A young woman is found murdered near the city's red-light district. Her husband quickly becomes the chief suspect, but DC Mowbray has his doubts. Meanwhile, the detectives learn about the brutal murder of three prostitutes in nearby south Wales.
A joint investigation begins into all four murders, but questions arise over the competency of the Welsh senior detective. Another murder back in Bristol breaks all the patterns of the previous killings--and comes uncomfortably close to Mowbray's family.