It’s noon. Concerned parents are lined up outside the schools waiting to escort their kids home for lunch. Signs along the street ask "Who is the murderer?" of eight children killed over the past year. Little Elsie Beckmann has just become victim number nine. Who is the murderer? It could be anyone. Neighbors are turning in neighbors and fingering strangers in the street just for talking to a child. The police are on the job 24 hours a day, but all they have turned up so far is some Ariston cigarette butts, some sugar grains, and a bag that held candy. Every thicket, every bush, every hole in the area has been combed. Every place from flop houses to underworld hangouts are being raided every night. In fact, the police investigation has been so thorough that the Underground is getting worried about the shakedowns. Underworld boss Schränker has come to the conclusion that the child killer must be found before the police ruin business.