Page 46 of No One Can Know

“I—I don’t know,” Emma stammered. She’d never thought about where the bullet had gone, when its work was done.

JJ looked back at her, expression unreadable. “It entered the back left side of his head and exited at the front right near the temple, then lodged in the wall.”

“I never wanted to know the details,” Emma said. The more she knew, the more she worried she would find out. And she hadn’twantedthe truth. As soon as she was sure, it would stop being a matter of protecting her sisters. It would start to be a question of protecting just one. The equation stopped balancing.

“He didn’t see it coming,” JJ said. There was a strange mix of challenge and compassion in her voice. Her eyes were locked on Emma. “It would have been instantaneous, for him.”

“But not Mom?”

“She was shot in the chest,” JJ said. “Close range. The bullet only nicked the heart, so it took a minute or two for her to bleed out. A minute or two isn’t that long, though.” She sounded like she’d thought about it a lot. She sounded like she didn’t quite believe that part.

“She must have heard the gunshot and come downstairs,” Emma said.

“Must have,” JJ said, not breaking eye contact. Must have, as if she didn’t know. Maybe she didn’t.

“You sneaked out to meet Logan that night, didn’t you?” Emma asked. JJ startled.

“Who told you that?”

“So it’s true.”

Car tires crunched on gravel. JJ didn’t answer, looking at her steadily. “Sounds like your husband’s home,” JJ said.

“Were you at the Saracen house that night? Where did you go?” Emma asked.

Juliette let out a breath between her teeth. “It’s ancient history. It doesn’t matter.”

The front door opened. “Why are you so worried about people asking questions, Juliette?” Emma asked.

Nathan stepped into the doorway. He was carrying a duffel bag over his shoulder that Emma hadn’t seen before. He looked between the two of them, clearly taken aback. “Oh. Hey, JJ,” he said.

“She brought the carriage house keys. Like you asked,” Emma said, words clipped.

Nathan smiled. “Great! Thanks for that. It’s been driving me crazy, not being able to see what’s out there.”

“Probably just Dad’s tools and a good way to get tetanus,” JJ said with a shrug. She glanced at Emma. “There wouldn’t be anything interesting out there.”

“No, I don’t think so,” Emma said. Not in the carriage house.

“Still. Could be buried treasure,” Nathan said cheerfully.

“Have at it.” JJ tossed Nathan the keys.

He caught them deftly in the air and stepped aside to let her pass. As her footsteps moved off down the hall, he brandished the key at Emma. “Now we don’t have to break down the door.”

“You called JJ about the key?” Emma said quietly.

His affable expression darkened. “Yes. Gabriel—your good friend Gabriel, remember him?—did say she might have one, so yes, I called her.”

“You didn’t tell me you were going to, that’s all,” Emma said.

“I didn’t think it was important.”

“You didn’t think it was worth mentioning that you were in touch with my estranged sister? My estranged sister who Ijusttold you I was having trouble with,” Emma said calmly, teeth clenched.

“It’s not like we were conspiring against you,” Nathan said. “I just want to get into the fucking carriage house.”

“It’s not a big deal, except that you didn’t tell me you were doing it.”

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