Death by Proposal by Jaden Skye

turning his back to Carl.
    “Of
course you’re in on it,” Cindy stepped closer to Mattheus. “And I did tell you
about it, last night.”
    “You
told me how you were feeling, not that you were going downstairs in the morning
and make it official.”
    Cindy
took a step back. “Mattheus, time is passing. We’ve let too much time go as it
is. For all we know the police are about to finish up interviewing the guests.
Then people can leave. Valuable evidence goes with them. This isn’t a game.”
    “The
police do plan to finish up interviewing guests this afternoon,” Carl added
swiftly.
    Cindy
looked at Mattheus with alarm. “There’s no way the police can do this
thoroughly and finish up today,” she insisted. “We should have been on it from
the start.”
    Tyra
stood up, swaying a bit, holding her face in her hands, “Oh I’m sorry, I’m
sorry,” she began murmuring. “I never wanted to cause any harm, never, ever.”
    Carl
walked over to her swiftly. “You didn’t cause any harm, Tyra. This is not your
fault.”
    “But
he’s so angry with us,” Tyra pointed to Mattheus.
    Mattheus
shook his head and took a step closer. “I’m not at all angry with you,” he said
in a softer tone, “I’m just upset with the way all this has gone down.”
    “He’s
upset with me,” Cindy said to Tyra.
    “That’s
not good either, is it?” Tyra turned to Carl.
    “That’s
what happens in cases,” Mattheus spoke slowly, trying to calm the waters. “Pain
erupts, suspicion, horror, one misunderstanding after another. Everyone
involved becomes upset.”
    “Then
misunderstandings turn into understanding. Flashes of insight come. Truth prevails,”
Cindy spoke strongly.
    “But
he’s mad at you,” Tyra kept looking back and forth from Cindy to Mattheus.
    “I
don’t take it personally,” said Cindy, as Carl stared protectively at her.
    “Neither
did Kate,” Tyra went on, “she never, ever took anything personally. When
someone was mad at her, she made excuses. Carl always begged her to do
something, but she never would. She also used to say she didn’t take it
personally. But, look where it got her. Look.”
    Mattheus
and Cindy sighed deeply together at the same moment.
    “Cindy’s
right,” Mattheus said softly. “I am not angry with her, it’s not personal. I’m
just upset at the turn of events. I was hoping for something else. I was
looking forward to it.”
    “Us,
too,” said Carl, between gritted teeth. “We were hoping to see Kate come home,
happy and refreshed. We were hoping to see her live a life, get married, have
kids.”
    Cindy’s
head spun as Carl spoke. She knew she’d done the right thing.  Was it suicide?
That had to be proven as well. It would be too easy to tie the case up quickly
and throw away the value of this young woman’s life. Cindy knew how important
it was to find out what truly happened and give Kate’s family some measure of
peace.
    “I’m
also sorry for your loss,” Mattheus added. “Don’t think the case doesn’t matter
to me.”
    “You’re
on board then?” Carl asked Mattheus quickly, as his hands clenched at his
sides.
    “Yes,
I’m on board,” Mattheus agreed quietly.
    “Thank
you,” Carl nodded formally then. “I’m sure that will make a huge difference to
Cindy.”
     “Yes,
it will,” Cindy added promptly, “I need Mattheus. He’s a wonderful detective. I’m
not the same person without him.”
    A
smile played around the corner of Mattheus’s mouth, as Cindy spoke.
    *
    The
four of them had a quick, tense breakfast and then Cindy and Mattheus went
straight to the police to let them know they were on board. Before they left, Cindy
told Carl and Tyra that she and Mattheus would be talking to them in depth
later on, and would keep them informed of their progress.
    Carl
grabbed Cindy’s hands to thank her once again.
    “I
don’t know you very well,” he said emotionally, “but my gut tells me, you’re
the best.”
    “We’re
the best,”