The Chicago Mafia murders one of the bosses named Frank Martel, who had started working for the police.

Johnny Boy, a psychotic young Chicago playwright, drives to New York to run down a phantom deal. Along for the ride are a drug dealing buddy named Aristotle and Johnny Boy's self-destructive sometimes girlfriend Anita. They hit the road and the road hits back. The drug-fueled all night drive devolves into sadistic mind games, sex games and finally violence. They don't all make it back to Chicago, but they all reach the end of the road.