When his estranged wife, Cass, shows up with Sharon Cooper, an uncommonly attractive woman who's getting death threats over the phone, how can Chicago private eye Malachy P. Foley turn down the case? For once, Cass has brought him a client who can pay. And besides, maybe Mal can get Cass to come back home. Mal learns that the true object of the caller's interest is Sharon's brother, Jason, a promising college basketball player who's hampered by a bad attitude. The problem is, Jason has disappeared, and Mal can't help Sharon until he finds the missing athlete. Following a trail that leads to murder, Mal races to find Jason before the caller does. But when Mal succeeds, why is no one, not even Jason, willing to tell him the whole truth? Finally, when both Sharon and Cass are kidnapped, Mal is given a terrible ultimatum: to save the women, he must send Jason to his death.