Death by Engagement (10 page)

“What
kind was that?” asked Cindy.

“Tad’s
a simple guy who wears his heart on his sleeve,” said Deidre. “Tad’s not
sophisticated and tricky like Doug is, who’s always keeping you guessing. Shari
didn’t have to be anyone special for Tad. He was crazy about her just as she
was. Anyone could see that.”

“You
dislike Doug?” Cindy asked carefully then.

“No,
just the opposite,” said Deidre, waving away a new string of bats. “I like
Doug, I always did. He knows what he wants and he gets it. I respect him.”

“And
Shari was what he wanted,” Cindy commented.

“Yeah,
I guess so,” said Deidre, suddenly deflated, “maybe she was.”

“Maybe?”
Cindy was stunned.

“I
always thought that Cayenne, the woman Doug was seeing when he and Shari broke
up, was much better for him. She was smart like him and tricky. Things finally
seemed to fall into place when Doug was dating Cayenne and Shari was with Tad.
I liked it.”

“And
then what happened?” Cindy was intrigued.

“That’s
the real question, isn’t it?” said Deidre, wrinkling her brow.

“Have
any ideas?” asked Cindy.

“Sure,
I have ideas,” said Deidre, “but why don’t you ask Tad that directly yourself.”

“Does
Tad know what happened to Shari?” Cindy asked, nervously.

“I
don’t think anyone’s told him yet,” said Deidre. “My father forbid us to put it
on Facebook, or say anything about it to the world, yet.”

“Will
you give me Tad’s number?” asked Cindy then quietly.

“I
definitely will,” said Deidre, as wave upon wave of sleeping bats awoke,
stretched their wings and headed for the opening of the cave, desperate to find
supper.

The
minute Cindy returned to the hotel and got into her room, she put a call in to
Tad. Thankfully, Mattheus wasn’t there yet, and she could do this in private.

A
soft male voice picked up the phone as soon as it rang. “Yes?” he asked expectantly.

For
a moment Cindy couldn’t say a word.

“Is
this you, Shari? Are you calling from Aruba?” The excitement grew as he spoke.

“Tad?”
Cindy replied in response. “This is Cindy Blaine calling from Aruba.”

“Cindy
who? Do I know you?” he asked, taken aback.

“No,
you don’t,” replied Cindy. “I got your contact information from Shari’s sister,
Deidre.”

“Are
you a friend of Shari’s?” Tad went on, nervously.

“I
met Shari, but I’m not exactly her friend,” Cindy spoke slowly and
methodically.

“What’s
this about?” Tad was becoming anxious. “Why are you calling?”

Cindy
wanted to break the news slowly and carefully to him. “Shari’s sister Deidre
said you were an important person to Shari,” Cindy went on.

“I
was? I am,” Tad replied.

“The
two of you dated recently?” Cindy asked cautiously.

“We
were friends for years and then we dated.” Tad’s voice became pressured and
tense.

Cindy
felt saddened by the sincerity in Tad’s voice.

“There’s
been some trouble down here,” Cindy went on softly.

“The
engagement’s been called off?” Tad started to get excited.

“No,
nothing like that,” Cindy replied, jarred.

“What
then?” Now Tad sounded frightened.

Cindy
knew she had to get it over with, tell him what had happened. “Shari took her
life, two days ago,” Cindy spoke in just a barely audible tone.

The
horror on the other side of the phone was palpable. ““What? What do you mean
took her life?”

“Shari
was found at the bottom of a cliff, here in Aruba. She left a suicide note,”
Cindy said.

“I
don’t believe you,” Tad started screaming. “It didn’t happen. Is this some kind
of horrible joke?”

“I
wish it was,” said Cindy.

“It’s
not possible.” Tad became adamant then. “Shari didn’t kill herself, she never
would. She loved life too much, she loved me too much.” Then he became utterly
silent.

“She
loved you too much?” Cindy didn’t know what to make of it.

“She
had too much to live for!” Tad corrected himself, hopelessly.

“Yes,
of course, I understand,” said Cindy, “but didn’t Shari also suffer from
long-standing depression? Perhaps that caused her to jump?”

“Nonsense,”
Tad bellowed, in pain. “Shari felt better than she ever had these past months.
She even stopped taking her medicine while we were dating. She didn’t need it
anymore. We were happy.” Tad’s voice began wavering as if he were about to
break into sobs. “Listen, I’m coming right down to Aruba. What’s the hotel her
family’s staying in?”

Cindy
gave him the information and he hung up without another word.

After
Cindy put the phone down, she took a glass of water, drank it quickly and then
went out onto the balcony to breathe some fresh ocean air and clear her mind.
Was it possible that Shari was in love with Tad, and couldn’t bring herself to
either marry Doug or break off the engagement? Did the bitter conflict cause
her to end her life? This new possibility made Cindy feel dizzy. She lifted her
head up toward the sky that had grown darker. Strong winds were picking up and
Cindy felt them pushing forcefully against her. Even though this was hurricane
season most of the local storms usually passed Aruba’s coastline. There was
some blowback though, and Cindy wondered if these harsh winds weren’t the back
end of some storm raging close by.

“Cindy,
are you here?” Cindy heard Mattheus’s voice now calling.

“I’m
out on the balcony, Mattheus, come out,” she called, relieved that he was back.

“I’m
coming,” he called and in a minute was out there beside her, his arms flung
around her strongly.

“Backend
of a nearby storm,” Mattheus commented as the strong winds blew at both of
them.

Cindy
turned and faced Mattheus then, feeling shakier than she’d realized.

“I
just put a call in to a guy named Tad, a recent ex-boyfriend of Shari’s,” Cindy
said. “I had to give him the news. He’s on his way down here now, devastated.”

“A
recent ex-boyfriend?” Mattheus asked, his brow curling. “Something serious?”

“Sounds
like it, from the way he took the news,” said Cindy. “Shari’s sister, Deidre,
thought so, too. Shari dated him while Doug and Cayenne were dating.”

“How
recently did all this go on?” asked Mattheus, puzzled.

“In
the past year, I believe,” said Cindy. “Doug and Shari were broken up for about
six months and dated other people. Then they got back together and got
engaged.”

“That’s
not such an unusual story,” said Mattheus. “Lots of time there’s that one last
fling before two people tie the knot. This way they’re absolutely positive that
they’re right for each other.”

It
definitely made sense, but still Cindy didn’t know why she felt so uneasy about
it. Perhaps it was the depth of the despair in Tad’s voice.

 “I
just spent some time with Doug,” Mattheus went on. “He’s a lovely guy. Awful
that this happened to him. He’s holding up quite well, though. His family just
arrived and I asked if you and I could speak to them after they settled in a
bit. Doug agreed immediately. He’s not hiding anything.”

Cindy
thought that she’d like to speak to Doug’s ex-girlfriend Cayenne, too, but
didn’t say so. She didn’t want to make things more complicated than they were
already becoming. Clearly, Mattheus thought they were sailing on a breeze and
would be done with the case before she knew it. Cindy felt otherwise.

“Oh
yes, one more quick piece of news,” Mattheus just remembered. “Your mom and
Frank are also on the way to Aruba as we speak.”

Cindy
felt jarred. “On their way down here? That’s not just a piece quick news, it’s
a bombshell,” she replied. “I don’t know why they didn’t check with me about it
first.”

“They
checked with me.” Mattheus smiled.

“We’re
in over our heads as it is. The last thing we need is to spend time with them.”
Cindy was uneasy.

“Not
at all,” said Mattheus. “By the time they arrive and settle in, as I see it,
our work will be practically done. We can certainly take some time for a family
dinner then.”

“Practically
done?” Cindy was astonished.

“Sure,”
said Mattheus. “There’s hasn’t been a piece of evidence to contradict the
conclusion that Shari committed suicide.”

“Plenty
of innuendos, though,” Cindy remarked, irritated, “and plenty of trails that
haven’t been fully followed.”

“Cindy,
come on, remember what you promised? We’d go over it for a few days and it
would be done?”

“And
what if we come to a bump in the road? What then?” asked Cindy, flummoxed.

“If
we come to a significant bump, we’ll deal with it then. But we haven’t,”
Mattheus repeated.

Cindy
hadn’t told Mattheus about her time with Deidre in detail, though, and didn’t
plan to at the moment.

“Well,
Tad’s on the way down right now, too,” Cindy said. “It’s going to be very
important to talk to him.”

“Why?
What are you trying to make of all this?” Mattheus wasn’t impressed. “Are you
looking for reasons to prolong the investigation?”

Cindy’s
heart missed a beat. Mattheus wasn’t truly on board, certainly not the way he
used to be. He had jumped in, as he said, to expedite matters. But he wasn’t
here wholeheartedly, truly open to exploring the possibility that something
here was deeply amiss, and there was a deeper reason why Shari had lost her
life.

“Listen,
we’ll talk to Doug’s family first thing in the morning.” Mattheus interrupted
Cindy’s train of thought. “They’ve come down to comfort their son. If there’s
any hidden mystery waiting, there’s a good chance they’ll let us know.”

“Okay,”
Cindy agreed, trying to act cheerful but feeling deeply crestfallen within.

“And
for now, finally, we can spend a little time alone.” Mattheus reached out to
Cindy. “We’ll order dinner in, watch a movie, hang out in each other’s arms.”

“Sounds
great,” said Cindy, but was distressed to notice that deep within, she was
pulling away.

*

First
thing the next morning, Cindy and Mattheus spoke with Doug’s family. They all
decided to meet downstairs in the outdoor gazebo, located on the rim of
beautiful walking paths that wound through the hotel grounds.

Cindy
and Mattheus walked there together slowly. “You don’t seem yourself,” Mattheus
commented lightly as they approached. “You didn’t seem yourself last night,
either.”

“Just
a lot going on,” Cindy responded as they moved along, spotting the gazebo close
up ahead. The gazebo was open in all directions to trees, sky, hills and a
magnificent flower garden that stretched out to the side. Little tables and
chairs were placed inside, so guests could stop there for a while to refresh
themselves.

When
Cindy and Mattheus arrived, she saw a few tables pulled together. Four people
were already seated, and there was easily room for a few others to join in. The
group had to be Doug’s family, Cindy thought as she and Mattheus walked in.

“Good
of you to join us.” An older man, dressed in linen slacks and expensive shirt,
stood up and walked over to Mattheus. “Doug tells us fine things about the two
of you.” This had to be Doug’s father, thought Cindy.

“Thanks
for taking the time to talk to us in the midst of your ordeal,” Mattheus
replied.

Doug’s
father nodded briskly and led Cindy and Mattheus over to the tables.

“This
is my wife, Andrea, and my daughter, Kate,” he went on.

Cindy
smiled at the two women who looked up and scanned her quickly from top to toe.
Andrea was an attractive, well-groomed middle-aged woman who sat there
stone-faced, as if she were doing her best to distance herself from these
terrible events. The daughter, Kate, was more animated. She had long dark hair
and flashing eyes which lingered on Cindy curiously. Cindy slid into the chair
beside Kate as Mattheus sat near the father.

“Cindy
and I will just take a few moments of your time,” Mattheus started.

“Take
all the time you need,” Andrea responded flatly, looking past Mattheus into the
distance.

“I
know this must come as a terrible shock to all of you,” Mattheus continued, obviously
probing for a response.

“Not
for all of us,” Kate piped up vividly.

“Tone
it down, Kate.” Her father raised his hand toward her.

“Sorry,”
Kate said and retreated, unsure of how to go on.

“Kate
and Shari were never the very best of friends,” Andrea spoke flatly. “They got
along decently, of course, but big sisters can be overly protective of their
younger brothers.”

“You
didn’t like Shari?” Cindy asked Kate, wanting to go forward with the line of
questioning.

“Of
course I liked her,” Kate backed off. “Everyone liked her, she was very
likeable. She made a point of being that way.”

“Shari
was gracious to everyone,” Andrea chimed in, once again. “That was a lovely
quality about her.”

“I
just never thought she and Doug were the best suited couple.” Kate tried to
elaborate on how she felt.

“Family
members are not in a position to determine who is best suited to their loved
ones,” Doug’s father piped up. “We have to honor the choices our children make.
Doug and Shari knew each other for years, they had plenty of time to find out
about each other for themselves and make their own decisions.”

Doug
looked at his father thankfully. Obviously Doug and his father got on well, and
it also seemed that Doug’s father’s opinion of him mattered a great deal to
Doug.

“Thanks
for that, Dad,” Doug commented.

“I’m
proud of my son,” Doug’s father continued. “He’s handling this better than any
of us could have ever imagined.”

“None
of us could ever have imagined anything like this, Fred,” Andrea piped up then.
“Doug’s still numb, the reality can’t have possibly hit him yet.”

Andrea
interested Cindy a great deal. She seemed grounded and smart.

“How
did you feel about your son’s upcoming marriage?” Cindy asked her directly.

“I
was resigned to it,” Andrea responded bluntly. “Doug and I discussed the pros
and cons many times. But ultimately, I agree with my husband, the choice of my
son’s mate was up to him.”

“What
were some of the cons?” Cindy couldn’t help but asking.