Helen Bentley, the wealthy heiress to the estate of High Bentley, was engaged to her cousin, Sir Edward Kirkham, from the time she was in her cradle. However, Edward's brother Frederick made no secret of his dislike for the arrangement, thinking that Helen was secure in her fortune and had no need to marry unless she truly wished. He had failed to appreciate that it would be another four years before Helen could take control of her inheritance.
Unhappy with the way the estate was managed, yet powerless to intervene, Helen knew her property would pass to her husband when she married. So, after being jilted by Edward, she began to look for a fortune-hunter, the kind of man who would be content to let her dismiss her agent, Mr Goodridge, and manage the property herself. But is was not easy to find a fortune-hunter of the kind she wanted, especially when Frederick was determine to thwart her plans.
And whilst Helen was looking for a husband, she failed to spot she had an enemy - someone who wanted her dead.