“Well, of course they do. But does it send the right message?”

“It’s just a fairy tale.” Bitsy bit her lip. Personally, she didn’t think every story had to have a socially redeeming message, and she wasn’t sure Corney was the right person to decide what was suitable for young children, either. After all, she was childless and never married, though not from lack of effort.

“Well, we don’t want our little girls growing up and thinking life is a fairy tale, do we? We don’t want them to wait for Prince Charming to rescue them from the kitchen—we want them to become self-actualizing, don’t we?” Corney gave Bitsy an encouraging smile, and patted her hand. “I’m sure you can find something more suitable.” She paused for a moment and came up with a suggestion. “Like The Little Engine that Could, ”she said, turning and striding off in the direction of the office.

Bitsy rolled her eyes and replaced Cinderella on the shelf. Pulling out one volume after another, she dismissed them. Children’s literature was so insipid these days. Everything had to have a positive, meaningful message. She wanted something with a little bite. Something exciting. She opened a battered copy of Hansel and Gretel and began turning the pages. This ought to keep the little demons’ attention, she thought, admiring a lurid illustration of the tiny Hansel and Gretel cringing in terror as the grinning witch opened the oven door.

“Say, Bitsy, do you know where those figures for the addition are?”

Bitsy closed the book and turned to face Hayden Northcross, another member of the board of directors. Hayden was a small, neat man who was a partner in a prestigious antiques business that was known far beyond Tinker’s Cove.

“Gerald’s got them, in my office,” said Bitsy.

“I’ll see if he’s through with them,” said Hayden, turning to go. “Say, what’s that?”

“Hansel and Gretel. For story hour.”

“Oh, my dear! Not Hansel and Gretel!” exclaimed Hayden, throwing up his hands in horror.

“No? Why not?” inquired Bitsy, tightening her grip on the storybook and starting a slow mental count to ten.

“Not unless you want to traumatize the poor things,” said Hayden. “I’ll never forget how frightened I was when Mumsy read it to me. I think it may have affected my entire attitude toward women.” He cocked an eyebrow and nodded meaningfully.

Bitsy wasn’t quite sure how serious he was. Hayden and his business partner, Ralph Love, had also been domestic partners for years. Hayden thought it great fun to shock the more conservative residents of Tinker’s Cove by flaunting his homosexuality.

“It’s just a story,” said Bitsy, defending her choice. “I’ll be sure to remind them it’s make-believe.”