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Tex stared at his daughter stupidly, and asked,“Why the trunk of my car?” as if in his expert opinion this was the last place one should ever put a dead body.

Marge said,“Tex? Did you do this?”

To which Tex immediately responded with a pointed,“Do what?”

Uncle Alec, meanwhile, who’d been restraining Francine, found that his job description had changed from restrainer to nurse, as Francine promptly collapsed.

Chase, meanwhile, had the presence of mind to place a heavy hand on his future father-in-law’s shoulder and declare, “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, Tex, but I guess you’re under arrest.”

Nothing personal, his expression seemed to suggest. Just one of those things. And who could blame him? If dead bodies are found in trunks of cars, it’s usually those in ownership of those cars that have put them there.

“What’s going on, Max?” asked Dooley, who had a hard time following the quickly evolving events.

“Jaqlyn Jones is dead and his body was just found in Tex’s car,” I said, bringing him up to speed on the latest. “And Chase is now in the process of arresting Tex for murder.”

“But… he can’t do that,” said Dooley, looking aghast. “Tex is family.”

“Chase is a cop,” I reminded him. “And cops are legally obliged to arrest killers, even if they are members of their family. That’s what they teach them at the police academy.”

“But… can’t he turn a blind eye just this once?”

I glanced around at the dozens of onlookers, all gleefully rubbernecking.

“Not if all of Hampton Cove is watching your every move,” I said, “including the mayor.”

Mayor Butterwick, who’d looked as shocked as her loyal subjects, now seemed to come out of her temporary paralysis and started barking orders. “Odelia, call an ambulance. Alec, cordon off the crime scene. Chase, take Tex into custody.” Then she glanced around and yelled, “No one move! You’re all staying put!”

This was all people needed to start dispersing. It’s a thing called group dynamics. But they hadn’t counted on Charlene Butterwick, who yelled, “Anyone move, I’ll have you arrested for obstruction of justice. And don’t think I won’t do it. I’ve seen your faces!”

And she did. Any politician worth their salt is familiar with the names and faces of their constituents, and Charlene definitely was worth her salt, and her pepper, too.

“I don’t like this, Max,” said Dooley now. “I don’t want Tex to go to prison.”

“I don’t like it either, Dooley,” I intimated. “But if Tex really did kill Jaqlyn, he probably should go to prison.”

“But Jaqlyn wasn’t a nice person.”

“You mean he deserved to be killed?”

“Well…” Dooley wavered. “I guess not,” he finally conceded. “Or maybe just a little.”

“You can’t kill a person just a little, Dooley. Either you kill them or you don’t.”

“I guess so,” he said, sounding sad.

We watched on as Chase led a stupefied Tex away, Uncle Alec removed himself from the scene, speaking orders into his phone, and Odelia gave instructions to the ambulance people, presumably to revive Francine and take care of Monica. There probably wasn’t a whole lot they could do for Jaqlyn.

Brutus and Harriet came hurrying up, Brutus with a piece of chicken filet dangling from his lips and Harriet with lips smeared with red currant sauce for some reason. They’d clearly taken up position near the food table and had done themselves well.

“What’s going on?” asked Harriet.

I was ready to repeat my earlier report but Dooley beat me to it.“Tex wanted to kill Jaqlyn just a little bit but overdid it and now Jaqlyn is dead and Tex will go to prison.”

“What?!!!” Brutus cried, and to indicate how shook up he was by this bulletin from the front lines, dropped the piece of chicken and didn’t even bother to pick it up again.

“Tex? Killed Jaqlyn?” asked Harriet, also looking extremely distraught.

“Sadly, yes,” I confirmed. “Chase just arrested him, though not wholeheartedly,” I quickly added, to make it clear the cop wasn’t one of your devil-may-care arresters.

Odelia crouched down and absentmindedly stroked my fur, something she tends to do when times are tough and she’s not feeling on top of the world. It seems to relax her.

“Bad business,” I said commiseratively.

“The worst,” she agreed, then got up to comfort her mother, who was looking shell-shocked, and probably in need of medical assistance herself.

“I say Jaqlyn had it coming,” said Brutus now, another one whose moral compass was a little out of whack.

“You can’t say that, Brutus,” I said. “No one deserves to die. Not even doctors who steal unto half your patients and say nasty things behind your back.”

“Did Jaqlyn say nasty things behind Tex’s back?” asked Brutus.

“That’s what I heard.”

Kingman had come waddling up. He looked appropriately grave.“Tough day,” he announced. “The day when the law starts arresting good people like Tex is the day…” He thought for a moment, then finished with, “… well, not a good day, that’s for sure.”

“Did you know that Jaqlyn had been talking smack behind Tex’s back?” asked Brutus.