Death by Betrayal (Book #10 in the Caribbean Murder series) by Jaden Skye Page A

States.”
    “No,
Ann’s main wish was for me to be happy,” Cindy became defiant. “She wanted me to
be my own person, not to follow along in anyone’s footsteps. She told me that
many times.”
    “That’s
hard to believe,” her mother uttered. “Ann often told me she missed you and
wanted you home.”
    “No,”
Cindy voice rose above the din of the waves which were lapping more loudly on
shore. “You know how I knew that Ann really cared for me and not just for
herself?  She wanted for me what I wanted for myself. She just was concerned
that I be careful!”
    “Not
true!” Frank interrupted Cindy gruffly. “Your sister wanted you to settle back
home, take that job on the paper, get a real life. She didn’t want you
traipsing around the Caribbean always putting yourself in danger.”
    Cindy
felt Mattheus shiver beside her, as he gripped her hand.
    “Cindy
has a real life,” Mattheus broke in, as all eyes turned to him.
    “This
is about Ann, not about me,” horrified Cindy spoke over him. “Let’s use the
time to remember her.”
    Cindy’s
mother moved down towards the ocean , opened her arms widely and spoke into the
wind that blew on her face.
    “Ann
was the daughter I always wanted, everything a mother could have hoped for. She
married a good man, lived close by. She respected my wishes, stayed at my side,
especially when her father died. Ann never left me; would never have left on
her own. I was blessed to have had her.”
    Cindy
felt the pit in her stomach grow deeper as her mother spoke and as the wind
blew more strongly on all of them.
    “I
want Ann to know how much she means to me,” Cindy’s mother continued, her voice
raw with emotion. “I want her to hear every word I’m saying.”
    Suddenly,
Uncle Ben suddenly started to sob.  “Ann hears you, Claudia, she hears you,” he
managed between sobs.
    Charlie
took a step closer to them and Frank stepped back and put his face in his
hands.
    Cindy
held Mattheus’s hand tighter. Was Ann’s spirit there with them? Did she hear what
they were saying? If she was there, what Cindy wanted more than anything was
for her sister to tell her how she died. I need justice for you, Ann, Cindy
spoke to her sister in her mind. I need you to help me understand.
    Ben
pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket then and started reading aloud.
    “The
good we do lives after us. It is never forgotten, lives on for eternity. The
good Lord is watching over dear Ann and watching over all of us now.”
    “Is
there anything else to be read?” Cindy’s mother’s voice rose shrilly, like the
sound of a seagull flying by.
    “Yes,”
said Cindy, as she stepped forward, remembering a passage that had guided her
life these past years. “ For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and
whatever is concealed is meant to be brought into the open.  If anyone has ears
to hear, let him hear.”
    “What
is that supposed to mean?” Frank’s head shot up as he stared at Cindy pitifully.
    “It
means we’ll definitely find out what happened to Ann,” Mattheus chimed in. “The
truth can only remain hidden for a little while.”
    *
    They
all spent a little while longer on the beach, prayed for Ann’s spirit, and then
returned somberly to the hotel.
    “That
was beautiful, Claudia,” Ben kept repeating, guiding Cindy’s mothers footsteps
off the sand, back onto the streets. “Would you like us all to have a meal
together now?”
    “Not
now,” her mother seemed discombobulated. “I need to rest now, Ben.”
    “Of
course, we all understand. We’ll get together again later on.” Ben’s voice rose
as he announced to everyone, “Right now Claudia needs to rest.”
    Cindy
was relieved to be free to be alone with Mattheus, and everyone else seemed
relieved as well.
    *
    Back
up in her room, Mattheus insisted that Cindy lay down on the lounge for a
little nap. He would get his computer from his room, bring it here and continue
investigating beside her while she