The escape of Bubber Reeves from prison affects the inhabitants of a small Southern town.

Carol Hunnicutová sa v losangelskom hoteli stane nechceným svedkom mafiánskej vraždy, ktorú spácha gangsterský boss Leo Watts. Robert Caufield z kancelárie okresného prokurátora, ktorý už dlho po Leovi pasie, zistí identitu svedkyne a vydáva sa za ňou pretože mafia už tiež objavila jej stopu a snaží sa ju zlikvidovať. Podarí sa im uniknúť najatým zabijakom a nastúpiť do expresu, smerujúceho do Vancouveru. Nebezpečný súboj s mafiou vrcholí na strechách vagónov, kde Robert musí čeliť zúrivému útoku tajomnej cestujúcej Kathryn Wellerovej, ktorá je tiež v Leových službách...

A man has been found dead after having been hurled from a train. As security agents, police and a medical examiner piece together his identity, three accounts emerge: one set during World War II, one in the immediate aftermath of the war, and one in contemporary Poland.

Attorney Walter Colby has ties to the mob, but he begins to regret his criminal affiliations. When his girlfriend, showgirl Flaxy Martin, who also has shady connections, becomes a suspect in a murder, Walter takes the fall. However, on his way to prison, he escapes, determined to bring the real killer to justice.