Detectives Goren and Eames are investigating the case of a beheaded woman whose body has disappeared. They discover that the victim is the American-raised daughter of a Russian mafioso. At first, they suspect that she was murdered after announcing plans to write a revealing book about growing up in a criminal family, and thugs planned a gangland hit to kill her, but evidently someone beat them to it.

Goren and Eames investigate the death of a wealthy publisher killed by a car bomb. During the investigation they discover that the victim was murdered after he demanded to meet a disabled girl he had been supporting. She is known as an orphaned and elusive teenage author whose personal tragedies have spawned best-selling books and profitable charities. After interviewing one of her editors they begin to suspect that the girl in question does not even exist; no-one can say they have ever met her. They suspect her foster parents are running an elaborate fraud.