Simon Says Die

amused that I thought he was having an affair. And relieved.”
    â€œRelieved?”
    She nodded. “It was . . . odd. I knew he was hiding something, but he’d rather me think he was having an affair than tell me what he was really up to. That’s when I started following him.”
    â€œYou followed him?”
    â€œOh, come on. Don’t look at me like that. I didn’t think he was dangerous. I just knew my marriage was falling apart, and I wanted to know why. We didn’t get along. We argued all the time. Then I discovered some hidden files on his computer.”
    Pierce put his finger beneath her chin, tilting her head up so that he could look her in the eyes. “What was in the files?”
    She stared at him a moment, then pushed his hand away and stared out across the field. “He lied about his finances. I found spreadsheets detailing private accounts I knew nothing about, and purchases. He was spending tens of thousands of dollars a month.”
    Pierce grimaced. “You were broke.”
    â€œNo, not at all. That’s the weird thing. We had too much money, way more than we should have had, the way he was spending money. I confronted him, demanded to know where all the money was coming from. When he found out I’d logged onto his computer and looked at his files . . .”
    She shivered and Pierce took her hand in his. She looked down at their joined hands, her brow wrinkling. But she didn’t pull away.
    â€œThat’s the first time I was ever afraid of him.” Her jaw tightened. “But not the last.”
    The bleak sound of her voice told him far more than her words. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to like the answer to his next question. “What did he do?”
    She vigorously shook her head, her dark hair brushing back and forth across her shoulders. “It doesn’t matter. Our marriage was over. He grabbed his laptop and left. He disappeared for two weeks. No phone calls, no e-mails, nothing. That’s when I filed for divorce.”
    Her eyes had a slightly wild look to them, as if she would bolt if he pushed her any further. So he decided not to press her on that topic. For now.
    â€œDid Logan or your mom know about the divorce?”
    â€œNo, no one did.”
    â€œWhy didn’t you tell anyone?”
    She swallowed and briefly closed her eyes. “At first, I was too embarrassed. I hated that my family was right about him. Later, when my dad’s health got so bad . . .”
    â€œGo on.”
    She drew a deep breath. “Damon showed up again when my father was admitted to the hospital. He acted supportive and sweet in front of my family, as if nothing bad had happened between us. I played along, but I wouldn’t let him back into the house. I’d changed the locks. And I was never alone with him, even though he asked me, several times, to speak in private.”
    Her grip on his hand tightened.
    â€œA few days later, my father was dead.” She was silent for a long time. Finally, she shrugged. “A week after that, Damon died in the car accident. I never thought about canceling the divorce proceedings. I’d totally forgotten that I’d even filed, until my lawyer contacted me. He said since Damon had been declared dead, obviously there was no point in finalizing the divorce. But . . .”
    She tugged her hands away from his and shoved her hair back behind her ears.
    Pierce steeled himself for whatever lie she was about to tell him.
    â€œI guess I just wanted those papers to make it feel official, that it was really over. So I had the lawyer push it through.” She shrugged. “There wasn’t any point in telling anyone after that.”
    He didn’t believe for one second that a judge would waste his time processing a divorce when one of the parties in the divorce had been declared dead. He made a mental note to press her about the divorce later. He frowned as a new thought struck him. “Damon didn’t know about the divorce?”
    â€œNo one does. Except you.”
    â€œThen, if he’s alive, he would assume if something happens to you, he’d inherit your money.”
    She blinked at him in surprise.
    â€œYou never thought about that?” he asked.
    â€œWell, sure, but I thought if he’d been declared dead, he’d have no claim to my estate.” She wrinkled her brow. “Even if that’s not the case, I