The Crayfish Dinner

the long version

The sudden disappearance of Jared Cowley, a ransacked, bloodstained bedroom, and a missing $150,000 — all are elements to indicate foul play. Leah Landreau, illustrator of children's books, wants some answers. She asks Jeffrey Green, handwriting and document expert, to help and together they turn up some rather startling facts. Cowley belonged to the Thursday Night Club — a group of six men who met for poker and gourmet dinners and any one of the other five members had reason to do away with Cowley. At the last meeting Cowley had brazenly shown a pearl necklace for which he had supposedly paid $25,000. The pearl necklace finally leads Leah and Jeffrey to a country club in Ohio, a crayfish dinner, and some interesting facts about a family named Cooper.