Arthur Conan Edwards (Ace), Dallas PI, is off on another adventure in a small town. Jeb Highsmith, an old college chum, contacts Ace to seek help after he discovers missing funds at his law firm. Ace and his crew; cats, Sweeper and Striker, and his favorite female PI, Kit Carsen Levitt, fly east. As they begin to work the case, they find themselves embroiled in a jurisdictional dispute between local authorities and the State Bureau of Investigation. But Williamston, NC turns out to be a colorful place as Ace and Kit dig into the past to investigate an apparent embezzlement. A seemingly petty crime that leads to murder, money-laundering, buried secrets . . . and loss beyond anyone's anticipation.