ANIKA CAROL CORMACK FERGUS FRANKIE JADE KEITH LIAM MORGANA RITCHIE TOMMY YOUNG_CORMACK ZACH ZARA YOUNG CORMACK Ritch, just stay quiet, OK. YOUNG CORMACK Mum? Mum? YOUNG CORMACK Mum. Mum, are you OK? CORMACK Your mate from room 9 was a bit of a Jack the Ripper. You're lucky you weren't home when he came for Liam. RITCHIE I don't feel lucky. CORMACK Well you are! If we can confirm he was there that night then the prosecutor will have to toss the case. RITCHIE I remember picking up the gaff and walking into the room. CORMACK I remember pissing the bed on school camp. But we don't have to tell anyone. RITCHIE Last night's the best I've slept in 25 years. It's a relief to know I'll finally pay for what I did to Liam. CORMACK This'll mean reasonable doubt. RITCHIE You sound like Zara. I don't want doubt, I want the truth. Are you certain I didn't do it? RITCHIE I'm not changing my plea. CORMACK What the fuck is wrong with you? You've got kids! You're not just punishing yourself, your punishing them. And they don't deserve it. FRANKIE When's Dad coming home? FRANKIE Mum? Mum? JADE What do you mean? When? FRANKIE Mum, is that Dad? JADE No. Be quiet a sec. This doesn't make sense. When can I see him? FRANKIE I want to see him. You said he was coming home. JADE Shut up, Frankie! JADE Zara, I'll call you back. JADE What the hell happened? Zara said he's going to plead guilty. CORMACK Nothing's set in stone. JADE This is your fault. That fucked up therapy has confused him. CORMACK You need to stay calm. JADE Don't tell me what to do! JADE It's fine. It's just a cramp. CORMACK Do you need meds, tea? What can I do? JADE Just get him out Jimmy. That's the only thing I need. CORMACK Careful they don't poo on us. FRANKIE Mum got mad at me. CORMACK She's just stressed. She didn't mean it. FRANKIE She misses Dad. CORMACK Yeah, she does. FRANKIE Where do they go every night? CORMACK They're nocturnal, so they go out to eat. Then they sleep during the day. Like musicians, or Spaniards. FRANKIE So they come home together every day? Like a family? CORMACK Yeah. I guess they do. CORMACK Screening calls. Very rude. ZARA So is calling 20 times a day. CORMACK I found something. ZARA I have a meeting with the Crown Prosecutor, to confirm Ritchie's plea. CORMACK The man in room 9 has been convicted or three violent murders. CORMACK His name's Eddie Peters. CORMACK You can't take that plea. ZARA It's not my decision, it's Ritchie's. Has he seen this? What did he say? CORMACK He just needs some time. Cancel your meeting. Please. ZARA I have a reputation. I can't just cancel, it's in 15 minutes. CORMACK Just say you've got diarrhoea. ZARA It's not a high school book report. CORMACK No, it's my brother's life. ZARA I can stall for a day or two. But that's it. It's Ritchie's decision. CORMACK Thank you. ZARA Have you got a motive for this guy? CORMACK Fergus lied when he said he didn't know him. There's footage of them together at the wharf. ZARA Footage? Where? I don't want to know. CORMACK Fergus wasn't fishing that night. If he brought something in for this guy and the deal went south, maybe Liam was just collateral damage. ZARA We need more than that. We don't even have proof he was still at the motel when Liam was killed. CORMACK I'm on that. Find out where old mate's locked up. He's never getting out, he might even confess. CORMACK Maybe don't actually say diarrhoea. Say 'bad oyster' or something. LIAM Hey. Watcha doing? RITCHIE Just cleaning up before we leave. RITCHIE That's if you still want me to come to Sydney with you? LIAM Mate, you need to let it go. It was an accident. LIAM Does that happen to you often? RITCHIE More often than I'd like. LIAM Is it scary? I'm sorry man. That's fucked. RITCHIE When do you want to hit the road? LIAM This afternoon. I need to grab some stuff from Ferg's place first. And I need some lunch. You hungry? RITCHIE You want any more chips? LIAM Nah, I'm good. RITCHIE Hey, have you told Anika we're leaving? LIAM Too hard. I'll give her a call when we get to Sydney. RITCHIE Oh yeah, cos that went down so well last time. LIAM She'll come around. She always does. LIAM Back in a sec. LIAM Fergus? RITCHIE Fergus pawn your stuff? LIAM We're not going. I've got some shit to sort out. RITCHIE Everything OK? LIAM Just Fergus being Fergus. I gotta find him. LIAM Fergus? ANIKA Hey. Thanks for meeting me. CORMACK I'm surprised you're still talking to me. ANIKA He's your brother. Of course you're going to do whatever it takes to get him out. CORMACK I'm getting real close. And you might be able to help me. ANIKA Fuck. Has he confessed? CORMACK We're still finding out which prison he's in. Can you confirm he was still at the motel that night? ANIKA Yes. CORMACK Will you testify to that? ANIKA Yes. CORMACK Thank you. What did you want to talk to me about? ANIKA I wanted to ask how Ritchie's doing? CORMACK He's scared. He misses his kids. ANIKA He's got kids? CORMACK A seven year old daughter. A son on the way. ANIKA Is he a good dad? CORMACK Not right now. But he will be. When I get him out. ANIKA I hope you do. I never wanted it to be him. CORMACK Yeah, I guess no one likes the idea they might've shagged a killer. ANIKA It wasn't just sex. I loved him. RITCHIE Hey. How's your Mum doing? ANIKA She's having a good day today. Thank you for asking. FERGUS Oi, where's Liam? RITCHIE At the bar. He's been looking for you. RITCHIE Do you want a drink? ANIKA Yeah. Thanks. LIAM Get off her. FERGUS Jesus, jealous much? I'm not into your girlfriend, I've got bigger shit on my mind. LIAM I need to talk to you about that. FERGUS Why are you talking to Keith? LIAM Does Mum know Zach's back? FERGUS Stay out of it. LIAM He's going to screw everything up. FERGUS Zach's saving our arse. He got the rest of the money. We won't be turning up short now. LIAM I still don't trust him. I'm coming with you tonight. FERGUS No way. Mum would flip. LIAM I saw the gear. You two druggos will fuck this up. RITCHIE What's going on? ANIKA Same old bullshit. ANIKA Let's go to my place and watch a movie. LIAM I'm going fishing with Fergus. ANIKA In this weather? What's going on? LIAM I'll see you tomorrow. RITCHIE Are you alright? ANIKA Not here. RITCHIE I'll come watch a movie with you. ANIKA We can't keep doing this. RITCHIE What do you mean? ANIKA I don't know. I'm so confused. All I know for sure, is that Liam doesn't deserve this. ANIKA I've gotta go. CORMACK Hey, how'd you go? ZARA I found our man from number 9. Eddie Peters died in Wacol, two years ago. Cancer. CORMACK Couldn't have happened to a nicer bloke. ZARA We can't call him to testify, but I don't think it'll matter. He was an enforcer for the Geddes clann. ZARA If we can put him at the scene, that's more than reasonable doubt. CORMACK Anika can confirm he was still at the motel that night. ZARA That's amazing! Wait, you spoke to Anika today? CORMACK Uh huh. ZARA Jesus James. You have to stop. We have enough to get Ritchie out now. Promise me you'll leave Liam's family alone. CORMACK Hello? Hello? Sorry, you're breaking up. KEITH It's Keith Finch. I spoke to Carol today - cue juvenile response from you here... KEITH She found the box of Zach's things. She can meet us tomorrow. I'll text you details. CORMACK Hey. JADE I spoke to Zara today. She said you did it. Ritchie's going to get out. CORMACK It looks that way. Yeah. JADE Thank you, Jimmy. JADE I thought we should celebrate. It's non alcoholic. CORMACK How's that a celebration? CORMACK That's more like it. JADE You're still working. Why? CORMACK Just trying to fill in the blanks. JADE But Ritchie's coming home. Isn't that enough? JADE You believe him, don't you Jimmy? CORMACK Yeah, of course. To freedom. FERGUS We have a problem. KEITH Morning! CORMACK Morning Sporty Spice. CORMACK Jesus, that's a lot of cologne. You could kill a small dog with that. KEITH Stop sniffing me, it's creepy. CORMACK This is what's behind door number nine. A Geddes hard man. KEITH So I was right all along? They were smuggling. CORMACK I'll make you a merit certificate later. Your girlfriend's here. CORMACK Zach was in the Scouts? CAROL He was always searching for somewhere to belong. I think that's why he joined the army. CORMACK Who's this? CAROL That's Zach and his uncle David. My brother. CORMACK Lieutenant David Hull? CAROL How did you know that? CORMACK Did Zach have David's dog tags? CAROL He never took them off. He idolised David. CAROL Will you excuse me a moment. I need to pop to the little girls' room. KEITH Maybe Fergus has just been holding onto them in case Zach came back? CORMACK For 25 years? Would you do that for a mate? If you had any. KEITH Rude. But no, probably not. You need to talk to Fergus again. CORMACK He and Morgana took the boat out in the middle of the night. They're still at sea. KEITH Morgana? She's never been a fisho. How long have they been out there? CORMACK Since before dawn. KEITH I've said it before, I think they're still on the graft. KEITH I'm telling you, if Morgana is out there, they're not fishing. MORGANA Is this it? ZACH Where is this fucker? FERGUS It's still 20 minutes. ZACH This is doing my head in. ZACH Just a leveller. FERGUS What the hell are you doing here? LIAM Trying to protect our family from you two fuck-ups. FERGUS Go home, Liam. This is serious. LIAM Get off me you fucking junkie. FERGUS Why do you make me do this? I'm just trying to protect you. Just go home. RITCHIE They locked me in that fucking Esky for hours. MORGANA Do you have any shame? CORMACK I've got a shedload of it actually. It's a tough one to tame, isn't it Ferg? MORGANA I'm calling the police. CORMACK That's a cracking idea. They're going to want to hear this. CORMACK You didn't catch any fish the night Liam died either, did you? CORMACK I'm guessing your usual cargo was cash, given the casino chips Liam had. But you weren't bringing anything in that night. You were taking Zach's body out. CORMACK Those GPS coordinates were his grave. How often did you visit him? CORMACK Did you save the new ones today, when you moved him? FERGUS I'm so sorry. MORGANA Fergus! Be quiet. FERGUS I can't do it anymore Mum. FERGUS I didn't kill him. But it was my fault. Just like Liam was. MORGANA It's all there. Plus an extra 20 grand. An apology to the Uncles for this mess. FERGUS No! FERGUS What the fuck are you doing? We gave the money back! MORGANA It's Ok, Ferg. You're OK. MORGANA Fergus. Fergus! MORGANA We need to fix this. Now. FERGUS We had to get him past the Coast Guard camera somehow. CORMACK Why did he kill Liam? FERGUS Liam wanted to help that night. But I beat the shit out of him and sent him home. Humiliated, angry... FERGUS ...and right into the path of that psychopath. FERGUS Ritchie loved Liam. He never would've hurt him. FERGUS I'll make a statement. I'll tell the police everything. FERGUS It's going to be alright, Mum. RITCHIE Thank you. CORMACK No worries, I was in the area. CORMACK Oh, for helping you dodge a murder charge? Any time. CORMACK You can't go home in that ugly shirt. Put this on. RITCHIE This is pretty childish, even for you. CORMACK You look great. RITCHIE Can we bounce? I'm shitting myself they'll throw me back inside. CORMACK Where to, bookies or strip club? RITCHIE Florist. CORMACK Mate, you'll need more than flowers to make it up to her. RITCHIE I know. But I've got to start somewhere. RITCHIE You're not coming in? CORMACK You guys need some time alone. I'll be back later tonight. MORGANA This place hasn't changed much. MORGANA I asked Tess, in Reception, to call me when you came back. CORMACK I would've come to you, if you'd asked. This can't be easy. MORGANA I wanted to bulldoze this place, but we needed the money. I've driven the long way home from the shops for 25 years to avoid it. MORGANA Pictures would pop up in the paper every few years. They'd dig up Liam's body for clicks and I'd get to relive the Swanport Slaughter with my morning coffee. I guess you've spared me that, now that you've 'solved' the case. MORGANA I welcomed Ritchie into my home. Let him sleep just a few feet away from my son. CORMACK I'm sorry if I've brought you more pain. But Ritchie is a good man. MORGANA Good men can be dangerous too. MORGANA I never told Fergus, but the uncles spared him because he was a Geddes. They never would've hurt Liam. He was their blood. I know your brother killed my son. And deep down, I think you do too. CORMACK Are you OK, mate? RITCHIE Just needed some air. CORMACK Bad dreams? RITCHIE Something like that. CORMACK They're not going to stop, unless we fill in the blanks. CORMACK Get in the car. We need to know what happened. RITCHIE It's clearer here. CORMACK What do you see? RITCHIE The images are the same. But the feelings are clearer to me. CORMACK What image are you focussed on now? RITCHIE That wall there, it had the weird hole in it. I kept staring at it, so I wouldn't see Liam's body. CORMACK What emotion's linked to that image? RITCHIE Regret. I was thinking about Mum, wishing I could've saved her. CORMACK You're getting muddled again. Try to stay here, in this room, the night Liam died. RITCHIE My shorts were wet. CORMACK From the blood? RITCHIE No. They were soaked. It was water. RITCHIE I was dry when I walked home. RITCHIE I saw him. The man from room 9. He was leaving, as I was walking home. It was him. I knew it was him. CORMACK Why were your shorts wet? RITCHIE I'd upset Anika, at the pub. But I called her when I got home, and we made up. Everything was going to be CORMACK What emotion is linked to the pool? RITCHIE Fear. RITCHIE My light was on. It was off when I got home. TOMMY Stop fucking lying! The sounds from the night Audrey died start up in Ritchie's head. They continue as he keeps walking towards his room. RITCHIE I was scared. LIAM Fuck you! RITCHIE Liam was in there. He was fighting with someone. CORMACK Who was it? CORMACK Who was it Ritch? Who was in there? Ritchie, clutching the gaff, steps forward and looks through the window. RITCHIE Mum. And Dad. CORMACK You're getting the nights mixed up again Ritch. RITCHIE No. I'm not. ANIKA Liam? I thought you were fishing? RITCHIE It's me. RITCHIE I wanted to say sorry. I shouldn't have put pressure on you like that. ANIKA It's OK. You just said what you feel. I feel it too. RITCHIE I want us to be together, properly. We can tell Liam. He'll understand. I've never felt this way. ANIKA Me either. But it's complicated. Just go to bed. We'll work everything out tomorrow. RITCHIE Yeah, you're right. Tomorrow. RITCHIE I love you. ANIKA I love you too. ANIKA Fuck tomorrow. LIAM Hey Ritch, I need-- ANIKA What happened to your face? Are you LIAM What are you doing here? ANIKA I came to see you. LIAM In Ritchie's room. When you thought I was fishing. LIAM How long have you been fucking him? ANIKA What? What are you talking-- LIAM Stop fucking lying! ANIKA Why do you even care. You were with other girls in Sydney. LIAM You're a whore. ANIKA You're a child. LIAM Fuck you! CORMACK You didn't have a choice. RITCHIE I killed him. CORMACK You saved her. ANIKA Ritchie. Ritchie! RITCHIE There's so much blood. He's not breathing. ANIKA You need to go. They'll never believe what he did. ANIKA Ritchie, can you hear me? You need to get of here. ANIKA You can't stay here, OK? You have to go. I promise I'll never tell. RITCHIE We should call the police. CORMACK Why? RITCHIE Tell them the truth. CORMACK What good would that do? Your kids lose a father, and Morgana and Steven lose the Liam they loved. They don't need to know what he did. The truth doesn't always bring closure. CORMACK We were too small to stop Dad. You gave Anika the second chance that Mum never got. RITCHIE Liam wasn't like Dad. And he didn't deserve to die. CORMACK Neither did Anika. RITCHIE What do I do now? CORMACK You go home and be a better dad to your son than ours was to us.