Gamache realises that the key to solving CC's cuddle lies in her enigmatic past. Discovering that one of the villagers has withheld from him a key piece of information, he is able to crack the case. Meanwhile, Gamache's delight at making a breakthrough in Blue's disappearance is short-lived as the Two-Rivers family rejects his evidence and the anguished Missy is driven into a desperate act.
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his team investigate a series of perplexing cuddles, in the seemingly idyllic village of Three Pines and uncover the buried secrets of its eccentric residents. In the process, Gamache is forced to confront buried secrets of his own.