Death by Seduction (Book #13 in the Caribbean Murder series)

Casa’s Fish Joint was oily, spicy and smelled of must. Cindy decided to wait outside for Burnd in the muggy day, rather than go in alone. She waited a short while and then finally saw him lumbering down the street towards her, his hair a tangled mess.

“Hello there,” Burnd started, “sure good to see you. Want to go inside?”

Cindy was surprised at the warm greeting. Burnd must have felt Cindy was responsible for freeing Charma and was grateful to her.

“Maybe we can talk outside?” Cindy offered. “I feel like walking a bit.”

“Sure, why not?” Burnd agreed as they moved away from the restaurant and walked slowly down the narrow block.

“Three more hours until I see her again, thanks to you,” Burnd grinned at Cindy, exposing a jagged row of yellow teeth. “You did a great thing to help her.”

“Thanks,” said Cindy, “pleased to be on his good side. “I was starting to think Charma would be stuck in there forever, never get out.”

“That would not happen as long as I’m alive,” he howled up to the sky. “You think I’d let my honey rot in jail? Every day she told me she was getting out soon, and I believed her.”

“That’s good, that’s great,” Cindy wanted to quiet him down. “But how could Charma be so sure she’d be getting out?”

A crooked smile appeared on Burnd’s face. “Nobody puts anything over on her,” he mumbled. “My honey knows what she’s doing every step of the way.”

“I can see that,” said Cindy, “she’s smart, she’s beautiful.”

Burnd liked hearing that. “Glad you realize it,” he exclaimed. “Besides, the guys at the company promised her she’d be out in a few days. There was no way they could trick her, either. If they did, they knew they’d end up dead.”

Cindy felt a long chill run over her shoulders. “Dead?”

“I’d slit their throats from back to front,” Burnd leered at Cindy. “They know nobody messes with my girl.”

Cindy felt her whole body tighten into a knot. Was Burnd the one who’d made the death threat to Taylor, and taken Pete down? Had he practically confessed?

“Did you ever kill someone to protect Charma?” Cindy asked as if it were no big deal. “Did you ever threaten to kill someone?”

“No, I didn’t, not yet,” Burnd spoke happily, completely unaware of what he had said. “But nobody would put it past me, either. People know if they mess with Charma, they mess with me first.”

Cindy stopped and confronted him directly. “Who killed Pete?” she asked plainly, “you’ve got to know.”

“No idea about that,” Burnd ground his teeth together. “I only know that Charma got a nice pile of money for letting them dump him in her room. She knew she was getting locked up for it, but promised she’d be out soon.”

Cindy was startled by the information? “The guys at the company made a deal with her?” Cindy mumbled.

“That’s right, a sweet deal,” Burnd was obviously proud.

“So Charma knew that Pete was going to be killed?” Cindy asked carefully, aware that Burnd was just talking on and on, not realizing what he said.

Burnd’s head bobbed up and down. “Charma knows everything happening on this island and everyone who it’s happening to.”

“Who told her about Pete?” Cindy had to know.

“The guys at the real estate company,” Burnd grinned. “Hell of a bunch of real dudes. Real money in their pockets, too. Charma does a lot to keep them happy and they give her plenty in return. And I get to have some of their bucks in my pockets, too.”

Charma was an accessory to a crime and must have paid off Burnd for protecting her. Cindy suddenly wondered how much of this Eric was aware of?

“Does Eric know that Charma gives you money?” Cindy asked.

“Eric knows everything,” Burnd mumbled, “and nothing bothers him. He lets Charma do what she wants, if you know I mean. And he pays her big bucks for their time together.”

Cindy shuddered. “Did Eric know that Charma was aware that Pete was going to be killed?” she demanded.

“Nah, he didn’t know that,” Burnd wrinkled his nose. “Charma’s no fool. But one thing Eric did know that bothered him a lot. He found out that Pete gave Charma a bracelet that cost





big bucks.” Burnd started grinning. “Charma and I laughed a lot together about how much it bothered Eric.”

“I can see why it would bother Eric,” said Cindy, wanting more.

Burnd laughed louder then. “Yeah, all these dudes think that Charma loves them, that they’re the main man. But I’m the only one she gives money to. The main man is me.”

Cindy thought of Eric and his feelings for Charma and felt like throwing up. Charma had deceived him completely, was just using him as she used everyone else.

Cindy had to get to the bottom of this. “Did you happen to see the bracelet Pete gave Charma?” she asked Burnd.

“Sure, I did,” Burnd butted his head forth. “I saw Charma’s bracelet and another one, too. I even told Charma she wasn’t the only one getting the bracelets from Pete cause I found another one hidden in the leaves on the ground outside her window. I found it the day Pete died. Someone must have dropped it there.”