From the cradle to the grave

It looked like an ordinary soft toy. The eighth case for Kay Hunter.

In the River Medway near Maidstone, the body of a man with a gunshot wound to the face is discovered. Nearby, the police find a motorboat containing belongings of a small child. At first, everything suggests the victim might be Greg Victor, who was supposed to be on a trip with his niece, Alice. However, the police soon find Greg and the child alive, and it emerges that the dead man is actually Alice's father, Robert Victor.

The investigation gradually uncovers a complicated web of family relationships and business activities leading to Robert's father-in-law, the businessman Kenneth Archerton. He is feigning a serious illness and hiding from the outside world in his home. As it turns out, his illness is merely a cover for illegal activities – smuggling drugs hidden inside soft toys. When the police begin to uncover the truth, Archerton attempts to flee with little Alice, leading to a dramatic conclusion to the case.