In Max Payne 2, the player controls Max Payne, a former DEA agent for the NYPD and a fugitive framed for murder of his best friend and fellow cop Alex. Two years after the events of the first game, Max has cleared his name and is now an NYPD detective. He reunites with Mona Sax, whom he met in the previous game, as they set out to resolve a conspiracy of death and betrayal, finding the Inner Circle in the center of it all.