In The August Lion, Philip Marlowe is enjoying a quiet evening at home, contemplating a drink and a smoke, when his solitude is shattered by an urgent knock at the door. It is Judd, a man from his past, who arrives in a panic, dragging a lifeless body behind him. The woman, Eileen Voss, is revealed to be a stockbroker with a penchant for risk, and Judd's emotional turmoil suggests a deeper connection. He confesses to Marlowe that he is terrified of being implicated in her murder due to his criminal history, which he has kept hidden for years.