Meg Langslow is plying her blacksmith's trade at Caerphilly Days, a festival inspired by her town's sudden notoriety as "The Town That Mortgaged Its Jail." The lender has foreclosed on all Caerphilly's public buildings, and all employees have evacuated except for Phineas Throckmorton, the town clerk who barricaded himself in the courthouse basement.

Phinny's year-long siege of protest has been possible because of a tunnel through which his local supporters deliver food and supplies. But when a woman is found dead on the premises, Phinny becomes a person of interest. Meg is certain that Phinny's been framed by the hawkish lender. Now it's up to Meg and the rest of Caerphilly to protect Phinny—and his beloved pet pigeons. Meanwhile, the killer has flown the coop…