While Jessica is collecting a charitable donation for a literary fund from Larry Armstrong when Kyle, his ice cream company's accountant turns up dead. As Larry, his partner Gary and the rest of the company reel from this, Larry discovers he has an illegitimate son he never knew, the company is accused of using tainted products, and the money for the literary fund is discovered embezzled. Then Gary ends up dead too, stuffed inside of a freezer.
Tropes:
- Bland-Name Product: An ice cream company which advertises on the basis of its natural ingredients and ethical business practices, named after the first names of its two founders.
- Chekhov's Gunman: Peggy the secretary initially doesn't; get that much relevance but then she kills Carol's attempted hostile takeover by stepping forward to say that she'll tell the board about how Carol has been charging personal purchases to the company expense account, and also sets up the Engineered Public Confession for the killer at the end with a fake blackmail attempt.
- Culture Police: Ralph Brewer is an activist who brings attention to things like the GMO-milk Gary is using.
- Daddy Had a Good Reason for Abandoning You: Woody's mom thought that Larry abandoned her after they first had sex (before either of them knew about her pregnancy) but he was actually arrested over a Vietnam war protest and she was gone by the time she got out.
- Honest Corporate Executive: Larry is an honest and charitable man who is deeply upset that Gary broke their brand promise of using all natural milk (and milk which turned out to be trained) in the ice cream and is willing to eat the cost to withdraw all of that ice cream from the market.
- Intrepid Reporter: Jim Kenton used to be one, and was hired by Gary due to his ability to dig up dirt (such as on Brewer) and find ways to counter it if it was thrown at them.
- The Lost Lenore: Larry indicates that Woody's mom was this to him.
- Luke, You Are My Father: Larry finds this out from Woody early on.
- Ms. Red Ink: Larry's wife Carol spends constantly and extravagantly without hesitation or remorse.
- Opposites Attract: Carol is a ruthless and mercenary woman and Brewer is a dedicated reformer who money doesn't mean much to yet he is deeply in love with her (albeit not enough to sacrifice his principals).
- Polygamy: Kyle was being blackmailed over how he was legally still married to another woman.
- Stealing from the Till: Kyle was doing this at the behest of Kenton due to being blackmailed.
- Suicide, Not Murder: Kyle, the company accountants death was this.
