Original subtitles

Gerald.

Father Brown.

Thank you.

I haven't made a decision yet.

Of course. I wouldn't expect you to make a decision on the basis

of a single letter. But I'm glad you're even here.

I've been thinking about what I did.

It's all I've thought about.

The person I was then.

I can barely say his name.

Kalon.

Foolish.

Confused.

Murderous.

And what now?

The psychiatrists all say that I've made a remarkable recovery,

but that's what they said at the last hearing.

But if you were there...

All I'm asking is that you hear my truth.

If after that you decide you can't help me, then I'll accept that.

You want me to gaze into your soul?

And if what you see is good

and it is in your heart to...

You saved me once before, Father.

Please...

..save me again.

He threw his wife out of a window.

Perhaps a cup of tea?

Right. One cup of tea.

And he brainwashed Suzie.

Poor girl was never the same after.

Small wonder she ran off with a Buddhist.

Suzie found her peace. The question is, has Kalon?

Gerald.

Father, sometimes there's such a thing as too much do-gooding.

This is not about "do-gooding".

This is about a second chance. This is about redemption.

So, you've already made up your mind.

I have done no such thing.

Yes, I believe he's a changed man.

And what brings you to that conclusion?

I have spoken with him.

I have spent time with him.

Obviously I am not trained to offer a medical diagnosis,

but as his spiritual adviser...

..Gerald shows genuine remorse for what he has done.

He is tortured by it.

And that agony can only come from one place,

a conscience.

And if he were to be released,

you would be willing to guide him

through his re-assimilation into society?

Yes.

Yes. Of course.

Well, of course I tried, Sidney.

The hospital will tell me absolutely nothing.

I'm going to see if he might...

Oh, I think that's him now.

Just get back here as soon as you can.

So, just how long does it take

to sing the praises of a murdering psychopath?

I waited until the director of the institution had made his decision.

And?

You have gone absolutely mad.

I appreciate your concern,

but I am asking you to trust me.

I would not be doing this unless I was sure.

I promise you.

I am not the "murdering psychopath" you think I am.

That man died a long time ago.

You disgust me.

Sid.

"And the Astral Ancients did command that we till

"the soil to honour their gifts, to entreat their favours.

"We till the soil to bless their light,

"to summon their wisdom, to beg for their healing."

Let me do that. Are you sure?

Of course. You need a break.

I'm all right.

If my daughter wants the blessings of

the Astral Ancients, she has to earn them.

Tell him, child.

"In shadow are the slovenly, denied their blessings."

You may rest.

All of you.

She will be blessed a thousandfold at the Solstice.

She will be healed.

Kalon?

Tobias.

Why are you here?

To seek acceptance.

To beg forgiveness.

Is that why you've brought a priest?

Everything's going to be all right now.

What makes you say that?

Kalon.

Thank you.

You've arrived at an auspicious time.

Chapters will be joining us from all over the country for the solstice.

Chapters?

The religion has been flourishing.

The student becomes the master.

Forgive me for asking -

your forehead markings?

Oh, the five levels of enlightenment,

based on insights delivered to me by the Astral Ancients.

And what about the crystal balls?

You telling fortunes now?

They aren't crystal balls.

They're spirit orbs.

My mistake.

It's all in here. There's nothing to hide.

Perhaps you'd like a tour of our homestead after tea?

Why have you returned?

I wish to rejoin the order.

You killed your astral partner.

You have no right...

It is not up to you.

This does not concern you, Celeste.

You weren't even here in Kalon's time.

Tobias saved us when you abandoned this order.

He brought us together. He's our leader now.

It's not my intention to usurp his leadership.

I wish simply to be amongst the people of the sun.

I will consider it.

You can go.

Your mother's right. He's a murderer.

My mother doesn't know what she's talking about.

How do you think he can help you? He's the founder.

The seer of the light.

If he can't help me, who ca...

Clara? It's happening.

Come.

Astral Ancients, we beseech you to channel your power

through the lens of our bodies.

To guide your light upon the spirit of our daughter.

We beseech you to calm the storm inside her,

to heal her with your blessed power.

We beseech you, we beseech you.

We beseech you.

WORSHIPPERS: We beseech you. We beseech you. We beseech you.

The power of prayer is a miraculous thing, isn't it, Father?

What are you doing here?

Please. Leave.

We're a self-sufficient community.

We grow our own food, make our own clothes.

But our ultimate destiny is through here.

The Sun Temple.

A vision from the Astral Ancients.

An instruction.

To build a place for our people,

to be close to them always.

The Astral Ancients show a flair for the extravagant.

All the better to exult their glory.

Wouldn't you agree?

"Glory be to the Astral Ancients."

First testament. Chapter three.

Bet that cost a few bob.

We've been pooling our resources into investments

and with the blessings and guidance of the Astral Ancients,

we will have our paradise.

Our paradise. Not yours.

You are not worthy of this blessing.

Thelma. I want to speak to you alone.

Later. Celeste, show our guests back to the garden.

Kalon, let us speak.

Here.

The originals.

My legacy.

Our legacy.

There are undoubtedly others who feel like Thelma.

And with good reason.

But let me speak to them,

to all of them, at the solstice.

If I'm rejected, so be it.

But as your founder, and your friend,

I simply ask to be heard.

BOTH: Astral blessings upon you.

Astral blessings upon you.

GONG RINGS OUT

Our founder has returned to us,

and with the blessings of the Astral Ancients,

he shall once again be one of us.

Astral blessings upon you.

GONG RINGS OUT

Kalon, do you accept baptism into the way of the light?

I do. Do you vow to learn the teachings of the Astral Ancients,

to commit them to your heart?I do.

Do you swear to abide by their will, to submit to their authority?

I do. No!

You can't!

You will not interfere with the sacred ritual of baptism...

But he's a murderer!

We will speak of this later. Go.

Kalon...

..be anointed...

..into the light.

Be anointed.

VARIOUS: Be anointed. Be anointed.

That's where you keep your spirit orb?

Don't worry about Thelma.

She thinks she knows the Astral Ancients better than Tobias.

But all she really knows is how to manage the rotas

and boss people about.

If you need anything, talk to me.

Thank you.

Gerald!

I asked you to leave.

Not until you tell me what you're doing here.

You got my letter?

I did.

So THAT is why you came back?

It is nothing like that.

What, then?

What's going on?

My friend was just leaving.

You give me no choice.

I will telephone the institution

and I will tell them what has happened.

Do as you must.

Come.

I never believed the whispers about you.

That's not how I remember you.

You were kind, protective.

Whispers?

About the way you...treated women.

Or the spiteful things my mother says.

But I know it isn't true.

I communed with Dominique's astral spirit.

You did what?

And she told me it was an accident.

And now you're here,

you'll heal me,

and everything will be all right.

Clara...uh...

..there are some things you need to know.

Um... Someone must be in there.

HE KNOCKS ON DOOR

Hello?

SHE SCREAMS

Get Mallory!

HE GASPS

SHE SCREAMS

She's dead.

Thelma.

Oh, no.

No.

May her astral spirit rise unto the sun.

May the Ancients draw her into glorious union.

May her light shine always.

VARIOUS: May her light shine always.

Windows are all bolted.

Nowhere to hide.

Maybe it was an accident. She fell.

Sir, the magnifying glass - broken during a struggle, perhaps?

Do you see any signs of a struggle in this room, Sergeant?

Looks like these fell out of her pocket, mind.

"Phenytoin".

That doesn't make sense.

I told you to wait outside with the others.

Given my prior history with this group,

I thought I might be of assistance.

Why doesn't it make sense, Father?

The followers don't believe in modern medicine.

Only the natural healing remedies of the Astral Ancients.

Astral Ancients?

Well, their spiritual forebears.

It's in the book.

Sergeant, homework.

Padre, out.

What's that on her fingertips?

Hmm. Hmm.

Black paint?

Padre!

Murder weapon.

Looks like blood and hair.

We'll take over the investigation from here.

There's broken glass on the mantelpiece.

Odd. Out!

You found out who it is yet?

No, not yet.

Everything's going to be all right.

How can you say that? My mother's dead.

Clara, I'm so sorry for your loss.

Thank you.

If you don't mind my asking,

why did your mother wear a magnifying glass around her neck?

She used it for reading.

And inspecting our cleaning.

I see.

Gerald, might I have a word with you, alone?

Right.

We have a few questions.

Sergeant. Sir.

The victim has black paint on her fingertips.

Does that mean anything to you at all?

The marks of banishment.

Three lines scored across the forehead.

So she was banishing someone when she was killed?

So it would appear.

And who might she want to banish?

She was found in your room?

I bore her no ill will.

Same can't be said of her, though, can it?

Meaning?

She disapproved of my re-initiation into the order.

And why was that?

You killed your wife.

Sorry...

.."astral partner"

making it look like a fall,

them staged a locked room to cover your tracks.

So this is a case of, if at first you don't succeed...?

I didn't do this.

Yours are the only fingerprints on the murder weapon.

I wish to speak to Father Brown.

Suddenly converted, have we?

I thought you believed in the astral fairies?

KNOCK ON DOOR

Father Brown's here, Sir. Spiritual counsel.

Speak of the devil.

You can give him all the spiritual counsel you like, Padre.

It won't change a thing.

Have you worked out the locked room?

I'll no doubt have it figured out by the end of the day.

In the meantime, I'm charging him with murder. Goodfellow.

Thank you, Sergeant.

No more secrets.

Tell me everything.

Clara came to this order when she was a child.

It's all she knows, and I'm responsible for that.

Her mind and her life poisoned by my delusions.

You went back to save her.

What was in her letter?

She told me she was going to devote herself to the order,

that the religion had grown.

She told me that she was sick,

but she believed in the Astral Ancients to...

She wanted me to come back and channel their power.

But your plan wasn't to heal her.

It was to tell her the truth.

Not just her - all of them.

At the solstice, before the entire congregation.

And say what? Tell them about my sickness, my delusions.

Tell them how I preyed on their weaknesses.

But you can't just rip someone's faith from under them...

That's what you did to me.

Yes. I did.

And you of all people know the emotional consequences.

Well, what are the consequences of letting it go on?

There are lives at stake, Father.

Souls.

Perhaps this is divine retribution.

I'll almost certainly hang this time.

Which is why it's up to you now.

Up to me?

To finish what I started.

GONG RINGS OUT

We stand in the shadow of a tragedy,

and it's my fault.

It was I who allowed Kalon back into the order.

It was I who trusted too much.

And it is I who must carry it on my conscience.

But at times like this

we must open our hearts to the light,

and keep in sight our glorious destiny,

our paradise in the sun.

Tomorrow is the solstice.

It shall be a time of healing...

..for us all.

Continue your preparations...

..which Celeste will now be supervising.

I came to offer my condolences.

Thank you.

Did Kalon say why he did it?

I'm not entirely convinced he's the culprit.

Well, Inspector Mallory telephoned, said they're charging him.

I believe he's mistaken.

So you think it was one of us?

I did notice antagonism between you and Thelma.

On the matter of Kalon, yes.

It turns out she was right.

I was foolishly naive to think he had truly changed.

Blinded by my own feelings.

Could not the same be true of you, Father?

Besides, what evidence do you have to show that he's innocent?

Nothing...yet.

But if I could just see his room again...

What do you expect to find?

How the killer escaped.

Isn't that a job for the police?

Yes, but a second pair of eyes wouldn't hurt.

You heard him.

In any case,

we are very busy with our preparations,

as you can see.

My lady has spoken.

But you're more than welcome to come back tomorrow

for our solstice celebration.

It's open to the whole community.

An excellent way to recruit new followers, no doubt.

No different from your church fetes, wouldn't you say?

Answer me.

Please!

What's the matter, Clara?

My mother's astral spirit won't manifest.

Why do you think that is?

Could it be something to do with the pills in her pocket?

Phenytoin.

It's an anti-convulsant.

The local chemist said they'd dispensed some

to a young man from your order a few days ago.

Your mother didn't just use the magnifying glass

for reading and inspection, did she?

That wound's only a few hours old.

How did that happen?

After my attack,

I went to commune with the sun.

I want to show you something.

Don't be angry.

Albert. Where did you...?

I faked a prescription.

It's forbidden.

Surely it can't be the wishes of the Astral Ancients that you suffer.

It is not ours to question the wishes of the Astral Ancients.

The chemist said it would help with your seizures.

I know you mean well.

But you have to throw them away.

Clara, please.

Then I'll do it. No!

I didn't take one.

It's my fault. I-I bought them.

Wait in my office.

Skin.

Astral Ancients,

look down upon this wretched child

and grant her forgiveness for her blasphemy.

I deserved it.

No, you didn't.

I angered the Astral Ancients.

I had to pay penance.

As a priest, surely you must understand.

As a priest,

I find sometimes that a literal reading

of the scripture can lead you away from the truth, not towards it.

How did your mother's magnifying glass get broken?

I don't think you're telling me everything.

I raised my hand against her.

Take this gift of skin as penance for her weakness.

SHE CRIES OUT

GLASS SMASHES

And now she has forsaken me.

What are you doing?

Talking.

You're upsetting her.

Was it you that Thelma was about to banish,

for bringing Clara the medication?

Go.

Are you all right?

I didn't tell you to do that.

Why don't you listen to my instructions?

Father?

Father? What on earth are you doing?

I'm going fishing.

You're going fishing?

Maybe he used some sort of magnetic device to close

the bolt from the other side of the door.

A magnetic device?

You've been reading too much science fiction, Sergeant.

DOOR OPENS

Apologies for the smell.

The murder weapon.

We already have the murder weapon.

Yeah, thanks to your eagle eyes, Father.

I was wrong.

Observe the fracture.

It was cast into the pond at the farmhouse.

That doesn't prove anything.

It could have rolled off one

of their laps while they were fondling it.

I mean, you have to admit, Father, apart from the crack,

there's no evidence it was used in the murder.

Consider the fragments of glass on the mantelpiece,

made when the murderer smashed Gerald's orb,

to make it appear to be the murder weapon.

What about the hair and blood?

Easily transferred from the victim.

Listen to yourself, Padre.

Spinning just-so stories,

finding any excuse to get the killer off the hook

because your neck is on the line for letting him out.

On the other hand, Sir,

we still haven't been able to figure out that locked...

Quiet, Sergeant.

You're always preaching about the truth, Padre.

Well, here's a dose for you -

you made a mistake.

You lost this one.

Now go home.

I need to retrace Thelma's steps,

then perhaps I can work out how, as well as who.

Father Brown.

Welcome to our celebration.

You've brought your little friends, I see.

Yes, I have.

Tobias said that all were welcome.

Of course.

But please don't go in the house.

That's private property.

I was in your pond yesterday.

You were what?

I fell in.

It was quite a spectacle.

While I was in there,

I found a spirit orb.

It was cracked.

Well...who knows how that got there.

As I said, stick to the gardens.

Astral blessings upon you.

ALL: Astral blessings upon you.

All right, I'll admit it, she's a bit shifty.

She looked as guilty as sin.

Oh, where are you off to now?

Oh!

KNOCK ON DOOR, DOOR OPENS

I just wanted to wish you blessings for the healing.

Thank you.

What is it?

It's our fault my mother's dead.

What are you talking about?

We angered the Astral Ancients.

I should never even have touched those pills.

It wasn't your fault. Or mine.

How else was she killed?

There was no-one in the room.

We-we saw it with our own eyes.

She was punished for our transgressions.

That's not true.

It was against the Word.

Maybe the Word isn't all.

Meaning?

There are more important things.

Like what?

Like-like...

What on earth are you...?

Like love.

I love you.

And I think you feel the same way.

I just want you to be well.

The Astral Ancients will make me well.

But what if the Astral Ancients aren't...? Stop it!

Stop! Please.

How can I love someone who doesn't believe?

The tabernacle.

Oh.

Of course.

SHE HUMS

SHE GASPS

Where on earth is Father Brown?

Oh.

Would you be so kind as to telephone the police station?

I'm about to apprehend the killer

and I would like Inspector Mallory here for the arrest.

You sure about that?

I've never been more certain.

There's a telephone in the hallway.

Right.

So who is it?

Look at this.

Kalon. He must have done that before he killed Thelma,

denouncing his own words.

We shall not speak of him today.

Today is for healing.

GONG RINGS OUT

Please...

..on this joyous day of solstice...

..we pay thanks to the life-giving sun.

We revere its ancient power

and we celebrate its glorious light.

The Astral Ancients are here with us today,

and together we shall channel their healing power.

Clara.

Astral Ancients,

we beseech you to guide the light upon

the spirit of this, your daughter.

Touch her with your healing power,

to burn away the sickness inside her.

We beseech you.

VARIOUS: We beseech you.

We beseech you.

We beseech you...

I can feel them.

I can feel them.We beseech you. We beseech you.

We beseech you. We beseech you...

SHE BREATHES HEAVILY

Clara.

Continue.

Look down upon this, your fallen daughter,

and bathe her in your light.

Cast out the shadows of sickness,

burn away the torment that plagues her.

Stop it!

Clara. Clara.

It didn't work.

The Astral Ancients are condemning me, just as they did my mother.

Clara, you are not being condemned.

Thank you, Father, but this is an internal matter.

Tobias...

..was it an internal matter when you murdered Thelma?

GASPS

That is a despicable accusation.

You killed her because she discovered your secret.

What secret?

After she interrupted the initiation,

Thelma didn't go to Kalon's room.

There were no black marks on the door.

She went to your study.

What's this?

Bankruptcy.

History of bad investments.

All your money lost.

Your paradise in the sun has gone.

Whatever he has there is a forgery.

Father Brown has been an enemy of this church

for a long time. It's a personal vendetta.

She threatened to expose you, didn't she?

You've been lying to us.

HE SCOFFS

No.

No, no, this is just a setback, that's all.

We're sure to recruit new members at the solstice.

The others have a right to know.

The Astral Ancients are guiding me.

They have a plan.

The Astral Ancients speak to me too.

I will be guided by them.

You dare defy me?

You are not our saviour.

You are a liar and you are a hypocrite.

And everyone shall know.

No!

An evil lie.

But now you had a problem.

Dead body in your office,

murder weapon in your hand.

You needed someone to frame,

and who better than the man

the victim had antagonised only moments ago?

So you dragged her to Kalon's room,

and my guess is you saw him.

SHE GASPS

I'll explain later. Clean up the mess. And get rid of that orb!

Go, go!

So now we're both in on this, are we?

You're a fantasist, Father.

You bolted the door,

prepared the scene.

But you were disturbed.

Someone must be in there.

KNOCK ON DOOR

Hello?

There was no place for you to hide, except behind the door.

And now you had another problem.

How to leave your hiding place without being seen in

the mirror opposite the door.

Which is why Celeste provided you with a distraction.

SHE SCREAMS

She's dead.

It's all lies!

It's all lies.

He's on a crusade to destroy any religion that's not his own.

Tobias, I'm here to expose you as a liar...

..a manipulator, and a murderer.

You said you killed her for me.

CAR APPROACHES SIREN RINGS

HE GRUNTS

Get off me.

I don't understand.

If I'm not responsible, why am I being punished?

You're not being punished.

BELL RINGS

Good morning. You're very welcome.

It's on the front of the newspapers -

"Religious cult goes bankrupt."

Good morning, Mrs Harrington.

Good morning.

Oh, and, Father,

I'm very sorry that I ever doubted you.

No apologies necessary.

Well, at least that's

the last we'll be seeing of those deranged lunat...

Would you have room in your congregation for a few more?

There is always room in the House of God. Is that not so, Mrs McCarthy?

What? Oh, yes. Yes, of course.

Thank you.

It is splendid to see you looking so well.

Thank you, Father.

Yes, you look better too.

Much better than in that tunic.

Clara's seeing a doctor.

And the others? Many have gone their own way.

But I'm helping those who want it, and they're helping me.

Are you coming inside?

You saved me. You saved us all.

From incarceration, perhaps.

But only God can grant salvation.

I don't deserve it.Yes, you do. After the things I've done.

God forgives.

How do you do it?

Do what?

See the good even the darkest of souls.

Because it's there.

And I see it in you.

Thank you, Father.