A prisoner named Frank Price is sprung from prison, but is murdered once he is on the outside. The man driving the getaway patrol car, Hurst, belongs to Bernie Silk's crime gang, whereas Frank Price belonged to Jack Lang's gang.

Dempsey meets an American woman named Angie Hughes. She claims that she is taking care of some business and seeing the sights. He and Makepeace investigate Price's murder. They discover that the killer was hired for a professional hit. Dempsey and Makepeace go to see Jack Lang to ask him why someone would want Price dead. The duo soon realise that Price's murder could be the start of war between Lang's and Silk's gangs. Dempsey then realises that Angie was Price's killer, taken hostage and placed into the boot of Angie's car.

Jack's grand-daughter, Debbie, is kidnapped. Then, Bernie Silk is taken by Lang's gang. The gangs had set their bosses up, so that the gangs could carve up the territories between them.