Mercedes Harrigan, novice landlord, is a pro at cleaning up messy apartments but cleaning up after an elderly tenant dies presents a different dilemma. It’s not the dead body lying on the kitchen floor that has Sadie freaked out—she grew up playing among the caskets at her grandmother’s mortuary—it’s the coroner’s suspicion that the wiring in Sadie's vintage apartments could be the culprit. Add a threatened lawsuit by the family of the deceased, along with bizarre clues that pop up but don’t add up, and Sadie’s morale dips lower than the meager balance in her bank account.

When none of the authorities will listen to Sadie’s suspicions about the supposedly accidental death, Sadie enlists the help of her BFF Rebbie Russell. As the duo digs into the tenant's life the sweet-old-lady facade crumbles and a nastier profile emerges, providing plenty of suspects. Threats against Sadie escalate as they come to the conclusion that her death was not due to old age and a three-pack-a-day habit but rather a cleverly planned murder. When a second murder is made to look like a random mugging, Sadie knows she’s on the right track. But can she expose the murderer before she winds up in one of her grandmother’s caskets?