Overview

The insignificant Claud, one of life's victims, yearns to own the astrakhan coat which James has advertised. As he cannot afford an outright payment he is persuaded by James' friends, Alain and Barbara, to agree to an arrangement whereby he will buy the coat in installments. There develops a sinister relationship between the four, in which the coat plays a significant role, and which culminates in murder. But who is dead? Inspector Rogers obviously does not think that Claud has sufficient initiative or character to commit the crime, and is inclined to believe him when he says he knows nothing about it. But after Claud has again been exposed to the stylish sophistication of James, and the genuine sympathy of Barbara, a second and third murder occur which so utterly submerge the bewildered Claud's personality that he is willing to confess to a crime which apparently he did not commit.