Frank grew quiet. “Who told you that?” he was surprised.
“I’m investigating the case,” Cindy responded, “details like that catch my eye.”
“What in hell have the yellow tulips got to do with anything?” Frank asked, nervously.
“You tell me!” said Cindy.
“Ann loved yellow tulips, I bought them for her,” his eyes looked glassy. “So what’s the big deal?”
“Who could have wanted her dead, Frank? Think! Tell me!” Cindy’s voice got louder and fiercer.
“I don’t know, I don’t know,” his head fell into his hands then and he started to sob again.Cindy watched him sob for a few moments, and decided it was enough for now. “I need to look through your computer, Frank. Is that okay with you?”
His head shot up like lightening. “What the hell are you talking about? Certainly not!”
“No?” Cindy was shocked.
“Listen, I loved Ann, I had nothing to do with this. You’re insulting me, invading my privacy, even invading Ann’s privacy – asking for her secrets.”
“I need the password to your computer,” Cindy paid no attention to his rant.
“Well, you’re not getting it on principal,” Frank jumped up and stamped his foot on the ground. “I’ve been through enough, shamed, humiliated and questioned enough. Have some respect for me, I’m the one who lost my wife. I lost the most precious person in the world.” Then his head dropped down again and he started sobbing again.
Despite herself Cindy felt sorry for him. Frank didn’t really know what he was saying. He was in a fog, and she knew it. Cindy also felt strongly that he had nothing to do with Ann’s death. She wanted to explain that she only wanted to scan his computer to find details he was not aware of. It wasn’t because she suspected him. But it was clear at the moment that he could not hear anything.
Cindy relented. “We can go upstairs now,” she said to Frank. “And, soon Mattheus is coming down to join the investigation, he’ll be a big help, believe me.”
Frank’s head shot up out of his hands and he stopped sobbing immediately.
“Mattheus? I thought you guys were finished?”
“I never said that,” Cindy objected.
“Ann told me you and Mattheus had broken up and she was as happy about it as could be. She said you were taking a job at a paper in New York.”
“That’s what Ann wanted for me,” Cindy replied. “I never told her Mattheus and I were over, just that we were taking a break.”
“A break, a break,” Frank muttered as the two of them pushed back their chairs and got up to leave. “How many times now have you guys taken a break?”
“What’s it to you, Frank? Cindy turned on him fiercely.
“Nothing, nothing,” he lifted his hands in front of his face. “It’s none of my business, it’s your business – and I’m leaving it that way.”
The minute they got to the front of the hotel, Cindy and Frank parted. Frank went up to join Cindy’s mother and uncles, and Cindy went to get a cab to take her to the airport. Mattheus’s plane would be arriving in a couple of hours and she wanted to get there early and wait. Cindy couldn’t think of anywhere else in the world she’d rather be than getting ready to see Mattheus again.
Chapter 8
Cindy sat alone at the airport, looking out at the gorgeous expanse of evening sky. She had plenty of time before the plane was due, and liked it that way. It was oddly relaxing to watch the silver planes catch the sun’s last rays as they slowly descended over the airport. From her vantage point they looked like huge birds, coming home to nest.
Cindy ran through her hair as she waited and flipped through a magazine. Of course it was impossible to concentrate on anything. What would it be like to see Mattheus again? Would they ever have reunited if Ann hadn’t been killed? From time to time Cindy shivered, thinking of what her sister must have gone through. But she couldn’t let her imagination run wild, it would de-stabilize her even further. Cindy wouldn’t be absolutely certain what had taken place until the medical examiner’s report came in. She would wait for that and focus on what was in front of her now.
As she reviewed what had gone on so far, Cindy felt upset about her talk with Frank, had expected more cooperation. But Frank had always been standoffish and critical of her. He must have taken offense when Cindy asked for Ann’s secrets, thought she was snooping. Frank had never really accepted the fact that Cindy was a professional detective. It would be better to let Mattheus deal with him.