Kate Hibbert is all too eager to lend a hand to her neighbors. Although she has been a resident of the sleepy village of Lochdubh for only a year, in that time Kate has alienated one too many of its residents with her interfering, and not entirely well-intentioned, ways. When Kate's neighbor sees her lugging a heavy suitcase to the bus stop, he hopes that the prying woman is gone for good. But two weeks later, Kate's cousin arrives in town with the news that Kate has gone missing. Hamish Macbeth is called in to investigate the disappearance, and soon he is befuddled by the discovery of Kate's body, her suitcase, and the sneaking suspicion that Kate was someone much more sinister than she claimed.