“They got engaged. It’s all over the web,” Cindy insisted. “There are pictures of them together, she said she was thrilled. “
“So why wouldn’t Clay share their correspondence with me?” Carl’s face clenched. “Why would Kate say nasty things about me to him? I was on her side all the time and she knew it. She came to me for everything. I don’t believe that Kate ever said that I didn’t understand her and Clay did. That’s just crazy. Something’s really off here.”
None of this computed for Cindy, either.
“You’ve got to look into Clay further,” Carl insisted.
“We researched him a lot up front. Couldn’t find one thing on except that he was the last to see Kate alive and was the one to find her. Everything in his background came up gold,” said Cindy.
“Even gold becomes tarnished,” said Carl. “Did he have lots of girlfriends? Was he engaged before?”
“No, he actually had very few relationships, seemed quiet and shy with women.”
“Quiet and shy, and he lured Kate in? Carl said. “It doesn’t figure. When you looked at his correspondence with Kate did you actually see the nasty things he said she wrote about me?”
“Not really, but I didn’t look at every single email, just a bunch of them,” said Cindy. Time was of the essence. I figured I’d go back and go over the rest carefully later on.”
“Now he won’t let you,” Carl growled.
“We’ll see,” said Cindy, calming him down. “Right now he won’t, but there are ways to get the information.”
“What was your impression of the emails you read?” Carl seemed to feel slightly better about the possibility of getting the chance to read them all.
“There was nothing so off about it,” said Cindy, “except that I thought Clay assumed a lot based on a little that Kate said. She’d say a few words and he went with it, decided that she was the One.”
“This is one creepy guy,” said Carl, “I don’t know why I ever encouraged her to meet him. I could kick myself over and over.”
“There are lots of them out there online like that, browsing around, looking for love. It’s easy to develop a fantasy relationship,” said Cindy.
“Yeah, it’s easy to develop a fantasy relationship when you’re together in person, too,” Carl quipped. “How many people really know each other?”
Cindy smiled. How well she knew that. “Relationships take time and patience,” she said softly.
“Tell me about it. I’ve been married three times,” said Carl, “loved each one of them tremendously, when I did. I thought each one was forever. But nothing lasted, nothing really worked.”
“It worked while it worked,” said Cindy, “why beat yourself up about it? Who’s to say something is supposed to last forever?”
Carl looked at Cindy oddly then, and she felt strange hearing those words from herself as well. Was her view of relationships radically changing? She’d always felt confident that she and Clint would be together forever. Everything had seemed so stable between them. And Mattheus, too, in the beginning.
“Sounds like you’ve had a rough time yourself,” his voice softened.
“I’ve been through changes,” said Cindy. “Who hasn’t?”
“I know,” Carl whispered.
“But at least you’ve been able to love again,” Cindy quipped. “That’s a good thing. You could look at having three wives as a failure, or you say that you were always ready to try again.”
Carl laughed and so did Cindy.
“I wish better than that for you, Cindy,” Carl said softly.
“I appreciate it,” Cindy replied, “we all dream of that person to go through life with.”
Carl took a step closer to her then.
Cindy backed away. “So, let’s talk more about Clay,” she said. “Clearly, he upset you.”
“Yeah, he made me begin to think that what happened to Kate was my fault,” Carl put his hands up to his head.
“Go easy on yourself, Carl,” Cindy put her arm on his and there was a moment of lovely connection between them. Both stopped to enjoy it.
“What now?” said Carl, as he composed himself. “Where do we go next?”
“Now I’ve got to meet with Mattheus and show him Kate’s bracelet,” said Cindy. “It’s going to change everything.”
“Lucky Mattheus, to be able to have time with you,” said Carl softly.
“Thanks,” said Cindy, “and I’m lucky, too.”
*
Cindy had no idea how Mattheus would respond to the shocking news about Riva’s bracelet. She called up to the room and fortunately, he was still there, researching on the computer. The roads had been flooded due to the storm and it was difficult to get anywhere right now. The light of the day was quickly fading, too. By tomorrow things would be getting back to normal. And in another day after that the airports would open and Clay and his family could leave.
“Yes,” said Mattheus when he picked up the phone, “what’s going on?”
“How about coming down and meeting me in the bar at the hotel?” Cindy asked.