Police Inspector Kurt Wallander and his team investigate the murder of an elderly farm couple, Maria and Johannes Lovgren. Nothing seemed to have been taken from their run-down house so the police initially rule out robbery as a motive. They subsequently learn from Johannes's brother that the dead man was actually quite wealthy and when the bank confirms he withdrew a large sum every calendar quarter, they revise their ideas about a possible motive. Of equal concern to Wallander is a news report that Maria Johannes' last word to him before she died was that her attacker was a foreigner. Soon, the migrant farm workers in the area for the harvest are being targeted by vigilantes. Meanwhile, Wallander is having his own problems. He's in less than good health - he's a diabetic - and he's not sure he approves of his daughter's new boyfriend. As well, his father's dementia is worsening and he faces the prospect of having to institutionalize him.