It's not going well for NE Division: half the force is off sick, all leave has been cancelled, someone has firebombed a migrant hostel and there's a massive climate change protest march happening this Saturday. With officers dropping like flies, Detective Inspector Logan McRae has to kick off a major murder investigation with a skeleton staff of misfits, idiots and malingerers - aka DS Steel's team - until the top brass can arrange back-up from other divisions. But, as bad as everything seems, there's something far more sinister lurking in the heat haze of this sweltering Aberdeen summer: something that's been building for years. Something that longs to sing its horrible song ... And it's clear that things are going to get much, much worse before this is over.