Political consultant Dev Conrad knows that helping Congressman Michael Robards to get re-elected is going to be tough. Robards’ liberal voting record stands against him, and his staff seem resentful of Dev himself—which could doom the campaign. But there’s a bigger problem.

A campaign worker has been shot behind Robards’ headquarters. Both Dev and the police presume it was a mugging, but as the election draws near, Robards is implicated in the murder by his enemies ...