By the time Cindy and Mattheus got Rowley back to the hotel most of the police were gone. Fortunately, to his credit, Abe had remained at the hotel, waiting to see what Cindy and Mattheus had found. He was especially pleased to see Rowley walk in with them.
“So glad to see you.” Abe ran over to them, reaching out for Rowley, who jumped away. “We’re picking up the search first thing in the morning,” Abe went on. “And I’ve arranged to have someone stay with you, Rowley , during the night.”
“That’s presumptuous.” The idea bothered Rowley. “I don’t want anyone staying with me. I’ve got calls to make, things to do.”
“Both families have been notified,” Abe filled him in. “From what I hear they’re all on their way down and will probably arrive sometime tomorrow.”
Now Rowley became irate. “It was my job to tell them, not yours,” he insisted.
“We’re just trying to help out,” Abe spoke softly.
“What did you tell them?” Rowley was beside himself. “That Kara was gone forever? That I’d never see her again?”
“Of course not,” said Abe. “There’s no reason to assume something like that yet.”
Cindy was relieved to see that the police down here seemed to be handling things well.
“Abe is right,” Mattheus chimed in, “it’s not a good idea for you to be alone tonight, Rowley.”
“Would you like to stay in our suite?” Cindy offered. “You can sleep on the couch in the main room.”
Rowley seemed touched by the offer and quieted down. “I have no intention of sleeping,” Rowley replied, “but thanks anyway. There are important things for me to do. I have to find Kara tonight. I’m not leaving her alone out there in the dark.”
Chills ran through Cindy’s body at the thought of Kara alone in the dark. Where was she? Could she actually still be alive somewhere out there?
“We have a team out already searching for her,” Abe reminded Rowley. “They know just where to look. It won’t help for you to become overtired. It’s better for you to rest tonight.”
Rowley stared at Abe strangely. “How can I rest until Kara comes home?”
“You might want to take something to help you sleep tonight,” Cindy suggested. “This way you won’t be exhausted and you’ll be able to help tomorrow.”
“I’m not exhausted,” Rowley remarked in a strange tone. “I’m ready for anything, and I’m going to search all night long.”
Cindy and Mattheus looked at each other. “I don’t know what you plan to do, Rowley,” said Mattheus, “but you could inadvertently make things worse without wanting to.”
“What can be worse than this?” Rowley suddenly called out in an awful, broken tone.
Things could be worse, thought Cindy. Hope could be entirely gone. You could find your wife’s body up on the shore, mangled by the ocean. Or you could find she ran away on her own, had no other way to say good-bye. Worst of all, you could find that someone harmed her and then live in the grip of revenge for the rest of your life.
“Do me a favor,” Abe interjected softly, “just give us tonight for the police to search on our own. Trust us for a little while. Cindy and Mattheus are right, get some rest for yourself. Everything will look different tomorrow.”
Rowley suddenly dropped his head into his hands and cried out, “Tomorrow? There’s no tomorrow for me until Kara walks in the door.”
Just at that moment a middle-aged woman, sedately dressed with her hair pulled back, approached.
“I’m here to help,” she spoke in a soothing tone. “I’m on staff at the hotel, and trained to take care of emergency matters.”
“Are you a nurse?” asked Cindy.
“A trained practical nurse,” the woman replied, putting a kind hand on Rowley.
Rowley jerked away from her abruptly.
“Dr. Flynn,” she said softly, “I have warm tea for you, pastries, anything you need.”
At the sound of his name, Rowley looked up quickly. Her addressing him as doctor seemed to spark something in him.
“Yes, yes, of course,” he replied, in a somewhat professional tone.
“Let me accompany you to your room and make you comfortable,” she went on. “Whatever you need, we’re here for you.”
*
Cindy watched with surprise as Rowley allowed the woman to walk him away, back to his room.
“They’re good here,” Abe mumbled, “they’ve got it all covered. We’ll have police in his room first thing in the morning. As it is, they’re watching everything carefully now.”
“Go easy on him,” Cindy murmured. She knew that the last one to see someone alive was always the main suspect. Obviously the police planned to question Rowley tomorrow.
“No one’s jumping on his back,” Abe quickly replied. “We have no idea yet what happened. It’s awful when they go missing out of nowhere and you have no idea why.”
“There’s always a reason and we’ll find it fast.” Mattheus’s jaw set firmly.
“You think so?” asked Abe, startled.