Death by Marriage (11 page)

“Do
you mind if I step out a moment and make a call?” said Cindy, finally.

“Do
whatever you want to,” said Margot, who looked distressed now as well. “But
tell me what’s going on. Please.”

Cindy
didn’t know what to say. “I will,” she answered slowly, “but first let me make
this call.”

Cindy
stepped out through the back door of the living room, into the blooming garden
and breathed deeply. She felt as though she were in a dream. How could this be
possible? Was the man who Margot thought was her husband, just someone who
looked like Paul? Cindy didn’t think so. It was definitely him. She’d inspected
his photo too many times.

Cindy
took out her phone and quickly dialed Mattheus. Fortunately, he picked up
instantly.

“Mattheus,”
Cindy gasped, having a hard time catching her breath.

“What’s
wrong?” Mattheus sounded alarmed.

“You’ve
got to come here immediately.”

“Why?”

“Paul
had a second wife and family.”

“What
are you talking about?” Mattheus said. 

“The
woman I’m with is married to Paul. He has another name here, Gregg Kowan.”

“Holy
God,” said Mattheus.

“And
his wife has no idea he’s missing. She thinks he’s on vacation.”

“She’s
nuts?” Mattheus asked.

“She’s
fragile,” said Cindy. “Get over here. I don’t want to tell her alone.”

“Don’t
say anything,” said Mattheus. “The police have to be notified. There are all
kinds of steps we have to take.  I’ll contact them immediately, and then I’ll
get right there. In the meantime, don’t leave the premises. Stay there and wait
for me.”

Cindy
hung up the phone and stood outside, not knowing how to proceed. She couldn’t
leave until Mattheus arrived, and she knew that Margot didn’t want her to stay.
She waited outside, lingering, trying to buy as much time as possible. It was
actually beautiful and soothing to be out in the garden which was filled with
small cobblestone walks winding between beds of rich flowers.  Over on the far
side was a grape arbor with a small bench inside it. Cindy walked over to the
arbor, went in, and sat down. Delightful breezes wafted through the enclosure,
refreshing Cindy and soothing her mind. She wondered how long she could stay
hidden here, before Margot came looking for her.

To
Cindy’s surprise as she sat, waiting, no one appeared. Cindy was left alone in
the tranquil beauty of this home, which would soon be coming to an end.  The
man she thought she was married to was also married to someone else - and had a
child with her as well! Cindy could barely absorb it. This turned the case on
its heel. She had no idea how Margot would be able to handle the shocking news
that lay in front of her. She seemed herself like one of the hothouse flowers,
so carefully planted here. Although she’d seemed cold and distant in the
beginning, as Margot relaxed and opened, Cindy developed a liking for her. She
appeared to be a fine, delicate woman, who had just lived her life in a world
of her own.

Margot’s
home would be about half an hour’s drive for Mattheus. Cindy wondered how long
she could really stay, before Margot came to the arbor to find her. To Cindy’s
surprise, time passed uneventfully for what seemed like a long while. Then
Cindy saw a shadow approaching on the ground, coming towards her. She stood up
and walked to the edge of the arbor, as Graham approached. He stopped when he
saw Cindy standing there in the shade.

“We
wondered what became of you?” said Graham, edgy.

Cindy
looked at him closely now. Now she knew who he’d reminded her of! His father,
Paul.  It was shocking to realize that Paul not only had a second wife, but a
son he’d been raising. There was also an intensity about Graham that Cindy
found him interesting.

 “I
was just taken a moment’s rest in the shade,” she said. “I hope it’s okay.”

“It
fine,” Graham answered, surprised. “My mother was looking for you, down at the
other end of the garden. She said that you disappeared into thin air.”

For
no reason a pang of deep sorrow for Graham came over Cindy. As he looked at
her, he suddenly seemed excruciatingly forlorn.

“I’m
so sorry,” said Cindy.

“About
what?” Graham asked, his dark eyebrows curling. “And why did you really come to
see us?”

Cindy
saw that he couldn’t really make out why she wanted to talk to his mother. It
bothered him.

“Sometimes
events have a life of their own,” Cindy started to say, desperately wanting to
prepare him also for what lay ahead. “Things happen that we can barely imagine.
Our lives get turned upside down.”

He
listened more closely, his eyes slowly glistening. Cindy could see that he
understood every word that she said.  She wondered if he’d had some sense of
trouble.

“The
more we struggle to get out of a bad situation,” Cindy continued, “the more we
can get trapped in it.” She didn’t know exactly why she was saying that to him,
but he absorbed every word she said.

Just
as he was about to respond, there was a crunch of noise behind him.

Margot
arrived. “Well, here you are,” she said to Cindy. “My goodness. I’ve been
looking all over for you.”

Cindy’s
heart began beating strongly.  “I’m so sorry,” she said, “it’s so beautiful
here. I couldn’t resist stopping in and sitting down for a moment.”

Margot
looked at her strangely. “I find that odd, very odd.”

“I’m
terribly sorry,” said Cindy.

“How
long do you plan to stay?” Margot continued, “and what are you saying to my
son?”

Margot
was right not to go along, thought Cindy. She wasn’t being straight forward.
There was no reason to play these games with her, either.

“Listen,”
said Cindy, “when I called my partner, he asked me to stay here until he
arrived.”

Margot
looked outraged. “I beg your pardon?” she said. Then she turned to Graham. “Graham,
go to your room. There’s absolutely no reason why you should be involved in
this.”

“I
want to be here,” he started.

“No,
it isn’t okay. Go to your room.” Her voice took on a shrill, demanding edge
that could not be easily turned down.

“Don’t
push me away,” he said, nervous.

“I’m
not pushing you anywhere, I’m just telling you to go.”

Graham
turned and walked away, throwing Cindy a long look over his shoulder.

“You
have a wonderful son,” said Cindy.

“It’s
irrelevant,” said Margot. “You’re not here on a personal visit. Who’s your
partner and what’s going on?”

“My
partner and I are private detectives,” said Cindy.

Margot’s
hands tied into tight little fists.  “And what has that got to do with me?”

Mattheus
had told Cindy not to say anything until he arrived. He should be here any
moment, Cindy figured.  She’d pave the way for Margot slowly, start to prepare
her for what lay ahead.

“You
know there was a murder on the main island. My partner and I were called down
to investigate it,” Cindy began.

Margot’s
irritation seemed to grow. “So?” she said.

“Heather
May told me I’d find out all I needed to know about the case right here.”

“You’re
repeating yourself,” Margot rubbed her foot on the ground, almost as if she
were stamping out a bug that was annoying her.  “We already said that was
ridiculous.”

“I
didn’t believe Heather either in the beginning,” said Cindy. “But now I realize
it was true.” Just at that moment, Graham came running back to the arbor, his
face white.  “Police cars are pulling up to the house, mom,” he called loudly.

“What?”
Margot gasped.

“Come
and see for yourself.”

Margot
turned and fled with Graham to the front of the house.  Mattheus had arrived -
he’d probably brought back up with him.  This was a huge break in the case.  It
couldn’t be kept under wraps long.

Cindy
walked slowly back to the living room, dreading what was to come. By the time
she arrived, Mattheus and three cops were surrounding the photos of Paul. 
Brayton was there, along with Nojo and another cop Cindy didn’t recognize, who
was taking pictures of everything. Margot stood near the sofa, terrified.
Graham was nowhere to be seen – she’d probably sent him to his room again.

“Please
sit down, Miss,” Brayton said to Margot.

“Not
Miss,” said Margot icily. “Mrs. Gregory Kowan.”

Mattheus
came over and stood beside Cindy. “Great work,” he whispered in her ear.

It
felt good to hear that and to have him here.

Brayton
held the photo of Paul in his hands.

“This
intrusion is unacceptable,” said Margot, “I’m going to call my husband right
now.” Her body began to tremble.

Brayton
took pity on her for a second. “It won’t be necessary,” he said in a softer
tone. “Just sit down a minute. We need to talk to you.”

Margot
obeyed automatically and sat on the edge of the sofa, upright.

“Listen,
we don’t mean to frighten you,” Brayton went on. “But the guy in this picture
is someone we’re familiar with.”“

“You’re
familiar with my husband?” Margot’s eyes flitted back and forth between
everybody, unable to comprehend.

“You
haven’t seen the papers recently?” Brayton went on.

“What
papers?” Margot asked breathless. “I read our local papers. What have your
papers got to do with anything? Has something happened to Gregg?”

“We
know your husband by a different name.”

Brayton
was doing a fine job, thought Cindy. Nojo stood behind him for support, his
face impassive, taking it all in.

“What
name do you know my husband by?” Margot’s voice started to teeter.

Brayton
kept going evenly. “We know him as Paul Robbins, a well-known criminal defense
attorney.”

Deep
confusion spread over Margot’s eyes. “Who?”

“Paul
Robbins was murdered about two weeks ago.”

Margot
stood up swiftly. “But Gregg Kowan was not.”

“They’re
one and the same,” said Brayton.

 “This
is ridiculous,” Margot yelped. “Obviously, you have my husband mixed up with
someone who looks just like him. My husband’s fully alive, doing business right
now on another island.”

Cindy
turned at that moment, and saw Graham outside, at the edge of the door, crunched
up against it, listening in.

“When
did you last speak to your husband?” Brayton asked.

“When
he left for his trip,” said Margot, “about three weeks ago.”

“You
haven’t spoken since? He didn’t call you?” Brayton looked surprised.

“We
weren’t necessarily accustomed to speaking when he was out of town,” said
Margot. “It wasn’t his way.”

Brayton
took a long breath and swallowed. “What kind of work was your husband in?”

“He
imported and exported antiques and art objects,” she said matter of factly, as
if the world as she’d known it still existed. “He had a large business in many
places – franchises.”

“Were
you close to your husband?” Brayton asked suddenly.

“I
beg your pardon?” Margot bristled. “That’s absolutely no business of yours.”

“Just
wondering how a husband can leave town for such a long time and not check in
even one time?”

Cindy
saw Mattheus look away.

“We
did fine,” said Margot. “We had our patterns and were happy with them.” Then
she stood up abruptly. “This is enough. You have to leave now. I’m exhausted. I
want to call Gregg.”

“I’m
so sorry,” said Brayton, “but we’ve got a long way to go.”

“The
man who was killed is not my husband,” Margot said staunchly. “There’s been a
stupid mix up of some kind.”

“I
wish that were true,” said Brayton.

“It’s
this woman’s fault,” Margot turned shrill and furious to Cindy, then. “You did
this. You created this nightmare. Who asked you to come here and visit? I
should have never let you in.”

Cindy
shriveled inside.

“My
husband’s alive,” Margot demanded violently. “I’m calling him this instant and
putting him on the phone. Then all of you will get out of here and never return.”

She
tore over to her phone, which was sitting on a carved, end table and dialed
frantically.  Obviously, a message machine picked up.

“Gregg,
call me immediately. There’s been an insane misunderstanding and I need you to
call to straighten it up.” Then she hung up. “He’s not there now.”

Cindy
walked over to her. “Is there someone else you can call?” she asked kindly.

“I
don’t usually call anyone. I don’t intrude in his life this way. How does it
look to have your wife chasing him down?”

“It’s
an unusual circumstance,” said Cindy gently.

“I
can call his personal assistant,” Margot was trembling.

“Good,”
said Cindy, “why not give a call?” She realized that it would be better for
Margot to talk to others, slowly absorb the fact that her husband was no longer
around.

Margot
grabbed her phone again and started dialing. “You see what a humiliating
position you’re all putting me in.”

Nojo
shook his head as Margot dialed, a look of pain crossing his face. The world he
lived in and hers intermingled for a moment and he felt the torment Margot was
going through. Cindy was touched to see him caring.

Margot
clung to the phone as it rang and rang. Finally, someone picked up. “Wendy,”
Margot said, breathless, “this is Margot Kowan.” She paused a moment, and then
went on quickly. “I have to get in touch with Gregg right away. We have a mini
emergency here. No, it’s fine, no one is hurt. Do you happen to know where he
is now?”

A
long silence followed.

“Are
you sure?” Margot continued weakly. “Really? What day exactly did he fly back?
Well, no, he didn’t return home. No, I haven’t seen him. Please, wait a minute,
don’t get frightened. I’m sure we can figure out where he is now. I’ll call you
back later.”

Margot
walked gingerly to the end table, and put the phone down, just before her body
slowly buckled, landing her on a nearby chair.