On a rainy day in London, England, private investigator Benjamin Browning (Chevy Chase) accepts a ride from his gay friend, Freddie (Alan Sues), who is an erratic driver. As Freddie drops Benjamin near his office, the investigator collides on the street with writer Jackie Howard (Jane Seymour (actress)). When Benjamin asks her for a date, she tells him to contact her upon her return from Paris, France. Back at his office, Benjamin's secretary, Margaret (Barbara Leigh-Hunt), leaves for lunch, and a stranger named Quimby Charles (Richard Vernon), claiming to be a member of Parliament, proposes to hire Benjamin as a bodyguard for a friend, Mrs. Patricia Elliot (Marguerite Corriveau). Benjamin is reluctant, but Quimby offers a great deal of money. Benjamin accepts the assignment and goes to visit Patricia at her flat, where he discovers the door unlocked. As he searches the residence, decorated with artwork, he discovers Patricia dead on the bedroom floor, bleeding from a knife wound. Suddenly, an intruder fatally stabs Benjamin, steals Patricia's gold pendant and leaves.