Dripping wet, Val sloshed through the corridors heading towards her office, thankful she could grab a pair of scrubs to change into. She was not thankful when she bumped into Candace.

“What happened to you?” Candace asked.

Val began to wonder how bad she really looked. “You might be surprised to hear it’s raining outside.” She didn’t bother to hide how irritated she was.

“Don’t you keep an umbrella in your car? I keep one in my car and in my purse. My hair just takes on a mind of its own if the rain gets at it.”

“Thanks for the advice. I’ll try to remember it for next time.” She turned to walk away when Candace spoke again.

“Oh, I have a surprise for you. I left her in your office.”

Val stopped and turned towards Candace, staring at her impatiently, expecting to hear what she was talking about, but Candace merely crossed her arms and said nothing.

“Who is it?” Val was curt. She was in no mood for Candace’s games. All she wanted to do was change out of her wet clothing. The morgue was always kept fairly cool and she was already feeling uncomfortable.

“I’ll let her introduce herself. I wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

Val hurried to her office, nervous. Who in the hell could this be? When she arrived, there was a red-headed woman standing in it. “Can I help you?” she asked.

The woman was busy unloading items from a large cardboard box. She stopped once she heard Val. “You must be Valentina Knight,” the woman said, staring at Val’s dripping hair.

Val immediately felt self-conscious about her appearance and began to explain, “I was caught in the rain.” She reached a hand to her hair, pushing soggy strands from her face.

“The administrator, Candace, told me to wait for you here. Sorry I seem a little disorganized. Today’s my first day of work.”

“Oh, you must be one of the new public relations people.” Val relaxed and sized this woman up. She was attractive, with curly auburn hair. She stood about five foot nine inches and had to be in her late thirties or early forties. Yes, she belonged in a public relations department. All of the people working there were pretty. They looked good in news interviews. She had heard about the new PR people who had been hired mostly to take care of the media frenzy surrounding Julia’s murder and the arrest of her husband Colin. Val was told she would be interviewed by one. This is probably what Candace was so happy about. Maybe Val’s background would be revealed during the inquisition.

The stranger laughed. “Public relations? No, I’m here to work with you. I’m your new fellow death investigator.” She extended her hand. “I’m Gwen. Gwen Carmondy.”