It was nearing the end of the road for The Merrymakers. Such companies of entertainers touring the towns and villages of East Anglia were finding things more and more difficult. For Howard Layton, playermanager of the troupe, it was a worrying time. But it was the murder of the bright young star of the show that proved to be the hardest blow he had to bear. For Debbie was his own daughter, and he and his wife Gloria had had ambitious plans for her career on the stage. And why would anyone want to kill her anyway?