Six-foot-tall, redheaded ex-cop and Boston-based private eye Carlotta Carlyle knows all about urban survival. That's why she's happy to do her neighbor, Valentine, a favor like this one. The elderly recluse needs help burglar-proofing her rent-controlled apartment. But it seems Valentine's fears are more immediate and threatening than she's letting on. Because just twenty-four hours later, the old woman turns up dead in her ransacked home. Finding out who'd want to kill a nice old lady lands Carlotta on the heels of a hotshot music executive claiming to be Valentine's last living relative, a real-estate mogul with a knack for eviction, and Valentine's terrified healthcare worker.