Original subtitles

??

You want to know what happened with me and Melissa?

I killed her in Amsterdam.

I chopped her up and I put her in a canal.

-[ Screams ] -We're requesting that

all relatives send us blood samples

for potential DNA profiling.

-Have you found Melissa? -No, sir, we have not.

We won't stop looking for her.

Sweeney's been granted bail.

-He'll kill me, I know it. -John: Get in the house.

[ Whimpering ]

Jane: I've got some news about Sweeney.

He's out of the country. At least now it's safe

for us to start thinking about getting you discharged.

Would you like to meet again?

Coffee? Or a meal?

John: You look cold like.

Do you want to come in, have a cup of tea?

Just for a few minutes then.

John: Sound -- What's your name?

Paula.

Christine: We think he might have killed a woman.

And the lawyers are saying we don't have enough to charge him.

We want to build a case against him for his attack on you

in December 1994.

And you'll be called to give evidence.

No.

After all that monster did to you,

why don't you wanna be part of something

that will put him away?

Delia: I solemnly, declare and affirm

-this is my lost fingertip... -Miss Balmer. Miss Balmer!

...and this is the scar made by the knife

that pierced my right breast and right lung!

Judge: Miss Balmer!

Christine: You carry on like this, you'll destroy this case,

and Sweeney will be back on the street.

He's laughing at you, Delia.

??

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-Man: Would you like some water? -No, I want wine.

[ Sighs ]

[ Murmuring ]

Miss Balmer, in your own time,

please tell the court about the events of the night

of Thursday the 22nd of December, 1994.

You mean the night he killed me?

If that's how you prefer to put it, yes.

It was the shortest, darkest day of the year.

It was about 6:30 PM. I'd cycled home from work.

There was no one on the street.

I arrived home.

I lent my bike up against the railings,

as I always did. I went to unlock my front door.

I went to pick up my bike.

As I was carrying it in, I heard him call my name.

I looked over my right shoulder, and he was coming up the steps.

Who do you mean by "he," Miss Balmer.

Him. John Sweeney.

Even though it has been seven years since the attack,

I am still affected by my injuries.

Some days I feel like there's a metal clamp crushing my chest.

And if I am touched even softly on my right breast,

I get a horrible feeling like an electric shock.

Both my arms hurt. I can't grip properly.

I have difficulty lifting anything of any weight.

And on cold days, the metal in my left arm feels like ice.

I don't like looking at my injuries.

I have scars all over my body.

I don't like trying on clothes in shops

because I feel like everybody is looking at them.

And I especially hate how my little finger looks.

I used to be proud of my hands, but now,

when I look at my little finger, it makes me feel sick.

Thank you, Miss Balmer.

Could you please tell the court what have been

the long-term effects of the attack on your mental health?

Oh, well, I have been diagnosed with PTSD,

post-traumatic stress disorder.

I feel anxious. I get angry with people.

I have nightmares. And I have --

I have been to see psychiatrists and therapists.

Most of them have said I need antidepressants,

which I have refused,

because I will not put chemicals into my body.

Drugs trick you into thinking that everything

is all right when it is not.

And do you know, I have lost what little confidence I had.

I feel as though...

...I am in a black hole.

And I am scared...

...to wake up in the morning and face a new day.

Because I feel I have lost my future.

You had the option to give your evidence from behind a screen

so that the defendant would not be able to see you,

but you chose not to do that. Why was that, Miss Balmer?

Was it because you wanted to see Mr. Sweeney?

No. Why should I hide from him? I'm not scared of him.

You invited Mr. Sweeney to live in your home.

You were intimate with him for almost four years.

Can you tell me why?

'Cause I'm soft and stupid and couldn't see through him.

Glen: Did you love, Mr. Sweeney, Miss Balmer?

No, I did not. I have never loved anyone.

Glen: You told Barstock Road Police

that Mister Sweeney had tied you to a bed

and repeatedly raped you. That's correct, isn't it?

-Yes. -And yet, after your ordeal,

when the police offered to instal you

in refuge accommodation in King's Cross, you refused.

Because King's Cross is full of drug addicts and prostitutes.

Glen: Or was it because you still had feelings

-for Mr. Sweeney? -No.

Glen: Did you hope that he might return to your flat

so that you could resume your

consensually sadomasochistic relationship?

No! That is not what...

Why do you have to twist everything

and make me out to be a liar?

It is unnecessary and it is dishonest.

Why is the law allowed to treat people like this?

You see, 'cause I just want to be left alone.

??

Well done, Delia, well done.

John: I wasn't there.

I was two hundred miles away in Skelmersdale.

Delia Balmer's lying because she's got a grudge against me.

What about Miss Balmer's neighbour, Joshua Wilson?

He identified you as a person he saw attacking her.

He's mistaken.

In March last year, after your arrest,

-police searched your flat... -Mm-hmm.

-...at Cicely Crescent... -Yes.

Eloise: And discovered an artist�s portfolio

containing 201 of your drawings.

Two of those drawings are of particular relevance

to your attempted murder of Delia Balmer.

Well, I didn't attempt to murder Delia Balmer.

Will the jury please turn to picture exhibit

page five in the bundle?

This drawing shows a boot about to crush a cockroach.

Did you do this drawing, Mr. Sweeney?

Yeah.

Do you remember if it was before the attack on Delia Balmer

on the 22nd of December, 1994, or after?

I've just told you, I didn't attack Delia Balmer.

So, it's impossible to say if it was before or after.

In the bottom right-hand corner are the words

"a cornered cockroach."

Is this your handwriting, Mr. Sweeney?

-Yes, I think it is. -Eloise: Yes.

The cockroach has a woman's head.

Who is the woman, Mr. Sweeney?

Delia Balmer.

Eloise: Picture exhibit, page six.

This is an enlarged detail of the same drawing

angled to make it easier to read.

What you are looking at, ladies and gentlemen,

is the front section of the boot.

As can be seen, there are words clearly visible on it.

Mr. Sweeney, would you please read what is written?

??

Mr. Sweeney?

"May you never die until I kill you."

"May you never die until I kill you."

What point where you making by writing these words on the boot?

John: No point.

Just black humour.

Eloise: Moving on. Page seven in the bundle.

This drawing shows a section of a man's body.

The man is wearing jeans and a belt.

Tucked inside the belt is an axe

with blood clearly visible on the blade.

Blood is dripping from the blade

onto a bloody scalp fringed with blonde hair.

Did you do this drawing, Mr. Sweeney?

-Yes. -Eloise: Do you remember

-when you drew it? -No.

I'd like to draw the jury's attention to the two patches

of white Tipp-Ex correction fluid on the blade of the axe.

Using ultraviolet light, scientists

were able to discover words written beneath the Tipp-Ex.

Please turn to picture exhibit page eight.

Under the first patch of Tipp-Ex is a date of birth --

13th of October, 1956.

Under the second patch, the words "made in Liverpool."

Where were you born, Mr. Sweeney?

I was born in Kirkdale, you know that.

-Eloise: An area of Liverpool? -Yes.

Eloise: Yes. And what is your date of birth?

13th of October, 1956.

So, the words you Tipp-Exed over refer to yourself?

I didn't write that! I didn't -- I didn't put Tipp-Ex on that.

I didn't write that!

Eloise: Yet, in the opinion of the handwriting expert

that we consulted, it is your writing.

Let us turn back now to page seven.

As can be seen, there is a further patch of Tipp-Ex

at the bottom of the page.

Ultraviolet light revealed more writing.

Please turn to page nine in the bundle.

December '94.

The very month and year

Delia Balmer was subjected to a near-fatal attack.

I didn't attack Miss Balmer.

I didn't write this,

and I certainly didn't put Tipp-ex on it.

You do admit doing this drawing?

-Yes. -Of a man with a bloody axe.

The very weapon used in the attack on Delia Balmer.

An extraordinary coincidence,

would you not agree, Mr. Sweeney?

Well, that's what coincidences are, isn't they, eh?

Extraordinary.

Judge: Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

in a moment, you'll go out and consider your verdicts.

The only verdict that I can except are ones

in which you are all agreed.

??

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Woman: My Lord, the jury have been in retirement

for nine hours and 40 minutes.

Mr. Foreman, have you reached a verdict

-on which you are all agreed? -We have.

Is that in relation to all four counts?

Yes.

On count one of the indictment,

the attempted murder of Delia Balmer,

do you find the defendant, John Patrick Sweeney,

guilty or not guilty?

-Guilty. -You fucking idiot!

You're all fucking idiots!

David: Well, Christine says his sentencing

will be in three weeks.

The whole world is laughing at me.

No one's laughing at you.

No one with a shred of decency could look at this

and make a judgement about you.

The only person this vile drawing says anything about

-is him. -It's my face, David.

David: It's not your face.

This is your face.

[ Liquid pouring ]

You're starting early.

[ Newspaper crinkling ]

To John Patrick Sweeney spending the rest

of his life behind bars.

To the damn police releasing a box of cockroaches

in his fucking cell.

??

??

[ Doorbell rings ]

Four life sentences. One for the attempted murder.

One each for the firearms offences.

Four life sen-- Oh, fantastic!

Yeah. We couldn't have done it without you, Delia.

Well, will you join us for a glass of champagne, Chris?

Oh, any excuse.

Come on, Delia, come on.

So, he'll spend the rest of his life in jail?

Uh, well... actually the, um...

The judge ruled that he'll be eligible

for parole in nine years.

David: What was that?

??

Four life sentences,

and he's up for parole in nine years?

Oh, that's insane!

Honestly, none of us can make head or tail of it. It's --

It's the same old fucking shit is what it is!

??

Sorry.

No. No, I'm sorry, David.

It's not your fault. You're not the bloody judge.

Well, this'll probably be my last visit.

-Oh. -Yeah.

The rules are very clear on FLO exit strategies.

Unless Delia actually requests to see me,

which I don't see happening.

Um, I'll be out of her hair now.

Ah, I wonder what my exit strategy should be.

What, seriously?

-[ Chuckling ] No. No. -Oh.

No, no, no. Delia and I, we're in this for the long haul.

We've found the teeth that match each other's wounds.

We're fine. We're fine. Adi�s, amiga.

[ Car door opens ]

[ Car door closes ]

[ Door closes ]

"Sir John Stevens, Police Commissioner."

What's this?

The police and the courts shouldn't be allowed,

to get away with treating victims like they treated me.

Oh, come on, Delia, now. Stop, eh?

It's over, sweetheart.

-L-Let's go out. -I don't want to go out.

My chest hurts. And it's very, very cold.

All right, well, then, let's -- let's get a takeaway.

What do you want? Indian? Chinese?

Do you know what, David, we can't afford takeaways, not now

that you're taking so much time off.

For Christ's sake, Delia! We're not fucking paupers,

for...

[ Sighs ]

[ Tapping loudly on keyboard ]

??

??

??

Let me look.

David Blunkett?

Yes, Sir John damn Stevens got some flunky to reply.

So I'm going over his head.

David: "The letter I received from the Metropolitan Police

was an insult.

I did not want to assist the law, I was forced to.

Them thanking me for testifying

totally misses the point.

You might as well torture someone then thank them

for letting you torture them.

I do not accept their thanks.

The police can stick their thanks up their a--"

Oh, yeah. That'll work.

??

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[ Sighs ]

??

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Do you wanna go out later?

Mm-hmm. Of course.

??

[ Indistinct conversations ]

I wish I'd known you before.

Before what?

Well, Sweeney. The police. The trial.

That's a stupid thing to say, David.

There's no point wishing for something that never was.

David: When the defence barrister asked

if you still loved Sweeney,

you said you'd never really loved anyone.

-Is that really true? -You know that about me.

David, I don't go in for any of that mushy stuff, so...

It's love, Delia. It's not mushy stuff.

For...

[ Sighs, chuckles ]

Oh.

So, now you're not giving me any wine 'cause

you're feeling sorry for yourself?

-I'm paying for it. -Oh.

-[ Glass shatters ] -Oh! Now look what you've done!

Keep your voice down.

No, I won't keep my fucking voice down, David!

Do you know I made a spectacle of myself

in the Old Bailey?

You think I care about making a spectacle of myself

in a Greek fucking restaurant?!

[ Murmuring ]

Sorry.

Sorry.

[ Indistinct chatter ]

Whoa. Everything all right?

Where are you off to in such a hurry?

-Home. Out of my way. -Hold on a moment.

-Have you been drinking, madam? -Yes! I don't --

I don't know what business it is of yours.

Are you American?

No, I'm not fucking...

American!

I was not drunk and disorderly.

I was walking home. I have not done anything wrong.

What's your name?

Delia Balmer.

I used to live on Lavinia Gardens.

I'm in your computer. The 22nd of December, 1994.

My -- I was attacked with an axe.

I nearly died.

There was a trial at the Old Bailey last year.

How do you spell Barmer ?

B-A-L-M-E-R.

[ Door creaks ]

[ Indistinct shouting ]

??

??

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[ Distant horn, siren ]

Delia Balmer? And she's been here all night?

Yeah.

Did you not even check her on the system?

She doesn't have a record.

Not as an offender.

As a victim.

I'm sorry about the night you had, Delia.

You're free to go. I'll have a car run you home.

I'm not getting in a fucking police car.

Delia! Oh, thank Christ!

Where have you been? I've been worried sick!

I've been wandering the streets half the night looking for you.

Yeah well, I was arrested, so...

What? What happened?

I don't want to talk about it. I just want to sleep.

Well, do you want me to come in with you?

It's not working between us, David.

We're holding onto something that's gone.

Well, do you wanna talk about that or...

Is there any point? 'Cause I'll only get angry.

Right, bye then, David.

??

??

Stupid!

??

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

Stupid bitch.

??

[ Sobbing ]

??

[ Siren wailing ]

Yes.

Okay. Bye.

-Hi, uh, sorry to interrupt. -Mm-hmm.

I'm on, uh, Lincoln Ward.

And I'm a qualified therapeutic masseuse.

And I was just wondering,

if that might be something that's useful here or...

Absolutely, but I'm afraid we don't have the budget.

All right. I can work for free.

??

??

[ Knocking ]

Hi. My name's Delia.

Sister said you'd like a cranial massage?

[ Clears throat ]

[ Indistinct conversation ]

??

??

You know, whenever I used to get a shampoo at the hairdresser's,

I'd always ask for the extra conditioner

just to make it last longer.

You are good, Delia.

Yeah, my lecturer at college said I was the best

in the class,

but the other students said I pressed too hard.

Nabil: They were obviously idiots.

So, is there a Mr. Delia at home?

Delia: Nope.

What, you, so petite and cute?

[ Laughs ]

Some lucky fella's missing out.

-Delia, it's after 11:00. -Nabil: Go away, Tessa.

Delia's my handmaiden. Isn't that right, Delia?

??

-[ Sighs ] -[ Laughs ]

[ Both laughing ]

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Ah, Nabil!

Delia!

Mum, this is the lady with the magic fingers.

Thanks for looking after him.

-You're leaving us? -Yeah. For a bit.

I've hit a good patch, so Mum is gonna pamper me at home.

You take care of yourself, Delia.

Yeah.

Thanks for making this shit bearable.

[ Coughs ]

Mum: Come on you, let's get you home.

Nabil: Let's do it. Thanks so much.

??

??

??

[ Phone rings ]

Barnes Green Serious Crime Command,

DI Steve Smith speaking.

Hi. This is Detective Astrid De Vries,

Amsterdam CID.

Scotland Yard gave me your number.

I understand that your department investigated

the unsolved murder of a woman, Paula Fields.

Uh, most of the team have moved on but, yes,

the Paula Fields investigation was based here.

How can I help?

I've got some news on the prime suspect in that case.

John Sweeney.

We've identified the remains of a former girlfriend of his.

A young American woman. Melissa Halstead.

A few weeks ago, a cold case team in Rotterdam

found a tissue sample in storage of an unidentified female body,

found in a bag in a canal

in Rotterdam in 1990.

We just got a DNA match with blood supplied

by Melissa's family back in 1995.

It's her. 100%.

Melissa Halstead's remains have been lying in Rotterdam's

municipal cemetery since 1990.

I was present at the exhumation.

The condition of the body might be of interest to you.

Her head, hands, and feet had been removed.

The same as Paula Fields.

Okay. Okay.

We need to figure how to work

together on this.

John Sweeney has served almost six years

of his nine-year sentence.

Add to that the months he was on remand,

and the reality is he could be out...

in two years.

That's at least how long an investigation

of this magnitude will take.

And we're not helped by the fact that neither us

nor the Dutch have a shred of forensic evidence

linking Sweeney to the murders

of Melissa Halstead or Paula Fields.

Smith: On Melissa Halstead,

her dismembered remains were found in a canal in Rotterdam

on May 3rd, 1990.

But only recently identified.

19 years later.

On Paula Fields,

her dismembered remains were found in Regent's Canal

on the 19th of February, 2001.

We can connect Sweeney to the two women.

Various recorded eyewitness accounts.

But no connection with their murders.

However, what are the chances of two women having relationships

with the same man,

both ending up murdered, dismembered, heads, hands,

feet removed, put in bags, and dumped in canals?

Then there's this woman,

Delia Balmer, the survivor.

The girlfriend who came between Melissa and Paula.

The woman whose attempted murder

Sweeney is currently doing time for.

On the 31st of May, 1994,

Delia Balmer made a statement to Barstock Road Police

in which she said Sweeney told her he murdered Melissa.

That evidence has never been put before a jury.

??

Smith: Delia Balmer?

What John Sweeney told you in 1994 was true,

except for one detail.

He disposed of Melissa's body

in a canal in Rotterdam, not Amsterdam.

I never said the canal was in Amsterdam.

Just that he said he killed her in Amsterdam.

Why are you here?

Smith: We're re-opening the investigation into the murders

of Melissa Halstead and Paula Fields.

And we intend to charge John Sweeney with both offences.

But it's a given he'll plead not guilty.

No shit.

We know the trial in 2001 was very difficult for you.

-Ha! -But if we can get the case

to court, we'd greatly appreciate it

if you'd consent to give evidence.

It -- It will be much easier this time.

You'd just have to talk about what he told you

he did to Melissa. That's all.

No. No.

No.

No.

??

[ Sobbing ]

We think it's a bad idea to put Delia Balmer on the stand.

Bad for us, but very bad for her.

You told her Sweeney's coming up for parole?

-Yeah. -[ Sighs ] I'd thought she'd

relish the opportunity to testify against him.

Smith: But it's not about that for her.

She thought her ordeal was over.

She just wants to be done with all this.

She's that terrified of being cross-examined again.

We want to suggest a compromise.

The Dutch have requested a videotaped statement of Delia

talking about Sweeney's Melissa confession.

If she agrees to it,

perhaps we could apply to the judge

to let the video statement serve as her evidence in the trial.

That way the jury get to see her,

but she avoids the ordeal of being cross-examined live.

Live is what we need.

Our case against Sweeney is still only circumstantial.

The jury needs to see Delia Balmer in real time,

telling them what Sweeney told her he did to Melissa Halstead.

[ Knock on door ]

Sorry, boss. You've got to see this.

Merseyside police conducted a search on Sweeney's family home.

They found this lot in the original police evidence bags.

It was restored to the family in 2001 after he was convicted.

But no one thought to hang on to it

because the case wasn't about Melissa.

Look at this.

-A scratch card? -Turn it over, boss.

We've confirmed that's Sweeney's handwriting.

"Poor old Melissa, chopped her up in bits.

Food to feed the fish. Amsterdam was the pits."

And that's not all.

He's even dated them.

[ Murmuring ]

"Amsterdam. Easter 1990."

Still think we need Delia in court to win this thing?

Videotape her statement. I'll talk to the judge.

See if we can keep her out of court.

Smith: Yeah.

Croft: Delia, please tell us what John Sweeney told you

during the Spring Bank Holiday of 1994.

No.

I want to talk about Saturday, the 29th of June, 2002,

when I was wrongfully arrested

by Barstock Road Police for being drunk and disorderly.

A policeman twice my size put handcuffs on me

and then shoved me into a police van.

I spent the whole fucking night in a dirty, smelly police cell!

Now, I wrote to the station's superintendent,

and when he wrote back to me,

he didn't even fucking apologise.

He said what had happened to me was

an unfortunate incident,

and he tried to shut me up with a cheque

for �42.50 for the dry cleaning

of my suede coat that they fucking ruined!

We didn't know she was intoxicated

until she let rip for the cameras.

It's not a problem though, is it, boss?

Not now we've got the photos

and the scratch card and everything.

There's been a development. Sweeney knows

that we don't intend to put Delia on the stand.

He's instructed his counsel to go back to the judge

and insist that she be compelled to testify.

Given the seriousness of the charges against him,

the judge has granted his request.

Delia: Yeah, well, I knew the creep wasn't finished with me.

I knew he'd find some way of stamping out

what little life I have left.

Ah, but it�s not the end of the road.

We�ve got one card up our sleeve.

We can apply for a medical exemption.

We�d get you to see a forensic psychiatrist,

with your permission, obviously, and see

if we can get you declared unfit to give evidence.

That's my only way out of this?

See a shrink who'll say how nuts I am?

Well, yes, but I-I wouldn't have put it that way myself, but yes.

Well, what choice do I have? I can't leave the country

because my passport's expired, so I'm trapped yet again.

Delia, medical exemptions aren�t easy to get.

So, if the psychiatrist thinks you�re even slightly

intoxicated, that�ll go into a report to the judge,

and it�ll be game over.

You mustn�t drink any alcohol before the session.

Oh, no, I have to have a drink. Otherwise I'll be a mess.

But a sober mess.

And that'll count in your favour.

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[ Doorbell rings ]

Shit. Come on, Delia.

[ Doorbell rings ]

I bought two bottles of wine and a bottle of brandy last night,

and I didn't touch a drop.

So now I feel dreadful.

Are you clear about the purpose of this session, Delia?

Yep.

You're gonna decide whether or not I'm mentally fit

to give evidence in court.

??

??

When I was lying on the steps,

thinking I was about to die,

I thought of my Mum and Dad...

??

...and my brother, Stewart.

They were alive then, Mum and Dad.

They died a couple of years ago, within a year of each other.

And I thought of them each...

??

??

...and how they...

how they were so far away.

??

I -- I thought about how I would never see them again

and how they would never see me.

[ Chuckles ]

And I...

[ Sighs ] I...

[ Voice breaking ] I clung -- clung to that memory

of their faces because I wanted

my last thoughts to be only of them.

??

??

Can I go now?

Of course, you can.

But...

there's still 30 minutes left on the clock, Delia.

Paid for by The Met.

If there's anything you want to talk about,

anything at all, now might be a good time.

I just want to go home.

Dr. Howes: The only thing holding her together

is her anger.

If her fear becomes greater than her anger,

which is very close to where she is now,

I think there's a real possibility she might try

to take her own life.

Dr. Howes will tell the judge that, under no circumstances,

should you be compelled to testify.

It's over.

??

??

Croft: "It was like he was letting out something

that he'd been keeping deep inside."

"He told me that he killed Melissa in Amsterdam,

and that he sat with her body for three days.

He didn't say how he killed her.

He said he had cut her up and put her in a bag

and threw her in a canal.

??

Delia: Yeah. Two life sentences. No parole this time.

He's what they call here a whole life tariff.

So, you know, he'll spend the rest of his life in jail.

Stewart: It�s about Goddamn time.

How do you feel, Delia?

Oh, I dunno.

Not much of anything.

You know, they, uh, told me that he

refused to leave his cell when they read out the verdict.

He must've been real mad.

Mm.

Good riddance, I say.

You won, Delia. He tried to kill you

and he couldn't because you were too strong.

I'd don't -- I don't know if

strength has much nothing to do with it, Stew.

Yes, it did.

You were always the strong one in our family.

-You think that? -I know it.

You remember when we first moved to Detroit in '64

and there was that tornado and --

and the neighbour's house moved off its foundations?

Yeah. What about it?

Dad was scared, and he wanted us all

to go down into the basement.

You wanted to stay upstairs and watch the storm.

Yeah. I remember.

??

I enjoyed it.

You did.

We were all scared,

but not you.

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? Lovely flowers ?

??

? Resting in water ?

? Would you take them away ?

? Take ?

? Would you take me away ?

??

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