Isabelle felt like the question was directed to her, so she answered. "You know how we all think Lizzie is hot and smart, right? Well, Franklin was hot, and I think he's probably pretty smart. He looked sharp to me. I think he was on his way out, and we were just there at the right time to help him out. At the same time, he helped us. He doesn't want to get involved in whatever is happening, but that's just a guess on my part. I can't swear to this, but the way he said he would be in the Caymans, I had the feeling he was going to walk out the door and head for there ASAP. I could be wrong, but that was my thought at that moment. I believe we should think of it as the guy having an epiphany, and we were the beneficiaries, and let it go at that. We don't have a tail, do we?"

"No," Kathryn shot back. "So far, so good."

"I really wanted those boots," Annie grumbled. "It won't be the same if I end up buying them from some catalog. One pair of boots! I'm not leaving here until I get them."

"Annie, dear, I promise you that somehow, some way, you will get your rhinestone cowgirl boots before we leave this fair city," Myra said.

"Oh, Myra, I knew you'd understand," Annie said happily.

The rest of the trip to Rena Gold's condo was made in silence.

"Well, that was a cluster fuck if I ever saw one," Owens railed at his staff. "I hired you to take care of things. Did you do that? Read my lips, no, you did not. I'm going to dock all of you a day's pay. This shit will be out on the street in seconds. Winters is going to hear about it, and for sure there will be hell to pay. Richards, what's up with the hooker? You on top of that? What's going on at the Rabbit Hole? Where the hell is Stu? His mike went out just when that old dame socked him silly."

"The last time I saw him he was headed for the men's room, his nose was bleeding. Then things went south, and I never saw him again," Oliver said.

"He's not answering his mike or his pager. Send someone to check the parking lot. If his car's gone, we have a problem," Owens snarled.

Quintera, Richards, and Oliver stood rooted to the spot. It sounded to all of them like Hank was saying somehow Stu was responsible for the disaster on the casino floor. All three of them liked Stu.

"He might have gone home to change his clothes if he got blood all over his suit. You are pretty fussy about us looking like we stepped out of a GQ ad, Boss," Richards said in Stu's defense.