The five women drove in silence on the way back to the barn. After Spencer getting questioned and them receiving another message, tonight had taken a turn for the worst.

-A was back and ready to throw Emily and her friends under the bus if need be, but they couldn't let that happen. They needed to find the real killer, and to do that they would have to make moves. Just like -A had demanded.

"Do you think it was a good idea telling Toby?" Hanna asked.

"Probably not," Spencer answered. "But I asked him to look into Elliot. He might be able to find something that'll help us."

"And in the meantime, what do we do?" Aria wondered.

"Tonight, nothing," Spencer said.

The rest of the women agreed considering the circumstances. With Mary making an appearance and -A planting fake evidence to incriminate Spencer, they had had enough crap for one day.

Spencer parked and everyone exited their vehicles. Emily grabbed her purse and started towards her car, but Alison caught her by the arm.

"Em," Alison said. "Can we talk?"

Emily wanted nothing more than to talk to Alison, but after what Paige had said today at swim tryouts... she couldn't help but assume this was Ali trying to manipulate her again.

"I should get home," Emily declined. "I've had a really long day."

Alison wanted to persuade her friend otherwise, but she knew how that would look. It wouldn't be fair.

Instead, Ali nodded. "Y-Yeah, I understand."

The fact that Alison didn't put up a fight shocked Emily. Usually when she wanted something, she didn't stop until she got it. And to be honest, Alison looked a bit shattered that Emily had said no.

Then Emily received a text. It was from Sabrina.

It read: "Are you still coming over?"

Emily cursed herself for forgetting.

She responded quickly, "Maybe another time. Got hung up at work."

Then Emily looked up and saw Alison already on the front steps of her house. Maybe, if Alison really wanted to talk, she would allow Emily to come over tomorrow morning to do so.

And that's exactly what Emily would do.

* * *

Alison had been grading papers for an hour when she heard a knock on her front door. For a moment, she wondered who on earth would be at her house at ten-thirty in the morning. She stood to answer it.

Emily stood there looking a little tired and anxious, but Alison couldn't deny she was glad to see her. After last night, she had begun to assume Emily had decided to completely shut her out.

"I brought coffee," Emily said. "I was hoping you'd let me do some paperwork here in return."

Ali felt a warmth in her chest at the innocence of Emily's trade.

"Was your mom hanging over your shoulder?" Alison asked.

"Just a bit," Emily answered. "And I didn't really want to hang out at The Brew."

Alison tilted her head. "Why?"

"Sabrina's kind of... mad at me."

Alison found this to be good news, even when it shouldn't have been. She opened her door and let Emily inside.

"I was grading papers anyway, so you'll have some peace and quiet."

Emily moved inside and found that had been easier than usual. Maybe Alison was still up for the possibility of talking, even after Emily had declined her last night. That was the real reason she was her, anyway.

The two women sat across from each other and Alison resumed her work as Emily set up her laptop.

"So... why's Sabrina mad at you?" Alison asked.

Emily typed a few words. "I kind of blew her off last night after Spencer got called to the police station."

Alison frowned. "Why would she be mad that you went to support a friend?"

"Because I didn't tell her the truth," Emily said. "I told her I got hung up at work."

At this Alison wasn't surprised that Emily hadn't told Sabrina the truth. It was smart. And it was just like Emily to do that.

"Oh," was all Alison said. She didn't want to pry anymore.

"I just... I can't tell Sabrina," Emily continued. "I can't tell her about -A or what we did or anything because she wouldn't understand."

Alison found herself glad that Emily was opening up to her.

"But won't it be hard building a relationship with someone you can't be completely honest with?"

Alison couldn't help but see the irony in her own comment.

"Yeah well, that's why I don't think Sabrina and I will work out," Emily admitted. "I just feel bad because I was the one who initiated in the first place."

Alison scribbled on a quiz. "At least you tried."

It fell silent again, which allowed Alison to think. She suddenly felt compelled to talk to Emily about what she had wanted to last night.

"Em-"

A knock on her front door stopped her sentence. Emily and Ali looked at each other with unsure expressions.

"Are you expecting someone?" Emily asked.

"No." Alison stood. "I'm not."

Ali paced through her house with Emily right behind her. Emily showing up unannounced had been a pleasant surprise, but anyone else would be out of the ordinary.

Emily peeked out the window and spotted none other than Mary Drake.

She looked at Ali. "It's Mary."

"You're joking."

"No."

Ali's hand rested on the door. "What do I do?"

Emily shrugged. "I don't know? Answer it?"

Alison opened the door and felt as if she was seeing ghosts. Now she understood why Emily had been so freaked last night. This woman looked identical to her deceased mother.

"Alison?" Mary said. Then her eyes spotted Emily. "Emily. Nice to see you again."

Neither Ali nor Emily knew what to say.

Mary linked her hands together. "This was probably a bad idea."

Alison and Emily exchanged glances before they seemed to have the same thought. This could very well be their opportunity to get some answers out of Mary.

"N-No," Emily stammered. "We were just talking about you."

Mary's expression grew worried.

"Not... badly," Alison recovered. "Would you like to come inside? Have some tea?"

Mary's worried expression fell as she smiled. "Yes. I would love that."

Emily stepped back as Ali allowed Mary to enter the house. They watched as the near stranger observed the den and made her way inside.

"I'm assuming Emily recounted our conversation last night at The Radley," Mary said.

Ali nodded. "Yes. She did."

Mary looked at them with piercing blue eyes. Ali felt a shiver run through her body.

"Good. I'm happy I didn't catch you completely off guard."

Emily and Alison continued to exchange unsure glances. Emily urged Alison to ask Mary what the hell she was doing here, but Alison didn't want to step on Mary's toes.

Mary caught them exchanging silent messages.

"You can ask me whatever you'd like," Mary said. "It's the least I can do considering I showed up at your house unannounced."

Emily gave Alison a shrug.

"Okay," Alison started. "Why did my mother never mention she had a twin sister?"

Emily listened while she poured Mary's tea.

"Jessica believed the Drake name was... tainted," Mary confessed. "And I'm sure she believed that was because of yours truly."

Emily rested next to Alison after she gave Mary the tea.

"Why's that?" Ali asked.

Mary sipped her tea and remained looking down into her cup. Had the question hit a nerve? She had been the one to bring it up in the first place.

"There was an incident when we were teenagers." Mary palmed her drink. "Jessica had been babysitting and had called me to relieve her. She claimed she had a headache." Mary took a deep breath. "I didn't want to, but when I got there she left and told me Teddy was sleeping."

It seemed as if the air in the room went still.

"When the parents came home, the father was giving me Jessica's money and..." Mary seemed to choke up. "The mother went upstairs. She started to scream like she was on fire."

Emily felt bumps rise on her arms.

"Teddy was dead," Mary revealed. "And I tried to tell them that it wasn't my fault but Jessica of course said he was fine when she had left him." Tears rimmed her eyes. "I was admitted into Radley and stayed there until I was eighteen."

Jesus, was all Ali could think. She knew her mother could be harsh sometimes, but had she really done that to her sister?

"Why would she do that?" Emily asked.

Mary shook her head. "Jessica never really liked me."

"Why?"

"I was born first," Mary said. "She was born jealous."

Alison couldn't help but feel a chill in the air at Mary's comment. Was she still holding a grudge after all this time? Even when her mother was now dead?

"So why have you come back to Rosewood?" Emily continued.

They needed to get as much information out of her as possible. Emily just hoped they didn't set Mary off.

Mary leaned back. "Well, a few weeks ago I received a lengthy letter. It was from Charlotte, and she explained everything to me. How she found me, where she was and what had been going on in her life." Mary looked up. "She told me she was getting out of Welby. I assumed she would be staying with Jessica considering she and Kenneth adopted her when I gave birth to her in Radley. That's when I found out Jessica was dead."

Mary continued. "I had a lot of things to get in order before I could return to Rosewood." Mary locked eyes with Alison. "Where is Charlotte? Is she sleeping?"

Alison realized that Mary was here to reclaim her daughter. Her daughter that had been murdered. Mary had no clue and the only people around to tell her were Emily and herself.

Emily was stiff with fear. What were they supposed to do? They had to tell her the truth, but it felt as if the news would completely shatter Mary.

"Uh..." Emily started. She knew Alison couldn't do this. "Ms. Drake... Charlotte... she's dead."

It seemed as if the news hadn't quite resonated with Mary.

"What?" Mary asked in a whisper.

Alison looked at Emily as they debated on how to go about this in the gentlest way possible.

"Mary," Alison said. "Charlotte... she got out of Welby about ten days ago. She and Elliot..." Alison looked at Emily. "They were murdered the night she was released."

Emily gave Alison a supportive look as they moved closer to Mary. It looked as if the news was finally setting in when Charlotte's mother wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I'm sorry." Mary stood. "I have to go."

"Ms. Drake," Emily called.

Mary turned back around with bloodshot eyes. "I thought..." She choked up. "I thought I would have a real chance at being a mother."

Emily and Alison stood there practically dumbfounded at this entire situation. This wasn't how they had planned to spend their morning. Not delivering this kind of news to Mary, who had apparently solely come back to Rosewood to be with her daughter who was now dead.

"We're so sorry," Emily said.

"I loved Charlotte like a sister," Alison admitted. "And I did everything I could to get her out of Welby."

Mary gave a small smile, but you could see the pain in her eyes.

"Thank you, Alison," Mary said.

Then Mary turned and left the DiLaurentis household. Emily and Alison just stared at each other in shock. What the hell had just happened?

"Oh my God." Alison sat on the couch. "The look on her face..."

Emily sat next to Ali. "She had no idea."

The two women sat together in silence as they processed what had just taken place. Then after a minute, Emily stood.

"We need to call the others," she said. "They need to know what we know."

Alison agreed silently as Emily made the calls. They all agreed to meet at Spencer's barn in ten, which gave Alison and Emily more time to process.

"This is my fault," Alison whispered. "If I hadn't pushed so hard for Charlotte to get out, she would still be alive-"

"Alison," Emily said. "This is not your fault. Do not say that."

"I mean, don't get me wrong. Charlotte did some terrible things," Alison continued. "And lied about a lot... but did she deserve to die that way?"

Emily watched Alison struggle, but she couldn't answer her. She couldn't because Emily believed Charlotte deserved a lot of pain. A horrible death? Maybe not. But that's what had happened as a result of her actions.

The things she had done to Emily and her friends in that Dollhouse were terrible. Alison still had no clue what they had endured. And Charlotte never truly got better. Not under any doctor. But was that her fault? Was it because she never tried hard enough? Or was it because she was one of the lost few of the world who were too damaged to be fixed?

"We should go to Spencer's," Emily suggested. "She's probably waiting."

Alison nodded as they left for the barn, but she couldn't get the image of Mary's broken expression out of her head. She had looked so devastated. It reminded Alison of the day she had found out about her own mother's death.

They walked in and were greeted by their friends. All of which looked confused as to why Emily had been at Ali's in the first place. Emily hoped they hadn't assumed she slept over.

"Mary Drake just stopped by at Ali's," Emily said.

"And?" Spencer pressed.

They told everything. From Mary's reasoning as to why no one knew about her, Jessica's backstabbing, and being completely unaware of Charlotte's death. Once they were finished everyone sat in shock, just like Emily and Ali had.

Then Spencer broke the silence. "Are we sure she's telling the truth?"

"Why would she lie?" Emily asked.

"Because she's creepy?" Hanna included.

Ali shook her head. "No. The look on her face... you could tell she didn't know until we told her."

"So are we assuming Mary and Charlotte's relationship consisted solely of what she said?" Aria questioned.

"You guys think she made up that entire story?" Alison asked.

"Look, she showed up out of nowhere looking for her dead daughter," Hanna said. "Plus, Charlotte told so many lies I'm sure it was in her DNA. And who shares Charlotte's DNA? Mary Drake."

Alison rolled her eyes.

"And if Mary and Charlotte didn't know each other until recently, is it just a coincidence Charlotte called herself CeCe Drake?" Aria included.

"Just because Charlotte knew about Mary doesn't necessarily mean Charlotte had a relationship with her," Emily included. "Maybe she needed more confirmation before she took the leap and sent Mary that letter."

"Yeah. But Hanna's right," Spencer said. "We didn't even know this woman existed until last night. How are we supposed to trust what she says?"

As convincing as Mary was today at Alison's, Spencer and Hanna had planted doubt in Emily's mind. It was true. They knew nothing about Mary or where she had even come from.

Spencer's cell rang out and everyone watched her stare at her screen.

She held it up. "It's from -A."

"Is this the first time they've texted just one of us?" Aria asked.

"I think so." Spencer looked at the message. "It's an address."

Hanna sat next to Spencer and typed it into her phone. "It goes to The Blueprint downtown."

Spencer shook her head. "Why the hell would -A send me there?"

"Guess they want us to find out on our own," Emily said.

Spencer stood to grab her purse. "I guess that's where I'm going, then."

"I'll come," Hanna said.

Then Aria's phone rang too, except this time, it was a call.

She looked down and frowned in confusion. "Rosewood PD?"

"I thought you got questioned already?" Alison asked.

"I did," Aria said. Then she answered the call. "Hello?"

Everyone waited for her to end the call before going anywhere.

When she did she looked up. "They're calling me in for an ID."

"An ID for what?" Emily asked.

She stood. "I have no idea, but I'll meet you guys back here after?"

"Yeah," all four women agreed.

Spencer and Hanna also left, which meant it was just Alison and Emily, alone. Again.

"So much for getting any work done," Alison said as she leaned back into the couch.

Emily rubbed her temples. "I just don't see why -A wants us to figure out who the killers are if there's still an ongoing investigation."

Ali looked at her. "You think -A believes the police are overlooking something?"

"I've never understood what -A thought," Emily finished.

Alison studied Emily and remembered her reaction when she had asked Emily if Charlotte had deserved to die the way she had. Emily hadn't said anything, but her face had. Ali had seen it.

"Em..." Alison started. "Can I ask you something?"

Emily gave Alison a cautious look. "Yeah?"

"You don't have to answer," Ali included. "If it's too much..."

Emily waited patiently.

"When you were kidnapped..." Alison paused. "What did -A – Charlotte – do to you?"

Emily figured Alison had caught her back at her house. It had been so noticeable when she hadn't said anything. She should've seen this coming.

Emily looked down at her joined hands. "A lot of horrible, horrible things."

"I just remember Tanner saying that it was awful what they found..."

Emily could feel a small panic in her chest as the images resurfaced. She could feel the cramping in her stomach when Charlotte had deprived her of food. She could hear the blaring alarm in her head when she did something wrong.

And she remembered the games. All of the horrible games Charlotte made them play.

Emily's stomach felt as if it was now eating itself. She was sure it had been a few days now that -A had deprived her of food. It was punishment for refusing to go back to her room when -A had ordered her to.

But now Emily would've done anything for something to eat.

That's when her door, that usually remained shut and locked at all times, opened. It was the first time it had opened in days.

Emily stared at it from her bed in the room that resembled the one back home in Rosewood. Her real home. But this place wasn't home. This was hell.

An automated feminine voice spoke over the intercom. "Please follow the lighted pathway."

Emily stood but blacked out for a second. She regained her head before doing as told.

She stayed close to the wall as her eyes adjusted to the dark hallway. The coldness of the concrete walls on her hands seemed to wake her up and give her strength. But the terror in her stomach made her want to throw up. Only bad thing was, she had nothing in her stomach to throw up.

She stopped at Hanna's door that was still shut and knocked. "Hanna?"

No answer.

She did the same at Aria's and Spencer's, but no one was there. Where were her friends? A sinking feeling settled in her stomach.

Then she stopped at Mona's door and knocked.

"Mona?" She called.

"Emily?" Mona responded. "What's going on? Why won't my door open?"

"Where did the rest go?" Emily panicked.

"I don't know," Mona said. "I don't know..." Emily could hear Mona sobbing on the other side of the door.

"Hey," Emily said. "It's okay."

"Don't leave me here, Emily," Mona pleaded.

"Please follow the lighted pathway," the voice repeated. Emily knew she shouldn't wait much longer.

"Mona, I've gotta go," Emily said.

"Emily please don't leave without me," Mona begged.

Emily was already down the hall with tears falling down her face. Why wasn't Mona coming? Or was she? And -A just wanted them separated for now?

The lighted pathway ended at a door. Emily rested her hand on the cold handle. She shivered before opening it.

There she saw a chair, and on the table, three switches. Under them we're pictures of her friends, Hanna, Aria and Spencer.

"Please take a seat," the voice ordered. "The game will begin shortly."

Emily could feel her heart beat in her head. Everything inside was aflame with adrenaline. What was she going to have to do?

She sat and waited. Her body trembled in the chair. She could feel her stomach ache from hunger. She wondered if she was going to die here.

Oh please God, don't let me die here, Emily thought.

"Choose your favorite," the voice demanded.

Emily was confused. "What?"

"Choose your favorite, or all will suffer."

Emily didn't understand what the hell -A was asking of her.

"3...2...1..."

Emily went to hit a switch but it was too late. The piercing alarm blared as she felt her head throb with pain. Her hands immediately cupped her ears as she tried to dampen the noise. She was convinced her ears would bleed.

The alarm lasted for an entire thirty seconds.

When it stopped Emily could feel the tears on her cheeks.

"Choose the smartest," the voice continued.

Emily didn't hesitate to hit Spencer's switch.

"Choose the ugliest."

Emily shook her head. This didn't mean anything. She didn't believe this. None of her choices were personal, right?

She hit a switch.

"Choose who will receive water today."

Emily's heart sank. Was -A depriving her friends too?

"Don't make me do this," Emily wept.

"Choose who will receive water today, or all will suffer."

"3...2...-"

Emily hit a switch and felt her tears fall down her face. She felt like she was going to throw up. Everything inside of her wanted to die. She didn't deserve this.

None of them did.

"Em?"

Emily was pulled out of her memory and suddenly felt like crying. It was still so vivid in her memory. Like it had happened yesterday. She was afraid she would never forget.

Emily looked at Alison. "We played games."

"Games?" Alison asked.

"Truth or dare, choose or lose..." Emily looked down in shame. "Who gets water today and who doesn't."

Alison couldn't believe this was the first time she was hearing of this. Charlotte had done that to her friends in that place? She had tortured them and deprived them of food and water?

Alison grabbed Emily's hand. "Emily... you're never gonna have to go back there."

Emily stared at her and Ali's conjoined hands. Ali was right. She would never have to go back to that Dollhouse. But -A was back, regardless of if it was Charlotte or not, and it was beginning to resurface all the horrible memories Emily had tried so hard to forget.

And Emily didn't know if she could handle it.