Captain Thomas, a retired sea captain, lives with his daughter, Mary, in an abandoned seacoast town on the Pacific Palisades, confined to a wheelchair. Their only visitors are Cal Morton, a motorcycle patrolman who loves Mary, and his dog, Rinty. Meanwhile, Morris and two fellow gangsters, Little and Davis, rob a payroll car; and posing as government agents, they force their way into the captain's house. Rinty brings the daily paper to the captain with news of the robbery and murder, and Mary succeeds in dispatching a note to Cal for help. Mail agents Bill and Fred are overtaken by the bandits, and Morris superficially wounds Rinty and Cal on the beach; but Cal and Rinty prevent the fugitives from escaping in a boat, and with Bill's help they are handcuffed.