It's great times in the fishing village of Porthcarrow as hundreds of people flock to sample the healing waters of the local spring, which are said to be able to cure everything from warts to asthma. The new owner, Miss Emily Pride, having inherited these lands, decides to understand the “sacredness” of the source and stop illegal profit from people’s faith in healing. Local residents, not at all happy about this turn of affairs, anonymously pester the elderly lady with threats. And a week later, a murder occurs on the island... When the young talented playwright and theater director Peregrine Jay receives a bombed London theater from a mysterious oil tycoon to recruit a new troupe and stage performances, his joy knows no bounds. After the restoration, the Dolphin is thriving: Jay's play about the life of Shakespeare is sold out, which is greatly facilitated by the glove of the great poet's son on display in the foyer, donated for temporary storage by a generous millionaire. However, the priceless relic is too tasty a morsel: the rarity is stolen, the watchman is killed, and the only witness - a boy actor - lies unconscious in the hospital. Superintendent Roderick Alleyn will have to figure out what happened in the theater that fateful evening.