Baptiste (2019) s01e02 Episode Script

She's my niece, I just want to know she's OK.
It seems fate has plans for you, Julien.
We could really use your help.
I'm not the man I was.
Dragomir Zelincu ran one of the big Romanian gangs.
Trafficking, drugs, you name it.
Natalie knew about Dragomir.
She learned it was you, didn't she? Please do not tell me to be calm.
You have no idea.
You have no idea what is going on! I've been looking for you, Natalie.
I am not what you were expecting? Your uncle didn't tell me.
He is not who you think he is.
Not at all.
I cannot believe he went to the police.
Why would he do such a thing? Like you, I'm trying to understand.
Who else is looking for me? Who else has he, has he talked to? Look You can trust me.
I assure you, I am no threat to you.
You can talk to me about him.
I can help.
He was a client.
When he started to see me I thought he was nice.
He brings presents, this kind of thing.
Then he doubles his appointments.
More and more, and then he starts to get jealous of the others.
He asked me how much he'd have to pay me to have me all to himself.
He did not like my answer to this question.
This is when he broke my jaw.
Edward Stratton is the one you should be asking questions.
Why would he lie to me? He must have known it could never hold up if you were found.
So, he does not care what anyone thinks.
He just wants to find me.
At any cost.
But still, to take such a risk involving the police when he didn't have to.
Because he's not afraid of anyone.
What? Why do you say this? Listen, I work for the police - not for him.
So, please, tell me.
You think it's different here than anywhere else? Just because the government say they support our rights to sell ourselves? Because they, they say they give us power and control, you think it always makes it true? The Romanians traffic girls here.
I see it.
All the time.
And people do nothing.
Myself included.
Keep my head down, keep out of their way.
Make my money.
What, what does all this have to do with Edward Stratton? He's with the Romanians, OK? He works with them.
This is crazy, it cannot be.
- Why? Just because he does not seem the type? Why do you think the Romanians find him so useful? An English man, working for a trucking company, the things he can move for them, without anyone asking questions.
What now? The detective knows where she is.
He rang his wife this morning.
He told her he was going to see Natalie.
Where is she? We hear only her side of the call.
So, we don't know? If the detective has found Natalie what do you think she has told him? About me? I don't know.
The truth, perhaps? Doubt it.
- You hope.
I can talk with Mr Baptiste No.
No, I'll do it.
I cannot believe this of him.
I think you would not be the first to be fooled.
But if Edward is so dangerous, why are you still here? Why don't you go somewhere else entirely? Go where? You think it is so easy? To pack up and find another life? I need time, I need money.
Yeah, but, uh Just go to the police for protection.
Edward pays off half of them to keep his operation running.
To, to keep the girls working.
I, I don't know who I can trust.
I have a friend.
She's the commissioner in the police in Amsterdam, you can go No.
No.
All I want to do is to stay out of sight until I'm .
.
I'm ready to leave.
You told Edward you knew the truth about Dragomir.
Kim must have trusted you a great deal to tell you.
She told me nothing.
I learned about her from Walter De Louw when he was drunk one night.
And you went to her with this so she would hide you? Edward Stratton.
Don't answer.
Well, uh I'm supposed to be meeting him right now.
I sent a text this morning telling him I had news.
What would you have me say now? Nothing.
Have nothing to do with him.
I beg you.
Don't do anything.
And be careful around him.
If he finds out you know where I am? That is something that cannot happen.
Julien? What kind of department are you running? Excuse me? I found the girl.
She's no relation to Edward Stratton.
He's no more than a client, obsessed with her.
Well, we don't actually investigate people who report crimes, Julien.
Well, perhaps you should! I suggest you get your officers to do their research.
Morning.
I was getting worried.
Yeah? First the traffic, then the parking behind this station.
If I find the car again it it'd be a miracle.
That's OK.
So, did you have something you were going to tell me? I think, Mr Stratton, uh I think I must be honest with you.
I should not have told you I could find your niece.
I do not think I .
.
I can pursue this case.
Oh.
That's disappointing.
A man of your experience I'm sorry.
May I ask why? I cannot go chasing a girl who doesn't wish to be found.
But I told you, she's important to me.
Yes.
But, er, it seems you .
.
are not important to her.
From what we've heard, she left Amsterdam for Germany of her own free will.
She's in no danger.
But she's not thinking straight.
She's upside down and turned around.
I need to find her.
I need to see that she's OK.
I am afraid you will have to continue this journey by yourself, my friend.
You think I'm weak, don't you? It's OK, I'm used to it.
People take one look at me and they think they know me.
But they don't.
No-one does.
They don't know the shit I've had to wade through.
How can someone get run down into the ground, get trampled on again and again, still be weak .
.
when they're still standing? You don't know me, Mr Baptiste, but I'm a fucking survivor.
That's what I am.
All I need from you is to get out of my bloody way.
I can find her myself.
Julien? The girl.
She's in danger.
You should send cars now! Tell me where.
Hi.
Niels Horchner.
My mother told me you would be here.
Pleasure to meet you.
So? No-one was inside when we got here, and uh well, the door was unlocked, but aside from that, nothing unusual.
May I? Yeah, of course.
Hello? I'll give you one guess where I stand right now.
I've never much liked playing games.
That surprises me - for someone who is so well versed in playing them.
It's time to be honest, don't you think? The truth can do a lot more than just hurt, Mr Baptiste.
Believe me, I know this more than anyone.
You're at the houseboat.
Who are you, Edward? I told you, I don't like playing games.
Then stop playing them.
I thought you were done with this case.
If you knew me, you would realise that's not an option.
I made a mistake when I trusted you.
I thought you didn't make mistakes.
The only way to find out if you can trust someone is to trust them.
Ernest Hemingway, right? You're full of surprises, aren't you, Edward? Tip of the iceberg, sir.
Where is she? Where is the girl? She not with you? You didn't find her? You led them here and, uh .
.
you didn't find her.
Officers! Niels! We need divers! Dada! OK.
Let's go.
Julien You can't blame yourself for what happened to that girl.
He found her usingt he navigation of my car.
Taking my keys.
How can I not feel responsibility for what has followed? Love I know.
This man, Edward Stratton.
Whoever he is What is it? It's just that, uh I wish I didn't have this feeling, a feeling that, uh .
.
that everything isn't quite as it seems.
Come! Do you remember me? Mr Stratton, right? Yeah.
Can I help you? When I was at school .
.
there was this kid .
.
called Billy Lomax.
Who was a fat .
.
stupid waste of DNA.
And when I was around nine years old, for some unknown reason, he decided to make my life a misery.
Any way he could, you know? Started small.
Waiting in the lunch queue, he'd stick bits of food into my pocket that I wouldn't notice till much later.
Which sounds kind of funny.
But not if you're the one stinking the classroom out all afternoon and everybody's laughing at you and you don't know why.
And then he graduated to kicking the shit out of me whenever he got the opportunity.
Kids can be real pricks, can't they? I was always trying to think of some way of stopping him torturing me.
And then there was one thing that caught my eye, because Billy had a pet mouse.
Titus he was called, and he was always talking about him, and he brought pictures into class.
And one day, he brought the actual mouse into class.
And at break, when everyone was outside enjoying the sun I went into that classroom and I took him out of his cage.
And I cut Titus in half.
I split him down the middle so that all his guts spilled out.
I was nine.
And Billy was Well, I'd never seen him like that, you know? I'd never seen him cry.
Big, ugly, snotty tears.
I thought that Billy Lomax was a monster who existed only to torture me and there was nothing I could do about it.
And I realised at that moment that everyone cares about something, don't they? Everyone's got something to lose.
What have you got to lose, Kim? Are you threatening me? Did Julien Baptiste come here this morning? Don't lie.
We are closing now.
He came to see you, and then he went to a houseboat on Keizersgracht.
You should go now.
You told him where Natalie was.
And now she's gone again.
Where to? Where's she go? I don't know.
Did she tell you about me? She has, hasn't she? She's told you about everything.
Get up and walk away, now.
Hey.
Hey.
Everything OK? Yeah, it's great.
It's a lovely place you've got here.
Thanks for the water.
Who's that? No-one.
- Bollocks.
The two of you looked about ready to kill each other.
What's going on, Kim? It doesn't matter.
Morning.
Morning.
Thanks for agreeing to meet here.
- Yeah.
So, what do you have for me? Mr Baptiste, we've looked into Edward Stratton.
I've talked to someone I know from Scotland Yard, and they've put him through searches on every database they can think of.
But the man has no criminal record.
No associates.
His name does not appear in relation to anything illegal at all.
Not even a parking ticket.
So, he is careful.
He is a man who covers his tracks.
No, there is just no way that Look, for several years now Europol have been running a taskforce focused on the Brigada Serbilu, a Romanian gang headed by the Serbilu brothers.
Huge operation.
They're coordinating forces here, in Germany, in Hungry, in Poland.
I work in the Amsterdam division of the taskforce.
And our principal focus is on the Brigada's role in sex trafficking.
We study their every dealing.
Their financial transactions.
Their associates.
My point is this, Mr Baptiste - if Edward Stratton had any link to the Brigada Serbilu we would know.
I would know.
Unless his anonymity is his value to them.
So, we are supposed to believe that Edward Stratton is engaged with the Brigada Serbilu? And then, yet no-one, in the entire Europol investigation would have any idea? He broke into my car, he found the address and Natalie died.
We need to keep our eyes open.
Mr Baptiste, I have a huge respect for the work you've done.
But you're retired now, and in a different You think I'm a dinosaur, that's what you're saying? No, I OK, OK, can we please keep it civilised? You're ruining my morning coffee, yes? He's just trying to explain to you what we have found.
I understand all this.
But in case you'd forgotten, Edward Stratton came to you asking for help finding his niece.
The girl that drowned in that canal was someone else entirely.
He lied to us.
It's important to know why, don't you think? Yeah, but she told you herself.
She was a sex worker.
He became obsessed with her.
I mean, it wouldn't be the first time I've seen such a thing.
So you .
.
you do not believe he could be dangerous? I believe we need more information before we do anything.
And that this still is a police matter, no? You were asked to help find the girl.
You've done that now, so I found her, yes.
I led them to her.
Now she's dead.
So, please, let me stay.
Let me learn if Edward Stratton has taken me for a fool.
OK Niels, let's bring Mr Stratton in and talk to him.
No, no, no - it's too early.
If Julien wants to ask him some questions, I have no objection.
Have him brought in.
OK.
Julien You shouldn't take offence at my son.
Of course not.
He's young.
He's passionate.
I think we were like that once, no? Seems a long time ago.
Niels has not always been so short-tempered, um He's been sick.
For a long time.
Cancer.
Um he has had an operation, chemotherapy, and, uh, it's gone, they say.
Finally.
But still, it is hard to adjust back to any kind of a normal life.
Um I asked that Edward Stratton be brought in for voluntary questioning.
Except there was no need.
He just walked into the police station.
He wants to talk to me.
Well, uh, I saw the news.
Saw the news that she was dead.
Natalie.
The girl you claimed was your niece? Yeah.
And, er, obviously I shouldn't have lied.
I wasn't thinking straight.
It's just that I .
.
wanted to find her.
I wanted to find her so desperately that I .
.
didn't care.
But why would you lie? Because .
.
I lov .
.
I loved her.
Fuck.
And I was worried about her, and she just disappeared and I thought just some missing prostitute, you wouldn't bother.
If you thought she was my niece, I thought you would try harder.
I was just upset and I just wanted to know that she was OK.
I know - I was stupid.
Falling for her like that, I just couldn't help it.
You don't always choose the people you fall in love with, do you? We appreciate you coming in, Edward, but you do understand - we need to know your movements, yesterday afternoon? Absolutely, yes.
Just so we are thorough.
- Yes, yes.
After I saw Julien Baptiste, I went to a cafe.
Cafe Stellan, I believe.
And had a coffee.
It was pretty busy.
Er I'm pretty sure there were some security cameras there, I don't know if they were working or not.
You get dummy ones, don't you? You get fakes.
Like with speed cameras, it's impossible to tell which ones are real or not.
Is that it? Yeah.
OK This was, um, just after he left me.
- Mm-hm.
What? He stays there until the police arrive from the houseboat.
He's looking.
- Mm-hm.
Subtlety is not his strong point.
This is a performance.
Maybe.
But we have nothing.
We have to let him go.
Most of my life I've looked for people who have gone missing.
Perhaps trying to find their soul is a stretch too far.
Is everyone asleep? No, they're out.
So? Huh? Tell me.
It's a hard thing to discern the measure of a man.
I missed something the first time with this man.
Perhaps Martha's son is right.
Maybe I should walk away.
I was hired to .
.
to find the girl.
I played my part.
Julien For such a bright man .
.
your complete lack of self-knowledge is astonishing.
You know, in all the years I've known you, you have never walked away from anything you've started.
Not even those bloody bees! You won't let them go, despite numerous attempts to do so.
It's your most irritating trait.
And your most brilliant.
Well, I'll try to get a better idea of him.
I'll make some calls.
Good.
We should get a dishwasher Sorry.
I'm going to get it Hello? Hello, Miss Evans? I'm, uh, Julien Baptiste.
Sorry, who? Julien Baptiste, I'm a former detective.
I'm currently working for the police in Amsterdam.
Baptiste? Didn't you find that girl, Alice Webster? I did.
Today, uh, I'm calling about your ex-husband.
Is he in trouble? You sound as if he could be.
He called, the other day.
It's the first I'd heard from him in a long time.
He sounded .
.
he sounded strange.
I couldn't work out what he wanted.
What is it you needed to ask me about him? Uh I'm trying to get a sense of what kind of man he is.
Of how much he told me is true.
He said he moved to Antwerp ten years ago.
Yeah.
We both did.
Well, he didn't mention you.
Well, we'd both rather forget what happened after.
What do you mean? He didn't tell you about Lucy? Lucy? Our daughter.
She died of an overdose when she was 19.
Edward just There was no coming back for him.
He couldn't even talk to me, because I reminded him of her.
By the time we realised she was an addict, it was too late.
She moved to Amsterdam and we couldn't Nothing we said made a difference.
Tell me, after this tragedy, did his lifestyle change? What do you mean? His financial circumstances.
Once it happened, our lives went on different paths.
I moved back to England What is it you think he's done? I, I'm not sure, I I thank you for your time.
I'm sorry to have bothered you.
Thank you.
Anything? Well If he's involved with the Brigada Serbilu, it would have happened after his wife left Antwerp.
When they split up.
There's an e-mail for you.
It's my contact in the UK.
Jesus! What is this, Julien? I need to find Edward Stratton.
Sir? Excuse me, sir? I'm looking for Karveel Street? Take the second road on the right.
And then it's a sharp left.
Thank you.
You shouldn't have come down here.
I think you and I must talk.
You think? Hello.
I'm sorry, I don't speak Dutch.
Gas Meter.
Oh, OK.
Come on up.