Arthur West, a disreputable private investigator, has found J. J. Stanley in a cheap motel. He knows Mr. Stanley and his partner, Ned Bain, were involved in the embezzlement of the Texas National Bank. He wants to blackmail Ned Bain into giving him money to keep quiet. When J. J. Stanley is found dead in Arthur West's hotel room, Harriet Bain, Ned Bain's daughter, is accused of the murder.