Fangs of the Arctic

Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer Corp. Rod Webb, accompanied by his faithful dog Chinook and Constable Mike Kelly, are sent undercover to the Blackfoot Crossing trading post area. Posing as trappers, the officers are to investigate the murder of trapper Antoine Borg. Mike, who is from the area, is happy to return home to renew an acquaintance with his youthful sweetheart, Borg's daughter Sandra. Just outside Blackfoot Crossing, Rod and Mike observe from a distance three poachers, Morgan, Howell and Cheval. Mike and Chinook chase the poachers, but they get away after slightly wounding Mike. When Rod and Mike arrive at Sandra's cabin, she is delighted to see them, but they are not welcomed by Blackfoot mine superintendent Matt Oliver, who is jealous of Sandra's attentions to Mike. The next day, when Rod and Mike go to the trading post, Chinook recognizes Cheval, who is standing outside, and growls at him. Cheval gruffly tells Rod to keep Chinook away from him, but Matt breaks up the argument and warns Rod that Cheval has some unsavory friends. Inside the trading post, Rod learns from the post's factor, MacGregor, that Howell has purchased all of the post's large traps. That night, Rod waits outside Howell's cabin until he leaves, then goes inside to look around. Just after Rod finds the traps and some beaver pelts, Howell returns and throws a knife at him. In an ensuing struggle, Howell is killed when his gun accidentally discharges. As Rod leaves the cabin, he is observed by Cheval, who is hiding nearby. Meanwhile, Sandra hears Chinook barking and goes to investigate. She sees that Chinook is barking at Mike, who appears to be breaking into the trading post. She rushes over to Mike to demand an explanation, and Mike reluctantly tells her that he has become a Mountie and is working undercover to investigate her father's death, possibly at the hands of the poachers. She offers to be his lookout and asks if Rod, too, is a Mountie, but Mike says that Rod is just a fellow he met a few weeks earlier. Once Mike is inside the post's storage room, Morgan and Matt sneak in, and Morgan throws a knife at Mike, killing him. Matt then looks at papers in Mike's pockets and discovers that he was a Mountie. Just then, Sandra enters the storage room, but before she sees Matt, Morgan knocks her out. A few moments later, Rod canoes back to the settlement and is greeted by an agitated Chinook, who guides him to the trading post. By now, MacGregor has been awakened and the two men find Mike dead and Sandra unconscious. After Sandra is taken back to her cabin, she awakens asking for Mike but soon learns from Rod that he has been killed. Rod spends the night outside her door and while he is dosing, Chevel enters the cabin and puts a knife to his throat, demanding the return of the pelts from Howell's cabin. Rod pretends that he is interested in joining the poachers and agrees to meet him later. The noise awakens Sandra, and after Chevel leaves she confronts Rod. He tells her that he is only trying to catch Mike's killer and convinces her to help. The next day, at the inquest into Mike's death, Sandra says nothing about Rod and he is not held responsible, although MacGregor is suspicious of him. Later, Rod goes to Howell's cabin to meet Cheval and Morgan, and the three agree to work together. Although Morgan indicates that there is another partner, he refuses to tell Rod who it is. Soon Rod is poaching beaver pelts with Morgan and Cheval and is accepted by them. One day, when Rod asks why they are bothering with rabbit pelts, Morgan and Cheval reveal that they pack them for inspection by MacGregor, then later go into his storeroom and switch them for similar bales containing the poached beaver pelts. One afternoon, when Sandra is at the trading post, Morgan overhears MacGregor ask her to deliver a letter to Rod and tell her that a Mountie is coming soon to investigate Mike's death. Back at Howell's cabin, Morgan tells Rod and Cheval about the Mountie and the men discuss their situation. Sandra, who is listening outside, overhears the conversation and runs back to her own cabin. There she tells the waiting Matt that Rod is part of the gang and that Morgan is behind all of the poaching. That night, Cheval, Morgan and Rod sneak into the storage room at the trading post to exchange the bales of rabbit pelts for ones containing beaver. Once inside they see Matt, who pretends to be trying to stop them until Morgan and Cheval come to his side and Matt turns his gun on Rod. As Matt reveals that he is the boss, Chinook jumps on him. The noise awakens MacGregor, who runs in and holds Cheval and Morgan at gunpoint as Rod pulls Chinook off Matt. The next day, Rod, who is now wearing his Mountie's uniform, accepts Sandra's apology and tells her that headquarters had sent a letter to MacGregor informing him of Rod's identity and that the letter she was supposed to deliver to him confirmed it.