Transferred from Southampton Row to the Soho Vice Squad D.C.I. Tennison's first priority in the new job is 'Operation Contract' - a large-scale clean-up of prostitutes in the area. However the charred body of 17 year old rent boy Colin Jenkins is discovered in the burnt-out flat of transexual cabaret artiste Vera (Peter Capaldi) and once again Tennison finds herself embroiled in the politics of the latest homicide case as she tackles homophobia and perceptions of gender and sex both within and outside the police force.