Carol, a young and attractive woman, is recognized as a great painter. Her life has been rather commonplace, particularly in light of the fact that she is of a nature that craves excitement and adventure. She tells her fiancé that she is tired of the monotony of society life. She wishes a man for a husband, a man who can hold her by force. Their engagement is broken. Chance throws her in the way of a band of crooks. They hold her up for her pocketbook and she is stopped in her pursuit of them by their leader. Her anger toward him changes to interest as she recognizes in him a handsome specimen of manhood and realizes that he would make a wonderful subject for a painting. She persuades him to pose for her. A young inventor is showing much progress with a new explosive. He discovers his Japanese servant about to steal his plans and discharges him. Meanwhile Carol has discovered a growing infatuation for this man of the slums. It frightens her, but she finds herself passionately drawn to him. He tells her of his life and she asks for a glimpse of it. He takes her to the slums (she disguised as a bowery tough) and the rough life fascinates her. She craves for it more and more and finally becomes a habitué of the lower world, always in company with this man. One day she expresses her desire to see a real holdup. One is planned and the inventor's father is chosen as the victim. The police have been warned and in the fight that follows both the inventor's father and the crook are killed. Carol escapes in the taxi in which she came, changing from her disguise to her regular clothes while in the machine. She then jumps out, boards a car and thereby evades the police, who later find her discarded disguise and hold it as a clue. Carol, for several months after the affair, is ill, and while convalescing, meets the inventor. Months before he had met her at a ball, and since that time, has been ardently in love with her. He now tells her of his love and she responds after a time. In going through his laboratory he explains to her his inventions and shows her a little switch which, if turned, would destroy the house and all in it. Wishing to keep no secret from her, he produces her old disguise and explains that the woman who wore it was the cause of killing his father, he has sworn that she shall suffer for her crime. He is called to a neighbor's phone, his own being out of order. Carol is left alone in the house. The discharged Japanese servant has been watching and now sees his chance. He enters, points a revolver at Carol and starts to pick up the plans. She requests him to drop the papers. He refuses. She puts her hand on the switch and turns the power on. An explosion follows. The Japanese servant meets instant death. Carol dying, points to him. Her lover understands and she dies in his arms.