“Oh, partly,” she said. “The accounting department runs pretty smoothly anyway. Since Nancy left, it’s sort’ve been a mix of Alan and Derek and even Judith. They’ve managed to muddle through.”

“So how is Judith as CEO of Smythe?” I asked. “Another light bulb?”

Gwen smiled and shook her head.

“Well now, that’s a different situation altogether. Judith inherited her father’s brains, his moxie, and his talents. Now if she could just temper all that with a little of his kindness and compassion, she would be as crackerjack as her father.”

“She does seem a little brusque,” I said.

Gwen laughed.

“To put it mildly,” she replied. “It’s funny, but Judith was always very headstrong, very no-nonsense, even as a child. Her parents were both so sweet, so mild mannered. They never could quite figure out how to handle Judith.”

“She told me yesterday that she doesn’t even believe in God,” I said. “That must’ve been hard for such a devout man as Wendell.”

“Terribly,” Gwen said, nodding. “He carried a special burden for Judith’s salvation. They talked about it from time to time, of course, but her heart was just never ready to hear the truth.”

“How sad.”

“He never gave up hope,” she said. “Maybe now, with his death, she’ll begin to see the light.”

“Perhaps.”

Gwen stood and walked some more, pacing as she spoke.

“You know,” she said, “with Wendell gone now, I hate to admit it, but I’m not very worried for the company itself. I believe it will do fine under Judith’s direction—and Derek’s. We may stumble along the way a bit, but I think we’ll get our feet back under us soon enough.”

“That’s good.”

“My greater concern is with the big picture. I mean, with Wendell gone, who will steer this giant ship? Who will lead our way in the years ahead?”

Gwen was so emphatic that I felt a brief flash of pity for her. Had she been born in a different generation, one where women had the same opportunities as men, she might have risen to the helm of such a mighty ship herself.

“Surely there was a plan in place for the succession of leadership here,” I said.

“Oh, yes,” Gwen replied sadly. “Wendell knew the end was in sight for him. He made provisions. But, truly, there’s no one that could ever be big enough to fill his shoes.”

She blinked back tears, and I realized that she held Wendell in the same high esteem Tom did.

“So his death didn’t come as much of a surprise?” I asked gently.

She thought about that.

“A surprise? No. Difficult? Yes.”

“I’m sure.”

“Then I heard on the radio this morning that they’re calling it a murder. You have no idea what that does to me, Callie. It tears my heart out.”