A number of sheep has been savaged or killed, and Inspector Crossley is convinced that a very big cat like a puma is at large in the area. To Blaketon it looks more like the workings of a dog and Greengrass' lurcher Alfred seems to be the culprit. Kate Rowans starts in her new job at Dr. Radcliffe's surgery in Whitby, although she feels as if she is being kept outside deliberately. Not by Dr. Radcliffe himself, but by his receptionist Christine Ferguson. Meanwhile Greengrass has settled his outstanding account with the Inland Revenue in his own, very unique way.

PC Rowan is stopped by three children, who claim they have seen a witch. And indeed they find an urn with the remains of on of Kate's former patients Amy Dewhurst, which the mysterious woman threw over the church yard fence. The description of the woman matches Nancy Bellow, the housekeeper and companion of the deceased. Now she cooks for Marjorie Salter, the grand niece of her former employer, and her husband, who are renovating her aunt's old house. The following night the Salters are admitted to hospital with symptoms of food poisoning. Inspector Crossley is so convinced that Nancy Bellow has tried to poison her new employers and murdered Amy Dewhurst that he goes to far to get a confession out of her.

Young Jamie Halsted is camping out with he parents. He is very sad because his dog Sam is missing, and when a man dies of rabies Sam gets under suspicion because Jamie's father is a former army major, who has been stationed abroad, and Blaketon organizes a major search for the animal in order to stop the disease from spreading. There's a new police car in town, and PCs Rowan and Ventress take it out for a spin. It has been some time though since the last time Alf Ventress was behind the wheel.

PC Rowan gets assigned to special duty with the CID in Whitby. He will be investigating reports of smuggling among the local fishermen. Ventress is asked to help him, but unlike Rowan he has to pay all expenses by himself since he is on holiday. Rowan's main suspect is Cedric Shanks, but to get close to him Rowan needs the help of young Jake Stirling, who is in dire need of a job because he has gotten his girlfriend Liza pregnant. Blaketon takes over Rowan's patch while he is away and uses the opportunity to keep an eagle eye on Claude Jeremiah Greengrass.

There has been a break-in at the county council office. At first it seems that nothing but petty cash was taken, but then it is discovered that an adoption file is missing. When the child of that file is abducted suspicion falls on its biological mother Sandie Eliot. Only the abducted child is not hers! Greengrass reports a murder. One of his homing pigeons has been killed by a peregrine falcon, and when the police will have nothing to do with it he and his fellow members of the local pigeon fanciers association decide to take matters in their own hands.

Gina is on her way home from celebrating a rugby match victory. Somebody attacks her and tries to rape her when her car breaks down. Luckily the attacker is frightened off by Greengrass, who is on one of his 'nightly expeditions', before things get too far. Inspector Murchison does not believe Gina's story and leans very hard on her trying to get her to drop her story. Meanwhile Phil Bellamy's tie has been found in Gina's car. Phil has nothing to do with the assault, but names a likely suspect, Neil Gibson, who is arrested. Gibson's family scares Gina into dropping the charges, but then a waitress in Whitby is attacked under similar circumstances.

Dr. Kate Rowan is spending several nights per week in Whitby while she works in the Whitby practice. Nick isn't happy at being left alone. Nick gets rebuked by Blaketon because his shirt isn't ironed. Blaketon says it shows lack of respect for the job. Lead has been stolen from the roof of a farm house and some out-buildings. Smoke pours from Greengrass' house and three young men who are camping on his land see the smoke and rush to help. Kate has discovered that she is pregnant and she thinks about the way a baby would affect her career, and Nick's. Lead has been stolen from a church roof. Blaketon has realised that there is something wrong in the Rowan household and he goes round to see Nick for a personal chat. Nick confides in him that he thinks he and Kate are drifting apart. Kate is back in Aidensfield and she runs into Nick. She tells him that she is pregnant. They have an emotional, heart-to-heart conversation. Kate Rowan has to make a tricky climb on to a church roof to give aid to a badly injured lead thief. Music in this includes "We Can work It Out", "Na Na Na Na, Hey Hey, Kiss Him Goodbye", "Magic Bus".

When Arthur and Emily Jacobs return home from a trip to Scarborough they find their house burgled and their cattle on the loose even though they had asked his brother Darcy to keep an eye on the place. PC Rowan soon discovers that there is bad blood between the Jacobs brothers. Gina gets a visit from her old boyfriend Billy from Liverpool. But Billy has some problems with honesty. First he steals 5£ from the till in the pub and then he tries to give Gina a record player that stems from the burglary at the Jacobs farm. The latter, he claims, he bought from Greengrass - much to the delight of sergeant Blaketon.