 During the battle of Guadalcanal, Sgt. Tom Sloan witnesses his platoon commander, Lt. Brady, shoot one of his own men. Believing the shooting to be murder but unable to prove it, Sloan keeps quiet. While on leave in New Zealand, Sloan meets the shooting victim s widow, Ruth, with whom he eventually falls in love. But he discovers that Brady is romancing Ruth s sister, presumably to gain access to the family fortune. Ordered back into combat for the invasion of Tarawa, Sloan and Brady head for a showdown.