London, 1886: Verloc runs a seedy shop in the heart of London's Soho. Unknown to his loyal wife Winnie, Verloc is paid by the Russian embassy to spy on a dangerous anarchist cell.

Having recruited Winnie's younger brother Stevie to help with his bomb plot, Verloc goes to Stevie to Michaelis' Kent cottage to prepare.

The authorities find it hard to make sense of the rationale behind the Greenwich attack. Chief Inspector Heat moves to arrest Verloc.