Emily found herself lying to Brandsom. What else could she do?

"I fell," she said, handing over the only connection she had to her brother to a man she didn't trust. "And found it. End of story."

Of course that wasn't enough for him. It never was. His eyes were dark, shadowed in the dim light in the kitchen. It was her mother's biggest complaint that the windows were too small, not letting in enough natural light. It suited Brandsom.

"You just happened to fall." ...