Break in the Circle

In Marshfleet, England, Skip Morgan, an adventurer who smuggles political refugees aboard his boat the Bonaventure , is directed by his contact Hobard to meet him in London the following day. Before leaving, Morgan tries to romance Lisa, a writer who lives in the port town in which he moors his boat, but Lisa objects to his profession and rejects his advances. In London, Hobard takes Morgan to see Baron Keller, a ruthless German millionaire, who hires him to escort his old friend Karl Kudnic from Hamburg to London. Keller tells Morgan that he owes Kudnic a debt of honor for coming to his aid years earlier. When Morgan leaves Keller's house, he is met by Farquarson from the Special Services Branch, who insists that Morgan accompany him to headquarters to confer with his superior, Col. Patchway. There, Patchway unfurls a letter accusing Morgan of smuggling and aiding in illegal entry. When Morgan scrutinizes the envelope addressed to Patchway, he recognizes the distinctive typeface of Lisa's typewriter. Upon returning home that evening, Morgan lures Lisa onto his boat and then casts off for Hamburg, informing her that he is keeping her prisoner so that she will be unable to contact Patchway. Lisa angrily responds that she is an Interpol agent and that the agency is aware of his mission. As the boat nears Hamburg, Morgan orders Dusty, his first mate, to paint over the name Bonaventure and rechristen the vessel Duchess , his nickname for Lisa. After docking in Hamburg, Morgan locks Lisa in her cabin, but she overhears him telling Dusty his destination is Ludwigstrassen. In Ludwigstrassen, Morgan heads to Kudnic's house, where he is interrogated by a man claiming to be Kudnic. Suspicious, Morgan refuses to answer, prompting the man to order his thugs to restrain Morgan. Back at the boat, meanwhile, Dusty and Lisa begin to worry about Morgan. After tricking Dusty into freeing her, Lisa springs into action to find Morgan. Upon arriving in Ludwigstrassen, Lisa hears several argumentative Russian voices and follows them to the building in which Morgan is being held captive. After his captors leave, Lisa revives the unconscious Morgan and urges him to alert Interpol for help. Instead, Morgan dashes off to find Kudnic. Spotting an elderly man being held prisoner by the thugs who assaulted him, Morgan assumes the man to be Kudnic and tries to free him. Before he can, however, one of the Russians speeds off with Kudnic in a car while the others pursue Morgan through the streets and nick him in the head with a bullet. Dusty, meanwhile, has gone to police headquarters for help and when Morgan phones there, he asks Dusty to ascertain the whereabouts of Emile, one of his smuggling cohorts. After turning Lisa over to Dusty, Morgan finds Emile and offers him $5,000 to hire reinforcements and drive him to the fortified village where Kudnic is now being held. Along the way, they spot a helicopter hovering overhead and follow it to a deserted field, where Kudnic is shoved into the aircraft. As Emile and his men struggle with the Russians, the helicopter becomes mired in mud and Morgan charges the aircraft, snatches Kudnic and boosts him into Emile's waiting truck. The truck speeds off, and when the helicopter pursues them, it flies into an electrified fence and explodes. Morgan takes Kudnic to his boat, but when he arrives, finds it missing and the docks swarming with police. Lisa is waiting for him, and informs him that Dusty has piloted the craft to the old landing stage. Emile drives them there and after helping Kudnic on board, Lisa explains that her father was killed while working for Patchway and that she felt compelled to take his place. She then admonishes Morgan to turn Kudnic over to the authorities. When Morgan questions Kudnic about Keller, he denies knowing the man and confides that he is a Polish scientist who is being pursued by a number of political operatives eager for his knowledge about a secret atomic process. As Morgan nears Marshfleet, he locks Lisa in her cabin and instructs Dusty to release her in eight hours, hoping that she will then alert Patchway. Proceeding to Keller's, Morgan accuses him of lying about his motives for securing Kudnic's passage and demands more money for the return of the scientist. While Morgan instructs Keller to meet him later that afternoon, Lisa sneaks off the boat and notifies Patchway that Kudnic is being held aboard. As Morgan and Hobard board the boat, they are met by Lisa, training her gun at them. Sneaking up from behind, Keller disarms Lisa and then orders Morgan to sail to Cherbourg, France. When Patchway sees the craft heading out to sea, he notifies the patrol boat, but when the sailors spot the name Duchess on its side, they assume that it is the wrong boat and allow it to continue. After Hobard panics, Keller shoots him, and Morgan signals Dusty to release a depth charge, alerting the patrol boat to danger. Morgan then pretends that his craft has been hit, and when Keller goes up top to investigate, Morgan sharply turns the wheel, tossing Keller into the sea below. Once safely ashore, Morgan informs Lisa that he deliberately allowed her to escape to notify Patchway, and she then kisses him.