Echoes of Titanic by Mindy Starns Clark Page B

read out the flavor names for all the coffee pods in the cabinet.
    â€œThat one,” he said, interrupting her about halfway through. “Hazelnut raspberry cream decaf.”
    While he made himself comfortable on the love seat and continued to flip channels, she brewed first one steaming mug of coffee and then the next, carried them both into the living room, and sat down on the tiny sofa next to her baby brother. Together, they watched several different reports about Gloria, and in every case the conclusion was drawn by the reporters that her death tonight and the scene with Rupert earlier today had been somehow connected. And while Kelsey could see why that was the natural conclusion to draw, she couldn’t imagine what the one might possibly have to do with the other. She said as much to Matt, and they tossed around ideas for a while but couldn’t come up with any theories that connected the two events.
    Ultimately, their conversation came back around to the discussion they had been having in the cab, about the value of Brennan & Tate stock and the impact today’s incidents would have on it. To help Matt fully understand, she had to go back a bit and describe for him the bigger picture of what had been going on at the compnay lately.
    She started with what he already knew, that the company had originally been founded by their great-great-grandfather, Sean Brennan, back in 1904. Even though it had grown since then into a multimillion dollar corporation with nearly fifty employees, it was still thought of in the finance world as a “family business,” one synonymous with the Brennan and Tate names. Their father, the highly respected Nolan Tate, had served solidly at the helm for decades, but after his stroke last year the company’s value had begun to plummet from a high of seventy million before Nolan’s stroke to a low of thirty-six last December.
    â€œOuch. Merry Christmas.”
    â€œI know, right?”
    In January Walter had called in consultants, who identified the problem as “a lack of public confidence in the wake of Nolan Tate’s sudden departure from the firm.” Something drastic needed to be done to restore that confidence, so they ended up hiring a big public relations firm to come in and fix things. The goal was to show the world that even though Nolan was no longer around, the Tate name was still alive and well in his daughter Kelsey. The impression they were trying to give was that she possessed the same sharp instincts and business acumen for which her family and her firm had long been known. It was a heavy weight to bear, one that had been feeling heavier all the time. But the general consensus was that their campaign was succeeding even better than predicted. These days, B & T’s value was back up inthe high fifties, she was a rising star in the financial realm, and the impression people were getting was that not only did she possess the same talents and instincts as her father, but that in time she may just prove to be as adept at successful investing as her great-grandmother, the legendary Adele Brennan Tate herself.
    â€œSo basically,” Matt said, nodding in comprehension, “these people built a whole campaign around Adele and how her gifts have been passed down through the generations to you.”
    â€œCorrect.”
    They were both silent for a long moment.
    â€œGuess I can see where you’re going with this,” he said finally. “Besmirching the name of Adele the way that guy did today could wipe out the significance of your entire campaign and put the value of B & T stock at an even lower point now than it was when you started.”
    â€œExactly.”
    Matt let out a long, slow sigh. “Well, then,” he said philosophically, “that leaves just one last question, only now it applies to you instead of Tiffany.”
    â€œWhat’s that?” Kelsey asked, leaning her head back against the couch and