Trama

When Jean's son Jack returns to Ballarat, he becomes a suspect in the murder of the wealthy Dennison family. Dr. Blake must solve a mystery that is close to home.

Jack Beazley, Jean's 24 year-old son, wins a running race, which is how his mother learns he is in town. Charlie Davis is also running in the race. A window washer sees three dead people at the Dennison home. The police find the Dennison parents and one son dead. Another son ran in the race, and the daughter's whereabouts are not known. Acting Superintendent Doug Ashby is at the scene when Blake arrives. Blake finds the terrified daughter, Aileen, in a cupboard. She is blind, and reports to Blake and Ashby what she heard, three shots, but the police know five shots happened. Her brother Owen returns from the race. Cameron Dennison, his wife Lorna and son Samuel are identified by Cameron's brother Clyde, who tells the police there is a third son Albert, a disgrace to the family who goes by Corrigan. The Dennison family are wealthy, old money per Tyneman, and generous; they sponsored the race that day. Patrick Tyneman demands Ashby explain who has been arrested, as people are calling the newspaper for information. Charlie gets Albert to the police station; Albert gets upset and violent when told his mother is dead; Blake sedates him. Albert tells police he last saw his father a week earlier, when it was made official that he was not in his father's will. They had fought earlier, and Albert was injured, leaving a scar. Charlie reveals to Blake his injury from Jack hitting him during the race, when it seemed that Charlie would win. At home, Jean explains that Albert was cut off because he wanted to marry a Catholic girl; she dislikes Clyde Dennison. Jack stays at Blake's home, where he meets Mattie. Ashby questions Clyde Dennison, who has been in court to take control of the family's many assets in the prior year, and he lost. Ashby has the court records opened before he questions Clyde, who will inherit. Police are called to intercept people driving into town after an armed robbery. There is a fierce shoot-out between them and the police. Ashby kills Ray Banford, the man trying to kill Charlie. Ivy Douglas survives the shoot out; she is pregnant, and Jack is the father. Ashby calls Jack in for questioning as a long ago friend of Ray. Jack was arrested ten years earlier by Ashby, and sent out of town at age 14, soon after his father had died. Ashby orders Blake off the case once Jack is suspected. Blake still worries about lividity of the corpses, the changing appearance of the body after death. The dog bowl is full of dinner scraps. Studying the photos, it appears that the morning newspaper was placed on the table after the shootings, staging the appearance; the blood on the newspaper is not human blood. Blake deduces that the murders could have happened up to 12 hours before the morning discovery. Tyneman publishes where Jack is living in the morning paper, and a crowd of men appear at Blake's house, and attack Jean. Charlie and Blake intervene. Charlie takes Owen Dennison in for questioning, while Blake deals with Aileen who faces him with a gun and makes clear that she aligned with her uncle Clyde, that her father was giving away the family wealth, and directed her brother Owen to do the shooting. Blake gets the gun out of her hand, and she too is arrested. Blake tells Jack how his mother stood up to the crowd of men for him. Jack replies with accusations, then goes home and packs his bags to leave. Blake makes it clear to Jean that she lives there, and her son is welcome in the future; they are always our children.

Ballarat is in an uproar when the bodies of the most beloved family in town, the Dennisons, are found murdered in their own home on the morning of the Daylesford to Ballarat cross-country race. With the town in a panic, it's exactly the wrong time for Jean's ne'er-do-well son Jack to turn up. As Blake investigates he discovers this revered family is not quite as perfect as everyone thought.