In 2019, a fire breaks out in an East Hollywood apartment building killing several residents including a 10-year-old girl; Detective Harry Bosch arrives on the scene, but his partner is noticeably absent.
Bosch and Edgar follow a lead in the arson case to the famed Magic Castle; Lieutenant Billets ruffles feathers in the ranks; Vincent Franzen offers up a big fish as his get-out-of-jail-free card.
Robertson and Bennett follow the hit man's trail to Las Vegas, hoping to find a connection to Fowkkes' other clients; Irving gives Bosch an order that causes Bosch to lose faith in the system he has defended his entire career.
Bosch and Edgar track down La Mayorista, but after Edgar makes a costly error, Bosch asks Vega to assist; Chandler and Maddie record Franzen's statement for the SEC before Chandler stashes him away in a safe house.
Nearly a year has passed, and Bosch gets called to the Lake Hollywood Overlook to investigate the murder of medical physicist Stanley Kent.