Smashed — Rex Kusler

Private eyes Jim Snow and Alice James are baffled by their new client, Cassie Lane, a buxom casino slot technician who hires them to investigate the murder of her ex-lover, Billy Ryan.

Billy, a professional horseplayer, has been shot outside his home after a night at the casino with his friend Dean Kale. Later, his stolen car strikes and kills a pregnant teen in a hit-and-run not far from the scene of his murder.

Who wanted Billy dead? His wife, Gina, an attractive blonde, is said to be a former model with a rap sheet, but is she not what she seems? Her two derelict brothers? Or was the hit-and-run victim really the intended target, and Billy's shooting and the theft of his car a premeditated step in the crime?

As Cassie's behavior becomes ever more bizarre, Snow and Alice make a startling discovery that forces them to consider their own client a suspect.