“How can you be so sure?” asked Darrin.
Rowley looked up at him sadly. “I knew all of Kara’s friends,” he said.
“Okay, Rowley,” Darrin went on officially then, “as far as you know, did you or Kara do drugs?”
Rowley squirmed in his seat. “I’ve already answered that question,” Rowley remarked.
“I have to ask you again now,” said Darrin.
“We did not do drugs,” said Rowley.
“This is an important question, Rowley, think carefully,” Darrin repeated.
“Neither Kara nor I did drugs,” Rowley repeated. “If Kara did drugs she could never have worked at the shelter. They’re absolutely fanatic about no drug use there.”
“I can second that,” Rod burst out then. “My daughter never would have taken drugs for any reason.”
“Okay, good,” said Darrin, “just checking again. We have to completely rule out the drug ring from both cases. Thank you.” Darrin nodded officially. “And I have to ask you, Rowley, and your extended family to remain on the island until the medical examiner’s report for Shane is complete. This is just a routine request. We don’t know what we’ll find yet and we need to have all the people involved in both incidents present in case something unexpected turns up.”
“I understand,” Rod acquiesced immediately, while Rowley continued to stay silent and sad.
“Thank you for coming, that’s all then for now,” Darrin said finally. “Be assured our investigations are continuing and that no stone will be left unturned in our efforts to find Kara and to find Shane’s killer as well.”
CHAPTER 11
Fortunately, Rod went back with Rowley, and Mattheus and Cindy were finally alone.
It seemed like forever since they’d had time by themselves. It was important now to go over what they’d discovered now and plan their next steps.
“Let’s get some decent lunch,” Mattheus said, as Rod and Rowley walked out of sight. “We could use some time to thaw out.”
“You can say that again,” said Cindy. “How about taking a few hours and going over to Pigeon Point National Park?” Cindy suddenly had a craving to leave their usual habitat and spend some time in a new environment. It would change their outlook on everything. “I heard it’s beautiful there.” Cindy tried to be cheery. “There’s a beach, two restaurants, and incredible landscaped grounds.”
“It’s where they hold the jazz festival every year, isn’t it?” said Mattheus. “I always wanted to go to that.”
“Great,” said Cindy, “it’ll be good to take a break.” Cindy noticed that she did not add that Pigeon Point was also a favorite destination of wedding planners. That wasn’t something she wanted to bring up though. The idea of marriage, of planning a wedding, was the furthest thing from her mind right now.
“How long will it take to get there?” asked Mattheus, looking at his watch. “We’ve got a lot on our plate for the rest of the day.”
“Not long,” Cindy urged. “And it’ll be worth the time, believe me.”
Mattheus agreed, hailed a cab, and they took off. Cindy felt relieved leaving town, having a chance to spend time under the wide, blue, unencumbered skies. As they drove she could feel the sense of burden slowly drifting away.
“This island is so lush,” she commented, “even a few hours in nature will mean a lot.”
“Absolutely,” Mattheus murmured. “I could use it, too.”
Cindy was glad to hear that. Before they got very far though, Cindy’s phone rang. She
looked up at Mattheus as if to say, should I pick it up? Is it okay to catch a few hours with no
one to answer to under the sun?
“Take it,” Mattheus replied quickly. “We really shouldn’t be leaving town at this point anyway, even if it’s only for a few hours.”
Cindy took her phone and answered immediately.
“Cindy, it’s Alfred.” The voice on the other end sounded garbled, but Cindy quickly recognized who it was. “I’m freaking out,” he continued, his words falling all over each other.
“What happened? What’s wrong?” Cindy suddenly felt afraid. Did something new just turn up? Had Kara surfaced?
“I’m freaking out about the dead woman on the beach!” Alfred went on. “It’s awful, it’s horrible!”
“Yes, it is,” Cindy spoke in an even keel, trying to calm him down.
“I’m sure it’s a warning.” Alfred sounded panicky.
“What’s it a warning of, Alfred?” Cindy knew that Alfred exaggerated things and could easily go over the edge. She tried not to get caught up in his panic.
“It’s obviously a warning that Kara is next,” he breathed into the phone. “There’s no question about it, first this woman, then Kara. They’re letting us know.”