New Orleans homicide detective Nick Saladino was an idealist in the beginning, but his professional life has left him jaded and cynical. He substitutes nightlife and alcohol for a home life, dreading the inevitable break-up of his family while subconsciously desiring the result. His close friend and drinking buddy, Assistant District Attorney Steve Chaisson has never had a home life, but now has Julie Landry, the woman of his dreams; educated, gorgeous, sexy, loving. But he knows that he will never be able to provide a lifestyle that will satisfy her. He knows that keeping her in his life would be like caging an exotic wild animal. He senses that the relationship will soon come to a head due to her desire to have a family, and he will have to make the sacrifice of his life. Little do the friends realize that the discovery of a human arm inside of an alligator that had been terrorizing a New Orleans neighborhood will envelop them in the investigation of their lives, an investigation that leads to a serial killer buried deep in the criminal justice system of New Orleans, a killer with close ties to many prominent citizens, requiring them to bind together in a covert effort to ferret out the killer without alerting the city's powerful politicians, who can stop their investigation and end their careers. Gritty and hard-hitting, a realistic if sometimes profane thrill ride down dark streets and around highly unusual corners in the Big Easy.