Helen Hudson is a brilliant forensic psychologist who specializes in the study of serial killers. After one of her subjects attempts to kill her, Hudson suffers a nervous breakdown and becomes agoraphobic. However, when a series of ritualized murders baffle the San Francisco Police Department, M.J. Monahan, a feisty, intelligent detective, turns to the unwilling Hudson for help in finding the killer. The team of doctor and detective becomes a target when their quarry learns who is on his trail.