Previously on Burden of Truth...
23 barrels in the field,
and we still can't tie it to Matheson Steel.
But our whistleblower can.
You want me to go on the record?
Joanna said that we're not suing you.
- We're suing the mill. - I am the mill.
We all have ends we gotta meet.
You keep this conversation going,
I'll show you where you meet your end.
I don't understand.
I have cancer?
She said opposing counsel called the meeting.
If it wasn't you, then who did it?
I did.
Joanna Hanley is hereby disqualified.
You've done a fabulous job of getting us this far.
I'll take it from here.
That's unnecessary.
I've got everything under control.
Thanks, guys.
What is going on?!
Grab a box and get comfortable.
What's all this?
The mill has been compelled to show us their files,
so they cooperate by burying us.
I thought we were prepping Molly today.
We are. We have to do both:
prep Molly and find the needle in the haystack.
Easy, right?
If only we had our third musketeer.
Shouldn't we have heard from her by now?
She'll reach out as soon as she gets her ruling.
So what's the needle?
Anything relating to the parent company:
e-mail transcripts, memos, board minutes.
We have to show that P and L knew
the illegal dumping was taking place.
Are you kidding me?
Oh, yeah... Anything that's been redacted,
we have to petition the court to have it unmasked.
- Every time? - Every time.
Welcome to discovery.
Before me today is the conflict of interest matter
for the prosecuting attorney of Ross v. Matheson Steel.
Ms. Hanley, you better have
one hell of an explanation for yourself.
During my time as lawyer at CTS,
I did not work on Matheson Steel files,
nor did I do any work substantially related
to the matter before the court. There is no conflict.
Furthermore, the Defence failed
to bring their complaint in a timely manner.
By failing to bring their complaint,
they have effectively waived their objection.
Use it or lose it.
Counselor Hanley.
Yes, Your Honour.
Counselor David Hanley.
Why the delay in bringing this to my attention?
I wasn't lead counsel for the Defence until last week.
But you knew your daughter was representing Molly Ross.
Yes, I did.
By removing me from this matter so late,
it will negatively impact our client.
They still have Billy Crawford, Your Honour.
Would your clients not be sufficiently
represented by your co-counsel?
William Crawford is a skilled attorney,
but Carver, Thatcher, Stokes
is a firm with enormous resources.
Even with the two of us, this isn't a fair fight.
And the resources that we do have
are being squandered fighting vexatious motions.
You're wasting Opposing Counsel's time
and more importantly, you're wasting mine.
Joanna Hanley is requalified as counsel.
Well, well.
Me and you back in court together. Just like old times.
I'm here because you had me disqualified from this case.
I've never given you special treatment. You know that.
I think that you are terrified
of what the girls are going to say
and you're trying to sideline our witness preparation,
and it's not gonna work.
Joanna, I was really hoping
that we could start mending fences here.
Come on.
Will you at least have breakfast with me?
Please?
We've always bonded over litigation.
There's no reason we can't do it from opposite sides.
That's gonna be a long road, Dad.
And right now, I'm kind of busy with my girls.
Your girls?
Now you sound like Crawford.
- What's that supposed to mean? - It means that he'll always be
Molly Ross's uncle first.
He's protective of her. He's emotional.
That's why he'll lose.
You think you can rattle Billy by going after Molly?
I should get going back to work.
- I'll get this. - You didn't finish.
I'll see you at the deposition tomorrow.
Hey.
Look, I know I'm not your favourite person,
but I was wondering if we could talk.
About my father.
I've been wanting to talk to you too.
When I told him I was having Luna,
your dad gave me an ultimatum.
I had to agree to never contact him again,
or else he'd sue for full custody.
He threatened to take her from you?
He was bluffing.
He had no interest in raising her,
but I was a kid. I didn't know that.
He told me that what you had together
felt like love.
I thought it was.
I was young and infatuated,
and he loved that.
But that's not love.
He's told so many lies.
I just need to find the one
that will trip him up.
Is that why you wanted to talk to me?
Ask your mother.
I'm sure she has enough dirt to bury him.
Yeah, I haven't heard from her in over a decade.
She was supposed to come with us.
She stayed back in Winnipeg to finish packing, and eh...
I never saw her again.
Maybe you should find her.
I mean, you know where she is, don't you?
I'll do what I can
to help you take him down.
But...
the person you really need to talk to is her.
Your kids made these for me?
I didn't tell them what happened.
Yeah. And they don't know about us?
How's the head?
Still feels like
the guy knocked something loose.
Whatever it is it's just...
rattling around in there.
Who would do this?
I keep replaying it in my head...
but... my head's the problem.
I can't remember anything.
You should get some rest.
I'll be back in a bit to check on you, OK?
Who the flowers for?
You cheating on me with some guy in a body cast?
They're for Taylor Matheson.
She's in the east wing, first round of chemo.
Give the kid my best, OK?
Dr. Barrow to Obstectrics.
Hey.
Shh!
How are you doing?
Oh, well, um, chemo sucks.
Well, we should put that on the back of a t-shirt.
Where's your mom?
They're on a rotating schedule,
which means I never get a break.
They don't want you to be alone.
And I'm always still here if you need me.
Oh.
- Diane. - Hi, Ben. Good morning.
Baby, did you sleep?
Yeah, when you weren't snoring.
I don't snore.
You must be hungry.
How about I get you one of those
tasty nutritional shakes?
Said no one ever.
Ms. Evans, can you take my dad on a walk or something?
He's been in that chair all night.
I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me.
I'd also really like to get some sleep.
Coffee?
Yeah.
We should start with named plaintiff, Molly Ross.
- She's the weak link. - OK.
She got some brain trauma on the soccer field
a couple years ago.
A concussion.
Yeah. Suffered traumatic brain injury
that caused sufficient damage,
enough to differentiate her symptoms from the other girls.
She only scored 10 on the Glasgow Coma Scale.
Look, it's an opening, OK?
We establish the brain injury,
and then we pivot to the gay thing.
- The gay thing? - Yeah.
Look, there are
certain psychological pressures
to being a closeted lesbian in a small town.
Stressors that may have
exacerbated her earlier brain injury.
Now, I think that we can
comfortably argue that Molly Ross was suffering
prior brain impairment
from her athletics and her lifestyle choices.
You know, I think we'd have better luck
focusing on the admissibility
of the medical evidence of causation.
Right? We argue Fraser v. UT Trucking.
This isn't a group grope, Alan.
You just follow my strategy. OK?
I just don't think that we should...
target a young teenager about her sexuality.
It feels...
unduly harsh.
"Unduly harsh"?
You're starting to sound like my daughter.
Alan, we're paid to win.
Nothing else matters.
Besides, we're not targeting
Molly Ross with these strategies.
- We're going after her uncle. - Crawford?
Yeah.
The harder we go after the niece,
the deeper we get under his skin.
He'll want to protect her.
He'll push to settle.
It's unnecessary, David.
That weak stomach of yours
is the reason that we lost certification.
They had a good case for certification.
Nothing would've changed that,
regardless of how many girls we made cry.
You should've had a better argument.
You should've had a better argument, Alan,
instead of mooning over the Opposing Counsel.
You know what?
Get out. Leave. You should go.
Take a walk around the block. Have a good cry.
Do what you need to do. I don't care.
But don't come back in here
until you're ready to start acting like a lawyer.
And when did these symptoms begin, Miss Ross?
Uhm... I guess around December of last year?
All right. You wanna be specific. December of last year.
December of last year?
No up-speak.
You want me to change the way I talk?
Look, if you sound uncertain, they're gonna jump all over you.
December of last year.
Molly, come on! You gotta take this seriously, OK?
It's like there's something wrong with everything I say.
That's what prep is for.
Look, you and the other girls,
you just need to get your stories straight.
Yeah but aren't I even allowed to
say things in my own way?
Maybe it's time for a coffee break.
All right.
- Molly, take five. - Yeah.
I'm gonna take a walk.
What is going on with her?
She's sick of being sick.
Crawford and Associates.
What was that?
Automated message.
Remind me to pay the phone bill.
Well, there she is.
Welcome back. Congratulations
on your reinstatement, Counselor.
Thank you very much.
All right. That's enough celebrating.
Grab a box and get to work.
I would've loved to see the look on your dad's face
when the judge ruled in our favour.
Yeah... And I had an interesting conversation afterward...
with your mother.
My mom? What did she say?
She reminded me that we may have
an ace in the hole that we didn't think of.
Well, that is exactly what we need right now.
I will be back by noon tomorrow.
- Where are you going? - To Winnipeg to see my mother.
If they're going after Molly,
then I'm going after him,
and I need as much ammunition as I can get.
What is it specifically that you're going
to find there that we can't find here?
My parents were still together when he brokered the sale
of Matheson Steel to P and L.
She might be able to give me something
to trap him with.
OK.
Go, just bring Luna with you.
No, it's just a short trip. I don't need any company.
Joanna, you haven't seen your mother in 15 years.
It'll be good to have someone there with you.
Especially someone you trust.
We can work in the car.
It lives.
- This is cute. - What are you doing here?
Hey, I know things got heated
the last time we spoke.
But I'm the one who found you.
I got you to the hospital.
I was the one holding up two fingers.
Remember?
And I got everyone on the force out looking
for the scumbag who did this.
I don't wanna upset you, so I'll go.
You heal up, OK?
Everybody at work
is pulling for you, buddy.
Hey.
Thanks for coming. Means a lot.
Ms. Evans.
Officer Mercer. What are you doing here?
Just... trying to get to the bottom of this.
Well, I'm sure Owen is relieved you're on the case.
Thanks.
Mm.
Do you think I should go see David?
Well, that depends.
What do you hope to get from seeing him?
I want to ask him how a person
can have a daughter out in the world
and not want to know anything about her.
You should ask my mom that when you see her.
If your mom's been in Winnipeg,
in the same house all this time,
why haven't you ever gone to see her?
I've thought about it...
more than a few times,
but my mother has made it clear
that she wants nothing to do with me, and...
I've made my peace with that.
I don't need her anymore.
I just need whatever she knows
that will help us win this case.
Thanks.
Um, I need a minute.
I'm sorry about before, at the diner.
I was with my daughter, and we were arguing.
Yeah, well...
you were always good at quick exits.
How've you been?
I didn't come here to catch up.
OK.
Then what do you want from me?
Someone was mean to you.
It took me a long time
to figure that out,
that people who were hurt hurt people.
And I'm sorry about whatever happened
that made you who you are,
but people just don't do what you did.
I don't know what to say. What do you want me to say here?
I came here to tell to let you know that I'm fine.
That Luna and I are fine.
- Good. - And I've tried so hard
not to pass that pain onto her. So it'll end.
Good.
I think that's good.
Wow.
Well...
Goodbye, David.
A basket of fries and a coffee.
You should stop for a proper meal, Counselor.
I'm too busy.
I would've thought you'd be too.
I find myself at liberty today.
Oh, thank you.
I ordered us some drinks.
No thanks.
How are you feeling about the depositions tomorrow?
Is this really your strategy?
Buy me a drink,
and then get me to spill about the game plan?
You're a good lawyer.
I'm serious. You've surprised me at every turn.
I'm flattered.
I quit CTS today.
I'm off the case as of three hours ago. I'm a free agent.
Oh, yeah?
You decided not to get out of town, just...
hang out for one last wild night at The Boot?
Asking me about depositions?
- Let me help you and Joanna. - OK.
David's gonna go after Molly.
Yeah, I know how depositions work.
No. He's going to flay Molly alive.
He's going to grill her on her mental state, her sex life.
I'm sure you know the expression
"a little bit nutty, a little bit slutty"?
Amazingly effective strategy
when it comes to taking down female plaintiffs.
To what end? There won't be a judge present.
To get under your skin.
He thinks that your connection with your niece
is a weakness to be exploited.
Why are you telling me this?
Something about those Millwood girls, I guess...
...kryptonite for us soulless Bay Street types.
All right, so you want to help us and risk being disbarred
for the good of your soul?
What better reason is there?
Look, I know his moves.
I know his game plan. I know his strategy.
Let me help you prep Molly and the girls
so that they are bulletproof.
Hey, maybe we should've called.
- Head off the awkward? - There's no avoiding awkward.
Joanna...
you don't have to pretend to be brave for me.
I was pretending for me, actually.
Hi.
I'll go, put up some tea.
We just need to ask you a few questions
about the purchase of Matheson Steel.
It's for an important case we're working on.
- Oh, if that's what you want. - You and Dad
were still together at the time he brokered the deal?
Um...
I really do think better with tea.
We'd love some tea.
Don't get too cozy. We're here to work.
You don't have to keep pretending
like we're just here for work, Joanna.
We are.
I've got some fresh banana bread. Would you like some?
This is not gonna take long.
Then we'll just get out of your hair.
I didn't expect you to forgive me.
I'll go get the tea.
Officer Mercer.
- Ms. Evans. We meet again. - It's Diane. How's Kelsey?
You know,
you were always her favorite.
I don't think she would have gone away to school
if it wasn't for you.
Hey, you owe me a lot of money.
May I sit?
I was wondering about Owen's case.
- What about it? - Any leads?
No... No, nothing yet.
If only I'd showed up
a few seconds earlier...
What about the weapon that was used?
A piece of pipe.
It could've been found at any of the industrial sites around here.
No fingerprints.
He doesn't remember much about the attack.
Yeah.
Poor guy, seems like he got his brains a bit scrambled there.
Except seeing you.
I'm just glad I found him.
My students do that.
- What's that? - The knuckle cracking.
It's nervous energy.
Sometimes they drum their fingers.
The girls fiddle with their jewelry.
Nervous energy, huh?
You must notice that as a cop
when you're interrogating people?
Mostly I see it when I'm getting some kind
of 'dog ate my homework' story.
How are those two little girls of yours, Diane?
Pardon?
Your girls.
You were nice enough to ask about...
Kelsey, and I didn't return the favour.
They're great, thanks.
Uh-huh. Yeah, I saw that...
that get well soon card
they left Owen.
Awful sweet.
He's a lucky man.
Hope he appreciates that.
You take care, Diane.
Do you remember Dad talking about
the Mathesons or the Steel mill going bankrupt?
Vaguely. It was a long time ago.
I know. You have to... put yourself back there.
I have spent the last 20 years
trying to do the opposite.
Look, I need to take a little break now.
Of course you can.
So, how did the two of you find each other?
Joanna came to Millwood
for a case and we started working together
without even knowing.
I remember thinking
how weird it was
how much we'd hit it off.
You're not angry?
I'm just glad she's here now.
I'm glad she's here now too.
Then why didn't you come for me?
Your father helped me immigrate. He was my lawyer.
He said he would have me deported.
He told me to go away,
or he'd throw everything he had at me...
use the breakdown I had in Millwood
to say I was unfit, turn you against me.
You lost me anyway.
I've been in and out of the hospital, Joanna.
So much time had gone by,
and I was so afraid.
Mom, I thought you hated me.
When things hurt you so much,
you need to turn away after a while...
just to live.
My memory is so foggy.
I don't think I'll be able to help you win this case.
It's OK.
That's not why I'm here.
So, the doctors kept you overnight in hospital,
- isn't that right Miss Ross? - Yes...
but I was released the next day.
So you just wanna answer yes or no.
You don't want to give him excess ammunition.
I'm just explaining what happened.
Right, but you don't know what he'll pounce on,
so treat your answers like money
and give nothing away for free.
- Got it? - Yeah.
Now, your family doctor,
Dr. Harper, what did he say?
He said that I had a concussion,
but I was fine in a week or so.
But that's not what you told your friends
a month later, was it?
What? I don't know. I don't really remember.
Well, let me help you, Miss Ross,
'cause it's right here in one of your social media accounts.
"Looking for my headphones all day,
"then I open the fridge to get some juice,
and what do you know!"
Alongside a photograph of your headphones in a refrigerator.
Would you read what you wrote next, Miss Ross?
"But hey, it's not like I
just got my brains knocked out or anything."
So, clearly you were experiencing
cognitive difficulties after the soccer injury
that you neglected to report to your doctor.
- Oh, my God. I was kidding. - No. I don't think that's fair.
- Wouldn't you object to this? - The gloves will be off
and there won't be any judge to appeal to.
So they can go into our accounts?
Ladies, CTS has no less than three associates
combing through all your social media posts
and internet searches as we speak.
Anything can and will be used against you.
It is not a question of fair.
ADD...
Eating disorders...
feeling depressed after your mother died,
it'll all come up because right now,
you are on trial.
None of that has anything to do
with the fact that we're sick.
Opposing Counsel will argue otherwise.
And if he can't convince a judge,
at least he might succeed
in upsetting you enough to say something stupid.
Which is why you all need to stay calm.
And be ready for anything.
And be ready to throw it back in his face.
Yes, I had an eating disorder. So what?
Yes, I'm on anxiety medication. So what?
If you know it's coming,
he doesn't have the power to ambush you.
Miss Ross, I understand that you're
in a lesbian relationship?
So what?
I've set up the spare room for you and Luna.
You can head out in the morning.
- Oh, let me help with that. - No, you've got work to do.
The work will still be there. I can take a break.
Joanna...
You'll come back?
Yeah.
I promise.
Good morning. I brought you both
a cup of Lucy's finest. Breakfast of champions.
Thank you.
You didn't have to be here.
I just wanted to come and say...
give him hell today, Molly.
You should be there with us.
That would be a little awkward for Alan considering...
Actually no, it wouldn't.
- I'll come. - Are you sure?
If David finds out what you did...
I want him to find out.
In fact, I want to be the one to tell him.
- Is there more of that? - Fresh pot.
I didn't know how you take it.
I can do it.
What's that?
I didn't tell you yesterday.
I didn't know if I could trust you with it,
but now I know that I have to.
What are you talking about?
After I left him, I...
your father kept asking me
to send him his things.
He seemed... anxious in particular
about this box, so I kept it as insurance.
- Insurance. - In case he tried
to make good on his threats.
There's something in here you need to see.
This is from Alison Shepard.
She used to work for your dad.
She's the mayor of Millwood now.
Mom, this is a love letter...
Keep reading.
- Alan. - David.
Counselor, shall we begin?
Diane.
I was just on my way to see Taylor.
Oh. Well, she's sleeping.
Uhm... I just decided to jump out
and get some health food. Want some?
- I'm good. - Your loss.
You seem better today.
Well, I had some sleep.
And eh... we spoke to Taylor's doctors this morning, and...
the prognosis is good, so...
- She is a tough kid. - Yes, she is.
Yeah, well...
Thank you for...
coming to visit so often. I appreciate it.
I'm doing double duty right now.
I've got a friend laid up nearby.
Officer Beckbie?
Yeah. Yeah, I heard about that.
- How is he? - He's on the mend.
Should be going home soon.
- It's nerve-wracking though. - What is?
They haven't caught the person who did it.
Yeah...
Confidentially, I think it might be someone he works with.
Like a... another cop?
He was investigating some corruption
right before he was attacked, so...
maybe he got too close to it.
Wow.
Hard to believe something like that
would be happening right here in Millwood, huh?
Yes. It is hard to believe.
I'm gonna go.
Thanks again, Diane.
It's like an electrical jolt
shooting up my spine that makes me flinch.
And since December,
the symptoms have been getting more pronounced?
Yes... I used to be able to suppress them,
but... now I can't.
I've had severe seizures
on two separate occasions and lately,
I've had a lot of trouble concentrating.
And Molly, have you suffered
any brain trauma previously?
Yes... I was diagnosed with a slight concussion
when I was 16. That's all.
Afterwards, the doctor said I was fine. And I felt fine.
And I could still do all the things I can't do now.
Tell me about those things you can no longer do.
I... can't
swim or drive.
I can't play sports.
I've lost a scholarship, and...
I've had to put off university indefinitely.
All right. Thank you, Molly.
That's all I have. Counsel?
Your witness.
Thank you, Miss Ross. No questions.
- We can turn off the camera. - I'm sorry?
I see no need to put these girls
through the ringer any further.
Well, that's very considerate of you.
She's a sympathetic witness, Crawford.
All those crushed dreams,
there wouldn't be a dry eye in the court.
You know,
you might actually have a case against Matheson Steel.
If you do, we'll just file for bankruptcy.
But you don't have a case against P and L.
- We're building one. - Really?
Well, let's see what you have.
We're filing a motion for summary judgment
on your claims against P and L.
If you don't have a case
against the parent company,
- then we're done. - What does that mean?
It means, Miss Ross, that very soon,
we can all get back to our lives.
Alan.
OK. What is he talking about?
- He knew what I was gonna do. - Just tell me what's going on!
All this time, he was just keeping us busy.
It was an ambush.
Hey. You OK?
I am doing what's required.
I'm so sorry I wasn't here.
But listen, I have...
Oh, there's nothing you could've done.
He had us dancing like a couple of puppets.
"Us"?
- Oh, yeah. Alan switched sides. - What?
He helped me prep the girls.
And he told me the exact same thing
you said about David going after Molly.
He told you the same thing
because that's what my father sent him to do.
I had no idea what he was planning.
He played me too.
- Give me a break. - He must've known I was gonna mutiny
and he used it against me.
"Mutiny"? So you torpedoed your career
because of a grudge against my dad?
No, it was...
more than that.
Anyway... the motion hearing's in a week.
We have to win that or we lose the entire case.
How was your trip?
Don't even think about it.
God, I was hoping someone
would come along and do that.
Wow. What's the occasion?
Life is short.
And good people like Officer Owen Beckbie
deserve a little special consideration now and then.
Something about you being in here,
Taylor upstairs, her parents worrying about...
losing their daughter.
Hey.
I'm not going anywhere.
I think I know who attacked you,
but I don't have any proof.
Tell me.
Sam Mercer,
maybe on the orders of Ben Matheson.
I'm so sorry.
Let's not talk about it right now.
OK?
You should try and eat something.
You are so good.
Hey, I was thinking about those kids of yours.
When I get out of here,
maybe...
I could thank them for...
the get well soon cards... in person.
Or we can talk about it another time.
- It's just... - No, sorry.
I would love you to meet them.
But I'm unsafe to be around right now.
- I get it. - That's not it.
It's just...
Do you remember when you told me
that you came to Millwood because you hoped
it would be better?
But then people like Mercer made you realize
it was just more of the same?
Yeah, but... I love this town.
I mean...
all my favourite people are here.
So maybe the place is less important than the people.
Derek's been offered a job in Winnipeg.
It's good money, and...
the girls need to be close to their dad.
Yeah.
It looks like I might be moving.
What're you gonna do when you get back to Toronto?
It's not like you can ask my dad for a reference.
You know, I'm thinking I might take
a break from the law for a while,
and...
travel or...
I don't know... learn piano.
Thank you for what you tried to do for us today.
You know, doing the right thing turns out
to be a lot harder than it looks.
Yeah, it takes a while to get the hang of it.
Trust me, I know.
Well... you make it look pretty easy.
For a lawyer, you are a terrible liar.
When do you leave tomorrow?
Bright and early.
This time tomorrow, the office will be packed.
How about you? What are you gonna do
with that letter from Mayor Shepard?
I don't know if I can deal with
another skeleton from his past.
Even if it can win you the case?
That used to be enough.
Well... whatever you decide, you'll be brilliant.
Thank you.
Kick his ass.
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