Death by Request (Caribbean Murder #11)

“They’re not speaking against you either,” Cindy commented.

At that Owen jumped to his feet. “Of course they aren’t, because there’s nothing bad to say. I took great care of Tara and of them. Even her stupid, weak father knows it. When all of his crazy business deals fell apart, who put him back on the map? I did. I was right there to step in and make things right.”

“I’m sorry,” said Cindy suddenly, filled with pain at the thought of Owen’s life.

Owen grasped onto Cindy’s feelings for him and looked at her with gratitude.

“Finally someone gets it,” he replied. “Cindy, you’ve got to get me out of here, you’ve got to.”

I will, said Cindy to herself.

“I didn’t hurt my wife. I don’t deserve this!” Owen’s voice grew more piercing.

“We’ll do our very best,” Mattheus calmly replied.

“I hope it’s good enough,” Owen wailed.

“It’s more than good enough,” Cindy replied forcefully. “We never leave any stone unturned.”





Chapter 4



When the interview with Owen was over Cindy and Mattheus took a cab back to the hotel, exhausted. The late afternoon sun was softer by now and, thankfully, a cool breeze had risen. It had been a long day with lots to process. Neither Cindy nor Mattheus had stopped for a bite of lunch either.

“We can order food up to the room, or go to one of the restaurants in the hotel,” Mattheus suggested, taking Cindy’s hand as they drove along.

Cindy felt like laying down and resting, but knew they needed to go over what they’d heard and divide tasks between them.

“We’ll do better sitting up, outdoors,” Cindy replied, happy to have Mattheus’s hand in hers. “There’s a lot to go over.”

“You can say that again,” Mattheus agreed. “Not time to get too cozy upstairs. We might forget about everything and just be happy together.”

Cindy smiled and put her head on Mattheus’s shoulder. “I’m tired,” she said. “I’m sure we’ll be very happy later on, but right now we’ve got a lot ahead of us to plan.”

“Once we’ve made our plans, how about an early evening swim to refresh us?” asked Mattheus.

Cindy loved the idea. “How about later on tonight?” she picked up on it, a twinkle in her eye. “A moonlight swim could really hit the spot.”

“I can’t think of anything better,” Mattheus crooned, “a moonlight swim alone with you in the Caribbean waters.”

Cindy felt Mattheus’s excitement, but for now wanted to stay focused on the case.

“Do you feel optimistic about the case?” Cindy changed the topic as the taxi swerved sharply towards their hotel.

Mattheus seemed surprised. “That’s an odd question coming from you,” he said. “I always feel optimistic about solving a case, and so do you.”

Cindy took a moment to think about it. It was true, she was usually certain they would find the killer. And she felt privileged to make it happen, too.

“Why do you have doubts now?” Mattheus was interested. “We haven’t even begun to meet most of the players involved.”

“I don’t know,” Cindy wondered herself. She was put off by Eric Holder, the Chief of Police, didn’t like the fact that he’d described Owen as a con man, had been brooding about that. Cindy also had a strange feeling about the hospital, which was unlike any other hospital she’d ever been in. “It seems like we’ve landed in a strange territory here, with layer upon layer of camouflage.”

“That’s an interesting way to put it,” Mattheus remarked.

“I don’t feel grounded yet,” Cindy continued.

“Could that have anything to do with what you’ve just been through?” Mattheus seemed concerned. “Could it be too soon for you to be taking on another case?”

“You mean right after losing Ann?” asked Cindy.

“You haven’t had any time to absorb your sister’s death yet,” Mattheus continued. “You haven’t even spoken to me about her, either. You can’t just shut it all out. I’ve been concerned about it.”

“I know,” said Cindy sadly. “But maybe the best way for me to absorb Ann’s death, is to go back to work, deal with what’s in front of me now. What good will it do to dwell on the horror Ann went through, or painful memories?”

“Not dwelling on them won’t make the memories go away,” Mattheus replied. “They’ll keep living right under the surface until you face them one day.”

“Maybe they will and maybe not,” Cindy remarked. “Maybe Ann is with me right now, guiding me along. Maybe she’ll always be with me, and I can just rest in that.”

Mattheus ran his hand over Cindy’s hair gently. “Does it comfort you to think that way?” he asked.

Mattheus’s comment made Cindy uneasy. “It’s not just a matter of whether it comforts me,” she replied. “It’s a matter of whether or not it’s true.”