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The residents of The Paradise are forced to cohabitate with a band of Parisian thugs with highly questionable morals. Facing grave financial difficulties, the brothel must also survive the rise to power of a royalist chief commissioner who marks the return of a Moral Order.

Chief Commissioner Torcy is suspicious of Mosca’'s involvement in a major burglary and sends Commissioner Angélus to The Paradise to make inquiries. Hortense, detesting Mosca’'s presence in her territory, makes a play to denounce him.

Torcy comes to The Paradise to arrest Hortense. In exchange for her freedom, she agrees to work with the Moral Order. Meanwhile, Mosca takes interest in a group of streetwalkers who are all alone after the death of their pimp, especially once he meets a procurer looking for girls to send to Buenos Aires.

Despite being warned by Kertel, Mosca decides to keep the streetwalkers that were formerly under Corentin'’s charge “on the pavement.” Valentine, dreaming of independence, is reunited with small-time criminal Rémy, who lures her into a trap. Véra decides to reveal everything to Jeanne.

The prefect reproaches Torcy for the increasing number of prostitutes in the streets, putting his head is on the chopping block. Not to be outdone by Mosca, the vicious master of the Pigalle streets, known as The Butcher, forces his way into The Paradise.

In order to restore calm to the streets of Paris, Torcy proposes that Mosca protect the peace at The Paradise and beyond. Véra wants Jeanne to believe that she was born out of love, telling her that her father was killed in a duel.

Mosca and Rose get lost in a world of drugs and sex. Kertel takes matters into his own hands with the help of Bak. After Angéle contracts syphilis, the women of The Paradise decide to treat her on site. Not knowing Jeanne has been seeing Bak, Véra searches for a furnished apartment to satisfy her daughter’'s desire for independence.

Torcy oversees the faithful’'s donations to the Sacred Heart, which add up to a tidy sum. Mosca jumps at the opportunity to strike a fatal blow to the chief commissioner and replenish his coffers at the same time. Meanwhile, the women of The Paradise are worried that Kertel and Bak are trying to overthrow Mosca for control of the streets.