Death by Temptation

by Jaden Skye

  The phone rang awhile and then to Cindy’s surprise, Pete answered.

  “Hi, Pete,” Cindy started, “it’s Cindy.”

  “Yes, I recognize your voice,” Pete replied. “It’s wonderful to hear from you again. How are you doing?”

  “I’m good, I’m fine,” said Cindy, “just trying to track down Mattheus. Is he there?”

  “Not at the moment.” Pete’s voice deepened. “I believe he and Rod are downstairs

  in the bar. Is there something I can do for you?”

  Cindy smiled at Pete’s graciousness. “I wish there was,” she answered. “I just have details I need to go over with Mattheus.”

  “Sorry he’s not here,” Pete replied sadly. “Is there someone else on board, helping you out?”

  “Yes, of course,” said Cindy brightly, not wanting to let him know how stranded she

  really felt.

  “Who?” asked Pete, unwilling to let it go at that.

  Cindy quickly thought of Santos and his offer to help. Naturally she couldn’t tell

  Pete anything about that. She couldn’t even let herself think that one of the bosses in

  the ring would turn out to be someone she could count on.

  “Wish I could tell you, but I can’t,” Cindy said in a lighthearted tone.

  Pete grew quiet. “Whatever you tell me will always be held in the utmost confidence,” he replied.

  “Thank you, Pete, I’m sure it would,” said Cindy. “And I’ll keep that in mind for the future, I really will.”

  “I hope you mean that,” Pete added, before the two of them hung up.

  *

  Cindy called down for dinner and to her surprise a few minutes after it arrived, Mattheus walked into the room. She hadn’t seen him for so long, it was the last thing she expected.

  “Pete came down to the bar and said you were looking for me,” Mattheus said as he entered. “Something wrong?”

  Cindy looked at Mattheus in amazement. “Is something wrong? We’re working a case, all kinds of things are happening.”

  “What case are we working, Cindy?” Mattheus took a step back at the sound of her voice.

  “Your friend’s daughter has gone missing,” Cindy reminded him, “and another young woman also turned up dead on the beach. At the moment I’m trying to see if the cases are interconnected.”

  Mattheus walked over to where Cindy was standing. “I thought we decided that they were not,” he declared.

  “Who decided?” asked Cindy. “There were plenty of drugs found in the dead woman’s body and I told you I was going to poke around in the drug ring down here.”

  “And I told you not to,” Mattheus exclaimed.

  “Why not, Mattheus?” This was almost more than Cindy could bear.

  “Because we’re not working Shane’s case, we’re here for Kara,” he repeated.

  Cindy had nothing further to say. She had been going to tell him what she’d found on Shane’s Facebook page, but given his attitude decided to say nothing at all. She wasn’t even going to tell him about her meeting with Santos. As far as she was concerned, Mattheus didn’t deserve to hear anything.

  Instead, Cindy turned to the table her dinner was sitting on.

  “Did you order some dinner for me, too?” Mattheus looked over her shoulder at the delicious, steaming food.

  “Why would I?” asked Cindy. “As far as I knew you were having dinner with Rod. When exactly was the last time we had dinner together?”

  “You sound more and more jealous of Rod,” Mattheus replied. “It’s an old story, women getting jealous of their guy’s friends. Lots of them do all they can to break up the friendships completely.”

  “What world are you living in, Mattheus?” Cindy was stung. “We’re down here on a case—”

  “I heard that a million times,” said Mattheus, “and I don’t want to hear it anymore. This case is over. You can’t put it down so you’re going round and round in circles.”

  “Really? How do you know that?” asked Cindy, inflamed. “I haven’t told you even one thing that I’ve found so far.”

  Mattheus’s brow curled and he looked confused for a second.

  “If you asked me, you’ve been taken over by Rod,” Cindy continued. “I’ve never seen you like this before. Has he been filling you with all these crazy ideas?”

  “Taken over by Rod?” Mattheus had a strange look on his face.

  “He’s affected you, Mattheus, he’s influencing your mind,” Cindy added.

  “That’s entirely nuts,” said Mattheus. “Who suggested that to you, Alfred?”

  There was no point in continuing the discussion. “Look, I’m going to have my dinner, check my emails, and get to bed early,” Cindy shot back at him.

  “Do what you want. No one’s stopping you,” said Mattheus. “I’m going to take a shower and get ready for bed, too. It’s been a long few days for both of us.”

  Soon Cindy heard the water running in the shower. She finished what was left of her dinner quickly, wondering what was happening to them. None of it was good and Cindy felt devastated to see their relationship unraveling. She had no idea how to stop it either, or why it was really happening. Was Mattheus just grabbing at Rod as a convenient excuse for backing away?

  Cindy sat at the table until she heard Mattheus leave the bathroom and go into the bedroom. There was no way she could go in there with him now. Instead, she went to the couch to lie down with a tired and heavy heart.

  As she lay there, Cindy thought of the day, of her odd meeting with Santos and brief conversation with Pete. Both Pete and Santos realized that Cindy was alone. Neither of them felt good about it. Would Santos intervene and help in some way? Miracles did happen. It definitely seemed as though there was something about the case that bothered him, as well. Before long, Cindy closed her eyes and drifted into a hazy, light sleep.

  In what seemed like just a few minutes Cindy was awakened by the ringing of her phone. Half asleep, half awake, she groped around for it.

  “Yes?” Cindy mumbled when she found the phone.

  A woman’s voice on the other end was even more muffled than Cindy’s.

  “Help me, please,” Cindy heard.

  Cindy’s eyes shot open, fully awake. “Who is this?” she exclaimed, her heart beating wildly.

  “Please,” the dim voice barely continued. “Under four trees and a fence, circle the corner,” then all grew silent.

  “Who is this? Tell me, please!” Cindy was gripped with a sense of horror. “Is it Kara?”

  “Begging, begging,” the jumbled voice managed.

  “Don’t give up, I’m here.” Cindy started shaking. “I won’t leave you alone.”

  “Promise, promise,” the voice tried to echo, before all went silent again.

  “Kara, Kara, talk to me, Kara.” Cindy kept calling into the phone long after there was no further answer.

  Finally, Cindy jumped up, ran into the bedroom, and shook Mattheus, who was asleep on the bed.

  Mattheus jumped up, alarmed. “What?” he shouted.

  “The call came.” Cindy was breathing with difficulty.

  “What call? From who?” Mattheus yelled.

  “A woman just called, Mattheus. It was Kara,” Cindy continued.

  “What are you talking about?” Mattheus asked, completely disheveled. “Did she say she was Kara?”

  “Not quite.” Cindy was having trouble catching her breath.

  Mattheus put his arms around her. “It’s okay, be calm, Cindy,” he said.

  It felt wonderful having his arms around her again. Cindy wanted to put her head on his shoulder, but wouldn’t.

  “Did the person say she was Kara?” Mattheus repeated.

  “She said, help me please, I’m begging,” Cindy continued. “Her voice was garbled.”

  “It could be anyone,” Mattheus responded.

  “No, it was Kara, I’m positive of it,” Cindy insisted. “She tried to give me a clue where to
find her. She said under four trees and a fence, circle the corner.”

  That could anywhere,” Mattheus went on, “and it also could be someone playing with you, sending you off on a wild goose chase.”

  “That’s not how it felt.” Cindy pulled back a moment and looked into Mattheus’s eyes. He now looked as he used to now, present, caring, completely available.

  “I’m not making this up, Mattheus,” Cindy went on. “We have to have the call traced.”

  “No one said you were making it up.” He pulled Cindy to him more closely then and led her to the edge of the bed. “Let’s sit down a minute and talk,” he said. “Of course we’ll try to have the call traced. But fill me in, what don’t I understand?”

  “I went down to the drug ring this afternoon,” Cindy whispered, “and spoke to a guy named Santos.”

  “Oh no,” said Mattheus. “I told you never to go there alone.”

  “It was a good meeting, really,” Cindy continued.

  “How did you get his name?” Mattheus was wide awake now.

  “From Abe,” Cindy continued. “He said Santos would help me out.”

  “Help you out how?” Mattheus looked alarmed. “This is totally nuts.”

  “I told Santos I was trying to find out whatever I could about both Kara and Shane,” Cindy continued. “I also met a woman down there who seemed to be close to him, Holly.”

  “You had a busy day.” Mattheus started stroking Cindy’s hair.

  “I had an interesting day, a fascinating one. Santos wasn’t thrilled that Shane was dead, either. He said he’d help me and I’d see how. Is that why this call came, Mattheus? Did Santos arrange it somehow?”

  “Don’t jump to all kinds of conclusions.” Mattheus seemed nervous. “Firstly, you have no idea who the call was from. Secondly, you don’t know if it had anything to do with Santos. Or maybe he had someone play a crazy prank on you to confuse things further, get you off the trail? These guys are snakes, they’re wicked, Cindy.”

  “The woman was in pain, Mattheus, she was in distress,” Cindy insisted.

  “God,” Mattheus breathed. “I had no idea all this was going on.”

  “I tried to call you and tell you,” said Cindy.

  “I know you did, I know,” said Mattheus. “I’m sorry, really sorry.”

  “I also got a lead on Shane’s Facebook page. I found a friend of hers there, Jenna, who left some messages that were suspicious. She was warning Shane of danger.”

  “We’re not on Shane’s case,” Mattheus repeated softly then. “I know you have a huge heart and want to help the whole world, but we can’t, Cindy.”

  “It’s not about that,” Cindy insisted. “I strongly believe the two cases are tied together.”

  “Based on what?” Mattheus seemed exasperated.

  “Based on a strong feeling inside,” replied Cindy. “Kara going missing and Shane turning up dead in the same place is too coincidental. It doesn’t sit well with me. I sent Jenna a message asking her to contact me.”

  “Okay,” said Mattheus. “You sent her a message, and then how soon after that did this call come?”

  Cindy paused for a moment. “I sent her the message this evening, before dinner.”

  “Wow,” said Mattheus. “Speak about coincidental. For all you know the call was from her.”

  “Why would she do that? For what reason?” Cindy didn’t buy it.

  “There’s lots of crazies out there,” Mattheus whispered softly. “I don’t know this woman, I don’t know Shane. But I do know we should take a rest now. I’ll put in a call to the station and have the call you received traced. We can pick it all up in the morning. But for now, please come to bed.”

  Cindy looked into Mattheus’s eyes, which were filled with concern.

  “Okay, let’s go to sleep now, Mattheus,” Cindy agreed, as she waited for Mattheus to call the station. Then they went back into the bedroom, lay down together, and fell asleep nestled in one another’s arms.

  CHAPTER 17

  Things felt better between Cindy and Mattheus in the morning. Both of them had needed to sleep close to one another, wrapped up in each other’s arms. Cindy slept lightly, waking and dozing alternately, wondering what in the world would be next for them.

  “Please forgive me for everything,” Mattheus murmured several times during the night as he tossed in his sleep. Even though he wasn’t awake when he said it, Cindy found

  comfort in his words.

  As soon as they got up in the morning, Mattheus ordered breakfast up in the room.

  “The family’s booked on a five p.m. flight back to the States,” Mattheus told Cindy as they ate. “This is their last day here. Rod’s incredibly jittery. After that, I’m all yours.”

  Cindy drank down what was left of her coffee. “It’s completely fine,” she said and meant it. She wanted to spend time with Alfred that day and also check further into Shane’s background. “Just keep in touch as the day goes by,” she added. “That would mean a lot to me.”

  “I definitely will,” said Mattheus, “and it means a lot to me as well. And promise me you won’t go back down to the drug ring alone. I’ll go with you next time. I want to meet Santos anyway.”

  “You want to meet Santos, or you’re doing it to look after me?” Cindy wanted to be sure.

  “Both,” said Mattheus. “Once the family leaves my head will be clearer and I’ll be able to help you come to peace with everything.”

  That was a tall order, thought Cindy. She didn’t need to come to peace with everything either. She just wanted to find out as much as she could about Shane’s untimely death. That would give her peace enough, for now.

  Mattheus gave her another hug then, promised they’d talk soon, and walked out the door. “The minute I hear from the police about the call they’ve traced, I’ll let you know,” he promised. “Don’t worry about it, though. Chances are mostly it’s some kind of a prank.”

  Cindy didn’t think it was a prank, and was eager to hear more. “Thanks, Mattheus,” she said. “I’ll be waiting to hear.”

  After he left, Cindy planned to go back to her computer to dig deeper into Shane’s life. First she went to the bathroom to wash up, put on makeup, and slip into an easy summer lime green print dress that always lifted her spirits.

  Once freshened up, Cindy went to get the computer to take out on the patio when a stiff knock on her door stopped her cold. She wasn’t expecting anyone. Probably housekeeping, she thought, and debated about whether or not to answer.

  The person knocked again swiftly, this time harder than before.

  “Yes?” Cindy called out, initially reluctant to open up and be disturbed.

  “I’m here, open up,” a woman’s voice answered on the other side. “Let me in.”

  The voice was not familiar, but the urgency in it made Cindy go straight to the door and open it.

  To Cindy’s shock, Jenna stood there. Cindy immediately recognized her from Shane’s Facebook page. She was petite and pretty with a fierce energy about her.

  “You messaged me yesterday,” Jenna announced, nervous to be standing there.

  “Please come in,” said Cindy.

  Jenna nodded abruptly, entered the room, and took a second to look around. “Incredible suite!” she exclaimed.

  “Thanks,” said Cindy, “I’m so glad you’re here.”

  “Are you really?” Jenna looked relieved. “I was totally freaked out about coming. Alfred said you were great and it would be okay, but I was still totally freaked.”

  “Why?” asked Cindy, surprised.

  “I’m totally freaked out in general by what happened to Shane.” Jenna spoke rapid fire. “She’s been my best friend for years.”

  “I’m so sorry,” said Cindy.

  “Yeah, that’s what Alfred said, that you would make it easy for me to talk to you,” Jenna continued.

  Cindy greatly appreciated Alfred’s encouragement.

  “I came down right away when
Alfred told me what happened.” Jenna spoke rapidly. “He found me on Shane’s Facebook page and I’ve been here for a couple of days. The minute I heard the horrible news I flew down to help. Can we go outside and talk on the patio? I’m totally claustrophobic inside.”

  “Of course,” said Cindy, leading her out into the beautiful sunny day, where puffy, white clouds were streaming across the sky, making it feel as though everything was well with the world and always would be.

  “Oh God, is this true? Am I dreaming?” Jenna kept muttering, as she tossed her large pocketbook onto the patio table.

  “Sit down on the lounge chair, Jenna,” Cindy suggested.

  “Do you want to hear the craziest part of it, though? I always knew something awful would happen to Shane,” Jenna said as she sat down on the edge of the lounge.

  “Why?” asked Cindy, fascinated.

  “Because Shane loved trouble, she lived off danger. There are women like that, you know.” Jenna threw a long look at Cindy.

  “Yes, I know,” Cindy answered as calmly as she could.

  “I tried to warn Shane over and over,” Jenna continued.

  “I know you did,” said Cindy. “I saw messages from you on her Facebook page.”

  “But what good did it do?” Jenna asked, staring at Cindy painfully. “Shane couldn’t hear a thing I said.”

  “It sounds as if you were a wonderful friend to her while she was alive.” Cindy wanted to say something helpful.

  Jenna stood up briefly and then quickly sat down. It was difficult for her to rest or unwind.

  “Look, I brought you something that might be of help,”” Jenna went on, without any more ado. “Alfred told me that you needed this when I showed it to him.” Jenna went over to her pocketbook, opened it up, and drew out a large envelope. She opened the envelope quickly and put a stiff sheet of paper in Cindy’s hand.

  “What is it?” asked Cindy.

  “It’s a photo. Look,” said Jenna.

  Cindy looked. Then she gasped, unable to believe what she was seeing. Shane and Kara were standing together in the photo smiling.

  “Shane and Kara?” Cindy could barely mouth the words. “They knew each other?”

  “Very well,” said Jenna. “Shane lived at the shelter where Kara worked.”