An uninvited house guest throws Bea Abbot`s summer plans into chaos, bringing danger and peril to Bea`s door. Bea Abbot is looking forward to spending the summer with her fourteen-year-old ward, Bernice, but her plans go awry when one of Bernice`s schoolfriends finds herself in trouble. Evelina Trescott`s uncle has died in a mysterious accident at their country house, and her aunt, Mrs Trescott, is keen to hide Evelina away from the police. Evelina arrives on Bea`s doorstep catatonic, heavily drugged up on epilepsy medication and unable to remember finding her uncle`s body. Is she really a hapless victim, or is Bea harbouring a wily criminal? The more Bea learns about the troublesome Trescotts, the more she realizes something is horribly wrong, and soon finds herself drawn into a dark web of greed, abuse, and murder.