A guard taps his baton on the bars of my cell, telling me I can come out to the common room. He unlocks the door, and I follow him down a hall to a room with some tables and chairs and a television in the corner. There’re only a few other inmates here, this being a small town and all, and this not being a well-equipped prison. Two of them are playing cards at a table, and the third one is reading a book at another table alone. The two at the table look up at me as I enter and whisper to one another. The third guy never looks up. Must be a good book. It’s probably not one of mine.

I take a seat at the table nearest the television and settle in, hoping to escape through the means of some bad daytime television show. But no such luck as a special news report comes on. A news reporter is standing in front of my lake house speaking into a microphone, “A brutal murder has shaken the small town of Brentsville. Kelly Summers, a twenty-seven-year-old local woman, and wife to local Sheriff’s Deputy Scott Summers was found viciously murdered early yesterday morning by cleaning lady, Sonia Gutierrez. Reports say she was brutally stabbed to death. Police are not releasing the name of the primary suspect as the investigation is ongoing. If you have any information regarding the death of Kelly Summers, please contact the local authorities.”

I hang my head in shame and embarrassment. Not releasing the name of the suspect? Are they fucking kidding me? You’re standing in front of my house. How could this have happened? The primary suspect should be Scott, not me. I don’t care what the evidence says, I didn’t do this. I would never do this. Why won’t anyone believe me?

“Morgan,” a guard calls from behind. “You have a visitor.”

I stand up and drag my feet to the door, following behind. He opens the door, and inside, I find Sarah sitting at the table in the small room. Her side of the table is covered in notebooks and papers. The guard closes the door behind me.

“Sarah, I’m so happy to see you. This is a nightmare.” I want to hug her. I want to kiss her.

She looks up at me and gives me a small smile. I get the hint and take the seat across from her. She’s jotting down notes and flipping through pages. “I heard you were released from the hospital.”

“Yep.” I know she wasn’t looking for more response than that.