Lucky introduced the other man as Stu Gortner, the person who, as Jane had guessed earlier, had debated Doris Schmidtheiser that afternoon. As soon as the introductions were done, Gortner begged off the walk idea. "Been a long day. Think I'll turn in," he said with a wink. Jane shuddered. She hated it when men she didn't know winked at her. There was something intimate and creepy about it.
"Ah, well, maybe I'll give it up, too," Lucky said. "And just sit with Jane for a minute. Do you mind?"
"Not a bit," Jane said politely.
When Gortner had gone, Lucky sighed and said, "I'm sorry. I won't intrude on your evening. I just had to get free of him."
"Why is that?"
Lucky sighed again. "I don't like to talk behind anyone's back, but that man is awful. Just awful. Invited me to dinner, then spent the whole time crowing about what he did to Doris. And poor old Doris dead! You'd think he'd know to show a little respect."
"Oh, you know she's dead? I didn't want to be the one to tell you. Craven of me, I guess."
"Yes, I know. Tenny called me to get some information for the sheriff about her family and who should be notified and such. But even if she hadn't, I'd have heard. Word's gotten around already."
"I didn't get to hear the debate," Jane said. "I understand Mr. Gortner made her look silly."
Lucky nodded. "And he wasn't playing fair, if I can use such a childish term. He's one of those people who tries to win people to his side by ridiculing his opponent."
"So his arguments on behalf of his — uh— candidate weren't better than hers?"
"Hell, no! Excuse me. Heck, no. He didn't present any really convincing evidence at all, just made everything Doris said look foolish. And, bless her heart, Doris could look pretty foolish all by herself without any help."
"Why would he need to do that? Just a naturally competitive spirit?"
"I wondered about that, too. Until tonight. See, part of the reason he invited me to dinner was to ask for the Society's backing on some plans he's got."
"Which are—?"
"See, Stu is an old P.R. man. Made a mint over the years pushing everything from pretzels to presidents of corporations. You wouldn't believe some of the people and things he claims took off like Roman candles because of his publicity. Anyhow, he's really latched onto his candidate, as you put it. He retired two years ago, and when the Iron Curtain came down, he took a trip to Holnagrad and met this guy— Stanislas Romanov."
"Is that really his name?"
Lucky looked at her. "That's a very perceptive question. I wish more people had the brains to ask it. I have no idea."
Jane kept glancing over her shoulder as tactfully as she could. No sign of Mel yet. "So he met Stanislas?"
"Right. Stu says he took up with him just to keep his hand in the business. Sort of like I work one day a week at the free clinic just to keep in touch. But Stu naturally turned his mind to how to make money off this man."
"He's found a way?"
"Has he ever! That's what he was bending my ear about. He's signed himself up as this guy's agent. Says he's very attractive — speaks English with a sexy foreign accent, has great Continental manners. All that. Stu wants to bring him over to this country, get him on TV, sell movie rights and book rights and Lord only knows what else. And he wants us to back him up. Sort of be his cheering section. The nerve!"
"That does sound sleazy. The Society won't go along with it, will they?"
"Not if I have anything to say about it. But Stu knows how to convince people of almost anything. He's already got a bunch of members in his corner. They say it's a great way to draw attention to our group and its concerns, make people aware of our heritage, enlist new members, all that. 'Course, they're being had. Stu's convinced them he's doing all this for the Society when he's just doing it for himself."
Mel came through the doorway and Lucky stood up suddenly. "I'm sorry for bending your ear like that. Just got a crawful. Have a nice evening."
Oh, I think I probably will, Jane thought.
It wasn't until Jane and Mel were leaving the lodge that she realized she was still carrying around Doris Schmidtheiser's file folder.
Chapter 9
"Do you know what I liked best?" Jane asked an hour and a half later.
"This?" Mel said, demonstrating. "Or maybe this?"
Jane laughed. "That's not what I meant. What I liked best was that before we came here, you'd already called and made sure the boys were all settled in your place with their dinner and their new Nintendo game."
"Only because I knew if I didn't, you would — and possibly at an inopportune time," he said, lazily stroking the curve of her shoulder.
Jane sat up, turned on the bedside light, and started looking around for her clothes. "That's exactly what I did mean. That you understand."
"I guess this is leading up to you turning back into Mommy any minute now."
Jane shrugged. "It is my job. And unlike you, I don't ever get a vacation. Do you mind horribly?"
"And if I did? Never mind. I don't want to know. I'll fix us some coffee."
"Darn it! I've still got that folder," Jane said, sorting through her things. "Doris Schmidtheiser's. I meant to give it to Lucky and it went right out of my mind when he started talking about that Gortner man."
As Mel walked Jane back to her cabin, she told him about her conversation with Lucky. "He was really shocked by and disgusted with Stu Gortner's attitude."
"And you think that means this Stu person killed Mrs. Schmidtheiser?"
"You're ruining my punch line. No, I don't mean that. But if it turns out that her death wasn't natural, I think he bears looking at. After all, her death removes the main obstacle to his promoting his candidate. Bill certainly isn't going to pursue his claim, and Pete doesn't know enough about genealogy, I don't think, to push it along himself."
"This is too strange to accept, Janey — the whole idea of trying to put somebody back on the throne in Russia."
"Of course it's nuts, but I don't think Stu Gortner has any interest in that angle of it. He just wants an interesting figure to promote as the rightful Tsar without getting involved in actual politics. Sort of a new Anastasia. Somebody had to have made a lot of money out of that poor woman. At least that's what Lucky led me to believe. Gortner just wants a celebrity to make money off of. Lucky talked about book contracts, movie rights and things like that."
"So what difference would Mrs. Schmidtheiser have made in the plan?"
"She was an outspoken fanatic who might well have trailed him around, debunking his guy's claim."
"But, Jane, it's absurd to think anybody would care enough about this to kill someone."
"It's absurd to us. But not to them. And as far as Stu Gortner is concerned, it's all about money. Maybe a lot of money. Isn't that what most people kill for? When someone is threatening their financial well-being?"
They'd reached her cabin. "We don't know that anybody was killed for anything, Janey. And even if she was, it's not our problem to solve. It's what's-his-name's. The sheriff."
"But—"
"But nothing. Say good night, Gracie."
Jane laughed. "Okay, okay. I give up." She rummaged in her purse for her key.
"Where've you been?" Katie asked when her mother came in.
The girls had MTV on, but, knowing Jane's loathing of the station, they switched to a movie channel as soon as she appeared.
"Oh, here and there," Jane said. "Mel and I ate at the fancy restaurant. You wouldn't believe what we had for dinner. Oh, look what movie's starting!"
"Just some old thing," Katie said, glancing over her shoulder.
"Some old thing! That's blasphemy! It's An Affair to Remember! Don't tell me you've never seen it."