by Jaden Skye
“What’s the connection? I don’t get it.” Rod was obviously ill at ease now. “Kara knew lots of people.”
But they didn’t turn up dead on the same beach she disappeared from a few days before, thought Cindy. She didn’t want to say it out loud though, for fear of upsetting Rod even further.
“Is this going to lead us to Kara?” Rod asked Mattheus bluntly. “Is that why you want us to stay?”
“It could lead anywhere.” Mattheus was obviously as affected by the photo as Cindy had been.
“Did you show this to Rowley?” Rod turned to Cindy directly. “Is that why he called us?”
“Yes,” said Cindy. “I asked Rowley if he also knew Shane. He said he didn’t.”
“Of course he didn’t,” Rod broke in, wanting to turn the heat down. “Give the guy a break, won’t you? He’s been through hell as it is. Why show him stuff like this and torture him more?”
“Because it could lead us straight to your daughter,” said Cindy.
Rod’s face took on a desperate hue. “Nothing’s going to lead us to my daughter again. Why raise false hopes? You think that’s right? You think that’s fair?” He obviously couldn’t stand Cindy.
“Your daughter still could be alive.” Cindy stood her ground.
“Not anymore.” Rod face grew darker. “I’m convinced she drowned in an undertow.”
“She was a marathon swimmer.” Cindy took him on directly
“That’s exactly why it happened,” Rod exclaimed. “Like all women, Kara thought she was stronger and better than she was. Whatever I said to her meant nothing. She always took
chances she never should have. Even when she was little, no matter how rough the ocean was she couldn’t resist the temptation to jump in. She must have done it again down here, but this time the water was unforgiving. The tides pulled her out. She couldn’t fight them.”
“Rod knows his daughter,” Mattheus said sadly, his eyes returning to the painful photo.
“Let’s go upstairs and hang out with Rowley,” Rod burst out. “After seeing this picture, the poor guy must be climbing the calls. He could use some male backup right now.”
“Rowley said he wanted time alone,” Cindy broke in.
“Yeah, he always says that,” Rod nodded, “but the guy doesn’t know what he really needs now. How could he? He just lost his wife on the honeymoon. It doesn’t get much worse than that.”
Cindy and Mattheus nodded in agreement and the three of them walked together to the elevator without saying another word. As they walked, Cindy glanced at Mattheus, pleased to see that he looked as perturbed as she felt.
The silence continued as they rode up to their floor. Each of them was probably turning the photo over in their minds, thought Cindy. They had to be wondering where it would lead them, if it were even remotely possible that Kara was still alive.
As soon as the elevator stopped on Rowley’s floor, they got out and walked down the hall quickly. This time when they arrived at the room, though, to everyone’s surprise, the door was shut.
“That’s strange,” said Rod.
“Rowley probably meant what he said,” said Cindy, “he wants to be alone.”
“Right now it doesn’t matter what he wants, I’m going in.” Rod pushed the door, but it didn’t budge.
“Let me open it,” said Mattheus, stepping in front of Rod and jostling the door knob. It still remained shut tight. “He must have locked it.” Mattheus was disgruntled.
“Why?” asked Rod. “He never did that before.”
All kinds of reasons, thought Cindy.
“It doesn’t matter, we’ll get in anyway,” Rod continued. “I’ve got a key.”
Rod fumbled in his pocket, pulled out a hotel card, slid it through the slot, and finally kicked the door open.
The three of them rushed in quickly, but no one was there. The room was empty. The silence was deafening. Oh God, thought Cindy, chilled, he’s run away.
“Where the hell are you, Rowley,” Rod called out in a hoarse voice, “in the bathroom?”
Mattheus rushed to the bathroom and pulled open the door. Nobody was there. He then yanked open another door of the suite, ran in, and came out quickly.
“Rowley’s taken off,” Mattheus pronounced.
Cindy trembled. Rowley’d escaped as soon as he’d heard the news, she thought.
“Slow down, cool it,” Rod insisted. “He’s probably in his parents’ room. I’ll put in a call.”
Rod called Rowley’s parents immediately. Rowley wasn’t there and they were equally horrified to hear that he was gone. Rod looked shaky as he spoke to them. “It’s okay, it’s okay, he probably went downstairs to get something to eat. He was probably sick of sitting in here alone.” Rod tried to calm them.
Mattheus immediately put in a call to hotel security to find him. “If he’s on the premises, we’ll know it quickly,” he said.
“If not, he could be in town?” Rod continued.
“Not likely,” Cindy murmured.
Mattheus turned to Cindy with the urgency in his eyes she’d been so familiar with.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find him, we have to,” said Mattheus.
“Of course we’ll find him,” Rod thundered.
“Maybe?” said Cindy.
Rod’s hands clenched into fists. “How is it possible that we couldn’t find him? Where would he be?”
“That’s the question now, isn’t it?” Cindy replied.
CHAPTER 19
The word was out, the search was on. The police returned to the hotel, fanning out into all corners. Photos of Rowley were now being shown to the guests. Once again the family was detained, could not leave the island. Mattheus linked up with the police, determined to find Rowley himself.
“Everyone has to calm down,” Mattheus said to the family over and over. “Rowley’s taken off on his own. He’s still definitely alive.”
Rowley’s mother, Bea, would not speak to anyone and Pete did his best to remain calm, to provide an anchor in the storm. Several times Cindy caught Pete’s glance looking at her, silently asking what had happened?
After Mattheus left, Cindy walked over to Pete, wanting to address the unanswered fear in his eyes.
“I believe Rowley is fine,” she started. “The photo must have come as a shock to him. It might have made him suddenly realize that Kara was gone. He missed her, he was alarmed. For all we know he’s out there searching for her himself.”
“I wouldn’t put that past him,” Pete answered quietly.
“Rowley would probably be amazed that his sudden absence has caused such a stir,” Cindy continued. She could see that her words meant a great deal to Pete.
“You know a lot about these kinds of situations, Cindy,” Pete replied.
“It’s what I do, it’s my work,” said Cindy.
“And you do it wonderfully, you really do,” he responded.
“Thanks,” said Cindy. “Your appreciation means a lot. And please don’t worry, we’ll find your son. I’m sure of it.”
“Be careful, be safe,” said Pete.
“I am safe,” said Cindy, and suddenly felt it deeply. All at once, she felt looked after and protected, no matter where she went, and what she might have to face.
After a few more words with the family, Cindy decided to leave. She wanted to go straight down to see Santos again. If anyone might know more about this, it would be him. If anyone could help her, perhaps he would.
*
When Cindy arrived at the casino, it was almost as if Santos had been waiting for her. Holly came up to her a few seconds after she walked in, put her hand Cindy’s shoulder, and said, “What took you so long?”
“He’s waiting for me?” asked Cindy.
Holly smiled. “Yeah, he is. I don’t know how you did it, but you got a friend over there. And when Santos is your friend, it’s forever.”
Cindy smiled. She’d felt that the first time she’d met Santos, a familiarity and congen
iality between him and her.
“Okay, let’s go,” Cindy said as Holly led her through the crowded spaces to Santos’s room in the rear.
*
Santos got up the minute Cindy walked in, waved Holly out, and smiled broadly.
“You sure took your time about coming back to see me,” he said as he reached for Cindy’s hands and gave them a quick squeeze hello.
“I’ve been busy trying to track Kara down,” Cindy replied.
“And also finding out who killed Shane.” Santos tapped his foot on the ground lightly.
“The cases are definitely connected,” Cindy spoke to him confidentially, as if he were her secret partner.
Santos laughed. “You think you’re telling me something I don’t know?”
“You knew all along?” Cindy’s eyes opened.
“Santos knows everything that happens down here,” he answered in a gruff whisper. “I even know about what happened with you and your husband, Clint. He was killed down in Barbados on your honeymoon and since then you’ve become a crazed Caribbean detective, going after all kinds of killers.”
Obviously, Santos had investigated her as well. “That’s right,” said Cindy. “What else can I do?”
Santos paused and looked at her kindly. “There are lots of things a person could do, but you haven’t found that out yet, have you?” Santos looked completely taken by Cindy and also disturbed by the path her life had taken.
“What kind of things could I do?” asked Cindy, wanting to know what was on his mind.
“You could put what happened in the past and let it go. You could build a new life of your own,” Santos chided Cindy, as if he were talking to his own daughter.
Cindy was both touched and startled. “This is my life now,” she replied.
“Right now, yes. But always, Cindy?” he asked.
Cindy had no idea why it mattered to him. “What difference does it make to you?” she asked, curious.
“Everything makes a difference to Santos,” he quickly replied. “Everything. Otherwise, how could I keep a grip on my place and people and make sure things don’t get out of hand?”
Cindy found him fascinating. “You do a fantastic job down here,” she remarked.
“That’s right, I do,” said Santos proudly. “And, believe it or not, part of my job is dividing right from wrong. Some people should be detectives, others shouldn’t. Some people deserve to die, others to live.”
Cindy was startled. Was he the arbiter of who lived and died? “Is that up to you?” she asked plainly.
“It’s up to someone.” Santos laughed again.
If everything was in his hands, Santos had to have Cindy’s answers. “Who killed Shane?” she asked him bluntly then.
The smile left Santos’s face instantly. There was nothing more he had to say.
The truth of the situation suddenly flickered before Cindy. “Shane wasn’t supposed to die, was she, Santos?” Cindy blurted out.
Santos threw up his head and rubbed his face with his palms. “You ask these kinds of questions to Santos? Sometimes you don’t know when to stop. But you’re a brave woman, Cindy. No one can say you’re not.”
“You like me and I like you, Santos,” Cindy replied. ”And we’re both after the same thing.”
That took Santos by surprise. “What?”
“We both want what’s fair,” said Cindy, meeting his eyes directly. Maybe what they thought was fair was different, but Cindy knew that if something wasn’t fair in Santos’s eyes, he wouldn’t allow it. “It wasn’t fair that Shane died, was it?” Cindy went on. “It wasn’t fair that Kara disappeared!”
Santos’s lower lip jutted out.
“You didn’t want it to happen, you didn’t approve it!” Cindy was on a roll.
Santos held up his hand then to stop her. “You’re not only beautiful but you’re smart,” he uttered. “Too smart. That’s what I like, a very smart woman. But don’t be too smart. Too smart gets you in trouble. You hear me?”
“Help me out, Santos,” Cindy pleaded again.
“I will, I am.” The smile on his round face returned slowly. “I have to go now, but a friend of mine, Felix, is coming in a few minutes. I gave Felix a present for you.”
Cindy’s heart began to pound. Who was Felix? What kind of present?
“Remember, this is a present from Santos,” he repeated, as he turned and walked to the door.
“Thank you, Santos, thank you,” Cindy murmured, wanting to run after him and give him a hug.
Santos spun around suddenly. “It’s okay, you deserve it,” he said. “But no matter what you do, don’t tell anybody where it came from. Nobody! Understand?”
“I understand,” Cindy promised.
“Good,” said Santos. He turned and threw her a quick glance. “I’ll see you later then,” he said and left.
Cindy stayed in the empty room a few minutes, wondering when Felix would arrive and what Santos had given him for her. She didn’t have to wonder long. Suddenly the door opened and an extremely thin Caribbean man slipped into the room, disappearing into the shadows in the back.
“Felix?” Cindy asked.
He nodded quickly and remained silent, looking at her strangely in the dim light.
Cindy decided to remain silent and let him make the next move.
Felix seemed to appreciate that. After a few moments, when he felt comfortable, he took a few quick steps toward Cindy and thrust a large piece of glossy paper in her hand.
Cindy took it quickly and moved into the light. On the paper was a photo of a young woman, doubled over, in a small room. Immediately, Cindy knew that it was Kara! She was still alive.
“It’s Kara, it’s Kara, isn’t it?” Cindy called out.
Felix remained totally silent.
“Speak to me, Felix, tell me the truth. Is this Kara? Is she being held somewhere for ransom?”
Felix eyes stayed glued to Cindy, though he did not utter a sound.
“Is her husband, Rowley, involved in this?” Cindy kept plying him with questions. But no matter how much she begged for an answer, Felix had nothing further to say. Finally, Cindy grew quiet and soon after, Felix left.
Cindy stood there alone with the photo staring at it. It was impossible to make out the young woman’s features or where the room possibly could be. Cindy decided to wait for Santos to return and see if he would tell her. In the meantime, she sat dwelling upon the photo, practically begging the young woman in it to get up and speak to her. Please, Cindy said to her silently, tell me where you are and how I can set you free.
A long while passed and no one came back into the room. Cindy finally realized that she had the gift that Santos was going to give her. There was nothing further she was going to get from him now.
*
After she left the casino, Cindy immediately put in a call to Alfred, to tell him about the photo she’d received. To Cindy’s amazement, Alfred took it in stride.
“Great,” he said as if he’d been expecting it.
“You’re not surprised? You’re not amazed?” Cindy couldn’t believe it.
“I know all about Santos.” Alfred’s voice grew lower. “I know you went to see him. And I know Santos likes who he likes.”
“I’m not calling you about Santos, I’m calling about the photo,” said Cindy, exasperated. “I’m sure it’s Kara. I’m sure she’s alive and being hidden.”
Alfred grew very silent.
“Should I come right over and show the photo to you?” Cindy asked.
“No,” said Alfred, “not right now.”
Cindy was completely startled. “Why not? What’s going on?”
“Didn’t Santos tell you to keep this quiet?” Alfred asked then in a very hushed voice.
“Yes, he did,” Cindy suddenly remembered, “but how do you know that?”
“I told you, I know about Santos,” Alfred spoke more definitively then. “If he gives you a hand and he tells you to keep it quiet, then
that’s what you do! You do what he says. That’s how it works.”
Cindy felt chilled to the core. Alfred knew more about Santos than she did. For all Cindy knew Alfred had even spoken to him.
“Santos gave you the photo, not me,” Alfred went on, grudgingly.
“I have no idea how I’ll find out where this room is located.” Cindy was floundering. “How can I get her out?”
“Listen to me,” Alfred continued quickly, “there’s a detective who specializes in cases of missing persons, Tracy Wrenn. She’s based in the States, and I have her personal number. She’ll pick right up. Call her immediately and tell her what you have and she’ll help you.”
Cindy breathed more easily. “That’s wonderful, thank you so much, Alfred,”
“It’s my pleasure,” said Alfred. “You’re doing a great job. And I know you and Tracy will definitely like each other. I know it in my bones.”
“Wonderful,” Cindy agreed. She took Tracy’s number and hung up the phone.
*
Cindy immediately put the call in to Tracy. As Alfred said, she picked up immediately.
“Tracy Wrenn,” a woman’s voice answered directly. “How can I help you?”
Cindy was moved by the forthrightness in her tone. “Cindy Blaine here, private detective,” Cindy replied. “Alfred gave me your number.”
“Yes, he told me.” Tracy was ready to talk. She was probably used to emergencies, Cindy figured. Time was always of the essence in missing person’s cases.
“I’ve been working on a missing person’s case down in St. Lucia,” Cindy began. “Now we find that it’s tied to the murder of another young woman who was found dead on the beach a few days later.”
“How much time has passed?” Tracy responded immediately, her voice becoming concentrated.
“How much time since the murder or the other woman going missing?” asked Cindy.
“Both,” answered Tracy, quick and sharp.
“All in all about week for both of them,” Cindy replied.
“Good.” Tracy picked up on it. “All the players are around, nothing has gone cold.”