Private detective Al Packer had his legs broken by two hoods after he put their friend behind bars. Now, barely able to hobble around his apartment, Packer receives an attractive offer for a routine job: $300 a week to protect a small-time thief named Markos. But the new case is anything but routine: At a seedy hotel hideout, Packer sees Markos gunned down -- or does he? The ""corpse"" comes alive, fires Packer and leaves the hotel.