描述
When Peter Derwent takes the shortcut through the woods toward his family's ancestral home, all he has on his mind is a desperate need for money. Certainly the shot that kills him comes as a complete surprise. What is even more baffling is that so many of the townspeople of Colombury are likely suspects. Who was desperate enough to murder harmless Peter? Why was he so short of money? Why does Peter's estate seem to be so important to everyone connected with the crime? Detective Superintendent George Thorne is called in to investigate--but he is totally unprepared for still more shootings on the wooded path...or a motive born, like original sin, in the darker passions of the heart.