Dept. Q (2025) s01e06 Episode Script

1
His wife lived for 90 days
in a women's refuge.
- Do you come here a lot then?
- Yeah, I find it calming.
The cemetery?
Have you been listening to what I've said?
Someone inside the Crown Office told
Graham Finch about your witness,
and he's had her killed.
Almost killed.
I'm listening.
Looks more like you're eating your lunch.
- I'm eating my lunch so no one kills you.
- Excuse me?
If what you're saying's true,
then you're talking
about pissing off some powerful people.
Since you're clearly an amateur at this,
setting a meet in a place you frequent,
I'd imagine
they have an idea of what you're up to
and are, in all likelihood, watching you.
I'm not the one investigating
mobsters and murderers.
I've worked really hard
to have zero profile
on the worldwide fucking shite bucket
that now feeds
every wannabe Trotskyite under 30
a steady diet of absolute certainty.
Has it ever occurred to you
that staying off the internet
can make someone
just as paranoid as being on it?
Not off it entirely.
Just the parts where you post
pictures of your glittered balls
alongside the odd Negroni or
epic slice of carrot cake.
But, hey,
what's the, uh the saying?
"Just because I'm paranoid
doesn't mean folks aren't after me."
I think maybe we've digressed.
Been getting any nasty emails?
Maybe some threatening texts?
Well, after you're gone,
car accident,
stumble in front of a moving tram,
there'll be a report of some nameless,
faceless psycho that was stalking you,
as opposed to a pro in a suit
that's working for your betters.
Here.
Throw me a dirty look.
- What?
- Do it.
Then pick up the rubbish,
put it in the bin, and walk away.
Is there a secret message
stuffed inside your bacon butty?
Walk away quickly,
like I've pissed you off.
No problem.
And, Merritt,
next time, pick a better spot.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la
La, la, la
La, la, la
So this has all become
a giant fucking melodrama.
You need to come home, Jasper.
I want you to come home.
I propose that we meet up
and have a proper talk.
What's that place that we'd get ice cream
back when we were normal human beings,
near your school?
I'll meet you there tomorrow
at four o'clock, and we can have it out.
In public
so that we don't hurt each other.
That last part was a joke.
Okay, bye.
Did you walk
down the middle like I told you?
Yes, right down the middle.
Good.
In my experience, it's usually better
for the surveilled not to know
they're being surveilled.
Yeah, sometimes it's better
to give the cage a good rattle
to see how the tiger responds
when it wakes up.
This is how many animal trainers
have lost their arm.
Morck.
I'm in the middle of something.
Why can't you tell me now?
Fergus.
My doctor once told me
I've got a tortured liver.
Yeah, you'd think they would have invented
a safer pint by now.
It's so far gone,
I don't even get drunk anymore.
Got that from my da.
Fergus, your message said
something happened.
You know, if you'd told me three years ago
that up until yesterday I'd stay sober,
I'd have spat in your face.
What happened yesterday?
Jesus.
Who'd you bump into?
I was hoping you'd tell me.
Me? How do I know?
You were mentioned.
One of them says, "Next time Morck
comes to see you, tell him to fuck off."
- "Give him nothing."
- One of them?
Cozy wee threesome.
All tooled up under their suits.
- Sounds like they came worried.
- Too fucking right.
That was the sucker punch by the way.
I think they thought
I'd stay lying there in the car park.
- But?
- I got up.
- And?
- I left them lying in the car park.
All three?
Yeah, that sounds
like the Fergus Dunbar I remember.
Brawn over brain always. Well played.
So are you gonna tell me what jackpot
you've got me in the middle of?
I fucking wish I knew.
Outside the bulges in their suits,
what was the vibe?
Ex-law? Military, maybe?
Who the fuck are you?
I am Akram.
My bodyguard.
You'll need him.
Vibes? They were bad ones.
The kind of guys
that when they came into a pub,
you either got up and left
or called for backup.
So you've no idea who sent them,
but they know
you and I have spoken about Merritt.
Yeah, they probably know
we're talking now.
I've been getting followed
since you came to see me.
- Are you sure?
- I do have some instinct left.
Don't doubt it, but if you're right,
somebody inside tipped off
somebody outside.
Maybe it's your fucking bodyguard.
Whoever it is,
they assume you know something.
If it was somebody on the inside,
they would've known I'd been working
on the case for eight months
and didn't get anywhere.
- Someone thinks you got somewhere.
- They were wrong.
Moira was right
to take me off the case when she did.
How about we give you a lift home?
I'm all right.
It'd be a shame to throw away three years,
abandon these nice kids
who seem to think you're really cool.
Carl, don't act all human.
Doesn't suit you.
Makes you look like a bigger arsehole.
If that's possible.
Thanks for the heads-up.
What?
I think if you were allowed to continue,
you would've solved the case.
- What makes you think that?
- I've read your file.
And everywhere we go,
you have already been.
We're following
in the footsteps of your investigation.
Great minds, eh?
I think you did such a good job back then
that someone was very afraid of you.
And that they are still afraid.
Good night, sir.
All right?
What?
- We've arrested someone for the shooting.
- My shooting?
I'm not sure
you can claim exclusive rights,
but yeah.
- Who is it?
- No one you know or know of.
- What's his name?
- We can't tell you.
Uh, not until
you've identified the shooter.
We need you to come in for a lineup.
- Me?
- Well, Jim can hardly do it, can he?
Neither of us can,
given the fucker was wearing a mask.
You saw his eyes.
You said so in the report.
Okay.
When would you like me to come
and look in some bloke's eyes?
The sooner, the better.
Today, if you could.
- Can't. Fully booked.
- Okay. When?
I'll consult my calendar.
- Right.
- Right.
You looking at Graham Finch?
Looking at everybody.
Don't touch anything.
Amazing mentor you are.
I know. It's a gift.
D.C.I. Morck?
What are you doing here?
Walking it all through once more.
You want me to ID someone in a lineup.
I need to remember their face.
What are you doing here?
D.C.I. Bruce asked us to
watch the place, see who showed up.
What, he's got you sitting outside all day
in the vain hope of bumping into
someone useful four months later?
Either he has zero faith in either of you,
which is possible, or
you're not telling me the truth.
We thought we'd come
and see if we missed something.
See if something new
didn't occur to us this time.
Did anything new occur to you this time?
We think you are right.
That whoever stabbed Mr. Allen
left the flat, but not the scene.
That maybe the stabbing wasn't
the actual crime.
Stabbing a bloke in the head isn't
an actual crime?
- He meant not the actual objective.
- Yes, that's what I meant.
What was the actual objective,
do you think?
- To kill a cop.
- Just any cop who showed up?
Maybe someone
with a grudge against the police.
That's pretty much everyone around here.
What makes you absolutely sure
that Archie Allen wasn't
the actual target?
He was a petty criminal
of no real weight or consequence.
The morgues are full of petty criminals
of no real weight or consequence.
I seem to remember there was
a journalist at the press conference
who mentioned something
about him being an informant.
Dennis Piper, Scottish Telegraph.
Can you tell us if it's true
that you and D.I. Hardy knew
the victim, Archie Allen,
and if he was
a paid confidential informer?
He hadn't been registered.
Victim's full name was
Archie Arran Allen, the man from Arran.
You know how I know this?
It was in the file.
I didn't know it until I read it,
which for me is very strange
'cause I love names.
Love 'em. Names are like dogs.
Often resemble their owners.
I don't forget names,
but I had to read
Archie Allen's name in a file.
P.C. Anderson never said
the victim's name.
All he said was he was here on
Routine wellness. Your man's daughter
in Lancaster called in.
Said her dad hadn't returned her calls.
And what he never said was
was big fucker in the chair,
bayonet in his head,
that's fucking Archie Arran Allen.
Maybe he didn't know that.
- Oh, the daughter would've told him.
- He forgot to mention it?
He was nervous, so maybe,
but let's say you're right
that Archie was bait for a bigger fish.
It's only a matter of calling in
something as innocuous as,
oh, I don't know,
a routine wellness check.
Then this way, boom,
someone finds the body,
the cavalry don't appear right away
gives you time to
do what you need to do.
The shooter was here
for you or D.I. Hardy?
No, no, no, not at all, no.
We had zero connection with the man.
We were here by chance.
Conversely, young Officer Anderson was
probably around here quite a bit.
This was his section.
I bet he'd been inside
this fucking house a few times.
You think he knew Archie Allen?
I think it's entirely possible
that if you look,
P.C. Anderson
and Archie Allen had an overlap.
That journalist was off by a little bit
but not by much, and fucking Anderson
How long you been on the job? A month?
Three, sir.
Anderson was
top of his class at the academy.
I looked it up.
So he wasn't dumb.
But he made a big play of acting like it.
- Think the weapon came from here.
- Don't
Touching all the furniture,
so his prints would be written off
as a rookie move.
Hardy and I surprised him.
He didn't know his own story yet.
He'd seen the body, but he was thinking
about how to distance himself from it.
I mean, do we even know
if Archie Arran Allen has a daughter?
That would be good for you to find out.
Got the feeling when I picked up
the keys that, uh, they knew you here.
I come here sometimes.
Oh?
Mm. When I need some space.
Mm. It suits you.
What is it, exactly,
that you want to know about my department?
I couldn't tell you exactly.
Something must've made you get in touch.
As I'm not very high up, I'm
guessing it's something specific.
I'm a reporter, not a cop.
But in my job,
planting ideas often backfires.
Someone knows something or they don't.
When we first met,
I thought you looked familiar.
Oh?
Actually, I knew.
- Really?
- Mm.
You were at the Finch trial.
Almost every day.
The reason I know that is
you were sitting right behind my boss,
the lord advocate, Stephen Burns.
Good memory.
So my question is,
is this to do with Graham Finch?
Or maybe Stephen Burns?
Or maybe both.
You understand I can't trust you.
Well
trust works both ways, doesn't it?
Your proximity to Stephen
makes me nervous.
As I recall seeing you two chatting.
Mm. Chatting about the weather.
- You could be setting me up.
- For what?
I didn't know Stephen Burns then,
and I don't know him now.
- I am hoping you can help me with that.
- So it's Stephen you're looking at?
I would think
you two would be on the same side.
Aye.
You'd think so.
Well, back to my first question.
How can we trust each other?
You wanna pat me down?
Make sure I'm not wearing a wire?
There's lots of places
you could be hiding a wire.
So how can I be sure?
For example, you could be hiding
your own wire. Somewhere.
Why would I do that?
Same reason you're wary of me.
- Sure Stephen Burns would love
- Don't say his name.
Kills the moment.
There's a moment, is there?
Make me trust you.
Well, go on, then. You too.
Your eyes are two different colors.
Mm.
Does that make me
more or less trustworthy?
I'll let you know.
At it again, eh, Merritt?
Ugh, no.
Now I'm gonna have to wash ya' joggies.
There was a witness Merritt wanted to call
to the Graham Finch case.
Which witness?
It's your job to decide
on witness statements, isn't it?
Yes. Which witness?
She would've came to you
and asked for her to be admitted.
Yes, which witness?
Prior to witnesses
being declared to the defense,
who else would know their names?
- Just us.
- "Us" meaning you and Merritt?
Aye. What is this? What witness?
Apparently someone could've swayed
the verdict the other way.
Who? And how?
Kirsty Atkins.
She met Andrea Finch
in a domestic violence shelter.
I've never heard of her.
Sure? Shouldn't you check the file?
It was four years ago.
I worked on the case for months
before Merritt was appointed.
- I'd remember.
- Hmm.
Merritt was appointed
lead counsel over you, right?
- She was considered the best fit.
- And you were okay with that?
We work as a team.
Doesn't matter who leads.
But we found that in cases like Finch,
a jury's more affected by a woman's voice.
Mm.
Merritt's voice could be quite affecting.
Excuse me?
Your relationship with Merritt went beyond
the boundaries of professionalism.
- It's relevant to the investigation.
- Not to me, it isn't.
We've discussed
all there is to discuss on that front.
How well did you know Finch's advocate,
Robert McDonald?
- Well enough.
- Well enough to feed him information?
- Why would I do that?
- To give them an advantage.
Is she having a laugh?
We're having difficulty believing
Merritt never mentioned
Kirsty Atkins to you, her trial partner.
- What makes you so sure she wanted to?
- What makes you so sure she didn't?
Again, asked and answered. I'm very sure.
At the time,
Kirsty was in Saughton Prison.
Merritt visited her
in week one of the trial. This we know.
Why would I sabotage my own case?
Because, as you said,
this wasn't just your case.
Ah, okay.
So this was revenge?
I was angry with Merritt
for not running away with me?
Were you?
I was fucking furious at the time,
and for about a month.
And then I woke up embarrassed
at myself for being such a cliché.
If there was any witness
that could've changed the outcome,
any witness that could've helped put
that bastard away, I would've welcomed it.
Kirsty was threatened
right after Merritt visited her in prison.
She was attacked. By some miracle,
they didn't kill her. She was transferred.
Now she's out in a month. My guess?
She'll be dead
by some mishap a few days later.
And this is all on Graham Finch?
We can't say without knowing
who it was that fed the defense.
So, if the personal stuff
did feed into the trial,
we need to know now.
You think I'd risk my career for her,
or let someone go free
for throwing their wife down the stairs
'cause my feelings were hurt?
- You risked your marriage.
- You're young.
Get married, and we'll talk in ten years.
Okay, let's just say that Merritt
brought this up with you hypothetically.
You're hypothetically asking
about a hypothetical?
Indulge me.
Might you tell Merritt
that Kirsty wasn't the best witness
because of her background?
Not to mention
her desperation to get out of jail.
- A jury sees through that.
- You'd have stonewalled her?
I would have asked
to speak to the witness myself
and made my decision
based on how credible I thought she was.
- So by the numbers?
- By the numbers.
Okay, so what would Merritt's next move be
to get Kirsty admitted as a witness?
She could go above me, but it would likely
just get kicked back down to me.
No. You're wrong.
You just said she'd go above you.
It doesn't mean that she did.
You get me worried
about my relationship with Merritt
just so you can play your real card,
which is Stephen Burns?
Oh, excellent. Hats off.
Be careful what you learn from this man.
There's practiced,
and there's reckless.
Stephen Burns brought Merritt
into the department.
He was invested in her success.
There's no way he would do anything
but help her, or at least try.
Now, if you'll excuse me,
I'm late.
Thank you, Liam.
Jasper.
How you doin', buddy?
Fine.
Carl Morck's kid, right?
D-do I know you?
Not by name.
But you can feel who I am, can't you?
Or what I am.
Course you can. You're a smart kid.
- Carl's on his way here right now, so
- Aye.
So where is he? 'Cause frankly
Sit.
Do not cry or whimper
or make any kind of sound.
Imagine this was your young balls
I'm doing this with.
'Cause if you shout or if you scream
or if you do anything outside of
just sitting there quietly looking at me,
I'll ruin you.
Okay?
Okay.
There's a good lad.
I mean, I'm not so bad to look at, am I?
No.
No what?
No, you're not that bad to look at.
Thank you, Jasper.
You're very nice to look at.
I know some people
who would pay good money
just to look at you.
All of you.
I know some others
who would pay good money too
to put things inside you.
Things human and not.
Both wet and dry.
See, and they would get off
not just on your nice face
but on all that fear
and the blood that comes out of you.
And they would film it all.
So after they dropped you at the hospital,
'cause these are just men with appetites,
they're not animals,
they could relive those moments
over and over again.
Just like you'd be doing
in your own mind
for the rest of your life.
So here's what I'd
like you to do for me.
I'd like you to pass on
everything I've just said to you
in exactly the way I said it to Carl
when he gets here.
Speak of the devil.
Nice kid you've got there.
Oi.
Easy, tiger.
I'm not resisting.
- What did you do to the kid?
- Nothing. We were talking.
I like kids.
- You fucking tell Finch that if he wants
- Who?
Tell Graham Finch,
the next time he wants to send a message,
to get his fucking arse
down here himself, yeah?
Fucking cunt!
Carl!
Move.
Keep pressing down
until you feel
all your weight along the floor.
- Wow.
- Exactly.
What did you say
this technique was called again?
It's mine. It's a Dr. Loo technique.
This isn't what it looks like.
- Too bad.
- Eh, eh, eh.
And press.
Now try and lift your legs.
All right. Good boy.
Let's get him into the chair.
Ready?
- Sit up.
- Okay.
And three, two, one, lift.
Whee!
Lift yourself up. Come on, push.
Let's try and keep you out of bed
as much as we can.
Thanks, boys.
Be nice to your father.
He's worked hard today.
Oh, I'm always nice to my father.
- How's your day, Dad?
- Fuck off.
Why are you haunting me?
I know you're in love with me.
In love with my own dad?
That's disgusting.
Fuck's wrong with you?
Don't you have a life?
Now you sound like my mum.
- I don't want to go home.
- Why not?
'Cause I don't like being alone.
I keep seeing dead old people.
Hmm. PTSD? You thinking
about that old couple you ran over?
I knew you'd comfort me.
Well, seeing as you're here,
you might as well help me.
Do you need the loo?
Do you want me to get you a wee bowl?
No, I don't need the loo.
So I've been reading old news.
Every wee thing that happened in Edinburgh
around the time
before and after Merritt went missing.
Everything from the opening
of a new pie shop up the Mile
to various pub fights
to the death of a Chinese medical student
who somehow confused
formaldehyde for vodka.
- There's a new pie shop?
- Four years ago, dimwit.
Right, yeah. Sorry.
Nothing all that interesting
except for a story
about a gentleman named Ned Finkle.
Ned Finkle?
- Some handle, eh?
- Ooft.
He was released from this very hospital
two weeks after being run over
by a young lawyer named Julia Montgomery.
- Mm.
- Sorry, did that trigger you?
I'm medicated.
So he's out jogging when the Fiat
driven by 28-year-old Julia Montgomery
suddenly veers across the street,
puts poor Mr. Finkle up in the air.
Lost both his legs.
Jesus.
What happened? Did she fall asleep?
Mrs. Montgomery claims
she was forced off the road
by another vehicle
that came up alongside her.
But seeing how she smacked him from behind
and there were no witnesses,
it was her word against his.
What, so she she just got away with it?
Well, only if she was lying.
How'd you mean?
Julia Montgomery was born Julia Burns.
She married an oral surgeon
named Robert Montgomery two years before.
- Burns?
- His daughter.
So someone sent a message
to Stephen Burns?
Attagirl.
- Graham Finch.
- Probably.
And you think Merritt knew?
Again, probably.
Good work, Dad.
Well done. You're all over the socials.
"Unhinged cop at it again."
Fucking cunt!
- Carl!
- Will that get me laid?
Probably. But not necessarily
by anyone you'd want.
Mm.
- Where's Jasper?
- Uh, school.
He said to say he'll pick his stuff up
from his nana's on his way home.
Okay.
Do you think violence is
a good thing to be modeling for Jasper?
I wasn't modeling violence.
I was modeling how to tell
a creep not to fuck with me.
Right. Well, uh, whilst I don't approve,
the experience did have one benefit.
This morning, he actually made his bed.
I know.
Very significant.
So notice it's happening dead center.
Like they knew where the camera is,
parked there so it would catch all of it.
And then,
right after
- Land Rover wasn't even his car.
- Mm-hmm.
Hang on.
BMW 7 Series.
Let's have a look at the tag.
- So what you guys doi
- Shh.
Nice.
Carl Morck?
Dr. Sonnenberg.
We meet at last.
Please.
Please take a seat.
Question.
Where's Dr. Irving?
Ah, well, lucky for you,
I managed to return earlier than expected.
Turns out
a torn meniscus takes less time
Nobody told me.
Well, they should have.
It's important to end
a therapeutic relationship properly.
Yes. Yes, it is. It's very important.
And I feel a sense of abandonment,
anger, and resentment.
That's good. That's an excellent place
for us to get started.
Let's just rearrange, shall we?
- Course, if you think that's
- Please, don't get up.
We wouldn't want you to have
any more surgery.
- It is allowed for you to drive faster.
- I know.
- You seem nervous.
- Do I?
Yes, is it because of your, um
- Never mind.
- Just ask if you're gonna ask.
What happened?
I hit an elderly couple in my car.
I was in pursuit of this
Does it really fucking matter?
No. I meant what happened after.
You said you had some issues.
Oh.
Yeah, it's not that big a deal.
Okay.
I tried to kill myself.
I am sorry.
Slit my wrists.
Well,
wrist.
Um Passed out
before I could get to the other one.
I can't stand the sight of blood.
D.I. Hardy found me.
I was helping him and Carl with this
Doesn't matter. Anyway, um
he came by my flat when I didn't show up.
He saved your life?
Not really, no. Um
The doctor said I wouldn't have died.
The The cut wasn't deep enough.
Um
But he definitely saved it after.
- How so?
- By being nice.
It's a black BMW 7 Series,
registered to Edmund Solomon.
Flat 58.
- This is not the best neighborhood.
- I've got your back.
Thank you.
Rose, do me a favor.
Wait here.
What? No.
Please.
Yeah?
Sir, is your car the black BMW?
What about it?
I'm sorry, sir, but your car is on fire.
- What do you say?
- Your car is on fire.
Get out my fuckin' way.
Oh.
You fuckin'
My fuckin' leg!
Sir, would you please call an ambulance?
Mr. Solomon has fallen down the stairs.
It appears he has broken his, uh
femur.
Fuck that cunt.
Your neighbors don't seem to like you.
Who hired you and your friends
to harass D.C.I. Morck?
I'm gonna fuckin' kill you!
Okay. But in the meantime,
please tell me who you work for.
If you're gonna arrest me, just do it.
Well, I'm not actually a policeman.
But you are lucky you're talking to me
and not D.C.I. Morck because
he would probably kill you.
I won't. However, I will hurt you.
Please, who hired you?
Who hired you?
Ho! Gonnae shut the fuck up?
Okay. I'm listening.
What the fuck were you thinking?
- I was thinking I wanna kill this prick
- Wait. I love this part.
- Fucking cunt!
- Carl!
'Twas only the reasoned voice of a child
could finally stop the beast.
- I was set up, for fuck's sake.
- Yes!
It looks like someone
may have indeed set you up.
And while that's very concerning,
what is even more concerning
is the fact it's fucking possible
to set you up in the first place.
You look like a bloody lunatic.
He threatened Jasper.
Be that as it may,
you have now lost hold of yourself
in public twice in the same week.
That's got to be a bloody world record.
I don't even know what to fucking say.
I'm fucking speechless.
What the fuck, Carl?
Show's been going on for a while now.
- Oh, yeah.
- What the fuck?
Are you fucking five
or are you fucking fifty?
Fucking pathetic, that's what it is.
And normally,
a banger fucking week like that
would be what I'd like to call
a fucking career ender.
- Catchy.
- Shut up!
And I am not firing you.
Because no doubt that's exactly
what whoever got your easy-gotten goat
wanted to happen.
Ah, yes!
The other enabling members
of Team Doolally.
To what do I owe this pain?
Uh we located the driver of the vehicle
who picked up the victim.
Can we not call
that piece of shit a victim?
Where is this driver?
At the moment,
he's in hospital with a broken leg.
Oh?
He fell down the stairs.
Really?
He's employed as a chauffeur
by Ballantyne Transfer & Security.
Which is owned by Finch Overseas Shipping.
And have you talked to Finch?
We've been
rattling his cage.
What are you waiting for?
Merritt was spending time
with a journalist called Sam Haig
who was looking into corruption
in the Crown Office.
Okay.
He died in a climbing "accident"
right before she disappeared.
And you think someone
inside the Crown Office was involved?
Not someone.
Stephen Burns.
What the actual fuck?
We think there was a connection
between Burns and Finch.
I can't wait to hear it.
Finch threatened Burns's daughter.
Her car was driven off the road
by another vehicle
the same time as Finch's trial.
Merritt didn't like losing
when it was fair.
If her superior was helping Finch
- This is all theory, not evidence.
- I'd like to hear what Burns has to say.
- Formally question the lord advocate?
- He won't give me anything if it's formal.
- You wanna waterboard him?
- Yeah, I'd love to.
But it's frowned upon,
so I'll settle for surprising him instead.
- We're all set.
- What for?
The lineup.
Oh, fuck.
- Turn to the right, please.
- What the fuck for?
They're wearing masks.
I need to see their eyes.
Back to the front.
Ask number six to step forward.
Number six, please step forward.
Tell him to take off his mask.
Please remove the mask.
I'm sorry.
Are you sure?
It's just you and me in here.
This gentleman's guilty of something.
Probably a lot of somethings.
But my shooter, he is not.
Okay.
- Looks like that hatch
- Shut the fuck up.
That fucking hatch.
That fucking airlock. It's broken again.
I told you to fix it.