After Mattheus left, Cindy walked over to Pete, wanting to address the unanswered fear in his eyes.
“I believe Rowley is fine,” she started. “The photo must have come as a shock to him. It might have made him suddenly realize that Kara was gone. He missed her, he was alarmed. For all we know he’s out there searching for her himself.”
“I wouldn’t put that past him,” Pete answered quietly.
“Rowley would probably be amazed that his sudden absence has caused such a stir,” Cindy continued. She could see that her words meant a great deal to Pete.
“You know a lot about these kinds of situations, Cindy,” Pete replied.
“It’s what I do, it’s my work,” said Cindy.
“And you do it wonderfully, you really do,” he responded.
“Thanks,” said Cindy. “Your appreciation means a lot. And please don’t worry, we’ll find your son. I’m sure of it.”
“Be careful, be safe,” said Pete.
“I am safe,” said Cindy, and suddenly felt it deeply. All at once, she felt looked after and protected, no matter where she went, and what she might have to face.
After a few more words with the family, Cindy decided to leave. She wanted to go straight down to see Santos again. If anyone might know more about this, it would be him. If anyone could help her, perhaps he would.
*
When Cindy arrived at the casino, it was almost as if Santos had been waiting for her. Holly came up to her a few seconds after she walked in, put her hand Cindy’s shoulder, and said, “What took you so long?”
“He’s waiting for me?” asked Cindy.
Holly smiled. “Yeah, he is. I don’t know how you did it, but you got a friend over there. And when Santos is your friend, it’s forever.”
Cindy smiled. She’d felt that the first time she’d met Santos, a familiarity and congeniality between him and her.
“Okay, let’s go,” Cindy said as Holly led her through the crowded spaces to Santos’s room in the rear.
*
Santos got up the minute Cindy walked in, waved Holly out, and smiled broadly.
“You sure took your time about coming back to see me,” he said as he reached for Cindy’s hands and gave them a quick squeeze hello.
“I’ve been busy trying to track Kara down,” Cindy replied.
“And also finding out who killed Shane.” Santos tapped his foot on the ground lightly.
“The cases are definitely connected,” Cindy spoke to him confidentially, as if he were her secret partner.
Santos laughed. “You think you’re telling me something I don’t know?”
“You knew all along?” Cindy’s eyes opened.
“Santos knows everything that happens down here,” he answered in a gruff whisper. “I even know about what happened with you and your husband, Clint. He was killed down in Barbados on your honeymoon and since then you’ve become a crazed Caribbean detective, going after all kinds of killers.”
Obviously, Santos had investigated her as well. “That’s right,” said Cindy. “What else can I do?”
Santos paused and looked at her kindly. “There are lots of things a person could do, but you haven’t found that out yet, have you?” Santos looked completely taken by Cindy and also disturbed by the path her life had taken.
“What kind of things could I do?” asked Cindy, wanting to know what was on his mind.
“You could put what happened in the past and let it go. You could build a new life of your own,” Santos chided Cindy, as if he were talking to his own daughter.
Cindy was both touched and startled. “This is my life now,” she replied.
“Right now, yes. But always, Cindy?” he asked.
Cindy had no idea why it mattered to him. “What difference does it make to you?” she asked, curious.
“Everything makes a difference to Santos,” he quickly replied. “Everything. Otherwise, how could I keep a grip on my place and people and make sure things don’t get out of hand?”
Cindy found him fascinating. “You do a fantastic job down here,” she remarked.
“That’s right, I do,” said Santos proudly. “And, believe it or not, part of my job is dividing right from wrong. Some people should be detectives, others shouldn’t. Some people deserve to die, others to live.”
Cindy was startled. Was he the arbiter of who lived and died? “Is that up to you?” she asked plainly.
“It’s up to someone.” Santos laughed again.
If everything was in his hands, Santos had to have Cindy’s answers. “Who killed Shane?” she asked him bluntly then.
The smile left Santos’s face instantly. There was nothing more he had to say.
The truth of the situation suddenly flickered before Cindy. “Shane wasn’t supposed to die, was she, Santos?” Cindy blurted out.
Santos threw up his head and rubbed his face with his palms. “You ask these kinds of questions to Santos? Sometimes you don’t know when to stop. But you’re a brave woman, Cindy. No one can say you’re not.”
“You like me and I like you, Santos,” Cindy replied. ”And we’re both after the same thing.”