Plot summary

In the city of Kenport, where criminal elements control the politicians as well as the city itself, homicide Sgt. Dave Bannion's tasked with investigating the supposed suicide of fellow officer Tom Duncan. Duncan had been head of the records bureau, and though at first it seems an open-and-shut case, Bannion gets a call from Tom's girlfriend, Lucy Chapman, who doesn't believe he would have done this. Though he puts it off, Ms. Chapman's found dead the very next day, having been brutally tortured and beaten to death. As Bannon begins to dig, he's warned to back off, but this only angers him to look harder. A bomb - meant for him - kills his wife, and Bannion's anger boils over. Looking to get vengeance and justice, he works harder. With help from the gangster's forlorn girlfriend, Debby, the clues point towards Mike Lagana and his associate, Vince Stone. But, as Bannion gets closer, the violence increases, spiraling towards a victory, but for which side?—Huggo