Claire Ross (Ava Gardner) is a young woman traveling alone by train through the American Southwest. Recently widowed and emotionally fragile, she’s trying to start over, heading to Los Angeles to take a new job and leave the past behind.

But something about this journey feels off from the start.

In her sleeping car, Claire meets a seemingly friendly couple — Mr. and Mrs. Bracken — who take an unusual interest in her. They offer to share dinner, ask her about her plans, and seem a bit too curious about whether anyone is expecting her at her destination. Claire tries to brush it off, but her instincts start to scream danger.

Johnny Larch (Richard Conte) is a slick, streetwise gambler and small-time hustler working the edges of the racetrack circuit. He knows the odds, the horses, and the angles — and he also knows he’s running out of luck. Johnny owes money to the wrong people and needs a big score — fast.

Ben Kendall (Lloyd Nolan) is a middle-aged, mild-mannered accountant whose quiet life begins to unravel when he suspects his much younger, glamorous wife Lila (Cathy Lewis) is having an affair.

The episode begins innocently enough: Ben narrates his happy, if slightly routine, life with Lila. But as he describes small changes — her new clothes, late nights, unexplained absences — his tone darkens. He becomes convinced that Lila is seeing someone else behind his back.

Fueled by mounting paranoia and a deep-seated inferiority complex, Ben begins spying on her — reading her mail, tapping her phone, even following her. He keeps telling himself he’s just looking for the truth… but his actions grow more obsessive and dangerous.

George Brissenden (Kirk Douglas) is a charming and successful man — at least on the surface. He lives in California, where under the state’s community property laws, a divorcing spouse is entitled to half of everything. This wouldn’t be a problem for George — if he weren’t planning to divorce his wealthy wife, Lucille (Cathy Lewis), without giving up a single cent.

Eddie Albright (Phil Silvers) is a low-level talent agent in New York, hustling washed-up vaudeville acts, second-rate lounge singers, and anyone else desperate enough to give him a commission. He’s got ambition — and no scruples.

The story follows Lieutenant Tom Bowers (Jack Webb), a weary and methodical police detective investigating the shooting death of a small-time bookie found behind a liquor store. Bowers is partnered with Detective Russo (Henry DeSilva), a more hotheaded, street-savvy cop who prefers action over analysis.

Elwood, played by Eddie Bracken, is a mild-mannered, somewhat dimwitted young man who works in a small-town hardware store and lives a quiet, lonely life. He’s polite, shy, and not very bright — but he’s always cheerful. Elwood has one passion: murder mysteries, especially the ones he hears on the radio.

One day, he tells his co-worker and friend Marion (Cathy Lewis) that he’s been writing a mystery story of his own. He’s excited — almost too excited — about how realistic it feels. He goes into great detail about the plot: a man murders his employer, buries the body in the basement, and cleverly avoids suspicion by playing the innocent fool.

The story opens on a stormy night, with Joe Paris (William Bendix), a down-on-his-luck ex-cabbie, stumbling into a deserted roadside diner. He’s soaked, hungry, and clearly rattled. The waitress, a quiet woman with watchful eyes, offers him coffee, and asks where he’s headed. Joe doesn’t know. He’s running — not just from the rain, but from something much more dangerous.

Maureen, played by Ann Baxter, is a sharp, driven young woman recently hired as a secretary at a bustling advertising agency. Ambitious to the core, Maureen is unimpressed with the slow pace of climbing the corporate ladder — and even less impressed with her fellow employees, particularly the woman whose job she wants.

The story opens with Madame Roselle, a proud and aloof woman (Agnes Moorehead), living in French Indochina with her husband, Henri (Bill Johnstone), and their Vietnamese servant, Ngo. The marriage is loveless, and Madame Roselle is bitter, cold, and emotionally detached.