Traces

I'm really sorry,

I hope you don't mind,

I need someone to talk to and I thought of you.

- It's about my mum's murder. - Oh.

I've heard things that I think could be important,

and someone told me that she was dismembered

and then I found a photograph

and I think it could have something to do with her murder.

- I'm in Scotland. - Great.

- I got on the motorway fine. - Great.

- And I didn't miss the junction. - Great.

Now, I've just stopped for a snack.

Well great, but don't be late for your new job.

I won't.

I reckon it'll be a jumper.

Sorry?

I just... Someone tried to jump off the bridge.

God, that's terrible.

I know, I know... We're all going to have to wait.

- Until he jumps? - Hm.

I can see that it's a water problem

and not a road problem.

Welcome to Dundee.

Hiya.

- Don't put diesel in. - OK.

- Are you there yet? - No, nearly.

The house is so quiet without you,

I'm not sure I'll ever get used to it...

Oh, he must have jumped. We're off.

- I've gotta go, I'll call you later. - OK, love you.

- A Dundee man and woman are missing, feared dead,

following a fire in the city last night.

Police and Fire Services were called out to

Secrets Nightclub at half past ten...

Thermal decomposition is the action

of heat on a fuel

to vaporise it and produce a gas.

When this gas mixes with the right amount of air and is ignited,

then you have flame and combustion, or visible flame.

The fire then grows and develops, as more fuels thermally decompose,

until eventually, a process called flashover happens.

Flashover is when a fire in a room

becomes a room completely on fire, everything burns, you have a huge

supply of combustible gases and the fire becomes ventilation controlled.

Controlled by the amount of air in the room.

The Procurator Fiscal's on the phone to Kathy,

he'd like you to ring them as soon as you can.

- I'll bring you a coffee. - Champion.

Hey, what's the Fiscal saying?

There was a fatal fire in a nightclub in Larky last night.

I heard it on the news.

Two sudden deaths, he wants both of us to work on it.

And guess who the SIO is?

- Neil. - How come?

All the major investigation teams are tied up in Glasgow.

Good for Neil.

The new lab technician's arriving sometime between two

and three - Emma Hedges.

Leave it with me, I'll get her enrolled.

Tell her I'm sorry.

I really wanted to be there to greet her.

Kathy, we could go together.

I'm not going to the strategy meeting, I'm going

- straight to the scene. - Oh, OK, I'll see you there.

Ah, you want to share this?

Yes...

- Bye. - Bye-bye.

Kathy, you have post.

The fire scene is being photographed this morning.

This wall here, everything behind it, are staff quarters.

Kitchen.

- Sorry. - Oh, hello, Sarah.

Professor Sarah Gordon from SIFA, everyone.

Fire maestro,

but, erm, don't annoy her, she's a tyrant...

Office - we have human remains here,

partly skeletonised,

so will be attended by a forensic anthropologist, and a body here,

less badly burned, still fleshed, so will be attended by a pathologist.

This body's thought to be male,

it's partly covered by debris.

Top priority, identify these two.

Secrets was hired to celebrate the 30th anniversary of a local couple,

Tommy and Jean Rattray.

We have a guest list of 84 people.

As far as we know, everyone on that list is accounted for.

Two members of staff were not seen leaving the building

and are still missing...

Shelley Nardoni and Bashir Kumar.

We've applied for their dental records,

so, we'll see if these are our bodies.

People became aware of smoke just after half ten and these fire

doors, as well as the main entrance,

were opened quickly and efficiently.

The manager, Shuggie Brooke, carried a couple of people out.

What's he saying?

Shuggie Brooke told us that he was mostly out front.

He was making phone calls in his office early on, but from nine

o'clock, he was working the floor with the rest of the staff.

So, he didn't go back through this pass door at all?

He said he may have done, he was confused,

he seemed very distracted and worried about his niece.

- His niece? - Shelley Nardoni is his niece.

- And he thinks she died in the fire? - Yeah.

It seems to me, the fire started in the office,

that's the worst affected room, part of the ceiling's down,

it wasn't even considered safe to get in there initially.

Now, there's clearly been some flashover,

there's a small window about so wide,

so high, quite high up on that wall.

Seemingly, staff stand on a chair

and smoke out of it.

Thanks, Andy.

Sarah, strategy?

Same as ever, really.

Preliminary outside examination.

Preliminary inside examination.

Detailed outside, detailed inside.

Recording and gathering anything untoward outside,

cigarette ends, tool marks,

footwear marks, tyre tracks.

Same inside, anything of possible relevance.

Looking at security systems, fuses,

good or bad housekeeping.

I'd also like to know if any new electrical appliances

or processes were installed recently

and what's routinely left plugged in and switched on,

and we will, of course, be adhering to this.

It's all about the doors, what was locked,

what was unlocked,

were there new codes, new locks?

Did CCTV footage survive? What's it telling us?

Was there any trouble at the club, or with the club?

How was Secrets doing financially?

What was the insurance on that building?

Was the cover expanded, or the policy changed,

what was there to gain?

However, I might write this on my own forehead, actually...

Until we establish whether the fire

was accidental or wilful,

we go down both roads.

- DI McKinven. - Sir.

- Jarvis. - OK.

Thank you.

- All right. - All right.

So, Sarah, nothing's been touched,

we've just secured the scene and photographed everything.

Hm... Well, here's the first body.

Poor guy, he had no chance of getting out.

These fire doors were chained shut.

Fire crew had to cut them open, eh?

No soot here, so there was direct flame.

I think this is possibly a toaster.

You've already captured this?

- Yes. - OK, if we can...

No thermal insul.

Could have been set on its side.

Could have fallen.

It could.

- Sarah, Neil, I'm through here.

Some of these bone fragments are very small

and they've been dispersed by the water jets,

so no-one in here till I've searched fully.

Right you are.

Professor Kathy Torrance.

Kathy, this is Andy Jarvis,

Fire Services Fire Investigator.

Mm-hm.

Over here, Sarah.

The smokers' window.

Yeah.

What are you thinking about these doors?

Don't know yet. Could have gone to flashover, even with them shut.

The process running up to flashovers are mostly fuel controlled.

- These were boxes of crisps. - Eh?

Oil, crisps and plastic are a really good fuel source.

Well, you can see the fire travelled out of here and into the kitchen.

Or into here from the kitchen.

Have you looked under the body in the kitchen?

We're waiting for the pathologist.

Neil...

There's another body here.

So, three dead.

You'll have to do it without her.

OK, Mrs Muir. No problem.

Hiya.

Hello, Emma.

Hi. I'm a bit early.

Good. We've gone off piste today.

Professor Gordon's at a fire scene and sends her apologies.

We're all at sixes and sevens, because of the MOOC.

Oh, this is Louise, the post op you'll be working with.

I'm a fool - she interviewed you.

- Hi. - Hi.

Take Emma to HR, to get her own e-mail and security lists

and all that jazz.

Did you do equality and diversity training

and health and safety training?

Yeah, online.

Shouldn't take too long then.