Cactus Island, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 8

CHAPTER 28

  MANIPULATION

  Since Cheryl's trial had been set for early March and Stan would have to be up to speed on all aspects of the case in the event something happened to me, I asked him to join me when I confronted Cheryl about the bank accounts. He said that was a good idea, so I set up a meeting. It would be a tricky meeting because Cheryl, if she was telling the truth about all that had happened, would be grieving and I certainly didn't want to cause her any more heartache. I would have to be very delicate in the way I questioned her.

  As I was thinking about our meeting, Jodie walked in with a Hispanic young lady at her side. She said, "Paula, this is Maria, our new secretary."

  Stan and I had decided it would be better if we let Jodie hire her replacement as she obviously understood the job better than we did. Nor did Stan or I have the time to interview applicants and check their references. Maria was short with dark hair and big brown eyes. She had a cheery smile yet seemed sophisticated enough for the job. I extended my hand. "It's so nice to meet you."

  "She's very smart and types 95 words a minute," Jodie advised.

  "Wow! That's pretty impressive," I said.

  "And she has four older brothers so she's not easily intimidated."

  "Jes," Maria said. "I don't take any chit for anybody."

  I laughed. "You sound perfect for the job."

  "She speaks Spanish, of course, which will really come in handy since we have so many Hispanic clients."

  "Right. Well, welcome aboard, Maria. I'm looking forward to working with you."

  "Me too," Maria replied.

  "Oh," Jodie said. "Cheryl is here."

  "Okay. Tell Stan and show her in."

  Maria brought Cheryl in and she sat across from me in a side chair. A minute later Stan joined us. I asked her if she'd heard anything about her children and she said the FBI talked to her every day but there hadn't been any new developments. I told her that there actually had been a few developments that the FBI didn't know about.

  "Like what?" she asked.

  "I can't tell you exactly how we know this, but Stan's sources have been able to trace the money from the liquidation of your assets."

  Cheryl looked at Stan, "Really? So who has it?"

  "Before I answer that question, I want to remind you that whatever you tell us is confidential and cannot be used against you in a court of law. It's very important that you tell us everything that happened to you. If you don't it will only harm you in the long run."

  Cheryl stiffened. "I don't understand. I've told you everything."

  "Have you? According to our sources all your money is neatly tucked away in a bank account in the British Virgin Islands. Have you ever heard of the VP Bank? It's a German bank, I believe, but they have several branches around the world. One of them is in the British Virgin Islands."

  "No," she replied indignantly. "I don't even know where the British Virgin Islands are."

  "Well, I'm sure you could have found them when the time came?"

  "What do you mean—when the time came? Are you insinuating—"

  "Cheryl, our sources say you control the account. It's in the name of a Walter Johansen. Does that ring a bell?"

  She shook her head vigorously and glared at me. "No. I swear, Paula. I've never heard of Walter Johansen. This must be one of Martin's sick jokes. He disappears and then frames me for his murder. It's just like him, the dirty bastard. You've got to help me, Paula. You can't let him get away with this."

  I raised my hands in surrender. "Okay. . . . Okay. I believe you. I just had to be sure. We figured it was probably a set-up." I sighed. "Now all we have to do is prove it. We'll need your help to do that."

  "What kind of help?"

  "Cheryl," Stan said, "I know a doctor who can put you under hypnosis to help you remember what has happened to you. We need to know everything so we can properly defend you."

  Cheryl's body became rigid, her face turned pale, and she shook her head vehemently. "No. I can't go under hypnosis."

  Stan and I exchanged glances. He shrugged. I asked, "Why not?"

  "I just can't. It's out of the question. I won't do it."

  Looking her directly in the eye, I said, "Cheryl, explain to me why you won't. It doesn't make any sense unless you're afraid of what we'll find out."

  "I can't do it. I'm sorry. No hypnosis."

  "Cheryl, I understand you won't do it, but why not? Don't you think we're entitled to an explanation?"

  Cheryl looked out the window. There was a look of fear in her eyes. Finally, she turned and said, "Martin told me if I ever went to a shrink and allowed myself to be hypnotized I'd die a horrible death."

  "What?" I asked, incredulous. "When did he tell you this?"

  "The day we separated. He said shrinks are evil people who manipulate you and make you think people have harmed you when they haven't. He hates them and he's especially against hypnosis. He says when you're under hypnosis you're very vulnerable and can be made to do and think anything. He said he'd let me divorce him, but only on the condition that I'd never go to a psychiatrist or allow myself to be hypnotized. It seemed a little paranoid at the time, but I had no plans to ever be hypnotized, so I didn't really see that condition as being significant. I had forgotten all about it until you just now mentioned it. But Martin was quite serious. He'll kill me if I allow myself to be put under hypnosis."

  "But he's gone. He can't hurt you now."

  Cheryl shook her head. "No, he's out there somewhere. He had the children kidnapped and he'll kill me in an instant if I do anything to threaten him."

  "But how will he know you've been hypnotized?" Stan asked.

  She sighed. "He's watching us. He knows we're in here right now. I'm sure of it. He's always been very aware of everything I ever did. It annoyed me at first, but after a while I got used to it. You can't hide things from Martin. I promise you. If you try, you'll regret it."

  A horrible chill swept through me. Who was this man who had cast such a powerful spell over Cheryl Windsor? Even in his absence he controlled her. What had happened to the woman I had first met who was determined to extricate herself from the grip of this evil man? I looked at Cheryl and said, "Okay, Cheryl. We'll try to put up the best defense we can with what we have. But if you change your mind, let us know."

  "I will," she said. "I'm sorry I haven't been much help. Please forgive me."

  After Cheryl left, Stan and I sat in silence for a while. Finally, I said, "Well, that went well."

  "Yeah, didn't it?" Stan replied.

  "Why do you think Martin doesn't want her to be hypnotized?"

  "Well, it's one of two things. He's either afraid of what she'll remember if she's put under hypnosis, or—"

  "Or what?"

  "She's under hypnosis right now."

  Stan's observation jolted me. Cheryl had been acting oddly as of late. She seemed different from when I first met her. I thought back to when her personality had suddenly changed. It was about the time of Martin's disappearance. What had happened that day? Had Martin hypnotized her or had someone at the house done it for him? That might explain her loss of memory.

  "Let's see if we can get Dr. Gerhardt on the line. Maybe he can shed some light on the situation."

  I buzzed Maria and asked her to call Dr. Gerhardt for us. A few minutes later she buzzed back that he was on line two. Stan explained to him what Cheryl had just told us.

  "It's possible that she was hypnotized and told to forget certain events," Dr. Gerhardt said. "She must have consented to being hypnotized, however."

  "Maybe he made a deal with her," Stan said. "Cooperate or you'll never see your children again. He didn't trust her enough to be satisfied with just a promise, he wanted to take it one step further—hypnotize her so her conscious mind wouldn't remember any of it."

  "Fear is a great motivator," Dr. Gerhardt said. "It's possible she consented out of fear."

  "So, she's not in a hypnotic state right now, she's just acting under
a hypnotic suggestion?"

  "Yes, that's possible," Dr. Gerhardt said. "That may be why she doesn't remember the details of her children's abduction. When she was hypnotized, she may have been told to cooperate with the kidnappers and that after it was over she wouldn't remember anything."

  "Jesus. This is mind boggling," Stan said. "So, Martin may also have told her not to cooperate with us?"

  I rubbed my temples. "I'm so confused," I said. "How am I ever going to try this case if my client is programmed to torpedo her own defense?"

  Stan shook his head and said, "I'm glad it's you and not me."

  "Ah! Thanks a lot," I said.

  Stan laughed. "I'm joking. Don't worry. We'll figure this out. Just take a break for now. We have a lot to digest. Tomorrow it may not look so bleak."

  Stan's reassurances didn't make me feel any better. Not only was Martin Windsor in control of Cheryl's life, but it seemed he was controlling us as well. What was he up to and what did he have in store for us down the road? Somehow, I knew I wouldn't like it.