Ransom!

Andy's school nurse collected him due to an infection, prompting the principal to call the Stannards. Dave realizes that the doctor hadn't requested the pickup, meaning Andy has been kidnapped, and he immediately calls the police. The kidnapping triggers a formal missing-child investigation and a media-fueled race to find him.

Police chief Jim Backett organizes a city-wide search and arranges a separate phone line at the Stannards' house so the main line stays free for ransom calls. The family becomes the focal point of the investigation as resources converge on locating Andy. The added line signals how seriously authorities take the threat.

Newspaper reporter Charlie Telfer enters the Stannards' home to cover the abduction, facing hostile resistance from Dave but is allowed to stay. His presence intensifies the pressure and heightens public interest around the case. The media intrusion complicates the family's already fragile dynamics.

The school principal arrives and Edith attacks her with a fire poker, escalating danger at home. The doctor sedates Edith, and she sleeps upstairs as the kidnapper's call comes through. The family wrestles with fear, anger, and a looming ransom crisis.

The kidnapper demands $500,000 and instructs Dave to signal willingness to pay by having a popular television host wear a white jacket on the next evening's broadcast. Dave and the police discuss the implications of paying, fearing it could encourage further abductions. The call sets a chilling deadline that frames the rest of the week.

The police trace the call to a phone booth and converge on the location. They arrive just as the kidnapper's cigarette is still burning, confirming the call's proximity. The investigation now overlaps with the search, tying the ransom plot to a concrete crime.

With his brother Al and business partner, Dave gathers the ransom money. Telfer cautions that paying does not guarantee Andy's return, and Backett notes that honoring the demand could invite more kidnappings. The family weighs a desperate payoff against the risk of setting a dangerous precedent.

The next day, Dave appears on the designated television show with the $500,000 spread on the table. He publicly refuses to pay the ransom, but offers a reward to anyone who captures the kidnapper if Andy is killed. The broadcast reframes the crisis as a test of parental resolve and law-enforcement objectives.

Backett asks for a letter absolving him of responsibility for the decision to refuse payment. Edith discovers Dave's stance and becomes furious, needing to be restrained before she is removed from the house. The tension between police strategy and family emotions deepens.

Backett presents Andy's bloody T-shirt, found behind a seat in a stolen car, which convinces Dave that his son might be dead. He arranges a trust to pay the ransom money as a bounty to anyone who locates the kidnapper. The stakes escalate as time wears on and the family prepares for the worst.

Dave retreats to the backyard to grieve, sitting beside a fort Andy had built. He breaks down, sure that Andy is gone, until Andy suddenly appears alive. Andy explains the shirt was bloodied because he bit the kidnapper who had posed as a nurse, and the father and son share a joyous embrace.

The family embraces in relief as the mystery resolves and gratitude fills the house. The butler thanks God for their safe return. The ordeal ends with a strengthened family bond and a quiet sense of closure.