Death by Obsession (7 page)

Lynch stared at his mother, open mouthed.

“It’s not what I want, it’s not what I’m hoping for,”
Raina tried to soften her words, “but what choice will I have? If this ever
gets out, we’ll all be done for. You have to make absolutely sure that not a word
of this leaves this room, ever!” With that she spun around and dashed to the
door. “I have guests to welcome,” she called out over her shoulder. “People
have paid thousands of dollars to be at this wedding. Things are going on as
normal, or else.”

It was as if the eye of a storm quieted down after
Raina left the room. And those remaining were left with all left with the
debris that the whirlwind had caused.

“I need to talk to you, Tara,” Lynch said quietly
then, reaching out for her.

“Not right now,” Tara began shivering.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you taking it so
hard?” Lynch alternated between looking baffled and afraid.

“I need time, Lynch,” Tara answered.

“There’s no time left, we don’t have time,” Lynch
replied. “The rehearsal dinner’s tomorrow night.”

Tara put her head in her hands and started sobbing.

“Give me some time alone with her,” Cindy said
quietly to Lynch. “Meanwhile you and Mattheus can talk.”

Aldon tapped his foot on the floor hard, at Cindy’s
suggestion. “I don’t know exactly what it is that Mattheus would have to say
that would make things better,” he said. “Mattheus seems to feel

that it’s perfectly fine to have a secret child you’ve
told no one about.”

“It’s not that simple,” said Mattheus, his face
growing tight. “I’m saying there are worse things to find out and that
misunderstandings can be repaired.”

“Not always,” said Aldon. “Actions can have
irreparable consequences.”

Tara looked up and sighed. “Take it easy, dad,” she
said.

“I’ve been worried about something like this for a
long time,” said Aldon.

At that Tara, grew quieter. Aldon’s statement seemed
to jar her. The last thing she wanted to do was go along with him.

“Let Mattheus talk to Lynch,” Tara proclaimed, “let
me talk to Cindy. Back off. Give us some time.”

*

Cindy put her arm around Tara and led her to a sofa
to sit down and talk. Mattheus took Lynch into the alcove, and Aldon walked out
onto the balcony and stared at the sky, alone.

“My father is happy about this,” Tara started, as
Cindy sat next to her and took her hand.

“I can’t imagine that he’s happy,” said Cindy.

“He and Lynch’s mother hate each other,” Tara went
on. “They made it hard for the two of us in the beginning, but then Raina
decided she loved me, and forgot about my dad.”

“He didn’t forget about her, though, did he?” asked
Cindy.

“No,” Tara shook her head. “He’s held this crazy
vendetta, determined to find out the truth about Lynch. Lynch is a wonderful
guy, but my father couldn’t see it.”

“That’s rough,” said Cindy.

“Awful,” Tara went on, “Lynch and I knew he was
poking around, investigating Lynch’s background. We didn’t care, though. It
didn’t amount to anything. I always thought Lynch was squeaky clean.”

“I don’t know if there’s anyone in the world who’s
squeaky clean,” Cindy said slowly. “There’s always a little something, here or
there. Life leaves its traces.”

“I realize that, of course,” said Tara, “but
something like this!”

Cindy sighed. She couldn’t help but agree. This wasn’t
a little something.

“This is huge,” said Tara.

“Yes, it is,” Cindy agreed.

“He lied to me,” Tara was taking it in, turning it
over and over in her mind, trying to make it real. “Lynch hid the fact that he
had a child.”

“He didn’t think of it as lying,” said Cindy, trying
to soften the blow.

“But whether or not he realized it, he lied,” Tara
shrugged. “In a way it would be better if he realized it. Otherwise, it could
happen again.”

““That’s true, you’re right,” Cindy agreed. “You’re
in a rough spot, Tara.”

Tara turned to Cindy point blank. “What would you do?”
she asked her.

Cindy was taken aback. “I’m not sure,” she said
slowly. It wasn’t up to her to tell Tara what to do.

“Would you go forward with a fake marriage, even
though you couldn’t trust your husband?” the words fell off Tara’s lip quickly.

“No, I would not do that,” Cindy was stalwart.

“Then, what would you do?” Tara’s voice grew more
strident.

Both of them looked up then, and to their surprise Lynch
and Mattheus were walking over to where they were sitting. They’d obviously
heard what had been said.

“I would give it time,” Mattheus took it upon himself
to answer the question. “I would take a long walk, talk to friends, make an
effort to forgive. After all, this is someone you said you loved, isn’t it?”

Tara looked up at Lynch swiftly and began to tremble.

“In fact, in a few days you were about to vow that
this is someone you would love forever, for better or worse, in sickness and
health,” Mattheus was making his case strongly.

Encouraged, Lynch joined in. “You did say that you
loved me, Tara. You said you loved me more than anyone or anything else in your
life.”

“I said that, and it was true at the time,” Tara
trembled more strongly.

Lynch took a step closer to her. “Did you really mean
it?” he asked, his head dropping, “or was it just words?”

“I meant it,” said Tara, “of course I meant it.”

“Then give me a chance,” Lynch pleaded. “That’s what
it means to love, isn’t it?”

Tara was silent a few moments and then shook her
head. “I’m not sure what it means to love at this moment,” she whispered. “I
could ask you the same question, if you loved me, how could you have hidden your
son from me? How could you, Lynch?”

“What’s the matter with you?” Lynch grew agitated, “you’ve
become completely obsessed with my son.”

*

Cindy and Mattheus left the two of them alone for a
while to talk further as Aldon walked in from the balcony.

“Where do we go from here?” asked Aldon. “How are we
breaking the news that it’s done?”

 “That’s for them to decide,” Mattheus said
scornfully to Aldon.

“There’s nothing to decide, the facts are clear,”
Aldon countered. Then he turned to Cindy, “I hope you told my daughter that she
was making the right choice in saying good bye.”

“This is her choice,” Cindy chimed in. “She and Lynch
need time alone together now.”

“What for?” Aldon’s face curled in disgust.

               Cindy turned and looked into the room
and saw Tara and Lynch, drawing closer, speaking to each other tearfully. “I
think it’s best to leave them alone for now,” Cindy said quietly. “Let’s all go
down to the restaurant and have some lunch.” Cindy was hungry, it was almost
mid-afternoon.

“I’m not leaving Tara alone for a minute,” said
Aldon.

Cindy shook her head slowly. “It’s up to you, of
course, but if you push too hard, it will backfire.”

Aldon took that in quietly. “Okay, maybe you’re
right, but I’m still staying here. There’s no reason for us all to have lunch.
You’ve both done you’re job. You can leave now.”

Cindy didn’t like the brusque way Aldon tried to
discharge her. Things were far from over and he knew that. “Tara’s not ready
for me to go, yet,” she replied.

Aldon backtracked a second. “If anything turns up and
we need you, I’ll be sure to call you again.”

“This isn’t over,” said Cindy slowly.

 “You’ve done a fine job and I’m grateful,” Aldon
insisted.

Mattheus turned away, saying nothing.

“You both have your room here paid for another few
days,” Aldon continued. “Please stay and continue to enjoy the island at my
expense.”

*

Mattheus didn’t want to stay and enjoy the island, he
couldn’t stand Aldon and wanted to get out of here as fast as he could. Cindy
felt differently.  She was tired, oddly saddened and wanted to rest and
regroup.

“Speak about an in-law from hell,” Mattheus muttered.
“I don’t want to do anything at this guy’s expense.”

“This is a beautiful place with so much to do, there’s
no reason to let him spoil it for us,” Cindy said to Mattheus, when they’d
returned to their room.  “It’s part of the payment for our work.  We arranged
for this in the beginning. He’s not giving us anything extra.”

“But he’s trying to make us feel like he is,”
Mattheus muttered.

“Forget about him, he’s a lonely, old guy,” said
Cindy. “We could use time together at the beaches, exploring the hot spots,
laughing again.”

Mattheus relented a moment. “That’s for sure,” he
agreed.

Although the case had only lasted a short while, it
had taken a big toll on both of them and definitely created a distance between
them that hadn’t been there before.

Cindy wanted to get back on track. She went over to
Mattheus and stroked his face slowly. “Why are you so mad at me?” she asked in
a playful tone.

Mattheus closed his eyes a moment, “I’m not mad. I’m
just upset by your reactions to the case.”

Cindy withdrew her hand quickly.  Upset by
her
reactions?  What should she say about his? She and Mattheus had differences
before, but they’d never gone as deep. And they’d never taken this kind of toll
on them while they were on a case.

Mattheus opened his eyes abruptly as Cindy withdrew. “Okay,
let’s go down and have lunch on the beach, then take a walk and talk.”

Cindy felt a pit in her stomach. “Talk about what?”
she asked, trying to be casual, “we’re officially off the case.”

“About life, love, secrets, the whole works,”
Mattheus answered.  “Go change into your bathing suit and a sundress, and I’ll
get ready too.”

*

The hotel had a small, beautiful, restaurant right
out on the beach with a bamboo roof and vines growing along the walls. Cindy
and Mattheus were shown to a table right on the sand and as they sat down could
hear the sound of sea birds filtering through. Cindy felt both hungry and queasy
at the same time. There was something in Mattheus’s tone that sounded like
trouble up ahead.

“It’s been quite a day,” said Cindy, after they’d
ordered their food.

“That’s putting it mildly,” said Mattheus, drumming
his fingers on the table. The afternoon had grown cooler and the winds from the
ocean blew in strongly on them. “This case is far from over, mark my words,” he
added.

“Is that what’s bothering you so much?” Cindy asked,
picking up a tall glass of iced water with lime and sipped it slowly.

“Partially,” Mattheus took a glass of water for
himself as well and drank it all down. “I don’t know if it’s the best idea for
us to hang out on the island. No one knows yet what’s happening with the
wedding. If it’s called off there’s gonna be all kinds of news and backlash. I
don’t want to be in the middle of it all.”

“You’re not and neither am I, we’ve been fired,
remember?” Cindy quipped, though she was also concerned about what was going to
happen. She liked Tara very much and couldn’t shake the feeling that Tara was
terribly alone now. Rationally that was ridiculous. She had her wedding party,
family, and all kinds of friends to talk to. There was plenty of support. She’d
work it out, no matter what she finally decided.

“I’m worried about Tara, though,” Cindy added, as the
waiter brought huge, delicious salads and homemade bread to their table.

Mattheus picked up a chunk of bread and covered it
with warm butter. “Once you start on a case you’re never finished, until it’s truly
over,” he said. “There are so many loose ends here and Tara is definitely
unstable.”

Cindy took exception. “I don’t find anything unstable
about her,” she said. “Any woman would feel the way she does.”

Mattheus put his fork down. “Really?” he looked over
at Cindy.

“Yes, why is that so confusing?” asked Cindy, “the
rug was pulled out from under her at the very last minute.”

Mattheus let out a long sigh. “Let’s eat and walk on
the beach and talk,” he said quickly, diving into his salad and finishing it
off as fast as he could.

*

The beach was cold and windy by now, with a feeling
of rain on the way. Cindy pulled her light lavender cardigan over her shoulders
and walked beside Mattheus, who took large steps along the water’s edge and was
hard to keep up with.

“Slow down,” Cindy finally said, breathing hard. “What’s
the rush, what’s the problem here, Mattheus? What is going on?”

Mattheus stopped, turned to her and looked at her
squarely as the wind from the water tossed her hair over her face.

“I also have a child who lives on the islands,” Mattheus
said squarely. “She should be about 15 years old by now.”

The roar of the surf pounded in Cindy’s ears and grew
deafening as Mattheus spoke. She wasn’t sure that she was hearing correctly and
lifted her hand up, as if to hold back the oncoming tide.

“What did you say? I didn’t hear you correctly.”
Cindy called out.

“I have a child,” Mattheus called out over the surf. “A
daughter, almost fifteen years old.

 Cindy was speechless. “It’s not possible,” she
called back, as if from another world.

“But it’s the truth and now you know about it,”
Mattheus’s body lurched from side to side.

“I don’t believe it” Cindy’s voice echoed round and
round.

“So, what are you going to do about it? Throw me into
the sea?” Mattheus’s voice grew grainer. “My daughter’s mother and I met when I
was just nineteen. It was a night of fun. We didn’t love each other, we didn’t
know each other. We never will.”

“My God,” breathed Cindy to herself now.

Mattheus’s voice grew louder and fiercer. “I haven’t
seen either of them for years.”

Cindy’s eyes started filling with tears. “Do you ever
think of them?” she barely could speak. How was it possible that she was facing
the same thing as Tara? What strange circumstance made this happen? Mattheus
was not answering. Cindy’s voice grew louder, above the din of the shore. “Do
you ever think of them, Mattheus?” she cried out.

“Sure, once in a while,” Mattheus finally said, “the
daughter, that is, not her mother.”

“Have you tried to meet your daughter?” Cindy’s legs
were shaking.

“I haven’t,” Mattheus said. “It could be too painful,
for both of us, not just me.”

His voice, the news and the sea became deafening.
Cindy’s heart pounded uncontrollably. This couldn’t be happening, it couldn’t
be real.

“Don’t hate me, Cindy,” Mattheus’s voice dropped as
he suddenly pleaded for all he was worth. “She’s a shadow in my life I’ve made
peace with.”

 Cindy was chilled to the bone now and silent.

“Say something,” Mattheus lurched closer to her, “don’t
just stand there like that, looking dazed.

But Cindy was speechless. If they hadn’t fallen upon
this strange case, would she ever have found out?  “Were you ever going to tell
me, Mattheus?” she finally spoke.

“No, I wasn’t, to be truthful about it,” Mattheus
replied. “There was no reason to tell you. I feel for Lynch, I identify with
him, he never thought he was doing something so awful.”

Cindy felt her stomach curl into a knot. “We’ve
talked about marriage and building a family for almost two weeks now,” Cindy
said. “You weren’t going to let me know you have a daughter?”

“I want a new family, I want a family with you. I
still want to marry you, but I have to know you won’t run out on me like Tara.”

Cindy could barely believe the strange parallels in
the situations. That’s why Mattheus was so upset about it, right from the
start. But he still didn’t see that there was anything wrong with shrouding a
whole chunk of your life in darkness. Cindy listened to the surf in the
background, growing wilder as they spoke.

“So, are we over again?” Mattheus called out. “Now
that you know this, if you have no intention of marrying me, let me know.”

Cindy felt dizzy and ill.  “I don’t know, Mattheus,” she
breathed. “You have to give me time with this.”

“I’ve given you all kinds of time,” Mattheus grew
agitated.  “We solve one thing and then there’s something else.”

“This isn’t just something else,” Cindy breathed,
growing angry. “This is a whole part of your life.”

“So what?  Isn’t there room to have secrets in a
person’s life? Do you lose all our privacy when you get married?” he asked.

Cindy stopped and thought about it. “Of course everyone
needs privacy,” she replied, “but privacy and huge secrets are different.
Secrets like this mean a double life.” Cindy felt deeply chilled.  How did Mattheus
truly see marriage? She’d been horrified when she found out about Clint’s
private life, that eventually killed him. She couldn’t go through something
like that one more time.

“When you’re married,” said Cindy, “there’s times
alone, even separate friends, not no more private life.” Cindy took a deep
breath. “Mattheus I agree with what you said before. We need to leave the
island now.  We need time, we need space.”

“Just what I was thinking” said Mattheus, “try as we
might, we can’t catch a break.”

*

The two of them walked back to their room in silence,
saying nothing. Once in the room the heavy silence continued as they started to
pack their bags.

“Are we going on the same plane at least? Are we
going to the same destination?” Mattheus finally asked.

Cindy said nothing. The news that Mattheus had a
daughter kept rolling around in Cindy’s mind. She couldn’t find a place for it
though, or what it meant for the two of them.

“I’m asking you something,” Mattheus’s voice grew
louder.

“I don’t have any answers, Mattheus,” Cindy said. “Let’s
go back to St. Barts for a little while, and give things time to settle.”

“Things will never settle,” Mattheus moaned, “I’m
getting sick of trying.”

Suddenly the phone rang sharply. Cindy stopped and
picked it up. Tara was on the other end, upset.

“Thank God you’re there Cindy,” she said the moment
she heard Cindy’s voice. “I’m messed up, I’m confused, I don’t know what to do.
Everyone says I should try and go forward, but first I have to see Lynch’s son
again.”

“Why?” Cindy felt uneasy.

“I don’t know. I just can’t stop thinking about him,”
Tara went on. “I dream about him, see his face in front of me. I have to see
him again.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” said Cindy,
frightened.

It didn’t seem as if Tara heard a thing she said,
though. “Will you come with me, Cindy?” Tara pleaded.

Cindy’s stomach lurched. “Did you tell Lynch you want
to go see his son again?” she asked. “Is he okay with it?”

“Why do I have to tell Lynch?” Tara sounded bitter. “Did
he tell me what was going on in his life? I told him I’d try to go forward with
the wedding, but that his son would have to be a part of our lives.”

Cindy grew silent, she found it odd. “And how did he
take that?” she asked.

“Lynch didn’t say anything, just stared straight
ahead of him,” said Tara.

“Lynch should know that you’re going to see his son,”
Cindy insisted.

“No, he shouldn’t,” said Tara. “I told him I’d be at
the rehearsal dinner, that’s enough. But I have to see Bala and Paulie again
before that. I want you to come with me, Cindy,” Tara repeated. “Will you,
please?”

Cindy had no idea how to respond. Officially, she was
no longer on the case, but Tara’s sounded so strange and desperate, it was
impossible to say no.

“When are you going?” asked Cindy, worried about her.

“Right now,” said Tara.

“Okay,” Cindy made a snap decision, “sure, why not? I’ll
go.”

 “Thank you so much,” said Tara overjoyed. “I’ll pick
you up downstairs in a car in fifteen minutes.”

*

“Where are you going?” asked Mattheus the minute
Cindy put down the phone.

“Tara sounds confused and disturbed,” said Cindy. “She
said she needs to see Bala and the boy again before the rehearsal dinner. She
wants me to go with her.”

“Why in hell does she need that?” asked Mattheus,
stunned.

“She can’t stop thinking about them,” Cindy replied.

“Sounds like obsession,” said Mattheus. “Nothing good
ever comes out of obsession.”

“She’s going to go forward with the marriage if the
boy is part of their life,” Cindy added, glad that she and Mattheus were
talking again, particularly about a case.

“Does this make sense to you Cindy?” Mattheus zeroed
in.

“It isn’t rational,” Cindy replied, “but in a strange
way I get where she’s coming from.”

“Oh brother,” Mattheus commented. “I mean, would it
make you feel better if you got to meet my old girlfriend and daughter?”

Cindy paused for a moment and considered it. “Not
your girlfriend,” she said, “but your daughter, yes. I would feel a lot better
for both of us to meet her together, in fact.”