For a long time, the room was silent, and then Bo gazed at Helen. “All of these theories involve a frame-up, and obviously Zannick and perhaps Lou would both benefit from you being in here.” He took a step closer to her. “But how would they benefit from Butch’s death aside from you?”

She shrugged. “Butch was Zannick’s corporate lawyer and was also running Z Bank for him. Maybe he found out some things he didn’t need to know.” She stopped. “They could kill two birds with one stone.” She snapped her fingers again. “You know something else I’ve been thinking about?”

“What?”

“Ennis Petrie got parole the Friday before Butch’s death. He was out of jail at the time of the murder.”

Bo felt a tickle in his stomach as he again remembered his strange interaction with the former sheriff the night before. “What would Ennis have against Butch? And why would he want to kill someone a few nights after he was released?”

“He might not have wanted to. He might have had to.” Helen set her jaw. “Sack Glover all but begged that hearing board to grant Ennis parole, and Sack is in Zannick’s pocket big time.”

“You think maybe Ennis agreed to kill Butch in return for Zannick arranging his release?”

“It’s not the craziest idea in the world. Ennis is no stranger to brutal killings—you know that firsthand—and he probably wouldn’t have had any qualms about throwing me under the bus since I put him in jail to begin with.”

And that might explain why he’s been trying to help since Butch’s murder, Bo thought. He did the deed and feels guilty about it.

“Ennis came to see me last night,” Bo said, watching Helen for her reaction.

She crossed her arms and squinted at him. “Well . . . what did he want?”

“To tell me that he’d investigated Butch Renfroe, Lou Horn, and Terry Grimes for being involved in a prostitution ring in the ’90s and 2000s. He could never prove it, so he didn’t involve you.” He paused. “But he did mention the ring to Finn Pusser when Finn visited him in prison.”

Helen gazed up at the ceiling and wrapped her hands around the back of her head. “That could explain why Butch was so desperate to have me dismiss the charges against Zannick.” She lowered her eyes to Bo. “Zannick could have been blackmailing him with the prostitution ring and threatening to disclose if he were convicted of Mandy Burks’s rape.”

“Which would also account for why Lou was so nervous at the trial docket.”

“Him getting sick never seemed right either,” Helen said. “It always felt like a stall tactic.”