Death by Seduction (Book #13 in the Caribbean Murder series)

“Put it anyway you want,” said Cindy. “You’re doing a lot to help her.”


“I’m not only doing it for Charma,” Eric spoke strongly, “I’m also doing it for you, Cindy.”

Another gust of wind struck at them then, practically pushing both of them around the corner.

“Come on, let’s catch a cab and get out of here,” said Eric, as he grabbed Cindy to keep her from falling down.





Chapter 17


Cindy knew that as soon as she returned to the hotel she had to see Loretta and make sure she was okay. It was also time to confront her with the fact that Pete had been Charma’s customer and find out about the reality of their marriage. Taylor had not as yet returned Cindy’s call and she imagined that he was still knee deep in the money trail. Cindy was glad he was tracking it, too. There was obviously a lot hidden about Pete’s life and no matter who was frightened by it, it was time for it to surface.

Cindy knew she first had to repair her relationship with Loretta and re-gain her trust before trying to learn more about her personal life. She decided to call and invite her on an outing. It would be good for Loretta to get away from her room, which was now being guarded by hotel police. Once out in nature she and Cindy could enjoy the incredible beauty of the island and hopefully put their differences behind them.

Cindy put a call into Loretta right away. “I have a great idea,” Cindy said the moment she picked up the phone. “Let’s take get away from the hotel and some time at the waterfalls together this afternoon.”

Loretta didn’t respond so quickly. “Why?” she asked finally.

“I’d like to work things out between us, Loretta,” Cindy went on, “we need a chance to talk.”

“Well, that’s gutsy of you, anyway,” Loretta seemed impressed. “As least you’re admitting you’ve done something wrong.”

Cindy wondered exactly what Loretta thought she did wrong? She decided to go along with it, however. “I’d like to talk it over,” Cindy repeated.

“Alright,” Loretta finally agreed, “but why the waterfalls?”

“I heard it’s beautiful there with crystal clear water and the rainforest above,” Cindy felt encouraged. “It’s a good place to unwind, isn’t it?”

“Sure it’s beautiful” Loretta went along, “but how am I going to unwind until this is all over and you find the killer? How do I know someone won’t throw another rock at me tomorrow?”

“The police are there now, they’ll protect you,” Cindy answered plainly. “What good will it do you to stay tied up in knots?”

“None at all,” Loretta sighed. “And I am completely in knots. Okay, we can just go and look at falls. I’m not taking the jumps, though. There’s a hike of about forty minutes to the top of the falls where you can jump and slide your way back down. I don’t want to do that right now.” Loretta stated.

“No, of course not,” agreed Cindy.

“But I’ll go for the hike, just to look at the falls,” Loretta continued. “Should I invite Angela to come, too?”

“How about just you and me for now?” Cindy wanted Loretta to herself, she needed to distract her and create a situation where Loretta could talk freely.

“I guess you don’t want Angela to hear you apologizing to me,” Loretta declared.

“I’d rather we had some privacy,” Cindy agreed. “When can we leave?”

“I’ll meet you downstairs in half an hour,” said Loretta.

*

The ride to the falls was tense and brittle, with Cindy and Loretta making meaningless small talk .Cindy thought Loretta might be waiting for an apology before she would open up. After they got out of the cab, before they started the hike, they paused at the waiting station at the foot of the trail. It was private and hidden, surrounded by trees and rocks, a perfect spot to clear the air between them.

“I’m terribly sorry if I offended you, Loretta,” Cindy started, as they sat on two small, carved, wobbly chairs.

“You did offend me,” Loretta snapped back.

“That was never my intention,” said Cindy.

“You specifically ignored my requests,” Loretta lashed out, “you spent time with Taylor, who I detest and who detests me. I’m sure he’s filled your head with all kinds of lies about me. You also met with, that guy Eric, a lawyer, without saying a word to be about it.” Loretta was getting herself more and more upset as she spoke.

“My goal was to help you,” Cindy tried to calm her. “And Taylor didn’t fill my head with lies. He just said that things always were tense between the two of you.”

“Tense isn’t the word for it,” Loretta shot back. “He always tried to turn Pete against me, couldn’t stand me, thought I was weak. What kind of brother in law would do that?”

“Not a very good one,” Cindy agreed.