Margot Baxter Harriman and Loretta “Rett” Mancini are shown into a private dining room in the Exeter Club, the women’s club in Manhattan where Margot is a member. They are seated at a well-appointed table where the Interviewer waits. The Interviewer stands and shakes each of their hands. The ladies smile, Rett’s coming off as almost a smirk.
Interviewer: Thank you for seeing me, Miss Harriman, Miss Mancini. I’m sure our readers will be delighted to get to know you a little better.
Margot: (takes a chair and waits for Rett to sit as well) Our pleasure. Please, call me Margot.
Rett: I love coming here. So swanky. (She grins at Margot, who rolls her eyes but also grins.) Oh, and yeah, just Rett.
I: I’ve taken the liberty of ordering coffee. I’m afraid it isn’t a B&H brand.
R: Castor’s is better. (She winks at Margot while she pours out three cups.)
M: We’re working on the roasting process. (She smiles at the Interviewer.) I have a meeting with marketers in an hour. (It’s a gentle nudge to get on with the interview.)
I: Of course, of course. This is a getting to know you piece, so we’ll start at the beginning. Tell me, what were your childhoods like? Your family lives?
(Rett gestures to Margot, indicating she should start.)
M: My grandparents on either side were small business owners. They had a grocer and a farm stand early in their adult lives that they expanded when they became partners. The two families grew the business together. By the time I was born, the B&H company and family was prospering. I would say my childhood was rather privileged, though my grandparents made sure we understood how lucky we were. As an only child, I suppose I was doted upon. My parents were attentive, but both were involved in running B&H.
R: My folks are first generation American, working class. My father was a cop, and my mother stayed home with us. She did take in some sewing jobs to get a little extra money. Mama was constantly hugging us along with just about every other kid in the neighborhood. We all had unofficial aunts and uncles up and down the block. My father wasn’t a particularly demonstrative parent. He showed his love by being the best provider he could while still having a career he was proud of.
I: What did you want to be when you grew up?
M: (cheeks turn pink) It’s silly, really.
R: (pats her arm) No, it isn’t. Tell them.
M: I wanted to be a professional dancer. Unfortunately, my coordination is fairly limited to a waltz. But I do enjoy watching talented people.
R: I wanted to be a baseball player.
M: You do have a heck of a swing.
R: (beams) I do. School stickball team champion was as close as I got to that. Then I wanted to be a police officer, like Albert (her voice cracks and Margot pats her shoulder). But women weren’t officially part of the NYPD until recently, and I’ve decided I prefer being my own woman.
I: You’ve taken over the Mancini & Associates operation.
R: I have.
I: That leads me to a related question. What was expected of you as a child, as you grew up?
R: (laughs) Not being a private detective, that’s for sure. I was supposed to work a little, maybe, then find a nice Italian boy to marry and have a bunch of kids (rolls her eyes). Good thing my sister thought that was a good plan, because there was no way I was going that route.
I: Well, considering…I mean, you and CeeCee.
R: (smiles knowingly) Exactly. Despite the bumps and bruises of working with Albert, I think we’ve settled things professionally and personally.
I: That’s good to hear. Margot, what about you?
M: I was groomed from childhood to take over B&H one day. Unfortunately, that day came sooner than any of us expected. But I have never backed down from a challenge and I’m not about to start now.
I: The events of April 1912 were rather challenging.
M: They were, and Rett was a huge help in rectifying that situation.
R: That was what you hired me for.
I: And now you two are partners. Business partners. But nothing more?
(Both shake their heads emphatically.)
R: CeeCee and I are completely happy.
I: And you, Margot?
M: (flusters) No, I mean, there isn’t…Not officially, of course.
I: Unofficially?
M: (The color on her cheeks deepens, and for the first time since sitting down, she looks away.) This is off the record.
I: (puts down pencil) Of course.
M: (She takes a breath and releases it slowly, bringing her gaze up) I have had a delightful relationship with someone for several months. Despite the occasional tete-a-tete, I believe we’re doing well.
R: (snorts a laugh) You told me you’ve never slept better since spending time with – (Margot shoots her a warning glare) Oh, come on, we all know. And it’s off the record. (Gives Interviewer the same glare) Right?
I: Of course.
R: (looks at Margot, dark eyes softened) She’s been good for you and you’ve been good for her, Margot. Our sort of relationships aren’t celebrated by society, but we should be happy and proud among ourselves at least.
M: I am happy and proud, but…
R: (sighs) Yeah, I know. Someday, maybe.
I: It’ll get better.
(Both smile a little wistfully.)
I: What about this latest adventure?
(They exchange glances.)
M: I don’t think we’re supposed to talk about it.
R: Not specifics, no. There are…legal ramifications that are pending.
I: Ah. Of course. But I find it interesting that you have gotten involved in a couple of cases that have some further impact than the immediate people involved.
R: Not intentionally.
M: Personal incidents are often reflective of greater social issues. These two cases have opened some eyes. That has to be a good thing. (Gives watch pin a significant look.)
I: Indeed, it is a good thing. Thank you, ladies. All the best on your continuing adventures.
A DEADLY ENTANGLEMENT by Cathy Pegau
In A Deadly Entanglement, two queer women in turn-of-the-century New York must work together to uncover the rotten truth.
The truth isn’t always easy…
Margot Baxter Harriman has just survived her deadliest scandal as President of B&H Foods, and now there’s nowhere to go but up. Which is why she’s organizing a fundraiser for the crowded, overworked city charity hospital, where she hopes to do good and give back–until a body falls past a second-floor window.
The nurse’s death is quickly ruled a suicide, but fellow nurse CeeCee Foxmoor, Margot’s friend and the live-in partner of investigator Rett Mancini, isn’t so sure: this isn’t the hospital’s first suspicious death. CeeCee’s concerns draw both Margot and Rett into an undercover scheme to untangle the threads behind the deaths everyone else is ready to overlook.
Then another death catches their attention: Margot’s old classmate checked into the Caspian, a luxury clinic catering to the New York elite, but never checked out. And the circumstances surrounding her death feel eerily familiar…
As both the secrets and bodies pile up, Rett and Margot realize that while money can buy anything, behind ward doors, everyone pays a price. This time, their search for the truth might cost the people they love.
Cathy Pegau’s A Deadly Entanglement is the captivating follow-up to A Murderous Business, where two women’s determination challenges the cost of greed–and the price of failure.
Mystery Historical | Mystery Woman Sleuth [ St. Martin’s Press, On Sale: September 15, 2026, Hardcover / e-Book, ISBN: 9781250356512 / eISBN: 9781250356529 ]
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About Cathy Pegau
Cathy Pegau lives in Alaska with her husband, pets, and the occasional black bear wandering through the yard. She enjoys reading and writing historical fiction with and without paranormal elements, and usually containing some sort of romantic involvement. Find her on BlueSky or on Instagram. Come say hello.
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