New York City, November 1988. Kate and George have just moved in to the Mathnet division at NYPD, with a new chief and a new ally, cabdriver Benny Pill. As they are fresh off ""The Case of the Ersatz Earthquake,"" Kate and George are well-prepared to hear about another prognosticator. This guy worked long hours to swindle five prominent city lawyers out of a few thousand bucks by predicting the results of a horse race.