A tough town in a tough time: Detroit during World War II where the U.S. furiously tried to outmanufacture the Germans and Japanese. Industry importer workers to replace men gone to war--Southern whites and blacks working side by side for the first time.

Through this tense, troubled world cuts a killer, a self-appointed soldier savaging ordinary people, the defenseless. Lieutenant Zagreb's most important job is to keep the city from exploding, but his job doesn't stop there. He must catch a mad killer with a cop roster of 4-Fs and near-retirees and he has to save his own soul. But, he can't succeed at all three.