Billions (2016) s02e10 Episode Script
With or Without You
1 [Hall.]
Previously on Billions [Foley.]
There's someone I need you to see.
George Minchak.
She vets all of my candidates.
You want her to know everything.
I'm not really sure I'm entirely comfortable with that.
[Chuck.]
Mmmm.
Red! - I'm sorry.
- [breathing heavily.]
Did I not pick up the body language? I didn't get permission.
[horn honks.]
Klaxon.
Belgian car company.
They're headed for a recall.
Bottom's gonna drop out.
[Chuck.]
I had a craving for Bistro Grisby last night.
We used to go there all the time.
- They closed four years ago.
- Sad.
Surveillance of a federal employee is a Class E felony, so if you want me to keep it up, I'm gonna need to charge you a higher rate.
Then it's a good day for business.
[Steph.]
Try Taylor Mason.
[Steph.]
Anything big Axe is wading into, Taylor's there with a snorkel mask.
[Lara.]
Divorces are hard.
[laughs.]
So are marriages.
Yeah, I've heard other people say that.
Wendy Rhoades is a liability, and I will never be okay with the two of you talking.
I personally won't see her.
I'm sure it must be hard for you to not have access to him, but we think it's best for everyone.
Which is why I set the policy.
dramatic music The Crystals' "What a Nice Way to Turn 17" My birthday candles Have all gone out The party's through And I'm alone - With you - Whoa Fuck.
What a nice way Lara? To turn 17 Boys? I feel your sweet lips against my cheek [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Hey.
It's me.
You call me? You can't just Will you just call me, please? Your shoulder feels Get in.
So soft What a nice way to turn Seventeen Maybe lying in your marriage was tolerated, looked upon with leniency, considered some sort of fucked up foreplay, but in my marriage in 15 years, I have never lied to my wife except once, except about what was said between you and me.
You were the only person who could've told her about that.
So please, tell me, what did you say to my wife? She was under the impression that our no-session arrangement came from you.
I corrected her.
The words.
The actual words.
I said I set the policy, and that was the only way I could work there.
tense music I didn't mean to come between you and Lara.
You of all people, you know precisely what response you're eliciting.
If you do it, you mean to do it.
Can I get out of the car now? [car door opens.]
I'll call if we have any other questions.
Or maybe I'll just show up.
[car door closes.]
Just got off the phone with Pacquin.
He sent these from the house security cams.
She took four 10k bricks out of the vault, and we have her here with the boys walking out of the house with light luggage.
Rippling out.
The jets are on the ground, the choppers are in the hangar, and the residences, Hamptons, the city apartment, Aspen, Miami, the vineyard, all empty.
GPS on the car? I disabled them all months ago at your request.
Right.
Fuck.
All three phones are off, and they've not used the EZ Pass or any other credit cards yet.
Uh Cancel my morning sessions, please.
I'm not feeling so well.
I'll try to make it in by the afternoon.
Thanks.
Did you bring your tribute? - I - Ah! I didn't ask you to speak.
And I don't want to look at your pathetic face either.
[K.
Flay's "Blood in the Cut" plays on speakers.]
The boy I love's got another girl You are nothing.
He might be fucking her right now I don't have an apartment Thought if I was smart I'd make it far - Down.
- [grunts.]
But I'm still at the start Time for me to make my preparations.
Need the crack of a whip, need some blood in the cut Don't move a muscle.
Blood in the cut, I need blood in the cut [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Hey, look, look, I'm not, I'm not trying to make an excuse, but, uh, you know, I was I was trying to protect you, and I know you weren't happy with Wendy coming back, and I was trying to respect that.
I'm trying to give you comfort.
Maybe I could've done it different.
I I don't know, but you could've done this a different way, too.
pensive music [Chuck Sr.
.]
So, Ms.
Minchak, how should we proceed? My goal is to do oppo before they do oppo, so if there is a potential October surprise, we drop it in February during the fucking Super Bowl.
I like the thinking.
Like the thinking, and as I said, you're welcome here for as long as you need.
I know that Wendy has the homestead, and the Yale Club has a few too many prying eyes for Yes, thank you.
Are you sure no coffee? No, thank you.
Pound cake.
Seventy percent sour cream.
This works best one on one.
Of course.
I'll just, uh I'll be I'll be right right inside, uh, in case you need anything.
Hmm? [door closes.]
So How should we do this? Why are you asking me? Keep it interesting.
I've done, uh, first couple levels, the dirty stuff those pop-up ads promised to find on your high-school sweetheart.
Those websites actually work? More than they should.
I do it myself, though.
I search the TROs, the DUIs, the tax liens.
You were fine there.
Tomorrow starts the deep dive, your receipts, browser history, interviewing those who have known you - intimately since school days.
- [chuckling.]
Jesus.
It's a shit show.
Today, though, you ever go to SeaWorld? No.
I've never been to one of those places.
- The mistreatment of the - Right.
Whale's got to jump and flip whether he wants to or not.
[chuckles.]
But then he gets his herring.
Quite so.
Today, though, you're that whale.
I'm gonna run through a list of areas.
- You'll let me know - Mm-hmm.
if we have an issue.
[inhales sharply.]
[sighs.]
Fire away.
- Aborted pregnancies? - No.
Uh, unwanted sexual advances in the workplace? No.
- Fiscal malfeasance? - No.
- Hiring of undocumented workers? - No.
None of those.
- Cheating? - No.
- Same-sex exploration - No.
Membership of racially-exclusive clubs? No.
Okay.
Let's get personal.
The separation, where are we on that? Uh, in counseling.
Is it working? It's a process.
Can that process be complete by the time we announce? 'Cause we need to know what we're selling, - and that can't be a process.
- Noted.
Will she be a problem if you split? No.
No bad mouthing, blackmail? - No.
- [scoffs.]
Such a perfect fucking couple, why are you getting a divorce? I didn't say we were.
Well, shit, given her ties to Wall Street, no tragedy if it goes that way.
[sighs.]
Hi.
What can I get you? I know what you're having.
They'll have a double shot almond milk latte to go.
Do I know you? Name on that's Taylor Amber Mason.
And I'll have a Macchiato.
Name's Bryan Connerty.
You've been following me.
tense music [exhales sharply.]
Taylor, you don't know me, but I think we should get acquainted.
You talk like a cop but dress like a lawyer.
- I'm a U.
S.
Attorney.
- Yeah.
So, why would I want - further acquaintance? - Because you work at Axe Capital, and I'm the guy who can keep your life - from becoming a nightmare.
- I like nightmares.
When I wake up, they leave me deeply valuing my reality.
But nice chatting.
My bad.
You know what, my bad.
I always felt Ed Harris went too hard at Mitch McDeere in that diner when they first met.
Should've made him feel safe, not threatened, and here I went the other way, but I do want you to feel safe.
Can't do that.
- How do you mean? - Mix character and actor.
You either go Ed Harris and Tom Cruise or Wayne Tarrance and Mitch McDeere.
Right.
Good point.
[barista.]
Taylor.
Why don't we go drink our coffees together? You can tell me about the last few months, how you got here, where you think it's going.
- I'm a good listener.
- Can't.
Got to get to work.
That's where I'm going.
You must know what time I arrive by.
Wouldn't it look weird if I showed up late? Another time.
[exhales.]
tense music [breathing heavily, snapping.]
[door opens.]
- Nope.
- Sorry, can't let it go.
I've been watching you pace about five miles in here.
What the fuck's going on with you? Lara took off this morning with the boys.
Where are they headed? Oh, took off.
Unannounced took off.
Why? She caught me in a lie.
How do you know? She left me a note.
"You lied to me.
" Fuck.
How you gonna figure out what she's referring to? I already know 'cause it was the only one.
You truly are a black swan.
Talk to the brothers and sisters? - They haven't heard from her.
- You believe those hillbillies? They probably have her hidden under the floorboards.
[cellphone vibrating.]
Good luck.
[door opens, closes.]
Hello? [Boyd.]
Roberto, it's Larry Boyd.
- Oh, hey.
- I need to talk to you.
- We're talking.
- No, I need to tell you - something important.
- Go ahead.
This is Mark Felt in the parking garage.
No phone.
It's kind of a bad day for me, Larry.
I'll send Wags up? As much as he might brighten these halls, it's got to be you.
I'm at my work-release job.
100 North Business Circle Road.
I'll be here all day.
Trust me.
It'll be worth the trip.
- I'll make it.
- Good.
Oh, and if you could bring me a bottle of 20 year old, it would be appreciated.
[phone snaps shut.]
What the fuck do you call this? Analysis? [sighs.]
You're supposed to be supporting a short play on Klaxon.
Right.
But your numbers don't do the job.
Best I could make them.
[sighs.]
Okay.
We're meeting over there at noon, yes? Oh, yeah.
And bring your wallet.
You do anything disgusting with your daddy's money? Excuse me? Raucous party, orgies with buttered-up fatties? Rubenesque, please.
And, uh, no, nothing like that.
Don't think you're doing your daddy or Jack Foley or certainly yourself any favors by holding back.
I'm not.
You're still trying to control this.
You can't micromanage a campaign.
Once it gets started, it's shooting Class five rapids.
You need a goddamn life jacket no matter how fast you paddle.
I know.
Then let's try a trust fall.
- Seriously? - No.
I don't care how you feel about this, but unless you want to end up the subject of a cautionary documentary, better start telling me the things that you're afraid to whisper that you've been keeping inside.
Even because you think it's your fault, like a priest gently sodomizing you.
Might not be able to absolve you, but can offer you the next best thing.
Safe harbor.
pensive music Bullying.
We call it hazing.
It had a different ring back then.
[sighs.]
We have evolved on these issues awfully quickly.
[chuckles dryly.]
This one kid bit of a loner.
And, a [chuckles.]
prig.
Well, just a tattle tale, really.
And one night, he got the Code Red treatment at boarding school.
Did you lead it? Just say that I was a part of it.
Never got it out of my mind.
He kill himself? No.
He went on to the ivy league.
[door opens.]
What, do you need something, Dad? I thought I heard you call for me.
I thought I heard my boy saying he needed me.
No, Dad, we're fine.
We'll wrap for the day.
Looking forward to the next part.
Seems that went well.
Yeah.
[door closes.]
Tight little body.
Dad.
Well, she's not vetting me.
Thank God for that.
[golf ball clacks.]
Fuck.
somber music plays [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
You know what? You leaving is one thing, but taking my boys, what the fuck? I don't get pissed and look to punish you.
And, you know, whatever you think of Wendy Rhoades, she's good for Axe Cap, and what is good for Axe Cap is good for us.
And what's good for us is good for you.
Why don't you know that? You used to know that.
How'd it go? Taylor Mason took my card.
Cautiously optimistic, that she's gonna I'm not used to this gender pronoun thing - yet that they'll reach out.
- And what makes you think that? Their politics run pretty far to the left.
They contribute to the Urban Justice Center.
- That's a good outfit.
- Active in Occupy Wall Street during their college years.
So there's hope this person might still have a heart.
I don't think their hard drive's been reformatted yet to wipe out - the conscience feature.
- [chuckles.]
I'll, uh I found Antoine Casson.
Excellent.
Thank you for your effort.
Guys.
[doorbell rings.]
[Matt.]
Jesus Christ.
Quit fucking breaking my balls.
I'm coming.
- What are you doing here? - Just following up.
I told you on the phone she's not here.
I know what you said.
You thought I was fucking lying to you? Get your ass away from my house.
Your house which I bought for you? You don't own it any more than you own her.
Hey, Matt.
Everything all right? Yeah.
Just my asshole brother-in-law trespassing.
Maybe you should call the cops.
Sometimes women go running, and their husbands learn a lesson.
Snap to.
More often, though, same guy that chased her away through abuse, neglect, needs her back.
And if and when she comes back, he's worse.
Punishes her for leaving.
We come around, check on the situation, but now she's too afraid to run again, so sometimes what we do is when we get a real hard fucking type, we get a carpet, roll the guy up in it, and beat the fuck out of him.
Carpet blunts the noise and contains the mess.
But the internal injuries are there.
You're a good brother.
[Man.]
Yeah [speaking indistinctly.]
[cellphone vibrating.]
Hey.
Hey.
Uh, are you busy? No.
I mean, yeah, but Never mind if you're busy.
No, no, no.
What? I'm gonna be in the neighborhood and thought we'd get a coffee.
Hey, how about, uh, a juice instead? This is called In-a-Gadda-da-Greena.
It's got a little ginger kick.
And this is Hello Yellow.
And it's got, like, nine different antioxidants.
- Sorry.
- Pick the one you want.
- I'm good with either.
- I'll go with the green.
I know that the tuition is due for the kids.
If you could advance it for just Don't worry about it, Chuck.
Really.
We have plenty of money.
You mean you do.
There's an imbalance.
I'm just trying to remedy that.
Okay.
Sure.
Thanks.
What is it? Why are you just in the neighborhood? Do you ever feel alone, a little scared sometimes? I do, but you don't.
Luckily we have these antioxidants.
Those ought to do the trick.
Huh? [chuckles.]
This is more than just a wave of loneliness, isn't it, that you're not saying.
I mean, when it comes to keeping in good mental health, you're Jack LaLanne.
Everybody has their off days.
I guess I just wanted a little company.
Besides, we have therapy later.
We can hit whatever Sure.
Okay.
Why waste it all in rehearsal? [Mike.]
And this is your terrace.
It's got 2,000 square feet, Three hundred and sixty-degree views, and as you can see, it's fully planted and has an automated watering system.
Wow.
- Pretty f'ing sweet.
- Have a look.
I'm gonna take this real quick.
This is ridiculous.
You live here? Twelve floors down and two lines over, but Why don't you take this place? Too much light.
Anyway, it's a bargain at $26,000.
Twenty-six thousand a month? Place I live now costs twelve hundred.
Taylor, you're the golden child.
End of the year, Axe is gonna bonus you one point five minimum.
Really? Hey, can you do me a favor? Axe is looking to make a short play on Klaxon Auto.
Assigned the write-up to me, which I kicked to Ben Kim.
Problem is, Ben doesn't see it as a short.
The numbers don't support it.
I looked at it.
I don't think it is, either.
- So tell Axe that.
- [Mafee.]
Yeah.
I'd love to make the hero call, stop Axe from losing money.
Last time I tried, he fired me.
So you want me to review it.
Would you? I'm not saying I've got fucking dyscalculia, but if I'm gonna put my ass on the chopping block, I want to make sure I'm not missing something.
Send the report over.
I'll take a look at it.
Thanks.
So? Anybody out here need a pen? Can I get back to you? It's hitting MLS tomorrow.
It'll be gone by lunch.
I'll get back to you tonight.
[Man.]
Thanks dude.
Yeah.
I have them at a go-kart track, a place called Autobahn, for 90 minutes.
Leaving less than an hour ago.
[Hall.]
Anywhere near here they might've headed? Yeah.
Yeah, there was a spot there she used to go when she was young.
She'd feel fortified there.
- You want me to - No, no.
I'll go.
[door closes.]
Gents.
[door closes.]
Hey, Axe.
Lara said you'd be showing up.
You or someone who worked for you.
So she came in here? Yep, her and the boys.
They fucking fleeced us out of 20 bucks at darts.
Soon as we tried to up the bet, they quit.
My boys.
They saw the hustle coming.
[Terry.]
Sure did.
Anyway, uh, Lara said to give her space.
She was going to your place in the city, and you could know that, but to please respect.
She'll get in touch when she's ready.
And so I'm supposed to what? Just fucking sit - on my goddamn - You can press her.
But look, you know her better than us.
You do that and Yep.
I'll make this look like the Rose Parade.
Hey, it's me.
I went to Terry's bar.
The memories came flooding back.
Us there at the beginning, right after I got struck by the thunderbolt like Michael with Apollonia.
And I was thinking about all that rail shit we used to drink, but we were already drunk from being with each other, so we didn't care.
And then I flipped totally to the other extreme.
[engine starts.]
To Paris.
That rainy night.
We wouldn't get out of bed even though the iPod was playing "With or Without You" on repeat, and so we ended up listening to it all night.
And I was just thinking I was thinking how deep it got between us.
And we promised that if anything ever threatened us, we'd remind ourselves of that night and we'd try to find a way back to it.
And I'm reminding you of that night right now.
Let's fight our way back to it.
Call me, please.
Thank you for finding the time, Mr.
Martinez.
What's the urgent matter? My laptop was stolen by a client.
Can you tell me who? Gave me a backstopped alias.
Came to me for three months.
Worked his way into my inner sanctum.
You think it's an attack against me? You or one of my more prominent clients.
More prominent than I? Should come as no surprise to you the lifestyle attracts brilliant people.
Mm-hmm.
Intricate temperaments.
Intricate tastes.
How protected is your information? I have a deeply devoted client from Palo Alto who's in corporate cyber defense.
You may rest assured.
And if I were ever approached personally I know that your relationships are beyond transactional.
The idea of blackmailing someone with something so close to their core, - of punishing true expression - Understood.
Understood.
And thank you.
[bottle cap clatters.]
Pick that up.
[grunting.]
[gulps, exhales.]
It's good to see you again, Mr.
Martinez.
Hmm.
We should do it again under other circumstances.
Once you've secured proper permissions, of course.
Of course.
[sighs.]
[knock on door.]
[door opens, closes.]
Did you find her? Yes.
She went into the city with the boys, but I don't know how to bring them home.
I'm sorry.
What do you want? What I've always wanted, to help.
I was remembering when you first met her.
Me, too.
And you said you felt like you'd known her forever.
Everyone else was sucking up, angling.
One date and you were talking about marriage.
I was skeptical.
I thought that sort of thing only happened in the Sicilian hills.
And then I met her.
Then it all made sense.
You know, she had three close friends who lost their husbands on 9/11.
Firemen.
And she helped to prop them all up, even after losing her own brother.
She helped them clean out their closets, and you wouldn't think that that was the toughest thing, but the way they wept when they found a favorite t-shirt or an old varsity jacket or a wedding suit.
And then about a week later, something occurred to her, and for all three of them, she found a way to get back into their bedrooms.
And she crawled under the beds and retrieved the errant slipper or sneaker.
She defended them from those little land mines.
You don't talk about that side of her much.
Look, I, um I know that you feel bad.
But that doesn't fix anything 'cause I tried.
I'm limited to waiting now, and you know the problem with that? You fucking hate waiting.
pensive music [door opens, closes.]
[Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Hey, it's me again.
You know what? Maybe I was wrong.
Maybe Wendy Rhoades isn't helping.
Maybe I should just blow her the fuck out of our lives.
Whatever it takes to get you home, get us talking again, just say the word, and I'll erase Wendy Rhoades from our world forever.
Oh.
Quick second date.
On the hazing, the whole Code Red situation, you were the victim, not one of the aggressors.
You were Santiago, not Dawson.
[chuckles.]
Boy, they left me black and blue anywhere my shirt would hide.
And you told on them? Oh, no.
Oh, it had its desired effect.
I never breathed a word.
Until just now.
But later, not a few days, two years later intramural baseball.
I was at bat, the ringleader was catching.
And on one fast ball, I swung backwards.
Lefty.
Right into his face.
Was he wearing a mask? Yeah, that's why his head stayed on, but his jaw shattered.
Now, is that gonna come back and bite me? If you hadn't told me, could've ended your campaign, but I know how to spin it as a strong anti-bullying stance.
By the time I'm finished with you, you'll be signing baseball bats every time you appear in public.
Okay.
My biggest potential vulnerability.
Now it's in your hands.
Any chance the, uh, operative could've copied the hard drive on this? No.
He's a trusted.
dramatic music I'll have my tech people run a lice comb through this.
Mm.
You'll let me know.
- And the owner of this? - Also a trusted.
Hundred percent? No such thing.
Now you're getting it.
Good.
Good.
[door closes.]
[sighs.]
dramatic music [Taylor.]
I want to say something to you.
I don't want you to find it insulting.
- Okay.
- There may have been a time when you understood the psychological makeup of everyone in the company, when you knew whom to assign any given task to in order to achieve the desired result.
I know how my employees think.
You're saying I don't anymore? You don't anymore.
Companies get bigger, modes of governance and delegation need to change to keep pace, or you get this.
It's not the best short thesis on Klaxon, but I thought Ben Kim could make it fly.
He couldn't.
Mafee couldn't either.
Their numbers dictate it's a long, - so that's all they could see.
- Fuck me.
Mafee's not dumb, he's not soft, but he didn't understand or wasn't willing to put on paper what you needed him to put on paper.
What do you think that was? Justification for later, proof that a good case could be made for the short.
What would you do? It's not an auto play.
Forget car sales.
Take a deep dive into their financing department.
Look at 30- and 60-day delinquencies, leasing, credit.
They're all stretched.
Every auto company is pushing sales forward with aggressive lending.
When that music stops, there'll be no chairs left.
- But - But what? But I assume there are other factors that are really dictating your short play here.
Congratulations.
All the analysts now answer to you.
If I fill in those blanks, - I have to put my name on it.
- Yeah.
Would that be a problem for you? You know how your employees think, right? So you tell me.
Thanks for letting me up.
So, you won't do sessions with him, but you'll be his messenger? He doesn't know I'm here.
But he told you I was, and he told you what's going on between us.
I was in the middle.
You're always in the middle.
Do you really think that's the problem? I know there's something broken in him that he thinks only you can fix.
It's not true.
Feels true.
And maybe if I got you the fuck out of our way, I'd get to fix it.
Or maybe it would heal all by itself.
Got me out of the way? tense music What kind of money would you be making in the real world? Lara.
Please, it is not about money for me.
- Let's make it about money.
- Don't do this.
Don't you dare be embarrassed for me.
What would it cost to make you disappear? Five, ten, twenty million? - No.
- Why not? Because the job means something to me.
If it ceases to, I'll go, but money means too little to me and I have too much of it to make decisions that way.
Bobby's the same.
I know it.
And you love it.
You married a guy who does whatever the fuck he wants because he has no reason not to except you.
He's a steamroller.
Wasn't that part of the attraction? You scared him.
In all this time I've never seen fear in him.
Not till today.
It should all be simpler.
I don't know if it should be.
I know it isn't.
If we make it through this does it get stronger on the other side? I don't know yet.
I hope so.
[sighs.]
Forgive.
If you can.
[footsteps.]
pensive music [sighs.]
Axe is asking if you have the Klaxon research.
I got it right here.
Just haven't signed it yet.
So, should I tell him he's getting it? I've got it right here.
Just haven't signed it yet.
Okay.
Thanks for the call.
I appreciate you coming in.
Thanks for seeing me on short notice.
Yeah.
I got you a latte.
And I don't know what kind of cookies you like, so there's a variety.
Thank you.
We've long suspected criminal activity at Axe Capital.
I'm aware.
And part of our work is to research the personnel of the company and to find within it a sympathetic partner.
And you think I fit that description? Yes.
Because your background tells me you're an intelligent [sighs.]
a good person, so I'm just gonna come out and ask.
Is there anything you see at Axe Capital that offends your sense of fairness, of right and wrong? What are you asking about? Fairness or right and wrong? Most people consider those the same thing.
A stock is like a living organism, a sparrow, say.
And we are able to create an emergent-based abstraction of that sparrow, which closely approximates the sparrow itself, accounting for migration patterns, wind, weather, and other variables.
We can create a similar abstraction of a stock, combining the information from the specific ETFs which represent its underlying dependencies.
And if we apply this to the stock, we can predict its delta, following the path of its abstracted self because nature follows abstraction.
I'm sorry.
You lost me.
Let's start again.
You sure you don't want a cookie? - I'm not going to eat a cookie.
- Okay.
The reason Ed Harris can get tough with Tom Cruise is because he knows Cruise has seen the bodies.
- Harris has something on him.
- That's right.
But you're coming on with cookies.
Telling me you're not leveraging me because you think it's the kinder, more profitable approach.
There's a simpler answer, though.
You have no leverage.
You have nothing on Axe Cap and even less on me.
Whoa, whoa, hey.
Let's just No.
We're done here.
dramatic music How'd that go? I'm no Ed Harris.
tense music Hey, sit a minute.
Busy.
Well, sit anyway.
No, I got pies to make.
Come on, they can wait five minutes.
Quick catch up.
You're my business partner.
So you get the slice and a Coke on the arm.
But that don't buy you a conversation with me.
Anything else I can get you? No.
[pizza and drink thud.]
pensive music [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
You're punishing me.
I get it.
I get it.
I have never punished you.
Not once.
Not once.
I'm making one mistake, and fine, fine.
It's not a contest.
You think I can't control this, or you? That you're teaching me some, some fucking lesson? I teach the fucking lessons, and you are about to get one.
Lar, I will lock you the fuck down and operate you by fucking remote control with a flick of my motherfucking fingers, Lar! You don't believe me? Try me, goddamn it.
You want to, you want to take this vacation, this, this adventure? Have it, go for it! Get it out.
Then come the fuck home! dramatic music [floor buffer whirring.]
[door closes, whirring stops.]
Larry.
Bobby.
Thanks for coming.
How are you? Frankly, I've had better days.
But given your circumstances, I've got no business complaining.
How are you holding up? Better man might turn the experience into a spiritual journey, and through humility, find some deeper understanding of the self.
I spend each and every day hoping for the end of it.
Anesthetic? Appreciated, but I was just dreaming.
They piss test me randomly.
Well, maybe take a risk.
So, what's on your mind? Revenge.
Oh, you really aren't feeling spiritual.
I got word from the boys at Spartan-Ives.
Chuck Rhoades Sr.
has taken a significant stake in a company that's going public.
Ice Juice.
No shit.
And insofar as you hate the Rhoades family almost as much as I do That could be pleasant.
Be fun if you could find a way to lob a turd in the punch bowl.
Yeah.
Real fun.
I'll make sure to take a sizable allocation.
So you'd have cover.
Yeah, take the free money up front, throw it into reverse, and I'd short every tick on the way down.
Worth the trip? Yeah.
Yeah, worth the trip.
pensive music [bottle cork squeaks.]
[door opens.]
- Hi.
- [Wendy.]
Hi.
How was the rest of your day? - It didn't get much better.
- Sorry.
Last fucking thing I want to do is this.
Honestly that's great to hear I'm not the only one.
I thought you fucking loved this stuff.
Like it was oxygen to you.
I recognize its value.
Are you just gonna go off? Or, uh, do you want some company? Just the two of us, you know, talking without a paid referee.
I think we're capable of that.
Yeah.
Seeing you this afternoon, I don't know, it felt, uh - Comfortable.
- Yeah.
That.
Can I buy you dinner? I'd like that.
I'm starving.
I know exactly where we should go.
It's a bit far afield, but, uh, it'll be worth it.
Where is it? [door opens.]
Trust me.
Come on.
Hey.
Hey.
Any progress on the home front? Nothing to speak of yet.
I'll buy you a drink.
No.
I've got some leftover pharmaceutical-grade No.
Handjob? Rain check.
Bonus Taylor five hundred k.
- At the end of the year? - No.
Now.
Mid-semester bonus.
The real one's still coming.
Should I move their desk closer to the bimah? Fitting for the new head of research who understands what the job entails and is willing to execute it.
I will make that happen.
[door opens.]
[indistinct conversations.]
What is this place? - Mm.
- Welcome.
Do you have a reservation with us this evening? - Yes, under Rhoades.
- Oh, of course, yes.
Mr.
and Mrs.
Rhoades.
We've been expecting you.
Right this way.
[Clears throat.]
[Antoine.]
Monsieur Le Prosecutor.
Ah.
[chuckles.]
I swear to God I'm too busy cooking the food to cook the books.
[laughs.]
You know, being a criminal takes hard work.
You're French.
- I don't have to worry about it.
- [laughs.]
Who is this college girl you brought with you, huh? Antoine.
Mwah, mwah.
Look at you with that face.
My God, you shame the angels.
Oh.
Asseyez vous.
S'il vous plaît.
Amelie, pas de menu.
Ce n'est pas necessaire.
- I have a few ideas.
- Oh.
- Antoine, uh - [Antoine.]
Don't worry.
You're going to get your Coq Au Vin.
Thank you, my friend.
Je vous en prie, mes amis.
How did you find him? Here's to the long arm of the law.
pensive music Oh, I'm sad that's over.
- [sighs.]
- [chuckles.]
[clears throat.]
Listen, Wend.
A lot has come up I need to talk to you about.
Go ahead.
There has been some movement.
The right influencers are backing me for a run at Albany.
Your father must be frothing at the mouth.
Oh, Jesus.
Like the end of Old Yeller.
I mean, I may have to shoot him.
[laughs.]
[chuckles.]
Congratulations.
You know, it occurs to me the reason you were in the neighborhood earlier.
The thing we were gonna discuss in therapy, we haven't discussed.
[chuckles.]
There's this person I haven't liked much lately, maybe fairly, maybe unfairly.
I don't know.
But she knew you and I were going through tough times.
So she was extra smug and condescending when it came to the sanctity of her own marriage.
And then I learned something that I knew would hurt her.
And I just couldn't resist punching her in the face with it.
It's a natural urge.
But it didn't make you feel good.
- No, it did.
- Mm-hmm.
For a second.
It was a fucking electric thrill.
[laughs.]
But no, after I kind of hate myself for it.
Which is why you're rare and special.
I know that you hold yourself to a higher standard because you're a therapist, but you're also human.
And you and I both know it's your humanity that makes you so good at what you do.
So maybe you just let yourself off with a warning.
Thank you.
Hey.
Yeah? Antoine's right.
You shame the angels.
You really do.
tense music I'll drop it at the garage on my way back to the club.
Thank you.
Chuck, that was lovely.
Yes, it sure was.
[sighs.]
[Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Do you know what the other rich guys do? Pendleton? Krakow? The fucking Russian guys with the prostitute yacht five hundred yards behind the family yacht? The fucking opportunities I've had.
And I have not wavered once in 15 years! I get no credit for that? For the life that I've built? For the kind of man I am? Fuck.
I could've been out every single night.
Models, musicians, your own so-called friends.
I could've done you like that.
Maybe I should have.
I get the same treatment from you now, but at least then, I'd have earned it by getting my fucking rocks off.
[telephone rings.]
Yeah.
[Security.]
Front gate, sir.
Missus is here.
Thanks.
[telephone beeps, receiver clacks.]
pensive music [cellphone vibrates.]
Hey.
[Wendy.]
Chuck.
Come home tonight.
Is that an order? Damn right it is.
[tires squeal.]
I really appreciate your coming out so late.
That's the kind of service you can expect from me when you're ready to move up from this and buy something.
U2's "With or Without You" See the stone set in your eyes Welcome home.
See the thorn twist in your side I'll wait for you Hey, how are ya? Sleight of hand and twist of fate Kiss your dad goodnight and straight upstairs.
Be right up.
Goodnight, Dad.
- All right.
- Night, Dad.
Okay, see you in the morning, fellas.
Without you How was your night? Fine.
I tried calling.
Phone's been off.
I can't live I thought long and hard about the thunderbolt today.
With or without you Apollonia got blown up by a fucking car bomb.
I'm going to put the boys to bed.
And you give yourself away And you give And you give And you give yourself away My hands are tied [grunts.]
My body bruised [grunts.]
She got me with nothing to win And nothing left to lose And you give yourself away [grunts.]
Take your fucking clothes off.
[exhales sharply.]
With or without you With or without you, oh, oh I can't live With or without you Oh, oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh With or without you With or without you, ah I can't live With or without you With or without you
Previously on Billions [Foley.]
There's someone I need you to see.
George Minchak.
She vets all of my candidates.
You want her to know everything.
I'm not really sure I'm entirely comfortable with that.
[Chuck.]
Mmmm.
Red! - I'm sorry.
- [breathing heavily.]
Did I not pick up the body language? I didn't get permission.
[horn honks.]
Klaxon.
Belgian car company.
They're headed for a recall.
Bottom's gonna drop out.
[Chuck.]
I had a craving for Bistro Grisby last night.
We used to go there all the time.
- They closed four years ago.
- Sad.
Surveillance of a federal employee is a Class E felony, so if you want me to keep it up, I'm gonna need to charge you a higher rate.
Then it's a good day for business.
[Steph.]
Try Taylor Mason.
[Steph.]
Anything big Axe is wading into, Taylor's there with a snorkel mask.
[Lara.]
Divorces are hard.
[laughs.]
So are marriages.
Yeah, I've heard other people say that.
Wendy Rhoades is a liability, and I will never be okay with the two of you talking.
I personally won't see her.
I'm sure it must be hard for you to not have access to him, but we think it's best for everyone.
Which is why I set the policy.
dramatic music The Crystals' "What a Nice Way to Turn 17" My birthday candles Have all gone out The party's through And I'm alone - With you - Whoa Fuck.
What a nice way Lara? To turn 17 Boys? I feel your sweet lips against my cheek [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Hey.
It's me.
You call me? You can't just Will you just call me, please? Your shoulder feels Get in.
So soft What a nice way to turn Seventeen Maybe lying in your marriage was tolerated, looked upon with leniency, considered some sort of fucked up foreplay, but in my marriage in 15 years, I have never lied to my wife except once, except about what was said between you and me.
You were the only person who could've told her about that.
So please, tell me, what did you say to my wife? She was under the impression that our no-session arrangement came from you.
I corrected her.
The words.
The actual words.
I said I set the policy, and that was the only way I could work there.
tense music I didn't mean to come between you and Lara.
You of all people, you know precisely what response you're eliciting.
If you do it, you mean to do it.
Can I get out of the car now? [car door opens.]
I'll call if we have any other questions.
Or maybe I'll just show up.
[car door closes.]
Just got off the phone with Pacquin.
He sent these from the house security cams.
She took four 10k bricks out of the vault, and we have her here with the boys walking out of the house with light luggage.
Rippling out.
The jets are on the ground, the choppers are in the hangar, and the residences, Hamptons, the city apartment, Aspen, Miami, the vineyard, all empty.
GPS on the car? I disabled them all months ago at your request.
Right.
Fuck.
All three phones are off, and they've not used the EZ Pass or any other credit cards yet.
Uh Cancel my morning sessions, please.
I'm not feeling so well.
I'll try to make it in by the afternoon.
Thanks.
Did you bring your tribute? - I - Ah! I didn't ask you to speak.
And I don't want to look at your pathetic face either.
[K.
Flay's "Blood in the Cut" plays on speakers.]
The boy I love's got another girl You are nothing.
He might be fucking her right now I don't have an apartment Thought if I was smart I'd make it far - Down.
- [grunts.]
But I'm still at the start Time for me to make my preparations.
Need the crack of a whip, need some blood in the cut Don't move a muscle.
Blood in the cut, I need blood in the cut [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Hey, look, look, I'm not, I'm not trying to make an excuse, but, uh, you know, I was I was trying to protect you, and I know you weren't happy with Wendy coming back, and I was trying to respect that.
I'm trying to give you comfort.
Maybe I could've done it different.
I I don't know, but you could've done this a different way, too.
pensive music [Chuck Sr.
.]
So, Ms.
Minchak, how should we proceed? My goal is to do oppo before they do oppo, so if there is a potential October surprise, we drop it in February during the fucking Super Bowl.
I like the thinking.
Like the thinking, and as I said, you're welcome here for as long as you need.
I know that Wendy has the homestead, and the Yale Club has a few too many prying eyes for Yes, thank you.
Are you sure no coffee? No, thank you.
Pound cake.
Seventy percent sour cream.
This works best one on one.
Of course.
I'll just, uh I'll be I'll be right right inside, uh, in case you need anything.
Hmm? [door closes.]
So How should we do this? Why are you asking me? Keep it interesting.
I've done, uh, first couple levels, the dirty stuff those pop-up ads promised to find on your high-school sweetheart.
Those websites actually work? More than they should.
I do it myself, though.
I search the TROs, the DUIs, the tax liens.
You were fine there.
Tomorrow starts the deep dive, your receipts, browser history, interviewing those who have known you - intimately since school days.
- [chuckling.]
Jesus.
It's a shit show.
Today, though, you ever go to SeaWorld? No.
I've never been to one of those places.
- The mistreatment of the - Right.
Whale's got to jump and flip whether he wants to or not.
[chuckles.]
But then he gets his herring.
Quite so.
Today, though, you're that whale.
I'm gonna run through a list of areas.
- You'll let me know - Mm-hmm.
if we have an issue.
[inhales sharply.]
[sighs.]
Fire away.
- Aborted pregnancies? - No.
Uh, unwanted sexual advances in the workplace? No.
- Fiscal malfeasance? - No.
- Hiring of undocumented workers? - No.
None of those.
- Cheating? - No.
- Same-sex exploration - No.
Membership of racially-exclusive clubs? No.
Okay.
Let's get personal.
The separation, where are we on that? Uh, in counseling.
Is it working? It's a process.
Can that process be complete by the time we announce? 'Cause we need to know what we're selling, - and that can't be a process.
- Noted.
Will she be a problem if you split? No.
No bad mouthing, blackmail? - No.
- [scoffs.]
Such a perfect fucking couple, why are you getting a divorce? I didn't say we were.
Well, shit, given her ties to Wall Street, no tragedy if it goes that way.
[sighs.]
Hi.
What can I get you? I know what you're having.
They'll have a double shot almond milk latte to go.
Do I know you? Name on that's Taylor Amber Mason.
And I'll have a Macchiato.
Name's Bryan Connerty.
You've been following me.
tense music [exhales sharply.]
Taylor, you don't know me, but I think we should get acquainted.
You talk like a cop but dress like a lawyer.
- I'm a U.
S.
Attorney.
- Yeah.
So, why would I want - further acquaintance? - Because you work at Axe Capital, and I'm the guy who can keep your life - from becoming a nightmare.
- I like nightmares.
When I wake up, they leave me deeply valuing my reality.
But nice chatting.
My bad.
You know what, my bad.
I always felt Ed Harris went too hard at Mitch McDeere in that diner when they first met.
Should've made him feel safe, not threatened, and here I went the other way, but I do want you to feel safe.
Can't do that.
- How do you mean? - Mix character and actor.
You either go Ed Harris and Tom Cruise or Wayne Tarrance and Mitch McDeere.
Right.
Good point.
[barista.]
Taylor.
Why don't we go drink our coffees together? You can tell me about the last few months, how you got here, where you think it's going.
- I'm a good listener.
- Can't.
Got to get to work.
That's where I'm going.
You must know what time I arrive by.
Wouldn't it look weird if I showed up late? Another time.
[exhales.]
tense music [breathing heavily, snapping.]
[door opens.]
- Nope.
- Sorry, can't let it go.
I've been watching you pace about five miles in here.
What the fuck's going on with you? Lara took off this morning with the boys.
Where are they headed? Oh, took off.
Unannounced took off.
Why? She caught me in a lie.
How do you know? She left me a note.
"You lied to me.
" Fuck.
How you gonna figure out what she's referring to? I already know 'cause it was the only one.
You truly are a black swan.
Talk to the brothers and sisters? - They haven't heard from her.
- You believe those hillbillies? They probably have her hidden under the floorboards.
[cellphone vibrating.]
Good luck.
[door opens, closes.]
Hello? [Boyd.]
Roberto, it's Larry Boyd.
- Oh, hey.
- I need to talk to you.
- We're talking.
- No, I need to tell you - something important.
- Go ahead.
This is Mark Felt in the parking garage.
No phone.
It's kind of a bad day for me, Larry.
I'll send Wags up? As much as he might brighten these halls, it's got to be you.
I'm at my work-release job.
100 North Business Circle Road.
I'll be here all day.
Trust me.
It'll be worth the trip.
- I'll make it.
- Good.
Oh, and if you could bring me a bottle of 20 year old, it would be appreciated.
[phone snaps shut.]
What the fuck do you call this? Analysis? [sighs.]
You're supposed to be supporting a short play on Klaxon.
Right.
But your numbers don't do the job.
Best I could make them.
[sighs.]
Okay.
We're meeting over there at noon, yes? Oh, yeah.
And bring your wallet.
You do anything disgusting with your daddy's money? Excuse me? Raucous party, orgies with buttered-up fatties? Rubenesque, please.
And, uh, no, nothing like that.
Don't think you're doing your daddy or Jack Foley or certainly yourself any favors by holding back.
I'm not.
You're still trying to control this.
You can't micromanage a campaign.
Once it gets started, it's shooting Class five rapids.
You need a goddamn life jacket no matter how fast you paddle.
I know.
Then let's try a trust fall.
- Seriously? - No.
I don't care how you feel about this, but unless you want to end up the subject of a cautionary documentary, better start telling me the things that you're afraid to whisper that you've been keeping inside.
Even because you think it's your fault, like a priest gently sodomizing you.
Might not be able to absolve you, but can offer you the next best thing.
Safe harbor.
pensive music Bullying.
We call it hazing.
It had a different ring back then.
[sighs.]
We have evolved on these issues awfully quickly.
[chuckles dryly.]
This one kid bit of a loner.
And, a [chuckles.]
prig.
Well, just a tattle tale, really.
And one night, he got the Code Red treatment at boarding school.
Did you lead it? Just say that I was a part of it.
Never got it out of my mind.
He kill himself? No.
He went on to the ivy league.
[door opens.]
What, do you need something, Dad? I thought I heard you call for me.
I thought I heard my boy saying he needed me.
No, Dad, we're fine.
We'll wrap for the day.
Looking forward to the next part.
Seems that went well.
Yeah.
[door closes.]
Tight little body.
Dad.
Well, she's not vetting me.
Thank God for that.
[golf ball clacks.]
Fuck.
somber music plays [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
You know what? You leaving is one thing, but taking my boys, what the fuck? I don't get pissed and look to punish you.
And, you know, whatever you think of Wendy Rhoades, she's good for Axe Cap, and what is good for Axe Cap is good for us.
And what's good for us is good for you.
Why don't you know that? You used to know that.
How'd it go? Taylor Mason took my card.
Cautiously optimistic, that she's gonna I'm not used to this gender pronoun thing - yet that they'll reach out.
- And what makes you think that? Their politics run pretty far to the left.
They contribute to the Urban Justice Center.
- That's a good outfit.
- Active in Occupy Wall Street during their college years.
So there's hope this person might still have a heart.
I don't think their hard drive's been reformatted yet to wipe out - the conscience feature.
- [chuckles.]
I'll, uh I found Antoine Casson.
Excellent.
Thank you for your effort.
Guys.
[doorbell rings.]
[Matt.]
Jesus Christ.
Quit fucking breaking my balls.
I'm coming.
- What are you doing here? - Just following up.
I told you on the phone she's not here.
I know what you said.
You thought I was fucking lying to you? Get your ass away from my house.
Your house which I bought for you? You don't own it any more than you own her.
Hey, Matt.
Everything all right? Yeah.
Just my asshole brother-in-law trespassing.
Maybe you should call the cops.
Sometimes women go running, and their husbands learn a lesson.
Snap to.
More often, though, same guy that chased her away through abuse, neglect, needs her back.
And if and when she comes back, he's worse.
Punishes her for leaving.
We come around, check on the situation, but now she's too afraid to run again, so sometimes what we do is when we get a real hard fucking type, we get a carpet, roll the guy up in it, and beat the fuck out of him.
Carpet blunts the noise and contains the mess.
But the internal injuries are there.
You're a good brother.
[Man.]
Yeah [speaking indistinctly.]
[cellphone vibrating.]
Hey.
Hey.
Uh, are you busy? No.
I mean, yeah, but Never mind if you're busy.
No, no, no.
What? I'm gonna be in the neighborhood and thought we'd get a coffee.
Hey, how about, uh, a juice instead? This is called In-a-Gadda-da-Greena.
It's got a little ginger kick.
And this is Hello Yellow.
And it's got, like, nine different antioxidants.
- Sorry.
- Pick the one you want.
- I'm good with either.
- I'll go with the green.
I know that the tuition is due for the kids.
If you could advance it for just Don't worry about it, Chuck.
Really.
We have plenty of money.
You mean you do.
There's an imbalance.
I'm just trying to remedy that.
Okay.
Sure.
Thanks.
What is it? Why are you just in the neighborhood? Do you ever feel alone, a little scared sometimes? I do, but you don't.
Luckily we have these antioxidants.
Those ought to do the trick.
Huh? [chuckles.]
This is more than just a wave of loneliness, isn't it, that you're not saying.
I mean, when it comes to keeping in good mental health, you're Jack LaLanne.
Everybody has their off days.
I guess I just wanted a little company.
Besides, we have therapy later.
We can hit whatever Sure.
Okay.
Why waste it all in rehearsal? [Mike.]
And this is your terrace.
It's got 2,000 square feet, Three hundred and sixty-degree views, and as you can see, it's fully planted and has an automated watering system.
Wow.
- Pretty f'ing sweet.
- Have a look.
I'm gonna take this real quick.
This is ridiculous.
You live here? Twelve floors down and two lines over, but Why don't you take this place? Too much light.
Anyway, it's a bargain at $26,000.
Twenty-six thousand a month? Place I live now costs twelve hundred.
Taylor, you're the golden child.
End of the year, Axe is gonna bonus you one point five minimum.
Really? Hey, can you do me a favor? Axe is looking to make a short play on Klaxon Auto.
Assigned the write-up to me, which I kicked to Ben Kim.
Problem is, Ben doesn't see it as a short.
The numbers don't support it.
I looked at it.
I don't think it is, either.
- So tell Axe that.
- [Mafee.]
Yeah.
I'd love to make the hero call, stop Axe from losing money.
Last time I tried, he fired me.
So you want me to review it.
Would you? I'm not saying I've got fucking dyscalculia, but if I'm gonna put my ass on the chopping block, I want to make sure I'm not missing something.
Send the report over.
I'll take a look at it.
Thanks.
So? Anybody out here need a pen? Can I get back to you? It's hitting MLS tomorrow.
It'll be gone by lunch.
I'll get back to you tonight.
[Man.]
Thanks dude.
Yeah.
I have them at a go-kart track, a place called Autobahn, for 90 minutes.
Leaving less than an hour ago.
[Hall.]
Anywhere near here they might've headed? Yeah.
Yeah, there was a spot there she used to go when she was young.
She'd feel fortified there.
- You want me to - No, no.
I'll go.
[door closes.]
Gents.
[door closes.]
Hey, Axe.
Lara said you'd be showing up.
You or someone who worked for you.
So she came in here? Yep, her and the boys.
They fucking fleeced us out of 20 bucks at darts.
Soon as we tried to up the bet, they quit.
My boys.
They saw the hustle coming.
[Terry.]
Sure did.
Anyway, uh, Lara said to give her space.
She was going to your place in the city, and you could know that, but to please respect.
She'll get in touch when she's ready.
And so I'm supposed to what? Just fucking sit - on my goddamn - You can press her.
But look, you know her better than us.
You do that and Yep.
I'll make this look like the Rose Parade.
Hey, it's me.
I went to Terry's bar.
The memories came flooding back.
Us there at the beginning, right after I got struck by the thunderbolt like Michael with Apollonia.
And I was thinking about all that rail shit we used to drink, but we were already drunk from being with each other, so we didn't care.
And then I flipped totally to the other extreme.
[engine starts.]
To Paris.
That rainy night.
We wouldn't get out of bed even though the iPod was playing "With or Without You" on repeat, and so we ended up listening to it all night.
And I was just thinking I was thinking how deep it got between us.
And we promised that if anything ever threatened us, we'd remind ourselves of that night and we'd try to find a way back to it.
And I'm reminding you of that night right now.
Let's fight our way back to it.
Call me, please.
Thank you for finding the time, Mr.
Martinez.
What's the urgent matter? My laptop was stolen by a client.
Can you tell me who? Gave me a backstopped alias.
Came to me for three months.
Worked his way into my inner sanctum.
You think it's an attack against me? You or one of my more prominent clients.
More prominent than I? Should come as no surprise to you the lifestyle attracts brilliant people.
Mm-hmm.
Intricate temperaments.
Intricate tastes.
How protected is your information? I have a deeply devoted client from Palo Alto who's in corporate cyber defense.
You may rest assured.
And if I were ever approached personally I know that your relationships are beyond transactional.
The idea of blackmailing someone with something so close to their core, - of punishing true expression - Understood.
Understood.
And thank you.
[bottle cap clatters.]
Pick that up.
[grunting.]
[gulps, exhales.]
It's good to see you again, Mr.
Martinez.
Hmm.
We should do it again under other circumstances.
Once you've secured proper permissions, of course.
Of course.
[sighs.]
[knock on door.]
[door opens, closes.]
Did you find her? Yes.
She went into the city with the boys, but I don't know how to bring them home.
I'm sorry.
What do you want? What I've always wanted, to help.
I was remembering when you first met her.
Me, too.
And you said you felt like you'd known her forever.
Everyone else was sucking up, angling.
One date and you were talking about marriage.
I was skeptical.
I thought that sort of thing only happened in the Sicilian hills.
And then I met her.
Then it all made sense.
You know, she had three close friends who lost their husbands on 9/11.
Firemen.
And she helped to prop them all up, even after losing her own brother.
She helped them clean out their closets, and you wouldn't think that that was the toughest thing, but the way they wept when they found a favorite t-shirt or an old varsity jacket or a wedding suit.
And then about a week later, something occurred to her, and for all three of them, she found a way to get back into their bedrooms.
And she crawled under the beds and retrieved the errant slipper or sneaker.
She defended them from those little land mines.
You don't talk about that side of her much.
Look, I, um I know that you feel bad.
But that doesn't fix anything 'cause I tried.
I'm limited to waiting now, and you know the problem with that? You fucking hate waiting.
pensive music [door opens, closes.]
[Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Hey, it's me again.
You know what? Maybe I was wrong.
Maybe Wendy Rhoades isn't helping.
Maybe I should just blow her the fuck out of our lives.
Whatever it takes to get you home, get us talking again, just say the word, and I'll erase Wendy Rhoades from our world forever.
Oh.
Quick second date.
On the hazing, the whole Code Red situation, you were the victim, not one of the aggressors.
You were Santiago, not Dawson.
[chuckles.]
Boy, they left me black and blue anywhere my shirt would hide.
And you told on them? Oh, no.
Oh, it had its desired effect.
I never breathed a word.
Until just now.
But later, not a few days, two years later intramural baseball.
I was at bat, the ringleader was catching.
And on one fast ball, I swung backwards.
Lefty.
Right into his face.
Was he wearing a mask? Yeah, that's why his head stayed on, but his jaw shattered.
Now, is that gonna come back and bite me? If you hadn't told me, could've ended your campaign, but I know how to spin it as a strong anti-bullying stance.
By the time I'm finished with you, you'll be signing baseball bats every time you appear in public.
Okay.
My biggest potential vulnerability.
Now it's in your hands.
Any chance the, uh, operative could've copied the hard drive on this? No.
He's a trusted.
dramatic music I'll have my tech people run a lice comb through this.
Mm.
You'll let me know.
- And the owner of this? - Also a trusted.
Hundred percent? No such thing.
Now you're getting it.
Good.
Good.
[door closes.]
[sighs.]
dramatic music [Taylor.]
I want to say something to you.
I don't want you to find it insulting.
- Okay.
- There may have been a time when you understood the psychological makeup of everyone in the company, when you knew whom to assign any given task to in order to achieve the desired result.
I know how my employees think.
You're saying I don't anymore? You don't anymore.
Companies get bigger, modes of governance and delegation need to change to keep pace, or you get this.
It's not the best short thesis on Klaxon, but I thought Ben Kim could make it fly.
He couldn't.
Mafee couldn't either.
Their numbers dictate it's a long, - so that's all they could see.
- Fuck me.
Mafee's not dumb, he's not soft, but he didn't understand or wasn't willing to put on paper what you needed him to put on paper.
What do you think that was? Justification for later, proof that a good case could be made for the short.
What would you do? It's not an auto play.
Forget car sales.
Take a deep dive into their financing department.
Look at 30- and 60-day delinquencies, leasing, credit.
They're all stretched.
Every auto company is pushing sales forward with aggressive lending.
When that music stops, there'll be no chairs left.
- But - But what? But I assume there are other factors that are really dictating your short play here.
Congratulations.
All the analysts now answer to you.
If I fill in those blanks, - I have to put my name on it.
- Yeah.
Would that be a problem for you? You know how your employees think, right? So you tell me.
Thanks for letting me up.
So, you won't do sessions with him, but you'll be his messenger? He doesn't know I'm here.
But he told you I was, and he told you what's going on between us.
I was in the middle.
You're always in the middle.
Do you really think that's the problem? I know there's something broken in him that he thinks only you can fix.
It's not true.
Feels true.
And maybe if I got you the fuck out of our way, I'd get to fix it.
Or maybe it would heal all by itself.
Got me out of the way? tense music What kind of money would you be making in the real world? Lara.
Please, it is not about money for me.
- Let's make it about money.
- Don't do this.
Don't you dare be embarrassed for me.
What would it cost to make you disappear? Five, ten, twenty million? - No.
- Why not? Because the job means something to me.
If it ceases to, I'll go, but money means too little to me and I have too much of it to make decisions that way.
Bobby's the same.
I know it.
And you love it.
You married a guy who does whatever the fuck he wants because he has no reason not to except you.
He's a steamroller.
Wasn't that part of the attraction? You scared him.
In all this time I've never seen fear in him.
Not till today.
It should all be simpler.
I don't know if it should be.
I know it isn't.
If we make it through this does it get stronger on the other side? I don't know yet.
I hope so.
[sighs.]
Forgive.
If you can.
[footsteps.]
pensive music [sighs.]
Axe is asking if you have the Klaxon research.
I got it right here.
Just haven't signed it yet.
So, should I tell him he's getting it? I've got it right here.
Just haven't signed it yet.
Okay.
Thanks for the call.
I appreciate you coming in.
Thanks for seeing me on short notice.
Yeah.
I got you a latte.
And I don't know what kind of cookies you like, so there's a variety.
Thank you.
We've long suspected criminal activity at Axe Capital.
I'm aware.
And part of our work is to research the personnel of the company and to find within it a sympathetic partner.
And you think I fit that description? Yes.
Because your background tells me you're an intelligent [sighs.]
a good person, so I'm just gonna come out and ask.
Is there anything you see at Axe Capital that offends your sense of fairness, of right and wrong? What are you asking about? Fairness or right and wrong? Most people consider those the same thing.
A stock is like a living organism, a sparrow, say.
And we are able to create an emergent-based abstraction of that sparrow, which closely approximates the sparrow itself, accounting for migration patterns, wind, weather, and other variables.
We can create a similar abstraction of a stock, combining the information from the specific ETFs which represent its underlying dependencies.
And if we apply this to the stock, we can predict its delta, following the path of its abstracted self because nature follows abstraction.
I'm sorry.
You lost me.
Let's start again.
You sure you don't want a cookie? - I'm not going to eat a cookie.
- Okay.
The reason Ed Harris can get tough with Tom Cruise is because he knows Cruise has seen the bodies.
- Harris has something on him.
- That's right.
But you're coming on with cookies.
Telling me you're not leveraging me because you think it's the kinder, more profitable approach.
There's a simpler answer, though.
You have no leverage.
You have nothing on Axe Cap and even less on me.
Whoa, whoa, hey.
Let's just No.
We're done here.
dramatic music How'd that go? I'm no Ed Harris.
tense music Hey, sit a minute.
Busy.
Well, sit anyway.
No, I got pies to make.
Come on, they can wait five minutes.
Quick catch up.
You're my business partner.
So you get the slice and a Coke on the arm.
But that don't buy you a conversation with me.
Anything else I can get you? No.
[pizza and drink thud.]
pensive music [Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
You're punishing me.
I get it.
I get it.
I have never punished you.
Not once.
Not once.
I'm making one mistake, and fine, fine.
It's not a contest.
You think I can't control this, or you? That you're teaching me some, some fucking lesson? I teach the fucking lessons, and you are about to get one.
Lar, I will lock you the fuck down and operate you by fucking remote control with a flick of my motherfucking fingers, Lar! You don't believe me? Try me, goddamn it.
You want to, you want to take this vacation, this, this adventure? Have it, go for it! Get it out.
Then come the fuck home! dramatic music [floor buffer whirring.]
[door closes, whirring stops.]
Larry.
Bobby.
Thanks for coming.
How are you? Frankly, I've had better days.
But given your circumstances, I've got no business complaining.
How are you holding up? Better man might turn the experience into a spiritual journey, and through humility, find some deeper understanding of the self.
I spend each and every day hoping for the end of it.
Anesthetic? Appreciated, but I was just dreaming.
They piss test me randomly.
Well, maybe take a risk.
So, what's on your mind? Revenge.
Oh, you really aren't feeling spiritual.
I got word from the boys at Spartan-Ives.
Chuck Rhoades Sr.
has taken a significant stake in a company that's going public.
Ice Juice.
No shit.
And insofar as you hate the Rhoades family almost as much as I do That could be pleasant.
Be fun if you could find a way to lob a turd in the punch bowl.
Yeah.
Real fun.
I'll make sure to take a sizable allocation.
So you'd have cover.
Yeah, take the free money up front, throw it into reverse, and I'd short every tick on the way down.
Worth the trip? Yeah.
Yeah, worth the trip.
pensive music [bottle cork squeaks.]
[door opens.]
- Hi.
- [Wendy.]
Hi.
How was the rest of your day? - It didn't get much better.
- Sorry.
Last fucking thing I want to do is this.
Honestly that's great to hear I'm not the only one.
I thought you fucking loved this stuff.
Like it was oxygen to you.
I recognize its value.
Are you just gonna go off? Or, uh, do you want some company? Just the two of us, you know, talking without a paid referee.
I think we're capable of that.
Yeah.
Seeing you this afternoon, I don't know, it felt, uh - Comfortable.
- Yeah.
That.
Can I buy you dinner? I'd like that.
I'm starving.
I know exactly where we should go.
It's a bit far afield, but, uh, it'll be worth it.
Where is it? [door opens.]
Trust me.
Come on.
Hey.
Hey.
Any progress on the home front? Nothing to speak of yet.
I'll buy you a drink.
No.
I've got some leftover pharmaceutical-grade No.
Handjob? Rain check.
Bonus Taylor five hundred k.
- At the end of the year? - No.
Now.
Mid-semester bonus.
The real one's still coming.
Should I move their desk closer to the bimah? Fitting for the new head of research who understands what the job entails and is willing to execute it.
I will make that happen.
[door opens.]
[indistinct conversations.]
What is this place? - Mm.
- Welcome.
Do you have a reservation with us this evening? - Yes, under Rhoades.
- Oh, of course, yes.
Mr.
and Mrs.
Rhoades.
We've been expecting you.
Right this way.
[Clears throat.]
[Antoine.]
Monsieur Le Prosecutor.
Ah.
[chuckles.]
I swear to God I'm too busy cooking the food to cook the books.
[laughs.]
You know, being a criminal takes hard work.
You're French.
- I don't have to worry about it.
- [laughs.]
Who is this college girl you brought with you, huh? Antoine.
Mwah, mwah.
Look at you with that face.
My God, you shame the angels.
Oh.
Asseyez vous.
S'il vous plaît.
Amelie, pas de menu.
Ce n'est pas necessaire.
- I have a few ideas.
- Oh.
- Antoine, uh - [Antoine.]
Don't worry.
You're going to get your Coq Au Vin.
Thank you, my friend.
Je vous en prie, mes amis.
How did you find him? Here's to the long arm of the law.
pensive music Oh, I'm sad that's over.
- [sighs.]
- [chuckles.]
[clears throat.]
Listen, Wend.
A lot has come up I need to talk to you about.
Go ahead.
There has been some movement.
The right influencers are backing me for a run at Albany.
Your father must be frothing at the mouth.
Oh, Jesus.
Like the end of Old Yeller.
I mean, I may have to shoot him.
[laughs.]
[chuckles.]
Congratulations.
You know, it occurs to me the reason you were in the neighborhood earlier.
The thing we were gonna discuss in therapy, we haven't discussed.
[chuckles.]
There's this person I haven't liked much lately, maybe fairly, maybe unfairly.
I don't know.
But she knew you and I were going through tough times.
So she was extra smug and condescending when it came to the sanctity of her own marriage.
And then I learned something that I knew would hurt her.
And I just couldn't resist punching her in the face with it.
It's a natural urge.
But it didn't make you feel good.
- No, it did.
- Mm-hmm.
For a second.
It was a fucking electric thrill.
[laughs.]
But no, after I kind of hate myself for it.
Which is why you're rare and special.
I know that you hold yourself to a higher standard because you're a therapist, but you're also human.
And you and I both know it's your humanity that makes you so good at what you do.
So maybe you just let yourself off with a warning.
Thank you.
Hey.
Yeah? Antoine's right.
You shame the angels.
You really do.
tense music I'll drop it at the garage on my way back to the club.
Thank you.
Chuck, that was lovely.
Yes, it sure was.
[sighs.]
[Lara voicemail.]
Hi, it's Lara.
Leave a message.
Do you know what the other rich guys do? Pendleton? Krakow? The fucking Russian guys with the prostitute yacht five hundred yards behind the family yacht? The fucking opportunities I've had.
And I have not wavered once in 15 years! I get no credit for that? For the life that I've built? For the kind of man I am? Fuck.
I could've been out every single night.
Models, musicians, your own so-called friends.
I could've done you like that.
Maybe I should have.
I get the same treatment from you now, but at least then, I'd have earned it by getting my fucking rocks off.
[telephone rings.]
Yeah.
[Security.]
Front gate, sir.
Missus is here.
Thanks.
[telephone beeps, receiver clacks.]
pensive music [cellphone vibrates.]
Hey.
[Wendy.]
Chuck.
Come home tonight.
Is that an order? Damn right it is.
[tires squeal.]
I really appreciate your coming out so late.
That's the kind of service you can expect from me when you're ready to move up from this and buy something.
U2's "With or Without You" See the stone set in your eyes Welcome home.
See the thorn twist in your side I'll wait for you Hey, how are ya? Sleight of hand and twist of fate Kiss your dad goodnight and straight upstairs.
Be right up.
Goodnight, Dad.
- All right.
- Night, Dad.
Okay, see you in the morning, fellas.
Without you How was your night? Fine.
I tried calling.
Phone's been off.
I can't live I thought long and hard about the thunderbolt today.
With or without you Apollonia got blown up by a fucking car bomb.
I'm going to put the boys to bed.
And you give yourself away And you give And you give And you give yourself away My hands are tied [grunts.]
My body bruised [grunts.]
She got me with nothing to win And nothing left to lose And you give yourself away [grunts.]
Take your fucking clothes off.
[exhales sharply.]
With or without you With or without you, oh, oh I can't live With or without you Oh, oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh With or without you With or without you, ah I can't live With or without you With or without you