Death by Seduction (23 page)

“You
love me as much as I love you,” breathed Mattheus, “you’re just in the grip of
a mission you can’t stop.”

Cindy
liked his way of putting it. “I’ve never thought of myself on a mission,” she
replied, “it’s just too painful for me to say no to a call where a life is at
stake. I couldn’t live with myself if I did that.”

“I
realize that,” said Mattheus, “and when I left I didn’t know how we then could
ever have a life.  All of a sudden, a week later, it hit me.  Solving cases is
our life. We both love it.”

Cindy
was startled. “It’s not that I don’t want time alone with you,” she repeated.
“I do, I love it.”

“Of
course,” said Mattheus, “I realize that. I also realize that when a call comes
that’s important, you’re not going to ever say no.”

Tears
suddenly filled Cindy’s eyes. “Can you live with that?” she asked in a small voice.

“What
choice do I have?” asked Mattheus. “It’s either live like that or live without
you.”

“There
are other women,” started Cindy.

“No,”
Mattheus stopped her immediately. “There’s no one else in the world for me but
you. And there never will be.”

The
intensity of Mattheus’s words made Cindy’s head spin.

“Do
you feel the same way about me?” he added quickly.

That
was a question that haunted Cindy. Mattheus had asked her that before and she hadn’t
been able to respond. Cindy knew she loved Mattheus, but she also knew she didn’t
feel exactly as he did. She loved being with him when he was here, but didn’t
feel as though she couldn’t live her life without him. 

“Can
you say that there’s no one that could ever make you as happy as you’d be with
me?” Mattheus wanted a response. And he deserved one.

“I
love you and am always happy when I’m with you,” Cindy responded, “except when
the jealousy comes or you suddenly disappear.”

“I
promise I’ll never disappear again like that,” Mattheus uttered, “no matter how
I feel. And there may be a thousand guys out there who’d you also enjoy, but when
you pick one and take vows, things grow deeper. I know it’s true, Cindy,
believe me. It’ll be like planting a tree so it can take root.”

“My
love for you is deep, Mattheus,” Cindy wanted to reassure him, when suddenly
Mattheus’s phone rang.

“Yeah?”
he picked up and listened for a few minutes. “Fantastic, great,” he responded.
“Go get him off the boat and bring him in. It’s the final piece and tells us
the whole story. Thanks for letting me know.”

“Who
was that, Brad?” asked Cindy.

“Right,”
said Mattheus. “Our calculations proved right. Val was trying to get off

the
island before the cops could get to him. One of the guys I have working the
case spotted it and let Brad know immediately. They’re bringing Val in as we
speak. Looks like the creep’s completely guilty. Case over, no problem!”

“Val
could have been running away for lots of reasons,” Cindy exclaimed. “It doesn’t
mean he’s the killer. He could be running from charges for fraud.”

“Nah,
it’s deeper than that,” said Mattheus as Cindy’s phone rang then.

Cindy
picked it up quickly and it was Eric. “You heard the news?” he asked. “Val
tried to escape the island. The police got him just in time.”

“I
heard,” breathed Cindy, “but thank you so much for letting me know.”

“Thank
you, Cindy, for everything,” Eric declared, “Charma’s being released in a few
hours.”

“How
wonderful, Eric,” she replied. “You’re an incredible guy. Charma’s lucky to
have you.”

“I’m
lucky too,” said Eric as Cindy quickly hung up the phone.

“The
guy’s madly in love with Charma,” Mattheus repeated, staring  into Cindy’s
eyes.

“I
know,” said Cindy, “but he deserves much better. No good can come of it.  Charma’s
deep in the life, has lots of customers, and Eric knows each one of them.”

“So,
maybe he’ll take her away from it all,” Mattheus suggested. “It’s been done
before, plenty of times. And now that Eric’s gone public about it, his life
can’t stay the same.”

“No,
it can’t,” said Cindy sadly, wondering what would happen to him.  “I just want Eric
to have the best life has in store.”

“Looks
like Charma is what life has in store for him,” Mattheus responded. “What does
life have in store for us, Cindy? Another chance?”

Cindy
smiled slowly. “Yes, Mattheus,” she whispered, “it absolutely has.”

Mattheus’s
old, beautiful, boyish grin returned full force. “Let’s go back up to your room
and spend time together then. There’s a thousand plans we have to make and  a
thousand things I want to tell you.”

*

As
soon as Cindy and Mattheus got up to her room, both their phones started ringing
off the hook. The news was out about the arrest of Val, and people were
rejoicing everywhere.

Loretta’s
father Henry was the first call Cindy received, thanking her profusely.

“You
did a fantastic job closing in on that guy,” Henry mumbled over the phone, “I
can’t thank you enough.  Loretta was wrong about you, I apologize for that.”

“It’s
alright, it’s fine,” said Cindy. “Loretta’s going through all kinds of hell.
She’s confused.”

“You
can say that again,” Henry agreed, “but now it’s over. I’ll take her home and
get her back on her feet. And don’t kid yourself, she’ll get better, too. The
guy who drove her nuts is finally gone.”

Cindy’s
stomach clenched for a second. Henry was glad that Pete had been killed.

“We’re
gonna start packing to go as soon as the police give us the word,” Henry
continued. “I’ve got a bonus for you, too, for all the hard work you’ve done.”

Strangely
enough, Cindy didn’t want it.

“I
heard your partner came on board at the end, as well. Can’t thank him enough,
either,” said Henry.

“It’s
our pleasure, Henry,” Cindy remarked, feeling more and more unsettled.

After
both Cindy and Mattheus took a few more calls, Mattheus put the phone down and drew
Cindy into his arms.

“There’s
no way to tell you how happy you’ve made me,” he murmured. “It’s heaven to be
here with you.”

It
felt wonderful to be in the warmth of Mattheus’s arms once again, too. Cindy put
her head on Mattheus’s shoulder and left it there for a long, moment.

“Now
that the case is over, we can finally make our plans,” said Mattheus.

Cindy
felt odd, though. Deep down she didn’t feel the case was over.  Instead she
felt as though they were all jumping to conclusions too quickly, too eager to
have it tied up.

“We
haven’t even heard the results of Val’s interrogation,” Cindy pulled back as
she spoke to Mattheus.

“It’s
obvious though, isn’t it?” asked Mattheus, surprised. “Val’s in the middle of
every interaction that’s gone bad.”

 “When
something looks obvious, it isn’t,” Cindy answered, “you’re the one who taught
me that.”

“What
are you saying?” Mattheus tightened up.

 “I
just want to feel positive,” Cindy said definitively. “I want to talk to John
Burnd one more time.”

 “John
Burnd?” Mattheus was rattled. “Charma’s weird customer who practically stalks
her? Why him?”

“Because
I’m not finished, Mattheus,” Cindy repeated.

“Oh
God, not again,” Mattheus murmured.

“Charma’s
getting out of jail and Burnd will be thrilled about it,” Cindy went on. “This
is a good time to get him to spill the beans.”

 “You
talked to him once already, didn’t you?” asked Mattheus.

“Yes,
I did,” said Cindy, “but I wasn’t ever finished. All the evidence we’ve got now
is circumstantial.  It’s a good case, but there’s nothing direct.”

“Why
would Burnd have direct evidence?” Mattheus was incredulous.

“He
hung around Charma incessantly. He saw everything and everyone who came and
went. He was her personal, self-proclaimed protector. If anyone has something
extra, he does,” Cindy said.

“If
Burnd had or saw something, why wouldn’t he have talked by now?” Mattheus asked.
“It doesn’t make sense.”

“But
I want to talk to him anyhow,” Cindy persisted. “He’s not the sharpest tool in
the shed. He could have seen something and not known what it meant.”

“Okay,
okay,” Mattheus took a deep breath. “This is how you work, we’ve been through
it before. It’s fine with me. Do what you have to. Would you like me to go with
you when you speak to him?”

“No,”
said Cindy, pleased that Mattheus was on board. “It’ll be much better if I go
alone. Then Burnd won’t feel threatened.”

Mattheus
 turned and went to the window and looked out.

“I’m
here for you Cindy,” he finally said slowly. “You do whatever you have to right
now.”

“Thank
you,” said Cindy, picking up her phone to put a call into Eric who had Burnd’s
contact information.  Time was of the essence and Cindy wanted to talk to Burnd
right away.

Cindy
wasn’t surprised when Eric asked if Mattheus was going with her to see Burnd.
She knew Eric didn’t feel Cindy should be with him alone.

“No,
I want to go myself,” Cindy replied. “This is a good time to talk to him.”

“Not
smart,” Eric replied. “Burnd’s unstable. The place to find him now is around
the brothel and you never know who you’ll run into there. Reporters are going
to be swarming  the place as soon as word’s out that Charma’s going to be
released. “

“When
will that be?” asked Cindy.

“As
soon as the cops finish talking to Val,” said Eric.

Cindy
felt a suddenly stab of worry for Eric. “Are you worried about yourself?” she
asked.

“I’m
ready for whatever comes,” Eric answered slowly. “Most of all I’m excited to
see Charma get out.”

“Of
course,” said Cindy softly. “I’m happy the two of you will be together again.”

Eric
remained silent for a moment. “I’m happy that you and Mattheus are also back
together. He’s a good man, Cindy.”

“Yes,
he is,” agreed Cindy.

“Much
better than me,” Eric laughed quickly and then stopped.

“He’s
not better than you,” Cindy couldn’t help saying. “You’re both wonderful men in
your own ways.”

 “Thank
you for that,” said Eric softly. “And, you and me, just two ships passing in
the night,” he repeated the words Cindy had said to him earlier. “Guess the
tides have their own ideas about where the ships are headed.”

“I
guess they do,” Cindy replied.

“Glad
the tides know because it beats me,” said Eric. “Okay, I’ll call Burnd now and
tell him to meet you down the street from the brothel, at Casa’s Fish Joint. Stay
out in the public. I’m not sure exactly what you want from the guy, but I’m
glad to put in the call.”

“Thank
you,” said Cindy, “I appreciate that.”

“Happy
sailing, Cindy,” said Eric wistfully.

*

Casa’s
Fish Joint was oily, spicy and smelled of must. Cindy decided to wait outside
for Burnd in the muggy day, rather than go in alone. She waited a short while
and then finally saw him lumbering down the street towards her, his hair a
tangled mess.

“Hello
there,” Burnd started, “sure good to see you. Want to go inside?”

Cindy
was surprised at the warm greeting. Burnd  must have felt Cindy was responsible
for  freeing Charma and was grateful to her.

“Maybe
we can talk outside?” Cindy offered. “I feel like walking a bit.”

“Sure,
why not?” Burnd agreed as they moved away from the restaurant and walked slowly
down the narrow block.

“Three
more hours until I see her again, thanks to you,” Burnd grinned at Cindy,
exposing a jagged row of yellow teeth. “You did a great thing to help her.”

“Thanks,”
said Cindy, “pleased to be on his good side. “I was starting to think Charma
would be stuck in there forever, never get out.”

 “That
would not happen as long as I’m alive,” he howled up to the sky. “You think I’d
let my honey rot in jail?  Every day she told me she was getting out soon, and
I believed her.”

“That’s
good, that’s great,” Cindy wanted to quiet him down. “But how could Charma be
so sure she’d be getting out?”

A
crooked smile appeared on Burnd’s face. “Nobody puts anything over on her,” he
mumbled. “My honey knows what she’s doing every step of the way.”

 “I
can see that,” said Cindy, “she’s smart, she’s beautiful.”

 Burnd
liked hearing that. “Glad you realize it,” he exclaimed. “Besides, the guys at
the company promised her she’d be out in a few days. There was no way they
could trick her, either. If they did, they knew they’d end up dead.”

Cindy
felt a long chill run over her shoulders. “Dead?”

“I’d
slit their throats from back to front,” Burnd leered at Cindy. “They know nobody
messes with my girl.”

Cindy
felt her whole body tighten into a knot. Was Burnd the one who’d made the death
threat to Taylor, and taken Pete down? Had he practically confessed?

 “Did
you ever kill someone to protect Charma?” Cindy asked as if it were no big deal.
“Did you ever threaten to kill someone?”

“No,
I didn’t, not yet,” Burnd spoke happily, completely unaware of what he had
said. “But nobody would put it past me, either. People know if they mess with
Charma, they mess with me first.”

Cindy
stopped and confronted him directly. “Who killed Pete?” she asked plainly, “you’ve
got to know.”

“No
idea about that,” Burnd ground his teeth together. “I only know that Charma got
a nice pile of money for letting them dump him in her room. She knew she was
getting locked up for it, but promised she’d be out soon.”

Cindy
was startled by the information? “The guys at the company made a deal with
her?” Cindy mumbled.

“That’s
right, a sweet deal,” Burnd was obviously proud.

“So
Charma knew that Pete was going to be killed?” Cindy asked carefully, aware
that Burnd was just talking on and on, not realizing what he said.

Burnd’s
head bobbed up and down. “Charma knows everything happening on this island and everyone
who it’s happening to.”

“Who
told her about Pete?” Cindy had to know.

“The
guys at the real estate company,” Burnd grinned. “Hell of a bunch of real
dudes. Real money in their pockets, too. Charma does a lot to keep them happy
and they give her plenty in return. And I get to have some of their bucks in my
pockets, too.”

Charma
was an accessory to a crime and must have paid off Burnd for protecting her.
Cindy suddenly wondered how much of this Eric was aware of?

 “Does
Eric know that Charma gives you money?” Cindy asked.

“Eric
knows everything,” Burnd mumbled, “and nothing bothers him. He lets Charma do
what she wants, if you know I mean. And he pays her big bucks for their time
together.”

Cindy
shuddered. “Did Eric know that Charma was aware that Pete was going to be
killed?” she demanded.

“Nah,
he didn’t know that,” Burnd wrinkled his nose. “Charma’s no fool. But one thing
Eric did know that bothered him a lot. He found out that Pete gave Charma a
bracelet that cost