A California high-school student, blonde, promiscuous Cheryl Diggs is murdered and the obvious suspect is her fellow student, Chris Whitman. A seemingly straightforward case, especially when it emerges that Whitman is an East Coast mafia chieftain's son - after all, murder runs in the family. But no murder case is straightforward, as Sergeant Pete Decker well knows, and the closer he looks at this one the less satisfied he is. Though Whitman eventually confesses to the killing Decker knows the case hasn't been exhaustively investigated - and certain pieces of evidence don't quite add up. On the other hand, Decker also knows that, even if he didn't murder Diggs, Whitman is a cold-blooded killer. And that the sweet young girl now under his thrall is bound, eventually, to suffer at Whitman's hands if he walks free. How should Decker ensure justice is done?