The Cutler family ship Eagle is captured in the 1780s, a time when America is weak and nations like the Barbary States of North Africa are preying on its commerce. Richard Cutler is sent to negotiate a ransom for his brother Caleb and the crew.

After learning the pirate chieftain's plans to reject the ransom terms, as well as of treachery among Britain, France, and the Barbary States to cripple American shipping and thus America herself, Richard finds himself engaged in a fierce naval battle with Arab ships. After learning that a woman of previous affection, Anne-Marie Helvétian, is in danger, he rescues her and her daughters from the guillotine, and with the revolutionaries in hot pursuit, their escape becomes a desperate race, with the lives of all at stake.