It is 1920 and Scotland Yard detective, DI Albert Lincoln, is still reeling from the disturbing events of the previous year. Trapped in a loveless marriage and tired of his life in London, he's pleased when he's called to a new case in the North West of England. Before the War, he'd investigated the murder of a child in the village of Alderley Edge in Cheshire and now a woman has been murdered there and another child is missing, the only witness being a traumatised boy who lives in a cemetery lodge. Albert's first investigation wasn't a success but this time he is determined to find the truth ... and the missing child. When Albert delves into the secret lives of the village residents, many of whom are wealthy cotton manufacturers from nearby Manchester, he uncovers shocking secrets and obsessions. The dramatic scenery of the Edge itself shelters men and children damaged by the War while the wealthy residents of big houses nearby pursue pleasure relentlessly, trying to forget the hell of the war years. With the help of a village schoolmistress with her own secret past, Albert closes in on the original pre-war killer but his recent case proves more difficult to solve. Then, as more bodies are discovered, he realises the young witness himself is in grave danger, possibly from somebody he calls 'the Shadow Man'. And as he discovers more about the victims he finds information that might bring him a step closer to solving a mystery of his own - the whereabouts of his son.