Death by Devotion (Caribbean Murder #9)

Cindy began to feel strange, and wondered what Ann had told everyone about her plans.

“Cindy, how absolutely wonderful to see you,” Al came right over to her now, took her hands and looked into her eyes. It was clear to Cindy, that Al had been missing Clint a lot and

having Cindy here was a welcome connection to him. “You look absolutely beautiful,” Al went on, stepping back and looking at her, surprised. “Seems like the adventurous life has treated you well.”

Cindy hardly knew what to make of the comment. She imagined they all had their own ideas about what she’d been doing. Cindy suddenly wondered if they knew about Mattheus and what they might think of that.

“And, at the same time, we’re all glad your time as a detective is over,” Al went on. “In truth, it made everyone nervous.”

“Over?” Cindy asked uneasy.

“Your sister Ann told us the good news that you’re returning,” Al said. Then he stopped a moment and took in Cindy’s surprise. “It’s true isn’t it?”

Cindy simply smiled. She didn’t want to let anyone know how annoyed she was feeling with Ann at the moment. Cindy realized that this was Ann’s way of helping Cindy settle, by providing an anchor for her here so she wouldn’t take off again. She looked over at Ann happily serving quiche and warm punch, making everyone feel at home.

“And how have you been Al?” Cindy asked, simply changing the topic.

“I’m good,” he said whole heartedly. “And I’m even better since I was able to do a real favor for my old friend, Clint.”

Cindy looked at him puzzled.

“Come here, sit down on the sofa,” Al said, excited. “I have something great to tell you.”

Dismayed, Cindy went with him to the sofa, and sat down.

Al took her hands and squeezed them.

“Listen, Cindy, as soon as I heard you were coming back, I knew it wouldn’t be so easy to make the adjustment, so I took the liberty of helping a little. I called a good friend of mine at a top newspaper in Manhattan.” Al was speaking so quickly Cindy could barely follow him. “How would you like a column of your own as a crime reporter for the New York Herald?”

Cindy gasped. The New York Herald was one of the best papers in the world. That had to be anyone’s dream job.

“In all truth,” Al went on, “they’d be lucky to have you. And also, you’ve returned at the perfect moment. There’s an opening right now for a crime reporter to have their own column. The guy who used to write the column just left. With all the success, publicity and newspaper experience you’ve had, the job’s a natural fit for you.”

This was hard to take in. “Talk more slowly, Al,” Cindy breathed, wanted to make sure she was hearing correctly.

Al grinned. “Sure. My friend Hal’s in charge of hiring and he’s excited about you. Of course he wants to meet you and talk to you in person, but basically, between you and me, the job’s yours if you want it.”

Cindy was stunned. She stared into Al’s eyes. They looked hopeful and sad at the same time. She could see how badly he wanted to make things right for his dear friend’s widow.

“Thank you so very much for your efforts, Al,” Cindy said, feeling a bit woozy. Things were happening too fast. Although she’d loved working on a paper and always dreamt of one day having her own column, she hadn’t expected it to happen just yet.

“You have to let Hal know by day after tomorrow,” said Al. “They need someone on this right away.”

“I’m really grateful to you,” Cindy said and meant it. “I need to sleep on it.”

Al seemed slightly taken aback. “Okay,” he said, “no problem. But I thought you’d jump on it just like that.”

Cindy didn’t just jump on anything just like that anymore. Her experience investigating cases now made her pause and take a closer look at everything. Of course it seemed that Al had only the best intentions. But as Cindy listened to him she also remembered how Al had sent that photo of Clint’s old girl friend, Heather, to Clint just before the wedding. Clint had never received it, but Cindy did. Clint never found out that his girlfriend had given birth to his child a few years before. Al knew the truth though. He also knew that she was happily married when the photo arrived and her husband thought the child was his. Cindy always wondered why Al had sent Clint the photo. Had he wanted to break up Clint’s relationship with Cindy? Everyone else had tried to. Was Al making amends for this now by getting Cindy this column? Or, was there something else he had in mind?

The job sounds wonderful,” Cindy reassured Al, who was looking at her quizzically.

“But you’re not one hundred per cent positive,” Al echoed.

“Not yet,” she answered. “Can I sleep on it?”

Fortunately, just then Pastor Mallord came over and interrupted the conversation.