A gambler is found dead, and it is discovered that he had thousands of pounds stashed in his flat, leading the team to suspect that he was part of an illegal betting scam. The wife of the owner then gets killed out riding and the investigation heats up further. Meanwhile, Burke is convinced that a former heroin addict and petty criminal has changed, until he is left with a decision to either arrest a killer or do a deal to catch a more major criminal.

Ex-con Eddie Monroe is found stabbed in a Govan alleyway. Burke meets Angus Ford - a retired police officer who was responsible for Monroe's arrest and subsequent convictions - who remains adamant that Monroe was a bad man who deserved to die. But who was his killer? All roads keep leading back to old acquaintance Daniel Tulloch and his family. In the course of uncovering the truth Burke is forced to face some demons of his own.

When Terry Brogan, an alcoholic cancer sufferer, is accused of bludgeoning his wife to death, D.S. Reid finds it difficult to believe that he is guilty of murder, and she sets out to prove his innocence - despite compelling evidence to the contrary. But as the net closes in on the murderer, her irrational sympathy threatens to jeopardise the whole case.