“What a family Tara had,” Cindy said as they walked along. She felt drained by the visit, glad to be away from them.
“They’re a complicated bunch,” said Mattheus. “It’s good that we met them.”
“If you ask me, we’ve got a treasure trove of suspects there,” said Cindy.
“That’s a leap,” Mattheus shook his head. “They’re all just reacting to the awful events. Seems like they really cared about Tara.”
“Including her father?” asked Cindy, surprised by Mattheus’s reaction.
“Of course,” said Mattheus, “maybe him the most.”
Cindy slowed down, trying to figure out what Mattheus meant. “Tara’s father said he always had a hard time with her,” she finally commented.
“Sometimes we have the hardest times with those we care about the most,” Mattheus replied.
“But I actually heard her father say he wanted her dead,” Cindy reminded Mattheus.
“No, he never said he wanted her dead,” Mattheus slowed down. “Ralph just said that he didn’t want her living like a vegetable in a coma. That could be a sign of his love.”
As always Mattheus made sense of whatever conundrum arose, but Cindy still felt uneasy about Tara’s father.
“I wouldn’t put anything past the father,” Cindy started walking more quickly again, and Mattheus, too picked up his pace. “Ralph definitely dislikes Owen, wasn’t at all grateful for the financial help he gave him. Could be he even set Owen up?”
“Ralph blamed Owen for the accident,” Mattheus refreshed Cindy’s memory, “not for the way she passed. He even said he had no idea who’d put the substance in Tara’s IV, but whoever did should not be blamed for it. ”
“But Ralph thought it was good that Tara died,” Cindy chimed in. “He was relieved.”
“Heck, the guy believes in euthanasia,” Mattheus responded, “you can’t fault him for that. That doesn’t mean he killed her. He just couldn’t stand seeing his daughter living like a vegetable. For him, Tara’s life was already over.”
“But it wasn’t over, Mattheus. Tara was alive, she was breathing,” Cindy insisted.
“It’s all how you see it,” Mattheus insisted.
“It doesn’t mean Ralph didn’t end Tara’s life, either,” Cindy said sharply, “he could have thought he was doing her a favor.”
Mattheus slowed down again. “What have you got against Ralph, Cindy?” he asked.
“Nothing,” she replied tautly. “I don’t particularly like him, but I don’t have anything against him. But we can’t let him off the hook so easily, either. The guy’s filled with all kinds of resentments. Who knows what was going on in his head?”
“If you ask me, I’d say the brother, Hank, is the strangest,” Mattheus responded as they turned the corner onto the street which lead to rows of boats rocking gently at the water’s edge.
“Hank’s a pathetic, desperate guy,” Cindy remarked as she breathed in the refreshing smell of salty, ocean air, “he’s overwhelmed. We can talk to him later, if he’ll talk. My guess is, he may not.”
“He’ll have to,” Mattheus insisted.
“But he may not be able to,” said Cindy, “and we can’t force him. I don’t know how reliable he is as a witness anyway.”
“We definitely have to talk to Hank,” Mattheus murmured as they passed a few casual restaurants open for lunch. The smell of fish and meat sizzling on the grills wafted out from the restaurants, making Cindy feel hungrier than she realized. “Do you want to find the boat Owen rented and talk to its owner first, or have lunch?” Mattheus asked.
“Let find the boat’s owner,” said Cindy. “Then we’ll have more to go over at lunch.”
Mattheus grinned. “Great,” he agreed. “Let’s find him. I love your spirit Cindy. I know you’re hungry, I know you’re tired, but you never let that get in the way. You really know how to put first things first. Nothing ever stops you.”
“I want to get to the boat as soon as possible,” Cindy felt pleased. “There still could be something left there for us to see. And, we have to make sure the forensic evidence was collected properly. For all we know someone else could have even been on board with them?”
“Good thinking,” said Mattheus, “no stone can be left unturned.”
*
It took only a few moments to locate the boat rental place Owen had used - Wyndsail Rentals. It was one of the most established, best known boat rental services in Jamaica and had franchises in other parts of the Caribbean as well. The place was owned and operated by Andy Tane.
Cindy and Mattheus walked up to the long, low wooden building. Wyndsail Rentals was proudly written in large red letters on a huge plaque in front. This was the place where day trips were planned and reservations made for boat rentals and cruises. As soon as they walked in Mattheus immediately asked for Andy Tane. To their delight he was there, in his back office. As soon as he was called, he immediately came out to see them.
“Well, I’d heard C and M Investigations were down in Jamaica on the case,” Andy said as he walked straight towards Cindy and Mattheus. Andy was tall, well built, suntanned, dressed in jeans and a T shirt. He had short cropped hair, strong features and leathery skin from the sun and winds.
“Thanks for talking to us,” Mattheus responded.
“I’ve spoken to the police a couple of times,” Andy continued. “Of course, if there’s anything else I can do to help, let me know.”
Cindy appreciated his no nonsense, forthright attitude. “We’d like to go onto the boat and look at it ourselves,” she piped up.
Andy turned to her, slightly startled. “Sure,” he agreed, “why not?”
The three of them promptly walked out of the cabin and out onto a planked walkway that lead to the boat.
“The boat Owen rented is one of the best boats in the fleet,” Andy remarked as they walked along, the breeze blowing over them all. “Owen reserved it a couple of weeks before their vacation.”
“He didn’t need a Captain to go along?” Mattheus asked. “He knew how to ride it?”
“Yeah, yeah, in fact Owen’s rented from us before. I know him,” said Andy. “There was never a problem the other two times.”
“Don’t you send Captains out along with the tourists on day sails, though?” asked Cindy.
“Not unless the people ask for them,” Andy replied, disconcerted by her persistence. “People know what they can handle.”
“Did Owen rent the same kind of boat this time as he did before?” Cindy continued, undaunted by his irritation.
“Good question,” Andy turned to her, uncomfortable. “The other two times he rented a smaller boat with less power, for a shorter trip. That time he just planned to stay out for an hour or so.”
“And this time?” Cindy felt uneasy.
“This time Owen wanted the most powerful boat we had. He’d planned a day sail to celebrate his anniversary,” Andy said solemnly as they got to the white power boat that sat grandly, gleaming in the sun.
“Beautiful boat,” said Mattheus.
“Sure is, “Andy agreed. “Top of the line and in perfect condition.”
“Want to step into the boat? “asked Andy, trying to be obliging.
“Sure do,” said Mattheus, as he gave his hand to Cindy to help her climb over the ledge.
Cindy shivered as she stepped on board the boat. It felt powerful and majestic standing there under the clear sky, rocking gently in the light wind. As she stood there, Cindy tried to feel what Tara had been feeling, alive, happy, trusting, about to embark upon a beautiful day with her husband.
“How long were they out for before the accident happened?” Cindy asked, looking around at the boat carefully.
“A couple of hours,” Andy answered, as Cindy spotted a drop of blood in the corner.
“Blood,” she mentioned, pointing to it.
“Yeah, I know,” said Andy. “Most of it has been removed. We have a few spots left to go.”
“All the blood, fingerprints, and evidence were collected for forensics?” Mattheus asked.
“Absolutely,” said Andy. “There were teams of cops down here for a long time inspecting the inside of the boat, collecting evidence and also looking over the front edge that rammed into her head.”