He laughed. “I love having you as my business partner. We’re good at this.”
“Yes, we are,” said Cindy sadly, “but we went further than that.”
Mattheus looked contrite a moment. “Was it a mistake?”
“I don’t know,” said Cindy. “You were still a married man.”
“I had no idea Shelly was alive,” Mattheus flared up.
“I know you didn’t,” said Cindy.
“Do you think I would have been searching for the murderer if I didn’t think she’d been killed?”
“Of course not,” said Cindy.
“If she’d just wanted to get away from me and live somewhere else, what the hell? I would have said, go, good riddance. She never said anything like that.” Mattheus pulled back in his seat, looking alarmed. “You don’t actually think I lied to you?”
“No, I don’t,” said Cindy. “I don’t think you lied, but I think you omitted a lot of details.”
Mattheus stared straight at her. “Like what?”
“You blocked a lot out,” said Cindy.
Mattheus looked shaky again. “Obviously, I did,” he said slowly, “that’s what I’m finding out now, isn’t it?”
Cindy put her drink down. “A woman doesn’t just disappear for no reason, Mattheus.”
His jaw locked again. “What are you implying?” a flash of indignation flared up.
“I’m implying that there was a lot going on in Shelly’s life that you didn’t know anything about.”
“So string me up! Kill me for it!”
“It’s not about accusing you. It’s about finding out what! When you love someone, when you trust them, it’s not easy to realize they have another life,” Cindy said, trying to settle him down. The same thing had happened to her with Clint, she knew how devastating it was. “It happens to lots of people. They think everything is wonderful in their relationship, they believe every word their partner says, then they find out differently.”
“So?” said Mattheus.
“So, it can ruin your trust in love forever,” said Cindy.
“Yes, it can,” said Mattheus, calming down. “But if a person’s really strong, they won’t let that happen.” And he looked at her directly.
Cindy’s eyes filled with tears. She had tried not to lose her trust in love after Clint had died, but it had been difficult. Then when Mattheus came along, everything changed. The trust came back on its own.
“You’re not going to let your trust in love be ruined because of what happened between us in Grenada, are you?” asked Mattheus.
Cindy flinched. He got the point.
“That would be ridiculous,” he added, fitfully.
Cindy hardly knew how to answer. She didn’t know at the moment what or who she trusted.
“You’ve got to answer that question,” Mattheus was emphatic.
“No, of course I won’t let anything ruin my trust in love,” said Cindy, rallying. “But we’re not here to talk about love, we’re here to talk about finding Shelly’s killer. That’s why you called me down to Key West.”
“That’s not the only reason,” said Mattheus, fumbling.
“But that’s the reason we have to focus on now,” said Cindy. The case was complicated enough as it was. This was the time for unraveling Mattheus’s relationship with Shelly, not for dealing with their romance.
“Come to the Shelter with me tomorrow,” Cindy repeated.
“I don’t want to,” said Mattheus simply. “It was Shelly’s place, she worked there, those were her friends. I don’t want any part of it.”
“You’re mad at her?”
“Mad’s not the word for it. I’m mixed up, shaky” he said.
“I understand,” said Cindy. “That’s why I’m going back to the Shelter. “One of us has to find out the truth.”
CHAPTER 13
When Cindy returned to the Shelter the next day, Barbara was there to greet her. Cindy was struck with how different Barbara looked today, pretty and, at the same time, professional. She was dressed in a green cotton suit with her brown hair lying softly around her face.
“We’re all so excited about your being here,” Barbara said, as she led Cindy through the wide doors to the place where the tour was going to begin. “The whole place has been buzzing about it. Finally, someone really cares about Shelly.”
That felt a bit extreme to Cindy, as if the entire fate of Shelly’s case now rested on her shoulders.
“I’m sure a lot of people care about Shelly,” Cindy said. “They’re doing all they can to help.”
Barbara stopped and stared at her.
“One of the things we learn at the Shelter is not to make excuses for bad behavior,” Barbara said crisply.
Cindy was startled. Was Barbara accusing her of making excuses?
“The women here have made excuses their whole lives,” Barbara continued quickly, “they’re terrified to face the truth. That’s why they’re here in hiding.”