First the joyous birth of Skinner's son... Then the grim reality of murder in one of Edinburgh's prosperous suburbs. A man has been found knifed in a luxury villa. The victim had run a chain of laundrettes, 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. Moving from Scotland to northern Spain, then back to a chilling climax in Edinburgh, this complex and suspenseful thriller follows a tortuous and bloodsoaked trail involving vice, corruption and the merchants of death.