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said. “That’s where you’d better start, Tim. Now what about these Domaines? What are they, husband and wife?”
    “Yeah, and they’re in a different category from Thorne. It’s a big stable, with plenty of money behind it. There’s a stud farm and a training stable, and they’ve turned out a few champions, big money-winners. It’s a racing outfit, not a betting outfit.”
    “I’ve never known a rich man who minded getting richer,” Rourke said.
    “You’ve got a point,” Kimball admitted. “I don’t know Larry Domaine, but I know people in his tax bracket. They wouldn’t turn down a chance at a big win, and especially if the Internal Revenue Bureau didn’t know about it. But would they take any real risks, like murdering somebody? You can look him up in the clips, Tim. I think he won a chess tournament last year. He’s a cold fish, from his looks. The wife is gorgeous. You see her picture every now and then.”
    Mehlmann, the reporter who had the desk next to Rourke’s, called, “Phone, Tim.”
    “That may be Shayne,” Rourke said. “He knows about this, Mac, and there may be too many angles for me to check out by myself in one afternoon. Would the paper put up a small retainer, if I can get him?”
    MacMaster considered briefly. “OK, up to two hundred bucks.”
    Rourke returned to his own desk and picked up the open phone. “Rourke.”
    Shayne’s voice said, “Lucy told me to call you.”
    “Mike, listen. Joey Dolan’s been found dead. Naturally I feel lousy about it. I’m going up to the track to see what I can find out.”
    “What did he die of?” Shayne said.
    Rourke related what he knew about Dolan’s death, and his suspicions about how and why it had happened. Shayne listened quietly.
    “Ad Kimball’s just been handicapping those races,” Rourke went on, “and we’ve got a good jumping-off point. Dolan used the ninth race as an example when he was talking to me, and the Domaines have horses going in the ninth and the sixth. A driver named Paul Thorne, who used to work for them, is driving both races. We’re wondering if the deal is for Thorne to win one and the Domaine horse the other. What I plan to do is barge in and ask a few questions and see how they react. The Mike Shayne technique, in short. I’m going to start with Thorne. But Kimball says he’s a menace, if not slightly out of his head, and I doubt if I can handle him if he doesn’t want to be handled. Would you be able to come along, Mike? After we see Thorne, we can split up. There’s a lot of ground to cover and not much time. MacMaster says he’ll give you a retainer. I won’t mention the figure. It’s small. But maybe in the process we can come up with a couple of winners.”
    “Afraid I can’t help you, Tim,” Shayne said. “I have people to see myself.”
    “Hell!” Rourke said; he had been counting on Shayne. “Couldn’t you postpone it?”
    “Can’t be done. I’ve been called in on that jewel robbery in the Fontainebleau last month. Diamonds insured at a hundred thousand, and I get fifteen percent if I can turn them in. As of this moment, it looks easy.”
    “Of course,” Rourke said. “MacMaster’s only authorizing two hundred bucks, and compared to fifteen G’s that’s nowhere.”
    “Yeah, there’s quite a difference,” Shayne said. “Something like fourteen thousand eight hundred.”
    “And who is Joey Dolan, after all? A wino. A bum. He couldn’t find a niche for himself in the affluent society, and who cares?”
    “That won’t get you anywhere, Tim,” Shayne said mildly. “After thinking about it, I can see how a smart manipulator might think he could beat the twin double. But murder doesn’t make sense.”
    “We don’t know enough to say! As far as the cops are concerned, I know he’s already a statistic. They’d be surprised to hear that only yesterday he was a human being. But I happen to know that Joey never drank anything but sherry. It was his way of protecting