Sheriff Metzger investigates when Vivian Proctor, one of Cabot Cove's best-liked and busiest housewives, is implicated in the murder of a well-known womanizer who has been found dead in a cheap motel. Although Vivian is widely regarded as the "perfect" wife and mother, her keys and a lurid personal note have been found next to the body of the victim--and she refuses to explain why. It soon develops that Vivian was leading a double life...and it falls to her friend Jessica to help untangle Vivian's web of lies and find out who the real killer is.