Supt Susan Blake returns to work from maternity leave. For PC Steve Traynor the day starts rather differently. Within the station, as the news spreads of their colleague's injuries reaches the officers, emotions are running high.

The day starts badly for Steve - he has slept through his alarm. His concerned colleagues have to break into his flat to get him up for work. The team responds to a call about a till snatch from a newsagents.

Bill faces a life-or-death situation when he and Steve chase two men who have broken into the home of an antiques dealer, and Jim Oulten faces financial and marital problems.

Steve and Larry go undercover to catch muggers and Steve finds himself facing an old woman with a submachinegun; a pregnant woman makes a confession to an off-duty Susan; Connie puts her career ahead of a family life; and Steve narrowly escapes being blown up by a hand grenade dropped by the old woman whose husband collected war memorabilia.

A past case comes back to haunt Susan, but it is Jim who makes a grave error of judgement, which puts a suspect and his daughter in danger. Meanwhile, Steve continues his reckless behaviour and hopes to cover up that he has crashed a squad car in a high-speed chase.

Miriam oversteps the mark after being called to a domestic violence case, which forces Susan to face some unwelcome memories. Meanwhile, Steve and Connie pick up a youngster suspected of credit card fraud, little realising they know his cousin rather well.

Jim's past returns to haunt him when a persistent offender slips through his grasp once again, and Larry helps out an illegal immigrant who has been beaten up by thugs at a strip club.

DI Pete Hammond seems rather down in the mouth. Is it the work that's getting him down or is it all the women in his life that he's juggling? Superintendent Jim Oulton also seems rather stressed. What's on his mind?

A high-speed car chase goes tragically wrong for Connie. The grieving father tries to blame the police but it turns out that his daughter was on Ecstasy. The Chirf Constable interferes, trying to force Susan out. She realises what he's up to and calls his bluff.