Death Vetoes The Chairman (Lizzie Crenshaw Mysteries Book 7) by Teresa Watson

before sliding into the booth next to Jake. “There’s a couple of rumors going around. One has you and Jake getting into it, which is why you had to go to the doctor today. The other rumor is that you two made fools of yourselves at that big shindig in Dallas last weekend. Someone said you two got into a fight with Ethan Winthrop.”
    Jake and I glanced at each other. “And what do you think happened, Maddie?” I said.
    “I know what happened. I have a friend who was the caterer for that function. The wait staff was talking about while they were cleaning up after the party. Sounds like Mr. Winthrop got what was coming to him, if you ask me. Is that why your wrist looks so swollen and bruised?”
    “No,” I shook my head, “something different.”
    She jerked her head in Gladys’ direction. “Watch out for Gladys. She has been here all week, waiting to pounce on you. Apparently, one of Charlene’s clients was also there that night, and her story was less than kind. She said your attack on him was totally unprovoked.”
    “Maddie!” someone called out from the kitchen. “Order up!”
    She stood up. “Whatever happened, I’m sure you two did what you thought was right. From what my friend said, you did.” She looked over at Gladys. “Don’t let her get to you. She’s going through a rough time right now.”
    Maddie walked away and I glanced in Gladys’ direction. She narrowed her eyes at me, tapped Charlene on the arm, and pointed at us. Since her husband Harold’s death by poisoning at the county fair three weeks ago, Gladys had alternated between mourning and being just flat out nasty to everyone around her. Despite the fact that we had helped keep her out of jail, she had actually been crueler to me than usual. It was one of the reasons I had been avoiding the café.
    “So, Charlene, have you heard any good gossip at your beauty parlor lately?” Gladys said rather loudly. I closed my eyes and shook my head.
    “You want to leave?” Jake said.
    “I’m not going to let her chase me out of here.”
    “Good girl.”
    “As a matter of fact,” Charlene replied, “I heard some really juicy gossip earlier this week.”
    “Do tell! I haven’t heard a good scandalous story in quite a while.”
    “Well,” Charlene said, taking a drink of her tea before starting her story, “you remember that big fundraiser they had at that fancy hotel in downtown Dallas about a week ago?”
    “You mean the one where it was $5,000 per plate for people to get in?”
    I looked at Jake. “It cost you $10,000 for us to go to that thing?”
    “It was for a good cause,” Jake shrugged.
    “That’s the one,” Charlene said. “It was hosted by Ethan Winthrop. Miriam and Wesley Calhoun were two of the attendees. I know this because I did her hair that afternoon. Anyway, she came into see me on Thursday, and she had a very juicy story to tell. It seems that a certain young lady managed to talk her way into the fundraiser, and made a fool of herself. Several people said she was throwing herself at that handsome Mr. Winthrop, even though she had gone there with someone else.”
    “The nerve! This younger generation just has absolutely no manners whatsoever,” Gladys replied, looking directly at me.
    “Isn’t that the truth?” Charlene agreed. “Anyway, at some point, they ended up on one of the patios that were around the ballroom, and she…well, I just can’t bring myself to mention all the scandalous details of what she tried to do to him. When Mr. Winthrop came back inside trying to get away from her, she accused him of attacking her. Her date punched the poor gentleman, knocking him to the ground.”
    “Considering how influential and rich Mr. Winthrop is, she was probably trying to get an exclusive interview with him, or trying to talk him into making a donation to her failing business. I wouldn’t put it past her.”
    “Me either,” Charlene replied, shaking her head sadly. “It’s just a shame that