Psycho Killer plot recap, spoiler-light
Kansas Highway Patrol officer Jane Archer faces devastating personal loss when her husband Mike is brutally murdered by a notorious criminal known as the Satanic Slasher, who leaves occult symbols behind at his crime scenes. Driven by a relentless desire for justice, Jane embarks on an intense cross-country pursuit following the killer's violent trail from the west coast across the Midwest. During this arduous journey, Jane discovers she is pregnant with her late husband's child, adding profound personal stakes to her mission.
Meanwhile, the Slasher perpetrates a series of gruesome attacks, murdering a female pharmacist for a large quantity of antidepressants and other drugs, killing stranded motorists on a country road, and slaying a Catholic priest whose blood he drinks. He eventually seeks out a Satanist mansion operated by a man named Mr. Pendleton, where he uses an assistant named Marvin to locate Leonard Wilkes, the manager of a nuclear power plant in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The narrative builds toward a high-stakes collision between Jane's quest for vengeance and the killer's apocalyptic ambitions, setting the stage for a tense final confrontation at the industrial facility.
