Page 162 of Collect the Pieces

“Respectful?” Thomas asks. “Not affectionate?”

I snort and look away. “Daniel’s not an affectionate person.”

“Is that why you broke up?” the older detective presses.

I stare him dead in the eyes. “Has something happened to Daniel?”

The older man’s eyes widen. “No. No. He’s fine.”

I blow out a breath. I may hate Daniel, but I don’t wish death on him, and I certainly don’t want the cops thinking I murdered him. “So, what is this about?”

“Why did you break up?” he asks again.

I smooth my hands over the arms of the chair, the soft, worn velvet grounding me. “We weren’t compatible. He was very… critical of me. And I grew tired of it.”

“Was he abusive?” Muppet-Brows asks.

I hesitate, choosing my words carefully. “Not physically, no. But he could be vicious with his words. I didn’t want to stick around and find out if the behavior would escalate to physical violence one day.”

Thomas studies me, his expression carefully blank.

Muppet-Brows nods approvingly. “Smart woman.”

I dip my chin in response.

“How about a Mrs. Penny? Do you know her?”

I stiffen, my pulse stuttering. “We recently handled her funeral. Why?”

The older detective nods. “Daniel attended the service, correct?”

Unfortunately.

My mouth moves before my brain catches up. “Yes.”

The older cop leans in, crowding his partner. “Did you speak to him?”

“Yes.”

“About what?”

I grit my teeth, remembering the awful conversation. Then bite my cheek to stop from grinning when I remember Jigsaw and Rooster scaring the crap out of Daniel. “Normal catching up stuff at first. But then he wanted to talk about getting back together.”

“But you said he was critical of you.”

“Yes. And I reminded him of that fact when I told him absolutely not.”

Muppet Cop grins so wide, I feel bad for referring to him asMuppet Copin my head.

“Did he say he’d changed?” younger cop asks.

I snort a laugh. “No. He didn’t understand what my problem was.” I rub the arms of the chair again. “But I finally got a few things off of my chest. Overall, it was an unpleasant conversation. My boyfriend walked in on the tail end of it and told him to leave.”

“So, you’re seeing someone?”

“Yes.”

Investigator Thomas opens a small notepad and clicks a ballpoint pen. “And his name?”

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