Take the Money: Romantic Suspense in Costa Rica

by Lucia Sinn

  She heard the low soft voice of Enrique, the higher feminine ones of his female assistants. Everyone was already at work, and she felt guilty at having slept so late. She dressed hastily and found Juan in the waiting room.

  His face crinkled into a broad smile when he saw her. “You had a busy night, I hear.”

  “Oh? You must have talked with Dr. Rojas.”

  “Yes, he said you were a great help.” Julie looked into Juan’s dark eyes for some clue as to what he was thinking. If he knew she and his friend had slept together, he showed no signs of disapproval.

  “I was hoping to see Dr. Rojas for a moment before we leave,” she said.

  “Of course,” Juan said. “We can stop back after breakfast at the restaurant and see if he’s free.”

  “Breakfast?” Julie thought about the tumultuous plane ride ahead. “I don’t think so. But I’ll be happy to wait while you have something.”

  “In that case, we’ll go directly to the airport,” Juan said. “We’ll be in Liberia shortly, and I’ll have something there. I need to pick up some passengers and get back to San Jose as quickly as possible.”

  Julie walked back toward the examining rooms, hoping to catch a glimpse of Enrique. At that moment, the clinic door burst open and a craggy-faced old woman limped into the room carrying a large bundle. A small boy covered with a dirty blanket screeched hysterically, his small chest heaving as dark red blood oozed from a gash on his forehead.

  “My Jacinto,” the woman yelled. “The mule kicked him in the head.”

  Julie caught only a brief glimpse of the cowlick on the back of Enrique’s head as he hastened to look at the boy’s wound. There would be no time to say goodbye. Reluctantly, she followed Juan to the front door.

  *

  When Julie saw the plane again, she remembered she’d sworn never to climb back in what she now regarded as a torture chamber. But what choice did she have? It had been refueled during the night, so after picking a few lizards off the wings, it was time to go. The winds were tame as they approached the International Airport of Guanacaste.

  They glided smoothly down through the cerulean sky and taxied across the runway for a perfect landing. A couple of uniformed employees came out to greet their plane, but the immigration office was empty. She saw no buses or taxi cabs on the dirt road leading into the forest. The beach was fifteen miles away. Juan assured her that another flight full of tourists was coming in within the hour and there would be vehicles to pick them up.

  Fortunately, there was a ladies room—clean and modern with Formica countertops and ceramic sinks and real toilets that flushed. Julie surveyed her reflection in the mirror for signs of wreckage. Was it only two weeks since she’d come to Costa Rica? Although she hadn’t been outside very much, her hair had already begun to lighten, and her skin had acquired a rosy glow from simply walking along the sun-drenched streets of San Jose.

  She’d been looking forward to seeing the ocean, but after last night she was in no mood for lolling on a beach with nothing to do. She’d call Nellie tonight and see if the men from Lewiston had come back.

  Still dejected about not saying goodbye to Enrique, Julie sat outside at a dark mahogany picnic table while a red parrot teetering on a tree limb screeched. Her bare legs stuck to the bench as the hot humid air pressed down like a vise around her head. Just breathing and moving seemed like a chore. It was hard to believe she was only a few hundred miles away from the cool mountain air in San Jose. She put her head on the table, closing her eyes against the bright sunlight reflected from the parking lot.

  “Senorita. Hola.” Julie heard a familiar voice. She opened her eyes, blinked, and looked again. Her mind seemed to be slipping gears. Although his back was to the sun and his face shadowed, the person standing a foot away looked exactly like David, the van driver from the Cariari. He took three short nervous puffs on his cigarette, each producing an incrementally larger cloud of smoke. No one else smoked like that.

  “How did you know I was here?” she asked.

  He gave her a lopsided yellow-toothed smile. “I didn’t.”

  “Then what are you doing here?”

  “The same thing I do in San Jose. I work for the tour company and they sent me up here for awhile to transport customers to the hotel.”

  He pointed to the parking lot and Julie saw the familiar turquoise and white van with the same logo as the one that had taken her to the Cariari. “Can you give me a ride again?” she asked.

  “If you’re going to the Villa de Costa.”

  “What’s that? Another overpriced hotel for gringos?”

  He laughed. “If you want more economical accommodations, I can show you another small place on the beach. But first you’ll have to let me deposit my passengers.”

  In the distance they heard the drone of a jet. An American airlines 747 appeared in the sky, dipping its wings like a giant bird and touching down on the runway. The attendants snapped to attention while David rushed out to wait for the tourists to disembark.

  Once again, Julie was in the company of her countrymen from the USA. She decided to remain silent on the ride to the hotel so that she could avoid their probing questions about where she was from and what a girl from the States was doing here alone.

  *

  The hotel was at the top of a small mountain with the ocean swirling below in foamy streaks of turquoise, green and pale blue around the Olympic-sized pool. White coated waiters brought colorful beverages to tourists who lay slathering perfumed oils on their scorched skin and listening to music plugged into their ears. What a contrast to the house where baby Oscar had been born last night.

  “You sure you don’t want to stay here?” David was standing closer than she thought necessary, so close she could feel the hairs on his arm.

  “I’m sure,” she said, drawing away quickly. “You said there was someplace on the beach?”

  “Hop in,” David said. In seconds they were careening downhill so fast she was afraid they’d land in the water. At the bottom of the hill, he jammed on the brakes as they came to a black sandy beach curled around the ocean, fringed by palm trees and tropical vegetation. The beach was nearly deserted, dotted with only with a few sunbathers. It was as if they’d been transported to an ancient world, pristine, untouched by modern civilization.

  David drove up a path gnarled with trees and vines to a two-storied white stucco building where he arranged for her to book a room with a sweeping view of the sea. Lace curtains flapped in the breeze over a large, fluffy bed, and there was a small chest of drawers made of fragrant mahogany. The maid brought a vase of amaryllis and birds of paradise as soon as Julie checked in, placing them on the center of a small writing table. Birds called back and forth from the lush greenery outside her window, and the sound of ocean waves washing against the sand were a balm to Julie’s jangled nerves. No one from Lewiston would ever find her here.

  She had a late breakfast at her small hotel, but the kitchen closed at two. As dusk descended, she was forced to venture out of her safe little haven to search for sustenance. The choice of nearby restaurants was limited to three.

  There was a small rustic spot about a quarter of a mile down the beach, with rough wooden tables and wide plank floors that served a smattering of cuisines: steak, seafood, fish, beans and rice. The place was jammed with down-to-earth types who had opted out of the fancy dining room up at the hotel.

  Some Canadians, already well into their rum-filled fruit drinks, welcomed her to their table and let her listen to their rowdy conversation without the usual “what is a girl like you doing here alone?” routine. A plate of boiled squid she found decidedly tough and tasteless, but the usual beans and rice, accompanied by some fried plantains, more than satisfied her hunger. The night wore on, and the purple twilight deepened into a still, primitive darkness where only the stars and the moon cast a luminous glow over the water. Julie looked out the window and saw ocean waves lapping at the side of the building. The tide was in.

/>   “How will I get back to my hotel?” she asked one of her inebriated dinner companions, a thickset blonde man with a fiery sunburn and a solemn, studious wife who constantly referred to Fodor’s.

  “Just wade,” he shouted. “We all walk back through the water.”

  “Kind of spooky out there, isn’t it?”

  “You’ll make it OK. The water’s shallow and it cools you off. But if you’re scared, just wait around until we leave and we’ll walk you back.”

  Even though they were the only customers remaining, Julie had the feeling the place would stay open as long as there was a single patron. Her eyelids felt as if they were weighted with lead; rum and low barometric pressure were combining to produce an overpowering lethargy. In a remote corner of her brain, an alarm went off and she forced herself to her feet. “I’m leaving,” she said. “See you all tomorrow.”

  A thicket of low hanging trees and shrubs were visible in the moonlight, but the path she’d taken to enter the restaurant was shrouded in darkness.”Don’t go now,” the Canadian said. “The party’s just getting good. I’m ordering another round of drinks.”

  Julie raised her hand in protest “Not for me, I’m going to find my way back home before it gets too late and I’ve had too much rum.”

  “Better take off your shoes,” the wife said.

  After Julie had walked out to the porch, she understood she’d received good advice. The ocean covered the steps she’d taken just a few hours before, but the fresh sea air had cleared her head; walking home up to her knees in warm salt water seemed like a lark.

  It was slow going as she waded in the moonlight toward her hotel. The only sounds were the sloshing of water and the whisper of wind in the trees. A few owls cried out, but all seemed quiet until Julie heard something like a tree branch cracking a few feet away. Her heart thumped. Was something out there? She tried to hurry, but the ocean dragged her down. It was impossible to go fast. How much money was in her coin purse and would it satisfy a thief? Would they only want money? She listened harder, hoping it was just her imagination, when a tall shadow loomed behind her. She opened her mouth to scream and felt a hand at her waist.

  “Julie. I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

  Julie spun around and found herself face to face with David. “What are you doing here?” she cried out.

  “I’m sorry I couldn’t get away any sooner. I had to meet a late flight.” He moved closer, his nicotine breath wafting under her nostrils.

  “I don’t understand? Did you think I wanted to see you tonight?”

  “Yes”

  “But why?”

  “Because of that first night in San Jose. When you got off the van. You gave me such a large tip.”

  “Large tip?” Julie tried to remember. She’d had a bunch of bills, and been too tired and nervous to look at them closely. “How much did I give you?”

  “About forty dollars.”

  “Omigod.”

  David moved closer and lay a hand on her shoulder. “I shouldn’t have taken the money. I don’t usually do that sort of thing. I thought I could make it up to you later, buy you a nice dinner or something.”

  Julie’s hands were trembling and she looked around, hoping her Canadian friends would have decided to leave, after all. This guy was a stalker. She moved away from his touch. “David,” she said. “This is crazy, it was a mistake. I didn’t actually mean to give you such a large tip. I thought I was giving you a bunch of ones.”

  “But why did you come here all alone? When you went in the casino, I was sure you were looking for companionship. And you let me accompany you to the mall.”

  “And I said goodbye at the bottom of the escalator. I told you not to wait for me.”

  “You said you had some personal business, I didn’t want to embarrass you.”

  He’d thought she was being coy, playing hard to get. Or worse, that she was on the prowl for a man. “Tell me something. You knew I caught a plane yesterday didn’t you?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  My God, was it that easy for someone to follow her? “How did you know?”

  “My cousin, he works at the place you were staying. He saw you leave for the airport.”

  “And the tour company just let you come up here?”

  “Sure. I told them about us, they understood.”

  “Us? What is there to tell?”

  “We might fall in love.”

  “Why would you want to fall in love with me? A tourist from the States? I’m too old for you, anyway.”

  “ I’ve always wanted to go to the States. You could take me back there with you.”

  “David, this is a terrible mistake.” Julie turned away from him and headed back toward the hotel, trying not to let him see she was afraid. “You were very kind to me. I appreciated your showing me the way to the mall. But you misunderstood everything.”

  “There is no hope? You aren’t interested in me?”

  “Look, I find it hard to believe that it’s me that you find so attractive. There are many beautiful girls your own age. I have the feeling you think you’d be happier in the US. But it’s not as great as you think.”

  “But everyone has two cars and a house.”

  They had been walking slowly in the water and were now at her hotel.

  “Come in,” she said. “Sit down in the lobby and dry off. Both of us are drenched.”

  “No!” Julie was surprised at the loudness of his voice. His moist face was flushed above the dark blue veins in his neck. “There is nothing whatsoever to discuss.”

  “I didn’t mean to upset you and I certainly didn’t say anything to encourage your interest.” Julie moved quickly into the small lobby where a few hotel guests were watching television. It was frightening to see how agitated David had become.

  “I won’t annoy you again,” he said stubbornly, then turned toward the door.

  “Don’t go that way,” she said. “The tide is still coming in. Look, you can go out the front door and up the steps to the road.”

  Ignoring her plea, David disappeared into the darkness. She watched as he walked into the water, his silhouette starkly outlined against the horizon until finally he disappeared from sight. Still shaken, she stood in the open-air lobby for awhile looking out across the sea.

  The warm air smelled of salt and sand and tropical flowers, but the tranquil scene did nothing to lift her spirits. The rum had begun to wear off, leaving her with a letdown of depression and worry. She’d felt so safe this morning, but it was unsettling to know she had been so easily followed. Was David the only one who knew where she was? She turned and went upstairs to bed, resolving to call Nellie in the morning. If the coast was clear, she was going back to San Jose. She had some shopping to do.

  That night Julie slept fitfully, dreaming of a tiny delicate baby with Indian features and improbable pale blonde hair. Dr. Rojas was at the clinic, surrounded by nubile young girls and haggard women, old before their time. Everyone was barefoot. They were sick and hungry. She was trying to help, but there was nothing she could do.

  She awakened in the morning to the muffled sounds of men’s voices that seemed to be coming from the beach. What could be causing excitement in such a slow, sleepy village? She threw open the shutters and looked out over the ocean. The sun was still lighting up the sky, and a handful of men stood over the inert form of a man who lay on the beach.

  Julie grew numb with fright. The head was narrow, the black curly hair cropped short. The men were shaking him, trying to arouse him from slumber. Finally, they turned him over, exposing David’s swollen face

  Julie threw on her clothes and flew down the stairs, her bare feet pounding the cement steps. It couldn’t be. Not again.

  Gulping air, she ran across the garden past a squawking parrot and found an opening in the hibiscus hedge that bordered the hotel. Fishnets were scattered on the sand near a small wooden boat where a black-haired man knelt beside the body while three others looked on.

/>   One of the men looked up as she approached, and she knew by the morbid expression in his sad droopy eyes that he had just made a grim discovery.

  “ What has happened?”

  “Don’t come any closer, Senorita. This is a terrible thing to see.” The fisherman moved toward her with upturned palms, vigorously shaking his head back and forth.

  “What’s terrible?”

  “A man has drowned. Undertow. Very dangerous in this area. He went out too far, he should have known better.”

  “Are you sure?” Julie felt her body swaying.

  The men lifted their heads in unison, their eyes darkened with pity. She scanned David’s bloated face for signs of some other trauma and examined his pale body for bruises or wounds. But his chest was smooth and unblemished, with just a few tendrils of black hair circling the dark aureole of his nipples. The whites of his eyes stared back at her, unseeing, above unmoving blue lips.

  “Is he your friend? Do you know him?” Their voices deepened in sympathy, and they moved closer as if they thought she might faint.

  Her face felt stiff. She steadied herself against the trunk of a palm tree, barely able to speak. “I don’t know him at all, except that he drives the van for the tour company.”

  “Well, then, Senorita, best you go back to your hotel. This is not a pleasant sight.”

  Julie closed her eyes and covered her face with her hands, trying to block the guilty thoughts whirling through her head like a tropical storm. Another death so soon. For the thousandth time she envisioned Kevin’s crumpled body against the rich smooth leather seat of his new Porsche. Why hadn’t she realized what would happen? Could she have gotten him out before the explosion? What bad karma was coming down? Had she been cruel and insensitive to a naïve young man with good intentions? If she had been kinder, David wouldn’t have walked back out into the water.