Welcome to our World! Where we serve you cookies to ensure you get the best viewing experience on our site.

Did you know that you can remove censorship board-wide, use our advanced search functions, be notified when new content is posted, join our memberships, set episodes to show in any order you want & more if you are logged into your account?

Register or sign in here: ucp.php?mode=register

02x04 - Episode 4

Episode transcripts for the TV show, "After the Flood". Aired: January 10, 2024 – present.*
Watch/Buy Amazon


When an unidentified man is found dead in an underground car park after a devastating flood, PC Joanna Marshall is commissioned to investigate the truth of the man's death.

02x04 - Episode 4

Post by bunniefuu »

We are being targeted constantly.

SAM: Mr Benson, two men

have been found dead on your land.

If you have any trouble

with my alibis,

I'm sure Sergeant Mackie

would vouch for me.

PAT: Do you remember Saskia Bale,

who had her charges dropped,

just like that?

Was she maybe ever fostered

by the Mackies and then used?

SARAH: They've had

a discreet request regarding Saskia.

What sort of request?

Mackie and the Bensons

had a connection 20 years ago,

and there's one now.

JO: 'Donna Rower, Xav Palmer's ex,

we interviewed her.

'She saw Xav the day he died.'

What about her?

She's gone missing.

Mum?

Where's she gone?

PAT: That's one way

to spread the word.

SIRENS BLARING

Estate workers say

the suspect's of average height.

He's in a hood, a mask

and dark clothes,

was chased into the woods

and then lost.

We're checking the roads

in case they left a vehicle.

Where's Sam?

Not here yet.

Oh.

Well, I mean, it's another form

of graffiti, isn't it?

Except this time,

it's close to where Todd Drake

and Xav Palmer's bodies were found.

You mean an out-and-out accusation?

Well, what else does "Bensons k*ll"

in this location mean?

Could be someone trying to deflect

suspicion away from themselves.

Yeah, like whoever broke into Aexous

with Xav and Todd.

Did the trio turn on each other?

Gawping at it won't get them found!

Mr Benson, we're just discussing

what it might mean.

It's the same as it ever is.

It's about the pesticides.

I told you before,

they're obsessives.

And they're bloody lucky

we had that rainfall,

or this whole hillside

would have gone up!

Your night patrol

swung into action, though.

Not fast enough for my liking.

Why have you got your shotgun?

In case I see a rabbit.

Can I advise you to leave

the policing to us from now on?

We don't want any accidents.

And can I advise you

to get your finger out?

My family are being victimised!

Earlier on, I was interviewing

the kids that were partying up here

the night Xav Palmer died,

and Izza, the girl you rescued,

said she saw Finn there.

Finn Allen?

Yeah.

She didn't wanna

give his name up, either.

I dunno, I might be wrong.

But he was a bit of a campaigner

after last year's flood, wasn't he?

And Sophie and her friends

are into that now.

I mean, why else was he up here?

30-plus sixth-form girls.

Bit young for him, aren't they?

Hm.

Thing is,

Donna doesn't have many friends,

and I've rung around the friends

she does have,

and no-one has seen her.

Well, we're doing everything we can,

and we'll be in touch

as soon as we hear anything.

Well, I know it's hard

and you want to get involved,

but you have to trust us

to do our job.

Now, let's go back over

some of the details.

Have those girls been having

another mad party?

The moors have been on fire again.

SHE SIGHS

You don't dabble in wacky baccy

and mushrooms, do you?

Cos you getting into trouble

is the last thing

your grandad needs right now.

He's told you, then, has he?

He's told you he's dying?

Your grandad's very poorly.

He's dying.

I found the letter last Friday.

Well, then why are you giving him

a hard time?

I'm not.

We went fishing

and made an agreement.

Don't keep it in, let it out.

He knows I don't mean it.

And look, I'm making him a playlist

for his MRI scan tomorrow.

They say take in music

cos you've got all them magnets

whizzing around,

and it's really noisy.

And this is his favourite stuff.

Aw.

Human League, very good.

Sheffield band. Met my nan

at one of their gigs.

Aw, it's lovely.

But listen to me, they're trying out

new treatments all the time.

They said he's too far on.

But he doesn't want Mum

to know that.

Well, if she comes back.

Of course she'll be back. And how

is he gonna hide it from her?

Yeah, overall, very impressive.

Eh?

Your taste in music.

CHUCKLING: Oh, yeah.

They've gone.

No update. They, er,

just want another photograph.

Oh, right. She'll be back.

Mm.

She will!

Yeah.

Sorry for being a dickhead, Grandad.

Yeah, well,

we all have our weaknesses, eh?

Yeah, like Orchestral Manoeuvres

In The Dark.

HE CHUCKLES

PHONE CHIMES

Morning.

Can I ask you something?

No, Mum, I'm in a rush.

It won't take a sec.

Only, you know, some people think

the councillors know everything,

and on this one,

I haven't got a clue.

Oh, right, here we go. Here we go.

PHONE CHIMES

Look! Same question. Right

"The 'Bensons k*ll' slogan burning

on the hillside means what?"

We dunno,

but they've had environmental

activists targeting them recently.

Environmental activists?

The Bensons gave us the floodwall!

Well, yeah,

they also own Aexous Chemicals.

Aexous Chemicals?

Not something they broadcast

because it attracts protests

like that, but

Hang on. No

No, no, no, no.

Pat is bringing Eve to the station

before she goes to nursery,

and I wanna see her.

No, hang on. Hang on, hang on.

We found out yesterday the river

is full of pollution.

Mum!

Two seconds. Please, just please?

Look, right, these test results

came through from Layal.

Right, I mean,

it's all gobbledegook to me.

I don't really understand

any of it,

but essentially, it is saying

there are horrible forever chemicals

in the water,

running through our town.

And these chemicals were banned,

like, 20 years ago.

So where are they coming from?

That's the question,

except now you've just said that,

what about from Aexous

three miles upriver?

Yeah, OK, that is interesting.

Yeah, I'll feed that in.

Yeah, I mean, and maybe

that's what the sign's on about,

because I tell you,

these chemicals are toxic.

OK, Mum, listen,

you said it yourself, right?

You don't understand this stuff,

so if folk ask you

about the fire on the hill,

you just say, "We don't know.

We're looking into it."

Then you leave it at that,

all right? Ugh

I mean it.

Right.

Cross your heart, hope to die.

Huh?

Cross your heart!

Oh, my God.

Thank you.

And now I actually am late, so

Right. Bye.

Bye!

You've got a big box out here.

Oh.

BEEP

Nearly lost another one!

Have you seen Jo yet?

Not yet.

No. Will you tell her we stopped by?

Will do.

Hiya, Sandra. It's Phil Mackie.

How are you?

'I'm Yeah, I'm good.

Haven't heard from you for a while.'

Yeah, listen,

I know you're up against it,

so just a quick question

about a data request.

PHONE RINGS

Hello?

Mr Sellers, it's DC Marshall.

Erm, the break-in at your plant.

'Yes?'

'Is there any news on the guest pass

that was used to gain entry?'

'Yeah. So, there were three passes

that were unaccounted for.

'We located two of them

'and confirmed

that neither of those were used.'

The third is a dead end

because the temp we issued it to

lost it on her last day,

so there's not much we can do.

Contact details for this woman, now.

OK. Our absolute priority

is to find Donna Rower, yes?

Yeah, she's vulnerable.

She was romantically linked

to Xav Palmer,

possibly the last person

to see him alive,

but has now been missing

for over 35 hours.

So an obvious concern is,

could she be another victim?

Or the person

who pulled that stunt last night.

Either way, find her.

Er

Yes?

I've got a lead on the guest pass

used to break into Aexous.

Chase it.

Yes, Sir. Also, I gather

that tests on the river indicate

that there could have been

a chemical spill,

and I'm just thinking we should talk

to someone at Aexous about that.

I'll call them now.

You go after that guest pass.

Yeah. Jo, I'll come with you, yeah?

Sure.

You didn't come out

to the moors last night.

No, I didn't see the text

until this morning.

TONY: 'I've still not heard back

from Donna.'

You know, "no news is good news"

isn't always true, is it?

SHE TUTS,

PHONE CHIMES

Come on.

The "no swimming" signs

have gone up. Mm.

Oh, Layal dropped off a whole load

of them water-testing kits

at my place.

Well, we shall have

to keep testing, then, eh?

Yeah, but she hasn't told us

how to use them. Well, ring her.

I've tried.

I can't get in touch with her.

Oh, this is a good 'un.

Did you know the Bensons

own Aexous chemical works?

Yeah. Yeah,

I think I heard it once. Why?

What do you mean "why"?

We've got a river full of chemicals!

Oh, I see. Right. Yep, yep, true.

Right, so what do we do?

Do we get

the Environment Agency onto 'em?

You could do, yeah.

You could do, but, erm

the trouble with the EA is,

they warn companies in advance

for when they're doing a spot check.

Warn them in adv

What's the point of that?

It's hopeless.

It gives them time

to cover up and clean up.

That's ridiculous.

Maybe I should give the Bensons

a Molly Marshall spot check,

turn up unannounced!

HE CHUCKLES

Maybe you should!

Antony Rower, please?

Right.

You're up. OK. Good luck.

He's got a very good playlist.

But I'd skip track four.

Hi. Oh, I'm so sorry,

I'm not a believer.

So I don't wanna waste your time,

but, yeah, all the best

SAM CHUCKLES

No, Miss Smith. Erm

I'm Detective Sergeant Bradley.

This is DC Marshall.

We're not Jehovah's Witnesses.

We're making enquiries about

the Aexous keycard that you lost.

Oh, sorry. Erm, yeah.

Aexous called about that yesterday,

and I told them

I don't know where it is,

and I don't remember losing it,

so afraid I can't help.

Well, let's see about that.

You worked as a temp for Aexous,

didn't you? For how long?

A month. I was covering

someone's maternity leave.

So, when did you lose

the guest pass?

Oh, well, I had it in the morning

on my last day,

but then when I got back

from a working lunch,

reception had to let me in

cos I couldn't find it.

Where did you go for lunch?

Oh, The Lord Stanley Oak.

The pub off the high street.

OK, look, we might come back,

but thank you. Thanks.

Finn Allen works

at The Lord Stanley Oak.

Who's Finn Allen?

Oh, his grandparents died

in the flood last year.

He's, erm

He's like a climate activist,

and he was at the party on the moors

the night that Xav Palmer's body

was found.

Hey, run a check on him.

Yeah.

Have you got his address?

Er, yeah.

RINGING TONE

'You're through

to the Counter Terrorism Unit.'

Counter Terrorism Unit.

'Leave your name,

and your call will not be recorded.'

Bring him in. Request back-up.

POLICE RADIO CHATTER

Jo! What is this?

OFFICER: Come on.

How can you let this happen, Jo?

I've done absolutely nothing!

I've done nothing, and you're just

standing there. In you get.

You have my total f*cking contempt.

Nice work.

I've told you, I don't know anything

about any key-pass or keycard

or whatever you wanna call it.

Are you sure about that?

Absolutely sure, yes.

It was an Aexous guest pass,

with the big X logo on it,

like the graffiti around town.

OK. Moving on.

For the purposes of the recording,

I'm showing Finn

a picture of Xav Palmer.

We've a witness who said they

saw you at the party on the moors,

near to where the body was found.

Were you involved in the m*rder

of Xav Palmer?

Was I?

No. No, I wasn't.

Were you involved

in Todd Drake's m*rder?

No, I mean, I

I didn't even know them.

How come you came to be there, then?

I was invited.

Who by?

How about Sophie Kamali

and her mates,

who've been protesting

about the heather burn

and harassing the owners

of Crossdale Estate?

You were aware of that, no?

I suppose. Yeah.

Did you encourage them

to do those things?

No. Were you recruiting them

to the cause?

SCOFFING: Oh, God.

Is that why you were there?

Look, I wasn't

I wasn't even gonna go!

Why not?

Because, like

Sophie has

Sophie has this thing for me, OK?

Which is, like, a bit embarrassing.

I mean, she's lovely, but she's 17.

So I told her, "No, I'm not going."

Then I found out

that her and her friends

were planning to, like, take

mushrooms and

So after work, when the pub shut,

I decided to go and check on 'em.

And there they were,

just, like, a bunch of sixth formers

off their faces with Declan Rower,

so pissed

he kept falling over everywhere.

But other than that, they were fine,

so I didn't hang around.

Not receptive to being recruited?

Oh, my God,

why would I recruit anybody? Eh?

Like, I don't have a cause.

Fine.

Well, our records say different,

because in 2023, you were arrested

at a climate protest

for aggravated trespass

and obstruction of a highway.

Yeah, like,

that was over two years ago.

And that was the last time you were

involved in any sort of activism?

Correct.

Right.

I heard you got pretty worked up

last year after the flood.

My grandparents died in it.

What do you get worked up about?

My point is, you were still active.

Jo, the prints on the g*n,

they're not Finn Allen's,

so it's all circumstantial.

Unless you've got something on him,

we're gonna have to let him go

really soon.

Nothing yet.

f*ck!

Hi, Miss Smith. It's DS Bradley.

We met earlier.

'Oh, hello.'

The person you met for your working

lunch at The Lord Stanley Oak,

can you tell us

who that was, please?

Yeah, she's a teacher

at Waterside Girls'.

She'd wanted to organise

a school trip to the Aexous plant

for sixth formers.

Can I have her name, please?

'Yeah, of course. It's Layal Ellis.'

Is she doing a runner?

Layal?!

LAYAL SIGHS

HE SNORES GENTLY

BRAKES SQUEAL

So, great year for you

and a sh*t one for me.

Talking of sh*t, how is Westminster?

I prefer the constituency,

a lot more opportunities.

Yeah?

Government's relaxing

planning regulations.

Apropos of which, you didn't go

bankrupt over Uplands, did you?

Yeah, I did, actually.

But it was lifted last month.

Good.

Thank you for your concern.

I ask because I'm looking

to put you forward

as a developer who understands

the needs of tomorrow.

There are a lot

of lucrative projects coming up.

This is your way of making amends

for throwing me under the bus,

is it? OK, I see.

Er, I'm not with you. Sorry?

OK, well,

let me spell it out for you.

Mackie lost me the Uplands project,

orchestrated the whole thing,

probably because I was f*cking you.

Don't be ridiculous.

He's good friends

with Alan Benson, isn't he?

Well, he knows him, but so what?

Well, it's just that Alan Benson

owns the investment company

that shafted me.

I mean, their timing was impeccable.

Pulled out

at the worst possible moment.

Almost as though

they'd had a tip-off.

And interestingly,

you were the only person

that knew exactly

how much trouble I was in.

I didn't tell them anything.

Oh, I bet you talked to Mackie,

didn't you? Yeah, course you did.

He would have passed it on to Benson

as payback for me and you.

OK, so even if that were the case

It is the case.

..then play the long game, Jack.

Mackie and I are as good as over,

have been for a while now.

So bide your time,

we can leave all this behind us,

team up together again

and make some real money.

It's all a bit vague, though,

isn't it?

You see, I need to be surrounded

by people that I can trust.

And the question is,

can I trust you?

Because every time I put my hand

in my pockets these days,

there's not much there, and that's

down to Mackie and Benson

..and you.

I'll leave you to pick up the tab.

I'm sure you'll be able

to claim it back on expenses, eh?

DOOR OPENS

Hm.

DOOR CLOSES

MACKIE: 'I was just about

to call you.' Hi.

'Listen, I made that call

to Children's Services

'about Saskia Bale.'

They're gonna get back to me

later today.

'And you were careful?'

Very.

I just ran into Jack Radcliffe.

Oh, yeah?

'He seems to think you're the reason

he lost his business.'

What? Come on.

He resorted to fraud to stay afloat.

He's useless,

that's why his business failed.

So you didn't tip off Alan Benson?

Cos that's what he's saying.

'Yeah, well, I might have mentioned

a few things.'

Oh, for God's sake, Phil!

'Then he's out to make trouble.'

Right. Well, let's just nip this

in the bud, then, shall we?

I'll see you later.

KEYPAD TONE

PHONE APP CHIMES

Back door's broken.

Vandals, probably.

It is a bit rough round here, eh?

But I love what you've done

with the place since your mum died.

What do you want?

Nah, what do YOU want?

Well, at least this confirms that

I can't trust your wife any more.

Maybe a touch more

than you can, but

MACKIE GRUNTS

Ha.

Steady.

What's the game, Jack?

It's quite simple, really.

Do you know what? I'm thinking

of marketing it as a board game.

It's called "I Want Back

Every Penny I Lost On Uplands".

Uplands failed

because you're sh*t at business.

You can pay, or the Bensons can.

I'm really not that fussed.

Never gonna happen.

Yeah.

I wouldn't be too sure about that,

you know.

You see, when you've got f*ck all,

you've got nothing left to lose.

Do you remember my caretaker?

Nice chap. Took his own life

or did he?

Cos you see, I heard the other day

that that's not what happened.

I heard that he was m*rder*d.

And guess who came along to help?

And you heard that from who?

Oh, now, let me, er

let me have a think.

What was his name?

Er, do you know what?

I can't quite remember.

OK, let me remind you,

we're all dependent on each other.

As I said, I've got nothing to lose.

How's about your liberty?

What's that without money, eh?

You see, I have zero interest

in trying to save your sorry arse

any more.

In fact, I might make myself

feel better if I was to turn you in.

Just be very careful.

Every penny.

You've got 24 hours. Now f*ck off!

PHONE RINGS

Oh.

'Ey up, Sandra, that was quick.

'Yeah, cos it was nice and simple.

'The data request was made

by someone at your end -

'Waterside Police.

'Are you gonna foster again?'

Ah, yeah, that'll be it.

Great, thanks. Cheers, Sandra.

'All right. Bye.'

Watch closely.

And keycard's gone,

stolen by you.

You're not gonna deny that

that's you, I hope.

And there's Finn Allen.

And you know Finn, of course.

So, what, did you work together

to steal the pass?

No. Did you break into

the Aexous chemical plant

with Xav Palmer and Todd Drake?

No. No.

PHONE CHIMES

Interview paused at 14:22.

PROLONGED BEEP

In 2024, you wrote

about Aexous online,

and I quote,

"Aexous Chemicals peddle death

on the open market,

"legitimately selling

carcinogenic pesticides

"across the developing world."

Wanna deny you wrote that?

Why would I deny it? It's true.

But no-one else cares,

so why should I any more?

So it's just

a big, fat coincidence, then,

that an Aexous Chemical pass

went missing at your place of work?

It's a coincidence on my part, yeah.

Did Xav Palmer or Todd Drake

ever drink in your pub?

Remembering before you answer

that we have CCTV

for the past 30 days.

And that you previously told me

you didn't know either of them.

HE SIGHS

OK.

I knew them, yeah.

We met at a, er,

grief counselling group.

And we just got talking.

It was hard not to,

Xav had a mouth on him.

What did you get talking about?

Aexous. All things Aexous.

And

At first, I thought, "Great,"

you know?

But then I realised

that their interests weren't mine.

All Xav wanted to do

was break into the chemical plant.

A complete waste of time unless

you know what you're looking for,

which Xav didn't, but every time

he got them together,

he'd just, like

..harangue them.

Who's "them"?

Erm Todd.

You said "them". Who else?

HE SIGHS

Layal Ellis.

Layal, we have Finn Allen

in the next interview room,

and he's just told us

that you, Todd Drake and Xav Palmer

planned to break into the

Aexous chemical plant for some time.

What have you got to say about that?

Because this is

a double m*rder investigation,

and you are a known associate

of both the deceased.

Also, an initial search

of your house

has found traces of an accelerant

that we believe was used

in last night's arson attack.

Also paint that matches

the threatening graffiti

found on the Bensons' estate,

and a mask and a boiler suit

that are identical

to the ones worn by three people

who broke into Aexous last week.

So, do you wanna explain to us

what those items are doing

in your possession?

No comment.

Right. For the purposes

of the recording,

I am showing Layal CCTV images.

Is that you breaking into Aexous

with Xav Palmer and Todd Drake?

No comment.

OK, Layal, I can give you one more

chance to answer our questions,

then I'm gonna have to

move things on, yeah?

So, once more,

is this you breaking into Aexous?

No comment.

If that's the case,

I'm gonna have to charge you

with theft, criminal damage, arson

and the murders of Xav Palmer

and Todd Drake.

No!

I didn't k*ll anyone!

So tell us what you do know,

and what happened,

and tell us now.

I broke into Aexous with Xav

and Todd, yes, with that passkey,

looking for evidence

of ill*gal discharges in the river.

But it went wrong

almost immediately

because Todd's epileptic

and was having a seizure.

So So we had to call it off

and leave.

I helped get Todd back in the van,

but then Xav took him off

to hospital because his

his mouth was dragging, and he was

making these clucking sounds

like he was having another fit.

So So, they went off and

and I went home.

And, erm, the next day,

well, I went swimming with Molly

to keep up appearances,

but I was getting

more and more anxious

because I couldn't get through

to Xav or Todd.

They weren't picking up.

And then the next thing I hear

is that Todd's turned up dead

on the moors,

on Benson moorland,

shot with a Benson g*n.

And I'm terrified because

I still can't get in touch with Xav.

I keep trying and trying,

but he won't pick up.

And then he turns up m*rder*d, too.

And on the moors again.

And he's been shot, as well.

And all I can think is that they

they saw us breaking into Aexous,

and they do have things to hide,

and they're k*lling us one by one.

And

Well, that's why

I haven't come forward,

cos I don't want to be next!

LAYAL SOBS

Layal, can I ask you

about the word "murderers"

that was daubed

on the Bensons' house,

and "Bensons k*ll"

up on the hillside?

Did you do those?

I did.

Right. It's just,

considering what you're saying,

that's quite a big risk.

There are levels of PFAS,

polyfluoroalkyls,

way above the legal limit

in the river,

which must be coming from Aexous.

And yesterday,

we found these other chemicals

banned over 20 years ago,

so what was it doing in our river?

And what would Aexous

and the Bensons do

to make sure that people

don't get to know that?

PHONE RINGING

No, f*ck off!

DOORBELL RINGS

Molly Marshall, Waterside Council,

here to see Mr Benson.

Is he expecting you?

Oh, good, he's in. Which way?

Hello!

Excuse me!

Why, what have you done? Hello!

Anybody home? Hello!

Molly Marshall, to see Mr Benson!

Hello!

What the hell is going on?

I couldn't put it better myself.

Can we get you something?

Nope. You're all right.

I was fortunate enough

to know your husband.

Really?

Yeah.

He never mentioned you.

Oh, yes. Yes, Brendan.

He was a credit to the force,

as I'm sure you are to the council.

Oh, I drive 'em potty.

Want everything done yesterday.

I'm with you on that one, yeah.

Life's too short for red tape, eh?

Yeah. Especially if you've got

cancer thanks to Aexous!

Right. OK.

If this is about

last night's protest

It's about dead fish in the river.

We've done tests,

and there's perfluorooctanesulfonic

acid in the water.

That's extremely worrying.

Yeah, just took a friend for an MRI.

He was flooded out last year,

has leukaemia now. It's terminal.

If you start making

unfounded accusations

Dad, stop! You be careful who

you pick a fight with in this room.

Those chemicals cause cancers

and are banned!

Molly, listen, please.

Aexous only produce

and use authorised PFAS.

And, yes, we do discharge

some of those into the river,

but only within

the regulated legal limits,

which we never exceed,

and we can prove that.

OK. So who's putting the nasty sh*t

in the water?

Not us.

Dear God, woman.

Would we risk a lawsuit

that could ruin us

when we don't need or have to?

We wouldn't, would we?

I will, though, take to the cleaners

anyone who starts making false

and groundless accusations

against us,

so careful who you pick

a fight with, Molly Marshall!

MOLLY LAUGHS

Said the philanthropist.

Tomorrow's commendations -

as Jo's sponsor, could you do

the introduction, say a few words?

Consider my arm twisted.

Great.

How is Jo?

You know, with her and Pat being

separated and on the same team?

Yeah, she's doing great.

You know, she's a natural.

She's an instinctive detective.

Well, Pat, on the other hand, is

HE CHUCKLES

What?

A bit unfocused.

You know, I had to have a word

with him the other day

for looking into high-end car thefts

from 15 years ago.

Cold cases, complete waste of time.

Just

I wasn't gonna mention anything,

but it is going round

that Jo might have a new fella.

Ah!

Yeah.

Look, it's good

that the two of us know.

You know? Duty of care and all that.

Yeah, quite. Thanks.

RINGING TONE

'Main desk.'

Computer Records, please.

'Putting you through.'

'Records.'

Hey, Ian. Phil Mackie.

How you doing?

'Oh, hi, Phil. Yeah. OK.'

Good, good, good. Can you send me up

an old case of mine from 2010?

'Yeah, course.'

Car thefts.

It'll have Bren Marshall's name

on it, as well.

'Sure.'

Cheers. Oh, and, er

yeah, with any viewing records.

'Yeah, doing do it right away.'

Thanks a lot, mate.

All right, shall we run this

past Balsara?

Yeah. Erm

I'm sorry, can I just ask her

one more question? Yeah.

How do you know that a shotgun

belonging to the Bensons

was used to sh**t Todd Drake?

But we haven't shared

that information with you,

so I'm thinking

the only way you could know that

is if you stole the g*n.

SHE SOBS

OK, change of story.

Did you sh**t Todd Drake?

SOBBING: Dear God, no.

Did you sh**t Xav Palmer?

No. Were you in a relationship

with him?

What, with Xav?

Or Todd?

No! No.

I didn't k*ll anyone,

I swear it. I

SOBBING: I swear.

But I did lie.

Xav shot Todd.

LAYAL SOBBING

This is everything I know

that happened, OK?

'We broke into Aexous

in the early hours.

'We were looking

for anything that could prove

'what they were dumping

in the river.'

We'd not long been in there

when Todd has a seizure.

HE GASPS,

GROANS

HE GRUNTS

'We managed to bring him round

and get him in the van.'

We had no option. We had to leave.

'And we were feeling

such frustration, and'

XAV: Todd?

To get in there and get nothing!

To be in there

with everything we need

to prove what they were doing!

TODD GROANS WEAKLY

Todd, Todd!

Xav!

Xav!

TYRES SCREECH

GROANING

Todd?

Todd?

Todd, wake up!

Todd!

We need to call an ambulance!

SOBBING: What was the point, anyway?

He He was already dead.

'The sun was coming up,

'and Xav was obsessed

about getting away from the van

'and up on to the moors.'

Xav?

DISTANT VOICES

WHISPERING: Oh, sh*t.

Oh, sh*t!

They're from the Bensons' estate.

They're setting the burn

for next season's grouse sh**t.

And then he told me to wait there.

'And he went off,

and he left me with Todd.'

With a dead body.

And anyone could have come along.

And he was gone for ages!

'And then he comes back,

'and the estate workers

who were doing the burn

'were miles away by then, thank God,

because Xav's all worked up.

'And he's he's telling me

to take off Todd's boiler suit,

'which I do, because

that sort of made sense, and'

INHALES SHAKILY

And then he shot him!

g*nsh*t ECHOES

Oh, my God, what did you do?!

Why did you do that?!

Then it was like

he was crazy or something,

because he's telling me

how he'd gone and stolen a shotgun

from the Bensons,

so that when he shot Todd with it,

you'd think they k*lled him!

And then I went home.

And that is all that I know. And

SHE SOBS

Again, I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

Update from Path

on Todd's cause of death.

It's still inconclusive,

but there's a note.

"The fact that the cause of death

can't be determined

"is consistent

with sudden seizures."

So she could be telling the truth.

Yeah, but now we know she can lie.

Yeah. Also,

Xav must have been k*lled

by someone who knew

Todd was shot after he died.

The only person we have

who definitely knew that is Layal.

Any update on Donna Rower?

No.

OK, so, what do we do?

I mean, obviously keep Layal in,

but what about Finn?

Keep 'em both in.

OK.

I need to go and get Eve.

Is there any news on Saskia Bale?

It's confirmed -

Saskia Bale was fostered by Mackie,

so I'll look her up.

Do you think she'll talk to us?

Well, we've gotta try.

Come round later, yeah?

Yeah.

CHIMING

Jack wants paying off,

which I'm working on.

But he wasn't the one

doing the digging on Saskia Bale.

That was Pat.

And it looks like

he's making a pincer movement

cos he's also been looking

into some old case files of mine.

You said we could bank on Pat.

Well, he's had enough pay-offs

over the years, so, yeah

he needs reminding of that.

What's Jo up to?

I dunno.

I'm not sure.

And how are she and Pat?

Still living separately.

Let's not stray

into talking about us.

I need to know where we stand.

Phil.

I miss you so much.

Phil!

You've no idea.

Stop!

That's for another time.

Find out what's going on, hm?

Knock, knock.

Ah.

Are we going fishing?

Yeah, for liars.

There's a brew there.

You can have it.

I've gotta go and get some river

water samples before it's dark.

Milk's in the fridge.

Oh, aye? Ta.

Oh, no, no. No, no, no, no.

Ha-ha-ha! Don't look at that.

It'll spoil the surprise!

Go over there.

What for, and what surprise?

Well, if I told you that,

there wouldn't be one, would there?

It's nice.

Moll

HE CLEARS THROA

..me and surprises don't get on.

I hate surprises.

The only way I can enjoy them

is if I know they're coming,

then I'm brilliant,

cos I'm, like, not surprised.

And I'm like, "Oh, great, thanks!

What a surprise."

So, come on, what's going on?

Well, don't tell Pat I told you.

He's getting

some of your old workmates

back together for your birthday.

And I found out

Nige Lynwood's back from Spain.

But don't worry,

I told Pat not to invite Tempo!

Oh, come on. You'll enjoy it.

I might even get an invite myself.

We'll have a laugh!

And shut the door on your way out.

Ta-ra.

Ta-ra.

Not tonight, thank you.

I mean it, OK? Just f*ck right off!

What's up?

What's up?!

Yeah.

Have a f*cking guess!

I've no idea.

No? I saw you with Sarah Mackie,

going into that bistro in town,

opening the door for her.

Molly OK, that was business.

Oh, Jack, please.

You had your hand

on the small of her back. Molly!

Don't bleeding lie to me, as well!

I'm telling you, it was business.

Oh, go away.

Oh, come on, come here.

Don't you dare! Don't!

Just go away and leave me alone. OK?

So, Balsara's like,

"Deepa, can I borrow you for a sec?"

And I'm thinking,

"Oh, no, what have I done now?"

And he comes out with,

"Does DC Marshall have a new bloke?"

What?

Yeah.

What did you say?

I said, "I don't think so, Sir, but

frankly, it's none of my business."

Do you, though?

Oh, yeah, a couple (!)

I mean, are you kidding me?

When would I have time for that?

You get some nights off, don't you?

PHONE RINGS

Yeah, that's true.

I could fit it in, actually!

DC Marshall.

MAN: 'I want to check,

you on the Layal case?'

Yeah, that's my case.

What have you got?

'I've got some more information

that's just come through.'

OK. Yeah, great.

I'll, erm

I'll be with you in an hour.

They've arrested someone in Leeds,

and their prints match our g*n.

Who?

Hi. Look, I'm sorry to disturb you.

We've got a fingerprint match

for the shotgun.

They were picked up

drunk and disorderly in Leeds.

'And get this, it's Donna Rower.

'Call me when you get this, yeah?'

MACKIE: Everything OK?

Mm. That was Jo.

So, go on, then,

tell me what you know.