It hasn't exactly been a banner year for Chicago-based private detective Ron Shade. First, his main lady-love left for a new life in California. Then, his faithful old Chevy turned over on its second hundred thousand miles and died. Finally, Shade realized that his expensive downtown office was a luxury that he could no longer afford. In an attempt to bounce back and take control of his life, Shade buys a new Camaro Z-28, takes a high-powered ad in the yellow pages, and is in the process of bidding his office adieu. That's when Maria Castro strolls through the door and into his life. Maria asks Shade to help find her friend's missing fianci. When he turns up floating face down in a local shipping canal, Shade tries to back out of the case, but Maria, with whom he's become romantically involved, convinces him to stay with it. This is only the beginning of Shade's quest into the heart of darkness, his search for something resembling the truth, and his hope to bring justice to the criminals he's tracking.