From brutal murder of a cop in pursuit of a robbery suspect, to the execution, years later, of a Detective Sergeant, the murdered cop’s son, when meeting an informant promising information about his father’s murder; and on to seemingly unconnected false allegations of theft against a timid elderly woman, Esther Brandt, whose close friend, Ann Monkton, is widow and mother of the murdered officers.  Ann’s instinct is to call on close friend, retired top detective, Debbie Anslow, for help; she in turn organises her team of retired and serving detectives, including Sean Daley, to speedily halt the stitch-up.

Debbie’s team soon discover Esther harbours several dangerous secrets; she is a close relative of Alex MacQuoid, multi-millionaire loan-shark and international money launderer, with whom Debbie and Sean have unfinished police business; coincidence or design, they cannot decide?  The can of worms, now open, draws them to the activities of sacked Detective Sid Mitchum, who goes on the run when the duo rescue two of Sid’s employees imprisoned in his stable, and their strange tale that super-model, Kim MacQuoid, wife of Alex, had been captive there before them.

Was Kim snatched by Mitchum to extract a ransom from Alex?  Is that why Conor MacQuoid, son of Alex, and secret lover of Kim, fakes his own death before going into hiding; more mysteries for the team to unravel?

The mystery deepens still further when the team uncover, encrypted photos of Kim MacQuoid in a setting the antithesis of the luxury that she enjoys as super-model and wife of a millionaire.  Another conundrum, what is Kim’s real identity?

Surveillance takes them to Alex’s luxury home in north London, where enemies attempt to kill him, and they discover that Alex has acquired a small Island in the Thames Estuary and spent a fortune furnishing it as a sanctuary for bird-watchers. Suspecting the Island hides secrets, they visit, but Sean is shot and lost at sea; an air-sea search and rescue fail to find him.

Unresolved suspicions take Debbie back to the Island where a gruesome discovery reveals the bizarre facts behind the whole plot; the true identity of the instigator, and outrageous demands made upon Debbie by the puppeteer. Anne Monkton is presented with closure, and unexpected birthday joy is brought to Kim MacQuoid, because the team uncover her mysterious background and reunite her with her family.

PART THREE OF THE SECOND DALEY TRILOGY