The Home Office send Barlow to access how tearaway Reardon became the first man to escape from their newest maximum security prison. With Reardon leaving no clues, Barlow has to find out how stop it happening again.
A ship from the Eastern Bloc is docked in a London port when Stefan Borowski jumps over the side and claims asylum. With talks proceeding between the two countries, Barlow is asked to prove whether he is a real defector.