“You pretty much know the rest,” she said.
He nodded slowly. “I believe so. Now, Emma—do you or Nathan own a gun?”
“Just Dad’s,” she said. “He got them out of storage. They were in the gun case.”
“All of them?” he asked, glancing at her over his glasses as he scribbled notes.
“I think so.” She chewed her lip. “Do you … do you think that what happened back then is relevant?” she asked.
“Why would it be?” Chris asked.
“It just seems like a massive coincidence otherwise, doesn’t it? I come back here and start asking questions, and suddenly my husband is dead,” Emma said.
“I think that the more distant from your past this current murder is, the better for you,” Chris said.
“In other words, I shouldn’t talk to the cops about that idea,” Emma said.
“I wouldn’t advise it.”
Emma fidgeted, rubbing her thumb over the opposite palm in a repetitive gesture. “The thing is, I’ve been talking to some people. People that think Dad was involved in some dangerous things. Illegal things.”
“Your mother’s suspicions aside, I never saw any proof of wrongdoing,” Chris said. She was silent. For all that he’d helped her back then, she’d never felt like she could tell him how she’d really felt about her father. As far as he was concerned, the narrative the police painted about a girl who hated her parents was a total fiction. Randolph Palmer had been his friend. “Who have you been talking to, exactly?”
“Logan Ellis,” Emma said. “He told me that he used to sell prescription pills to Mom. And that Dad was using the company as a front for smuggling.”
“Logan Ellis is a waste of oxygen who sold pills to middle schoolers,” Chris said, his expression dark. “I wouldn’t believe a word he says.”
“But is there any chance it’s true?” Emma asked. “If it was, couldn’t that have something to do with why they died?”
Chris clicked the pen to retract the point and set it on the legal pad, then folded his hands. “We aren’t trying to solve your parents’ murders. We’re not trying to solve any murder. We are trying to insulate you from this investigation.” He let out a sigh. Rubbed the spot between his brows. “I’m sorry. After everything you’ve been through, you shouldn’t have to endure this. And it’s going to be hard. Very hard.”
“Does that mean you believe me, at least?” Emma asked, hating the tremor in her voice, the way she couldn’t quite look at him.
“I’ve always believed you,” he told her.
“I haven’t always told you the truth,” she said.
“You told me the important thing. That you didn’t do it,” Chris said. The chair creaked as he adjusted his weight. “And this time?”
“It wasn’t me,” Emma told him. There was no real inflection to her voice, no strength. Just the words offered plainly, without performance.
“I’m going to do everything I can,” he promised. She could see in his eyes that he didn’t think it would be enough. “But, Emma, to protect you, I need to know what I’m protecting you from. Are you sure that you’ve told me everything?”
“I loved my husband,” Emma said quietly. Her hands were limp on her lap.
“I don’t recall questioning that,” Chris replied.
“But people will. They’re going to look at me and try to judge my grief. Whether I’m acting like a widow should. But it doesn’t matter what you do. If you cry, they call them crocodile tears. If you ever laugh, you’re a psychopath; if you never laugh, you’re, wait for it, probably a psychopath. If you smile, you’re remorseless, and if you don’t, you’re cold and unlikable.”
“I wish I could tell you that you’re wrong. But then, you’ve been through this before.”
“Maybe I’m cursed,” she suggested.
“Entirely possible,” he told her, surprising her into a small, mirthless laugh. He settled back in his chair. “The police want to bring you in to ask you some questions. You do not have to go; you aren’t being arrested. At least, not yet.”
“I should seem like I’m cooperating, shouldn’t I?” Emma asked. This time, she didn’t need to lie or spin a story. She hadn’t done anything. She wasn’t trying to hide anything.
“It’s your choice, but I’d advise against it, at least until we know more about what we’re looking at here, and whether they’re looking at you,” Chris said.