She smiled up at him, very sure about what she was going to say. “If it meant that I could have both you and my own peace of mind, I’d be happy. Yes, I’d be happy.”
At ten o’clock the following morning, Marni entered the boardroom. She’d chosen to wear a sedate white wool suit with a navy blouse and accessories. Her hair was perfect, as was her makeup. She knew that no one in the room could fault her appearance. She represented Lange well.
Twelve of the fourteen members of the board were present, talking quietly among themselves until she took her seat at one end of the long table. Her father was at the other. He stood stiffly, and the room was suddenly quiet.
“I will formally call this meeting to order, but since my daughter was the one who organized it, and since I am myself in the dark as to its purpose, I will turn it over to her.”
Ignoring both his glower and his very obvious impatience, Marni stood. She rested her hands lightly on the alternating stacks of papers that had been set there for her by her assistant. “Thank you all for coming,” she said with quiet confidence, looking from one face to the next, making eye contact wherever possible. “I appreciate the fact that many of you have had to cancel other appointments on such short notice, but I felt the urgency was called for.” Pausing, she lifted the first pile of papers from the stack, divided it and sent one half down each side of the table. “Please help yourselves. These are advance copies of our latest production figures, division by division, subsidiary by subsidiary. I don’t expect you to read through them now, but I think when you do you’ll see that the last quarter was the most productive one Lange has had to date. We’re growing, ladies and gentlemen, and we’re healthy.”
She went to the next pile of papers and passed them around in like fashion. “These are proposals for projects we hope to launch within the next few months. Again, read them at your leisure. I believe that you’ll find them exciting, and that you’ll see the potential profit in each.” She waited until the last of the papers had been distributed, using the time to bolster herself for the tougher part to come. When she had the attention of all those present once more, she went on quietly.
“It is important to me that the board knows of everything that is happening at Lange, and since I’m its president, and as such more visible than our other employees, I want you to be informed and up-to-date on what is happening to me personally.” As she spoke her gaze skipped from one member to the next, though she studiously avoided her father’s face. He would either intimidate or infuriate her, she feared, and in any case would jeopardize her composure.
“At some point within the next two months, I’ll be getting married. My fiancé’s name is Brian Webster. Perhaps some of you have heard of him. If not, you’ll read about him in the papers I’ve given you. He’s been chosen as the cover photographer forClass,the new magazine our publishing division will be putting out Let me say now that, although Mr. Webster and I knew each other many years ago, the decision to hire him was made first and foremost by the publishing division. At the time I didn’t realize that the man I knew so long ago was the same photographer New York has gone wild for. We met, and I realized who he was only after the contracts had been signed and he’d begun to work for us.”
There were several nods of understanding from various members of the group, so she went on. “The fact of my marriage will in no way interfere with the quality of work I do for Lange. I believe you all know of my dedication to the corporation. Mr. Webster certainly knows of it. My father built this business from scratch, and I take great pride in seeing that it grows and prospers.” She dared a glance at her father then. He was sitting straight, his eyes hard, his lips compressed into a thin line. She quickly averted her gaze to more sympathetic members of the group.
“You may be asking yourself why I felt it so important to call you here simply to tell you of my engagement. I did it because I wanted to assure you that I intend to continue as president of Lange. But there was another reason as well. There is,” she said slowly, “a very important matter concerning Brian Webster and my family that some of you may already know about, but which I wanted all of you to hear about first hand. There is apt to be speculation, and perhaps some ill will, but I’m counting on you all to keep that in perspective.”
She lifted her hand from the last pile of papers and sent them around the table. “Fourteen years ago Brian Webster and my brother Ethan were good friends. Brian was the one driving the motorcycle on the night Ethan was killed.”
Barely a murmur surfaced among those present, which more than anything told Marni that her father had been busier than she’d thought. The knowledge made her all the more determined to thwart his efforts to discredit both her and Web.
“What you have before you are copies of the police report from that night. You’ll learn that Mr. Webster was found entirely without fault in the accident. I’ve also included excerpts from articles about Brian and his work. They were gathered by the publishing division when it cast its vote for him as theClassphotographer. I don’t think any of us can fault either his qualifications or his character.”
She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. “There are some who will claim that Brian was responsible for Ethan’s death, and that I am therefore acting irresponsibly by thinking of marrying him. Once you’ve read what I’ve given you, I feel confident that you’ll agree with me that this is not the case. In no way could Brian Webster embarrass this corporation, or me, and in no way could he adversely affect the job I plan to do as your continuing president.”
She looked down, moistened her lips, then raised her chin high. “Are there any questions I might answer? If any of you have doubts as to my moral standing, I’d appreciate your airing them now.” Her gaze passed from one director to another. There were shrugs, several headshakes, several frighteningly bland expressions. And then there was her father.
With both hands on the edge of the table, he pushed himself to his feet. “I have questions, and doubts, but you’ve already heard them.”
“That’s right. I have. I’d like to know if any of the other members of the board share your opinion. If a majority of the others agree with you, I’ll submit my resignation as of now and seek a position elsewhere.”
That statement did cause a minor stir, but it consisted of gasps and grunts, the swiveling of heads and a shifting in seats, so that in the end Marni wasn’t sure whether the group was in her favor or against. Her gaze encompassed all those who would sit in judgment on her.
“I truly believe that what we have here is a difference of opinion between my father and myself.” She purposely didn’t include mention of her mother or Tanya. “It should have remained private, and would have, had it not been for calls that were made to several of you that I know of, perhaps all of you—which is why I’ve asked you here today. It’s not your place to decide who I should or shouldn’t marry, but since it is in your power to decide whether or not I remain as president of this corporation, I felt that my interests, and Brian’s, should be represented.
“As it is, someone tried to plant a story in one of the local papers.” She was staring at her father then and was oblivious to the other eyes that widened in dismay. “It would have been a scandal based on nothing but sleazy headlines. Fortunately, Brian is well enough respected in this community that the writer who received the anonymous tip very quickly dismissed it as soon as he heard the truth. Now—” her eyes circled the room again “—do any of you have questions I can answer before I leave?”
Emma Landry spoke up, smiling. “When’s the wedding?”
Marni smiled in return. She knew she had one ally. “We haven’t set the date yet.”
“Will we all be invited?” asked Geoffrey Gould.
“Every one of you,” she said, seeking out her father’s gaze and holding it for a minute before returning her attention to the group. There were several stern faces among them, several more meek. All she could do was to pray she’d presented her case well.
“If there are no further questions,” she said, taking a breath, “I’ll leave you to vote on whether I’ll be staying on as president. If you say ‘yes,’ I’ll take it as a vote of confidence in what I’ve done at Lange during the past seven years. If you say ‘no,’ I’ll accept it with regret and move on.” Her voice lowered and was for the first time less steady as she looked at her father a final time. “I’ll be at my mother’s awaiting your decision.”
That, too, had been a studied decision. Marni had felt that it would be a show, albeit false, of some support from her family. But she did want to tell Adele what she’d done. If she failed with this group, her mother would witness firsthand her pain. If she succeeded, it would be a perfect opportunity to try to swing Adele to her way of thinking.
Marni had no idea that Web was a full step ahead of her.
“I appreciate your seeing me, Mrs. Lange,” Web said after he was shown into the solarium at the back of the house. “I would have called beforehand, but I didn’t want to be turned down on the phone. I know that your husband is in the city at a meeting of the board of directors.”
“That’s right,” Adele said quietly. She was sitting in a high-backed wicker chair, with her elbows on its broad arms and her hands resting in her lap.
“You’re probably wondering why I’m here, and, to tell you the truth—” he rubbed the tense muscles at the back of his neck “—part of me is, too. It was obvious at our last meeting that you agree with your husband in your opinion of me, and I’m not sure I could change it if I wanted to.” He sighed and sat forward, propping his elbows on his thighs. He studied his hands, which hung between his knees, then frowned.
