Vera (2011–…): Season 2, Episode 4 - Sandancers - full transcript

An occasion such as this is always
one of conflicting emotions,

as we celebrate the safe
return of our comrades

and the honours
that they have gained in the field.

We also remember the
injured and the fallen.

Whoo!

Shine up the old silver,
looking good, looking sexy!

Ladies and gentlemen - the
Royal Ordnance Fusiliers.

Has anybody seen the enemy?

Light House, 500m, rapid fire!

Move!

Here you are, boss. Have some rounds.



- Take that, Terry Taliban!
- This one's for Ollie!

Charge!

Man down! Man down!

♪ Wanna go home!

♪ Let me go home

♪ Let me...
♪ Let me go home

Yeah! Yeah!

♪ I feel so broke up

♪ I wanna go home

I hope he hasn't decided to stay.

Two tours of Afghan? Not likely.

Come here.

Morning.

No.



No, they can be awkward buggers.

Listen, call Joe.
Tell him I'll pick him up on the way.

- You did it?
- Aye.

- How much?
- A pound.

That's what we used to get, Joe.

Yeah, well, inflation hasn't
hit the fairy world yet.

Go, then. Go to your other woman.

- Babe, I'm between a rock and
a hard place. - Hm...

Well, I hope I'm the rock.

- Hi, Vera.
- Celine.

Mum, Mum, the tooth fairy
forgot to take the tooth!

She'll come back for it, pet.

Well, I wouldn't worry about it. She
was going to find out sooner or later.

Breakfast?

It's an army death. You'd have thought
military police would handle it themselves.

Boy soldiers playing at policemen.

Fine at banging up a couple of drunk
squaddies on a Saturday night.

But unexplained deaths...

out of their league.

Isn't it their case, though,
if it happens on military property?

Aye. Letter of the law, you're right.

But what happens in reality
is we both do what we're good at.

We do the investigating, and they
do the marching and the saluting.

Excuse me, sir.

- Captain Shepherd, SIB.
- Vera Stanhope.

- Chief Inspector, ma'am.
- DS Ashworth.

- Joe.
- Most people call me Shep.

And this is Lieutenant Colonel Chapell,
CO of the regiment.

Detective Chief Inspector,
welcome to Otterford.

A suicide, of course, is bad for morale.

So we're grateful to you
for your assistance.

Let's hope we can resolve this
as soon as possible.

If you need anything, please ask.

In the meantime, I leave you
in Captain Shepherd's capable hands.

Thank you, Lieutenant Colonel.

And as soon as we've established
that the unexplained death is a suicide,

you'll be the first to know.

Right, Shep.

Staff Sergeant James Deverson.

Everyone called him Dev.

RLC, Military Cross.

He was EOD. Sorry, ma'am, bomb disposal.

Two tours to Afghanistan, and Iraq before
that. Recently returned.

Military Cross? That's
a big deal, isn't it?

- Aye, you got to the Palace for it.
- He was down there only last week.

- So where is it?
- He would have been wearing it last night.

- Anyone come across this medal?
- No, not yet, ma'am.

- Family?
- Married. Two kids.

- Were they...?
- No, they live off with the wife's mother.

- Weapon?
- It's a Browning, 9mm.

Standard army issue. It's got a silencer
on it, so he didn't want to be heard. His?

We don't carry weapons
outside of theatre. He

had to have checked
it out of the armoury.

- No note?
- None we've found, ma'am.

There might be something on that.
Have someone bag it up.

- Who discovered him?
- A new-minted sergeant out of Catterick.

He was supposed to move in
with his wife and baby this morning.

What, he was... shipping out again?

He was hanging up his boots.
15 years. His last night on barracks.

Ooh! Nice-looking lass.

- The wife?
- I'm afraid I'm not long in Otterford.

Sorry, didn't hear my alarm.

Well, you have to wake up in your
own bed to hear the alarm, Billy!

Better suit up.

Right, thoughts?

He's an armaments officer.

They know how to get access to all
the equipment. It looks like suicide.

After making it alive through a
couple of tours to Afghanistan?

Afghan affects people in
different ways, ma'am.

You see it here, when they come back.
Leaves its mark.

Ma'am.

- Looks like a squat.
- Aye, it's a bit grim, in't it?

Billy's got something
for you downstairs.

It smells in here.

Get Forensics to check
for traces of vomit.

No, it's too low.

Look, if I'm going to shoot myself...

firstly, I'm tense, so
I'm sitting up straight.

Second, I want my wrist behind the shot
because of the recoil.

So I hold it lower, shoot upwards.

Now, look at him.

Exit wound is too low.
It's the base of the skull.

But if he was asleep, head back, mouth
half open, like he was found...

And someone else shot
him through the mouth.

You think he was murdered?

It's too like a suicide...
to be a suicide.

State of shock. I said I'd
drive her home in a bit.

- Where's Shep? - Getting the rest
of the Sandancers together.

- The what?
- Dev's bomb team.

"Sandancer" must have
been their call sign.

Must have been a Shields lad, eh?

She said she'd meet us
up the mess up the way.

Right.

Get the statements first, then the gun.

Get Shep to take you to the armoury.

Eh, you'll be like a
kid in a sweetie shop.

Ma'am.

Morning. Thanks for coming.

This is Detective Chief lnspector Stanhope
of the Northumberland and City CID.

- Ma'am.
- Captain.

I expect some of you have heard that Staff
Sergeant Deverson died early this morning.

Initially, his death was
thought to be a suicide...

but we now have reason to believe
he was murdered.

So, which of you were with Staff Sergeant
Deverson after the meal last night?

Come on, show of hands.

So after the fireworks
at the Collingwood Memorial?

- Back to camp.
- What time?

I thought you liked real men, ma'am.

He's a bit boy band, is he not?

Answer Sergeant Ashworth's question,
Corporal Grafton.

I don't know what time.
Why don't you check with front gate?

So you'd been drinking since the meal?

And what makes you think
we only began then?

And what happened after?

- We all came home.
- Together?

- I don't remember.
- No, after the fireworks?

Yeah, I remember heading
over to the fireworks.

So how did you get home after?

Did Dev and Vince take you back?

We all signed in.
Then said our goodbyes.

What about Budgie?

He could hardly stand. Poor bastard.

Where did you wake up
this morning, Budgie?

The block. My own bed.

You can't remember getting there?

It always makes me feel
that little bit calmer.

I read once it's the positive ions
generated by the pounding of the waves.

But I think it's the wind.

Blows the cobwebs out of your head.

I don't know what to think.

First the chaplain came, saying he's
shot himself, and then you say...

You weren't with your
husband last night?

But I thought it was a celebration
dinner, to welcome the lads home?

Er... an army thing. Not for wives.

- So where were you?
- Home. You can ask my mum.

- You don't think that I had anything...?
- No. But I have to ask, pet.

You don't like it at the
barracks much, do you?

It's just with him being away
on tour so much, we felt...

it would be better if
I stayed with my mum.

And it's better for the kids not to be
surrounded by it all at the barracks.

But this time he was home for good?

I've longed for that
for years, and now...

And there weren't any problems?

With anyone in the regiment or his team,
I mean?

No. Not that I know of. Why?

What about in Afghanistan?

He didn't like to talk about out there
and I... I didn't want to know.

- Letters?
- Well, it's emails now.

But he was never much for writing.

When he had his soldier head on, which was
24/7, there's not much time for family.

Joe?

Right, I'm on my way.

The Browning 9mm is standard army issue
since the Second World War

but they're being
decommissioned in batches.

The one that killed Deverson
should've been done eight months ago.

- So someone took it instead?
- Mm-hm, yeah.

- What am I looking at?
- The officer that signed it out.

James Deverson?

He'd have known it would be decommissioned.
So it must've got lost in the bureaucracy.

Excuse me.

- What about forensics? Prints on the gun?
- Yeah, only Deverson's.

So the killer knew he had the gun. Knew
not to leave prints on it, obviously.

Silencer?

Not army issue,
not according to the armaments officer.

Home-made or modified. Expertly done.

But something an ATO like Deverson
would know how to make?

Mm-hm.

What about the team?

Corporal Vincent Grafton.
He's not giving anything away.

Lance Corporal O'Connor
claims that he drank so much

he blacked out and can't
remember a thing.

That's fortuitous.

Shep checked with the front-gate log. He
signed in with Dev at 10 past midnight.

As forthe others, didn't
hear or see anything.

- Did you get prints and swabs?
- Mm-hm.

Ma'am. Lieutenant Colonel Chapell.

He's right, we've nothing.

Nothing from his men,
nothing from the wife.

The only prints on the gun they
appropriated from the armoury are his.

He seems very keen for us
to believe it's suicide.

There's a lot riding on Billy's theory.

It's not a theory, it's
a fact. You did tell

him I'm a pathologist, not a homeopath?

Besides, what's he going
to threaten you with?

You're outside his bailiwick, aren't you?
Outside everyone's.

But he can still make things difficult.

Here.

- What's that? - Little present.
Front tooth. Most of it, at least.

Found it in the back ofthe victim's head.
If you were going to do it yourself,

you wouldn't shoot yourself
through half-closed teeth.

So what are you saying?

Deverson conks on the bed, still in
his full formal gear from the meal.

Middle of the night, gets up, vomits,

comes downstairs for a glass of water,

sits in the chair to stop
the world spinning?

Forensics confirmed there were
traces of vomit in the bedroom.

Yeah, but Deverson didn't vomit.

Had half a keg of beer in his gut
when we opened him up.

Had to mop the place clean after.

And here's me thinking
you'd been partying in the morgue again.

So there was someone else
in the house with him?

Put that down, Kenny. This is an
incident room, not a greasy spoon.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a visitor.

Captain Shepherd
from Her Majesty's Royal Military Police

is going to assist us
in our investigations.

Now...

Staff Sergeant James Deverson,
known to everyone as Dev.

Recently awarded the Military Cross.

- Speaking of which, any sign yet?
- No, nothing in the scene-of-crime report.

Oh.

Now, the killer wanted us to believe
he'd committed suicide. Why?

Make him look like a coward.

Personally, I think it takes some courage.

But the common view, of
which you are the proud

possessor, Kenny, is
that it is cowardly.

What is that?

That's the high-speed broadband upgrades
we're crying out for, ma'am.

Well, I'm sure it's going to assist
greatly with all your tweeting.

But would someone tell 'em to shut up?

Now, then... he was
killed with a handgun

that Deverson himself
signed out of the garrison armoury.

So who would want him dead?

Wife - Laura? Motive?

- Him never being around. - So why
kill him when he finally comes back?

Playing away from home
as well as working.

Hm? He was clutching her
photo, when he died.

No, she seemed genuinely
distraught, plus her

mother confirmed she
was at home that night.

What about members of his team?

Vince Grafton, his infantry escort,
Dev's bodyguard when he was defusing.

Lance Corporal Kevin O'Connor.

Fusilier, point man to the team,
nicknamed Budgie.

Now, both of them had a
skinful that night.

Grafton claims they came
back around midnight,

said their goodbyes. He
went back to his block.

Budgie doesn't remember a thing.

But the traces of vomit tell us there was
someone in the house with him that night.

Did you get Forensics
to crosscheck with their samples?

Aye. They said they'll
try their best, boss. But,

apparently, there's a
variety of DNAs in vomit.

- Depends on what you put in.
- Oh. Thanks for that!

Did either of you get any sense that any
of them held any grudges against him?

All the soldiers I
spoke to yesterday seemed

to respect him, look up to him, even.

Vince, I don't know
whether it's his soldier's

code, keep it in the
family sort of thing,

but Vince did say that
Dev could be a mean bastard sometimes.

- Meaning?
- He clammed up after that.

Said he meant nothing by it.
They were all under stress out there.

- Did you check Deverson's military record?
- Yeah. It's exemplary.

Does it say what he got
the Military Cross for?

Mm. Heroism under enemy fire.

His team were lured into a trap.

His second in command Oliver Barton
triggered an IED.

It was pressure released.
He was blown up.

Dev had to defend his
team from the Taliban,

extract his comrade's body and his men
without further casualties.

There's a full report here from Lieutenant
Colonel Chapell, CO at Otterford.

Brave man.

- Any of the team mention this
Oliver Barton? - No.

- Did you know him, Shep?
- No, I'm only in the post a few months.

Right, Kenny, I want checks on Vince
Grafton and this Budgie O'Connor.

Shep, I want background
on this Oliver Barton.

I want the logbook from the front gate,
CCTV tapes from the night before last.

I want a list of everyone
who went in or came out of the barracks.

- Joe, any mention of next of kin
for Barton? - Yeah, there is.

- I want someone to talk to them.
- Me, ma'am.

Where are they?

The Cadvar Estate.
He's the estate manager there.

- What, the Cadvar?
- Yeah.

- Do you know it?
- Mm, years back.

I'll tell you what, we'll take
this one, Joe. Sorry, pet.

- Ma'am.
- Thanks.

Kenny, Deverson's laptop.

Emails..See if there was
anything going on in Afghanistan.

Bullying, that sort of thing.

And see if he was carrying
on, like you suggest.

Er... password?

No, that's what the detective part
of detective constable means, Kenny.

Significant dates, kids'
names, anything at all.

Come on, we've got work to do.

Keith and Diana Barton.
He's a former sergeant

major in the Royal Ordnance Fusiliers.

He retired from the regiment 15 years ago.
Now he runs shooting parties on the estate.

So how is it you know
this place again? Was it

coming to balls here
when you were a lass?

My dad, he had a bit of a racket going
with the shoot manager.

Must be this Barton.

Whenever he spotted a peregrine's
or a goshawk's nest, he'd call my dad.

Up he'd come and take the eggs,
and the young, if there were any.

Why did he want to get rid of them?

Birds of prey pick off the
chicks they breed for the shoot.

Old bugger made me turn a blind eye.

Up you get, up! Good girls.

- Mr Barton?
- A moment.

Blanking in the woods before tomorrow's
shoot. Stop the birds straying.

DCI Vera Stanhope.

Stanhope?

- Anything to...?
- Aye, daughter.

Ah, so the poacher's
girl's a gamekeeper.

Better watch what I say!

Actually, we're here to talk
about Oliver, your son.

Have you got a minute?

The day he got his tapes at Otterford.

Thank you, Mrs Barton.
You shouldn't have.

It's Diana, please. It's nothing.

You served with the Royal Ordnance
Fusiliers too, Mr Barton, out of Otterford?

- I did my time.
- He's being modest.

Rose to sergeant major, didn't you, sir?

Thanks.

And you still retain
links with the regiment?

Cut off my leg, and you'd see

Royal Ordnance Fusiliers
written right through me.

So you would have been at the dinner
the night before last?

Oh, we wouldn't miss it.

It was our chance to, you know...
remember Ollie.

Well, you've sacrificed more than most.

Yes. Yes, we have.

Did you come straight home after?

We went to Dominic's
for a nightcap. Why?

- Dominic?
- Lieutenant Colonel Chapell.

I was his platoon sergeant on his first
tour. He was fresh out of Sandhurst.

I thought you wanted
to talk about Ollie.

I'm afraid to have to
tell you that yesterday

the body of your son's immediate superior,
James Deverson, was found at the barracks.

Well, as I said, I am - we
are - close to Dominic.

He called me yesterday. Deverson
was Ollie's colleague, after all.

Which is why I want to talk to you
about Ollie's death.

- It's a needless bloody waste!
- Keith, please.

He did stand on an IED,
didn't he, Mr Barton?

And then Deverson extracted his body
and the team?

That's what they gave him
the MC for, wasn't it?

- You don't think that is what happened?
- How can we know what happened?

Now Deverson's dead too, what more can
we tell you? We weren't there, were we?

No, I understand that, and I'm sorry
to have brought it all back to you.

It's not like it ever goes away.

I'll see you out.

Thanks.

- So it's a big shoot?
- Two days.

- Your guns?
- The estate's.

Don't worry, they're all
registered and licensed.

Just giving them the
once-over before tomorrow.

They must be big business, these shoots.

It helps maintain the place,
keeps some of us employed.

This one's private,
for his lordship and his friends.

I'd better get those dogs up there,
so there are still birds to shoot at,

make sure there's enough
game for them to feel

like the last of the
great white hunters.

- Goodbye!
- Goodbye.

Thanks, Mr Barton.

So how come
you know so much about the army?

I used to love everything
to do with the army

when I was a kid. It
seemed like a way out.

Why didn't you choose that as a career?

Celine. Imagine her letting me go to
Afghanistan six months at a time!

Their loss! Now, get Shep to
check their alibis with Chapell.

And Laura Deverson told us
the dinner wasn't for wives.

- Is the Provo about?
- Yeah, he's around. I'll give him a ring

Right.

Laura 2000. Dev's email.

He married Laura in 2000.

Eh, you're not just a pretty
face, then, Kenny. Hm?

- What does it tell us?
- Now, that's the problem.

It's mainly spam, phishing scams.

He didn't seem to use it much, though.
Only the emails, that is.

Eh, don't think you can get all lads mag
just cos Holly's no longer here.

- Is there nothing to his wife, even?
- No, EOD, boss.

- Explosive Ordnance?
- No, no, no. "Everyone's divorced."

It's an army joke Shep told us.

Oh, telling each other
jokes now, are we?

Just because he's not emailing his missus
doesn't mean they're getting a divorce.

It's not like he's
emailing anybody else.

Maybe he didn't have high-speed broadband.

Well, you'd better check, see if there's
any sign of divorce proceedings.

Solicitors, banks, that sort of thing.

Boss? Turns out there were
traces of blood in that vomit.

From an ulcer.

- They've got a match?
- Uh-huh.

Budgie!

You need to put that beer down, Budgie,
and come with me.

Do you understand why
you're here, Kevin?

- Kevin, do you understand?
- Don't call me that.

OK. Budgie.

How did you come by a name like that?

Dev said I was like a
canary down a mine.

If my Val started tweeting.

- Your what?
- Vallon. Metal detector.

Oh, so you went out in front, did you,
looking for lEDs?

So why didn't he call you Canary?

Because I'm a Fusilier. Nicknamed the
Budgies because of our dress hats.

Typical British army, Dev said,
always messing up on equipment.

"They send me a budgie
instead of a canary."

Have an ulcer, Budgie?

Only you told my
sergeant here you couldn't

remember what happened
the night before last.

But we found vomit with traces of blood,

your blood, at Dev's house.

So do you remember going back to Dev's?

Well, what were you doing there?

I asked, Budgie, what
you were doing there.

I want to confess to the murder of
Staff Sergeant James Deverson, ma'am.

After the dinner, we
went out on the piss.

Drinking all day. Been like that since
Afghan. Need to knock myself out.

But out at them fireworks,
the legs went from under me.

And then what?

And then Dev took me home.

His home?

Gave me some tabs... to help me sleep.

He had trouble and all
himself like that.

Said for me to take the bed.
Said he didn't use it any more.

Then the next thing I
know I'm come to and I'm

staring at Dev, and he's
shot through the head.

And I know it's me that's done it.

But it looked like suicide.

- You knew he had a gun? - Some lads
bring mementos back from Afghan.

- His gun was army issue, Budgie.
- I mean, they have kit, their own kit.

- What about the silencer?
- What do you want from me? I did it!

I shot him, I took his
gun and I shot him.

What, you don't think I'm capable? Hm?

And then I made it look
like suicide, just like

you said, and then I
scarpered, back to my block.

Dev rated you. You did
two tours together.

But he could be hard on you, Budgie,
couldn't he? Hm?

- Cos sometimes I messed up.
- That why you killed him?

We wouldn't have all
got through without Dev.

But you didn't all
get through, did you?

Ollie didn't make it.

We're just trying to understand
why you killed him.

You talk like he was a
second father to you.

Was it because he was leaving the army?

Leaving you?

- You take his medal, his Military Cross?
- No.

- Not even as a memento?
- No, I didn't mind his leaving. OK?

What about Ollie?

What about Ollie's death?

Did you blame Dev for that?

No.

No, that was my fault.

It was me that got Ol killed.

Ollie! Ollie!

Dev was the hero.

He got us and Ollie's body out of there.

I didn't spot them other lEDs.

I told him that the path was clear.

Ma'am, Chapell's confirmed
45am.

Right. Kenny, has Billy
confirmed time of death?

Between 1 and 2am, ma'am.

- And I checked CCTV.
- 48am.

- What about Chapell himself?
- He's the commanding officer, ma'am.

- Well, no-one's above suspicion, Shep.
- But I thought we had our man anyway.

Found at the crime scene.
Valium. 10 grain.

There was enough Valium in the vomit
to knock out a horse.

And as you know,
Dev was long dead before dawn.

What are you thinking?

I'm thinking whatever Budgie's done,
or thinks he's done,

he didn't do this.

This didn't happen in
some drunken brawl.

This was a clinical job.

You can take that. I'm
going to discharge him.

Ashworth.

Ma'am, it's Keith Barton downstairs. I
asked him to pop by with Ollie's laptop,

just in case there was anything on it -
bullying, troubles, like you said.

Now, that's what I like to see.
Bit of initiative.

Tell him I'll be downstairs in a sec.

No, there's hundreds of 'em, boss.
Come on, boss, we can't get him.

He's out there. He's dead.
He's one of ours. Come on, lads!

I don't know what happened,
boss. I cleared them.

I've cleared the lEDs, I'm telling you!

Come on, Budgie, man up!

We can't move.
Ollie's out there! Ollie's out there!

Let go of me. Please, please!

Please, Budgie. Please.

It's not gunfire, Budgie.

No.

It's just drilling.

Is it loud noises... like drilling?

Bring it all back for you? Is it?

Your fireworks? Is that what
happened that night, Budgie?

The fireworks?
You didn't want to be on your own?

Or maybe... maybe Dev thought you
shouldn't be on your own. Hm?

So he took you back
to his place instead?

But some time in the
night you woke up, and

that's when you saw
him, didn't you, Budgie?

And you thought you'd done it, hm?

Budgie, he'd been dead for hours.

Stand down, Budgie! Stand down!

Joe, easy!

OK, Budgie. OK.

But I saw myself do it.

You didn't kill him, Budgie.

I can still see him,
lying there in the sand.

His limbs like a jigsaw I
can't put back together.

Who?

You mean Dev?

Or Ollie?

The dead don't leave you.

What are you looking at?

Go and get me a large
drink and a psychiatrist.

At last, the cry for help.

I'll make you a wee cup of tea, ma'am.

I know that it would've been
Dev's last will and testament

that we get absolutely
hammered in his memory.

OK. To Dev.

To Dev!
- Sandancer legend.

Don't they give these lads any kind of
help, after all they've been through?

Counsellors are available,
but soldiers have

to know they've got a
problem to consult them.

And if they do, it's still seen
as a sign of weakness by some.

I'll make some calls tonight.

Thanks for the lift.

You don't want to
overdo the exercise.

I've still got 10km
to run when I get home.

- What, are you being punished for
something? - Iron Man challenge.

Well, cannot let the RMPs down.

Show the grunts what us monkeys can do.

That's what they call us!

- Where's Budgie?
- Off with the birds.

I sent him a text. Told
him where we were.

Joe?

Just to let you know,
Ollie's emails have been cleaned out.

His folders, his trash-can, everything.

And it wasn't done two months ago
before he died.

- It was done today.
- Oh?

- Well, Mum or Dad?
- His dad seemed fine about bringing it in.

Well, let's pay them
another visit tomorrow.

And Laura Deverson.

Now, Joe, you get yourself home
to Celine and the kids.

- Good night.
- Night. Night.

Where are we going, lads?

Right, I'll see you losers later.

- Where are you off?
- Oh, aye, Grafton, where are you off to?

- How does it compare?
- Different angle to the first.

Upward. Entered jaw here,
exited skull... here.

Might also have been awake
when it happened.

Gun?

Silencer. It's just like the other one.

It's not army, though.
Not British army, anyway. Russian maybe.

A little memento from Afghanistan.
Isn't that what he said?

Oh, well, see what there
are in the way of prints.

- Note?
- No.

- So what are we saying? Same killer?
- Or a copycat.

Apart from the angle of shot,
but crouching down could explain that.

Any sign of a break-in?

None I can see.

Hm...

- Who found him?
- Vincent Grafton.

I thought maybe I'd better check on him.

Was the door locked or unlocked?

Open.

Why did you think you
needed to check on him?

I thought maybe he'd bugged out or...

Or what? Killed himself?

He was a soldier, and a good soldier.
He wouldn't have done that.

I was just checking he
wasn't ill or something.

What did you do last night?

I was out. Drinking to Dev.

- After?
- Came back here. Went to bed.

Ma'am...

Why was he in uniform?

We were a guard down.
Must have had to do last-minute stag.

Well, we'll need the logbook
from the front gate, Shep.

Right. And the CO wishes
to speak to you, ma'am.

Is it OK, if I...?

Thanks.

This latest death is
terrible. For the barracks, for

the regiment, as well as
being a tragedy in itself.

Yet I can't help but think
that it might have been prevented.

If you had not gone around
chasing phantom murderers,

then perhaps Corporal O'Connor might not
have taken his life in the same way.

We believe somebody killed these men
and might kill more.

And I might be able
to get to the heart of the matter

if you and your men
showed a little more cooperation.

I'm sorry. I don't
understand, Chief Inspector.

Hasn't Captain Shepherd
been of assistance?

Oh, Captain Shepherd's
been a great help.

Though I believe
that something happened in Afghanistan.

Something that links
the deaths of these two

soldiers, but nobody's
prepared to talk about it.

And what do you suppose
that something is?

Oliver Barton.

I've written a full report.

- I've seen it. It's in Deverson's file.
- Then you know what occurred.

I spoke to Keith Barton, and he was
reluctant to endorse the official version.

So I did a little bit of reading up
on military procedure last night

and I discovered it was Deverson's job to
ensure that the incident site is safe.

Chief Inspector, I do not believe
that you have the authority...

Did Deverson follow procedure?

Maybe not to the letter, but...

So he could be seen to be responsible?

Barton was Deverson's number two.

Even if he technically should not have
been the one to secure the ground,

he had the skill-set to do so.

So it is only in the
letter of the law that Keith

Barton and his family might have a case.

What sort of a case?

They were pursuing the matter?

I cannot speak for them.

On the night that James
Deverson was killed,

you invited the Bartons back
to your house for drinks.

- Did you talk about Ollie?
- Amongst other things.

They wanted you to push for an inquiry.

And you told them no.

What time did they leave?

As I told Captain Shepherd,
45am.

Shep, you stay here, take statements -
Dev's team, what's left of them.

Anyone who saw Budgie last night.

And guns.

You've got to find all these personal
arsenals before anyone else gets hurt.

Er, are Keith or Diana home?

No. Dad's with the shoot
and Mum's at the cash-and-carry.

Can I help?

Peas in a pod?

The terrible twins,
Mum always used to call me and Ollie.

And you're with the Royal
Ordnance Fusiliers too?

Medical Corps, but I'm
based at Otterford.

Still completing my training
at Newcastle City Hospital.

Ah! What, then you'll go to Afghanistan,
will you?

If I'm needed. It's sad to say,

but theatre of ops is one of the best
places to learn new theatre skills.

What was it you wanted?

Could we have a look at Ollie's room?

See if we can get some idea.

He still had a room here?

Yeah.

But why?

We're looking into your brother's death,

and trying to find out
exactly what happened in Afghanistan.

We were very different, me and Ol.

I'd bury myself in some science books,

and he'd be into the back of an old
computer or radio or circuit board.

Dad wanted us to go to uni
and then on to officer training.

He'd risen up through the ranks. He
wanted his sons to go further than him.

That's perfectly natural.

But Ollie knew what he wanted. He didn't
want to be ordering men to do things.

Be in there, getting his hands dirty,
doing them himself.

He signed up as a private after school.

Ollie had just been selected for his
final training to become an ATO.

So he'd have then been qualified
to do Dev's job?

Deverson insisted that he'd only go
back out if Ollie was his number two.

- Or what?
- He'd quit.

But Ollie could have said no, right?

Dev would have made sure that was
him finished in ordnance disposal.

Deverson must have thought
highly of him, all the same.

You have to trust the men
you're out there with.

What do you think happened
in Helmand, Alex?

Look, your parents think Ollie's death
might've been preventable.

They think there might be grounds
for an inquiry.

So why don't you tell us what you think
happened out there, and maybe we can help.

Deverson defused an IED.

They did the controlled explosion, but then
he sent Ollie in to give the all-clear.

That's Deverson's job, as officer
in charge, to give the all-clear.

But how would Deverson know
there were more lEDs?

He'd been up to the incident site.
He'd seen the lie of the land.

If there were any more ground signs
of devices, he'd know.

You think he wanted Ollie killed?

Well, I'm not saying that.

And now that Deverson's dead,
we'll never know.

Were you here the night
Deverson was killed?

- Anyone vouch for you?
- Yeah.

Er... no.

My parents were here earlier in
the evening before the dinner.

- What about last night?
- I was on duty at the hospital.

And your parents? Where were they?

They were up at the main house. There was
a dinner for the first day of the shoot.

Ollie's laptop that your father brought in
to us yesterday, the emails had been wiped.

Know anything about that, Alex?

You've got to help us here.

It was nothing to do with Afghanistan.
It was girlfriend stuff.

Private, that's all.

He's dead. Is he not
entitled to his dignity?

Uh-huh. All right.

No, that's great. Thanks, Kenny.

Cadvar House confirmed
the Bartons were there last night.

- Alex Barton?
- The hospital says he was on night shift.

- Laura Deverson?
- At home.

- Oh. Anything on divorce proceedings?
- Kenny says no sign.

- And the good news?
- Vincent Grafton.

You might be interested in this, then.

I did a search of the lines,
looking for illegal firearms.

Well, where do you come across
a collection like this?

You'd be surprised what $20 will get you
at a souk in Basra or Sangin.

Did you talk to the others
who were with him last night?

Uh-huh. They said he left them down at the
quayside around midnight. But look at this.

From the logbook at the front gate.

Right, then, Vince,
I think you'd better come with us.

You arresting me?

Can do, if you like, unless you've got
licences for your little arsenal.

So you were out on the lash
on Dean Street last night?

Had a few bevvies.

30pm.

30?

If that's what it says.

Oh, only the name before yours
gets back at 12:20am.

Your colleagues said they left you down
at the quayside. Were you with anyone?

- Maybe I got lucky.
- A woman? She have a name?

You don't think much of women, do you,
Corporal?

I like them. Lots.

I just don't want to get too close to them.
They mess you up, when you're a soldier.

Like Ollie?

I don't know what you're talking about.

Well, he had girlfriend
problems, didn't he?

Yeah.

He had some problems
with his bird before...

before the last tour.

So? It's pretty common in our line.

What's her name? Ollie's girlfriend.

- She have one? - I'm sure she did.
But I didn't know her, did I?

Listen, Vince, Budgie was killed with a
weapon you smuggled back from Afghanistan.

Your prints are all over it.
So I suggest you start telling us.

So what if Budgie was shot with my gun?

Doesn't mean I did it. He knew I had
them guns. Loads of the guys did.

- Where were you last night?
- I was with someone, wasn't I?

You stop off at a hotel or a B&B?

I was down the front
. Didn't get back till dawn.

My mate Kez was on stag at front gate
that morning. Ask him.

Kenny, I've got to check something.
Watch our back, will you?

Yeah, sure.

What happened in Afghanistan
the day Oliver Barton died?

Listen, Vince, I'm not interested in the
rights or wrongs of what goes on out there.

But I believe that the death of Budgie and
of Deverson have something to do with it.

Dev changed, the last tour.

He was still the best
at his job and all.

You could put your house on him
to get you through.

But outside, he didn't join in.

No banter.

Distant.

Especially with Ollie.

Do you blame Deverson for Ollie's death?

Or do you blame Budgie?

The sentry admits
he entered the wrong time on the log.

Said it was well after
dawn when he got back.

Yeah, can we trust that? These lads would
rather go to jail than tell us the truth.

Get Shep to check the CCTV.

- You still think he did it?
- Aye.

- Where are you off to?
- Evening shift will be starting.

You can knock off when you've done that.

Stupid!

Have you got a moment?
- Er, yeah.

Right, Budgie's death,
forget about Deverson's for the minute...

What do the forensics tell us?

- Yeah, angle of shot suggests he was
awake. - Right.

- Teeth weren't broken or burnt like Dev's.
- Right. What else?

Which means his mouth
was open for the gun.

Er... yeah, sorry. Er... no
sign of a struggle either.

Yeah, if it wasn't for the other death,
I'd have said he took his own life.

Here's me feeling so smug.

Because Deverson's death looked too
like a suicide to be a suicide,

I've only gone and assumed Budgie's was the
same because it looked so much like Dev's.

Budgie wanted us to arrest him.

To save him from himself.

Thanks, Billy.

So let's proceed on the assumption
that Budgie's death was not murder,

though that doesn't
rule out a connection.

All these lads were
members of the same unit,

close colleagues of Oliver Barton,
whose death they all witnessed.

Ma'am, computer forensics have recovered
Oliver Barton's deleted emails.

We might have our connection.

I'll see you in a minute.

What, you're not coming?

No, you go and charm her first.

I'm sorry that he killed himself,
but I didn't know him that well.

Dev didn't talk much about the others?

He said he had a private
self and a soldier self.

He thought he could switch one off
and the other on.

And when he was on tour?

No demands from us on his private self,
so he could be all soldier.

It must be difficult being away from each
other for such a long period of time.

Him not writing much.

You got into his email account?

He did still care about you, Laura.
He...

He was holding this picture...
when he died.

So much of my married
life I've been alone.

While Jim was off saving the world, I was
stuck in his house, in his barracks,

being father and mother to his kids.

And the funny thing is, I don't even
understand what we're doing there.

Afghanistan. It's their
country. If they want to

live like that
- killing and murdering, maiming...

So why do we have to go
and sort it out for them?

Why does my husband
have to go and sort it out for them?

You did get close to Ollie
Barton, didn't you?

Yeah. He knew what it was like for me.

And then it became something else?

Now, why didn't you tell
us this before, Laura?

Because it wasn't like that.
For me, at least.

You can't understand
how trapped, how penned

in on every side I
was, I am... I still am.

Between children and the army and Dev
and expectation...

And when Dev found out, what did he do?

He went round to Ollie's and threatened
him, threatened to kill him.

He had a gun. He kept
a gun in the house.

And they got into a fight.
The RMPs had to come and sort it out.

- They said they'd put him on a warning.
- It's not in the file.

He was their star-turn. Clearing
mines, saving lives, winning medals.

But then again, maybe Jim
just sorted it himself.

Like he sorted it for all
the wives to have nothing

to do with me after. Like
he sorted it for Ollie.

You think he knowingly
put Ollie's life in danger?

I don't know what to think, I just know
that Jim insisted Ollie went on that tour.

Hm...

Oh, the... erm...

the little red hatchback,

that's your car, is it, pet?

Yeah.

Only I was talking to your neighbour,
Mrs Preston.

She's very observant.

She said your car was gone until the early
hours the night your husband was killed.

I went out, yeah.

Now, that's different
from what you told us before.

- I was with Alex.
- Alex Barton? Ollie's brother?

He'd found out about me and Ollie
from Ollie's emails,

and he wanted to ask me
if the family could use them

as evidence for an inquiry
into Ollie's death.

Evidence that your husband
had a motive to harm Ollie?

- And what did you tell them?
- How could I look my kids in the eye?

Turning against their
father. I couldn't do that.

I couldn't do what they were asking me.

- They? - Alex and Ollie's
parents were there for a bit.

- And then they went to dinner.
- And you stayed with Alex?

We were just drinking wine
and remembering Ollie.

And I drank too much,
so Alex drove me home.

- In his car?
- In mine.

- What time was that?
- Midnight, just after.

- Then what?
- He got a cab and went home.

So?

Why would Alex clear
his brother's emails

when he wanted Laura
to go public with them?

Because she said no.

Because Dev was dead.

It only embarrasses her.

What, and he didn't
want to embarrass her?

Deverson puts Ollie in
danger in Afghanistan,

getting him back for
sleeping with his missus.

Ollie dies.

His soldiers support
his story because...?

Because Ollie had broken trust.
It's a code of honour.

Or maybe they don't all agree.

Vince Grafton thinks Dev
could be a mean bastard.

Maybe he thinks
that Dev would put him in danger.

Then Vince can't hack it when Dev gets his
Military Cross, knowing what's gone on.

Or maybe he's paying
them back for endangering

him with their private squabbles.

Thinks women are trouble, doesn't he?

- You showed Laura this photo?
- Mm-hm.

- Did you tell her where we found it?
- Yeah.

- How did she take it?
- She was surprised,

given everything that's gone on.

Deverson was estranged from his wife.

She's had an affair
with one of his mates.

Yet the night he dies,
he falls asleep clutching her picture...

- He still loves her?
- Or maybe the killer put it there.

- And where does the killer get it?
- The wall?

Not the sort of picture
you'd put on the wall, Joe.

You can leave that. Not the same
without something to dunk anyway.

Ma'am!

Come on!

Chief lnspector.

No-one in.

No, Alex is up at the hospital
and Keith's away with the shoot.

He won't be back till after dark.

Alex said you called yesterday as well.

Well, we're still trying
to piece together exactly

what happened to your
son in Afghanistan.

Does that mean there might be an inquiry
after all?

Oh, well, it's not for me to decide, pet,
but if we could uncover further evidence...

Can we talk?

It's very beautiful here, in't it?

Is it?

Yeah, I suppose it is.

I suppose I should count myself lucky
to live in such a place.

But I don't feel lucky.

I feel like I've given my whole life
in the service of this country.

First trailing after
Keith with the boys,

while he's posted to Germany and Ireland
and God knows where.

And then, when we finally come home
and make a home,

you know, a real home...

my...

my own little boy...

You know,
when I hear some boy's won a medal,

I think about his wife and his mother.

I think of all the tears that have
been shed in the winning of that medal.

Were you upset that Laura Deverson
wouldn't allow you

to use her affair with your son
as evidence to push for an inquiry?

No, I wasn't.

I don't condone her actions, but I
just thought it was unfair to ask her.

She's a soldier's wife...

and the lover of another
soldier, apparently. My son.

And I expect she's suffered greatly.

But your husband and Alex?

Oh, well, Keith wanted to go ahead
and make it public anyway.

And... Alex, I don't know.

And by the time I saw him the next day,
James Deverson was dead.

Did your husband discuss an inquiry with

Dominic Chapell at his
house, after the dinner?

- Yeah, they talked, yeah.
- Yeah, and?

And Dominic said he couldn't help us.

Mrs Barton, Diana, I don't suppose
you have a hairbrush of Ollie's,

or a lock of hair?

For DNA.

No, I'm afraid...
I'm afraid I didn't keep a lock of hair.

Well, anything at all
that might have traces?

His army kit, perhaps.

No, I washed and mended his uniform.

I'm sorry, pet.

What about his teeth?

- Excuse me?
- His baby teeth. Do you still have them?

Thanks, Mrs Barton.

Right, I'm taking them
straight to the lab.

Get them to crosscheck those teeth
with the blood on the original of this.

Stand over them while they
do it, if you have to.

- Where are you going?
- Shep.

See if Laura Deverson's story's true
about Dev threatening Ollie with a gun

and, if so, why any report of it's
been removed from the file.

The keeping of soldiers' records is not
my responsibility, Chief Inspector.

Captain Shepherd has found you made
special pleadings to her predecessor

not to have the charge of affray
added to Dev's record.

It was a personal conflict, out of
character, no reflection on his soldiering.

Plus it would have reflected badly
on the regiment.

And there'd be no
chance of him winning any

honours, let alone the
Military Cross after that.

I did not think it was relevant
to your investigation.

It is not for you to decide what is or
is not relevant to my investigation.

Now, is there anything
else you have withheld?

Chief Inspector, you are meant to be
investigating the death of these two men.

Instead, you seem intent on questioning
military operation and procedure,

which lie beyond the range
of your jurisdiction or competence.

You're in no position
to question my competence.

Captain Shepherd, I must ask you
to resume charge of this investigation,

as I should have insisted
from the outset.

Now, if you don't mind.

I'm afraid I cannot comply
with this request, sir.

It is not a request, Captain.

Sir, you have no procedural authority
over RMP.

No, but you do have authority
over this investigation.

Under the Provost Martial's
ruling of 2009,

in all serious crime
relating to the military in

the UK, the civilian
police will take the lead.

Sir.

Hey, Shep, I hope that hasn't ruined
your chances of promotion.

Well, like CID, we're
independent of the powers that be.

At least, that's the theory.

We've got our match. Two different blood

traces on the photo.
Dev's and Ollie Barton's.

And I confirmed with
Laura that she gave the

photo to Ollie before
he went to Afghanistan.

- Ollie had it on him when he died.
- That's the motive.

Revenge for the death of
Oliver Barton in Helmand.

Now, the killer planted
the photo on Deverson as

a sign, thinking that
since Laura's his wife,

no-one but them's going
to see it as such.

Who had access to Ollie's
personal effects?

They would have been
returned to his family.

Let's pay a little
visit to the hospital.

We talked about Ollie,
mainly, and family.

Around midnight, I
drove her in her car back

to her place, and then I got a cab home.

So you left your house with
Laura Deverson at midnight.

Arrived at her house at 1 am.

What time did you get home, Alex?

- Around 2:30.
- Took a detour?

- Stop by the barracks, settle an
old score? - No.

What, then?

I was waiting for the cab.

What did you do while you waiting?

Talked.

Talked?

Where?

Laura's car.

What about?

Ollie.

Eh, that's a lot of talking about Ollie.

- Nothing else?
- It's difficult.

It's complicated.

Aye, it would be, holding a torch
for big brother's girlfriend.

No.

It wasn't to protect Ollie's privacy
you wiped his emails.

It was to cover their
affair and your tracks.

I don't have to say anything, do I?
I don't have a lawyer present.

I haven't arrested you yet.
Would you prefer that?

- Joe...
- OK. OK.

It's because...

because I could see the whole thing
had caused her so much pain.

And after that night,
after hearing her side,

I thought my dad should just give up
looking for an inquiry.

It was your dad pushing
for the inquiry, was it?

And me.

But I was doing it for him.

After that night,
I thought it just prolonged the pain.

I told him, before he
left for the dinner.

And then when I heard
that Deverson was dead,

it just seemed cruel
to drag Laura through it again.

What about the photo of Laura?

- What photo? - The one
with Ollie's things from Afghanistan.

I've never seen it.

- Well, it would have been sent to his
next of kin. - I'm not his next of kin.

I don't care how long it takes,
I want every little detail, Joe.

And don't take any slaver from him.

You going to be all right on your own?

Kenny says that the
cab company confirmed

that a passenger was picked up
30am

and that they dropped off
around the Cadvar Estate around 2:30am.

So there is no way
they had time to take a detour

around the Otterford
Barracks in that time.

And Shep's checked,
there's no record of Alex Barton

- entering or leaving the camp by foot
that night? - No, none.

- What about Chapell?
- There's still no sign.

Well, get her to call him again.
I don't care if he's invading France.

If he's not with her in five minutes,
I'll have him arrested for obstruction.

Chief Inspector?

Which way was the hunt
headed, Mrs Barton?

Oh, it's at Cadvar Woods. Why?

Thanks, pet.

What's going on?

Mum?

I was in a meeting with military
officials, Captain Shepherd.

What was it that couldn't wait?

The night that Deverson was murdered,

you invited the Bartons to your house
after the dinner at the hall.

It was more like Keith insisted.
He wanted to talk about his son.

- And how far is your house?
- 20 minutes by foot. Five minutes by car.

You drove? You took them in your car?

Could you show us?

- 45?
- Yes.

Did they walk back from your house
to the car park?

Diana was tired. She was wearing heels.
Keith decided to go back for the car.

- And would they pass by this way?
- It's one way they could have come.

Is this the most direct way?

Keith Barton!

Mr Barton!

How long was he gone?

Hard to say. 20 minutes...

Was it not more like half
an hour or 40 minutes,

and that's why they
were so late leaving?

You and Barton go back
a long way, don't you?

He was platoon sergeant on
your first tour, wasn't he?

I've committed no crime, Sergeant.

I was asked what time they left
and I have told you accurately.

Gibbet.

Where we hang the vermin.

Scares others off.

I know it's frowned on, but nature
doesn't operate by man's laws.

Your father would have understood that.

Put the gun down, Keith.

I'd have done anything for them, my boys.

Same as in the army.

The only way a unit survives is by
standing together. Whatever it takes.

Dad!

Now it's all changed.

All hearts and minds.

Ollie and I disagreed on that.

He thought you could reason with the
enemy, make them see you're right.

But then he gave his heart to a woman,
and look what her husband did.

He insisted on Ollie going
on that second tour.

So he could fix him.

So I fixed him.

Natural law.

Dad!

Keith, don't! Don't!

Do you think I'm going
to sit there and watch,

while the murderer of my son
is awarded a medal for bravery?

- Dad!
- Oh, so you took it, did you, Keith?

- Dad, please!
- You took his Military Cross?

I looked for it, but I expect
even he was ashamed to keep it.

It is not your fault Ollie died.
Please don't do this.

Stop!

They say it's just a flesh wound.

Like you said, it takes
guts to go through with it.

It'll take more than guts
to live with what he's done.

♪ Solo

May God give you his
comfort and his peace.

His light and his joy in
this world and the next.

And the blessing of God Almighty,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit

be among you and remain with you always.

- Amen.
- Amen.

Vince.

Look, I know it doesn't
compare, what we do.

But what we're fighting
for, both of us in our

own way, it's for more
than just our mates.

And though it's not always pretty,
we're both good at what we do.

So you let him off the weapons charge?

Yeah, on condition he has his
little mementos decommissioned.

So, Shep, what's next for you?

Oh, you know, 15k run,
see what's on my desk.

Glutton for punishment, you!

Still, if you're ever
looking for something,

you know, when you're done
with your marching and your saluting,

or if your senior officers
stand in your way...

you look us up, hm?

Hey, your garden is transformed.

Well, had to be done.

That shrub got so overgrown,
it kept banging on the window.

Kept thinking it was Heathcliff
coming to take me away!

- So where's this stuff you want moving?
- Ah. No bob-a-job today, pet.

That was just a ploy
to get you over here.

- Ta-dah!
- Look at that.

Lunch. Return the compliment.

Well, that's lovely, boss. But salad?

Yeah, I know. The end of the world.

Eh, come on, I'm feeling all demob happy,
as if I've made it through basic training.

Eh, that's it. Come here.

Where is he?

Where are you?

Give up.

Come out, come out, wherever you are.

- Come on, Jimmy!
- Come on, Jimmy!

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!