“Of course he feels okay, why shouldn’t he?” Alfred was offended. “It was never romantic between Kara and me, ever.”
“Still, some men could have trouble with their wives being so close to another man,” said Cindy.
“Sure, some guys could,” Alfred conceded, “but Kara would never have gotten involved with someone like that. I’ll tell you one thing right now. She would never, ever, ever let anyone get between her and me.”
Cindy swallowed hard. Alfred’s feelings for Kara were extremely intense. “And how do you feel about Rowley?” she went on.
“He’s okay.” Alfred turned and looked at Cindy with a rumpled grin. “Rowley makes Kara happy, so I have to like him.”
“But do you like him, really?” asked Cindy.
“Rowley’s not someone I’d choose myself,” Alfred continued. “Did you look at his Facebook page?”
“Not yet,” said Cindy, startled to realize that she hadn’t yet done it.
“No big deal,” Alfred went on casually, “but when you look at his page you’ll see that it’s full of pictures of all kinds of women, with messages from them, too. The women like this guy and everyone knows it. It’s his reputation. But still, Kara doesn’t mind at all.”
“How could she not mind it?” asked Cindy as they got to the end of the block and stopped in front of an outdoor café.
“Want to get some coffee?” asked Alfred before they turned the corner.
“Definitely,” said Cindy, more tired and thirsty than she realized.
*
The café was open and inviting and it was wonderful to sit down. Cindy ordered a latte and Alfred had the same. It was good that the two of them felt so comfortable with each other, thought Cindy. Alfred was obviously a treasure trove of information about Kara’s life.
Cindy decided to pick up right where they’d left off. “Why didn’t Kara mind that Rowley was a ladies’ man?” she asked as they waited for their coffee.
“Why should she?” Alfred was surprised. “Kara knew that Rowley was totally, madly in love with her. He’d do anything for her. It made her confident.”
The coffees came and Cindy took a long, slow drink of hers. It was warm, spicy, and delicious.
“Was Kara right to have that kind of confidence in Rowley?” Cindy asked as she put the glass back down on the table.
Alfred left his coffee untouched. “I always thought so,” he said, “but how can you be sure? And besides, it’s never so good for a woman to think a guy is totally, completely in love with her, either. It makes him putty in her hands.”
“Was Rowley putty in Kara’s hands?” Cindy shot back, intrigued.
“Yeah, of course he was,” said Alfred. “And how could she really respect a guy like that? It had to backfire sooner or later, I always thought.”
“Did you tell that to Kara?” Cindy was fascinated.
“Yeah, sure I told her,” said Alfred, “but she only laughed. She said it wouldn’t backfire, that she liked it. She was glad Rowley never made her feel worried or jealous.”
“Some women prefer that kind of man,” said Cindy.
Alfred looked at Cindy out of the corner of his eye. “Some women, but not most,” he answered slyly. “Most women get bored with a guy like that.”
Cindy decided to go to the heart of the matter. “What happened to Kara?” She asked the question swiftly and pointedly, letting it land like a small shaft of lightning.
“I believe Kara was taken, kidnapped.” Alfred ‘s voice got shaky.
That startled Cindy. “Kidnapped? Why? By whom?”
“It’s complicated,” Alfred mumbled.
“Right now the police believe it was an accident,” said Cindy. “They think Kara went swimming and got caught in a tide.”
“That didn’t happen.” Alfred was definite.
“How can you be so sure?” asked Cindy, alerted.
“This is off the record, okay?” said Alfred.
The hairs rose on Cindy’s arms. “Of course,” she said.
“I got an email from Kara,” Alfred continued. “She sent it after they say she disappeared. So she didn’t drown, she sent me the email!”
Cindy gasped. “Why is this off the record? It’s incredibly important! Did you show the email to the police?”
“I don’t trust the police,” Alfred whispered. “The police could be in on the kidnapping for all we know.”
“Why would they?” Cindy’s voice rose.
“There are all kinds of possibilities,” said Alfred, looking slightly unhinged.
Cindy suddenly wondered if Alfred were paranoid and dreaming this up, or if he really knew something.
“Let’s start with the email,” Cindy continued slowly. “Why do you say she wrote it after they say she disappeared?”
“Because of the time on it,” Alfred replied.
“That could just be the time you received it,” said Cindy.
“No,” he insisted, “it was the time it was sent.”
Cindy’s mouth grew dry. She was very grateful that Albert didn’t suspect her along with the police, that he was talking to her.