Blood Alley

Captain Tom Wilder is seized by Chinese Communists and imprisoned for two years. The harsh confinement sets in motion a plan for a daring breakout. His capture becomes the catalyst for the villagers' later escape mission.

With help from covert couriers, Wilder escapes through bribery and a disguise that makes him resemble a Soviet army officer. The escape remains a tightly guarded secret as he slips away from his captors. This exit paves the way for his new mission among the villagers.

An imposing Chinese man escorts Wilder to the village of Chiku Shan. The reasons for his breakout stay shrouded in mystery during the transport. Upon arrival, Wilder begins to learn his new role.

Mr. Tso explains Wilder’s assignment at Chiku Shan: to shepherd almost 200 residents out of Red China toward Hong Kong. The plan depends on Wilder piloting a stolen 19th-century stern-wheel riverboat with only a rough memory of the coastline. The villagers’ confidence hinges on discipline and courage.

The villagers have spent more than a year plotting the escape. They raise the harbor bottom to lure the patrol boat inside and sink sampans at the channel mouth to trap it. They also clandestinely stockpile Browning machine guns, Mosin–Nagant rifles, and Nagant revolvers to defend the route.

Tack, a U.S. Navy-trained marine engineer, joins Wilder in the plan. Wilder and Tack bring the vessel to Chiku Shan, load it with firewood, boiler water, and provisions, and christen it with the village’s name to symbolize their resolve. The stage is set for the dangerous voyage ahead.

Wilder’s bond with Cathy Grainger grows as they work side by side. Wilder reveals the heartbreaking truth that Cathy’s father was executed by a political commissar after a failed surgery. The revelation tests Cathy’s faith but deepens her resolve to push forward.

The escape begins with calculated deception: the patrol boat is lured into harbor and trapped, while Wilder and the refugees slip away down the coast aboard the stolen ferry. The plan relies on timing, nerve, and careful navigation. The villagers' coordination keeps the departure largely hidden from pursuers.

They bluff their way past a People's Liberation Army Navy destroyer and vanish into a fog bank. They travel only at night, moving through reed marshes and keeping to the shadows as they press toward safety. The peril intensifies as pursuit closes in.

Two sabotage attempts by the Feng family threaten the escape and a brutal storm tests the group's resolve. They poison food and water and attempt to seize Chiku Shan, but the plan collapses under the villagers' vigilance. Cathy’s resolve hardens as danger mounts.

Shortages of firewood, water, and boiler water force Wilder to raid wrecks in the Graveyard of Ships at Honghai Bay. He strips other vessels of fuel and pulls water from depressions and tanks to keep the boiler running. A rogue heavy timber rips into the stern wheel, causing a delay that heightens the stakes.

Chiku Shan makes a final dash into a marsh estuary and slips toward open sea beyond the destroyer’s search radius. Tack restarts the boiler as the steamboat presses on toward Hong Kong. The refugees arrive to a triumphant welcome in the port city.