Dennis Markahm (Ian Bannen) is forced to resign from the British Parliament after he is linked to a woman serving as an East German dignitary. As reporters Nick Mullen (Gabriel Byrne) and Vernon Bayliss (Denholm Elliott) investigate the case, they discover that there may be more to the incident than meets the eye, and that a nuclear near-accident at an Air Force base is somehow involved. Markham's secretary, Nina Beckman (Greta Scacchi), agrees to help, but she may know more then she lets on.