Puss 'N Cahoots

to smuggling illegal workers than be thought a murderer. Ward came clean about stealing, so to speak, Queen Esther.
    “I’m sorry Ward was part of it,” Harry said. “Whatever money he’s made will go to lawyers.”
    “Think he’ll go to jail?” Fair asked. “I don’t know Kentucky judges. Virginia’s are pretty conservative.”
    “Most are here, too.” Joan thought a long time. “I don’t think he’ll go to jail. He’ll pay a fine, be sentenced to community service, but Ward was the driver, not the mastermind. He’s already exonerated Benny, who he said knew nothing.”
    “Ah, good for Ward,” Fair said.
    “Good for Benny.” Harry laughed.
    “And Renata says she will stand by Ward about Queen Esther. Of course, that cat is out of the bag.”
    “I resent that,”
Pewter grumbled.
    “How bad will it be for her?” Fair asked.
    Larry popped back in, heard the question, leaned over the divider, and said, “More publicity, wrong kind.”
    Just then Renata drove up, parked, and walked in. She poured coffee, snagged a doughnut, and leaned over the divider, as well.
    “We were talking about you,” Joan said.
    “I deserve what I get.” She started to bite the doughnut, then stopped for a second. “Charly didn’t deserve to die, though.”
    “Booty sure thought he did.” Harry leaned back.
    “‘What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.’” Joan put down her mug. “Booty claims Jorge wanted more money, so he made calls to whoever it is in Texas. Booty says Jorge knew the man, who is a Mexican himself.”
    “The smuggling agent? I mean, what do you call someone like that?” Renata wondered.
    “‘Agent’ sounds good.” Joan smiled at Renata. “Same function, different business than yours.”
    “Not by much.” Sarcasm dripped off Renata’s tongue.
    “So Jorge didn’t talk to Charly or Ward?” Larry was so tired last night that he wasn’t sure what he remembered and what he didn’t.
    “Ward was the driver; pretty much that was it. Booty and Charly both handled the money, but Booty directed Jorge, and Charly contacted people receiving the workers. Division of labor,” Joan said. “Jorge went to Booty. That was his big mistake. If he’d asked all of them for more money, he might be alive today. Charly wouldn’t have agreed to murder. He just wouldn’t. Carlos may have known about the smuggling, but he wasn’t implicated. He was smart enough not to talk, but then, Booty talked so much who could get a word in edgewise? Guess the pain got to him, too. Funny, he really thought he could get away with it.”
    “Booty killed Jorge.” Larry rested his chin on the palm of his hand, his elbow on the divider. “He could have found an easier way.”
    “That was the point,” Harry filled in. “Booty wanted it to be gruesome and dramatic. The double cross on the palm was a theatrical touch.”
    “Charly then knew Jorge had double-crossed them. Naturally, he figured Jorge had talked to Booty, but he couldn’t be sure that he hadn’t also talked to Ward. Charly was too smart to confront Booty, at least during the show.” He might have questioned Booty and Ward afterward, but he tried to keep things level during Shelbyville. He had a lot riding on the show, one of the reasons why he was stunned at Jorge’s murder. Could Booty or Ward be that cold-blooded? Joan added, “It’s strange how someone can put up walls around themselves like Booty did and then the walls come tumbling down. He couldn’t shut up last night. It was kind of embarrassing.”
    “He’s lucky Ward didn’t kill him.” Renata had polished off her doughnut, not having eaten since lunch yesterday. “After all, Booty tried to kill Ward and make it look like Charly did it. He really was cold-blooded. He could go right out in the ring and put in a great ride.”
    “That seems so stupid to me.” Harry threw up her hands. “Hadn’t enough gone wrong? I mean, after Jorge pushed Booty for more money and Booty refused, Jorge threatened to call the INS. You should have heard Booty about that. He thought he’d killed Jorge in time, even though it might have been an empty threat. Well, he found out differently the next night.”
    “Maybe your mind goes.” Joan spoke slowly. “Maybe because what you’re doing is criminal, even if a lot of people don’t think it is—bringing in illegal workers, I mean. But anyone involved in crime leads a double life. That’s the real double cross. You