Serangoon Road (2013) s01e01 Episode Script

1 Help me, Sam! No! I didn't take it! Please, Sam! Bartel! No! You were asleep.
I don't sleep.
Mm-mm.
I'd hate to think I was boring you.
I think you were even having a dream.
Yeah? Yeah, you were saying something.
A boy's name.
Bartel.
It's Dutch, isn't it? Anyone Anyone I'd better go.
Anyone You can blame me Try to shame me And still I'll care for you You can run around Even put me down Still I'll be there for you The world may think I'm foolish They can't see you Like I can Oh, but anyone Who knows what love is Wanna try some of that.
Hey, where are you guys from? Hey! Hey, Ferguson! Shit! What was that, man? You think that's funny? No! I'm not We're leaving right now.
Let's see what those boys are up to.
Wh Konfrontasi.
Where is it this time? Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Is she alright? Yeah, she's injured, man.
Help me get her out of here.
Come on, let's go.
MAN, ON TV:.
.
fourth bombing this year.
Police confirm that 13 people were injured last night in Bugis Street.
A spokesman for the government has deplored the escalating attacks on Singapore and reiterated that despite the terrorist campaign, British and Commonwealth troops will remain in Borneo to safeguard the interests of the Malaysian government and business interests in the area.
Oh, sorry.
Excuse me.
What can I do for you, Mrs Cheng? Mr Callaghan, please sit.
I haven't seen you around much lately.
Yeah, I've been busy since Winston's funeral.
How have you been? Oh, alright, thank you.
Good.
I have a job for you.
I hope you'll be interested.
I thought you were going to close the agency down.
I have some unfinished business.
I see.
You worked for my husband.
I did a few jobs, yeah.
Winston was always very happy when you were on the case with him.
He'd come home and tell me how it suited you, the life on the wild side.
And this time, the pay will be substantial.
The Americans have deep pockets.
I don't work for the CIA.
CIA? You see, you're already one step ahead.
The CIA said you have better contact than they do on the street.
To do what? Well, an American sailor was killed in Bugis Street last night.
In the bomb blast? Before the bomb.
He was stabbed.
So you're interested? See, this is how they work.
One minute you're having cups of tea with them, the next minute they're carpet-bombing Central America.
I would really appreciate it if you could help out.
So it's just one job? Yes.
One job.
What's his name? No-one special.
At all.
Daniel Mahovolich.
Boston.
Been in the Navy three years.
Pathologist says the knife penetrated his stomach and nicked his liver.
He bled to death.
Fast.
So the burns are- Post-mortem.
He was dead by the time the bomb went off.
Do you have the knife? Looks old.
It's not.
It's a replica.
They sell them in Bugis Street to the tourists.
So the killer could be? Anyone.
Backpacker, salesman, another sailor.
But you're not worried he was killed by a stranger, you're worried he wasn't, yeah? So what, you want me to find out who killed him? We know who killed him.
Nate Crosby.
What makes you think he's the killer? Because we've got witnesses who saw them arguing, his prints are on the knife and he's gone AWOL.
So that's the brief? You want me to find Crosby? Is this a racial thing? We don't think so.
But you don't know? Fine.
Tell him.
We believe that the two sailors were working together, feeding information to the Commies.
This makes Crosby a security risk.
Explains why you don't want the local police involved.
What sort of information? About the ship or? Mahovolich and Crosby weren't on the ship.
They were on the sub.
What sub? Nuclear sub, trailing the aircraft carrier.
You have a nuclear sub in the harbour? Do you want a megaphone? There's no shortage of people in this neck of the woods who'd pay top dollar for that sort of information.
Do you think it was a falling-out, some kind of doublecross? Whatever it was, your sailor's not just a killer, he's a traitor, right? Wild Bill says that you fought with the Brits in the Malay Emergency, and before that, you were in Changi, as a kid.
Yeah, you know I love chicken rice.
Was that in my file as well? You know, if Crosby hooked up with his contact .
.
could have been someone on Bugis Street.
Ni hao, Aunty.
Hey, Sam Callaghan.
No sleeping again? You can tell that from my eyes, right? Got those photos? Your friend? Very pretty boy.
No.
Oh, they were here.
Uh-huh? What time? Mm.
What'd she say? Pretty sure they didn't buy a knife.
Say you find Crosby and he is a spy.
Is that really a story you want getting out? No-one kills a United States sailor and goes unpunished.
I don't care what the fallout is.
Thank you, thank you, bye-bye.
Callaghan! Macca, you're up early.
The sun's practically over the yard arm.
Besides, terrorist bombs make good stories.
This is my cousin.
Cousin? I didn't know you had relatives in the CIA.
Oh look, I do my best but you lot keep coming out of Langley wearing the same haircuts and same shoes.
Bruce McDonald, stringer for the Australian press, this is Conrad Harrison.
Harrison.
So, you're working for the CIA now? No, it's just a favour for Patricia.
Oh, yeah.
She's roped me in for the day.
See these two last night? So it's true? Your dead man's a US sailor.
Yep, they were together.
Both out of Boston.
They say anything interesting? Not really.
Just kids.
They always say the same thing.
Joined the Navy to see the world.
But I guess your boy, he's seen all he's going to see now.
Were they meeting with anyone? Looking for anyone in particular? Marlena.
Marlena? Asked for her by name? Yeah.
Thanks, Macca.
Get me a story, Sam.
How are you, Marlena? Like you to meet Conrad Harrison.
Hello.
We're looking for a sailor.
Aren't we all, baby? Aren't we all? You see these two last night? This one, yes.
This one, maybe.
What were they doing? Drinking.
I danced for them.
Did they meet up with anyone, Marlena? European, not military? Yes.
Big men, deep voices.
They were drinking vodka.
Must have been a hundred men on shore leave last night.
Why do you remember those two? Because they were cute, like you.
Not like the ones they were with.
Big.
Meaty.
Not so nice.
Penguins.
Penguins? I think she means seals.
As in Navy SEALs.
Thank you.
Anything else you've left out? It's nothing.
They're just doing exercises.
So you lot are doing covert ops with the Brits against the Indonesians.
Not sure I know what you're talking about there.
Thought the Yanks were supposed to be neutral.
Let's start with Ferguson.
We've been three months in the jungle, fighting the fight for Uncle Sam.
Crawling with leeches.
These Commies tell us we're wasting our time.
So why'd you go with them to Bugis Street? Girls? You bet, girls.
Last women we saw was in Saigon, and that's before we deployed.
Took us to the bar.
There was this dancer.
Marlena? We all fell for it.
But Mahovolich sucked Crosby right in.
Right into what? What? What am I missing? She's a prostitute, yeah? Not actually a prostitute.
Yeah, courtesan, whatever.
She's not actually a A what? .
.
she.
She's a? He.
Yeah.
Crosby went for a feel.
Expecting one thing and got another.
Beans and sausage.
He went crazy.
What the fuck? Shit! You think that's funny? You've already embarrassed me enough! Last we saw, they were headed out of the bar.
Crosby screamed at Mahovolich.
Then the bomb went off.
No prize who killed Mahovolich.
No loss, either.
How much do you owe? More than I've got.
Ohh, ahh, gentle, gentle! Nothing's wrong with you, lah.
Big baby.
Where you been all day, anyway, man? Patricia's got me looking for a sailor.
Do I get a cut? Hey, we're a team.
Well, half of nothing's nothing.
It's not nearly enough to get you out of trouble with the Red Dragons.
Why do you even bother when you're not getting a decent percentage? He's guilty.
Men only do the right thing when they're guilty.
Ow! Look, you didn't kill her husband, OK? So Didn't stop the guy who did.
Ow! Am I wrong? How do you lose a sailor, anyway? You can see those white suits a mile off.
He's got to be paying someone to hide him.
Who would he know? They were in your bar last night.
You see anything? The only one who got close to them was Marlena.
She got all my tips.
Bitch! Got some new big necklace.
All flashy.
Don't move! Ow! You might as well feed me the cotton wool.
Marlena! Sam.
Hey! Hey! Crosby! Stop! Police! Stop! I didn't do it.
I didn't do anything.
Daniel was my best friend.
I wouldn't hurt him, ever.
Hey, where are you going? Out of town.
Yeah, till when? Till the trouble's gone.
What trouble are you talking about? The trouble you're gonna get me into if I talk to you.
Marlena Why'd you hide that sailor? I know he paid you, but you wouldn't have done that if you thought he was a killer.
Hey! What happened? I knew him.
The dead sailor.
Shore leave, nearly a month ago.
We had some drinks.
He was a nice boy.
Yeah, I heard he was looking for you.
He said he wanted to play a trick on his friend.
So he got you to do a lap dance with Crosby? Crosby's not the one I danced for.
This guy, big, meaty.
What was his name? Ferguson.
So Mahovolich paid you to do a lap dance for Ferguson? Mahovolich and Crosby.
Together.
They thought it a big joke.
Very funny.
What'd Ferguson think of that? He went nuts.
Drunk, very angry.
Threw me off my chair.
The sailors all laughed.
Mahovolich, he thought it was very funny.
What happened after that? What happened? If anyone knows I talked about the penguins Only for you.
OK.
The mean one, Ferguson, he waited until Mahovolich went outside for a smoke, then he followed.
Were they the only two out? You sure? Definitely.
Then what? Then the bomb.
You're lucky he's still here.
Five minutes.
He's being transferred tonight.
Malaysia for the Malaysians.
Except when CIA wants something.
Why'd you run? If you didn't do it? There was nothing else I could do.
When I came out of the back of the club .
.
I saw Ferguson and Daniel in the corner.
Daniel! It wasn't until Daniel hit the ground that I realised he had a knife in his chest.
You're OK.
You're OK.
I tried to help.
I tried to stop the bleeding.
I even tried to pull out the knife.
Just keep breathing! No-one was going to believe me.
Not against them.
I believe you.
And if I believe you, others will.
Back in the States, you'll have a lawyer.
I won't make it to the States.
I won't even make it to the ship.
You're being transferred tonight.
And guess who they're sending to pick me up? The SEALs.
The guard let it slip.
SEALs? I'm sure they had a story.
Extra protection.
I'm a security risk, remember? Commie spy? I know how they work.
I saw Ferguson knife Daniel.
I'm a dead man.
See, Crosby did nothing, Ferguson stabs Mahovolich, then he and his mates must have agreed to frame Crosby.
Tell the CIA.
It's too late.
They don't want to know about it.
Well, this is hardly an organisation that faces up to its tactical blunders.
Bay of Pigs, anyone? Anyway, the job's finished.
We found the sailor, handed him over.
You'll get paid.
But if you're right, an innocent man is going to hang for a murder he didn't commit and the guilty one is going to run free.
What do you want to do about it? We're not the authorities.
I warned you about the CIA.
I don't care.
CIA, KGB.
We cannot let an innocent man die.
Well, we can't break down the front doors of the embassy because Wild Bill won't pick up the phone.
Well, there is a reception at the Country Club tonight.
All the cultural attaches will be there.
Sam! Yeah? Kang's gone back to see the Red Dragons.
He thinks he can win his way out of debt.
Alright, thanks.
Wh Kay Song? I mean, Songa, can I bet my boat on the next round? Oh, hang on, hang on.
Sam! He's joking.
It's not his boat.
No, no, no.
I'm just betting my half.
It is my boat.
Look, if I don't bet the boat, Kay Song's going to take two fingers off.
You bet the boat, and I'll take your fingers.
Listen to me.
Your betting triples.
You're going to lose the boat and your fingers.
Yeah, but if I win, we can buy a new boat.
You can't bet the boat! He can bet the boat.
Ha! Thank you, thank you.
See? It's OK, it's OK.
Don't worry.
I told you! I told you, it's my night.
OK.
Let's go.
Let's go.
No, no, no.
I'm on a roll.
We can't just go.
Hey, you're very selfish, you know.
You need to get out more, loosen up a bit.
Congratulations.
Thank you, Songa.
It's a good night.
Doubled his money, right? He cancelled his debt.
He'll be back.
The long game.
The only one that matters.
Mrs Simpson, I just need a word with Conrad Harrison.
Not dressed like that.
Just getting a jacket.
They always have spares, in case someone spills a martini, or God forbid, gets trampled by a devil on horseback.
It's stupid, all this dressing up in the heat.
It's the protocol of the empire.
Won us the war, didn't you know? It wasn't bow ties and suits won us any war.
Don't tell that to the British High Commissioner.
I can do it.
Actually, you'd be quicker.
Not many men can tie a bow tie.
Boarding school education taught me all the useful things.
Mine taught me how to hang out underwear.
There's a procedure? A rule.
You hang your bras and panties on the inner line, concealed from view by linen on the outer line.
It's a complicated world.
Yes, it is.
Good.
You'll pass.
You look wonderful.
Excuse me.
Claire.
Frank, I didn't think you could make it.
Didn't want to leave you alone.
I'll work through the night to make it up.
Sam Callaghan.
Frank.
Didn't know you two knew each other.
Of course we do.
We met when I came by the house a few times.
To do the security analysis for our company.
Excuse me, Sam.
I've been travelling too much.
How's work? Well, the company's certainly getting their money's worth.
If you'll excuse me.
Of course.
Good to see you.
You too.
Harrison.
Sam.
Crosby? He didn't kill Mahovolich.
He's innocent.
A SEAL? A Navy SEAL murdered a US sailor? I can go back to the SEALs.
I'll separate them out, take their statements again.
I can interview Marlena- No.
No.
We've got a dead sailor.
We've got a suspect and we've got witnesses.
We ship 'em all back to the States.
Let the Navy MPs work it out.
It'll be Ferguson's word against Crosby's, which is how we all got here in the first place.
You know he'll be found guilty.
Maybe there's worse things.
The US is supposed to be the shining light of the global post-war gloom.
How do you think this'll play back in Washington? Commies, spies.
Yeah, but if Crosby didn't kill anyone Your chief witness is a transvestite.
You want to be the case officer assigned to this particular piece of shit? You'll let an innocent man go to death row when you know who the real killer is? There's nothing I can do about it.
Your problem is you can't get your head out of Changi.
You still live in a world where the white hats win and the black hats lose.
Where the Aussies sweep in and save you from the Japanese.
Wake up, Callaghan.
The world got a lot shittier since the war.
So what was the point of winning? You don't have an invitation.
Get out of here.
What about you? 'No-one kills a United States sailor and goes unpunished.
' What's wrong with you? I thought you wanted a story.
What'd the police say? They don't believe me, Macca.
Or the Americans.
They know! You think they care? Well, then you'd better hope that this is just a paranoid fantasy of a brain that's spent too much time crawling around in the jungle playing soldiers.
So you don't give a damn? No! And I'm struggling to understand why you do.
Sam, you can't go to war over everyone who's been dealt a shitty hand.
You'll go mad.
Pick your battles.
But he's innocent, Macca.
They're gonna kill him, and he's innocent.
Maybe- I can't see how it's not worth trying.
But you have been trying.
You've talked to everyone you can talk to.
You've done your best.
Let it go.
You can't win this and I can't help you.
End of story.
I didn't do it! I didn't do anything.
He was my best friend.
I wouldn't hurt him.
He was my best friend.
I wouldn't hurt him, ever.
Hey, man.
You OK? Yeah.
You want a drink? Sure.
Hey, sure about that? Hey! Please don't! I took the rice! Bartel, no! We're here! Hey, those sailors are here.
Doesn't look like they're going anywhere.
They want to kill Crosby on their own.
Mm.
There'll be two more of them on the pick-up detail.
You think they'll talk? We're going to have to make 'em.
I did it plenty of times in Malaya.
That was ten years ago.
Now you're just fat.
I'm fat? A little bit fat.
So what's the plan? Absolutely! How're you going to kill Crosby? Look, untie me.
We'll all pretend this is some sort of Australian joke and I won't rip your fucking head off! Just tell us.
We'll let you go.
You can kill me before I talk.
With pleasure.
Leave him.
What? I'll deal with this.
Just tell me.
I'll let you go.
Oh what, so now it's the good cop, bad cop? We're taught this stuff, you stupid asshole.
Isolate, contain, Extract.
Very good.
'I serve with honour, on and off the battlefield.
I humbly serve as guardian to my fellow Americans.
' Is that what you said to Mahovolich when you knifed him? He wasn't American.
He was a Commie.
'Always ready to defend those who are unable to defend themselves.
' You killed a defenceless US sailor for tricking you into feeling up a tranny? God, you're looking good.
They knew.
Those little pricks set me up! Humiliated me! Sam! Come on, wake up, princess.
You know it's just a blank.
It doesn't hurt as much.
Come on.
Let's go.
Right, go, go, go.
Hey! Hey! Get over there, you.
Don't do this! Come here.
Don't! Say hello to the fish.
They're going to drown him.
Throw him in.
No! He's done.
Let's go.
We searched everywhere, sir.
Can't find the body.
The current Are you sure he didn't get away? He was still handcuffed.
He would have sunk like a stone.
And he just jumped? Guess it was the shame of it, sir.
He couldn't face what he'd done.
This is your stop, Captain.
Where are we? Indonesia.
Here, buy yourself a passport.
Then what? Where do I go? Wherever you want.
India.
Across to London, then back home eventually.
There's nothing for me back there.
It's 1964.
It's a brand-new world out there, sailor.
Isn't that why you signed up? I signed up to work alongside good men.
Men like Mahovolich.
Men like you.
London, you reckon? Good luck.
Thanks.
Hey Sam, what are you doing? Take him to Batam.
Show him the ropes.
Why? Teach you a lesson.
Keep you away from Kay Song's gambling tables.
I got no shoes, man.
You got nothing left to bet.
Fuck you, lah! Come back here! You see what life's like without a boat? Hey, come back! I got no shoes! Sam! Mr Callaghan.
Harrison.
Ferguson turned up on the ship last night.
Broken wrist.
Wouldn't say how he got it.
Well, Singapore's a dangerous place.
His trigger hand.
That kind of injury takes a long time to heal.
He won't be a SEAL again.
That's a shame.
He's still a murderer.
He's still free.
Well, you hired me to find one man, Harrison.
It's your job to save the world.
It's gonna be tough though, isn't it? Being the good guys? Tough? Men like Ferguson on your side.
Well, that's terrific.
You saved a life.
We saved a life.
Sort of.
And we got paid, which is what this was all about, isn't it? Yes, but I've been thinking.
We should keep the agency open.
What? We're a great team.
Good luck with it.
I've got a job.
All I'm asking is, if I need somebody on the street once in a while, would you consider helping out? Once in a while, eh? That's all.
I'll think about it.
Aunty, even though we got paid well this time, it's going to be a struggle to keep the agency going.
Wouldn't you make more money working at the bank? But with the agency open, with Sam Callaghan helping, this is my chance.
To do what? He could go to places I couldn't go to.
Brothels, gambling dens.
Why? To find out who killed my husband.
Anyone Anyone It's official.
Being with me really is very boring.
You weren't even dreaming this time.
Hey, you could stay.
Frank's on another trip.
I've got to go.
I wish I I'll see ya.
They can't see you Like I can Oh, but anyone Who knows what love is Will understand Anyone I just feel so sorry Anyone For the ones who pity me 50,000 Chinese men were killed by the Japanese.
He would have survived.
He would do whatever it take to live.
We are not in bloody Sydney, Claire! Dead.
Patricia Cheng As you may know, she recently lost her husband.
So this could have something to do with his murder.
Thank you for bringing this to my grandfather's attention.
I didn't come to Singapore to hide away in this house or at the club.
Excuse me! Excuse me! Perky, and young.
Mr McDonald, I would really appreciate your help.
Forget it.
Are you saying you were going to ask me out, and now you're not? Kiss your true-love story goodbye.
He is either very wise, or an idiot.
Some people are both.
No, no, no, no! I think it's a warning.
Let's see what stirred them up.