Detective Patrik Hedstrom is no stranger to tragedy. A murder case concerning Fjallbacka's dead financial director, Mats Sverin, is a grim but useful distraction from his recent family misfortunes. It seems Sverin was a man who everybody liked yet nobody really knew - a man with something to hide ...His high school sweetheart, Nathalie, has just returned to Fjallbacka with her five-year-old son - perhaps can she shed some light on who Sverin really was? However, Nathalie has her own secret. If it's discovered, she will lose her only child. As the investigation stalls, the police have many questions. But there is only one that matters: Is there anything a mother would not do to protect her child?