In Toronto's war on crime,
the worst offenders are pursued by the detectives
of the specialized criminal investigations unit.
These are their stories.
Surprised you're back so soon.
So? Tell me, yes or no?
Is this the necklace?
If I tell you, you won't be safe.
I'm already not safe. I need to know.
What should I do?
You take care.
Mom, seriously, I have to go.
Promise me that you're going to be home.
Did you hear me, Erica?
Yes, I heard you, Willa.
Can you please not
"first name" me? I just really need you to be home tonight.
You know, just because you decided
to become mother of the year
doesn't mean I have to drop everything.
I told you I have plans. I gotta go.
Erica, just...
We have to be back for English class in 40 minutes.
Do you want them or not, Penny?
Come on, it will be worth it.
Come on!
Your law firm must take this seriously.
This is a clear and present threat.
- You need to be on high alert. - Sorry, my call went long.
My advice: To refrain from sharing personal
information with your clients.
Don't take the same route to court.
Install security at your home.
Good thing I got that panic room.
You need to be vigilant. Alright?
These threats, these affect you and your family.
I just need, like, an hour.
Or, actually, two. What are you gonna wear?
Don't stress it, Pen. I'm heading to Nicola's first,
I'll meet you there later. Okay?
Hey, Mrs. Wright.
Hey, Erica.
- Dumpster diving, Mom? - Oh, I know.
I accidentally put some recycling in the garbage.
Saving the planet one can at a time?
You know it.
Ew, no! Get those garbage gloves off me!
- I can't hug you? - No!
- What's so funny, ladies? - Mom's being gross.
- Aw, that's why we love her. - Mmm. Japanese curry.
Yeah, you interested, cupcake?
Hmm. Tempting, but Erica and I are heading to the ROM tonight.
So I gotta get ready. Save me some leftovers?
Yes, it's always better the second day.
Noah.
I've looked everywhere. It's gone.
Erica? Honey? Are you home?
Erica?
Shoot...
- Hi, Tom. - Hey.
You can't be here.
Have you seen Erica? I can't find her anywhere.
No, why? I thought she went out.
That's why I brought this.
- We could order some pizza... - I can't, I can't do this.
Okay, well, let's just find another night, then.
No. This. Us.
We can't do this anymore, okay? I'm sorry.
Whoa, whoa, hey, hang on a sec.
What's going on with you?
I can't even explain.
I need to find Erica.
But she'll turn up. Meet me later.
- I gotta go. - Meet me later!
Wi...
Willa!
Hey. Uh, victim was found in this alley at dawn.
Female, 45, gunshot wound to the chest.
First, we thought it was a mugging,
but her purse is still here,
wallet, ID, everything.
And guess who she is.
Willa Fenwick.
Excellent defence lawyer.
You know her?
Yeah, we had the pleasure
of being cross-examined by Ms. Fenwick many times.
Charming woman. Ruthless attorney.
She made the bad guys look good.
Well, not every bad guy.
Fenwick's law firm thinks she was targeted
by a former client.
Remember Trevor Tavernes?
The drug trafficker.
He went to jail recently, if I recall.
Supposedly, he's mad that Fenwick didn't
keep him out of the clink.
He's been sending her death threats.
The law firm was concerned for Willa
and her 17-year-old daughter, Erica.
Officers just notified her at their home.
- Thanks, Dana. - Yeah.
- Well, it's all a bit odd. - What, you mean the threats?
No, the casings.
They've been ejected from here, but she was shot at close range.
Her killer was standing right in front of her, and yet...
- They missed. Twice. - Yeah. So unless...
Tavernes was using bargain muscle...
I don't see this as a drug hit
or the work of a career criminal. It's...
erratic, emotional.
Well, gang or no gang,
someone had a problem with Willa.
Tavernes thought Willa deliberately ruined his trial.
She wouldn't let him put a surprise witness
on the stand to exonerate him.
And she knew it was perjury, bribery.
Exactly.
And without the lie, he couldn't win the case.
- He was convicted. - And then the threats began.
Yes.
At first, it was just intimidation, but...
then we got our first death threat.
Did Willa take any precautions,
get a security camera?
She didn't even get that far.
This whole thing escalated so quickly.
I... I never thought Tavernes would actually kill Willa.
I'm really worried about the second chair on the case.
We'll get a security detail on them,
and look into Tavernes.
Drug Squad's got a whole file on him.
Thank you.
If you could tell us more about Willa's relationships
with her clients, with her colleagues,
that'd really help us out.
She didn't have any other clients.
I'm sorry, I thought Willa was a senior partner.
Yes, but about a month ago,
she said she needed to step back.
Something was stressing her out.
Before the first death threat?
Yes.
Willa used to be here all the time,
100 hours a week, easy.
And then, all of a sudden, she started taking
all these personal days.
You know any top lawyers with a great work-life balance?
Nope. And I've never heard of any who are on partial leave
while preparing for their only case.
What would compel you to leave the force?
Abandon me to this glorious job all on my own?
Well, I'd like to say, "nothing," but...
combine "single mom" with "stressful job,"
who knows what could happen?
Well, we should see if Willa was having some trouble at home.
Willa was more than a neighbour to me.
She was like family.
What was she even doing in that alley?
Oof...
Hey, come here.
It's okay, sweetie.
It's okay.
This is my husband, Noah.
- Hi. - This is Detective Bateman
and Detective Graff.
They have some questions about Willa.
Yeah. Yeah. Hi. Of course.
So just to clarify,
you're looking after Willa's daughter Erica, is that right?
Yeah, just until Renata gets here. Uh Willa's sister.
We're also helping with the visitation, but...
there's just so much to do.
Excuse me.
Susan, how long have you lived beside Willa and Erica?
Ten years.
We've raised our kids together.
Penny and Erica are the same age.
What about Dad?
Callum was a total deadbeat.
They don't talk. He lives in Vancouver.
This is, um... this is my neighbour, Margot.
And this is my husband, Tom.
Hi.
We were all so close friends with Willa.
I'm so sorry for your loss.
We were hoping you could help us understand
what was going on in Willa's life
in the last month.
Her colleagues seem to think that, um...
she had a personal issue.
Not that I can think of.
Uh, she had been acting a little distant.
- Absent-minded. - Hmm? What do you mean?
Well, she forgot Susan's birthday.
Showed up to mine three hours late.
We didn't take it personally,
we just figured that Willa was trying to make more time
for Erica.
Poor kid.
Went out last night, had no idea she'd never see her mom again.
Would you mind if we speak with her a moment?
My mom wanted me to stay home,
but Penny and I had tickets to the ROM Night Exhibit.
She called me a bunch of times, I didn't even answer her.
What if she needed help?
Erica.
When you came home,
did you notice anything strange?
No.
The house was quiet.
I thought she was asleep, I went to bed.
Had her behaviour changed at all in the last month?
She barely let me out of her sight, wanted to...
drive me everywhere, but then, she'd, like...
pull over every five minutes, wait for cars to pass us.
She thought we were being followed.
Drug dealers don't follow people, Graff.
Well, I know they don't, which is why going through
this Tavernes file from Drug Squad
was an exercise in frustration.
Still, you gotta alibi his guys.
Already did. All his foot soldiers
were accounted for at the time of Willa's murder.
11 p.m. Some all-night wake down by the Bluffs.
Ex-husband?
Already cleared, as was Willa's sister Renata,
and her colleagues. Her death had nothing to do
with her case, her work, or her family.
So who was following her?
Well, could've been Jesse Meecham.
- Who's Jesse Meecham? - Well, I don't know,
but he called Willa four times on Thursday night.
It was the last call she ever answered.
I-I never met Willa Fenwick.
You haven't met her, yet you spoke to her
for five minutes on Thursday night at 10:15.
No, uh, Thursday...
M-My phone got stolen around 10.
- You mean this phone? - Yes, that's my...
- that's my phone. - We found this in the dumpster
near the alleyway where Willa was shot to death.
- Did you kill her? - No, no, no!
I-I did not kill anyone.
I swear, I did not kill anyone. I was at a bar. Lokale.
I-I put my phone down for a few seconds,
and someone took it.
Can anyone place you there?
Our bartender at Lokale confirmed it.
Jesse was definitely there. He made a big stinker around 10
when his phone was stolen, and then left at midnight.
They got any security cameras?
No. Our thief remains a mystery.
I think you mean our killer. Mark's been doing
his due diligence. Look.
Lokale is a five-minute walk from our crime scene, yeah?
So the killer steals the phone at 10 p.m.,
and then travels across the alleyway
where Willa's body was found.
Now all four calls were made to Willa from that location.
She picks up the fourth call at 10:15,
goes to the alley to meet the caller.
And gets shot at 11 p.m.
Someone lured her to her death.
Then threw the phone away in the dumpster.
But why would Willa,
who's already stressed about safety,
take a call from a stranger,
then go meet them in the middle of the night?
Well, what if it wasn't a stranger at all?
Look at this.
I went through security cameras in Willa's neighbourhood
to see if Tavernes' guys were outside her place.
Look who I found instead.
Susan and Willa arguing about something.
I guess Susan didn't think
this qualified as a personal issue.
Hey. If this is too much, we don't have to stay, okay?
What are you doing?
Crying like this in front of Margot?
I'm not allowed to be upset?
You may think no one knows what you did, but I do.
So if you don't wanna ruin any other lives,
take the theatrics down a notch.
You may think you're a saint,
but I think you're a bitch.
Mrs. Wright.
- Detectives. - We need to have a word.
Come with us please, Susan.
I couldn't tell you about our fight.
Not in front of my friends and family.
Well, they're not here right now, so go ahead.
Fill us in.
Get you anything? Any coffee, water?
No, I can't have coffee. I'm fine.
It's just a hard thing to talk about.
Willa was having an affair.
With Margot's husband, Tom. Hence the...
avoidance of eye contact, that lukewarm hug.
Am I supposed to welcome him with open arms?
Margot is one of my best friends, the guy is a jerk.
How did you feel about Willa?
Willa was a good person.
Sometimes, good people do bad things.
What about Tom? What kind of person is he?
The kind who used to be in movies
and now makes furniture in his backyard.
I...
told Willa she needed to end it.
On the night she died.
I wonder how Tom felt about that.
Willa Fenwick...
was a lovely person.
Smart, kind.
I have no idea who would want to hurt her.
Did you happen to see her on the day she died?
No. No, why?
Ah, we were just canvassing the street.
It's quite a setup you got over here.
Now I consider myself an enthusiastic amateur.
- Do you mind if I have a look? - S... sure.
I'm, uh, trying to turn a hobby into a second career, you know.
You used to be an actor.
Yeah, how did you know?
Ah, we're talking to people in the neighbourhood,
it came up.
Were you and Willa close?
No. Not really. I mean, she's my wife's friend.
- So just friends. - Yeah.
Have you ever spent any time alone with Willa?
- Just the two of you? - No.
Never. What's this about?
Listen, I-I got nothing to hide.
Well, I wouldn't be so sure about that.
Look, I'm telling you, I've never seen this gun before.
Walther PPK.
It's a strange choice for a murder weapon.
It's an antique.
You've kept it in great condition, though.
Shaving off the serial number, now that's clever
Stashing it in your own garage...
maybe not so.
Look, I don't know how it got there.
I don't even know how to shoot a gun.
According to your IMDb page,
you played a cop a couple of times.
So unless you're a terrible actor,
you'd know how to pull a trigger.
Yeah, well, I may be convincing on screen,
but it's not real.
Kinda like your marriage?
You were cheating on your wife with Willa.
Does Margot know, or had you convinced her
that your little affair wasn't real either?
Who told you? Susan?
Doesn't matter.
How long have you been with Willa?
A few months.
At first, it was, it was just... fun. And...
then it seemed like it might be something more, and then...
she just started to pull away last month.
I didn't know why, so I went to her house
- to talk to her and... - She broke it off with you.
On the day of the murder.
No, no, she didn't break it off!
She was just... she was being strange.
She wouldn't let me in the house.
And break it off or not, I didn't kill her!
If she wanted to end it, fine, I can take it, I...
I've been dealing with rejection most of my career.
This wasn't me.
Something happened to her before she got home. She was terrified.
- Of what? - I don't know.
She wouldn't say, but she was worried about Erica,
so she needed to deal with that first.
But I begged her to come talk to me after.
So at the time of the murder...
I was waiting outside our usual spot.
A hotel on the Beaches, hoping against hope
that she'd show, but... she didn't.
You knew, didn't you?
Of course I knew.
Tom is many things, but discreet is not one of them.
I'd been onto him for a while.
That's quite the betrayal.
If you're thinking this is a "scorned wife
kills the other woman" thing, you're wrong.
Well, the evidence might say otherwise.
You do share a life with Tom, Margot.
And a house, and a garage, where we found a gun.
And we confirmed with ballistics
the 9 mm bullets found at the scene are a match.
Both of you had equal access to the murder weapon.
He's telling the truth about where he was that night.
I've been trying to catch them together for weeks,
so on Thursday, when he made a pathetic
excuse to leave, I followed him.
We were in a hotel parking lot from 9 to 11:30 p.m.
Okay, so you're each other's alibis?
My insurance company made me install a dash cam
after I got into my third fender bender.
I have footage of him waiting in the parking lot that night.
This is from 11 p.m.
We'll get this verified.
Margot, do you make a habit of following people?
I mean, did you ever follow Willa?
I followed her a couple of times. Yes.
Mostly when Tom said he was going out of town.
Once, I followed her all the way to Brighton,
but instead of meeting Tom, she went to the prison.
Must have been meeting some client.
I wasted a whole day on the 401.
We're happy about the verdict.
Thanks for coming in so late.
Mark verified the dash cam footage.
Both Tom and Margot were halfway across town
at the time of the murder.
We had to release him.
So you have a murder weapon and no murderer.
No charge to lay?
Why did I come down here?
I guess I jumped the gun, counsellor.
- Thank you. - So it's not her case,
it's not her work, it's not her family,
it's not her affair.
It was something we never could have imagined.
On the 10th, Margot tailed Willa
all the way to Brighton Institution.
So she went to a max prison. Maybe she was visiting a client?
Our senior partners don't go all the way out there.
No, and her last client, Tavernes,
is still awaiting sentencing at Toronto South Detention.
- So why go to Brighton? - It wasn't for work.
I spoke to Willa's assistant, on the 10th,
she took a personal day. So I called the warden.
He has a record of her visiting an inmate.
But our lawyer visits are off the record.
Meaning Willa went there as a civilian.
Exactly.
And I know who she was meeting,
not just on the 10th, but also on the day of her murder.
Hey, wanna know what I heard?
What?
Sabrina Carpenter will be playing in Montreal next month.
So?
So you'll be living there with your aunt by then?
I'll come visit, we can make a weekend of it.
Only if you don't scream along the whole time.
Can't make any promises.
"Brighton Institution"?
"Looking forward to your next visit. Brad Turner"?
- What's this? - This creep was writing my mom.
And you're not concerned? You don't think he did anything?
No, Penny, it's fine.
The guy's in prison for life.
Like... look.
In the 90s, this Brad guy
and his wacko girlfriend, Ruth, killed his mother.
They were our age.
- That's awful. - Yeah.
And it was all because his mom said they shouldn't date.
Like...
Anyway, when the cops got to them, Ruth was like,
"Brad forced me, I'll tell you everything."
So they gave her a deal, and then found out
that the whole murder was basically her idea.
She goes to prison for five years,
he's in for life.
So I'm not worried about him showing up. It's fine.
But what did he want with your mom?
I have no idea.
I didn't want anything from Willa.
Look, I don't even remember much about our meetings at all.
If you're withholding information...
You'll what?
Add another year to my sentence?
Toss it on the pile.
Don't try the stick with me.
It won't work.
How about the carrot?
I looked into your library withdrawals, and...
noticed you read a lot of Pablo Neruda.
Ever read Enigmas?
Our...
collection is lacking.
Well, I happen to...
own his collected works.
I'd be happy to donate it.
Deal.
Oh, yeah, deal.
Willa said she wanted to write an article about me.
My side of the story of my mother's murder.
Said she was a journalist.
When did you realize she wasn't?
Halfway through our first meeting.
Her questions all became about Ruth Keller.
Yeah, everyone wants to know
about the killer who got away with it.
Yeah.
Started asking all these random questions, like,
"Does Ruth have nervous habits?"
Or, "Is she allergic to caffeine?"
Or was she diagnosed with OCD?
Yeah, which she was.
Did Ruth come to visit you after her release?
If she did, I wouldn't recognize her.
Why's that?
After she got out, I followed her closely.
Websites would track her location to warn the public,
but in 2013, she just disappeared.
See, I think...
she got a new face and name.
A whole new identity.
And the last time that Willa visited,
what did you two talk about exactly?
She wanted to show me something.
A necklace.
She was wearing it.
- A heart-shaped locket. - Yeah.
She wanted to know if it was the same one
my mom had on when she was killed.
I said it was a dead ringer.
When my mother died, Ruth took her necklace.
Ruth said she liked the photos inside, me and my mom.
She said...
"We'll keep her in our hearts,
but we won't let her mess with our lives."
Do not forget the book.
So Willa found out her best friend and neighbour
was a killer in disguise.
And how far would Susan go to keep that identity a secret?
So Susan Wright is Ruth Keller.
Same killer. Two different faces.
I never would've guessed.
Neither did her closest friends.
The only we found out was through her Corrections File.
Stipulations of Ruth's release
compel her to list her address:
196 Saint-Leonard Avenue.
And that's where Susan lives, right next door to Willa.
Did she move there after prison?
No, she was released in 2004,
moved around and then landed in Timmins in 2006,
where she had her daughter with a local guy.
But when the people there found out who she really was,
they chased her out.
Seems nobody wanted to live next door to a killer.
Yeah. So she roams around,
gets ousted from every place she goes
until she finally lands in Calgary in 2012.
In 2013, she went from
a barely employable ex-con
to a Cinderella of sorts when she gets a job
cleaning the house of...
Noah Wright, her future husband.
Did he pay for her plastic surgery?
Yeah, later in '13, uh,
he helped her change her face and her name.
And then, when all traces of Ruth were gone,
he marries Susan in 2014.
He even adopted her daughter Penny. What a guy.
So then they moved to Toronto
where Susan went from "reviled killer"
to "real housewife of Lawrence Park."
And they lived happily ever after,
until Willa figures out who Susan really was.
And if that's not a motive to kill Willa,
I don't know what is. You've already spoken to Susan?
Yes. But I think it's time we talked to Ruth.
I served my time.
And you got a nice new life.
And you didn't wanna lose it.
Willa was threatening to expose you.
Yes, she did.
But that's nothing new.
What, do you think every time someone discovered me,
I just killed them? No. I moved.
And I moved again.
And it was exhausting.
And don't even know how she found out.
Well, I do.
I believe that's yours?
Actually, the necklace belonged to the victim,
Laura Turner.
And Willa knew that too.
Oh, there were dozens of true crime online forums
that suggest you took that necklace
before you and your beloved buried the body.
Then I guess the rumours are true.
Willa brought this to Brad Turner for confirmation.
So how did she find it?
About a month ago, Willa came over for dinner.
While I was cooking, she lost the back to one of her earrings.
I had five pots on the go,
so I just told her to go upstairs
and grab one out of my jewelry box.
She must've...
she must've found the locket then.
So you just let her go through your stuff?
I wasn't thinking.
I didn't even know it was missing until...
'til she started asking me questions.
Like, did I remember this or that from 1999.
She was basically asking me if I went to prison.
I thought I was being paranoid,
but when she started to pull away,
I just, I had this feeling that, um...
I just had this feeling. "I should check on the locket."
And sure enough, it was gone.
Thought I lost it myself somehow.
I thought I threw it in the garbage, but no.
Willa showed up wearing it the night she was killed.
Your trophy.
It's not a trophy.
Then why did you keep it?
I kept it as a reminder of everything
that I can never escape, and never forget.
I'm disgusted...
that she visited Brad in prison wearing that.
Well, we can only imagine how Willa felt.
So what was your fight really about?
It started because she said
she'd entrusted a...
"a sick and twisted person" with her daughter.
She thought that I might hurt Erica.
I would never do that. I would never do that!
Yeah. I was upset.
I was upset. I... I mean, I tried to make a deal with her.
I just told her that I'd leave town,
I'd just never come back, like always, like I always do.
But she...
She said she thought that it was more important
that everyone know.
So I told her that if she revealed my identity,
I would tell Margot about her affair with Tom.
Right.
And where were you the night of the murder,
Ruth?
She went out to get reusable moving bins?
Well, sometimes, the most pedestrian of alibis are true.
I think she's a flight risk and a liar.
Yeah, Detective Graff. We need a spin team
at the Wright residence. 196 Saint-Leonard Avenue.
This was a bad idea, Noah.
We should just go home.
I don't know what I was thinking coming out here.
Come here, come here.
Look, nobody knows who you are. Okay? You know?
You just gotta get out of your head for a bit.
The best we can do right now is to just act normal.
Look, we said that we would never, ever lived scared. Right?
I know. I know, you're right, I just...
Why did Willa have to find out?
Look. What's done is done.
Okay? Come on.
Inspector.
I just got off the phone with the moving company.
Susan's alibi is basically Swiss cheese.
She picked up bins at 8:30 on the night of the murder,
but she was only there for 15 minutes.
Which gives her ample time
to drive across town and kill Willa.
Yes. But we still don't have enough to arrest her.
Unless we put the murder weapon in her hand.
Now guess who inherited a grandfathered pistol
from his uncle.
Susan's husband, Noah.
Yeah, Mr. Supportive and Sensitive.
And not just any pistol, a Walther PPK.
The exact same make and model as the murder weapon.
We'll get a search warrant.
Whatever you think you're gonna find, you won't.
We'll be out of here soon.
Safe's clear. Nothing there.
See? I told you.
That's hardly good news, Susan.
See, we already have your husband's gun in our possession.
We were just checking to see if the safe was as empty
- as we thought it would be. - I told you,
I had nothing to do with Willa's death.
She's not lying.
I filed off the serial numbers.
I planted to gun at Tom's,
and I can tell you exactly where you found it.
- Noah! - I did it.
Dad, please stop talking.
I wanna sign a confession.
Okay, sure... I love paper work.
- Dad! - What are you doing?
- Take him away. - Come with me, please.
- Dad? - Just stay here.
What is going on? Noah!
Noah, what are you doing? What is happening?
- He's protecting someone. - Yeah...
and it's not Susan.
Let me get this straight.
You have an adult, Noah,
who's willing to sign a confession,
but you wanna drum up a charge against Penny,
a teenage girl who you have no evidence against?
Actually, we do.
We just got this back from Forensics.
Look at this right here.
That's the height of the shooter.
- Alright? 5'4". - It's the same height as Penny.
- Same height as you, Bateman. - I'm 5'6".
It's actually the average height of most women.
Similar to Susan,
who actually has motive.
Susan has more reason to kill Willa
- than Penny or Noah. - Yeah, but we know
- it's not her. - How?
Because when she was confronted,
she chose to run, like she always does.
Look, she told me as much, and I believe her.
I didn't realize you were in the habit of taking
killers at their word, Graff.
Let alone a woman who lied to the Crown to get a plea deal.
Worse miscarriage of justice since Homolka, in my opinion.
Look at her history, her psychology.
Time and time again, when she's exposed,
she chooses flight over fight.
Now she hasn't harmed anyone in 20 years. Why kill now?
Because she has more to lose.
This is by far the longest she's ever settled down
in one place. The longer you lay roots,
the harder it is to uproot.
And all of that is true for Penny as well.
Fair point.
So what about her alibi?
This wouldn't be the first time
a teenage girl lied about where she went.
But what are you talking about?
We can't just leave Dad!
I've already packed your things, Penny.
We have to go.
It's happening again, isn't it?
Willa found out about me.
I told her we'd leave, but...
your father did a terrible thing.
He was only trying to protect us, but now,
there is nothing we can do, 'cause he confessed.
But you and I still have a chance to leave
before everyone figures out who I am, who you are.
- No. No, we can't. - Penny, listen to me.
You were younger the last time. Remember?
They had to blur your face and redact your name.
It's different now.
And you deserve to be more than my mistakes.
I already told you, I went to the ROM Night Exhibit.
If you went last Thursday night,
you would've seen the Dale Chihuly exhibit, right?
The glass sculptures... Beautiful.
Yeah.
Well, the thing is, that exhibit moved on years ago.
Come on, Erica. We just need to know
where you and Penny were that night.
Hon, no one's gonna be upset, I promise.
We just want your help.
Your aunt's right, Erica.
We went to a bar.
It was my idea.
Penny and I had just gotten our fake IDs that day,
and I wanted us to celebrate.
And where is this bar exactly?
Mrs. Wright.
I have nothing more to say to you.
Oh, we're actually here to speak to Penny.
I've never been to a bar, I'm 17.
That didn't stop me.
Erica's lying. I don't know what she's talking about.
Penny.
Several people place you at Lokale.
A bar
just a few blocks away from where Willa was murdered.
And Erica also mentioned that you left early that night.
You said you were taking a cab home.
But instead, you lifted a stranger's phone.
- You called Willa. - No.
Um, did you ask her for a ride?
Did you...
tell her you'd had too much to drink
and not to tell your mom?
- No... - She doesn't drink.
Well, whatever it was, it worked.
She raced over, because she cared about you.
And you were waiting for her with your dad's gun.
And after you shot her,
you called Noah on your phone,
we found the deleted logs in his cell,
because you knew he would do anything for you.
And he did make the ultimate sacrifice.
He hid the gun,
and he would tell your mom that he killed Willa.
All to protect you.
Look, Penny.
I know you didn't want to hurt your best friend's mom.
Someone who cared for you, for Erica...
But you just didn't have any other choice.
No, you're wrong.
She didn't know about Willa.
I only just told her now.
You know,
like most parents,
I think you might have underestimated
how much your kid hears of private adult conversations.
You knew about Willa, right?
Yeah.
She's a liar.
You didn't tell her,
did you, Susan?
Penny, you don't know the truth about Laura Turner.
You never told her how complicit you were.
No, you're wrong.
My mom didn't kill that woman.
She was manipulated by her boyfriend, she's the victim...
Penny, Penny. Not another word.
Which is your spot, Penny?
I mean, every family member has got their favourite.
Mine was, uh, right in the middle between my parents.
My mother to the left of me, always beside me,
and my dad...
down in his captain's chair. More leg room.
See, as a kid, I, uh...
I looked up to them. Literally.
To me, they were... perfect.
Infallible.
But part of growing up is realizing
that our parents are flawed.
My father was suspected of doing a terrible thing too.
When I heard about it,
my first thought was,
"They're all so wrong.
They just can't see the truth.
He's my father, not a monster."
That person
that they're all screaming about,
that wasn't my father.
Because what would that make me?
If he's a monster,
am I?
So we choose to rely on cognitive dissonance.
We choose to believe that our parents are good people.
Innocent people. It's easier on the soul.
The past recedes and with it, that awful nagging doubt.
And that works. For a while.
For a while, until that belief
is threatened by someone like Willa.
You see, I-I knew Willa.
I knew what it was like to be caught in her glare.
She was like a dog with a bone...
and she was gonna tell the world who your mother was,
and it was gonna destroy your lives.
And you couldn't just sit there and watch your world crumble.
Penny.
The worst part is that
after she was gonna remind the world
that your mother was a monster,
she wasn't gonna stop until she convinced you.
What did your father do?
You have no idea what it's like.
Was your father in every paper?
Did people write books about him?
How many times were you chased out of your school
by screaming reporters?
I was little, but I remember it all.
The TV vans tearing up our lawn.
People throwing paint at our house. Spitting on us.
Every friend I ever had turned their back on me.
Until we got here.
I wasn't gonna go through that again.
If Willa talked, it would never stop.
Oh, Penny...
I made a deal with Willa,
she was never gonna say anything.
Yeah, for now!
What if she changed her mind? I mean,
we couldn't have that hanging over our heads
for the rest of our life.
We worked too hard to start over.
And I couldn't go through that again.
- I'm sorry, Mommy! - What did you do? Oh, my baby.
- I'm sorry! - It's okay.
It's okay. It's okay.
I'm not going anywhere.
- I'm sorry! - Don't take her.
Don't take her...
Don't take her!
It's okay, baby!
It's okay, I'm right here. I'm right here.
Don't worry.
About what?
You are nothing like your dad.
You know what they say.
The rot spreads.
But not with you.