“Of course he was,” answered Cindy.
“So why would he think he was a suspect?” Alex was careful. “His alibi cleared. He told us he was with you in Grenada when Shelly was killed. We have that on the record.”
Cindy bristled a moment. Mattheus said he was with her in Grenada when Shelly was killed? Was he? Cindy wasn’t sure. When exactly was Shelly killed? When had Cindy flown back home?
“I was with Mattheus in Grenada,” Cindy clarified, “until a little over a week ago. Then I returned to the States.”
“Did you come back before Shelly was killed?” Alex looked momentarily alarmed.
“I need to know the exact time she was killed,” said Cindy. “But whether I was there or not, there were plenty of other people in Grenada Mattheus were in touch with.”
“That’s right,” Alex mused. “He told us you left. He said you guys were in the process of moving in together, then you had a falling out and you decided to leave,” Alex was trying to get the facts straight.
“Right,” said Cindy.
“He said your departure was unexpected,” Alex continued.
“True,” said Cindy.
Alex looked straight at her. “He was actually vague about it. Do you mind if I ask you what happened?”
“We got together too soon,” Cindy said. “Neither of us was ready.”
“What exactly triggered your leaving?” Alex was being methodical.
“Mattheus wanted to go out on another case right after I’d moved in. I needed time to unwind, for us to be together, build the relationship, be a woman again, not just a cop.”
Alex nodded sweetly, “I completely understand.”
Cindy was very grateful that he did.
“This work can really take a toll, if you’re not careful. We all need time like that,” Alex said.
The waiter brought their dinner and put it down before them, but Cindy’s appetite suddenly dimmed. She’d appreciated telling Alex her concerns, but also wanted more information from him. There were questions she had that hadn’t yet been answered.
“I heard that Shelly’s family moved and left no forwarding address,” Cindy started.
“That’s right,” said Alex, looking up at her again. “It’s a strange touch, if you asked me.”
“Very strange,” Cindy agreed. “Are you guys looking for them?”
“We did. No luck.” He took a bite of his food.
“Could Shelly’s brother be dangerous?” This seemed like an area worth investigating.
“Doubt it,” said Alex, “but you can never tell. Eat your dinner.”
“I’m not so hungry all of a sudden,” said Cindy.
“Eat it anyway,” said Alex. “You’ve got to take care of yourself.”
Cindy smiled. It had been quite a while since anyone had been concerned with whether or not she ate her dinner.
“Thanks,” said Cindy, picking at the food.
“You’re still in love with Mattheus?” Alex asked. “Is that what’s upsetting you so much?”
Cindy didn’t realize she seemed so upset.
“The whole case is nerve wracking,” she side stepped the question about how she felt about Mattheus. “It’ unnerving spending time at the Shelter, too.”
“Certainly is,” said Alex. “Everyone there has a story, everyone heard something, rumors float around there a mile a minute. It’s a web you can really get caught in.”
“Why haven’t you guys gone there?”
“We don’t have the man power or the time. Besides, the evidence keeps piling up around Anthony.”
“Like what?” asked Cindy. “The women in the Shelter all loved Anthony. Not one of them thinks he killed Shelly.”
Alex cracked his boyish smile. “I’m sure they all love him,” he said. “Anthony’s got women swooning over him all over town.”
“Could have been one of the fans who killed Shelly,” Cindy said, “that’s something worth checking.”
“Nah,” said Alex. “There’s no one of them that stands out. It’s usually the stalkers who kill. There wasn’t anybody stalking. From where we stand now, it looks clear that Anthony’s the one.”
“Mattheus didn’t think Anthony did it, either,” Cindy pressed on. She felt a great need to contest the point. How could Alex be so sure? So far she hadn’t heard of any specific evidence linking Anthony to the crime.
“Listen,” said Alex, openly, “Anthony was seen getting more and more threatening with Shelly the last couple of weeks before she died. People heard him yelling threats at her, said he was going to leave her flat. And, between you and me, we just found Anthony’s journal, where he kept notes about all kinds of things.”
Cindy listened, all ears.
“He talked a lot about the songs he was writing about his relationship with Shelly. One of his songs is about how rough she was on him, how he prayed to get free, and didn’t know how. Now, if that’s not damning I don’t know what is.”
“Circumstantial,” said Cindy, though she had to agree that it didn’t sound good.