Not traveling together is the start of Ruby and Glad’s troubles.  When Glad gets to his RV once they reach Dover, he finds a strange man in his bed.  This man is a little different than the last man he found in bed with his ex-wife, this man is asleep and clothed - clothed in Glad’s pajamas, but clothed nonetheless.  Glad learns that Ruby and her mother picked up the homeless man at a rest stop along the way and felt sorry for him, offering him some food, clean clothes and a warm bed.  While Glad is proud of Ruby, he also feels she is a bit foolhardy and is just as pleased when Bill disappears, even though he has left behind his miserable cat Malibu. 

At the track, Bill is found under the DuPont Monster Bridge, an apparent suicide.  Then it is learned he is the twin brother of Phil Paxton, who owns a local casino, and who is under suspicion of taking $10 million that went missing several years ago.  Adding to the family ties is brother John who races with Bobby.  Ruby suspects something is up and becomes convinced that Phil is really Bill; then John is kidnapped and all points back to the $10 million.   

Ruby insists on become involved in the investigation, against retired detective Glad’s advice, (and local authorities’ wishes). She and Glad end up scaling the monster bridge to locate a key, have their trailer trashed by intruders and the police several times, and end up falling out of an airplane while dropping suitcases full of ransom money to the kidnappers.  Ruby does not appear to be especially naďve, but many participants in these events seem to be playing her, including private investigator Whitaker Forsyth who has been retained to locate the money.   

Ruby and Glad have the makings of an intrepid couple.  Ruby’s parents are colorful additions to the mix (her mother always referring to Glad - a northerner as “Ruby’s husband” even when speaking to him directly), but amid the myriad of race fans and with Ruby changing her mind as to who is dead, Phil or Bill, their investigation seems a bit muddled and unfocused. 

While Louise and Zeke are good additions to the cast of characters, some of the others don’t seem to fit in.  Glad runs into a colleague from twenty years ago, one it appears he had a short relationship with, but there is very little that occurs, other than a brief, “Why didn’t you ever call me?” and some very short lived jealousy on Ruby’s part.  Race car fans will appreciate some of the bigger names dropped (Gordon, Earnhardt), but not much focus is given to the race weekend, though mentions of the next stop on the circuit, Pocono, hint at more trouble in Ruby’s and Glad’s futures.  

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry