Najias Sarto, art instructor, is very attracted to his young and naive student, June Barton, who only has eyes for her fellow student Jimmy Fuller Unknowingly, June leads Sarto on. Financial reverses at home forces June to seek work, and accept Sarto’s offer to pose for him in the nude at his country home. June lies to Jimmy and tells him she is going home to North Carolina. At Sarto’s estate, the work progresses, Sarto’s feeling for June becomes almost uncontrollable, and Sarto’s mentally unbalanced housekeeper, Elia, smoulders with jealousy. Elia is also Sarto’s mistre ss, and the attention he lavishes on June causes Elia to attempt to strangle June, merely as a warning. Meanwhile, back in New York, Jimmy discovers June is not in North Carolina, but actually is at Sarto’s estate, and in d anger. He rushes off to help her. On the final night of June’s stay with Sarto, he finds his feelings for her too much to resist, and, bursting into her room, he attempts to force himself upon her. During the struggle, Elia, now completely unbalanced stalks in and strangles, not June, but Sarto. The deranged Elia accuses June of killing Sarto, and chases June through the darkened house. Jimmy arrives at the last moment, too late to save Sarto, but just in time to save June from a mad Elia.