The new Kings Lake Central murder squad is about to spend its first morning on team-building exercises and reviewing cold cases when the call comes in that the body of one of the city’s rough sleepers has been found in a shop doorway.

It happens, someone says, he isn’t the first to die on the streets and he won’t be the last. But the story the new team begins to uncover is far from routine, as previous investigations resurface and unexpected characters appear. All the while, DCI Cara Freeman is under pressure to deliver a result and demonstrate that her first specialist team is worth the money.