(upbeat rockabilly music) (upbeat rockabilly music continues) - Unbelievable.

Fat lot of good you are, mate.

(upbeat rockabilly music continues) Bastards!

(upbeat rockabilly music continues) Come here, you bastards!

(upbeat rockabilly music continues) (people arguing indistinctly) (birds twittering) (slow music) (slow music continues) - Target locked in.

- Fire!

(pellet pops) Reckon you got him?

Awesome.

- Reload.

- Surrender!

- Surrender, or you'll get another one!

(tense music) - Wait, is that... (intense music) - Run for it, bro!

Run!

(intense music) (title crackling) (grim music) (camera shutter clicking) I only shot him once.

Honest.

- We didn't know it was Mr. Henderson.

- Not that that would've killed him.

- Oh, we'll have to leave that to forensics.

- Hey, obviously they thought it was an actual scarecrow.

- I'm sure.

- It's all good, boys.

Ka pai.

- You're not just spooking the birds, Philip.

Let's hope you were already dead before they tied you up there like that.

- I think he was dead, yes, before he was tied to the stake.

- So, what killed you, Philip?

- I will answer that in good time, Mike.

- Gina, I was talking to him.

- Not to mention who.

- That's your job, not mine.

- Oh, just saying.

- What?

- What?

- You're just saying what?

- Nothing.

- I thought so.

(camera shutter clicking) - Follow me.

- Have you, uh, checked him out yet?

- [Sims] Doug Randall?

- Mm.

Him and his loco missus.

Pretty porangi.

You know what I mean?

- You all right there, Tamati?

- Oh, are you okay there, Doug?

- You have some information that might be relevant?

- Yeah, maybe.

But not here.

Don't wanna put myself or my kids in harm's way, do I?

- Yeah, oh, you should get them home.

I'll be by later for a witness statement.

Thanks, guys.

- Let's go.

- They'll be quad bike tracks, I reckon.

- Yeah.

(light music) (camera shutter clicking) - Key's still in the ignition.

- Make sure the whole area remains cordoned.

Get forensics all over it.

Let's check the house.

(footsteps plodding) (camera shutter clicking) I remember Philip from the Dunn case.

Bit of a player if I recall rightly.

- You might be surprised.

- [Shepherd] You know her.

- Dahlia Freyberg.

She owns the Sage Locust.

- Oh, the raw foods place.

Hmm.

- Yeah.

I think she stole his heart.

She'll be devastated.

- [Shepherd] Last supper.

- Or breakfast.

- [Shepherd] He made his own honey.

- No signs of a struggle or distress.

- Oh.

Finally, family.

Was he a twin?

- Hmm.

(upbeat music) So he could have been dead before he was tied to the stake.

- According to Gina's initial thoughts, yes.

- Therefore his death could have been accidental?

- Yes, but nothing about that suggests accidental.

- So until we know exactly what killed him, we're treating this as a homicide?

- Absolutely, because whoever trussed him up like that was sending a message.

- The occupational risks of being a scarecrow?

- Generally a very high mortality rate.

That much we know.

But, for whom was that message intended?

- Well, other than the birds, who else was gonna notice a scarecrow?

- Nobody but a neighbor.

- [Breen] The father of the kids who found Philip?

- Mm.

He indicated he had some information to share about Philip's neighbor on the other side.

Doug Randall.

- Information?

- He wouldn't talk to me in front of Doug.

He was worried about Doug and his quote, "loco," wife.

Trudy Neilson is the publican of the Toad & Lion.

- Ray Neilson's sister?

- Oh, scariest mine host I've ever met.

- Mm, tough nut, all right.

- [Breen] What does Doug see in her?

- Mm, question might be, what does Trudy see in Doug?

- Waiting for him to die, inherit the farm?

Classic gold digger.

- Mm, I'm having trouble seeing Doug Randall as a gold mine.

- Okay, tomorrow I should get time of death, if not cause, out of Gina.

Talk to Tamati, see what he's on about.

Background the deceased.

Who stands to profit from Philip's demise might be a question worth asking.

Who inherits his property?

Does he have any family still alive?

Ex-wife, partner, children, twin brother, sisters?

- Right.

What about this?

Fishing line, I reckon, when it's not being used to tie corpses to stakes.

- Surf casting or fly?

Who makes it?

And ask them for any DNA on them?

♪ Every time I think of you, you get a little smaller ♪ ♪ Sun's getting lower and the shadows getting taller ♪ - All I know is there was a major disagreement between Doug and Philip the day before Philip was found.

- [Sims] How major?

- Major.

If it was less than major, I probably would've said minor.

- Okay.

- [Tamati] Suppose you wanna know what it was about.

- That would be helpful.

- Well, I didn't hear it myself.

- Who did?

- [Tamati] He wouldn't thank me for saying.

- So, not your wife, then.

- Oh, no.

My wife's dead.

- Oh.

Okay, did your witness say what the disagreement was about?

- No.

Could've been any number of things, though.

Was a lot of raru go down here, just quietly.

- Raru?

- Yeah, disagreements, agro.

- [Sims] What about?

- Stuff.

- Can you be more specific?

- Yeah.

I'm not going to, though.

Too much to lose.

- [Sims] (sighs) Was there a bad blood between Philip Henderson and Doug Randall?

- Yeah, you could say that.

- What about between you and Philip Henderson?

- Oh, no.

Philip wasn't the problem.

- Who was?

- Look, I've probably said enough.

Like I said, there's too much to lose.

- Well, I really need to know.

- Well, I think you'll get a shock.

- Try me.

- No.

When I connect this here to that fence, that wire you're leaning on is gonna give you a shock.

- Right.

- I'm gonna move my stock, so, uh... - [Sims] Yeah, well, I'd like to pick this up later.

- Yeah, sure.

Knock yourself out.

I'm not going anywhere.

- Is there any bad blood between you and Doug Randall?

(intense music) - [Shepherd] He was poisoned?

- The indications are there.

Whether it was deliberate, I don't know.

He might have ingested a toxin of some kind.

- You mean something he ate?

- [Kadinsky] Maybe.

- And then tied himself to the stake, and made out like he was a scarecrow.

- That depends how badly and how quickly he was incapacitated by the toxin.

- That was a joke.

- I know.

Don't give up your day job, Mike.

The life of a comic is hard.

In Russia, it's a fine line between comedy and death.

Most comedians end up in jail.

- What kind of toxins?

- I'll send blood and tissue samples to the lab and we'll wait for the toxicology report.

- Time of death?

- Difficult to say precisely.

- Yeah, but roughly.

- Judging by his stomach contents, no less than eight hours before he was discovered.

- And as much as?

- Hm, perhaps 24 hours.

- What was in his stomach?

- [Kadinsky] It looked like bread, whole-grain, and quite a lot.

If toxins didn't kill him, then maybe too much fiber.

(cellphone ringing) - Sims.

- Well, Tamati Taylor says that Doug Randall and Trudy Neilson are the neighbors from hell.

- They should be called the Vandals, not the Randalls.

- Why?

What'd they do?

- They're selfish.

They take advantage of whatever's around, whatever situation.

- Take advantage, like?

- Well, they stole my damn queen!

- What?

- I keep bees.

Look, those two are made for each other.

Doug and Trudy.

The toxic twosome.

- He said that?

Called them the toxic twosome?

- Yeah.

Why?

- Gina's preliminary finding was cause of death was poison.

- Hmm.

Okay.

Well, Tamati says that Philip had a heated argument with Doug Randall later that afternoon, around four-ish, the day before he died.

- What about?

- Tamati didn't see it.

But he knows someone who did.

Who was the witness, Tamati?

Look, we can do this down at the station if you like.

- My nephew heard something.

He was fixing a water pump over by the boundary fence.

Kahu.

- Kahu Taylor?

Get onto him.

(light music) - Smoko.

- Hey?

(light music) Detective Sims - Kahu.

We meet again.

Uh, your Uncle Tamati suggested that I talk to you.

- Did you bring baking?

- No.

- Well, you should learn the true definition of smoko.

You wanna chuck the jug on.

Owner said it's cool.

I'll clean up.

That's quite a talent you have.

- What?

- Making instant coffee taste like tea.

- It's coffee.

- Right.

- I used coffee, definitely.

- If you say so.

- Tastes fine to me.

- Yeah, no, all good.

Can't wait to try your baking.

- I don't bake.

It's not my thing.

- Me neither.

- So, your Uncle Tamati said that you were working on the boundary water pump when you saw Philip Henderson and the Randalls having some sort of disagreement.

- It's got nothing to do with me.

- What'd you see and hear, Kahu?

- Okay, I couldn't hear everything but it was pretty serious.

- [Philip] Come here, you bastards!

- [Kahu] Philip was yelling at Doug and Trudy.

"Bastards!

You bastards!"

- [Sims] What was the argument about?

- I'm not totally sure.

Then Doug got out of the passenger side of the ute, and he's right up in Philip's face.

Doug and Philip looked like they were about to have a real go, until Trudy yelled at Doug to get in.

And then Trudy threatened to run Philip over.

- You're sure?

- Yeah, that bit I heard all right.

- You back off, pencil neck, or you'll be roadkill!

- Roadkill?

- Next thing he's dead, right?

(intense music) - Philip's only next of kin is a brother, Thomas.

Lives in the city.

Put a call through, he'd already been notified.

- By who?

- Don't know.

Didn't say.

But he's on the way.

- Okay, so Gina is putting time of death at between 8 and 24 hours before he was found.

That means he died anytime between that fight with Doug and say, I don't know, breakfast the next morning.

- Which it looks as if he might have eaten.

Dishes in the sink.

Toast.

- So we need to find out what Philip's movements were over that period.

- Late that night and early next morning.

- Shouldn't be difficult.

- Meaning?

- Lived alone but never lonely, if you get my drift.

- Actually, he had a proper girlfriend.

- What?

Not you?

- Not me, as it happens, but a friend who was very close to Philip.

- Who?

- Dahlia Freyberg.

Runs the Sage Locust.

- Oh, raw foods.

Lettuce burgers and quinoa tea.

- I'll follow up with her.

- Uh, we also need to interview Doug Randall and Trudy Neilson, see if we can find out what that argument was about.

- Yeah, and whether or not she made that threat.

- Bring them in?

- No.

Keep it casual.

Interview them separately and compare notes.

- Begs not do Trudy.

- Why?

She give you the collywobbles?

- Sorry, colly what?

- Doesn't matter.

Get to it.

- Collywobbles.

♪ The first man ♪ ♪ That I ever loved was ♪ ♪ The first man ♪ - Hey, Dahlia, it's me, I'm outside.

- Hey.

♪ The first time ♪ ♪ That I cried ♪ - Come in.

- Thanks.

♪ The very first tear ♪ ♪ He was here ♪ - Kombucha okay?

This one's brewed with water from an island in Patagonia.

- Thanks.

Mmm.

Wow.

Ah...

So, how are you holding up?

- Yeah, I'm okay.

Well, not okay.

Pretty awful, to be honest.

You know, I, I believe everything happens for a reason.

I really do, but this... - Dahlia, I'm so sorry.

- Yeah.

Yeah, and just when Philip was ready to settle down.

We had all these plans.

- H-how long had you two been- - Eight months.

But it was serious.

We even had rings made as a sign of our commitment.

- [Sims] Oh.

That's beautiful.

- His is identical.

You know, we weren't into that whole engagement thing.

- Dahlia, um, I know this is hard, but to figure out what happened to Philip, we need to trace what his movements were the night before he was found.

(Dahlia exhales and clears throat) - He was here with me.

We, um, closed the doors and pulled the curtains and had a little celebratory dinner.

- [Sims] Celebrating?

- It looked like the investment money was in place.

- Investment in?

- For our online organics store that Philip would exclusively supply.

So we shared dinner and a bottle of Philip's wine.

(both laughing) - Um, this is a little bit awkward, but we think that Philip might have been poisoned.

- No way.

Philip treated his body like a temple.

- I know, but the, the dinner that you two- - It was just a salad, some leftovers from the café, and still fresh.

Wait, what are you implying?

- We have to look at everything.

- Well, I had exactly the same meal.

And, and he didn't show any signs of being ill during the night.

Far from it.

Philip was an incredible lover.

- Right.

So Philip stayed the night here with you?

- Yes, upstairs in the apartment.

And left, uh, just before dawn the next day to go back to the farm.

He, um, he always started early.

Someone must have been waiting for him there.

(intense music) Philip loved me.

He really did.

- If Philip ingested poison, it was unlikely to come from the dinner he shared with Dahlia.

He stayed the night with her and showed no ill effects.

- Performance uninhibited?

- Yeah, far from it, apparently.

If he was poisoned, it must have been something he had for breakfast.

- We're waiting on toxicology reports from Philip's house.

I might take another look, see if there's anything we missed.

- Okay.

(light music) (tense music) - Just having a snoop, are we?

- Thought we could have a chat about your neighbor.

(Doug sighs) - The gentleman farmer now deceased.

Had as little to do with him as possible.

- But you did have an argument with him the day before he died.

- Where'd you hear that?

- Did you or didn't you?

- I can see where this is going.

I have a go at Henderson, the next thing he's found dead, and I'm to be accused of offing him.

- So it did happen.

- [Doug] We had words.

- What words?

- Accused me of damaging his crops.

- [Breen] How?

- [Trudy] What the hell do you want?

- Your bloody spray drift is ruining my crops!

- [Doug] Oh, yeah?

Prove it!

- You're gonna cost me my organic certification.

How the hell am I expected to make a bloody living?

- Is that why you haven't paid your tab at the pub?

- No, that's 'cause you're ripping me off, you- - Watch what you say to the missus, mate!

Bloody nerve.

I've got every right to look after my land and try and earn a bloody living too.

- So what did you spray?

- Haven't sprayed anything yet.

Not this season.

Intending to.

- Did you tell Philip that?

- Don't owe that ponce an explanation.

- Not now he's dead, for sure.

But why let him think it was you who did it?

- I don't give a stuff what he thought.

- Right.

- If there was spray drift, it could have come from anywhere within three or four K's of here.

Depends on the wind.

- [Breen] He was angry?

- He was frothing.

- But you got out of the car and confronted him.

- Where you getting all this?

- [Breen] Does it matter?

- No, 'cause that's all you're getting out of me.

- What's that?

- That's Trudes' domain.

You want to go in there, ask her permission.

- No need to bother her.

Quick look?

- You got a warrant?

- [Breen] I'll get one.

(grim music) - She keeps a few hives.

Bit of a hobby.

- [Breen] You leave the hives to her?

- Well, it gives her an interest, me a chance to have a breather, if you know what I mean.

- Sorry?

Oh.

- [Doug] You got a good woman, have you, son?

- Yes.

- Oh.

Lucky men, then, aren't we?

- Well... - Birds and the bees.

Some things in life never change.

- Can we just stick to the bees?

- Bees, yeah.

People think they're easy.

Well, they're not.

Prefer animals myself.

- [Breen] What's special about this one?

- I don't know.

Have to ask Trudes.

Maybe it's dodgy or not manuka.

She's always on at me about manuka.

Lowers my cholesterol, and all that nonsense.

Still, not bad in whiskey.

- The real deal.

Yeah.

It's actually a great sideline for Trudes.

God knows she hasn't taken to much else around the farm.

- No?

- No.

She's hard yakka, this land.

Got to work for every bloody cent.

- So Philip Henderson was really up against it?

- He wasn't a farmer.

- What was he?

- He was a bloody townie who dabbled.

Wouldn't know a farm from a hole in the ground.

♪ If you're feeling lonely, if you're feeling blue ♪ ♪ Mama's got a sweet thing back at home for you ♪ ♪ I'll be your honey ♪ (bell dings) ♪ I'll be your honey, girl ♪ (footsteps tapping) - Great healing properties.

You look as though you could do with some.

- Thanks.

- What can I do you for?

- Um... - Thanks, Trudy.

- [Trudy] No worries, Larry.

- I, I'd just like to ask you some questions.

- I'd like to win the Lotto.

(cellphone ringing) - It won't take long.

- Dunnies to clean.

Yeah?

Right.

Okay.

Thanks, sweetheart, bye.

That was Dougie.

Those questions of yours, he's just fielded them from your offsider.

- Well, I need your confirmation.

- Then I'll confirm there's nothing more to say.

- But... - Dougie and me don't boil our cabbage twice.

- Smile, Detective.

Only happy punters leave the Toad & Lion.

It's an aspirational experience.

- Your sister's walking a fine line, Ray.

- Oh?

What's she done?

- It's more about what she hasn't done.

She just needs to help us with our inquiries.

We're not the bad guys here.

- Look, all that macabre stuff happening to her neighbor, helluva stressful.

It's enough to put even a tough nut like Trudy on edge.

Let me talk to her.

Her bark's worse than her bite.

Honest.

Most of the time.

- What I meant to say was that Dougie's a real straight shooter, and I endorse everything he told you.

- I understand that you made threats against Philip Henderson that day on your driveway.

"Back off, pencil neck, or you'll be roadkill."

- You didn't get that from Dougie.

- Is it true?

- I just wanted him out of our face.

He was never in any danger.

He was on our land, blocking our driveway, making false accusations.

- About what?

- I'm confirming everything Dougie told you, okay?

Now, that's it.

I've got work to do.

- That's fair enough, isn't it?

(intense music) (vehicle engine purring) (grim music) (birds chirping) - You must be Philip's brother.

- Easy deduction to make, even for a detective.

I assume that's what your business is here.

- D.S.S.

Mike Shepherd.

- Thomas Henderson.

- Unfortunately, Thomas, forensics haven't finished with the house yet.

- Ah, okay.

I'll get a room in Riverstone.

- Uh, Brokenwood's closer.

- They have hotels in Brokenwood?

- And electricity, television.

Running water, even.

I take it you didn't spend much time visiting your brother here.

- No.

Well, I never got it.

- [Shepherd] Got what?

- Philip shucking the city, moving here, this whole farming thing.

Same genetics, me and him.

- Well, obviously.

- Same nurture, same school, identical degrees in commerce.

Here he was, moldering away in the wops.

(chuckling) Going organic.

- While you?

- Me?

- What do you do?

Tom, is it?

- No, never Tom.

Always Thomas.

- So, Thomas, what do you do?

- I am a matchmaker.

I work in finance.

I bring parties to tables, put deals together.

Make people happy.

- [Shepherd] Sounds rewarding.

- Very.

- How did you find out about Philip's demise?

- His girlfriend at the organic cafe, Delia.

- Dahlia.

- She rang me.

- Yesterday?

- Yeah, well, I had, uh, some loose ends to take care of, but I came as soon as I could.

So I'm here to take care of affairs.

Apparently there's some kind of memorial, and, uh... - And?

- I'll do what I have to do.

- I understand you're his only next of kin.

- We didn't have much time for each other, but there was no one else.

- Do you want to see him?

- Philip?

- His body's at the morgue.

- Do I have to?

- No, we have adequate I.D.

- Well, then, I think I will pass.

Be like looking at myself, dead.

♪ Sweet darling, without you ♪ ♪ It's such a lonely town ♪ - Thank you all so much for coming to remember Philip.

Unfortunately he can't be here in body because the pathologist is still determining cause of death, but I'm sure he's here in spirit.

Oh, my God.

- [Hemi] It's like his ghost.

- Shh, respect, boys.

- Oh, sorry, I'm Philip's brother.

Hi, I'm Thomas.

- Oh, my God, I...

I, I mean, Philip never said that...

I, I, he said that you were twins, but o-on the phone you sounded so different, and I, I didn't realize... - We're identical, yeah.

I'm sorry, I, I know it can be confronting.

- No, I'm sorry, you should, uh,... - Oh, no, no, no, please, please, you continue.

- Uh... Philip was considerate and, and kind.

(Dahlia sobbing) - Ah, look, now's probably a good time if anyone else has got anything to say, feel free.

(Doug clears throat) - Uh, Philip and I didn't exactly see eye to eye, but he was a neighbor and if neighbors don't look out for each other, what have we got?

Oh, a-anyway, on that note, I'd just like to say that, uh, Trudes has invited everyone down to the Toad & Lion for a bit of a wake, and, uh, Mrs. Marlowe over here has, uh, whipped up some, uh, cheese rolls.

So if, um, anyone feels like a beer, uh, come on down.

Everyone's welcome.

- Pigeon beats lentils down at the Sage Locust.

They're just trying to get Philip's tab paid off by his flash brother.

- Have a heart, Taylor.

The man's bloody dead.

- Dahlia, um, I'm sure it wouldn't be a problem if I retrieved Philip's ring from the mortuary.

I could check it out with Thomas.

- No!

- [Sims] Okay, it's no problem.

- Sorry, it's just I... Well, I think it would be wrong to take it from him, even in death.

Uh, can I grab a lift with you to the wake?

- Yeah, sure.

- Thanks.

- I must say I'm very surprised to see that man here.

I mean, would you attend the funeral of someone you'd so publicly attacked?

- Really?

- At the Riverstone farmers market this last weekend.

- You're doing a roaring trade.

- Can't complain.

- [Sinclair] You're saying all this honey is organically grown, are you?

- Yes, sir.

- Well, does that mean that every flower the bees alight on is organic?

Is that how it works?

- Yes, sir, it is.

- How do the bees know which manuka flowers are organic?

- Sir, my farm is organically certified, as you well know.

- Ah.

So these bees, they know which trees are on your land, do they?

- What exactly are you trying to say?

- Bees can forage for up to three kilometers, and, I mean, can you guarantee that they're not going off your land onto, say, a neighbor's non-organic manuka?

- Philip said, "As you well know," so he knew him?

- Oh, yes.

I'm certain they'd come across each other before.

It's, um, true, though?

- What?

- That Philip Henderson was hung, drawn, and quartered.

- Not exactly.

- Oh.

Oh, well, that's a relief, really.

Would be a bit messy.

- [Shepherd] Mm.

- Polyethylene, Dacron, and Dyneema, also known as UHMWPE.

It's a monofilament made for fly-fishing.

- Any DNA material?

- Too early yet, but, uh, blood and scales were evident.

From brown trout, probably.

- Did Philip fish?

- Don't know.

But I know who does.

(grim music) The line I saw looked just like that one.

- Bring him in.

Doug needs to explain his movements in detail.

He's at Henderson's wake.

You're not heading down?

- Ah, Sims is on it.

- You lost something?

- Yeah, just looking for a message from a dead man's finger.

- [Breen] Mm.

- You might want to slow down a bit.

- Why?

I hate this place.

You know, she never made us feel welcome here.

She always spoke to us as if she had a mouth full of barbed wire.

- I don't think you're alone in that.

- She seemed to have something against Philip.

- Mm, I heard mention of an unpaid bar tab.

- Disputed, not unpaid.

- Over?

- Doug's spray drift wreaked havoc.

The unpaid tab was a point of principle.

It was small change compared to the cost to Philip.

Now look at her.

Playing Miss Generous and sucking up to Thomas and that shark, Sinclair.

- Dahlia.

- You know, I was trying not to talk business out of respect for Philip, but if you're talking to him and, and our competition, then I won't be left out.

- Dahlia, please, I'm sorry.

I thought it was crystal clear.

- What?

- Philip is dead.

There is no our.

- Yes, but you own the farm.

I can help you manage it, and we can still do the online organics store.

- Dahlia, I work in finance.

I have absolutely no interest in farming.

- Hey.

- Hey.

- Another beer, gents?

- Thank you.

- Here's trouble.

- Doug about?

- Was.

Gone.

- Back to the farm?

- Maybe.

- Bastards!

- Okay, why don't I make you a coffee?

- Kristin, you're a good friend, but you make terrible coffee.

I made the mistake of thinking that because Thomas looks like Philip, he was a nice guy.

But instead he's double-crossing me with Corporate Honey.

- Larry Sinclair?

- How can two men who look the same be so different?

(Dahlia sobbing) - Here.

(Dahlia sobbing) (Sims exhales) (grim music) - I want to know what happened to Philip.

Who killed him?

What killed him?

Why?

(light upbeat music) (light upbeat music continues) - [Breen] I'd like to give that a try one day.

- It's great for the soul.

Well, it was, until you turned up.

Guess you didn't realize it was the first day off in six months.

- Apologies.

What kind of line do you use?

- Leader or trace?

- Uh, the main one, I guess.

- Why would you want to know that?

- Say I wanted to try.

- Well, you'd go for monofilament, not fluorocarbon.

Mono's easier to cast.

- Handy to know.

- I didn't come down in the last shower, son.

You're into fishing, all right.

Not for the fish.

- A monofilament line was used to tie Philip to the stake.

Do you mind coming down to the station?

- Wouldn't matter if I did mind, would it, son?

- No ring?

- [Shepherd] No ring.

- If Philip left Dahlia's that morning with the ring, then when his body was found there was no ring, then whoever has that ring now is either the killer or the last person to see Philip alive.

- Unless it's opportunistic.

Someone comes across Philip's body and lifted the ring.

- But who would do that?

- [Shepherd] More to the point, who might have an excuse to be on Philip's property that time of morning?

- I'll alert the pawnshop.

- Yeah, and Riverstone.

And Tahuna Point.

Whoever's got it may have more clues than to try and offload it in Brokenwood.

Do you have a picture of Dahlia's ring?

- I'll get one.

Actually, can we not tell Dahlia that Philip's ring's gone missing?

Just in the meantime?

She's feeling a little fragile, in grief over Philip's death, obviously.

But she's also feeling really frozen out by Thomas.

- Thomas?

- She had hopes that he might pick up the reins on the business partnership that she was setting up with Philip.

- And Thomas refused to play ball?

- Well, apparently he's already on-sold Philip's farm to Larry Sinclair.

- Interesting.

Mrs. Marlowe saw Sinclair disrupt Philip's stall at the Riverstone farmers market last weekend.

- [Sims] How?

- Oh, he publicly questioned Philip's organic status.

Therefore she was a bit shocked when he showed up to the memorial with Philip's brother.

- Yeah, they were as thick as thieves at the wake too.

- I might have a word with Larry Sinclair before he leaves town.

- Well, he's staying at the Toad & Lion, so, (cellphone ringing) good luck with that.

- Mike Shepherd.

Thomas.

(intense music) On my way.

(intense music continues) (intense music continues) Larry, Mike Shepherd.

- Ah.

The new owner of the farm.

- Gee, word travels fast.

Not actually me, though, uh, my company.

We don't own it yet.

There's probate.

Few i's to dot and t's to cross.

But if we did own it, I'd be concerned.

All these hives and a couple of dozen others on Philip's land have been stripped.

- [Shepherd] Stripped?

- Cleaned out.

All the honeycomb stolen.

It's akin to stealing liquid gold.

The honey from these hives is UMF 15 plus.

- In layman's terms?

- It's a combined rating of key markers like leptosperin, DHA, and methylglyoxal.

- Clears that up.

- The unique properties of manuka honey.

- Virtually the highest-rating manuka honey you can get.

- This manuka stand just happens to produce the most active honey in the world.

- [Sinclair] If it's the real deal, someone's gotten away with thousands of dollars.

- And yet you didn't seem that impressed with it when Philip was trying to sell it last weekend at the farmers market.

- My, aren't we well informed?

- Small-town gossip.

- But nevertheless true.

- It's a question of labeling, Detective.

Organic is irrelevant when it comes to manuka honey.

The important thing is its UMF rating, not whether it's organic.

- Philip never got that.

- But this is an organically certified farm.

Why shouldn't he sell his honey as organic?

- [Sinclair] Because there's also the question of accuracy.

This huge stand of manuka actually extends across the top end of three farms, and since bees can travel up to three kilometers in search of nectar, how could Philip be sure that his bees were making honey only from the manuka on his farm?

- He couldn't.

- It's not just a question of labeling, it's a question of ownership.

- So Philip's honey... - Was Doug Randall's honey.

- And equally... - Tamati Taylor's.

- [Sims] Sort of looks like this, and it's in gold.

- Hm.

Hand-tooled?

- I believe so.

- It's bespoke, slightly hippie, New Age.

Well, we don't deal with that sort of thing.

- Well, if it's come through, it's in a man's size.

- Yeah, that's unlikely.

- Why?

- Well, rings aren't really gender specific.

No, girth's more a question of flesh on the bone.

You're not keen on another ferret, are you?

I got a new shipment in, not too manky.

- That was a, a one-off.

- What about a "Xena: Warrior Princess" costume?

- I'm okay, thanks, Syd.

So, early to bed.

- [Doug] 9:30's hardly early for a farmer.

- After a whiskey-and-honey nightcap.

- Yeah, and out like a light.

Hey, can you just make a note that, uh, I brushed my teeth first?

- And you were out to the world until 5:30 in the morning?

- I may have had a pee.

- You didn't see your wife come home?

- Trudes is careful.

She knows I have to get up early.

Saw her for breakfast, though.

- And what time was that?

- Nine-ish.

Like to let her sleep in.

She finishes late at the pub.

- What time were you up and about?

- About 6:00.

- So between 6:00 and 9:00, did you leave the farm?

- No.

- Who can vouch for you?

- No one.

Not unless your name's Doctor Dolittle.

- Doctor who?

- Not him.

You know, the other one.

The one who talks to animals.

Would have been a few polled Angus.

Quite a few Romney would've seen me.

- No human contact.

- I can't afford that.

On my own out there.

So, we done?

Look, some bastard's obviously got it in for me.

- Some bastard had it in for Philip Henderson.

- If they think they can intimidate me off my farm, well, they've got another think coming.

- Who's they?

- I've said more than enough.

- Come on, Doug.

What the hell's going on here?

- None of your beeswax, son.

Look, I'm not the only fly-fisherman around Brokenwood who uses mono.

- Any idea where we might find some more of the stuff?

- Old Tamati Taylor.

He's a bloody master at nabbing all the best spots on the river.

Never caught as many as me, though.

Didn't bother to tie his own flies.

(light music) - We'll need corroboration from Trudy, I guess.

- I guess.

- I think she'd rather talk to a woman.

- I think you'd rather she didn't talk to you.

- True.

She gives me the collywobbles.

- Collywobbles?

- Yeah, it's something Mike said.

- Right.

When you and he were hanging out in the 1940s?

(light upbeat music) - Collywobbles.

♪ So I'm putting on a brave face ♪ ♪ Wearing a brave face ♪ ♪ Putting on my brave face today ♪ ♪ Yeah, I get out my brave face ♪ ♪ Wearing a brave face ♪ ♪ Putting on a brave face today ♪ (camera shutter clicks) ♪ Ooh, ooh ♪ - [Shepherd] That mask has been switched around.

- [Breen] So whoever stole the honey did so using Philip's gear.

- His hives were stripped by someone who was very familiar with the farm, who knew that no one would be there and that they wouldn't be disturbed.

- A neighbor?

- The same person who used the quad bike to shift Philip's body to the stake?

- Doug.

- But why would Doug kill Philip and then string him up using his own fishing line?

So he can steal his honey?

I'm not feeling it.

- Doug was adamant someone's setting him up.

- Who?

- Well, the person who made sure we knew about the altercation between Doug and Philip.

The person who, according to Doug, also fishes using monofilament line.

Tamati knew from Kahu that Trudy had made threats against Philip, an opportunity he took advantage of.

- Same question.

Why?

- Tamati said something peculiar.

- They should be called the Vandals, not the Randalls.

They stole my damn queen!

- If you've got the queen, you've got the whole hive.

So Tamati was basically accusing Doug of stealing his bees.

- An unholy trinity of apiarists.

- And neighbors.

- Honey wars?

- So if we find the stolen honey, do we find the killer?

- Tomorrow, Tamati deserves another visit.

(mid-tempo rock music) (mid-tempo rock music continues) Gina.

(vehicle door closes) - It really is a nice place you have here.

- Thanks.

- Very like Yasnaya Polyana.

- In Russia?

- Where Tolstoy wrote "War and Peace."

- Ah.

- I imagine you sit on your veranda and write too, yes?

- No, I don't.

- Maybe you should try it.

Poetry, Mike.

I think you have the heart of a poet.

- Poetry?

- Toxicology.

- Tutin?

What exactly is tutin?

- A toxin that comes from the tutu bush.

We don't have this plant in Russia.

Coriaria genus is a powerful antagonist of the glycine receptor.

- Please, Gina.

- It causes convulsions.

And sometimes, as in Philip Henderson's case, death.

- The tutu bush?

- Found in the New Zealand bush and historically has caused the odd death.

The last was in 1908.

But plenty of hospitalization and incapacitation.

- What, so all these people just wandering through the bush who decide to eat- - [Shepherd] All through eating toxic honey.

The tutu bush isn't toxic to bees.

So the bees take the nectar from the tutu flower - They can't tell the difference between manuka and tutu, and it all gets mixed in with the honey.

- Gina reckons the comb honey is the real danger.

Once it's processed, it might still be there, but it's so diffuse, it's usually harmless.

- So Philip's death could still be accidental?

- Could be.

But at least we know where to look now and what to look for.

Breen, have we got the analysis of Philip's jar of honey back yet?

- I'll give ESR the hurry-up.

- Well, I'm at Tamati's now.

Should I hold off?

- No.

Squeeze him.

(light music) (light music continues) - Hello?

- What now?

- [Sims] We're told you're a fly-fisherman.

- Oh.

Well, who'd have told you that?

- [Sims] Does it matter?

- Well, I haven't been fishing since Viv died.

Yeah, probably take it up again, you know, when the kids are old enough to enjoy it, but... - So have you still got your gear?

- Yeah.

Yeah, just, uh... Over here.

Here, knock yourself out.

Why the sudden interest?

- Philip was tied to the stake with fishing line.

- Oh.

And someone, guess who, told you that I do a bit of fishing, huh?

- Is this all of it?

- Yeah.

So what?

- [Sims] Is this both the same type of line?

- [Tamati] Well, I only use mono.

- And how long's it been since you've checked these?

- I don't know.

Years.

- [Sims] Well, this rod has a fly on it and the other doesn't, should it?

- Well, like I said, it's been years.

- [Sims] And this one's missing a decent amount of line.

You mind if I take these?

- Do I have a choice?

- Not really.

- Someone's trying to set me up here.

Doug Randall, he put you onto this, didn't he?

- You mentioned Doug stole your queen.

How do you know it was him?

- One day he's got no honey, right?

And then next thing, he's got plenty, just after my bees disappeared.

- Yeah, but how do you know one bee from the other?

- Well, he said they'd swarmed, you know, just turned up out of nowhere.

- Well, we need to know your exact movements the night before Philip was found and on that day.

- That's easy, I was here.

- [Sims] And we need to know whether or not you've been back to Philip's farm since the day his body was found.

- Why?

What happened?

- All of the honeycomb from Philip's hives has been stolen.

(grim music) - Hey!

- If they've done over Philip, then they've probably done me too.

- Who?

- So you want to talk?

Get on.

(engine turning and revving) (upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) What the... (soft tense music) Oh.

They're all dead.

Some bastard's gone and poisoned them!

- All of them?

(soft tense music) - Yeah, it's me.

Yeah, my hives are all dead.

Is that a deal breaker?

Yeah.

Okay.

Gods aren't smiling on us today.

- Who were you just talking to?

- Larry.

Larry Sinclair.

He's on his way up.

(soft tense music) - [Sinclair] Now, there's many reasons why hives die.

- So it might not be deliberate poisoning?

- Looks as if it was.

Petrol.

You see how there are no dead bees on the entrance ledge?

- [Shepherd] Meaning?

- They're all stacked up inside.

They couldn't get out.

Somebody's blocked off the exit, lifted off the lid, thrown in a cup or so of petrol, and then jammed the lid back down quick smart.

The fumes kill the bees in about five minutes.

- Poor bees.

- It's awful, actually.

The noise that the bees make within the hive is almost like a jet engine.

Then they suddenly stop.

- You have some experience?

- Some hives infected with the varroa mite.

Once they were dead, whoever it was removed the bung from the exit, moved on to the next hive.

- How long have they been dead?

- Well, it has to be done in the dark.

You have to make sure all the bees are back in the hive.

- So?

- Well, had to have happened last night.

Any longer, and the smell of petrol would be gone, overcome by the smell of rotting bees.

- Randall the vandal.

- Why?

- Well, he must have figured out that, you know, that I told you guys about that argument he had with Philip.

Yeah, Doug and Trudy, they're vindictive people.

As Philip found out.

- Well, how would Doug have gotten in here, even at night, without you seeing him go past your house?

- No, you don't need to go past my place to get in here.

There's lots of ways into this bush.

- We'll need a statement from you.

- Oh, come on!

Hey, I wouldn't kill my own bees!

- As tragic as this situation is, Tamati, it's not just about the bees.

(vehicle engine humming) - When you're ready.

I'll just arrange for Kahu to be here when the kids get back from school.

- Reckons he hasn't fished for years but confirms that when he did, he used monofilament.

- Interesting.

- This one has a decent amount of line missing.

- Okay.

Even more interesting.

- Looks the same.

We'd need ESR to make sure it's a match.

- I'd put money on it.

I had an interesting conversation with Larry Sinclair on the way up to the hives.

You said that Tamati called Sinclair when he discovered the dead hives.

- Yeah, my hives are all dead.

Is that a deal breaker?

- I asked Larry what sort of deal he had with Tamati.

- Sure, we have a deal with Tamati.

We've bought his farm, this farm, conditionally.

- Conditional on what?

- Well, conditional on our company completing the purchase of Philip Henderson's place.

At the time we entered into the arrangement with Tamati, Philip was adamant he wouldn't sell to us.

- Why was one sale dependent on the other?

- Tamati's farm by itself is no good to us.

- This is how it works.

This is Philip Henderson's property, bounded on one side by Tamati Taylor and Doug Randall and Trudy Neilson on the other.

And this is that big manuka stand that extends across and within all three properties.

The bees' only concern is the nectar, and they don't care who owns it.

So from Larry's point of view, he needed all three farms, or at least two of the three.

And with Philip's here in the middle, it had to be one of the two.

Problem was, Tamati was keen to sell, but Philip refused.

- As long as Philip refused to sell, Tamati had no sale.

- So Philip's death cleared the way for Tamati to sell his farm.

We were looking for motive.

Who profits from Philip's death?

- It's hard not to feel sorry for the guy.

Dead wife, dead bees.

- Waiting for the gods to smile.

I'll do it.

You had a deal to sell your farm to Sinclair Wholesome Limited, but only if Philip Henderson sold his farm to that company.

- Yes.

- [Sims] Was Sinclair offering a good price?

- Yeah, really good, considering my farm isn't really an economically viable unit.

It was okay when there was two of us, but since Viv died, it's been a bit of a struggle, you know?

- So you were keen for the sale to go through?

- No.

- No?

- No, I want to keep my land for my whanau, my boys.

- Then why offer to sell?

- Sometimes you got to do things you don't want to do.

- Like what, exactly?

The problem was Philip Henderson was standing in your way, wasn't he?

And you knew that once he was dead, the sale of his farm would go through.

- I didn't know that.

- And then you're sweet, right?

Because then your sale goes through too.

- Well, I can see how this might look- - Then you'll understand why we need to know exactly where you were the day that Philip was found and the night before that.

(Tamati clears throat) - Well, I generally go to bed pretty early, not long after the kids, 'cause I'm up at dawn.

- Did you leave the farm that night?

- Leave the kids asleep in their beds?

I couldn't do that.

- You said you were up at dawn.

- [Tamati] Yeah, but the kids are still asleep, so I never stray too far from the house.

- So no one can vouch for your movements?

- Guess not.

I don't see too many people on a regular basis, you know, day to day.

Generally get the kids up about 7:00, make breakfast, lunches, get them ready for school.

- When do they leave?

- They've got to be at the gate for the school bus by 8:00.

- After which point you're on your own again.

- Yeah.

- With no one to account for your movements until the kids got home from school.

- Yes.

- Is there, uh, anything you want to tell us?

- (clears throat) Yeah, there is.

- Go on.

- I might not be the, uh, perfect father, but I would never just bugger off out of sight of that house and leave my kids asleep in that tinder box.

I just wouldn't.

- That's it?

- Yeah.

Can I go now?

I've got Kahu waiting outside with the kids.

He's got to get to another job.

(door squeaking) - Kids are in my van, Uncle.

- Ka pai.

Catch you later, huh?

- Detective Sims.

This is for you.

For your smoko.

- I thought you said you didn't bake.

- Hidden talents.

It was a good thing to do with the nephews.

- Actually, believe it or not, I can't accept this.

It could be seen as bribery.

- (chuckles) You should try it first.

Might not be so much a bribe as a form of culinary torture.

The nephews were a bit random with the measurements.

- Well, I'll see if an exception can be made.

- You find out who poisoned my uncle's bees?

- [Sims] We're working on it.

- Busy as a bee.

- (chuckles) Something like that.

- You know, my Uncle Walter had bees too.

He told me this cool thing.

The average worker bee, the little lady buzzing around, hopping on all those flowers, she only makes a twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in her whole lifetime.

- Wow.

- Makes you think about quality over quantity, right?

And... - And?

- Just how you have to work hard in life to get the sweet stuff.

Another thing about bees, you know how they communicate?

- Uh, no, actually I don't.

- By dancing.

Cool, eh?

Do you like dancing?

- Ah... Y-Yeah.

- Good to know.

(door opens) (door closes) - Well?

- What?

- Tamati Taylor.

- Uh, yes, um... Well, we have him completely over a barrel.

Absolutely no corroboration about where he was or what he was doing.

Not a shred of help from anyone.

There's just one problem.

- He didn't do it?

- (sighs) He didn't do it.

- Gut feel over logic, eh?

Sometimes that's all we've got.

We asked the right question.

Who profits from Philip's death?

And we overlooked a couple of names.

Why pay someone market rates for something when you can just knock them off?

My gut feel is that Larry Sinclair's offer to buy those three farms somehow sparked Philip Henderson's death.

But just because he provided the pot of gold doesn't mean he's responsible for the actions of those trying to get their hands on it.

- You're letting him off the hook.

- Well, not yet.

Although he's been pretty transparent with us.

Larry told me that if his company completes the purchases, then all that land will be planted out in manuka.

- Source of liquid gold.

- Which means a lot more money in the future.

- You again?

- We're looking for one of your guests.

Thomas Henderson.

- Was here.

Gone.

- To?

(serene music) Yoga.

You ever try it?

- Yep.

Do wonders for you.

And Roxy.

- Really?

- Hey.

Hey, what's happened?

- Actually we're just here to talk to Thomas.

- Well, can't say I'm surprised.

- Oh, I'll, uh, drop by later for a kombucha.

- Great.

- Kombucha.

Seriously?

- Shut up.

- [Breen] (groans) No way.

(Sims clears throat) - How can I help?

- [Sims] Dahlia's still upset with you.

- (chuckles) I can't help that.

I did everything I could to help Philip and her get the money they needed.

- One way of acquiring knowledge of an opponent's business is to offer to invest.

Is that what you were doing?

- He was my brother, not my opponent.

- But you admitted to D.S.S.

Shepherd that you weren't close, that you were quite adversarial.

- Is that his interpretation of what I said?

- Why didn't you go ahead with the online organics?

- Like, did you have the better plan?

- Like what?

- Sorry, do you have to do that?

- Can't rush it, I'm cooling down.

- Fine.

When did you find out about Larry Sinclair's offer to buy Philip's farm?

- Okay, what exactly are you guys getting at?

- Philip's death dumped his farm in your lap, so you could sell to Sinclair.

- (laughs) Do I need a lawyer?

- Maybe.

(joints cracking) Or a chiropractor.

(light music) (vehicle engine rumbling) - I've got nothing else I can tell you.

- I'm here to talk to you.

- Oh.

Oh, well.

I'll go put the jug on, then.

We're good.

- Right.

Okay.

(solemn music) - Sounds serious.

- We might be talking motive for murder.

- That serious?

- Well, you knew Philip refused to sell and that his brother, Thomas, his only heir and successor, would.

- [Breen] You had the figures for Philip's farm.

You knew the manuka honey was a gold mine.

- No, I knew that Philip's organic farm was a perennial loser, and what saved him was manuka honey.

So what?

- So you knew through your relationship with Larry Sinclair that he was interested in buying your brother's farm.

- But that your brother wouldn't sell.

- (exhales) Okay, look.

What happened when the Randalls and Tamati Taylor got into the honey business, it made for decreasing returns for all of them, particularly Philip.

- There are only so many flowers.

- Exactly.

So you've got three greedy, small-time operators all trying to cash in to the max.

Therefore a sustainable and lucrative operation for one supplier was being ruined by the three.

Larry Sinclair saw that.

- Who told him?

- What?

- Who drew Larry Sinclair's attention to the situation?

- I told him.

I'd had dealings with him in the past.

- So while you were supposedly acting for Philip and Dahlia, behind their backs... - No, you see, I kept Philip informed throughout.

- But not Dahlia.

- Well, I had no obligation to Dahlia.

- When did Sinclair make those offers?

- Uh, some weeks ago.

Maybe three.

- But Philip said no?

- Yeah, initially.

He couldn't get past his organic dream.

Some crazy scheme he had concocted with Dahlia.

- Crazy?

- Yeah, it would have solved nothing.

- Did you tell him and Dahlia that?

- I told my brother.

I had to be honest.

- Did you speak to Dahlia?

- I spoke to her once or twice when she answered Philip's phone.

To be honest, she's a flake.

No wonder she ended up with Philip.

Anyway, he got there in the end.

- Got where in the end?

- You're saying I arranged Philip's death so I could do a deal with Thomas?

Oh, yeah?

(chuckles) There's only one problem with that theory.

Philip agreed to sell.

- When?

- Just before he died.

Philip accepted that the online organics store wasn't a goer, neither was the farm, and that he'd sell to Larry.

- You're sure?

- It took him a long time to accept that his dream was dead.

- When, precisely, did that happen?

- The night before he died.

- Did he tell Dahlia?

- He said he was going to, but I don't know if he did.

(cellphone ringing) (door opens and closes) - Detective Sims.

Right.

Thank you.

I'll, I'll be right over.

I have to head over to Curios & Collectables.

Sounds like Philip's ring's turned up.

- Well, the night before Philip's body was found, I was close to giving up on any sort of deal.

Even though Doug Randall had agreed to a royalty.

- A royalty?

- Yeah, in exchange for not having hives.

But it was no good without the Henderson patch.

Then the call came through from Philip.

He'd changed his mind.

He wanted to sell.

- Where were you when the call came through?

- The Toad & Lion.

Trudy Neilson can verify it because I was so chuffed I ordered a bottle of champagne.

She asked me what I was celebrating, so I told her.

Trudy actually, uh, broke all her own rules and shared the bottle with me.

- What's the occasion?

- Philip Henderson has agreed to sell.

- Really?

Cheers.

- Okay.

I'll confirm with her and come back to you.

- I'll tell you something for nothing.

You said Philip died from toxic honey, tutin.

- I did.

- Yeah, people have got it wrong.

See, the bees don't eat the nectar from the tutu flower.

The passion vine hopper eat the tutu sap, not the bees.

The bees eat the honeydew sap secreted by the passion vine hopper.

- And this is important why?

- Well, passion vine hoppers are only found on tutu bushes at certain times of year.

They haven't been around for months.

- Meaning?

- Well, the toxic honey can't have come from fresh honeycomb.

It has to have been stored toxic honey.

- Which means it was more likely that the poisoning was deliberate.

- You're the detective.

- Lab tests confirm that the honey from Philip's kitchen contains very high concentrations of tutin.

- So we know what killed him.

You drew a blank with Thomas?

- He said that Philip changed his mind the night before he was found.

He'd agreed to sell.

- Confirmed by Larry.

I can't see motive for him.

- Does that eliminate Thomas as well?

He was simply carrying out his brother's wishes in going through with the sale.

- Must be so weird for Dahlia.

Being let down by two separate men who look exactly the same.

I think the worst thing is that Philip didn't even have the guts to tell her.

That's it.

Same design.

- Hm, it's here somewhere.

You haven't changed your mind about that second ferret?

I've got some other people seriously interested.

Oh, well, it's your loss.

Oh, yeah, here we are.

Let's see.

That's the name and the signature of the person who brought it in yesterday.

(grim music) - Dahlia.

But does it really mean that much?

- She lied about the ring.

What else is she hiding?

- If it was opportunistic, as you said... - Then she took the ring off her dead boyfriend's finger.

- I just, I don't see her doing that.

- People do strange things under duress.

- Let me talk to her.

Please.

- (sighs) Okay.

But record it.

(vehicle engine humming) (grim music) (grim music continues) - Is something wrong?

(sighs) I think, (recorder chimes) you better tell me what really happened that night.

(tense music) (grim music) I'll transcribe this later.

The romantic dinner never happened.

Philip did tell Dahlia that the plan for their online organics store wasn't a goer and that he'd reached the end of his tether.

- This afternoon with the Randalls, the spray drift, Dahlia, I, I've had enough.

- He told her that he couldn't fight them anymore and that he'd decided to sell to Sinclair.

Dahlia was upset.

- You lied to me!

- I didn't lie to you!

- How could you do that?

- I told you as soon as I knew.

- You didn't even tell me you were considering it!

- So he didn't eat?

- Not according to Dahlia.

And he certainly didn't stay the night, either.

- So the timeline in which Philip could have been poisoned shrinks back to... - When he left Dahlia's that night, around 8:00.

- Or before, if she's lying about him not eating.

- [Sims] Why would she try and poison him before he told her about selling the farm?

- Fair point.

- And then after he told her, there was no question of them sitting down together to eat.

- If it means the end of us, then... (Dahlia sobbing) I'm sorry.

- Can she account for her movements the rest of that night?

- Not really.

Spent the night alone, upset.

Understandable, though.

- [Shepherd] Does she have a key to Philip's house?

- Well, yeah, but she said that he doesn't lock his house anyway.

- So she could have put the tutin in Philip's honey.

- But what was her motive?

- Revenge?

- Get a search warrant for Dahlia's cafe and apartment.

We'll get forensics to check the cafe for traces of tutin.

Meet me at Philip's farm.

(light music) (light music continues) I'll be there in a mo.

(light music continues) - You know her?

(light music continues) I want to see if it's physically possible.

- What?

- Hop on.

You're about the same weight as Philip.

Comfy?

See if you can push him up into position.

(Sims clears throat) - [Breen] Huh.

- Use your legs, not your back.

- Oh.

Says the guy who recently broke his leg.

Is that why I'm doing this?

- Time is a great healer.

And no.

(Sims grunts) (birds chirping) - Yeah, that would certainly scare the birds.

- The point is she could have done it.

- Yeah, and she's been back to the house.

I can prove it.

(cellphone ringing) - Shepherd.

Okay.

Thanks.

Developments at the Sage Locust.

Let's talk on the run.

(light music) Contemplating a new career?

- Nah, too many health and safety issues.

(light music) (light music continues) (light music continues) - [Sims] Philip Henderson's honeycombs.

(light music continues) (light music continues) - Come on.

(light music continues) Looks the same.

I mean, it could be monofilament.

Should we have it tested?

- Let's see how the interview goes.

Our scene guard was stood down two nights ago.

When they left, the shed looked like this.

Then sometime the following evening, things changed.

Can you spot the difference?

- No.

- The bee helmet's been hung upside down.

You drove up to the hives, which you knew would be full, but you needed apiarist gear to pull off the heist.

We know you were there, you left a trail.

- What?

- You took the photo of yourself and Philip from his kitchen, and you pinned it up in your cafe.

- How do you know that?

Oh.

- You're not gonna deny that you stole the honey, surely?

- He damn well owed me.

All the time and effort I've put into our partnership, for him to just pull the plug... - You resented him for it.

- Yes!

- Enough to poison him?

- No!

- You were familiar with his habits.

You obviously felt comfortable going into his house.

You snuck in and replaced his honey with toxic honey.

- W-what?

T-Toxic honey?

- He spread it on his toast, as you knew he would, he ate it.

- I would never do that!

- I still don't believe that she would have poisoned him.

- You're hardly objective.

- What I can't figure out is why you poisoned Tamati Taylor's hives.

- Tamati?

- The farm next door.

- The Randalls?

- The other side.

- Poisoned?

How do you poison beehives?

- Can you excuse me for a moment?

(door closes) Something's not right.

She's got motive for stealing Philip's honey, but poisoning him?

- And if she did poison him, why string him up as a scarecrow?

Why advertise the fact?

- Thomas did call her a flake.

- Well, he called his brother that as well.

- Theft is a different ball game from poisoning, bees or people.

- But Dahlia's such a greenie that she thinks twice about using fly spray.

But to poison the man that she loves, then string him up with fishing line all to make it look like Doug Randall did it?

I just don't buy it.

- Charge her with the theft of the honey.

Give her police bail, but ask for her passport.

(door opens) - I was so in denial since Philip died.

I couldn't accept it was the end of everything.

I know you were just doing your job.

- Trying to be a good friend, actually.

(grim music) (door closes) - Okay, back to the honey wars.

Who wasn't getting what they wanted?

- Philip changed his mind, got a deal.

- Which suited Thomas.

- Which meant Tamati got a deal too.

- Doug didn't want a deal, so everyone's happy.

Larry Sinclair walks away with two out of the three.

- Three out of three.

Larry confirmed that Doug Randall didn't sell his land, but that he did agree to take a royalty from Sinclair for not having hives on his land.

- So everyone gets what they want.

- Are we back to square one?

- No.

Larry said that the tutin couldn't have come from current honeycomb.

It had to have been stored.

- In the jar of his own honey that Philip spread on his toast?

- That jar was half full.

If he'd already used it, why hadn't he already poisoned himself?

We've got to come back to the honey makers.

(thoughtful music) Doug didn't make his own honey.

If you look at it this way, there was someone who wasn't getting what she wanted.

Trudy wanted the farm sold but instead was forced to close down her hives.

How did Trudy handle that news?

- She seemed pretty dark on it.

Just as well the champagne was on the house, because she sculled most of it herself.

Larry said that as part of their due diligence, his company surveyed the whole stand of manuka.

- Sure, we found a couple of tutu bushes.

I mean, nothing to get alarmed about.

We'll get rid of them.

- Did he say where they were?

- On the Randalls' property.

- (sighs) The tutin poison.

- What about it?

I know where it is.

What's the time?

- Uh, 9:15.

- 9:30 he has his whiskey-and-honey nightcap.

He's out like a light.

- So if Philip was a warning to Doug, you think Doug is next in line.

(tense music) (tense music continues) - What the hell do you roosters want this time of night?

I was about to hit the bloody scratcher.

- Good evening to you too.

Is that your usual?

- Whiskey and honey nightcap, yeah.

(tense music) If you're that desperate, I'll pour you one, have another myself.

What's your problem?

Cat got your tongue?

- Well, I guess we can park that theory.

Follow me.

- Who the hell's in there?

(footsteps plodding) (door opens) (camera shutter clicking) Oh, jeez.

Trudes'll scream blue murder.

That's the last of her honey in here, you know?

- Because you gave away her hives to Sinclair.

- Yeah, we get royalties.

For not having our own bees.

- Trudes would have been thrilled about that.

- How have marital relations been since the royalty deal?

- (sighs) I guess I didn't realize how much they meant to her.

- You told me she didn't really take to anything else about the farm.

- Yeah, but in 45 years of farming, that's the first time someone's come to me and offered to pay me for doing nothing.

It's hard to say no to that.

- You said this one might be dodgy.

- [Doug] Yeah.

- You know what's in it?

- Trudes said something about tutu bushes, but I wasn't really listening.

You'll have to ask her.

- We plan to.

- What the hell is this all about?

- You said last time you were here that jar was full.

- Yeah, yeah, I think that might be right.

- Well, you're talking crap.

Same amount as it was before.

Oh, she got rid of some of it.

I don't know why she didn't get rid of the lot.

- So it had been full?

- Yeah, late summer.

That batch all got tested.

Why?

Bag it.

- Hang on.

(tense music) These are Trudy's?

- Yeah, too small for me.

(tense music) (tense music continues) What is that?

(tense music continues) That's a factory job.

It's not mine.

What the hell's going on here?

(upbeat music) (vehicle engine roaring) (door closes) - What can I get you?

- We need to talk.

- So talk.

- I can do it here, bring in the detective, caution you, cuff you, make a spectacle out of it.

It's up to you.

I'll be over here pondering my next move.

You have a minute to decide what that'll be.

Were you in on Doug's plan to poison Tamati Taylor's hives?

- Is that what this is about?

Dead bees?

- [Sims] Worth a lot of money.

- (sighs) Silly old fool.

Look, I, I told him not to do it.

We can make restitution, surely.

- It's always weird watching but not being able to hear.

But after a while you get good at lipreading.

- Why'd he do it?

- Doug was upset, understandably, about Tamati's attempt to frame him.

- For what?

- The scarecrow business.

- Philip Henderson's murder?

- Was it?

- Doug thought Tamati was setting him up.

- Well, it was Tamati that told you jokers about Dougie's argument with Philip, wasn't it?

- [Sims] We're asking the questions, Trudy.

- We know what we know.

And it was Tamati that tied Philip up using fishing line, make it look like Doug had done it.

Well, it's obvious, isn't it?

Why aren't you putting the pressure on Tamati?

- We've spoken to Tamati.

- Look, if poisoned bees are such an issue, then he can have our bees.

We won't need them anymore.

- Because Doug gave your hives away, didn't he?

To Larry Sinclair.

- Is that it?

Are we done?

Who's out here?

- Walk away, Trudes.

Walk away.

- Let's talk about Philip's murder.

That wasn't a case of Tamati framing Doug, was it?

- Wasn't it?

- No.

It was a case of you framing Tamati.

- Whose reel is that?

What's that mean?

- I want a lawyer.

- Sure.

But let me run something past you so you're fully informed when you do talk to your lawyer.

You hated life on the farm.

- It's actually a great sideline for Trudes.

God knows she hasn't taken to much else around the farm.

- I don't hate the farm.

I hate what the farm's doing to Dougie.

He's getting on.

It's grinding him down.

It's gonna put him in an early grave.

- Looks like she's under a bit of pressure there, Doug.

- She'll, she'll tough it out.

- So that when Larry Sinclair came along with his offer to buy the farm, you were in favor of selling?

- You townies wouldn't understand.

- Try us.

- The farm's marginal.

Even though it's been in Doug's family for generations.

He can't afford to hire someone to help him.

I make damn near as much from my hives as a hobby as Doug makes from running sheep and cattle.

- But Larry's offer to buy your farm- - Doug's farm.

- Was conditional, wasn't it, on Philip selling?

Because Philip's farm was central.

- That's no secret.

- Larry was staying at your pub, so you saw a lot of him, and you understood from Larry that Philip was refusing to sell.

But you also found out that Larry was a business acquaintance of Thomas, Philip's brother and only next of kin, who would sell.

- So you decided to remove the problem, didn't you?

- You're telling the story.

- On the night that Philip died you were on your way into work when you saw Philip leaving his house and heading into town.

So you went to your shed, where you had some honey that'd been rejected for excessive levels of tutin.

You took that jar of toxic honey.

This jar.

- Which your husband confirmed had been full.

- Dougie?

- [Doug] Trudes, what're they saying to you?!

- [Breen] She can't hear you, Doug.

- And on your way in to the pub, you took a detour with your jar of honey to Philip's house.

You walked in through the back door, which you knew would be open, and you replaced Philip's honey with the toxic honey.

It was almost the perfect crime.

Accidental poisoning by tutu contamination.

Happened so many times before.

It's an occupational hazard.

- But what you couldn't have foreseen is that Philip would change his mind about selling.

- Did he?

- That night, when he got back from telling Dahlia that their organic dream was over, Philip rang Larry Sinclair and told him the news, didn't he?

- How would I know?

- [Shepherd] Because he was at the pub when he took the call from Philip.

He was so delighted that he ordered champagne, which he shared with you.

- I don't drink at the pub.

- But you broke that rule because you thought you had something to celebrate too, that the sale of your farm- - Doug's farm.

- Would go through too because Philip had agreed to sell his.

- In fact, you shouted Larry the champagne.

- [Sims] Larry had some more news, didn't he?

Some bad news.

- Larry told you that your husband had changed his mind too, that he now refused to sell.

Instead he offered to give away your hives in return for a royalty from Sinclair.

- That was the real bombshell.

- It was the worst of both worlds, wasn't it, Trudy?

- I was prepared to lose my bees to help sell the farm.

I was prepared to do that for Dougie.

But he just couldn't let it go.

He can't let it go even though it's killing him.

- So Doug gets to keep his farm but gives away your bees.

(tense music) - So, now you're angry and confused.

- Not to mention drunk.

Larry said that you drank most of the champagne.

- I shouldn't drink.

- You needed to recalibrate, and quickly.

Philip no longer needed to die.

In fact, now that he'd agreed to sell, it was probably better that he didn't.

- Doug was now the problem, not Philip.

So you left the pub early and drove to Philip's farm, hoping you were in time.

There's a light on but no action.

You park by the gate and creep towards the house, where you discover that you're too late.

Philip was already dead.

And in that moment of drunken anger and frustration at Doug's decision, you turned what might have been considered an accidental death into a murder investigation.

You decided to kill two birds with one scarecrow.

- [Sims] By framing Tamati and, hopefully, sending Doug a message.

- [Shepherd] An almost mafioso-style message.

- That doing deals with Larry Sinclair could end badly for him too.

- Hell of a way to scare him off his farm.

(tense music) You took Tamati's reel.

(tense music) You put Philip's body on the quad bike, drove down to the scarecrow, tore that down, and put Philip up instead.

- You can't prove any of this.

- [Sims] This was found attached to the bottom of your boot.

- Must be one of Dougie's.

- The fly is machine-wound.

Doug only uses hand-tied.

The trace matches Tamati's.

- Well, there you go.

- So how did it get to be stuck to the bottom of your boot.

unless you were on his property?

(tense music) - [Shepherd] Things might go easier for you in court if you admit to going back and trying to stop the process you'd already set in place.

(Trudy sobs) - I didn't want him to die.

But- - But you were too late.

Philip hadn't eaten with Dahlia that evening, so he came home, made himself some toast and honey.

- [Shepherd] Big boy.

Unfortunately he had an appetite.

Maybe four pieces.

(Philip coughing) - [Sims] Delirium.

Convulsions.

Coma.

Eventual death.

(grim music) It's not a nice way to die.

- But it worked, didn't it?

- I didn't want it to work.

I was hoping I'd make him sick, that it'd be the last straw for him.

- Instead of the last breath he drew.

♪ I lost myself in Te Aro ♪ ♪ What a funny way ♪ ♪ To lose a heart so strong ♪ - Mike's formally charging her.

- With what?

- Philip Henderson's murder.

- Eh?

- Come on, mate.

Your turn.

- My turn?

- Poisoned hives.

I need to talk to you about that.

♪ All that I have done ♪ - Then something snapped.

God, I was so furious with Doug for refusing to sell.

(sniffles) Farm's gonna be the death of him.

I just wanted to do something to help him make the right decision for himself.

For both of us.

- Trudes.

♪ Ooh ♪ - I'm sorry, Doug.

- Oh, Trudes.

- [Breen] Come on, Doug.

(pensive music) - The classic case of the wrong thing for the right reason.

- Seems so.

- [Breen] Doug's got himself all choked up.

He needs a minute.

- [Sims] True love seldom did run smooth.

- Tried to tell you.

- Tell me what?

- She's always freaked me out.

- Ah.

The collywobbles.

(pensive music) (slow country music) (slow country music continues) (slow country music continues) (slow country music continues) (intense music) (intense music continues) (intense music ends)