Let's Play Dead

question. Given the way things were set up, sounds like almost anyone with some basic knowledge plus access to the exhibit could have rigged Willy to shock someone.”

Barney shrugged. “Like I said, it’s a simple switch, so any electrician would know how to do it quick.”

I wasn’t sure if I’d made any progress, but I had all the information I could handle at the moment. “I appreciate your help, Barney. Let me know when you want to stop by and do some research into our baseball records and I’ll set it up for you. And if I have any more questions about the Society’s wiring, may I contact you?”

“Yeah, sure-as long as you keep me in mind when you get the money together to do something about it.”

“I’ll do that, I promise.” I doubted we’d find funding before Barney retired, but I owed him that much. I stood up. “I’ve got to catch my train. Shelby, are you leaving, too?”

“I am. Barney, good to see you again.”

Barney stood out of courtesy but said, “I think I’ll hang around for a while. Nice to meet you, Nell-and I’ll be coming around soon to check out your records!”

CHAPTER 16

The next morning I was editing the agenda for the Executive Committee meeting when I looked up to see Marty Terwilliger slouched against the door frame.

“You busy?” she asked.

“I’m always busy these days, but I can make time for you. Do you need something?”

Marty came in and sat down with a thunk that had me worrying about the chair. “We need to talk about the Executive Committee meeting.”

That was something I’d been putting off. Since I’d only held this job for a couple of months, I wasn’t exactly settled into a routine yet. The Society’s full board met quarterly, and the last one had been a doozy; most board members had gone away stunned and baffled. The Executive Committee was a subset of the board, made up of the core members who actually got things done, including Marty, and I had scheduled a committee meeting for tonight. Marty was right: we needed to talk about progress or lack thereof; I hadn’t even finished my reports. It was going to be another busy day.

I sighed. “In general, or you have some particular issues?”

“Both.” Marty laughed at the look on my face. “Relax. You’re doing as well as anybody could have expected, under the circumstances. But the board needs reassurance, and there are some specific issues we need to review. Assuming, of course, that you don’t waste a lot of time on the Let’s Play problem?”

“Why would I? Although Hadley Eastman dropped in on me, with steam coming out of her ears.”

“Why?”

“Why was Hadley here, or why was she steaming? She thinks I told Arabella that I thought she might have been the target of the incident, which I didn’t. Well, not exactly.”

Marty snorted. “Hadley Eastman apparently thinks everything is about her and her damned hedgehog. From what I’ve heard, she’s a real drama queen. She’s gone through three publicists in the last couple of years.”

“And you know this how?” I was always amazed at what and who Marty knew. She was definitely plugged into a lot of social networks-the kind that predated electronics.

“One of my nieces worked for her for a short while. She quit. Said Hadley treated her like a slave and never even said thank you.”

“Based on my very short acquaintance, that doesn’t surprise me. That’s how she treated Chloe, the assistant who was with her when she came to my office. But she is successful.”

“Maybe.”

I cocked my head at Marty. “Maybe? Have you heard something?”

Marty shrugged. “A friend of mine said that her books aren’t selling as well as they used to. Publishing is fickle-one day you’re hot, the next day you’re not. Maybe this whole mess is a boost for her sagging career.”

“Marty! Are you saying she electrocuted someone just to sell books?”

“Gets her name in the papers, doesn’t it? Look, I’m only guessing. But from what I’ve heard, I wouldn’t put it past her. Of course, she wouldn’t get her own hands dirty, but I’m sure she could find someone to do it for her.”

“Well, I assume the police will look into that. She said they’d paid her a call.”

“Good for them. That Hrivnak woman isn’t stupid, even if she lacks tact. Uh, there’s one other thing…” Marty glanced over her shoulder, then got up and closed the door. “It’s about Arabella.”

Now I was really curious. There was something to know about Arabella that required closed doors? “Is this something I need to know?”

“Maybe. I just thought I’d fill you in on some of the background, in case it comes up in this investigation. I think I told you already that she’s divorced, and the split was messy?”

“Yes. And I’ve met her daughter.”

“The divorce happened, oh, about twenty years ago, I guess.”

I laughed. “Marty, I was in high school then. Even if I had been here, I wouldn’t have paid any attention to Philadelphia gossip.”

“Oh, right-I forget you’re just a baby. Anyway, it wasn’t pretty. Arabella was married to a blue-collar guy, and she was working in some low-level position at Let’s Play. Like front desk, or maybe it was the gift shop. Her daughter was pretty young. The guy left her, and she was stuck with the kid and the mortgage. She really struggled for a while.”

“So how did she end up running Let’s Play?”

“I’ll give her credit-she hauled herself out of the pits, without any help. I can’t imagine how she managed, but she kept the job and worked her way up. She took night classes in business administration, to fill out her resume. She worked damned hard-and made friends with all the board, which didn’t hurt. I’ve got to say I admire her. She may seem sweet, but she’s got some real grit.”

I tried to read between the lines of what Marty was saying. “Are you telling me she’s a phony?”

Marty shook her head vehemently. “No, not at all. From everything I’ve ever heard, she really is a nice person. But you see the sweetness up front-there’s some steel behind it.”

“You think she had something to do with what’s happened?”

“No, I’m not saying that. She’s worked too hard to make the place what it is, and no way would she jeopardize it. It just doesn’t fit. Just keep in mind, she’s a lot tougher than she looks.”

“Has she made enemies along the way?”

“Maybe. There’s always somebody whose nose is out of joint about what’s being done, or what’s not. Look, Nell, you’re in a position to know something about all this. You’ve worked at several different places, and you know people at others. Isn’t there always some malcontent on the staff, someone who thinks he or she got passed over or isn’t getting enough attention? That kind of thing can fester. Maybe that’s what happened.”

I nodded. “I can see that, I guess. It just seems so incongruous, when you apply it to a children’s museum. Everything there is supposed to be cheery and happy.”

“That’s the way they want it to look, and believe me, they work hard to keep up that public image. But it’s a business, like any other. Have the police decided whether the death was accidental or deliberate?”

“If they have, they haven’t shared it with me. But the very fact that Detective Hrivnak is looking into it says something. She is a homicide detective, after all. By the way, I talked to an electrician-I’ll fill you in on what he said about the Society’s wiring-and he told me how the accident could have happened. I say could because he’d have to have more details to be sure. But how do we know if the person who set it up was thinking about murder? Maybe he just wanted a nasty accident, but not a death. Assuming, of course, that it wasn’t just sloppy work. Still, I could see one mistake, but two separate events? That has to be deliberate, doesn’t it?”

“Maybe. Anyway, that’s not something we should worry about. So-the meeting. What’ve you got on the agenda?” And we turned to the business of the Society. I was happy to tell her that we had no new problems since I’d taken the helm, but unfortunately most of the old ones were still with us. Marty outlined what she thought were the most pressing issues at the moment, most of which I’d already included on my agenda-they didn’t change much