EMMA POV

The house felt large.

Each sound carried. My shoes hit the marble. The air was still.

I stood by the window. The garden moved under a gray sky. Reporters had once waited there. The same place. The same house.

Charles had spoken for me. Ethan had stayed silent.

It did not feel like peace. It felt like being watched.

A knock came.

“Come in,” I said.

An older woman entered. Her hair was neat under a white cap. Her voice was steady.

“Mrs. ...