Inspector Curran arrives at the scene of a brutal murder. Sylvie Nolan, the young wife of lieutenant colonel John Nolan, has been bludgeoned to death in a locked room. A heavy silver candlestick and journal are missing. Harriet Gordon is baffled by the crime scene and turns to the victim's new family for clues. But Sylvie's father has a history with Curran and is doing all he can to get him off the case. Things are further complicated when Curran comes down with malaria, leaving Harriet to detangle the complicated Nolan family tree alone. What she uncovers puts her life in grave danger.