“She tried to stop the other two that night, fought with all she had. That’s how she got her prints on the knives, got all bloodied. She went along with the plan to steal money because she felt she was owed, and was mixed up with the other girls in that blood bond.”

“I don’t understand.”

“It’s complicated. In the early stages of the case, she broke down and confided to me in a private moment that she never killed anyone.”

“So what did you do?”

“She would not allow me to defend her on that basis. Didn’t want people to think she was trying to lie her way out because she was consumed with guilt. No one knew that she was not a killer. My strategy was to get her second-degree murder charge reduced to aiding and abetting. That way I could’ve argued that she didn’t know of any intent to kill, had in fact taken steps to prevent or stop it under the abandonment principle.”

“Why didn’t you do that, or appeal or something?”

“Again, she absolutely refused to let me.”

“She wanted to be found guilty of murder?”

“During the entire case, she went along with being lumped in with the two killers, accepted being guilty because she felt guilty, and in her mind, she was guilty, for initiating the circumstances. Janie had a tough life before that night. She blamed herself for the entire tragedy.”

“Wait.” Ben caught his breath. “You said Janie?” That was Emma’s previous name…

“Jane Elizabeth Klassyn. She was no saint, but my God, she was no more a killer than you or me, Ben, and that’s the truth that I wanted you to know.”

Ben felt his heart filling with warm relief.

She didn’t kill anyone.

After thanking Tracy and signing off, Ben accelerated.

Guilt. It’s what Emma’s been carrying all these years and has been afraid to tell us. I understand guilt—believe me, I get it.

He dragged the back of his hand across his mouth.

But who killed Rita Purvis? Where’s the other Skull Sister, Lucy Isabel Lavenza?

Ben’s phone pinged with Emma’s text.

Emma and Kayla were at the cabin.

Ben increased his speed, praying that they were safe.

Eighty-Eight

San Bernardino County, California
Present day

Kayla was battling Nikki’s lock on her neck, gasping for breath.

“Let her go, Nikki!” Emma said. “She’s got nothing to do with us!”

Appearing to be in a drug-altered state, Nikki bared her teeth; her eyes flashed fire.

“All these years, finally we find you and what do you do? You deny us. Your sisters! You broke our bond and now Marie’s dead because of you!”

“We were children, misguided, stupid children! Our old lives are gone—”

“And you’ve been living a lie ever since!”

Kayla let out a weak cry as Nikki’s crushing grip tightened.