A Touch of Frost (1992) s05e02 Episode Script
House Calls
Good afternoon, Jack.
Good afternoon.
Ah, I remember these places.
Used to have squatters in before they were evicted.
Got those bucket and seat privies down the bottom of the garden.
Bum freezers we used to call them.
All right, where are we going? Up here.
Anyway enough of the history lesson.
So, tell me what you've got, a body I understand.
Yeah, it's a dozer by the looks of it.
Yeah, wasn't stuck in the privies, was he? Yeah, bout as bad, in a coal bunker.
Round here, left.
All right, here? Oh my god.
Well, he's dead all right.
Any idea who it might have been? No, he's probably some tramp who crept in, got hypothermia.
Yes, he's been there months by the looks of it, at least.
Was he like this when he was found? No, no, he was covered up.
The corrugated iron was across the top.
Detective Sergeant Maude, Denton CID.
You took your time.
That should keep the beggar out.
I'm the GP.
This is Lily.
Lily Turner.
She's in a very distressed state.
I'd rather you didn't touch anything.
Who are you, by the way? I live next door.
George Armitage.
Her husband's inside.
Eighteen months.
Stealing radio's from cars.
He stole mine.
Hello, Lily.
Do you wanna tell me what happened? Did someone hurt your baby? Seems someone broke in and woke the child.
Lily was watching TV in the next room.
She tried to get in here but couldn't.
He wedged a chair under the door handle.
She hears him moving around, so she come running next door to me.
I come round and kicked the door open.
He'd gone.
How is the child.
Is there any sexual interference? No evidence of that, the child's untouched.
There's no evidence of anything.
Except I found this hypodermic on the floor.
Any idea what's in it? Not sure.
Clear water, as far as I can tell.
I'd like to see Mr.
Frost.
I think he's got my medals.
Jack.
Yeah.
Young lady to see you.
Sorry, me again.
I wondered if you'd got them back? Got them back? Mrs.
erm.
Hinkley.
Hinkley.
The medals, you remember.
A man came from the water and stole them.
Came from the water, did he? It's not so much the jewelry, it's my husband's medals.
He was shot down over Hamburg in the war.
Posthumous DFM.
Con artist came to your door claiming he was from the water board, is that right? Popped upstairs to flush the loo.
When he'd left, he'd taken everything.
Yes, listen love, if I get any news I'll be in touch right away, I promise.
I knew you would, Mr.
Frost.
Being a hero yourself.
All right, worst things happen at sea.
Come on, what is it? All right, let me guess.
Mr.
Mullett has not come through with your promotion to acting DI.
No, and he as good as promised.
Well, he couldn't swing it love, could he? Not now DCI Peters has come back.
All right, so what's he got you working on? It's a strange case.
We had another incident last night.
That's four in two weeks.
It's a child abuser.
Sexual interference? No, that's what makes it strange.
He breaks into houses where there are young children and he seems not to do anything.
Except last night we found a hypodermic syringe.
Do you know any mad doctors? Was there water in the hypodermic? Yeah.
He's not a doctor.
He just thinks he ought to be? Do you know who it is sir? Well I sniff something.
You won't find it on your database either.
You better see me in the morning.
It's time you met our Mr.
Trigg, he's in charge of card indexing.
Ah, there you are inspector.
Come in, have a look.
Right.
Nothing much to show I suppose, is there? That's where you're wrong.
What do you wanna know? Well, usual things.
Was he murdered? Very much so.
He died of a heavy blow to the head which smashed his skull.
I doubt that he died in the bunker.
Probably killed elsewhere and moved soon after.
Interested in food? Well, no, not at the moment.
Pity.
We managed to salvage his stomach contents.
All right.
Substantial meal.
He probably died within an hour of eating it.
Salmon fish cake, peas and chips.
Washed down with an artificially flavored carbonated liquid.
A what? A fizzy drink.
Nothing on the body to identify him.
He was wearing an ordinary waterboard jacket over ordinary clothes.
Pockets all empty.
He was a big man.
Not much chance of any fingerprints, I suppose? We might get something.
There are interesting scraps of flesh.
And DNA.
And we're working on it inspector.
I'll tell you what the funny thing is I think I know him.
Shop? Ah, morning Trigg, how are you, alright? Yes, hello Jack, I'm all right.
Listen, I want you to find.
Here, aren't these all supposed to be in alphabetical order? Wasn't that what it was invented for? Very funny.
Everything got mixed up when they moved, didn't it? Now they're saying these files are redundant.
That's what we'll all be soon.
Bloody computers.
You know, they've got no heart have they? No feeling for personal information.
No instinct.
No, I know what you mean.
Anyway, listen, I want your help.
Have you got anything on an unlikely lad called Sydney Snell? Slimey Sid? Used to call at houses saying he was from the Health Department and the kids needed to be vaccinated.
Yeah, that's the one.
Sydney was a troubled little boy of thirty, Sergeant.
Bright lad in his way.
His uncle used to be a GP and left him his medical bag.
And for some unknown reason, he used to like to stick needles into plump little bottoms, or fat little arms.
Yeah.
Did it eight or nine times before we caught him.
He served three years.
They promised him psychiatric help.
Why is he not computer listed? Because, this was all of, what, eight years ago? No, it was about seven.
Anyway, he left Denton.
Too many parents threatened to do him over if he ever came back.
So when he left prison he went up north somewhere.
So why tell me to look for him then? Because Sydney's only friend was his mother.
And I thought he might come back to live with mummy now that it's all been forgotten.
He'll be in here somewhere.
Under unusual interests.
Yes.
There you are Jack.
That's him.
Sydney Snell, 44 Parnell Terrace.
Well that's his mother's address anyway.
Well, do you want to go and have a look, Sergeant? Mmmm.
Sydney's always been a mummy's boy.
They reckon he's never had sex, so he's never grown up, you know in that way.
It's called sublimation, sir.
Yeah, well whatever.
He liked to play doctors and nurses.
Especially when there's a childhood epidemic about.
He thinks he's saving them.
Ah, Jack.
Ah, yes.
Body in the coal bunker.
Yeah.
We've come up with an ident.
You'll never believe it.
Go on.
Lemmy Hoxton.
Lemmy Hoxton.
'Cor.
I've nicked Lemmy Hoxton.
Vicious bastard.
We've all nicked Lemmy Hoxton.
Oh yeah.
What's his wife's name? Maggie.
Maggie.
What has she been doing then? I mean he's been dead for three months and she's not even reported him missing.
Well, she probably couldn't believe her luck.
You're right.
Anyway, she's got some questions to answer.
Come on, let's go.
Shall I chase up Sydney Snell myself then, sir? No, you can study that file for now.
Look at that.
Lemmy's Toyota.
Hello, Maggie.
Mr.
Frost.
Will this be business or pleasure.
If you're looking for Lemmy, he's not here.
I know that, he's dead.
Who says? I did, but you knew that didn't you? No, I didn't.
When Lemmy died he bequeathed me a murder to investigate.
So, can we come in and have a look round.
Thank you.
Searching me house.
You've no right.
Don't you want to know what happened to him? No.
Good, I'll tell you.
He's been dead for three months.
Someone hit him on the head.
Oh dear.
See you're bearing up well to the recent news of your tragic loss.
Lemmy was a vicious sod.
Alive or dead.
I'm glad.
In fact I'm over the moon.
Oh yeah? So when did you see him last? Three months ago.
We had a barney and he walked out.
Don't you find that strange.
That he just left his house, Ieft his Toyota, Ieft his change of underwear.
What was this row about, theological matters was it? Bonking matters.
He was humping another woman.
Jack.
Yes.
Just found these.
In the back bedroom.
Well don't look at me, they'll be Lemmy's.
Well, more of his ill gotten gains eh? Anything else? Yeah, his checkbook.
In the dressing table.
Lemmy left you three months ago.
Did he leave you plent for housekeeping? No, he didn't give a sod about me.
Oh, come on Maggie, you know that's not true.
He cared about you.
Course he did.
Even when he was dead he went on signing checks for you.
Have you seen this.
It's his check book.
We talked to the bank.
Lemmy died three months ago, yet he signed one of these last week.
Okay.
I did his signature.
I was alone and I was broke.
The jury's not going to convict me on that, are they? Now come on, Maggie.
You wouldn't have done that if he'd still been alive.
Because he'd have given you a bloody good hiding! Do you know what I reckon? I reckon that you and one of your boyfriends hit him on the head with something heavy.
You gotta be joking.
Give us a fag.
I'll tell you the truth.
Lemmy went out to do a job that day.
One of his usual house calls, was it? When he didn't come back, I thought he'd been nicked, it happened so often.
Then he didn't come back.
And he didn't come back again.
Well, you don't look a gift horse in the mouth, do you? After a bit I started doing his checks.
Didn't you think he might be dead? I hoped so.
Why didn't you call the police? Because if I had, his real wife might have got his house and his cash flow.
I'm his commonlaw.
Give us me bag.
His credit card statement.
Lemmy never let that card out of his sight.
If he'd pegged out three months ago, how come his spends seven hundred quid at a Supertek discount warehouse a fortnight ago? You're detectives, you work it out.
'Cos I reckon whoever killed him might have taken his wallet as well, don't you? Look at that, there Love.
Gas off, water off, the only thing that's missing is sod off.
You know, this used to be a nice street once, before they started knocking it to pieces.
Anyway, that's where Sydney Snell used to live, there, number 44.
I came here about seven years ago to arrest him.
I remember, his mother answered the door.
Sydney was in the kitchen, he got a tea towel around his shoulders.
She'd been cutting his hair.
Locks all over the floor.
When I told him the charges his mother just said 'oh dear, Sydney, I thought you'd always been a good boy'.
She clobbered him beside the earhole.
Outside the neighbors were gathering.
Shouting abuse and throwing things at the car when we left.
Sydney didn't understand what was going on.
He didn't think he'd done anything wrong.
He loved kids, he said.
He just wanted to help them.
He got four years.
He was out in three.
What was that? There's someone in there.
Come on, come on! Open up! Who is it? It's the Avon Lady.
Come on Sydney, I want a word with you.
I thought it was you, Mr.
Frost.
Hoped to never see you again.
Yeah, I bet you did.
Well, come on.
Where's your mother? Me mother died.
She was in hospital for weeks.
They only told me when she was dying.
She went before I got there.
I'm very sorry to hear that, Sydney.
I'd still like to come in and have a talk with you.
Come in.
No thank you.
I expect you'll say what this is about.
Well, we were just passing and I thought I know where to get a nice cup of tea and a fancy cake.
When did your mother die, Mr.
Snell? Two weeks ago.
So you've been in Denton two weeks? Are you staying here? I can't, can I? They're pulling this down.
Mother was the last tenant.
She told them she'd never go while she was still alive.
So when she died, before the funeral, they told me, they were going to knock our house down.
Tomorrow, everything gets cut off.
I'm going back, to Newcastle.
Mr.
Snell, about the time you came to Denton we started getting complaints of children being interfered with in their cots.
I never hurt children.
That was ages ago.
I was caught, and punished.
I learned my lesson.
They don't like child molesters in prison.
I know.
I'm not too keen on them either.
I got beaten up.
Where were you the night before last, Mr.
Snell? Here.
I never go out.
I see.
What do you do to amuse yourself then, Sydney? I read the Bible.
I've taken my punishment, and turned to the Lord.
And does the Lord know what else you've got in your drawer, Sydney? It's quite innocent.
Yes, but you're not are you, eh? What's all this? I think we should discuss this somewhere else.
I haven't done anything.
You're not going to start blaming me all over again? I think you've been a very naughty boy, again.
No, I haven't done anything bad.
I learned my lesson.
My mother just died.
Children are my friends.
Right, come and sit down, opposite me Sydney.
Come on, sit there.
I want you to promise me that you'll never be a bad boy again.
Go on I want you to swear it, on the Bible.
Go on.
I swear on the Bible I will never be a bad boy again, and I'll return to Newcastle first thing tomorrow.
Sir? It's all right, and, And? You'll never come back to Denton again.
I'll never, ever, come back to Denton again.
Amen.
Amen.
Good boy.
I cannot believe that, sir.
Mmm? He practically confessed.
The evidence was lying there.
We should have taken him in.
Oh, come on Sergeant.
You've seen him.
He's inadequate, he's pathetic.
Look at him, he's a forty year old virgin.
His mother's just died.
I mean look around you his world has collapsed.
Now I nicked him once before and he was sent to prison and used as a punchbag.
Now that shouldn't happen again.
Right.
I'm putting it on record I completely disagree with what you just did.
You have let loose a child abuser who is incapable of controlling himself and will probably offend again.
My case was almost complete.
All that goes in my report.
All right, we'll get in touch with Newcastle CID.
That way we'll keep tabs on him.
It is not enough.
That man is a child abuser and you heard him admit it.
Night fellas.
Thanks again.
No!!!! No!!!! Help me! Help me! Police! Jack, you're jacket's bleeping.
Hmmm? I'll get it.
Alpha Bravo two four to Control, come in.
Nasty one, Jack.
Two kids dead and a mother gone missing.
Sergeant Toolan's in there sir, and Sergeant Maude.
All right.
Make yourself useful, chat to the neighbors.
It'll save you a job in the morning.
Yes, guv.
Well? It's a tragic mess, Jack.
Two kids dead, and the mother's done a runner.
Oh, my god.
What was her name, the mother? Nancy Grover.
Age 21.
Nobody saw her leave, but we think she's wearing a red coat.
We are looking for her now.
Where's the father? He's in there.
The medic's given him a sedative, said he needs to go to hospital.
The fella's in deep shock.
I'll have a word with him.
Well, you can try Jack.
But with what he's been given, he'll soon be out cold.
Dr.
McKenzie's on his way.
All right, In that case I'd better take a look at the kids then, hadn't I? Dennis, age 3.
Linda age 1 1 months.
We think that's the pillow used to smother them.
Dear, oh dear, oh dear.
Alright, alright.
No clues as to where the mother might be, I suppose? No not really Jack, no.
Horrible.
Has he had a cup of tea? Good.
She did it.
Hmm? She killed my kids.
Who's that Mr.
Grover? Your wife? Sir.
He's heavily sedated, sir.
Said he got home around two to find his wife gone and his kids dead.
Sir? All right, stay with him, will you? There's someone outside who might be able to help.
Who's that? The workmate who drove him home.
The old bloke across the road saw his van stop outside.
So we gave him a call.
What's going on? Who are you? Phil Collard.
Mark's mate.
I drove him home tonight.
Or rather, two this morning.
We work together, carpetfitters.
I see, well.
Mark? Phil? My babies.
They're dead, Phil.
Mr.
Collard.
I'd like to talk to you for a minute.
Inside.
Please.
Thank you.
Who's that, Sergeant? It's the father, Doctor Mackenzie.
He's in deep shock.
The babies are in the small bedroom.
Could you check for any injections? Injections? I understood it was a possible asphyxiation.
Yeah, but if you find any pinpricks from a hypodermic.
I'll look out for anything unusual.
All right.
You said that you were working tonight.
It's a funny time to be fitting carpet, isn't it? Got a rush job.
A nice little payer.
We were down the pub this evening, as per usual, when Mark got a call on his mobile.
Mr.
Maltby, from Bonley's Department Store.
Hold on a second.
Who was that again? Mr.
Maltby, from Bonley's Department Store.
Could we do a rush job for them.
Two hundred a piece.
We jumped at it.
I came with the van around eight to pick him up.
Nancy had the hump, sat there complaining and sulking.
Kids screaming and shouting.
Why did she have the hump? The usual thing.
She didn't like being left on her own.
We got to Bonley's about eight thirty.
Fitted the grippers and underlay.
Carpet turned up about then.
So we, well worked like the clappers and got done around quarter to two.
I drove Mark back here, dropped him at the door then I went home to bed.
Had she ever threatened anything like this before? She often said she'd do herself in.
Any idea where she might have gone? I mean to relatives or friends? No, she didn't have friends.
Relatives? I haven't heard of any.
Now, Mr.
Collard just for the record, is there anyone at Bonley's that can confirm that you were there tonight? The night security guard.
I mean, what are you suggesting then! No, no, no.
It's just that we've got to check everyone out.
The innocent and the guilty.
Okay, that'll be fine.
If you'd like to just wait here for a minute would you? Collier.
Go in there now would you please and check out Mr.
Collard's story about Bonley's Department Store.
Mr.
Collard.
Got anything Sergeant? Yeah, we've got a neighbor here sir who saw something.
Right.
Well, sir, can you tell me what you saw? I don't sleep you see.
Happens when you get older.
I heard someone running down the street round about one thirty, that's what woke me up.
I couldn't get back to sleep, so I took the dog out.
Mark and his mate, got home round about two.
Right, thank you very much.
Very helpful, thank you.
Look after him will you Sergeant? Come this way, sir.
Right, Jack Not now, Sandy, please.
This bad.
You owe me, right? We're looking for the kids' mother, okay? Has she killed them? Like something suddenly snapped? Oh, come on Sandy You're not sure, now don't say you're baffled.
I'm not baffled, and I'm never sure.
This is going to be a big story, Jack.
Yeah, well you know us at Denton, we never seek publicity.
See you, Jack.
Mr.
Mullett.
Mr.
Mullett sir.
Could we have a statement, please? All I can say at the present time, is that we have an excellent team.
My people will be doing everything in their power.
Morning Bill.
Morning Jack.
He wants to see you.
Do you mean Mullett? I always mean Mullett.
Morning, sir.
I saw you had your photograph taken last night.
Sit down.
No it's all right You heard, I said sit down! Now first you better tell me who you think is responsible for the death of those kids? Well at this stage we think it's the mother.
Did you know the little boy had been given an injection in his upper arm? What? I'm told it happened after death.
Do you see what that means? Sir? What that means is that whoever did it, almost certainly murdered him.
And the other child.
Now I've been given a report by DS Maude which I propose to take very seriously.
Sydney Snell.
Yes, Sydney Snell.
The habitual child molester.
She was going to arrest him.
You let him loose to return to Newcastle.
Look, I don't think that Sydney Snell had anything to do with this.
No, look at the links.
Snell breaks into people's houses and injects young children out of some misguided idea of helping them.
The Grover house was broken into and the little boy injected.
Sydney is pathological, he's inadequate, but he is not a killer.
How do you know that? Supposing something went wrong.
Supposing one of the children woke and made a noise and he had to put a pillow over their face.
Supposing the mother came in and he had to murder her too.
All right where's the body? I don't know, but the point is you're an experienced policeman and you let Snell go and I want to know why! 'Cos I felt bloody sorry for him.
I'd nicked him once before.
He didn't think he'd done anything wrong.
They promised him psychiatric help.
Instead they sent him to jail where he was beaten up.
Then he should have learnt his lesson, shouldn't he? And so should you.
But instead of detaining him you sent him packing.
Now what have you got to say for yourself.
Not a lot.
You made a stupid, unprofessional decision.
You know what could happen now, don't you? If a man you've failed to arrest proves to have murdered two children, that amounts to neglect of duty.
Chief Constable will set up an inquiry.
And this time I have no intention of protecting you.
I wouldn't expect you to, sir.
I ought to suspend you straight away but you know this Snell character.
That's going to be useful.
So I'm bringing in DCI Peters to run this case.
From now on you will take your instructions directly from him.
Sir.
I'm sorry sir, I had to do it to safeguard my position.
The evidence was clear.
I understand, Sergeant.
So long as you don't think it's personal? No, I didn't, I thought it was a very good career move.
Yeah well.
Yes, well.
Now we've got Inspector Peters over both of us and he's a very tidy man and he'll want a very tidy solution.
Yes, well.
Has anything come up? Not much.
Two neighbors who thought they heard rowing from the bungalow sometime earlier on.
What, the Grovers? No, it couldn't have been, sir.
I checked out Mark Grover at Bonley's Department Store.
According to the Night Security Guard, the two carpetfitters were there from half past eight 'till almost two this morning.
They had no way of getting out because the main security door was locked.
Can anyone confirm that? Yeah, I spoke to the man who hired him.
A Mr.
Maltby from Bonley's Store.
He said he rang about midnight to check progress and spoke to Mark Grover while he was there.
Yes, well, all right Sergeant.
Come on then.
What else are in Mr.
Peter's plans? Full scale search for the mother.
And we're looking for Sydney Snell.
I'm just on my way to the mortuary to speak to the Pathologist.
All right.
I think I'll come with you.
Straight forward.
Children were asphyxiated with a pillow while they were sleeping.
They wouldn't have cried out, wouldn't have heard anything.
The injection mark on the boy's arm.
What do you make of that? Nothing I can make sense of.
It occurred to me that he might have been sedated.
But there's no sign of that.
Could it have been water? It could.
You'll want time of death.
At the moment somewhere between 1 1 pm and midnight.
I could be more precise if you can find out what time the children had their last meal.
The father must know when they were fed.
He's still in hospital under sedation.
He's in deep shock.
Doctor won't let us question him.
And you haven't found the mother? No.
If I may say so, I do think you should try and be quick about it.
Why say that? Because quite often the mother kills herself soon afterwards.
That's if she's the killer of the children, we don't know that.
We do have another suspect.
Morning.
Morning, Mel.
Jack.
DCI Peters is having a team briefing on the Grover case.
He wants you both there in fifteen minutes.
Oh dear.
Oh, and Jack.
You got them back, Mr.
Frost.
Well done.
I knew you would.
Ah, Mrs.
Hinkley.
Yes, all right, Sergeant, yes.
Your medals.
Ah.
That's it.
Thank you.
Now then, do you see anything that's yours.
'Course I do.
It's his DFM.
I never thought I'd see it again.
Can I take it now? I'm afraid not, Mrs.
Hinkley.
It's evidence, you see, we've got to hang onto it for a bit.
Oh, and the photos.
What a relief.
I'd hate to think of these falling into the wrong hands.
Are these you Mrs.
Hinkley.
My husband did all his own developing.
You were pretty well developed yourself, by the looks of things.
(Knock on the door) Yeah.
Jack.
The briefing's starting.
Jack? Oh, yes.
You better take those home, Mrs.
Hinkley.
If you leave them here we'll all get too excited.
I wasn't always old, you see.
Nancy Grover.
Twenty one.
The missing mother.
Address, 25 Creswell Street.
Nancy has a history of depression.
She's been under treatment.
Social Services were involved and on several occasions she's threatened to take her own life.
We think she's wearing a red coat.
We started without you, Inspector.
Yes, I see.
Sorry.
We also want to find this man.
Sydney Snell.
Consider him a suspect as well as the mother.
We need to find them both.
Right, any questions? Okay, get to it.
Yeah, yeah.
Police officers arriving now.
We should be on the move soon.
Where is she? Just inside the tunnel there, see? Any idea how long it'll take? No, I'm afraid not.
It's playing hell with the timetable.
We've got trains backed up all the way down the line.
Really? That's tough.
Mr.
Grover? Remember me? How are you today? Not too well, are we? She killed my babies.
Mr.
Grover, there is something I have to tell you.
We've found Nancy and I'm afraid she's dead.
She killed herself.
She said she would.
She killed my babies.
I think you'd better go.
Mr.
Grover, Iast night you said someone entered your house.
Now did you see anyone inside? Leave me alone.
Please, just go.
Please, please.
Any idea who she is? It's just someone that we've been looking for.
That the train that hit her? No, no.
The track workers saw her on the line ahead and stopped the train.
What time was the last through train last night? Well, there was the 12.
05 then the 12.
40 then that's it until this morning.
Can you examine your trains? They're all over the place, but we'll try.
Now can you move her and let us get back to a normal service.
Could she have been walking through the tunnel.
I'd say it was more likely she jumped from the parapet Ianded on the roof of a train and got carried in.
Thank you.
Well, that's it then.
Well, she killed her kids, walked up there and jumped.
Just a minute.
Now we've got witnesses stating they heard a row around midnight.
She must have been pretty light of bloody foot to get here to be hit by the 1205 or the 1240 come to that.
Quite so, Inspector.
What's more, this death isn't a suicide.
She was murdered.
Come again? If she'd gone under the wheels, we might not have seen it until the full post mortem.
But there are stab wounds to her arms.
I presume where she tried to defend herself.
Then again she'd been stabbed in the chest.
Sharp knife.
Pointed.
It's possible that she was murdered elsewhere.
Probably around midnight.
Then brought here.
Her other injuries come from the train.
So if it's murder.
That brings us back to Sydney Snell again, doesn't it.
Sydney Snell is not a frenzied killer.
If he'd done it he wouldn't try to hide the crime by bringing the body here, he'd just panic and run away.
Look, why don't we go back to Cresswell Street and review the evidence? I mean if he'd done it, why isn't the house full of blood stains? I don't know.
Snell was diagnosed psychotic.
Nancy Grover was supposed to be suicidal.
Look Jack, we both know why you don't want it to be Snell.
Ah, there you are Hammond.
I presume before they put all this bloody polythene stuff down all the carpets were checked for blood stains? Yes, of course, sir.
They're clean.
All right.
So that means if anyone was stabbed to death in any of these rooms, you would have found evidence.
Yes, sir.
There you are, Jim.
Remember those old questions they taught us.
Where abouts, and what with? Could have happened outside.
Or somewhere else.
Yes, but where's the evidence? Eh? The evidence? You know the courts are in love with that stuff.
We'll find it.
Speaking of evidence.
We've found something quite interesting in the kitchen.
It's the back door, sir.
Now the, apparently the neighbors kids broke the panel.
And I'd say that this plywood here has been nailed on fairly recently.
But as you can see it's been forced.
Now probably the intruder shoved his hand through and turned the key.
It could have been one of the family.
Oh Jack.
Well.
It shouldn't be too hard to find out.
You see whoever did it grazed his arm.
And we have blood stains, and we're getting DNA which can be matched to a suspect.
If you should happen to have one.
We have.
Sydney Snell.
I'm bringing him in.
That's three you owe me.
Never mind.
It's expenses.
Yeah.
I want to check a rumor with you, Jack.
Nancy Grover did not jump in front of that train, she was pushed.
You know better than to listen to rumors Sandy.
I wouldn't be a news hound if I didn't.
Is it true? This isn't a mother in crisis after all.
It's a threefold murder and the police have a prime suspect.
Oh, do they? Do they really, Sandy, go on.
There's another rumor going about.
About you.
I told you not to listen to rumors.
This one says you cocked it up.
You had the prime suspect and you let him go again.
Who told you that? Is it true? Jack, this time I'm not asking you because I want to print it.
Someone will.
They could do you a lot of damage.
You'd better understand that.
I'm not leaning on you.
I'm talking as a friend.
I'm a good policeman, Sandy.
Not one of the new kind.
I'm the old fashioned kind.
With feelings and gut instincts.
All right, so I don't play by the rule book and I cut corners.
But my judgment is good.
We know that, but is it this time? The truth is, Sandy, yesterday I made a stupid decision.
Because I felt sorry for someone at the time.
Well, I made it and I've got to live with it.
None of us go on forever.
Maybe I'm losing it.
My job's changing too, Jack.
Getting dirtier all the time.
Everybody's fair game these days.
Doesn't matter what you did once, or if you were the local hero.
It's what you do now that counts.
Meaning what? Meaning you better get your finger out, because your reputation isn't going to protect you.
Call me if you need me.
I've got to go.
Yeah.
There you are.
I've been in every pub in town.
I thought you were coming over to see me tonight.
Ah, yes, well, you know how it is? You had enough of me then? No, of course not, Kitty.
You've been very good to me.
'Course I have.
What is it then.
Well, I suppose you'll read about it in the papers tomorrow.
I was the one that let the man go who they think murdered those kids.
Well you must have had your reasons.
Oh yeah, I did.
They were bad reasons.
I arrested this bloke about seven years ago.
Still have nightmares about it.
The neighbors screaming hatred, banging on the roof of the car.
I felt sorry for him and it clouded my judgment.
I know he didn't kill those kids, but I should never have let him go.
Look, Jack, you're right.
You always were.
It's just you're exhausted.
What you need's a holiday.
No, what would I do with a holiday? If you're determined to sit there and be sorry for yourself, I'm off.
Yeah, well.
All right, Kitty.
I think I'd just better get this sorted, you know.
Well, you see you do then.
Because I don't hang around forever.
Just you remember that.
Any sign of Snell, Sergeant? No, sir, seems to have vanished.
Well, he couldn't have gone back to his old home, they're pulling those houses down today.
Come on, Sydney.
Morning George.
Mr.
Frost! Where did they find Sydney? DS Maude brought him in.
You might say he was at home.
You know I didn't do it.
Do I? Do I? How did you cut your hand? On the Bible? Now listen, you promised me Jack, stay away from this.
He's my prisoner.
Don't you want me in on the interview? No, I don't.
Sit down please.
Interview with Mr.
Snell.
Eleven-o-five am.
Those present, DCI Peters, DS Maude.
I am detaining you in connection with the deaths of Nancy, Dennis and Linda Grover.
You do not have to say anything but it may harm your defense if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court.
Anything you do say may be given in evidence.
Do you understand? Yes, I do, Mr.
Peters.
Now Mr.
Snell, your left hand is bandaged.
Can you tell us how you incurred that injury? Was it when you went to the Grover house the night of the murder? I don't know.
You've given a blood sample.
It matches blood stains found on the back door.
There were plywood fibres in the wound.
You illegally entered the Grover house two nights ago, didn't you? I didn't want to hurt anyone.
I love children.
I could never harm them.
I only want to make them better.
Only sometimes things go wrong, don't they? Sydney? You've always tried to be a good boy, haven't you? Take a look at that.
Yes, what is it? Snell's confession.
Confession? Confession to what? Burglary.
Child abuse.
The murder of Mrs.
Grover and her two children.
It all happened in a haze, he says.
He doesn't know what came over him.
Oh, bloody hell.
Don't you mean congratulations? No, I mean bloody hell.
I think I made a very foolish decision.
He promised me on the Bible.
It wasn't just foolish was it, Jack? It was fatal.
Two children who would be alive, are now dead because of your action.
The Chief Constable has already asked for my report.
I shall have to recommend an inquiry.
In the circumstances I ought to suspend you straight away, but, well, if you can settle this Hoxton case quickly, that'll be something to say in your favor.
Listen, stay away from Snell.
He's in custody, where he belongs.
He'll be sent for trail.
Yes, sir.
Jack, I truly regret this.
So do I.
Ah Jack.
Yes.
Do you remember someone tried to use Lemmy Hoxton's credit card at the Supertek Discount Warehouse? Yes.
Well, we've got an ident from one of the assistants.
It looks like it was his old friend Dougie Cooper.
Well, was it.
Well go and talk to him then, will you? DCI Peters won't like this.
Well we'd better not tell him then, eh? Oh Mr.
Frost.
Shut up Sydney at sit down! I wanna finish reading this.
What is it? You're confession.
All done of your own free will.
They said I'd go down for a very long time.
So it would be best if I was a good boy and cooperated with the police.
Yes, but good boys don't cooperate with the police by telling them porkies, do they? Look at this.
You say here you broke in about one thirty and committed murder.
But I know that Mrs.
Grover's body was on the railway about an hour earlier.
Maybe I got the time wrong.
Oh, maybe you got the time wrong.
All right then.
Come on.
Where did you kill her? Was it the children's bedroom.
Yes.
Yes.
Well you must have been bloody clever because you stabbed her eleven times and didn't leave a single blood stain.
All right then.
What did you kill her with, eh? They found a knife.
In my medical bag.
Sydney, you promised me you'd be a good boy.
You swore to me, that you'd never interfere with children again, but you were in that house.
Your blood is on the door.
You didn't keep your promise, did you? No, Mr.
Frost.
I didn't kill them.
I couldn't.
Why did you sign this? Mr.
Peters said it would give me peace of mind.
Oh yeah.
And twenty five years of it.
With a bit of remission for good behavior.
Come on, what happened Sydney? Sometimes God talks to me, Mr.
Frost.
Oh yeah? What does he say? Go out and kill a couple of kids and their mother just to spite that silly old sod Frost, who should have had you banged up in the first place.
He told me to look after children while they were sleeping.
Maybe I could help.
But you can't can you? You don't help, you just inject them so you can get a thrill.
I don't hurt them.
I saw that lady in the park.
With her children.
And I followed them home.
After you came that day, I packed.
Then I remembered.
Those children and I went to the house.
You broke in and went to the kids' bedroom.
You can hear kids when they're sleeping.
It was so quiet.
I should have known something was wrong.
The boy had his arm on the cover.
I pricked him.
Just a little injection.
They usually stir or moan.
He didn't.
When I touched his face he didn't move.
I couldn't hear him breathing.
Neither of them was breathing.
They were dead.
I was in the room with two dead children.
Did the mother come in I didn't see the mother.
I didn't think anyone else was in the house.
I just panicked and I ran out into the street and I stayed out all night.
I'm innocent, Mr.
Frost.
You're not are you? You're a pervert who interferes with children.
What would your mum say now? I was a bad boy.
A very bad boy.
Why should I believe you now? I don't know.
Neither do I.
I was told you were off this case, sir.
Yes, yes, I am.
But I just thought that if I were to follow you around in the course of your enquiries, you might learn something.
Oh I see.
And am I looking for something in particular, sir? Well, it's always a good idea to visit the scene of the crime again in case anything has been missed.
For example, how could a murder have been committed in a room like this without leaving a single trace? Also, where is the weapon? You know, little things like that.
Questions we used to ask in the old days, it was called police work then.
Oh well, let's look in the kitchen again.
All right.
What's that? Mr.
Grover's toolbox, guv.
He uses it for his carpet fitting.
Oh yeah.
Everything's already been checked by forensic though, sir.
All the knives are clean.
Any of Mrs.
Grover's friends or relatives turned up yet? No, sir.
All right.
Well, that's about it, I suppose.
Finished? Nancy Grover.
She was a patient of yours.
Yeah, I read about it in the papers.
She was in here only last Tuesday.
Yeah, could you tell me what her problem was, I mean what she was suffering from? I know it's supposed to be confidential, but, I mean, after all your patient is dead and so are both her children.
It's just that I'm working on a very sensitive murder hunt.
I'll be just a few seconds really.
Well, she came in to discuss an abortion.
She was two months pregnant.
Well we couldn't agree to a termination because we're obliged to take into account a patient's mental state and she'd been suffering from depression recently.
Acute depression.
Would you that say she was suicidal? Listen, she was a young, inexperienced mother.
Excuse me, these are the pictures.
That's great thanks.
No relatives to help her, no gift for making friends.
Her husband was at work all day and went to the pub at night.
She was left trapped inside the house with two undisciplined children and another one on the way.
Well, no wonder she was depressed.
I'd be depressed.
As to whether she'd kill herself, well, who could say? I'm no expert.
Would you say that she was a danger to others? Like I said Inspector, it's not my field.
Thank you.
Thanks doctor.
Dougie Cooper.
You're a known associate of Lemmy Hoxton.
You did jobs with him pretending to be from the waterboard.
You used his credit card, two months after his death.
Now, would you like to tell us how you killed him? I didn't, Mr.
Toolan.
I didn't even know he was dead.
This is a bit out of your league, Dougie.
I mean this could be murder.
No, look.
Lemmy and I had this scam going.
We'd find some house, old folks, a cottage in the country.
We'd put on waterboard jackets.
I'd turn the water off on the outside.
Lemmy would knock and say there were problems with the mains supply.
After he'd worked on the taps for a bit, I'd turn the water on again.
Lemmy could say he'd fixed it.
Then he'd ask to check the upstairs as well.
Oh, and isn't it amazing what people keep in their bedroom drawers.
Look, Lemmy found this place at Alderney Cross.
Isolated cottage.
Two women living alone.
A hydrant just up the lane from the place.
I mean it was so sweet we thought we'd have a meal at a country pub first.
Oh, Salmon fish cakes, chips and peas, washed down with a fizzy drink? It was Sprite.
How did you know? We never took alcohol when we were working.
Oh, that's very commendable, Dougie.
Anyway after the meal I drove the van, parked it in a side lane.
Lemmy put on the waterboard jacket, went up the track to the house.
That's the last I saw of him.
He never come back.
I hung about for an hour or so.
Then I drove home.
I reckoned he'd either been nicked or struck gold at this place and done a runner.
So you decided to get even by using his credit card? Well you could put it like that, yes.
But you said you never saw him again, so how could you get his credit card unless you attacked him and killed him? Well, that's easy, isn't it? When he changed he left his coat in the van.
It's still hanging in my cupboard.
Mark? How are you? A lot better, aren't we? It's good to see you, Phil.
They've made an arrest, a nutter off the streets.
Oh, my god! Listen mate, come and stay with me and Alice for a bit, eh.
Tell him nurse.
It's nice to have good friends, isn't it Mr.
Grover? Sir, I was at that interview, I was there.
Nobody forced him to say anything.
All done by the book.
All I'm saying is that people do make false confessions don't they? What did you say to him, eh? Did you say, 'Sydney, come on.
Come and be a good boy? Is that what you said? What makes you assume he's telling you the truth and not us? He's lied to you before.
We've got him in the house, his blood stains are on the back door.
What are you saying, he just happened to break in in the middle of someone else's murder? No, what I'm saying is that you haven't got a motive, you haven't got a weapon, you haven't even got a time.
I mean you've got Nancy Grover on the railway track at about midnight and you've got Sydney Snell in the house at half past one.
Yeah, and all you've got is a hunch that Sydney's a nice boy who wouldn't do a thing like that.
Sorry sir, I mean just look at the evidence.
Sydney is an unstable personality.
You haven't even got another suspect.
No? What about the husband? Sir, I checked out Mark Grover in every way.
I went to the hospital, got his clothes for forensic.
They're clean.
Went through his alibi.
His witnesses are rock solid.
Did you know that Nancy Grover was after an abortion? I don't see what that's got to do with anything.
Well think about it.
Mark Grover loved kids.
Everybody said that.
They said all right, he's got a bit of a bad marriage, but he loved his children.
Go on, get your notebook out and let's go through it again.
Go on.
Three witnesses have him at Bonley's from eight 'till two.
We've got his mate, Phil Collard, Den Milton, the night security man and Mr.
Maltby, store manager of Bonley's.
He phoned the store, right? U-hu.
Well I got Collier to phone Bonley's last night.
Do you know what he got? An answering machine.
So? So, the stores phones are switched off at night.
How did Mr.
Maltby talk to Mark Grover? I don't know.
I suppose we should go an ask him.
Precisely.
Mr.
Maltby? Would you mind not entering this area.
It's still closed to the public.
This is very nice this, isn't it.
Very nice work.
Yes, well, you get what you pay for.
Yeah, well, not so in my business.
Can you tell me something.
Is this the carpet that Mark Grover fitted? Yes.
Why? Why, sir? No, it's very nice.
Very good.
Very expensive I should think.
Thirty pounds a meter.
Thirty pounds.
Really.
Anyway, you told my colleague that you phoned him here at around midnight.
Yes.
She's just there, ask her.
Yeah, well I wondered how you did that, sir.
Because you see the stores switchboard closes down at six and then it goes onto answerphone.
That's why I expect my workpeople to carry mobiles.
Ah, you called him on his mobile.
That's what I thought.
That means that actually he could be anywhere, 'cos a mobile is, well it's mobile.
He told me he was here and he was here when I arrived an hour later.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to do.
You work long hours, don't you, sir? I like to supervise people on jobs like this.
If you don't, there's no saying what standard of work you'll get.
Yes, I know.
I know the feeling.
So, some alibi, eh, Sergeant? Yeah, well it was also confirmed by the night security guard, Den Milton.
Oh, yeah, where was he? In his cubicle watching the TV monitor.
Oh.
Mr.
Maltby? Excuse me, sir.
Could you tell me, would this TV camera have been working the night they laid the carpet? No, it's not been connected up yet.
It's a new system.
What about that then? You're very quiet.
What's your problem? I was just wondering why we're chasing after a petty criminal like Dougie Cooper when we should be arresting Mark Grover.
Grover, yes I know.
Yes, it might be Mark Grover just look at the evidence.
Sydney Snell did break into the Grover's house and he did inject those children.
Lovely country.
Yes, ideal.
Especially if you didn't like Lemmy and you wanted to lose him.
Suppose they had a bust up, Dougie and Lemmy.
And Lemmy killed him.
In that case why would Dougie bother to move the body up to the old cottage.
Why wouldn't he just bury it round here, somewhere? Who did you say lives here? The Miss Flemings.
Two sisters.
Never reported a burglary though, we checked.
That's it.
The old school house.
Miss Fleming? I'm Caroline Fleming.
Police.
Sorry to disturb you.
We're doing a check up on doorstep con artists.
Oh, yes? And what are those? Well they're people who come to the door saying they're on official business.
Like you, you mean? We really are police, Miss Fleming.
Do phone Denton Police Station and check if you wish.
We'll wait here.
You look reliable.
You'd better come in.
We wondered if you'd ever had a visitor claiming to be from the waterboard? About a year ago, when we moved in.
He turned the water on for us.
Do you mean he really was from the waterboard? That's what you said wasn't it? Yeah, we meant about three months ago, Miss Fleming.
And this was the man.
He claims to be from the waterboard.
And while he's in the house he slips upstairs and robs the bedrooms.
Dreadful.
Yes.
I've never seen him.
He certainly hasn't been to the house.
What makes you think he might have? Well, he was on his way here, the day he died.
Died? Well, he was murdered.
How awful.
Could your sister have seen him? She may have done when I was out.
She's at work at the moment.
Oh, Julie, you're back.
We've met.
You're a nurse at the hospital.
Yes, and Caroline's sister.
They're police.
They want to know about a man they thought had come to the door.
Yes.
This is the man, Miss Fleming.
I've never seen him before.
About three months ago, Miss Fleming.
Just after lunchtime.
Could you have been in? Let's see.
No, I was on night duties all that month.
So if he came there'd have been no reply and he'd have left again.
I'm sorry, we're really not much help.
We're very quiet here, we don't expect visitors.
Except a few friends from the village.
How's Mr.
Grover? Oh, didn't you know.
He was discharged last night.
Oh, was he? Do you know where he went? Staying with friends.
Mr.
Collard came to collect him.
Oh, right.
Well thank you very much Miss Fleming and Miss Fleming.
Sorry to have disturbed you.
I tell you what, that Miss Julie could give me a blanket bath any day of the week.
Well, I don't think she'd be interested, sir.
Really, why not? I think she'd be rather more interested in me.
What now? Hm, oh, Mark Grover's been discharged.
Now I want to have a word with that security guard, what's his name? Den Milton.
That's What makes you think she'd be more interested in giving you a blanket bath, than me? Den? Could you come down? Why? I've only just come up.
Remember me, Mr.
Milton? You lot again? So, when am I supposed to get some sleep.
Yeah, well, I'm sorry, we won't keep you a minute.
It's just that I wanted to ask you a couple of questions about what happened at Bonley's store the other night.
Better take them in the lounge, Den.
It'll be quieter.
No.
It'll be warmer in the kitchen.
I was wanting to feed her in there.
Well, she can starve another minute can't she.
Through here.
Oh, thank you.
Kids drive you crazy, don't they? Yes.
Do you want a cupper? Oh, very nice, yes, thank you.
Now then, just a couple of points you can clear up for me, Mr.
Milton.
You said Mr.
Grover arrived at Bonley's about eight and didn't leave 'till half past one in the morning.
Correct.
All right.
And he couldn't have left without your knowledge? No.
The entrances are all electronically controlled.
I'd have had to work the switch to let him out.
I see.
So, anyway, they were on the top floor.
So where were you? In the security cubicle by the entrance watching the security cameras.
Ah, right.
Watching the security cameras, eh? Or else I was doing my rounds.
I have to check every floor at half hour intervals and click a key in the security locks.
They couldn't get out of the place while you were doing that? No, not without a master key.
And I had that.
Ah, right, right.
That's it Mr.
Milton.
Fine, thank you.
Listen, don't worry about the tea.
Thanks very much.
All right, come on Sergeant.
Is this the way out? No, not that way, that's Well, well, well, well, well.
I spy with my little eye something beginning with nicked.
Isn't this the same carpet they were putting down at Bonley's, Sergeant? It certainly looks like it, sir.
It was a remnant.
It would only have gone to waste.
I think you'd better sit down and tell me all about it, Mr.
Milton.
Oh, Den! Somebody must have taken the wrong measurements.
There was a big chunk left over.
And you thought you'd take it? Well, fifty, fifty.
Fifty, fifty? All right, how did it get here? Who put it down? They did.
They did.
So Grover and Collard did leave the building that night.
Not for long though.
A couple of hours.
You've been telling us porkies, Mr.
Milton.
If Bonley's knew, I'd be for the high jump.
For the high jump! I'm investigating a murder here, and you've made false statements to the police.
Now I want to know what happened? Those two came in the store about eight and worked like the clappers.
I went up around eleven.
They were almost done.
They had the piece left over.
We made a deal.
They'd do my lounge, and hang onto the rest.
So you did let them out of the store.
What time was that? About eleven.
They came back by around one to finish off.
They tidied up and left just before two.
All right, come on, Sergeant! What are we doing here, sir? Well Another one of your hunches? You just keep your eyes open and follow me.
What am I looking for? You're looking for a nice new piece of carpet that came out of Bonley's Department Store.
Now it wasn't at Grovers, so where is it? Are you sure this is safe, sir? Yeah, course it is.
(Sound of train) Don't you ever, ever do that to me again! What have you got? I've got a nice new piece of carpet.
There, it was wasted on the floor in there, wasn't it? Right, nip back to the car, get hold of Collier and tell him to come and collect it.
I want this examined by forensic.
Every mark and every single stain.
What made you think it would be in there? My nose, my nose.
I worked it out.
They had to carry the body in something didn't they? So when they dropped her onto the roof of the train they threw the carpet on afterwards hoping it would be carried miles away from here, but fortunately for us, it dropped off in the tunnel.
Well, I suppose we'd better go and have a talk with Mark Grover.
Look, if you're press would you kindly piss off! No, we're from the police, Mr.
Collard.
Do you remember? I want to speak to Mr.
Grover.
Can't you leave the poor sod alone.
He's completely shattered.
He was crazy about those kids.
We've got one or two things down the station that need to be identified if we're going to convict the killer and I'm sure that he would want that.
I'm sorry I can't help you.
He's gone for a walk.
Mr.
Grover? I never want to come here again.
Stand there.
Do you know what this is, Mark? No.
Oh, I think you do.
This is your part of the carpet that was acquired from Bonley's Department Store.
And do you see those marks? They're blood stains.
They're the same group as your dead wife, Nancy.
I've got to go! All right, stop him! Mr.
Grover, you have been cautioned and you've heard your rights.
Now you know you don't have to say anything.
No.
No.
But for the sake of conversation, I'll tell you how I think it is, shall I? On the night in question, you had a row with your wife.
She was very depressed.
You got fed up with her and the kids.
Not the kids.
Oh yes, so you lost your temper, you picked up your carpet knife and you stabbed her with it.
The kids were screaming so you've got to shut them up too.
No! I've never hurt my kids.
Now you've got blood all over your nice new carpet so you've got to get rid of it, so you chucked it on the top of a train at the railway tunnel, where you dumped Nancy's body onto the tracks to make it look like suicide! No, it wasn't like that! Wasn't it? What was it like then? Come on, you tell me.
We'd been rowing.
That's what our life was.
It was one endless row.
She couldn't cope.
The kids got her down, she didn't have any friends.
I was never there.
Said I was never there because she wanted money to go out and spend and nobody earns that sitting around at home all day.
No.
Very true, Mr.
Grover.
Well that night, we got the rush job at Bonley's, and it all started again.
And then she said, if you go out and leave me alone again, I'll kill myself.
Did you know she was pregnant? Yeah, she told me.
She said she wanted an abortion.
And you didn't want that, did you? I said she couldn't kill a child of mine.
You and Phil were laying the carpet in the lounge.
Phil went to make tea.
And then Nancy came in and she was laughing at me.
Was she laughing at you, was she? And then she said, there's no need to worry about the kids any more, Mark.
They won't be a trouble now.
And then I went into their bedroom.
And there they were.
She'd smothered them with a pillow.
So I went back into the lounge and she was laughing at me.
And I had the carpet knife in my hand and I The wife killed the children, so he killed the wife? Yes, that's it, sir.
And you've got a confession? Well, I'm hoping to get two.
It was Collard, the workmate, who figured out how to conceal the crime.
He wrapped the body in the carpet, then they dumped the body onto the rail track to make it look like suicide.
And it was Collard who found Grover some clean clothes and burnt the others.
Why would he put himself at risk like that? Oh, I don't know.
They were at school together, they were best mates.
Tragic case.
Do you know, I can't help feeling sorry for him.
I know just how you feel, sir.
By the way, Jack.
I think I owe you something.
Oh? What's that, sir? An apology? No.
A holiday.
Ah.
Ah, sir? Yes.
Have you got a minute? Yes, I've got several, Sergeant.
What is it? Well there's been something worrying me about this Hoxton case.
So I thought it'd be worth checking up on past tenants who used to live at the old farm cottages.
Take a look at that.
Yeah, well? One of those sisters, Miss J.
Fleming.
Sorry to bother you again, Miss Fleming, it's just that we've got one or two loose ends that we need to tie up.
You didn't tell us you used to live at Woodside Farm Cottages.
No I didn't.
Why should I? Well, do you remember the man who never called? Well that's where we found his body.
It was in a coal bunker next door to the cottage where you used to live.
I don't see how we were supposed to know that.
Look, I'm sorry, I can't help you.
We'd still like to come in anyway.
We have a witness that said Mr.
Hoxton was on his way to this cottage the day that he died.
Now we haven't been able to trace Mr.
Hoxton to anywhere else so with your permission I'd like to have a little look around.
Inspector, we told you that man never came here.
Are you all right, Miss Fleming, you're shaking? Can I get you something? Yes, another brandy.
You have no right to be up here! Go back downstairs at once! Is this the drawer he took the jewelry from? Don't be ridiculous, it's all there, isn't it? Ah, what's this? Are these your passports? Put them back! Put them back! Okay, calm down, will you.
That's enough, Julie! I apologize for my sister.
You're not sisters, are you? No.
These are passport's.
A Miss J.
Fleming and a Miss C.
R.
Adams.
We live together.
But it suits us to say we're sisters rather than lovers.
They're good people in this village, but they're not overly liberal.
We came here for a quiet life, so we play things on their terms.
Did Lemmy Hoxton threaten to blackmail you? He just came here, robbed us and left.
What, he robbed you and you did nothing about it? We didn't want anyone to know what was taken.
You told me nothing was taken.
That it's all here.
All this jewelry.
Lemmy would have never gone from here Ieaving all this stuff.
He didn't leave here, did he? He never walked back down that lane.
Caroline's very upset.
She doesn't know what she's saying.
We're going to have to explain.
It was my fault.
I never should have let him in.
When I was tidying up in the kitchen, he slipped upstairs.
Julie was sleeping in the small bedroom because it was cooler.
She heard him go into the bathroom and then into the bedroom.
She went in and there he was Iooking in the drawer.
He'd found our personal possessions.
Photographs, passports.
I was in my nightdress.
I told him to put everything back.
There were some magazines too.
He had this dirty grin on his face.
He said I know your sort.
What you need is the real thing.
He went for me.
I struggled.
But he was very strong.
He tore at my nightdress and forced me onto the bed.
He was going to rape me.
I screamed.
(Scream) I could hear Julie screaming.
(Scream) I ran upstairs and into the bedroom.
And Julie was lying on the bed.
I reached for the nearest heavy object and smashed it down on his head.
I killed him.
Caroline suddenly appeared.
I was still struggling.
She was trying to pull him off me.
She pulled at his shirt and, he rolled off me for a moment and that's when I grabbed the lamp and I hit him with it.
He didn't yell, he just groaned.
There was blood everywhere.
I killed him.
You should have told the police.
Your friend was being attacked.
He tried to rape her.
She was in fear of her life.
It was mutual self defense.
This may be hard for you to understand Inspector, but two years ago, I fell in love for the first time ever, with Julie.
When I moved in with her I left behind a husband, and two children.
I changed my name.
I changed my life.
I knew that if we reported this attack, all of that would have to come out.
So the longer the body lay undiscovered, the more you put it to the back of your mind.
There isn't a day goes by when I don't feel guilty about what happened.
Julie took charge of disposing the body.
After I killed him I was like a zombie.
I just did what she said.
What will happen to us now, Inspector? Well, you'll be charged.
So get yourself a good solicitor.
He should be able to arrange bail.
And if he's half decent you'll end up with a suspended sentence.
Guess what? Julie confessed.
So did Caroline.
Each protecting the other.
So, what do we do now? We let them talk to their solicitor, then we re-interview them and then they'll both volunteer the truth.
Sergeant? Sir? Tell the duty solicitor he can see his clients now, will you? By the way, sir, I thought you'd wanna know.
I've asked to go back to Furnley Division.
Better career prospects.
So nothing came of that promotion then? Mr.
Mullett says he's tried all he can.
Yeah, I'm sure he did in his own way.
Well, I'm sorry, Sergeant.
Good of you to say so.
No, no, I mean it.
You're all right.
Was it something I did? Yes, the railway tunnel.
Oh.
No.
It wasn't anything you did.
Yeah, I know I'm a rotten bastard to work for.
Well, not quite what I was gonna say.
But I do really regret putting in that report about you.
I mean, I still think you were way out of line over Snell but, if you hadn't have gone with your instincts the wrong man would have gone to jail for murder.
The truth is Liz, it's nose.
Now you're a good policeman Policewoman, sir.
All right, you're a good policewoman.
Thank you.
But it's important to remember your nose.
Yes, sir.
I'll always remember your nose.
Right.
Thank you.
So, what are you reading? I said you needed a holiday.
Yeah, holiday.
Yeah, that's where you get all the sunshine and some other poor bugger gets all the rain.
It hardly seems fair, does it? Mind you, I've heard that Benidorm's quite nice.
Benidorm?
Good afternoon.
Ah, I remember these places.
Used to have squatters in before they were evicted.
Got those bucket and seat privies down the bottom of the garden.
Bum freezers we used to call them.
All right, where are we going? Up here.
Anyway enough of the history lesson.
So, tell me what you've got, a body I understand.
Yeah, it's a dozer by the looks of it.
Yeah, wasn't stuck in the privies, was he? Yeah, bout as bad, in a coal bunker.
Round here, left.
All right, here? Oh my god.
Well, he's dead all right.
Any idea who it might have been? No, he's probably some tramp who crept in, got hypothermia.
Yes, he's been there months by the looks of it, at least.
Was he like this when he was found? No, no, he was covered up.
The corrugated iron was across the top.
Detective Sergeant Maude, Denton CID.
You took your time.
That should keep the beggar out.
I'm the GP.
This is Lily.
Lily Turner.
She's in a very distressed state.
I'd rather you didn't touch anything.
Who are you, by the way? I live next door.
George Armitage.
Her husband's inside.
Eighteen months.
Stealing radio's from cars.
He stole mine.
Hello, Lily.
Do you wanna tell me what happened? Did someone hurt your baby? Seems someone broke in and woke the child.
Lily was watching TV in the next room.
She tried to get in here but couldn't.
He wedged a chair under the door handle.
She hears him moving around, so she come running next door to me.
I come round and kicked the door open.
He'd gone.
How is the child.
Is there any sexual interference? No evidence of that, the child's untouched.
There's no evidence of anything.
Except I found this hypodermic on the floor.
Any idea what's in it? Not sure.
Clear water, as far as I can tell.
I'd like to see Mr.
Frost.
I think he's got my medals.
Jack.
Yeah.
Young lady to see you.
Sorry, me again.
I wondered if you'd got them back? Got them back? Mrs.
erm.
Hinkley.
Hinkley.
The medals, you remember.
A man came from the water and stole them.
Came from the water, did he? It's not so much the jewelry, it's my husband's medals.
He was shot down over Hamburg in the war.
Posthumous DFM.
Con artist came to your door claiming he was from the water board, is that right? Popped upstairs to flush the loo.
When he'd left, he'd taken everything.
Yes, listen love, if I get any news I'll be in touch right away, I promise.
I knew you would, Mr.
Frost.
Being a hero yourself.
All right, worst things happen at sea.
Come on, what is it? All right, let me guess.
Mr.
Mullett has not come through with your promotion to acting DI.
No, and he as good as promised.
Well, he couldn't swing it love, could he? Not now DCI Peters has come back.
All right, so what's he got you working on? It's a strange case.
We had another incident last night.
That's four in two weeks.
It's a child abuser.
Sexual interference? No, that's what makes it strange.
He breaks into houses where there are young children and he seems not to do anything.
Except last night we found a hypodermic syringe.
Do you know any mad doctors? Was there water in the hypodermic? Yeah.
He's not a doctor.
He just thinks he ought to be? Do you know who it is sir? Well I sniff something.
You won't find it on your database either.
You better see me in the morning.
It's time you met our Mr.
Trigg, he's in charge of card indexing.
Ah, there you are inspector.
Come in, have a look.
Right.
Nothing much to show I suppose, is there? That's where you're wrong.
What do you wanna know? Well, usual things.
Was he murdered? Very much so.
He died of a heavy blow to the head which smashed his skull.
I doubt that he died in the bunker.
Probably killed elsewhere and moved soon after.
Interested in food? Well, no, not at the moment.
Pity.
We managed to salvage his stomach contents.
All right.
Substantial meal.
He probably died within an hour of eating it.
Salmon fish cake, peas and chips.
Washed down with an artificially flavored carbonated liquid.
A what? A fizzy drink.
Nothing on the body to identify him.
He was wearing an ordinary waterboard jacket over ordinary clothes.
Pockets all empty.
He was a big man.
Not much chance of any fingerprints, I suppose? We might get something.
There are interesting scraps of flesh.
And DNA.
And we're working on it inspector.
I'll tell you what the funny thing is I think I know him.
Shop? Ah, morning Trigg, how are you, alright? Yes, hello Jack, I'm all right.
Listen, I want you to find.
Here, aren't these all supposed to be in alphabetical order? Wasn't that what it was invented for? Very funny.
Everything got mixed up when they moved, didn't it? Now they're saying these files are redundant.
That's what we'll all be soon.
Bloody computers.
You know, they've got no heart have they? No feeling for personal information.
No instinct.
No, I know what you mean.
Anyway, listen, I want your help.
Have you got anything on an unlikely lad called Sydney Snell? Slimey Sid? Used to call at houses saying he was from the Health Department and the kids needed to be vaccinated.
Yeah, that's the one.
Sydney was a troubled little boy of thirty, Sergeant.
Bright lad in his way.
His uncle used to be a GP and left him his medical bag.
And for some unknown reason, he used to like to stick needles into plump little bottoms, or fat little arms.
Yeah.
Did it eight or nine times before we caught him.
He served three years.
They promised him psychiatric help.
Why is he not computer listed? Because, this was all of, what, eight years ago? No, it was about seven.
Anyway, he left Denton.
Too many parents threatened to do him over if he ever came back.
So when he left prison he went up north somewhere.
So why tell me to look for him then? Because Sydney's only friend was his mother.
And I thought he might come back to live with mummy now that it's all been forgotten.
He'll be in here somewhere.
Under unusual interests.
Yes.
There you are Jack.
That's him.
Sydney Snell, 44 Parnell Terrace.
Well that's his mother's address anyway.
Well, do you want to go and have a look, Sergeant? Mmmm.
Sydney's always been a mummy's boy.
They reckon he's never had sex, so he's never grown up, you know in that way.
It's called sublimation, sir.
Yeah, well whatever.
He liked to play doctors and nurses.
Especially when there's a childhood epidemic about.
He thinks he's saving them.
Ah, Jack.
Ah, yes.
Body in the coal bunker.
Yeah.
We've come up with an ident.
You'll never believe it.
Go on.
Lemmy Hoxton.
Lemmy Hoxton.
'Cor.
I've nicked Lemmy Hoxton.
Vicious bastard.
We've all nicked Lemmy Hoxton.
Oh yeah.
What's his wife's name? Maggie.
Maggie.
What has she been doing then? I mean he's been dead for three months and she's not even reported him missing.
Well, she probably couldn't believe her luck.
You're right.
Anyway, she's got some questions to answer.
Come on, let's go.
Shall I chase up Sydney Snell myself then, sir? No, you can study that file for now.
Look at that.
Lemmy's Toyota.
Hello, Maggie.
Mr.
Frost.
Will this be business or pleasure.
If you're looking for Lemmy, he's not here.
I know that, he's dead.
Who says? I did, but you knew that didn't you? No, I didn't.
When Lemmy died he bequeathed me a murder to investigate.
So, can we come in and have a look round.
Thank you.
Searching me house.
You've no right.
Don't you want to know what happened to him? No.
Good, I'll tell you.
He's been dead for three months.
Someone hit him on the head.
Oh dear.
See you're bearing up well to the recent news of your tragic loss.
Lemmy was a vicious sod.
Alive or dead.
I'm glad.
In fact I'm over the moon.
Oh yeah? So when did you see him last? Three months ago.
We had a barney and he walked out.
Don't you find that strange.
That he just left his house, Ieft his Toyota, Ieft his change of underwear.
What was this row about, theological matters was it? Bonking matters.
He was humping another woman.
Jack.
Yes.
Just found these.
In the back bedroom.
Well don't look at me, they'll be Lemmy's.
Well, more of his ill gotten gains eh? Anything else? Yeah, his checkbook.
In the dressing table.
Lemmy left you three months ago.
Did he leave you plent for housekeeping? No, he didn't give a sod about me.
Oh, come on Maggie, you know that's not true.
He cared about you.
Course he did.
Even when he was dead he went on signing checks for you.
Have you seen this.
It's his check book.
We talked to the bank.
Lemmy died three months ago, yet he signed one of these last week.
Okay.
I did his signature.
I was alone and I was broke.
The jury's not going to convict me on that, are they? Now come on, Maggie.
You wouldn't have done that if he'd still been alive.
Because he'd have given you a bloody good hiding! Do you know what I reckon? I reckon that you and one of your boyfriends hit him on the head with something heavy.
You gotta be joking.
Give us a fag.
I'll tell you the truth.
Lemmy went out to do a job that day.
One of his usual house calls, was it? When he didn't come back, I thought he'd been nicked, it happened so often.
Then he didn't come back.
And he didn't come back again.
Well, you don't look a gift horse in the mouth, do you? After a bit I started doing his checks.
Didn't you think he might be dead? I hoped so.
Why didn't you call the police? Because if I had, his real wife might have got his house and his cash flow.
I'm his commonlaw.
Give us me bag.
His credit card statement.
Lemmy never let that card out of his sight.
If he'd pegged out three months ago, how come his spends seven hundred quid at a Supertek discount warehouse a fortnight ago? You're detectives, you work it out.
'Cos I reckon whoever killed him might have taken his wallet as well, don't you? Look at that, there Love.
Gas off, water off, the only thing that's missing is sod off.
You know, this used to be a nice street once, before they started knocking it to pieces.
Anyway, that's where Sydney Snell used to live, there, number 44.
I came here about seven years ago to arrest him.
I remember, his mother answered the door.
Sydney was in the kitchen, he got a tea towel around his shoulders.
She'd been cutting his hair.
Locks all over the floor.
When I told him the charges his mother just said 'oh dear, Sydney, I thought you'd always been a good boy'.
She clobbered him beside the earhole.
Outside the neighbors were gathering.
Shouting abuse and throwing things at the car when we left.
Sydney didn't understand what was going on.
He didn't think he'd done anything wrong.
He loved kids, he said.
He just wanted to help them.
He got four years.
He was out in three.
What was that? There's someone in there.
Come on, come on! Open up! Who is it? It's the Avon Lady.
Come on Sydney, I want a word with you.
I thought it was you, Mr.
Frost.
Hoped to never see you again.
Yeah, I bet you did.
Well, come on.
Where's your mother? Me mother died.
She was in hospital for weeks.
They only told me when she was dying.
She went before I got there.
I'm very sorry to hear that, Sydney.
I'd still like to come in and have a talk with you.
Come in.
No thank you.
I expect you'll say what this is about.
Well, we were just passing and I thought I know where to get a nice cup of tea and a fancy cake.
When did your mother die, Mr.
Snell? Two weeks ago.
So you've been in Denton two weeks? Are you staying here? I can't, can I? They're pulling this down.
Mother was the last tenant.
She told them she'd never go while she was still alive.
So when she died, before the funeral, they told me, they were going to knock our house down.
Tomorrow, everything gets cut off.
I'm going back, to Newcastle.
Mr.
Snell, about the time you came to Denton we started getting complaints of children being interfered with in their cots.
I never hurt children.
That was ages ago.
I was caught, and punished.
I learned my lesson.
They don't like child molesters in prison.
I know.
I'm not too keen on them either.
I got beaten up.
Where were you the night before last, Mr.
Snell? Here.
I never go out.
I see.
What do you do to amuse yourself then, Sydney? I read the Bible.
I've taken my punishment, and turned to the Lord.
And does the Lord know what else you've got in your drawer, Sydney? It's quite innocent.
Yes, but you're not are you, eh? What's all this? I think we should discuss this somewhere else.
I haven't done anything.
You're not going to start blaming me all over again? I think you've been a very naughty boy, again.
No, I haven't done anything bad.
I learned my lesson.
My mother just died.
Children are my friends.
Right, come and sit down, opposite me Sydney.
Come on, sit there.
I want you to promise me that you'll never be a bad boy again.
Go on I want you to swear it, on the Bible.
Go on.
I swear on the Bible I will never be a bad boy again, and I'll return to Newcastle first thing tomorrow.
Sir? It's all right, and, And? You'll never come back to Denton again.
I'll never, ever, come back to Denton again.
Amen.
Amen.
Good boy.
I cannot believe that, sir.
Mmm? He practically confessed.
The evidence was lying there.
We should have taken him in.
Oh, come on Sergeant.
You've seen him.
He's inadequate, he's pathetic.
Look at him, he's a forty year old virgin.
His mother's just died.
I mean look around you his world has collapsed.
Now I nicked him once before and he was sent to prison and used as a punchbag.
Now that shouldn't happen again.
Right.
I'm putting it on record I completely disagree with what you just did.
You have let loose a child abuser who is incapable of controlling himself and will probably offend again.
My case was almost complete.
All that goes in my report.
All right, we'll get in touch with Newcastle CID.
That way we'll keep tabs on him.
It is not enough.
That man is a child abuser and you heard him admit it.
Night fellas.
Thanks again.
No!!!! No!!!! Help me! Help me! Police! Jack, you're jacket's bleeping.
Hmmm? I'll get it.
Alpha Bravo two four to Control, come in.
Nasty one, Jack.
Two kids dead and a mother gone missing.
Sergeant Toolan's in there sir, and Sergeant Maude.
All right.
Make yourself useful, chat to the neighbors.
It'll save you a job in the morning.
Yes, guv.
Well? It's a tragic mess, Jack.
Two kids dead, and the mother's done a runner.
Oh, my god.
What was her name, the mother? Nancy Grover.
Age 21.
Nobody saw her leave, but we think she's wearing a red coat.
We are looking for her now.
Where's the father? He's in there.
The medic's given him a sedative, said he needs to go to hospital.
The fella's in deep shock.
I'll have a word with him.
Well, you can try Jack.
But with what he's been given, he'll soon be out cold.
Dr.
McKenzie's on his way.
All right, In that case I'd better take a look at the kids then, hadn't I? Dennis, age 3.
Linda age 1 1 months.
We think that's the pillow used to smother them.
Dear, oh dear, oh dear.
Alright, alright.
No clues as to where the mother might be, I suppose? No not really Jack, no.
Horrible.
Has he had a cup of tea? Good.
She did it.
Hmm? She killed my kids.
Who's that Mr.
Grover? Your wife? Sir.
He's heavily sedated, sir.
Said he got home around two to find his wife gone and his kids dead.
Sir? All right, stay with him, will you? There's someone outside who might be able to help.
Who's that? The workmate who drove him home.
The old bloke across the road saw his van stop outside.
So we gave him a call.
What's going on? Who are you? Phil Collard.
Mark's mate.
I drove him home tonight.
Or rather, two this morning.
We work together, carpetfitters.
I see, well.
Mark? Phil? My babies.
They're dead, Phil.
Mr.
Collard.
I'd like to talk to you for a minute.
Inside.
Please.
Thank you.
Who's that, Sergeant? It's the father, Doctor Mackenzie.
He's in deep shock.
The babies are in the small bedroom.
Could you check for any injections? Injections? I understood it was a possible asphyxiation.
Yeah, but if you find any pinpricks from a hypodermic.
I'll look out for anything unusual.
All right.
You said that you were working tonight.
It's a funny time to be fitting carpet, isn't it? Got a rush job.
A nice little payer.
We were down the pub this evening, as per usual, when Mark got a call on his mobile.
Mr.
Maltby, from Bonley's Department Store.
Hold on a second.
Who was that again? Mr.
Maltby, from Bonley's Department Store.
Could we do a rush job for them.
Two hundred a piece.
We jumped at it.
I came with the van around eight to pick him up.
Nancy had the hump, sat there complaining and sulking.
Kids screaming and shouting.
Why did she have the hump? The usual thing.
She didn't like being left on her own.
We got to Bonley's about eight thirty.
Fitted the grippers and underlay.
Carpet turned up about then.
So we, well worked like the clappers and got done around quarter to two.
I drove Mark back here, dropped him at the door then I went home to bed.
Had she ever threatened anything like this before? She often said she'd do herself in.
Any idea where she might have gone? I mean to relatives or friends? No, she didn't have friends.
Relatives? I haven't heard of any.
Now, Mr.
Collard just for the record, is there anyone at Bonley's that can confirm that you were there tonight? The night security guard.
I mean, what are you suggesting then! No, no, no.
It's just that we've got to check everyone out.
The innocent and the guilty.
Okay, that'll be fine.
If you'd like to just wait here for a minute would you? Collier.
Go in there now would you please and check out Mr.
Collard's story about Bonley's Department Store.
Mr.
Collard.
Got anything Sergeant? Yeah, we've got a neighbor here sir who saw something.
Right.
Well, sir, can you tell me what you saw? I don't sleep you see.
Happens when you get older.
I heard someone running down the street round about one thirty, that's what woke me up.
I couldn't get back to sleep, so I took the dog out.
Mark and his mate, got home round about two.
Right, thank you very much.
Very helpful, thank you.
Look after him will you Sergeant? Come this way, sir.
Right, Jack Not now, Sandy, please.
This bad.
You owe me, right? We're looking for the kids' mother, okay? Has she killed them? Like something suddenly snapped? Oh, come on Sandy You're not sure, now don't say you're baffled.
I'm not baffled, and I'm never sure.
This is going to be a big story, Jack.
Yeah, well you know us at Denton, we never seek publicity.
See you, Jack.
Mr.
Mullett.
Mr.
Mullett sir.
Could we have a statement, please? All I can say at the present time, is that we have an excellent team.
My people will be doing everything in their power.
Morning Bill.
Morning Jack.
He wants to see you.
Do you mean Mullett? I always mean Mullett.
Morning, sir.
I saw you had your photograph taken last night.
Sit down.
No it's all right You heard, I said sit down! Now first you better tell me who you think is responsible for the death of those kids? Well at this stage we think it's the mother.
Did you know the little boy had been given an injection in his upper arm? What? I'm told it happened after death.
Do you see what that means? Sir? What that means is that whoever did it, almost certainly murdered him.
And the other child.
Now I've been given a report by DS Maude which I propose to take very seriously.
Sydney Snell.
Yes, Sydney Snell.
The habitual child molester.
She was going to arrest him.
You let him loose to return to Newcastle.
Look, I don't think that Sydney Snell had anything to do with this.
No, look at the links.
Snell breaks into people's houses and injects young children out of some misguided idea of helping them.
The Grover house was broken into and the little boy injected.
Sydney is pathological, he's inadequate, but he is not a killer.
How do you know that? Supposing something went wrong.
Supposing one of the children woke and made a noise and he had to put a pillow over their face.
Supposing the mother came in and he had to murder her too.
All right where's the body? I don't know, but the point is you're an experienced policeman and you let Snell go and I want to know why! 'Cos I felt bloody sorry for him.
I'd nicked him once before.
He didn't think he'd done anything wrong.
They promised him psychiatric help.
Instead they sent him to jail where he was beaten up.
Then he should have learnt his lesson, shouldn't he? And so should you.
But instead of detaining him you sent him packing.
Now what have you got to say for yourself.
Not a lot.
You made a stupid, unprofessional decision.
You know what could happen now, don't you? If a man you've failed to arrest proves to have murdered two children, that amounts to neglect of duty.
Chief Constable will set up an inquiry.
And this time I have no intention of protecting you.
I wouldn't expect you to, sir.
I ought to suspend you straight away but you know this Snell character.
That's going to be useful.
So I'm bringing in DCI Peters to run this case.
From now on you will take your instructions directly from him.
Sir.
I'm sorry sir, I had to do it to safeguard my position.
The evidence was clear.
I understand, Sergeant.
So long as you don't think it's personal? No, I didn't, I thought it was a very good career move.
Yeah well.
Yes, well.
Now we've got Inspector Peters over both of us and he's a very tidy man and he'll want a very tidy solution.
Yes, well.
Has anything come up? Not much.
Two neighbors who thought they heard rowing from the bungalow sometime earlier on.
What, the Grovers? No, it couldn't have been, sir.
I checked out Mark Grover at Bonley's Department Store.
According to the Night Security Guard, the two carpetfitters were there from half past eight 'till almost two this morning.
They had no way of getting out because the main security door was locked.
Can anyone confirm that? Yeah, I spoke to the man who hired him.
A Mr.
Maltby from Bonley's Store.
He said he rang about midnight to check progress and spoke to Mark Grover while he was there.
Yes, well, all right Sergeant.
Come on then.
What else are in Mr.
Peter's plans? Full scale search for the mother.
And we're looking for Sydney Snell.
I'm just on my way to the mortuary to speak to the Pathologist.
All right.
I think I'll come with you.
Straight forward.
Children were asphyxiated with a pillow while they were sleeping.
They wouldn't have cried out, wouldn't have heard anything.
The injection mark on the boy's arm.
What do you make of that? Nothing I can make sense of.
It occurred to me that he might have been sedated.
But there's no sign of that.
Could it have been water? It could.
You'll want time of death.
At the moment somewhere between 1 1 pm and midnight.
I could be more precise if you can find out what time the children had their last meal.
The father must know when they were fed.
He's still in hospital under sedation.
He's in deep shock.
Doctor won't let us question him.
And you haven't found the mother? No.
If I may say so, I do think you should try and be quick about it.
Why say that? Because quite often the mother kills herself soon afterwards.
That's if she's the killer of the children, we don't know that.
We do have another suspect.
Morning.
Morning, Mel.
Jack.
DCI Peters is having a team briefing on the Grover case.
He wants you both there in fifteen minutes.
Oh dear.
Oh, and Jack.
You got them back, Mr.
Frost.
Well done.
I knew you would.
Ah, Mrs.
Hinkley.
Yes, all right, Sergeant, yes.
Your medals.
Ah.
That's it.
Thank you.
Now then, do you see anything that's yours.
'Course I do.
It's his DFM.
I never thought I'd see it again.
Can I take it now? I'm afraid not, Mrs.
Hinkley.
It's evidence, you see, we've got to hang onto it for a bit.
Oh, and the photos.
What a relief.
I'd hate to think of these falling into the wrong hands.
Are these you Mrs.
Hinkley.
My husband did all his own developing.
You were pretty well developed yourself, by the looks of things.
(Knock on the door) Yeah.
Jack.
The briefing's starting.
Jack? Oh, yes.
You better take those home, Mrs.
Hinkley.
If you leave them here we'll all get too excited.
I wasn't always old, you see.
Nancy Grover.
Twenty one.
The missing mother.
Address, 25 Creswell Street.
Nancy has a history of depression.
She's been under treatment.
Social Services were involved and on several occasions she's threatened to take her own life.
We think she's wearing a red coat.
We started without you, Inspector.
Yes, I see.
Sorry.
We also want to find this man.
Sydney Snell.
Consider him a suspect as well as the mother.
We need to find them both.
Right, any questions? Okay, get to it.
Yeah, yeah.
Police officers arriving now.
We should be on the move soon.
Where is she? Just inside the tunnel there, see? Any idea how long it'll take? No, I'm afraid not.
It's playing hell with the timetable.
We've got trains backed up all the way down the line.
Really? That's tough.
Mr.
Grover? Remember me? How are you today? Not too well, are we? She killed my babies.
Mr.
Grover, there is something I have to tell you.
We've found Nancy and I'm afraid she's dead.
She killed herself.
She said she would.
She killed my babies.
I think you'd better go.
Mr.
Grover, Iast night you said someone entered your house.
Now did you see anyone inside? Leave me alone.
Please, just go.
Please, please.
Any idea who she is? It's just someone that we've been looking for.
That the train that hit her? No, no.
The track workers saw her on the line ahead and stopped the train.
What time was the last through train last night? Well, there was the 12.
05 then the 12.
40 then that's it until this morning.
Can you examine your trains? They're all over the place, but we'll try.
Now can you move her and let us get back to a normal service.
Could she have been walking through the tunnel.
I'd say it was more likely she jumped from the parapet Ianded on the roof of a train and got carried in.
Thank you.
Well, that's it then.
Well, she killed her kids, walked up there and jumped.
Just a minute.
Now we've got witnesses stating they heard a row around midnight.
She must have been pretty light of bloody foot to get here to be hit by the 1205 or the 1240 come to that.
Quite so, Inspector.
What's more, this death isn't a suicide.
She was murdered.
Come again? If she'd gone under the wheels, we might not have seen it until the full post mortem.
But there are stab wounds to her arms.
I presume where she tried to defend herself.
Then again she'd been stabbed in the chest.
Sharp knife.
Pointed.
It's possible that she was murdered elsewhere.
Probably around midnight.
Then brought here.
Her other injuries come from the train.
So if it's murder.
That brings us back to Sydney Snell again, doesn't it.
Sydney Snell is not a frenzied killer.
If he'd done it he wouldn't try to hide the crime by bringing the body here, he'd just panic and run away.
Look, why don't we go back to Cresswell Street and review the evidence? I mean if he'd done it, why isn't the house full of blood stains? I don't know.
Snell was diagnosed psychotic.
Nancy Grover was supposed to be suicidal.
Look Jack, we both know why you don't want it to be Snell.
Ah, there you are Hammond.
I presume before they put all this bloody polythene stuff down all the carpets were checked for blood stains? Yes, of course, sir.
They're clean.
All right.
So that means if anyone was stabbed to death in any of these rooms, you would have found evidence.
Yes, sir.
There you are, Jim.
Remember those old questions they taught us.
Where abouts, and what with? Could have happened outside.
Or somewhere else.
Yes, but where's the evidence? Eh? The evidence? You know the courts are in love with that stuff.
We'll find it.
Speaking of evidence.
We've found something quite interesting in the kitchen.
It's the back door, sir.
Now the, apparently the neighbors kids broke the panel.
And I'd say that this plywood here has been nailed on fairly recently.
But as you can see it's been forced.
Now probably the intruder shoved his hand through and turned the key.
It could have been one of the family.
Oh Jack.
Well.
It shouldn't be too hard to find out.
You see whoever did it grazed his arm.
And we have blood stains, and we're getting DNA which can be matched to a suspect.
If you should happen to have one.
We have.
Sydney Snell.
I'm bringing him in.
That's three you owe me.
Never mind.
It's expenses.
Yeah.
I want to check a rumor with you, Jack.
Nancy Grover did not jump in front of that train, she was pushed.
You know better than to listen to rumors Sandy.
I wouldn't be a news hound if I didn't.
Is it true? This isn't a mother in crisis after all.
It's a threefold murder and the police have a prime suspect.
Oh, do they? Do they really, Sandy, go on.
There's another rumor going about.
About you.
I told you not to listen to rumors.
This one says you cocked it up.
You had the prime suspect and you let him go again.
Who told you that? Is it true? Jack, this time I'm not asking you because I want to print it.
Someone will.
They could do you a lot of damage.
You'd better understand that.
I'm not leaning on you.
I'm talking as a friend.
I'm a good policeman, Sandy.
Not one of the new kind.
I'm the old fashioned kind.
With feelings and gut instincts.
All right, so I don't play by the rule book and I cut corners.
But my judgment is good.
We know that, but is it this time? The truth is, Sandy, yesterday I made a stupid decision.
Because I felt sorry for someone at the time.
Well, I made it and I've got to live with it.
None of us go on forever.
Maybe I'm losing it.
My job's changing too, Jack.
Getting dirtier all the time.
Everybody's fair game these days.
Doesn't matter what you did once, or if you were the local hero.
It's what you do now that counts.
Meaning what? Meaning you better get your finger out, because your reputation isn't going to protect you.
Call me if you need me.
I've got to go.
Yeah.
There you are.
I've been in every pub in town.
I thought you were coming over to see me tonight.
Ah, yes, well, you know how it is? You had enough of me then? No, of course not, Kitty.
You've been very good to me.
'Course I have.
What is it then.
Well, I suppose you'll read about it in the papers tomorrow.
I was the one that let the man go who they think murdered those kids.
Well you must have had your reasons.
Oh yeah, I did.
They were bad reasons.
I arrested this bloke about seven years ago.
Still have nightmares about it.
The neighbors screaming hatred, banging on the roof of the car.
I felt sorry for him and it clouded my judgment.
I know he didn't kill those kids, but I should never have let him go.
Look, Jack, you're right.
You always were.
It's just you're exhausted.
What you need's a holiday.
No, what would I do with a holiday? If you're determined to sit there and be sorry for yourself, I'm off.
Yeah, well.
All right, Kitty.
I think I'd just better get this sorted, you know.
Well, you see you do then.
Because I don't hang around forever.
Just you remember that.
Any sign of Snell, Sergeant? No, sir, seems to have vanished.
Well, he couldn't have gone back to his old home, they're pulling those houses down today.
Come on, Sydney.
Morning George.
Mr.
Frost! Where did they find Sydney? DS Maude brought him in.
You might say he was at home.
You know I didn't do it.
Do I? Do I? How did you cut your hand? On the Bible? Now listen, you promised me Jack, stay away from this.
He's my prisoner.
Don't you want me in on the interview? No, I don't.
Sit down please.
Interview with Mr.
Snell.
Eleven-o-five am.
Those present, DCI Peters, DS Maude.
I am detaining you in connection with the deaths of Nancy, Dennis and Linda Grover.
You do not have to say anything but it may harm your defense if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court.
Anything you do say may be given in evidence.
Do you understand? Yes, I do, Mr.
Peters.
Now Mr.
Snell, your left hand is bandaged.
Can you tell us how you incurred that injury? Was it when you went to the Grover house the night of the murder? I don't know.
You've given a blood sample.
It matches blood stains found on the back door.
There were plywood fibres in the wound.
You illegally entered the Grover house two nights ago, didn't you? I didn't want to hurt anyone.
I love children.
I could never harm them.
I only want to make them better.
Only sometimes things go wrong, don't they? Sydney? You've always tried to be a good boy, haven't you? Take a look at that.
Yes, what is it? Snell's confession.
Confession? Confession to what? Burglary.
Child abuse.
The murder of Mrs.
Grover and her two children.
It all happened in a haze, he says.
He doesn't know what came over him.
Oh, bloody hell.
Don't you mean congratulations? No, I mean bloody hell.
I think I made a very foolish decision.
He promised me on the Bible.
It wasn't just foolish was it, Jack? It was fatal.
Two children who would be alive, are now dead because of your action.
The Chief Constable has already asked for my report.
I shall have to recommend an inquiry.
In the circumstances I ought to suspend you straight away, but, well, if you can settle this Hoxton case quickly, that'll be something to say in your favor.
Listen, stay away from Snell.
He's in custody, where he belongs.
He'll be sent for trail.
Yes, sir.
Jack, I truly regret this.
So do I.
Ah Jack.
Yes.
Do you remember someone tried to use Lemmy Hoxton's credit card at the Supertek Discount Warehouse? Yes.
Well, we've got an ident from one of the assistants.
It looks like it was his old friend Dougie Cooper.
Well, was it.
Well go and talk to him then, will you? DCI Peters won't like this.
Well we'd better not tell him then, eh? Oh Mr.
Frost.
Shut up Sydney at sit down! I wanna finish reading this.
What is it? You're confession.
All done of your own free will.
They said I'd go down for a very long time.
So it would be best if I was a good boy and cooperated with the police.
Yes, but good boys don't cooperate with the police by telling them porkies, do they? Look at this.
You say here you broke in about one thirty and committed murder.
But I know that Mrs.
Grover's body was on the railway about an hour earlier.
Maybe I got the time wrong.
Oh, maybe you got the time wrong.
All right then.
Come on.
Where did you kill her? Was it the children's bedroom.
Yes.
Yes.
Well you must have been bloody clever because you stabbed her eleven times and didn't leave a single blood stain.
All right then.
What did you kill her with, eh? They found a knife.
In my medical bag.
Sydney, you promised me you'd be a good boy.
You swore to me, that you'd never interfere with children again, but you were in that house.
Your blood is on the door.
You didn't keep your promise, did you? No, Mr.
Frost.
I didn't kill them.
I couldn't.
Why did you sign this? Mr.
Peters said it would give me peace of mind.
Oh yeah.
And twenty five years of it.
With a bit of remission for good behavior.
Come on, what happened Sydney? Sometimes God talks to me, Mr.
Frost.
Oh yeah? What does he say? Go out and kill a couple of kids and their mother just to spite that silly old sod Frost, who should have had you banged up in the first place.
He told me to look after children while they were sleeping.
Maybe I could help.
But you can't can you? You don't help, you just inject them so you can get a thrill.
I don't hurt them.
I saw that lady in the park.
With her children.
And I followed them home.
After you came that day, I packed.
Then I remembered.
Those children and I went to the house.
You broke in and went to the kids' bedroom.
You can hear kids when they're sleeping.
It was so quiet.
I should have known something was wrong.
The boy had his arm on the cover.
I pricked him.
Just a little injection.
They usually stir or moan.
He didn't.
When I touched his face he didn't move.
I couldn't hear him breathing.
Neither of them was breathing.
They were dead.
I was in the room with two dead children.
Did the mother come in I didn't see the mother.
I didn't think anyone else was in the house.
I just panicked and I ran out into the street and I stayed out all night.
I'm innocent, Mr.
Frost.
You're not are you? You're a pervert who interferes with children.
What would your mum say now? I was a bad boy.
A very bad boy.
Why should I believe you now? I don't know.
Neither do I.
I was told you were off this case, sir.
Yes, yes, I am.
But I just thought that if I were to follow you around in the course of your enquiries, you might learn something.
Oh I see.
And am I looking for something in particular, sir? Well, it's always a good idea to visit the scene of the crime again in case anything has been missed.
For example, how could a murder have been committed in a room like this without leaving a single trace? Also, where is the weapon? You know, little things like that.
Questions we used to ask in the old days, it was called police work then.
Oh well, let's look in the kitchen again.
All right.
What's that? Mr.
Grover's toolbox, guv.
He uses it for his carpet fitting.
Oh yeah.
Everything's already been checked by forensic though, sir.
All the knives are clean.
Any of Mrs.
Grover's friends or relatives turned up yet? No, sir.
All right.
Well, that's about it, I suppose.
Finished? Nancy Grover.
She was a patient of yours.
Yeah, I read about it in the papers.
She was in here only last Tuesday.
Yeah, could you tell me what her problem was, I mean what she was suffering from? I know it's supposed to be confidential, but, I mean, after all your patient is dead and so are both her children.
It's just that I'm working on a very sensitive murder hunt.
I'll be just a few seconds really.
Well, she came in to discuss an abortion.
She was two months pregnant.
Well we couldn't agree to a termination because we're obliged to take into account a patient's mental state and she'd been suffering from depression recently.
Acute depression.
Would you that say she was suicidal? Listen, she was a young, inexperienced mother.
Excuse me, these are the pictures.
That's great thanks.
No relatives to help her, no gift for making friends.
Her husband was at work all day and went to the pub at night.
She was left trapped inside the house with two undisciplined children and another one on the way.
Well, no wonder she was depressed.
I'd be depressed.
As to whether she'd kill herself, well, who could say? I'm no expert.
Would you say that she was a danger to others? Like I said Inspector, it's not my field.
Thank you.
Thanks doctor.
Dougie Cooper.
You're a known associate of Lemmy Hoxton.
You did jobs with him pretending to be from the waterboard.
You used his credit card, two months after his death.
Now, would you like to tell us how you killed him? I didn't, Mr.
Toolan.
I didn't even know he was dead.
This is a bit out of your league, Dougie.
I mean this could be murder.
No, look.
Lemmy and I had this scam going.
We'd find some house, old folks, a cottage in the country.
We'd put on waterboard jackets.
I'd turn the water off on the outside.
Lemmy would knock and say there were problems with the mains supply.
After he'd worked on the taps for a bit, I'd turn the water on again.
Lemmy could say he'd fixed it.
Then he'd ask to check the upstairs as well.
Oh, and isn't it amazing what people keep in their bedroom drawers.
Look, Lemmy found this place at Alderney Cross.
Isolated cottage.
Two women living alone.
A hydrant just up the lane from the place.
I mean it was so sweet we thought we'd have a meal at a country pub first.
Oh, Salmon fish cakes, chips and peas, washed down with a fizzy drink? It was Sprite.
How did you know? We never took alcohol when we were working.
Oh, that's very commendable, Dougie.
Anyway after the meal I drove the van, parked it in a side lane.
Lemmy put on the waterboard jacket, went up the track to the house.
That's the last I saw of him.
He never come back.
I hung about for an hour or so.
Then I drove home.
I reckoned he'd either been nicked or struck gold at this place and done a runner.
So you decided to get even by using his credit card? Well you could put it like that, yes.
But you said you never saw him again, so how could you get his credit card unless you attacked him and killed him? Well, that's easy, isn't it? When he changed he left his coat in the van.
It's still hanging in my cupboard.
Mark? How are you? A lot better, aren't we? It's good to see you, Phil.
They've made an arrest, a nutter off the streets.
Oh, my god! Listen mate, come and stay with me and Alice for a bit, eh.
Tell him nurse.
It's nice to have good friends, isn't it Mr.
Grover? Sir, I was at that interview, I was there.
Nobody forced him to say anything.
All done by the book.
All I'm saying is that people do make false confessions don't they? What did you say to him, eh? Did you say, 'Sydney, come on.
Come and be a good boy? Is that what you said? What makes you assume he's telling you the truth and not us? He's lied to you before.
We've got him in the house, his blood stains are on the back door.
What are you saying, he just happened to break in in the middle of someone else's murder? No, what I'm saying is that you haven't got a motive, you haven't got a weapon, you haven't even got a time.
I mean you've got Nancy Grover on the railway track at about midnight and you've got Sydney Snell in the house at half past one.
Yeah, and all you've got is a hunch that Sydney's a nice boy who wouldn't do a thing like that.
Sorry sir, I mean just look at the evidence.
Sydney is an unstable personality.
You haven't even got another suspect.
No? What about the husband? Sir, I checked out Mark Grover in every way.
I went to the hospital, got his clothes for forensic.
They're clean.
Went through his alibi.
His witnesses are rock solid.
Did you know that Nancy Grover was after an abortion? I don't see what that's got to do with anything.
Well think about it.
Mark Grover loved kids.
Everybody said that.
They said all right, he's got a bit of a bad marriage, but he loved his children.
Go on, get your notebook out and let's go through it again.
Go on.
Three witnesses have him at Bonley's from eight 'till two.
We've got his mate, Phil Collard, Den Milton, the night security man and Mr.
Maltby, store manager of Bonley's.
He phoned the store, right? U-hu.
Well I got Collier to phone Bonley's last night.
Do you know what he got? An answering machine.
So? So, the stores phones are switched off at night.
How did Mr.
Maltby talk to Mark Grover? I don't know.
I suppose we should go an ask him.
Precisely.
Mr.
Maltby? Would you mind not entering this area.
It's still closed to the public.
This is very nice this, isn't it.
Very nice work.
Yes, well, you get what you pay for.
Yeah, well, not so in my business.
Can you tell me something.
Is this the carpet that Mark Grover fitted? Yes.
Why? Why, sir? No, it's very nice.
Very good.
Very expensive I should think.
Thirty pounds a meter.
Thirty pounds.
Really.
Anyway, you told my colleague that you phoned him here at around midnight.
Yes.
She's just there, ask her.
Yeah, well I wondered how you did that, sir.
Because you see the stores switchboard closes down at six and then it goes onto answerphone.
That's why I expect my workpeople to carry mobiles.
Ah, you called him on his mobile.
That's what I thought.
That means that actually he could be anywhere, 'cos a mobile is, well it's mobile.
He told me he was here and he was here when I arrived an hour later.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to do.
You work long hours, don't you, sir? I like to supervise people on jobs like this.
If you don't, there's no saying what standard of work you'll get.
Yes, I know.
I know the feeling.
So, some alibi, eh, Sergeant? Yeah, well it was also confirmed by the night security guard, Den Milton.
Oh, yeah, where was he? In his cubicle watching the TV monitor.
Oh.
Mr.
Maltby? Excuse me, sir.
Could you tell me, would this TV camera have been working the night they laid the carpet? No, it's not been connected up yet.
It's a new system.
What about that then? You're very quiet.
What's your problem? I was just wondering why we're chasing after a petty criminal like Dougie Cooper when we should be arresting Mark Grover.
Grover, yes I know.
Yes, it might be Mark Grover just look at the evidence.
Sydney Snell did break into the Grover's house and he did inject those children.
Lovely country.
Yes, ideal.
Especially if you didn't like Lemmy and you wanted to lose him.
Suppose they had a bust up, Dougie and Lemmy.
And Lemmy killed him.
In that case why would Dougie bother to move the body up to the old cottage.
Why wouldn't he just bury it round here, somewhere? Who did you say lives here? The Miss Flemings.
Two sisters.
Never reported a burglary though, we checked.
That's it.
The old school house.
Miss Fleming? I'm Caroline Fleming.
Police.
Sorry to disturb you.
We're doing a check up on doorstep con artists.
Oh, yes? And what are those? Well they're people who come to the door saying they're on official business.
Like you, you mean? We really are police, Miss Fleming.
Do phone Denton Police Station and check if you wish.
We'll wait here.
You look reliable.
You'd better come in.
We wondered if you'd ever had a visitor claiming to be from the waterboard? About a year ago, when we moved in.
He turned the water on for us.
Do you mean he really was from the waterboard? That's what you said wasn't it? Yeah, we meant about three months ago, Miss Fleming.
And this was the man.
He claims to be from the waterboard.
And while he's in the house he slips upstairs and robs the bedrooms.
Dreadful.
Yes.
I've never seen him.
He certainly hasn't been to the house.
What makes you think he might have? Well, he was on his way here, the day he died.
Died? Well, he was murdered.
How awful.
Could your sister have seen him? She may have done when I was out.
She's at work at the moment.
Oh, Julie, you're back.
We've met.
You're a nurse at the hospital.
Yes, and Caroline's sister.
They're police.
They want to know about a man they thought had come to the door.
Yes.
This is the man, Miss Fleming.
I've never seen him before.
About three months ago, Miss Fleming.
Just after lunchtime.
Could you have been in? Let's see.
No, I was on night duties all that month.
So if he came there'd have been no reply and he'd have left again.
I'm sorry, we're really not much help.
We're very quiet here, we don't expect visitors.
Except a few friends from the village.
How's Mr.
Grover? Oh, didn't you know.
He was discharged last night.
Oh, was he? Do you know where he went? Staying with friends.
Mr.
Collard came to collect him.
Oh, right.
Well thank you very much Miss Fleming and Miss Fleming.
Sorry to have disturbed you.
I tell you what, that Miss Julie could give me a blanket bath any day of the week.
Well, I don't think she'd be interested, sir.
Really, why not? I think she'd be rather more interested in me.
What now? Hm, oh, Mark Grover's been discharged.
Now I want to have a word with that security guard, what's his name? Den Milton.
That's What makes you think she'd be more interested in giving you a blanket bath, than me? Den? Could you come down? Why? I've only just come up.
Remember me, Mr.
Milton? You lot again? So, when am I supposed to get some sleep.
Yeah, well, I'm sorry, we won't keep you a minute.
It's just that I wanted to ask you a couple of questions about what happened at Bonley's store the other night.
Better take them in the lounge, Den.
It'll be quieter.
No.
It'll be warmer in the kitchen.
I was wanting to feed her in there.
Well, she can starve another minute can't she.
Through here.
Oh, thank you.
Kids drive you crazy, don't they? Yes.
Do you want a cupper? Oh, very nice, yes, thank you.
Now then, just a couple of points you can clear up for me, Mr.
Milton.
You said Mr.
Grover arrived at Bonley's about eight and didn't leave 'till half past one in the morning.
Correct.
All right.
And he couldn't have left without your knowledge? No.
The entrances are all electronically controlled.
I'd have had to work the switch to let him out.
I see.
So, anyway, they were on the top floor.
So where were you? In the security cubicle by the entrance watching the security cameras.
Ah, right.
Watching the security cameras, eh? Or else I was doing my rounds.
I have to check every floor at half hour intervals and click a key in the security locks.
They couldn't get out of the place while you were doing that? No, not without a master key.
And I had that.
Ah, right, right.
That's it Mr.
Milton.
Fine, thank you.
Listen, don't worry about the tea.
Thanks very much.
All right, come on Sergeant.
Is this the way out? No, not that way, that's Well, well, well, well, well.
I spy with my little eye something beginning with nicked.
Isn't this the same carpet they were putting down at Bonley's, Sergeant? It certainly looks like it, sir.
It was a remnant.
It would only have gone to waste.
I think you'd better sit down and tell me all about it, Mr.
Milton.
Oh, Den! Somebody must have taken the wrong measurements.
There was a big chunk left over.
And you thought you'd take it? Well, fifty, fifty.
Fifty, fifty? All right, how did it get here? Who put it down? They did.
They did.
So Grover and Collard did leave the building that night.
Not for long though.
A couple of hours.
You've been telling us porkies, Mr.
Milton.
If Bonley's knew, I'd be for the high jump.
For the high jump! I'm investigating a murder here, and you've made false statements to the police.
Now I want to know what happened? Those two came in the store about eight and worked like the clappers.
I went up around eleven.
They were almost done.
They had the piece left over.
We made a deal.
They'd do my lounge, and hang onto the rest.
So you did let them out of the store.
What time was that? About eleven.
They came back by around one to finish off.
They tidied up and left just before two.
All right, come on, Sergeant! What are we doing here, sir? Well Another one of your hunches? You just keep your eyes open and follow me.
What am I looking for? You're looking for a nice new piece of carpet that came out of Bonley's Department Store.
Now it wasn't at Grovers, so where is it? Are you sure this is safe, sir? Yeah, course it is.
(Sound of train) Don't you ever, ever do that to me again! What have you got? I've got a nice new piece of carpet.
There, it was wasted on the floor in there, wasn't it? Right, nip back to the car, get hold of Collier and tell him to come and collect it.
I want this examined by forensic.
Every mark and every single stain.
What made you think it would be in there? My nose, my nose.
I worked it out.
They had to carry the body in something didn't they? So when they dropped her onto the roof of the train they threw the carpet on afterwards hoping it would be carried miles away from here, but fortunately for us, it dropped off in the tunnel.
Well, I suppose we'd better go and have a talk with Mark Grover.
Look, if you're press would you kindly piss off! No, we're from the police, Mr.
Collard.
Do you remember? I want to speak to Mr.
Grover.
Can't you leave the poor sod alone.
He's completely shattered.
He was crazy about those kids.
We've got one or two things down the station that need to be identified if we're going to convict the killer and I'm sure that he would want that.
I'm sorry I can't help you.
He's gone for a walk.
Mr.
Grover? I never want to come here again.
Stand there.
Do you know what this is, Mark? No.
Oh, I think you do.
This is your part of the carpet that was acquired from Bonley's Department Store.
And do you see those marks? They're blood stains.
They're the same group as your dead wife, Nancy.
I've got to go! All right, stop him! Mr.
Grover, you have been cautioned and you've heard your rights.
Now you know you don't have to say anything.
No.
No.
But for the sake of conversation, I'll tell you how I think it is, shall I? On the night in question, you had a row with your wife.
She was very depressed.
You got fed up with her and the kids.
Not the kids.
Oh yes, so you lost your temper, you picked up your carpet knife and you stabbed her with it.
The kids were screaming so you've got to shut them up too.
No! I've never hurt my kids.
Now you've got blood all over your nice new carpet so you've got to get rid of it, so you chucked it on the top of a train at the railway tunnel, where you dumped Nancy's body onto the tracks to make it look like suicide! No, it wasn't like that! Wasn't it? What was it like then? Come on, you tell me.
We'd been rowing.
That's what our life was.
It was one endless row.
She couldn't cope.
The kids got her down, she didn't have any friends.
I was never there.
Said I was never there because she wanted money to go out and spend and nobody earns that sitting around at home all day.
No.
Very true, Mr.
Grover.
Well that night, we got the rush job at Bonley's, and it all started again.
And then she said, if you go out and leave me alone again, I'll kill myself.
Did you know she was pregnant? Yeah, she told me.
She said she wanted an abortion.
And you didn't want that, did you? I said she couldn't kill a child of mine.
You and Phil were laying the carpet in the lounge.
Phil went to make tea.
And then Nancy came in and she was laughing at me.
Was she laughing at you, was she? And then she said, there's no need to worry about the kids any more, Mark.
They won't be a trouble now.
And then I went into their bedroom.
And there they were.
She'd smothered them with a pillow.
So I went back into the lounge and she was laughing at me.
And I had the carpet knife in my hand and I The wife killed the children, so he killed the wife? Yes, that's it, sir.
And you've got a confession? Well, I'm hoping to get two.
It was Collard, the workmate, who figured out how to conceal the crime.
He wrapped the body in the carpet, then they dumped the body onto the rail track to make it look like suicide.
And it was Collard who found Grover some clean clothes and burnt the others.
Why would he put himself at risk like that? Oh, I don't know.
They were at school together, they were best mates.
Tragic case.
Do you know, I can't help feeling sorry for him.
I know just how you feel, sir.
By the way, Jack.
I think I owe you something.
Oh? What's that, sir? An apology? No.
A holiday.
Ah.
Ah, sir? Yes.
Have you got a minute? Yes, I've got several, Sergeant.
What is it? Well there's been something worrying me about this Hoxton case.
So I thought it'd be worth checking up on past tenants who used to live at the old farm cottages.
Take a look at that.
Yeah, well? One of those sisters, Miss J.
Fleming.
Sorry to bother you again, Miss Fleming, it's just that we've got one or two loose ends that we need to tie up.
You didn't tell us you used to live at Woodside Farm Cottages.
No I didn't.
Why should I? Well, do you remember the man who never called? Well that's where we found his body.
It was in a coal bunker next door to the cottage where you used to live.
I don't see how we were supposed to know that.
Look, I'm sorry, I can't help you.
We'd still like to come in anyway.
We have a witness that said Mr.
Hoxton was on his way to this cottage the day that he died.
Now we haven't been able to trace Mr.
Hoxton to anywhere else so with your permission I'd like to have a little look around.
Inspector, we told you that man never came here.
Are you all right, Miss Fleming, you're shaking? Can I get you something? Yes, another brandy.
You have no right to be up here! Go back downstairs at once! Is this the drawer he took the jewelry from? Don't be ridiculous, it's all there, isn't it? Ah, what's this? Are these your passports? Put them back! Put them back! Okay, calm down, will you.
That's enough, Julie! I apologize for my sister.
You're not sisters, are you? No.
These are passport's.
A Miss J.
Fleming and a Miss C.
R.
Adams.
We live together.
But it suits us to say we're sisters rather than lovers.
They're good people in this village, but they're not overly liberal.
We came here for a quiet life, so we play things on their terms.
Did Lemmy Hoxton threaten to blackmail you? He just came here, robbed us and left.
What, he robbed you and you did nothing about it? We didn't want anyone to know what was taken.
You told me nothing was taken.
That it's all here.
All this jewelry.
Lemmy would have never gone from here Ieaving all this stuff.
He didn't leave here, did he? He never walked back down that lane.
Caroline's very upset.
She doesn't know what she's saying.
We're going to have to explain.
It was my fault.
I never should have let him in.
When I was tidying up in the kitchen, he slipped upstairs.
Julie was sleeping in the small bedroom because it was cooler.
She heard him go into the bathroom and then into the bedroom.
She went in and there he was Iooking in the drawer.
He'd found our personal possessions.
Photographs, passports.
I was in my nightdress.
I told him to put everything back.
There were some magazines too.
He had this dirty grin on his face.
He said I know your sort.
What you need is the real thing.
He went for me.
I struggled.
But he was very strong.
He tore at my nightdress and forced me onto the bed.
He was going to rape me.
I screamed.
(Scream) I could hear Julie screaming.
(Scream) I ran upstairs and into the bedroom.
And Julie was lying on the bed.
I reached for the nearest heavy object and smashed it down on his head.
I killed him.
Caroline suddenly appeared.
I was still struggling.
She was trying to pull him off me.
She pulled at his shirt and, he rolled off me for a moment and that's when I grabbed the lamp and I hit him with it.
He didn't yell, he just groaned.
There was blood everywhere.
I killed him.
You should have told the police.
Your friend was being attacked.
He tried to rape her.
She was in fear of her life.
It was mutual self defense.
This may be hard for you to understand Inspector, but two years ago, I fell in love for the first time ever, with Julie.
When I moved in with her I left behind a husband, and two children.
I changed my name.
I changed my life.
I knew that if we reported this attack, all of that would have to come out.
So the longer the body lay undiscovered, the more you put it to the back of your mind.
There isn't a day goes by when I don't feel guilty about what happened.
Julie took charge of disposing the body.
After I killed him I was like a zombie.
I just did what she said.
What will happen to us now, Inspector? Well, you'll be charged.
So get yourself a good solicitor.
He should be able to arrange bail.
And if he's half decent you'll end up with a suspended sentence.
Guess what? Julie confessed.
So did Caroline.
Each protecting the other.
So, what do we do now? We let them talk to their solicitor, then we re-interview them and then they'll both volunteer the truth.
Sergeant? Sir? Tell the duty solicitor he can see his clients now, will you? By the way, sir, I thought you'd wanna know.
I've asked to go back to Furnley Division.
Better career prospects.
So nothing came of that promotion then? Mr.
Mullett says he's tried all he can.
Yeah, I'm sure he did in his own way.
Well, I'm sorry, Sergeant.
Good of you to say so.
No, no, I mean it.
You're all right.
Was it something I did? Yes, the railway tunnel.
Oh.
No.
It wasn't anything you did.
Yeah, I know I'm a rotten bastard to work for.
Well, not quite what I was gonna say.
But I do really regret putting in that report about you.
I mean, I still think you were way out of line over Snell but, if you hadn't have gone with your instincts the wrong man would have gone to jail for murder.
The truth is Liz, it's nose.
Now you're a good policeman Policewoman, sir.
All right, you're a good policewoman.
Thank you.
But it's important to remember your nose.
Yes, sir.
I'll always remember your nose.
Right.
Thank you.
So, what are you reading? I said you needed a holiday.
Yeah, holiday.
Yeah, that's where you get all the sunshine and some other poor bugger gets all the rain.
It hardly seems fair, does it? Mind you, I've heard that Benidorm's quite nice.
Benidorm?