Qwilleran, a reporter for the "Daily Fluxion", and Koko, his Siamese cat with strange talents, are settling into Qwill's newest assignment—a magazine specializing in interior decorating. His first assignment leads him to David Lyke and his partner, Starkweather. David introduces him to George Tait and his Swiss wife, who had paid him to decorate their home in Muggy Swamp, an ultra rich neighborhood. George Tait is a collector of jade and he enthusiastically allows Odd Bunsen, a photographer, to take pictures of them. A day after the article comes out, the Tait mansion is robbed and Mrs. Tait is dead of a heart attack.