“Wait a minute, back up, back up,” Mattheus was having a hard time taking it in. “What kind of story are you telling us? Lynch and Bala were married? They had a child?”
“Who said they were married?” asked Nick. “And yeah, the boy lives down here with his mother. She’s Caribbean and Lynch pays for every little thing. He takes good care of both of them.”
Cindy was stunned. Was it really possible that no one knew about this? How did Nick know that?
Mattheus’s head shook, unbelievingly. “Back up, back up,” he said. “How do you know Lynch takes care of the kid? How do you know that no one knows about it?”
Nick quieted down and made a strange face. “You can ask me for all the information you like, but you can’t ask me how I got it. I just know. That’s got to be enough.”
“So, how do we know you’re telling the truth?” Cindy jumped in.
Nick threw her a contemptuous look. “What reason would I have to make it up? You came looking for me, I didn’t come looking for you. Edwin told me to give you whatever I had.”
“You’ve seen this child?” asked Cindy, aghast.
“Sure I’ve seen him,” said Nick. “He’s a great, little guy. What the hell is the fuss all about?”
“Lynch sees the kid? Hangs out with him?” Mattheus was agitated.
“I didn’t say he hangs out with him,” Nick jumped in. “He sends money. The kid has whatever he needs.”
“Except a father,” Cindy exclaimed.
“Now, wait a minute,” Mattheus took exception to that. “The guy sends money to care for the son. He’s doing his job.”
“Just sending money?” Cindy was appalled.
“It’s more than plenty of fathers would do,” Mattheus held his ground.
“Nick said nobody knows about the boy,” Cindy interjected.
“The kid’s mother is Caribbean,” Nick repeated.
“Is Lynch ashamed of that? Is that why he’s hiding his son?” Cindy became more inflamed.
“Hell, Lynch and Bala had a thing going for a few years and then this kid came along. Lynch stayed with her a little while after he was born and then got out. What’s the big deal?” asked Nick.
“What’s the big deal that Lynch has a secret child?” asked Cindy horrified by Nick’s reaction as well.
Mattheus stood up abruptly then. “I’ll need to know the child’s full, date of birth and where he lives now. I also need the full name of the mother.”
“No problem,” said Nick.
“Thanks, Nick,” Mattheus said quickly, extending his hand. “I’ll be back with the money to take care of you.”
“Sure thing,” said Nick, shaking Mattheus’s hand hard.
*
A light wind was blowing up as the afternoon was winding down. Cindy and Mattheus stood on the street outside of the casino and stared at each other in disbelief.
“You could knock me over with a feather,” said Mattheus, “this is the last thing in the world I expected.”
Cindy was a bit in shock herself. “Let’s go somewhere for dinner and talk this over,” she said.
The two of them walked down the block silently looking for a place to eat. The streets were growing more crowded with tourists and party goers filling up every inch. Cindy and Mattheus stopped at a small, lovely restaurant on the corner that seemed fairly quiet for now.
They went in and were shown to a table in the back garden. Cindy sighed a breath of relief. It was good to be out of the throbbing energy and have time to talk and think. Mattheus ordered a light dinner as Cindy tossed the news about in her mind.
“Well, for starters Aldon isn’t some kind of paranoid psycho,” Cindy said, as Mattheus poured her a glass of ice water that was on the table.
“No, he isn’t,” Mattheus agreed, “he’s a nervous father.”
“He’s got a solid radar,” Cindy went on, “he realized that something was amiss.”
Mattheus raised his eyebrows skeptically. “I don’t know if it’s a solid radar, or just a lonely father looking for a reason to stop his daughter’s wedding.”
Cindy was genuinely surprised by Mattheus’s reaction. “What are you talking about?” she said. “This isn’t just some reason.”
“Sure it is,” said Mattheus.
“What are you saying, Mattheus?” Cindy was aghast.
“Look,” Mattheus answered, “if you dig hard enough you can always find something about everybody. Who doesn’t have a wrinkle in their past?”
“This is more than a wrinkle,” Cindy exclaimed. “Lynch has a secret life.”
“I wouldn’t put it that way,” Mattheus objected. “The guy had a girlfriend and they slipped up, they had a child. This isn’t the first time it’s happened and it won’t be the last. It’s not exactly a tragedy, is it? After all, the guy’s stepping up, taking care of both of them.”
Cindy felt her jaw drop in amazement. Why was Mattheus making light of it? Cindy had no idea.
“Lynch has a child that he’s keeping a secret from everyone,” Cindy said emphatically.
“We don’t know that for sure,” said Mattheus. “And even if he has, so what?”