At a cocktail party, San Francisco insurance investigator - and one-time jewel thief - Dennis Stanton runs into an old and very attractive acquaintance, Christina Hellinger. She tells him that she's left her brute of a husband, Ben, and they begin spend the night together. After a day out, Ben apparently tries to run them off the road. When she later shows up with a nasty bruise on her cheek, Dennis checks her into a hotel. When Ben Hellinger is found dead, police Lt. Catalano is certain he knows who is responsible: Dennis Stanton.
—garykmcd