Page 125 of Liar's Point

His face showed no reaction.

Alex shook his head. “Never heard of him.”

“He’s been in the news some. At least, his company has, McVoy Systems. Anyway, after my lawyer served Malcom with divorce papers, I decided to drop off the radar.”

“You went into hiding?”

“I basically left town and did everything I could to cover my tracks and not leave a trail. I had to go somewhere where he couldn’t find me. The divorce blindsided him, and I couldn’t be there for the fallout.”

Alex watched her, as though he was trying to read between the lines. “Was he abusive?”

“Not physically. But in other ways.”

“He was controlling?”

She laughed. She didn’t know why—it was just such an understatement.

“Controlling in the extreme,” she said. “He controlled all the money, the credit cards. He tracked my every move and was constantly spying on me—”

“Spying?”

She bit her lip. Interesting that he’d zeroed in on that one particular word.

“He has a thing for spyware,” she said. “And he uses it to... let’s just say influence the people around him.”

Alex’s brow furrowed. “So, am I to assume you’ve been keeping up with him through your divorce lawyer? When did you file?”

“Six months, three weeks, and five days ago.”

His eyebrow arched.

“And, yes, I have been communicating through my attorney, who swore that he would keep my whereabouts secret from Malcom. Attorney-client privilege and all that. But I’ve come to the conclusion that he sold me out.”

Alex leaned forward. “Your lawyer did?”

“That’s the only way I can figure that Malcom could have found me down here. I left my phone and credit cards behind. I stopped using my email and social media. I removed the tracking device from my car.”

“A tracking device?”

“I told you, spying is his thing.”

Alex frowned. “Is there a chance he found you through one of your friends, maybe?”

She scoffed. “Friends? I don’t have any.” She had one, but she wouldn’t tell anyone about Jess, not even this new lawyer, who by all appearances seemed trustworthy. “When I say he’s controlling, I mean every aspect of my life.” She paused. “Being a man, you probably can’t imagine. Just trust me on this.”

“Okay.” He paused. “And what, exactly, made you need to drop off the radar?”

She picked up the glass and took a long sip. This was where things got sticky. She needed to choose her words carefully, even with someone who claimed to be on her side. Trusting an attractive man was what had gotten her into this in the first place.

“My husband has a very lucrative business,” she said. “Some of it also happens to be illegal. I found out about it, and that’s when I decided I had to get out.”

“How did you find out?”

“His accountant. She’d been doing our taxes for years, and she came to our house one day and told me she’d discovered Malcom was running two sets of books to conceal his operation. She was thinking of turning him in and wanted my help. I think she thought if we reported his operation together, we could make a stronger case and ensure ourselves immunity.”

“His operation?”

“The illegal one.” Cassandra didn’t elaborate, and she didn’t plan to. She felt like she was risking her neck enough just talking about this at all, much less providing key details.

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