Death by Marriage (17 page)

Cindy
bit her lip. “I’m not done yet,” she said strongly. “Help me to help you,
please.”

Nell
laughed a loud coarse laugh, and tossed her wild hair off her face.

“Can
I come into your room?” Cindy asked. She wanted to look around, sit down and
have some time for the two of them together.

Nell
flung the door to the room open wider. “What the hell do I care? Come in.”

Cindy
walked in after her. The room was a total wreck. Clothes were strewn on the
floor, paintings on the wall were taken down, or hanging at weird angles. Her
laptop was opened on the floor in the middle of all of it.

“What
happened here?” Cindy asked alarmed.

“Nothing,”
said Nell, grinning now, showing a row of small, perfect teeth. “This is how I
live. You got a problem with it?”

“No,”
Cindy said. “I’m just frightened for you.”

“Don’t
be,” said Nell. “The time for worrying about me is long gone.”

Cindy
walked in further and sat on a small chair.

Nell
pulled up a broken chair and sat down opposite her. For a moment she seemed
glad to have Cindy around.

“This
has to be hell for you,” Cindy started. “First your father and now your mom.”

“Hell’s
putting it mildly,” Nell said

“I
know you and your father were close.” Cindy wanted more from her, craved it,
sensed the heart of what happened was right here. 

“My
father was a dick,” said Nell quietly.

Cindy
was shocked. But it was natural that Nell should feel that way after she’d
found out that her father had been married to someone else.

“Because
of the other wife?” asked Cindy.

Nell’s
face puckered. “No. Who cared if he had another wife? I couldn’t blame him for
that, one bit. My mother’s a bitch. She was always a bitch - to both of us. I’m
not saying she killed him, I don’t think she did. Just that she was a bitch. If
my father had half a brain he would have stayed there with his other wife. But
he couldn’t. He kept running home.”

Cindy
looked around the turbulent room. Parts of it looked like any high school kid’s
rooms, posters of rock stars and papers strewn around. She wanted to see what
was on Nell’s computer and leaned down towards it.

“Just
talking to my friends on Facebook,” said Nell.

“I’m
sure you have a lot of them,” said Cindy. “Mind if I take a look?”

“Look
all you want,” said Nell as Cindy picked the laptop up.

It
was open to Nell’s homepage. Cindy started looking at the people and then
stopped cold.  Her heart started beating wildly. Right on the top was a photo
of Nell and Graham.

“Who’s
this?” she asked Nell, totally shocked.

“Graham
Kowan,” said Nell matter of factly. “Why?”

 Cindy
turned towards Nell, amazed. “You knew Graham Kowan? Your father’s son?”

Nell
just stared at the photos and said nothing.

Cindy
reached out to her. “You’ve got to tell me about this, Nell.”

“There’s
nothing to tell,” Nell murmured.

“You
and Graham were friends?” Cindy pursued it.

Nell
remained silent.

 “How
did you know him?”“ Cindy was speechless.

 Nell
became sullen.  “He goes to my school,” she said, “no big deal

“You
knew about your father’s second family for a long time?”

Nell
shook her head. “No.” Flames darted from her eyes.

“Nell,
you’ve got to talk to me about this,” Cindy could barely catch her breath. Her
mind was racing. She needed to know about this relationship, how it started and
why.

But
Nell had enough. She pulled her scraggly sweater close around her, went to her
door and opened it up. “Go home now. I’m tired.” she said to Cindy.  “It’s
enough.”

A
wave of sorrow flooded Cindy, leaving Nell alone there.

“You
can trust me, Nell,” Cindy said softly.

A
distorted look crept over Nell’s face. “Oh yeah, I can trust you. Fat chance.
Go home now,” she demanded.

*

All
the way home in the cab Cindy watched the heavy rain fall, blurring her vision
so that, looking through the side windows, the road disappeared from view.
Cindy could not erase the image of Nell and Graham though from her mind. The
two of them looked oddly at one, unlikely partners who had no right to meet,
much less to connect. Cindy wondered whether she should tell Mattheus about
this development, but decided not to. It was too premature. She had no real
idea what all of this meant, or where it might possibly lead. Cindy decided to
go to see Kendra in jail first thing the next morning and talk to her about it.

Usually,
when Cindy returned to the hotel and walked into the lobby, Mattheus was there
waiting for her.  This time he wasn’t.  Maybe he was up in his room? She went
to the desk to call him. As she dialed she heard the television in the hotel
lobby speaking about the on-coming storm. Flights off the island were packed
full, ports would soon be closed.  The phone to Mattheus’ room just rang and
rang. Cindy’s heart dropped.

“Did
you see happen to see Mattheus King?” she asked the man at the desk.

“Checked
out this morning,” he said.

Cindy
felt her body turn cold. It wasn’t possible.

 “Lots
of visitors leaving. You heard the warnings about Lola? Going to hit St. Thomas
in real soon.”

Mattheus
meant what he said, thought Cindy. He was letting a little storm run him out of
town. Cindy took a deep breath. This was totally shocking. He had told her he
was leaving, but she hadn’t believed him for a second. Couldn’t imagine he’d
leave her alone here with the case. Clint would never have done this. He’d stay
at her side through thick and thin. Well, now I know what this person is made
of, Cindy said to herself. Better find out sooner than later. But deep within
she felt lonely and scared.

“Hey,”
the guy behind the desk said, “you staying around during the storm?”

“Yes,”
said Cindy.

“There’s
gonna be a shelter about a mile from here to go when the electricity shuts
down. They’re collecting jugs of water, batteries, bread, canned in the back. juice
and canned food. This isn’t the best place to be. It’s low ground. When those
winds hit, the roofs go flying.”

“I’ll
be fine,” said Cindy.

“Don’t
be so sure,” the guy said, “I’ve seen the storm wipe away stronger folks than
you. If you want to stay alive, you better watch out.”

When
Cindy awoke the next morning the clouds had grown thicker and the winds picked
up.  She immediately turned on the TV in her room.

“Tropical
Storm Lola is bringing gusty winds, rain and generally foul weather to St.
Thomas,” the reporter said. “As the storm intensifies throughout the day, both
of the territory’s airports will be closed, seaports shut. Expect power outages
to hit and shelters to be opened on St. Thomas, St. Croix and St. Jon. The
Governor declared a state of emergency, imposing a curfew from 6 p.m to 6 a.m.
today. The U.S. Coast Guard closed the ports until further notice. Emergency
shelters will be open at St. Croix Educational Complex, the Sugar Estate Head
Start Center on St. Thomas.”

Cindy
was riveted to the TV.

“The
biggest concern,” the commentator continued, “is the wind and rain. We’ve
already had a significant amount of rainfall and the ground is just about
saturated. More rainfall could cause downed trees, mudslides and rockslides.
Waste Management is also concerned about overflows in sewer collection. Avoid
known areas where manhole overflows occur and proceed through standing water
with extreme caution!”

As
the commentator went on and on, Cindy called down to order breakfast in her
room.

She
didn’t need to have breakfast with Mattheus downstairs, as they usually did. A
new kind of power filled Cindy. It felt good, being independent, coming and
going as she pleased.  She could handle the storm and also the case, with or
without Mattheus. She’d prefer to do it with him, but only if things were
mutual. An odd kind of strength filled her at that realization, and a freedom
she relished as well.

The
storm hadn’t hit yet and the curfew wasn’t until 6 p.m. She’d ride it out at
the hotel or at the shelter a few miles away.

The
bell boy brought breakfast and Cindy finished it, turned off the TV, went
downstairs. She knew she had to see Kendra again before the storm hit.  Had to
ask her about Nell and Graham. Even though she’d been fired, the case had taken
on a life of its own, much like the storm that was coming.

The
local airport was filled to capacity. Mattheus was crunched with others,
waiting to get off the island.  He’d checked his luggage and headed here, eager
to get back to Grenada. Outside, the winds blew fiercely. He hoped they could
take off before it got worse.

 It
was definitely crazy that Cindy wasn’t with him, but she wouldn’t listen to
sense. And he wasn’t into forcing anyone. It made him feel stupid and small.
The case was over, Kendra was in jail, and beyond that, they’d both been fired.
 Mattheus hadn’t been able to see one sane reason for staying on the island and
putting himself in danger. At first he’d been sure that Cindy would come to her
senses. But he hadn’t heard a word from her as storm warnings increased.

Right
now he’d been waiting online for over an hour. It would be a few minutes before
the flight boarded. Mattheus wondered what Cindy was doing back there, where
she’d ride the storm out. She had no idea how hard it would be, either.  Mattheus
realized that. She was idealistic, but also pig headed. If this is what she
wanted, let her have it.

Mattheus’
flight was now being called to board. He grabbed his overnight bag and quickly
went to the gate. He couldn’t wait to get off the island, back to the calm,
beautiful world he’d grown to love.

He
showed his ticket, walked onto the plane and packed his bag safely overhead.
This was one of the last planes out before the storm and he was damned lucky to
have a seat on it. He took his aisle set and waited while others were boarding.
There was a sense of urgency as the plane filled up, and Mattheus was hit with
a wave of anxiety. How the hell was Cindy going to manage alone? The thought of
her there in the huge winds and rain, suddenly made him feel like throwing up.

He
put his head back on the seat and tried to block her out of his mind. He couldn’t.
She’d chosen this, he thought. He’d gotten plane tickets for both of them,
tried his best to reason with her. No matter what he told himself, the anxiety
gnawed. Damned, he thought, he couldn’t do it. He had to get back to the hotel
as fast as he could to be there with her when the storm hit.

Mattheus
jumped out of the seat, grabbed his bag, and pushed through the crowded aisle,
back to the plane’s entrance. Then he flew down the plank, out into the
airport, and rushed for all he was worth to grab a taxi before it was too late.

Cindy
hailed a cab and took it to the jailhouse. As it drove along the streets, the
streets were much emptier, but there were also people left, rushing back and
forth with packages, boarding up their houses. There was a strange excitement
being a part of the fierce energy the storm was bringing.

The
jailhouse, located further out on the island, was small and low, and half
empty, as this was the woman’s division.  The winds hadn’t hit this part of the
island yet, and there was an odd calm hovering about it.

Cindy
had to wait for the officials to bring Kendra to her. They put her in the
waiting room which had wood plank floors, two wooden benches, and a photo of a
bird on the wall.  On the far corner was a table with paper coffee cups and a
pot of coffee. A large female guard with big hips walked in and out of the
waiting room from time to time.

Cindy
got up, poured herself some coffee, and added a nice, heaping serving of sugar.

The
woman watched her as she stirred it all together. “What’s someone like you
doing at a place like this?” the woman finally asked, curiosity getting the
better of her.

Cindy
turned and looked at her. “I’m a private detective,” she said.

The
woman threw her head back and guffawed. “You? You’re making me split my sides
laughing.”

Her
laugh was contagious. Cindy couldn’t help but smile. “What’s so funny about
that?” she asked.

“Nothing,
honey, but it’s the last thing in the world you look like,” the woman said. “I
thought you were one of her daughters. You look so young. And innocent.”

Cindy
never thought of herself as innocent. “Just new to the game.”

The
woman laughed again. “Well, you never know – it does take brains.”

Takes
more than that, thought Cindy. “Takes heart,” she said.

“And
a tough skin,” the woman added. “Better not forget that. These inmates know
what they’re doing. They’re one slippery bunch. Can get over on anyone. Used to
fool me plenty in the beginning. Now I can see through them the second they
come in.”

Cindy
could believe that. This woman seemed as planted as a huge tree, with roots
that sunk down deep into the middle of the earth.

“You
know what you’re doing staying for the storm?” the woman looked at Cindy
closely.

“Sure,”
said Cindy. “I’ve got important work to do.”

Kendra,
dressed in orange overalls, was brought into the waiting room, accompanied by a
female officer.

“You
have a maximum of  twenty minutes together,” the officer announced. Clearly it
was official policy and she was informing Cindy of it. That will be more than
enough, Cindy thought, as the officer departed.

“What
are you doing here?” Kendra looked startled, seeing Cindy. “You’ve been fired.”

“I’m
working the case anyway,” said Cindy. “I’m not done.”

“I’m
not paying you anything.”

“There’s
more at stake than money,” said Cindy. “I never give up on anybody.” 

Kendra
was taken aback.

“I
want to find the killer,” said Cindy.

Kendra
looked surprised. “You don’t mean you don’t actually believe I killed Paul?”

“I
have my doubts,” said Cindy.

“Only
doubts?”

“I
still have questions.”

“Okay,
shoot, what are they?” Kendra seemed ready to answer anything now.

“Tell
me about Nell and Graham,” Cindy said immediately.

Kendra
seemed momentarily confused. “You mean Graham Kowan? Paul’s son?”

“Yes
– his relationship with Nell?”

Kendra’s
brow furrowed. “Nell and Graham?” she sounded stunned.

“I
saw a photo of them together,” said Cindy. You’ve never seen it?” Cindy focused
in on her for all she was worth.

“Never,”
Kendra was shocked. “Where did you see it? Why was it taken?”

“Listen,
Kendra,” Cindy was annoyed, “if you’re not honest with me now, I can’t help
you.”

“I’m
telling you the truth,” Kendra said. “I never saw any photos. I had no idea
they knew each other. Don’t you think I’d tell you if I knew? How did you even
see those pictures?”

“I
went to your house last night,” said Cindy. “Nell was there. I went into her
room to talk.  I saw them on her Facebook page.”

Kendra’s
mouth hung open as she listened. “Believe me, I had no idea she ever met Graham
at all.”

“How
is that possible?” said Cindy.

“Nell
and I aren’t close. She doesn’t tell me anything. She hasn’t even been here to
visit me once,” said Kendra.

“I
can understand why,” said Cindy, bitterly.

“Why?”
Kendra’s eyes flared.

“She’s
going through hell.”

“Nell’s
always going through one hell or another,” Kendra voice grew harsh. “The truth
is she can’t stand me, never could, not even when she was a little girl. I told
you before, she preferred her father. For some reason I never understood, he
adored her. Whenever he was home, she was the one he’d spend his time with.”

“You
couldn’t have liked that very much,” said Cindy.

“In
the beginning I didn’t,” said Kendra, the muscles in her face trembling. “But I
got used to it. You get used to all kinds of things as time passes.”

“Like
your husband having a second family?” Cindy had to dig at her. Kendra was ready
now to talk. She had no reason not to. There was no way out of here for her if
she didn’t.

“Not
that,” said Kendra. “I got used to him having a relationship with Heather,”
Kendra said. “That only went on for a few years.  Heather was different from
me. A side dish. I could deal with it.”

“But
a second family?” Cindy wasn’t letting go.  “He must have been gone so much.
You deserved better.”

“I
had what I needed,” Kendra said flippantly.

“That’s
not how it looks to others,” said Cindy.

“What
difference does it make how it looks? Everyone’s made up their mind. They
decided I did it the first day Paul was found. Book closed. Case completed.”

Kendra
got up from the bench and walked to the small windows that lined the room. It
was dark out and the winds were starting. “Storm is coming soon,” she said.

“You’ll
be safe here,” said Cindy.

“I’m
not safe anywhere, anymore,” Kendra said.

Cindy
came up beside her. “How long did you know about his other family?” she asked.
She needed more and more details, couldn’t help feeling that somewhere, buried,
in the center of this morass, one unexpected memory would untie the entire
web. 

“What
makes you say I knew them?” asked Kendra trembling.

“Don’t
play games with me!” Cindy was on edge. “This is your last chance to get free.”

“If
I knew that Paul had two families,” Wendy cringed, “that would only make it
look worse for me.”

“Not
necessarily,” said Cindy. “Tell me the entire truth. One fact leads to another.
You’ll set me on the right trail.”

“I
knew about them for the past seven years,” Kendra finally whispered.

Cindy
stopped breathing. “How did you find out?”

“It
happened strangely. One day I saw a snapshot on the floor of Paul and a boy of
about eleven, Graham. The boy was clinging onto his father.  I looked and
looked at it for a long time, thought the photo must have fallen out of Paul’s
pocket.”

Cindy
took a long, slow breath. “Awful!”

“Not
really,” said Kendra. “It was actually fascinating. This child looked exactly
like Paul’s brother, who had died when he was young. The minute I saw the
photo, I knew this child was Paul’s son. So, I thought it was a love child.  I
had no idea that he’d actually married the mother. But it was fantastic to find
the photograph. Proof of something you knew all along deep down, but couldn’t
put your finger on.  It makes you feel like you’re crazy.”

That
was exactly the way Cindy felt about this case.

“I
showed Paul the photo a few days later, before he was about to leave on his
usual trip. He stared at it horrified. Then he stared at me. At first he tried
to lie, said it was some kid from a charity he was working with. That didn’t go
over with me for a minute. I slapped him hard, in the face.” Kendra smiled now,
thinking of it. “He needed that slap, he deserved it.”

Cindy
felt chilled. What else had she done to Paul over the years to make him pay for
this?

“Paul
got scared. For a minute he was going to slap me back, but then he looked in my
eyes. What did he see? I often wonder. Maybe he saw that I didn’t care.”

“I
just need the truth,” I told him.

“The
kid’s my son,” he said, terrified.

“You
know, Paul was a tremendously weak man. Despite his grand life and big cover,
underneath he lived like a crazy person and was terrified of being found out.
And he was also very rich. Whatever he touched brought him big money. It made
him think he could rule the world, do whatever he liked.”

“You
stayed with him because of the money?” Cindy zeroed in.

“No,”
said Kendra, “definitely not.  I had an income of my own. I could have built my
tour business any time I wanted. Look, at first I just thought he had a kid
with someone else, I had no idea he was married. I’m not saying that wasn’t
rotten -.”

“Why
did you stay?”

Kendra
turned and walked away from the window and began slowly pacing back and forth.

“I’m
as weak as he was,” she said, looking down at the floor.

Cindy
walked beside her. “He had something on you?”

Kendra
laughed out loud. “Of course not. What could he have? I’m weak because I was also
frightened.”

“Afraid
of who?”

“Of
Nell,” she said. “Afraid of raising her alone. I couldn’t bear the thought of
it. It would have been far too much for me. So I stayed. But it haunted me. I searched
further and found out about Margot, the wife.

When
I told him about it, Paul didn’t deny any of it. He just said Margot had no
idea about me or Nell -and that he had no intention of telling her. He felt
indebted to the bitch for everything. She gave him all the money he needed to
get going in life - paid for law school, set up his office, paid for their
home, and ours too. Who knew?   He said he married her out of obligation and
then a year later, met me - and really fell in love.  He didn’t want to lose me
ever, so, he decided to marry me, too. He actually started crying when he said
that. I told him to stop his blubbering. He looked at me with sick, fish eyes.
He said that Margot and I were pregnant at the same time. Graham was born a few
months before I had Nell. He couldn’t get out of either marriage.”

“You
lived with this for seven years?” said Cindy.

“You
get used to all kinds of things,” said Kendra. “In the meantime I did my thing
and he did his. There were other people I was with. I figured I’d get out when
the girls grew up. I knew where I stood. I had the truth. That’s a lot more
than most women have.”

“Go
on,” said Cindy intensely.

“I
didn’t ask him anything more about his son, Graham.  I knew that he came to
high school on the mainland, but I didn’t care. That’s where he and Nell must
have met.”

Cindy
and Kendra then stared at each other and a chill went through both of them at
the same time. 

“I
never knew Nell and Graham were friends,” Kendra said in a plaintive tone. “There
was no way Nell could have known who he was either.”

Kendra
wove a fantastic web and Cindy was fascinated.  She wondered, though, as Kendra
spoke whether she could believe any of it. Her moments of hatred towards Paul
were laser sharp. It made sense that Kendra would finally get fed up with him
and put an end to all of it. 

“Why
didn’t you tell me this before?” Cindy breathed.

“What
difference does it make if I knew about his other marriage or not?” asked
Kendra. “It’s just sordid family history. It has nothing to do with who killed
him.”

“That’s
ridiculous,” said Cindy. “Everything has something to do with who might have
killed him. How did you know that Margot didn’t find out and do it?”

Kendra
smirked. “I heard about her for so many years.  She couldn’t live without Paul,
wrapped her life around him. She was a spineless creature, living in a dream
world. There would have been no way for her to do it. If she did find out, she’d
simply fall apart.  That was her main tactic with him when things didn’t go
well, or when he spent too much time away.”

 “Can
you see why people think you did it?” Cindy asked pointedly.

“I
see,” said Kendra tartly. “But I didn’t do it.  And that’s the truth.”