 Joe Drake has been having a rough time. After he and his wife Madeline suffered a serious fall, he shattered his leg and has since required several operations. He can t work and his wife, who escaped fall with only a concussion, is the only earner working as a waitress. When she is late coming home from work one evening, he becomes concerned, mostly because of a series of grisly murders and a killer the press have called The Butcher. He sets off looking for her with a one-time rival for Madeline s affection, Ralph Morrow. He is desperate to find her but eventually comes face to face with the killer, knife in hand.