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is mutual.”
    The door clicked back open and Luke hurried inside, stopping at the foot of the bed again.
    “Mrs. Ashton, if you don’t want me here, I’ll wait in the hallway.” He looked pointedly at the detective and Leslie. “But I thought you might want one ally in your corner, something you seem to have little of at the moment. I also strongly urge you not to say anything to Detective Cornell without a lawyer. A criminal lawyer, not a civil one.”
    Leslie pursed her lips but didn’t say anything.
    “Cornell isn’t here with your best interests at heart,” Luke continued. “He considers you a suspect in your husband’s murder.”
    Caroline blinked at the detective. His face reddened, telling her Luke’s words were true.
    “I’m not your enemy,” Cornell explained. “I simply want to know what happened. But first, I’d like to offer you my condolences on the death of your husband.”
    She shivered and rubbed her hands up and down her arms. Even though she knew Richard was dead, hearing it out loud didn’t make it seem real. She kept expecting him to pounce at her from behind the curtains, or stride out of the bathroom and laugh at her for thinking she could ever escape him.
    “Thank you, Detective.”
    “Have you had a chance to speak to your doctor yet?”
    “Yes,” she whispered. “He was here a few moments ago.”
    “Then you know he suspects your husband abused you, that he’s the reason for your fractures, bruises, your ruptured spleen...your miscarriage?”
    She winced and automatically moved her hand to her belly. “Yes. He told me.”
    “Is it true? Did your husband beat you?”
    She blanched, her face growing hot. She’d never wanted anyone else to know about her shame. Until a few days ago, no one did. No one but Leslie.
    “I don’t want to talk about this.”
    “It’s the elephant in the room,” Cornell continued. “It can’t be avoided. You hired a bodyguard, Mr. Dawson here. Why did you hire him?”
    She glanced at Luke. “I knew my husband would be angry that I’d left him. And I didn’t want to have to deal with an argument. I wanted someone who could confront him, if necessary, and save me from the ugliness.”
    “Are you denying your husband hurt you?” the detective asked.
    She twisted her fingers in the sheets. “I don’t—”
    “Don’t say another word,” Luke said. “You need a criminal defense attorney before you speak to the police.”
    Leslie patted Caroline’s hand. “The sooner she answers the questions, the sooner this will all be over and she can put it behind her. Perhaps it would be best if you waited outside, Mr. Dawson.”
    “Not a chance.”
    “No,” Caroline said at the same time. She pulled her hand back from Leslie’s. “I’m sorry, but I feel...better with Mr. Dawson here. Detective Cornell, all I can tell you is that I didn’t kill my husband. I don’t own a gun. I don’t even think Richard owned one. There was no need, not with a security firm watching over the house. And regardless of what Richard did or didn’t do, I never wanted him dead.”
    “I agree it appears you couldn’t have killed him yourself, based on the timeline of events and the witnesses to your whereabouts. But that doesn’t mean you didn’t hire someone else to kill him.”
    Her mouth fell open. “Why would I do that?”
    “Your husband was quite wealthy. Maybe you figured you wouldn’t get much if you divorced him.” He cocked his head and studied her. “Was there a prenuptial agreement limiting how much you would get in a divorce?”
    “Yes. There was. But I didn’t care. I was leaving my husband, regardless of the money.”
    Cornell didn’t look impressed by her statement. He scribbled something in his notepad. “I think when you decided to leave your husband, you didn’t want to lose the money. You called a friend, maybe a lover, offered him a portion of the estate if he’d help you stage your husband’s murder to make it look like you