On January 15, 1947, the hideously mutilated body of Elizabeth Short, or the "Black Dahlia", is found in an abandoned lot and becomes a media sensation. Lee is especially disturbed by the case; Bleichert learns Lee's beloved sister Laurie vanished without a trace years earlier. For his part, Bucky develops a strange obsession with Short, identifying with her troubled, nomadic, and marginal life. As he investigates the murder, Bucky encounters Madeleine Sprague, a spoiled socialite who greatly resembles Short and had a one-time sexual encounter with her. In exchange with keeping her name out of the papers, Madeleine plies Bucky with sex, causing him to fantasize that Madeline "is" Short. Bucky meets her family, which endures constant abuse from her father Emmett, a property developer.