The Bullet That Missed

Donna tells Bogdan she is his girlfriend, and he is happy they are officially a couple. She asks if Ron and Viktor discovered anything, and Bogdan says he can’t tell her because she is a cop. He does tell her that Ron is staying at Pauline’s house, which is in Juniper Court. Donna knows this is where Bethany visited the night she was murdered.

Elizabeth visits Andrew and gets into his office by saying she is a literary agent. Once inside, she admits that she is not and that only Joyce has read his books. Rather, Eilzabeth wants to exchange information about Bethany’s case. She tells him about the note and the financial connections they found and offers him a file with all the details. In exchange, she asks for help digging in Heather’s garden. Elizabeth also asks for some guards to be on the lookout for her potential assassin. Andrew asks if Joyce is enjoying his books.

Pauline does Donna’s makeup for her second appearance on South East Tonight to discuss online fraud. Donna casually brings up Juniper Court, and Pauline admits she has lived there for many years. Pauline also says many other people from the television station have lived there because of its proximity to the studio. However, she denies that Bethany ever visited her there.

The Viking breaks into Joyce’s apartment, and her dog—Alan—greets him warmly. He waits for her with a gun, which surprises her when she walks in the door. Joyce identifies him as the man who kidnapped Elizabeth. She assures him that she, an old lady, is no threat. She offers him some tea, but he initially refuses and reveals the threat on her life that Elizabeth never told her. The Viking admits he’s never killed anyone, and that he might need to kill only Viktor because he warns against using cryptocurrency. Joyce, again, offers tea, and the Viking accepts. She brings out two mugs, one with flowers and one with a motorcycle, and he chooses the latter. As he sips his tea, they talk about her investing in Ethereum. He moves her money around on her computer and passes out from the sleeping pill (one of Viktor’s) that Joyce snuck in his tea.

The others come to Joyce’s place. Bogdan ties the Viking to a chair and leaves. Viktor points the gun at the Viking before waking him. The Viking realizes Joyce drugged him, and she apologizes. Pauline, who came over with Ron, says this is the best date ever. Viktor explains that he is old and will die soon, so the Viking doesn’t need to kill him. Bogdan returns with Stephen. Stephen reveals that the Viking’s name is Henrik Mikael Hansen, and he discovered it through early rare book purchases. Stephen admits to Elizabeth that Kuldesh did most of the work, and Bogdan admits he took Stephen out to the antique shop. Henrik threatens to kill Ron, and Pauline threatens Henrik in return. Henrik claims to be a psychopath, and Pauline observes that if he were a psychopath, he would have killed Alan.

Viktor unties Henrik, and Joyce gets him some water. Pauline notes how exciting being around them has been. When Elizabeth mentions they are going digging for Bethany’s corpse tomorrow, Pauline is less excited. Elizabeth tells Henrik to stay with Ibrahim.

Joyce is writing detective fiction for a short-story competition. She names her detective after her late husband, Gerry.

Mike, after hearing that the Thursday Murder Club is going to go digging for Bethany’s corpse, thinks about what she meant to him. He sees Fiona on Stop the Clock and thinks about how, when he filmed a pilot for a show, it was rejected because they wanted someone more authentic. Bethany, as she progressed from researcher to anchor, helped him become more authentic. She encouraged him to come out as gay, and he eventually did. Feeling more authentic made him happy with being a local newscaster. He wants to figure out the mystery of her death in return for her encouragement and support in coming out.

Around Heather’s house, police officers, looking for her corpse, dig holes. Joyce walks around the house, then goes to the garden where people are working. Elizabeth talks to Andrew. He believes Jack probably did have a partner. An officer calls out that they found something, which the reader later learns is a gun, in the woods behind Heather’s house.

Viktor and Henrik look through the financial information from Heather’s case, and Ibrahim brings them tea. Ron offers commentary from the couch about how Heather found something Henrik missed. Henrik apologizes repeatedly for his ill-advised attempt to murder Joyce and Viktor. Viktor asks about Bethany’s message to Mike, and Ron tells them that Mike and Pauline are coming over for lunch.

Elizabeth looks at the gun the police officers found and is surprised it is a semi-automatic. She suggests that Andrew arrest Jack and question him. Joyce talks with the forensic officer, asking about details for her detective story, and tells Elizabeth a little about it.

Mike and Pauline are introduced to Viktor and Henrik at Ibrahim’s place, and Mike reads Bethany’s text about “absolute dynamite” (332). When Alan the dog begins barking at the window, Viktor pulls out his gun and hides behind a sofa. Henrik points out that Viktor does not have someone else out to kill him, and Viktor gets up. Elizabeth and Joyce arrive and tell the others about the gun the police found in Heather’s garden. Henrik discovers that Bethany’s text refers to a company in the VAT fraud case files. Absolute Dynamite’s directors are Carron Whitehead and Michael Gullis. The name doesn’t ring any bells for Mike or Pauline, but Joyce pulls Elizabeth into the hall and says she knows the name.

Based on the gun and money that they found buried in Heather’s garden, Andrew sends Chris and Donna to arrest Jack. On the drive to Jack’s house, they talk about Donna’s repeated appearances on South East Tonight. No one answers when they buzz at the gates. When they climb over the gates, Chris tears his trousers. Donna takes a picture of his exposed boxers. Jack’s front door is open, and his corpse is inside. They consider how their suspects have started dying since the Thursday Murder Club has gotten involved and how to fix Chris’s trousers before backup arrives to deal with the crime scene.

As she prepares for a commercial, Fiona thinks about how she didn’t get along with Bethany. Because Fiona didn’t cry on the tribute show, the public reacted negatively. Elizabeth finds Fiona’s number and texts her with questions about Bethany. Fiona scrolls through Instagram, thinking about how her use of social media has changed since becoming famous. Also, she enjoyed meeting with Elizabeth and Joyce after the show. Justifying it as a way to perform for her followers, she agrees to Elizabeth’s request.

At a medal presentation for Chris and Donna, Chris and Andrew talk about Elizabeth. Patrice is excited about Chris getting the “Highly Commended in the Line of Duty” (345) medal. Donna planned on bringing Bogdan after confessing her relationship with him to Chris. However, Donna shows up alone at the event after Elizabeth asks Bogdan to do something for the case.