On Neptune Beach in New York City, racketeer Shubunka owns a soda fountain shop, which is run by Nick Jammey. Racketeer Cornell and his gang plan to take over all of Shubunka's rackets and force Jammey to meet with them. Although Shubunka's girl friend, Nancy Starr, a show girl, is genuinely in love with him, Shubunka's paranoia about Cornell causes him to fly into a rage against her. Meanwhile, weak-minded accountant Frank Karty, a regular at the soda shop who compulsively bets on horses, begs Shubunka to lend him some money or let him in on one of his rackets, but Shubunka refuses to help him. Dorothy, the soda shop cashier, quits in disgust at Shubunka's lack of conscience, and he tries to give her $200 as a going away present after refusing Karty the money. Karty's wife later comes into the shop to warn Karty that her brothers are after him for stealing $1,300 from their mechanics garage. Cornell forces Jammey to a lunch meeting in which he orders him to hand over a list of the locations of Shubunka's rackets. Jammey refuses out of loyalty to Shubunka. When Nancy suggests to Shubunka they enjoy a secluded picnic on the beach, and Cornell's men beat him up there, he accuses her of setting him up. One by one Shubunka's connections begin to turn on him. Fearing for his life, Shubunka makes plans to skip town with Nancy, but when she offers to pawn all the expensive gifts he has given her, he becomes determined to fight Cornell by hiring new men to run his rackets. Meanwhile, Karty's wife, who hasn't seen Karty in two days, comes looking for him at the soda shop. Despairing, Karty again asks Shubunka for help and is again turned down. Dorothy again upbraids Shubunka for his immoral life, but he becomes that much more determined to fight Cornell. He then discovers that Jammey has turned over the location list to Cornell. When Cornell offers Shubunka a job as a collector, he bitterly turns it down, assuring Jammey that he is still working for him. Cornell warns Shubunka that if he kills Jammey, he will be killed within twenty minutes. Karty is beaten up by his in-laws and promises to return their money, then goes to Jammey, who refuses to steal from Shubunka for him. Karty hits Jammey over the head with a frying pan, and he dies. When Shubunka comes to pick up Nancy, he finds Cornell and his men waiting for him. Shubunka accuses Nancy of setting him up, and she explains that while she loved him in the beginning, his paranoia has now made her hate him. She adds that when Cornell offered her a part on Broadway, she decided to turn Shubunka in. Shubunka later learns that Jammey was murdered, and, terrified that he will be blamed, he seeks refuge in Dorothy's apartment, where she lives with her father. Dorothy tells Shubunka that although Karty has confessed to Jammey's murder, he is really to blame, and that he should be forced to pay for his sins. With nowhere to turn, Shubunka walks into the rainy night, and as he shouts to Cornell that he can "have it all," he is gunned down. Later, Cornell and his gang are apprehended.
