The Serpent (2021) s01e07 Episode Script

1
Nadine just phoned.
It's Gautier's apartment.
The landlady wants to rent
it out again,
so she's clearing it.
He poisons the kids.
Makes them believe they're sick.
Says, "Take this.
Makes you all better."
One of your people, ambassador.
One of mine? No.
Using his diplomatic credentials
to enquire
after some Dutch murder victims.
I do not recognise myself.
What do you fear?
Am I nothing but a replacement
for his true love?
"If only Char keeps his promise,
"takes me out of this ditch,
"takes me to meet his mother."
Wait! Yes, yes, the mother!
Charles? Where are you?
It doesn't matter where I am,
but where I will be soon.
My associates and I will be
in Paris.
I thought I might trust you
with a sample.
Quite a trick, Monsieur Gautier.
A forwarding address for Leclerc.
We know where they're heading.
Merci. Bon voyage.
come away from that man
your promised land
what you got, you know
the lot #
They are fugitives,
and I believe they are already on
French soil.
Monsieur, are you a policeman?
No, I am a Dutch diplomat
Then I'm sorry
OK, thank you for your time.
forget you're a man
Yes, my name's Herman Knippenberg.
I'm calling from the Dutch embassy.
I'm calling in regard to
a Frenchman
and his Canadian accomplice.
Monsieur, you think they are in
Paris now?
Yes.
I have an address there for the
man's mother
The mother of the man wanted for
murder in Thailand?
Yes. Monsieur, if the crimes took
place in Thailand,
you have to go to the Thai police.
You think I haven't already?
Au revoir, Monsieur.
Monsieur, I don't know who gave you
this number,
but what you ask is for out of
the question
without authorisation from the
correct department.
That's why I am calling you.
Thanks, Lawana. I am telling you,
monsieur, we cannot help you.
But if you could just
Au revoir.
change your desire
forget you're a man
forget you're a man
She doesn't speak French.
We only speak English in Ibiza
with Vitali
Vitali's gone to Thailand.
Mummy's going to find him because he
can't manage without her.
That's what he says.
It is very hard to manage without
your mother, Cleo.
We're going to stay here
in Paris
when Vitali and I are back
from Bangkok.
You will love him, Mum.
Everyone does.
There comes a time when a man needs
to settle down,
decide where his home is and who
he wants to make it with.
Look, my treasure.
That's my woman, Stephie,
and little Cleo.
She is beautiful.
She is. She's not mine.
Cleo.
But she is like a life raft for me,
you know?
She is beautiful. Mm.
So, do you want babies with Alain?
Not yet. Not yet?
Why wait? Do it now! Do it now!
Do it now! Now?
Yeah. We plan to live in Paris.
We want to start a family
together there.
Yeah.
Well, don't wait for too long,
sister.
You are beautiful and time flies.
Ah, here is the man.
Look at you two.
Think of the babies you'll make.
Monique
Help. Help.
What's wrong?
What's wrong with me, man?
I-I'm burning up.
You've got to take me to hospital,
man.
We must take the fever down.
We know how you suffer.
Stephie.
Stephie is my lady.
Will you call her? Call Stephie.
C-C—Call Stephie.
We gave them his mother's address!
What else can we do, huh?
Nadine, until this point, I have
done everything in my power.
I'll think of something.
No, Herman. Because I am sick of you
thinking of something.
I am sick of your plans and your
promises
and y-your bullshit.
They mean nothing.
I lost.
It will never end!
Nadine, please.
We're done.
Herman, you understand?
You should have let Paul shoot him.
He's right.
Paul, shooting him
Not about that.
We're done.
All of us.
Let it go.
He's gone.
I don't I don't know what to do.
You've done so much already, Herman.
No-one holds you
responsible for any of this.
My mother was
extraordinary, you know.
In November 1944, an allied bomb
completely destroyed our house.
Thankfully, we weren't inside.
But we were homeless.
She had to push me
all the way to Helmond.
In your pram.
I remember, you told me.
Yes. Yeah.
I've
I've never told you this.
When I was 11
..my father contracted tuberculosis.
When I was 15, from all that he
endured because of the war,
you understand, he was committed to
a mental institution.
It took years for the government
to award a military pension.
So my mother had to do everything.
We had no money.
She always made sure we had food
and books and bicycles.
She said with a book and a bicycle,
you will always be free.
She always insisted - wherever
you want to go,
you must go.
We all talk a lot about freedom.
Don't we? But
..I don't think I ever really
understood it -
the sacrifice of it.
Not until now.
When I think of those
other mothers and
..of all the children that fucking
man has killed.
My dear, it's beautiful.
Charles, did Juliette
receive such a ring?
He told me all about Juliette.
And Madhu. He has?
Marie and I have no secrets.
Just as soon as we are settled here,
we'll have children of our own.
Many children.
Hm.
That is Madhu, yes?
May I?
Yes.
It's awful -
everything that happened
to your granddaughter.
A little girl taken from her father.
And to lose her mother so young.
Yes. It's a tragedy.
This isn't your father? No.
Stepfather.
To myself and my sister Nicole.
I have never heard you speak of him.
He did so much for Charles.
Well, he adopted my sister
..but never felt
he wanted to do the same for me.
Charles could be hard to love.
Surely no child is hard to love.
So how could you Stop it.
This was a bad idea.
We shouldn't have come.
Go. Wait for me outside.
Whatever you do, whatever he says,
don't think you can have a
normal life with him -
children, family.
I made the same mistake
with his father.
Wait for me outside.
Poor, dead Juliette.
Did you find Madhu?
Why do this, Charles?
You have got someone new.
A sweet girl you're about to fill
with more children.
Did you not find her?
Madame Voclain is sick, so it
seems. Mortally ill.
Juliette and the child
were in New York, but they
Juliette flew to her mother's side -
to say her farewell.
You ought to be careful, Charles.
You're almost 33 now.
Jesus Christ died when he was 33.
I'm smarter than Christ.
And I'll die an old man.
As I'm sure you're aware,
gentlemen,
the Thais are most
welcoming of foreign investment -
not least in these somewhat
brittle times.
I will task Mr Knippenberg here with
overseeing the matter personally.
Nature calls.
I cannot speak highly
enough of the steamed bass.
Mr Van Dongen. Mr Stanton.
The Bangkok Post.
You might remember
we spoke at your garden party?
I am not sure.
Let me jog your memory.
I don't read Thai.
So, er, Mr Knippenberg,
can I ask you about the sites?
Which do you think?
Oh, yes, of course. My apologies.
There's a killer out
there, Mr Van Dongen.
You enjoy your lunch.
You can keep that.
Pardon me,
will you excuse me for a second?
"A gang of narcotic traders were
under arrest in Singapore
"charged with murdering
a young Dutch couple
"who were believed to be burned
and also killed.
"The couple were identified as
Walter Dahm and Lola Deberg.
Who? Those names are
This is complete garbage!
"Further reports said that previous
to their death, the couple
"came from Hong Kong to stay for one
night at the apartment of
"a Dutchman called Ngoti."
Sir, the Thai Issara is
I'm not sure in English.
What, a rag? Yes, that.
People read it, though.
They need to hear the truth.
They need to know the facts.
Not this garbage.
Lawana, get me Graeme Stanton
on the telephone.
I'll take it in my office.
Mr Stanton, sir?
The editor of the Bangkok Post.
Mr Stanton, every fact
in there is wrong.
Well, of course they're wrong -
they didn't any of this.
She was one of ours.
They didn't even give her a name.
Her name was Stephane Parry.
She was murdered by this
bastard Gautier.
I know that much,
but I can't prove it.
It's quite a risk, Mr Knippenberg.
Thank you. A fellow in your position
coming hugger-mugger
to a fellow in mine.
Mr Stanton, as
long as Gautier is out there
in the world, people
are in danger.
People will die.
What is my risk next to that?
What is your risk?
Newspaper stories
are curious things.
You never know which
ones are going to grip.
But, when they do,
they're like a virus.
Whatever brought you to this
position,
you're about to kick a sealed
door wide open.
The kind of door that tends to
swing back at you - and hard.
I'm done with knocking politely.
I was meant to meet him
at his hotel. But he only left this.
Have you seen him?
He has a lot of hair,
a moustache.
He's hard to forget.
My husband will not be long.
Are you going to stay here?
Oh, no.
We're going to live in Paris.
That's where I was born.
My daughter is there, actually.
With my mother.
Do you have children?
Not yet.
And you only have one? Hm.
Alain and I intend to have many.
Would you like more iced tea?
Yeah, thank you.
Alain, this is Stephane
and she's looking for her friend.
Vitali.
Who? A Turkish man.
He left me your card.
Yes. Yes, he came to a party here.
But he didn't stay long.
This is his necklace.
Why do you have it?
He never took it off.
It's OK.
He gave it to me as a gift.
Then where is he?
Be calm, huh?
Calm down.
Monique, bring her some
tea please.
Sit down.
Ajay is sorry for the necklace,
aren't you?
So very sorry.
Here, take it, if you like.
You can give it to him
when you find him.
He told us about you.
You and your beautiful little girl.
I want you to tell me
what you did
to the French woman
and the Turk who loved her.
I asked you in Karachi,
"Can you forget?"
And you told me you could.
You did, Marie.
Were you lying? No.
Charles
..if
..if I am to be a mother to
our child
..I must know.
Well, you were there.
Why do you need me to tell you?
Where did you take her?
Like I said,
the same place I took him -
the beach.
I left him there
and then I left her there.
And that was all?
This has to stop. Now.
Mr Knippenberg!
May I have a moment, please? Yes.
I am Lieutenant Colonel Suthimai.
Thai Interpol.
You have identification?
You seem suspicious, huh?
Ah, experience teaches.
You've been busy.
And, if you don't mind, I'd like to
inspect your materials.
Materials?
As I understand it from Mr Stanton,
you have quite an assortment.
Let me be clear, Mr Knippenberg -
it's not a request.
You knew?
And you didn't try to stop him?
Have you met Herman?
Besides, it might work.
People can hardly brush it
under the carpet now.
And then what? They catch him!
And it's all over?
Yes! Except that it won't be,
Angela.
Not ever.
The stink will follow
Herman his entire life,
which means it will follow you, too.
Every tennis club, every goddamn
party the pair of you ever go to,
men will point at him and say,
"Did you hear about
the mess he made in Bangkok?"
It's only a news story.
You wanted to shoot him, remember?
Don't you want the man caught, Paul?
Sure, I want him caught.
But there are 1,000 murderers -
little scumbags -
in ever city in the world.
You can't catch them all.
We might catch this one.
You might, Angela, you might.
But at what cost to you?
Monsieur Gautier. Monsieur Boeder.
My honour to meet you.
The first parcel of sapphires
I ever bought was in Kashmir -
the trip on which I met my wife.
Yes, but these are from Thailand.
Trust me, there is
nothing in comparison.
The sapphires are chunkier,
and the rubies - they are intense.
The certificates. Thank you.
I must confess, Monsieur,
when you walked in here, I was
..surprised.
A man of my colour, you mean,
in this business, in this country?
It would be unwise of you
to judge my goods
the way you judge me, Mr Boeder.
The certificates are in order.
There is, however, a matter on which
we'd appreciate some clarity.
You see, earlier today, a
contact in Singapore
had a newspaper story from Thailand
transcribed
and telexed for our attention.
Both of your names are mentioned
there as suspects -
Alain Gautier and Monique Leclerc,
sought by police.
I wondered if you might wish to
comment.
Lies. Totally false.
An old story spread by the Chinese
cartels in Hong Kong.
Hippies? Why would I murder
hippies - for their beads?
But if you wish to lose the
opportunity we offer
on the basis
of false slander 5,000 miles away,
then there's nothing we can do.
And I will take back the sample
I sent to you. Please.
Her father,
who knew his stones, used to say,
"I would rather swallow a chopstick
than trust a Chinaman."
The fair market value, as agreed.
Why don't you keep this,
mademoiselle?
So you know just what
people are saying about you.
How can I forget
if the world will not?
It's just the Bangkok Post -
a rag from the other
side of the world.
Even in Thailand,
they use it to clean the windows.
What do you think your mother meant
about you being hard to love?
You didn't leave them at the
beach
..did you?
I told you we'd show you where
Vitali came.
And, see - here we are.
Because you believe you love him
Please. ..you want to know what
happened to him? Please.
Well, I shall tell you.
We bound him, drove him in this
very car
to a paddy field near here.
For a while, Ajay and I beat on him.
Then I put a rag in his mouth
to stop him screaming
and took a razor to his long hair
and
..peeled it from him.
Let me go.
Then we poured gasoline on him
and set him on fire.
Please.
Ajay, take the beads back
and, when we're done with her,
we'll go to Pattaya.
I'm hungry.
Let me go!
Your work here is extraordinary.
Those are the ones we could
identify.
This Frenchwoman has been
missing for months.
Her family couldn't make the French
authorities take action.
Nadine and Remi - our friends -
they tried to make the Embassy
here listen, but
She was involved with this guy.
His name was Vitali Hakim.
They were lovers.
He was a drug trafficker.
Miss Parry's child was
left behind in Paris.
I was present at the morgue
when her body was identified.
Nobody knows how she died.
Your work here changes that.
Stephane Parry's mother has had him
searching for her for months.
His case was our case, too.
Please talk to him.
He is Interpol. It's different.
Nobody wants to forget about
the whole thing more than I do.
But this man,
he stood before that
..that awful table
..and I finally believed that
the whole thing might be over.
My God, is that Monique's dog?
It's her. That must be Suda.
And Frankie.
Madame Gires.
Inspector. Hi. I am sorry,
Mr Knippenberg.
Of course, Colonel.
No problem.
Please.
Thank you for coming here today.
This way.
Have a seat, please.
This is Charles's half-brother, Guy.
It could be the same person.
They could. They have been.
Guy is still in a Greek prison
after Charles seduced him
to take part in a robbery -
a very violent robbery.
Then why isn't Charles with him?
Charles was already
a wanted man in Athens.
So he proposed with Guy that the
two of them should swap identities.
Charles got away.
And his brother was tortured
when the guards found out.
That's why you came here.
Correct?
To find out what he does to the
people who are closest to him.
If this is true, how could you even
have him in your home?
He is the son I had by the man
I loved more than any other.
I see Charles,
and I am with his father again.
To live in love is to live in God.
A priest told me that in Pakistan.
Then he never met Charles or
Charles' father.
Loving such men is a curse.
For them, love is only a thing that
other people feel.
They watch
and learn expertly how to mimic it.
But it is only ever confection.
And Madhu?
He loved that child and he suffered.
She took her away from him.
The child is better off.
Better off? Her mother is dead.
You do not hear a thing I say,
do you?
Are you stupid?
He lies. Charles lies - always.
Let me tell you about
Juliette Voclain.
Your daughter's remains will be
repatriated tomorrow night, madam.
Thank you, Colonel. You're welcome.
What is the name of the Dutchman,
the diplomat?
I hope you will
pass on my thanks as well.
His name is Knippenberg. Goodbye,
Madame Parry.
She's my son's lover.
Is this your son - Alain Gautier?
Yes. That is my son.
But his name is not Gautier.
His name is Sobhraj.
Charles Sobhraj.
Well, you always wanted to
be on the cover of a magazine.
You're a liar! It's not my lies
that they're now hunting us for.
Juliette.
Have you been to see my mother
behind my back?
I was going to have your baby.
We have located two more bodies.
The police had buried them.
We exhumed them this morning.
They have identified
the remains of Vitali Hakim.
And this is Teresa Knowlton
..the young woman that
Gilbert Redland was looking for.
I remember her.
She came to a party,
but she left with Alain and Ajay.
This is an international
arrest warrant.
It will go to every law enforcement
agency in the world,
which means the whole world will
now hunt him down.
Then stay.
But when you're arrested,
they won't be sending you
back to Quebec.
They will be sending you back
to Bangkok,
where they have the death penalty.
Do you understand?
You are a killer too, Marie.
And the Thais will execute you.
If you had your time again, Herman,
knowing from the start
what you know now
..would you let me shoot him?
That's a good question, Herman.
Well?
No.
Then perhaps you have a career
in the diplomatic service after all.
But for all those
urgently seeking
to put the murderous conman and
thief behind bars,
the question still remains -
when and where will Sobhraj's
rampage across the world end?