A case of mistaken identity, or delicious deception?

BARBARA LACEY, a sultry blonde, saunters into the Night and Day, a St. Louis bar owned by ALFIE GREENBLATT. She waits with an envelope for a stranger who never arrives. Minutes after entrusting it to Alfie, she is gunned down in the street. Alfie calls Sergeant REGGIE COMBS, and the chase ensues. If only Somebody had told Alfie that sexy blondes mean trouble; if only Somebody had told him that November night that the envelope would kill him before he could deliver it. But then, nothing would have mattered to Alfie. He wouldn’t have listened to Somebody.

HELEN TATTAGLIA approaches her neighbor, ELVIN SUGGS and his partners, COBRA GLYNES and DIMOND, “DI” REDDING, of the Grapevine Detective Agency, to trail her “abusive” husband. She suspects that her in-laws have arranged her murder on behalf of their only son, Marvin. Though the detectives are skeptical, they are desperate for cash. Elvin, a divorced Vietnam veteran, faces bankruptcy. Cobra, also a veteran, suffers from anxiety attacks, aggravated by a breakup with his actress girlfriend, VALERIE GAINS. They accept the case. After all, how hard could it be to quiet her fears? Should be a piece of cake. They never expected to discover Barbara Lacey as well as a host of shady ladies lurking in Helen’s past. Who is this client, Helen Tattaglia, really?

Di, a middle-aged widow and retired Army nurse, is an attractive woman. Though she presents a prickly façade, she longs for romance. When DR. JULES DERRY, a former acquaintance, reenters her life, she is delighted, despite her partners’ disapproval. They suspect the unscrupulous doctor of ulterior motives, and they are right. Something is amiss when a man of his status spends his days doing research on shock therapy in the basement clinic of a charity hospital. What is it?

A talented plastic surgeon, Derry lost his medical license after the death of a Tattaglia family member. Another surgery on the real Barbara Lacey proves fatal, but Barbara’s devious husband, DEJUAN, sees opportunity. His corrupt ventures will survive if Barbara’s friends assume her identity, following the demise of each girl. Only the contents of the envelope-photos of the girls with Derry and DeJuan-provide the missing links. Meanwhile, Dr. Derry pursues the envelope left by one Barbara Lacey, ransacking every likely place he can find. Even the Grapevine Agency is not off limits to his frenzy. He will stop at nothing to get those photographs. They are, he believes, his gateways to justice.

Stumped, Reggie turns to the Grapevine Agency. PARRY LEACH, an ex-con and employee, has “street” contacts. Elvin arranges his parole “off the record” in exchange for information. Parry purloins the Lacey files from Derry’s secretary and jilted girlfriend, BARI LUX. Elvin and Cobra uncover the stolen identities.

Finally, a Tattaglia family member murders Derry. Bari exposes Derry and his motives. Di is disappointed in her failed romance, though Cobra and Valerie are reunited. Valerie is busy doing dog food commercials until her big break arrives. Grapevine Investigations survives another financial crisis.