Deadline (2022) s01e04 Episode Script

The thing missing was a murder
weapon. She had to get rid of that
cos it was incriminating her.
I'll give you the interview. I want
you to find the person who killed my
husband.
I take care of the tapes.
She's holding our footage hostage.
In your earlier career you made
yourself extremely unpopular.
There was a missing girl.
I contaminated evidence.
That would've had him conflicted
of murder.
No copper is gonna talk to me.
I know who killed him. My brother.
Oliver's dead. Out!
Can we find out who the
birth parents are?
Adoption services don't share
records. What about your mate?
You've just established the person
who killed my husband is in Hungary.
Is she saying that Oliver killed
her husband?
He wanted to control every move
I made.
I think she did.
Are you sleeping with her?
Where is that coming from?
You're fired.
Whatever she's told you, it
will be lies.
He has a daughter. Leila.
They are my family too.
You're not having them.
She did it. I watched her do it.
GUNSHO
They were going to kill him if they
didn't get their money.
And George just laughed.
I don't even remember doing it.
PHONE RINGS
What is it? I can't.
What?
Let him go.
No. I can't do it.
I don't care about me any more.
I care. He won't stop.
Please.
Did you hear me?
SHE EXHALES SHARPLY
On your knees.
SHE COCKS GUN
Come on.
TRIGGER CLICKS
You're a lucky man.
I want to say go home,
forget about everything,
live your life.
Hmm?
No, you won't.
The charming English phrase,
"dog with a bone" comes to mind.
TREES RUSTLE
SHE SIGHS
Stay.
FOOTSTEPS RECEDE
ENGINE STARTS
CAR RECEDES
Hey!
Hey! Hey!
INDISTINCT CHATTER
Cut!
CLAPPERBOARD SNAPS
DISTANT INDISTINCT CHATTER
She's called Molnar. Mrs Molnar.
That's all I I don't know of her
first name.
And she says she's a lawyer, but I
don't know,
maybe that's a fucking lie.
HE CHUCKLES SOFTLY
Do you understand me?
Yes. Yes, we understand.
Because I'mI'm talking about
a homicide.
Natalie Varga, Oliver Sewell.
I have a, I have a picture of
Oliver.
He's the brother, who's officially
dead, but
Wait. They deleted my photographs.
Umwait.
Uh OK.
Vera Dorati, she's an artist,
she's been helping them. She's
Finished now, or?
MONITOR BEEPS
DEVICE BEEPS
DEVICE BEEPS
PHONE RINGS
I told you, you're out.
For what? Going after a story?
Look, I need you to get me
to DI Khan,
the police aren't taking my calls.
It's done.
I completed the documentary.
Case closed.
Natalie killed her husband. I don't
want to hear about I know.
..Natalie Varga.
Let's talk about Lucy Gallagher?
What's Lucy Gallagher got?
You didn't only fuck up your career,
over what you did.
You fucked up you life,
because you became obsessed.
Can't you see you're doing
the same thing?
Take a step back.
Think about whether that's
the person you wanna be.
Do what I'm doing.
Walk away.
DOOR CLOSES
I've got nothing to say to you.
I met your son, Mary.
I told you, Oliver's dead.
ENOUGH!
I followed your piece of shit son
to Hungary,
and ended up with a gun against
my head. Is Ollie all right?
You're so worried about your son
and his family.
Let'slet's talk about your other
little psycho.
Does she know about
my granddaughter?
He wasn't just running from
those thugs you know, he was running
from her.
Why?
When she was just a kid,
I thought I could fix her,
but whatever it was she's
been through,
she don't care now who she hurts.
What was it that happened with her
family, before you got her?
I don't know.
They don't tell you everything.
Theythey just say,
"Oh, the twins were troubled."
Christ, what an understatement.
We're going to go to the police,
you're going to back me up.
Oliver saw it. He'll testify.
He won't.
Not now she's got him back.
And now she's got Leila.
Help me put her away.
You?
How's that going so far?
HE GRUNTS
FENCE CLANGS
PHONE RINGS
RINGING CONTINUES
What the fuck can you possibly have
to say to me?
The police are going to arrest me.
I want to talk to you first.
Let's finish the interview.
I'm alone.
Oh, sure, sure,
I'll come right over.
I saved your life twice.
Why would I hurt you now?
Because you're going to prison.
I'm going to prison
because I let you go.
Take the story. You deserve it.
James, you can go back to working on
trash or you can tell my story.
It'll make your career.
Fuck you.
I want to tell you about my father.
Fuck.
Fuck!
KNOCK AT DOOR
LIGHT KNOCK AT DOOR
Hello?
Hello?
Oh, my God. What have you done?
Help!
HELP!
Hey, just
Help! Hey, wait come back.
Somebody help me!
What are you doing?
He's going to hurt me. Please!
She's not here. What the fuck?
She doesn't want to see you.
Don't hurt me. Please don't hurt me!
Please, somebody call the police!
Please!
KNOCK AT DOOR
Mr Alden?
Detective Inspector Broughton.
Can you open the door, please?
Yeah? This is DS Feehan.
Sorry, what do you want?
I'm arresting you on suspicion
of harassment
and putting someone in fear
of violence. Harassment?
You don't have to say anything,
but it may harm your defence if you
do not mention when questioned
something which you later rely on
in court.
Anything you do say may be given in
evidence. Sorry, I don't understand.
You're under arrest, Mr Alden.
Just explain this to me again.
These officers will be searching
your flat.
Who has accused me of harassment?
Take him away.
Who has accused me?
Get me that. All of it, please.
All those cards, please.
CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS
Thank you for your statement.
Let's review.
According to Mrs Varga's statement,
in a bid to get away from you,
fearing for her safety she went
to Hungary and you followed.
Well, she wasn't in fear
and I went first.
According to this passenger
manifest,
Mrs Varga flew out at 9am
the same day.
For the purposes of the tape,
Mr Alden is examining
the passenger manifest.
Well, I didn't know that she was
already there.
What did you plan to do when you
tracked her down?
No, I went to find her brother.
Who died four years ago?
He didn't. He faked it.
She wanted me to find him.
She said that he killed George.
Which I thought was crazy,
until I met his wife and his kid
and then I saw him, in Hungary.
Look, you need to find the wife.
Shona Strand.
He'she's calling himself
Elliot Strand now.
And you need to find Mary Sewell,
that's the adopted mother.
She's the one who helped him fake
his own death.
She identified the wrong body.
Whose body?
I don't know. Maybe that's something
you can find out.
According to Mrs Varga's statement,
you tracked her down.
You verbally threatened her.
No. I was tied to a chair.
She found me. She had a knife.
Mrs Varga tied you to a chair?
No, that was Dominik.
The one they shot.
Yeah, we've contacted the
Budapest police, 19th District.
They have no reports
of any shootings, or anybody.
Mr Alden. Who's "they"?
The lawyer, Mrs Molnar.
I saw her shoot him, point blank.
Why would I make this stuff up?
The same Mrs Molnar you assaulted
last night?
I barely touch her.
She threw herself on the ground
for the photographer.
I mean, they called the pap,
they staged the whole thing.
Is your aggression directed mainly
towards women, would you say?
Officer. That's a very unhelpful
comment to make
and entirely unnecessary.
My client is trying to assist you.
I am here voluntarily.
Can recognise that, please,
for the purposes of the tape?
It will be fully recorded that
you are attending this interview
voluntarily and helping
as best you can.
You were seen loitering around
Shona Strand's home
on the evening of the 12th August.
I was looking for her brother.
And you were recorded on CCTV
breaking into Vera Dorati's studio.
She is a blackmailer.
She tried to have me killed.
She gave Natalie a false alibi,
probably for money,
I was just trying to find out.
I'm not on some general mission
to terrorise women,
Least of all Natalie.
How do you see your relationship
with Mrs Varga?
It It was professional.
You know, who offered me an
opportunity to interview her.
To get a good story.
And then she made me feel like we
had a connection.
You're calling it a connection.
Fine. We slept together,
fully consensual.
Tell me she's not saying that
I forced her.
James, let the officer ask
her questions.
I'm sure she'll happily tell us what
Mrs Varga is saying. Officer?
You got into Mrs Varga's home
through your position as
a journalist.
She invited me.
You gained her trust by offering
to help with her criminal case.
No. She was asking me
to investigate.
Does, um, "Who Remembers Spangles"
require much investigation?
As I understand it, you haven't
engaged in that kind of journalism
for some time. Years.
Well, have you or not?
No. So when you approached
Mrs Varga,
offering to help with her case,
you were, in fact, posing as an
investigative reporter.
It wasn't like that.
When did you first become aware
of Natalie Sewell,
or Natalie Varga, as she became?
About two months ago,
the same time as everybody else.
So you're saying you'd never
met her,
or been aware of her before
that point?
No. I don't read Tatler,
or go to charity auctions or
Elton John's house or wherever it is
people like her hang out.
When we arrested you, you were
viewing covert video recordings
of Mrs Varga, footage of her
in her bathroom.
I did not make those tapes.
For the purposes of the recordings
DS Feehan is showing Mr Alden
the memory cards seized from
his flat.
They say "Natalie Varga Interview".
I thought they were ours.
That's the only reason I took them.
When you broke into her home?
No, she invited me.
She
HE EXHALES SHARPLY
She told me she was gonna confess.
These recordings date back
ten months.
So when you say you met Natalie
a couple of weeks ago
Why would I record her?
I don't know, Mr Alden.
Why would you forensically pick over
a woman's private life?
Drooling over every
intimate detail?
Well, that the voluntary part
of this interview over.
Let's wrap this up, please. Yeah.
you will be released on bail whilst
we present our evidence to the CPS.
Your conditions require you
to remain in the country.
Any attempt to contact or approach
Mrs Varga
will result in your being rearrested
and held in custody until a date is
set for your hearing.
Terminating the interview.
DEVICE CLICKS
Should I take it personally that you
never stalked me?
Too soon?
I considered bringing you
something stronger.
Gin? Cyanide.
I'm sorry.
I guess neither of us are very good
at walking away.
She was gonna confess.
I'll write a statement.
I hired you to make a documentary,
the invitation for the interview
came from Molnar.
We both tracked down Shona.
You had a mark on your neck
from when you were attacked.
Yeah, but you didn't see it happen.
You didn't see anything in Hungary.
HE SIGHS
You're my ex-girlfriend, for fuck's
sake. They'll discredit you.
Why is she doing all this?
She said she needed to tell me
something,
some sob story about her dad.
Did your mate ever get back
to you about the birth parents?
No.
Let your legal team handle this.
I'll help.
Do not go after her.
You will make it worse.
And I'm not bailing you out again.
Understood?
Ugh! You didn't get sugar?
You're such a dick!
And
..my old phone, till you get
yours back.
And we need to find you
a decent lawyer.
Maybe Mrs Molnar's free?
Yeah. No, the thing is, Kemi, um,
she's actually gone in for
a bit of an operation.
No, no, nothing serious.
Nothing serious.
Um, I'm just following it up.
You emailed her.
VEHICLE APPROACHES
I know who you are.
When I saw you outside my house,
making your little documentary
about me, you seemed fine.
I mean, a bit tragic,
but essentially fine.
You don't get to be fine.
I am sorry. Truly sorry.
But your father was a murderer
before I came into his life.
And he was free to rape and murder
again because of what you did.
I thought I might find her.
I thought I could save her.
You wanted a story.
Who cares how many more Lucys
he would have taken?
It was the biggest mistake
of my life. It wasn't a mistake.
You knew exactly what
a crime scene was,
but you did it anyway.
Cos you wanted the story.
It's all about your needs to be
the best. To be the first.
I know you may not believe this
..but I've punished myself for that.
Every day for the last 20 years.
I believe what I see.
And I see you behaving in exactly
the same way.
Let's stop.
You can't stop,
any more than he could.
But he did.
No, James. I stopped him.
He shot himself.
He was drunk, passed out.
It wasn't that hard.
No.
You were a child. Hm.
Oh, Jesus.
No-one else was going to do it.
Oliver was useless.
He kept crying.
He's been crying ever since.
I'm so sorry.
You keep saying sorry, but
..I don't know what you're
sorry for.
What do you want me to say?
Maybe you can destroy my life.
Maybe you can
..but it won't give you
what you want.
Maybe not.
But it's worth a try.
Detective Inspector Polton.
Yes, it's an emergency.
Barbara, I need help.
Yes, the police are here right now
looking at the tapes you stole.
Well, tell them who she is.
They already know, they think you're
the one with the grudge.
Barbara, you know me. I bail you out
and you hack my emails?
No, I don't know you.
SLOW PIANO MUSIC
You stated that you first met
Natalie Varga
after her husband's murder.
Yes. But you'd come to know her
biological father, Kurt Duvall,
22 years previously.
And during the course
of your investigation,
you never realised he had
two children?
Wasn't part of the story,
I never even thought about them.
For the purposes of the recording,
I am showing Mr Alden a photograph
of 13-year-old Tania Duvall,
taken from his home.
Have you been holding on to this
for 20 years?
I didn't know her then.
I didn't I think you did.
I think you've been fixated on her
all these years.
Maybe you lost track of her when she
was adopted?
But then she became Mrs Varga,
the socialite, in the public eye,
and you reconnected with your
obsession.
There is no obsession.
You don't think you're obsessive,
Mr Alden? You don't fixate?
You arrived at the scene of
Lucy Gallagher's murder
before any police detective.
I was reporting on a missing girl,
I suspected Kurt Duvall.
And I went to a lock-up that
I had reason
Kurt Duvall was never charged.
No, because I messed up
the evidence,
for which I am eternally
and profoundly fucking sorry!
PIANO CONTINUES
This is your file,
also taken from your home.
All this material on Lucy Gallagher,
Now, what would you call it?
Mementoes? Trophies?
It didn't feel right just
to throw it in the bin.
No. You preferred to keep it.
Relive it, relive the experience?
Enjoy it? Officer that a very
unhelpful comment to make.
All my life, I've had no voice.
As a child
..no-one listened to me.
As a woman everyone sneered,
and said I was hysterical,
imagining things.
So, yes, I do feel vindicated.
The detective on the Gallagher case
gave a statement.
How do you counter his suggestion
that you contaminated
the evidence on purpose?
Why would I?
Why would a journalist have
12 cable ties,
two roll of gaffer tape,
three syringes,
a pair of pliers
and two vials of Rohypnol?
That key was planted on my key
ring.
I think you were planning
to abduct Natalie Varga,
sexually assault and murder her.
That is utterly fucking insane.
Just as you did Lucy Gallagher.
PIANO STOPS
Was it Natalie that you wanted
all along?
Did she get away?
Did you have to make do with Lucy?
I'm not answering any
more questions.
And when you went after
Natalie again, did George Varga
try to stop you? Officer, I'd like
this interview
to terminate now. Did he try to
protect his wife?
Mr Alden, where were you on the
night of George Varga's murder?
Yes.
I do think monster is
the right word for him.
What James Alderton
did to me was monstrous.
That man took everyone I loved.
My best friend
..my father, my husband.
Maybe even my brother.
And after everything he'd done
..he wormed his way into my life
and convinced me to share my pain
on camera
so he could enjoy it all over again.
So God knows who else he's hurt.
There must be others.
It's like he wanted to turn me into
some kind of living trophy.
He may have had a messed up
childhood, I don't know.
Honestly, I don't care.
All I know is he won't be able
to hurt anyone any more.
He's powerless.
His life is over.
I came closeto being broken
by him.
But in the end I won.
I won.