This programme contains some violent scenes and scenes which some viewers may find upsetting
Do we believe any of the deceased is the shooter?
No. We need to find them.
Name from the prints confirmed. Douglas Nicholson.
He's wearing the Operational Service Medal for Operation Shader.
Why did he do it? Why?
You're not meant to come here, Cal. You know I love you,
don't you, Peggy?
Just remember, me and you against the world.
I just wanted to say how much I have enjoyed working with you.
They were sounding me out about setting up
a new forensic centre of excellence.
I think you forgot to pay. Get out the way or I'll cut you.
He is so stupid. Come on, man! Fun and games!
You got someone in there? No! That boss of yours in there?
He's always sniffing around. No. No. That...Akram.
Come on, let's do it. Let's draw a line under the ratbag.
Nicholson may have shot the gun and he may have shot it
in the restaurant...
..but someone else shot Douglas Nicholson.
Do you think there's a place, Cal...
..a place where you can be with the ones you love...
..for ever?
A place that truly is for ever?
GATE CREAKS
Dawn, I'm not telling you again. We're going to be late.
Will you put your shoes on? All right!
PEGGY GRUNTS IN FRUSTRATION
I can't hear you, Dawn!
Douglas Nicholson?
I believe he left the Army in 2019.
Yes. Yes, that's him. Operation Shader.
I'm after a copy of his military record.
Oh, he was?
HOW distinguished?
So he's now the victim, not the perpetrator?
Not exactly. Well, what is he...exactly?
The murders at the restaurant - was he the shooter?
It's likely. There's residue from gunshots on his hand.
But we can't be certain.
Is there still a gunman on the loose? Hm? Have I put the public
at risk? We have the gun used in the restaurant.
Bullets and casings match.
We tracked him from the scene of the crime.
But we cannot with any certainty say
that he killed the victims in the restaurant.
Residue equals shooter, doesn't it?
Is there ANYTHING you can be certain of? We're certain
he didn't take his own life.
We think he was murdered. By who?
Flowers. He left flowers. Lots of them.
My husband. We're not together.
No, you don't understand. There's no "getting back".
There's a restraining order.
No, he didn't speak to me.
He didn't knock on the door, no!
I-I...I didn't actually see him.
Because... Because I know it was him! I just know.
Because he says he loves me! Oh, please, someone help me.
Just help me! SHE SOBS
Douglas Nicholson's brain? Look at this.
It looks like significant degeneration of the nerve fibres.
How old was he?
Mid-forties.
Unusual! Mm.
Did he have family? Estranged.
Why would you ask that? Well, I was wondering if he was able
to make a human connection. Your answer suggests that, yes, he was...
..although I'm not surprised that it broke down.
With brain fibre degeneration,
nobody really knows what's wrong with you.
You're angry. You're mean.
You're different. People think it's just a quirk of personality.
They don't realise that it's a physical malady.
It's confounding, really, to think that these nerve fibres...
..make us who we are. When they're gone...we're gone.
Make memories while you can.
Got your wedding dress yet?
Not yet, no. You better get a move on!
Time is ticking away. I'm still deciding what to do. I'm not sure...
Not sure about what?
Did you have a wedding dress? Well, I certainly did! I was gorgeous.
It had a miniskirt. I had very good pins. Still have,
actually. Used to make my husband very excitable!
BOTH LAUGH
Have you been shopping for a wedding dress?
No. It's one of life's guilty little pleasures,
people rushing around telling you how lovely you are
and bending over backwards to make you feel special.
HARRIET LAUGHS
I used to do it regularly when I was younger!
I think it's TBI...
..traumatic brain injury.
Do you mind if I run it past a colleague at Imperial?
Of course. PHONE VIBRATES
Hello?
I'm on my way.
Yep.
SIREN WAILS
Morning. DS Davies.
Nikki Alexander, pathologist. Jack Hodgson. Hello.
Morning. So, the victim is a middle-aged male
of South Asian descent. Do we know who he is?
Not confirmed yet. Registered keeper of the car is Akram Rahul.
All looks very clean. Any damage to it? No.
MESSAGES OVER POLICE RADIO
So he parks up here? Mm. And he appears
to have been killed in the car.
Were they trying to steal the car? I think that's unlikely. Is it?
Why was he here? Well, this area's known for
two, erm, activities...
..drug transactions - county lines...
..and...dogging.
Dogging. Yeah. It's where people watch other people...
Yeah. Got it. Know what that is.
Searched the body? I thought I should wait for you.
It's my first unlawful killing, so I just want to do things right.
Yeah. Good call.
Come in.
I'm guessing no dogs were involved.
Who did you say the registered keeper was? Akram Rahul.
Match.
Lot of cash. Who carries around this amount of cash these days?
People buying drugs. I see.
OK? Thanks.
Just bag that? Yep.
Thanks.
Jack?
A deep incised wound to the neck.
Certainly signs of a struggle.
To cut through the muscles of the neck would require
significant strength and leverage.
CHOKING
No obvious markings on the metal bars of the headrest.
I think these are defence scratches on the neck
consistent with the victim trying to remove a ligature.
I'll see if I can get any fibres or residue.
OK. I'll focus on the back seat and the headrest.
Did he threaten you?
No.
Did you ask him not to leave the flowers?
The court has banned him from coming to the house without permission.
Did you...tell him to leave? I didn't see him!
How do you know he was the one who left the flowers?
Ohhh... I just know!
We have no evidence he actually came to your house.
You do have evidence. The flowers!
What, they're not evidence?!
My daughter. How do I protect my daughter?
Have you called your daughter's school? Yes!
What do I do? Do I need to move house? Tell me. What do I do?
I'll give you a crime number. If he comes to the house
or contacts you or threatens you, call 999.
This is my card, if you'd like to speak to me.
Great. Thank you.
Positive for cocaine.
It's likely he was surprised from behind.
So...let's say he gets out of the car...
..and then he walks to buy the drugs.
There's a violence about this that makes it feel like it was personal.
Need to look into the deceased's background. No cameras?
No, none.
Are you still wondering about a motive?
I'm wondering if the killer was always in the car
and, if he wasn't, how he got here...
..and how he got away.
Shall we go?
Yeah.
POLICE SIREN WAILS
What if Douglas Nicholson didn't have PTSD?
What if there was an insult to his physical health,
not his mental health?
You can see the degeneration of the nerve fibres here.
As well as the axonal injury and myelin loss,
there's inflammation, there's small blood vessel injuries.
This is consistent with previous studies on blast injuries.
And, you know, he may have had PTSD,
but he most certainly had a traumatic brain injury.
What did he do in the military?
Commando Royal Artillery.
L118.
105mm towed howitzer.
So here's the conundrum - L118 fires from miles away.
Artillery crews don't see
the destruction and the death they're responsible for.
It's a repeated mechanical act. It's quite heavy work,
but why should there be any traumatic stress?
Why should he have PTSD?
Because Douglas Nicholson didn't witness or experience
a terrifying event, he... he perpetrated one.
So why? The answer may be that with repeated firings,
blast overpressure damages the brain.
And we have physical damage, not traumatic stress.
What's the pathology?
Well, a shock wave above normal atmospheric pressure
results in injuries predominantly to the hollow organ systems
such as auditory, respiratory and gastrointestinal systems,
and it can cause a traumatic brain injury,
which I suspect it did for Douglas Nicholson.
Some people are more susceptible to it than others.
I can point the finger at any number of weapons
or jobs where they use explosives repeatedly.
Quarries, for example. Can it explain his behaviour?
People living with this injury report hallucinations
and hearing voices, headaches, memory loss, an inability to sleep,
and a number of those injured people go on to become violent.
Some take their own lives.
I mean, whether he did it or not...
..he fits the profile.
MAN LAUGHS
TYPING
PHONE VIBRATES
..a case of violent crime coming only days after
the brutal shooting in east London. The victim has been named
as Akram Rahul, the managing director of the tech firm Tautwire.
Police are asking for assistance
from anyone who may have information.
There is bilateral transection of the common carotid arteries.
At the back of the incised wound is a linear groove
suggesting it was caused not by a sharp blade,
but rather by a thin ligature pressing against his neck.
I think I've found the material used for the ligature. What was it?
Nylon polyvinylidene fluoride, also known as PVDF.
Also known as fishing line.
HE BANGS ON DOOR
Hiya. Thanks for coming. It's all right.
We have some potential witnesses. Uh-huh. Mr and Mrs Doe.
HE CHUCKLES John and Jane. Right.
They say Akram's car was here already when they arrived,
but they didn't think it was unusual.
Apparently, they have a following.
A following?
Oh! Right.
Hi, John. Hi, Jane.
Hi. I'm Les Davies, and this is my colleague Jack Hodgson.
Hi. Er, you know that's not our real names, right? Right.
If you don't mind, Jack is going to take some fingerprints and DNA.
We didn't do anything. It's just to eliminate you
from the investigation. Oh. OK.
Can you talk me through what you reported on the phone?
Where you were parked, what you saw.
Er, yeah, we came for our normal time,
and we were parked up in our normal spot -
just where we're parked now - and, er, Jane was, you know...
..getting ready.
Swab. Open.
And, yeah, well, people in our community, they know our car,
so they stop and... well, you know, join in.
JOHN CHUCKLES Yeah? Uh-huh.
OK.
Let's take your fingerprints. I saw the car, and I thought
it was odd, but I thought maybe someone had just left it there
to be collected. Was there anyone else parked up?
Er, there was a van that was just leaving when we arrived.
What kind of van? A delivery van.
Can you remember the name of the company?
Or what it looked like? It was a dark colour. Blue, I think.
And it had writing on it - er, V and something.
Great. Very helpful. Thank you. Er...
..if you want to play, you know, um,
Jane's up for it, yeah?
MEN'S VOICES
No. Leave those.
Come on! Get a move on and put 'em in the bag!
Yeah, yeah. Here, grab 'em. Put the packages down.
Can I do one? Let's go! Come on!
I'll take what I want! But you're stealing.
Stealing the hard work of others.
Get out of the way!
You're a cockroach. Put the packages...
..down. I'm going to step on you. Back off!
You're just a bad smell.
What you on, mate?! You're the problem.
I got this.
TRAIN ROARS PAST
But Harriet... What would happen to Dr Maven?
Retirement.
She doesn't want to retire.
I see.
Well, I'm flattered. I am.
And I would love to make it work, I really would.
But I can't. I'm sorry.
We're a team...
..and a very good team. Why would you want to break that up?
I'll only do it if Harriet Maven is in charge.
Harriet?
Are you busy?
How's it feeling?
CURTAIN DRAWN ASIDE
Oh, Nikki, that is divine!
It's simply gorgeous.
Come up to the mirror.
HARRIET CHUCKLES Turn round.
HARRIET CHUCKLES
It's lovely.
The garroting...
..there was something visceral about it...
..as though there was malice involved.
What, meaning the victim was known to the perpetrator?
Exactly. A male victim? Yeah.
Only 4% of male homicide victims get killed by strangulation,
and, erm, it's 13% in women. Garroting's even rarer.
And the perpetrator is likely to be male
in order to overpower the victim.
Could we have some more cakes, please? Particularly the ones
with the cream? Maybe freshen up the tea? Lovely. Thank you.
Have you been able to determine the diameter of the fishing line?
Not with any precision. The struggle was too violent.
There was no clean cut or mark. Jack thinks it's likely to be braided.
They're the strongest. Nikki, you have to try one of these.
They are absolutely gorgeous.
May we see another dress? Yes?
Jack! Milk and one sugar.
Ah-ha-ha-ha. Funny. It's who I am.
You are going to love me. Seems to be a theme today.
VDW. Von der Werth.
German-owned delivery company operating in the UK.
Seventh largest. Dark inky-blue vans.
All those vans have trackers, right? Mm-hm. It's pretty standard
these days. If they do, we can put the driver at the scene.
Time and place. They also have security cameras fitted to the vans
to prevent theft. Outside and inside? Yeah.
Ooh, you're feelin' it, aren't you?
So much love. I may have to call off the wedding.
Do you have the vehicle reg? No.
No?
They have over 800 vans, Jack.
That's checking the GPS data of over 800 trackers!
They make an average of 170 to 190 stops a day.
They do that many stops a day? Let me see, that is a minimum of...
..136,000 stops a day, not counting nondelivery stops.
Are you saying you can't do it?
A vehicle reg would be useful.
PHONE RINGS
Yep.
Where?
Gilligan Road. OK.
Thanks.
TRAIN RUMBLES PAST
HE SIGHS
CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS
He's nearly been decapitated.
What a waste, eh? Any sign of a murder weapon?
Not so far. Injury is consistent with a large blade.
Gang-related? Well, it's got that look about it.
We're checking for witnesses now.
I fear he'll just be another statistic.
Detective Inspector!
CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS
What have you got? Looks like a crowbar.
Chips of paint.
Yeah.
Matt?
We're looking for a large knife. Yes, sir. Thanks.
TRAIN RUMBLES PAST
Are you divorced?
No. Not yet.
You say he knew Akram Rahul?
He didn't know him. He knew he was my boss.
Ex-boss. Ex-boss? Why "ex"?
He made me redundant. When?
Last week. Why did he make you redundant?
Downsizing? Economy?
Because...
Because I wouldn't sleep with him.
Did your husband know?
I didn't think he did. I would never tell him. He's so jealous.
But I don't know.
Over the last few years, he's become a different person.
He...stalks me.
He haunts me.
I have a restraining order against him.
Where does he live? Oh, I don't know. I don't want to know.
Do you have a phone number for him? Yeah, sure.
Er, does he have a job?
Yeah.
What does he do?
Er, he's a delivery driver.
The driver's name is Calvin Ream.
Calvin Ream. Got it.
I'm downloading black-box data now.
You should have all routes, stops and periods of inactivity. Great.
I'll scan through the cameras, as well, see if I can pick up anything.
OK, got it. Bye!
PHONE CHIMES
The depth of the wound, three points left to right...
..1.9 centimetres...
..6.2 centimetres...
..1.75 centimetres.
There's dirt and gravel present in the head wound,
suggesting that the injury
was the result of a fall rather than a blow to the head.
Well, there should be abrasions on the hand and the arm
if he tried to break his fall.
No.
May I?
Any prints found on the crowbar?
None found. Waiting on DNA.
CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS Nikki?
Match.
So, how was the blow delivered?
Either I'd have to be on the ground or Nikki here would have to be
up in the air. But if I'm on the ground... You have no leverage
to land the blow with the force required... To do that damage.
You finish each other's sentences? They're getting married.
Up you go.
So, somehow, he was about a metre off the ground.
Was he standing on a wall? There's no wall.
Well, we know he was hit with enormous force on the shin.
Mm-hm. The pain disorientates him. He instinctively reaches down
to his shin, loses his balance... Falls. Hits his head.
Unconscious? Concussed? Yeah.
Could you lie on the floor? Face down, please.
So he's out of action on the ground.
Which means that the assailant could pull his head back...
Cut his throat...
In a left-to-right motion.
The assailant must have been right-handed.
But we found the body lying in the middle of the road.
So where was he standing when he was hit?
When he...when he fell?
Jack?
Jack!
He was at Akram Rahul's office building, and...
..he was in the parking area that evening.
He followed him? I'll call Davies.
What's this point down here? That...
..is Kingswood Mere Lake.
He was there a long time. What happens there?
Fishing?
These are the GPS points where the van stops.
I used the time code to construct a pattern of movement on the map.
And what about this here, by the railway line?
That one? Yeah. Er...
..that is Gilligan Road. Gilligan Road!
Can you put him near the restaurant or where Nicholson's body was found?
I'll try.
Where is he now?
And you gave her a detention?
Yes. Why? Because she was fighting with Dawn.
But you know Dawn is a bully!
My daughter has to be able to defend herself, doesn't she?
She'll be done at four.
She's dreadful, that Dawn. I don't like her.
We'd all be much better off without her at the school.
CHILDREN PLAY
I'm sorry to interrupt.
Are you, erm... Are you Melissa's mum?
Sorry, do I know you? I'm Dawn's dad.
Yes?
Your daughter, Melissa, is bullying my girl, and it needs to stop.
My daughter is not a bully. It's your daughter that's the problem.
But she's making Dawn's life a misery, so I would like you
to, er...to ask her to stop.
Your daughter has some real problems - which I'm sure you know,
considering you're one of them. My daughter's only problem...
..is Melissa. Stop trying to put your problems on somebody else!
Can you imagine being married to that?
ANGRY CONVERSATION
Let's tie her up and throw her in the river.
She's the sort of woman everyone hates.
And she...slanders people.
You're doing all these people a favour.
Restaurant is there. He was parked there
for 26 minutes then moves...here.
200 metres or so from where we found Nicholson's body.
The message should be force-wide. What do we know about Calvin Ream?
He worked for Von der Werth logistics for six years,
and before that, he was in the British Army. Doing what?
Commando. Royal Artillery.
KNOCK ON DOOR
Hello, darling.
Hi!
I did...I did say four o'clock.
Yeah, it's near enough. Let's have a look.
Oh, lovely!
DOOR OPENS
Do we have his home address?
He used his wife's address. Can we get his mobile number?
We'll ping his phone for his location.
Do we have any camera footage? I'll get it now.
Phone's switched off.
DOOR CREAKS
Daddy, you came!
Mr Ream, you can't come in here. Get out. Get out! Daddy! Daddy...
Mr Ream! Mr Ream! Mr Ream!
BANGING ON DOOR
Daddy! Mr Ream!
Mr Ream! Mr Ream!
Get out!
Not you. OK, please don't hurt us.
Please don't hurt us.
When you're ready, Kit, thank you.
So, this is CCTV footage from an incident at a food store.
Calvin Ream's van was parked nearby at the time.
MELISSA SOBS
Do you believe those tears are real? I don't believe it.
Let's end the noise. Stop talking.
Two-faced cow, talking behind people's backs.
Eventually, it bites. Let's end it now! Stop talking.
Just stop talking!
MELISSA SOBS
Daddy?
Who are you talking to?
MELISSA SOBS QUIETLY
Erm...
Er, what does this prove?
Have we got his van's security camera? Mm-hm.
MESSAGES OVER POLICE RADIO
What's going on? What's going on?
There's been an incident. You can't go in. What do you mean?
Gilligan Road? Yeah.
Crowbar...yeah.
STRONG INHALES SHARPLY OK...
Punch in there, Kit.
Mm-hm.
Where is he?
Police are en route to an incident at a primary school in east London.
Oh, no! OK, let's go.
Yeah, we're going to need MO19.
Calvin? Calvin, open the door.
KNOCKING ON DOOR Calvin!
Calvin? Calvin, is Dawn with you?
Calvin? Answer me, Calvin! Is Dawn safe?
Mummy? Dawn!
Oh, please! Please don't hurt her, Calvin.
Do you think there's a place
where you can be with the ones that you love...just for ever?
A place that is...truly for ever?
Calvin, just let me in, please!
You need to apologise.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Not me!
Daddy?
We're sorry. We're sorry. We're so, so sorry.
KNOCKING ON DOOR We're really very sorry.
Come on, just get it done. Do something good.
Make the world a better place.
Do it.
Yes!
Come on. Come on, do it.
Yes, brother.
Take the ripples away.
Come on, mate.
Don't think, mate, just do it.
Do it for her. Come on!
Do it for Dawn. Look up. Good man.
MELISSA AND HER MOTHER SOB
Act now.
Daddy?
It's you and me against the world.
Daddy?
You and me against the world?
Remember?
Oh... Yeah.
You and me against the world?
BANGING ON DOOR
Oh, man...
BANGING ON DOOR Calvin, please, it's just me!
CALVIN GROANS
Peggy!
Calvin, just open the door.
Peggy? Peggy?
KEY IN LOCK
Please help me.
No! Are you OK, baby?
Calvin? Calvin? Calvin, just let them go, OK?
Please... OK? HE GASPS
Go, go, go, go, go.
Go, go, go, go, go!
MOTHER STAMMERS What? He's going to kill someone!
Get them out. Stay with me.
Baby! Come here. Come here.
Dawn? Come on.
I love you.
Love you, too.
Dawn...
Yeah...
Come on, darling.
Come here. It's OK. He's going to be fine.
Come on. Come on.
OK. Come on.
You believe in love, don't you?
Calvin...
Don't you, Peggy?
Yes.
Then help me.
What can I do, Calvin?
It's OK, Calvin.
I want you to end this for me. Please.
I hear things.
I see...things.
I do things.
It was the same for Doug.
Help me. Help me, brother.
I helped Doug. It was the same for him. I helped him find peace.
GUNSHOT
Cos there is evil, Peggy. And...
..I can't stop it!
I can't!
End it.
No, Calvin. Please, Peggy.
Calvin...
I love you.
No...
GUNSHOTS
There is evidence of traumatic brain injury...
..likely caused by repeated blast overpressure...
..which the deceased suffered while serving his country.
They said his last words were, "I love you."
Not a bad epitaph, I guess.
I love you.
You're not planning on dying any time soon, are you? No. You?
I certainly hope not.
Jack...
..I want to marry you.
Thank God!
It'd be very awkward at work if you didn't.
I was just thinking...
Yeah, it's one of your most attractive qualities.
And usually I know what you're thinking. You do?
I think I do, yeah.
But I don't this time, and it fills me with...
Jack? Yes?
We don't have to do the big wedding.
I don't need the crowd, the bridesmaids, the big fuss.
I just need you.
I just wanted it to be perfect for you.
I'm marrying you.
How can that be anything less than perfect?
So why are we waiting?
Let's get married.
Kit? Nikki! I need a witness. A witness?
What kind of trouble are you in?
Morning, Jack.
Will you be my best man?
SHE LAUGHS Jack!
You do know how to flatter a girl!
FOOTSTEPS APPROACH
Are you coming?
I was just thinking.
OK... Good. But...is now the best time to think?
The registrar asked me who was giving me away.
So it made me think, brides were "given away".
Imagine that. Given away.
Then I was thinking...
..but I'm giving myself away.
I'm giving myself to you.
You're giving yourself to me.
And that's a gift I'll always treasure, as long as I live.
Me too. I hadn't told you that, and I wanted to tell you.
Thank you. Shall we go in?
And I was thinking... Really? OK.
I've held the hearts of so many people in my hands.
As a scientist, I know every detail of the human heart.
And yet, for so long, my own has been a mystery to me.
Isn't that a wonder? God is in what science can't explain.
You said no-one has any faith any more.
But I have faith...
..in you.
In us.
I'm giving my heart to you.
And I'm giving mine to you.
And I promise to cherish it.
I promise to keep yours safe.
Shall we walk in together?
Always.
Look how nice they are. I know.
PHONES CHIME
Have you just had an email?
Sir William Bowman Centre of Excellence in Birmingham?
That one? Yes.
Well, I think you're excellent, Kit.
I think you're excellent. Mm.
What are we going to do?
Shall we dance?
Wings by Birdy