When Mark is invited back to Leila's flat and ordered to strip, he expects the experience of his life. Waking later to find Leila gone, he opens the wrong door and finds he's entered a nightmare; behind the swaying Barbie dolls that hang from the ceiling is the body of the girl he just had sex with. Rhona Macleod's investigation reveals the red silk cord used to hang Leila to be a cingulum, a Wiccan artifact used in sex magick. Sketches of sexual partners hidden in the dolls provide a link to nine men, but who are they? As the investigation continues, it looks likely that other witches will be targeted too. Also investigating is newly demoted DS Michael McNab, eager to stay sober and redeem himself with Rhona, but the case threatens his resolve. Soon McNab realizes Freya may hold the key to identifying the men linked to the dolls, but the Nine will do anything to keep their identities a secret.