Janice is with Vera in her office

Vera - Are you ok Jan?

Janice - I'm fine thank you

Vera - You don't look it and no one would blame you after whats happened

Janice - I just want to get on with my work and keep busy, its the best way, the only way

Vera - No one could blame you if you found it too hard right now though

Janice - I'm not going to fall to pieces right here while I'm at work Vera if that's what you're getting at

Vera - Yes well if you find you can't cope and have to leave just come and tell me and you can go home, its no big deal

Janice - I'll be fine... I'd rather discuss another matter with you

Vera - Oh?

Janice - I'm not very happy that you told Ian about Tommy

Vera - So you've seen Ian?

Janice - Yes I saw him in reception as I was coming in and the first thing he said was how sorry he was to hear about Tommy. I wasn't expecting him to know

Vera - I'm sorry Jan, I didn't realize you wanted it kept from him

Janice - We aren't together anymore so there was no need for him to know

Vera - Well I noticed he hadn't been spending time with you lately but I didn't know you'd actually split up

Janice - Well we have...

Vera - Has Ian spoken to you about anything else today?

Janice - No nothing why?

Vera - Oh no reason...

Janice looks suspicious

Janice - If there's something you want to tell me go ahead and say it

Vera -It would be better if I let Ian tell you himself trust me

Janice - Oh very well...

Janice marches out of the office to find Ian hanging around in the corridor

Kath is sitting in court with Christine sat next to her

Christine - How are you feeling?

Kath - Sick but I'll be ok Where is Bob?

Christine - He's outside, he will be called as a witness later so can't be present here right now

Kath nods

Christine - I have a few other people as witnesses too. I think we have a strong case Mrs Maxwell. If you don't walk free from here today I'll be very shocked

Janice and Ian are in the staffroom. Ian hands her a mug of coffee and smiles

Ian -It's just how you like it...

Janice puts the coffee on the table

Janice - Stop messing around and tell me what it is you want to tell me? Don't try my patience Ian

Ian sits beside Janice and smiles again

Ian - We're not really together anymore, are we? I know I did something that made you annoyed, although I have no idea what that was Jan. But anyway I know we're finished now and so I'm hoping you can take this on the chin

Janice glances at her watch and sighs

Janice - Take what on the chin Ian? come on spit it out

Ian - Well it's like this you see. I've been seeing Colleen and we're engaged

Janice looks shocked

Janice - Engaged?

Ian - Yes, well it was she who proposed to me, it took me by surprise I must say. It was a nice surprise though

Janice - And how long were you seeing each other?

Ian bows his head

Ian - Ah well...

Janice - You were seeing her while you were seeing me weren't you?

Ian - Yes I'm afraid I was Jan, I'm sorry

Janice - You lousy swine! You promised me I was the only one!

Ian - I know babe...

Janice - Don't ever call me babe again! I'm not your babe

Ian - Look I know you must feel pretty mad at me and I don't blame you, just please don't tell Colleen. She's a nice lady and doesn't deserve to get hurt

Janice - Why shouldn't I tell her? I'd be doing her a favour in the long run if I warned her about your ways

Ian - Oh but I'm ready to settle down now, no more cheating. I think Col's the one for me

Janice - Yeah right...

Ian - I mean it. There comes a time when even a lad like myself has to accept its time to stop messing around and settle down

Colleen arrives in the room

Colleen (surprised) - Hello Miss Raymond

Janice - Morning Colleen

Colleen notices how tense they both seem

Colleen - Everything alright? It looks like I interrupted something

Ian looks at Janice nervously, Janice glances at Ian and then at Colleen

Dr. Weissman is in the governor's office with Vera

Vera - I'll warn you in advance that you've had a wasted trip over here Dr, the girls clearly faking it

Dr. Weissman - Yes well I will need to see her first before I can make a judgment myself

Vera - I realize that, I just think you could be spending the morning somewhere else that's all...but if you insist I'll take you down to the meeting room and get someone to fetch Tucker

Ailsa, Mandy, and Connie are in the kitchen. Ailsa is hammering away noisily at a lump of meat, making it flat

Connie - This is so cool the three of us working together like this. I'm so glad I'm here with you both

Mandy - We're glad you're here to love, even if you were a crazy bugger getting yourself locked up, especially so young

Connie - I just wanted to be here with you both

Ailsa - You're crazy and I should put you across my knee but I'm happy to have my granddaughters with me so I'll let it go

Matt enters the kitchen

Matt - Something smells nice, what are you cooking?

Ailsa - Burgers that's what we're making. Nice juicy meaty burgers

Matt - Very nice...so I see it's very much a family affair in the kitchen now, all three Slaters running the joint?

Ailsa - Yup, i made it quite clear to Bennett that if the department wants me running their kitchen they must send my granddaughters to join my team

Matt - Quite right too Ailsa, stick to your guns that's what I say

Tess is shown into the interview room where Inspector Grace is waiting

Grace - Take a seat Tess

Tess sits down

Grace pushes a folder of photos across the table

Grace - We dug up your garden, that is what we found, please look at the photos

Tess turns her face away

Grace - I SAID LOOK AT THEM GIRLY!

Tess does as she is told and begins to cry

Grace - The bodies of 12 young girls. We were able to identify them from dental records, all 12 had been reported missing

Tess - I didn't kill any of them, it was John, it was all John

Grace - Really? And you played no part in it at all?

Tess -No none

Grace - Well the trouble is we only have your word on that now that John isn't here to help us with our inquires...and even if it was true I find it hard to believe you knew nothing about it so therefore you are an accessory anyway

Tess - Sure I knew but I was scared wasn't I, terrified of what John might do to me

Grace - I see...is that why you killed him and ate him?

Tess - I didn't kill him..that was Connie, the whole thing was Connie

Grace-Slater tells us it was both of you

Tess - Then she's bloody lying! I'd never have killed John, I loved him... I'd certainly never eat him

Grace - But you did eat him didn't you?

Tess - Yes but I didn't know what I was eating I swear!

Grace - You poor girl, always dragged into other people's actions, never guilty of any of the wrongdoing yourself. Just a poor misguided victim of circumstance

Tess - Yes thats right! I'm glad you can see my side of it now at last! I hope in time I will be released from here, I don't belong here I should be free. Connie and John are the guilty ones not me

Grace smiles at Tess

Grace - Yes of course.......I'm sure we can help you out a little here

Tess smiles too

Grace suddenly slams his fist on the table making Tess jump

Grace - STOP WASTING MY TIME WITH ALL THIS RUBBISH GIRLY! WHY DON'T YOU TELL ME WHERE YOUR DAUGHTER IS BURIED, IT MIGHT GO A LITTLE WAY IN YOUR FAVOUR IF YOU CO-OPERATE WITH US FULLY OVER THAT!

Tess buries her head in her hands and sobs

Ian and Janice are alone again

Ian - Thanks for not telling Col, I mean it

Janice - I did it for her sake, not yours

Ian - Yes I know...I'm still grateful though

Janice - If you don't mind I must get on now

Janice leaves the staffroom. Once outside the door she pauses and takes a photo of Tommy out of her pocket, she starts to cry then hears voices, she quickly shoves the photo back in her pocket and wipes the tears off her face as Cheryl and Kelly appear

Cheryl - Hey g'day Miss Raymond, when did you get back?

Janice - Today Gibson, thought I'd come and see how my girls are getting on

Kelly (sarcastic) - We missed you so much Miss

Janice ignores her

Janice - Why are you two in this area anyway?

Kelly - Just on our way to the dunny Miss

Janice - Then get there, be quick about it! Then get back to the laundry, no loitering

The two of them carry on past

Dr. Weissman is waiting in a comfy meeting room as Brumby is wheeled in by Colleen

Dr. Weissman - Many thanks Mrs Powell

Collen nods her head and leaves

Dr. Weissman - Good morning Tucker, so you know who I am?

Brumby - Yeah I think so, you're a quack, right?

Dr. Weissman - I wouldn't have put it quite like that no...

Brumby - Are you here to help with my confusion?

Dr. Weissman - Yes that's right

Brumby - I just don't know what's going on, it is all very scary

Dr. Weissman - Yes I can imagine. Any idea what brought it all on?

Brumby - No none...

Dr. Weissman - You were locked in a rubbish skip, do you remember that?

Brumby - No I don't...I just remember mum telling me not to be late for school, that's the last thing I can remember

Dr. Weissman - I see

Brumby -Can you help me get out of here? I don't know why I'm here, I wish someone would understand and help me leave.....

Brumby turns on the tears

Janice is with Vera

Vera - Has Ian spoken to you?

Janice - About Colleen? Oh yes, I know all about that now....how long have you known?

Vera - Only a short while

Janice - I see....why didn't you tell me?

Vera - I thought it would be best if Ian did

Janice - Did you? I'm wondering if I would have ever found out at all had I not returned here...

There is an awkward silence

Janice - Well anyway I have to leave for a few hours now but I'll be back later

Vera - Oh yes you have contact with Tommy, don't you?

Janice -Yes that's right

Vera - You don't have to come back after that Janice, just go home and come in again tomorrow

Janice - No I want to come back in damn it! I want to keep busy... I'll see you back here later

Janice storms out of the office

Court

Christine is addressing the judge

Christine - This is a particularly distressing case, your honour. Not only due to the involvement of a terminally ill child who sadly lost her life but also for the terrible miscarriage of justice involved. Mrs. Maxwell was handed an excessively harsh sentence for her crime, it was a crime carried out through the love of a mother for her child. The child was suffering, the child was dying. All Mrs Maxwell did was end her suffering a little earlier than the natural process would have, she did that out of love and acting on a mother's natural instinct to protect her child....to protect them from pain, from suffering. If a mother saw her child falling over a cliff she would rather jump in and fall herself if it meant she saved the child....any mother who loves her child will always protect them from danger, it's the same here, Mrs Maxwell's desire to protect her child from any more suffering got the better of her......

.....Bob is in the witness box

Bob - No other mother could have loved her child the way Kath did. Always she did her best for Linda, and her decision to kill her was not one she took lightly, on the spur of the moment. She begged the Drs for months to help with the pain, nothing more could be done and Kath was forced to make a decision, the hardest she has ever had to make but the only one she felt was an option by that stage

Christine - But as a lifelong friend of Mrs Maxwell you would say that to protect her wouldn't you?

Bob - Not if I felt that what she did was wrong I wouldn't, no matter how much I cared for someone the killing of a child is too serious an occurrence to be brushed aside casually. If I felt she had done the wrong thing or acted for the wrong reasons I'd say so. But in this case, I know she did the right thing....it was the right thing for Linda, I was there many times when the child would be laying screaming in agony, begging her mother to take the pain away. Anyone who witnessed that and then said that what Kath did was wrong...or at least not understandable, lacks the compassion and insight that we need to make this a decent, humane society. Anyone who thinks it's ok to allow a child to suffer as much as Linda Maxwell did isn't fit to care for the welfare of children. We put people in prison for child abuse.....we also put them in prison for ending a child's suffering.....

......Another man is on the stand

Christine - Can you tell the court who you are please Sir?

The man - I'm Dr. Lowther, I was the Maxwell family Dr and had many dealings with Katherine Maxwell and her daughter Linda

Christine - And what can you tell us about the situation with Mrs. Maxwell and her daughter?

Dr. Lowther - Well Katherine would ring me up often towards the end of Linda's life. Sometimes she'd ring once or twice a week, to begin with, but towards the end, it was almost every day

Christine - And what would she say when she rang?

Dr. Lowther - She would beg me to come on a home visit to see Linda, Linda was far too sick to leave her bed by that stage. Katherine would plead with me to come and see her

Christine - And did you?

Dr. Lowther - Most times I would if I could, but I wasn't always able to fit them in

Christine - And what would happen when you got there?

Dr. Lowther - I would look at the child. She would often be crying with pain, but sometimes she was sedated. Katherine would tell me how she'd been crying all day, the pain was worse. She's tell me she couldn't stand it anymore. She would say she didn't care how hard it was for her, it was Linda's suffering she couldn't bear. She'd beg me to give her something to help but all I could give her was the painkillers she was already on, it was the strongest dosage I could give. Katherine would explain they weren't enough anymore, weren't working and I could see the child was in a great deal of pain. It was very hard for me to see her suffer so much and know I was helpless to do more. I could see how much it was torturing Mrs Maxwell too.....

.......A woman is in the stand

Christine - So the court has heard from the family Dr, now I would like to allow Linda's pre-school teacher to have a say.

Christine turns to the woman

Christine - Mrs. Rigby, I understand Linda Maxwell was in your pre-school class for a short while?

Mrs Rigby nods her head

Mrs Rigby - Before her condition became worse she was

Christine - Did you have many dealings with Mrs Maxwell?

Mrs Rigby - Oh yes, a lot. Mrs Maxwell would often come in for a chat to ask how Linda was getting on. She always wanted to make sure everything was ok. She came across as a loving mother who took an interest in her child's time at school and her welfare...I got the impression there wasn't much support from the husband either.....

Christine - Were you aware of Linda's condition?

Mrs Rigby - Yes, Mrs Maxwell informed us of that as there was special medication Linda had to take at certain times each day and we had to give her a dose while she was at school. Mrs Maxwell was adamant about how important it was she took her doses when she was supposed to. Sometimes she would take a bad turn at school and we'd have to call Mrs. Maxwell to come and collect her

Christine - I would imagine those times were quite distressing?

Mrs Rigby - Oh indeed yes, I will never forget the sound of the child crying. All she wanted was her mother, she'd cry for her and we'd tell her she'll be here soon. Then when Mrs Maxwell arrived she'd cling to her begging for help. Mrs Maxwell would cry too and tell her it would be ok....but you could see in her eyes she knew it wouldn't be. You could see how it cut her up inside but she had to be brave for her child's sake......

.....Christine - So we've heard from Mrs Maxwell's lifelong friend, from her dr, and from her child's teacher. Now I would like to call another witness, Mrs Maxwell's husband, Alan Maxwell

Kath looks surprised

GATESLAM

PART 2

Eileen is standing on a doorstep arms folded across her chest as she watches Tommy walk up the driveway to where Janice is waiting. Janice throws an arm around him

Janice - Hello darling, I've missed you

Tommy - I've missed you too mummy

Eileen calls out from the doorstep

Eileen - ONE HOUR JANICE REMEMBER! BACK HERE IN ONE HOUR SHARP LIKE THE JUDGE SAID!

Janice - Come on darling, fancy an ice cream?

Tommy (excited) - Oh wow! can I have mint choc chip?

Janice - You can have whatever you like darling

Janice holds Tommy's hand as they walk off up the road

Dr Weissman is back with Vera

Dr Weissman - I think she's faking...

Vera - I'm glad you see sense Dr!

Dr Weissman - Yes but I can't prove it. She's quite a good actress...but I think she's trying to get released

Vera - Just keep seeing her and wait for her to trip up, she's bound to eventually

Dr Weissman - I think she's too smart for that, she has her plan and she intends to stick to it. My best hope of proving she's lying is by proving that being locked in a skip overnight is simply not enough to make a person lose their memory. If she'd had a bang to the head or something then maybe but she hadn't had anything like that had she?

Vera - No, I don't believe so. It wasn't mentioned in Officer Hagen or Sister Halls reports

Dr Weissman - It's natural to be scared in a situation like that, but lose your memory? Without a blow to the head or similar injury? no its extremely unlikely

Vera - That's what I thought too...and it's hardly the first time inmates played the amnesia card to try and get a release

Jenny is with Inspector Grace

Grace - So we meet again Miss Hartley?

Jenny - Yes and don't expect me to be thrilled about it

Grace examines her statement

Grace - I'm not thrilled either.....once again we have ''I'm innocent, I was set up'' History really repeats itself doesn't it

Jenny - Yes doesn't it just

Grace - Have you had any time to reflect on your statement? Ready to change it?

Jenny - No, I am innocent....just like I was last time

Grace - Well you really do have the most rotten luck of any prisoner I have ever met, being set up not once but twice

Jenny - If you're just here to torment me then I would like this interview to end

Grace - Just do yourself a favor and own up. Ok so you were set up the first time but not this time, right? This time you did it right?

Jenny shakes her head defiantly

Grace - Listen Girly this offense is much less serious than the original one, just come clean and the sentence isn't going to be that bad

Jenny - Joan Ferguson set me up, you should talk to her

Grace - Ferguson again? She's to blame for everything it seems