Betty was standing near the orchestra, tapping her foot in time with the music. She looked as if she wanted to dance, but it was doubtful that any of the local men would ask her. Betty was what Hannah and her friends in high school had unkindly called “heavy-duty.” She weighed close to three hundred pounds and she wasn’t known for her grace on the dance floor. Hannah’s father had once quipped that a man needed steel-toed boots to dance with Betty, and more than one man in Lake Eden had nursed an injured foot after an obligatory turn around the floor with her.

As always, Betty was dressed in vertical stripes. Someone must have once told her that they were slenderizing and they might have been, for someone less bulky. Betty’s stripes were wide tonight, and they were dark green and burgundy. The colors were pretty, but that didn’t stop Betty from resembling the side of a circus tent. As she walked closer, Hannah made a mental vow to go on a diet and shed the ten extra pounds she’d been carrying around since last Christmas.

“Hi, Betty,” Hannah called out a cheerful greeting. Since there was no one else around, it was obvious the local males feared for their insteps, and Hannah knew she’d never have a better chance to interview Betty about Max’s meeting.

Betty reached out to pat Hannah’s arm. “You look gorgeous tonight, Hannah.”

“Thanks.” Hannah knew it was only polite to return the compliment, but what could she say? Then she spotted Betty’s shoes and she had her answer. “Your shoes are great. They match your dress perfectly.”

Betty smiled, apparently satisfied. “Is there any news about poor Ron?”

“Nothing yet. I’m glad I found you, Betty. I need to talk to you about Max.”

Betty swallowed and her face turned pale. “I knew it! There’s something wrong, isn’t there?”

“Wrong?” Hannah was puzzled. “Why do you think there’s something wrong?”

“Max hasn’t called in yet and that’s not like him at all. He’s a very hands-on manager. Last year he called me three times a day.”

“There’s nothing wrong as far as I know,” Hannah reassured her. “I just wondered if he knew about Ron, that’s all.”

Betty fanned her face with her hand. “You practically gave me a heart attack. I’m probably just imagining things, but it’s just so strange that Max hasn’t called. Shirley, over at the Mielke Way Dairy, said Gary’s called in every morning.”

“Did Gary mention seeing Max at the convention?”

“No. And Shirley can’t call him to ask, because Gary won’t tell her where he’s staying.” Betty’s face crinkled in a huge smile and she moved closer. “Gary’s a bachelor and this is his big chance to live it up a little, if you know what I mean. At least that’s what Shirley thinks.”

“Shirley’s probably right. Do you think that Max is doing the same thing?”

“Max?” Betty looked utterly astounded. “If you knew him as well as I do, you wouldn’t even think it. Max has only two pleasures in life: money and more money.”