“No. Does it matter? I only want to sign on the dotted line and be done with this. I want to move on.”
Jerome leans back in his seat and drops the papers he’s reviewing to the surface of his desk.
“I know you’re frustrated, Adeline. And this was a short marriage, so it’ll be easy enough to rush the divorce through, but Grant has demanded this information in interrogatories, documents I can’t ignore. Answers are required regardless of whether you want to wipe your hands of this or not.”
Anger sparks inside me. Quickly blinking my eyes to fight off tears, I cross one leg over the other and try to remain calm.
“Then give him my answer. I don’t know. Harrison was obviously a fake name. Why does everybody think that I know more than that? I’m not getting anything out of this, so it shouldn’t matter.”
He eyes me, not believing what I say.
“You know nothing about the man you spent an entire month with? The same man you had an affair with while living with your husband? I find that hard to believe.”
I know he killed my father, I don’t say. I know he stalked me for years, toyed with my life and destroyed me in the end. I know that.
“I know nothing. I was just a game. One I’m sure he enjoyed playing until he grew bored with it.”
Sympathy softens his expression. “I’m sorry to hear you went through that.”
Me too.
“Is that all? Are we done?”
He nods his head and stands from his seat, offering his hand across the desk to shake mine.
Pushing to my feet, I grasp his palm weakly.
“Call me when you know we have a final hearing. I’d like to have this finished as soon as possible.”
“It’ll be a while, but my secretary will be in touch.”
“Thank you.”
I leave his office without another word, take the elevator to the bottom floor and cross through the lobby. My heels click against the ground as I push through the revolving door and step out onto the sidewalk.
Cathedral bells ring, grabbing my attention, the church where I married Grant only a block away. I’m not sure why I walk in its direction, but by the time I reach it, I see a bride and groom running through the front door, the wedding party outside clapping and cheering as they toss birdseed into the air.
It’s not the wedding that bothers me, though. It’s the building across the street from the cathedral. Turning, I lift a hand to shield my eyes from the sun and stare up at the windows on the top floor, wondering if Ari is staring down.
Anger possesses me, more questions racing through my head that I’d been too upset to ask the last time I saw him.
Why did he kill my father? Who ordered the hit? Who else out there is responsible for the shitshow my life has become? He owes me those answers, at least that’s what I tell myself as I march across the street and into his building.
Elevator banks are on either side of the lobby, one leading to the lower floors, the other a private entrance to the penthouse. I know I can’t access it without a key and a code, so I walk to the front desk, tapping my hand on the counter when the woman behind the desk doesn’t immediately look up at me.
She lifts her head at the sound, a forced smile on her face. “Can I help you?”
“I need to speak with the man living in the penthouse. Can you buzz up and tell him he has a guest?”
Her brows tug together as she stands from her seat.
“I can’t do that, but I can speak with the building manager. If you’ll just wait for a moment, I’ll bring him to you.”
They return a few minutes later, the manager approaching me to speak low enough that the people passing through the lobby can’t hear.
“Ma’am, I’ve been told you’d like to have a message delivered to the penthouse.”
Turning to him, I smile as innocently as I can. I’m not sure it helps. Surely, he can see the pain and hatred behind my eyes.
“Yes, I lived with him a little while ago and left some personal belongings. I need access so I can run up and grab them.”
The building manager looks like a kind man. He’s older, his hair entirely white. Confusion bleeds behind his brown gaze.