“I was going to tell you, but I wanted it to be the right time,” my voice is sympathetic. She pulls away. She won’t look at me. “I wanted to have all the teas properly blended. I promise I was going to tell you when we were closer to launching the business.” Sliding her chair back, she stands up and walks into the house after Cindy.
I thought I’d have a moment to gather my thoughts, but one of them decides to increase the volume on the TV. The music is blaring and my house sounds like a discotheque.
I gaze through the glass door and see them hugging. Cindy pulls back, holding Val’s hands and soon they’re dancing in the living room. All that's missing is a mirrored disco ball hanging from the ceiling. I envision a globe dangling and shining, adding a little sparkle to the place. Women like sparkle, I know for a fact. My last wife bedazzled everything she got her greedy little hands on, hats, jackets, shoes… everything except me.
Here come the gals, side-by-side, back through the door and out onto the deck. They’re jumping around and pointing to each other, singing along to the song that’s playing. It's a catchy tune, but I’ve never heard it before.
I listen more carefully and try following the lyrics. Something about a ‘cocktail bar and working as a waitress.’ I can see why they like this song. I met Val in a cocktail bar when she was working as a waitress.
Tapping my feet, I smile and continue to listen. ‘Picking you up and turning you around.’ Yep, exactly what I did for my Val. I picked her up and turned her life around.
Now they’re bopping and circling each other, really getting into it. They each sing a line and then laugh out loud.
The mood has certainly lightened, and I can't help but laugh along with them. They both turn and point to me, belting out the words.
“Don’t you want me, baby?”
Jumping out of my chair, I shimmy over to Val, showing her my best dance moves.
“Hey, you guys, this is your song!” Cindy yells, wedging herself between us. She slips one arm around me, and one arm around Val, turning us into a Cindy sandwich.
“Could these lyrics be any more true?” Cindy shouts. She soon breaks away from us.
I watch as she bounces over to the end of the deck. The song is still playing and I see her teetering too close to the edge. The vision flashes before my eyes and I shut them tight, forcing the sight away. That horrific, bloody, tragic scene. Will it ever go away?
When I open my eyes, Cindy’s arms are flailing and she’s balancing on one foot. I sprint into action and rush over to grab her. She twists to the side as her leg gives way mere seconds from falling off the deck.
35
Valerie
“How's your ankle?” I asked Cindy as she sat on the floor, massaging her leg.
“It's a little sore,” she grimaced. “I’m thankful I didn't break anything.”
“I can't believe you almost fell off the deck last night.”
“Yeah, all that dancing and wine…”
“Too much wine once again.”
“It was all in good fun.” She smirked.
“You should've seen the look on David's face when he grabbed you. He turned white as a sheet. I’ve never seen anyone so terrified.”
“Probably because of the huge rock on the ground, right below where I was standing. Gosh, Val, can you imagine if I fell on that thing? I could have cracked my head wide open,” she quivered.
“I know,” I replied. But I can’t help thinking his reaction was due to something else. He looked almost grief stricken.
Wiggling her toes, Cindy adjusted the bandage wrapped around her ankle. “I feel so bad going through his personal things. I mean, the man just saved my life.”
“But you promised to help me solve this puzzle.”
“I know I did, but are you sure about all of this? About the—”
“You have to believe me. I’ll show you. I know it's in here somewhere.”
We sat in the living room digging inside David’s box. I needed to show Cindy the papers I found with my name on them, proof of the insurance plan he had taken out on me. She watched as I flipped through each and every file, but the folder was nowhere to be found.
“It's not here… it’s gone.” Sitting back on my heels, I frowned.
“Maybe you didn't see or read it right. C’mon Val, you can barely speak, let alone read Spanish.”
“Okay, okay, just help me put the files back then.” I huffed, feeling defeated. “I’ll show you the wooden box. I know exactly where it is.”
“Whatever,” she shook her head.
We trudged outside and into the garden, Cindy limping behind me. Since her shoe size was smaller than mine, my rain boots fit perfectly over her bandaged ankle.
When Cindy first twisted her ankle, she kept moaning in pain. David had offered to take her to the hospital for an x-ray to make sure it wasn’t fractured but she whined about not trusting the doctors in a third world country. As much as David consoled her, assuring she would be adequately cared for, she declined. Having had many sprained ankles in his past, he knew what to do and was kind enough to attend to her needs. Thankfully he had a first aid kit tucked under the bathroom sink. He said you should always be prepared for the unexpected.
I stood at the edge of the garden, scratching my head, bewildered. There were bright pink hibiscus plants scattered throughout. Last week there had been only one.
“What's the matter?” Cindy asked, hobbling over to me.
“David planted a whole bunch of new flowers,” I said, walking over to the other side where I counted ten pink hibiscus plants. “I’ll have to dig them all up to find it,” I sighed in frustration. “Maybe Max can help me sniff it out. I’ll go untie him; he was the one who found
