Alan had their problems, but they were still married. If he
was about to be given a big job like the one at WaCom, he
must have discussed it with her.”
“But Andrea didn’t tell Frank,” Judith pointed out, heading
back to the kitchen.
“Obviously not.” Ava had grown thoughtful. “Nadia was
right—a merger will mean cutbacks and layoffs and all the
rest of it. Andrea would know that, which means…” She
stopped, staring at the silverware she’d just put into the
dishwasher.
“What?” Judith asked.
SNOW PLACE TO DIE / 197
Ava’s expression was wry. “Where did Nadia get all that
information she was spouting at the dinner table? Especially
the old stuff about Gene and Max and Russell? She was
about to start in on me, as well. Where did she get her data,
and why bring it up now?”
Judith thought back to the conversation, though the word
was only a euphemism for wrangling. “Frank was needling
people, too. Surely military records would be common
knowledge.”
“It doesn’t work that way,” Ava said. “People lie on their
resumes, they omit things they’d rather not have in their files,
they add accomplishments that didn’t happen. But somewhere along the way, particularly when someone is being
considered for a big promotion, a company will do a background check. It’s usually done by the security people who
fall under human resources at OTIOSE.” Ava gave Judith a
meaningful look.
“So Andrea would have been privy to all the dirt?” Judith
asked.
Ava nodded. “That, and what she’d pick up from rumor
scavengers like Barry Newcombe. But my point is, why now?
Did Andrea bring her files with her? Did Nadia get a look
at them and pass the information on to Frank?”
Judith tried to recall what she and Renie had found in
Andrea’s room. There had been personnel files, but they had
been so thick that the cousins hadn’t taken time to peruse
them. Judith, however, couldn’t admit as much to Ava; no
one must know they’d searched Andrea’s belongings.
“If that’s true,” Judith temporized, “Nadia must have found
those files after Andrea died.”
Ava gave a single nod. “The question is, how soon after
she died?”
Judith’s eyes widened. “You think Nadia is the killer?”
Ava made a helpless gesture with her hands. “No. Not
really. Unless…” She bit her lower lip.
“Unless what?”
198 / Mary Daheim
“Nothing. It’s all so…difficult.” Ava started for the dining
room. “Let’s finish cleaning up this mess.”
Judith decided she might as well change topics. “You
started in on Nadia’s background,” she remarked, removing
glassware from the table. “I take it you weren’t referring to
the personnel files.”
“I wasn’t,” Ava responded. “The story I’ve heard is that
Frank met Nadia when he went back for his tour of duty at
AT&T. It used to be that anyone from the associated companies who was on the rise spent a couple of years at
headquarters in New York. Nadia was a clerk-typist in what
they called the plant department then. Frank was already
married, but his wife didn’t move to New York with him.
Patrice Killegrew came from a wealthy family, and could afford to fly back and forth to join him for long weekends.
They had children in school, and she didn’t see any point in
uprooting them and moving back east for what would be a
relatively short time. As you might guess, the inevitable
happened.”
Judith kept pace with Ava as they walked back to the kitchen. “Frank and Nadia had an affair.”
“Exactly. It wasn’t a mere fling, it was serious,” Ava continued. “But as I said, Frank and Patrice had small children,
and she was rich. Not only that, but in those days, divorce
was frowned on by the upper echelon. Potential officer candidates were supposed to be solid citizens, untouched by
scandal. Frank couldn’t possibly dump Patrice.”
“So he brought Nadia with him when he was sent back to
the West Coast,” Judith said.
“That’s right. He promoted her every time he moved on,
and eventually she became his administrative assistant.” Ava
turned rueful. “I’ve often wondered if he did her any real favor. She might have been a bigger success on her own.”
Judith didn’t understand. “Meaning—what?”
Ava turned on the dishwasher, then leaned against it.
SNOW PLACE TO DIE / 199
“Nadia came along at a time when women were beginning
to rise in the Bell System. Oh, sure, there’s still a glass ceiling
and all that, but she’s smart, she has drive, she’s got the
makings of a good manager. Sometimes I feel she really runs
the company instead of Frank.”
“That crossed my mind, but I don’t know much about the
corporate world. Tell me,” Judith went on, recalling how
frantic Nadia had been when she thought Frank had had a
heart attack, “are they still…intimate?”
“Define intimate.” Ava laughed, a faintly jarring sound.
“Let’s put it this way—Nadia is more of a wife to him than
Patrice ever was. You can see that from the way they behave.
She does everything for him. And if you’re referring to sex,
my guess is that they still have that, too. Patrice is a very
cold woman.”
“Nadia’s not exactly warm and fuzzy,” Judith noted.
“You haven’t met Patrice. She could give those icicles
outside a run for their money.”
“But…Frank and Patrice stay married?” Judith couldn’t
keep the question out of her voice.
“Of course.” Ava’s manner was ironic. “If Patrice knows
about the relationship between Frank and Nadia, she ignores
it. Mrs. Killegrew—and it is definitely Mrs.—enjoys being
the wife of a CEO. Money and status are her substitutes for
love and sex. Besides, Frank could never risk a divorce.”
“Times have changed, though. Unfortunately,” Judith added.
“Not so much in the old boy network,” Ava said. “For the
most part, Frank’s peer group is still extremely conservative
and old-fashioned.”
“Well.” Judith tried to absorb everything Ava had told her.
The folded piece of paper with the notation about Hukle,
Hukle, & Huff didn’t necessarily indicate that a Killegrew
divorce was in the offing. And while Ava’s account of Frank’s
domestic triangle was interesting, Andrea’s personnel files
might have a more immediate bearing on the week- 200 / Mary Daheim
end’s events. Had Max been looking for them? How and
when had Nadia slipped away to Andrea’s room?
The folded piece of paper. It suddenly dawned on Judith
why it was important. “Ava,” she said as the other woman
started back for the dining room, “how long were you in the
bathroom with Nadia this afternoon?”
“What?” Ava looked at Judith as if she were crazy.
Judith felt embarrassed. “I don’t mean…It sounds stupid,
but…Really, I have a very good reason to ask.”
Ava’s expression grew serious. “Are you talking about the
time period when Ward was killed?”
“More or less, yes.”
“Oh, let me think.” Ava cocked her head to one side. “Five
minutes? I don’t know. However long it takes. I’m not much
for primping.”
“Are you sure it didn’t take longer than five minutes?” Judith persisted.