JANUARY 2020. The first recorded death from Covid 19 in China. Ex DI Mick Fletcher is at a funeral in Sussex, where he's recruited into investigating the worrying intentions of the new government's covert operations. FEBRUARY A desperate husband involves private investigator Ziggy Hook in his search for his missing wife. Ex DS Janet Becket is regretting accepting a protection assignment - a government official who cannot forget anything she's read? Meanwhile an old lady goes missing from a care home in the Scottish Borders. Local DI Magda Steil investigates, whilst worrying about the homecoming of her errant soldier brother, who has once again upset his superiors. MARCH As the virus storm gathers momentum, a disparate group of people begin to congregate in the valley of the River Tweed in the Scottish Borders, not immediately aware of their varied interconnecting activities. LOCKDOWN But . . . will lockdown enable a high-risk power grab? Will Captain Tomasz Steil fall into a trap? Can you trust a woman covered in tattoos? . . . and does anyone still believe in fairies?