Death by Request (Caribbean Murder #11)

“I doubt that, Hank,” Ralph shouted.

“How can you be certain they’re not suffering?” Hank stood at the edge of his chair, his eyes wide with fear and sorrow.

“Sit back down, Hank, be calm, be quiet,” Isabelle went over to him quickly.

“Hank was very close to Tara,” Jenna whispered to Cindy.

“Did Tara leave any record of her last wishes should something like this ever take place?” Cindy quickly asked.

“Of course Tara didn’t leave any final instructions,” Hank kept wailing from the back of the room. “She was just forty, she was beautiful, she never expected to die.”

The entire room grew silent for a moment.

“There was a large life insurance policy taken out on your daughter’s life though,” Mattheus finally remarked to Ralph.

Ralph’s face grew flushed. “I only heard about that after she died,” he said gruffly.

“I knew about it before,” Jenna piped up. “Tara and Owen took the policy out for us, to help the family. Tara told me about it. I was shocked. I told her it was ridiculous, that she was young and healthy.”

“Tara worried about the financial situation of the family?” Mattheus inquired.

“Tara worried about lots of things,” Jenna said softly. “She had much more money than we did and felt guilty about it. She kept giving us gifts all the time. So did Owen.”

“Whatever Owen gave me, I paid back,” Ralph took exception. “I’ve had a few business deals go bad and he stepped in to help. So what?”

Clearly, the friction between Ralph and Owen had gone on for a long time.

“Do you believe that Owen injected the lethal substance into your daughter’s IV?” Mattheus asked Ralph pointedly.

“I don’t know about that,” Ralph shuddered. “But whoever did it, was brave. They did the right thing, took Tara out of her misery. Hell, I don’t like the guy. But why in the world should anyone be prosecuted for that?”

The wailing from Hank in the back of the room suddenly grew louder as he sat back down in his chair, rocking back and forth.

“Hank was very close to Tara,” said Isabelle, as she stepped closer to Cindy and Mattheus. “All during the ordeal I told Hank that it was alright, I felt Tara close by, communicating with me. He wouldn’t believe it, but I knew it was true. I even saw little flashes of lightning in the sky. That was her. I knew she was telling me she was at peace.”

Cindy stopped cold and stared. “How do you know that, exactly?”

“Not just the lightning, there have been so many other signs I’ve had that I’m at ease,” Isabelle answered softly.

Cindy couldn’t help but think of the lightning she saw and her own sister. Could that have been a sign? Cindy wasn’t sure, but she was happy that Isabelle could find the solace she needed.

Mattheus stepped over then, wanting to turn the discussion in another direction. “If you were in touch with Tara,” he said to Isabelle grimly, “by any chance, did she let you know who put the lethal substance in her IV?”

Isabelle stared at him oddly, not sure if he was being flippant. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“I just wondered if Tara might have let you know who killed her?” Mattheus asked without skipping a beat.

“No, she didn’t,” said Isabelle swiftly.

“What do you think? Any ideas?” he went on.

Isabelle grew pale at the thought of it. “I haven’t let myself think of that,” she spluttered. “But I do know that. I don’t approve of taking anyone’s life, under any circumstances. In Tara’s case, she never chose death or asked for it, either. There is no guilt on her head.”

“There’s guilt on someone’s head, though, isn’t there?” asked Mattheus, unwilling to let go.

“Someone,” Isabelle agreed.

“Do you believe the person who did it should be prosecuted?” Mattheus continued.

“Definitely,” Isabelle responded. “It was not up to them to take such an action.”

“Ridiculous,” Ralph once again interjected, overhearing the conversation. “We’re kinder to animals who are dying than to people.”

“But you weren’t kind to Tara, ever,” Hank’s wailing voice suddenly pierced the room, as he jumped up out of his chair. “You weren’t kind to her ever. And now she’s entirely gone.”





Chapter 6



“Let’s have lunch outdoors,” Cindy said as soon as they left the Villa. The meeting with the family had unnerved her, she was thrilled to be out of there and wanted to be near the water. Cindy needed to see the sky, have time to walk outdoors and talk the meeting over with Mattheus.

“Great,” said Mattheus. “In fact, I was thinking we should go to the marina where Owen rented the boat he and Tara went out on. It’s not far from here. We can take a look at the boat and talk to the owner. Then we can find a place for lunch close by.”

Cindy loved being near boats and the plan felt perfect. It was a good idea to walk in Tara’s footsteps, take each step of the journey along with her.