Things are looking up for Adam Matthews and Robin Bright — their relationship is blossoming, and they've both been promoted. But Robin's a policeman, and that means murder is never far from the scene.

When a body turns up in a shallow grave at a Roman villa dig site — a body that repeatedly defies identification — Robin finds himself caught up in a world of petty rivalries and deadly threats. The case seems to want to drag Adam in, as well, and their home life takes a turn for the worse when an ex-colleague gets thrown out of his house and ends up outstaying his welcome at theirs.

While Robin has to prove his case against a manipulative and fiendishly clever killer, Adam is trying to find out which police officer is leaking information to the media. And both of them have to work out how to get their home to themselves again, which might need a higher intelligence than either a chief inspector or a deputy headteacher.