When Walter is diagnosed with lung cancer, despite his squeaky clean lifestyle, he has to tell his screenwriter partner, a chain-smoker. As Walter fights cancer he tries to put his affairs in order by teaching writing to prison inmates, talking to his son and ex-wife, and getting his partner to quit smoking.

A woman that during the daytime is an insignificant librarian, at night becomes a fascinating mysterious dark lady. She uses the personal advertisements on the newspapers to obtain appointments with men then kills them. These murders last until the wife of one victim decides to investigate.