French police are looking for a missing Englishman, World War II re-enactor GI Joe Thorpe. Trevor learns Eavis is also involved in the hunt, and Gladys is dragged in when a French private investigator asks her to help him locate the body. This does not go down well with either set of police officers but they agree to allow her to use Joe's jeep for psychometry, even though she does it in front of a local TV news crew.

Gladys befriends the parents of the missing man, learning all about his role-playing activities. When Trevor goes to talk to Joe's fellow re-enactors he learns that the man had battled with drug addiction, which is confirmed by his parents.

When the private investigator is found murdered, Trevor traces his movements and it begins to seem as if the systematic theft of classic cars is at the root of the mystery, so Trevor and Gladys concoct a scheme to smoke out the thieves. To Sardou's amazement this works, and enables police to follow one of the suspects back to their