It's Halloween and a body has been found at Druids Altar, a local beauty spot high on Harden Moor. The victim is Shayla Richards, a young black girl, and the post-mortem reveals she was suffocated and sexually assaulted; photographs of her body at the crime-scene suggest a ritual sacrifice. DI John Handford and DS Khalid Ali soon discover that Shayla's past is anything but straightforward. Over a year before her death, she accused a teacher of a sexual attack while in school. Although the teacher was suspended, the case collapsed when it came to trial. Then events take a more sinister turn when Handford discovers his prime suspect seems to be a man without a past. In fact, he doesn't even appear to exist...