Cindy didn’t want to. She wanted to check in with Mattheus as she usually did, wanted everything to be the same. But it wasn’t. She looked down at the floor. Would Mattheus be able to come back to himself, or would these huge waves of emotion pull him away from her forever?
“If you feel you have to stay on the case, stay on it,” Alex said, “but you can’t do it alone. I’m glad you’re going to the Shelter. That will be a help to us. You can let us know what you find there. We’ll also run what we have by you.”
Cindy felt grateful. Alex was offering himself in place of Mattheus. She looked up and to her surprise, saw his clear opaque eyes looking at her, filled with admiration.
“Thanks for including me,” she said quietly. “I want to stay.”
“I know you do,” said Alex, “and it’s great to have you with us. “There’s nothing good about quitting, you’re right. But, remember, it also takes guts to know when it’s time to let go.”
CHAPTER 16
Cindy went back up to her room in a little while, and though she wanted to speak to him, didn’t pick up the phone to call Mattheus. It was up to him to calm down and reach out to her now. This was certainly no way to work on a case, she thought, each of them hunkering down in their private corners. She wasn’t sure how she’d suddenly turned into Mattheus’s enemy either, but she didn’t like it.Clearly, there was little hope left for their relationship, even as partners working a case.
Cindy turned on the television in the room, to calm down and distract herself when the phone rang. Relieved, she expected it to be Mattheus, when to Cindy’s surprise, it was her sister Ann again. Ann had an uncanny radar about when Cindy needed her, or was truly upset.
“So, how’s it going?” Ann asked in a pleasant tone. She’d obviously come to grips with the fact that Cindy was working down there on a case with Mattheus.
“It’s going,” Cindy answered blandly.
“What’s wrong?” asked Ann. “You sound funny.”
“Just tired,” said Cindy. “These are long days and it’s hot down here.”
“And you never got that rest period you promised yourself, either,” said her sister.
“It’s beautiful down here though,” said Cindy, changing the subject and looking at a huge conch shell that was on the wicker end table near her bed. “The foliage is blooming, the wild life incredible.”
“Cindy,” Ann interrupted, “what’s wrong?”
“It’s a rough case,” said Cindy, finally.
“Is Mattheus helping you with it?”
“He’s doing what he can. This is a nightmare for him that he’s got to wake up out of. These things take time.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” said Ann. “Cindy, I don’t like this, you don’t sound like yourself.”
“I’ve been better,” Cindy conceded.
“Are the two of you sharing a room?” Ann asked, the anxiety growing.
Cindy was offended. “Come on, Ann, I’m not in high school anymore.”
“Are you?” Ann insisted.
“No,” said Cindy.
“Well, thank God, that shows some sense.”
Cindy was flustered. “Ann, you never met Mattheus, you might even like him.”
“Whether or not I’d like him is irrelevant,” said Ann. “It’s the state of his life that scares me. You don’t belong there. I feel it. Are you getting paid for your work?”
Cindy hadn’t even thought of it. All her expenses were cared for, of course, but usually they were paid for cases by the people who hired them. She and Mattheus always split what they made. Now it was different, it was Mattheus’s wife.
“You’re doing this as an act of love?” Ann said then, bluntly. “My God, Cindy, I’d love to come down and visit you there. Would it be possible?”
“Definitely not,” said Cindy, “I’m on a case.”
“Well, Frank and I might just choose to take a week-end down there anyhow,” Ann was growing indignant.
“Don’t,” Cindy exclaimed, as her sister just hung up the phone.
Cindy felt sad after the call. Ann meant well and Cindy knew it. She just didn’t realize that the focus and intensity involved in the work didn’t permit time for diversions.
Cindy watched a little more TV, waited to hear from Mattheus, and by ten o’clock, when he hadn’t called, decided to get to sleep early. It would be a long day at the Shelter tomorrow and she wanted to be ready for it.
*