Scrublands (2023) s01e04 Episode Script

1
So, you're here
to do what, exactly?
I'm just trying--
Trying to rescue
your flagging career,
by raking over
our small-town tragedy.
- How's your article going?
- Something's still missing.
Like, how you're involved
in this whole Byron Swift thing.
Swift didn't kill the couple
I found on the scrublands.
The cafe lady alibied him.
Yeah, 'cause she was
screwing him.
You should've told me.
That I was having an affair
with a mass-murdering priest?
Yeah, sorry I didn't
wanna lead with that.
Martin Scarsden is a journalist.
Careful who you trust.
- What is that skunk?
- Hydro.
No bush bud
around here any more.
Used to be tons of it.
What's growing
around here?
Don't think this could be
defined as personal use, can it?
It's not mine. I found it here.
Hope the safety's on, Robbie.
What are you doing here?
It was Byron's land.
That's how he funded
all his good deeds.
And I don't even think
Byron Swift was his real name.
That's Byron in combat gear.
Looks like he was on
a squad of some sort.
I've got the number for a lawyer
with Defence
who's done a couple
of inquiries.
- Yes?
- Ms Coulson?
Byron Swift isn't showing up
on any military searches.
And that interests me.
I'll text you
a meeting place in the morning.
Somebody sends me
a warning shot,
I know I'm getting close.
Who to?
Okay, what's the link?
What's the link?
You bought a cop in on this.
What was that all about?
Robbie is a good lad.
He trusts me.
And he will do exactly as I say.
Give virtue to these
hands, O Lord,
so they might serve you
with purity of mind and body.
And repel all the souls you leave.
Good morning.
St James Riversend,
Father Byron Swift speaking.
Hello, Julian.
It's been a while.
How did you find me?
The Working
With Children card
triggered an alert.
Got your face in the system.
I didn't touch any of those
kids, okay? It's all lies.
That
bullshit is the least
of your problems, Corporal.
They know where you are.
- Hello?
- Hey, it's me.
Hey.
I'm leaving Riversend.
Will you come with me?
What?
Now. Okay? We have to go
right now.
Father Swift!
Hey!
What happened to your face?
Oh, ah, someone took
a shot at me last night.
- What?
- No. Don't worry about it.
Byron didn't start
the weed crop, did he?
Well, that's what he said.
Okay, but what if
the massacre victims set it up?
They were ordinary,
had normal jobs.
Yeah, exactly.
The Newkirks were farmers.
So, they had access to ploughs,
irrigation, fertiliser.
Grosvenor was a mechanic,
so he could fix machinery.
Torlini was an accountant,
so he could fix the books.
And Craig Landers--
Half those guys didn't even
know each other.
Yeah, but what if the crop's
what connected them all?
Come on. We gotta
check your files,
see if any of them had a record.
I I told Sergeant Piccini
about the crop.
I'm suspended.
Yeah, but you still got
your keys.
Oh, come on, Robbie.
You gotta do this.
The story is about to
come together.
"The story."
It's all about the story,
isn't it?
Nothing else matters to you,
not people, privacy--
Mate, I couldn't have gotten
this far without you--
I'm not your mate.
You used me.
Byron used me.
He's bullshit. "Heroes
of Riversend" is bullshit.
It's all bullshit, mate.
Yeah, you're right.
Ever since Byron arrived,
this town has been
a pack of lies.
And that's not gonna
change until
the truth behind the
massacre comes out.
And I can't get to that truth
without you.
So forget me,
and fuck the story,
and do it for the town.
Come on.
Craig Landers,
no drugs, no criminal record
Well, what about the others?
Tom Newkirk's clean, so is Alf.
Hugh Grosvenor was arrested
for drunk and disorderly
five years ago.
Of course he was.
And Gerry Torlini had
a complaint of bullying
by a former employee.
No charges laid.
Well, you know, they're
They're all, you know,
respectable ish.
No. No links to drugs.
Did the Newkirks have rifles?
Well, mate,
all farmer have rifles.
I mean, Craig Landers had
a couple too, both licensed.
Only mention he's got is
driving with a bung headlight.
I mean,
not exactly Pablo Escobar.
When was Craig pulled over?
The busted headlights.
What was the date?
January 01
New Year's day last year.
So, the day after
Damo and Jill’s van was rammed.
Yeah, I mean--
Apparently Craig said
he was on his way to
a mechanic's in Bellington
to get the headlights replaced.
What mechanic in Bellington is
open on New Year's day?
- Ah. Hugh Grosvenor.
- Hugh Grosvenor. Yeah.
Yeah, he would be open,
wouldn't he?
If him and Craig were in a hurry
to repair that headlight.
I reckon Jamie Landers
might know something.
Hey, Jamie.
Thought I'd drop by and see
how you're travelling.
You're getting out today.
Is your mum here?
I guess she must be
'cause I, uh
I saw your dad's ute outside.
It's a pretty cool car,
by the way.
Shame you had to replace
the headlight.
Lenses don't quite match.
Anything to say
about that, Jamie?
Yeah. Fuck off.
Yeah, fair enough.
I'm sorry, mate.
Look, I don't exactly know
what's going on
but shit is always
happening and
sometimes, you just get
caught up in it.
Might not be what
we intended or
might not even really
be our fault but
sometimes, you just
find yourself in the middle
of this whole fucking disaster.
And it makes you ask yourself,
"Did I cause this?"
You know, "Could I have done
something different?"
And it can really mess you up.
But I know one thing,
is that the only way
to free yourself off of it
is to shove that shit
right out in the open.
That's enough, please!
Leave him alone!
Ah! Look, Jamie, you can help
yourself and your mum.
But you just need to
tell the truth.
Who do you think you are?
Uh
I only hid in the ute 'cause
dad never took me hunting
like he promised he would.
- Jesus, Damo, go, go!
- No, I'm trying!
I'm fucking trying!
Fuck!
What the fuck, man.
The fuck are you doing?
Please! Please, no!
got it!
Aw, shit, Jamie.
Then they hid the
bodies in the old tank.
I didn't wanna watch
but dad made me.
Said it was a punishment for
being where I shouldn't have,
hiding in the ute.
Said if I told anyone,
we'd both go to jail and
and mum would top herself.
But you did tell someone,
didn't you?
You told Byron.
Let us pray.
If we hadn't have
done what we'd done,
we would've gone to jail.
This way, we got a chance
of staying here.
- I know what you are, mate!
- You are an accessory to murder.
Okay, but the--
Everything is gonna
be fine.
This is how
you sort things, is it?
Hm? Murdering a couple
of harmless kids?
Little wuss just couldn’t
keep his mouth shut--
I knew you were thick Craig,
but I had no idea you were
this fucking thick.
I think all of need to take
a good look at yourselves.
And you
you pathetic little fuck.
Oi! Cunt!
This This is fucking over!
Yeah?
No more new cars,
no more extra cash,
no more little nest eggs, Gerry.
It's fucking done.
- You can't stop this, mate.
- It's done!
Yeah, I burned it.
I burned the fucker
to the ground.
If any one of you think about
starting this shit up again
I'll make sure you all
get put away for a very,
very long time.
You fucking scum.
Get the fuck off.
Jesus.
What are you doing?
What is it?
We've got a real problem.
Jesus.
Flick said you were shot
at last night?
Oh, yeah.
Seems someone doesn’t like me.
Only half the town.
I’ve wanted to kill you myself.
I know why Byron did it.
You should put something
on that, it'll get infected--
So, Gerry, Alf, Craig,
- Tom, Hugh
- I don't care any more.
Byron was in on
the drug crop with them.
No, no, Mandy, please.
Just wait.
It was Craig and Tom who killed
those kids in the scrublands.
Jamie was hiding in the back
of Craig's ute.
He saw them.
He told Byron and then
Byron killed them all.
I think it was
his form of justice.
And maybe
Maybe his way of protecting you.
Protecting his flock.
But why like that
at the church?
Well, that I don't know yet.
Thank you for finding out.
Sorry.
- Where's Waldron Reservoir?
- Uh
A 150 ks back up the highway.
An hour, hour-and-half’s drive.
Okay, I've gotta go. Sorry.
Sorry, I've just gotta
meet a contact--
Oh, just get on with it then.
What about "Jebediah"?
I'm not naming
our baby Jebediah.
Okay. "Ezra"?
Ugh! Sounds like
something you spit!
Okay, all right.
We'll name him "Wick,"
after the greatest character
that Keanu Reeves's ever played.
Mm-hm.
I don’t care what
we call him, you know.
Really just want all this to
be done by the time he’s born.
He won't like it.
The year’s up. What can he do?
Oh, come on.
We were in the neighbourhood.
You're gonna invite us in
or what?
So, this is
your great-grandmother’s.
Not much call for it these days.
- Very pretty.
- Yeah.
Oh, uh, here's your spoon.
Here. There's some, uh
Some nice biscuits.
Shop not open?
Since the media left,
not much business.
Must be tough
for the both of you.
Liam’s dad in the picture?
Never even in the frame.
A drunk weekend slip-up.
Ah.
Why are you here?
Told you.
- I came back to look after mum.
- I know that.
And she's gone.
So why are you still here?
You’ve been a shit dad.
Maybe I’ve been
a shit daughter too.
Let's not dwell
on that.
But of all the shitty men
in my life,
you’re kind of coming up
trumps right now.
You’re proud, Mandalay,
you’re like your mother.
But if you were out here
with me, I could lend a hand.
Be like a proper granddad.
Think of your boy.
He's a Reagan.
Do you wanna have a go?
Yeah?
Ms Coulson.
Were you followed?
No!
I'm a little over
the cloak and dagger.
You don't know what's at stake.
You'd called Swift the morning
of the massacre.
Didn't you?
Why?
This is just deep background.
I’m not providing
corroborating evidence.
Okay.
And you have to keep
my name out of it.
We never met.
Seven people connected
to Swift are dead,
and I’m lucky not to be
the eighth.
So how about you just
tell me what you know
and we go from there.
Watch this.
Take those off him.
An SAS team went over
the Afghanistan-Pakistan border
to take out a Taliban cell
Off the books.
I was sent to do
an investigation.
The moment I touched
down in Afghanistan,
it was obvious everyone wanted
the whole thing
resolved very quietly.
Record of
interview between
Lilly Coulson
and Corporal Julian Flynt,
January 11th, 2017.
Corporal, I’m a lawyer
appointed by Defence
to enquire into
Operation Scorpion
during which 12 enemy
were killed,
as were seven civilians.
Three women, two teenage boys
and two children.
During the course
of the mission,
four of your team also died.
Only you
and your Sergeant survived.
I think Operation Scorpion was
a scorched earth op,
that you were ordered
to leave no witnesses.
But you need to
talk to me, Corporal.
Your Sergeant's talking.
According to him,
all those deaths,
enemy and civilian,
were down to you.
He says you acted with complete
disregard for human life
and collateral damage,
including to
your fellow soldiers.
Is that your recollection?
Corporal.
I know you don’t want to
dob on your mates,
but you need to get
your version on record.
I don't believe
you're responsible.
Your loyalty is admirable,
but it’s misplaced.
You’re not just facing
a court martial and jail;
Pakistan is screaming for blood.
SAS, Defence,
the Federal government,
they’re considering
handing you over,
and if they do,
there’s no trial,
no prison
just a black hood and a one-way
ticket to Islamabad.
Julian.
They have abandoned you.
You are on your own.
He escaped from custody
that night.
They searched,
ended up listing him MIA.
And frankly, they hoped
he was dead.
It meant Operation Scorpion
never happened.
And no one else was
gonna talk.
An illegal raid with
a bunch of dead civilians
and most of an SAS team
would've been a disaster
for Defence and Foreign Affairs.
But how did
Corporal Julian Flint,
arrested in Afghanistan,
end up as Father Byron Swift
in Riversend?
A devout young
Englishman called Byron Swift
was doing missionary
work in Laos.
Somehow Julian made his way
to Laos from Afghanistan,
met Swift, stole his identity.
Maybe his faith was real,
maybe it's not.
I can't work it out.
Anyway, when Police
in Bellington received
a sexual abuse complaint
against a rural priest
called Byron Swift,
they ran a check on
his Working With Children card.
Because the real Swift had
worked in South East Asia,
a hot bed of paedophilia,
it pinged an alert with
Border Security, and
facial recognition
software matched
the picture on
the Working With Children card
with Julian Flynt,
AWOL war criminal.
Ordered the Federal Police
to Riversend ASAP.
But you phoned him first.
Told them the Feds
were on their way.
I believed he was
being made a scapegoat.
And if I could get
his statement,
get to the truth, I could hold
the people in charge to account.
“Leave no witnesses."
Fuckers.
Yeah, but instead he shot
five people and suicided by cop.
Problem solved.
Till you started digging,
freaked everyone out again.
You know, I think
there’s a Fed in Riversend.
A woman. Tall.
Says she’s from
the Bureau of Metrology
Jacqui Goffing.
Yeah.
They're there to make sure
you don’t undermine
the "sex abuser priest
goes berserk" story.
Are you going to Canberra?
Nope. Still don't know who
started the sex abuse lie.
Who's that?
It's just Mandy.
She's going. Come on.
- Hey, Mandy.
- Hey, Shaz.
How's the bladder?
Oh, you know,
under here somewhere.
Oh, my bag.
Can you hold him
for a second?
- Oh.
- Got him?
You've held one of those before.
- Yeah. Well
- Well? Yeah.
Go on.
Oh, look at that!
We're, uh, we're done.
Hm. Oh!
You wanna leave my employ?
Yes, he wants to leave
your fucking employ.
Deal was a year,
it's been a year.
Actually, Sharon,
your time working for me ends
when I say it ends.
Well, Jason's.
He's the most skilled employee.
Keep your end of the deal,
or we'll tell the cops what
really goes on out here.
And who will they
believe responsible?
Huh? Me?
Or the pregnant Black girl
and her ex-con boyfriend
I took pity on,
and who repaid me by
betraying my trust
on my own land?
On whose land?
You know I pay you.
And I let you live here.
So, if you want that half-breed
mongrel of yours
that you're about to spit out,
to have anything to eat,
you need to stop
fucking whining.
Oh, found it?
Yep. I mean,
unless this is yours.
Hooroo. Bye!
All right.
- Bye, Liam.
- Bye, Harley.
Bye, bye!
I'll sell it. Soon as I can.
I was thinking,
when business picks up,
you get a new console,
some new games.
Are you coming?
It was all my fault.
Everything.
No. It's not.
And it was brave of you
to tell Martin the truth.
But it was Father Swift
that did the really
terrible thing,
who betrayed you.
Okay?
What happened with
Father Swift,
that was his fault.
You don't understand!
It-- It just
- Stop! Enough!
- You don't get it!
Jamie, Jamie,
come on. Hey.
Look at me.
Whatever happened
it's all right.
Jamie.
Just tell me.
Yello!
Say, climate patterns
not interesting any more?
It seemed pretty
stable, so
think I'll move on.
You know, you
might've been a bit vague
on your connection
to Byron Swift
because you knew him
under his real name.
Julian Flynt.
Any comment on covering up
a war crime,
Agent Goffing of
the Australian Federal Police?
My readers would love to
know your thoughts on
Australia’s illegal incursion
into Pakistan too.
You have been busy.
Just holding up press freedom
and the public’s right to know.
"The public right to know"?
Ever heard of
the National Security Act?
Any unauthorised disclosure
of information related to
a special intelligence
operation is five-years jail.
If the disclosure
endangers an operation
or impacts health and safety,
make it ten.
How’s your health and safety,
Mr Scarsden?
Ah! I have been
threatened a bit recently.
Did you shoot at me?
If it was me, your brains would
be all over your motel door.
Crack shot are you?
Hey, just like your boy Flynt.
Martin?
It’s not only the skies
that can open, Scarsden.
If you publish,
shit will rain down on you
till you’re drowning in it.
Deft weather
analogy, Agent.
Goodbye, sunshine.
We need to talk to you.
Mate, look, if it’s about
the Scrublands Murders,
- you should go to the police--
- No, no, no! It's not!
It's not about that.
Hm?
Last year,
I went to the cops
and told ‘em something.
He gave a statement that
Father Swift had
sexually abused him.
But it wasn’t true. None of it.
He never touched me
Or anyone.
Then why say it?
His father made him.
Made him lie.
Craig Landers?
He came up with
the paedophile story?
Mm.
Damaged Byron’s reputation
before he could say anything
about the weed or the murders.
- Hm.
- Discredit him,
get him arrested,
moved on by the church.
What?
I-- I don't know.
It's just, it’s a bit
complicated for Craig, you know?
Bit brainy.
I mean, Craig's idea
of cleverness was a fart.
Well, it could’ve been Alf,
Tom, any of them.
Well, none of them were
criminal masterminds.
I mean, story like that,
I don't know.
Sophisticated, strategic.
"Talk to Harley."
Byron's last words were,
"Talk to Harley."
I thought it might've had
something to do with Mandy,
but what if he was telling you
that Harley was in on it?
- You coming?
- I've got no authority, mate.
I'm probably not even
a cop any more.
It's not all bullshit
what you did.
That wasn't bullshit.
And it wasn't corrupt.
And what you’ve just done
Mate
that took guts.
Cheers, mate.
Go on, get out of here.
Shaz?
You all right?
Here.
Thanks.
Where you going?
Springfields.
All right, me too. Hop in.
He wasn't trying to kill you.
Jason, he's a good shot.
He meant to miss.
Your partner?
What What?
He's the one who shot at me?
Yeah, only because Harley
told him to.
- Can we just go now, please?
- No! No!
I think you need to tell me
what's going on.
Harley’s had Jason watching you
since you got here.
The other night, when he saw you
snoopin’ around the old crop,
he told Jase to give you
a fright so you’d fuck off.
- So Harley was part of the weed.
- Okay?
Can we get to Springfields now?
Why? What's happening up there?
Shaz, please. Come on.
Harley's into meth now.
Meth?
It started when that
priest burned the old crop
and shot everyone.
Jason's cooking for him.
He's gone up to run a batch.
A secret one.
You're ripping Harley off?
No, we are owed it.
He never paid us
what he owed us.
And always with the threats,
sayin’ he’d dob Jase in
And Jase was supposed to
be back hours ago.
When he didn’t come,
I just started walking.
'Cause if Harley's found him
You found that other couple,
you know what happened to 'em.
Okay. Okay. Let's--
Let’s just get back into town.
- Get Robbie--
- No, please!
It could be too late by then!
Please!
Please.
Okay!
Oh, come on.
Hey, buddy, you're okay.
Go to sleep.
Oh, fuck it.
The lab’s at
the homestead?
"Hiding in plain sight,"
Harley called it.
He reckoned us driving
in and out of the scrublands
would be too suspicious,
but us coming here,
supposedly helping him renovate.
But what if
Harley's here?
We gotta hope
that he isn't.
Wait.
How come Jase isn't back?
Shaz, wait.
Aw, shit.
We really should get the cops.
You don't have to come.
Shit.
Oh, Jase.
Thank God you're all right.
Shaz, no. What the fuck
are you doing here?
- All right, let's go.
- Is he here?
Yeah. He'll be back
any second.
Come on, let's go!
Come on--
Jason doesn't get
an early mark.
Especially since he's been
taking product
that doesn’t belong to him.
Please, just let her go.
Let her go?
I knew you were
up to something.
Lucky I can smell a rat
when they come calling.
All right, I’ll stay, I’ll cook.
Fucking please, just let her go.
Ah, probably just
be simpler to kill you.
Another young couple
with something to hide
go missing.
Disgraced journalist
tops himself.
You're gonna have to come up
with a better story than that.
No wife, no family,
failing at your job,
that makes very good copy.
No, “Landed gentry
turns crime boss."
Now, that’s good copy.
You think
you’re an investigator.
You’re just a hack
who trades on
people's misery.
Oh, says the ice dealer.
My family made this place.
Claimed it, cleared it,
fenced it, farmed it.
We’ve always done
whatever it takes
to keep it going.
Last 20 years,
I’ve staved off bankruptcy,
got through drought, floods,
downturns,
waiting for the good
times to come back so I--
I’d have a legacy,
other than debt, to pass on.
Pass on?
What? To Mandy?
You really think she wants
to be a part of this?
She won't know.
Another six months and I'm done,
and she and my grandson
are back at Springfields
where they belong.
Look, I may be a hack,
but I know spin when I hear it.
You and that fucking priest.
Always so high and mighty.
Fuck.
Let's go. Come on!
- Jase!
- Come on!
Come on! Come on!
Martin.
What's going on?
Where's Harley?
In the lab.
What lab?
No! Martin!
Forget the fucker!
Harley!
D-- Dad!
Dad!
"Honouring
your fucking ancestors."
That's a bloody lie.
Byron was a threat to
all this, wasn't he?
To your delusions
of fucking grandeur.
So you send Craig and the others
to threaten him.
Next time
you're pissed off, Father,
Harley's just got Alf
to take Allen down to
the Bellington cop shop,
swear that he saw you
force yourself on my boy.
You see, you're not just
a paedophile any more.
Now, you're one with a witness.
So, unless you want to spend
the next 20 years in jail,
getting buggered senseless,
you better disappear,
you better run away
where no one will ever find you.
And if you even think
about opening your mouth,
you just remember there's plenty
of room in the scrublands
for your cop mate.
And little Mandalay Bond too.
You have had some
impure thoughts about her,
haven’t you, Father?
First, I might have to have
a little crack there myself.
Sweet little piece of arse
like that going to waste?
Well, that really
would be a sin.
Might even take her down to
that little secret little spot
by the river.
There's no miracle coming
to save you, Father.
You are on your own.
Julian,
you are on your own.
May God bless your soul,
Craig Landers.
See, on this side,
it's still all smooth.
If you flip it over,
still all rough edges.
A two-faced stone?
A two-sided stone.
All things have
passed away.
Behold.
All things have become you.
This is how
you solve things, is it?
Please! Please!
Murdering a couple
of harmless kids?
You labour and you struggle,
and no one listens
to your pleas or your fears.
No one listens
to your individual pain.
- It's been great at school.
- Yeah?
Day one of ten, bought us
a laptop for each classroom.
Oh, that's great.
It's another bloody
miracle, that's what it is.
I'm bored.
Yeah, he'll be ready soon.
You're
a good man, Byron.
To long life and happiness.
To long life
and happiness.
I love you, Mandalay.
What did you do, dad?
You got 'em all killed,
you fuckwit.
'Cause Byron had
nothing to lose.
Now you've lost everything too.
Hey.
I'm really sorry.
What for?
All those times
I defended Byron,
- you believed he--
- It's fine.
You were just trying to
make sense of it.
Besides, I
convinced myself that
the best way to help Jamie
was to not talk about it,
to him, to anyone, just
carry on as normal.
I loved Craig once.
How could he have put
our son through that?
Fran.
Think we need to leave
Look at a different horizon.
Here.
Think of it as a
- gift from God or something.
- Oh, my God.
Scarsden.
"The War criminal, the Priest,
the drug syndicate
and the cover-up -
The truth behind
the Church Massacre."
It's a cracker, Marty.
Maybe even a book.
Shh, Max,
his head’s big enough already.
Yeah, well, it’s just a draft.
I’m still polishing.
Mate, it’s running over double
page in the paper edition.
And graphics have worked up
some great stuff for online too.
Yeah, and what about
the National Security Act?
Well,
upstairs want to fight,
they wanna make a test
case of the laws.
There's no guarantees, but they
think they can handle it.
But if you do go to jail,
I’ll send you a cake
with a file in it.
Well, thanks, Beth.
And hey, you can be
my babysitter anytime.
- Thanks, Martin.
- Yeah, all right.
Enough pocket-pissing.
You get back here
as soon as possible.
There's a big story breaking
about corruption in Dubai
and upstairs wants you on it.
Oh, shit.
You got it! You got it!
That is a big story.
How do you think Harley
will do in prison?
Ugh, I don't know.
Thank you for risking your life
to save him but
he was only interested in me
'cause of Liam,
and continuing
the Reagan legacy.
I guess Liam
will just have to do without
a dad and a grandad, right?
Hm? Yeah.
Oh, you're still not much
of a journalist, are you?
No mention of who
Liam's dad was?
What happened to the truth,
the all-truth-and-nothing-but?
Well, the story doesn't
always come first.
Hmm.
Sometimes, you have to decide
what really matters.
Well, I
haven't put much of a dent
in this.
But when I'm done in Dubai,
I thought I'd
pop back to Riversend.
Maybe find my next read.
Well, you know who sells
the best books in town.
You sell the only books in town.
No option then.