Before she can even begin to track down the killer of the old woman dumped by the lonely canal, Monika Paniatowski needs to find out who she is, and no one seems to know. Even when her daughter Louisa provides the vital clue, it only makes life more difficult, because the Chief Constable, intent on making Paniatowskis life difficult, refused to let her follow the obvious trail. And it is not until there is a second, even more brutal murder, that Paniatowski realises she will have to call on the help of her old mentor, ex DCI Charlie Woodend.