Motoring about the countryside in search of inspiration, melodramatist Cyrus Vance runs out of gas at the door of a remote shop. Having filled his tank, he searches for the proprietor, only to discover her dead, himself locked in, and someone driving away with his car. Once he has convinced the excited townsfolk who release him of his innocence, Vance is inclined to pursue the mystery, if only because he has become enraptured by the photo of a young woman in the murdered woman's rooms and vows to meet and woo her.
