In a small Swiss village, a school sports coach is accused of molestation by the mother of one of his pupils. The citizens are outraged…that the mother could make such a claim – for the coach she accuses is a local hero, a former world champion who has become the town’s closest thing to a sporting legend.

Flooding in Krumau am Kamp: three infant bodies, two girls and a boy, are found in the basement of the Trummler family's farm, which has long been uninhabited. The children were suffocated immediately after birth and buried on the spot. A dark reputation precedes the Trummlers – the word "cursed" is used more than once, after the daughter's disappearance without a trace...

Another case for Inspector Richie Haller, in which the deadly mixture of cocaine with a pinch of cyanide salt and a faker operation, which is used by drug couriers for distribution, plays a role.