Death by Jealousy (Caribbean Murder #6)

“I’d like a copy of the contact information myself” said Mac, giving Cindy a sidelong glance. “Sure,” said Cindy, professionally. “Anything you want to say to me, anything you can think of -.”


“That’s quite an invitation,” Mac smiled. “There’s plenty I’d like to talk to you about. How about right now?”

At that Laura stood up, shivering. It had grown much cooler and she only wore a thin shirt.

“I need a few minutes alone with Cindy first,” Laura broke in, about to burst into tears again. “I need to talk to her badly.”

Cindy stood up and stepped closer to her.

“Is that alright?” Laura asked.

“Of course it is,” said Cindy, throwing a glance over her shoulder to Mac.

“Absolutely,” Mac agreed, “take your time. I have all night.”





CHAPTER 6


Mac and the girls went back up to the hotel, as Laura huddled closer to Cindy.

“Thank you for giving me your time,” Laura murmured, “I really need it.”

“Thank you for talking to me,” Cindy replied “Here, take my jacket,” Cindy, took her jacket off and put it over Laura’s trembling shoulders.

“Are you sure?” asked Laura.

“Of course, I’m sure,” said Cindy. “Come on, let walk a little near the ocean and you can tell me what’s on your mind.”

Although it wasn’t that cold, Laura pulled the jacket tight over her shoulders. She and Cindy started walking towards the edge of the beach, as the fading light of the day cast long shadows on the sand.

“Sunsets are beautiful here,” Laura started, “but it’s been mostly overcast these past few days. That’s not unusual for this time of year. Not only can it be cloudy, but it gets very windy suddenly.”

That was interesting, but they weren’t here to discuss the weather. Cindy knew that Laura was nervous about what she was about to say.

“What is it you want to tell me?” Cindy interrupted gently.

Laura stopped walking as they got to the water. “I was afraid of saying this in front of the girls,” she started. “They all talk about each other and I don’t want them talking about me!

“I understand,” said Cindy.

“Yes, you really do,” said Laura, tears filling her eyes. “That’s why I’m talking to you now.”

“Whatever you tell me will be in complete confidence,” Cindy assured her.

“Thank you,” she said. “I don’t want to create the wrong impression or say something that will lead you astray.”

“Don’t worry, say what you have to,” Cindy persisted. It was hard for Laura to get going but instinctively Cindy sensed that Laura had something vital to tell her. “Jump right in.”

“Allie was always clinging to Peter, and it got worse and worse as time went on,” Laura finally started, her voice getting husky.

A strange chill went through Cindy. “What do you mean clinging to Peter? Was she insecure about his feelings for her?”

“Worse than that,” Laura’s voice blended with the sound of the waves, and Cindy had to listen intently. “Rather than feel more and more grounded in the relationship, Allie felt less and less. She would call Peter all day long, check what he was doing, where he was going, what he was thinking about. She felt he could take off at any moment.”

Cindy shuddered. “How awful. How did he take that?”

“He hated it,” Laura whispered. “She talked to me about it every day, wasn’t proud of what was happening.”

“Of course not,” said Cindy.

“No girl wants to have to cling to their guy for dear life!” said Laura.

“No guy wants to be clung to like that, either,” Cindy replied. “How did Peter handle it? Did Allie tell you?”

“He didn’t like it,” Laura’s voice got louder, as a wave came rushing in, almost splashing them as they spoke.

Cindy lurched backwards and pulled Laura away from the water.

“My God, I hope and pray she’s not dead in there,” Laura looked out into the ocean. “I hope he didn’t do something to her,” she started sobbing again.

Cindy put her arms around Laura’s shoulders. “I know how hard this is,” Cindy said softly, “but you’re helping her by telling me this.”

Laura stopped speaking a moment. “Helping Allie? Why? Do you think Peter did it, that it was the only way he could get away?”

Cindy felt jarred. “No, I didn’t mean that,” she said crisply. “I meant that you’re helping me get a fuller picture, which will give us a better chance of finding her.”

“Do you think they’ll ever, ever find her?” Laura gasped.

Cindy and Laura paused and looked straight at each other.

“I don’t know if we’ll find her,” Cindy said, quietly, “but we’ll do our best to learn what happened. If someone harmed her, we’ll bring them to justice.”

“There’s no justice,” Laura said quivering. “Allie didn’t deserve to die like this.”

No one deserves to die like this, thought Cindy. But these deaths did happen, and Cindy felt a longing to make them right. As best she could.