CAST LIST

SYNOPSIS

A car pulls up outside a building and a chauffeur opens the car door for a nervous-looking man to get out. Once inside, the man (Neville) demands an explanation from the building’s owner, Patric Marcel for his rough treatment: Marcel apologises for the chauffeur, his brother. Neville protests that he is late for a business meeting: Marcel knows that he is on his way to attempt to re-finance his company, and is prepared to make Neville a better offer. Marcel would own the company, with Neville the boss. Refusing the offer, Neville goes to leave but the "chauffeur" has other ideas, and follows Neville to the exit with a bazooka…

Beckett asks Ros at the Gizmos office about Neville’s disappearance, and the rash of similar "incidents" involving small companies in financial difficulties. The same French family is buying up the companies one by one: plus, if the offer of financial aid is turned down by the company’s boss within a few hours of the offer they are either dead, or they disappear. Ros shows Ed and Beckett a list of companies currently in danger of takeover: at the top of the list is Newsoms, a custom Truck builder. Ed recognises one of them, Weapon Works, as being owned by a friend of his. He goes to warn her, while Beckett tries to work out why all the losers in town are suddenly so popular…Arriving at Weapon Works, Ed’s friend Clare shows him a number of her range of non-lethal weapons, which is her only line of business. Clare knows Ed has come to her for a reason, but before Ed can tell her what’s happening a small child, who turns out to be Katie, Clare’s daughter, distracts him. Whilst Ed plays with her Clare explains she does not need any help, and despite her need to re-finance the company she is confident she can weather her current difficulties. It is obvious that the pair has been close before, and Clare promises that if she has any problems she will call and tell him. As Ed is leaving Marcel arrives, with the mysterious chauffeur in tow…

Beckett has gone to Newsoms, here the owner angrily denies that he is in difficulties and believes Beckett has in fact been sent by Marcel to intimidate him. Unable to work out how Marcel knows so much about them Newsom storms into his office, leaving Beckett to try and start a conversation with Lena, Newsom’s manager. Beckett is succeeding when a massive explosion rips through Newsom’s office…Surveying the damage, Beckett is informed by Beckett that Clare is saying nothing. Outside, Ros consoles a desolate Lena over the untimely demise of Newsom, and tells her to continue trading, allowing Gizmos to pose as the new owners. They will completely bug the premises and will field Marcel’s next move. Beckett is putting the finishing touches to a hastily rebuilt office when Marcel appears, asking where Newsom is. Telling the Frenchman that he is in charge now Patric wastes no time in making his move, as Ros and Ed listen outside. Marcel explains his terms: he is buying up small companies in the unlikely event that their larger competitors may one day suddenly go broke…not such an impossibility as it might sound, as Marcel has some "insider information" that suggests this may well be the case. Beckett accepts Marcel’s offer, and the Frenchman then hands Beckett a disk, on which is a "special" job that he needs completing for his "benefit". Loading the disk the next day Lena is unable to identify what it is that Marcel wants, but knows it is to be fitted to the back of a lorry. Beckett suggests the most sensible course of action is to simply build the item: as Lena begins to place electronic orders for the parts, her machine suddenly stops, then begins to automatically back-up. She explains to the team that the process happens every 24 hours, the reason why Newsoms were able to get back to operational capacity so quickly after the explosion. The company who holds the backup, Computer Recall, is supposed to be totally secure…but who owns them? On his way to the backup company Ed phones Claire to ask her if she uses Computer Recall’s services: she is unable to answer him as an increasingly impatient Marcel has decided to threaten Claire using the one thing she won’t be able to resist: her daughter. Trying to escape, Katie runs into the threatening chauffeur…

Ed has arrived at Computer Recall, delivering the aborted backup from Newsoms on disc. Leaving the backups at the drop-off point, in a specially-bugged case with a hidden camera, Ed leaves as a smartly dressed Ros arrives, posing as a potential client. It is Marcel that greets her and shows her around the building: he is charmed by her presence but she is less than impressed. He explains that the bulk of clients are based in London and Geneva: their data is stored on a mainframe Ros is unable to see. The company offers a complete disaster recovery service that is completely secure: the offices are shielded virtually all external interference. Discussing this in Marcel’s office, Ros notices a tray of milk and dinosaur biscuits, which seem more than a little out of place…Whilst using the bathroom, Ros attaches a transmitter to the earth wire of the building’s electrical system and quickly leaves to Marcel’s disappointment. Back at the office Beckett is getting pictures from the briefcase camera: using the Earth wire acts as a giant booster and allows the signal out of the building. The briefcase arrives at the mainframe area, then onto the nerve centre of the building: where Marcel hands the briefcase…to his brother! Ros surmises that Marcel looks the part of a boss but it is in fact his brother who is the real brains behind the team. Ed notices something on the tape, and as Beckett rewinds the recording to enhance the image it becomes clear what Ed has seen: It is Katie, locked in a cage.

Back at Gizmos Beckett is "playing" with Katie as Ros, Ed and Clare has tea. Katie’s game involves tying Beckett to a chair with masking tape and refusing to allow him to be released before he promises to marry her mother…