Detectives Goren and Eames investigate the murders of a university president and his assistant.

During the investigation, Goren and Eames focus their attention on a controversial African-American professor who wants a promotion for a department chairmanship. At first, the professor seems the most likely suspect because he had accused the victim of being a racist. But the team soon become suspicious of an underachieving grad student, who has had working for a long time on his graduate thesis, which also benefits him if that professor gets the promotion. The short list of suspects include the student's girlfriend, a visiting professor with a shady element in her past.

As the campus investigation continues, Goren and Eames suspect that at least two of the possible culprits might be romantically entangled which results in a third murder. After that, they discover that the main culprit is a highly shrewd adversary who has more than these crimes to hide. This episode introduces ongoing character Nicole Wallace.