McLeod's Daughters (2001–2009): Season 1, Episode 12 - Pandora's Box - full transcript

- [Narrator] Previously
on McLeod's Daughters.

- [Tess] How dumb would
you have to be to do that?

- No argument from me.

- [Announcer] Next out of the chute,

local lad Alex Ryan on PST.

Come on, let's give Alex a big hand, now.

- I didn't mean your brother was dumb.

(horse whinnying)

- Still fighting the collar.

- Yeah, yeah, give him time.

- [Harry] Not too much rope, Alex.



Keep him close.

- He's beautiful, Harry.

- Yeah.

Sort of a lucky devil.

Three times national drafting champ.

- Great confirmation.

- That means he's good, right?

- Yeah, perfectly shaped
and lots of spirit.

- You are still talking
about the horse, aren't we?

- Go on, Alex, keep your mind on the job.

We ready for the roller?

- Bag him down yet?

- Yeah, yeah, bring it over.

- I've never seen Claire
use anything like that



when she's breaking in horses.

- [Claire] I prefer to
call it starting them.

- Same difference.

Horse has still gotta learn who's boss.

- It's not the same at all, Harry.

There are other ways,

apart from scaring them into submission.

- Oh, come on, spare me the
horse-whispering mumbo-jumbo.

You do it your way, we'll do it ours.

- [Nick] Don't girth him up to tight.

- [Alex] Don't worry, I'm
gonna keep it nice and loose.

- Alex!

- Grab him, Nick!

- He's a cranky bugger.

- You're gonna scare him, of
course he's gonna fight ya.

- What, you think you can do a better job?

- No way.

- Yeah, I reckon I could.

- Is this a bet?

- No.

- Oh, come on, let's make
it a business proposition.

How much to break him in?

- Nothing.

Except his first foal out of Blaze.

- You know what that's worth?

Now I'm looking at two
grand servicing fee for him.

- Bonking is expensive
in the country, Tess.

- You're looking at
nothing right now, Harry.

- How long?

- Four days.

- Three.

- Oh, get real.

- All right.

Stay for dinner, we'll seal the deal.

- You haven't got a hope.

- We'll see.

(upbeat music)

♪ It'll take some time to find
your heart and come back home ♪

♪ You could walk for
miles, cross every river ♪

♪ And find you're not alone ♪

♪ 'cause I'll be there ♪

♪ Oh, oh ♪

♪ You're not alone ♪

♪ Oh, oh ♪

♪ 'cause I'll be there ♪

- One guess who this is.

- Come on, they're Bill's calves,

he's entitled to check on them.

- Yeah, but every single day?

- Have a heart, Jodi, he's doing it tough.

- I don't care how much
money his adjusting business

is making us, he's driving me nuts.

I mean, what does he
think we're all gonna do,

lose them down a big hole?

- G'day, just passing.

They're still looking good.

- Yeah, just like yesterday,
and the day before that.

- Okay if I hang around a bit?

- Yeah, of course.

- What's he gonna do, pitch a tent

and sleep with them, too?

- So what's it gonna be
for Blaze, eh, Claire?

AI or live color?

- AI, unless she wants a trample.

- Does the vit and all the
gear come as part of the deal?

- I didn't know it could
all be so complicated.

- Oh, we have such
sophisticated conversation.

- Well, why don't we just
let nature take its course?

- Because a stallion can
get a bit carried away.

- Typical.

- They're valuable creatures, too,

so they have to be protected.

- I'm glad I'm not a thoroughbred.

- No indeed.

(chuckling)

- We can bring Wildfire
over tomorrow, if you like.

Greg will have to sedate him, though.

- Do you have to?

- He would just get hurt otherwise.

- Then leave him here.

Have you had a go, Nick?

Maybe you'll have better luck than Alex.

- I don't ride any more.

- Oh.

Is that because of what
happened to your leg?

Was it a riding accident?

- Yeah.

- Would you like some more potatoes?

- No thanks.

Bet you miss it.

- We don't talk about this.

Now, uh, someone pass
me some carrots, please.

Thank you.

- [Tess] How was I meant to
know you don't talk about it?

- 'cause you just don't, everyone knows.

- Yeah, well, I'm not everyone.

Social customs aren't
like osmosis, Claire,

you can't just suck 'em
up through your skin.

So what else am I not to mention?

- Fred Baring shooting
himself, that's important.

His daughter thinks it was an accident.

- So what did happen to Nick's leg?

- It was ages ago.

(sighing) The boys went
away, Alex came back,

Nick was in hospital.

That's all I know.

- What, you never asked?

- Of course I did.

- [Tess] So what did they say?

- It was a riding accident.

- Yeah, but didn't you ask what happened?

How, why?

- You saw Liz tonight, would
you have kept on asking?

(mellow music)

- I went out with a guy
who used a walking stick.

He was just fine.

- I reckon some scars are
pretty sexy sometimes.

- Yep.

(laughing)

- You guys are seriously
weird, do you know that?

Compared to Alex, Nick is creepy.

Who cares what happened to his leg?

- It's their business, all right?

That's why you don't talk about it.

- Oh, not to their face, but
behind their back's just fine.

(coughing)

- Are you okay, Beck?

- Yeah, I'm fine.

- Sounds like you're
coming down with something.

- We've got a calf with red water.

- What's that?

- Blood in the urine.

- Oh, that's gotta be bad, yeah?

- I'll get Greg to take a look at it

when he brings over Wildfire.

- Right, Bill's never gonna stay away now.

- We won't tell him.

Not until we know exactly what it is.

- So Meg, there's gotta
be someone who knows

the real story about Nick.

- Whatever it was, it almost killed Liz.

(somber music)

(tapping)

- Harry, I was thinking.

Why don't we go to Adelaide today?

There's a few things I need--

- [Harry] There's too much to do here.

- But surely that can
be handled by the boys.

- Look, Liz, it's too late.

We're already wasting half the morning

taking this horse to Drovers
for this idiotic bet.

- There's no way Claire
can break in Wildfire.

- Well, neither could you.

Nick, I'm gonna need you to cover for Alex

while he's off with the horse.

- I was gonna go and--

Yep, sure.

- Blame your brother.

- Everything's under control, so why,

why don't we make a week of it?

I would really like this, Harry.

- Sorry, love, can't.

(phone ringing)

- Yes, hello, Killarney.

- Uh, yeah, it's Tess
Silverman, Mrs. Ryan.

About last night, I'm truly sorry.

I didn't mean to offend anyone.

- There's absolutely no need to worry.

Thank you very much for calling.

- Greg wants us to keep an eye on him

until the sedative wears off.

Then I reckon he should be fine.

- Pity we had to sedate him at all.

- Yeah, well, you could've
broken him in at our place.

- With you breathing down
my neck all the time?

I don't think so.

- [Alex] Yeah, right.

- Take a good look, Blaze.

Two grand for a roll in the hay with him.

So get your money's worth
when the time comes, okay?

- Are you coming?

Greg's waiting.

- Uh, yeah, in a sec.

(whinnying)

So how's loverboy?

I think Blaze is interested.

She's giving him a horsey sort of a look.

Alex, about last night, I--

- Forget it.

- Please, let me apologize.

I just wanna say I--
- I said forget it.

All right?

- Well, I can't.

I obviously asked a really
insensitive question,

and I've upset everyone, so I just--

- Tess, will you shut up?

Just shut the hell up.

- Right.

(sighing)

So no one says sorry
in the country either.

It'd be quicker if you
told me what I can say.

Hello, goodbye, how 'bout a cuppa?

- So maybe it's, uh, some
phosphate, or a weed they ate.

- No, there's too many of them, Claire.

I'd say it's lepto.

- Damn.

- What's lepto?

- Bacterial infection, contagious.

- And a notifiable disease.

- Uh-oh.

- My advice is you vaccinate the lot.

- Suggesting is supposed
to be making us money,

not costing us.

- So now we're telling
Bill about this, aren't we?

- No.

Not until Greg's confirmed what it is

and we can figure out where it came from.

So we're gonna have to check
our stock, that's you and me.

Lay baits so that the
rats stop spreading it.

And uh, disinfect the troughs.

- I'll help you, Beck, you look terrible.

- Are you right for disinfectant?

(coughing)

- Are you all right, Beck?

- Yeah.

- You should go to the doctor.

- I'm fine, it's just the flu.

- You've got cattle to
check, we can manage.

- Go to bed.

- Bloody stupid, pushing yourself.

- I'm not that sick.

- Hey.

- [Meg] Come on, Jodi, give it a rest.

- Well, Tess said soup
to keep up her fluids,

and I've also got some herbal
tea that really stinks.

- All right, well, don't stay too long.

And don't get out of that bed.

(coughing)

- Here.

You all right?

- Yeah.

(mellow music)

- You like books, don't you?

I'm too slack.

Oh, Wuthering Heights.

We did this at school.

She dies on the moors, doesn't she?

- Who?

- Cathy.

You know, Heathcliffe and Cathy.

Do you want me to read to you?

It's what Mum used to do when I was sick.

- Sure, if you want to.

- Chapter one, 1801.

I have just returned from
a visit to my landlord,

the solitary neighbor that
I shall be troubled with.

This is certainly a beautiful country.

In all England, I do
not believe I could have

fixed on a situation so completely removed

from the stir of society.

- Enid, give me two semis, or a B double.

No, I don't want one semi,
I'm not gonna make two trips.

Well, make one available.

Look, I gotta get 100 head to
the sale yards by Saturday.

- Well, if our cattle are
still in the clear tomorrow,

then Bill must've brought
it over with his lot.

- Well, then we tell him, right?

- Of course, why wouldn't we?

- I give up.

(whinnying)

- She's got her work cut out for her.

- Any other horse and she'd
be petting him by now.

What's his problem?

- The Ryans.

- Ahh.

I tried something new tonight.

Helen Walters gave me the recipe.

- Looking glam there, Mum.

- Ooh, you don't look too bad yourself.

You got a hot date?

- Nah, just a bit of action.

(laughing)

- Why don't you eat with us, and go after?

- I'll be a bit late then, won't I?

- That's the idea.

Get a good's night sleep,

put in a decent night's work for a change.

- Oh, Harry, come on, come on.

It'll be nice, just the
two of us, just for once.

- See ya, Mum.

- Yes, see you, darling.

(somber music)

There's fennel in the sauce.

And I made your favorite dessert.

- Where's Nick, isn't he eating?

- Harry, he's working.

Harry.

- Nick!

Nick!

Come on, Nick, leave it.

- [Nick] Busy, Dad.

- You're always busy, you never go out.

Geez, when I was your age--

- Yeah, you had four trucks and

a half million dollar loan, right?

- Yeah, but I still knew how
to go out and enjoy myself.

Come on, Nick, you're a young
man, what's wrong with you?

- Go tell Mum you like the sauce.

She made it specially.

(sighing)

I think I'll go for a walk.

- You all right?

- Um, yeah, sure.

- Don't do this to yourself, Mum, please.

I'm all right.

- Yeah, yeah, okay.

- Thanks, mate.

Catch you later.

- Where's the ute?

- I wrapped it around a tree.

It's in the car park at the
pub, what do you think I am?

- Drunk.

- Hey, you're wasted.

Really?

What a pair, huh?

The Ryan brothers, the
famous Ryan brothers.

- National rodeo champions.

Two years running.

- Nah, nah, four, at least.

- Could've made it to the States.

- You bet.

Made a fortune.

Done a few cowboy flicks, even.

- What, you?

As the rear end of a cow.

- Next to you I look like Brad Pitt, hey?

Hey, hey?

- You can be the movie star.

I just wanna ride the horses.

(sighing)

- I never made you get on that bull, Nick.

- Never said you did.

- You didn't have to.

- [Bill] Look, when I dropped
them off they were fine,

that's all I know.

- Get the door, Jodi.

- It doesn't matter, Bill,
they all need vaccinations.

- I'm not paying for any shots.

It's your land, you
gave the lepto to them.

- No we didn't, none
of our cattle are sick.

- So you're saying I brought it in.

- What I'm saying is, they
didn't get it from here.

- Prove it.

Those cows were fine.

There was nothing wrong with them.

You'll be hearing from my lawyer.

- Maybe we shouldn't have told him.

- Just get Becky to the doctor, would you?

- He can't sue us, can he?

- I don't know, just get to town.

I've gotta work on Wildfire.

- I thought you were meant to be

fixing the fence up on the ridge.

- [Alex] That's what I'm doing.

- I've just loaded
everything up in the ute.

- There's only one post down,
it's much quicker on a horse.

(mellow music)

- Sure you don't mind?

- You heard the doctor, it's just the flu.

- Okay, I won't be long.

- Tess.

I don't know why you're
bothering, this is the Ryans.

Next to them, my family
looks almost normal.

- Oh, good morning, Mrs. Ryan.

Is Nick in?

- No, he's not.

- Mrs. Ryan.

These are for you.

- Oh.

- I, uh, I feel like I
made a real mess of things.

- Why are you making trouble for us?

- I'm just trying to do the right thing

and fit in around here.

- Oh, you can try.

You can join all the right
clubs, you can get involved.

Everyone will be very, very nice to you,

but you will never actually fit in.

They're lovely.

I have to go.

- I still can't believe
you went over there.

I mean, how many knockbacks do you need

before you get the message?

- So you can accuse Bill
of lying, to his face,

but I can't mention Nick's leg.

- Well, one's private, and the other one's

about protecting our reputation.

- Okay, so if it's got to do
with money, anything goes.

Have I got it now?

- Yeah, sort of.

- Oh.

- You busy?

- What?

- I need your help with something.

- Oh, okay.

- Right-o, come on.

(knocking)

- Yeah.

- What do you think you're doing?

- I was just gonna take the
plates down to the house.

- Well, I'm perfectly capable
of coming to get them.

Wuthering Heights, I love this.

- It's so romantic.

- Oh, yeah.

- Jodi's been reading it to me.

(coughing)

- Come on, into bed.

You know, Jodi is a shocking reader.

Page 12, is it?

- Yeah.

- The herd of possessed swine could have

no worse spirits in them than
those animals of yours, sir.

You might as well leave a
stranger with a brood of tigers.

They won't meddle with persons who

touch nothing, he remarked.

- I mightn't have been
quite so enthusiastic

if you had've told me we were
trespassing on Bill's place.

- I don't remember you being enthusiastic.

- You really think the calves
had lepto before coming to us?

- Only one way to find out.

- Bums I have known.

Wish they'd stand still for a sec.

- They don't need to.

I can see it from here.

- Oh yeah, they've got it.

They've got lepto, too.

- Bastard.

He knew all along.

- Bastard.

- Yeah.

He's burning something.

(gunshot)

Come on.

- What are you doing?

- I'm gonna shoot his nuts off.

He tried blaming us for this.

- But don't you think we
should, like, have a plan?

Negotiate with Bill?

- I'm the one who tells you what to say

and what not to say here,
not the other way around.

- This country-city thing is crap.

You go in there guns blazing,

you're asking for a punch in the face.

- You're not afraid of
a good stash, are you?

- Well, actually, yes.

- Then don't come.

- If I don't come,
you'll probably kill him.

- If he doesn't tell everybody
there's nothing wrong

with Drover's Run, I will.

I want them to know he was lying.

- Okay, fine.

That's a good plan.

- Then I'll shoot his nuts off.

No, you stay here.

(gunshot)

Bill!

I wanna talk to you.

You let me take the blame for the lepto

when the rest of your
stock had it as well.

- I didn't know then, I swear.

I never would've put
sick cattle on your land.

- You still let me take the blame.

- I don't know what got into me.

I just, I couldn't afford to vaccinate.

I panicked.

- Stock are worth a lot more
than the cost of a shot.

- Yeah, not when you're up
to your neck in debt already.

- Geez, Bill.

You know you could've said something.

- I'm sorry, Claire.

- Yeah.

(sighing)

- So what happened?

- I didn't know what to say.

The Tilsons have been here
for generations, you know.

Same as us.

- You want me to drive you?

Just tell me where, I'll drive you.

- Sydney.

- It's all right.

- Isn't he marvelous?

Does absolutely everything for her.

(somber music)

(whinnying)

- You've only got a couple
of days left, you know.

Are you sure you can break him in by then?

- Of course.

I just need to figure out
his secret, that's all.

I know you've got one.

Just gotta make you tell me what it is.

Whoa, steady, steady, boy.

- Easy, boy.

(groaning)

- Nick!

Stupid bloody idiot, what
do you think you're doing?

- I'm all right, I'm okay.

- What are you trying
to do, kill yourself?

- I've always been a better
horseman than you, always.

- You mean you thought you were.

- At least I never needed a woman

to do my work for me.

- Is that right?

- Oi, where are you going?

- To wipe the smile off your face.

- Alex.

Don't be such a bloody idiot.

(suspenseful music)

- Good boy.

(whinnying)

It's all right.

It's all right.

Good boy.

Good boy.

It's all right, good boy.

There you go.

That's not too bad, is it?

Good boy.

It's all right.

It's all right.

Yeah.

Hey, how you doing?

- What are you doing, mate?

Alex!

What are you doing?

- Oh, hi, Alex.

Nick.

(shouting)

- The bet's off, I'll take him home.

- Would you guys shut up?

I'm working here.

- I said I'm taking him home, Claire.

- One more day and I'm done.

- It's my job, I can do it.

- Shut up, Alex.

- You don't think I can do it, do you.

- Go on then, show me.

- Don't let him push you, Claire.

- I know what I'm doing.

Okay.

- Is he ready for this?

- Here we go.

(whinnying)

- Claire!

- I'm all right.

- Are you hurt?

- I'm all right.

You happy now?

- You bloody idiot!

- Nick, Alex!

- Come on!

- Cut it out!

Just, Nick!

Alex!

You--

- Alex!

- Sorry, I'm sorry.

- What the hell was that all about?

Well, are you gonna
tell me what's going on?

(mellow music)

- I'd heard about this rodeo up north.

We were crazy about them.

Any chance to ride in one, we took it.

- I remember.

- Dad never let us go that
far, so we nicked his car

and drove there.

And we were underage,
I was 15, Nick was 14.

So I had to forge his signature.

- We'd already ridden a couple
steers, both done real well.

Maybe it would've been
better if we hadn't.

For me, at least.

I mean, I was starting to
think that I was immortal.

- Who doesn't at 14?

- Yeah.

There was this old bloke,
and he sat on this fence,

and he said, if you're so
good, mate, give the bull a go.

Alex is going, yeah, yeah!

So I started putting on the bull armor.

Alex says, only girls wear it.

He's just joking, he's just
trying to get a rise out of me.

- He was always a better rider than me.

- Didn't that piss you off?

- He thought he could ride anything.

So I just wanted him to prove it.

- Maybe I was scared.

Maybe that's why I fell for it.

I mean, I wouldn't have normally.

- So you didn't put it on.

- I was slaughtered.

200 kilo bull can mash you up a bit.

I've got a plate here, screws
here, screws down there,

plate down there, and
the kneecap's plastic.

- I'd never seen so much blood.

The bull was right on top of him.

I thought I'd, I'd
killed my little brother.

So I just ran and ran and ran.

- I remember all these people around.

A clown chasing the bull
away, ambos, medics,

more doctors at the
hospital, nurses, you know,

all these people, but no Alex.

- I finally go the guts to front up

at the hospital, and waited.

Then Dad turned up.

He walked straight past
me and asked the nurse

where his son was.

When I was sitting right there.

- What did he do?

Did he hit you?

- I thought he was going to.

I was ready for it.

But all he said was what
happened, what happened,

and don't lie.

And he never spoke about it again.

- I was in hospital for months.

Mum came every day.

Nearly killed her.

Dad came a few times.

Alex, not once.

- He was scared.

- [Nick] Of what I was gonna do to him?

- No.

Of what he did to you.

- I know Dad blames me.

Every time he yells at me,
every time he picks on me.

- It was an accident.

It wasn't your fault.

- Tell Dad.

Tell Nick.

- I've ended up with a limp.

Dad hates me for it.

So I became the business man.

See, Dad respects that.

And it's something Alex
can't hold over me, you know?

So now you know.

But you know what?

In my dreams, I can still ride.

And I'm still beating Alex.

- If you just got them all in one room,

if you just got that family
to talk about what happened--

- Then it'd all be better?

- Well, it'd be a start.

I don't know how you live
with something like that.

What if it were us?

How would we cope?

- By not talking about it.

- Poor Nick.

- Poor Alex.

- It is your fault, fault.

You...

Sh, should have, take, taken...

(door creaking)

You can't tell anyone.

No one's allowed to know.

- All these books.

You really can't read any of them?

- Not yet, but I will.

- Here, let me.

Is he injured anywhere?

Injured, I cried angrily.

If he's not killed, he'll be an idiot.

Oh, I wonder his mother
does not rise from her grave

to see how you use him.

You're worse than a
heathen, treating your own

flesh and blood in that manner.

- It's all right, see?

Okay.

Come on, steady now.

Steady now.

Good boy, come on.

Come on.

Yeah.

(engine starting)

- Good work.

(upbeat music)

- Good boy.

Good boy.

(mellow music)

♪ Don't judge, don't
believe what you see ♪

♪ Don't judge, there's
so much more to me ♪

♪ Inside it's hard to be clear ♪

♪ Inside, yeah, I feel the fear ♪

♪ I'm finding my way, I'm finding my way ♪

♪ I can do it alone ♪

♪ I'm finding my way, I'm finding my way ♪

♪ But there's so much,
so much more to say ♪

♪ I'm finding my way ♪

♪ I feel, but the feeling is wrong ♪