Detectives Sloan and Crosby find themselves assigned two rather puzzling cases. First, there's the young woman's body which has been discovered in the River Alm. And then there's the mysterious break-in at the Berebury Nursing Home. To be precise, it's Josephine Short's room at the nursing home that's been entered, although nothing seems to be missing. What could the intruder have been after? It becomes apparent to Sloan and Crosby that the two cases...

Four strangers discover that they are descendants of the late Algernon Mayton and each entitled to a portion of his fortune. But before they can split the money, a missing fifth man must be found. Two months later, Sloan and Crosby are called to investigate when one of the legatees is found dead. Are they being picked off one-by-one?

That Miss Beatrice Wansdyke had died is not particularly surprising. A chemistry mistress at the Girls' Grammar School in Berebury, she was a longtime sufferer of diabetes who manages to live her modest life to a ripe old age. But one thing is odd -- Beatrice Wansdyke died a very wealthy woman, What was an old schoolteacher doing with a small fortune?