Page 151 of For the Sub

Time to get rid of the past…

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Niles turned on his emergency hazard flashers and eased off the windy Lookout Mountain road that had been the site of his wife’s fatal crash.

Well, that of Eleanor and her…

What?

Even he didn’t know what to call the man who’d died alongside her.

Lover?

Intended?

Fiancé?

After stopping the vehicle, he remained where he was, gripping the steering wheel, staring at the two small, white crosses near each other.

Unbidden, memories assailed him.

Of the knock on the door from the police officer.

Of the seemingly endless drive to the Jefferson County morgue to identify her body.

Of seeing a ring on her finger that didn’t belong to him.

Of searching for answers.

Confused, devastated, he’d driven to this exact spot, where he’d met Dale Cunningham’s younger sister, Lori.

She was as shocked to meet Niles as he was to find out who she was.

Together, through their grief, they’d pieced together parts of the puzzle, though massive questions remained even today.

Lori had evidently met Eleanor on several occasions, and the two had spent time together, going shopping, enjoying Saturday morning pedicures.

On the night she’d died, Eleanor had picked up Dale from his office in Denver West, and they’d driven to the country club on Lookout Mountain where he’d proposed to her.

Since Dale had sent Lori photos from the happy event, Niles hadn’t been able to deny reality, no matter how much he wanted to.

Eleanor and Dale had celebrated over two bottles of champagne, and a third, empty one, had been found in the totaled vehicle.

As they’d continued to talk, Lori had shaken her head in horror and disbelief at the knowledge that Eleanor was already married.

Eleanor had told Lori and Dale that she was divorced and had never been happy in her first marriage.

Odd, because Niles had believed everything was fine.

Like most married couples, they had struggled.

The only thing he’d been concerned about was their lack of time together due to her work schedule.

Which he eventually found out had been a cover.

Her law firm hadn’t been doing well, and she’d spent more time away from the office than she had in it.

Lie upon lie, upon lie.

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