First the joyous birth of Skinner’s son…Then the grim reality of murder in ones of Edinburgh’s prosperous suburbs. A man has been found knifed in a luxury villa. The victim had run a chain of launderettes, saunas and pubs throughout the city, but for some time the police suspected these to be the front for a drug-distribution network. As the murder investigation continues without result, it seems the killer was particularly cunning in covering his tracks – leaving no clues or leads to pursue. But then another, seemingly minor, crime – involving property fraud – takes Assistant Chief Constable Bob Skinner in a new direction