A popular local politician and newly declared candidate for the New York State Senate hosts a party for family members and close business associates.  The next morning his battered body is found near a gazebo on his estate.  Party attendees insist the killer must have been a prowler their host surprised after the gathering was over.  State Police Investigators Max Nielsen and Jan Montgomery soon learn, however, that the evening had been a less than festive occasion, one which left most of those on hand with good reason to want him dead.