Death by Jealousy (Caribbean Murder #6)

Peter made a fist and drummed it on the table. “What are you getting at?”


“You got to let it all out,” Mattheus insisted. “There’s trouble in paradise and you can’t protect anyone here.”

“Who am I protecting?” Peter’s shoulders lifted.

“Look, you’re a top banker and trader,” Mattheus lifted his chin and stared straight at Peter, “you’ve learned how to figure the angles. Are you telling me you can’t imagine that someone here might have been jealous of the two of you?”

Peter’s eyes glass over. Not only was he exhausted, he seemed to refuse to even consider such a thing.

“No, I can’t imagine who,” said Peter.

“Peter,” Cindy came closer to him, “you have to think hard now. We need your help. We’re on your side.”

“There are no sides,” Peter burst out, “no one’s hurt Allie. Can’t it be she’s still alive somewhere? She was a strong swimmer, isn’t it possible she swam up to the surface? Maybe she’s lost on the island and doesn’t know where she is? She could have panicked when she realized she didn’t have enough air, pulled everything off, hyperventilated, wasn’t able to exhale thoroughly! She could have had too much nitrogen! That happens all the time, it impairs judgment and coordination, she may still be suffering from it now. Or maybe she came up too fast?” The words rolled desperately off his tongue.

“Got the bends?” said Mattheus.

“It’s possible,” said Peter, “but I don’t think so. I think she’s lost on the island and is alive.”

Cindy and Mattheus shot each other a quick glance. Neither of them wanted to be the one to say that it seemed unlikely that Allie survived.

“I realize the police don’t agree,” Peter continued. “I see it in their eyes. They think she’s gone, and that someone could have killed her.”

“Why would they think that?” Cindy asked gently.

“Because that’s their job,” said Peter. “It would be a feather in their cap to find a killer. But who could have killed her? That’s just nuts. We got separated, the visibility was bad, the tides too strong and she couldn’t find her way back to me. When she saw she was so low on air, she must have panicked. It didn’t take much for Allie to panic these days. I did my best to help her all the time, I did my best.” Peter’s face grew pale and he closed his eyes. “When I realized Allie was gone, I thought I would die. You think I wanted to come back up alone without her? I didn’t. They had to struggle to get me back up on the boat.”

“Who could have tampered with the air gauge?” asked Mattheus.

“Tampered with it, or did something just go wrong?” asked Peter fitfully.

“Where was it kept? Who had access to it?” asked Cindy.

“Hell, we kept our diving equipment in our hotel room. Both families and the wedding party came in and out all the time. You’re telling me someone came in and did something to the equipment? Wanted to harm her?”

“I’m not telling you anything,” said Cindy. “It’s our job to check carefully though, and find out.”

Peter suddenly put his heads back into his hands.

“We’ll do our best for you Peter,” Cindy said, reaching her arm out to him.

Suddenly, the door to the room opened and Cindy heard someone walked in. Had half an hour passed already? Were the cops returning? Cindy turned to look and saw a tall, rugged, handsome guy in his fifties standing there. He wore jeans, a plaid sports shirt and watched them all intently.

Peter looked up, greatly relieved, “Hey Mac,” he called out, “come in, you’re needed here.”

“Hey buddy,” Mac came over to where they were seated. “I’m never more than a few steps away.”

As he approached Cindy felt a wave of energy flash between her and him. Then she felt him focus on her with a powerful presence.

“You must be the private detective,” Mac said, ignoring Mattheus and sitting down close to her.

“Yes, I am,” Cindy responded, “my partner Mattheus and I are here on the case.”

Mac didn’t look at or greet Mattheus, just turned to Peter then.

“So, is this gorgeous detective making you feel any better?” Mac asked.

Peter tried to crack a smile but could not.

“The only thing that’s going to make me feel better is when I hear they’ve found Allie alive,” he said.

“Listen, buddy,” said Mac, “you’ve got to unwind. This is terrible, and the cops are making it worse for you. But it’s their job to draw blood from a stone. They don’t have a thing. You had nothing to do with it and they know it, but they don’t have anything else right now.”

Cindy saw Mattheus bristling, not warming to Mac in anyway.

Mac turned to Cindy then, “Did you happen to hear anything from Peter that he hasn’t told everyone a hundred times by now?”