Synopsis
Retired entrepreneur Pal McLean is found dead in his study, with his face having been shot to a pulp by a shotgun. With the door having been locked from the inside, and all signs pointing to a suicide, Dalziel believes it's an open and shut case. But McLean's son, Rob, is determined to lie the blame on someone's shoulders, and sets out to find the evidence to convict someone for murder. But then he is found dead in exactly identical circumstances. When the post mortem reveals that he was suffering from an inoperable brain tumour, Dalziel again deduces he took his own life. Photos of McLean's son-in-law Jason playing away with a prostitute soon prove to be the key element in the case, until the private detective who took them is found dead at the bottom of a stairwell, with his head caved in. As Pascoe searches for a motive for murder, Dalziel woos over his one true love, Kay McLean.