Free Death by Marriage by Jaden Skye Page B

known Mattheus was coming back to St. Thomas that day,
but hadn’t expected him to show up at breakfast like that. Since they’d arrived
on the island, Mattheus had shown so many different sides to him, she didn’t
know what to expect next. Back on Grenada he felt like a rock to her, constant,
caring, dependable. Now he seemed skittish at times, even eager to get away
from her.  She couldn’t help compare him to Clint, who had been fully available
when he was around. Cindy’d never felt he wanted to run away.  The sense that
Mattheus was unsettled, made her feel insecure. Of course, their company didn’t
have to last forever. If it didn’t work out, Cindy could always go home.
    When
Cindy and Mattheus arrived and rang the doorbell, Kendra opened the door
immediately. She wore beige slacks and a linen shirt, with a matching necklace
and bracelet. Her long hair was tied back from her face.  It struck Cindy as
odd that a woman whose husband had been murdered such a short time ago, would
be so perfectly groomed.
    “Come
in,” said Kendra somewhat officially. 
    Cindy
and Mattheus came in and looked around for Nell.
    “Nell’s
in her room,” said Kendra. “She’s studying. The kids have off from school for a
few days for exams. The police spoke to her quite a bit in the beginning. I don’t
know what she can possibly add now.”
    “We
just wanted to meet the whole family,” said Cindy. “It won’t take long.”
    Kendra
sighed. “It all adds up, though. Half an hour here, an hour there.”
    It
sounded as if she resented their being there. “We want to do a thorough job, “said
Cindy.
    Kendra
interrupted, “thorough or not is one thing. Finding the killer is something
else. How in the world can Nell lead you to that?”
    “You
never know what one off handed comment leads to,” said Mattheus, “especially
from someone close to the victim.”
    “Do
what you have to,” said Kendra. “Nell,” she called loudly then, her voice
bouncing off the high walls. “Come downstairs.”
    No
answer.
    “She’s
probably deep on her Facebook page,” Kendra smirked. “That’s about all these
kids study these days, who’s saying what to who? Nell -” her voice rose with a
sharp timber.
    Cindy
heard a door open upstairs. She looked up and saw a young, tall, slender woman
come down. She had  long, dark hair, a sculpted face and extremely intense
eyes.
    When
the young woman got down the stairs, she paid no attention to her mother, but
came right over to Cindy and said “Hello, I’m Nell.” 
    “Glad
to meet you Nell,” said Cindy.
    “I’m
glad to see you finally managed to extricate yourself and come downstairs,”
Kendra quipped. “Whenever she’s home, Nell practically lives in her room these
days. She never has a second to spend with me.”
    “This
has been a horrible strain on our mother,” Nell said to Cindy abruptly. “You
have to help the authorities realize that she’s had absolutely nothing to do
with this crime.”
    Kendra
looked at her oddly. “I’ve told them that already,” she said. “That’s why they’re
here.  I believe they’ll help.”
    Cindy
looked over at Nell, who suddenly turned sullen. “Nothing I say makes any
difference,” she said.
    “We’d
love to hear more from you, Nell,” Cindy said, breaking into the thick tension
that had formed. “Let’s sit down a moment.”
    Nell
shot her mother a quick look and then went with Cindy and Mattheus to the
couch. Kendra started to join them as well.
    “We’d
like to talk to Nell alone,” said Mattheus.
    Kendra
was offended. “Why?”
    “People
can talk more easily when they’re alone,” he said. “It won’t take very long.”
    “This
is not a matter of time,” said Kendra. “What could Nell possibly say that I can’t
hear? You’re working for me, after all.”
    Nell
looked down at the floor.
    “Would
you like me to join you?” Kendra asked Nell pointedly.
    Nell
did not respond.
    “It’s
better this way,”