“Oh God, this will never end,” Mattheus groaned.
“It will end when it ends,” said Cindy. “Please go read it, Mattheus.”
Mattheus left to read the note and Cindy kept scrolling. There had to be something else here that would tell her what she felt in every bone of her body and was longing to know. She went over every message from Kate and its responses with a fine tooth comb.
Suddenly Mattheus reappeared on the patio. “Okay, you’re right, this note is weird.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” said Cindy.
“No, not mildly. It’s putting it exactly right. The note is weird. Right now this guy is emotionally disturbed. But who wouldn’t be when they’d just gone through something like this?”
“I found a mention of a predator on Kate’s Facebook page,” Cindy turned to Mattheus directly. “Kate said to someone that there were no predators on this island. That’s a strange thing to say. Not like her at all.”
“Clay probably mentioned it to her and it was on her mind. Mattheus had an answer for everything.
“You don’t think it’s weird?” asked Cindy, agitated.
“I don’t think it’s pleasant, but it doesn’t mean a thing,” said Mattheus.
“Everything means something on a case like this,” said Cindy.
“Not everything,” Mattheus insisted. “Thinking every little thing has a secret meaning leads to madness. You have to know what’s really significant and what is not.”
“This is very significant,” Cindy stuck to it.
“Cindy, the case is solved. They’ve got Sean. It’s tied up.”
Cindy turned back to the computer. “I don’t believe Sean did it, Mattheus. Everyone just wants to pin it on someone and tie it all up.”
“That’s not fair,” said Mattheus more calmly, walking closer to Cindy. “I’ve gone along on this ride with you, but I don’t have to give up what I feel is right.”
“No, you don’t,” Cindy agreed, calming down as well. The tension that developed as cases proceeded inevitably spilled back onto both of them. “I know you’ve done your best.”
“And so have you, “said Mattheus more warmly.
That was unexpected and felt good to hear.
“How about leaving the computer for now and us taking some time together?” he said.
Cindy wanted to do it, but was also afraid. She sensed something here that they could not let go of.
“I want to,” said Cindy, “but it bothers me that Kate wrote about predators. It doesn’t sit right.”
“So, go back and see exactly when that message was written,” said Mattheus. “Put it in perspective and let it be.”
Cindy scrolled back to the message and checked the exact time and date it was sent. As she did, she froze in horror.
“My God,” Cindy called out suddenly.
“What?” asked Mattheus, unnerved.
“My God, my God” Cindy’s voice got louder, “this message was sent after Kate was dead.” Frantically, Cindy scrolled further. “So were the others!”
“What others? What others?” cried Mattheus.
“Mattheus, Mattheus,” Cindy suddenly cried from the top of her lungs, “Kate never announced her engagement to Clay. The messages were sent after she was dead. Kate didn’t post them. Who did?”
CHAPTER 21
“We’ve got to find out who wrote and posted those messages,” Cindy said to Mattheus urgently.
“I’m going with the case as it is,” Mattheus replied. “There will never be a way to prove who wrote them. Kate could have written them before she died, and then someone posted them later. We’ll never know, we’ll never know.”
“Someone was obviously pretending to be Kate,” Cindy replied firmly. “They announced the engagement after she’d died. Why? It’s weird, it’s crazy.”
Mattheus wouldn’t get into it. “You’re chasing a rainbow,” he said. “There are lots of them across the sky, especially after a storm.”
“This is not a rainbow, it’s a lead,” Cindy was inflamed. “Who else had access to Kate’s computer except Clay?”
“We don’t know,” answered Mattheus in a clipped tone, “and by now the computer has so many fingerprints on it, it’s anyone’s guess.” Then he got up and walked to the door. “I’m taking a walk,” he said. “I’ll be back later.”
“When?” asked Cindy, ruffled.
“Does it really matter?” asked Mattheus. “You’re busy anyway, off and running after a new lead.”
It was hard to believe that Mattheus had become so lackadaisical, not really like him at all, thought Cindy. He must have believed that she was using it to put a wedge between them, avoid being back on vacation again. But his lack of involvement troubled Cindy deeply. It also made her wonder whether their working together was even a good idea anymore.
After Mattheus walked out and closed the door, Cindy immediately put in a call to Carl, who picked up instantly.
At first, it was hard for Cindy to talk to him though. It should have been Mattheus she was talking this over with, thought Cindy, flustered.