When Charles Fresnay investigates a murder on his first day as parish constable he finds opposition from locals and magistrates but nevertheless decides to pursue his enquiries. What he does not realise is that the reasons for the killing are rooted in the past and he is finally confronted with a history of debauchery and forgery, betrayal, revenge and murder during the Napoleonic wars. Moreover, in his investigations he is forced to confront personal guilts arising from his previous employment as a Bow Street Runner as he seeks to expose the killer of Tom Symonds.