The Jerk's Dilemma

Jeff Larkin works in a temporary employment agency as a salesman. His obsession with receptionist Janet causes him no end of distraction from his work. Though married with kids, he can't keep his eyes off the ladies--especially a statuesque brunette with a coke-bottle figure. He searches the want ads for leads, calling on employers who may need the expertise of his agency. One day he spots an ad listed by an occult shop. It specifically appeals to the baser instincts, promising success with girls considered out of one's league. Jeff writes down the address and hurries out to investigate. J P Parallax is an unscrupulous opportunist who gets buyers in over their heads. Whatever high-tech gizmo a client uses, it brings consequences requiring a second purchase: a way out of the first one. Naturally, the second item is far more expensive. Jeff learns that to his chagrin when he obtains compromising photos Janet. He wrestles with his conscience, and despite horrendous temptation, resists the urge to peek inside the envelope. Nor will he give in to blackmail, required to purchase a very expensive cure for his problem. His solution is to throw himself on the mercy of a co-worker, begging her to explain everything to Janet, since he can't bring himself to do so. The co-worker is horrified, and promises no end of cops and legal action. Jeff's call to Parallax is in vain. Parallax knows everything his various contraptions are doing and seeing, because he's intricately linked with them via a gem about his neck. He expects payment promptly. Jeff goes home early and tries to wait it out, but no phone calls come, no police show up at his door. By evening, he's driven to go to the office and see for himself what's going on. Janet is there alone at her desk. Understandably stricken by this betrayal, she asks how he could do such a thing. Jeff pleads his case, insisting he never looked at the pictures. As it turns out, his feelings for Janet go beyond the physical, and she picks up on the unmistakable signs of honesty. Friendship restored, he goes home, leaving the magic contraption behind. The next day, a cop reports the grisly murder of Parallax, though Jeff isn't a suspect because he doesn't have the size or strength to have committed such abuse. Jeff questions Janet as to the fate of the magic contraption. She says she destroyed it in a fit of anger, bashing it with a hammer until little was left; just like the body of Parallax.