When a young property developer dies on a beach in Whitley Bay, Vera's investigation begins to tread on many toes. It appears that the victim was not only having a secret relationship with his estranged sister, but that he had confronted a local arcade owner, whose son had died at his house many years before, having slipped from a flat roof in a supposed 'burglary'. However, a scam involving the family's rental business may hold the key to the motive behind the victim's death. But in order to place all of the pieces of the puzzle together, Vera has to reveal some long buried - and heartbreaking - secrets, leading to a shock revelation which points the team firmly in the direction of the real killer.