“Yes.” She wished he would leave. “Do I need a lawyer?” she asked outright, hoping he would be forthright and honest with her and hoping she could trust him. She was beginning to think there wasn’t anyone she could trust.
He stood. “I think that would be a really good idea. I’ve been working on this case from the beginning, and I personally don’t think you’re involved or even knew what your husband was doing. But if there is anything that links you to his activities, you could be in serious trouble.”
She swallowed. Was there? How would she even know?
“Is there anything?” he asked. He was giving her that look again—that cold, penetrating stare.
Her coffee soured in her stomach. “I wouldn’t have a clue,” she said with the utmost honesty. “My office is upstairs. I don’t go into Paul’s office. He pays the bills; he handles the finances for this house, the cars, everything. I… I don’t even know how this can be happening.”
For the first time since he arrived, compassion filled his face. “Do yourself a favor. When we leave here, go through your husband’s files. Find out what he owns and what he doesn’t. Discover if your name is on anything. We are going to seize his assets and freeze his accounts. If you have access to any funds, you’d better get to them before that happens. We wouldn’t want to see you starve.”
“Thank you,” she said, her voice breaking over the words.
“Get yourself a good lawyer and cooperate with us in every way you can. This trouble your husband is in is very serious.”
“Wait,” she said when he reached the doorway.
“You said he’s working with the cartel?”
“Yes.”
“Is there any reason they would come after me? Am I in danger?”
He shrugged. “I don’t think so, but stay aware of your surroundings, and if there is anywhere you can go away from here, do it. Just let us know where you are at all times.” He took out his card and placed it on the counter in front of her.
She picked up the card and held it to her chest as her eyes filled with tears. “As soon as I can, I’m going home.”
“Where’s home?” he asked, his expression softening.
“Granite Falls, North Carolina.”
“Sounds like a nice place.” A smile lifted the corner of his mouth.
“It is. Nothing like this ever happens there.”
After they left, taking several boxes of Paul’s things with them, Gillian went upstairs to her office. Annie stared at her from behind the bars of her fancy cage.
“I’m starting to understand how you feel,” she whispered to her bird.
Who had she been married to all these years? And why had she been trying so hard to please him?
Over the next week, she did as Agent Morris said and he was right—the house and both cars were leased. There were two bank accounts, one in his name only and one in both their names with only a few thousand in it. Luckily, she had her own business account with enough money to buy a used SUV.
And then it hit the news.
Before she could finish listing their expensive furniture online to sell, everyone knew the truth. Her husband was a crook. Bills started coming in she couldn’t pay, and eviction and repossession notices filled the mailbox. She sold what she could and hired a couple of movers to put everything left into a small U-haul trailer she towed behind her SUV.
She was getting a crash course in life—never trust someone else with the necessities. Stay involved. Know where the money went and how much there was. She depended upon Paul for everything, and he wasn’t the man she thought he was. In fact, Paul Barnes wasn’t even his real name. She was married to a ghost who needed a wife and family—window dressing he bought and paid for. Just like the house and cars, part of his made-up life.
Nothing about her world was real.
Now she had to go home and start over again. What would she do with her life? What kind of job would she get? She spent all her time becoming a top-notch home decorator and gourmet cook. Anything to make Paul happy, but none of that would help her out of the situation she found herself in now. And the sad thing was nothing had ever pleased him. The familiar ache filled her chest. She pushed it away.
It was time to move forward. Rebuild her life. Try not to think about the past and everything she’d lost. How was she going to tell her parents about Paul? She blinked away her tears as she thought of their disappointment.And her embarrassment.She had left Granite Falls because she wanted the big city life. She wanted more than a small town. More than Nick, her high school sweetheart everyone assumed she’d marry. She surprised them all and didn’t.
Look how that turned out.
She stopped at a fast food restaurant for a quick dinner. She’d been driving all day and was exhausted. She considered checking into the hotel next door, but it was only two more hours, and she couldn’t wait to get home. She ordered a large coffee and got back into the car.