Hailey Matheson, the first female detective in the Portland Police, finally gets a case: a poisoned cocktail waitress. The murder exposes the dark sides of 1980: savage punk rockers, swingers, call girls, runaway kids, and cocaine. The prime suspect is Yvonne, who haunts Hailey's passionate fantasies. She wants both to arrest the killer and protect the woman of her heart's desire. Lieutenant Jim Hardy opposes queerness and the idea of female detectives. Hailey fears discovery of her orientation would provide him a pretext to take her job. He also obsesses over finding Yvonne guilty. Hardy plans to rough up Paul, Yvonne's young boyfriend, to get answers, but Hailey, inspired by his devotion to his lover, tries another way.