Commandant Hauptmann Oswald Von Traunsee, who has been sent to patrol an Austrian garrison on the Italian border as punishment for a romantic escapade, takes out his frustrations on the men in his unit. When Russian-Hungarian Sonia Vallanoff arrives at the post, however, Von Traunsee softens and, using his authority, detains her emigration to Brooklyn by claiming a discrepancy in her passport. Soon after, the garrison is invaded by American gangster Riker, who is identified by Von Traunsee as a fugitive wanted for extradition to the United States. Riker later discovers that Sonia is the sister of a former prison companion who died during the escape that had earlier freed him. Determined to prevent the lecherous Von Traunsee from seducing Sonia, Riker steals a pistol from the garrison and surprises the couple at dinner. At gunpoint, Riker forces Von Traunsee to drive Sonia and him to a neighboring town and witness their marriage at the local burgomaster's. Impressed by Riker's bravery and decency, Von Traunsee, who had known from the start that Riker's stolen pistol was empty, allows the couple to leave for Brooklyn, where, as a United States citizen, Sonia vows to wait for her husband to finish his prison term.