Josiah was a strong personality at the best of times, and now, sitting this close to her when she felt so low and vulnerable, he was almost overwhelming.

Fighting the urge to retreat, she said drily, “I was pretty busy at the time. You know, getting the shit kicked out of me and fighting for my life and all.”

One corner of his mouth lifted at her sarcasm, but he was dead serious when he replied. “We take in a lot more than we realize. Think about what was to the left of you and to the right.”

Blowing out a breath, she tried. “The copse of trees bordering the back lawn was to my left. I didn’t sense any presence or movement over there. To my right was the back of the house, until we walked toward the side street where he had parked his car. Then there was the intersection of the two roads at the front of the property. Nobody was there. The house across the street was dark. I remember looking that way after the car exploded.”

“What lay straight ahead?” he pressed. “Did you hear anything behind you?”

“I told you already,” she said impatiently. “The side street lay ahead, where Austin parked the car. He put it under the shadow of a maple tree, probably so it wouldn’t be very noticeable. And no, I didn’t hear anything behind me other than Austin before I got free.”

Austin’s voice in her ear. His body pressing against her shoulders while his arm pressed against her windpipe, forcing her to arch back. She shuddered, and Josiah’s sharp gaze caught it.

“What did you remember?”

She pressed shaking fingers against her mouth. When she forced out the words, her voice sounded scraped thin. “He had his arm around my neck when he was forcing me to the car. Do we need to do this right now? Why do you think someone else might have been there?”

“Yes, we need to do this now. I need every detail I can get while the experience is still fresh. As for why I think someone else might have been there…” He rolled one wide shoulder in a shrug. “You thought you might have killed him, but he wasn’t there when the police showed up. I’m just pursuing every angle.”

She glowered. He sounded like a cop, one that knew the whole story and knew what to ask. “You think someone else is involved, don’t you?”

“It’s possible, even probable. The money in the Seychelles account came from somewhere. He didn’t conjure it up on his own.” He studied her. “Did Austin give you any indication before now that he might be capable of committing murder?”