The Bay

'West Lancashire Police.'

Hi, erm... I'm job, DS Townsend.

I have to report a missing person.

It's my son.

- Hey, are you OK, sweetheart? - Is Mum...?

She's had to nip back out, she's had to go look for him.

Where is he? Where's Conor?

Maddie, hey, look, he's...

He's gonna be OK, all right? I promise.

You can't promise that, though, can you?

We're doing everything we can, love. Hey, hey, come here.

- Boss? - 'I just heard. Are you OK?'

Yeah, I'm fine.

- Any news? - 'No.'

Erm, I've been on to Child Services, Social.

Uniform's out looking.

I've talked to his dad, his mates, colleagues back in Manchester,

but no, nothing.

'Has anything like this ever happened before?'

No. No, this isn't like him. He's usually such a homebody.

Is there anything else we can do this end?

I don't know. Erm... I should ring the Rahmans, talk to Mariam.

No, look, Karen's here.

I can do that, Jenn. You just focus on finding Conor.

Thanks.

Jenn...

- I'm sure he's fine. - 'Yeah, I know.'

Where did you disappear to last night?

Is it Kareem? Have you been fighting again?

Can't I just give my sister a hug?

Look, well, thanks, Becky.

Yeah, thank you. No. No, no, everything helps.

All right. OK, bye.

That was his... his form teacher.

The police are now at the school now.

They were here before, but I didn't know whether to call you or not.

It's OK. Have they heard anything?

No, but I've spoke to his teachers, heads of year,

and he didn't show for DT at the end of the day yesterday,

but he was in double English before that,

so he must have left school around two.

How about you? You hear anything?

Erm, they've got him down as a high-risk missing person,

which means they're chucking everything at it, but... so far,

no word, no sightings, nothing.

But that's a good thing, right?

Like, if we've not heard from the hospitals and...

I'm sorry.

It's OK.

- I'll go check on Maddie. - Yeah. Yeah, that would be great.

Thanks, love.

She... She's been great. She, erm...

She put his picture on her story and, erm, so did Molly.

- We'll find him, Jenn. - And what if we don't?

What if it's too late?

He's not from round here, he doesn't know his way around.

What if he's been singled out?

- What if someone's... - Let's not talk like that.

You don't know what it's like!

You can't know, I'm sorry.

'Morning.'

Obviously, under the circumstances, DS Townsend won't be in today.

OK, so, Shazia Riaz was arrested last night

and released under investigation, but she made a statement

implicating her husband, Kareem, in match fixing against Saif Rahman.

So, she says they paid him two grand to throw the fight.

Fucking hell.

According to Shazia, Saif went along with this willingly.

She would say that, though, wouldn't she?

Yeah.

See, everything we've heard about Saif

suggests he was committed to boxing, took a lot of pride in it.

He was ambitious.

Does that sound like somebody who was gonna throw a fight?

Unless somebody was putting him under pressure.

OK, Karen, you're with me. We need to talk to Kareem.

The police have been through all that.

Hang on, there was some clothes there last night.

Did they take them? Did they find something?

No, that was, erm...

That was me. I did... I did laundry.

I thought I was helping. I was climbing the bloody walls.

There could've been something in his pockets. Receipts...

- There was nothing, I checked. - Fuck's sake, Chris.

Kareem?

- Can you come with us, please? - Why?

We have information implicating you in match fixing.

- What? - In relation to the planned fight

between Saif Rahman and Karl Eccles on May 3rd.

No way, this is bollocks.

I'm therefore arresting you for attempted fraud. Come on.

You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defense

if you do not mention, when questioned,

something which you later rely on in court.

Anything you do say may be given in evidence.

- Do you understand? - Yes.

No. No way.

He would never have agreed to that.

But if you'd got wind of the idea he was going to throw the fight,

what would you have done?

I don't know. I would've talked to him.

I would... I would've tried to make him see sense.

- You'd have put pressure on him? - This is nonsense.

You know where I was that night. You know that I wasn't here.

I wish I had been, then maybe I could've done something about it.

I had a duty of care towards that lad.

That's what I live with.

You don't have to go in if you don't want to.

Honestly, if it was me, I'd just throw a sickie.

- You've got a brilliant excuse. - No, it's OK.

I'll see you later, yeah?

- Can you cover for me? - You what?

- I'll be back later. - No way! We've got that presentation.

I have to help find him. I'll be back before lunch,

no-one will even notice I'm gone.

Erin, he'll be fine. We bunk off all the time.

Yeah, and we have somewhere to go.

Come on, then, I'll give you a hand.

- 'Hello?' - It's Conor.

Guy?

Jenn, I've got him.

'He's OK, he's safe. We're on our way back now.'

Can I talk to him?

Go ahead, you're on speakerphone.

'Conor? Are you all right, love?'

Conor?

Come on, Con.

'It's all right. We'll talk later.'

- I'll see you back at ours, yeah? - 'No worries.

- 'We'll be there in an hour or so.' - Thanks.

Conor? I love you.

He's with his dad.

You always pour milk like Mum did.

What happened?

It's Kareem. He's been arrested.

What? What for?

I don't know.

Lads at the yard said it's something to do with Saif.

Saif? That's ridiculous.

- Mariam... - No! No, I'm not having this.

I'll call Jenn. They can't do this. They've already arrested our Adnan.

Mariam!

What is it?

I've told you, that's not what happened.

According to the information we received...

What information? Where did it come from?

Whoever it was, they're lying.

- Why would they lie? - I don't know.

- Get at me, set me up. - Why?

So I'd take the blame. Well, I'm not having it. No, no way.

I'm sorry.

- I'm so sorry. - I hope it was worth it.

- How much did you make? - Mariam, please.

My son's never coming back,

but at least you'd have paid off your credit card. Is that it?

Is this why Saif died?

No!

No, of course not. Why would you say that?

He would never have agreed to this.

Somebody must have put pressure on him. You and Kareem.

- No, it wasn't like that. - Oh, no!

Then tell me, what was it like?

- Mariam, I... - No! No, get out!

- Mariam, please... - Get... out.

I think you should go, Shaz.

Conor, love.

I'm sorry, Mum.

- Thanks for, erm, bringing him back. - Yeah, no worries.

Hey, come here, you. You all right?

Come on.

It's not true.

He wouldn't just throw it all away for money. Would he?

_

Who were you with? Conor, look at me.

Do you know how lucky you are? Anything could have happened.

Come on, Conor. Are you listening

- to what your mum's saying? - I'm sorry, OK?

No, it's not OK! Have you any idea what we've all been going through?

Half of West Lancashire's been out looking for you.

God knows what kind of resources have been thrown at this.

Sorry if I've embarrassed you.

Yes, you have embarrassed me, actually.

- It's my first week on the job! - I just wanted to see my friends.

You put us through this because you wanted to see your friends?

Who?

What friends you talking about?

Just mates from Central. I crashed at Ethan's.

I called Ethan, I talked to him. He didn't say anything.

- Yeah, I told him not to. - So, what was your plan?

Just to go to Manchester and stay there forever?

Better than being stuck here.

I'll call the school. Let them know he's back.

I've just come to get my stuff.

- So what's going on? - It's finished.

I'm packing it in. Too much has happened.

It's fucking this, mate!

This fucking holier-than-thou bollocks.

Now, you knew what was going on. You knew the whole time with Saif.

- Fuck off, Warren. - Truth is, you put so much pressure

on that lad, he was bound to break, wasn't he?