September 17, 1864. New York City is still recovering from the Draft Riots of 1863. In Five Points, the worst slum in the country, Detective Kevin Corcoran of the New York City Metropolitan Police Department's Sixth Precinct finds himself investigating the murder of a young girl that hits uncomfortably close to home. As the investigation heats up, detectives Corcoran, Francis Maguire, Andrew O'Brien, and old comrade, Doctor Matthew Freeman, must navigate the slums of Five Points and the mansions of Uptown to search for the child's killer.

September 26, 1864. Racial tensions in Five Points come to a head as the body of an Irishman is discovered lynched and hanged. While all evidence points toward a black pastor as the murderer, Corcoran has doubts. As the people of New York cry for a hanging, Corcoran is forced to question every piece of evidence with the help of Doctor Matthew Freeman. The Morehouse family attempts to capitalize on the situation by eyeing new parcels of land in the Points that may become available if the city panics. Meanwhile, the search for Corcoran's missing wife unexpectedly lands in the hands of Eva Heissen – though Corcoran is entirely unaware.