Los Angeles is a city of stark contrast, the palaces of the affluent coexisting uneasily with the hellholes of the mad and the needy. Brilliant psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware and Detective Milo Sturgis are drawn into an unsettling case of altruism gone wrong. The victim had recently received rave media attention for his latest project: images of homeless people in their personal "dream" situations. There are some who view the whole thing as nothing more than crass exploitation, citing token payments and the victim's avoidance of any long-term relationships with his subjects. Has disgruntlement blossomed into homicidal rage? Or do the roots of violence reach down to the victim's family-a clan, sired by an elusive billionaire, that is bizarre in its own right?