Hirsch is checking firearms. The regular police audit: all weapons secured, ammo stored separately, no unauthorised person with keys to the gun safe. He�s checking people, too. The drought is hitting hard in the mid-north, and Hirsch is responsible for the welfare of his scattered flock of battlers, bluebloods, loners and miscreants. He isn�t usually called on for emergency roadside assistance. But with all the other services fully stretched, it�s Hirsch who has to grind his way out beyond the Mischance Creek ruins to where some clueless tourist has run into a ditch. As it turns out, though, Annika Nordrum isn�t exactly a tourist. She�s searching for the body of her mother, who went missing seven years ago. And the only sense in which she�s clueless is the lack of information unearthed by the cops who phoned in the original investigation. Hirsch owes it to Annika to help, doesn�t he? Not to mention that tackling a cold case beats the hell out of gun audits and admin�