[Indistinct chatter]
♪
Hiya, love, how you doing?
Good. Thank you.
Take a seat. Sonia will be with you in just a moment.
- Thanks. - OK.
I'd go full set with gels. It'll take an hour, though.
Yeah. Thank you.
[Knocking on door]
Sonia, do you have a moment?
- You all right? - Yes, that's lovely.
- Thank you. - Do you have a jacket?
Yes, I did.
- It's camel. - Oh, right.
- All right? - Thanks so much. See you soon.
Lovely. Thank you.
Sonia, if I could have a word.
Er, no, not now, love.
I've got a full Bliss 'n Body till the end of play.
Tara, good to see you.
Let me take your jacket.
Would you like to come with me?
After your client, then, OK?
[Sonia] Just down here today.
[Dog barks]
Don't stress, Nan.
I'll... I'll send some money by the end of the week, yeah?
All good. Love you, too.
All right, love you.
[Dog barking]
[Card machine beeps]
All good.
Thank you.
See you soon.
Sonia, we need to talk.
[Indistinct chatter]
No, just trust me.
- Ow! Ow! - Oh.
I'm so sorry. Are you OK?
- I'm so sorry. - Ow. Ow.
[Sombre music]
Tara, I'm off.
You OK?
Yeah. What do you mean?
I thought those massages were supposed to chill you out.
You seem...
I don't know, a bit tense.
I'm fine. I'm...
I'll get it. It's OK.
[Indistinct chatter]
[Sighs]
- All right, I'm cancelling. - No...
No, honestly, Piers, I'm fine. It's fine--
It's fine, but you're spiralling again.
It's fine. It's OK. Honestly. Come here.
It's fine. I promise.
It's all right.
[Sighs]
[Beeping]
[Softly] Yep.
[Sports playing on laptop]
Oh...
[Mobile ringing]
- Olivia! - There's someone in the garden.
What, again?
Are you sure?
I didn't want to phone 999, but...
I heard rustling and... and footsteps.
Erm...
OK, yeah...
Sit tight.
I'm... I'm on my way.
Thank you.
What? Oh!
[Sighs]
Please, Piers, I don't want to ruin your weekend.
- You never go away. - It's all done. It's sorted.
Who wants to go away with a bunch of old blokes anyway?
Night in,
a glass of wine, takeaway on the sofa
with my gorgeous wife.
What could be better?
Nothing there now anyway.
Well, it...
It was probably the foxes again. Sorry.
Don't be. Well, better foxes than burglars, right?
To say thank you...
It'll make me feel better for dragging you out.
I really, really shouldn't...
I'm cycling back.
Well, it's Friday night. Why don't you stay over?
And it really is a very fine bottle.
Overnight oats for breakfast.
Ugh.
Ooh. [Sighs]
I think we need to address what's happening here.
It was just a blip.
Look, I heard a noise. I overreacted. That's all.
Well, why don't we upgrade your security anyway?
There's no harm, is there?
Good idea.
I'll call a locksmith.
Has she slept in?
She's not answering.
Have you spoken to her since yesterday?
Only, she kind of overreacted.
I've got keys in here somewhere. There they are.
Oh, my God.
Sonia?
Sonia...
Where is she?
I don't know. Sonia?
Sonia?
I don't think she's upstairs.
[Suspenseful music]
[Gasping]
What is it?
[Gasps] No!
Sonia!
[Theme music]
Any more?
No.
- [Mobile ringing] - Oh!
Stupid.
[Mobile continues ringing]
Yes?
OK.
Hey.
[Layla] Hey.
Sonia Blessing, 52.
Owner-proprietor of the place.
Yeah, colleagues called it in
when they arrived for work to find the salon still closed.
Jess said she's taking statements down at the station.
All right.
Death likely by asphyxia... bruising,
petechiae around the eyes, position of the body,
and a right glenohumeral joint dislocation.
I'd say someone's had her in a sort of chokehold.
Timing?
Er, last staff member, Kathy Ahmed,
left at 17:45 yesterday.
[Ashley] She's still in rigour.
What's up there?
It's the victim's flat.
It looks like the assault started up there.
Shall we?
[Exhales heavily]
Separate front door, access from the street.
No sign of a break-in,
so we think she buzzed her assailant up via the intercom.
CCTV?
Nothing to cover the flat or salon specifically,
but we're checking local feeds.
Well...
She was expecting someone.
Yeah, someone she was comfortable with.
She was dressed down in a sweatshirt and leggings.
Looks like her laptop was damaged in the struggle.
No sign of her phone yet, but...
She may have been going somewhere.
[Suspenseful music]
She never said anything about going away,
but she's got bookings all next week. I can show you.
Did she mention expecting anyone
to call around to her flat last night?
Her partner, perhaps?
We didn't really talk about personal stuff.
Well, she's quite a private person.
Was... private.
[Sniffles]
She used dating apps once in a while.
We had that much in common, being single.
I mean...
But there was no-one serious.
There was that karate guy.
Remember, he picked her up that time?
Karate?
She took a class at the leisure centre, but it didn't last long.
It's all so insane. We only saw her yesterday.
Can you think of anyone who might have had
a grudge against Sonia?
I suppose there's the guy who trolled us, Kathy.
What, that pervert, you think?
This client who got a bit too handsy
in the massage room once too often.
Sonia barred him, and we had some pretty
rubbish reviews right after.
Might you have a record of his name?
Johnny Leonard. He's a DJ at the Pig's Ear.
Never stopped banging on about it when I did his brows.
Sonia Blessing opened her own salon
two years ago, employing beautician Bella Dooley,
who she'd worked alongside in a previous outlet,
and trainee Kathy Ahmed.
The victim lived alone above the salon.
Single, no children or extended family
that we know of. Both Bella and Kathy
say they went home after work as usual,
and neither heard from Sonia again.
A victim had a packed case
in the bedroom, all brand new clothes,
three packs of pants and socks, T-shirts, leggings, toiletries.
A capsule wardrobe.
Oh, and an envelope of money
adding up to nearly £3,000, but no holidays booked.
So...
What was Sonia packed for?
A weekend away, maybe?
Or a hospital visit?
Any online activity, Connor?
Mmm. I've requested records from the server...
- [Mobile chimes] - ...and the comms team
are recovering what they can from the damaged laptop.
But it was last online at 23:34 last night.
Well, let's get that over to Ashley,
help narrow down the time of death.
We have two suspect priorities.
The man that Sonia was dating most recently,
let's get a name and how and why it ended.
And secondly, the problem client Johnny...
Er, that'll be Johnny Leonard.
Ex-customer turned troll.
Yes. And we have his place of work, so...
Let's go. Layla?
Layla?
[Layla sighs]
What's going on?
I've just had an email from the IOPC.
You're copied in.
They're opening an investigation
into my conduct in arresting the guy
who mugged your aunt, Charlie Weir.
- What? - Yeah.
He's only gone and filed a complaint against me.
Says I twisted his arm back with undue force.
They're sending someone to interview me this afternoon.
OK.
Have you got all your notes?
Good. Well...
I can't make a statement.
Conflict of interest. But, well, your record
should speak for itself.
[Ed] Oi, Johnny!
Police here for ya.
DI Arnold, Chelsea CID.
I'm DS Walsh.
We believe you know a Sonia Blessing?
Oh! What's that witch been saying
- about me now? - "Witch"?
Accusing me of trolling her, right?
What, I can't leave a legit bad review
as a disappointed customer?
It's her you should be hassling.
That's a hate crime.
Discriminating against someone cos of their sex.
Why don't you go talk to her?
That won't be possible, Mr Leonard.
Sonia Blessing is dead.
Look, I'm not denying it got a bit aggie, all right?
I had a, like, a natural
physical reaction during the massage,
probably cos I was relaxed.
But barring me? What about the damage to my rep?
[Max] What damage was that?
Well, if anyone caught wind, I'm saying.
Did they?
My understanding is that this natural physical reaction
happened on three occasions.
Which I booked and paid for, right?
I mean, if she didn't like it--
She didn't. She barred you.
Right.
Well, well, if I'm barred, how could I murder her?
Can you account for your whereabouts
last night, Mr Leonard?
Yes, I was here. Ed?
I was working the bar, and then I did a DJ set
downstairs until 1:30 am. Yeah, he'll tell ya.
[Max] Nice guy.
[Layla] Sensitive, empathetic.
I'm surprised it took three goes before they barred him.
We're giving him the benefit of the doubt.
- That's what women do. - Mmm.
It's a shame, he's got a firm alibi.
[Mobile chimes]
Oh.
Jess has got a positive ID
on the karate boyfriend... Mark Hart.
[Shouting indistinctly]
- Six, seven, eight, nine, ten. - [Shouting indistinctly]
Attention stance.
Great work, everyone.
Good concentration. Good session.
[Shouting indistinctly]
All right. See you next week.
No, no, I get it. You have to ask.
I was at home with my dad.
He lives with me. He's got dementia.
Sorry, this is...
Such a shock.
Sure.
I understand.
Anything you can tell us at this stage would be helpful.
When did you two meet?
Erm, she came to a few classes at my dojo here,
maybe six months ago.
She'd been followed at night a few times
and wanted some self-defence resources.
Then we started chatting and hit it off.
She seemed very, erm,
natural, very genuine.
You know, my type, you know.
When you say "followed", did she elaborate?
No. I mean, this is London, right?
Anyway, we went out a few times. Pubs, dinners... her place,
like my dad.
And then I guess it just, erm,
fizzled out.
I was looking for a relationship.
- And she wasn't? - Not with me, anyway.
I mean, we... we got on great.
It's just... I think it was more physical for her.
But... I guess you get to that age where
you just know what you want, right?
She was kind of private, independent.
So who actually ended it, Mr Hart?
I suppose I did, regretfully.
I lay all my cards on the table
and told her I wanted more commitment.
And she didn't.
And that was that.
Pretty much.
Yeah. I did ask her out again a few weeks ago,
but she said no.
So, yeah, that was that.
I haven't heard from her since.
Excuse me.
Whoever Sonia was expecting, it was someone
she was already familiar with.
Bubble bath and leggings don't exactly scream date night.
Well, speak for yourself.
But the Prosecco...
- Girls' night? - [Mobile chimes]
Ashley's asked us to stop by the path lab.
I could do with a break from trying to find anything
"Sonia Blessing".
Like, "Blessings Holistic", yes. But Sonia herself?
Nothing apart from her professional profile.
Well, not everyone loves social media.
And we were told that Sonia was private.
OK, sure.
But it is strange. And since her National
Insurance number isn't recognising,
I'm not getting any registered data either.
Wait up. I've uploaded Sonia's laptop.
Looks like she was going away.
Three weeks ago, she booked a one-bed chalet on Loch Lomond
for a fortnight, starting tomorrow.
So why didn't she tell anyone or cancel her clients?
And why bring so much cash?
Cash doesn't leave a digital trail.
But an online booking does.
She wasn't worried about that.
Maybe she was paying someone, a cash deal.
That's not all I found.
Looks like she was doing emails when she was interrupted.
But there's still one email sitting in her outbox
to Bella Dooley, her work colleague.
"Hey, Bella, I feel bad about this afternoon.
"Let's talk tomorrow. But FYI meantime,
"I've had to sack Kathy for gross negligence.
"We'll need to find a replacement."
Aye, aye...
Kathy didn't mention that this morning.
No.
[Ashley] Your time of death works for my window...
Stomach contents, body temp, and rigour, all consistent.
The fractured hyoid bone confirms death by strangulation.
And we've got the shoulder dislocation and bruising
from where the attacker pulled her neck back
with their hand over her mouth.
Male, female?
Er, I can't tell without DNA,
and the killer was wearing gloves.
But injuries sustained, hand span,
it was someone strong.
I'll do some more imaging,
but this is what I wanted you to see.
Surgery on her jaw. Maybe 15 years old?
Cosmetic surgery?
It's hard to tell after so long.
And I'm still waiting on her medical records.
But if you look at it in conjunction with this...
Surgery for an open compound fracture
from around the same time. I mean, it could be related.
Might not.
Car crash maybe, or fall?
I can't say, but she was certainly being hospitalised.
Yeah.
I spilled a tiny bit of wax on my client.
But Sonia was in a mood, so she took it out on me.
I was hoping she'd change her mind by the morning.
You... you say she was in a mood, Kathy.
Do you know why?
Something Sonia felt bad about, she said in her email.
I don't know. I mean, they had a row just before Bella left.
I couldn't hear what they were saying,
but I could see them in the mirror.
And Bella was mad.
She doesn't usually get wound up.
That's how I wasn't concentrating.
[Mobile vibrating]
Sorry.
So you stated this morning that you were here last night
with your parents, Kathy, is that right?
Can they confirm that?
Everything all right?
Yeah, all good.
Helen had the embryo transfer last week.
And, you know, she's a bit jittery.
So am I, to be fair. It's the waiting.
And bad timing for a murder case.
You should be waiting it out together.
Honestly, it's better to stay busy.
What do you reckon?
Well, Mum confirms her alibi,
and I can't see her as our killer.
But Max is gonna wanna know more
about this row between Sonia and Bella.
Let's get Bella Dooley in right away.
And start checking hospitals.
Sonia had surgery about 15 years ago.
If we find out where and why, we might get a lead.
Good luck finding her with that name.
Why?
I sourced the cock-up with Sonia's NI number.
DVLA had a digit wrong on her driver's licence,
and it turns out Sonia Blessing doesn't actually exist.
Well, at least she didn't until a Linda Norris
changed her name by deed poll 10 years ago.
[Sighs] I had no idea.
I've never heard of a Linda Norris.
I mean, why would Sonia change her name?
That's what we're trying to find out, Miss Dooley.
I mean, I know we weren't close,
but I'm starting to think I didn't know her at all.
Kathy said you had a row with Sonia yesterday.
You didn't mention it.
Well, I didn't think it was important,
given the circumstances.
It could well be.
We're trying to build the full picture.
I invested in the business at the beginning of the year,
so we could look at providing higher-end treatments,
such as injectables, dermal fillers, chemical peels.
So I was alarmed to see
some odd figures in the books recently.
It looked like Sonia was charging clients
for treatments or add-ons they didn't have.
Stealing from her own business?
[Sighs] I...I don't know.
Just seemed so unlike her. That's why I was confused.
But she's almost overkill on all the rules... hygiene,
health and safety, all that.
But when I confronted her, she just fobbed me off.
That's what really got to me.
What do you mean, fobbed you off?
Said it was just a bit of short-term creative accounting.
Said she was just borrowing money from the company.
Like, it was none of my concern,
even though I've got a stake in the business now.
How long has this been going on, did you see?
How many other clients were overcharged?
So far only one client, Tara Mason, loaded.
Husband's a banker or something.
Well, she's in every two minutes,
so I suppose Sonia thought she wouldn't notice.
But you did. And you were angry.
So let's check Bella's story against Sonia's banking.
And I want everything we can get on Linda Norris as was,
work, personal, that surgery.
Already on it, Max.
Was she hiding from something or someone?
Was she about to run because someone
found out her real identity?
Well, maybe she just wanted a fresh start.
I've got a mate who changed his name to Voldemort for a bet.
Stuart Voldemort.
OK. I've got the victim's phone records from the server,
and one number stands out.
Incoming calls only, starting just over three weeks ago,
mostly late at night, brief.
The longest is three minutes,
but typically less than a minute each.
The last one is a text message,
last night, 23:03. "On my way."
I ran the number, but it's a burner phone,
so I've asked the comms team to do what they can.
So, three weeks ago Sonia booked
a holiday chalet, and days afterwards,
she started getting these calls.
Someone from her past life, when she was Linda?
Whoever it was, Sonia was expecting them,
less than an hour before she was attacked
and killed in her own home.
[Layla] Let's say Linda had forms,
so she changed her name, but old habits die hard.
And so the client discovers she's been stealing,
flies into a rage and kills her?
Right.
Thanks.
Excuse me.
I'm looking for a Tara Mason.
Yeah?
Detective Inspector Max Arnold.
Detective Sergeant Walsh.
Look, we've been at the hospital all night. It's not a good time.
Well, we'll try and be brief, Mr Mason.
- Well-- - I'm OK.
OK. Right.
OK. Please.
[Piers] That's terrible.
[Tara] Are you sure it was Sonia?
I'm afraid so.
I'm sorry to have upset you.
We were hoping to ask some questions.
You've been going to Blessings Holistic
for how long now?
Erm, about a year, I think.
I can check the diary if you'd like.
- Yeah, that'd be helpful. - Will you excuse me?
- You OK? - Yeah. Sorry.
I just... I'm just...
No. Sorry. That's OK.
[Door opens, closes]
Sorry. She gets these terrible panic attacks.
That's why we were at the hospital, actually.
A bit of a mix-up with her meds.
Well, apologies for the timing, Mr Mason.
We could come back?
No, no. I'd rather get it over with.
Yeah, my wife, she, er...
She deals with anxiety and depression. And now this...
It must be very worrying for you.
Yeah, it's a... it's a lot.
Just give her a minute.
Erm, did Tara ever mention
being charged for massages or therapies she didn't have?
Er, as in?
Extra beauty treatments,
reflexology, hot stones, spa days.
To the tune of £3,000?
No.
No, she, erm...
Well, I pay the bills, and I can't say that I've noticed.
Er, I think I was quite happy for her to spend
whatever she wanted in order to feel better.
I can't say I'm thrilled about being ripped off, but...
Well, does it matter now?
I mean, the poor woman's dead.
I can hardly sue her now. Can I?
Oh. Excuse me. Sorry.
Hey, listen, erm, Tara's not feeling very well.
Would you mind if you just look after Lulu for another night?
Would that be OK?
- Yeah. - Thank you. Yeah. All right.
Thanks. Bye.
- [Layla] Cute dog. - [Piers] Yeah.
Tara's best friend.
Apart from me, actually. [Laughs]
Look, it has been a bit of a long night.
- I think it's-- - Yeah.
We'll leave you in peace.
We will need to come back, though.
But in the meantime, if you or Tara think of anything.
Oh, of course, absolutely. Yeah.
Detox body wrap.
I wouldn't know a "radiance skin spa"
if it slapped me in the face.
[Layla] If you don't mind me saying...
[Lulu barking]
...that's not a massive surprise.
They're recommending a course of 10.
I wouldn't pay that for a new bike.
I mean, what on earth is a "welcoming foot ritual"?
Well, I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.
What...
Do you actually know?
- Not a clue. - Ah.
That's Connor.
He's found something at the crime scene.
OK?
Er, can I drop you off? I just... I wanted to go over
my notes at the station before the interview.
Absolutely.
Look, you can anticipate the questions.
Just prep clear, concise answers.
Did you push the suspect down the steps?
- Well, did you? - No.
Is there anything you think you would have done differently?
I mean, maybe emotion was involved, it was Olivia.
No, no. If you look like you're doubting yourself,
they'll doubt you, too.
Just so you know, Max, if you're trying
to make me feel better, it's not working.
[Car door beeps]
Hey.
It was in amongst a bunch of junk mail in our recycling bin.
Linda?
"Linda, I know what you did." [Scoffs]
3:00 pm, Monday,
and an SW11 address.
It's a cafe in Battersea Park, and from that postmark,
that would be a week last Monday.
Nice work, Connor.
- Thanks. Feedback when you can. - Will do.
[Mobile ringing]
Olivia?
Yeah, good.
Well, I'll... I'll try and pop over this evening.
Olivia?
Yeah, sorry, I...I gotta go.
[Man] That's a major...
[Indistinct chatter]
[Mobile camera clicks]
Oh, Max.
Linda Norris's medical records detail surgeries
at Conquest Hospital in Hastings in 2009,
for a compound fracture of the tibia and a broken jaw
from a fall down the stairs. She was in for eight days.
[Max] Any personal data?
Er, parents deceased, no siblings.
I'm digging to see where she might have
trained as a masseuse.
But it would have been pre-digital.
And on social media, she seems just as shy as Sonia Blessing.
She had any accounts, she's deleted them since.
But checked Sonia's bank records against the sums.
Bella said she moved from the business account into her own
and subsequently withdrew in cash,
and they match to the penny each time.
Why so precise, I wonder? To look legitimate to HMRC?
Just to keep track of her debt.
Excuse me.
- How'd it go? - Yeah...
- What's that? - Well,
it looks and smells like a blackmail threat.
Connor's checking it out as we speak.
Blackmail for what?
Well...
It could be linked to the incoming calls
from the burner phone, maybe the person Sonia
was expecting before she was killed.
Well, she was relaxing, though,
celebrating even, there was Prosecco out.
Yeah.
Our killer was prepared.
He was wearing gloves.
He wasn't there on a social call.
I just found Johnny Leonard hanging around the salon
like a rubbernecker.
Or a killer returning to the scene of a crime.
He's got a solid alibi, though.
Well, we need to check that with the club's security.
He might have nipped out.
None of the staff recognised Sonia's photo.
I'm not surprised it's a busy place.
CCTV?
Not at the cafe itself, but there is a council camera
that covers the area.
I've put in an urgent request for footage.
[Mobile vibrating]
I'm sorry.
Listen to this.
In 2013, one Linda Norris was struck off the General Council
of Massage Therapists for failing in her duty of care.
She's working out of a salon in Croydon called Hair by Moira.
Looks like we've found a reason for the name change.
Oh, and someone found out.
Hence the overcharging in order to pay the blackmailer.
Hair by Moira stopped trading seven years ago.
I'll see if I can find a current contact.
Max, I need to go home for a bit.
- Sorry. Bit of a family thing. - No problem.
Maybe we could all do with a break.
Well, I'll stay on a bit,
wait for the Battersea Park CCTV.
- OK. - You want to share a pizza?
Yeah.
- [Mobile ringing] - [Dog barking alarm sounds]
[Olivia] Hang on!
Oh! [Grunts]
Oh, it's supposed to turn itself off, that stupid, bloody thing!
I mean, it's loud!
Well, it's supposed to deter burglars,
not visitors!
- Well, there must be an on/off! - Oh!
Oh, give it to me.
- [Alarm stops] - [Sighs]
Was only an afterthought.
I mean, the new lock is the main thing.
Here. Feel free to let yourself in
when I've keeled over with boredom
and dispose of my body as you see fit.
Jolly good. Silver linings.
Drink?
I can't.
Well, I can, I have, and will continue.
Olivia, do you want me to stay the night again?
Oh, God, no.
I can't bear any more of your snoring.
Just go! I'll be fine. I'll be fine, go.
You don't look fine.
Well, I'll be fine when I've had a good night's sleep.
And the mood I'm in, I dare anybody try and break in.
OK.
Look, call me, all right, if you need anything.
I need my head looked at
for spending good money on that bloody thing!
Cheerio.
[Door opens]
[Door closes]
- Bye, Anna. - Bye, Jess.
Companies House has the registered owner
of Hair by Moira as a Moira Duncan,
but she goes to Singapore on a work visa in 2017,
and there's just nothing after that.
Tell me that's something more fun than this.
A mate? A date?
I don't have time or inclination for either at the moment.
What about you?
Well, I had this thing
with this guy called Dinesh, but it fizzled out.
- I'm sorry. - I'm not,
because this... is...
Manfred.
[Speaking German]
[Mobile chimes]
Oh, the Battersea Park CCTV's in.
[Soft classical music on record]
[Chuckles]
- There she is. - Mmm.
[Jess] Hello, Sonia.
Or is it Linda today?
"Nancy Gilmarsh."
- [Max] Hey. - Max.
I was just about to call you.
There's a name for you to check.
"Nancy Gilmarsh."
Max, I think we found Linda's blackmailer.
All right.
Can you see?
Got it.
OK, there's Sonia going in.
Now, let's go forward.
Well, approximately 20 minutes later.
And here she is coming out. And...
[Max] Mark Hart!
Mark Hart is running two classes
at the leisure centre this morning.
Good. Well, let's pay him a visit.
Meantime, see if you can get a fix on this trainee
who worked with Linda in Croydon. Nancy Gilmarsh.
Might be something or nothing.
Hey, how's Helen?
She's got the OK to test tomorrow.
We found out one way or the other.
Well, there's one of those for me.
So...
Linda Norris's trainee from 15 years ago.
Got any needles in haystacks we need finding, too?
No bother. I've got her.
She's in the system.
Just out of Peterborough for shoplifting.
Repeat offender. Peterborough, Styal, Downview... Oof.
All very minor offences.
Still added up, and she spent more time inside than out.
[Mark] Keep it nice and slow.
Great. All right, well done.
And again.
How's it going over here? OK?
Well done, everybody. That's... that's fantastic.
Let's wrap it up there.
Let's shake it off, take some time to wind down,
do a few little stretches.
I told you that I ran into her, though, didn't I?
Well, not as such, no.
Well, maybe not the details, but I'm sure I said it was
the last time that I saw her.
I asked her out again, and she wasn't interested.
At the Battersea Park cafe?
Yeah, I...I run an outdoor tai chi class
in Battersea Park at the Old English Garden.
Sometimes I go to that cafe after class
for, like, a juice or something.
I only saw Sonia when she was leaving.
Did you see who she was with?
No, I...I guess I assumed she was on her own,
since she was leaving on her own.
No, I...I suggested meeting up,
and she was... super awkward, so I left it.
Does the name Linda Norris mean anything to you?
No. Should it?
He didn't look under pressure.
He's a martial arts sensei, Max.
Mental and physical discipline.
A father with dementia is not the best alibi.
Tai chi is good exercise, though.
Good for the core, and low impact, so even
people...
...of all ages and fitness can benefit.
Do you fancy a drink?
That pub where Johnny Leonard works is just around the corner.
I could do with a lemonade.
Totally.
Yeah, me, too.
When's he next in?
Never. I sacked him.
I caught him planting a camera
in the ladies' loos last night.
I was thinking about calling the cops, actually.
You saved me the bother.
We'll see it's reported.
But you're sure that Johnny didn't leave
- during his set on Friday? - No.
He was on all night.
"Naughty Noughties." I'll send you the CCTV.
Sweet setlist. Shame about the DJ.
Mmm.
Oh...
Just make sure Johnny gets done
for being a creep, if nothing else.
[Rings doorbell]
I'm not likely to forget Linda, am I?
She threw me under the bus.
I'm sorry, Nancy. Can you rewind, please?
You said it was an accident with a hot stone massage, right?
It was part of this client's hen package,
but Linda knackered her shoulder
the day before, so she got me to do it.
And I messed it up.
Made a red mark on the bride's back, and she went mad.
She couldn't wear her wedding dress.
So Linda got closed down.
Well, she just upped and left,
so the bride tried to sue me for compensation.
I was 18.
I got roasted.
Hang on. I'll... I'll show you.
I get why Sonia was so intolerant
of Kathy making mistakes.
She'd been burnt before.
No pun intended, I'm sure.
Here it is.
The local papers stitched me up as well.
I've passed on the allegation to the team downstairs.
Good.
Johnny Leonard may be a sex offender
in the making, but he's not our guy.
So...
Let's have another look at the Battersea Park cafe CCTV.
I'm thinking the same. If Sonia wasn't there to meet Mark Hart,
then whoever she was there to meet must be here somewhere.
"Heartless. Trainee parties as bride-to-be mops her tears."
[Nancy] Everyone I knew saw that.
It's holiday pictures from the year before,
they took it from my social media.
Did you hear from Linda again?
No. Her phone went dead.
And when I go around her flat, she's moved out.
Just some bloke there.
What, partner, flatmate, dad?
- I didn't ask. - Can you describe him?
Young, old, white, black?
[Nancy] I don't know, do I?
White, bald, older?
It was years ago.
He just said she's moved out, and he didn't know where.
I just lost the plot after that, getting in bother all the time.
Can you remember the address?
I could, er... I could show you on a map.
Who's this?
[Nancy] Him?
That's my brother.
[Sombre music]
Connor, I need you to run a check
on Nancy Gilmarsh's brother, Reece.
Nancy went to pieces after working with Linda
and I think I recognise him.
Oh, hello.
I'm sending you a screenshot now.
That's the Masons' dog walker.
And that's Nancy Gilmarsh's brother.
Motive, connection, proximity.
Bingo.
- Hi. - Hi.
Aw.
Hello, angel.
Oh, Bob, Bob, Bob.
- There we go. - There we go.
Aw.
I hope you're feeling better.
Thanks.
Bye.
- Say bye. - [Barks]
Good girl.
[Max] Hold it right there!
[Dramatic music]
[Groans]
What the hell is going on?
- Oof. - Are you OK?
Thank you. It's all right.
The sink's just round there.
DC Pollock in pursuit, heading west from Larch Drive.
Thank you.
Thanks.
I'll... I'll take it from here.
Sorry. You're... you're saying that our dog walker
has something to do with this murder?
He's a person of interest.
Either of you know anything about
Mr Gilmarsh's private life?
Any connection to Croydon perhaps?
You know what? I always thought there was something off
about him, the way that he kept looking at you, Tara.
He's never done anything, Piers.
I don't know. He's weird.
[Mobile ringing]
- Connor? - I lost him over the fences.
I think he's gone into the Clarence Bailey estate.
[Max] I'll try and head him off.
Inspector?
Erm, Sonia did mention a dodgy ex from Croydon,
but, erm, I think his name was Robbie.
Good to know.
Thank you, Mrs Mason.
[Dramatic music]
♪
[Connor] Police.
We know you're there, Reece.
Just come out slowly with your hands in the air.
[Max] Last chance, Reece.
You can make this a lot easier for yourself
by just stepping away from the bins.
If we have to come in and get you...
- Face down on the ground now! - Please hear me out, all right?
I saw her photo in a brochure
when I was picking up the the Masons' dog.
Erm, the name was different, but I'd pick my sister up
enough from work to know that
it was Linda Norris.
- You sent her this letter. - Mmm-hmm.
Showing the suspect exhibit MA/20.
[Sighs]
- Is that a yes, Reece? - Yes.
My sister lost everything because of her.
Linda was supposed to be the adult, the professional,
and she let Nan do a procedure which she wasn't qualified for,
and then take the heat for it when it went wrong.
- I met Nancy this morning. - Well, then, you know, right?
She cannot cope on her own, let alone get a job.
And I give her what I can, but I wanted Linda
to pay her fair share.
It was her fault, right?
So she met you at the Battersea Park cafe,
and when she refused to be blackmailed,
you tracked her down and murdered her.
What, no! No. No, it was... nothing, nothing like that.
What, then?
She was actually really nice.
She was gutted... gutted to hear what Nan had been through,
and her reasons for disappearing were personal.
A bit of an emergency.
Getting closed down was just the final straw.
So she changed her name by deed poll
because of a personal emergency.
I...I don't know. It could have been bullshit,
but she sounded like she was for real.
She said if she knew Nan was gonna take the heat for it,
then she would have stepped in, but she had to move on
swiftly for other reasons.
And she was more than open to paying what she could.
She had some other stuff to sort out first,
but she gave me her number. She... she said to stay in touch.
So why did you run if you'd done nothing wrong?
Er...
No comment.
OK. OK, look, I had some class As.
It was coke, it was oxy.
And I stashed them by the bins when you nicked me.
Erm, you can check.
Oh, we will.
[Sighs] God, I don't... I don't even touch the stuff.
I mean, it was...
I was just trying to make a little bit of extra for Nan.
I've got a really good business walking people's dogs.
They trust me.
I can't lose that.
Where were you the night before last at 11:30 pm?
Ladbroke Grove, selling drugs.
No details, naturally,
so we have to take his word for it. Or not.
Reece Gilmarsh has zero alibi and all the motive.
But if he's telling the truth,
Linda disappeared and reemerged as Sonia for personal reasons.
Bit of an emergency.
Tara Mason mentioned a dodgy ex of Sonia's in Croydon... Robbie.
And the bald bloke in Linda's flat
when Nancy went looking for her.
Well, he could have been anyone, the landlord, a neighbour.
One way to find out.
This has been nagging at me,
the sling Linda's wearing.
Dislocated shoulder, it's why she got Nancy
to do the hot stones, and she'd had surgery
for bad injuries three years earlier.
A history of injury, keeps herself to herself,
and a dodgy ex hanging about.
And the self-defence classes
after being followed on the street.
Shall we count the red flags?
[Mobile ringing]
Ashley.
Max? I...
...found something on the victim's scalp.
I missed it at first because of her thick hair.
Cigarette burns, I'd say.
Possibly self-inflicted.
It's hard to tell, but deliberate either way.
Max...
You're bleeding.
Oh.
You could do with a couple of stitches in this.
Oh...
I haven't the time.
Well, I'll butterfly it. Hang on.
- [Max sighs] - You OK?
I've seen all the bad in this job.
I mean,
you have, too, I know, but I've been around longer.
Well, it's men who inflict the majority of this, isn't it?
Yep.
That's hard to square sometimes.
Well, suck it up, Max.
Male violence isn't going away anytime soon,
and you can't afford to choke.
Well, I'm not choking, Layla.
- I'm angry. - Oh, me, too.
That's why we do the job, right?
Thanks.
- Max? - Mmm-hmm.
You do trust me, don't you?
Whatever the IOPC say?
I trust you with my life.
[Door opens]
[Door closes]
Oh, so we checked the electoral roll
for Linda Norris, going back three previous moves
to an address in Hastings, and we found him.
Robbie Campbell. 64 last month.
I ran him through the system.
There are five domestic violence
incident reports against his name
over an eight-year period, ended in 2012,
when it seems Linda moved out.
[Jess] Nothing stuck.
But this was before the Serious Crime Act
let us press charges without victim consent.
Got done for breach of the peace, though.
2013. He'd look older now, obviously.
The bald bloke Nancy mentioned in Croydon.
So the last time they were officially living together
was Hastings from 2007 to 2012.
Same timeframe as the surgery.
If she left him once
and he tracked her down in Croydon,
you can see why she changed her name the next time.
She must have been really afraid.
And determined to live her life.
Got him. He's claiming disability benefits
from an address in Tottenham.
Let's pick him up.
Is Robbie Campbell at home?
Who wants to know?
He's not in, I'm afraid.
Do you know when he'll be back?
I only wish I knew.
You know where we can find him?
Hmm.
Hang on. I'll check his diary.
Oh...
Right.
Tracy Campbell, I assume. Any relation to Robbie?
Robbie Campbell is a suspect in relation
to a brutal murder two days ago. Now, where is he?
If my brother murdered anyone,
it must have been from beyond the grave.
Nasty bastard's been dead a year.
Mind if I smoke?
Yes.
You were telling us about Linda.
She was a laugh back in the day,
before Robbie knocked it out of her.
I remember one time he slammed her fingers in a chest freezer.
She couldn't work for six months,
and he punished her for that 'n' all. Poor cow.
When did you last see her?
Oh, I don't know.
Years back, in Hastings.
Me and Robbie fell out when he put Linda in the hospital,
so I cut ties.
I heard she finally got shot of him in Croydon,
and I raised a glass. Never set eyes on him again
till he turns up here like a rotten banana.
When was that?
What about I just vape?
Please don't smoke or vape, Tracy.
When did Robbie last contact you?
Two years ago, last September.
He'd been working for a building contractor in Newcastle,
got himself sacked for fighting
and come to blag what he could off me.
But I didn't have anything to blag, so he left.
Except...
Mmm.
Except,
on his way back out of the blue,
he spots Linda getting on a tube at King's Cross.
So he comes back to mine to kip on the sofa
till he tracks her down again.
Unfinished business, he says.
I'd have warned her if I knew where she was.
Did he find her?
He hung around King's Cross
for a couple of days, winding himself up
till he had a bloody stroke right here on my floor.
Laid him up for the next year,
with me as his unpaid carer.
So, no, he never did find Linda.
But he managed to make my life a misery
till he finally snuffed it last October.
But you continued to collect his benefits.
Maybe I did forget to inform the government,
because maybe Robbie's benefit was the least he owed me.
And maybe you could let me off, seeing as I've been so helpful.
[Scoffs]
I want every aspect of her story checked.
Who registered Robbie's death?
Where was he cremated?
I can't believe he isn't our man.
And I bet he's no stranger to a burner phone.
Why would he tell Linda he was on his way?
And why would she let him in?
He'd been ringing her late at night
for three weeks, and she was answering.
She wouldn't be the first
to give an abusive partner another chance.
Well, I don't buy it.
She changed her whole life to shake him off.
She was done.
OK, so Reece Gilmarsh
dumped his stash where he said he did.
Plus, a search of his flat
turned up more drugs and related cash from dealing.
Nothing specific to the murder.
Doesn't mean he didn't do it.
- Ugh. Damn! - I told you it needed a stitch.
Look, leave your bike,
I'll drive you to A&E on the way home.
No...
Wait.
I've got a better idea.
[Max] So far, we've only got the sister's word for it
that the suspect's dead.
But he's a fit in every way.
You do know I'm actually alive.
[Chuckles] Beggars can't be choosers.
Yeah, the point is, Campbell's in the system,
so if we had any DNA at all...
I'll keep looking, Max.
All I've got is flecks of leather
from his bogs down to gloves.
Yeah, he was careful.
There you go.
Thanks, Ashley.
Much appreciated.
Least you didn't ask me to lipread again.
That's crossing a line.
[Mobile chimes]
Oh, text from Jess.
Er, "Robbie Campbell's sister paid for a direct cremation
"at Enfield Crematorium, October 3rd last year."
That's that, then.
Back to the drawing board?
Mmm.
By way of a large scotch.
Finish your tea. I'll walk from here.
Thanks, Ashley.
Fancy something stronger?
You could leave the car?
♪
Do I want to know what else you keep in there?
That's a hard no.
[Laughs]
Right.
I'm gonna go to the gym.
Do you want to come?
Oh, no.
Oh, Connor...
We were supposed to wait till tomorrow, but Helen caved.
It's positive. She's pregnant.
[Both laughing]
[Soft piano music]
[Mobile chimes]
Layla...
Check your emails.
I knew something was bothering you.
Well, not any more.
Thanks to witness statements and CCTV,
I'm officially in the clear.
Hey.
It's OK.
Oh...
I didn't realise just how crap I felt about it.
This...
This thief accuses me...
[Sniffles] ..of undue force for trying to stop him
from mugging women, and they took him seriously.
I know. I get it.
For a while there,
you know, I started to wonder myself if they're investigating,
well, there must be something to it, right?
But there isn't.
And that's on record.
Sorry.
It's just...
[Exhales deeply]
...my work and my reputation
mean everything to me.
I mean,
isn't that part of the problem?
[Laughs]
The whole work/life balance chestnut.
Yeah. Well, if I said that you were probably bang on,
would you pour me a top-up?
- [Line ringing] - Come on, come on.
[Layla] Max?
Layla, meet me at the crime scene.
What, really?
I'm still asleep.
I am so sorry. Erm...
I'll see you there first thing, and let's get Connor
to chase up that complaint on Johnny Leonard.
Right.
Coffee.
Congratulations. You must be relieved.
Honestly, it's put a lot of things in perspective,
pulled me up a bit,
stop and smell the roses and all that,
so, you know, maybe it's a good thing it all happened.
Gosh. Well...
- It's a very-- - Yeah, no, it sucked.
I'm thrilled it's over. And if I ever see
the little creep again, I really will be up on charges.
- Moving on. - [Chuckles]
I can't get it out of my head.
If Leonard's not the killer,
why was he hanging around the crime scene?
Well, we know he's a voyeur.
That's my point.
What if the pub loos weren't the only place
that he was spying on women?
And another thing that's bugging me...
Don't you think it's odd
that Tara Mason would know about her masseuse's dodgy ex?
Women do share things, though.
Hairdresser bantz, right?
Yeah, but Sonia was a private...
I knew it.
He wasn't rubbernecking.
He wanted his camera back.
[Connor] Leonard hid it there four weeks prior to the murder,
motion-activated,
and there's footage of the attack.
That's it.
There's no clear image of the assailant, but look.
We need that print.
[Line ringing]
Hi. DS Walsh.
We're after a print from the massage table.
We're sending you some precise footage and timecode.
I've been going through the earlier footage,
and this is interesting.
That's the form for every massage.
Sonia sees the client in.
She leaves them to get undressed and under the towel.
Afterwards, she leaves them to get dressed again.
Then a glass of water, and she sees them out, except...
Take a look at this.
- Tara Mason. - Mmm-hmm.
But instead of getting undressed,
they just talk.
♪
"Hairdresser bantz."
And then there's this,
from three weeks ago.
Sonia gives Tara something.
Wait, but rewind.
Can anybody tell what she's saying?
Let's get Ashley to take a look.
Look, blame me.
- I will. - Yeah, so will she.
OK, so comms have pulled all they can from the burner phone.
It seems it's been switched off
since the night of the murder,
but there's nothing we didn't already know except this.
Its signal consistently pinged
off a tower near the Masons' house.
[Ashley] Seriously, Max?
Well, actually, I'm short of time.
So am I.
[Sighs]
Call me night or day from somewhere safe
and hide it.
Call me night or day?
And hide it.
Thanks, Ashley.
It's the burner phone.
Sonia gave Tara the burner phone to use
without her husband knowing.
You thinking what I'm thinking?
Sonia recognised another victim
of domestic abuse, and she tried to help.
Yeah. So the suitcase,
the Airbnb, the envelope of cash,
all set and ready for Tara to disappear.
All funded by Tara herself booking expensive treatments.
[Max] But he found out anyway.
Piers Mason, you're under arrest
on suspicion of the murder of Sonia Blessing,
otherwise known as Linda Norris. You do not have to say anything
but may harm the defence if you do not mention...
- No, you come into my house. - ...later on in court.
- [Dog barking] - Tara, shut the bloody dog up!
Take her statement here, make sure she knows he's in custody.
- [Dog growls] - Shh, shh, shh.
I thought that her ex must have found her again.
But it was Piers.
Of course it was Piers. So...
So he found out, right?
So it's my fault
Sonia's dead, because she was helping me.
It's not your fault.
And he'll punish me, too.
As soon as they let him out, he'll kill me.
Tara, Piers is in custody now. He can't hurt you.
Yes, he can.
Nobody helped Sonia, did they,
when... when her ex nearly killed her.
He... he tracked her down, and he stalked her,
and he hurt her all of those years.
And the police knew about it, and nobody did anything.
It's different now.
And on top of it, this is a murder case.
Oh, Piers killed her, and he'll kill me, too.
And I'll deserve it.
He won't, because we're going to stop him.
And with your help, Tara, we're going to put him away.
I need my pills.
Yeah.
Take your time. Let's get you calmed down.
Did you know that Sonia Blessing was helping Tara
to escape your coercive and violent control?
No comment.
When did you find your wife's second phone, Mr Mason?
No comment.
I put it to you that you followed Sonia
to find out where she lived,
before setting a trap with a weekend away.
No comment.
You then changed your plans
at the last minute, drugged your wife
and went in her place to Sonia's flat,
where you attacked and murdered her.
Returning with ample time
to get to A&E with Tara just after 1:00 am.
What happened was that I cancelled
a much-anticipated golfing weekend
to look after my vulnerable wife at home.
OK?
Now you go ahead and you ask her, because she was there.
Couldn't find any sugar, so I put some honey in it.
I always thought Piers would kill me eventually.
He said so often enough.
He hurts me.
And then he was so sorry, and he would tell me that he loved me.
And he would book me spa days and beauty treatments.
Sonia saw the bruising.
And she told me her story.
And she gave me the courage to believe, because...
because she did get out, didn't she?
Piers controls everything.
The money, my phone...
He tracks me.
He's so jealous I have to prove where I am all the time.
So Sonia came up with this plan.
And we were gonna do it this weekend
when Piers was away.
Hey, you can do this.
You're not alone.
Can you explain the number of visits to A&E
your wife has had to make in the last two years?
That's four in total.
She's an addict. I've told you this.
Dislocated shoulder, broken wrist.
Addicts are clumsy.
Is that why you have three bottles
of oral morphine in your cupboard?
OK... [Clears throat]
Junkies have accidents, accidents hurt.
Painkillers are required.
Painkillers are addictive. And so the cycle continues.
Now I'm very protective of my wife, but mistakes happen,
Like the one that knocked her out the night of the murder.
[Knock on door]
I hid the phone in the mattress.
Piers never does the beds, and then...
And then one day, it was gone, and I...
I couldn't figure out how he could've found it.
Do you have cameras inside?
No, no.
Er, carry on. I'm just checking.
Well, I was so afraid that he'd found it, but he...
He seemed so normal, so I just thought
that I must have lost it or... or the cleaner did.
And then he cancelled his weekend away,
and I had no way of telling Sonia
that I wasn't gonna be there, and then...
Then I can't really remember after that.
I took too many pills, Piers said.
But I think it was him.
I think he'd done that before.
Yeah, I think you're right.
It's the motion sensor for the burglar alarm.
It's a camera.
Now, there's no audio on this, Tara,
so where did you go to call Sonia?
"Somewhere safe," she said, right?
At night when Piers was asleep?
Yep.
[Max] Have a look at this.
Sonia's assailant caught on camera.
That isn't me.
Oh, but it is.
Prints don't lie.
And it seems that the murderous palm print
matches those on file for you, Piers Mason.
You were arrested for driving under the influence
four years ago, on your way back
from dropping your wife at A&E...again.
[Sighs]
My home spa.
A room with a view, Piers calls it.
I would come up here to call Sonia
and I could hear him if he was coming upstairs.
Did that happen?
Once.
I said that I wanted to read
and I didn't want to keep him awake.
He was really sweet about it.
I felt guilty.
He even bought me a better reading lamp.
But he only gave me this room
because it was the furthest away from the front door.
So there's no way out.
Voice-activated microphone.
You can buy them online for home security.
I may as well have killed her myself.
Listen to me, Tara.
Pierce killed Sonia.
No-one else.
[Sniffles, whimpers]
We can hold him until the CPS give us the OK.
- [Layla sighs] - She's safe for now anyway.
Oh, physically at least.
But only because he killed someone.
Otherwise it would all still be going on behind
fancy closed doors.
Everywhere you turn, cameras, mics... buy the kit online.
At least we can help Tara going forward.
Mmm. If she wants to check into rehab.
Piers wouldn't let her before,
said he could take care of her himself.
Control her, more like.
The good thing is she wants to survive.
Said she owes it to Sonia.
All that's stopping her is she doesn't have anyone
to look after her dog while she's away.
Now, hear me out, I have a security idea to run past you.
It won't bring down any burglars, but it's real,
and it makes a hell of a noise.
You must be joking.
No, it's only temporary, just a couple of months.
Under no circumstances
am I gonna be palmed off with a bag rat!
You ridiculous little creature.
[Chuckling]
The best position.
You should go to the...
Guess who's just booked a hiking holiday in Peru.
Shot in the dark, you?
A whole month up in the mountains, thank you,
with a bunch of strangers, and I can't wait.
- [Connor] Great. - Vamos.
Oh, you and Helen should book a holiday while you still can.
It might be the last one you have alone for the next, what,
16, 18 years?
Bring it on.
Honestly, I just want to be a good dad
and a positive role model.
Oh, then you already are.
Just maybe lose the trying-too-hard yoga pants.
Yeah, and then you'll be perfect.
- Oh, oh! - [Laughing]
And...
Commencement.
[Spiritual music]
[Theme music]