She’s right. I’m not helping. I need to look at everything, like the way I examine one of my books when I’m editing it. Where are the plot holes? Which characters aren’t fleshed out? Who is really driving the story? And why? What’s the crux of the story and what should I be looking for?

“They found three sets of DNA in her,” she says with exasperation, changing the subject.

At first, I don’t understand what she’s saying. My eyes are wide again, and my mouth is partially open.

“One of them is yours. One of them is Scott’s. And the third is unknown.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying you weren’t the only man she was cheating on her husband with. I’m saying you weren’t special. I’m saying she was a whore.” Sarah looks just as surprised as I do after the words leave her mouth.

“Jesus, Sarah!”

“I’m sorry. I’m just. I’m still… processing all of this.” She looks away from me, almost like she’s ashamed for her outburst. I tell her it’s fine, even though I don’t think it is. None of this is fine. Kelly is dead. She was sleeping with another man. How could she?

“Maybe she was raped by that third man?” I offer.

“Maybe.”

“Maybe that third guy killed her too.” I’m trying to make sense of all this, but none of this makes sense. How could Kelly be seeing someone else? Why would she be? Was I not enough? Did she not love me like I loved her?

“Maybe. But I thought you were convinced it was Scott?” She jots down a few more notes.

“I thought I was too. I mean, I am. It had to have been him. He was abusive. You saw what he could do. He beat the hell out of me, and he hurt you, and I know what he was doing to Kelly.” I’m trying to convince Sarah just as much as I’m trying to convince myself. It has to be Scott. This third guy—maybe he was a one-night stand or maybe she was assaulted. I just can’t believe there was someone else. Kelly wouldn’t do that to me. She loved me. I loved her. We had something special.

“Well, that all may be true. But there’s no evidence to point to Scott. He may have been abusive, but that doesn’t mean he killed her. Plus, there were no reports of domestic abuse between Kelly and Scott.”

“She wouldn’t go to the police. He was the police. She was terrified.”