Baron Henri de Mortelart, hedonist, gambler and chairman of a vast international conglomerate, is kidnapped while holidaying in the South of France, and a ransom of 10 million dollars is demanded for his release. Arrangements are in hand to meet the terms and conditions imposed for his release, but these are temporarily disrupted when, first Henri's daughter is involved in a car crash, then his mistress threatens to inform the press of his disappearance, and finally his brother Maurice develops a taste for power and throws a spanner in the works to turn the situation to his advantage. When, finally, the way seems clear for the payment of the ransom, a forest fire devastates the property where Henri is being held, and his captors have to flee. Will Henri survive, or will he be left to be burnt alive with no one the wiser, and all traces of his captivity erazed, as his kidnappers hope? Who, though, was responsible for his kidnapping in the first place? Who, apart from his captors, was to benefit from it? And what of the American socialite and his glamorous partner in crime who masterminded the operation? Will they collect and get away with their share of the ransom money, as planned?