S1E2

Catherine’s Unraveling: The Obsession Spills Out

In a rare moment of unguarded vulnerability, Catherine Cawood—her professional frustration boiling over—unwittingly reveals the dual, off-the-books obsessions consuming her: her relentless pursuit of the drug network’s higher-ups (blocked by bureaucratic walls) and her secret fixation on Tommy Lee Royce, the recently released rapist. The conversation begins with Catherine venting about the drug bust’s dead-end results—her exclusion from intelligence, her role as a ‘mess-mopper’—before Clare’s deliberate, loaded pause forces Catherine to confront the unspoken elephant: her self-destructive distraction tactics. When Clare avoids naming Royce, Catherine’s raw, visceral reaction—her near-slip of a slur, her abrupt pivot to describing her illegal surveillance of Royce—exposes the depth of her emotional unraveling. The scene becomes a pressure-cooker moment: Catherine’s professional and personal vendettas are no longer separate but dangerously converging, with Clare’s sharp, unspoken challenge acting as the catalyst. The reveal of Catherine’s rogue actions (printing Royce’s photo, enlisting civilians like Mickey Yip) underscores her desperation—and the thin ice she’s skating on. This isn’t just a confession; it’s a crack in her armor, a moment where her grief, rage, and obsession spill out uncontrollably, threatening to derail her entirely.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

Catherine expresses frustration to Clare over the limitations placed on her drug investigations by the drugs squad, preventing her from reaching higher up the criminal network and accessing crucial intelligence.

frustration to resignation ['door step']

Clare suggests Catherine's focus on the drug case helps distract her from Tommy Lee Royce, but Catherine reveals she's been actively investigating Tommy's whereabouts, going to Mickey Yip's restaurant.

distraction to obsession

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

Catherine Cawood

Sergeant

primary

A volatile mix of frustration, desperation, and barely contained rage, with moments of vulnerability as her grief and obsession surface uncontrollably.

Catherine sits beside Clare on the doorstep, smoking a cigarette and sipping tea, her body language tense and agitated. She vents her frustration about the drug bust, her exclusion from higher-level intelligence, and her illegal surveillance of Tommy Lee Royce. Her near-slip of a slur ('cunt') and abrupt pivot to describing her off-the-books actions reveal her emotional unraveling. She is visibly agitated, her voice sharp and her gestures restless, as she admits to printing Royce’s photo and enlisting Mickey Yip’s help.

Goals in this moment

• To vent her professional frustration and justify her actions to Clare, seeking validation or understanding.
• To indirectly reveal her obsession with Tommy Lee Royce, testing Clare’s reaction and possibly her loyalty.

Active beliefs

• That the Drugs Squad is deliberately excluding her from critical intelligence, undermining her authority and effectiveness.
• That her personal vendetta against Tommy Lee Royce is justified and necessary, despite its illegality and potential consequences.

Character traits

Impulsive Defiant Emotionally volatile Obsessive Vulnerable

Follow Catherine Cawood's journey

Clare Cartwright

primary

Concerned and probing, with a underlying tension as she navigates Catherine’s emotional unraveling, balancing support with the need to confront her sister’s dangerous obsessions.

Clare sits beside Catherine on the doorstep, smoking and sipping tea, her posture relaxed but her gaze sharp and probing. She listens intently to Catherine’s venting, interjecting with pointed questions and deliberate pauses. Her avoidance of naming Tommy Lee Royce forces Catherine into a near-confession, exposing her raw emotional state. Clare’s tone is calm but laced with concern, her presence acting as both a confidante and a challenge to Catherine’s self-destructive behavior.

Goals in this moment

• To gently challenge Catherine’s self-destructive behavior and obsessions, pushing her to confront her emotions without outright confrontation.
• To extract the truth about Catherine’s illegal actions, assessing the risks and potential consequences for her sister and the family.

Active beliefs

• That Catherine’s obsession with Tommy Lee Royce is harmful and unsustainable, both professionally and personally.
• That Catherine needs to be guided toward rationality and self-awareness, but that direct confrontation may push her further away.

Character traits

Probing Supportive yet challenging Perceptive Diplomatic Protective

Follow Clare Cartwright's journey

Supporting 1

Tommy Lee Royce

secondary

Not physically present, but his influence is palpable—Catherine’s reactions are a direct response to his actions and her fixation on him.

Tommy Lee Royce is indirectly referenced as the subject of Catherine’s obsession. His name is avoided by Clare, but Catherine’s near-slip of a slur and her admission to printing his photo and surveilling him illegally reveal his central role in her emotional state. His presence looms over the scene, a specter driving Catherine’s actions and unraveling her composure.

Goals in this moment

• N/A (Indirect influence only)
• N/A

Active beliefs

• N/A (Indirect influence only)
• N/A

Character traits

A catalyst for Catherine’s emotional turmoil Symbolic of her unresolved grief and rage Indirectly manipulative (through his absence and the power he holds over Catherine)

Follow Tommy Lee …'s journey

Mickey Yip

Mickey Yip is mentioned by Catherine as the owner of the Chinese takeaway where she showed Tommy Lee Royce’s photo. …

Shafiq Shah (Police Constable, Norland Road)

Shafiq is mentioned in passing as part of the drug bust Catherine is venting about. His role in the interviews …

Objects Involved

Significant items in this scene

Catherine Cawood's Off-Book Printed Surveillance Photo of Tommy Lee Royce

The printed photo of Tommy Lee Royce is central to Catherine’s confession. She admits to printing it from case files and showing it to Mickey Yip at the Chinese takeaway, enlisting his help in surveilling Royce. The photo symbolizes her obsession and the lengths she is willing to go to pursue her vendetta. Its mention is a turning point, revealing the illegal and personal nature of her actions.

Before: Stored in Catherine’s possession, likely in her home …

After: Still in Catherine’s possession, but its existence and …

Before: Stored in Catherine’s possession, likely in her home or at the police station, part of her off-the-books investigation.

After: Still in Catherine’s possession, but its existence and use are now known to Clare, making it a point of tension and concern.

Catherine's House Back Doorstep

The back doorstep serves as the physical setting for Catherine and Clare’s conversation. It is a private, intimate space where Catherine feels safe enough to unravel emotionally. The doorstep’s low, informal perch contrasts with the high-stakes nature of their discussion, creating a tension between the mundane and the deeply personal. The cigarettes and mugs of tea on the doorstep symbolize comfort and ritual, grounding the scene in reality even as Catherine’s emotions spiral.

Before: Part of Catherine’s home, a familiar and private …

After: Unchanged physically, but now imbued with the emotional …

Before: Part of Catherine’s home, a familiar and private space where she and Clare often sit to talk.

After: Unchanged physically, but now imbued with the emotional weight of Catherine’s confession.

Drugs Seized from Twiggy and Alfie

The drugs seized from Twiggy and Alfie are mentioned by Catherine as part of her venting about the drug bust. She lists the types of drugs (cocaine, heroin, m-cat, cannabis, crystals, ecstasy) and the amount of cash (three thousand quid) found on them. These details underscore the scale of the operation and her frustration at being excluded from higher-level intelligence, reinforcing her sense of being sidelined and ineffective.

Before: Seized as evidence during the drug bust, likely …

After: Still in police custody, but their mention in …

Before: Seized as evidence during the drug bust, likely stored in police lockup or evidence rooms.

After: Still in police custody, but their mention in this scene highlights Catherine’s professional frustrations and the bureaucratic walls she faces.

£3,000 Seized Drug Bust Evidence

The £3,000 cash is mentioned by Catherine as part of her venting about the drug bust. It symbolizes the financial scale of the operation and her exclusion from critical intelligence. The cash’s presence in the conversation underscores the professional frustrations driving her emotional unraveling and her sense of being sidelined.

Before: Seized as evidence during the drug bust, likely …

After: Still in police custody, but its mention in …

Before: Seized as evidence during the drug bust, likely stored in police lockup or evidence rooms.

After: Still in police custody, but its mention in this scene reinforces Catherine’s professional disillusionment.

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

Catherine Cawood’s Terrace House Backyard

Catherine’s back yard is the intimate, private setting for this emotionally charged conversation. The afternoon daylight fills the space, creating a sense of exposure and vulnerability that mirrors Catherine’s unraveling. The back yard acts as a sanctuary where she can vent her frustrations and confess her obsessions, but it also becomes a pressure cooker as Clare’s probing questions force her to confront her actions. The yard’s seclusion contrasts with the high-stakes nature of their discussion, amplifying the tension.

Atmosphere Tense and emotionally charged, with a sense of intimacy and exposure. The daylight feels intrusive, …

Function Sanctuary for private reflection and confrontation, where Catherine’s emotional and professional struggles are laid bare.

Symbolism Represents the tension between Catherine’s private obsessions and her public professional role. The yard is …

Access Private and secluded, accessible only to Catherine and her immediate family or close confidantes.

Afternoon daylight filling the yard, creating a sense of exposure. Cigarettes and mugs of tea on the doorstep, symbolizing comfort and ritual. The back door, a threshold between the private and the public, where Catherine’s confession takes place.

Mickey Yip’s Chinese Takeaway on Rawson Lane

Mickey Yip’s Chinese takeaway is mentioned by Catherine as the location where she showed Tommy Lee Royce’s photo and enlisted his help in surveilling Royce. While not physically present in the scene, the takeaway is a key site in Catherine’s off-the-books operations. It symbolizes her willingness to bend the rules and involve civilians in her personal vendetta, highlighting the desperation driving her actions.

Atmosphere N/A (Not physically present in the scene, but implied to be a bustling, everyday commercial …

Function Information hub for Catherine’s illegal surveillance, where she leverages local contacts to pursue her obsession.

Symbolism Represents the blurring of professional and personal boundaries, as Catherine uses civilian resources to further …

Access Publicly accessible, but Catherine’s use of it is covert and unauthorized.

N/A (Not physically present in the scene).

Organizations Involved

Institutional presence and influence

Drug Squad

The Drugs Squad is directly referenced by Catherine as the group excluding her from critical intelligence. Their covert operations and selective sharing of information are central to her frustration, as she feels shut out of higher-level decisions and strategies. The Squad’s actions symbolize the broader institutional barriers Catherine faces, reinforcing her sense of being sidelined and ineffective.

Representation Through Catherine’s descriptions of their covert operations and exclusionary practices, as well as her venting …

Power Dynamics Exercising authority over Catherine by controlling access to intelligence and higher-level operations, reinforcing their hierarchical …

Impact The Squad’s actions create resentment and frustration among frontline officers, potentially undermining collaboration and morale.

Internal Dynamics Tensions between the Drugs Squad’s need for secrecy and the frontline officers’ desire for transparency …

To maintain control over drug enforcement intelligence, ensuring that only authorized personnel have access to sensitive information. To uphold operational secrecy and hierarchical structures, even if it frustrates officers like Catherine. Through selective sharing of intelligence and exclusionary practices. By leveraging rank and protocol to limit Catherine’s role and access to information.

Todmorden Police (Regional Force)

West Yorkshire Police is indirectly represented through Catherine’s venting about her exclusion from higher-level intelligence and the Drugs Squad’s operations. The organization’s bureaucratic walls and hierarchical structure are central to Catherine’s frustration, as she feels sidelined and ineffective. Her role as a ‘mess-mopper’ at the ‘bottom end’ underscores the power dynamics at play, where rank and protocol dictate access to critical information.

Representation Via institutional protocol and hierarchical barriers, as Catherine describes her exclusion from intelligence and higher-level …

Power Dynamics Exercising authority over Catherine, limiting her access to information and decision-making power based on rank …

Impact The organization’s rigid structure and secrecy create frustration and resentment among frontline officers, potentially undermining …

Internal Dynamics Hierarchical tensions between frontline officers and higher-ups, where access to information and decision-making power is …

To maintain control over intelligence and operations, ensuring that only authorized personnel have access to sensitive information. To uphold bureaucratic protocols and hierarchical structures, even if they frustrate frontline officers like Catherine. Through institutional protocol and rank-based access to information. By controlling the flow of intelligence and limiting Catherine’s role to ‘cleanup’ tasks.

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

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Key Dialogue

"**CLARE** *(she won’t say the name TOMMY LEE ROYCE)*: *‘Least it’s got your mind off… That other business.’* *(A pause. A moment. A hiatus, where it feels like that could be the end of the scene. Only it isn’t—)* **CATHERINE** *(‘cunt’, she was going to say. Only she retrained herself)*: *‘I printed a photo of the little— shit off the box and I went into t’Chinese.’*"

"**CATHERINE**: *‘I just get to mop up the mess at the bottom end. And we should know—I should know—if they know stuff about people on my patch, people bringing stuff into this valley, I should damn well know about it.’* **CLARE**: *‘Why would they not let you know?’* **CATHERINE**: *‘Oh, they’ll have some covert surveillance stuff going on that numpties like me aren’t allowed to know about— til they need a bit of back-up. Exactly.’*"

"**CATHERINE** *(CONT'D, after Clare’s ‘Inevitably.’)*: *‘Either that or they don’t actually know any more than I do. Which is even more worrying.’* *(A pause. They smoke. They sip tea.)*"