"Xun Li, 42, came here as a refugee from China just over ten years ago." "Argh!" "They don't want to kill your husband, Mrs Li, they want to sell him back to you." "Besides his wife, any other family?" "A son, Bo, from his first marriage and a younger brother Chang." "How would you describe your relationship with your father?" "He thinks I'm a failure." "Xun saved us." "We owe him everything." "Wendy Xiao." "Robbery, illegal gambling, all sorts." "Xun Li had two gangs in his sights, both of them linked to you." "A heater in one of Xun's flats was faulty and one of the tenants got carbon monoxide poisoning." "Where were you on Sunday night?" "I thought you might find it useful to get a few pointers for when you sit the DCI board." "You asked to see me." "That was a mistake." "Why would the wife of a villain like Richards want to see you?" "I would like to take my wife home... now." "I told you not to go and you ignored me." "You wouldn't be saying that if I'd have got something." "But you didn't." "So what next?" "Ransom note?" "Or a body." "Time of death?" "Somewhere between 9:30 and 11:00." "His wife raised the alarm when she came home." "She went out?" "Even though he'd just got back from hospital?" "Where is she now?" "She's been sedated, staying with the brother-in-law." "We can talk to her in the morning." "How did they get in?" "Well, it looks like they forced the patio doors at the back." "Kidnappers upping their game?" "Could be." "They break in... .. tie him up, and then... what?" "Access his account online, torture him when he refuses to co-operate... and then kill him." "Can you e-mail me that report?" "Thank you." "Yeah, that's great." "Cheers." "Whoever killed Xun Li didn't come in through the patio doors." "What?" "Preliminary forensics are just back." "The decking outside had been oiled within the last 48 hours, so it was still tacky enough to leave traces of oil inside." "But there weren't any?" "No, not a drop." "There's no sign of forced entry anywhere else." "All the windows were locked." "So they came in through the front door." "Either because Xun Li let them in himself, or..." "Because they had their own keys." "Helen." "Morning, sir." "Sir." "Got your board date, I hear." "Yeah." "Tomorrow, sir." "All set?" "I hope so." "Good." "Well, perhaps, we could celebrate if it goes well." "Really?" "You thinking of turning up unannounced with another bottle of wine?" "No, I just thought we could..." "Didn't I make myself clear?" "Perfectly." "Good." "Well, barring any unforeseen circumstances, er... .. I'm sure it'll go fine." "Are we linking this to the kidnap, or is Xun Li just the world's unluckiest man?" "We can't rule out coincidence, but odds-on they're linked, we just don't know how." "The kidnappers left most of the ransom money." "Perhaps they tried to put that right." "So what, we find the kidnappers, we find the murderers?" "Lines of investigation." "Wendy Xiao." "Said to be running her boyfriend's protection gangs while he's inside." "Being targeted by Xun Li's charity, so plenty of reason to silence him." "Plus, her boyfriend did a nice line in death by plastic bag." "Maybe she's just carrying on the tradition." "Mark Rundle." "Blames Xun Li for his wife's carbon monoxide poisoning." "Plenty of motive, but what about means and opportunity?" "But we start with the wife - Rachel Li." "Listen, last night on the phone, I was probably a bit..." "Harsh?" "Clumsy?" "I was going for "firm"." "Oh." "It's just... whatever's going on with Tamsin Richards, that marriage, them coping with losing their daughter, that's what Family Liaison's for, don't get sucked in." "I think it's more than that." "Do you have any reason to believe she's committed a crime?" "No, but..." "Then it's not your problem." "Annie, is everything OK?" "Yeah." "You'd say if there was something wrong... at home." "Of course, but nothing is." "I promise." "DCI Banks, DS Cabbot." "We're here to see Rachel Li." "Dad?" "The police are here to speak to Rachel." "See you later." "She's upstairs." "This way." "I'm sorry for your loss." "I came straight here from work, as soon as I heard." "You were at work?" "Collating trial results." "All night?" "I went in about 7:00." "I was still there when the police came and told me that..." "We'll be in touch." "I wasn't gonna go out, but Xun insisted." "It was a dinner I'd organised, corporate awards thing." "I got back about 11:30." "At first, I didn't think there was anything wrong." "I just thought Xun was working because I couldn't hear the TV." "Then I went into the dining room and... .. I saw the..." "What time did you leave the dinner?" "About 11:00." "Yeah, the news was on the radio... when I got back in the car." "Can anyone vouch for you?" "Oh, only several hundred reps." "Though most of them were pretty pissed, so... not much use to you, eh?" "Xun took that." "New Year's Day." "You were a close family?" "He was my brother." "I'm sorry." "Oh, please." "Yeah, we were very close." "He took care of me and I did the same for him." "Especially after his first wife died." "When was that?" "Giving birth to Bo." "We know that Bo and his father rowed on Xun's birthday." "Is this something that happened often?" "Sadly, yes." "I think Bo's closer to Dad than he was to my uncle." "Do you see him a lot?" "Fairly often, and we talk on the phone." "I tried calling him last night." "What time?" "Around 10:00." "He didn't answer so I left a message." "See if Rachel wants anything." "Three days after this was taken, they came for us." "They took An and me to prison and set about... .. re-educating us." "I can't remember her voice." "Not any more." "I try... .. but she's gone." "Bruising to the side of the head, here and here." "So he was beaten?" "It looks like it." "With fists, I'd say." "No linear patterns, see?" "And then he was suffocated?" "In a manner of speaking." "I found traces of aspirated vomit in his trachea." "I'd say someone stuffed his mouth with something, a cloth, a newspaper." "And that's what killed him?" "The gagging triggered a panic attack, which in turn set off the asthma." "Like a row of dominoes." "So his death might have been accidental?" "Or sadistic." "Any physical evidence, doc?" "No useful hairs, if that's what you mean." "I've taken swabs from the wounds and his mouth to send to the lab." "And the clingfilm?" "Was applied postmortem." "Why do that if he was already dead?" "Boss?" "Xun's offices were vandalised on the 24th, right?" "So?" "We've been checking CCTV from that night." "This is Mark Rundle's car turning left onto Canal Street." "At 1:42 in the morning." "According to the police report, the office alarm went off at 1:39." "So we have Mark Rundle driving away from the scene less than three minutes later." "He said he didn't even know where the offices were." "Now, why would he lie about that?" "It's a coincidence." "You held Xun Li responsible for what happened to your wife." "He was responsible." "You wanted to make him pay." " Now, come on." " All that pain, all that frustration, and there he was, rich and successful, while you struggled." "It was a gesture." "Just a few stones, that's all." "We'd just heard the council were cutting back." "Jenny's care package was being reduced." "The quality of Jenny's life would suffer." "And there was Xun Li, in his big house and his flash car, and I..." "Even as I was doing it, I was thinking," ""Jenny would be so ashamed of me," but... .. I couldn't do nothing." "I'd lost the court case so I did what I could." "Throw a few stones." "I've just got the lab results on Xun's body." "Various trace elements as yet unidentified, but they have detected a polysaccharide." "A linear polymer amylose." "You could literally put those words in any order and it'd mean the same." "Try again." "Starch, like they use in dry-cleaning." "You two, what're you doing tonight?" "I'm flattered boss, but..." "Wendy Xiao" " I want you to watch her." "Stake out the dry-cleaner's." "Where she goes, who she sees." "Why don't we just bring her in?" "We haven't got enough." "We've got some, but not enough." "I wanna be able to put her in a room with Xun Li, either directly, or through a third party, so coffee, camera, big bag of Haribos." "Could be a long night." "Great." "Stuck in a car all night with Tigger." "Lydia's gonna be over the moon." "Cancelling plans?" "Again." "She used to think it was exciting going out with a copper." "Now, not so much." "Make it up to her." "Something special, a proper date." "Really?" "Yeah." "Sometimes you just have to make an effort." "I'll get it." "I lied... .. everything isn't fine." "So, are you gonna invite me in?" "Well, I could, but..." "You're not alone?" "Whoever it is, tell 'em you're busy looking after the elderly." "No, I'm not alone." "Oh, hi!" "Hello, Arthur." "Well, what you waiting for?" "Why don't you ask the poor girl to come in?" "No, it's OK, I can..." "Listen, honestly, we've got plenty of food." "You've just got no manners, you know, that's your problem." "Come on." "Here you are." "What are the chances?" "Sorry?" "My last partner was a food Nazi." "E numbers, empty calories..." "blah, blah, blah." "Then he left and I got you." ""A new start," I thought... .. and you're exactly the same." "I didn't say anything." "You didn't have to." "Still, nothing wrong with wanting to keep yourself in shape." "And there it is." "I'm just saying." "And I'm just saying I happen to like saveloys, and pies, and crisps." "Great." "Knock yourself out." "What's it to you, anyway?" "Nothing." "Here we go." "I know her." "It's Wei Li..." "Xun's niece." "Where's David now?" "Looking after Isla." "And where does he think you are?" "With Ken, staking out Wendy Xiao." "Do you lie to him often?" "No." "Yes." "More than I should... .. or want to." "We row all the time about Isla." "Bedtime, schools, what she eats..." "Both of us disappointed in the other." "Different reason but the same row." "Have you tried talking to him about it?" "To begin with, but... it's like there's... .. nothing... between us... and neither one of us is willing to admit that the marriage is over." "David's not a bad man, he's not the villain..." ".. but he's not a husband either." "He's not even a friend." "And I can't..." ".. I can't go on pretending." "What do you want, Annie?" "I can't." "Not behind David's back." "No." "Can you give me a few days?" "A few more days won't hurt... much." "I should go." "Yeah." "Say goodbye from me." "Night." "About bloody time." "Were you awake?" "Yes." "Why didn't you say?" "Didn't seem to be the right moment." "Dad..." "Spare bed made up?" "Yeah." "Right you are." "Hey... she's a keeper, that one." ""About bloody time. "" "We pay her." "You pay Wendy Xiao protection?" "It was a couple of years ago." "She came here one evening, said we were vulnerable to gangs, that she could help." "We knew what she was doing." "So you agreed?" "We told her to stuff it." "Two days later, three men come in with baseball bats just as we're closing." "We tried to stop them, but all our stock, every glass..." "So now we pay, like everyone does." "And that's what you were doing last night?" "Every week, without fail." "Sister Wendy likes things to be ordered." ""Sister Wendy"?" "It's a term of affection." "It's not enough that we pay, we have to like her, too." "Maintaining the momentum of change..." "DI Morton?" "Yeah." "They're ready for you now." "DI Morton." "Take a seat." "Hello." "You have to understand, with Sister Wendy, you pay up and shut up." "Is that all you do?" "Sorry?" "Does she ever ask you to do anything else for her?" "Your uncle was targeting the gangs Wendy Xiao controls." "There was no sign of forced entry at his house the night he died, but I can't see him opening the door to Wendy or any of her thugs." "You think..." "Maybe she made you give her a key." "I didn't have anything to do with my uncle's death." "That's ridiculous." "What about your father?" "After what he's been through?" "What he's seen?" "He wouldn't." "He couldn't do anything like that." "With your help, we could put Wendy Xiao behind bars." "Do you know what happens to people who cross her?" "Tell me what you need, inspector." "It's time we stopped being scared." "And you think you have the necessary qualities to run your own team?" "I do." "I believe I can engender the correct results-based approach to policing, whilst inspiring people to meet challenging goals and at the same time... erm..." ".. erm... maintaining the momentum of change." "Really?" "Yeah, definitely." "Your colleagues have described you as ambitious, demanding, rigid, obsessive." "And in one case... .. impossible." "Don't sound terribly inspired, do they?" "Well... .. I think, results, well, they're... they're what matter." "Clear-up rates." "You know, that's what we... that's our job." "Our job is to catch criminals." "How are you gonna do that if no-one wants to work for you?" "It doesn't surprise me that... .. people think I'm difficult." "I am... and I don't apologise for that." "And apparently I'm ambitious and demanding, well, maybe." "But there are plenty of good detectives out there," "DCIs and above, about whom you could say the same." "Only with men, that's a compliment, isn't it?" "And if I am rigid, it's because we have a chain of command and a series of ranks, which I respect." "And for all that criticism, I'll bet anything you like, you won't find anyone who says I take advantage of my rank." "But we know there are men in the job that do, every day of the week." "So I'll stand by my record because I want to be a DCI, not someone's best friend." "I'm a police officer, it's what I do and I'm good at it." "Any joy?" "It's locked, boss." "Come on... with me." "Police." "We're looking for Wendy Xiao." "Seriously?" "Wendy Xiao, I'm arresting you on suspicion..." "What for?" "Why don't we start with protection-related threats, criminal damage and demanding money with menaces, and see where that takes us?" "How did it go this morning?" "Yeah, really well." "Yeah?" "Yeah." "Good." "Thank you." "Good for you." "Ken, where are we on the lab?" "Have they ID'd the other trace elements found on Xun?" "Haven't heard." "Have you chased?" " No." " Oh, for God's sake, do I have to do everything?" "Give 'em a ring, will you?" "Protection and demanding money with menaces." "That carries quite a custodial sentence." "No comment." "We've got witness statements and they're willing to attend court." "We can make these charges stick, Wendy." "No comment." "This is your opportunity to tell us about any other offences you've committed." "Clear up all your crimes yourself before we do." "Now's the time, Wendy." "Tell us about Xun Li's murder, it'll make things a lot better for you later." "No comment." "Boss, we just got a call from the hospital." "It's Chang Li." "There were three of them and Dad just stood there and took it." "I'm sorry." "Would you recognise any of those men again?" "Possibly." "Would you come back to the station with us to look at some photos?" "Have fun, did you?" "Enjoy hanging me out to dry?" "I raised legitimate concerns." "It's up to the board to decide what happens next." "You know, I treated you with respect, even though you turning up to my flat was completely inappropriate, but I didn't say anything then or later." "I let it go." "I shouldn't have done..." "You..." "You..." "What, DI Morton?" "What did I do?" "You're upset about the way you handled the interview and you're right to be." "Don't try to blame anyone else for it." "It shows poor leadership qualities." "But then, we already knew that, didn't we?" "We arrested some of your friends last night, Wendy." "Not very nice, are they?" "They gave you up in about five minutes." "So how about it?" "You still gonna "no comment" me?" "No comment." "I'm gonna be recommending some additional charges of ABH and witness interference to the CPS." "And I will find evidence that links you to Xun Li's murder." "Who knows where it's going to end?" "I think I've found something." "Look at this." "Oh, sorry, do you mind?" "Be my guest." "Mark Rundle's car, the night he broke the windows at Xun Li's office." "OK." "Now, look at the headlights, the pattern they make on the road." "The nearside beam's off." "Yeah." "Maybe it's from an earlier accident, or maybe it's just been misaligned, but either way..." "It's off." "Yeah, now, look at this." "The night Xun was kidnapped..." "Same misalignment, same pattern." "Yeah, same car." "This must be a mistake." "You told us you were looking after your wife the night Xun Li was taken." "That's right." "This is a statement from Carol Denton, the agency nurse you requested that Sunday night for four hours between 7:00 and 11:00." "You lied to us." "So, where were you?" "You hated Xun Li and you needed money to help look after your wife, and we can put your car within a few yards of where he was taken." "The kidnap failed, you still wanted revenge so you murdered him." "It's time to tell the truth, Mark." "I was with another woman, she's a friend of Jenny's." "Bumped into each other in the park a few months ago and we got chatting." "Two lonely people." "I love my wife very much... .. and I swore I wouldn't do it again..." ".. but all the time..." "I knew I would." "Who was driving your car, Mark?" "Who kidnapped Xun Li?" "Yes?" "Lilly Rundle, I'm arresting you on suspicion of false imprisonment, conspiracy to kidnap..." "Stop!" "You're under arrest, Bo." "CCTV of your father's car the night of the kidnap." "His statement saying he lent the car to you." "Kidnapping and false imprisonment." "You're looking at..." "ten years, more." "Co-operate now and it will be better for you later." "We met at the hospital." "Lilly took Jenny in once a week and I recognised her immediately... from court." "I felt sorry for them." "You thought your father was guilty?" "I certainly didn't think that they were." "Not like they said in the trial." "It wasn't Mark's fault, what happened... .. and Dad knew it..." ".. but he got away with it, like he gets away with everything." "Not quite everything." "We'd chat most times when I was at the hospital." "Pretty soon..." "I started looking for him... .. hoping I'd see him, and he was the same." "So you started a relationship?" "Did your dad know?" "No." "I was afraid he'd think it was a betrayal." "When Mum's funding was cut... we both wished there was a way we could make Bo's dad pay, but it was just that, wishing." "So what changed?" "Bo came to me one day." "He..." "He said he had a plan, a way to get his dad to give a lot of money so we could help Mum." "Did he tell you what it was?" "No, but he was really fired up." "When was this?" "Just before his dad's birthday." "He went to the party saying everything would be all right, but when he came back, he said his dad hadn't gone for it." "He was so angry." "He said he didn't care any more... .. there was another way of getting the money." "Hey." "Look, we found this at Bo's flat." "It was e - mailed to him from China two days before Xun's birthday." "Lilly mentioned something happened around that time that made Bo think his dad might pay up." "Maybe this was it." "I'm getting a translator on it now." "Let me know." "Ken, Wei Li said she tried to phone Bo round about ten o'clock on the night her uncle died." "You want me to find out which mast it pinged." "Thank you." "I just wanna go back a bit, if I may, to your father's birthday." "Witnesses said that you rowed." "Two days before... .. you received this." "Where'd you get it?" "I was sent it, by a friend from China." "He thought I should see it." "We had it translated." "It's an interview between your father and the local police chief." "It proves that your father was a state informant." "He didn't flee because of persecution, he fled because he was afraid of being found out." "So you went to his birthday party to blackmail him." "Pay up or you go public with this." "Ruin his reputation?" "Wreck his business?" "What happened?" "He call your bluff?" "Bo!" "He said it all happened a long time ago and people didn't care." "So he gave up a few names, so what?" "He said he'd say he was coerced, his family threatened." "He said he'd spin it so he came off as the victim." "You told me that the night your father died, you went to work." "Your cousin Wei Li called you at 10:07." "Now, this shows the location of the phone mast that call pinged." "It's two streets away from your father's house." "How do you explain that?" "OK." "These are forensic results from a swab taken from the bruise on your father's face." "They were able to get a DNA sample from it." "It's your DNA, Bo." "You were at your father's house the night he died." "You went there to get him to pay the money you'd failed to get from the kidnap, he refused, and in the ensuing fight, he died from an asthma attack." "No." "It was an accident, you hadn't planned it." "I promise you " "We're probably looking at manslaughter." "That's not what happened." "Then tell us what did!" "Dad called." "He said he wanted to see me, he'd figured it out." "He got kidnapped just after I'd tried to blackmail him... and then the asthma inhaler..." "He said he knew it was me, that I'd screwed up... .. and if I ever told anyone his secret, he'd have me arrested." "Then he said I disgusted him and that I was worthless, going on and on and..." "So you hit him." "I couldn't stand it..." "And then you gagged him." "No..." "No." "Yeah, you wanted him to stop." "Which is why I left." "I had to get out of there." "I was afraid of what I'd do if I stayed, so I ran." "Where?" "My uncle's place." "I just..." "I didn't know what else to do." "You have to believe me." "I hit him, but that's all." " We've got enough to charge him." " Except I don't think he did it." "Wouldn't be the first son to kill his old man." "Lashing out, I could buy that, but stuffing something into his mouth until he gags?" "That's more like torture." "DI Morton, you'll be hearing soon enough." "It appears you passed the DCI Board... in spite of everything." "I'm gonna be a DCI?" "If and when a post becomes available." "That's fantastic news, Helen." "Excuse me." "Well, thank you for taking the trouble to tell me in person, sir." "I can't tell you what that means to me." " I hear you did it." " So I did." "You can crack a smile, you know." "The results are back on the trace elements found in Xun Li's mouth." "About time." "I took your advice." "Me and Lydia are having a proper date tonight." "I'm making the effort." "Good for you." "Trouble is, I'm a bit rusty." "You'll be fine, it's like riding a bike." "I might need some stabilisers." "DS Cabbot." "Slow down." "Where are you?" "OK, OK." "Helen." "Yep." "What year was Chang Li arrested in China?" "Er... 2006." "Why?" "Come with me." "Alan, have you got a minute?" "Can it wait?" "Yeah." "Look, stay where you are, OK?" "I'm on my way." "You want me to come?" "No, you just concentrate on your stabilisers." "Bo showed you this the night he came round, didn't he?" "He was distraught, he didn't know what to do." "Will you please translate?" "It's been a long time, I'm not sure I can." "Try." ""I am grateful for another chance to help in the fight against subversives." "The names I gave last time, those that were rounded up on February 1st... were all enemies. "" "You told me that you were arrested three days into the New Year." "In 2006, the Chinese New Year fell on January 29th." "Three days later was February 1st." "When Bo showed you this, he didn't realise its true significance... .. but you did." "Your brother was the one who betrayed you and your wife." "Along with traces of starch, we found a compound known as..." "Durindophyl Red in your brother's body." "It's used to dye material, only it doesn't come out red, it comes out pale pink." "I confronted Xun that night." "He told me he'd given us up because they threatened to imprison him if he didn't." "He thought I'd understand." "But you didn't." "He saved himself by sacrificing us." "In prison, they stuffed rags into our mouths." "They'd make us choke." "It felt like you were drowning in your own vomit." "So you used one of these." "I wanted him to know, just for a few minutes, what it felt like." "But then he had an asthma attack." "I thought he was pretending." "I took the napkin out and tried to help but he was turning blue." "It happened so fast, I didn't know what to do." "Oh, I think you knew exactly what to do." "You knew Xun's charity was targeting Wendy Xiao's gang." "You knew the sorts of things they did." "You used the clingfilm to make it look like she was behind it." "They put my wife in a punishment block... .. and bound her to a board." "Chained day and night, she couldn't move." "And they made me feed her just enough... to prolong things." "Every day, forced to watch her getting weaker... .. lying in her own filth." "It took... weeks." "I never got to hold her." "She died alone... broken..." ".. because of him, my own brother." "I wanted him to answer for that." "Hi." "I came as soon as I could." "As you all may know," "DI Morton, Helen, recently sat her DCI board." "And I don't need to tell you that it is a demanding, long, drawn-out and rigorous process which is designed to separate the wheat from the chaff, the sheep from the goats, and the men from the boys." "And I am delighted to tell you that Helen is now officially and simultaneously, wheat, a sheep and..." "A man." "Pending a position coming available, I give you..." "DCI Helen Morton." "Thank you." "Thank you, everyone." "All right." "Right, I need you to stay here, I have to make a phone call." "I won't be long, OK?" "Cheers!" "Alan, it's me." "I know it pisses you off when I disobey orders, but I think you'll be really pleased I did this time." "I've got something." "It's big, trust me." "Did I mention that I love you?" "Alan, it's me." "I've got something." "It's big, trust me." "Did I mention that I love you?" "Where have you been?" "Celebrating." "Helen, remember?" "Listen, I'm just off Howsden Street in a place called Smith's Yard." "What are you up to?" "I just need you to get down here now." "Why don't you just tell me what you're doing?" "What's so important that you're missing free champagne?" "Oh..." "Hello?" "What was that?" "Oi!" "Annie?" "Alan?" "Annie?" "Annie, are you still there?" "Oh!" "Annie?" "Annie!" "Annie, what's happening?" "I think I've been stabbed." "What did you say?" "Annie." "Annie, talk to me." "Annie." "Annie." "Hold on, I'm coming to you." "I'm coming to you right now!" "What's happened?" "It's Annie, come on." "Come on!"