Poor, tired old Octavio Benelli appears for a public hearing into the matter of the murder of his wife, by person or persons unknown.
There are three people on the review board. However, only Detective Paul Egan actually knows Octavio Benelli.
The crux of the problem is that there are two gangs, the Cross Street Dukes and the Forest Park Hunters operating in the Forest Park area. Almost certainly, one of the gang member murdered Octavio Benelli's wife, Marlene. However, there are no witnesses and also no proof.
Complicating the problem is that numerous residents of the Forest Park area are older, but politically powerful, people. The residents of Forest Park want the killer caught.
In addition, someone is killing members of the Cross Street Dukes and/or the Forest Park Hunters, on a night by night basis. The nightly killings have the Forest Park people up in arms.
(His wife Marlene had been an angel, however, Octavio ‘Bad News’ Benelli had been a devil. Bad News was a hit man who was so efficient that his work had become a very quiet legend in certain circles. Bad news never failed and the furnishing of a victim’s name to him was a death sentence. Bad News had never been caught, never even been officially involved in any of the high profile deaths and this despite the fact that it was common knowledge among the homicide police that the deaths were the result of Octavio Benelli’s work. His grim work had rid the city of many men whom the police couldn’t touch.)
However, poor, tired old Octavio Benelli obviously couldn't be the one murdering those who killed his wife.
(During the hearing Paul Egan briefly flashes back to some years ago. A young Pauly has begun his final sprint toward the finish line of the state championship 440 yard dash. The 440 yard dash is an event for strong runners with a lot of determination. Young, strong Pauly has left the other runners behind and now drives his tired legs as hard as he can and pumps his arms to increase his stride. He competes, not against the other runners, but against a legend. He’s barely conscious when he hits the tape to finish the race. He then looks up at the score board and discovers that he has won the race in record time! Pauly has broken the oldest high school record in the books. Octavio Benelli no longer holds the state high school record for the 440 yard dash, Pauly Egan now does!)
As the hearing draws to a conclusion, Detective Paul Egan has slowly come to realize that he knows who's doing the murders of the Cross Street Dukes and/or the Forest Park Hunters. He has also come to realize that the police will never catch the murderer.