Steve Garry, insisting he has quit gambling, asks his ex-wife Virginia Merrill if he can lie low at her Los Angeles house while avoiding testifying in a murder trial.

At a market, buying Steve food and liquor, Virginia runs into a police sergeant, McCloy, who dated Dolores Alden, her former roommate.

McCloy won't go away, escorting Virginia home, then making a drunken pass at her.

While avoiding roadblocks, they pull into a gas station, where Virginia leaves a note for an attendant to find.

As the cops close in, Steve takes off on foot, climbing a crane and wounding Donovan with a gunshot.