The Little Brother New Tricks

# It's all right It's OK

# Doesn't really matter if you're old and grey

# It's all right I say it's OK

# Listen to what I say

# It's all right, doing fine

# Doesn't really matter if the sun don't shine

# It's all right I say it's OK

# We're gettin' to the end of the day. #

'I think I'll be all right with this, you know...

if this is the way it has to be.

I'll be able to see a bit more of Mark...

and the baby, of course...

Go on, in your basket.

..when he or she comes along.

I'll be able to hold my head up high knowing I've done the right thing...

like whatshisname.

Serpico.

Oh. I didn't know we had company.

-Hello.

-Hello.

Brian, this is Margaret Kirby, from my book group.

The Raymond Chandler thing?

The Little Sister.

Have you read it, Mr Lane?

No.

Margaret wants your help.

What kind of help?

She joined the book group just a few weeks ago...

There was a sign up in the library.

..but we had our first proper talk last night, in the coffee break.

I can't drink caffeine beyond mid-afternoon.

I have a restless leg.

Margaret's looking for her brother.

-Ah.

-He went missing, six years ago.

Are the police aware?

We've never kept in touch, really.

I thought - that is to say, I'd heard -

that he'd gone to live in New Zealand.

I tried to contact him a few months ago and I can't find him.

I employed someone...

A private detective.

He couldn't find any trace of Peter in New Zealand.

Why did you try to contact him?

-I'm sorry?

-You said you weren't in touch.

Our parents are dead and Peter didn't have any children.

My son... I've just got the one boy...

He and his wife had a little girl six months ago.

She's a new member of a very small family

and I thought Peter might like to meet her,

or at least that he'd like to know...

The police could help you with this, you know.

She doesn't want to go to the police.

My...

My brother's name is...

Peter Sale.

The Florence Epstein murder?

It's an unsolved case, Brian.

-That's your department.

-Was.

My brother was a witness because he was Florence Epstein's accountant.

But he was never charged with anything.

I don't know if you realise, Margaret, or if Esther's told you...

I know you're not a policeman any more.

If you were, Mr Lane, I certainly wouldn't presume

to ask you to shift your focus from chasing criminals...

Lots of retired policemen take on private cases.

And I'm sure we could come to an arrangement about fees.

No, no, no, no, no. We wouldn't dream of taking your money.

No, this is about keeping those cogs turning, isn't it, Brian?

-Exercising your muscles.

-I'm fine, Esther.

You are today.

What about tomorrow, or the next day, next week,

when you're telling me that you can't switch your brain off?

Well, this is something for your brain to do.

I can't promise to find your brother.

But you'll try?

All right, yes. I'll try.

Well, here we go, Esther.

Working without the safety net of the Metropolitan Police.

Just my mind versus the problem at hand.

That's nice!

Like Sherlock or that fella in your book...

Mr Darcy?

Darcy? No! Marlowe!

Phillip Marlowe. DOORBELL RINGS

I'll get it.

-Brian Lane?

-Yes, hello.

-Maxine Wilson, Mr Lane.

-I'm the deputy editor on the crime...

-A reporter?

-Well, Deputy Editor, but yes.

-I'm afraid I can't talk about any...

No, no, I understand.

This isn't about the circumstances of your dismissal from UCOS.

I actually wanted to talk to you about a case you investigated

back in 1988.

The Derek Spencer murder?

We've received some information that calls into question

your handling of the evidence on that case.

-I wonder if I might come inside...

-No, you may not.

There's also the question of your drinking problem, Mr Lane,

and how that might have affected the investigation

of a number of cases...

-KNOCKS ON DOOR

-Mr Lane!

An anonymous call?

Yeah, just after four this morning, according to the note.

And who is this Larry Gofton?

A small-time con man. Quite clever, quite successful.

-Hasn't been heard from in years.

-Related to a UCOS case?

Nothing ongoing, no, but according to the system

his name is connected to several unsolved cases.

-So he might be able to clear some up?

-If he wants to talk.

And if whoever called in was correct about his whereabouts.

They said he's now calling himself Archer. Laurence Archer.

It's worth checking out. Anything else?

And I don't want to talk about Brian Lane.

That's unfortunate, because I do. Look, what Brian did was...

SHOUTING

Dirty tricks, is what this is!

Not enough that you get rid of me from UCOS -

you've got to go and ruin my reputation now.

-What are you talking about, Brian?

-This has nothing to do with you, Sandra.

Nothing to do with me either, Brian, I don't know what you're talking about.

-Did you let him come down here?

-Couldn't stop him, Guv,

and, anyway, I think you should hear what he's got to say.

There's a journalist outside my house.

-At my front door.

-What does he want?

-He's a she. And ask him!

-I don't know, Brian.

-Asking questions about the Spencer case.

-What's the Spencer case?

-Ancient history, is what it is.

-And it was all above board.

-There were some questions at the time...

Questions which I answered, and they're in the file...

and the evidence on that case

was as solid as anything I've ever worked on.

It absolutely was, Brian.

Then why's this journalist got hold of it,

and why is she on my front step trying to get me to talk?

-I don't know.

-Well, it's got to be Embleton's mates -

feeding stuff to the press so he looks like an unreliable witness.

No, no. Hang on, Gerry, we don't know that.

That's almost certainly correct.

They're going to try to make you look incompetent, dishonest and drunk, Brian.

Well, we can do something about that, can't we?

No, we can't.

Thank you very much(!)

-Surely you can make some calls, Sir?

-To whom?

No-one is going to admit to being behind this.

And it's certainly not in our interest to get involved.

Once they've finished painting Brian as a disgrace to the police force,

they're going to tell the story about how he was forced to retire

and then they're going to shine the spotlight

on the people who brought him out of retirement

and put him back on the police payroll again.

Your actions, Brian,

have brought an awful lot of trouble to OUR door too.

Jonathan Epstein? I'm Brian Lane.

From the Unsolved Crime and Open Cases Squad.

Yes.

You're reopening my case? Is that what this is?

No... Not exactly.

I shouldn't be in here.

Well, you did lock your wife in the basement

and then torture her until she gave up the passwords to her bank account

and then cave her head in with a hammer.

Yeah, but now that Florence has passed on,

I'm not likely to re-offend again, am I?

I suppose nobody wants to take that chance.

Three women write to me in here.

They all want to marry me.

How will you choose one?

Ah, I see.

What do you see?

You're still holding a torch for Annabel Skinner.

You had an affair with this woman...

It was much more than an affair. We were...

So, where is she?

All right, you had...whatever you might call it with this woman.

Your wife's got all this money in her own account,

which you won't see a penny of if you leave her.

So, you and Annabel Skinner lock Florence up and torture her

to get your hands on that money.

And then you kill Florence.

But what happened to the money, Mr Epstein?

It left Florence's account and then it disappeared.

Just like Annabel Skinner.

Who do you think called the police?

She wasn't there when the police arrived, was she?

Did you ever hear from her again?

If you're not here to help me, what do you want, Mr Lane?

I'm looking for Peter Sale.

-Why?

-He's gone missing.

Do you think he's got my money?

-It never was your money.

-You know what I mean.

I think Annabel Skinner's got your money.

Then why are you looking for Peter?

Because his sister asked me to.

I barely knew him.

He was your wife's accountant.

According to the case file, you introduced them.

He was a patient of mine.

He had ankylosing spondyloarthritis -

a genetic disorder which affects the strength of the bones

AND can cause a lot of dental problems.

I carried out two root canals and some bridgework.

Ooh...

Squeamish?

A bit.

You should still go for your regular check-ups, though.

Once they're gone, they're gone.

I wish they'd let me practise in here.

I don't think much of the regular chap. And I miss it.

Did Peter Sale come in off the street?

No, he was referred.

Can you remember who...?

Laurence Archer. Two crowns and some composite fillings.

How long ago was this?

Seven years.

Peter Sale had a toothache, Laurence Archer recommended me.

I performed the root canals and then he came back for the bridgework

and that's when we started talking about Florence's accounts.

So how did Sale and Archer know each other?

-They played golf together.

-What, and they were close, were they?

How would I know? Ask Laurence.

I will, if you've got an address for him?

No.

But I know which golf club he plays at.

DOOR BUZZES

Hello? Mr Archer?

Anyone there?

OBJECT WHACKS HEAD

Brian. Brian!

-Come on, mate.

-Is he OK?

I think he will be.

Don't worry, mate, we're still here.

-There was a book.

-What book?

I'm fine.

You've had a nasty bump to the head, sir, for a man your age.

-You should be sitting down.

-I'm fine!

-Sorry, sir.

-I'm with them.

Then one of them needs to come and get you, sir.

Sandra.

-He says I need authorisation.

-He's right, and you don't have it.

-I just want to...

-How's your head?

It hurts.

OK, they're going to get you X-rayed

and then we're going to have a chat back at UCOS.

Fine, I could do with a nice cup of tea.

Not that kind of chat, Brian.

What were you doing at Laurence Archer's?

Are you not going to turn that on?

Are you sure you don't want to make this official?

We don't think you killed him, Brian.

Oh, are you sure(?) I seem to be guilty of everything else.

Grow up, Brian.

This is still an active murder case, anyway.

Shouldn't I be talking to a Murder Investigation Team?

That's where you're going straight after this.

Listen, mate. We got to that address five minutes after you.

It came up on one of our cases. We are still involved.

What case? So who were you looking for?

We need to be asking the questions here, Brian.

I was looking for a man named Peter Sale.

I was led to believe that Laurence Archer was an old friend of his

and might know where to find him.

Why are you looking for Peter Sale?

Cos he's gone missing.

His sister asked me to help try and find him, as a favour.

Who gave you Laurence Archer's name in connection with this?

Jonathan Epstein. I went to see him in prison this morning.

-Who?

-Jonathan Epstein. Do you not remember him?

Murdered his wife, Florence, for her money.

But the money was taken by Epstein's girlfriend,

who called the police on him and did a runner.

Peter Sale was Florence's accountant.

I remembered him being interviewed at the time

and I thought it might be connected with that.

So Epstein put you onto Archer?

He told me that Archer and Sale played golf together,

so I went to the golf club and they gave me Archer's work address.

And he was dead when you got there?

Of course he was.

That wasn't Laurence Archer, Brian. There's no such person.

It was an alias. His real name's Gofton.

-What, Larry Gofton? The con man?

-The same.

We got an anonymous call during the night,

telling us that Gofton was now living as Laurence Archer.

Gofton was a key witness in several open cases, so we looked into it.

Imagine our surprise when we show up to find Gofton dead

and you spark out on the floor.

Well, we can check the prison records,

-see if Epstein made any calls this morning.

-Not your job, Brian!

I'm looking for Peter Sale.

Epstein told me Sale and Archer were friends.

I tracked Archer down to his place of work

but he was dead when I got there. Then somebody hit me over the head.

That's all I know.

-Can I go now?

-No, not yet.

When you came round, you were mumbling about some book.

I don't remember.

That'd be a first.

I don't remember.

Fine. Gerry, take Mr Lane up to the MIT, will you?

Mr Lane?

We have a lot to talk about, Mr Lane.

I can't go back to my boss empty-handed.

-I'm not talking to you.

-I'm not stupid, Mr Lane.

I know my information is coming from someone high up

and it's pretty obvious they're trying to use me to discredit you.

Why don't you give me your side of the story?

My side of the story, you say?

That's all I'm after. I'm sure there's a simple explanation for...

All right.

Here's my side of the story...

You're a muck-raker,

working for a bunch of scumbags and I'm not talking to you.

-I feel terrible about this.

-It's not your fault, Margaret.

It's Brian's fault

for wandering about in places where he's not meant to be,

and not being careful enough when he was doing it.

They sneaked up on me!

Well, you shouldn't be so easy to sneak up on, should you?

But I've got you in trouble with your old work.

No, that's a complicated situation.

I can't believe Peter would have got himself

mixed up in something dangerous.

You think this is connected to that awful Epstein business?

Well, it was Epstein who told me about Archer, but...

-Laurence Archer?

-Yes. Do you know him?

I didn't "know" him, no.

He was a business associate of Peter's.

I only met him once.

Quite charming, though.

Peter had a party, a Christmas thing,

and Laurence Archer was there with that awful Skinner woman.

-You met Annabel Skinner?

-I didn't take to her from the off.

Of course, I didn't know just how awful she would turn out to be.

She wore real fur, you know. Mink.

-I'm afraid I don't hold with that.

-No.

My brother knew these people,

but that doesn't mean he had anything to do with what happened.

No, no, it doesn't...

He was certainly never accused of anything.

And now he's disappeared...

Might there have been anyone else looking for him, do you think?

No.

Well, I can't imagine who. Why?

Nothing, just thinking.

Oh, Esther, I 'm so sorry for causing trouble.

You have to believe me, if I thought Peter was mixed up in any...

Nonsense, Margaret. Of course you didn't.

We understand, don't we, Brian?

Do you think my brother's in danger, Mr Lane?

Honestly, I wouldn't know.

Well, he's hidden himself pretty well, hasn't he?

If someone was looking for him...

YOU couldn't find him and you're his sister.

I should be on my way.

-I'll see you out.

-Thank you, Esther.

-Goodnight, Margaret.

-FRONT DOOR CLOSES

-Are you all right?

-HE GRUMBLES

Come to bed.

Laurence Archer never existed.

-What?

-It was an alias used by a con man called Larry Gofton.

But if Gofton was using that alias all those years ago,

and he was at a party with Annabel Skinner...

What if Gofton was working with Skinner all along?

What if the two of them planned to get hold of Florence's money

and let Jonathan Epstein take the fall?

Well, maybe Peter Sale was involved in that plan somehow.

He was her accountant, after all. He had access to all the...

Are you going to go on with this?

What about Sandra and the others? What are they going to say...

I don't work at UCOS any more.

It's not up to them how I spend my time.

There was a black leather notebook on the desk in Archer's office.

It had a number on it...

A phone number...

I remember everything, why can't I remember that number?

Maybe because somebody hit you over the head?

Come to bed.

It'll come back to you in the morning.

Well, I'm going to bed.

So, this bloke, who Brian's looking for, Peter Sale...

was the accountant of this dead woman.

-Florence Epstein, yeah.

-Who was killed by her husband Jonathan

with a hammer, so he could run off with another woman.

But that other woman nicks all the money and shops him to the cops.

Well, why haven't we got anything on her?

-Love, Gerry.

-Love?

This Jonathan Epstein's a complete fruitcake.

He falls for this Annabel Skinner woman so hard

that even though she rips him off and does a runner,

he wont so much as give a description of her to the police.

What, and he thinks he's going to come out

and they're going to live happily ever after, does he?

She's long gone. Why does love make such a mug of some people?

And how many times have you been married?

-Morning.

-Oh, yeah, Guv.

I've looked through the logs of that anonymous call, but it looks like

it was made from a pay-as-you-go phone, bought for cash.

The service provider confirms that it hasn't been switched on

since that call, so it looks like it was used once and then dumped.

And it's taken you two days to find that out?

We are a man down, sir.

In the absence of a lead on our anonymous caller,

you're meant to be compiling

background information on Gofton for MIT.

Well, I hadn't quite finished, sir.

There's no trace of Gofton, as we know,

but now we realise he's calling himself Laurence Archer

a different back-story emerges.

Have a look at that. Longbow Company.

High-class domestic cleaning -

hoovering and dusting rich people's houses.

-Gofton was running this as Archer?

-So it seems.

Bit of a comedown for him.

Actually, this might be a nice little earner.

Three years ago, a team out of West End Central

were investigating a series of high-profile burglaries,

and they noticed that a large proportion

of the houses that were burgled

were cleaned by Archer's company.

So he was using his people as scouts.

That's what they thought, but they couldn't prove it.

Brian, that journalist is still out there.

Good luck to her, she's getting nothing out of us.

It's harassment, surely?

How are you feeling today?

You made short work of these eggs, anyway.

-Hmm?

-Your head.

-What about it?

-How is it feeling?

Hmm...

Brian?

Yeah, go on, if you're putting the kettle on anyway, I'll have a cup.

Ta.

A serious head injury? Who would know(!)

Six, two, three...

zero, six, two, three!

Yes! Lane shoots, Lane scores!

Yay!

Oh, bloody hell.

Ow.

HE MUMBLES PHONE NUMBER

-VOICEMAIL:

-'This is Longbow Cleaning Company.

'Sorry nobody's here to take your call,

'but if you leave a message after the tone, we'll contact you...'

Mr Lane?

Well, that's that, then.

I can pull the company accounts, see who they were trading with

and follow that trail.

Companies House will have an address for Archer

and their registration details for this place and the design company.

Well, that's smashing, thanks very much.

It turns out this place closed nearly three years ago.

About the time West End Central were looking at it

-in connection with those burglaries.

-Exactly.

So, Archer shut up shop when it started getting too hot

-and moved on to pastures new.

-The design company?

Not directly, no.

The design company's only been open for four months.

I think it's worth checking whoever was working there at the time,

-when it closed, and see if they know what Archer went on to.

-Yeah.

CREAKING IN DISTANCE

Ah!

Silly old sod.

PHONE RINGS IN DISTANCE

RINGING GETS LOUDER

RINGING CONTINUES

RINGING CONTINUES

IN MUFFLED VOICE: Hello?

-STEVE:

-Hello? Is that the Longbow Cleaning Company?

Um... Yes...

Yeah, this is Steve McAndrew. I work for the Metropolitan Police's

Unsolved Crime and Open Cases squad.

We've just been round to your registered office

and it seemed to be deserted. Can I ask where you are right now?

Hello? Hello?

I know you're still there, I can hear you breathing.

What's going on?

Can we turn round and go back?

-Why, what is it?

-I'm sure there's somebody in that building,

-I think we should go back. Hello?

-HE HANGS UP

DOOR CREAKS OPEN

FOOTSTEPS APPROACH

-VOICE IN SLOW MOTION:

-Brian...

Esther?! What the bloody hell...?

Shush! Keep your voice down!

Why would someone be hiding in here?

And if they are hiding, why answer the phone?

-Is that Gerry?

-Sssshhh!

-Oh, it's Gerry and Sandra.

-Keep your voice down!

What?! Why are we hiding from them?

Shut up, Esther!

PHONE RINGS

Here's the phone that I rang.

Well, it doesn't look like there's anyone here now.

They must have got out when they realised we were coming back.

I think we need to take a serious look through this company's records

and get a search warrant for this place.

Well, if he's going to be trawling through company records,

I'm with you, Guv'nor.

OK, let's go and see Jonathan Epstein.

DOOR CLOSES

Now, what on earth is going on, Brian?

Why did you come here?

Because YOU were acting strangely, stranger than usual,

and the address for this place was on your computer.

I was looking for clues.

The phone number for this company

was on a notepad in that place where I got hit,

but there was only an answering machine when I rang,

so I thought I'd come here and see if there was anyone I could talk to.

Now, it sounded as though someone answered the phone to Steve.

No, that was me.

What?!

You... You've just broken into the place...

Why would you answer the phone?

Spur-of-the-moment thing.

It's a miracle you lasted so long as a detective.

Come on, let's get out of here.

-Did you find any "clues"?

-No.

Oh, hang on. What about this?

-What about what?

-This.

Could this be something?

"Ennis-McCrea. Building contractors."

What have they got to do with anything?

Ennis-McCrea...

There was a court case about six years ago.

It was an organised-crime thing.

Ennis-McCrea was a front company for organised crime.

What, concrete boots? Bodies buried in motorway bridges?

Does that still go on?

You'd be surprised.

What could it have to do with any of this?

-SANDRA:

-Tell us about Laurence Archer.

Two crowns and some composite fillings.

Well, that would be handy

if we needed his dental records to identify his body.

-His body?

-Yeah.

Someone strangled Laurence Archer.

Or Larry Gofton, as he's known on his long criminal record.

I'm just a dentist. He was a patient of mine.

He registered as Laurence Archer...

You sent a friend of ours to his office, yesterday.

He found the body and then...

somebody hit our friend over the head.

Is that what was supposed to happen?

I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.

So, it's just a coincidence, is it?

That you led Mr Lane to Laurence Archer on the day he died?

Mr Lane was looking for Peter Sale.

He asked me how I first met Sale

and I told him Laurence Archer introduced us.

That's as much as I know.

So, Sale knew Archer and...

now Archer's dead and Sale's missing.

I have no idea about either of those things.

Why would I possibly want Archer dead?

He was a good friend of mine.

When did you last have contact with either Sale or Archer?

I haven't heard from either of them since I was arrested.

Oh, very good friends, eh(!)

And your accomplice, Annabel Skinner?

The woman who grassed you up to the police

and then scarpered with all your wife's money.

Oh, please.

Don't tell me you still hold a torch for her.

-You wouldn't understand.

-Clearly not.

How did you meet?

Laurence introduced us. She was a friend of his.

Laurence Archer.

There really is one born every minute.

So, what do we think?

Archer, Sale and Skinner conspire together to get Florence's money

and then let Epstein take the rap for it.

Well, they picked the right bloke.

He was obviously more than happy to off his wife.

Yeah, but now Archer's dead and the other two are missing,

there's a decent chance that one is the murderer

and the other the next victim.

DOORBELL RINGS

We know you're in there, Mr Lane.

So much easier if you come out and have a word

and we can be on our way...

I received some information this morning

on the arrest of a Mr Adrian Cope in 1989.

It seems you may have a few things to clear up there as well...

Mr Lane?

There are three of them out there now.

The Ennis-McCrea number's not in use.

Hardly surprising - they were shut down six years ago.

-Did you hear what I said?

-Three of what?

Reporters!

Oh... Ignore them.

I can't ignore them!

They're shouting through the letter box,

they're out there watching the house all day.

It's like living behind the Iron Curtain.

-They'll get bored.

-And what if they don't?

Esther, love, we have to wait them out.

I'm not going to talk to them, so we just have to wait them out.

Focus on something else, that's how you do it.

You find something to focus on and just shut the world out.

Would you mind telling me how I'm going to do that?

All right, here...

Just tell me the story so far.

I can hardly read your writing...

Right... Well, Jonathan Epstein and Annabel Skinner

killed Florence Epstein for her money.

Correct.

Peter Sale was Florence Epstein's accountant

and he was introduced to the Epsteins by Laurence Archer,

real name Larry Gofton.

-Are we calling him Archer or Gofton? It's confusing...

-Archer.

Archer was a notorious con man.

We don't say "notorious", we say "known".

Archer was a known con man...

Margaret said that she met Archer and Annabel Skinner together,

and they seemed to have known each other for quite a long time.

Annabel Skinner and Jonathan Epstein...

They start an affair...

and decide to kill Florence Epstein for her money...

Does that mean Archer and Sale were in on it too?

-The numbers.

-What numbers?

-On the back of this card.

The numbers, I know what they mean!

How did you get that from what I was saying?

Eh? Oh, I wasn't listening.

I thought you just wanted something to do.

Come on, get your coat!

Well, I've been through the records

for Longbow Cleaning and the Bowman Design company.

They're tied up in knots

and it'll take a better man than I am to untie them.

-Well, that was Brian's forte.

-Yeah.

Any connection to Peter Sale in any of that paperwork?

Not exactly, no, but I did look into a company run by Peter Sale

when he was doing Florence Epstein's accounts.

One of his other clients was a company called Ennis-McCrea.

They were listed as building contractors.

Pull the other one! Ennis and McCrea are proper gangsters.

Exactly - they were sent down a few years ago.

From the look of the books,

Peter Sale was investing money on their behalf

through a company run by Laurence Archer.

-You're kidding.

-Well, it's got to be a scam, innit?

Skimming money off of Ennis and McCrea

-and funnelling it through to Archer.

-That's what it looks like.

-That's a dangerous game to play.

-You can say that again.

And, by the way, there's no trace of Peter Sale beyond six years ago,

-just after the Epstein case.

-Well, that's what his sister told Brian.

I think his sister's right when she says he didn't go abroad -

there's no evidence for that.

But he does just vanish into thin air.

If Ennis and McCrea got wind of what he was doing,

he's probably at the bottom of the Thames.

Do you know what really bothers me?

Why did we get an anonymous call on the exact same day

that Brian was asked to look for Peter Sale?

That's too much of a coincidence, isn't it?

This storage place stands on the exact spot

that used to be the Ennis-McCrea builders' yard.

-And you think...

-Yes I do.

-Hello.

-Hi.

We're looking for some stuff.

Yep.

-Number one, zero, seven, one.

-One, zero, seven, one.

If you could sign in for me, Mr Sale.

'I never intended to get poor Mr Lane'

into any trouble.

-He's a very kind man.

-Why now, Mrs Kirby?

Why are you looking for your brother now?

He's been missing for six years.

Yes, I didn't know that. I thought he'd moved abroad.

We were never close.

My son and his wife are expecting a baby.

Family never meant a great deal to Peter, but I thought he should know.

Your son lives in France, is that right?

Nantes, yes.

It's not that far now that you can get a flight from City Airport.

You came to Brian through his wife, Esther?

Yes. We're in a book group together.

Can I ask what this is about?

Have you found something out about Peter?

Quite the opposite, I'm afraid.

We can't find any trace of him.

When did you last have contact with Peter?

Well, I suppose it would have been

in the aftermath of that awful Epstein business.

Peter was being questioned by the police.

I called him to see how he was bearing up.

He was finding it all rather stressful,

but he hadn't done anything wrong, so...

Are you sure about that?

Did you know a man called Larry Gofton?

Gofton? No.

-Or Laurence Archer?

-Oh, I met Laurence. At a party.

I didn't take to him.

And I met her... Annabel Skinner.

Before everything that happened, obviously. I didn't like her.

I told Mr Lane.

You know how you get a feeling about people?

-But your brother knew her.

-Yes.

How well, I couldn't say...

Peter had nothing to do with what happened, you do know that?

Actually, we think he may have been more involved

than was originally suspected.

No. No, Peter would never...

He was an honest man.

He'd never been in trouble before.

Maybe not, but he was hanging around

with a lot of people who knew the ropes.

Maybe he was pushed into it.

Maybe he needed the money to pay back a debt...

Did Peter ever mention two men called Ennis and McCrea?

No.

We think your brother may have owed them money.

These are not two people you want to owe money to.

Whatever kind of trouble he was in, Peter would never have hurt anyone.

But now Laurence Archer is dead.

Then it's her.

What, Annabel Skinner?

That woman had trouble written all over her.

There was something purely nasty inside her,

you could feel it as she looked at you.

And if she killed Laurence Archer...

Oh, God...

You have to find Peter. Please.

You have to help him.

If Annabel Skinner is looking for him...

Whatever he's done, you have to help him!

This one here.

-One, four, seven.

-I know.

Oh!

This investigation, Brian, that you've mounted,

has hardly been done by the book.

It wasn't an investigation, I was just looking for someone's brother.

Yeah, well, now there's a body

and we can't even talk about how we found it

without revealing that you discovered a business card

whilst illegally entering the Longbow Cleaning Company building.

The door was unlocked! And anyway, I don't work for you any more.

Surely, if a civilian stumbles onto something

and brings it to the police...

He's not a civilian, Esther. He's a retired police officer.

And the CPS think that someone like Brian should know better.

-Then they don't know Brian.

-Well, that's certainly true.

It's a trail I was meant to follow,

from the phone number on that notebook in Archer's office,

to the cleaning company, to that storage place.

A trail set by who?

The body's Annabel Skinner.

-What?

-A bracelet with her initials engraved on it.

SOCO reckon that she's been strangled.

Just like Laurence Archer...

Only more violently, yeah.

They think her neck was snapped in the attack.

And if Annabel Skinner's our victim, then the killer has to be...

-Peter Sale!

-I don't mean to be rude, Esther,

but you and Brian really can't be here whilst we're discussing...

This is all a bit obvious, though, isn't it?

A trail laid by someone that leads neatly to Peter Sale?

Peter Sale has been missing for six years.

Why has he come out of hiding to kill somebody?

-Esther!

-Yes, all right, I know. It's not our business.

Come on, Brian, let's get out of their hair.

The business card I found was for Ennis-McCrea.

Oh, for Christ's sake.

Annabel Skinner's body was hidden in a storage facility

on the site of their old offices.

Somebody's trying to point up a connection to Ennis-McCrea here.

Well, we think that Sale and Archer

were skimming money from Ennis and McCrea,

then they had to steal all the money from Florence Epstein

to pay it back.

But we think that Ennis and McCrea found out,

killed Sale, but somehow Archer got away.

But if Sale and Annabel Skinner are dead...

then who killed Laurence Archer?

Exactly!

What if Archer took the money

and left Sale to carry the can with Ennis and McCrea?

Well, it's in character.

Then Archer stays hidden until Ennis and McCrea have been sent down.

But why would he risk coming back onto Peter Sale's radar?

Because Sale had already disappeared.

What, you mean he got away, as well?

He might have gone one better...

Can we get the Ennis-McCrea file up?

Sir?

All right, go ahead.

Because to someone looking to put away Ennis and McCrea,

a man with inside information about their affairs,

like Peter Sale would have as their accountant,

and who's in fear of his life, would be like the Holy Grail...

-Oh, my God.

-I think Brian's right.

It was a closed session in court with an anonymous witness.

Peter Sale.

Now, before we get overexcited, this is all supposition.

But you still haven't found Peter Sale?

-No, not yet.

-Well, should you have?

With all the access you've got to databases and whatnot?

Yes, we should.

But you can't. Because Peter Sale is in witness protection.

If we have good reason to think he's committed a crime, sir,

then surely you could access him.

All right, I'll make some phone calls in the morning.

But there must be no mention of Brian's involvement in any of this.

What? Despite the fact that he's joined all the dots for you?

Isn't it a shame when politics gets in the way of policing.

AND there are reporters outside our house.

That's not my doing.

I didn't think it was.

All right, I'll see what can be done.

Come on, Brian.

Nothing's certain, Margaret. We just wanted to update you.

Yes.

Does any of it ring true?

I don't know.

It would explain why I can't find him, but...

how could Peter have got himself mixed up with these kind of people?

Well, if he has, at least we should start to get some answers now.

You've found him?

It's become a police matter now.

Will they... I mean, will they keep me up to date?

I'm sure they'll tell you everything they can.

Will I be able to see him?

I don't know, Margaret.

I'm not in the loop, so to speak.

Do you think he killed these people?

Oh, Margaret...

You do, don't you?

No-one knows yet.

I should go.

If there's ever anything you need, just ask.

Yes, thank you.

Thank you, Mr Lane.

I am sincerely sorry to have brought all this trouble to your door.

Strickland was true to his word.

Esther, come here.

What is it?

-Look at this.

-What?

A grandchild.

Oh!

Can we tell what's what?

Well, that's head and the arms, I think.

Unless it's upside down...

What's that?

I've been reading about ankylosing spondyloarthritis.

What's that when it's at home?

It's a chronic inflammatory disease of the axial skeleton.

Sounds nasty.

Jonathan Epstein mentioned that Peter Sale had it.

Said it causes all kinds of dental problems.

But its main symptom is the fusion of the spine.

I was just wondering how easy it would be

for Peter Sale to strangle two fit and healthy people

if he was suffering from it.

Not just strangle, even.

He broke poor Annabel Skinner's neck.

After what she did, we can hardly call her "poor" Annabel...

-What?

-Her neck snapped.

-And?

-Her other bones were...

-Were what?

I need to see those forensic photos.

You do know how much trouble I could get into, don't you?

Esther isn't even an ex-copper.

She won't let me go anywhere on my own.

Where are the others?

They've gone to see Peter Sale.

Yeah, you were right, he is in witness protection.

He testified against Ennis and McCrea.

Strickland got them access for a visit.

Now, I think we were wrong AND right.

We think that Annabel Skinner's neck broke

-while she was being strangled, yeah?

-Yeah.

And it did. Look. There's the fracture.

-See?

-Blimey.

-But how often do you see that, Gerry?

-Well, once...twice, maybe,

you've really got to go some to break someone's neck like that.

Unless the neck's already damaged,

or the spine isn't flexible enough to compensate for the force.

Look here...

See the way these vertebrae are fused,

causing a curvature of the spine here.

That's known as "bamboo spine".

It's a classic symptom of ankylosing spondyloarthritis.

-Is it?

-It's a degenerative disease.

Epstein told me that Peter Sale has it.

And you said it's genetic.

Genetic and very rare.

So what are the chances that Annabel Skinner and Peter Sale both had it?

Hold on, hold on. What are you saying?

That they're related?

-I'm saying this isn't Annabel Skinner.

-Well, who is it?

-Oh, no!

-This is Peter Sale's sister.

-Who is it?

-Police, Mr Sale. Detective Superintendent Pullman.

You should have been told to expect us.

Just keep trying. Reception's probably a bit patchy round here.

I always knew this Epstein business would come back to bite me.

It's not at all what it appears to be.

I was just the money guy,

I had no idea what Archer and Annabel were up to.

But you did take the money.

I arranged for the money to come out of Florence's account

and go into an offshore account set up by Archer.

I never saw a penny.

Archer took the money and vanished,

leaving me empty-handed to face Ennis and McCrea.

MOBILE PHONE RINGS

That's why I testified against them, I had no option.

Excuse me.

-Hi, Gerry.

-No, it's Brian.

Brian, what on earth are you doing on Gerry's phone?

Gerry's driving.

Listen, the dead woman isn't Annabel Skinner,

we think it's Margaret Kirby.

The woman we know as Margaret Kirby is actually Annabel Skinner.

She knew Peter Sale was in witness protection.

So, this whole thing - the anonymous phone call,

the trail I was sent on - it's all been about us leading her to Sale.

She wants revenge, and if she was waiting outside UCOS this morning,

she could well have followed you all the way there.

-OK. Thanks, Bye.

-What's going on?

Annabel Skinner is on her way, if she's not already here.

Annabel?

Who's was the body we saw?

Not now, Steve, it doesn't matter.

Mr Sale, I'm afraid we're going to have to get you out of sight.

Steve, draw all the curtains and secure the house.

-I'll call the local station for backup.

-Gerry has, they're on their way.

POLICE SIRENS WAIL

Brian?!

Brian? Brian?!

Mr Sale?

Mr Sale?!

BRIAN CHOKES AND SPLUTTERS

You bitch!

BRIAN COUGHS AND GASPS

I'd stay exactly where you are, if I was you.

I don't think we're very popular with witness protection.

Yeah, well, Sale was involved in the Epstein business, wasn't he?

Yeah, he was, when he claimed he didn't know Florence was going to be killed,

but that's between him and a jury to sort out.

-Picked on the wrong woman.

-So did Annabel Skinner.

-Nice spade work there, Esther.

-Oh, thank you.

What do we reckon that pub's like?

Time for a drink to your new-found freedom, Brian?

Freedom... Yeah. That's what it is, really, isn't it?

It might seem like freedom to you lot,

you're not the ones who have to keep him out of harm's way.

Yeah.

Why don't you go on and we'll catch you up.

-Yeah, sure.

-Yeah, come on, Esther.

Sandra, I just wanted to say I'm sorry.

Don't.

For getting you all into trouble and bringing all this down on UCOS.

The way you handled Embleton was stupid.

-Sandra...

-And you threw yourself on your sword for a complete stranger.

But I'd like to think I'd have done exactly the same thing.

It's what we're here for, isn't it? Especially UCOS.

Bringing closure to people who've waited too long for it.

I wish there'd been another way.

So do I.

You'll be missed, Brian.

Oi! Oi!

When you two have stopped kissing and making up,

there's a pub there that wants to sell us loads of beer.

So, come on, then!

Listen, well done, mate.

We could never have solved this without you.

Oh, bugger off, of course you could.

Yeah, I suppose so.

THEY LAUGH

Scampi nearly got mugged by two squirrels!

Go on. Basket!

Esther! I said Scampi nearly got mugged by...

-What are you doing?

-That's nice.

No, I said, what are you doing?

Sorry, Brian, what?

What's all this?

It's that jogger who got attacked in the park the other week.

What about her? I thought they caught the bloke.

Well, they got a man who answers the description,

but I've found several other similar attacks online.

There's lots in common,

but it can't be the man they've got because he's left handed.

-Esther, what are you doing?

-It's just interesting.

It's none of our business... and I'm retired now.

For the second time.

You might be, but I'm not.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd