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Investigator Ipatiev is transferred from Vitebsk to Moscow and involved in the case of the maniac Samoilov, who is undergoing treatment in a psychiatric clinic. Bazhenov's doctor, the son-in-law of Prosecutor General Nazarov, is ready to defend his doctoral thesis on the possibility of treating such patients. He tries to convince everyone that Samoilov is healthy and insists on his discharge, but his colleague Larisa Korzun is sure that the maniac cannot be released. Ipatiev does not believe in the healing of the cannibal killer either, but he does not have time to prove anything.: during transportation from the institute back to the mental hospital...

Bazhenov tries to prove to his father-in-law that Samoilov is safe, but he understands that the maniac was released precisely because of the actions of his son-in-law, who removed additional security. Bazhenov's wife Galina helps Ipatiev's wife Olga get a job as an administrator in a fashion studio to keep abreast of Samoilov's search and help her husband find the maniac first...

Samoilov is hiding with his friend Larisa, whom he met during treatment. Kowalski is in the hospital with a concussion. In a campsite house near the scene of the attack on Kovalsky, Ipatiev finds an unconscious girl tied to a bed. He takes her to the hospital, but on the way the girl disappears.…

The decapitated body of Murtazina's patient is found in the forest. It becomes clear that Samoilov committed the murder. Meanwhile, the Gavrilovs' daughter Yulia disappears from the chess tournament. At home, a photograph is found in her room, in which the face of one of the teachers is smeared. During a search of the teacher's house, the missing girl's hairpin is found.…

Samoilov calls Bazhenov. The maniac claims that he has taken the doctor's wife hostage and threatens to kill her if the psychiatrist refuses to help him and does not carry out his instructions. Yulia's friend, at Ipatiev's request, brings the ransom to the designated place, but Julia herself comes for the money, to the surprise of the operatives.…

A group of skiers on the ice of a frozen lake finds a corpse dusted with snow. The second terrible discovery is made by the operatives who arrived at the scene: next to the first victim lies the headless body of the missing psychiatric hospital nurse Zina.…

Ipatiev learns many family secrets of the Gavrilovs, which can help to find the killer who keeps the family in fear. Lyudmila's former fiance and Gavrilov's young mistress Zoya come to the attention of the investigation. Meanwhile, experts are able to establish that the pistol confiscated from Gavrilov previously belonged to an operative and was lost during the arrest of bandits who attacked Foreign Ministry employees during a country party.

Thanks to the surveillance installed on Zoya, it is possible to establish that she is engaged in prostitution at Intourist. While Ipatiev is trying to figure out how threats to Gavrilov and Zoya's occupation might be related, Kovalsky travels to Leningrad, from where a letter was sent to Samoilov's sister in Krasnodar. But it soon becomes obvious: Samoilov is not in the city — a new victim of the maniac has been found in the Moscow region.

Gavrilov finds a box near his car. Inside is Zoya's wig, a boot with a severed foot and a note demanding to bring ten thousand to the specified place, otherwise his daughter will be the next victim. Meanwhile, Samoilov is trying to get himself antibiotics. He turns to Bazhenov again, demanding to treat his wound and provide him with medicines. The psychiatrist, again without telling anyone anything, goes to meet the maniac with pills soaked in poison.

Zoya's body is found outside the city. Judging by the nature of the injuries and the intact internal organs, she was not killed by Samoilov. Gavrilov confesses to stealing salary money, but the organized operation to transfer the ransom is disrupted. Bazhenov confesses to his father-in-law that Samoilov had his wife all this time. According to the dates and times of telephone conversations with the maniac, it is possible to establish the place from where he called.