In this episode of The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, a quiet Christmas Eve turns into a whirlwind of double-cross, murder, and international intrigue—all centered around a mysterious relic known as the Sword of Cebu. When Marlowe is visited first by a desperate stranger waving money and then by his old client Henry Polne, he’s pulled into a tangle involving a murdered pearl dealer in Manila, a smuggler with a temper, and a beautiful blonde who lies as easily as she breathes. The sword—an ornate, hand-carved ceremonial blade—turns out to be more than a curio. Hidden in its sheath is a list of black-market contacts worth killing for, and several people already have: Polne’s partner in Manila, a Romanian thug named Bebesco, and a red-haired gunman who won’t hesitate to add Marlowe to the pile. The blonde—Clara Saunders—tries to outplay everyone by stealing the sword and selling it to the highest bidder, but she’s only one move ahead until the bodies start dropping faster than she can improvise. As Marlowe pieces the truth together, he uncovers the real puppeteer: Henry Polne himself, who engineered the Manila murder, hired Marlowe as unwitting cover, and planned to eliminate every associate between him and a clean escape. But his final ambush collapses when Marlowe shows up with a different “friend” behind the curtain than Polne expected—and the killer’s careful scheme finally caves in on him. A fast, exotic, and deadly story where everyone reaches for the prize, but only Marlowe walks away intact.