Death Steps in the Dark

Italian reporter Luciano Morelli and his girlfriend Ingrid board an express train bound for Greece. The car fills with a mix of passengers, hinting at hidden tensions that will soon surface.

In a darkened tunnel, a scream erupts as light returns to the car. The young, nervous French woman is found dead with Luciano's letter opener lodged in her heart, signaling a calculated killer among the passengers.

The inspector interrogates the passengers and treats Luciano as the prime suspect because of the murder weapon. Passports are taken and everyone remains confined as the investigation unfolds.

Ulla learns from her boyfriend Raul that the killer has one of the gloves used in the murder and is planning an extortion. A ransom is demanded for the glove's return, and Ulla tries to push Raul to demand more while avoiding provoking the killer.

At the arranged meeting, the killer leaves money as bait and then strikes Raul with a wooden post before slashing his throat. The extortion plot escalates into a deadly trap for those involved.

Luciano consults a contact in organized crime, who helps him assume a disguise and offers a hiding place in a fishing cabin beside the tracks. The secluded retreat, however, is far from safe as investigators close in.

Luciano tries to call Ingrid for supplies and a discreet meeting, but the inspector intercepts the call. The attempt to reconnect with Ingrid falls through, leaving Luciano isolated and increasingly desperate.

Ulla continues her scheming as she places the glove with Teodorus for safekeeping. Her plan hinges on using the glove to blackmail the killer, setting the stage for the next move.

That night the killer breaks into Ulla's apartment, drowning and slashing her girlfriend on the roof, then kills Ulla by slamming a bathroom door shut. The coordinated murders heighten the sense of imminent danger and pursuit.

The inspector catches up to Luciano but gives him little time to prove his innocence. They arrest a drug dealer who approaches them, buying a brief window for Luciano to improvise.

Desperation leads Luciano to team up with a crime boss to break into Teodorus' home and retrieve Ulla's bust. Ingrid joins the group for the heist, raising the stakes for everyone involved.

The safe is cracked, and the boss' daughter arrives to help, but Teodorus is murdered by the killer and the trio must flee with the bust. The plan unravels as witnesses are drawn into the danger.

All three remaining suspects are invited to a fashion show where Ingrid stars. A cigarette-lighting moment reveals the killer's identity as Ulla's murderer, triggering a tense pursuit.

Ida Tuclidis is cornered on a rooftop and falls to the gravel below. The young safe cracker later reveals she wore a bust-made mask to trap the killer, exposing the clues behind the murders.

The inspector explains that Luciano was innocent all along and had helped uncover the plot. Tuclidis orchestrated the killings to silence witnesses and stop blackmail, while the Lebanese narcotics officer continues pursuing her trail; the ending remains open to interpretation.