In the mob-ridden Chicago of 1938, a reform candidate for mayor is gunned down, and Steve Malek, a police reporter for The Tribune, senses the story of a lifetime. Incurring his editors' anger, he ranges far beyond his beat, plunging headlong into a maverick investigation of the murder. In the process, he crosses paths with actress Helen Hayes, future Mayor Richard J. Daley, one-time syndicate kingpin Al Capone, and pitching great Dizzy Dean, traded to the Cubs at the start of the season.