Death by Request (Caribbean Murder #11)

It took only a few moments to locate the boat rental place Owen had used - Wyndsail Rentals. It was one of the most established, best known boat rental services in Jamaica and had franchises in other parts of the Caribbean as well. The place was owned and operated by Andy Tane.


Cindy and Mattheus walked up to the long, low wooden building. Wyndsail Rentals was proudly written in large red letters on a huge plaque in front. This was the place where day trips were planned and reservations made for boat rentals and cruises. As soon as they walked in Mattheus immediately asked for Andy Tane. To their delight he was there, in his back office. As soon as he was called, he immediately came out to see them.

“Well, I’d heard C and M Investigations were down in Jamaica on the case,” Andy said as he walked straight towards Cindy and Mattheus. Andy was tall, well built, suntanned, dressed in jeans and a T shirt. He had short cropped hair, strong features and leathery skin from the sun and winds.

“Thanks for talking to us,” Mattheus responded.

“I’ve spoken to the police a couple of times,” Andy continued. “Of course, if there’s anything else I can do to help, let me know.”

Cindy appreciated his no nonsense, forthright attitude. “We’d like to go onto the boat and look at it ourselves,” she piped up.

Andy turned to her, slightly startled. “Sure,” he agreed, “why not?”

The three of them promptly walked out of the cabin and out onto a planked walkway that lead to the boat.

“The boat Owen rented is one of the best boats in the fleet,” Andy remarked as they walked along, the breeze blowing over them all. “Owen reserved it a couple of weeks before their vacation.”

“He didn’t need a Captain to go along?” Mattheus asked. “He knew how to ride it?”

“Yeah, yeah, in fact Owen’s rented from us before. I know him,” said Andy. “There was never a problem the other two times.”

“Don’t you send Captains out along with the tourists on day sails, though?” asked Cindy.

“Not unless the people ask for them,” Andy replied, disconcerted by her persistence. “People know what they can handle.”

“Did Owen rent the same kind of boat this time as he did before?” Cindy continued, undaunted by his irritation.

“Good question,” Andy turned to her, uncomfortable. “The other two times he rented a smaller boat with less power, for a shorter trip. That time he just planned to stay out for an hour or so.”

“And this time?” Cindy felt uneasy.

“This time Owen wanted the most powerful boat we had. He’d planned a day sail to celebrate his anniversary,” Andy said solemnly as they got to the white power boat that sat grandly, gleaming in the sun.

“Beautiful boat,” said Mattheus.

“Sure is, “Andy agreed. “Top of the line and in perfect condition.”

“Want to step into the boat? “asked Andy, trying to be obliging.

“Sure do,” said Mattheus, as he gave his hand to Cindy to help her climb over the ledge.

Cindy shivered as she stepped on board the boat. It felt powerful and majestic standing there under the clear sky, rocking gently in the light wind. As she stood there, Cindy tried to feel what Tara had been feeling, alive, happy, trusting, about to embark upon a beautiful day with her husband.

“How long were they out for before the accident happened?” Cindy asked, looking around at the boat carefully.

“A couple of hours,” Andy answered, as Cindy spotted a drop of blood in the corner.

“Blood,” she mentioned, pointing to it.

“Yeah, I know,” said Andy. “Most of it has been removed. We have a few spots left to go.”

“All the blood, fingerprints, and evidence were collected for forensics?” Mattheus asked.

“Absolutely,” said Andy. “There were teams of cops down here for a long time inspecting the inside of the boat, collecting evidence and also looking over the front edge that rammed into her head.”

Cindy shuddered at the thought of it. Standing here she felt safe and secure. Had the accident been just a combination of unexpected circumstances, or something else, she wondered?

“How did the accident even happen?” Cindy asked, turning and looking directly at Andy, who seemed disturbed to be reliving all of this now.

“Accidents happen,” he mumbled. “People come and rent boats that are too powerful for them. There’s no way to know in advance. Things can start out fine and then suddenly the day gets cloudy, the water gets rough. Things change in a second and they can’t handle the situation. In Owen’s case a rough wind blew up from out of nowhere and tossed the wife off the boat. He tried like hell to save her, but couldn’t. His foot must have jammed on the motor trying to get the boat out of the way. The boat swerved right at her hitting her head.”

“Horrible,” breathed Cindy.

“Yeah,” Andy agreed. “Horrible for both of them. Owen lunged into the water and pulled her out, but it was too late. You could hear his shouts from miles around.”

“You heard him shouting?” Mattheus was interested.