In the pretty and tranquil market town of Kirkluce, the proposed development of a chain superstore has divided the population in an increasingly bitter feud. The low-level aggression of bored youth that is generally tolerated has become sinister. The bloodied carcass of a sheep abandoned in the streets is more than just unpleasant vandalism, and teenage bikers have begun terrorizing a woman to breaking. When an old man is brutally gunned down on his doorstep and a second victim is killed in what seems a random shooting, the fear in the town becomes tangible. Detective Inspector Marjory Fleming will not accept that the crimes are motiveless, but she struggles to make sense of the two murders. How are they connected, and will she find the perpetrators before more violence erupts?