Investigating a socialite's insurance claim for a champion show horse's sudden death, elite Pasadena law firm newcomer Jack MacTaggart uncovers links to an old blackmail scheme before he is falsely accused of murder.

Monsieur Giroux is not a happy man. Of course, who could be happy while discussing the death of their son? Without an heir, his Chateau Giroux winery in California will be inherited by another family member, its grapes plowed under to make way for a lucrative real estate deal. Yet Giroux believes that his son may still be alive and hires Jack MacTaggart to investigate.