The Lost Despatch
Historical Thriller • Espionage • Civil War
Washington, D.C., 1865. The Confederacy is dying, but its spies are still at work inside the Union capital.
Nancy Newton moves easily through Washington society—attending elegant dinners, charming Union officers, and listening carefully when military secrets are discussed. Behind the dresses and Southern manners, however, is a Confederate agent carrying coded despatches through enemy lines.
Federal detective Captain Lloyd Irving knows what she is.
He just can’t prove it.
But when Lloyd is suddenly found dead and the evidence begins pointing toward Nancy, the spy becomes the suspect—and with the war drawing to a close, she must uncover the truth before the government discovers just how much she really has been hiding.
Logline
As the Civil War nears its end, a young Confederate spy operating within Washington society becomes the target of a relentless Federal investigator—only to find herself accused of his murder when he dies just as he obtains the evidence that could finally expose her.
About the Screenplay
The Lost Despatch is a historical espionage thriller set during the final months of the American Civil War and based on the 1913 novel by Natalie Sumner Lincoln.
Nancy Newton is a young Virginia woman living in Washington, D.C., where her Southern heritage and social connections allow her to move among politicians, military officers, and influential families. What few realize is that Nancy is also secretly working for the Confederacy.
Using disguises, coded messages, clandestine couriers, and even her loyal dog Misery, Nancy gathers Union military intelligence and passes it through a covert network operating between Washington and Confederate territory.
But Federal detective Captain Lloyd Irving is closing in.
Lloyd has encountered the mysterious female courier before and becomes convinced Nancy is the woman who escaped him. Their battle becomes increasingly personal as he follows her through Washington society and across military lines, determined to obtain the physical evidence necessary to prove she is a Confederate agent.
Complicating Nancy’s dangerous double life is Major Robert Goddard, a Union officer who falls in love with her without realizing the woman he wants to protect may be one of the very spies his government is hunting.
Then Lloyd finally obtains the evidence he needs.
Before he can use it, he is found dead.
Nancy is arrested and brought before a military commission, accused not only of espionage but of murdering the Federal investigator who pursued her. As testimony exposes hidden identities, missing despatches, secret loyalties, and another suspect with a deadly connection to Lloyd’s past, Nancy must fight for her life while confronting a truth she can no longer escape:
She may be innocent of murder—but she really is a spy.
Set against the collapse of the Confederacy and the final days of Abraham Lincoln’s presidency, The Lost Despatch blends Civil War espionage, murder mystery, romance, and historical drama into the story of a woman caught between loyalty to a lost cause and the possibility of a life beyond it.
Screenplay Details
Author: James Leach
Based On: The Lost Despatch by Natalie Sumner Lincoln
Genre: Historical Thriller • Espionage • Civil War
Format: Feature Screenplay
Page Count: [Page Count]
Setting: Washington, D.C. / Virginia / Maryland
Time Period: American Civil War / 1861–1865
Status: Completed / Available for Option
Available Materials
Screenplay
Synopsis
Treatment
Character Sketches
Pitch materials / Storyboards
About the Screenwriter — James Leach
James “JC” Leach is a U.S. Air Force veteran, technical writer, and screenwriter who has been developing original screenplays since 2008. His work spans historical drama, military and geopolitical thrillers, science fiction, suspense, horror, and stories inspired by real events.
With a professional background in technical writing, instructional design, and simulation development, JC brings extensive research, technical authenticity, and a disciplined approach to storytelling. His military experience in electronic warfare and aviation provides an additional foundation for stories involving military operations, technology, and high-stakes environments.
JC has developed a diverse portfolio of feature-length screenplays. His work includes original material as well as two adaptations of public-domain literary works, giving him experience translating existing stories into cinematic narratives.
He is currently adapting his screenplay portfolio into novels, expanding his stories across both film and publishing. JC is interested in connecting with producers, representation, and creative collaborators seeking distinctive, character-driven material with strong cinematic potential.
JAMES LEACH Author • Screenwriter 