Synopsis of "Rocked by Murder"

John Jennick, a middle aged visiting geology professor, discovers the body of his longtime friend and colleague, Tom. He is lying next to his work in a deserted lab, his head crushed. Suspicion immediately falls upon John, as he is discovered kneeling next to the body by Heather, a graduate assistant. During his interrogation by a Detective Heinemann, John reveals that he witnessed a shadowy, hooded figure leaving the lab just prior to his discovery of the body. Although the detective clearly doesn't believe him, he is persuaded to release him by Fiona Notting-Simpson, another professor at the school. Fiona takes an unusual interest in the case, and John himself. She quickly becomes his ally in the effort to clear himself.

This effort becomes a huge task as more and more suspects come into focus. The victim himself suggests several lines of investigation. He was a man with a faltering career, who had come to the college to work on a mysterious project, one dealing with a potential mine site in direct conflict with the building of a ski resort. There is Tom's beautiful wife Julie, who is not only disappointed in her husband's lack of career success, but also suspects he was being unfaithful. Moreover, John and Fiona soon suspect that she herself may be having an affair. There are also hints that Tom may have been involved with Heather. Therefore another grad student, her boyfriend, Kyle, becomes a suspect.

The investigation soon leads to other figures in the department as they learn of past scandals, and the effects of tragedies that reverberate right up to the present. While following these divergent lines, John is drawn to a closer relationship with Fiona. This more intimate connection soon clashes with John's lingering guilt over the death of his wife, the event which brought him to the university. As their collaboration intensifies, John becomes ever more conflicted. He even begins to suspect Fiona's motives.

But the investigation also seems to lead in another direction, more and more to Kyle, as they become personal witnesses to his tendency for violence. Their investigation of him uncovers additional links to the past, causing them to more closely examine Heather's motives. However before they can act, events place them in another act of violence. They arrive at the lab in time to stop another murder. To both clear himself and prevent another tragedy, John faces the murderer, an act which forces him to confront his inner conflicts as well.