James Hardy's life takes an unexpected turn when he's mistakenly identified as a retired Scotland Yard Detective. Having ended his career as a coachman in England under somewhat scandalous circumstances, Hardy sets out for a fresh start in New Zealand, finding it in the small port of Napier through his work with the local authorities.

The year is 1881, the setting is deep in the New Zealand bush, when Hardy's chance encounter with a reclusive Māori fugitive on the run turns into a murder investigation. After jumping onto the back of Hardy's spring buggy, the Māori man reveals a gruesome crime scene: the body of a young housemaid lying next to a log, dressed in a coat belonging to none other than Beatrice Hardy, James' wife.

• As Hardy assists the police in their search for justice, they uncover a tangled web of secrets and mysteries. With the local hermit seemingly tied to the past, the question on everyone's mind is: did he commit the crime, and why does he insist he took the knife for the major?

• The trail of clues leads Hardy deeper into the heart of the New Zealand bush, where the line between truth and deception begins to blur.

• As Hardy delves deeper into the case, he must also confront the shadows of his own past and the secrets that have haunted him for so long.