by Jaden Skye
“Tad was the one who really needed Tiffany much more than she needed him,” Wynn continued as Cindy looked at the video. “He could get too quiet at times. And he needed our family. My dad really loved him, that meant a lot to him, too.”
“Is Frances at the party?” asked Cindy, looking at the video.
Wynn fast forwarded the tape. “Here he is,” she said
A handsome, rugged, dark haired young man, with a small scar on his chin, stood there talking to a few other people. Rori was next to him laughing, holding a drink in her hand.
“I need his full name and address,” said Cindy. “I’ve got to talk to him right away.”
“Please don’t say you found out from me,” Wynn started shaking.
“Of course I won’t,” Cindy assured her. “You can count on me.”
“For what?” asked Wynn.
“For everything,” said Cindy, taking her hand. “You’re a brave woman, Wynn, and you’ve been a big help. Both Tiffany and I thank you for everything.”
CHAPTER 12
The moment Cindy returned to the hotel, she saw Mattheus waiting for her in the lobby.
“Where were you gone to for so long?” he asked, walking over to her, edgy.
Cindy smiled to herself. Where were you last night? she thought, and glanced at her watch casually.
“I’ve only been gone a few hours,” she said. “I told you where I was going before I left this morning.”
“It’s been more than a few hours,” Mattheus responded. “It’s almost the middle of the afternoon.”
Cindy looked at him oddly. “Do I have to check in every hour?”
“Okay,” he said, putting his hand on her arm, reassuringly. “Sounds like we have to talk.”
Cindy shrugged. She liked it that Mattheus picked up on clues immediately when things weren’t quite right between them.
“I did something to offend you,” he said. “It’s written all over your face.”
Cindy smiled.
“Want to tell me what I did?” He smiled too. “How about getting a quick drink at the bar so you can fill me in.”
Clearly, Mattheus knew his way around women, read them like a book. He always knew how to make Cindy smile at her own foolishness. She liked it.
“Sure,” said Cindy as they walked to the bar, suddenly feeling needed.
They took a quick seat at the bar, ordered rum and coke and relaxed a moment.
“Was last night useful?” asked Cindy.
“Ahh, that’s it,” Mattheus said. “I didn’t take you to the party with me. It got you thinking,” he laughed.
“You didn’t come down for breakfast,” Cindy corrected him. “I was just curious about what you found out.”
“You were curious if I spent the night with one of the dames who accosted me at the party?”
Cindy laughed.
“You’re right there, they accosted me, but I didn’t spend an extra second with any of them.”
“That’s not the point,” said Cindy. “You absolutely have the right to spend time with anyone you like.”
“In the middle of a murder investigation?” Mattheus asked.
“Time off is your time.”
“Cindy,” Mattheus said, “that’s crazy. I’m here for a purpose and so are you. Do you think I’d let my head get spun around by gorgeous women, scantily dressed?”
“Of course you would,” said Cindy.
“A spinning head is one thing,” said Mattheus. “Doing something about it is another.”
“True,” said Cindy.
“Would you allow yourself that?” Mattheus asked.
His question took her off guard. “No, of course not,” she said.
“So, why should I be different?”
Cindy looked over at him with renewed admiration. “I’m sorry,” she said.
“It’s okay, it’s natural,” he said. “And, actually, I’m flattered that you cared. Flattered and touched.
Cindy blushed. This wasn’t a conversation she was comfortable having.
“What about you?” he said, taking her off the hook quickly. “How did it go today?”
““I have important news.” said Cindy. “I was actually going to tell you the second I got back.” “What?”
“Tiffany was having an affair with a guy named Frances, when she was killed.”
“Are you kidding me?” Mattheus’ jaw fell open.
“I know, it’s shocking.”
“It’s a game changer,” he said, his voice growing urgent. “Who’s the guy?”
“Someone she’s known a long time. He’s down on the island now, was actually at the engagement party.”
“You’re sure about this?”
“Her older sister Wynn told me about it. She’s the most dependable of them all, solid and clear. She felt that Tiffany really loved him.”
“Whew.” Clearly Mattheus was taken aback. “Did Tad have any idea what was going on?” Mattheus slowly absorbed the information.
“Wynn is convinced that no one knew a thing, especially Tad.”
“She’s convinced, but I’m not. Okay, so, what are we doing sitting here? Let’s get over to talk to Frances, this second.”
*
Frances’s family’s home was high up on a hill, at the foot of a craggy mountain. When Cindy called his voice was a bit slurred, but he said they could come right over. The moment Cindy and Mattheus ran the front door bell, he came down himself to let them in.
Frances was about Tiffany’s age, good looking, with dark hair, suntanned, with a small, scar on his face. He stood there, a little disheveled but rugged looking, dressed in shorts, a ripped T shirt and a bottle of beer in his hand.
“Come on in,” he said, high strung and discombobulated.
The house was big and messy, with fieldstone floors, magazines strewn around, furniture placed at odd angles and too many plants lined up near the windows.
“No one’s home right now,” he said. “Parents are out on their boat with friends.”
“When are they coming back?” asked Cindy.
“Who the hell knows? Beats me. They go out for days at a time,” said Frances.
Cindy wondered if he was drunk or high on something. She and Mattheus walked in, cleared a space on the sofa and sat down.
“I guess you’re interviewing all of Tiffany’s friends?” Frances asked as he sat on a stool close by.
“Not all of them,” Mattheus said. “We picked you for a reason.”
Frances rubbed his hands on his knees quickly. “Oh yeah, what?”
Clearly, Mattheus was trying to make Frances uneasy, knock him off his game, get him to talk, thought Cindy.
“Want to tell us about what went on between you and Tiffany? Mattheus let a nasty tone creep into his voice.
“What am I supposed to say?” said Frances. “Tiffany and I knew each other for years. We were friends.”
“Just friends?” asked Mattheus, grinning suggestively.
Frances was getting more uncomfortable by the minute. Despite herself, Cindy wanted to calm him down. She stopped herself though. She knew it could be useful to push people to the edge, shake up their defenses, get them to spill.
“I heard the two of you were much more than friends,” said Mattheus.
Frances’s eyes opened wide at that. “Yeah? Who’d you hear that from?”
“It doesn’t matter who,” said Mattheus.
Frances threw Cindy a long, suspicious glance. “From her?”
“Frances,” Mattheus stood up threateningly and walked closer to him. “The game is up. Tell us what happened between you and Tiffany.”
“I told you,” Frances said, “we were friends. What else do you want me to say?”
“We’ve been in touch with the medical examiner,” Mattheus was making it up as he went along, trying to smoke out Frances.
“Oh yeah? What’d he say?”
“Medical examiner thinks Tiffany was pregnant when she died.”
Frances jumped up. “What?”
“And the DNA’s gonna tell who the father is.”
“What the hell are you telling me? She never said a word about being pregnant to me,” Frances could hardly catch his breath.
“Why would she tell you a thing like that?” Mattheus was closing in.
“If it was my baby, she’d let me know,” Frances shouted.
Mattheus shouted louder, “Your baby? You were lovers?”
“Sure we were lovers,” Frances was starting to freak.
“For how long?”
“About six months,” he was running his hands frantically through his hair.
“Was she sleeping with anyone else at the time?” asked Mattheus.
Frances started pacing back and forth.
“She was sleeping with Tad, but it couldn’t be his. That baby was mine, for sure.”
“Why couldn’t it have been Tad’s?” asked Mattheus.
“Because they hardly slept together. Once in a while, but it meant nothing to her.”
“That’s what they all say,” Mattheus rubbed it in.
Frances grew furious, “But I’m sure, dude. It was a whole different thing between Tiffany and me.”
“That’s why she got engaged to Tad?” Mattheus said, sarcastic.
“It was temporary,” Frances hissed.
Cindy was stunned. Was that what Tiffany told him? That she’d end up with him? Cindy suddenly felt badly for him.
“Tiffany got engaged to make her family happy, to keep her crazy mother from having another nervous breakdown,” Frances spun into a different state of mind. “Her family never liked me much. I never liked them.”
“Why not?” asked Cindy.
“Who the hell cares?” Frances spit out. “People get engaged all the time and the wedding day never comes.”
“You didn’t want it to come, did you?” said Mattheus.
“It wasn’t going to come,” Frances breathed, Tiffany promised me that.
“But, you killed her to make sure,” Mattheus said.
“Are you nuts? I swear I didn’t kill her. I loved her, she loved me. Why in the world would I kill her?”
“Ten dollars says you did,” said Mattheus stepping closer to him.
“You got to be crazy!” Frances reeled back and forth.
“What were you doing when she was murdered?”
“I was here, home alone.”
“Doing what?”
“Doing cocaine,” Frances said, “thinking things over.”
“That’s how you usually spend your days?”
“How I spend my days is my business, Mister.”
“Not when the woman you were sleeping with was found murdered.”
“I didn’t do it,” Frances whimpered.
“Was anyone at home with you that day? Anyone see you?”
“No one saw me. My parents were out on the boat with friends. They’re always out on the boat with friends. I’m not lying to you about anything.”
“Prove it then.”
“How the hell can I prove it? You want me to jump into the ocean and kill myself?”
“That’s a strange thing to say,” said Mattheus. “Why would a completely innocent guy kill himself?”
Frances was sweating heavily. “Oh Jesus,” he said, and covered his face with his hands. “Now the baby’s gone too.”
“Do you have any idea who may have done this, Frances?” Cindy asked quietly, trying to calm him down.
“How do I know? I’ve been thinking about it since it happened. It’s driving me crazy. I can’t even leave the house.”
“Did Tiffany ever tell you about anyone who had it in for her?”
Frances’s eyes darted back and forth. “She had some spats with a few friends, but nothing serious. Those friends of hers were always throwing darts at each other. It’s how they spent their days. It didn’t mean anything. She was used to it.”
“Was one of them particularly jealous of her?” Cindy asked quickly.
“Not really,” said Frances. “Not that I know.”
“How come she was sleeping with you and engaged to Tad at the same time?” Mattheus asked again, returning to the same point, like a dog chewing on a bone. “What kind of guy sleeps with someone else’s fiancée?”
“I knew Tiffany long before she took up with Tad,” Frances said. “She and I always had a thing for each other, even though we just stayed friends. But then, all of a sudden, when she started dating him, everything turned around. She was nervous, lonely, I saw it in her eyes. I asked her about it one night at a party when he was out of town. One thing led to another. Jesus, neither of us had any idea how incredible it would be between us. We really fell in love.”
“Why didn’t she break up with Tad, then?” asked Mattheus, irritated.
“She said she was going to break it up, but not just yet.”
“And that didn’t bother you?”
“How could it? He was no match for what was going on between us.”
“You were cheating on him behind his back,” said Mattheus, his jaw tightly set.
“Tad got what he needed from the relationship,” Frances defended himself. “He wasn’t a victim of anything.”
“No, she was the victim,” Mattheus dug in.
“Oh God,” Frances started trembling. “I miss her, I really do.”
“Look, I’m going to have to call this into the police,” Mattheus said quickly.
France’s eyes narrowed. “You have nothing better to do than nail a guy who lost someone he really loved? Go to hell.”
The pain in his voice pierced through Cindy.
“I’m not nailing anyone,” said Mattheus. “It’s my duty to call the police and let them decide what to do.”
“You’re a rotten freak,” Frances mumbled, “a coward.”
“Take it easy,” Cindy went over to him.
He pushed her away, “You get the hell away from me, too. The two of you stink.”
*
Frances sat on the couch glumly, not saying a word then, just waiting for the cops. When the doorbell rang, he got up like a robot and opened the door.
Tomas and Jean Pierre were standing outside.
“Come in,” said Frances.
They nodded to him and entered.
Mattheus got up and went over to them.
“Thanks for the tip,” Tomas said, appreciatively to Mattheus.
Mattheus nodded grimly.
“Okay,” said Tomas to Frances, “sit down a minute. We have a few questions to ask.”
As if he were a doomed man, Frances sat down on the edge of the couch, almost listless by now.
“I loved her,” Frances said slowly.
“First things first,” said Tomas. “Where were you the afternoon, Tiffany was murdered?”
“I was here at home, like I usually am.”
Tomas looked at him more closely. “Doing drugs?”
“Sometimes,” said Frances.
“We can take him in for that,” said Jeanne Pierre who stood stiffly behind him.
“Did you do some today?” asked Tomas.
“A little while ago.”
It frightened Cindy to see Frances so undefended. He seemed to be losing the will to fight.
“So, you and Tiffany were an item?” said Tomas fitfully then.
“Yes, we were,” said Frances.
“Even though she was engaged to someone else?”
“That’s right,” Frances continued, determined to say it as it was.
Cindy felt a strange admiration for him, mixed with fear. He seemed like a lamb about to be led to the slaughter.
“Was there anyone who saw you at home at the time Tiffany was killed?” Tomas continued questioning.
“No, there was not,” said Frances
“Did you tell anyone you were going to be at home during that day?”
“No, I didn’t,” Frances replied.
“There was no fri
end, no person you mentioned it to?”
“No one,” said Frances.
“That’s odd for the holiday season, isn’t it?” Tomas’s eyes narrowed. “Usually everyone’s with someone, at a party, on a boat, in town?”
“I didn’t mention it to anyone,” said Frances.
“Is something else wrong in your life?” Tomas asked, his voice becoming more subdued.
“Nothing else was wrong,” said Frances, as long as Tiffany was around.” His eyes were glassy and there was a sense of doom growing around him.
Tomas looked at Jeanne Pierre who nodded at him.
“Frances,” said Tomas, “I am arresting you now on the suspicion of murder.”
Frances stood opposite him and stared into his eyes.
“Tiffany was pregnant with my baby,” Frances muttered.
“What’s that?” said Jeanne Pierre.
“It was my baby. It wasn’t his,” Frances added sorrowfully. “As soon as the tests are complete, the medical examiner will tell you who the real father was.”
Tomas looked confused for a moment, then he leaned over and placed France’s wrists behind his back in handcuffs.
“You’ll come with us and tell us more,” Tomas said, as he led Frances in cuffs to the front door.
“I didn’t hear that she was pregnant,” Jean Pierre remarked to Mattheus as they walked out.
“She wasn’t”, said Mattheus, confidentially. “It was something I concocted to get him to talk.”
Cindy’s heart dropped, but Jeanne Pierre winked.
“Smart tactic,” he said.
CHAPTER 13
Cindy didn’t say much on the drive home. Obviously, Mattheus felt good that he’d gotten the truth out of Frances and was going on and on about guys who cheated on their friends.
“They’re the pits,” Mattheus said.
“Now it’s my turn to tell you not to sit in judgment,” Cindy interrupted. Life happens. I like him.”
“How could you like him?” Mattheus asked, “why?”
“He seems honest, he’s not hiding anything. And I believe he’s in real pain.”
“Listen, I had to give this information to the police,” Mattheus said.