On a cruise ship to Stockholm, an American man attacks a passenger. When Marianna Hermansson from the Stockholm police arrives, he has escaped. What she doesn't know is that the man is her boyfriend, John.

Mariana discovers that John is not only the attacker, but that he also supposedly died ten years ago, executed in a prison in Ohio. When John tries to escape, Mariana lures him back.

John is acquitted of the assault charges, but the Foreign Office decides to extradite him. Mariana is convinced of his innocence and helps him escape from prison again.