Episode 2 Amber

AMBER: # I really have to go La, la, la, la... #

Amber?

It's the final piece of my grand design.

That is really something!

If you give me a spare key to your apartment,

I could be like your...elf.

Amber, if you're watching...

..please come home.

This programme contains strong language

THUNDER RUMBLES

ENGINE STARTS

DOOR BUZZER

Hi, Sarah, come on up.

Ooh!

"Eamon has not only lost his big sister,

"but a mother and a father who have thrown themselves

"into their own individual searches for their daughter,

"which may yet prove to be fruitless."

That's quite an angle, Maeve.

How could you write such a thing?

Sarah, I'm sorry. I had no say in the headline.

Are you trying to blame someone else now?

It's your name right there!

-I...I tried to be honest.

-Honest!

My search will not be fruitless.

And I will not stop until I find my daughter.

Sarah, I'm not trying to stop you.

That bitch of an editor screwed me on this!

The quotes they used are completely out of context.

-Are you all right?

-That fucking headline!

Look, what did you expect? Sensitivity?

Do you think she saw me?

How can that make this any worse?

All this sneaking around behind their backs.

You know, we should have just told them about us from the get-go.

Well...now is not the time, that's for sure.

Well, O'Donoghue? What's happening?

I don't know, Larry, you tell me.

Were you listening to the radio this morning?

People are talking about Amber again.

-This is good for the Baileys.

-Sarah doesn't see it that way.

Well, you had her cooperation with the story, didn't you?

-Only in so many words. And, er...you cut most of them.

-No.

You know what we do and how we do it.

We can waste time arguing about the past

or we can start talking about your future.

I assume you still need work?

What sort of work?

I'm thinking of running a special supplement.

Ireland's Missing Persons.

Amber Bailey should be the main focus.

Run through the possibilities of what happened to her.

I don't know. Sarah's not going to speak to me again.

You've been her closest friend all these months since this started.

Surely you've made other contacts?

Relatives, friends, the cops. Talk to some of them.

I'll need an outline by the weekend.

Oh! Sorry! Could you hold the door for me?

Thank you.

Thanks.

Oh, hi! Gemma.

I don't know if you remember me. My name is Maeve Flynn-Dunne.

I know who you are.

Er, can I come in?

I don't think so.

I just have a couple of questions. Is Charlie at home?

Charlie doesn't live here any more.

Oh.

Do you know where I could find him?

Are you for real?

Look, I'm here because the Baileys need your help.

They already had enough help from us.

DOOR SLAMS SHUT

PHONE RINGS

-'Hello?'

-Hi, Darina, it's Maeve.

PHONE CUTS OUT

PHONE RINGS

Hello?

-'Is this Maeve Flynn-Dunne?'

-Who is this?

'You don't know me. I can't talk for long.

'Just listen.'

CAR HORN HONKS

Got to go.

Hiya.

-How was school?

-Fine.

What's that on your shirt?

Is that blood?

Darren Kelly was going on about my picture in the paper.

Kept talking about Amber.

Wouldn't shut up.

So you hit him?

-Mum will go mad.

-Ah, don't worry about it.

We'll get you a new shirt before you go back. OK?

This happened before.

-She didn't tell you?

-No.

When?

Ages ago.

Who won?

What?

You or the other fella?

I kicked him in the nuts.

Good man.

Hi! Nana's upstairs. Go and say hello.

Was he OK?

Fine, yeah. He did his homework in my place.

I helped him with it.

-Can I have a word?

-Yeah, come on up.

Hi, Trish.

Hi, Jenny.

Have you thought about what we discussed?

If it's about the apartment, I think we should just sit tight

till we get the right offer.

You wanted a house, Sarah!

And you were right. Eamon needs to play on the streets with his mates.

Well, what if Amber comes back?

You know, I mean the place would be full of strangers.

If Amber comes back, we'll both know about it,

whether you're in this place or not.

I don't like you isolated out here.

I'm hardly isolated, Ben.

They're not here all the time, are they?

Please consider it...

for Eamon.

-OK.

-Yeah?

Mm-hm.

OK.

He didn't even offer to help.

Mum, Ben needs to take a step back for a bit.

I don't want him lashing out at any one again.

Yes!

A 1,000 euro donation from Dempsey's.

I hate to say it, Sarah, but your friend's story has helped.

He says he has info relating to Amber.

This guy called you from inside Mountjoy?

He wants me to pose as a girlfriend or relative

-so I can get in and see him.

-Oh! He's lonely, is he?

Are you interested in this?

If he's full of it, I suppose you could spin a story

about prison security - what a joke it is.

Could I get an advance on this?

You know it's interesting but it has a more than

a faint whiff of bullshit about it.

Have you made contact with the family again?

I think I prefer the personal angle.

No, this is what you're looking for.

Maybe a new theory on what happened to Amber.

Well, any number of people can come up with that!

If you can't use your relationship with Sarah Bailey,

what use are you to us? Two specials.

Well, this guy could point things in a new direction

and then maybe I could approach Sarah.

All right, go and see him.

If something comes of it, we'll talk money then.

DOOR OPENS

Hi, I'm Terrence.

Glad you could make it.

You don't look like your picture in the paper.

It's not often I get calls from prison, Terrence.

The papers say you are a good friend of the girl's parents.

You've been in their home.

Amber was very proud of her new room, wasn't she?

The undersea garden.

She decorated it herself, you know.

Her own magical world.

Very creative.

Clever girl.

Oh, by the way...

(..not a word about this conversation to anyone else, OK?

(Otherwise, it will be our last.)

Why should I believe anything you say?

Well...

you're a journalist.

Do some research, check my facts.

How would I know about Amber's room?

Where the little mermaid lives.

Do they show you cartoons in here, Terrence?

Daughters of the air.

Daughters of the air? What does that mean?

You can't expect me to do all the work now, can you?

I know.

Why don't you go and look?

And then you'll find out if I know anything or not.

-Jenny?

-Maeve.

-Hi. How are you?

-Good.

I just wanted to ask you something about Amber, if that's OK?

-Well, I'm on my way to school.

-It won't take long.

Do you know anything about the collection of mermaids

-Amber has in her bedroom?

-Little Mermaids?

-Mm-hm.

She got them on some holiday in Copenhagen.

Did you know she painted something about that on her bedroom wall?

-It's great, isn't it?

-Yeah.

What's this - "daughters of the air"?

-I helped Amber paint that.

-Yeah?

What does it mean?

Just something Amber liked in a story.

Mermaids are born without souls

and they earn them by the good deeds they do,

then come out of the water and become daughters of the air.

What did you and Amber do to become daughters of the air?

Nothing. It was just a theme for a mural.

She's always coming up with mad things like that.

-Did you tell anyone about this? The Guards or anyone?

-No.

Why? I didn't think it was important.

Well, I'm going to be late.

-Gotta go.

-OK so, Jenny. Thanks.

You think I took her, don't you?

You think I took her and she told me about it.

What am I supposed to think?

Did you know Poland passed a law introducing chemical castration

as a punishment for convicted paedophiles?

Probably fair, I think.

What's your connection to Amber?

If you want to know more, I'm afraid it's going to cost you.

And if you go to the Guards, or anyone else without my say-so,

well, then, no-one will ever know what I know.

So this is about money?

Ten grand.

You get nothing else until half that amount is in this account. OK?

Ten grand?

You must be joking.

No joke.

How do I know this isn't a con?

Well, you don't.

But I haven't let you down yet, have I, now, Maeve?

How much does he want?

Ten grand.

Ho ho! You're being had, Maeve.

Ben gets calls from conmen like this every other day.

You should report him to the cops.

Declan, you know at this point I need more of a carrot.

-Not a stick!

-If I did have money, and I don't,

I wouldn't be blowing it on smoke. That's all this guy is offering.

-No...he's...

-If you really think that there's something in it,

then you should come back to the office with me

and tell Ben about all this.

I will. Just not yet.

Not until I know this is something real.

You started remedial reading?

The ol' mash. You want to watch that.

I'd stick to the ol' bread and water, me.

Why, what's wrong with the mash?

Wardens putting something in it.

Stops you getting a hard-on.

Unusually upbeat today, aren't ya?

Is there something I should know about?

Ah, now!

I thought we had no secrets.

Come on, let's go.

-Enough of the chit-chat.

-You reckon it's funny, yeah?

Scoff that up, then. See if you can get it up later.

Would you not go back to doing some of this stuff?

I'm almost 40, Declan.

I don't want to be writing about some model's struggle with anorexia

or the latest nightclub opening for the rest of my life.

Have you established any link between this guy and Amber?

Well, he used to work pretty near to where we think Amber went missing.

So you think he's credible?

-Then you need to bring it to Ben.

-I need more.

-I have his former address.

-Maeve...

Listen, you know Ben better than anyone - he'll barge in

like a bull, O'Donoghue will clam up and that'll be that.

I suppose.

And what if it is all just bullshit?

Then he'd rather deal with that than be kept in the dark.

Is this how you want him to find out about us?

How do you think he's going to react when he finds out

that we got together

a couple of weeks after his daughter went missing?

He'll get over it.

Just let me get a little bit further with this, OK?

You should stay away from O'Donoghue.

Do you know I haven't seen Amber since her christening?

I'm her godmother.

It's pathetic.

So you want to pay some conman to feel better about yourself?

If this guy knows something real about Amber's disappearance,

it's worth any price.

I can't argue with the service. It's the price that worries me.

Bernard, we know who you had working this for you before.

You pay that money, you get those results.

I'm sorry, can you excuse me for a minute?

-Ben!

-I'll be back.

-Is he all right?

-Yeah, he's fine.

Look, what we're proposing here is an entirely different scenario.

We'll have our best men in there. Guys with years of experience...

'Six months after Amber disappeared, it can't be getting any easier?

'No, it doesn't get any easier.

'But it just becomes part of normal life, I suppose.

'I look back at the last few months and I see the different stages I went through.

'You know - shock, denial, depression.'

But you have to pull yourself out of that.

'My daughter Amber is missing. Myself and Ben are doing everything that we can to find her.'

Oh, hi, I'm from the Find Amber campaign

and I'm just giving these leaflets around, just trying to jog people's memories.

That's terrible that she's still missing.

But all I know is from the news and the papers.

Well, listen, thanks a million for having a look.

Oh... I'm sorry to trouble you but I have been running around Wicklow all morning,

haven't had a moment to stop. Is there any chance I could use your loo?

-Now...

-Ah, you're very good. You didn't have to.

I was making it anyway, and it sounded like you needed a break.

Who's the handsome lad?

Handsome?

My son was no looker.

Was?

He's...dead now.

A fair while.

But he lived with you here before he passed?

I don't want to talk about him.

Terrence told you something, didn't he?

You know something about Amber.

How do you know my son's name?

What did he tell you?

Drunk-driving is the least of his crimes, isn't it?

I want you to leave.

OK.

But do you know where he was when Amber vanished?

My son had nothing to do with that girl.

How could he?

Now get out of my house!

DOOR OPENS

DOOR CLOSES

June 20th.

O'Donoghue in custody.

Six days later Amber disappears.

So I'm thinking, why not pitch them as a company we can outsource to

if we can reduce their costs?

They want someone to train bodyguards?

No, they want somebody to train their executives

so they don't behave like complete idiots overseas.

Crash courses in how not to get kidnapped.

Do we know anyone in there?

-PHONE RINGS

-Oh, sorry. Just give me a sec.

Hey.

'You're not going to believe this.

'My guy was in custody the day Amber disappeared.

'I'm a complete idiot.'

-Do you want me to come over?

-'Yes, please.'

(Right.)

-Who was that?

-Oh just...someone I've been seeing.

Oh, yeah? What's his name?

I'll tell you about her over a pint some day.

Oh, this sounds serious.

No, it's...

-Listen, I'd better be going. Can we continue this in the morning?

-Yeah.

-So how long's it been going on?

-What?

Well, when am I going to get to meet this someone?

Er...soon.

Are you afraid I might steal her away from you?

Not this one.

Don't go back to him again. Let the Guards know what he told you,

then learn your lesson and move on.

Five grand of savings? Feckin' expensive lesson.

You made a mistake, lost a bit of cash. You'll earn it back on something else.

You know, Terrence is making money out of Amber and I'm doing the same thing.

I know you're trying to do something good for Ben and Sarah

but it's just not happening this way, I'm sorry.

Come on, we're already late.

Been a while.

I was starting to think that you'd forgotten about me.

You were in custody on other charges when Amber disappeared.

You see, I told you.

I'm not Amber's bogeyman.

Then what's your connection to her?

Is there even one?

Or are you just some fantasist who's conned me out of five grand?

We agreed ten, actually. We're only halfway there.

This isn't even your first time in prison, is it?

You've done worse than driving offences at some point, right?

Enough for your own mother to act like you're dead!

Oh, dear me.

You met my mother.

I've got something better for you.

Front page guaranteed.

Worth the extra few grand, I think you'll agree.

Oh, yeah?

I know where Amber is.

I can give you the exact location.

What's that to you guys and your organisation?

-I mean, he can pinpoint the exact location. That's what he said. The exact location...

-No.

No, Maeve. Absolutely not!

My budget is tight enough. I'm not sinking any more money into this.

I do have something for you. Tara's away and I need someone to cover one of her stories.

What? The fluffy, girlie beat?

You want me to give it to someone else?

-No problem.

-Nope. Give it to me.

Good girl.

Hi. Is he here?

So what do you think this collection says about the modern Irish woman?

Well, this collection's going to bring the modern Irish woman

from day to night with easy transformations.

So we've got nice earthy tones that can be jazzed up

with heavy embellishment.

We've got big button details working with leggings and lace.

It's going to transform amazingly.

That's great. Thanks a million.

-You got a busy week this week?

-Yeah. Playing golf.

-Ah! Very nice.

What are you doing here?

I'm here to see Ben.

-You're doing this now?

-Yeah.

Ben. Two minutes? Please.

You need to hear this.

I'm doing my own investigations and I've got a few ideas.

Great. The cavalry have arrived.

But there are some things I need to ask you.

I suppose Sarah knows you're here?

I'm going to find Amber.

Go back to the gossip pages, Maeve.

You haven't really given up.

You still need to know, don't you?

And if you have something to tell me, say it.

The week she disappeared...

..Amber decorated her room.

Daughters of the air?

I was contacted by someone who claims to know what happened to Amber.

He was able to tell me these details about her room.

And he says he knows where she is.

He wants money.

Finally, she says it. Money!

Ben, I wouldn't come to you if I wasn't sure about this.

-You're the same as the rest of those vultures!

-For God's sake, Ben, let her go!

Ben, this is real!

I promise you. I put my own money into this!

You're not getting anything out of me!

Just let me talk to him, OK?

So, how much do you think?

-Declan.

-'You OK?'

Well, you're a real rock of support(!)

I'm sorry. If you told me you were coming in, I could've...

Look, I...I'm after selling my dead mother's ring to make up the cash

for this guy. Do you think that'll prove to Ben I'm not full of shit?

Maeve, I told Ben about us.

OK. Interesting timing.

I told him...I think he should believe you.

And did he?

I'm on the shit list now, too.

Great(!)

Great(!)

MUFFLED BUZZING

It's Amber.

I need you to come with me, I'll explain on the way.

Ben was right. I know you hated the piece, but it worked.

You keep the story alive, you never know who'll come forward.

I want to talk to you.

-Hi, Sarah. Come with me.

-Take a seat, I'll come back down to you.

We should've known about this as soon as O'Donoghue made contact with you.

If I did that, he would've closed up immediately. Wouldn't have got nearly this far along.

More like you needed to be this involved in the drama, amp it up for your story.

-That's not true. I was thinking only of Sarah and Amber.

-Of course you were(!)

Thank you.

The next few weeks we're going to cover attack recognition,

surveillance detection, defensive driving...

-PHONE RINGS

-Some personal protective measures.

-Sorry.

Sarah?

What is it?

What's up, Ben? Where are you going?

PHONE RINGS

'We're not available at the moment but leave a message and we'll get back to you.'

VOICEMAIL TONE

Hello.

My name is Terrence O'Donoghue.

You don't know me.

I'm the pers...

I know I can never make up for what I did.

What happened was an accident.

I've set up a bank transfer for you and your husband.

Some money...

(I'm sorry...)

Fuck.

Oh, come on!

CAR HORN BLARES

There was nothing in the news reports about Amber's room,

so people who knew about the decoration must've been

in the home or have spoken to Amber.

And the line from the story, not even the parents knew about that.

How could O'Donoghue get this detail?

My take on the situation is that you've been deliberately withholding information.

Now, if this convoluted mess bears any fruit,

you could be arrested.

You could wind up in prison.

O'Donoghue is going to text me Amber's exact location at 7pm.

If he has any inkling that I've told you about him he won't ever tell.

That's less than half an hour.

TEXT MESSAGE ALERT

Sarah. Sorry for the delay...

Is it her? Oh, God! Is it her?

-We have no further information.

-Tell me what's going on!

-Please, Karen!

-Sarah, the best thing for you to do is take Eamon home.

No, I am not, I am not going home! I've been sitting here for hours. I want to know...

-Ben!

-What's going on?

-Ben, we've been trying to contact you.

They've got a location on where Amber might be and they won't let us go with them.

Ben, please. Take Sarah and Eamon home. I promise you, we will be

-in contact as soon as we have any further information.

-What's the location?

I can't tell you that for now.

THUNDER RUMBLES

ENGINE STARTS

Shit.

This is ridiculous!

Excuse me, is this the way back to the main road?

I'm not sure. I hope so.

Have you there in no time.

Ah, it's OK. I'm in no rush. Thanks a mill.

The sooner you get home, the sooner you can get out of those wet clothes, the better, I'd say.

Get yourself a nice cup of tea.

-Windy roads, eh?

-Look, it's not far. I can literally just get out here.

Watch. Watch it!

Ah, bollocks!

-Keep your hands off me!

-Ben?

Ben, please. Let us do our job.

As soon as we can confirm anything, you'll know.

How old was the Bailey girl?

14.

She's been in the ground about two years

and the skeleton would indicate a young woman in her early 20s.

So it's definitely not Amber Bailey.

You better tell her.

(Sarah...)

Do you know Amber Bailey?

Nope.

Have you ever seen this face before?

No, I haven't.

Have you ever heard anybody mention Amber Bailey's name?

No.

Erm, no, never seen her before.

Someone in here was boasting about their connection to this girl.

Not fucking me.

I think the Polish had it right when they brought in that law.

Chemical castrations for nonces.

It's what's good enough for them.

-TV:

-'Did you think Terrence O'Donoghue had anything to do with Amber Bailey's disappearance?

'He left a letter.

'In it he claims to have overheard a prisoner speaking about Amber.

-'O'Donoghue never gave you any indication as to who this prisoner was?

-No.

'The Gardai have begun to interview prisoners and ex-prisoners

'but there have been no new leads.'

Are you OK, Mum?

I think it's time you took Amber's room.

Why?

We can do it up the way you want to.

What will Amber say if she comes back?

Come here.

Amber's been gone a very long time.

There's a chance she's not coming back.

You realise that, don't you?

What will we do with all her things?

Erm...

We'll pack them up...

..put them somewhere safe.

Good. Because if she does come back...

..she'd be really mad if we didn't keep her stuff.

(Yeah.

(Yeah, she would.)

MESSAGE ALERT

-Hey.

-Hey.

-It's over here if you want to take a look.

-OK...