When a youth pastor is found murdered at a church, Backstrom and his team at the Special Crimes Unit must solve the case while navigating the tenuous terrain of a possible cult. Meanwhile, Backstrom's ex-fiance, Amy Gazanian, is recruited by the Chief of Police to head up the newly formed Civilian Oversight Committee with the task of investigating questionable conduct within the Police Bureau, pitting Backstrom's squad against hers.

Backstrom and the team at the Special Crimes Unit investigate the murder of a prominent member of Portland's LGBT community - a drag queen Internet blogger named Jenna Rose. Backstrom declares the murder a hate crime, and the investigation takes an unsuspected turn when Backstrom's tenant, Gregory Valentine, becomes a suspect. Meanwhile, Backstrom has to testify in front of the Civilian Oversight Committee, regarding his shooting of a suspect from a previous case. Heading the newly formed committee is his ex-fiance, Amy Gazanian, all of which results in severe anxiety attacks for Backstrom.

In the Special Crime Unit's most harrowing case yet, the team has three days to save a teenage girl who has been abducted by a slippery online predator. The team soon learns that this is a deeply personal case for Backstrom, who is jolted by the girl's resemblance to the victim of an unsolved case that he was assigned seven years ago. Meanwhile, Detective Sergeant John Almond's church faces eviction when he neglects to pay rent three consecutive months.