by Jaden Skye
“Count me in,” said Mattheus, obviously eager to go.
“First you come back with us to the station,” the cop went on. “We’ll go over what we have so far, show you photos, documents. That will probably take the rest of the day. We can hit the Dive Shop tomorrow.”
Mattheus looked pleased, “Terrific,” he said, as he walked to the door with the police. Before he left, he turned back to Cindy, “We won’t go to the Dive Shop without you,” Mattheus promised. “While I’m going over the records at the station, you can use the rest of the day to interview the guests.”
“Perfect,” said Cindy, as Mattheus left. They always divided their time on different parts of the investigation, it made the most sense.
Dana and Edward then came closer to where Peter was sitting. “You’ve got quite a partner there,” said Dana.
Cindy wasn’t sure what she was getting at. “Mattheus is strong, thorough and does a great job,” Cindy declared.
“Lucky for you, I guess,” Dana declared, as Mac smiled with amusement. “I’m glad you’re here without Mattheus for a few hours though,” she went on. “It’s good to have a woman on the job, alone for a while. What do you want to do next?”
“I’d like to speak to Allie’s parents,” Cindy replied.
“So would everyone else,” said Dana. “The police have only had a little while with them. They won’t talk right now, they’re grieving.”
Cindy understood. “Give them some time. It’s too much right away.”
“But, they’ll have to agree to speak to someone at some point,” Dana went on, “it may as well be you. That would probably be easier for them anyway.”
“There are others I have to talk to others as well,” Cindy continued. “What about the wedding party?”
“Good idea. Let’s start with them first, “Dana agreed. “I’ll introduce you to all of them now. They’re usually downstairs at this hour in the cocktail lounge. Let’s go and take them out to the front lawn where it’s quieter.”
Cindy was grateful for Dana’s steady, clear guidance. The woman was determined to spearhead an effort to clear her son. There was no way she was going to let this case go unsolved.
Mac stepped closer to Cindy once again. “Love to join you two, if I can,” he said softly, to Dana.
Dana looked taken aback. “Peter needs you here, Mac,” she said, “this is where you belong.”
“Of course,” Mac replied not taking his eyes off Cindy. “There will be plenty of time for Cindy and I to talk later.”
CHAPTER 5
The cocktail lounge was filling up as Cindy and Dana walked in. Beautiful women in short, silk, summer dresses, men dressed casually, in open throated custom shirts, were laughing, talking, charming each other.
“The wedding party usually gathers at the center table,” Dana remarked quietly. “They’ve been coming down here at cocktail hour late every afternoon to chill out. It’s important to try to normalize things.”
Cindy followed Dana as she wound her way through the crowds to a low, round table, surrounded by a plush sofa in the center of the room. A group of beautiful, suntanned young women and good looking young men sat around the table, looking dazed and glum.
“Hi guys,” Dana started, as they got closer, “this is Cindy Blaine, an old friend of the family and one of the best private detectives on the Caribbean.”
The whole group looked up, startled.
“My God,” said Nora, a bridesmaid with very curly hair, “no one told us you were coming.”
“Hi guys,” Cindy tried to be upbeat.
Some of the girls moved a bit to make room for Cindy and Dana to sit down.
A tall young man, with sandy hair, leaned towards Cindy. “Welcome,” he said, extending his hand.
“This is Tad,” Dana introduced him, “Peter’s best man, his rock of strength.”
“Pleased to meet you, Tad,” said Cindy.
“Thanks,” said Tad, “but why a detective? Have they decided it was a crime?”
“They’re not sure,” Cindy replied.
“No one’s damn sure of anything down here in this place, are they?” It was a groomsman with broad shoulders, dark hair and furrowed eyebrows. “I’m Bernard,” he added.
A lovely, frail young woman with blonde hair, sitting to the right of Cindy, trembled and began crying.
“Stop it, Laura,” another bridesmaid burst in. “Laura’s the Maid of Honor,” she said, “And I’m Elizabeth.” Elizabeth was taller, with straight chestnut hair, dark eyes and a firm manner.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” Laura kept crying, “and to have a detective down here with us, too. It only makes it worse.”
“Makes it better,” said Elizabeth. “We don’t know for sure that Allie’s gone. We need help searching. For all we know, she ‘ll turn up soon.”
“She’s not turning up,” Laura’s crying got louder. “I know it.”
At that the whole group fell silent and grim.
“We’ve all been a mess since this happened,” Tad turned to Cindy, “not to mention Peter, even though he continues to hold onto hope.”
“Why shouldn’t he hold onto hope?” another groomsman, with short clipped hair, interjected.
“This is Roger,” Elizabeth introduced him.
“I keep telling Peter that Allie’s gonna turn up fine,” Roger continued.
“There’s no reason to say something like that,” Bernard was upset. “You’re raising his hopes for no reason. After all this time, she’s not turning up alive.”
“Hey, man, you don’t know that for sure,” Roger bit his bottom lip hard.
“It’s the waiting that’s the worst of it,” said Bernard.
“I know it is,” said Cindy, remembering how she’d waited to find out what happened to Clint after he disappeared on their honeymoon. It was the not knowing that was most brutal.
“We all feel we should be out there personally searching the Island,” Bernard continued, “but the cops won’t let us leave the hotel grounds.”
“We’d only get in the way,” Elizabeth insisted, “they’ve got it all covered.”
“You don’t know that,” Bernard shot back. “If you ask me, the cops just don’t want more trouble to deal with, don’t have the man power to follow all kinds of leads.”
“Maybe they just want to protect us,” said a regal looking bridesmaid who threw her head back as she suddenly stood up and then sat down again. “I’m Robyn, Allie’s oldest friend,” she said to
Cindy.
Cindy nodded at her. “Investigations are complicated,” she replied. “It’s important to keep them under control.”
“We’re all in danger, aren’t we?” Nora piped up.
“There’s no reason to think that,” said Cindy.
“And there’s no reason to think we’re not in danger,” Bernard retorted.
“That’s why I’m here,” Cindy replied, “to figure it all out. And I’d love to speak to each of you personally in greater detail.”
“Each of us? About what?” Bernard looked agitated.
“I need to find out as much as I can about Allie and Peter, and their relationship,” Cindy spoke calmly and clearly.
Tad stood up. “Listen, you’re way off track if you think that Peter had anything to do with Allie’s disappearing.”
Cindy stood up and faced all of them. “I don’t think anything yet, just have to find out. Each of you can be holding a piece to the puzzle you don’t realize you have. When we talk you may remember a fact that doesn’t seem like anything, but leads us to whole new trail.”
Robyn didn’t like it either. “This has nothing to do with Allie and Peter’s relationship,” she chimed in. “Peter and Allie were happy, they were fine. Allie was excited about the wedding and especially having it here. There are over a hundred guests who came down for it.”
A hundred guests - Cindy wondered if they’d all been interviewed. Probably not.
�
�Money was no object either,” Bernard, interjected. “We were all set for a fantastic time.”
“I want to go home,” Nora piped up. “I want to see my parents. “How long are they keeping us down here?”
“You’ll all be allowed to leave as soon as we know more,” Cindy tried to reassure her.
“But it’s not safe to go now, is it?” Nora continued. “For all we know there’s someone loose on the island who wants to kill us all?”
“There’s no reason to suspect that,” said Cindy firmly. The wonderful thing about investigations was that you depended upon facts, didn’t allow wild imagination to create terrifying scenarios that chewed up your energies and threw you off base.
“Can you give me a guarantee that we’re safe?” Nora’s eyes flared.
“There’s no point in letting fear run wild,” Cindy replied. “It confuses the issues, undermines clarity.”
“I’ve heard that crime on these islands is increasing every day, and no one’s talking about it,” Nora replied. There’s all kinds of drugs, gangs and smuggling seeping in from other places.”
“It’s normal to think the worst at a time like this,” Cindy tried to calm her. “It’s normal to have catastrophic expectations when you’ve had a terrific shock.”
“Why would someone want to kill us all?” Nora couldn’t stop, and Laura started to cry again. again. “Things look so beautiful here on the outside, but underneath they aren’t,” Nora continued. “I asked Allie a few times if she was sure she wanted her wedding away from home?”
“What did she say?” asked Cindy.
“She said Peter wanted it here badly. He grew up in the Cayman Islands, works here now and loves it here. Allie said she was okay with it. But she never thought this place would kill her, that she was going to die.”
“Oh brother,” said Tad. “Some great cocktail hour. Listen you guys, we’ve got to cheer up. At least for Peter’s sake. We’ve got to keep his spirits up!”
“Tad’s always been a wonderful friend to Peter,” Dana suddenly interjected, “he’s been a shoulder to lean on all through the years.”
“Thanks,” said Tad staunchly. “And I’m not gonna stop being here for him now. The guy needs support! Chins up! We’re his wedding party. We’re his team!”
“I’d like to speak more to each of you about this personally,” Cindy repeated. “It will help me a lot. Who would like to come to the table over there with me and start?”
There were no volunteers. That surprised Cindy.
“Maybe it would work better to first talk to the bridesmaids alone together and then to the groomsmen,” Dana suggested quietly.
“Okay,” Cindy said, “let’s start with the bridesmaids. We’ll all go down to the beach that’s in front of the hotel and talk there. After I’ve talked to the gals, I’ll talk to the guys.”
“Sounds good to me,” said Dana, throwing Cindy a grateful glance.
The girls got up then, and all together, wound their way out of the cocktail lounge. Cindy and Dana followed behind them through the lobby, down to the pink, sandy beach, a few hundred feet away.
“I have no idea why they didn’t want to talk to me personally,” Cindy said to Dana as they walked.
“I imagine they might feel as though they’re revealing personal information, betraying their friend,” Dana conjectured.
“Their friend has disappeared – her life could be at stake! How could revealing personal information be a betrayal at a time like this?” asked Cindy.
Dana drew a deep breath. “I don’t know,” she said, “but I don’t think the reality has sunk in yet.”
*
They gathered together on the sandy pink beach that was stretched out luxuriously in front of the hotel, surrounded by palm trees. Dana collected a group of empty beach chairs, placed them in a circle and they all sat down. The sounds of soft waves lapping up on the shore and the early evening breeze circled around them as they sat there.
“We’re gathered here to find Allie, to bring her home,” Cindy started. “Tell me whatever you can think of that could be of help.”
“Allie was a terrific diver,” Laura started, “she loved the water. She loved diving with Peter.”
“Peter loved diving with her as well,” Dana jumped right in
A few of the other girls glanced over at Dana. Cindy suddenly realized that the presence of the groom’s mother was an inhibiting factor. How could they speak frankly with her around? Cindy needed raw information, and she wasn’t going to get that with Dana around.
“Dana, I’m really sorry,” Cindy said abruptly, “but I’m going to have to ask you to go back up to the hotel until I’m finished down here.”
Dana drew a sharp breath in and the girls seemed suddenly flustered as well.
“Why?” asked Dana.
Cindy wanted to be as kind as she could, but the truth worked best. This was no time for playing games.
“I’m sure the girls will feel freer to talk if the groom’s mom isn’t here,” Cindy said directly. “I know you want to join in, but I need to hear every little thing.”
Dana stood up swiftly. “Of course, you’re right,” her voice was husky, “I didn’t think of it. It never occurred to me.”
“That’s why I’m here,” said Cindy, “to cover details that would go unnoticed. Time is of the essence. I hope you understand.”
“I understand.” Dana gathered herself together, “I’ll take a back seat, lay low. The investigation is in your hands now.” Then she waved to everyone as she walked back along the sand to the hotel, alone.
All eyes were turned to Dana, as she left.
“That was gutsy of you,” Elizabeth said to Cindy, when Dana was out of sight. “Dana’s a good woman, but you’re right.”
“Thank you,” Cindy replied. “I need full cooperation. I need to know anything any of you can think of - the most personal details about Allie, Peter, their relationship, and anything else!”
“Is this being recorded?” asked Nora quickly.
“Everything is in total confidence,” Cindy assured her.
“There are cameras and recorders hidden everywhere in the hotel,” Nora continued. “Any fool can realize that.”
“Is there something you want to tell me, Nora?” Cindy asked quickly.
“I’m scared,” said Nora, “terrified. I think someone among us knows something that they’re not willing to reveal.”
At that the girls shuddered, as if a wave of fear encompassed them all.
“Nonsense,” Elizabeth interrupted. “Nora exaggerates things in her mind. There’s no reason to think that anyone here is hiding anything. There’s nothing to hide. Allie lived her life straight out. She had two boyfriends before Peter and the minute she met him, that was it.”
“They fell in love?” asked Cindy.
“That’s putting it mildly,” said Elizabeth. “Peter was all she could talk about, or think about. She couldn’t stand being away from him for a minute. He was definitely the man of her dreams.”
“What about him?” asked Cindy.
“That’s a strange question,” Elizabeth paused. “Who knows what it is about a guy that makes a woman feel he’s her dream? Personally, I could never see it. But then, Peter’s not the one for me.”
“Peter’s a wonderful guy,” Robyn defended him. “He’s been good to Allie, extremely generous - gives her incredible gifts all the time, and I mean incredible.”
“So what? He can afford it,” Elizabeth piped up. “Who knows how much these gifts really mean to him?”
“They mean a lot to Allie though,” said Robyn, “that’s what matters, isn’t it?”
“I guess it matters,” Elizabeth shrugged, “if you’re into collecting jewels.”
“Was Allie into collecting jewels?” Cindy asked methodically.
“Of course she wasn’t,” Laura interrupted. “She had a wonderful, sweet heart.”
“She liked showing them off, though” said El
izabeth.
“I wouldn’t say Allie showed off her jewels, she just wore them,” Laura was determined to protect her dear friend. “The jewels were a sign to Allie how much Peter cared. Allie always needed reassurance. She used to model in high school. She had the perfect body and was incredibly beautiful, but she was always insecure.”
“Why?” asked Cindy.
Laura looked at Cindy distressed. “Who knows why a beautiful woman is insecure? It happens all the time.”
“It will help me to know why Allie was insecure,” Cindy repeated.
No one said a word for a moment.
“An insecure woman can do things that inadvertently lead her to harm,” Cindy continued. “It could have led to what happened here.”
“Allie’s mom was terrifically hard on her,” Robyn piped up, “Allie always wanted to make her mother proud and it wasn’t easy. Whatever she did was never good enough. I saw it myself, over and over.”
This was something Cindy hadn’t heard before.
“When Allie nabbed Peter it was a real coup,” Nora agreed. “Her mom couldn’t put her down so much anymore. After all, Allie had gotten the richest bachelor around.”
“Nabbed Peter?” Cindy was struck with the expression.
“She went after him hard,” Nora continued, “just like any woman who really wants her man.”
“Allie was tough?” asked Cindy.
Robyn had enough of this. She waved her hand back and forth as if to wipe out the picture they were painting of Allie.
“Are we blaming the victim now?” asked Robyn, perturbed. “Allie was not tough. She was single minded. She loved Peter and did all she could to hold onto him. Is there anything wrong with that?”
“Of course not,” answered Elizabeth. “You’d do it, too, wouldn’t you?” she asked Cindy.
Cindy smiled. “Of course,” she said, to make them feel as though she were one of the crowd. But for a moment, she wondered whether she would really try to nab a guy she loved? She didn’t have to do that with Clint, everything had happened naturally between them, and mutually. It all just worked, it was comforting. That’s what she loved so much about it.
