DCI Taggart attends the wedding of social worker Jane Ross and former bank robber Charlie Forbes. Janie is later found murdered, having been crushed to death by a car. Meanwhile, a criminal hijacking a truck discovers more than he bargained for when he discovers a cache of explosives, and a chain of seemingly unrelated events begins.
A body is dredged up from the bottom of the Clyde, setting Taggart and Jardine off on an investigation which takes them beyond Glasgow into the Scottish Highlands.
A far-right political party seeking the return of capital punishment are embroiled in a series of murders during a by-election campaign, in which both the candidate and her agent become victims of the killer. DCI Taggart is pressed for a quick result, with strong media interest in the case and Supt. McVitie strapped for manpower.