Death by Request (Caribbean Murder #11)

Owen looked at her gratefully and sat across from Cindy and Mattheus at a narrow, steel table.

“This is a nightmare I can’t wake up from,” Owen started, focusing almost entirely on Cindy. “The police have decided I killed Tara. But they have nothing to base this arrest upon. I’m constantly in touch with the authorities in the States, but so far am getting nothing but flack. I’m trying to contact my Senator, it’s all a mess.”

“Tell us everything,” Mattheus started quickly, keeping his eyes glued to Owen’s face, wanting to be included in the conversation. “We need whatever facts you have for us.”

Cindy was grateful that Mattheus was open to Owen, despite what Eric had said.

“The fact is I loved my wife,” Owen started heatedly, “and anybody you talk to will tell you that. We were married for twenty wonderful years. Tara never complained about our marriage and neither did I. We were here to celebrate our anniversary, it was supposed to be a beautiful time. After the horrible accident I stayed at her bedside every second. I didn’t leave her alone for a minute, I slept there, held her, begged her to wake up and come back to me again.” His eyes filled with sudden tears.

Cindy sighed deeply, unnerved. There was nothing about Owen that seemed like a con man. She had no idea where Eric got that idea from.

“Did Tara wake up, even once?” Mattheus asked suddenly, startling both Cindy and Owen.

“Not that I know of,” Owen seemed confused by the question. “Some people thought she would. They said it was just a matter of time. I insisted we let the coma go on as long as it had to.”

“Had to?” asked Mattheus.

“Until she woke up, or passed on her own,” Owen said suddenly anguished. “Did I think she would pass? Not for a minute. How could a young, beautiful woman leave you so suddenly like that?”

Cindy took a deep, stabbing breath. She’d grappled with that question herself twice now. How could Clint have left, and now her own sister?

“Tell us more about the accident,” Cindy recovered herself. “What happened exactly?”

“It’s written up in all the papers,” said Owen, clearly reluctant to go over it again.

“I know, but I want to hear about it from you,” said Cindy. “You m ay suddenly remember some little detail that skipped your mind before.”

“Oh God,” it was obviously hard for Owen to re-live the memory once again. “Tara and I were out on a boat we’d rented. She loved the water and so did I. The day was incredibly beautiful. I remember flashes of sun on the water, making amazing shapes. Tara said they were there just for us.” Owen got quiet.

“Then what happened?” Cindy gently urged him on.

“All of a sudden it got windy,” he continued in a scruffy tone.

“Did the weather forecast predict wind or storm?” Mattheus asked carefully. “Was it wise to go out on the water that day?”

“I don’t know,” Owen replied sadly, “I didn’t check. It was beautiful when we got out on the boat. That was enough for me.”

“Doesn’t one usually check the weather before going out onto the water for the day?” Mattheus was pushing, trying to unnerve him and get more.

In response, Owen just brushed his hand in the air casually, as if brushing cobwebs away. “Then the wind suddenly blew up,” he continued, ignoring Mattheus’s question completely. “Our boat started rocking, and Tara was standing near the edge.”

“Didn’t you yell at her to get back?” asked Mattheus.

“Of course, I yelled and I reached out my arm to pull her back in the boat,” Owen added hastily, “but I also had to steer the boat, make sure we didn’t topple over completely. The wind got worse, Tara let out a little yelp, then I heard the huge splash. When I saw her bobbing in the water, I was completely shocked. So was she. She called out to me, I answered. First thing I had to do though was to steer the boat away from her. But it locked, swerved, I couldn’t control it. Next thing I knew the tip of the boat was driving into her head, over and over.”

Cindy shut her eyes. The picture of it was horrible, terrifying. “What did you do then?” Cindy asked, shaking.

“What could I do?” Owen’s voice got louder and stronger. “Finally, I had to jump into the water and pull her out. She was alive, she was breathing. I put a call in for help immediately!” He stopped then, had trouble continuing.

“Help came quickly?” Mattheus asked.

“In just a little while helicopters surrounded us, landed on the water and air lifted the two of us to the hospital. Tara was still breathing. She was alive then. She wasn’t killed, she didn’t die.”

“It’s okay, calm down,” Cindy said to him gently.

“When we got to the hospital they said she was in a coma,” Owen went on uncontrollably. “They put us up on the third floor.”

“I’m sorry, so sorry,” Cindy murmured.

Owen looked at Cindy through glassy eyes. “Thank you,” he uttered. “I knew you would be, I knew it.”