Escape Route

An American operative, Steve Rossi, slips past immigration at Heathrow, triggering a national manhunt led by Scotland Yard. As he disappears into London, police begin a wide search while Rossi heads toward the core of Grand's network.

Rossi makes his way into London and seeks out Bailey, a barman who knows the underworld. The bar's conversation ends with Bailey passing Rossi a note that contains an address, directing him to a contact who can help.

The note leads Rossi to a woman who initially denies knowing Grand. She agrees to exchange his US currency and buys him a coat while he waits in her flat, then passes him another address to Kingston House.

Rossi takes a taxi to Kingston House on Kingston Road and meets Joan Miller, who claims to be Grand's secretary and says Grand is not there. She phones Grand to arrange a meeting, signaling that Rossi's lead may be compromised.

Joan pulls a gun on Rossi, and they drive to an old terraced house where Wilkes begins questioning him. Rossi repeats that Grand offered him a job designing aircraft, underscoring his deeper entanglement with Grand's operation.

After the tense encounter, Rossi is asked to stay in Joan's flat. The arrangement signals a delicate alliance as both sides weigh loyalties and the balance of information between intelligence services and criminals.

Police post Rossi's picture in newspapers, and various underworld figures are quizzed to locate him. A taxi driver recognizes the image, pulling Rossi further into Grand's orbit and increasing the risk to him.

Joan Miller is revealed to be an MI5 agent, complicating Rossi's already tangled cover story. The revelation reframes Rossi's mission as part of a coordinated intelligence operation.

Rossi discloses his real identity as an FBI agent posing as a nuclear scientist to infiltrate Grand's gang. He explains that his aim is to monitor kidnappings of Western scientists across the Iron Curtain and to counter Grand's operation from within.

Grand has recently arranged the kidnapping of an American, establishing the scale of his operation. Rossi's presence adds a complication that both sides must accommodate as the net tightens.

With MI5's assistance, Rossi monitors Grand and arranges a meeting with him. The collaboration tightens the net around Grand as Rossi closes in on his target.

Growing increasingly suspicious of Rossi, Grand and his organization make several attempts to kill him. The danger escalates as the pursuit becomes more ferocious and desperate.

Rossi and Joan tail Grand's assistant Irma Brookes. They locate a burned-out car containing a body with some of Grand's ID, suggesting a failed effort to protect Grand.

Rossi dons a naval uniform and tails Grand on foot through empty city streets, leaving chalk markers for Joan to follow. The pursuit continues to the River Thames and toward the Old Swan Pier near London Bridge as the tension tightens.

Grand pulls a gun and a scuffle erupts as Rossi and Grand contend on the pier and then on an external freight lift near a grain elevator. The struggle ends with Rossi prevailing and the police arriving to secure Grand's capture.