Slow Horses 4x2

1. It's me. It's River. Can you put the gun down, please?

2. It's me.

3. All right.

4. It's me, River.

5. Where are you?

6. Wh—

7. Just let me know you're decent.

8. Oh— Fuck. Whoa, whoa.

9. Granddad.

10. Jesus, what the fuck have you done?

11. Put the gun down, okay?

12. It's me. It's River.

13. - Please. It's River. It's me. - How are you here?

14. - I just shot you. - No, you haven't.

15. - Please just give me the gun. - You mean—

16. What, he's an impostor pretending to be you?

17. I don't know, okay? Just give me the gun.

18. How do I know you're not an impostor?

19. Ask me something only I would know.

20. I met my KGB counterpart in Berlin, Christmas Day, 19—

21. - Eighty-two. - Eighty-two, yes.

22. And we'd had too much to drink.

23. - What did I do with him? - You had a snowball fight.

24. Oh, my gosh.

25. All right. Okay. Right.

26. Okay. It's all right.

27. It's all right. I'm here. I'm here now.

28. All right. You're all right. You're all right. Just sit down.

29. Oh, God. Oh, God.

30. All right. Hey, hey. It's fine.

31. It's fine. You're fine.

32. After I shot him, I thought maybe it was you after all.

33. I could have killed you.

34. No, no, no. Look, I'm gonna fix this.

35. I can fix it, okay?

36. It's not anything we haven't dealt with before, is it?

37. - No. - You know?

38. I mean, it's a fucking mess, but...

39. Jesus. He really does look like me.

40. Okay.

41. Why don't you talk me through exactly what happened from the start?

42. Yes, right. Well...

43. he knocked on the door,

44. he came straight in and suggested running a bath.

45. - Right. And he was pretending to be me? - Yes.

46. - And you thought it was me? - At first, yes.

47. Then he said something that, well, you would never say.

48. He called me "Gramps."

49. I challenged him and he lunged at me. That's when I shot him.

50. Okay. Okay.

51. Is he armed?

52. - No, nothing feels like a weapon. - Oh, God.

53. I shot an unarmed man.

54. No. No one's sending a near identical look-alike of me

55. to draw you a bath out of the goodness of their heart, are they?

56. - God. - See. Diazepam.

57. So obviously he was gonna dope you with this and then drown you.

58. God.

59. It's a return train ticket to France.

60. "Le Blanc Russe."

61. It's a café in "Lavande."

62. Lavande, does that ring any bells?

63. - I don't believe so, no. - That's okay. It's all right.

64. "Adam Lockhead"?

65. You're asking me too many questions. I'm getting muddled.

66. No, I'm just debriefing you like you taught me to, okay?

67. Maybe it's a name that you knew once and you've forgotten now.

68. - The Park will sort this out. - No, no, no, no. No, no.

69. Shit.

70. - Great. Now we're on the clock. - For what?

71. Once they're here, I lose you. Do you understand that?

72. You have to be so sure of what you tell them.

73. - I am sure. - Because you give that statement,

74. that's it, okay?

75. You can't change it. It becomes fact.

76. I'm sorry, why would I give them the wrong statement?

77. - Because you're not well, are you? - Don't talk to me like that!

78. I'm your father!

79. Oh, God.

80. - Grandfather. - Yes. Yes. You see—

81. Yes, yes. Well, you do what you think best.

82. I mean, you know, after all, it's your op.

83. - But I'm— I'm sorry. - No.

84. - No, I shouldn't have shouted at you. - No. It's fine.

85. Right, we need to get out of here.

86. And go where?

87. I don't know. Somewhere else, somewhere safe.

88. Why don't you meet me downstairs?

89. - What will you do? - I'll buy us some time. Okay?

90. Good.

91. Ma'am.

92. If it's important, you'll have to talk to me on the move.

93. I'm going to the COBRA meeting.

94. Well, I was given the bomber's passport from the flat.

95. - I'm Giti Rahman, by the way. - I know.

96. I got a hit on the passport number.

97. I know that too. He came in from France last week.

98. No. This is the actual passport number.

99. - There's an anomaly. - It's a fake?

100. - No, ma'am. - What then?

101. - Well, I'm not exactly sure. - Yeah, I'm coming down.

102. Well, spit it out.

103. It's been renewed legitimately over the years by the passport office.

104. If you check for Robert Winters on any other site, everything tallies.

105. The birth certificate, National Security number,

106. bank account, credit rating. There's nothing suspicious at all.

107. Except?

108. Well, except according to our systems, the passport was first issued by us.

109. Well, that's impossible.

110. No, from this building.

111. Rather the old building, 28 years ago.

112. I presume you've come straight to me with this.

113. - Yes. - Good, good, good.

114. So while we're unraveling this, I want you to report to me and only to me.

115. I want you to go to a secure location

116. and collate a list of anything we might be holding

117. that will support the life of Robert Winters.

118. We need to know who he really was.

119. And if he was one of our identities?

120. I don't want to think about that. You can use my office.

121. Start work there. I'll send someone to collect you.

122. Flyte, I want you to remove and isolate someone.

123. Immediately.

124. I'm here on the street just outside the Westacres shopping center,

125. where the mood is still one of sadness and grief.

126. I'm joined now by Reverend Harris...

127. Well, David insisted River dig up his flight funds from the garden.

128. It's out of date.

129. It's not a bad smudge. Mine makes me look fat.

130. Imagine that.

131. So, what's going on?

132. Why did you lie to the head Dog?

133. River shot the guy's face off

134. so he could play dead and look into whatever's going on.

135. - Arguably a batshit move. But— - But you don't blow a joe's cover.

136. He took the dollars.

137. Takes you back, hey? Drachma, lira.

138. I gave him all the cash I had and my phone.

139. He took the SIM out, so he'll probably only use it in emergencies.

140. So, where's he gone?

141. I didn't ask and he didn't tell me.

142. That doesn't mean you don't know.

143. All right. When he was in the toilet, I went through his pockets.

144. He had a return ticket to France, a café receipt for Le Blanc Russe,

145. which is White Russian— don't say anything—

146. in a town called Lavande, and a passport.

147. - In the name of? - Adam Lockhead.

148. Charging off to play the hero yet again.

149. Well, he left David with me because the state David is in,

150. he could be made to say anything.

151. You know, sign up to the Park's version of events.

152. I mean, he was fairly lucid when he got here.

153. But since then, there's been a fair bit of confusion.

154. Does he know where River's gone?

155. No, I doubt it. He didn't want to worry him.

156. Fuck that. He should be worried.

157. Le Blanc Russe, huh? You ever been there?

158. - I killed River. - No, you didn't.

159. What am I gonna tell Rose?

160. - Nothing. Seeing as she's actually dead. - See, I told you he's confused.

161. He thinks River's dead and his wife's still alive.

162. What's the town of Lavande mean to you?

163. I don't know.

164. Jackson, isn't it? Haven't seen you in a long time.

165. Yeah, I know. Bliss. Yeah. Lavande?

166. - Lavande? French for lavender. - Yep.

167. Lavender's blue, dilly, dilly. Lavender's green.

168. - Lavender's blue, dilly, dilly - Stop fucking around, you old—

169. - Lavender's green - Oh, Jackson. He's not well.

170. - He's had a massive shock. - When I am king...

171. Fuck that. He's taking the piss. Hiding behind his dementia.

172. - He knew who I was a second ago. - Still got it.

173. Lavande. River's gone there.

174. No. No, River's dead.

175. Well, maybe he will be if you don't tell me what you know.

176. Where am I?

177. - Whose room is this? - No. You're at a s—

178. - David, you're at a safe house. - What?

179. - Yes. River brought you here. - River?

180. Here, sit. Come on.

181. I don't understand. I don't understand. I—

182. There was a man. He was like River and I shot him.

183. I know you're in there. And I know you know who I am.

184. River— River is alone out in the field.

185. Now, he might be your grandson, but he happens to be my fucking joe.

186. So who is he up against and why? What's he walking into?

187. I tried to protect him. I always tried to protect him.

188. You believe me, don't you, Rose?

189. He's just mistaken you for a dead 80-year-old.

190. - Maybe I should just give him a slap. - Have a heart, Jackson.

191. I did. Till I worked for him.

192. So you're going now?

193. I'm gonna find out when and why he was in France.

194. And in the meantime,

195. if he remembers anything useful, let me know.

196. Do you know Lavande?

197. No.

198. There aren't many tourists, you know.

199. Are you a tourist?

200. Me? No. Looking for a friend.

201. You're British, right?

202. Yes, sorry.

203. No, that's fine. Shall I drop you here?

204. Yes.

205. 95 euros, please.

206. Keep the change.

207. Thank you. I hope you find your friend.

208. Thank you. See you later.

209. Have a nice day.

210. Openness, trust, security. You cannot have the one without the other.

211. Two...

212. You can't have one without the other two. I see.

213. Where mistakes were made, we must hold up our hands.

214. Not literally, but you get the picture.

215. Now, I appreciate that most of our work is conducted in the shadows.

216. But sometimes I feel it's good to let a little light in,

217. because that's actually how we learn to do better.

218. And it's only when we're at our best, that we can best our—

219. - I presume you need to get that. - Not mine.

220. What— Is it...

221. Shit. Is it mine?

222. It is mi— I'm s— That's embarrassing, isn't it?

223. It's really— I just— It's a new phone, so I didn't—

224. And I thought I set a timer, but in fact, it's a countdown.

225. It's easily done.

226. Yeah, but bang on 15 minutes. Bang on. So that's—

227. Well, feedback f—

228. - Well, I don't think it's the right time. - No, you're right.

229. - I can make it shorter. - As in the wrong moment.

230. Our threat levels are critical. You need to sign these.

231. They are letters of condolence and support to the families.

232. Yes, of course.

233. Would you say it's too early to rule out another bomb threat?

234. Yes. Yes.

235. In some ways,

236. a random and motiveless attack is worse than an ideological one

237. in that there are no leads.

238. Well, listen, Diana, I do really appreciate you

239. running with the ball on this, you know, dealing with the here and now.

240. But you do have to understand that the big picture,

241. long-range strategy, that's—

242. that's what— that's me.

243. - Well, yeah. - That's where I come in,

244. - because that's where I'm from. - Yeah.

245. And between you and I, the culture of this place

246. needs to change dramatically. Yeah?

247. In fact, funny enough, that was actually the pitch that put me behind this desk.

248. No, I understand.

249. Yes, you say you understand, but are we in agreement?

250. In principle, yes. I'm just f—

251. I'm just flagging that our response in the here and now

252. may alter with this new approach.

253. Yes. Yes. Well, I am sure you and everybody else will adapt admirably.

254. Bonjour. Excusez-moi.

255. I'm sorry for... excuse me.

256. I'm sorry for... scaring... your dog.

257. Can you help me, where is the cafe 'Le Blanc Russe'?

258. Blanc Russe?

259. It's further down there. In the square.

260. Thank you.

261. Merci.

262. Did you not make him one? Might break the ice.

263. I like the ice.

264. You got a gun 'cause of Westacres? Worried what'll happen next?

265. Yeah, well, you know.

266. - You're not doing it again, are you? - Doing what?

267. Gambling.

268. Why would having a gun be a sign of me gambling?

269. I don't know. Just—

270. Maybe you owe someone money who was getting a bit heavy.

271. No, it's nothing like that. Just a little cash-flow issue.

272. Jesus Christ. You are gambling again.

273. Once. It's fine.

274. Look, a relapse is a good thing. It's a sign of progress.

275. - No, it isn't. - Yeah, it is.

276. Gambling one time is better than gambling all the time.

277. Yeah, like murdering one person's better than being a serial killer.

278. - I'm not killing anyone, so... - What's the gun for then?

279. - I'm gonna sell it. - So you're gonna put a gun on the street

280. where someone might use it to kill someone?

281. Look, I'm gonna use the money on a sure thing, clear my debts,

282. buy it back before it ends up on the streets.

283. - No harm done. - You are completely fucking delusional.

284. How much do you owe?

285. - None of your business. - A shitload then.

286. All this gambling with paper clips

287. was just a smoke screen for whatever's really going on.

288. - You should have come to me as a friend. - Come to you as a friend?

289. You wanna be a friend, lend me ten grand by the end of the month.

290. Otherwise, I lose my house

291. and when Cassie finds out, my marriage, yeah?

292. 10K! 10K is what I need, not a lecture from a reformed cokehead.

293. - Thanks for the brew. - I pissed in it.

294. French town of Lavande.

295. You've got five minutes to find out everything you can about it

296. that you think might interest me.

297. Is that Cartwright's?

298. Yeah.

299. He's not dead, you dickhead.

300. - You said he was in your text. - Read it again.

301. All right.

302. You can stop stinking up the office. River's alive for now.

303. - Jesus Christ. - What did he say?

304. - I don't believe this. - Make up your mind.

305. - All right, he's dead. Better? - No. Tell me what's going on.

306. You definitely said he was dead.

307. You reread it yet?

308. Yeah. "Will be in late. Up all night identifying Cartwright's body."

309. He didn't say Cartwright was dead. He said he was identifying his body.

310. Oh, fuck me. Did someone fart? Only—

311. I heard a squeak, but I can't smell anything.

312. I'm all over the place right now.

313. Well, it's been a stressful time for all of us.

314. Shut up, you twat. You didn't give a fuck when you thought River was dead.

315. - I'm suffering from PTSD. - Piss off. Just piss off.

316. - I nearly died at Westacres. - I—

317. - You were several streets away. - Fuck off.

318. - No, I'm a Westacres survivor, yeah? - Unfortunately.

319. Who was dead then?

320. Someone sent to kill his grandfather, who had a passing resemblance to River.

321. River planted his ID on the body.

322. River has a— what, a look-alike?

323. Yeah, but he don't look much like him now.

324. River shot his face off to help in the misidentification.

325. Awesome. Did you get any photos?

326. I'm sorry, why did you let us believe that he was dead?

327. Because he's a joe in the field and you don't blow a joe's cover.

328. You don't blow a joe's cover!

329. River wanted the Park to think he was dead.

330. You're maintaining that.

331. And you lot believing that too shores it up.

332. I trust you made all the right noises to anyone expressing condolences.

333. No one did.

334. Oh, bugger. I left his mother a message.

335. - She not ring back? - No. Not yet.

336. So it's not just us then. Good to know.

337. Okay. So where is he?

338. He's in France, retracing the assassin's steps.

339. France is big.

340. Good work, Watson. Someone put a gold star on his chart.

341. - So, how's David then? - He's safe.

342. Right. What can we do to help River?

343. We let him get on with it.

344. Well, okay. So where is he in France? We're not gonna sit here and do nothing.

345. Yes, we are. If he wanted help, he would have asked for it.

346. Yeah. Well, he's not getting his computer back.

347. Mr. Lamb, delighted to meet you.

348. I took the liberty of having a bit of a tidy.

349. Quite a lot of a tidy. I hope you don't mind.

350. That's quite a transformation.

351. You got stuck in quick.

352. Well, I like to be proactive, which is why I've been sent here.

353. It was, was it?

354. "Needs a strong manager," is what Mr. Whelan said.

355. Mr. Whelan, but— Yeah, well, he's not wrong.

356. I'm off to lunch, care to join me?

357. That's very kind. I'll get my coat.

358. We could maybe talk about reorganizing the rest of the building.

359. Yeah, lovely.

360. I can't fucking be in there with it like that.

361. Put it back how it was.

362. - All yours. - After you.

363. - Lunch. - Thanks.

364. Could I have a tea as well, please? Two sugars.

365. Ma'am.

366. Put her on.

367. - Hello. - It was a glitch.

368. - Well, that's good, I suppose. - Definitely good.

369. Robert Winter, without an S, was a fake ID we created 30 years ago.

370. But not Robert Winters.

371. So, Robert Winters and Westacres has nothing to do with us?

372. Absolutely nothing. No trace of him on our system at all.

373. But thank you, Giti. I mean—

374. It would have been catastrophic if this had ever come to light and—

375. and been misinterpreted.

376. - Thank you, ma'am. - Put Flyte on the line.

377. Flyte.

378. - Ma'am. - You can release her now.

379. With respect, I'm more than a babysitter.

380. I'm sorry if you're not feeling fulfilled

381. on an hour-to-hour basis, but that is the job.

382. Now get back on Cartwright, or is that beneath you too?

383. No, m—

384. Bonjour.

385. Bonjour.

386. A latte, please.

387. Do you speak English?

388. Non.

389. A man who... looks like me...

390. He was here a few days ago.

391. I know him.

392. He has a house here?

393. Non, non.

394. Not in Lavande.

395. He is from Les Arbres.

396. - Les Arbres? - Les Arbres.

397. Where's that?

398. Go straight, three kilometres down, in the woods.

399. Oui.

400. Merci.

401. It's him.

402. He's heading for Les Arbres.

403. I'll keep track of him.

404. Sorry about the cloak-and-dagger.

405. Actually quite exciting.

406. For me because I don't know if you know,

407. I'm— I've not actually been out in the field before.

408. And— I mean, why is this necessary?

409. Some conversations are best kept out of the headlines.

410. Right.

411. What— Where are we going?

412. Anywhere. On a bus. This one will do.

413. Robert Winters was one of ours.

414. Jesus Christ. What, he was an agent?

415. - Not exactly. - He was an asset then?

416. He was a cold body from the tail end of the Cold War.

417. What the hell's a cold body?

418. It's a ready-made identity.

419. Birth certificate, passport, National Insurance number,

420. bank account, credit rating.

421. Not forgeries.

422. Authentic documents maintained through official channels.

423. Nowadays you do it all online, back in the day it was state of the art.

424. Sorry, how long have you known about this? Who brought this to you?

425. One of my kids,

426. - Giti Rahman, a few hours ago. - Gi— I don't—

427. Now, I told her it was a mistake, and she shouldn't look into it.

428. That was a mistake.

429. You should have told me about this when it first came to light.

430. And if I had, what would you have done?

431. I'd have informed the PM.

432. I'd have instigated an inquiry into how exactly a mass murderer

433. - was using an MI5 identity. - Yes, I thought you would.

434. - And that would have been a disaster. - It's already a disaster, Diana.

435. No, it isn't because I've scrubbed the records.

436. Every trace of Robert Winters in our building

437. - has been destroyed. - Oh, my God.

438. No. We can't cover something like this up. You know that. Not after Istanbul.

439. That is exactly why we have to keep a lid on it.

440. If even a hint of this gets out,

441. any credibility the security services still have will be shot to pieces.

442. I'm sorry, I can't sit on this. I won't do it.

443. Oh, Claude.

444. Well, what's this?

445. It's a C & C order to sequester Giti Rahman

446. that you signed earlier today.

447. Making it look like you're part of a cover-up.

448. Yeah, but I...

449. I never read this.

450. No, you didn't. But you signed it.

451. You have helped in the destruction of Winters' documents.

452. Are you doing this 'cause I got the job?

453. You're doing this 'cause I got the job over you?

454. Is that what this is about?

455. I didn't apply for it.

456. Yeah. Yeah. No. You knew you weren't gonna get it, right?

457. And that's why you withdrew.

458. And yet, here I am doing it anyway.

459. There isn't a big picture to running an intelligence agency.

460. It's just putting out fires every bloody day.

461. Seems to me like a case of institutional burnout...

462. - I don't care what you think. - ... more like.

463. All I care about is stopping another Westacres.

464. And your need for public self-flagellation will get in the way of that.

465. Yeah, well, just want to keep your job, is all. Isn't it?

466. - Yes, because I'm bloody good at it. - Oh, yeah?

467. You can get off at the next stop.

468. Excuse me, sir. Can you help me?

469. I'm looking for Sissinghurst— hurst? You know, the gardens.

470. Oh, no. You're way off. It's the other side of Tunbridge Wells.

471. You wanna go back onto the main road, left into the town.

472. You should start to pick up signs.

473. I thought I was taking a shortcut down here.

474. No. This is private property.

475. What happened here?

476. You are on patrol or something?

477. There was an incident.

478. Oh, my God. The woman at my guesthouse, she was talking about this.

479. An old man was shot. Terrible.

480. In a place like this too.

481. It was actually his grandson that was killed.

482. A young life then.

483. Maybe more tragic. Very sad for the family.

484. Crazy times, huh?

485. Okay, thank you. Have a nice day.

486. Yeah?

487. David's still alive.

488. I've left a camera feed in case he comes back.

489. They are saying the grandson was killed

490. but it could be Bertrand. I can't raise him.

491. Bertrand's passport pinged coming back into France.

492. I'm gonna wait for him here while I clean up.

493. What if it's not him? It could be the young Cartwright.

494. Well, if it is, I'll take care of him.

495. You hit the second target.

496. Another old man.

497. Let's hope he's less trouble than David Cartwright.

498. Come on, he worked for him for years.

499. If he's heard about Cartwright, he's gonna be jumpy.

500. Yeah. Maybe.

501. But he might have forgotten. Might not even know why he has to die.

502. I'll have the pork and a bottle of the house red.

503. I'd probably better not drink anything.

504. Well, just a bottle of the house red then.

505. Thanks.

506. Over at the Park, you were across everything, right?

507. In terms of personnel. One of the queens.

508. I was.

509. If I didn't know the answer to a question, I knew who to ask.

510. Bit of a comedown, Slough House, isn't it?

511. I don't see it as such. Every place has its challenges.

512. And you were sent here by Whelan himself, yeah?

513. - Mr. Transparency. - I was.

514. He picked me out soon after he started. I think he saw something in me.

515. And when you've sorted us reprobates out, what?

516. You go back to your throne at the Park?

517. I wouldn't go so far as to call you reprobates.

518. Really?

519. Ho, Marcus Longridge, Shirley Dander. To pick three at random.

520. Actually maybe reprobates is a bit mild.

521. And you don't think that

522. the company you now find yourself in reflects badly on you?

523. Well, no.

524. - I'm a different case. - Just fill it up.

525. Well, I see why you're telling yourself that you're special,

526. because the truth is too hard to accept.

527. But I think you know that people are sent to Slough House

528. for one of two reasons.

529. One, they're a total fuckup. Which as you said, you're clearly not.

530. I mean, you've reorganized my office brilliantly.

531. And having said that, I never ever want you to step foot in there again.

532. And two, they've unwittingly pissed someone off.

533. So, here's the deal.

534. I will find out why you were sent to me

535. and then you can fuck off back to the Park.

536. And in return,

537. I want you to call your friends on the database

538. and tell me when and why David Cartwright went to France

539. at any point of his illustrious career.

540. - Okay. - Yeah.

541. Robert Winters. Shit.

542. Get lost!

543. Get lost!

544. Thanks.