by Jaden Skye
“No one needs it,” said Cindy, “but like it or not, Vivien’s involved.”
Mac seemed put off. “How?”
“Vivien’s a guest at the wedding, even though Allie didn’t want her here. There was bad blood between her and the victim for a long time. It goes to motive.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Mac exclaimed.
“Why?” asked Cindy. “Vivien’s an orphan and who was now in the process of losing her best friend – Peter.”
Mac laughed. “There’s no way Vivien would ever lose Peter.”
Cindy was startled. “Marriage changes everything. It’s not unusual for wives to get rid of their husband’s friends. You hear about it all the time. They edge them out.”
“Not Peter,” Mac shook his head vigorously. “Peter’s a loyal guy, loves his friends and knew how to keep Allie in her place.”
Cindy was unnerved by that. “What exactly was Allie’s place?”
“I mean Peter knew how to set limits for her. In fact, I helped him with it. That’s the most important thing a guy has to learn in a relationship - how to say Yes, and how to say No.”
“You helped him do that?” Cindy was intrigued. It had definitely grown colder and she was only wearing a thin shirt.
“You must be cold,” Mac’s eyes roamed over her body, “and you’re only wearing a thin, beautiful shirt.”
“I’ve been colder,” said Cindy.
“You’re absolutely charming,” Mac grinned. “I enjoy everything about you. Look, it’s nasty out here and getting dark. Let’s go inside and have a drink while we keep talking. I want to keep you safe and warm.”
“I’m fine where I am,” said Cindy, refusing to be beguiled by the considerable charm Mac had turned on. “What exactly did you teach Peter about setting limits with Allie?”
Mac laughed, “You like that? It interests you?”
Cindy couldn’t help but think that the limits between her and Mac right now, weren’t what they should be.
“Well, it took some doing to teach Peter limits, I must admit,” Mac went on. “Peter loved Allie, she pulled at his heart strings and gave him something he needed badly.”
“What?” asked Cindy intrigued.
“Phenomenal sex,” said Mac, enjoying Cindy’s shock. “Beyond phenomenal,” he went on, “Allie wanted it all the time. Now, phenomenal sex makes it hard to set limits.”
As he spoke Mac drew closer to Cindy until she could felt him almost upon her.
“And, along with great sex, came guilt,” Mac continued, “Peter’s a guy who can be manipulated by guilt. Lots of us are, you know.” He stopped and waited for an answer.
“I wouldn’t know,” said Cindy, “I’m not into those games.”
“You’re above it all?” Mac smiled. “You’re telling me you’d be fine with it if your guy got close to another woman?”
“I never said that,” said Cindy, wondering how he managed to turn the conversation to this. "I bet you could make a guy feel plenty guilty if he got too close to someone else?” Mac persisted.
Cindy thought about it for a moment. She remembered how jealous she’d felt when she thought Mattheus was too involved with a woman on one of their cases.
“I wouldn’t make him feel guilty, necessarily,” said Cindy, “I just wouldn’t choose to be with a guy like that.”
“All guys are like that,” Mac was practically touching Cindy now. “No one’s naturally monogamous. Women aren’t either.”
“I am,” said Cindy.
Mac’s voice fell into a husky tone. “You’re not naturally monogamous, Cindy. You might be involved with one and refuse an encounter with another, but deep down you’d be wanting it to happen, right?”
Cindy felt herself flush from head to foot. He was going far afield of where she felt comfortable.
“You and Mattheus are an item, aren’t you?” Mac asked.
“We’re business partners,” Cindy replied.
“Who just happen to share a bedroom,” Mac chuckled.
“What has this got to do with anything?” asked Cindy.
“Besides the fact that Mattheus isn’t right for you,” Mac continued, “I’m trying to help you understand Allie and Peter. She wanted him all to herself. In most ways, she had him. But he still had feelings for Vivien. Why shouldn’t he? He and Vivien have known each other for years. She was his first real love.”
“Hopefully, people move on,” said Cindy.
“Peter and Vivien moved on,” said Mac definitively. “They became friends. I wonder why Mattheus didn’t fill you in on all this? He’s had plenty of time to find out about Vivien. The two of them have talked for hours out here at the pool.”
Cindy felt stunned and flustered. Mattheus hadn’t said a word to her about having spent hours interviewing Vivien at the pool. He had said she was beautiful, though.
“Look,” Mac’s voice became matter of fact, “all guys find Vivien irresistible. She’s not a woman who’s going to be alone.”
“Is she dating someone else?” Cindy needed to know more.
“She and Tad have been dating for a while now,” Mac answered.
Cindy slowed down and took it in. Tad had told her that he and Vivien weren’t close.
“Vivien’s a woman who likes men,” Mac continued.
“Promiscuous?” asked Cindy.
“That’s judgmental,” said Mac, pursing his lips.
“It’s important to call something what it is,” Cindy insisted.
“Why call it promiscuous, then?” Mac looked right at her. “Why not call it daring and free? Why not say that Vivien refuses to let herself be tied into a narrow lifestyle that would confine her?”
Mac was playing with Cindy’s mind, creating alternative realities that would take her off track. But Cindy had a more important question for him to answer than whether or not Vivien was promiscuous or not.
“I have a bigger question for you to answer now,” said Cindy, taking back her train of thought. “It’s not about Vivien’s lifestyle, but why someone refused to let Allie live a life of any kind? To answer that question I need to be stone, cold, clear.”
Mac stopped and listened. “You’re tougher than you look,” he said.
“I have a job to do here,” said Cindy.
“I respect that,” Mac replied.
“Thank you,” said Cindy, “I respect you, too.”
Mac seemed taken off guard. “Respect me? Why?”
Cindy felt his warm breath on her face now. For a second, she flinched, feeling he was going to pull her into his arms. The two of them stood there unmoving though, neither of them taking an action of any kind.
“Why isn’t Mattheus right for me?” Cindy finally asked in a throaty tone.
“The guy’s got a short fuse that’s dangerous,” Mac answered directly. “You can do much better than him.”
Cindy felt upset having this conversation, but also wanted to hear more. She wondered again if something negative had happened between Mac and Mattheus.
“Did Mattheus contact you for access to Peter’s emails?” Cindy asked.
“Yes, he did,” said Mac. “I gave him very limited access to one particular, personal email account of Peter’s. He could have gotten it from the police as well.”
“How about the others?” Cindy quickly asked.
“Those are our personal banking accounts. Highly confidential. You’ve got to practically get a court order to get them released. This case doesn’t warrant it. There’s no reason for it.”
“Doesn’t warrant it?” Cindy was surprised.
“Of course we have to do everything we can to find out what happened to Allie, but what I mean is that nothing points to our company. There’s no reason to open our records and files. We’re known for our high integrity and service.” Mac had a way about him that made you trust him, forget the details you were concerned with.
“I’d like to see the office Peter worked in though” said Cindy, “speak to some o
f the guys he worked with.”
“There’s no problem with that. I’ll take you there myself,” Mac smiled.
Cindy recoiled, “How about Mattheus joining us?”
“Really stuck on that guy, aren’t you?” asked Mac.
“We’re partners,” Cindy repeated.
“For now, anyway,” Mac replied.
CHAPTER 11
The intensity of the wind had grown much stronger and it didn’t make sense to stay outside. Just as Cindy and Mac turned to go into the hotel, their cell phones started ringing at the very same moment. They both picked up.
The first thing Cindy heard was Mattheus yelling, his voice so garbled it was hard to make out his words.
“What’s the matter? What’s wrong?” Cindy asked immediately.
“We have it, we have it!” Mattheus shouted.
“Have what?”
“The body’s turned up! “ Mattheus’s voice grew strident.
“The body?” gasped Cindy, “when?”
“Where?” Mac shouted into his phone then.
“They’ve found Allie washed up on the shore,” Mattheus went on heatedly. “The winds and tides washed her in. Some dancers at the festival found her leg protruding out from under a tree.”
Cindy cringed as she pictured the scene, Allie washed up, like a rag, under a tree. A wave of nausea flooded over her.
“She was badly mangled. It’s a mess.” Mattheus went on.
“My God,” Mac yelled back into his phone.
Cindy could barely breathe. The case had suddenly turned a corner. An autopsy would be performed, the investigation would deepen. More police would be brought in.
“Where are you now?” Mattheus demanded.
“I’m at the pool with Mac,” said Cindy.
“Mac? Why him?” A taut silence fell between Cindy and Mattheus.
“He arrived as I was talking to Tad and Vivien,” said Cindy.
“A likely story,” breathed Mattheus. “He arrived or he’s been watching you from afar? Tracking your every move?”
“That’s crazy Mattheus,” Cindy was agitated. “And where are you?”
“Digging into the computer. I got clearance to scan Peter’s personal email account. There’s plenty to see here, too.”
“Emails from Vivien?” Cindy was right on it.
“No, emails from Allie, hundreds of them, asking where he was, what he was doing and with who? She was warning him if he didn’t cut it out, she didn’t know what she would do. We’ve got a whole new picture of her.”
“Allie was stalking him?”
“Pretty close,” said Mattheus, “at the very least she was pulling in the net. In the emails she’s going crazy, suspecting him of everything.”
Despite what Cindy had heard about Allie’s suspicions, she was shocked that it had gotten this bad.
“Didn’t the police see these emails?” asked Cindy.
“They said they didn’t think it meant a thing - had no bearing on the case.”
It was easy enough to call Allie a stalker, say she was going crazy, but did Peter give her a reason to be jealous like that? Cindy wondered.
“What about emails from Vivien?” Cindy shot back. “There had to be plenty of them.”
“You’re obsessed with Vivien,” Mattheus breathed.
“I’m obsessed?” Cindy was furious. “How about you? I happen to know you’ve spent plenty of time alone with her and haven’t said a thing about it to me.”
“Who told you that, Mac?” Mattheus started fuming.
“Yes.”
“That guy wants to drive a wedge between us as sure as night is night and day is day,” Mattheus shot back. “The question is, why? I’m coming down to the lobby immediately. Get inside and meet me there. More police are arriving at the hotel in a few minutes. This is all over the news, causing a commotion. People at the festival can’t talk about anything else.” Then he hung up.
“Poor Allie, poor Allie,” Mac’s voice was shaky as he simultaneously shut off his phone.
“I’m sorry, Mac,” Cindy offered.
“How am I going to tell Peter we’ve found her?” Mac murmured. “He held onto hope for so long.”
“Tell him the mind plays all kinds of horrible tricks on us,” Cindy said.
“That’s a lousy thing to say,” said Mac.
“And also tell him that Allie’s alive somewhere else now, watching all of us from a different world.”
*
Cindy didn’t want to go back to the lobby and speak to Mattheus right away. The hotel and the Island were crowded and this news would only draw more curiosity seekers. She needed to be alone with her thoughts, take a walk near the water, have a moment to realize the enormity of what had taken place. The sudden appearance of Allie’s body came as a shock to Cindy. She wanted to say good bye to her. Even though she hadn’t known Allie personally, she felt a connection with her after all these days. In the back of her mind Cindy realized she’d also been hoping that somehow, somewhere, they’d find her alive. It was painful to see a young life lost, especially the day before her wedding. Cindy also felt a responsibility to Allie’s family and loved ones. She knew she could ease everyone’s suffering so much by finding out exactly what happened and making sure that justice was served.
Rather than go back to the lobby, Cindy slipped out of the hotel and went down to the edge of the water. It was cold out and windy and the waves were high and strong. Clearly the turbulent seas had tossed Allie up to shore right in the midst of the festivities. How awful that she’d been found by a stranger, in the middle of the celebrations, dancing for joy. Life and death intertwined - the timing was strange though, and Cindy wondered what to make of it.
Cindy walked at the water, thinking of Allie, and also of her own husband Clint. He’d died in a similar way, though his body had washed up sooner. Cindy remembered the pain of finding him there, the finality of it, the unrest that wouldn’t leave her alone. She also remembered her unending resolve to find out the truth. That determination had kept her going not only then, but through all the cases that followed since then.
As she walked some seagulls flew across sky making odd formations. They dipped down, then flew higher, then dipped down again, circling around as if in a dance. It almost as if they were trying to get Cindy to notice them, to show her that patterns in nature could not be ignored. Nothing was left hidden forever. At the perfect time, under the perfect conditions, everything inevitably became clear.
*
When Cindy returned to the hotel lobby, Mattheus was in a whirl.
“Where the hell were you?” he asked the minute he saw her.
“I needed a few moments to myself,” said Cindy, oddly calm then.
“Allie’s family has been taken to identify the body and the British Royal Guard is here as well,” Mattheus words fell over one another. “The body was gruesome, scratched, bruised and bitten.”
“It’s been under water quite a while,” said Cindy, “all of that could have taken place after Allie drowned.”
“We’ll find out for sure in a little while,” said Mattheus. “And, they found her camera still wrapped to her wrist.”
“Good,” said Cindy, “if we’re lucky we’ll find something valuable on it.”
“You seem odd,” Mattheus stopped and looked at her slowly. “Calm in a weird way.”
“It’s a sobering moment,” Cindy said.
Mattheus quieted down. “Death is never pretty,” he agreed.
“Puts everything in perspective,” said Cindy, sadly.
“You can say that again,” Mattheus breathed. “Shows how little time all of us have.” Then he reached his hand out and took Cindy’s in his.
Cindy trembled at his touch.
“I don’t want to fight with you, Cindy,” Mattheus said, suddenly softly, “we need each other, we belong together, both of us know that.”
*
Cindy and Mattheus were still in the hotel lobby when t
he television screamed the news -Bride’s body washed up on shore, mangled. The reporter’s shrill voice howled through the Island, cutting into the joy of the festival, shattering the celebration. Guests in the lobby huddled together in small pockets whispering. The TV showed people on the streets, a look of fear on their faces.
“We have to speak to Allie’s parents as soon as possible,” Mattheus said to Cindy intently.
“We’ll do it together.”
“Let’s give them some more time,” said Cindy.
“They’ve had plenty of time. I’m sorry about this, but we’ve got to know everything last thing about her. Those emails I saw from Allie were creepy,” said Mattheus.
Was it possible that Allie had brought this on herself in some way? Cindy realized that they had no choice but dig into every last detail of Allie’s life.
“And we have to find out what Nora was warning her about. Immediately! Did you speak to her yet?” Mattheus was on high alert.
“No, not yet,” Cindy had it on her list.
“Call up to Nora’s room this minute,” said Mattheus.
Cindy called the police in the Interrogation room, asking to speak to Nora immediately. In a few moments they called down that they’d located her and she was on her way to see them. Cindy and Mattheus should come upstairs that minute.
The mood in the Interrogation room was grim and solemn. When Cindy and Mattheus walked in, Douglas was there, tapping his foot fiercely on the floor.
“Bad timing,” he muttered on his phone, “right in the middle of everything. This kind of news is the last thing we need.” Then he turned and looked over as Cindy and Mattheus walked in. “From now on, all the interviewing has to be done under police auspices. We need to keep track of everything said, everything seen. You’ll have to report into us immediately, whatever you do.”
“Got it,” said Mattheus.
They were tightening the reigns and Cindy understood why.
Just then Nora walked in, looking ashen. She ran over to Cindy and the two of them hugged.
“I knew it was awful. I told you,” said Nora.
Cindy nodded sadly.
“Sit down here,” Douglas said and motioned to the table, as Nora’s body jerked away.
“I’d rather talk to Cindy alone,” Nora said half under her breath.
