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CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

Zinnia Rutledge stood gazing at the wall of framed photographs behind the credenza. She loved this office because of those photographs. She could have gazed at them for hours and never tired of it, though of course she never did. The memories they evoked were bittersweet.

At the sound of the door opening behind her, she turned.

"Hello, Zee, did I startle you?"

Zee quickly blinked away the tears in her eyes and resealed her emotions in the vault of her heart. "Hello, Carole. You did take me by surprise. I was expecting Tate." They had planned to meet here at his office and go to lunch together—a special date, just the two of them.

"That's why he sent me over. I'm afraid I'm the bearer of bad news."

"He can't make it," Zee said with evident disappointment.

''I'm afraid not."

"There's nothing wrong, I hope?"

"Not exactly. There's been a labor dispute going on within the Houston Police Department."

''I'm aware of that. It's been in all the papers."

"Well, this morning things came to a head. An hour ago, Eddy decided that Tate should go down there, assess the situation, and make a statement. The latest poll shows that Tate is closing the gap. He's only five points behind Dekker now. This volatile situation in Houston presented a perfect forum for Tate to get across some of his ideas, not only on labor versus management, but law enforcement, as well. They're flying down in a private jet and should be back in a few hours, but lunch is out of the question."

''Tate likes to fly as much as his father,'' she remarked with a wistful smile. "He'll enjoy the trip."

"Will you accept a poor substitute for his company?" The tentative invitation yanked Zee from her pensiveness.

"You mean have lunch with you?"

"Would that be so terrible?"

Zee looked her daughter-in-law up and down, finding little about her appearance to criticize. Carole had refined her image considerably since her recovery. She still dressed with flair, but her emphasis was now more on style than sexiness.

Carole's flamboyance had always repelled Zee. She was glad it had been subdued. The woman inside the impeccable clothing, however, was still just as distasteful as the first time she'd met her.

"I'll pass."

"Why?"

"You never knew when to let something drop, Carole." Zee tucked her handbag beneath her arm.

"Why don't you want to have lunch with me?"

She had taken up a position in front of the door, barring Zee from making a gracious exit. "My heart was set on having lunch with Tate," she said. "I understand why he had to cancel, but I'm disappointed and see no reason to pretend that I'm not. We have so little time together these days, just he and I."

"And that's what's really bugging you, isn't it?''

Zee's small body tensed instantly. If Carole insisted on a confrontation, Zee decided to give her one. "What are you implying?''

"You can't stand that Tate is spending more time with me. You're jealous of our relationship, which is stronger every day."

Zee gave a soft, scoffing laugh. "You would love to believe that, wouldn't you, Carole? You'd prefer to think that I'm merely jealous when you know that I was opposed to your marriage to my son from the beginning."