I'm sorry you're leaving with unfinished business.
It's just a bit harder than I expected.
Do you think there is a single person
that lives their lives without regret?
- Catch you later, detective. - Frank?
- Oh, it's nothing. It's an OD. - An overdose?
That was not a suicide.
- Hey, new neighbour. - Patrick.
Steve's lost all interest.
Catch you later.
Patrick is the Ripton stalker.
You're just chasing shadows.
Wha...?
CREDITS
'There are multiple cuts and abrasions
'across the body.
'Severe bruising around the spine.
'It looks like the victim was beaten repeatedly.
'We also have ligature wounds around the neck, wrists and ankles.
'These are not fresh wounds.
'I'd suggest the victim had been tied up for several days.
'The killer knows his anatomy.
'None of these wounds would risk a critical loss of blood.
'More likely, they were performed as an act of torture.'
And then Steve announces that he's going on yet another work trip.
- To quote Liz: she lost her shit. - Yeah. Oh, man.
She's just convinced that he's having an affair with his PA.
Well, you know, he's not.
Well, if he was, I don't think he'd be telling you.
He's just knackered, that's all.
The only thing he's gonna be doing at night
is just stuffing his face with room service.
Why wouldn't he tell me? You know, we're mates.
For the same reason that he hides his stash of mushrooms
every time he sees you.
Once a cop...
Just tell Liz that he's not having an affair.
Talking of dirty little secrets, I was on the computer last night.
Anything you wanna tell me?
Internet history.
Stop googling 9-iron golf clubs.
It's not very sexy.
Well, there's no harm in looking, is there?
Well, you should be searching for luxury spa breaks
or a once-in-a-lifetime holiday.
So, the next time I see Steve,
I'm just gonna take out this big bag of gear,
I'm gonna roll a massive spliff
You wouldn't know how to roll a spliff.
I would! I'm gonna... I'm gonna go rogue!
Stop it! Are we good?
Yeah. Yeah, never better. Yeah? OK.
OK. Don't go rogue.
Hi, Tina.
Oh, my effing G.
Huw, you are an angel sent from heaven.
So, they're asleep. I have literally just put them down.
And nap time is normally an hour, but we can let it run to 90 minutes.
Well, I don't mind getting them up.
So, I'm only five minutes up the road.
Olga does the best mani-pedi in Ripton, and I just need a moment.
I just need a few blessed moments to myself, you know?
Y-Yeah, of course. And if they wake up...?
You just ignore them.
Well, I don't mind getting them up. They can come down here and play.
Oh, God bless.
Bet back in the day,
you were reciting the Greek alphabet, weren't you?
"Back in the day"? Yeah, but you don't get it.
They gang up on you.
They can't speak, but I swear they communicate with their eyes.
So as long as there's no visible scars, I don't care.
You having fun with that?
I... How did you get in?
Oh, Tina gave me a key.
They've got a leaking tap, and I said,
you know, running a repair shop, I'd have a look.
Not seen you in a while. Yeah. No.
Yeah, not since the party. You all right?
Sorry that I left early.
My stomach was churning and... I'm all right now.
I didn't poison you by accident, did I?
No. You're entirely innocent.
So, what's this?
Baby-sitting.
You're baby-sitting?
Well, that's nice.
Seriously, where have you been? I thought we were friends.
You sound like you missed me.
You're my favourite neighbour. Of course I've missed you.
And I'm hoping you feel the same.
You make me blush.
Well, if you're baby-sitting,
I can't go banging around with the plumbing, can I?
Oh, well.
Hi.
Twice in one day.
People are gonna talk.
Yeah, yeah, I was looking for a dry-cleaner's, and I...
I happened to see the sign. Yeah.
Interesting place. Thanks.
There aren't any dry-cleaner's around here.
So I've learned.
So, this all needs fixing, does it?
Well, everything needs fixing here.
Let me show you something.
Are you coming or what? Yeah.
Over here.
Now, this has taken me months.
It was just wasting away in an attic for years.
Yeah, there was rain damage, mould.
There was mice. You name it.
But the owner is very sentimental, so...
Well, that's amazing.
Yeah.
Really pleased with how it's turned out.
Is that a ballerina? Well spotted, Huw.
Can I take a photograph?
I don't think the owner would approve.
Well, I won't tell him if you don't. I said no.
Come and look at this.
It's a cuckoo clock.
But instead of a bird, a bloody great llama pops out.
_
Liz is in a right state.
We're gonna have to grab a bottle from the fridge and talk her down.
What's this? Nothing.
Well... Well, it looks like someone's got a speeding ticket.
After all the lectures you've given me...?
Are you gonna go on a speed awareness course?
Well, I may have got away with it, so...
This is the best day of my life.
_
Hi, Ruth, sorry, I've not been in...
Well, I'm just amazed they haven't sacked me already.
Sometimes, a student might ask me to find an obscure manuscript,
but basically, I'm just filing stuff on my own, so, yeah.
You look well.
Oh, I'm retired. What?
God, you must be dying. I know you.
So, you've got a job at the uni library.
T-That feels like progress.
Yeah. Yeah, it's... it's good for me.
Well, that's what my therapist says.
I'm sorry, Ruth. Don't. Don't, don't.
I'm doing better.
And you're here, and that's so nice.
But I should have come sooner, shouldn't I?
And... I should have caught him.
I'd be dead if it wasn't for you.
You stopped him.
He was in the house, hiding in my wardrobe,
and you chased him.
I let him get away. That's not fair.
He attacked you.
Do you still have that statue of a ballerina?
It's an odd thing to ask. No, it's just the...
I remember you said you trained as a dancer
and you had a little ballerina statuette, that's all.
I got rid of it.
Declan gave it to me. Do you remember?
And then when he got arrested
and everyone thought he was the stalker,
I just chucked it.
It felt...
disgusting.
Then it turns out he didn't do it, so...
But, hey, I'm doing so much better these days.
I shouldn't have come. No, no, you should have.
No, I should go. I'm sorry.
Will you come and visit me again? Yes, of course. Of course I will.
Yeah. I promise.
Right, don't ask me why, but I did what you asked
and I had a look at that PM report for your neighbour.
Oh, right. Look, there were some concerns.
I mean, for one thing, there's nothing in the report
about syringes or any other form of self-administration.
S-So no syringes, no empty pill bottles.
So that means that someone must have... must have removed them.
Just slow down, all right? I talked to the paramedics.
They can't remember if they saw anything.
Sorry, they can't remember? Look, it was a crazy day, all right?
They were busy. Mistakes were made.
If your neighbour didn't wanna kill himself,
why are there no signs of a struggle?
There's no bruising.
There's no marks of any kind on the body.
Are you telling me he just let a stranger walk in and inject him
without putting up a fight? No. Right.
Here's the report.
See for yourself, look.
They've asked for further investigation. I've done so.
There is nothing more to see.
Look, just forget about this.
All right? Go and do retired things.
Play bowls... mahjong, whatever old people do.
Bingo?
Hey. Hiya.
I was hoping Huw might be around.
He's here somewhere. Huw?
How is he? How do you mean?
Tea or coffee? Neither, thanks.
Have I done something to piss him off?
No, not that I know of. He hasn't said anything?
I hate to break it to you, Patrick, but we never talk about you.
Alice, I was just won... Oh, hi.
Hi, Patrick. How are you?
Are you not working? Do you want a coffee?
I've just offered him.
Oh, right. Oh, well, good to see you.
I could have sworn I heard you just now.
Oh, yeah, I was just, singing whilst putting the bins out.
Sounded closer.
Do you know what, you boys should go out for a drink one night.
Yes, we should. Yeah?
Well, I tell you what, I'm seeing Paul in the pub tonight.
I'm out with the girls tonight, so...
Great. Can't wait.
All right, so then what does he say?
"Hi, honey.
"Sorry, I overslept and now running for a meeting.
"All is fine. Will call later if I can."
There, see? Gaslighting.
What if he is just really busy?
Oh, shut your mouth.
Just cos you've got the perfect marriage. Me?
Yeah, when I get old, I dream of being like you and Huw
because you've been through a lot
and then you come out the other side.
You bloody have.
How do you do it? I don't know.
I guess I still love him, and he needs me.
But, God, those days, weeks, they felt like endless months,
and they really tested us, you know?
And so we know the price that we paid to get back to happy.
And... he's just mine.
Come on. Pass me the sick bucket. Absolutely disgusting.
As if we're just gonna buy all this. Dirty cow!
Get a room!
Seriously, being in your 30s sucks.
It gets fun again when the kids are older, right?
Oh, Paul, you have no idea.
How's your back? Or your knees.
And have you got any hairs growing out your ears yet?
You are so young.
Young? I'm 36.
I get hangovers that last all day.
Yeah, but you still have second chances.
Me and Huw are running out of time.
Yeah, we're slowly heading towards the exit.
Do anything to be 30 again, Huw.
I'd sell my soul.
I've been thinking about Frank.
I mean, he should be here, shouldn't he?
Yeah, sounds like he was a real character.
I'm so sorry.
For what? For your loss.
I mean, you couldn't have stopped it, Huw.
So why don't you focus on things you can put right?
Hi, Ruth.
Look, I-I'm sorry I rushed off the other day.
Do you fancy a trip somewhere?
Where are we going? Oh, I don't know.
just somewhere where we can breathe, I think.
Perhaps down by the river.
I'd like that. Yeah. Good.
Little stroll along the river.
Thanks for coming back. I thought I'd scared you off.
Oh, you? Scare me off? No, no, no.
Oh, look at that. That's... What?
I know the guy who runs that shop.
You know, it's really interesting. Shall we pop in?
I mean, you'll like it, I promise. Yeah.
There's all that there.
Thank you.
Yes, I mean, he fixes all sorts of stuff.
In fact, here he is.
Patrick, I'd like you to meet an old friend of mine.
Ruth, this is Patrick.
Patrick, this is... this is... this is Ruth.
Ruth. Well, I'm pleased to meet you.
You too.
What brings you here?
More dry cleaning? Oh! No, no.
I just think that your... your work is amazing.
I just fix things. Oh, you do more than that.
That doll's house.
That's really quite something, isn't it?
Can't we look at that? I'm sure that you'd love to, wouldn't you, Ruth?
I'm so sorry. The owner picked it up this morning.
So it's gone?
'Fraid so.
Terrible timing..
Can we see the workshop anyway?
Sure.
Ruth, follow me.
Oh, this place is a treasure trove.
And you fix all these things? Well, I try.
Yes, I like things that are broken.
Yeah, take a look at the Victorian doll over there.
Yeah. Just finished painting her eyes.
What are you playing at? You, here with her?
What's wrong? You're married.
Don't bring your bit on the side to my shop.
Well, she's... I like Alice.
Don't drag me into your... Her eyes are amazing.
It's like she's crying.
Yes. That was the idea.
She's half your age. She... She's not a girlfriend.
Huw! Huw, come look at this.
Yeah, just a minute. She's not!
Huw, come over here. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, coming.
He seemed nice. Yeah, you think so?
He's your friend, right?
Are you OK?
Hey, maybe...
Maybe instead of the river, we could go for something to eat.
So, what would you like?
I don't know what anything is. You choose for me.
Well, it's the least I can do.
And this is on me, by the way,
after everything you've been through.
Well, don't say that.
I was just trying to think what else I could have done.
You know, it just goes round and round in my mind.
Yeah. What...
What I could have done to make you feel safe.
I-I don't want anything too spicy now. Yes.
I mean, Ruth, if he...
If he came up to you in the street, would you recognise him?
I mean, you never actually saw his face.
But if you heard his voice, would you recognise him?
Would you...?
I felt his breath on my face, and...
it's burned into me who he is.
But, please, I don't... I don't wanna talk about this.
Yes, but what if he was pretending? Pretending to be decent.
I mean, he could be so friendly, and you wouldn't be able to spot him,
even though he was right in front of you.
Listen...
You know, sorry, I really shouldn't be talking about these things.
Let's just... Let's just enjoy our meal, shall we?
When I asked you before if he was a friend,
you didn't answer.
Yeah. I mean, he's just... He's just a new neighbour.
I don't really know him at all.
Do you think it's him?
Tell me, Huw.
I just wanted to see.
See me in front of him, what, like, bait?
Just so you'd know...
that you'd be safe, that you'd never be scared again.
You pretended.
All this...
You let me stand in front of him just so you could see?
You know what that would do to me if I had seen him
and I'd known...
I was trying to end all this for you, Ruth.
- Hi there, professor. - Hi, captain.
Sorry I'm late. I just...
I bumped into Jerry Turner.
He insisted on having a pint and a catch-up, so...
Margot! Wow. What a... What a wonderful surprise.
Hi, Dad.
Well, you're...
Her and Rakesh are just having a time-out.
Yeah, well, he's being an arsehole.
Oh, sorry to hear that.
Oh, I won't get in your way or anything.
You're hardly gonna do that, are you?
I mean, this is your home. Yeah. I'll defrost a lasagne.
Yeah, and I'll get us a nice bottle of wine,
I think just to celebrate you being home.
We could all do with that, couldn't we?
Could all do with a drink or something.
You all right, Dad?
Yeah, Mum said you'd been a bit tense.
Well, I've got nothing to be tense about.
You seem a bit twitchy. Margot...
I'm just saying.
Sorry, I... Twitchy?
Yeah, I'm just saying.
Your dad's fine. All right.
No.
Twitchy. What do you mean, Margot? Twitchy?
It's a word that we would use for you.
You know, when you're on that case. What, you...?
T-Twitchy? What the...?
Look, I think I'm gonna just pop out for a bit.
What? No, no! I'll just give you guys a bit of space.
No, no, listen. I-It's fine.
Sorry, Margot, I've just had a bit of a day, so...
No, no. Just come back. No, I think...
Don't. Look, I-I'll come with you. I'll buy you a drink.
No, I think we'd all just be happier if I'm out of your hair.
No, that's not right. I love having you around, Margot.
Dad, chill, OK? I'll be back in a bit.
Just let me be, all right? Margot!
Is that your...?
Yes, yes, t-that is my daughter.
DS Atkins.
You all right, Mel?
What, now?
Yeah, yeah. OK. Hang on.
Bloody hell!
Oh, God. Oh!
What are you doing here?
Seriously?
After those raging texts you sent me?
I'm so sorry.
Oh, God, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry.
What's with the screaming? I don't know. I thought that...
God, it's just been so weird without you here.
And then all of my things have been...
No, I'm just... I'm being silly. All right, all right, all right.
Well, I'm back now, OK? Nothing bad's gonna happen.
OK. I'm a black belt in origami.
Oh... You idiot.
Are you OK?
Honestly, I don't know.
Now, can I just say that when you retire,
you've suddenly got a lot of time on your hands.
And I think what's clear is that...
what really matters in my life is...
is right here...
in this room.
I love you both so much.
Let's dig in.
No, I'll go. I'll get it.
Hello?
DCI sent me. Thought this would be better in person.
Can I... Can I come in?
What's up?
Ruth Parker came into the station earlier.
She claims you visited her.
She's made some concerning allegations.
Hi, Alice. Hi, Margot. Did you say Ruth?
Have you been seeing Ruth?
No, I mean, this...
God, no. This is just a complete misunderstanding.
The DCI just wants to be sure that it's...
Yeah, but, I mean, this is crazy you even being here.
When was this? Listen, can you just tell the DCI...
tell him that I'm... I'm really sorry, and that...
and thanks for coming round.
That's... Yeah.
Did you see Ruth today?
Did you?
I-I did, yeah. Yeah.
So what was all that about Jerry Turner?
You just made a big speech about how precious we all are.
Well, you are.
But you're still sneaking off to see her.
Well, no, not... It's not in a bad way.
It's not like I'm having an affair or anything like that.
You lied! Yeah.
Do you still think it's him?
Do you?
You told me that you...!
No, but I just want you to be happy, that's all.
T-That's all I want. I just... Oh, my God.
You know, I just want to protect you.
You wouldn't have to...
Look, I just thought that... He's said all this before.
I just need to know if it's him or not.
What about me?!
What about our daughter?
No. He's... He's always put Ruth and the case first.
He's never thought about us.
Not once. I mean, come on, Dad. Well, that's all I ever do!
I just think about you and never think...
You're a liar! Fuck this!
Ruth.
Look, I know you're in there.
Ruth.
Ruth!
Come on. Ruth!
Ruth, is it him?
Is it?
Is it him?
I'm so sorry.
No. No.
You can't come in.
Are you serious?
How can I let you in? How do I explain that to myself?
I can't stop you, but I won't help you, Huw.
I love you.
So stop this while you still can.
Good night.
Door's open.
Was it? Yeah.
Shit.
Well...
I'm glad it's you.
And not some nutter who wants to rob me.
Drink?
Cheers. Cheers.
Are you OK, Huw?
Yes.
I just keep letting everyone down.
This is about that girl you brought round to my shop, isn't it?
Do you like her?
No, it's not about her. It's...
I just...
I just keep hurting her, and I don't know how to stop.
You know, I keep thinking about what you said.
How you'd sell your soul for the chance to do it all again.
You know, when I saw you with her...
Ruth.
you looked different.
You had colour in your cheeks.
You love your games.
So do you. No.
No, I just want it to end. No, you don't.
You live for the hunt. No.
That's you. That's us.
Yeah..
Today, you reminded me of the guy I used to watch on television.
What do you mean?
You told me before that you...
you didn't know anything about the case.
It's you... isn't it?
Tell me.
Yes.
Are you sure you're OK? You just...
You just said...
You just... You just...
I've go to go.
You were such a great detective.
Your instincts were always right.
Yes. It's me.
Of course it's me.
CREDITS