The Vanishing Man
Season 1, Episode 2
Not Fade Away

Written by David Fox Directed by ? Originally Broadcast (UK), 25th July 1998 on ITV

Before she leaves for work, Moreau phones for Nick. We then see Nick in Moreau's office watching a video of a news broadcast. It tells of a criminal who shot his business partner after a falling out. The whole thing was seen by a big kid called Peter who is now the prosecutions star witness. Moreau and co. have been assigned to protect him until after the trial. It's a trial which is set to be the longest running in British legal history.

Nick goes back to Alice's to start packing. He's clearly not looking forward to his assignment, so Alice asks why he's doing it, he could have said no. She then twigs that it's because of his dream of turning invisible permanently. Nick explains he's in danger what ever he does, especially with Dr. Jefferies still at large. He needs to trust someone, so why not Moreau? Alice folds a little and says if Nick still needs somewhere to stay after this job then he can come back and stay here.

Before Nick leaves he remembers to invite Alice to Joe's surprise birthday party. It's a party which Joe himself is organising! Alice sadly refuses because of Zoe, and just as Nick leaves, Zoe arrives. Nick and Zoe exchange glances, both clearly liking what they see.

Moreau and Nick arrive at the secure holding facility to meet Peter, the star witness. Peter is engrossed in a computer game he's playing, and he can't seem to get into level 5. Nick explains he's there to "shadow" him until after the trial. Peter practically ignores him, he's too busy trying to find the key to get him into level 5. Nick finally understands why Jacob and Moreau described him as a big kid - he's a computer nerd.

Meanwhile a hitman (known as Shades in the script) arrives in the building, pretending to be security. He asks a cleaner to show him their ID and then turn around as if to frisk him. Instead he knocks the cleaner out, and takes his ID.

Back in the "cell" Nick and Peter are talking, whilst Peter is still playing his computer game (don't know which one, but it has the same sort of format as Doom). Nick keeps asking questions about the game which annoy Peter.

Back at Alice's flat, she and Zoe are talking about Nick. Zoe asks if it would be okay to go after Nick, she doesn't want to tread on any toes. Alice tells her, she and Nick are just friends.

Back at the secure area, Nick find Moreau and says they need to talk. Unfortunately Nick is in only a raincoat and is invisible. At the same time, Shades, has now found his way into the kitchen, and proceeds to take the place of the chef. Nick is asking Moreau if he can leave, after all Peter couldn't be better protected here. Moreau isn't convinced, and tells Nick he has to stay, and he has to remain inconspicuous. Unfortunately, Shades, now dressed as the chef, is on his way to see Peter, and see Nick reluctantly take his coat off. He knows Nick is invisible.

Shades then delivers dinner to Peter and then leaves. Nick makes his way back to the room, but hears some funny noises from a room as he walks by. He opens the door to find the cleaner and the chef bound and gagged on the floor of the closet. He immediately sends for help, and runs to the room Peter is in. Knocking the food out of his Peter's mouth and the rest onto the floor, he tells him it's poisoned. Peter is startled to discover Nick is invisible, it's the first time he's been told.

Moreau tells Nick to take Peter somewhere, but to stay in London. Nick gets to pick a car to drive, and takes a BMW, suddenly the assignment is looking up. Unfortunately Peter doesn't see it that way, in the car he doesn't have access to a phone line, and so he can't play his game anymore. He's playing with three others via the Internet. Nick heads out of London to make sure they're not being followed, and then back in again.

We catch up with them again at a cafe, where they seem to be arguing. At least Nick can hide in a phone booth, Peter says. Nick argues that invisibility isn't all its cracked up to be. As Peter talks with the waitress, Nick spots a man looking at Peter from across the room. Nick tells him to pay the bill and go to the car. Nick pops into the loo to cover himself in water and become invisible, but the tap isn't working. He pops back out to the cafe and takes a bottle of water. We then see Peter getting attacked by a man in the car park, it turns out to be a jealous friend of the waitress, and she soon breaks it up. Nick says it was lucky it was only a false alarm. Peter clearly isn't amused.

Nick and Peter proceed to a five star hotel, where unfortunately Nick re-appears stark naked in front of Peter. He quickly puts a robe on. Peter has checked in as Nick Cameron, as Nick himself was invisible. Peter is worried that it's all a bit high profile, and says he felt safer in the cafe. Peter proceeds to plug in to the Internet and continues playing his game. Nick offers him a drink from the fridge, but gets annoyed when he picks one that isn't in it. Peter wants a milkshake, as anything else will slow down his reaction time. To Nick this is the last straw, and he unplugs Peter's phone cable, and re-plugs in the hotel phone. He needs to call another human being, or failing that, his brother!

Joe then arrives, having left his own surprise party bringing the milkshake Peter had asked for. Joe tells Nick that he's invited Alice and Zoe to the party, and asks if he's coming. Nick says no, and gets a bit jealous when Joe shows an interest in Zoe. He tells Joe of their chemistry, and Joe surprises him by saying okay, it was Alice he was interested in anyway! Nick pretends he's okay with this, but we know he isn't.

As Joe leaves, he gets in a cab that Shades has just vacated.

Back in the room, Peter asks Nick what Gyges did to him. Nick explains that when his body is exposed to water, it starts to vibrate at a frequency that allows light to pass through him, giving the effect of invisibility. When he dries off, he returns to normal. He stars to search through a bag of clothes and discovers a gun. Even though he said he didn't want one, Moreau still put one in.

Back at Joe's party, Alice introduces Joe to Zoe, they seem to be getting on okay. Meanwhile Shades has now disguised himself as the bell boy for the hotel, and is proceeding to Nick's room. In the room, Nick tells Peter that all his Internet activities are just a substitute for the real world. Peter argues that Nick is doing the same thing, he's running away from what he really wants - Alice. Nick gets defensive, and says it's time to call it quits, he doubts they will make it through the night let alone the longest trial in history, before they kill each other. Peter agrees, so Nick leaves.

As Nick gets into the lift, Shades gets out, still dressed as the bell boy.

At Joe's party, Alice asks how things are going with Zoe. Great he replies, Zoe's in love. Alice congratulates him on being a fast worker. He tells her Zoe's in love with Nick not him. Alice seems flustered, and refuses Joe's advances.

Peter's still in the hotel room, when there's a knock on the door. It's room service with tea for one. Thinking Nick must have ordered it before he left, he let's the man in.

Joe is back with Zoe, laughing at life. He likes Alice, and she likes Nick, will it ever work out? Zoe tells him that they will both get over it. He points out that it's okay for her as Nick feels the same way. At this moment Nick is sitting in a hotel room thinking about her. This seems to cheer Zoe up no end.

Back in the hotel room, Shades pulls a gun on Peter. At the same time, Nick's conscious gets the better of him, and he tells the cab driver to turn around and go back to the hotel. Shades then proceeds to ask what he thinks is Nick Cameron, how does he turn invisible? He's the best hitman in the business, and Nick is competition for that title, so he wants to know his secret. Peter stalls for time and tells him its a secret formula which looks like a strawberry milkshake and it's in the fridge. Shades retrieves the milkshake and makes Peter drink some. It's obvious that it doesn't work, and Shades is starting to loose patients. Peter then throws the rest of his shake over Shades, and grabs his computer, making a run for it.

Meanwhile back at the party, Joe is trying to persuade Zoe to call Nick on his mobile phone. She's not convinced it will work, and he ends up dialling the number for her. She reaches the front desk, just as Nick enters the lobby. Unfortunately he mistakes Zoe for Alice, and tells her he was just thinking about her. Before Zoe can correct him, Peter comes running through the lobby with Shades shooting at him. Zoe hears the shots over the phone. Alice then sees Zoe on the phone and realises she's called Nick. She has a go at her, as Nick is working, and Zoe tells her about the gun shots, Alice demands the phone! Zoe replies, "Oh Alice, why didn't you tell me how you felt." Alice looks flustered, but says nothing.

Nick and Peter meet Joe at a block of flats. Joe is looking after Bruce's flat while he's away, and lets Nick and Peter hide out there for a while. Joe asks Nick not to tell Alice they've spoken again, he's in enough trouble already. Bruce won't mind in the least as he's staying in prison for a while. Up in the flat, Peter seems quiet and Nick asks what's wrong. Up until now it's all been like something from a film for Peter. He saw the killers face, and then ran. He never knew what it was like to have a gun pointed at you until today. Nick opens the bag, and shows Peter the gun Moreau left him. He tells him that the thought of pointing it at someone terrifies him. They seem to have found some common ground, and Nick offers to play his game on-line with him. Peter also confesses that he went to the police because he liked the attention.

As soon as they log on to the Internet, Shades detects then via his own computer.

Later Nick has another bad dream, and wakes up with a start. Peter hears him, and Nick says they have to leave now. At least that way they will be a moving target. The lift doesn't seem to work, so they take the stairs. They open the door at the bottom of the stairs, to find Shades waiting for them. They run back to the lift, but it doesn't seem to work, then Shades shoots the doors and they finally close. Back in the flat, Nick makes himself invisible, and leans over the side of the balcony whilst holding onto Peter. To us it looks like Peter is hanging in mid air! They manage to fool Shades, and he leaves, thinking he's missed them. Nick dries himself off, and prepares to leave with Peter. Peter has found some wire, which he thinks might come in handy. It's a habit he's picked up from the game he plays, you always pick things up in case they can be used later on in the game. It's not a game though, Nick points out.

Shades is now on the ground floor and looks like leaving, he thinks Nick and Peter have got past him somehow. Unfortunately Peter knocks a plant pot off the balcony, and Shades comes back. They end up in the underground car park, and Peter places a bottle of water on a car roof. He tells nick it's his ticket out of here, and he should save himself. Nick throws the bottle away, and says they are in this together, they'll think of something. They run into a dead end but come up with an ingenious plan. Shades keeps coming asking Peter to give up the secret.

Peter shouts out "No deals", and Shades' follows the voice to find Nick with his hands in the air due to an "invisible" Peter pointing a gun on him. Shades tries to make a deal with Peter, with his connects and Peter's formula, they could go far. The gun pointing at Nick seems to swivel round and point at Shades. Shades is disappointed, but not scared, he says Peter doesn't have the guts to pull the trigger. We then see Peter coming up behind Shades and hit him over the head with his computer. This leaves a large dent in his computer which is the only thing he's concerned about!

The gun on Nick was suspended by the wire Peter picked up earlier, creating the illusion that Peter was invisible.

In Moreau's office, Alice, Nick, Jacob and Moreau are celebrating the conviction of the killer Peter saw. It's not over yet for Peter though, he could still be open to revenge attacks, so he's being packed off for a while until things die down a bit.

Alice is waiting at a train station, when Nick arrives calling out her name, but she doesn't answer. It's just like his dream, but when he gets close enough she turns and says hi. This isn't a dream. She asks how Jacob's sofa is, he replies, "lumpy". She tells her he's been meaning to call and asks what she's been up to. She's been spending time with Zoe. Nick asks how Zoe is, Alice replies she's fully recovered now, she's totally over her ex-boyfriend.

Peter then arrives, and is delighted they've come to see him off. Nick tells him they will be thinking of him when he's lonely and miserable in hiding somewhere. Peter tells Nick he won't be lonely, he's got a new hobby. Zoe then arrives and Peter kisses her. Zoe is clearly over her ex-boyfriend, and Peter's new hobby is obviously in the real world!

As the girls hug each other goodbye, Zoe says, "You will tell him, won't you?" Alice says yes she will. Peter and Nick say goodbye, and Peter says the same thing, "You will tell her won't you?" Nick also says yes.

Alice and Nick wave goodbye to Peter and Zoe, and neither of them say anything!

The End

Guest Stars

Razaaq Adoti as Jacob Paul Trussell as Pete Christopher Adamson as Shades Josephine Butler as Zoe David Fennell as Calhoun Richard Walker as Prosecutor Richard Cubison as Announcer Richard Cherry as Cleaner Ali de Souza as Vendor Steven Emrys as Bell-hop