The KGB of the USSR is alarmed by the CIA's attempts to penetrate the secrets of the laboratory of Nobel laureate Nikolai Baskov, which develops lasers for missile defense. KGB Colonel Valentin Simagin recruits Kim Nikanorov, a former laboratory employee turned currency speculator. It should become a channel of disinformation for Americans about the activities of the laboratory. Kim is arranged to work for Basov again and helps him establish contacts with a CIA resident.

 Everything goes according to the KGB's plan, but soon Kim is faced with a very experienced and sophisticated opponent — a CIA agent with the call sign Leonardo. She suspects that Kim is a figurehead for the KGB.