Inspector Morse doesn't think much of regulations. While his subordinate, Sergeant Lewis, meticulously investigates according to the police manual, Morse prefers to follow his intuition, often led down surprising paths by the daily crossword puzzle in the Times. This is especially true when he is lost in thought over a pint of bitter in a smoky pub. A particularly challenging case is that of the mysteriously vanished Valerie Taylor, who ran away from home more than two years ago. Morse sees not the slightest chance of finding the girl alive. Until a letter arrives, seemingly bearing Valerie's signature, and the investigator from that time dies shortly after in a traffic accident. Morse does not believe in coincidence.