Jeff is off to shepherd his first play through its premiere run in the Midwest. The kids are with their grandmothers. Bryna needs a project. She visits their mutual friends who encourage her to "poke and prod" like Jeff does when a problem arises. Bryna is still insecure in her recovery, having so recently learned the truth of her past. But Bennie (the world's most devoted maker of muffulettas) has been charged with murder at the pool hall. Someone must act. Jeff is away. His New Orleans friends tell her she has to pick up the torch. Poking and prodding with Jeff's friends--a Marine turned female impersonator, a 300-pond pool player, a longshoreman, and NOPD cop, his honest politician (honest) uncle, Jeff's brothers (and sisters we meet for the first time) and a blowzy gambler from St. Bernard Parish who has interesting friends. Twists, hidden identities, Irish Channel parties, and physical danger keep Bryna on her toes Jeff's calls from Nebraska are no help. It seems the ingenue in his play is making a "play offstage." Bryna is no longer the damsel in distress. She has to grow up and be Chief Inspector of "Chaussier and Chassier: and Friends." "We stick our noses in your problem. This is going to be a whole lot different. Mystery Merriment and Mayhem are still the rule in the Irish Channel of New Orleans.