Los Angeles, 1931. On the heels of an unsavory investigation involving a famous comedian, Perry Mason--a PI struggling to make ends meet--and his right-hand man Pete Strickland are hired by attorney E.B. Jonathan, Perry's mentor, to solve a perplexing case: the brutal kidnapping of one-year-old Charlie Dodson, whose parents were targeted for a $100,000 ransom.

Mason and Strickland lean on Virgil, again, for extra-legal assistance. Following Sister Alice's recovery from a frightening episode, Birdy urges her daughter to renounce her claims about baby Charlie. E.B. faces the reality of his financial situation and takes his frustrations out on Della.