With young Henry unleashing a gunshot into Stevie and Grace's vehicle, our hearts palpitate with dread, fearing yet another beloved character has met their end, as Gerry did in last year's inaugural season. Yet, we cling to the slender hope that they both emerge unscathed!
Meanwhile, Lee Thompson has assumed the mantle of local omnipotence, his promises of a better future and a drug-free Belfast sounding increasingly utopian and his aspirations to expand beyond Belfast being ominous. He has positioned himself as a de facto Godfather, yet we've already caught a glimpse of his manipulation of the community, ordering the march for his own ends. As for poor Henry, we can only hope he's all right... We know he ordered Dixie's demise and petrol-bombed his house, yet the police are currently at a loss to prove it. To make matters worse, DS Canning seems to have entered into a pact with him in a bid to keep the crime rate down, which is a very dangerous ground for the detective indeed.
Elsewhere, the truth about Chief Nicola Robinson's past and the workings of Special Branch in the 1970s and 1980s has finally been revealed. But what will Happy Kelly do, who lost his father and brother in a bombing that could have been prevented? The finale unfolded like this...
Fortunately, the two constables miraculously survived the bullet that pierced their back window, but the danger was far from over. As the aftermath unfolded, young Henry wandered into the street, still clutching the gun. Grace bravely stepped forward and pleaded with him to lay down his weapon, but as she approached, armed SWAT team members appeared, screaming at the youngster who seemed paralyzed in fear. Luckily, Stevie was able to hold them back while Grace disarmed him, but the entire incident had been captured on video by nearby neighbors.
At the Blackthorn incident room, Canning wanted to hold off on bringing in Thompson and McQuarrie, but this was not enough for McNally. She demanded that Chief Robinson order the arrest of both men and send forensic experts into the house. "It's all backroom deals and compromises with you, isn't it?" she said to Canning. "Anything for a quiet life!" Robinson reluctantly sided with McNally.
With adrenaline still coursing through their veins, Stevie and Grace shared a kiss when they returned to the station. However, they were soon forced to cut things off when Sandra entered. Boo.
At the subsequent briefing, Sandra explained that Henry was the nephew of Lee Thompson, who was a suspect in the murder of Jim Dixon, although there was no proof linking him to that crime at that stage. "The evidence we get from that crime scene could be the key to everything that's been going on in Mount Eden," she said. Sgt McCluskey, who had been in charge of the exercise at the start of the series, would be taking control of the response on the ground that evening.
When Lee Thompson saw the video, he ordered his team to circulate it online in an attempt to stir up ill-feeling towards the police. The clip falsely claimed that the police had drawn their guns on a young boy who was carrying a toy gun. "The worse it gets, the better," he said.
DS Canning then turned up at The Loyal Pub to arrest Lee and Craig, but not before Rab arrived to vent his fury at them. "Wee Henry could have been killed!" he shouted.
As Grace spoke with Henry and Mags after the briefing, the young man's anger boiled over at his mother for revealing his presence with Lee and Craig before the shooting. Grace and Jonty led Mags outside, suggesting that her son had been subjected to a process of indoctrination. "He needs to hear the truth about his uncle Lee," Grace insisted. "Is there anyone who can reach him?"
Rab's arrival brought with it a weighty confession. He explained why he had been sent to prison before the Good Friday Agreement, detailing how he lured a Catholic taxi driver to the docks and murdered him. "His name was Francis. He was crying, saying he had two little girls," Rab recounted, tears welling up in his eyes. "You cross that bridge, and it crumbles behind you, and you can never go back. The world is forever dark." Rab's words served as a chilling reminder that if Henry continued to associate with Craig and Lee, he would cross that same bridge.
Meanwhile, at the station, McNally faced challenges while interviewing Lee Thompson. "It's not my house, not my safe, and not my gun," he declared. Moreover, the gun Henry had was not the one used to kill Jim Dixon.
When they spoke to Craig McQuarrie, they discovered that as a former British soldier living in Northern Ireland, he had applied for a gun license, making the firearm legal. The money he possessed was said to be his "life savings from his army pay." Essentially, the police had hit a dead end.
On the Mount Eden Estate, a crowd had already gathered near the crime scene after seeing the footage posted by Lee Thompson. They were becoming increasingly hostile, but the squad was ordered to hold them off until the forensics team finished their work in the house. However, things took a turn for the worse when Thompson's men appeared and petrol bombs started flying.
Just when all seemed lost, Tommy discovered a crucial piece of evidence on the doorbell footage that Grace and Stevie had picked up from the elderly lady's house. It showed Craig McQuarrie in the area on the night of Dixon's shooting. Circumstantial evidence it may be, but he was wearing Soupy's old desert scarf from Afghanistan as a face-covering—a treasured keepsake for both Craig and Lee. It seemed unlikely he would have gotten rid of it, and could hold important ballistics evidence.
McNally instructed the forensics team to search the house for the scarf and ordered the squad on the ground to hold their position amidst the missiles and burning cars. The line was on the verge of breaking when Rab walked into the fray, begging the locals to stop. When he was hit by a petrol bomb, he burst into flames, and Stevie rushed to help him.
Fortunately, the line held long enough for the forensics team to find the scarf. Crucially, there was a blood splatter on it that proved McQuarrie had killed Dixie. The team also found a set of keys belonging to Dixie's property that had been attacked by a petrol bomb. When questioned, Lee Thompson offered no comment, but next door McQuarrie confessed like a canary. He took full responsibility for Dixon's murder and said it had nothing to do with Lee. "You don't know the meaning of the word loyalty," he told McNally with finality.
At the solicitor's office, Jen discovers that the Crown's legal representatives have offered Happy a settlement of £80,000 to make his case disappear. He accepts the offer and requests that the funds be sent to the Central Soup Kitchen. "It's blood money, but perhaps some good can come of it," he muses. When Jen inquires about his decision, he explains that while he cannot save his father, brother, or Gerry, he can save her by dropping the case. It's an emotional moment.
The following day, Jen arranges a meeting between Happy and Robin Graham, who admits that he could have prevented his father and brother from being blown up. He tells the source that the information he passed on saved dozens of lives that day. "It wasn't worth it," says the ex-Special Branch officer. "I wish I'd never been there, I wish I'd never had to make those decisions." However, Happy forgives him, and they shake hands, a powerful gesture indeed.
Chief Robison congratulates DS Canning on the outcome, but after he leaves the room, he asks McNally if it's true that Canning went for a clandestine meeting with Thompson on the day Henry got hold of the gun. When she confirms it is, she replies, "Then make the call."
Back at Blackthorn, Police Ombudsman official Geraldine Gilroy comes to speak with DS Murray Canning as she has a few small timeline queries about where he was on the day Henry got hold of his uncle's gun. "I told you we were on the same team," she says to McNally before entering the interview.
It seems that all meetings with suspected Tier 1 individuals must be recorded in notebooks and the duty log. But DS Canning obviously didn't do that, so he could be in hot water!
With Craig McQuarrie shouldering the brunt of the responsibility, Thompson exits Blackthorn unscathed, only to be met with a crushing realization upon his return to The Loyal Pub. The moment he hears how he stirred up the riot that claimed Rab's life, in an attempt to aid his escape from custody, the very community he once called home has turned its back on him. Mags, with a severity in her tone, recounts how he wielded petrol bombs against Dixie's home, leading to Dixie's demise, and how he's been colluding with the police. "You said you'd be different, but you're not," Mags chides him. "We don't want you here. You've caused harm, Lee. You've hurt me, you've hurt Henry, and look what you did to Rab."
As the squad gather for a drink, Sandra announces to McNally that she's staying put in London, a triumphant cheer! She then turns to Jonty, sharing that she read his letter and extends an invitation to share a drink with him. On the dancefloor, Aislyn and Tommy weave their way through the rhythm, while Shane and Annie rekindle their connection. However, Stevie decides to depart. "You think too much," Annie tells Grace as he walks away, following him out to the cab and they head home together, wrapped in the embrace of happy days!
