JAMES HADLEY CHASE

The Guilty Are Afraid

     Lew Brandon, private eye, lands up in St. Raphael City, to learn that his partner, Jack Sheppey, has been found murdered. His efforts to trace Sheppey's killer leads him to Creedy, racketeer and businessman, who tells Brandon to lay off or else.. Creedy has Captain Katchen, an ominous cop, as well as Hertz, an ominous thug,  in his payroll. So far so good.  Brandon is used to such occupational hazards. But soon he comes across a match folder, with a code imprinted on it. The match folder originated in hot-shot Musketeer Club, with a very very exclusive clientele.  The coded match folder has importance for people who visit the guarded interiors of Marcus Hahn's School of Ceramics. Brandon is soon on the trail of drug runners and assorted crooks. He is helped in his pursuits by Margot Creedy - the glamorous daughter of racketeer boss, Creedy. So things are bound to get out of control.....