Crediton is expecting the arrival of the Bishop of Exeter, Walter Stapledon. A band of mercenaries has arrived in the town under their leader, Sir Hector de Gorsone. Rumours abound that they terrorize travellers, have no respect even for the cloth, and that Sir Hector has seduced a local maid.

When Simon and Baldwin attend the Bishop's welcome dinner, they are called to learn that the mercenaries have complained of theft, and then discover the body of a young woman hidden in a chest: the first of the Crediton killings.