A supermarket, owned by a very rich family, seems to be at the center of some bad doings. Right at the start, a young artist is killed when his apartment is set ablaze. Meanwhile, a young woman leaves the supermarket, begins to gasp and dies on the street. There is also a connection to a commune in the country. A young an seems to be the leader although he says he is merely the one who started it. In the midst, there is a kidnapping and a ransom demand. The grocery guy's daughter has been kidnapped. This man is a tyrant and is in a nasty marriage. His wife is lonely and seems to have her needs met outside the boundaries of marriage. She is attracted to Morse and comes on to him. There is a protest going on outside the store by some Rhodesian students and their sympathizers. It has to do with the purchase of Rhodesian sugar. Anyway, as is usually the case, a series of connections develop and Morse and Thursday are given the task of sorting it out.