"Billy." "Name of Billy." "But you went through all that pain for someone and then he just died." "Doesn't change what we did have." "A fallen angel, an actual fallen angel." "Just stay away from him." "Some of what Richard says makes sense." "Course it does." "He's demonic, not stupid." "This is the clock that sat in the Kremlin and counted down to Doomsday." "And Mr Mountjoy sent it to me." "He's not about to let another of us fall." "As long as you know that being with Hannah will probably mean the end of the world!" "How's he doing?" "You mean apart from encouraging a punter to top herself?" "Yeah, he's still a bit down about that." "But I told him we all make mistakes." "Don't we?" "Apparently." "He's all right, actually, for a chorister." "You should let him do more." "Staggering though it is to believe, he looks up to you." "Does he?" "Yeah." "Give him more responsibility." "I think he'll impress you." "Where is he, anyway?" "What are you doing to that poor fish?" "Hello." "Line-caught on the Tweed by a hirsute man called Malcolm, apparently." "I suppose you're a wonderful cook." "Lightly poached, griddled asparagus, avocado and watercress salad." "That..." "That sounds delicious." "If you ever want anyone to help you eat it..." "I know where you live." "Won't they make a lovely couple?" "No, they won't." "You could be the maid of honour." "A vision in mauve crinoline." "Idiot boy Tom could be best man." "It'd be wonderful." "Yeah, well, that's not going to happen." "Now, go away." "What if it did?" "I mean, Mountjoy's wrath would know no bounds." "Help!" "No!" "Help me, please." "What's your name?" "Laura." "OK." "Remember." "Obturator." "Femoral artery." "Yes." "What are you doing?" "Trying to save your life." "You're beautiful." "Thank you." "I was first in line when they handed out bodies." "Seriously, I was the first in line." "There..." "Now, this is going to hurt you a lot more than it's going to hurt me." "Just relax." "'Whenever human beings are in trouble, that's where you'll find them." "They may be tinkers or tailors, soldiers or sailors, nurses or bin men or strangers in the street." "Perhaps even... and this is hard to believe, I know..." "lawyers." "They're here to help... to comfort... to guide. '" "Mrs Sheringham, I need that fish kettle." "Patience." "Mrs Sheringham!" "Bugger off." "I am cooking." "He's where?" "Excuse me." "I'm here to see Major Parker." "Yes, sir." "Straight through the next barrier, first door on your left." "Eyes right!" "He owes us, Dad." "Major Parker." "Zak Gist." "You're an army psychiatrist?" "I am." "Apparently you have my colleague." "Yes." "He says he got lost." "If that's what he says, then that's what happened." "He saved one of my soldiers' lives, Mr Gist." "He does that sort of thing." "You won't press charges?" "No." "Good." "Thank you." "Can I have him back, then?" "Have you always wanted to be a soldier?" "Since I was a kid." "None of my family were ever in the forces." "Just..." "It's what I always wanted." "Now they'll go to Afghanistan without me." "Isn't that a good thing?" "You won't get killed." "So what happened?" "With the knife." "It was just a silly accident." "Put that woman down, Tom." "At ease, Private Pearson." "How are you feeling?" "Better, thank you, sir." "Come on, Tom." "We're off." "This is Laura." "She..." "Now." "Next time you commune with nature, don't do it on a battlefield." "You think Laura accidentally stabbed herself?" "None of my business." "Thank you." "For everything you did for Private Pearson." "Sir." "What just happened?" "What?" "Nothing just happened." "Something between you and Sergeant Faber." "No, there wasn't." "Come on." "Let's get out of this bloody place." "Billy?" "You could let me do the closing speech." "Next time, I promise." "I'm sorry if I was snappy with you yesterday." "Men and women in uniform running round with guns gives me the willies." "It always has done." "All right." "Hello, gentlemen." "Very funny." "Very droll." "Look, I popped a rib." "Have you got a moment?" "I have to talk to you... professionally." "Let me guess." "Private Pearson is going to be court martialled and you want us to defend her." "What's the charge?" "Attempted desertion." "Contrary to Section 8 and Section 39 of the Armed Forces Act." "She said it was an accident." "We ask them to go to war." "They have to trust each other." "There are a dozen other lawyers in town." "It's important to the regiment she gets the best." "Before you find her guilty." "We'll take the case." "What?" "She's no coward." "I know she's not." "Thank you." "I'll make arrangements for you to talk to her." "Yes!" "My first court martial." "Is it yours?" "No, it's not." "It's caught." "Hold still a second." "Sorry." "Does that hurt?" "No." "A little bit." "Maybe if you just kind of spin round..." "No, that's not doing anything." "How fond of your hair are you?" "Quite fond." "So you should be." "Your name's not Rapunzel, is it?" "Hannah." "My name's Hannah." "You really are a bastard." "You always say we're not to interfere." "Now you say push Hannah and this Major together?" "I'm not saying interfere." "I'm saying facilitate." "You realise that Mr Mountjoy is convinced you'll fail." "Convinced this clock will start ticking again." "He's wrong." "Well, then, prove him wrong." "Did you know the maximum sentence for attempted desertion is life imprisonment?" "It won't happen." "A custodial sentence will be more like a year." "Tom." "Zak has something to tell you." "Listen to me." "I know you're excited about the court martial." "I am." "Very." "It's important that Hannah and this Major head-shrinker chap spend some time together." "OK." "So I'm going to ask her to assist me on this one." "What?" "No." "No, you can't." "Working with a barrister from another chambers is not unprecedented." "This is my case." "I found her." "Tom, Zak is right." "There'll be other trials for you to show us what you're made of." "Why do we always do what you want?" "Why not me?" "Because I'm your superior." "Hannah." "Hello." "How was the salmon?" "A triumph." "I've been asked to defend a soldier at her court martial." "Lucky you." "Only..." "I was wondering... if you're not too busy..." "Spit it out, Mr Gist." "I thought we could do it together." "You and I." "Why me?" "Because I think I might need your female insight." "And my outrageous brilliance." "That too, obviously." "Tom's all right with this?" "Tom understands completely." "English and Gist." "I like it." "Zak?" "I admire Zak's tenacity." "I don't understand." "Don't you?" "He's clearly attracted to you." "Zak?" "I don't think so." "Go on." "Hannah." "He shakes like a leaf whenever you're near." "He does not." "Has he ever said anything to you?" "Would you like it if he had?" "I'm... not interested in a relationship." "Not with Zak Gist or with anyone else." "Right." "Well, enjoy the trial, Hannah." "Bring glory down upon us." "You know what they're gonna say, Laura?" "That you're a coward." "That you wounded yourself to get out of going to Afghanistan." "But I know that's not true." "I've seen men so afraid that they would kill themselves rather than face up to that fear a moment longer." "I don't see that fear in you." "Can you tell us what happened, Laura?" "I was cleaning the blade..." "During a battle?" "My hand slipped." "And the blade went into your thigh, severing an artery." "Don't you dare lie to me!" "Mr Gist!" "I'll get you off this charge, but you stop lying to me now." "Come on, Laura, help us." "Are you protecting someone?" "No." "Someone in your platoon?" "Sergeant Faber, perhaps?" "You're a bad apple." "They're better shot of you." "Zak!" "She'll let her friends fight, do her dirty work." "I didn't do it." "Then who did?" "I know Laura would never hurt herself like that." "How can you know that?" "We started our training on the same day." "We're best mates." "I know she wanted to get over there, to see what it was like." "Does she have any enemies, Sophie?" "No." "She's really popular." "A leader." "You can't think of anyone that might have wanted to hurt her?" "What about Sergeant Faber?" "I'm going back to base." "Zak Gist is a brilliant lawyer." "Maybe he'll say she didn't know what she was doing, that she was scared half out of her wits." "A dishonourable discharge." "That would kill her." "The army is her life." "He'd been hitting on her for weeks." "Who?" "Sergeant Faber." "When Laura told him to get lost, he went mad, smashed up the mess." "Do you think he could have stabbed Laura?" "He'd stab his own grandmother if she looked at him funny." "Really?" "He'd stab his own grandmother?" "Don't mess with him." "I'm telling you." "Just leave it alone." "She's saying someone else stabbed her." "Who?" "She refuses to say." "Good old esprit de corps." "See that maschinengewehr machine-gun, chaps?" "Why don't you take a stroll towards it?" "Do you have a problem with the army, Mr Gist?" "You're the psychiatrist." "What's your opinion of Private Pearson?" "My opinion is that she's psychologically stable." "Perhaps stabbing yourself to avoid being blown up is the sanest action a person could take." "Sorry." "May I suggest we discuss this tonight over a sirloin and a decent Bordeaux?" "I hope you know what you're doing." "That's all." "Hannah's been through enough." "It's what you wanted." "This is where Faber drinks." "Yeah, remind me again why I'm here." "Because you've got a face like a wet Wednesday." "So I get to sup with some squaddies?" "Joy!" "Right." "I'll do the talking." "All right?" "No, not all right." "I found him." "I'll do the talking." "Talk away, Tom." "You lost?" "Just... thirsty." "We're Laura Pearson's defence team." "I know who you are." "What do you want?" "To talk to you, Sergeant Faber." "Did you not hear the man?" "We're thirsty." "Hello." "Hello." "Are you all right?" "You look like you've seen a ghost." "I'm fine." "Just waiting for..." "Mr Gist." "Didn't he call you?" "Something came up he had to see to, so..." "Yeah." "Looks like it's just you and me, I'm afraid." "More?" "Cheers." "She's a coward." "You'll get no help from us." "You asked her out." "Yeah, well, even cowards can have nice tits." "Still, better she falls apart here than out on patrol in Helmand." "To the health of Colonel Puff Puff for the second time!" "Sheringham's getting drunk." "I'd noticed." "Better get a round in before she drinks the place dry." "Sergeant Faber, did you stab her because she spurned your advances?" "Those are brave words for a young lad." "It's a reasonable question." "If you'd prefer to answer it in a military court..." "I don't think she did it." "Did I say you could have an opinion?" "Now piss off." "If there's one thing I despise more than a bully, it's an army bully." "I don't give a bollocks what you think." "When you've been there, then you can have an opinion." "I drink to the health of Colonel Puff Puff a third time." "Who is this Colonel Puff Puff?" "What's kept you in the army all this time?" "Well, I've..." "seen some extraordinary things and met some extraordinary people." "Killed them all, obviously." "Sorry." "Bad joke." "Bad joke." "No, the army... well, the regiment, it's... it's everything to me." "Which is why this whole business with Pearson is..." "She didn't give you a thing, did she?" "Nothing." "Anyway, how about you, Hannah?" "You and Mr Gist..." "What?" "You know." "No!" "God, no." "OK." "So... why isn't there a Mr Hannah in your life?" "There was someone once." "But..." "It's too boring." "I'll be the judge of that, soldier." "He said to... meet him in our favourite restaurant." "He had something he wanted to say to me." "You mean he was going to pop the question?" "I waited and..." "I waited." "And he never came." "I mean... never, ever." "I've never met the guy..." "I never will... but I can honestly say he's a bloody idiot." "No, Colonel Puff Puff's gone." "Yes, he has." "Let's get you home." "If you think of anything at all that could help Private Pearson, let me know." "Let's go." "Where's Tom?" "Tom!" "Sophie, Laura needs you..." "Can I help you?" "I have a few questions for Sophie." "Look, no more questions." "Do you understand?" "Zak!" "What the hell do you think you're doing?" "I thought you'd gone to bed." "I wasn't tired." "What's happening to us?" "Mrs Sheringham..." "I know." "I know." "I'll talk to her." "And you, Zak?" "What's happening to you?" "Get your coat." "I'd done a long tour and I was gagging to get home for some R and R." "Then some bloody Serb popped Archduke Franz Ferdinand." "First World War?" "You were there?" "I've seen some things, Tom, but I've never seen anything like that." "It was... disgusting." "Couldn't you have told me this at home?" "24th August, 1914." "Belgium." "I was a captain in the 1st Cheshires." "The British were outnumbered, legged it, but the Cheshires never got the order to retreat." "We..." "They were... slaughtered." "The few survivors were completely surrounded." "They waited to die." "I couldn't let them die." "Not like that." "I couldn't do it." "What did you do?" "There was an old hidden mining road." "I just showed them where it was." "No way." "That was you?" "Towards the light, boys, now!" "You were the Angel of Mons?" "So what did Mr Mountjoy do?" "In the circumstances, he was very calm, reasonable." "Really?" "No, not really." "For the next four years, I served on the Western Front." "My task, to defend at court martial the poor shattered bastards the army called cowards." "Every dawn for four years, I heard those boys cry for their mothers and their gods... before they were executed." "How many times did you win?" "In four years?" "Let me see." "None." "Not once." "Not a single time." "Well, then it's time you did win." "Billy." "Billy?" "Billy!" "Billy!" "Billy?" "Mrs Sheringham." "Mrs Sheringham, Billy is dead." "Go... away." "Did you really think that could be him?" "Mrs Sheringham?" "Fuck off." "When's your wedding anniversary, Mrs Sheringham?" "You..." "You bastard." "Zak hasn't remembered, has he?" "Naughty boy." "You might think that I'm the weak link..." "But I won't break." "Look at me, Mrs Sheringham." "You won't get to Zak through me." "Look me in the eye, Mrs Sheringham." "Billy." "Billy!" "Private Pearson was taking part in the regiment's last full exercise before leaving for Afghanistan on what would have been her first tour of duty." "Like any young soldier in such a position, she was nervous, frightened..." "No!" "Unlike other young soldiers, Private" "Pearson decided to do something about it." "She took her own bayonet and stabbed herself." "No doubt hoping for a flesh wound." "No, it's not true." "Silence." "In her fear and incompetence, she cut through her femoral artery." "It was only due to the remarkable quick thinking of a member of the public, a trespassing member of the public, that this is a court martial and not a coroner's inquest." "Richard Pembroke." "Go to hell!" "You look so like him." "You sound so like him." "I never got your letter." "I'm sorry, Carl." "I'd moved on." "I was teaching in an orphanage, in a remote part of north-east India." "And no mail came there, believe me." "And then, a few months after I returned, I just happened to be... passing by the old post office in the village and the fella came out and he gave me a letter." "And that's how you found out that Billy was dead?" "It's how I found out about the illness." "It's how I found out about the funeral." "I am so sorry, Carl." "I think..." "I think, when you didn't reply, I assumed... for whatever reason... that you didn't want to know." "You've no reason to apologise to me." "Mrs Sheringham." "That's what everyone calls me now." "I can't call my brother's wife Mrs Sheringham." "How about if I call you Birdy?" "How'd you know he called me that?" "I had another letter waiting for me at the post office." "This was from Billy." ""I have found a love so brilliant that it banishes all shadows... except that one, tiny, unbanishable shadow... that something so wonderful must one day end." "Tis my dearest wish... that one day, Carl, you will meet her, my astonishing and wondrous wife." "My Birdy."" "I'm so glad you're here." "I gathered the platoon and then realised that Private Pearson was missing." "I instigated a search and we found her." "Badly wounded." "Yes, sir." "Where were you before you gathered the platoon..." "Sir, Sergeant Faber is not on trial." "I was in the command vehicle with Major Parker." "What are you doing here?" "You know something." "Get out." "Don't be afraid." "Trust me." "Get out before I raise the alarm." "Who are you?" "Tell me what happened." "Now." "You're a coward." "What?" "You let your best friend go to prison for something she didn't do." "Who said she didn't do it?" "I looked into her eyes." "She was brave." "Shut up!" "In your eyes, all I see is fear." "You shut up!" "Help!" "For once in your life, Sophie, be a soldier." "Oi!" "You fought in Iraq and Afghanistan?" "Yes." "So you're an experienced soldier." "Indulge me for a moment, Sergeant." "What are your definitions of fear and cowardice?" "How would you differentiate?" "Well, fear is what every soldier feels." "Cowardice..." "Cowardice is acting on that fear to the detriment of a fellow soldier." "Have you ever acted to the detriment of a fellow soldier... because of fear?" "Your Honour, Mr Gist cannot..." "This woman's career... her life... is in the balance." "Have the courage to tell the court what you know." "Tell me what happened, Sergeant." "Tell me what happened, Sergeant." "Faber." "Please." "Faber, cover me." "It's gonna go." "It's gonna go." "Please, I beg you, stop." "What on earth's the matter, Sergeant?" "Faber, return fire." "Faber!" "I can't do this on my own." "Faber." "It's gonna go." "It's gonna go." "Faber!" "Faber, please!" "Please!" "Please." "Who was the man, Sergeant?" "A friend?" "Who was he?" "Gist, for God's sake." "Tom?" "Zak!" "Just hang on, Tom." "Zak, I can't move." "It's live." "What are you people playing at?" "It's an unexploded mortar." "We're waiting for the bomb squad." "No, Zak!" "Get off me!" "Wait for the bomb squad." "Please, Zak." "You'll kill yourself." "Stay very still, mate." "Very still." "Remember when you said it hurts to buggery when you die in this world?" "Yep." "I remember." "Were you telling the truth?" "Yes." "Sort of." "What do you mean, sort of?" "You don't get to come back." "You failed." "This wasn't my fault." "Not how MrMountjoy sees it, I'm afraid." "I'll never get to come back." "But I like it here." "I've only just started." "Don't move." "I saw hundreds of these on the Somme." "Only..." "Only what?" "They didn't look quite like this one." "We're gonna die, aren't we?" "Not me, I've got a case to win." "I need something to dig it out with." "Don't touch anything." "If you release the pressure on the detonator, it'll go." "Private Caple, stay where you are." "We have to get the bike off him without releasing the pressure on the mortar." "How do we do that?" "Just do exactly as I say." "You seem very calm." "Never let a bomb see your fear." "That's what my dad always said." "Zak?" "You know the worst thing about fear?" "Fear itself." "Done." "Does that mean I can..." "No!" "No!" "OK, OK!" "Push down hard on the mortar with me." "Tell me about your father." "He was in the army." "In this regiment, bomb disposal unit." "Sorry, can we have this conversation another time?" "He served with Faber." "He died because Faber wasn't covering him." "I used to blame him." "I don't now." "Right, roll away." "My dad died..." "I was terrified about going away." "I asked Laura to make it look like an accident but she refused." "We had a fight, it stuck in her leg and I panicked." "I ran away." "So Faber covered for you." "Tom's right, this really isn't the best time for this conversation." "Right, drag the bike to here, we can push it down on the mortar." "It's heavy." "Help him." "You sure you can..." "Do it." "Now walk slowly up the hill." "How terrified were you?" "Not terrified." "Just a bit nervous at first." "I stabbed Private Pearson, sir." "New underpants for Mr Greening!" "I have to admit, Mr Gist, life is rarely dull around you." "It's my great failing, I suspect." "You know..." "Major Parker?" "Yes." "He asked me out on a date." "And... what did you say?" "I said yes." "That's good." "Isn't it?" "Yes, very good." "I should really get on." "Yes." "We worked well together, didn't we?" "Yes, we did." "Enjoy your date." "You haven't got... anything else to say?" "No, I don't think so." "Goodbye." "Goodbye." "It was amazing." "His voice..." "It's like..." "If I closed my eyes, it was like having Billy back in the room." "I'm so pleased for you, Mrs S." "When do we get to meet him?" "Soon." "But tonight, he's all mine." "I've a thousand questions." "Mr Mountjoy will be very proud of you." "Zak, you should be really proud of yourself." "Well..." "Regiment always comes first." "Slings and arrows, Mr Gist." "Ups and downs." "And even if it is sometimes a wet Wednesday in Arbroath... one day... one day soon, it'll be a sunny Saturday in Venice." "I promise you." "The hero of the hour." "Have a drink." "I don't feel much like a hero." "You cleared Laura Pearson's name." "She was broke and you made her whole." "Sophie Caple thought she was a coward, you showed her she wasn't." "There's an interesting case coming up." "ABH." "I'd like you to take it." "But what did I save them for?" "So they could go to war and get themselves killed?" "Or kill others?" "Do you like art?" "It's called The Return To The Front." "So these soldiers are going back to... hell, essentially." "But look at them, Tom." "Can you imagine the courage of these men?" "The things they've already done and seen?" "And yet here they all are, together, preparing to return to Armageddon." "Because that's what you do." "You stick together... no matter what the cost to yourself." "Do you think we can learn from them?" "Richard Pembroke would say no." "Look at this one." "He looks terrified." "So would you be, if you had to wear a rough woollen skirt next to your Dardanelles." "Is that you?" "When Mr Mountjoy seemed a long, long way away indeed." "You'll be OK." "Come on, soldier." "I didn't order champagne." ""Hannah loves John."" "beards, bearded men..." "He'll be in love with Hannah by now." "I was." "So we're sort of soldiers, aren't we?" "What?" "Sent on missions, following orders, doing our best." "It's not considered polite to thrash a poor metaphor to within an inch of its life." "I'm the idealistic young private on his first tour of duty." "Optimistic, brilliant..." "Naive, irritating." "You're the grizzled old veteran..." "seen it all, cynical." "Never made it above private, never will." "Yes, thank you." "What does that make Mrs Sheringham?" "She's the best of us." "To Mrs Sheringham." "Long to reign over us." "Mrs Sheringham!" "Without whom, we would be up a very unpleasant creek indeed." "Shit creek." "So, Hannah was Richard's big weapon and we've disarmed her." "Be on your guard, Tom." "He'll come after us with everything he's got now." "Can I say something, Zak?" "If you must." "The Angel of Mons." "You are the man." "Marcus?" "What have you done?" "Marcus Hale, killed his own brother." "Even confessed." "He's 110% guilty." "I swear, Mr Gist, I'm an innocent man." "God, you feel like him." "Would he really mind if I were to hold her one last time?" "She's made her decision, Zak." "You put her in danger, to get at me."