Catherine Mallory was one of Frangeles' best detectives, until the day that her partner was killed by an unlucky stray bullet. She quit her police job and started operating a forklift by day, serving drinks at night. Both jobs together pay her rent and her food and keep her from brooding over how she failed her teammate.

One day, though, she finds the dead victim of a violent crime, and her old job instincts kick in. She decides to investigate and interfere. She can't know that this decision will lead her into deeper trouble than ordinary mortals could imagine.