In 1946, George, after years of war, was anxious to return to his island home three miles out from Cedartown, where he hoped to retrieve the twitch in his smile. Shrapnel had damaged his voice box but it wouldn't interfere with the pleasure of tiptoeing around the law. His one regret was his inability to convince Cass, Toronto's most successful Madam, and the woman he loved, to stop what she was doing and come back with him to the island where she was born. Bear, the local cop, was continually tested by George's nonsense. It made him smile with affection and at the same time worry that the day might come when George overstepped acceptable bounds, which, amongst other things, made him question his desire to remain a cop. Jumper, so called because he was a retired steeplechase jockey, was the photographer and reporter for the Cedartown Express who delighted in exposing the foibles of the townspeople. But he went too far. The blame for murder and suicide rested entirely on his shoulders.