Now that Mr Symmington is embracing his new way of life after coming to grips with the death of his wife and his early retirement from England's high court, his new way of life has taken an unexpected turn. He was asked by a good friend of his, Inspector Jonathon Stonewall, before his death to investigate the deaths of Elizabeth Cartridge and Peter Winscelscott who met their untimely end by the hands of Steven Fairbanks in a village named Cottondale.

With his clever logic and a keen bloodhound nose for the truth, Mr Symmington will seek to make wrong things right. His best friend, Mr George Ellsworth, will find himself having to juggle his friendship with Jeremiah Blackworth and the truth surrounding the six year old case, which was given the name "Hands of Time" by the bloodhound himself Mr Symmington.