Detective Landers (Robert Douglas), of the Los Angeles Homicide Bureau, suspects murder when the body of a transient ranch hand is found in a sleazy Los Angeles hotel. Unable to be assigned officially to the case , Landers takes off on "vacation", and goes to the swanky Glorietta Springs Hotel, a book of matches with that logo having been found at the scene of the murder, but ruled by the coroner as suicide. Other clues he has is a bad hangman's knot and a saccharin pill. There, he meets the bartender, Andy (Robert Alda), and the cigarette girl, Jo Ann Marlowe (Helen Westcott.) Following a tip from Jo Ann, he goes to a nearby ranch where the "accidental" death of the owner had recently occurred. He finds a piece of telephone wire, tracks it back and finds it leads to Andy's room at the Gloriette Springs hotel. He also learns that Andy had a medical discharge from the Navy as a diabetes sufferer. Troubles and complications and an ambush follow.