Original subtitles

- Hello. Nice to see you. - Hi.

- Hello, hello. - Oh.

Thank you for coming, everyone. Genuinely.

Now, for those of you who weren't

at last year's auction, where were you?

Details on how to bid are,

well, they are everywhere, as you can see.

And we have got some amazing packages

for you to bid on tonight.

We have an original Vivienne Westwood.

We have a villa on Lake Como.

We have Gray Marshall's Yacht for the week! Wow.

Thank you, Gray!

Wha-hey to Gray.

Er, now the auction, it kicks off an hour from now,

which means you have just enough time

to charge up your glasses with your drinks.

Charge up your phones

and good luck and enjoy, everyone.

Thank you for coming.

Clare. Er, a word.

Sorry to interrupt. I'm heading off.

Thank you for a brilliant party.

Bye.

So, Clare Curtis' charity do at The Aether.

I mean, the money here,

if this place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

So I've been looking into Bett--

What do you want?

Good morning to you too, Bob.

I'm all right. I'm all right!

You've got, but-- No! Come back!

Come back!

Olivia?

Olivia!

- Morning. - Hello.

I saw the police boat this morning.

Wonder what they were looking for.

Turns out a tugboat captain

saw something snagged on Cadogan Pier.

I see one male in his 20s.

- Sir. - Good morning.

Sir.

- Astrid? - No, my aunt.

It's her birthday tomorrow.

She thinks I've forgotten.

I haven't.

I haven't spoken to Astrid for months.

Well, staying strong. That's good.

Well, she hasn't called me.

- What's today's date? - Fifteenth.

Oh, no, it's today.

Olivia's birthday is today.

Well, good job you didn't forget.

OK, so he's been in the water less than 12 hours.

But there's a possibility any useful forensic evidence

may have been degraded by the saltwater.

Well, what are we saying?

He jumped off a bridge

and hit his head on the way down?

Not unless he bounced.

He has two separate skull contusions,

both frontal, one deeper than the other,

possibly from a heavy pointed instrument.

Any idea where he went in?

Ebb tide.

It was a full moon last night.

Should I write down "werewolf"?

High water at Chelsea Bridge would have been 0315

and peaked at 7.8 metres.

Quicker if you point.

Well, he must have gone in west of here

because the tidal surge would have carried him down.

- Any ID? - Er, yes.

Two things tucked into his phone case.

Coffee shop loyalty card

and his work ID.

Phone is waterlogged. I send it to Cyber.

"LLV?"

Lucas? Surname's illegible.

Oh, the letters in the corner look like a company logo.

E-C-H-O-S.

Eck-oss?

Echoes.

"Echoes hardware supplies, Echoes auto repair."

This could be it.

"Executive Chelsea Household and Operational Services.

"Providing elite homes with household staff."

Some rich person got tired of their butler

and threw him away?

Question is where did he buttle?

Is "buttle" the word?

- No. - No.

Welcome. Joanna Picard. How may I help you?

DI Arnold, this is DS Walsh, Chelsea Police.

We're here about one of your employees...

first name, Lucas?

Well, that's Lucas Sullivan. He's on our books.

Is he in trouble?

We've had to make a formal ID,

but a body was pulled from the Thames this morning.

- Oh, my God. - I'm sorry.

Sorry, is it "Eck-oss" or "Echoes"?

Echoes.

I chose it because it hints at legacy. Echoes of the past.

We offer something here that other household agencies

don't... tradition and trust.

Nice pitch.

Here he is.

What can you tell us about Lucas?

He's one of our junior executive household managers.

What, like a butler?

For Clare Curtis.

As in Clothing by Curtis?

Marvellous woman. This is one of hers, actually.

Was Lucas working last night?

Yep, he was serving drinks at Clare's annual charity bash,

an auction for her foundation.

- Where was this? - The Aether.

It's Clare's event Space on the river.

I showed my face.

Couldn't afford to bid on anything, mind.

Did you speak to Lucas?

Mm. We may have exchanged hellos.

He was busy.

- How did he seem? - Fine.

- Nothing stands out. - Was there any trouble?

No, of course not.

Do you know what time Lucas left the venue?

Er, well, I'm not sure. I left at 10:00.

He was still there then.

Looks like he was new to the agency.

He joined us a little over three months ago.

I assume you'll run background checks.

We are famously picky.

Lucas came with sterling references.

He had previously worked at an Ambassador's residence

in Madrid.

We'll, erm, need a copy of that employment file.

Do you supply any other personnel

for the Curtis household?

We supply all of their staff.

The household manager, the housekeeper,

and Clare Curtis' PA.

I'll send you everything I have.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Stop.

No... OK.

Can you stop, please?

Good morning.

This is DI Arnold. I'm DS Walsh.

Did our colleagues not tell you

this is a potential crime scene?

I explained on the phone that that particular horse

had already bolted.

Yes. The venue was clean,

top to bottom after the party ended.

Pascal, love...

Love, could you leave that for now, please?

Thank you.

Can you tell us about your function last night?

Mike, my husband, and I

organised a charity event for my foundation.

Poor Lucas.

I mean, do we know what happened yet?

Was it an accident or...?

We're still piecing it together.

Well... however we can help.

We understand you own this venue, Mrs Curtis.

- Yes. - May we take a look around?

Sorry, we would require a warrant.

It's a private space, you understand.

I didn't catch your name.

Are you Mr Curtis?

No. You're not the first to make that mistake.

This is Phil, my house manager.

Phillip Hawksley, dogsbody.

Do you know what, I... I don't want to appear obstructive.

We're all still trying to absorb this news.

Lucas was working here last night.

But I assure you, nothing happened at the party.

What time did he finish?

- Well, when the party ended. - Midnight.

Do you know where he went after that?

Well, home, I assume.

You didn't see him meet anyone?

Erm, no.

Do you know if he had a partner?

We leave our personal lives at the gate.

Discretion is a key part of the job.

Phil, could you check on Pascal?

Excuse me.

We need to see a copy of your guest list

and any CCTV footage.

Hm. No CCTV, I'm afraid.

My guests can be a fickle bunch

when it comes to privacy.

As for a list of attendees,

I'll need to tick a few boxes first.

Preserving the anonymity of your peers, or buying time?

My guests attended a charity event, not a crime scene.

You know, I need to be careful.

if your guests are so concerned with

preserving their anonymity, maybe they shouldn't have

posted pictures of themselves all over Instagram and TikTok.

OK. From my end, I will tick those boxes as fast as I can.

But there is something, and it's best that

you hear it from me first.

Lucas and I were supposed to meet this morning.

- Who? - Oh, no, it was nothing.

It's just that he asked to have a chat

last night, but he was busy,

it wasn't the right time, so I suggested the morning.

Why didn't you mention that earlier?

And do you know what it was about?

Look, I promise you now, Lucas was alive and well

when that auction ended.

Well, his body was recovered from the Thames.

Last month, The Aether was used by the Home Office

for a seminar on work-life balance.

Is that that "finding of balance" nonsense?

What's wrong with it?

It's good to explore new ideas.

Forget about Max's aversion to change.

Oh, I admit I am wary of change,

and you know what that really is? Hm?

An underhand way to abolish overtime.

I need that.

These renovations are bleeding me dry.

You wait till the baby comes.

DC Connor Pollock...

Have you seen the acronym they use?

- Smart. - Yes.

Specified outcomes, clear Measures of success,

Achievable steps, Relevant to the problem,

with a clear Timetable.

Well, that's a roundabout way to spell smart.

How's the guest list, Layla?

- Anyone of interest? - Take your pick.

NFC?

Yep.

No further comment?

Normal for Chelsea.

Ah.

Well, Lucas Sullivan is visible

in a couple of these photos.

The guests I've approached so far

have all referred us to their legal teams.

Any worth their salt will get their clients to talk to us.

We'll just haul them in.

Nobody's above the law.

Even the Curtis household staff

have NDAs we need to navigate.

Well, there's four of them. Including Lucas,

there's Cate Chalk-Harris, the PA.

Philip Hawksley, the house manager,

Bettina Chalk-Harris, also Cate's mother,

is the housekeeper.

The bigger mystery is what Clare Curtis does all day.

Ah, makes money.

OK. Thank you.

My aunt's downstairs.

Desk Sergeant says she sounds rather distressed.

Well, to be fair, I get like that on my birthday, too.

OK, so the address

on Lucas Sullivan's work file is a dud.

They don't know him from Adam, but our colleagues

up in Manchester spoke to Sullivan's sister,

who says he's very much alive and has been working

in Madrid the last two months.

She supplied a photo.

Meet Lucas Sullivan.

Spot the difference.

Then who the hell did we fish out of the Thames?

We're all upset about Lucas, Cate.

Calm down.

Keep...

Keep calm and carry on.

Great advice, Mum.

He's dead.

Here.

Hey...

If you ask me, Lucas asked too many questions.

Maybe, just maybe...

...it caught up with him.

- Olivia. - Just popping my head in

- to say "Happy birthday." - Is it?

Well, it is, isn't it?

I meant the happy bit.

What's happened? I've been trying

to call. Your phone's dead.

Well, therein lies the tale.

Why? Where have you been?

I was mugged.

Oh, my God!

- Are you OK? - Yes. No...

Oh, not really. I'm bruised.

Some chancer knocked me over

and ran off with my bag, with my phone.

- With everything. - What?

Oh, Max, now don't make a fuss.

I'm allowed to make a fuss.

My old aunt has just been mugged.

- Less of the old, please. - Sorry.

- Yeah, I didn't... - Did you get a look?

I told everything to your man at the desk.

It all happened so fast.

Male, white, 20s, grey hoodie.

I spent the entire morning at the bank,

and they treated me like a criminal

because I couldn't remember my special name.

And now I've forgotten

all the passwords to my social app.

So I've got that whole farrago

to look forward to.

And Harper Lee was in my bag.

It's her cat.

Her dead cat.

Obviously, Max. I don't walk around

with a stuffed dead cat in my bag.

Yeah, well, that's a relief.

It's a sculpture.

It's a silly, sentimental trinket that...

Izzy made it in her pottery class

the year before she died and...

Max said you're an artist.

Well, when you're ready, maybe you could come back

and sketch us a likeness?

- Oh, no-- - That's a wonderful idea.

And actually, I don't know

why my nephew didn't think of that.

I can't get my head around it.

I just keep expecting Lucas to walk in.

What did the police say?

- Mention me? - Love of my life,

pain in my arse.

Why on God's green Earth is any of this about you?

- I'm just asking. - Yes, I told them you did it.

Not really, obviously.

It'd surprise me if you did.

Oh, come on, Mikey.

Well, maybe I was jealous.

I found out you were shagging.

That's not funny.

Lucky Lucas, eh.

Come on, babe. Look, I'm joking.

I'm just trying to lighten the mood here.

Yeah.

Are you in favour of this?

If it means I can get home

and have dinner with Ben and the boys,

instead of on my own at 10:00 pm

from the microwave, why not?

Well, I have platinum accounts

for all the food delivery apps.

Go, me.

The tox results for our unknown male.

He was clean.

No alcohol or drugs in his system.

His TOD... I can only give an estimate because of the water.

But a six-hour window.

7:00 pm to 1:00 am.

Severe blood loss from the head wounds,

but that wasn't the cause of death.

He was alive when he went in?

Significant presence of fluid in the trachea

as well as pulmonary and cerebral oedema.

Well, what about the weapon?

Metal. Heavy. Indentations suggest

it was spiked at one end.

Well, the killer probably

dumped it in the river along with the body.

Do we have a budget for a team of divers?

Might have the budget for a wet suit.

You can swim, Layla.

Attacker likely right-handed, facing the victim...

Depending on factors...

proximity, direction of fall...

I'd expect spatter,

maybe on the attacker,

definitely on the surrounding area.

"Speedboat"

? Some have said they OD'ed on Leonard Cohen ?

? Well, I can see that river whenever I think about them ?

? The river is cruel And the water is deeper ?

- Hello. - Check your e-mail.

We have a name for our imposter.

The phone company traced the mobile number

on Lucas Sullivan's work file to a William Paige.

So I did some digging and found him.

Goes by Billy Paige. 25,

work history has him listed as a journalist.

Graduated from UWE three years ago.

Limited experience. But he runs his own podcast,

The Final Paige.

Oh, clever.

Well, I thought you'd like that.

- Oh, is it crime? - Loosely.

Do you think he ruffled some feathers?

Hm, easier if you have a listen.

Oh.

This morning, with my aunt...

The sketch was a nice touch.

Look, I know it's not our case,

but I feel we should do something.

Who was Izzy?

Oh, Olivia's partner.

They were together for over 20 years.

Are you still at work?

No.

Yes. Maybe.

I'll see you tomorrow.

Hello, and welcome to The Final Paige.

With me, Billy Paige.

This week, "The Triple Agent."

The amazing true story of Ian Mortlock,

the crooked MI5 spy who lived a double-life.

Mm.

Professor from the university.

Unfortunately, she declined to be named or to appear...

It's all right, Bob. Go ahead. I'm nearly done.

...because if only one tenth

of what she just said is true, she is a key witness.

Hey, what do you think of this?

Spiked on one end.

You know, most people open with "Morning,

how are you?"

Hold it still then. What is it?

A boat hook.

Could this be what was used on Billy Paige?

Interesting.

What?

Roz?

Hello, stranger.

How are you?

You're looking well.

Good. Same to you, too.

- Mm, good choice. - Hope so.

What's the occasion?

Belated birthday.

If they're a cat owner, be careful of the lilies.

They're highly toxic.

Good point. My aunt's not really into flowers anyway.

Your aunt?

Yeah.

How's your son? How's Kieron?

Well remembered. He's fine, thanks.

He's doing his GCSEs.

I'm trying to help, but God,

it turns out I don't know anything.

Do you want to go for a drink?

- Now? - No, er--

It's a bit early.

Yeah, I meant after work, but it's fine.

No, no, no. I'm... I'm doing a Couch-to...

Well, actually, I'm, I'm still on the couch,

but I plan to get to 5K eventually.

I'm going on a mini hike

tomorrow evening if you wanted to.

I'd like that.

I will text you the deets.

Living with a teenager.

- The details. - Yeah.

When I saw the flowers...

This time,

don't bring your ex...

technically still your wife.

No, she sold her gallery.

She's moved back to Germany.

- Great. - Her mother's sick.

Not so great.

OK. Well, I will see you tomorrow.

Yeah.

A budding journalist snooping among you

and none of you suspected?

No.

You'd think we'd know,

but the man I knew as Lucas, he was professional,

he was hardworking. He...

He was wholly convincing.

Did he get on well with everyone?

Staff, Mr and Mrs Curtis?

We're one big, happy family here.

He must have asked questions.

No, only about the job.

Billy went to great lengths to work here.

Did he mention anything to you?

Any trouble he might be in?

It's OK.

Take your time.

Did you know that he had a podcast?

Do you know what he was doing here?

Pretending to be someone else?

No.

You know, chance meetings in London

are rarer than hen's teeth.

I bump into people I know all the time.

Criminals don't count.

Do I need special equipment?

Roz said hike. You hike.

Used to.

Anyway, Hampstead Heath is hardly the Moors.

Pair of sturdy shoes?

I know you have them.

Always buy for sturdiness.

Sturdiness beats fashion every time.

I don't know where to begin.

Wait.

Billy Paige's loyalty card.

I want to help any way I can.

Except when they requested to search the venue,

my colleagues noted that you were obstructive

Oh, not at all. If it was my choice.

But I have to prioritise my employer's interests.

Mr Paige was planning on speaking

with Clare Curtis the morning after he died.

Did he discuss that with you?

He did. But his probationary period with us was nearly up,

and he wanted to make sure Clare would put in

a good word for him with the agency.

I assured him there were no problems.

Why would he care about that?

This wasn't a vacation for him.

I've been asking myself the same question.

- Thanks. - The owner says

Billy Paige was a regular customer,

bought a coffee most days, and on Tuesday he bought two.

So he had company?

It would appear so.

I wasn't even at the party.

Like I explained, I flew back from Monaco.

I got into Gatwick, I don't know, just after 1:00 am.

And what were you doing in Monaco?

Well, no disrespect, Detective.

I don't think it's got anything to do with you.

Hey, this is a murder investigation.

Yeah, and I wasn't in the country,

so I don't really see how

whatcha-get-up-to-in-Monaco, how that's relevant to you.

That's for us to decide, Mr Curtis.

How would you describe your relationship with Billy Paige?

We were best mates, weren't we?

We were planning on going Centre Parcs together.

What exactly do you want me to say?

We hired him. He did the jobs we couldn't be arsed to do.

Look, I'm sorry the geezer copped it, all right.

But it's got nothing to do with me.

But he's been here just under two years.

The landlord said he was a good tenant.

Never had any complaints.

Landlord might want to reconsider.

Hi. DS Walsh.

I need a SOCO at 19, Napoleon Tower, World's End.

Thanks.

Oh.

I'm guessing that once had a laptop on the end of it.

Oh.

Oh, hello.

"Tuesday, 10:00 am. Clare chat?"

Well, Billy died that night, but Clare said she'd arranged

to meet him the following day.

Why would she lie about that?

Why not tell us that they'd already met?

We need our own chat with Clare.

Did you know Lucas Sullivan was an alias?

No.

Were you in on whatever he was up to?

Did he come to you and ask for help?

Well... lured me with the prospect

of appearing on his podcast. No, thank you.

We're trying to unpick how a budding journalist

with as far as we can tell, no relevant experience

in the service industry,

got employed by you to work in the house

of a multimillionaire client.

Despite your background check.

I was duped.

He was very convincing.

But you did run checks on Lucas Sullivan, right?

Of course. And they were watertight.

Enough to throw you off the scent?

Either Billy had a knack for identity theft,

or he knew the real Lucas.

Hello.

A warrant to search The Aether.

Oh.

Well, I'm sure you understand,

but we'll need to refer you to our legal team.

Well, in the meantime, Mrs Curtis,

we'll continue with our search.

Right. Let's go.

10:00 am on Tuesday, where were you?

Here, preparing for the auction.

Not in the World's End Estate?

Why would I be there?

It's where Billy Paige lived.

What did he really talk to you about at the auction?

I already told ya. He asked to meet.

Had you ever met him socially before?

No.

In his flat,

we found this note indicating that you had met them.

I... I have no idea what this is.

The coffee kiosk near Billy's flat

supplied us with their recent transaction records.

Your credit card was used there

on five separate occasions over the last month.

So again, where were you at 10:00 am on Tuesday?

All right. May I see that, please?

All right, this wasn't me.

That card is used by my staff for expenses and the like.

So you'll know who it was?

Yeah.

Miss Chalk-Harris.

How long have you worked for Clare Curtis?

Three... years.

And on Tuesday morning, did you meet with Billy Paige?

Did you know who he really was?

He... He...

He told me when things got...

...serious.

You and he...

What, you were together?

Why didn't you tell us this before?

I... I...

I wan... wanted to.

Were you at the function on Tuesday night?

Taking on a fake identity

and holding down a job like that,

Billy must have been onto something big.

We found this at Billy's flat.

"Clare chat."

Did Billy want to talk to you about Clare Curtis?

I...

I don't...

My grandfather had a stammer.

He had this quote...

"Because he talked so little,

"his words had a peculiar force.

"They were not worn dull from constant use."

It's from My Antonia by Willa Cather.

Wonderful book.

You knew Billy better than most, Cate.

Why was he going to such lengths?

What was he hoping to find?

I... don't... know.

If Billy was investigating Clare Curtis,

he must have talked to you.

No...

...honest.

You discovered your boyfriend was undercover,

and at no point did you think to ask why?

Can you chase the magistrate about getting copies

of Clare Curtis' bank statements?

If Billy uncovered something dodgy,

maybe he tried to bribe her.

Excuse me.

Well, my aunt's arrived.

She's in the family room.

ECHOS did carry out background checks

on Lucas Sullivan, which got me thinking.

Did Billy Paige know Lucas?

- And it appears he did. - I'll check on her.

Thank you.

Lucas Sullivan studied hospitality at UWE

at the same time Billy Paige was there

- doing journalism. - Good find

Well, let's track down the real Lucas Sullivan

and see what he knows.

Sorry to keep you. One of those days.

How are you?

Oh, I'm OK.

But, you know, it's hard.

When I was at uni, I got mugged at knifepoint.

It took me a while to feel safe again.

Years later, my first week on the job, I tried to find

who did it, but never did.

They win twice, don't they?

Yeah.

I know the chances of you finding the man

who attacked me are slim,

but I thought this might be useful.

Oh, did Max ever tell you that I once sold a painting

to Sir Terence Conran?

He didn't. Impressive.

He was in Pink Floyd.

- Layla. - Joking.

Sorry.

I tried to take down as much detail as possible.

I hope this helps.

Yeah, it-it does.

I'll phone London Zoo, see if they've lost a giraffe.

Hilarious.

Er, wait. Is... is that a tattoo?

Yes. I only got a glimpse of it,

but it looks like a bird on fire.

I'm thinking Phoenix?

I was just telling Layla about Terence Conran.

Do you remember the time that Habitat bought

one of my designs and put it on a shower curtain?

Proud day. I bought two.

That's him!

That's the toe rag.

Well,

if that is him, I take it back.

You weren't a million miles away.

I'm sorry.

You'll be paid until the end of the month.

Clare, you asked for me?

What's going on?

Well, like you don't know. You're her mum.

Mikey, leave it.

This is more than just the odd coffee, Cate.

We're not involving the police.

She's been syphoning money from the accounts

thinking we wouldn't notice.

There's thousands of quid missing.

This... This is wrong. You've made a mistake.

So is this what Billy Lucas,

whatever he calls himself, found out?

You've been biting the hand that feeds you all this time.

Oh, Cate...

How's it going with your paddle tennis man?

Erm, yeah, good.

Is he still letting you win every game?

He wishes.

What was the call like with Billy Paige's family?

Er, tough. Really tough.

Headlines are they were looking forward

to meeting his new girlfriend.

Did they know what he was up to?

Didn't even know he had this job.

But his da said Billy had landed

a juicy story for his podcast.

Said he was onto something big.

Billy Paige's phone was a write-off,

but Cyber had managed to salvage a couple of things.

Those Cyber boys really know their stuff.

- Mm-hm. - Cyber boys?

Nice try.

If Billy Paige's flat was ransacked,

somebody was after something.

- But what? - SOCO came up empty

on any matching prints for those at the flat.

Officers spoke to the neighbours,

nobody saw or heard anything.

I'm pulling up CCTV from around the World's End.

Ashley's checking the boat hook

that we found at The Aether. From the shape of the wound,

it's possible that this is our weapon.

Oh, and Cate Chalk-Harris didn't tell us about

her relationship with Billy.

Might she have a motive?

Crime of passion? If things weren't

as rosy as she makes out.

Take a look at this from Billy Paige's phone.

...Clare Curtis' charity do at The Aether.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

So I've been looking into Bett...

Timestamp is Tuesday. 22:16...

Any GPS?

Data's corrupted, nothing usable.

And the goodbye ping from his phone?

One-oh-four.

But he went into the water with his phone in his pocket,

so it could have remained active for hours.

Does that look like he's still at The Aether?

Clare Curtis said Billy was there until midnight.

Unless he docked out early.

Someone jumped him between there and home

Play the last bit again.

So I've been looking into Bett--

Bett?

Is he saying Bettina?

Was he investigating Bettina, the housekeeper?

...if the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

So I've been looking into Bett--

It sounds like he's saying your name.

Or I've been looking into

better ways of...

something like that.

That was recorded at 22:16 on Tuesday night.

Was Billy still working then?

I don't know.

I headed back to the house just before 10:00.

- You did? - It's a bloody mess, eh?

Mr Curtis, this was a private conversation.

Er, why was Billy looking into you?

I have no idea.

Perhaps he discovered what was going on.

They're gonna find out.

What has been going on?

After you asked to look at our finances,

we did a bit of investigating of our own.

My daughter, Cate.

She's been relieved of her duties,

but it's all a huge mistake.

Turns out she's a little thief.

Mike, please!

Is it possible that Billy discovered this?

No.

Because there's nothing to discover.

Cate's innocent.

She is!

You previously told us you weren't at the auction

on Tuesday night.

But that's not true, is it?

We've obtained a copy of your phone activity.

On Tuesday, you sent quite a few texts to Billy.

Increasingly frustrated.

The last one shortly before 9:00 pm,

you tell Billy, "I'm on my way."

No, I...

I was there...

Not long. I went to...

to speak to Billy,

but I left.

I don't like crowds.

"Do not tell her."

What did you mean by that?

We know you were dismissed

from your post today.

- Is that connected? - No.

Was it because of this?

Money disappearing from Clare Curtis' account

alongside a charge to your personal account.

Is that what you didn't want

Billy showing to Clare Curtis?

I...

I... I am not a thief.

That one payment of �650 is a reimbursement.

Money I was owed.

Tuesday night, I was trying to

- stop Billy... - From?

From speaking to Clare.

I noticed this strange thing

in the finances and

confided in Billy.

And what was that?

Money... going out of the accounts.

I showed it to Billy. He...

He thought it was Mike.

Clare's husband?

I didn't think it was him, but Billy kept looking.

And what did he find?

I don't know.

As Clare's PA, you have access

to her financial records.

So if Billy had shown them to Clare, she'd have known

where they'd come from.

And you'd lose your job.

The irony.

I wish I had stopped him.

He was...

...perfect.

He made me feel for the first time that...

that this...

...this doesn't matter.

Oh no, I forgot.

I'll-I'll, er... I'll phone and cancel.

- Cancel what? - My hike with Roz.

- Go! - I can't.

- What's more important? - Well...

Max, there is more to life than work, work, work.

Hey, you've been first in the office

and last to leave every day for two weeks.

I knew Bob would grass on me.

It's just...

the flat, it's a bit of a mess.

When I moved onto the houseboat,

I didn't unpack for months.

There's still a box I can't quite face.

Go. Now!

Roz.

- Hi. - Hi.

- Erm, this way. - Oh, great.

How are you?

Yeah, I-I'm good. How are you?

Find a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life.

What a crock, eh?

How do you manage it?

Well, my job's a little different to yours.

If I plant a seedling, I don't expect it

to text me with updates.

Well,

if you could create a plant like that, I'd buy it.

I can barely keep a cactus alive.

A plant hooked up to an app might encourage Kieron

to follow in his mum's footsteps.

- How is he? - He's good.

He said to say hi.

He has a new girlfriend who understands

none of my references.

My hilarious jokes

are suddenly unfunny granddad jokes.

- Tumbleweeds? - All the time.

If you need to be somewhere,

we can pick this up another time.

No, no, no. Silenced.

Or if you need to keep one eye

on your phone, that's fine, too.

What?

Thank you.

Well, it was always a wedge between Astrid and I.

Oh. I promised myself I wasn't gonna mention her name.

I'm impressed it took you an hour.

Well, something else I'm trying

to put on silent occasionally.

Well, Stockholm syndrome is a thing.

What did you buy your aunt in the end?

Oh, a book.

- Any old book or... - Sorry.

Erm, an early edition.

- My Antonia by-- - Willa Cather.

- Yes. - It's one of my favourites.

It's years-- well, decades.

Now let's just stick with years since I read it.

Same here.

If you need to get back.

What?

No, no, no, no.

The nearest bookshop.

- What? - Well...

if you have time, we could hunt for a copy.

Yes.

Right. Well, erm...

Hampstead High Street.

Hampstead High Street is that way.

Oh.

Hi. I'm looking for a Charlie Weir.

Mr Weir?

Hi.

Your flatmate said you'd be here.

DS Walsh.

- Can we talk? - Sure.

What seems to be the trouble?

Were you anywhere near Brompton Park

yesterday morning?

Nah. Not me. Why?

Well, because someone matching your descript--

I'll take that as a yes.

Oh! Damn it!

Charlie Weir, you're under arrest

on suspicion of assault and theft.

So Clare Curtis' charity do at The Aether.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

So I've been looking into Bett--

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

So I've been looking into Bett...

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

If the place fell into the river,

the world's economy would sink with it.

Erik Satie...

- Good morning. - Good morning.

Harper Lee.

I see you booked him. Well done.

Took a leaf out of your book. Acted on a hunch.

Officers recovered that from Charlie Weir's flat.

Well, I think you should return it to Olivia.

And if you could do the paperwork,

could you give that to Ashley?

What's that?

A blood sample from the crime scene.

Wait, there's a crime scene?

Well, possibly.

I was watching Billy's video last night.

So you were also working late.

You could hear the piano at The Aether in the background.

It's faint, but too faint for him to still be at the venue.

So this morning,

50 metres away, I found blood spots on the concrete.

Which, if it is Billy's,

means he wasn't at the auction till the bitter end.

And Clare Curtis has been lying to us.

Let's keep our focus on The Aether.

Recheck the social media posts.

See if you can spot Billy in anything after 10:15 pm.

He's here.

Who?

Mike Curtis has come in for a little chat.

He lied about his flight.

He was back in the UK earlier than he told us.

You said you left Monaco and flew back from Nice,

arriving into Gatwick at 0115 hours on Wednesday.

Correct.

But we checked with the airline.

You weren't on that flight.

Well, I didn't say I was, did I?

But we know you took an earlier flight from Paris

into Gatwick.

Which arrived shortly after 6:00 pm, Tuesday.

Where were you between then and 1:00 am?

I was at home.

I drove straight home and I stayed there.

Can anyone confirm that?

No. They were all at the do.

Were you? Did you go to The Aether?

No. Look, can't you just check the CCTV for this?

You told us you weren't in the country

when Billy Paige was killed.

Why did you lie?

We believe that Billy Paige

was investigating your finances.

Did you fire Cate

to deflect attention from yourself?

- No. - Someone was taking money

from your wife's accounts.

Yeah, Cate was.

OK, then explain this.

We believe that Billy Paige was killed because he was

about to tell Clare what he had found.

And it doesn't make sense that he'd throw Cate under the bus.

Why not?

Oh, I get it. Because I had

a little secret teenage romance.

You think Billy Lucas, whatever his name is,

he found out that I was nicking from my wife?

Excellent work, Detectives.

I mean, come on.

All right, I told a little white lie.

I was in Monaco. I had a change of plans.

I was booked on that flight, but then I ended up

getting a train back to Paris on Sunday, all right?

Well, what change of plans?

My, erm...

My old dear lives in Paris.

What? Your mother?

Well, why didn't you tell us this earlier?

Well, it's just, you know, it's women, innit?

Yeah. You're gonna have to give us a bit more than that.

What exactly do you want me to say?

What? That I flew back in early to kill the help?

All right, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that.

But Clare's, erm...

Well, Clare doesn't get on with my mum, OK?

So I'm like a rose between two thorns.

I didn't tell her and I didn't tell you about

my little stopover in Paris.

Well, I mean...

...anything for an easy life, eh.

Penny for your thoughts.

You couldn't afford it.

Phil? There's, erm...

There's something I need to show you.

So...

I spoke to the real Lucas Sullivan over Zoom.

Poor guy was really affected by Billy's death.

Connor was right about them being old uni mates.

So did he know Billy was impersonating him?

Not only did he know, he gave him permission.

And... get this.

"I told him he could use it,

"but I didn't think he'd actually go through with it.

"It's a rumour. I told Billy, it's not true."

Well, use what?

Lucas knew Billy loved a good story to investigate.

He told Billy, and Billy clearly ran with it.

This is the best part.

It concerns the Curtis housekeeper.

- Bettina Chalk-Harris? - Yep.

- Can you just tell us? - This is really annoying.

- Jess! - What was the rumour?

That, and we're talking decades ago,

when Bettina worked at the Sandringham Estate,

she had an affair with a senior Royal.

And you can guess the rest.

Illegitimate child, blah, blah.

That's why Billy was undercover.

So Cate was the child.

Our victim was in a relationship

with a woman who may be royalty.

Wow.

That's definitely the best part.

- OK. - So--

So... So it certainly widens the pool of suspects.

Hey, I'm all in for storming Buckingham Palace.

I'm sorry I lied before.

Why?

Because...

...in this job, appearances are everything.

Discretion is paramount.

My clients expect trust and traditional values.

No exceptions.

So if word had spread, you were having an affair.

I warned Lucas--

Billy to keep his sticky beak out,

but he was like a hound with a scent.

So what is the truth?

I did get pregnant.

I kept it secret. Why should I explain myself?

I quietly left my post,

and a year later I reappeared with a baby in tow.

Cate?

Cate.

Does she know?

- About? - About her father.

Did you?

Well...

that's why the rumour persists.

No matter how vociferously I deny it.

Her father is the former head cook at Sandringham.

He's in Miami now. He's a good man,

a live-in chef for a lazy billionaire.

There are lots of those about.

But no, alas, my daughter is not

the future Queen of England.

And Cate explained this to Billy?

I expect so.

So he knew this lead was no good,

then why stay on at the Curtis House?

Well,

I did think it was because he was in love with my daughter.

Hard to tell the difference between your

"I've cracked it" face and your "I'm tired,

- leave me alone" face. - Bit of both.

I'm digging deeper into the Curtis corporate finances.

Found that "something big" yet?

Chasing ghosts around spreadsheets.

The public-facing stuff, it's boring, clean.

- As you would expect. - I mean, too clean.

There are a lot of accounts offshore.

Found a few patterns that don't look right.

Millions paid into their charitable foundation.

Millionaires dodging taxes... very NFC.

While you're chasing big fish,

I've been snooping on the ECHOS' owner,

Joanna Picard.

Five years ago, she got fired

from a housekeeping job at a stately home in Kent.

- Any reason? - The plumbing man I spoke to

said he'd get back to me forthwith.

You told us before that Billy was alive and well

when the function ended at midnight.

- Yes. - Are you sure?

- Yeah. - Did you see him?

What?

We believe that Billy came here following a story

about one of your staff.

He then discovered an anomaly in your finances

and decided that that was the story.

We've noticed large amounts

flying in and out of your accounts

almost on a daily basis.

OK, this isn't the bombshell that you two think is.

I'm sure you both know my background.

Children's homes, in and out of trouble,

runaway, dropout...

The poor little Salford girl who won against the odds.

I set up the foundation to help kids like me

who've been dealt a bad hand.

We don't all manage to get out.

I'm in the process of transferring all...

well, it's pretty much all...

my wealth to the foundation.

I'm at that age where I've been thinking about legacy.

Does Mike know about this?

- No. - How would he react

if he found out?

if Billy had revealed it.

I don't know.

Is it possible Mike was saving

some of that money for himself?

And if so, Mike wouldn't want Billy

telling you what he was up to.

Well, Mike wasn't here on Tuesday night, was he?

Yes, he was.

His flight arrived from Paris just after 6:00 pm.

No.

So he was in London long before Billy Paige was killed.

Paris?

Where his mother lives.

Oh, yeah, I think he... he did mention that now.

What is this about?

My colleague spoke to the house manager

at Edwina Manor in Kent, who confirmed

that you were caught stealing.

Allegedly. The dismissal was a farce.

It was completely unproven.

Well, we hear that a lot.

Innocent people tend to say, "I didn't do it."

And I'll say it till I'm blue in the face.

Diamond necklace worth �30,000?

It was a mendacious accusal.

Tell me about your relationship with Billy Paige.

I barely knew the man. He conned me, remember?

Did you ever visit him? Stopped by his flat?

Oh, why would I?

My colleague also found this.

Where is this colleague of yours?

From outside Billy's block of flats.

Time stamped 01:56 am

on Wednesday morning, hours after we believe

Billy Paige was attacked and thrown into the Thames.

We need your fingerprints for elimination purposes.

Found a lot of prints in Billy's flat.

What's this?

A search warrant.

You asked about my colleague.

I offered to do this interview

because he's currently searching

your home and office.

Oh.

The lab said, any moment for the swab.

Any update on the boat hook?

It was clean.

No prints, no DNA.

And this size and shape isn't a match for the wounds.

Back to square one then.

A similar shape, though?

Yes. So if you can find another one.

I'll give them a nudge.

Oh, er, how was the hike?

Oh. What happened?

Well, despite best efforts,

I still managed to mention Astrid.

Ooh.

You know, I've been on one...

one disastrous date since John and I...

And I did the same thing.

So maybe don't mention Astrid next time.

There will be a next time?

She texted.

There you go. You texted back?

It was on my list.

- Oh, God. - Good news.

The lab managed to extract DNA from the blood you found,

it's a match for Billy Paige.

There's tonnes here. Even the offshore stuff.

Billy Paige had a promising future as an investigator.

Does it fit with Clare transferring

money to her charity?

Yeah, it's all here. But there's other transactions...

the ones the PA's been dismissed for...

Money going to an external account.

It's spread out, under the radar.

Easy to miss. Five grand here, 10 grand there,

100 grand over the past year.

I mean, I'd notice

if 10 quid was missing from my account.

Well, what if Clare Curtis' charity is a front?

I mean, after all, this has the hallmarks

of money laundering.

There' so much money going in and out on a daily basis.

Cate the PA had access to the money.

Yes. So does Mike Curtis.

Was Joanna Picard working alone?

Maybe Mike got wind of Clare's plans

and decided to squirrel away

some of their fortune for himself.

We're checking CCTV around the Curtis household

to confirm his alibi.

ANPR cameras caught his car heading east

on the King's Road at 20:41.

Heading home, or to The Aether?

Whatever Mike's up to,

he wouldn't want Billy telling Clare.

Maybe he cut short his trip to silence him.

OK. You two find out

why Joanna Picard had that laptop.

You and I will go talk to the Curtises.

We recovered this laptop from your offices.

I've never seen that before.

It belonged to Billy Paige.

Why did you have it?

This has helped us connect a few dots.

It contains what looks like proof of criminal activity.

Someone has stolen just shy of �100,000

from various personal and business accounts

relating to Clare Curtis.

And it wasn't her PA Cate.

We also found this...

...bank statement in your name.

This shows one of many deposits

into your personal account.

Can you explain this?

You were being very careful.

But then along came Billy. Was he about to tell

Clare Curtis what you were up to?

I don't know anything about this.

The problem is, Joanna, that there's a direct

correlation between the amounts transferred

out of the Curtis accounts and the deposits paid

into your personal account.

Always 50 percent.

Sorry, I didn't mean to. I was looking for Clare.

She's out.

Care for one?

No, thank you.

You think you're better than me, don't you, Phil?

Not at all.

I think you do.

I think coz you've had a little sip of my life,

you think it's running all the way

through your veins now.

You want what I've got, don't you, mate?

Why don't you sit yourself down, Phil?

Go on.

Take a load off. Me and you need to have a little chat.

Did you kill Billy Paige?

- No. - But you knew he was dead

- when you went to his flat. - I didn't.

You knew he wouldn't be there and you had his keys.

- Did you take them off him? - I didn't know.

Oh, look, all I knew was that Lucas--

Billy knew about the money.

And-And...

I didn't want any of this.

- This wasn't my idea. - Then whose was it?

Er, door's open.

Mr Curtis?

- Hello? - I'm in here.

He needs your help.

Please help.

- He's alive. Steady pulse. - Is he gonna be all right?

DS Walsh. I need paramedics. 31, Wigstone Street, SW3.

Mrs Curtis? What happened here?

I don't know.

I was out.

I found him.

Mikey.

Can you hear me?

We have Joanna Picard in custody.

Do you know where we might find Philip Hawksley?

Is that who attacked your husband?

- You don't-- - Just stop!

You know, some days the only people that I speak to

are paid staff and paid advisers. All...

...trying to protect me.

If I could go back, I'd explain.

Explain what?

Just how my life works,

how his life works,

How...

we're not the same.

Philip Hawksley...

- Since this time last year. - And Mike found out?

I... I don't know.

I don't know. I just...

I walked in and found Phil standing over him.

And then he asked me to go with him.

You know, like... like I can just disappear.

And where is he now?

I don't know.

But please, will you tell him

that I forgive him for attacking Mike?

What about for killing Billy Paige?

No, no.

That-that... that was that was Cate or the, erm...

That was, erm, the Picard woman surely.

Was Billy really at the auction

at the end of the night?

Yeah.

Yeah, I think so.

I think Phil, he, erm...

That's what Phillip told you.

Joanna Picard and Phillip Hawksley

have been conspiring to steal money from you.

Only Billy found out.

That's what he wanted to talk to you about.

To warn you about Philip Hawksley.

And that's why Philip had to stop him.

No.

Phil?

No, no.

You were his mark.

Clare told us about your affair.

Did her husband confront you today?

Is that why you attacked him?

Did he discover

that you've been stealing from them?

How is he, Mike?

Wondered when you were gonna ask that. He'll live.

And once he's able to, he'll tell us what happened,

so sit tight.

Let's talk about you and Joanna Picard.

She tells us it was your idea to steal from Clare Curtis.

Clare's worth, what, half a billion?

She wasn't gonna miss 5 or 10K here and there.

Could you explain this?

It's from your e-mails.

A receipt for a boat hook.

Purchased the morning after Billy died.

Clare said the one in The Aether

had been mislaid, so I replaced it.

Yes, well, it happens.

Boat hooks go missing all the time.

I found the spot where you hit Billy Paige.

Fifty metres along from The Aether.

His blood is still there in the concrete.

Did you know he was still alive

when he went in the water?

You hit him,

you took his keys.

And you told Joanna to destroy the evidence.

And before you deny it, you should know

that she's confirmed all this.

Clare Curtis too.

She's not happy that you used her.

I didn't.

I love her.

That's the problem. Where it all went wrong.

Look...

...I made a mistake with Billy.

I warned him. I-I gave him a choice.

The day before,

Billy showed me what he found, and I implored him not to

waste Clare's time with it.

She didn't need to know.

I explained that Clare and I, we were gonna be together.

Is she all right?

Her husband's in the hospital

and her lover's on the hook for fraud,

GBH, and murder.

I mean...

...did she ask about me?

What did you explain to Billy?

That he would be compensated.

Handsomely compensated.

As long as he covered up what he had found.

That night...

...he wasn't supposed to be there.

I'd given him the evening off.

But in he walked. Quite the provocation.

We had an agreement.

But Billy couldn't ignore a good story.

So when I saw him talking to Clare...

...I panicked.

I hit him.

I know I let emotions take over,

but what was I supposed to do?

I gave him a choice.

Oh, ho, ho!

I don't know how to thank you!

I'm just sorry the idiot who nicked it

binned everything else.

But why do you think he kept this?

He said his girlfriend liked it.

Oh, Izzy would have loved that.

A fan!

Late. Supposed to be meeting Dinesh.

Date four?

Er, yeah.

I let him win the last game.

Very noble.

I know.

See you tomorrow.

Ha.

Max. Hi. I thought you were ignoring me.

Oh, sorry.

I-I've been meaning to call.

You know, maybe this work-life balance thing has substance.

Well, if it means you return my calls.

The thing is,

I'm not very good at this.

Maybe it's my inquisitive mind,

but I always err towards taking things apart.

You know, I replace the chain,

and then the brakes start squeaking.

Hm.

Well, sometimes...

sometimes you just have to accept.

It's time for a new bike.

Yeah.

I enjoyed our walk.

If you're planning another...

Saturday. Same time, same place.

Yeah.

I-I'll see you there.

OK. Bye.