Line of Duty Page #7

HASTINGS:

Let me tell you about Steve Arnott.

He’s my most dogged investigator.

He will not leave a stone unturned.

She gives him a winning smile. He doesn’t know

how to react at all, but he’s got no choice but

to accept the situation. The waiter refills her

glass.

GILL:

I had intended that meeting in a

more social setting would make this

less confrontational between us...

HASTINGS:

(Lightly.)

Yes well. We’ve only just got

started.

The chink glasses.

She grins wryly before she turns to the waiter.

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X:

Music Ends

10:
29:44

Music

10:
29:40

DUR:
1’05”.

Specially

composed by

Carly

Paradis.

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10:
30:45

10:
30:56

GILL:

(To waiter.)

I would like the chicken liver pate

then the sea bass.

(To Hastings.)

I’ll be right back.

Gill heads to the loo. As she goes, he watches

her departing form.

HASTINGS:

(Eyes still on Gill)

Thanks. I’ll have the soup followed

by the sirloin steak, medium-well,

and er... no sauce...

CUT TO:

INT./EXT. TAXI/GILL’S HOUSE. LATER THAT NIGHT.

A black cab carrying Hastings and Gill pulls

away.

They walk up the front steps and enter through

the front door.

CUT TO:

INT. GILL’S HOUSE. CONTINUOUS.

Gill and Hastings enter. She shuts the door

behind them and in reaching past him to do so

comes close to him. She holds her position and

smiles at him, he succumbs, and they slip into a

kiss.

But then he breaks off.

GILL:

What’s the matter?

HASTINGS:

I’m a married man.

GILL:

Separated.

HASTINGS:

I took vows. I can’t undo them.

GILL:

Don’t you want to stay with me,

Ted?

Very obviously he does want to be with her, but

he can’t proceed with this transgression. It

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X:

Music Ends

10:
30:45

Music

10:
30:43

DUR:
1’22”.

Specially

composed by

Carly

Paradis.

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10:
32:00

tears him apart.

HASTINGS:

I’m sorry, Gill. I’m sorry.

Exit Hastings, leaving her bitter and

disappointed.

CUT TO:

INT. STEVE’S FLAT. LATER THAT NIGHT.

Steve watches sport (sound only) and drinks a

beer. Enter Sam. He tenses, expected the worst.

STEVE:

I don’t need to watch this. If you

want to put something else on.

SAM:

It’s fine.

She continues into another room to dump her coat

and bag.

Steve turns the TV off. Follows her into the

kitchen where Sam is making herself a cup of

tea.

STEVE:

You hungry? Do you want to go out?

SAM:

I’m tired.

STEVE:

Yeah. All right.

Tense beats.

SAM:

I need to tell you what I found out

about Ronan Murphy.

STEVE:

You looked into it?

SAM:

Murphy was a person of interest to

the inquiry into the murder of

Tommy Hunter.

STEVE:

(Taken aback)

In what way?

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X:

Music Ends

10:
32:05

Music

10:
32:35

DUR:
0’42”.

Specially

composed by

Carly

Paradis.

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10:
33:04

SAM:

Ronan Murphy was one of Hunter’s

closest associates. We never

interviewed him. Major Violent

Crime did.

STEVE:

(Flabbergasted)

Ronan Murphy was interviewed about

the conspiracy Lindsay Denton was

convicted of?

SAM:

Looks like it.

STEVE:

None of this was in the file. It

must have been doctored.

Steve looks shocked.

SAM:

You didn’t get any of this from me.

CUT TO:

INT. SUPERMARKET. LATER THAT NIGHT.

Steve wanders the aisles. Open 24 hours, the

supermarket is deserted apart from one or two

shift workers picking up shopping and some sad

cases with nowhere to go.

Lindsay appears from behind a tower of boxes of

vegetables, in her work uniform, surprising

Steve.

LINDSAY:

Well, well. Who’d have thought?

What are you after?

STEVE:

You ever heard the name Ronan

Murphy?

LINDSAY:

Why do you ask?

STEVE:

I just thought you might have heard

the name.

LINDSAY:

Are you reopening my case?

Beat.

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X:

Music Ends

10:
33:17

STEVE:

Forget it, all right. That’s not

why I’m asking.

Steve turns to exit. She pursues him.

LINDSAY:

I don’t expect you to care, Steve,

but I’ll never ever gonna get back

to being the person I was before

all this happened. You know. The

only thing that kept me sane, the

thing that got me up in the

morning, was being a police

officer. I want to find the people

that framed me, Steve. And I

believe --I hope – that you do

too.

Steve hesitates, despite himself, but then keeps

going.

Lindsay catches him up, brandishing her phone.

LINDSAY (CONT’D)

The audio file in this phone is as

embarrassing to you as it is to me.

Believe you me I’ve got it backed

up.

(Off his resentment)

I don’t enjoy threatening people.

They make me.

Under pressure and with great resentment, Steve

gives in.

STEVE:

Ronan Murphy was killed by a police

officer. Murphy was a prime suspect

in the murder of Tommy Hunter but

for some reason that’s been hidden

from AC-12.

LINDSAY:

Well bring in the officer that

killed him.

STEVE:

He was killed a couple of weeks

after.

LINDSAY:

Why?

(Off his hesitation)

Oh come on, Steve.

10:
34:49

STEVE:

(Beat. Doesn’t trust her)

Best guess, he was breaking open a

paedophile ring.

Lindsay looks very thoughtful.

STEVE (CONT’D)

What?

LINDSAY:

Don’t you see?

She gives him a look --“isn’t it obvious?” And

then Steve realises it is obvious and has a

light bulb moment.

CUT TO:

INT. AC-12. HASTINGS’ OFFICE. NEXT DAY.

Steve, Kate and Dot in Hasting’s office.

STEVE:

Ronan Murphy was interviewed by the

team investigating, Tommy Hunter’s

murder.

HASTINGS:

And where did you get that from?

STEVE:

I’m not at liberty to say, sir.

KATE:

Here we go again.

STEVE:

Tommy Hunter was involved in

grooming underage girls and pimping

them out. And he was about to turn

informer. The people who ordered

his murder didn’t want what he knew

about child sexual exploitation to

come out. That’s exactly the same

motive as the murder of Danny

Waldron. They’re connected.

Hastings absorbs this. Dot looks uneasy.

KATE:

Sir, we know Hunter’s murder was

orchestrated by the Caddy, and

there’s ample evidence that someone

was pulling Hari Bains’s strings.

STEVE:

Using the exact same methods as the

Caddy. Voice contact only, multiple

phones.

HASTINGS:

Yes, but, how can this be the

Caddy. DC Cole is dead.

Dot coolly seizes the initiative.

DOT:

Well the Caddy is my inquiry, sir.

So maybe I should be the one to

look into this.

HASTINGS:

I’d be grateful.

DOT:

Sir.

STEVE:

(Resentful it’s not him.)

Sir.

HASTINGS:

What? Something to say? Or are you

not at liberty?

Hastings shows them the door.

Exit Dot, Kate and Steve.

DOT:

Sir.

Once again Hastings looks worried.

Steve, Kate and Dot troop out of Hastings’

office.

KATE:

(To Dot)

Well I know exactly who we should

speak to first.

STEVE:

Who?

KATE:

We’ll be fine, thanks, Steve.

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