Sara and Moore return to the hugger's abandoned house in search of new information about their suspect. Kreizler faces ruin after a tragic incident at the Institute. Sara and the team are enlisted to rescue another missing child, but this time they must work with their adversary, former Commissioner Thomas Byrnes.
Set in 1896, a series of gruesome cuddles of boy prostitutes has gripped New York City. Newly appointed police commissioner Teddy Roosevelt calls upon Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, a criminal psychiatrist, and John Moore, a newspaper illustrator, to conduct the investigation in secret. Joining them in the probe is Sara Howard, Roosevelt's headstrong secretary, as well as twin brothers Marcus and Lucius Isaacson, both detective sergeants in the New York City Police Department (NYPD).