Barlow laid bare

Barlow needs every ignorant bone in his body to survive against an unknown enemy who is using witchcraft to bring him down. An old adversary of Barlow is murdered during a witchcraft ceremony involving group sex. Then a second man is killed with Barlow's own pistol. In both cases Barlow cannot supply an alibi. All of which delights District Inspector Harvey, because if Barlow doesn't hang he'll spend the rest of his life in jail. Meantime, rain falls and the water in the rivers rise until, like Barlow's troubles, they overflow. His daughter, Vera, won't speak to him because he has a girlfriend, the girlfriend dumps him because she thinks he's two-timing her and Barlow's old army friends, Edward Adair and Geordie Dunlop, are relying on him to get them out of trouble over a stolen lorry-load of whiskey. Even a spot of gardening puts Barlow in the hospital fighting for his life.