Pierre Boucheron, or 'The Rat' an infamous former underworld leader, is now living the high life as the darling of glamorous Parisian high society. Casually cruel, he leaves a score of lovelorn women behind, until he meets Madeleine, the young Countess de L'Orme. But when his mistress, Zelie de Chaumet, learns he is planning to marry someone else, she refuses to submit to the indignity of being shelved, she has the perfect instrument for revenge - Pierre's past. Hungry for revenge, she seeks to ruin him before he can even reach the alter, her anger will push him into the dark depths of Paris. Pierre, once at the pinnacle of Parisian high society, finds himself reduced to misery and poverty because of his love for a beautiful woman. A novel based on the film of the same name released in 1926. Original title: The Triumph of the Rat, reedited as The Gilded Cage.