn’t want to get caught.
    I then moved on to the