[Mid-tempo music plays] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [Buzzer rings] [Buzzer rings] Yes, hi.

You're early.

Asti, it's me.

What do you mean **** ?

I'm on my way out, Max.

What do you want?

Um, a name.

Your friend who deals in rare books.

I've got some first editions from Dad's shop, thought he might be interested.

Is your phone broken?

You couldn't text me?

Well, I-I was passing... And?

And... [Alarm chirps] Hello?

Excuse me.

[Buzzer rings] Max, this is not a good time.

Oh, no, it's Patrick.

Hi.

Is Max still there?

[Camera shutter clicks] You mean the bloke with the bike?

No, he's gone.

I'll be right down.

Sure.

♪♪ ♪♪ Ciao.

Good evening.

Ciao.

Would you like me to sign that for you?

[Gasps] Yes, please.

Who should I make it out to?

Stef, with an "F."

Wow.

Okay, Stef with an "F, enjoy your meal.

[Gasps] Thank you.

[Door opens] -Lanfranco?

-You got the keys?

We agreed to the end of the month, yet you're still here.

I need more time to find something else, unless you've grassed me up to the big boss?

Didn't think so.

By the end of the week.

I'm serious.

[Sighs] Sorry.

Behind you!

Ciao, bella.

Where have you been all day?

Did you get my messages?

I was running an errand.

This lady I knock about with has a big birthday next week, so... Mind my own?

You are so mysterious.

Hey!

You know the rules.

No PDAs in the kitchen!

Frightens the fish.

Got service!

Table 12.

Yes, Chef.

Wait, wait, wait, wait.

Okay.

Table 12.

Go!

Go!

Go!

Right, we're getting low on plates.

Luca!

Where's Luca?

Luca?

Luca?

You bribed him to come in to work?

I thought you'd like him here for the announcement later.

What?

No.

We're not... It's too soon.

I'll check the office.

♪♪ Luca.

You promised.

You agreed to not upset your mum.

I'm helping you.

I know what you're up to, Robyn.

Just leave me alone!

Luca, please!

[Engine starts] ♪♪ Ciao, food lovers.

Mrs.

Romano here, from the beating heart of Romano's Restaurant.

This is our head chef, cousin Jonno.

And here comes the beautiful Beth.

Hi!

And our junior chef, Nix.

Right, two ******** parmigiana, one ****** tonnarelli!

What's my name?

-Chef!

-Yes, Chef.

Seriously?

Ah, leave it up.

Everyone loves an out-take.

Exactly.

[Siren wailing] ♪♪ [Horn honking] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Evening, Mrs.

Cooper.

-Evening.

[Alarm chirps] ♪♪ ♪♪ [Thud] [Creak] ♪♪ ♪♪ [Breathing shakily] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [Siren wailing] ♪♪ ♪♪ [Thud, glass shatters] [Woman screams] ♪♪ ♪♪ Max: It sounds like a missing persons.

Oh.

Okay.

♪♪ ♪♪ [Machine beeps] [Water bubbling] [Machine whirring] ♪♪ [Siren wailing] ♪♪ ♪♪ Morning.

Morning.

Oh, thanks.

All right.

Oh!

Is this decaf?

Oh, yeah, my decaf.

You know, so baby girl doesn't buzz her nuts off.

My mum used to give me a cup of Nescafé with my breakfast.

Never did me any harm.

Not that I'm advising you how to feed your child.

Yeah.

Not that I'm listening to someone whose mum gave him coffee as a kid.

[Chuckles] Missing person is Robyn Romano?

29 years old.

Celebrity chef, by the looks of it.

You not heard of La Famiglia Romano off the Kings Road?

I live in Streatham.

All right, so, neighbor called it in at 23:17.

Said she heard yelling and then a loud bang.

-Gunshot?

-Patio doors smashing.

A few minutes later, same witness saw the Romanos' Mini leave the property at speed.

Didn't see a driver.

Dispatch mentioned there was blood.

Yeah, first officer on the scene spotted some on the side gate, called us in as a precaution.

-Morning.

-Morning.

Looks like there's spotting here, too.

Do we know where the car went?

[Camera shutter clicks] Phone company pinpointed the last three pings from the missing woman's mobile to a mast in Battersea, final one at 01:09, then inactive.

Switched off.

Presuming this is Robyn Romano's blood here and on the gate, do we know if the car was facing the road, or did it reverse out?

I'll check.

What about hospitals?

Yeah.

They're on alert.

Oh, hey, Pri.

Heard you made the cut.

Congrats.

Representing.

What cut's that?

I'll speak to the neighbor.

♪♪ [Camera shutter clicks] ♪♪ ♪♪ [Camera shutter clicks] Mrs.

Romano?

I'm Detective Inspector Max Arnold.

I've already explained everything to your colleague.

Mm.

Well, let's start at the beginning.

When did you last see Robyn?

[Sighs] At the restaurant.

She came in around 6:00.

She works there?

She runs the PR.

Mrs.

and Mrs.

Romano, that's all hers.

She left about half 9:00.

We were supposed to come home together, but I... I had stuff to do, so Robyn took the car.

I left later, about half 10:00.

Did anybody see you leave?

Maybe Jonno.

And there's a camera on the front.

Who's Jonno?

Our head chef and my cousin.

Ah.

From the restaurant to here is, what, 15 minutes?

Oh, no, I, um... I was going take an Uber but I changed my mind.

It was a nice night, so I walked.

I got back about 20 past 11:00.

When I saw Robyn wasn't here, I phoned and left a message.

I know.

I should've called 999.

Hmm.

What was your instinct?

Honestly?

Yeah.

That a bird had crashed into the glass.

[Chuckles] Bloody big bird.

[Chuckles] We tracked Robyn's phone to Battersea.

Does she know anybody there?

Not that I know of.

What do you think happened there?

Well, I'm concerned about the blood we found on the drive and up on the ceiling there.

I feel sick.

♪♪ Thank you.

[Knock on door] Jess: DI Arnold?

There's a gentleman outside, says he's family.

[Police radio chatter] Julia.

I only just got your message.

Robyn's missing.

You spoken to Luca?

Luca?

My son.

It turned right, shot off at a rate of knots.

Not that I'm a curtain-twitcher.

But I bet a concerned neighbor like yourself was watching out for the police to arrive?

Did you see Julia come home?

No.

Mrs.

Cooper?

There's a son, Luca, who lived with them.

Bright lad.

At catering college.

But, well, where is he now?

One day, there.

Next day, gone.

You know what happened to Julia Romano's husband?

No?

Fifteen years ago, he disappeared, too.

First the husband, then the son, and now... Max: You saw Julia leave work?

Yeah, about half 10:00.

But you were at the restaurant all night?

Well, I was on late clean-up.

I left about midnight.

Anyone confirm that?

Yes, our waitress Beth.

She was cleaning front of house.

She left five minutes before me.

According to our system, two weeks ago, Robyn Romano reported a break-in at this address, then promptly withdrew the complaint.

Was that the son, Luca?

He's a good kid.

Did you see him last night?

Briefly.

He's on the rota, but everyone knows there's only one reason that Luca turns up for a shift.

Julia kids herself that she's molding him in her image, but when I cashed up at the end of the night, we were 50 quid short.

It rained yesterday afternoon, so we can assume these footprints are fresh.

Size eights.

From the pattern on the sole, Adidas Superstars.

I know my trainers.

[Camera shutter clicks] Max: Tracks end at the fence.

So that's the likely point of access.

Officers have searched the neighbor's garden but didn't find anything.

Mm.

The neighbor confirmed the car reversed out.

Then whoever's blood that is on the driveway didn't get in behind the wheel.

We have a third party.

And a possible kidnapping or abduction.

♪♪ Look, Luca dotes on Robyn.

He wouldn't hurt her.

Luca's got quite the collection of trainers.

Can you sign here, please?

Thank you.

We'll return them as soon as we can.

Do you know where he's staying now?

After Robyn reported the break-in, how did Luca react?

Well, he was angry, but [sighs] they made up after he returned the watch he stole.

It was one I gave Robyn for our anniversary.

His number's unavailable.

Shows how far we've fallen.

We need to speak to him.

You could try Nix.

She might know where he is.

Nix?

Nicola Greaves, our junior chef.

She and Luca have an on-off thing.

And what about Luca's father?

Uh...David Westbury.

Is he still on the scene?

Why are you asking about David?

Your neighbor mentioned him.

I haven't seen or spoken to David since he walked out 15 years ago.

For God's sake, a gossipy neighbor regurgitates a rumor and you take it seriously?

♪♪ ♪♪ [Alarm chirps] [Door opens and closes] Oh, sorry, I forgot to lock it.

We're not open yet.

DS Shamsie, DI Arnold.

Are you Nicola Greaves?

Uh, no.

Uh, Beth.

Beth Dalton.

Nix isn't in yet.

What's up?

Is she in trouble?

We want to talk to her.

We're investigating the disappearance of Robyn Romano.

[Laughs] Oh, God.

I thought you were joking.

What's happened?

There was an incident at the Romano house last night.

We need to speak to Luca Romano about it.

Oh, Luca.

Where there's trouble, he's never far behind.

Um, you wait here.

I'll go and call Nix.

♪♪ ♪♪ Julia Romano said you and Luca were an item.

Were.

We broke up last year.

When he's using, he's exhausting.

What's he take?

Nothing serious.

Did you see him last night?

Yeah, but thankfully, he rarely bothers to show up for a shift.

Did he used to talk to you about things at home?

[Chuckles] Oh, did he.

He was always moaning about his hard-knock life.

He was having problems?

Of his own making.

And last year, on his 21st, his mum offered him this place to take over, to manage, like.

I'd give my right arm.

But he turned it down.

Did Julia or Robyn pressure him to change his mind?

[Chuckles] Good luck with that.

Last night, did you see anything out of the ordinary?

No.

Oh, but Lanfranco, the delivery guy -- he's got the hump with Robyn.

She handed him his cards last week.

Either of you got a light?

No.

No.

Um, do you have a number for Luca?

Is this the only number you have?

It's the one he used when we were a thing.

Look, are we done?

I'm on prep this morning.

Oh, nice trainers.

Oh.

Thanks.

Louboutin?

La boot what?

Philistine.

It's nothing.

I turned up late a couple of times.

Robyn's given me till the end of this week to buck up or clear out.

Is it normal for her to borrow the van?

[Scoffs] She's the owner's missus.

Me -- lowly delivery driver.

If she wants to borrow the van, she borrows the van.

How did she seem?

Happy-go-lucky.

Robyn loves attention.

Probably what this is all about.

Attention.

-Not a fan?

-She's a gold-digger.

Your last delivery -- 23:02?

A stone's throw away from the Romano house.

Yeah, and the night before, I finished a street over.

Night before that, around the corner.

You must've been annoyed when Robyn fired you.

Oh, yeah, 'cause this is my dream job.

Lanfranco.

Are you a Romano?

No.

But you're Italian, right?

My old man was born in Milan.

Oh, Milan.

I love Milan.

Yeah.

What part?

Oh, uh... south.

Yeah, Jonno locked up after me, um, just before midnight.

What's the kitchen gossip, Beth?

You must all talk.

Does Robyn put anyone's back up?

Everybody gets on with Robyn.

I just wish she'd told me if there was something wrong.

Oh, bloody hell!

Sorry, sorry.

It's okay.

Has she talked to you about tensions at home?

Luca?

You know he steals from the till?

What about Robyn and Julia?

The harmonious Mrs.

and Mrs.

Romano?

No way.

Does the name David Westbury ever come up?

Julia's ex-husband?

It's before my time here, but, yeah, it's no secret.

♪♪ ♪♪ 23:19, Robyn's car was captured on CCTV, heading west on the Brompton Road, in the direction of the hospital.

It was not seen on the traffic cams on the hospital approach, though.

Then where did it go?

Well, from the Ealing mast data, it traveled along the A-40 to Uxbridge.

I've requested ANPR data.

What's that?

Is that our case?

Patrick Thompson?

Ah.

No.

It's Astrid's new fella.

I bumped into him outside hers and kind of accidentally ran his plates.

Using HOLMES to stalk the ex's new squeeze.

That's a good look, Max.

Jess: Okay, according to MPS, Julia Romano never reported her ex-husband missing.

I couldn't find any social media presence for him.

No updates to his HMRC records since October 2006.

What about immigration?

Nothing.

So he really did disappear?

In 2015, Julia Romano was granted a divorce in absentia.

She married Robyn three years later.

Jealous ex-husband turns up out of the blue 15 years later?

Hmm.

Or Robyn asked too many questions about him.

I mean, you saw Julia's reaction when I mentioned David Westbury.

Julia pushes Robyn into the window.

Robyn cuts herself on the glass, runs to the car, and escapes.

Blood on the ceiling.

So likely she was attacked first.

Julia carries her to the car, drives her to hospital, but she's too late.

Well, what time did the mast in Ealing last detect Robyn's phone?

Um, um, um... 23:48.

By which time, uniforms had been at the Romano residence speaking to Julia for 20 minutes.

We can't place Julia in that car.

Unless she had an accomplice.

[Cellphone rings] -Connor?

-Got it, boss.

Max: Got what?

From the door-to-door, a resident said a black Mini nearly ran him over on his way home from the pub.

You found the car?

Uh-huh.

Near Sheepcote Lane in Battersea.

Nobody inside, no visible drag marks or shoe prints.

Okay, full lift for forensic examination.

There's blood on the passenger seat.

Looks like the passenger started seated and then slid down.

This foot-mat's soaked through with water.

Looks like the driver wiped everything down.

[Sniffs] Lemon fresh.

Alpine Meadow.

Where are we on Luca?

Nix gave us the names of his mates, but none of them have seen him.

♪♪ Hair.

Found in the boot of the car.

Pulled out at the roots.

Lab results returned a match for Robyn Romano.

That was quick.

The boot of the Mini is too small to fit a body, so could be off the weapon.

When we removed the wet foot mat, we found this pendant.

Ran it through lab analysis but didn't pull anything useful off it.

But we spotted something under the wiper.

Hold on.

What was the cut you made?

-Hmm?

-That Jess mentioned.

You can't remember my kid's name, but you remember that.

[Chuckles] You made the team.

-Yeah.

-Great.

Not great?

Veteran?

Well, if you were a footballer, 40 is... still young.

No.

I thought windscreen, could be the corner of a flyer.

But it's a parking ticket.

♪♪ Priya: Mrs.

Romano, thank you for coming.

So I guess you've seen it, too, then.

Seen what?

The e-mail.

What e-mail?

Oh, it came through about an hour ago.

It -- It's from Robyn.

"Don't worry, I'm okay.

I'm so sorry.

What a mess.

I can explain everything.

Cremorne Gardens, tomorrow at 10:00 a.m.

Come alone."

Does anyone else have access to Robyn's e-mail?

Nobody.

I certainly don't.

Mrs.

Romano, we have some news.

We found your car, left in Battersea.

There was no sign of Robyn.

But we have to inform you that we found blood and hair inside the car.

Oh, God.

And preliminary tests suggest that both it and the samples taken from your house are a match.

It's Robyn's.

But... But you think she's s-still alive?

We don't know.

This was found on the floor of the car.

Do you recognize it?

No.

I've been building a picture of Robyn's movements yesterday.

It looks like she was at the restaurant until around 3:00 p.m., then drove to Hammersmith.

Do you know what she was doing there?

She's been being secretive all week, but there's an innocent explanation.

Next week is my 50th birthday.

I think Robyn's been planning something.

Your car was also driven to Uxbridge last night.

Is there any reason why Robyn or Luca would travel there?

♪♪ I don't... According to Robyn's Internet search history, she was trying to track down your ex-husband.

What?

Did you know that?

No.

♪♪ Max, I've checked the financials for Robyn Romano.

The restaurant had a bumpy few years, but it's back in the black now.

Enough to warrant a kidnapping?

No, but Robyn Romano's savings account.

Last November, she deposited £300,000 into it, only it didn't stay for long.

Over four months, there were multiple payments, all via PayPal, Payoneer, Google Pay Send, Western Union.

So no way to trace the recipient or recipients.

Random amounts, too.

A few thousand here, a few hundred there.

300 grand.

Where's that from?

Fraud are helping me trace it.

Boss, got a hit on that parking ticket.

Issued from a private firm by an over-eager operative of CPA Parking at a quarter past midnight, in a car park near Uxbridge.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ There's no cameras on the approach road.

There's blood.

It goes into the woods.

We better get a search team.

♪♪ [Camera shutter clicks] What I wouldn't give for an innocent explanation.

Hmm.

Maybe tomorrow morning, Robyn will turn up to meet Julia with a brilliant excuse.

[Chuckles] Ever the optimist.

[Chuckles] Yeah.

♪♪ ♪♪ The foot well in the Mini was saturated.

Yeah, soaked through.

We passed a lake on the way here.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ So who wrote that e-mail?

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ Can I see her?

Of course.

We'll be in touch as soon as we can arrange it.

I need to let people know.

Mrs.

Romano, I'm sorry to ask this, but could we keep this between ourselves for a while longer?

What?

Well, we know the e-mail came from Robyn's phone.

It was reactivated briefly earlier today.

It pinged the mast at Chelsea Wharf.

And if there's a chance, no matter how small, that whoever sent it might still show up tomorrow... Whatever I can do.

Thank you.

There's something else, but if you'd rather we, um... Go ahead.

Ask what you need to ask.

Looking in to Robyn's financial history, someone transferred £300,000 in to her savings account last November.

Robyn used to co-own a PR firm, Hillside PR.

M-Maybe it was a-a windfall.

All but 5,000 was transferred out.

Do you know where?

I have no idea.

We kept our finances separate.

I didn't keep track of her spending.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [Thudding] Hello?

Whoever's up there, I've called the police!

♪♪ Bloody hell.

Nearly gave me a heart attack.

What are you doing?

Nothing.

Did you call the police?

No, but they're looking for you.

Okay, they think you were at the house on Friday night.

Were you?

Luca, did you have something to do with Robyn going missing?

-Is that what Mum thinks?

-Your mother is in bits.

Let her think what she wants.

Don't tell anyone I was here.

Wait.

Wait.

Wait.

Wait.

Come here.

You be careful.

Okay?

-Thanks.

-Go on.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ That was my first foray into publishing.

We printed those little recipe books ourselves.

Me and Luca stapling pages in the kitchen.

We sold them to customers for £5 a pop.

You signed my copy.

Did I?

Huh.

Max: Why here?

This is one of our favorite places.

The cruelty in sending that e-mail... It's time.

Are you all right?

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ Won't they know we've found the body?

Press office are sitting on it until 6:00.

Do we know what Robyn was doing in Hammersmith the day she died?

Anything come from the door-to-door?

We canvassed the cafes just in case Robyn was meeting someone there, but no one saw her.

♪♪ [Cellphone chimes] Sorry.

I thought my phone was on silent.

Girlfriend placing her takeaway order for tonight.

[Chuckles] How is Becky?

Yeah.

Really good.

Thanks.

It's Helen.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ Julia Romano?

That's it go.

Go.

I'm sorry.

This is for David.

David?

Police!

Remove your hand from your bag.

-What's going on?!

-Step away.

-What are you doing?

-She said "David".

My husband.

I just bought it for my husband's birthday, I was gonna ask her to sign it.

♪♪ -Our apologies, madam.

-Yeah, unbelievable.

That e-mail.

It was meant to get her out of the house.

♪♪ ♪♪ Police!

If anyone is in here, make yourself known!

♪♪ The door panel's been ripped off.

Ground floor's clear.

There's jewelry and cash upstairs that hasn't been taken.

Is anything in here missing or out of place?

No.

I'll get a team in, check for prints.

[ Line ringing ] In the park, you thought that woman was delivering a message from your ex-husband, David.

I panicked.

That's all.

It was all her idea.

The book.

Making us famous.

I hired her to find a way to save the restaurant, but I quickly fell in love with her.

She was brilliant.

She saved more than the restaurant.

I hope she knew that.

I'm sure she did.

Thank you.

If I think of anything, I'll let you know.

Of course.

♪♪ ♪♪ Robyn: Ciao.

This is Robyn Romano.

Please leave a message after the beep, and I'll get back to you pronto.

[ Beep ] Ciao.

This is Robyn Romano.

Please leave a message after the beep, and I'll get back to you pronto.

[Sobs] [Siren chirps] The water's probably washed away our chances of getting useful fibers or DNA.

How long was she in there?

Very little in the way of skin changes.

Not too long, maybe 6 to 12 hours.

Any water in the lungs?

Dead before she went in.

Small mercies.

Front temporal fracture.

Caused by blunt trauma with a heavy object.

Any idea what?

Ashley, I said any idea -- I heard.

This is my concentration face.

There's a patterned bruise in the skin overlying the fracture, small indentations close together, like dimples.

I've never been in your kitchen, but I imagine you don't own one.

Incredibly presumptuous.

Actually... "Actually"?

My kids say it just like that before they make something up.

Actually, Astrid had one.

Well, we didn't find one in our search of the house.

That's what killed Mrs.

Romano here?

Cerebral contusions.

Severe extradural hemorrhage.

-Four, right?

-Four what?

Kids.

When I left this morning.

Love them to bits, but thank God I have an off switch.

[Chuckles] And are they, um -- No.

Not one of them.

What are the odds?

Sorry.

I thought you meant -- [Chuckles] Oh, no.

Are they boys or girls?

Oh, sorry, yes.

Four boys.

What are the odds, eh?

Ashley, just to be clear, we are talking about one of those hammers you use on steaks, right?

♪♪ Ciao, food lovers.

Mrs.

Romano here.

Tonight is the launch party for our new cookbook.

Ciao, food lovers!

Ciao, food lovers.

Ciao, food lovers!

Is your volume button broken?

Cookbook.

♪♪ ♪♪ Max: The murder weapon.

Mm.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪