A man, who is of generation wealth, knows a woman called Miss Wannop when she is very old. Miss Wannop took care of her skin but was never beautiful. During her life, Miss Wannop has a maid who later marries the man’s maitre d'hotel. The maid tells the man all sorts of things about Miss Wannop. 

A shady but sociable person Marquis de Vestiglione married a rich and famous beauty. Though, when she dies, Vestiglione makes his living by selling her things to rich Americans while also selling things he finds in his travels. Thus, he contacts the man as the man’s father collected porcelain de sax. Vestiglione has a friend, Miss Wannop, an American woman living in France, who is willing to pay a large sum of money for the entire collection. Vestilgione says he can be the dealer and receive a commission. Lastly, in knowing the politics of such matters, Vestilgione invites the man to tea with him and Miss Wannop. The man vaguely remembers Miss Wannop from writings in the Harold which talk about prestigious and elite people.

The man finds this social invite and the hierarchy of business comical but agrees to go. The man meets Vestiglione at the Ritz, which is full of an array of people. The man thinks he sees Miss Wannop as he walks by a large woman with a red wig and large diamonds. However, this is not her. Miss Wannop is a little old lady. This surprises the man as she is not the typical American woman who runs off to France. The woman talks about why she will not ever go back to France. She also reveals to the man that she worked on the same charity board as his grandmother. The man is surprised that he has never heard of Miss Wannop. They chat and eventually discuss the collection. The man invites her to lunch the following week. The large woman with the red wig approaches them. His companions tell him that she is the Duchess. The Duchess says that she knew his grandma. Something about the company causes the man to become anxious and feels as if he must leave. At that moment a white cat runs through the hall and scares Miss Wannop. The man and others help take her to her room.

Vestiglione wants a ride from the man to his hotel.  The man assumes having a ride from a man as rich as he is will make Vestiglione look good. They talk poorly about the Duchess. They talk about Miss Wannop’s dislike and fear of cats, but how she can’t leave the Ritz just because of the cat which lives there due to her inability to live alone. 

On Monday, Vestiglione and Miss Wannop get lunch with the man, who is reading the Herold. The article talks about his presence with Miss Wannop, the Duchess, and Vestilgione earlier that week. They talk about money. Miss Wannop has brought a maid with her, Amelie. The man tries to comfort her about the cat. Miss Wannop becomes upset. The man realizes he might like tormenting the old lady. They talk about the French versus American people. They go to look at the porcelain. Miss Wannop agrees to buy all of it which does not have a cat. She will pay whatever he asks so long as they seal the deal with dinner. 

The man talks to Vestilgione about why Miss Wannop won’t negotiate a price. Vestiglione explains she is old and has no one to leave her money to. He elaborates that she is a royalist and wants to help the old regime. The man thinks this is funny because he is already rich. He agrees to the dinner.  At the dinner, Miss Wannop is there along with a drunken Russian Prince, the Duchess, and Vestilgione. The following morning the man was in the Herold as he was with these people. He feels publicly soiled. 

The man is invited out again after that but does not go. The deal never goes through as Vestiglione asks for far too high a price. The man thinks he is finally done with these people until his maitre d'hotel is marrying Miss Wannop’s maid, Amelie. 

The man isn’t sure he wants to offer Amelie a job. The maitre d’hotel says Amelie was going to leave Miss Wannop anyways, as Miss Wannop is a monster to her servants. This shocks the man. However, a few days later, on Amelie’s wedding day, Amelie calls the man informing him that Miss Wannop has died and that none of her friends are going to see her. So, the man agrees to go. Amelie rants about Miss Wannop to the man when he arrives. 

While the undertaker is with her body, the man goes through her things. The undertaker shows him the body but she is without her jewels. The man comments. The undertaker says a sister was there to get her jewels, but he wouldn’t let her take them. The man says that she had no sister. The man realizes her friend, the Duchess, tried to rob her. 

The man kneels to pray for her and sees her as empty and peculiar. He can almost see what Amelie had tried to put to words. Then, he feels as if he is being watched. He is, by the cat. He realizes that Miss Wannop and the cat have the same blue eyes as if Miss Wannop never really had a soul--it was as if she was like the thing she was most afraid of. He chases the cat out and leaves the room.