It's August l946 and the historic Saratoga racetrack, closed for the past three years during WWII, has reopened for the traditional race meeting. The small city's seams are bursting with the pent up needs of thousands of gamblers, socialites and hangers-on who seek the excitement of the Sport of Kings and the mob-controlled casino-nightclubs where the likes of Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Sophie Tucker entertain. The discovery of a woman's mutilated corpse at a lake near the casinos has local political boss Doc Fazzone and mob boss Sammy Cohen worried that the press will imply it's a mob hit. Reporter Jack Jenkins, assisted by coed intern Beverly Michaels, digs into the murder and finds that young Jeremy Bell, who discovered the body, may hold the key to unraveling the crime. City detective Tom Connor must contend with Jack and keep police commissioner Torrey off his back during an election year where Torrey faces a challenge from local attorney and war hero, Bobby Deliberto. Meanwhile, a reclusive nurse, Sonia Kosik, knows more than she's telling about the victim. Someone in the organization is ripping off the take from the numbers' racket and Doc must find him before mob boss Sammy Cohen does. Doc's enforcer, Harry Schmidt, looks for answers in a book hidden near the racetrack by Jimmy O'Connor, Doc's bookkeeper and brother-in-law. The disparate parties come together and confront each other near the isolated lake where the murdered woman's body was first discovered.