Marty Casale, only two years older than Angie, stood at the counter rolling out biscuit dough with a flour-speckled apron tied around her thin but shapely body. She turned and smiled, her face almost as pretty as Angie's, except for the deep lines etched in her forehead and around her mouth. A face depicting a hard life. "Good morning, Mrs. Nevers. What would you like for breakfast? Biscuits are almost ready."
"A nice cup of black coffee to start." Angie rubbed her temples. "Champagne always gives me a headache."
"You gave a nice party."
"Thank you. But no one would miss a celebration that served Marty Casale's hors d'oeuvres."
Marty's cheeks turned a rosy pink. She ducked her head, grinning broadly.
Pouring a cup of coffee, Angie touched Marty's shoulder. "I'll eat with Bud when he gets back from golfing. You know him, a creature of habit. He'll hit this door famished as soon as his game is over."
*****
Ken Weber, Bud's right hand man at the company, accompanied him on the golf course. They'd known each other since college and together had formed Nevers Computer Technology; Bud, the CEO and Ken, the President.
Ken stood head and shoulders above the foursome of men as they said their good-byes at the edge of the course alongside the parking lot. Bud turned his clubs over to the caddy and started for the clubhouse. Ken's long strides soon caught up with his rapid pace. "Hey, Buddy, what's with you today? Your game showed maybe too much champagne last night?"
"Partly."
Bud had noticed Ken eyeing him through the set of eighteen holes and expected his questions.
"Something bothering you?"
"You could say that." Bud paused, "Melinda paid me a visit."
Ken stopped in his tracks, his sharp green eyes narrowed. "When?"
Bud continued walking. "Last night at the party."
"What the hell?" He hastened up alongside Bud. "I didn't see her."
"Fortunately, I stopped her before she got inside"
"Shit. What'd she want?"
"You realize she's graduated from college and is twenty-three years old? Hard to believe."
Ken nodded.
"She doesn't want the money to stop. If it does, she'll talk. Said her mother's furious, but she doesn't care. She's taking the matter into her own hands now." He halted and looked at Ken. "But that's not all that's bothering me. What in the hell is ABC Wafer Company?"
Startled, Ken stepped back. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm not an accountant, Ken. But something fishy is going on with the books."
Ken rubbed the back of his neck and looked out over the golf course. "Damn. Then we better get an auditor."
A woman's voice from across the parking lot distracted them. "Ken! Bud! How'd you do?"
Sandy, Ken's wife, who'd been playing tennis on the club's courts, came toward them. "Oh dear, looks like I've interrupted a serious conversation."
Bud watched Ken put on a big grin and slip his arm around her shoulders. "No problem, just trying to figure out why Bud's swing fell so short today."
Sandy raised a finely-arched brow and grinned. "What you're saying is the other guys whipped your butts."
Bud forced a smile. "Yeah, something like that."
Sandy glanced at Ken. "Ready to go?"
"Yeah." He threw a skeptical look over his shoulder at Bud. "We'll talk later."
Bud watched the couple walk away. Then with a sigh, he headed toward his car in the parking lot.
Driving home, he thought about how he'd broach the subject of Melinda to Angie. It wouldn't be easy; he knew she'd be full of questions. Suddenly, a news bulletin came over the radio mentioning the local high school. Bud turned up the volume. He learned that Highway Seventeen had been closed due to a serious accident involving a semi-truck and a school bus full of high school seniors heading for the beach. He remembered Ken mentioning that his twin girls were going to the beach with their school today. Swerving to the side of the road, he made a U-turn.
The minute he approached the Weber's driveway, he saw Ken and Sandy backing out. He sensed the twins were on that bus. Ken rolled down the car window, his face pallid. "There's been a wreck."
Bud nodded. "I heard on the radio. That's why I'm here. Any news?"
In tears and looking on the verge of hysteria, Sandy wiped her eyes. "Not yet." Her voice trembled. "We're on our way to the hospital now."
Bud watched as they gunned past him. "Dear God," he said aloud. "I do believe things come in threes. First the accounting entry, then Melinda's visit and now this wreck."
When he got home, he rushed inside and tuned the television to the local news station.
Angie hurried into the TV room. "What is it?"
He pointed at the screen. "Bad wreck. The Weber twins were on that school bus."
Her hand went to her mouth as she stared at the overturned yellow bus hanging halfway over the edge of the road. "Are you sure the girls were on it?"
"Yeah, I just left Ken and Sandy. They're pretty shook up and were headed for the hospital."
Angie slid into the chair, her eyes glued to the TV coverage of the grisly wreck as paramedics lifted a stretcher with a covered body into an awaiting ambulance.
Bud shot a sideways glance at her, folded his arms across his chest and continued to watch the news. He felt guilty that this tragedy bought him time at the expense of the Webers' girls. At least for a while, he wouldn't have to answer questions about Melinda.
Chapter Two
The small community rallied together after the accident. Having no children of her own, Angie loved Cindy and Wendy Weber as if they were and felt great relief that the twins had survived the horrific crash with only minor cuts and bruises. However, she still worried about their mental state after Sandy told how they'd watched as a classmate bled to death.
Angie spent most of the next few days at the Weber home, offering comfort to the girls and helping Sandy. At Marty's insistence they prepared meals for the families of the victims and for those exhausted parents spending long vigils at the hospital with their critically injured children. Angie delivered those dinners and lunches. The week passed in a blur.
Bud sat in his office, glued to the computer, tapping a pencil on the desk. The more he studied the books, the more hidden entries he found. He now knew that someone had skimmed a lot of money out of the company, deleting profit over a long period of time. He tossed his pencil across the desk. To think he'd trusted his staff without reservation. But the evidence proved that someone had betrayed him. Hands clasped behind his back, he went to the window and stared out. He'd have to call in an auditor to find the full extent of the embezzlement.
Rubbing his neck, he sighed. As if he didn't have enough on his mind, Melinda had to enter the picture. There hadn't been an opportunity to sit down and discuss it with Angie. But he knew she would bring it up soon, especially now that the twins were better. He let out another deep sigh and rubbed his temples. "Why can't life be simple?" Grumbling, he locked the files on the computer and shut down. "Might as well go home and get it over with."