Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: The Disappearing Game

The film opens with Aurora 'Roe' Teagarden, a librarian and true crime enthusiast, welcoming her nephew Phillip to Lawrenceton for college. Her mother, Aida, attempts to set her up with a new neighbor, psychology professor Nick Miller, who meets Aurora when he accidentally bumps into her with a library cart. During a meeting of the Real Murders Club, the group witnesses the arrest of Clayton Harrison, the son of a prominent local family, for vandalizing a campus sculpture. The plot thickens on Phillip's birthday when he cancels dinner with Aurora, claiming to be sick. Concerned, Aurora goes to his dorm and finds it empty. Shortly after, she and her friend Sally discover the body of Tammy Driscoll, a student, behind a hair salon—the victim of a hit-and-run. Phillip and his roommate Josh Farrell have vanished, and Phillip's car is later found abandoned with blood in the backseat, leading Detective Arthur Smith to believe the boys killed Tammy and fled. Aurora, convinced of Phillip's innocence, teams up with Nick to investigate. They learn from Clayton's father, Dan Harrison, that Clayton has also been kidnapped for a $500,000 ransom. Aurora and the Real Murders Club conduct a secret stakeout of the ransom drop, but the money disappears without any kidnappers being seen. Aurora eventually discovers that Phillip was being paid to write papers for Clayton, and that Clayton had a motive to be angry with Phillip. She realizes the kidnapping was staged by Dan Harrison to cover up the fact that Clayton accidentally killed Tammy while in a reckless rage. Aurora finds Phillip and Josh held captive in the Harrison family's basement. In a final confrontation, Dan Harrison holds Aurora and her mother at gunpoint, but Aida uses self-defense techniques to subdue him. The boys are rescued, the truth about the accident is revealed, and the Harrisons are arrested.