from her pinstripe coat dress.
“Basically, I went with your colors for the corporate logo,”
Renie said. “I only tweaked them a little. You’ve got a good
eye, Margo.”
“You can’t go wrong with black on red,” Margo replied,
SNOW PLACE TO DIE / 27
grimacing as she took in the damage to her outfit. “You did
keep that concept, didn’t you?” Her almond eyes pinioned
Renie.
Renie, however, seemed unperturbed. “I reversed it. TIOSE
isn’t a firefighting unit, it’s a telecommunications company.
You use a red background, you’re stuck with it for everything.
It’s too hot, it lacks class. Black is much more versatile. You’ll
like it when you see it. Your basic colors were a great idea.”
If Margo was taken aback, she didn’t show it. “Okay, we’ll
see. I still think red is vivid and eye-catching. I’ve got Ward
Haugland’s vote on that. Max Agasias is in my corner, too.”
Renie chuckled softly. “I didn’t realize it was a democratic
process.”
Margo’s smooth skin darkened. “It should be.” With great
thoroughness, she wiped her hands on a towel. “You’re on
in thirty minutes,” she said to Renie. “I hope you’re ready.”
Renie smiled and inclined her head. Margo left the kitchen.
Judith started putting the puff pastry on dessert plates.
“She’s dangerous, coz,” Judith said. “Don’t these people
scare you?”
“Not anymore. I don’t know what went on out there in
the dining room, but I’d guess that one or more of them was
acting like a big brat. That’s what they are—spoiled children.
You have to treat them like that. Let them have their little
tantrums and allow them to show off a bit and give them an
occasional ego-massage. Then yank the chain. Every so often,
they have to get a dose of reality. If they don’t like it, I peddle
my wares someplace else.”
Judith didn’t try to hide her admiration of Renie. “You
don’t worry about losing clients?”
Renie shook her head. “That’s bound to happen. But the
marketplace is vast these days. If I lose somebody, two more
pop up. Besides, I don’t intend to lose this bunch.
28 / Mary Daheim
Unless,” she added with a little laugh as she reached for another cigarette, “they die on me.”
It didn’t occur to Judith that Renie’s little joke might not
be so funny.
THREE
AS SHE’D PREDICTED, Renie’s presentation went well. “There
were the usual glitches,” Renie reported to Judith three hours
later, “and of course they got to arguing among themselves.
But Killegrew still has the last word, and he seemed very
pleased.”
Judith gave Renie’s shoulder a congratulatory pat. “Good
for you, coz. I was worried, especially after that scene in the
dining room.”
“You can tell me about that now,” Renie said, opening a
duffel bag and pulling out a pair of old slacks and a Georgetown University sweatshirt. “I didn’t want to know about
it before I went onstage. It might have distracted me.”
While Renie changed, Judith recounted what she knew of
the incident between Margo Chang and Andrea PiccoloniRoth. “Mr. Killegrew took charge, and everything sort of
calmed down. There was another man who intervened, a
tall, lean guy with a faint drawl.”
“Ward Haugland,” Renie said promptly. “He’s the executive vice president, remember?”
Judith did, vaguely. “The only other one who spoke up
was a woman who looked as if she was Samoan. I guessed
her to be Ava Aunuu.”
“Exactly.” Renie slipped into thigh-high boots.
29
30 / Mary Daheim
“Ava’s a computer whiz. Frank Killegrew raided her from
one of the big computer companies about four years ago and
immediately made her a vice president. She’s only in her
thirties, but I’ve been told that she’s the person most responsible for bringing OTIOSE up to speed in terms of technology.
Frank’s strictly from the old school of engineering. That’s
why he keeps his trusty slide rule at his side. I don’t think
he’s figured out how to use a computer, let alone apply the
new technology to modern communications.”
Judith only half-heard Renie’s comments. It was a quarter
after four, and she was taking final inventory of the foodstuffs
she’d arranged for the rest of the weekend.
“Just before we leave, I’ll set up the supper buffet,” Judith
said, removing the soiled apron she’d worn since arriving at
the lodge. “They plan to eat at seven, right?”
“Yes.” Renie reached for her cigarettes, saw Judith’s disapproving glance, and began to nibble for the first time. A slice
of peach, a chunk of cantaloupe, and a plump strawberry
seemed to satisfy her. “Right now, they’re taking a breather,
then they’ll gather for cocktails around six. You’ve got chafing dishes, so you can put the hot food out around six-thirty.
Then we can head home.” Renie yawned and stretched.
“Sounds good to me,” Judith said. “Is there any reason why
we can’t have a look around now?”
Renie considered. “We probably shouldn’t go upstairs
where the guest rooms are located. But we could snoop
around the main floor. Oh, when I carted all my presentation
materials back to the car, the clouds had lifted, and you could
see the mountains. It’s beautiful outside.”
“Great,” Judith said, putting on the dark red three-quarter
coat Joe had given her for Christmas. “Let’s have a look before it starts getting dark.”
The cousins went out through the dining room, where Judith had cleared away the luncheon debris and reset the table
for the buffet supper. In the lobby, they paused to
SNOW PLACE TO DIE / 31
examine some of the art works more closely. There were
soapstone carvings, Native American masks, and a few pieces
of jade, which were kept under glass. The only painting was
a large, rather abstract mountain scene hanging above the
big stone fireplace.
Judith smiled wistfully when she saw the swirling signature
in the lower left-hand corner. “It’s a Riley Tobias,” she said
to Renie. “Doesn’t that bring back a few memories?”
Renie, however, made a face. “Not good ones, seeing how
we found him dead next door to the family cabin.”
Judith inclined her head in assent. “His art lives on, though.
He did some wonderful work at one time.”
“Let’s skip the body count,” Renie said. “You and I have
had our share of stiffs over the years.”
It was true. But Judith rarely marveled at her encounters
with premeditated death. She was married to a homicide
detective; she was engaged in a business which brought together all sorts of people, with all kinds of passions and
quirks; she had a natural curiosity and a penchant for the
unusual; she lived in a violent world. To outsiders, her daily
routine of personal and professional domesticity should have
invited calm. But coping with husbands, children, relatives,
in-laws, neighbors, and friends brought not only joy but
conflict. And the B&B guests ran the gamut from amiable to
zany. If Judith didn’t exactly live life in the fast lane, she was
accustomed to traveling a bumpy road with unexpected detours.
“Here’s the library,” Renie said, standing in the doorway
of a room off the far side of the lobby. “It’s nice.”