Character Relationship Map: Decoy

Characters

• Margot Shelby (played by Jean Gillie) — protagonist

  Central figure who orchestrates a scheme with Jim Vincent to locate Frankie Olins' hidden $400,000 fortune. She manipulates prison physician Dr. Lloyd Craig to revive Frankie after his execution, only...

• Jim Vincent (played by Edward Norris) — protagonist

  Margot Shelby's new lover and accomplice in the quest for Frankie Olins' hidden fortune. He participates in the plan to revive the executed Frankie and takes him for the money. After Frankie reveals t...

• Frank Olins (played by Robert Armstrong) — supporting

  A convicted murderer sentenced to death for robbing an armored car. His lover Margot Shelby and her accomplice Jim Vincent plan to revive him using methylene blue after his execution to force him to r...

• Dr. Craig (played by Herbert Rudley) — supporting

  A prison physician seduced by Margot Shelby into helping her execute a plan to revive Frankie Olins after his lethal injection. He administers methylene blue to bring Frankie back to life. Later, he a...

• Sergeant Joe Portugal (played by Sheldon Leonard) — supporting

  The police detective who arrives at the apartment to find Dr. Craig and Margot Shelby wounded. He interrogates the dying Margot as she recounts her elaborate scheme. After her death, he opens the stro...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Sergeant Joe Portugal → Margot Shelby (Professional Interrogator And Witness) — Portugal hears Margot's account and opens the strongbox after she dies; she humiliates him with a mocking kiss request.

  Portugal arrives at the apartment, finds Margot mortally wounded, and interrogates her as she recounts the events.

• Dr. Craig → Frank Olins (Professional Physician And Reviver) — The prison physician's role in Margot's scheme is to revive Frank after his execution.

  Dr. Craig administers methylene blue to Frank's executed body through a breathing mask, and Frank returns to life.

• Margot Shelby → Frank Olins (Romantic Former Lover And Betrayer) — Margot has Frank revived for the location of the fortune; after he provides a map, Jim shoots him as part of their scheme.

  The plot identifies Margot as Frankie's lover, says she no longer loves him, and describes her plan to revive him to learn where he hid the money.

• Margot Shelby → Jim Vincent (Romantic Lovers And Criminal Accomplices) — They cooperate in the revival scheme and the journey to the buried loot, but Margot runs Jim over after he changes the car's tire.

  The plot identifies Jim as Margot's new lover and says they plan together to locate Frankie's hidden money.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Dr. Craig → Sergeant Joe Portugal (Narrative Connected Through The Shooting) — Portugal investigates the aftermath of the gunfire between Craig and Margot and hears Margot's account of what led to it.

  The opening apartment scene shows Dr. Craig exchanging gunfire with a young woman, later revealed as Margot; Portugal arrives and finds both wounded.

• Jim Vincent → Frank Olins (Conflict Accomplice And Killer) — Jim helps Margot obtain Frank's information, then kills him once the map has served its purpose.

  After Frank is revived and reveals the money's location with a hand-drawn map, Jim shoots him to death.

• Margot Shelby → Dr. Craig (Conflict Manipulator And Victim) — She draws the physician into her plan and later turns on him at the burial site; he survives and shoots her in the apartment.

  Margot seduces Dr. Craig into helping revive Frank, then forces him at gunpoint to dig up the loot and shoots him twice.

Story Analysis

Margot's pursuit of hidden loot turns an elaborate revival scheme into a chain of betrayals, ending with a worthless strongbox and a final humiliation.

Plot Progression

1. A Wounded Woman's Confession — Portugal arrives at the apartment and questions the mortally wounded woman. Her account identifies her as Margot and introduces Frank's conviction and the missing fortune.
2. The Revival Scheme — Margot and Jim seek Frank's hidden money after an appeal fails. Margot recruits Dr. Craig to revive Frank after his execution so he can disclose its location.
3. Death Reversed — Frank is executed and secretly taken to Craig's office. Craig administers methylene blue, and the revived Frank draws a map to the fortune before Jim kills him.
4. Partners Turn on One Another — Margot, Jim, and Craig set out for the buried loot, but Margot runs Jim over after a roadside tire change. At the site, she forces Craig to dig and takes the strongbox before shooting him.
5. A Final Mockery — The story returns to the apartment, where the wounded Margot finishes her account to Portugal. She dies after humiliating him, and he discovers that the strongbox contains no fortune.