When Jessica overhears the confession of a dying hit man, she becomes embroiled in a case of international intrigue and must use her infallible crime writer's instincts to solve the murder of a government official.

Following the death of an eccentric recluse of Cabot Cove, Jessica is appointed as executor of the woman's estate. As she begins the daunting task of cataloging the contents of her home, Jessica gets roped into helping Sheriff Tupper in the investigation of the murder of the local unscrupulous antiques dealer who was found dead inside the woman's house. They soon discover that an old legend of Benedict Arnold spending time inside the old house may have played a part in the man's death.