It is an instance unlike any psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware provides ever came across. Five-year-old Woody Swope is normally ill, but the true problem is usually his parents. They refuse to agree to the one treatment that could save this boy’s life.

Alex pieces out to convince Mr. and Mrs. Swope–only to discover the parents have left the hospital and used their son with them. Even worse, the sleazy motel room where in fact the Swopes were staying is usually empty–except for the ominous bloodstain. The Swopes and their boy have vanished into the sordid shadows of the town.

Now Alex and his friend, homocide detective Milo Sturgis, haven’t any choice but to push regulations to the breaking point. They’ve joined an amoral underworld where medicines, dreams, and sex are all on the market…where fantasies are fulfilled at any price–even at the cost of a boy’s life.