Death by Betrayal (Book #10 in the Caribbean Murder series) (3 page)

“I
just got a call from Bermuda,” Cindy rallied for a moment. “Frank found Ann
dead in their hotel room. They think someone killed her. I’ve got to get on the
next flight and get down there. I need your help to get tickets and get me to
the airport. I can’t do it alone.”

“My
God, my God,” Pastor Mallord cried out aghast. “Dear Lord, why do you give us
pain like this?”

Pastor
Mallord went so far as to actually walk Cindy onto the plane before leaving her
alone. Cindy could see that he was worried about her, but it was difficult to
absorb much else. She went through the motions on automatic, as if in a dream.
Cindy knew she was headed down to Bermuda. She remembered that Frank had called
and said Ann had been killed. It was ungraspable for Cindy, impossible to
imagine. Just yesterday, she and Ann had been talking and making plans for the
future. Ann had just gone down to Bermuda for a much needed vacation. She’d
been excited about it. How was it possible that her life could be cut so short?
Who would ever want Ann dead? No one.

 
When Pastor Mallord hugged Cindy good bye on the plane, she remembered thanking
him for everything and promising she’d stay in touch.

Cindy
took her seat on the plane, put her head back on the cushion and felt tears
streaming uncontrollably down her face.  Ann, Ann, Cindy called to her in her
mind. Where are you? What happened? Are you somewhere hiding? Are you really
gone? Please don’t worry. I’m on my way down to take care of everything. I’ll
never, ever leave you alone.

As
the plane lifted into the sky, Cindy felt an odd relief, as if she, too, was
now headed in the direction of heaven and would be closer to her sister,
somehow.

Cindy’s
hands clutched at her seat the whole time. The trip was barely two hours and it
seemed that almost as soon as they took off they were about to land. When the
plane landed, she half expected Frank to be there at airport to greet her. Or,
if he couldn’t come, she thought at least he’d send a car.

When
Cindy got off the plane, and looked around, no one was there waiting for her.
Disoriented, she made her way to baggage claim, thinking of all the times Ann
had been here to pick her up and accompany her every step of the way. More than
anything in the world Cindy wanted to see her sister again, to hug her and pick
up where they’d left off.

Cindy
got a cab easily and gave the driver the name of the hotel Frank and Ann had
been staying at. Frank had texted and said he’d reserved a room for Cindy
there. Other than that, she hadn’t heard from him again.

As
the taxi drove through the balmy spring night, Cindy gazed out at the beautiful
highways and tried to make sense of what was happening. When she woke up this
morning in Oyster Bay, this was the last place she’d expected to be that night.
It was as if she had been lifted on the wings of an eagle and dropped down in
another world suddenly.

Before
long the taxi arrived at Cindy’s destination, the luxurious Greenstone Hotel.
It was one of the loveliest on the Island, surrounded by manicured hedges,
limestone walks lit by sparkling evening lamps and magnificent, palm trees.
Cindy was a taken aback. Frank earned a decent, but modest salary. She hadn’t
expected him and Ann to stay at a place like this.

A
bellboy came out to take Cindy’s luggage. The trip had all been so smooth and
effortless, she felt as though she had simply come to meet up with Ann and
Frank and join them for dinner, as she had done many times. Cindy needed to see
Frank immediately. They had to go over what happened again and again; he had to
make it real for her. And, beyond that, Cindy had a thousand questions for him
she needed answers to right away.

As
she entered the lobby Frank was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a couple of policemen
were milling around. Cindy looked around at the elegant lobby and beautiful
guests in evening attire, enjoying each other and the evening to the full. Even
though the policemen were there, it seemed as if most guests didn’t even
realize what had gone on, or if they had, wouldn’t really care. This was a
wealthy, self-contained world that didn’t take well to being faced with messes
of any kind.

Cindy
took a deep breath, gathered herself together as best she could and went to the
front desk to check in. On her way there, she was stopped by a large police officer
with deep brown eyes.

“Cindy
Blaine?” he asked, as if he’d been on the watch out for her.

“Yes?”
she said, relieved that someone knew who she was.

“I’m
Officer Trage, Chief Officer on the case,” he introduced himself immediately. “Your
brother in law said you were coming.”

“Hello,”
said Cindy, grateful not to be alone.

“We’ve
actually heard about you and your partner down here on the force,” Trage went
on. “You two have done some pretty impressive detective work.”

“Thank
you,” Cindy barely got the words out.

“Where’s
your partner now?” Trage looked around.

“He’s
on another case in St. Croix,” said Cindy, wanting to put an end to any
discussion about Mattheus immediately.

“I
see,” Officer Trage nodded solemnly. “Well, first of all let me say for all of
us that we’re very sorry for your loss.”

Cindy
bit her lip until it was practically bleeding. Sorry for her loss? The words
felt like knives flying through her heart. What loss? Cindy wanted to cry out.

“I’ll
help you check in,” Trage continued, taking Cindy’s bags from her. “You won’t
be along long. I heard your mother and uncles are also on their way down.”

“I
want to speak to Frank as soon as possible,” Cindy interrupted as she and Trage
walked to the front desk. “How is he doing?”

Trage
looked down.  “Right now we’re holding him for questioning at the jailhouse,”
he replied.

Cindy
was stunned. “Why?”

“Routine
procedure,” Trage continued, “he’s next of kin and the last one to see your
sister alive.”

“Frank
loved Ann with all his heart,” Cindy suddenly burst out wailing, frozen with
horror at the implication that Frank could be involved. “They’ve been together
for years, he’s always loved her. He’s been tremendously good to her.”

“He
said he was swimming in the pool when your sister was killed,” Trage broke in.
“But no one saw him there.” The sound of Cindy’s wailing clearly disturbed him.

“That’s
no reason to hold him,” Cindy insisted.

“He
has no alibi,” Trage went on.

“So
what? That’s not evidence of anything,”Cindy’s eyes flared.

“It’s
enough for us to hold him,” Trage looked directly at her.

His
strange look woke Cindy up, shook her out of her reveries and filled her with fear.
This was a grim reality she was dealing with. She had to be as clear and keen
as she could be. There’d be plenty of time for grieving later. For all she knew
Frank could be in danger now as well.

“We
also need to question you about your sister,” Trage continued. “We need to know
as much as we can about Ann.”

“You
can ask me anything you like,” Cindy flipped into a professional stance, “and I
need to question you as well. I’m working this case right along with you.”

Trage
stepped back and shook his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he
started.

“Oh,
yes it is,” Cindy interrupted.

“You’re
way too involved,” he said kindly. “This is family we’re talking about.”

“I’m
not involved barely enough,” Cindy’s eyes flashed at him. “You’re right, this
is my sister and I intend to work full out on the case. I need your support.”

Trage
grew quiet, rubbing his foot back and forth on the floor.

“You
need me too,” Cindy then said, her voice rising. “So does Ann and Frank.”

A
look of sadness crossed Trage’s face. “Alright,” he said finally. “Doesn’t seem
like you’ll take no for an answer, anyway.”

“Of
course I won’t,” said Cindy fiercely. “Ann is not only my sister, she’s my best
friend.”

Trage
went along with Cindy. “First we have to check into the hotel,” he said
quietly.

 “Then
I want see the crime scene immediately,” Cindy demanded, feeling waves of adrenalin
soaring through her. “After that I have to speak to Frank.”

“Whoah,
calm down there,” said Trage in a throaty tone. “One thing at a time.”

“There’s
no time to lose, none,” answered Cindy.

“Cindy,”
Trage put his hand gently on her shoulder, “you have to calm down. Investigations
take time. There’s no imminent danger, no rush to save anyone. Your sister is
gone.”

*

Gone
, the word echoed through Cindy’s
mind as Trage checked in for her at the front desk. The reality of what had
happened to her sister flashed through Cindy suddenly like a wave of
lightening, that struck fiercely and then disappeared.

“Was
Ann in pain?” Cindy asked, her voice choking, as Trage turned from the desk.

“We
have no way of knowing that yet,” he replied softly.

“You
are sure this was a crime? She didn’t have a heart attack?” Cindy had a
thousand questions for him.

“There
were scratches on the neck that showed evidence of a struggle,” Trage responded
quietly. “

“What
kind of scratches? Who made them?” Cindy had to know.

“The
body’s in the morgue right now. Soon it will be seen by the medical examiner,”
Trage replied. “We’ll know more later on.”

Cindy’s
heart clutched. “I want to see my sister as soon as possible,” her words fell
over one another.

“Cindy,
are you sure you’re ready for this?” Trage responded as they walked to the
elevator to visit the crime scene on the third floor.

“Of
course not. No one is ever ready for something like this,” Cindy replied
fitfully, “but where else could I be? What else can I do?”

*

The
elevator rose to the third floor quickly, opened and let them out just a few
steps from the room Ann and Frank had been staying in. A policeman stood guard outside
the door. He was young, very slim and jittery, looked like he was new on the
force.

Trage
walked over to him and said something under his breath, and the cop looked over
at Cindy furtively.

“Sorry
about what happened,” he said, nodding to her. It obviously upset him to see her.

“Thanks
for helping,” Cindy responded.

“Okay,
let us in Rob,” Trage ordered.

Rob
opened the door slowly and Cindy and Trage walked carefully into the crime
scene.

Cindy
trembled from head to foot. This was the place where Ann had lost her life. Two
policemen were in the room collecting evidence, brushing the walls for
fingerprints.  Other than that, there was an oddly peaceful sense about it. The
room was spacious and beautiful, with ivory furniture and a plush beige carpet.
Large windows looked out at rows of palm trees that bordered the back of the
hotel. Yellow bands had been draped around parts of the area, designating it a
crime scene. Otherwise nothing was out of order, there was no sense of chaos,
fear or despair here. There was no sense of Ann here either, none at all.

Cindy
wanted to go to the closet, take out Ann’s clothes and hold them. She wanted to
smell her sister’s scent, feel her presence.

“You
said my sister fought for her life?” Cindy asked Trage her eyes avidly
searching every nook and cranny of the place. “There’s no sign of a struggle.”

“No,
there isn’t,” said Trage. “But the scratches on her neck tell another story.”

“There
has to be DNA with scratches,” Cindy was right on it.

“Usually
true,” said Trage soberly.

“That
should clear things up quickly,” Cindy replied.

“Not
completely,” said Trage. “DNA alone doesn’t speak to motive, or who engineered
the death.”

Cindy
could feel that Trage suspected Frank, whether or not they found his DNA on the
scratches.

“There’s
no sign of a break in either,” said Cindy, looking around.

“No,
there isn’t,” said Trage definitively. “Which is why we’ve concluded that Ann
knew her killer, let him in.”

“Or
the room could have been open,” Cindy remarked. “Ann was never one for locking
up behind her. She left doors unlocked all the time. She was a trusting soul.”

Trage
shook his head, “sorry to hear that.”

“Sorry
that she was trusting?” Cindy took exception. “I’m not, I’m proud of her. Ann
lived her life finding the best in everyone.”

“Didn’t
do her much good now, did it?” Trage replied.

“Better
to live and be trusting then curled up in fear,” Cindy had a burning need to
defend everything about her sister. Ann didn’t deserve this. Nothing she had ever
done in her life warranted her having such a horrible ending.

Rob
came into the room for a second and said something to Trage that Cindy couldn’t
hear. Trage nodded and thanked him and Rob went back out on his post.

“What’s
going on?” Cindy didn’t want to miss a thing.

“Rob
said he heard your mother and uncles have landed at the airport and will be
checking in shortly. They’re staying in the hotel as well, on the sixth floor.”