The Hippie in the Wall

When workmen discover a corpse dating back twenty years stuffed in the wall of a topless bar in New Orleans’s French Quarter, it raises any number of questions. Who is this person, how did he get there, and who is responsible? With no clues to go on and a mysterious corpse on his hands, Lt. Frank Washington of the Homicide Division turns to an unlikely source for help - Margo Fortier. A woman with a past Margo is now married to the quietly gay scion of an old respected family - and a society/gossip columnist for the local paper. But twenty years ago, she was known as "Cherry", a stripper at the bar in which the corpse was uncovered. Margo, determined to protect her social position and uncover a good story at the same time, tries to identify the corpse. Armed with questions and a reconstructed photo of the deceased, Margo tracks down the other former employees of the bar in a quest that takes her through all levels of New Orleans society, from the mainstream wealthy to the eccentric fringe, and uncovers a deadly conspiracy that endangers not only her position but her life.