It's Not What You Think Characters

Nadeeka Prasanna is the partner of Jamie Golding, mother of Maya and Nish, and ex-wife of Scott Hadley. She works at Echelon Warehousing and lives at 10 Cedar Walk, where Jamie is found stabbed to death. She grieves while investigating Jamie's secrets and trying to protect her daughters.

Arc: She moves from suspecting Jamie of an affair to uncovering his hidden life and possible New Dawn involvement, insisting he was trying to stop the group. After Jamie's ashes are scattered eighteen months later, she has begun to heal and feels hopeful for her unconventional family.

• Jamie Golding — her partner, murdered in her home
• Maya — her elder daughter
• Nish — her younger daughter
• Scott Hadley — her ex-husband who cheated during their marriage
• Kath Hadley — her ex-mother-in-law and close support
• Lauren Caldwell — detective investigating Jamie's murder and later a contact
• Mike Bishop — the fake DI Burton she trusted, who took her phone
• Surinder — local shopkeeper and acquaintance
• Penny — Jamie's mother and later a close friend
• Frank — Jamie's father
• Helen — her line manager at Echelon
• Elaine — her colleague at Echelon
• Stefan Petrov — newer Echelon recruit she asks about New Dawn

Jamie Golding is Nadeeka's partner, a health and safety inspector at ATP Construction who moved into her home at 10 Cedar Walk. He is found stabbed to death in her living room, but later chapters reveal he had infiltrated New Dawn to gather evidence after reporting an assault. He lies to Nadeeka to protect her and is killed by Chris Morley after New Dawn discovers his exposé.

Arc: He goes from a seemingly distant and possibly unfaithful partner to an undercover infiltrator who commits an initiation arson but tries to protect Surinder and stop New Dawn. He is murdered, his body hidden and later found, and his reputation is gradually cleared by Nadeeka's insistence and the evidence he left.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — his partner
• Maya — Nadeeka's daughter, whom he loved like his own
• Nish — Nadeeka's daughter, whom he loved like his own
• Carrie Finder — coworker and New Dawn sponsor/handler who pressured him
• Alan Ellis — New Dawn member who suspected and attacked him
• Chris Morley — New Dawn member who stabbed him
• Mike Bishop — New Dawn associate/deputy
• Fraser Hogan — New Dawn member who helped cover up his murder
• Adam Bennington — his line manager at ATP Construction
• Penny — his mother
• Frank — his father
• Surinder — shop owner whose shop he burned for initiation but warned and compensated
• Scott Hadley — Nadeeka's ex-husband, who hated and fought him

Lauren Caldwell is the DCI from major crime who investigates Nadeeka's report of Jamie Golding's murder and the fake police impersonation. She is engaged to Fraser Hogan, a fellow officer, and balances a major investigation with wedding pressures.

Arc: She uncovers Jamie's New Dawn infiltration, identifies Mike Bishop as the fake DI Burton, and discovers Fraser is a New Dawn member. She reports him, arrests him on the civic center roof, and later attends his sentencing.

• Fraser Hogan — her fiancé and colleague, later revealed as New Dawn antagonist
• Nadeeka Prasanna — witness and bereaved partner in her investigation
• Mike Bishop — suspect and fake DI Burton
• Carrie Finder — suspect in her investigation
• Alan Ellis — suspect
• Chris Morley — suspect
• Jules Stratman — counterterrorism colleague
• Bahnaz — DC on her team
• Kenric Fennell — DC on her team
• Matt Draper — DS on her team
• Sonya Marston — DC on her team
• Jamie Golding — murder victim she investigates
• Miss Key — hostage she rescues from Fraser
• Maya Prasanna — missing child she searches for

Fraser Hogan is Lauren's fiancé and a police officer who is secretly a committed New Dawn member. He helps cover up Jamie Golding's murder, plants twenty improvised explosive devices at the civic center nativity, and holds Miss Key hostage. He believes the multifaith nativity betrays British culture and values.

Arc: He maintains a double life, betrays Lauren and the investigation, plants the bombs, is talked down and arrested by Lauren, and is sentenced to life with a minimum of thirty-five years. In prison he continues spreading New Dawn messages and recruiting disillusioned young men.

• Lauren Caldwell — his fiancée and colleague, whom he deceives; she arrests him
• Mike Bishop — his New Dawn deputy and associate
• Carrie Finder — New Dawn member who killed Jamie and called him for help
• Alan Ellis — New Dawn associate who arranged body disposal
• Chris Morley — New Dawn associate who stabbed Jamie
• Jamie Golding — New Dawn recruit whose murder he helped cover up
• Miss Key — his hostage
• New Dawn — the extremist group he serves

Mike Bishop is an ex-Met detective inspector and New Dawn deputy whose photo matches the facial composite of fake DI Burton. He impersonated a police officer, took Jamie's and Nadeeka's phones, and deleted cloud footage from cameras. He flees before arrest when police raid his villa.

Arc: He poses as family liaison officer DI Burton, covers New Dawn tracks, is identified from a contract phone and composite, evades arrest in a taxi, and sends the message 'All ready for Christmas?' to Fraser's hidden phone.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — she trusted him as fake DI Burton; he took her phone
• Jamie Golding — handled his phone, laptop, and iPad as fake DI Burton
• Fraser Hogan — New Dawn associate and deputy
• Carrie Finder — New Dawn associate
• Alan Ellis — New Dawn associate
• Chris Morley — New Dawn associate
• Lauren Caldwell — investigator pursuing him

Carrie Finder is Jamie Golding's HR manager at ATP Construction and a New Dawn member who recruits and sponsors him. She holds racist views, pressures Jamie into committing arson, lights the fire at Surinder's shop, and calls for a cleanup after Jamie is stabbed.

Arc: She presents as a well-being manager but is revealed as a New Dawn recruiter, is arrested, and answers 'no comment' in interview about Alan Ellis, Chris Morley, Mike Bishop, and Fraser Hogan.

• Jamie Golding — coworker, HR manager, and New Dawn sponsor/handler
• Alan Ellis — New Dawn associate
• Chris Morley — New Dawn associate who brought her to her first meeting
• Mike Bishop — New Dawn associate
• Fraser Hogan — New Dawn associate; she called him for help after Jamie's murder
• Nadeeka Prasanna — she escorted Nadeeka out of ATP Construction and warned her not to return
• Surinder — target of the arson she helped commit
• Nicole Davis — HR head present at Nicole's police interview

Alan Ellis is a computer science teacher at Millfield Academy and an active New Dawn member. He tests Jamie's loyalty, confronts him with racist slurs, and arranges the disposal of Jamie's body through Damian Fletcher. He is placed under surveillance and disappears after being approached by Scott Hadley.

Arc: He is identified as a New Dawn member suspected of planning an attack, evades arrest, and remains at large.

• Jamie Golding — New Dawn member he suspected and attacked
• Chris Morley — New Dawn associate and paired contact
• Carrie Finder — New Dawn associate
• Mike Bishop — New Dawn associate
• Fraser Hogan — New Dawn associate
• Damian Fletcher — asked him to dispose of Jamie's body
• Scott Hadley — seen talking to him in a pub
• Nadeeka Prasanna — used racist slurs about her and her daughters

Chris Morley is a New Dawn member with previous for violent disorder. He helps test Jamie's loyalty, searches Jamie's house, finds his laptop, and stabs him. DNA on cleaning rags links him to the cleanup, and he disappears when police move to arrest him.

Arc: He kills Jamie Golding, flees after forensic evidence links him, and evades arrest.

• Jamie Golding — New Dawn member he stabbed
• Alan Ellis — New Dawn associate and paired contact
• Carrie Finder — New Dawn associate he brought to her first meeting
• Mike Bishop — New Dawn associate
• Fraser Hogan — New Dawn associate

Scott Hadley is Nadeeka's ex-husband and the father of Maya and Nish. He cheated during their marriage, owns half of 10 Cedar Walk, and is hostile toward Jamie. He later moves back into Nadeeka's house for security and helps investigate New Dawn.

Arc: He is a suspect who lies about running and admits an affair with Dani, then helps Nadeeka, leaks to the press, and becomes more involved in his daughters' lives. He remains a continuing presence in her unconventional family.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — his ex-wife
• Maya — his daughter
• Nish — his daughter
• Kath Hadley — his mother
• Jamie Golding — hated and fought him
• Gabriela — his girlfriend
• Dani — woman he was seeing
• Alan Ellis — seen talking to him in a pub
• Lauren Caldwell — suspect and interviewee

Kath Hadley is Scott's mother and Nadeeka's ex-mother-in-law, who remains close to Nadeeka and helps with the girls. She hosts Nadeeka after Jamie's death, comforts her, and insists Scott move in for security.

Arc: She remains an ever-dependable presence, caring for the family through grief and danger and staying part of Nadeeka's unconventional family.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — her former daughter-in-law and close friend
• Scott Hadley — her son
• Maya — her granddaughter
• Nish — her granddaughter
• Jamie Golding — she had warned Nadeeka about rushing things with him

Maya is Nadeeka's elder daughter, who was building a relationship with Jamie and made a 'Welcome home Jamie!' banner. She is grieving, wary, and later hides during the civic center evacuation. She argues with Nish and calls Penny a spare granny.

Arc: She moves from welcoming Jamie to grieving his death, has night terrors, and is eventually found by Nadeeka at the civic center. Eighteen months later she walks to the hill with her family, eating ice cream and arguing with Nish.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — her mother
• Nish — her sister
• Scott Hadley — her father
• Jamie Golding — her mother's partner
• Kath Hadley — her grandmother
• Penny — her 'spare granny'
• Frank — her grandfather figure
• Miss Key — her teaching assistant
• Mrs. Fairfax — her teacher

Nish is Nadeeka's younger daughter, who made a cardboard castle with Jamie and is deeply affected by his death. She is playful, anxious, and attached to Jamie. She later tells Nadeeka that Maya went to the toilet before the civic center evacuation.

Arc: She grieves Jamie, wets the bed, and is evacuated during the nativity attack. Eighteen months later she walks to the hill with her family and argues with Maya about cartwheels.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — her mother
• Maya — her sister
• Scott Hadley — her father
• Jamie Golding — her mother's partner who helped build the castle
• Kath Hadley — her grandmother
• Miss Key — her teaching assistant
• Penny — her 'spare granny'

Adam Bennington is Jamie's line manager at ATP Construction and the only person with access to Jamie's folders. He deletes Jamie's Redburn Point risk assessment after Nadeeka's visit because he disagreed with its costly safety recommendation. Police investigate him as a suspect, though he later has a rock-solid alibi.

Arc: He is suspected of deleting evidence and involvement in Jamie's murder, but is not the main culprit and fades from suspicion.

• Jamie Golding — his employee and line manager
• Carrie Finder — his HR colleague
• Nadeeka Prasanna — visited him at ATP Construction
• Lauren Caldwell — interviewer and suspect
• Fraser Hogan — interviewer
• Nicole Davis — staff member he defends

Nicole Davis is an ATP Construction colleague whose initials ND match Jamie's diary. Nadeeka confronts her, suspecting an affair, but Nicole denies it and provides alibis for the dates. Police interview her and clear her of involvement.

Arc: She is accused by Nadeeka, interviewed by Lauren and Fraser, and provides alibis that lead Lauren to conclude she was not involved.

• Jamie Golding — colleague she says she did not know well
• Nadeeka Prasanna — accused her of an affair and murder
• Stacie — colleague who identifies her
• Carrie Finder — HR head present at her interview
• Adam Bennington — colleague and manager who intervenes

Surinder is the local corner-shop owner whose Shop Express is set on fire during Jamie's New Dawn initiation. He is woken by an anonymous call before the fire, gives Nadeeka free milk, and later says the £300 was pushed through his door the day after. He lives above the shop with his wife and twin sons.

Arc: He survives the arson and helps Nadeeka understand that Jamie tried to protect him by warning him, calling 999, and leaving money.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — customer and neighbor he treats kindly
• Jamie Golding — target of Jamie's initiation arson, whom Jamie warned and compensated
• Maya — his twin sons attend the same school
• Nish — his twin sons attend the same school

Penny is Jamie's mother, who rejects the idea that Jamie was racist and gives Nadeeka his jumper. She grieves her son and wants Nadeeka to remember him and do what brings her peace. She later becomes a close friend and 'spare granny' to Nadeeka's daughters.

Arc: She moves from grieving Jamie with Nadeeka to sharing the scattering of his ashes and becoming a regular grandparent figure in the family.

• Jamie Golding — her son
• Frank — her husband
• Nadeeka Prasanna — Jamie's partner and later close friend
• Maya — her granddaughter figure
• Nish — her granddaughter figure

Frank is Jamie's father, who rejects the idea that Jamie was racist and shows Nadeeka the garage full of Jamie's stored belongings. He becomes emotional while defending his son's character. He and Penny bury a spoonful of Jamie's ashes with their roses.

Arc: He grieves his son and later helps Nadeeka and his granddaughters remember Jamie on the hill.

• Jamie Golding — his son
• Penny — his wife
• Nadeeka Prasanna — Jamie's partner
• Maya — his granddaughter
• Nish — his granddaughter

Jules Stratman is a DI in counterterrorism who reveals New Dawn is a real far-right extremist movement. He provides intelligence, participates in the investigation, and later takes control for CTU. He interviews Carrie Finder and places Fraser under surveillance.

Arc: He moves from counterterrorism support to taking control of the investigation and later steps back to let Lauren negotiate with Fraser on the roof.

• Lauren Caldwell — counterterrorism colleague
• Nadeeka Prasanna — interviews her about New Dawn
• Carrie Finder — interview subject under arrest
• Fraser Hogan — suspect placed under surveillance
• Mike Bishop — New Dawn suspect

Bahnaz is a DC on Lauren's team who searches eBay for police uniform, decodes coded messages, and helps arrest Peter Fletcher. She is a mother herself and helps Nadeeka enter the civic center to find Maya.

Arc: She assists the investigation and provides crucial help when Maya is missing, taking Nadeeka to Lauren and searching the civic center with her.

• Lauren Caldwell — her boss and colleague
• Kenric Fennell — colleague
• Matt Draper — colleague
• Tom Chandler — colleague she recognizes on eBay
• Nadeeka Prasanna — helps her find Maya
• Fraser Hogan — colleague

Kenric Fennell is a DC on Lauren's team who investigates financial inquiries, uniform allocations, and Costco purchases of bomb-making materials. He identifies the three-star thin blue line badge issued only to their force's officers in 2019. He also jokes about coded words resembling poetry.

Arc: He follows investigative tasks that help identify the fake officer's vest and New Dawn's bomb-making supplies.

• Lauren Caldwell — his boss
• Bahnaz — colleague
• Sonya Marston — colleague
• Fraser Hogan — colleague

Matt Draper is a DS on Lauren's team who traces the cloned credit card, the blue Corsa rental, and the Tesla Sentry Mode footage of Mike Bishop's car. He later falls under suspicion because his vetting was never completed and he was in a uniform role in 2019. He denies any connection.

Arc: He provides key evidence against Mike Bishop but becomes a person of suspicion within the team after the vetting discrepancy.

• Lauren Caldwell — his boss and colleague
• Fraser Hogan — colleague who raises suspicion about him
• Bahnaz — colleague
• Mike Bishop — he provides evidence about Bishop's rental car

Sonya Marston is a DC on Lauren's team who does background checks, requests VODS checks for black vans, and organizes Lauren's wedding shower. She works overtime because her youngest wants expensive trainers for Christmas.

Arc: She supports the investigation and Lauren's personal milestone, then reacts with sympathy to the New Dawn revelations.

• Lauren Caldwell — her boss and colleague
• Kenric Fennell — assigned to work with him

Craig Whitfield, called Whitty, works in source management and reports on New Dawn's plans for 'direct action' that his source calls a 'fucking bloodbath.' He attends Lauren's meeting with the chief constable and DI Stratman and later talks with Fraser at the station.

Arc: He provides source intelligence that helps Lauren understand the scale of New Dawn's planned attack.

• Lauren Caldwell — source management colleague
• Fraser Hogan — colleague he speaks with at the station
• Jules Stratman — colleague in CTU/source management meeting

Stacie is the receptionist at ATP Construction who assists Nadeeka, gives her a list of Jamie's colleagues, and identifies Nicole Davis. She is briefly considered as a possible ND because of her name. She reports Nadeeka's confrontation to Adam.

Arc: She helps Nadeeka access ATP Construction and inadvertently provides the clue that leads to Nicole Davis.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — visitor she assists and then reports
• Jamie Golding — colleague at ATP Construction
• Adam Bennington — defers to him
• Nicole Davis — colleague she identifies

Helen is Nadeeka's line manager at Echelon Warehousing. She receives Nadeeka's call about Jamie's death with sympathy and shows her the newspaper article about the job fair.

Arc: She remains a supportive manager as Nadeeka returns to work and confronts the fallout from Jamie's death.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — her line manager
• Jamie Golding — had met him

Elaine is Nadeeka's colleague at Echelon Warehousing who helps set up the recruitment fair. She questions the Christmas tree as culturally inappropriate and is with Nadeeka during the evacuation.

Arc: She helps Nadeeka prepare the recruitment fair that becomes the target of New Dawn's planned attack.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — colleague

Stefan Petrov is a Bulgarian-born Echelon recruit featured in a newspaper article about the job fair. He tells Nadeeka that New Dawn harmed a friend of his and that getting insider information would require an English guy. He says there is a lot of anger under the surface locally.

Arc: He provides Nadeeka with a wary perspective on New Dawn and the local tensions around immigration.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — newer recruit/colleague at Echelon
• New Dawn — says they harmed a friend of his

Josephine Capstick is the librarian who checks Jamie's library record and shows Nadeeka his reserved books and search history, including extremist searches. She initially follows data protection rules, then sympathizes and helps Nadeeka.

Arc: She helps Nadeeka uncover evidence of Jamie's extremist reading and search history.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — library patron she assists
• Jamie Golding — library patron whose records she checks

Miss Key is Nish's favorite teaching assistant at Elmwood Primary. She keeps Nish's cardboard castle in class and later goes back to find Maya during the evacuation. Fraser takes her hostage on the civic center roof, and Lauren rescues her.

Arc: She moves from a supportive teaching assistant to a hostage, then is saved by Lauren and runs to safety.

• Nish — her pupil
• Maya — pupil she went back to find
• Mrs. Fairfax — colleague
• Fraser Hogan — her captor
• Lauren Caldwell — rescues her

Mrs. Fairfax is an Elmwood Primary teacher who counts the children at the evacuation zone and tells Nadeeka that Maya is not there. She calls Miss Key when she realizes Maya is missing.

Arc: She helps account for the evacuated pupils and alerts staff when Maya is unaccounted for.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — teacher of her daughters
• Maya — pupil
• Nish — pupil
• Miss Key — colleague

Tony Watkins is the CSI lead at the woodland grave site and later reports that Jamie's fingerprints were on a lighter fuel bottle from the arson near Cedar Walk. He reprimands Fraser for leaning over the grave without a mask.

Arc: He processes the grave scene and provides forensic evidence linking Jamie to the arson.

• Lauren Caldwell — CSI colleague
• Jamie Golding — forensic subject
• Fraser Hogan — reprimands him at the grave site

Hannah Foster is the forensic lead who directs CSI in Nadeeka's living room and tells Lauren that the extent of blood loss suggests little or no chance of life, making it a murder investigation.

Arc: She confirms the forensic evidence that turns the case into a murder investigation.

• Lauren Caldwell — forensic lead colleague

Hillary Kent is the head of digital forensics who explains that smart tech in Nadeeka's house and cloud data will be examined. She notes that Golding's and Nadeeka's phones were seized by the so-called DI Burton.

Arc: She supports the investigation by examining digital evidence from the house and seized devices.

• Lauren Caldwell — colleague and head of digital forensics

Amber is from the media team and arrives late to the briefing to reveal the fake police story has hit the papers and gone viral with hashtags including #fakepolice and #corruptcops.

Arc: She brings media attention to the fake police cover-up, increasing pressure on the investigation.

• Lauren Caldwell — media team colleague

AJ Carter is a digital forensics specialist who explains how Berla software extracts vehicle infotainment data and recovers messages from Jamie Golding's cloud account. He presents Scott Hadley's threatening message and coded VPN messages to the team.

Arc: He provides key digital evidence about the burner phone, vehicle data, and Jamie's recovered messages.

• Lauren Caldwell — colleague
• Jamie Golding — cloud account evidence
• Scott Hadley — recovered threatening message

Gary Fisher works for Safeguard Solutions and is hired by someone falsely claiming to be a control room sergeant to clean Cedar Walk. He provides before photos of the bloodstain and reveals the cleaning cloths and PPE are bagged in his basement for collection.

Arc: He provides evidence that the crime scene was professionally cleaned by a legitimate company hired under a false police identity.

• Lauren Caldwell — interviewee
• Mike Bishop — hired him while impersonating a control room sergeant

Tom Chandler is a PC identified through eBay listings as a seller of police uniform, including a hi-vis jacket with the force badge. He admits selling spare equipment because money is tight after Karen's long COVID and credit-card debt, and begs Lauren not to suspend him.

Arc: He is caught selling police equipment, agrees to delete the listings and return the property, and is not suspended.

• Lauren Caldwell — his superior who interviews him
• Bahnaz — colleague who recognizes him
• Karen — his wife who had long COVID

Susan Belter is the chair of Neaton village hall committee who tells Lauren and Fraser that a group booked the hall claiming to be Freemasons, paid cash, and left it spotless. She provides a bank holding charge that reveals the last four digits of a debit card linked to the financial investigation.

Arc: She helps the investigation trace the card used by Jamie's New Dawn contacts.

• Lauren Caldwell — interviewee helping the investigation
• Fraser Hogan — interviewee helping the investigation

Roger Fletcher, also called Mr. Fletcher, owns Fletcher and Sons Funeral Services. He tells Lauren and Bahnaz about the mortuary bags and the Mercedes Vito, and protests when his sons are arrested. He is the father and employer of Damian and Peter Fletcher.

Arc: He is questioned about his funeral business and his sons' involvement in concealing Jamie's body.

• Damian Fletcher — his son and driver
• Peter Fletcher — his son and trainee embalmer

Damian Fletcher is a driver for Fletcher and Sons who is arrested on suspicion of murder and concealing a body. He gives a prepared statement claiming he provided private ambulance services after a believed murder of a white male. He later half-confesses to burying Jamie's body and claims he owed Alan Ellis a favour.

Arc: He is arrested, answers many questions with 'No comment,' then partially confesses and is charged and remanded.

• Roger Fletcher — his father and employer
• Peter Fletcher — his brother
• Alan Ellis — man he owed a favour to
• Jamie Golding — the body he helped collect and bury
• Lauren Caldwell — interviewer
• Bahnaz — arresting officer

Peter Fletcher is a trainee embalmer at Fletcher and Sons who tries to flee when police arrive and is arrested. He admits he and Damian collected and buried Jamie Golding's body, saying Damian was asked by Alan Ellis and felt he owed him a favour. He denies knowing New Dawn.

Arc: He confesses to helping collect and bury Jamie's body and is charged and remanded.

• Roger Fletcher — his father and employer
• Damian Fletcher — his brother
• Alan Ellis — the man who asked Damian for the favour
• Jamie Golding — the body he helped bury
• Lauren Caldwell — interviewer
• Bahnaz — arresting officer

Stanley Hall is Nadeeka's neighbor who checks Lauren's ID and describes the fake detective who came to No. 10. He reports that Scott Hadley punched Jamie in a street fight weeks earlier and agrees to give a statement.

Arc: He provides eyewitness evidence about the fake detective and Scott Hadley's hostility toward Jamie.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — neighbor
• Jamie Golding — neighbor and fight victim
• Scott Hadley — witnessed him fight Jamie

Dani is the woman Scott Hadley was seeing when he lied about going running. She tells Lauren she did not know Scott already had a girlfriend and confirms they were together at the time of the murder.

Arc: She provides Scott with an alibi and reveals his affair.

• Scott Hadley — seeing him
• Lauren Caldwell — interviewee

Gabriela is Scott Hadley's girlfriend, with whom he lives. She is mentioned as the reason Nadeeka refuses Kath's suggestion that Scott help, and Scott later admits he was seeing Dani despite living with Gabriela.

Arc: She remains Scott's girlfriend while he has an affair with Dani.

• Scott Hadley — he lives with her

PC Dan Harrington is the traffic officer who stops Nadeeka for doing forty in a thirty and running a red light. He begins writing a ticket until his female colleague stops him.

Arc: He briefly detains Nadeeka during her frantic drive home before Jamie's body is found.

• Nadeeka Prasanna — the driver he pulls over

Karen is Tom Chandler's wife, who had long COVID. Her illness and the couple's credit-card debt are given as the reason Tom sold police equipment online.

Arc: Her illness motivates Tom's misconduct and his fear of losing his job.

• Tom Chandler — her husband