Charlie refuses to believe Ronnie’s revelation, convinced that she’s fobbing him off with a lie. Upset, Ronnie insists she’s telling the truth and tells Charlie to go. Shocked, Charlie demands to know what happened. Ronnie declares she fought back against a violent man - you don’t know how you’ll react until it happens to you. Later, Charlie sits alone in the Square gardens, reeling.
Dot’s perusing her catalogue for a posh dress in hope of an engagement party when Charlie enters, upset, declaring Ronnie’s not ‘the one’. Ronnie orders a taxi for Gatwick airport. Dot assumes Charlie’s got cold feet and wonders what Charlie knows of Ronnie’s past; Charlie only knows she had a daughter who died. Dot explains that Ronnie had a second baby who also died, James, and tells Charlie the whole story that led to Ronnie going to prison for abduction. Dot thinks if Ronnie had a family again, she’d be alright.
Charlie listens, stunned. Later, Ronnie’s pulling away from the Square in a taxi when Charlie bolts from Dot’s house and stops the car. Charlie promises he’d never arrest her. When Ronnie worries he’ll go back on his word, Charlie confesses he’s not really a policeman; he posed as a policeman to fake Nick Cotton’s death because the police were after his dad. Ronnie fumes that he duped everyone, including her and Dot. Charlie protests Nick forced him, but he loves his dad despite the vile way he’s always treated him – he just wants Nick to notice him. Ronnie insists Charlie must tell Dot.
Charlie refuses and explains he only told Ronnie because he wants someone to know he’s not a bad person. Charlie and Ronnie promise to keep each other’s secrets. Charlie wants to know who the man she killed was; Ronnie insists it doesn’t matter and declares she and the baby will be fine alone. As they say goodbye, Ronnie takes Charlie’s hand. She opens her palm to reveal Dot’s engagement ring. Charlie insists Ronnie needn’t manage
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