“Okay, I will,” replied Cindy, feeling downcast.
“Chances are your sister’s death has nothing to do with the hotel killings – chances are she or her husband were involved in something else. Whatever it was, it wasn’t pretty. There’s a lot of undercover crap going on down here. Check out that husband.”
None of what Evan suggested resonated with Cindy.
“I’m sorry I can’t be of more help,” Evan said then. “Keep in touch anyway. And please get me the name of the person who works for me, too. I’m interested to know who he is.”
.
Chapter 12
Cindy was thrilled to have met Evan. Not only did she like him, she felt he was someone she could count on, come back to talk to time and again. Although he’d offered to have one of his cars take her home, Cindy insisted upon going back alone. She wanted to walk a bit first along the water on her way to the hotel. It was a beautiful, warm, afternoon and Cindy needed time to unwind. She wanted to take in the blue sky, listen to the song of birds and bask in the great beauty of this perfectly manicured island.
The walk along the water was easy and peaceful. Cindy went over all she and Evan had discussed again. This was the first time Cindy had learned that the women who were murdered had been poisoned. It was shocking, awful, but Ann’s situation was nothing like that. Ann had not been poisoned, she’d struggled with her murderer, fought for her life. The hotel murders were fascinating and it would be easy to get side tracked into trying to solve them. But Cindy had something more important at hand. Finding out what had happened to Ann, was Cindy’s first priority, nothing could override that. Where could she turn now?
Cindy thought about going to talk to Tony Beggio as Evan suggested, but she couldn’t imagine that Frank would be involved with a guy like that. Cindy knew she had to uncover more about Ann’s life at the end. She also had to learn more about what, if anything, was going on with Frank. It was a painful road to take and Cindy didn’t want to take it, but nothing else beckoned.
As Cindy walked slowly she let herself breathe the sweet, salty air deeply and forget about time. Whatever she did or didn’t do, whatever she found, or didn’t find, nothing would bring Ann back. It would take a long while for Cindy to learn how to live life without her sister around. Cindy would also have to discover how to forgive herself for not being close by when Ann needed her. It was easy to look into the underbelly of big business and hunt for a culprit. It much harder to stop and look into herself.
Suddenly, Cindy’s phone rang, interrupting her reverie.
“Where in the world are you?” Mattheus sounded nervous. “You should have been back here at least an hour ago.”
Cindy was surprised at Mattheus’s urgency, unaware of how much time had passed. “What time is it?” she asked.
“Time for you to be back,” Mattheus quipped. “It’s almost three. How long did that lunch go?”
“A couple of hours, I guess,” said Cindy.
“A couple of hours? That’s a long time,” Mattheus said. “Where are you now?”
“Walking back, along the water,” said Cindy. “It’s actually beautiful here, I never noticed it before.”
“You sound strange,” Mattheus commented, uneasy.
“No, I’m fine, Mattheus, “just taking it slow.”
“I’m waiting for you here,” Mattheus responded. “I’ve found stuff to go over with you and I also want to hear what Price had to say.”
Cindy picked up her speed. She knew she had to go over everything with Mattheus, and she would. But for a little while, it had been lovely just taking a simple walk by herself.
*
Mattheus was downstairs in the lobby waiting when Cindy walked in. He ran right over to her, put his arms around her and gave her a hug.
“I missed you,” he said, “I was worried about you. I was nervous about you being out there alone.”
“I’m okay, Mattheus,” Cindy closed her eyes, taking in his concern. It felt good and also constricting at the same time. “Please don’t worry about me.”
“But I do,” he said. “This is a delicate time.”
“I know,” Cindy replied.
“Come on, let’s go out on a hiking trail,” Mattheus said then. “We’ll get some fresh air, walk together, unwind and decide what to do next.”
Cindy liked the idea of being outdoors and was pleased to get into the cab and go with Mattheus and drive to a beautiful hiking trail that overlooked both the water and a world class golf course.
“It’s good to get out of our familiar surroundings,” Mattheus said as they arrived. “It refreshing, will clear our minds.”
“You’re good to me, Mattheus,” Cindy said as took her hand and quietly lead her between rows of tall, gorgeous trees whose huge branches seemed to reach to heaven. Cindy felt sheltered and cared for in the shade they provided.