The Romeo Section (2015) s01e04 Episode Script

Previously on "The Romeo Section" Taylor Gascoyne? I have a message from your mother.
I just don't want her saying the wrong thing to the wrong person right now.
I'm just looking for my fair share of the spoils, and I will take over that fucking crew.
So she goes to rehab.
This is the key to the basement apartment.
We're supposed to stay here.
So how are we going to work together? We are everywhere.
At the same time, we are nowhere.
We don't handle anything but the big picture.
S01E04 Fragrant Harbour Waxing his car every Saturday morning in old Wan Chai.
He would sit there and smoke and watch all the ships come and go.
I wish he were here to see me with you.
Me too.
Now read it back to me.
Foxtrot, Bravo, Echo, Kilo, 6-9-0-0 The general tells me you have friends down at the docks.
I wouldn't be here if I didn't.
Ruf' I'm busy right now.
Are you with Vince? Yes.
I'll call you back.
I need to see you tonight.
Yeah, okay.
Whatever you want.
Vince is trying to sell my fucking house.
He told Cindy not to tell me.
He's making his move.
Make sure it lands safely.
I gotta go.
I'll call you.
We need to figure this out before he does anything.
Okay, gotta go.
Bye.
Need you to go see our friend down on the docks.
From Vince.
This is the rehab your cousin went to? Yeah.
Five or six years ago, he was slamming meth.
My aunt and uncle had to change all the locks, the whole thing.
He's all better? Fully.
He started his own bridal shop business in New West.
So, what'd they do, like, an intervention? Nope.
They just straight-up kidnapped him.
Grabbed his legs, threw him on a private jet.
Done and done.
How much did that fucking cost? 30k.
All in.
30? I want you to take care of this.
Now he's asking me to kidnap his fucking wife.
In order to accomplish what exactly? To get her to rehab.
He thinks there's no other way.
And what do you think? I think he's right.
Well, it's not really my place to tell you to kidnap her or don't kidnap her, but my advice is leave these kind of things to the professionals.
But if I, uh if I were to do it, hypothetically "Hypothetically.
" Well, get her when she's weak.
From a secure, indoor location, after a binge, when she's vulnerable.
Make sure you have a minimum of five bodies, one for each limb and one for the head.
Take away her air and her sight as quickly as you can.
Use a panel van, slam her full of opiates, enough to knock her out, but not so much that you kill her.
You've done this once or twice? If this thing goes sideways, and they usually do, and you end up with a kidnapping charge, just know that that's not one I can make disappear.
Tony, is it? I understand you're in the movie business.
I made a couple gangster pictures.
Documentaries.
Fiction.
What's your story? They picked me up trying to fly to Los Angeles on false papers.
I got bold, what can I say? So, now you're headed back to one of those five-star labour camps in the People's Republic.
I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to avoid that.
Whatever it takes.
I can be helpful.
Quanxi.
You know what that means? Sure.
"Social capital.
" And I got a lot of it.
Not right now, you don't.
I know people here.
Politicians.
Ex-cops, agents.
Vancity is where the real gangsters come to lay low.
Really? Let's hear some names.
Ah, well.
The Yuen Brothers.
Victor and Newell.
Loan sharks.
Big time.
I know for a fact they're wanted back on the mainland.
They financed part of my last picture in Hong Kong.
Winston Santos.
The banker.
He also finances movies.
Sounds like the movie business is a good business to be in.
Susie Mah.
I see her around all the time.
Is she also in show business? Real estate, and she runs a couple big charities.
She also runs a casino in Macau, I bet you didn't know that.
So, you see, Tony, you are going to have to dig really deep, my friend, to surprise me.
I haven't slept in 48 fucking hours.
Okay, tell you what.
I am going to leave you this, and when I come back, this page is gonna be full of names.
Every interesting person that you have ever met.
What do you think? He's a bit desperate.
He's just too willing, too forthcoming.
Somehow, the prospect of facing a firing squad does that to a man.
The PRC wants this guy back on embezzlement charges.
Feels like a dangle.
I should toss him back? No, let him stew a while, see what bubbles up.
Fred Foy from San Diego wants a sit-down in the morning.
What's he doing all the way up here? I think he's interested in joining your church.
Yeah, well, we're not taking on any new members.
Come by the office.
We'll discuss.
Jesus.
Been a while, I guess.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
So, what's Vince saying today? He's talking about rehab for you.
Where? I'm curious.
Somewhere local, I think.
That cheap fucker.
California wouldn't be too much to ask.
I think he's legitimately trying to help you.
What's his plan for me? He's gonna kidnap you.
I'd like to see him try.
That's the plan.
What if I just go willingly? I don't think he'll buy that.
You need to really sell this.
If you're in rehab, you won't get nailed for doing Vince.
Nobody will suspect you.
The only way I'd get nailed is if you rat me out.
I'm saying take a couple weeks off.
I'll do what needs to be done.
You get back, the whole thing's taken care of.
It makes sense.
Malcolm Song? Yeah? That's one I don't know.
Military attache.
He bounced around the consulates for years.
He still around? He comes, he goes.
He's retired, but I don't think he's so retired, if you know what I mean.
Any family? Not that I know.
Ah Tony, those names are useless to me.
You're joking.
Those are some big fish.
No.
You're going to have to do an awful lot better than that to overturn the deportation order.
You know, these days, we pride ourselves on our relationship with the PRC.
We try to help them out whenever possible.
Then help me help you.
Give me some direction.
Talk to me about the Red Mountain Boys.
What do you want to know? I want to know about leadership here in town.
You want to know about the General.
General Wu.
You know him? Never met him, nor have I met anybody who has, but that's what they say he's here.
Here, where? I have no idea.
Why do they call him the General? Because he's an actual fucking General.
He was one of Mao's Red Army guys who got thrown in prison during the cultural revolution, and when he got out, he brought half a fucking army with him to Hong Kong.
I think you're getting the hang of this, Tony.
The general wishes to see you.
About what? Is there a problem? He wishes to see you in person immediately.
I hear things are moving smoothly.
Your shipment is secure.
We'll have it off the boat very soon.
I'm going to suggest to my leaders in Hong Kong to reward your loyalty by making you a member of our brotherhood.
I'm honored.
It is unorthodox, but I want to ensure a long and lasting partnership, long after I'm gone.
Me too.
Thank you, General.
Al came to see me.
He did? What does he want from you? We had dinner.
It took four hours, but eventually he circled around to asking about Martha Gascoyne.
What about her? The nature of your relationship.
I didn't lie for you.
I won't lie.
I'll be selectively dishonest, Wolf, that's all our history buys you.
Thanks, I appreciate that.
I told him Martha was one of your recruits, and like all your recruits, it became quite an emotional tangle, and like all good tangles, eventually you got fed up and put it in a drawer somewhere.
In this case, that drawer was Guangdong Province.
You give me too much credit.
Martha's been happily married for 20 years.
Yes, poor Daniel Gascoyne happened to be standing in the right place at the right time to catch her fall.
I've got nothing to be guilty about.
Nobody said anything about feeling guilty.
I've been in touch with their son, Taylor.
Is he yours? No, I don't think so.
I'm going to try and get a message back to Martha through him.
I'm going to make a polite suggestion that you not make the situation any worse than it is.
She was one of my recruits.
I can't just leave her there.
There it is.
There what is? The guilt of the conquistador.
Trying to plant a shrub after scorching the earth.
Bad news.
What? Another dead koi.
Oh, no.
He jumped out.
No, no, no, no no.
Third one in three months.
Why are they doing that? Something has changed.
A parasite.
Yes, maybe a parasite.
I'd love to sit down with Miguel Padilla, clear a few things up.
Only so much we can do, Fred.
This is a refugee situation.
I'd like to help, but we haven't zeroed in on him yet.
You're an independent.
You do contract work? That's right.
Yeah, I was thinking of doing that myself in the next couple of years.
Seems to be booming, good money I hear.
I wouldn't know.
This is Canada.
Gentlemen, I believe the topic here is the refugee Padilla.
And just between us, Padilla has moved up in status.
We think that he might be able to help us validate some key sources in Mexico.
I'm sure you gentlemen would understand that we would be very grateful, toss you some work.
Oh, that's very kind, but I'm not accepting any new clients at the moment.
You watching him? He's in hiding somewhere.
- Has he filed his refugee claim? - Not that I'm aware of.
Okay, you guys need to know that I always repay a favour.
You need something, whatever it is, you just ask.
I have the resources.
Onwards and upwards.
Same to you.
He didn't come all the way from San Diego just for that.
Maybe he didn't come from San Diego at all.
You know he's stationed here? I'm on a call with Ottawa in the morning about Miguel.
My bet is, they're going to draw a line through him.
So, is he blowing smoke, or should I be spending more money on him? Well, I think we should just hold onto him a little longer.
I need to get the whole story.
Find out if we're getting ripped off here.
Well, you'd better get on it.
You surprise me, Uncle.
Why? Unconventional.
Uncertain.
As with all things, even death.
Who do we suppose is the biggest drug cartel in history? Not the Sinoloa Cartel.
Not Juarez.
Not the Mafia.
Not the Triads.
No, the title goes to the British East India Company.
Nobody before or since has enjoyed the kind of monopoly that the Company did in opium, not even close.
They controlled everything.
They controlled supply, the fields, shipping.
They set the prices.
Opium flows into the colonies, and silver flows back to the Queen.
Until one day, the Emperor decides he's had enough, he's gonna crack down, and he confiscates 20,000 barrels of opium.
How do the British react? They launch a brutal and aggressive war, which brings the Chinese to their knees.
All of this in the name of free trade.
Taylor, thanks for coming.
I, uh, talked to my mother on the phone.
The consulates were able to arrange it.
How did she sound? Okay, I guess.
They only gave us five minutes.
Can you remember what she said? She said she was confident the two governments would work things out.
Was your father on the call? No.
Did she say why not? She said he was otherwise occupied.
"Occupied.
" Was that the exact word she used? Does that mean something to you? She could be saying that your father has been turned, that his mind has been occupied.
I'm sorry.
The editor of "Western Strategy" just emailed me.
He loves my paper on sanctuary.
If you're cool with it, I'd like to acknowledge you as a co-author, not to ride on your coattails.
Well, that's kind, but I'd prefer not to be acknowledged.
What's his interest in sanctuary, do you know? Probably thinks it's something the public cares about.
Well, I'd agree with that.
If you don't care, the public won't give a shit either.
I'm into it.
I've been reading about it all night, the law seems very discretionary.
Very sketchy.
Yeah, I'm having trouble with the database.
We all are.
It's gone wonky across the board.
I've got analysts screaming at me from all over the country.
What's the issue? Is it a hack? It's the Gods keeping everybody on their toes.
What do you need to look up? I'm right in front of the backup server here.
Ah, it's nothing important.
Just let me know when it's back up and running.
Is there anything else, Mr.
McGee? Can I collect your drycleaning? Any other little chores? Actually, if you have a moment, my toilet's plugged as well.
- Hi, there you are.
- Hi.
I was wondering, um, drinks later? My place? I'd love to, but I've got a dinner I can't get out of.
Anybody I know? Sorry.
None of my business.
It's the Dean.
I was cornered into it.
He has some sort of proposal he wants to talk about.
Well, maybe another time, then.
What about after? You come by my place? I can do that.
Okay.
It's on the move.
Here we go.
It's in a cargo yard off the docks.
We've got eyes on it.
So do we.
How do we offload? A two-ton truck should handle it.
We'll drive right on the lot.
As long as we've got the right waybill, we're good.
Stay close to your phone.
I need a pack of cigarettes, please.
Quickly.
Yes, sir.
What kind? I don't know, the red ones.
I want to meet with Miguel.
He's not going to go for that.
Why wouldn't he? He doesn't trust anybody, why would he trust you? Well, maybe you can convince him I'm a good guy to talk to.
How am I supposed to do that? Be convincing.
He likes you, doesn't he? Yeah.
So, tell him his best chance is to talk with me.
I can advise him.
I can't do that.
Why not? I don't want to screw him over, I want to help him.
Ultimately, I have to figure out what the story is and whether I can sell him up the ladder or not.
If I can't, and we walk away, then poor Miguel is on his own.
Look, maybe this is all just a little too much for you.
It's not too much for me.
Then the best way to help him is to gain his trust.
However you want to do that.
What now? Don't take your eyes off it.
Come in, come in.
Why are we whispering? I don't know.
Feels like we're doing something wrong, doesn't it? Well, that's half the fun, isn't it? Come on in.
How was your dinner? Oh, endless.
I was just opening a bottle.
This is lovely.
How long have you been here? Always.
I grew up here.
This is your family home? Yes, but they never lived here.
They bought it so I could go to school here.
And they left you all alone in their investment? Since the seventh grade, it's been my castle.
Me and the maid and the gardener.
That must have been lonely.
Yes.
It was.
It's me! - Where have you been? - I was worried.
What happened? Nothing.
Hey It's okay, it's okay.
I'm losing my mind in here.
I'm sorry.
It was a traffic accident.
A limousine going way too fast climbing the hill out of town, and hit a family coming over the top.
The passengers abandoned the car.
Three men.
A military man, a narco and a policeman.
The Holy Trinity.
It fell to me to prosecute.
The limousine driver kept a logbook.
From that I learned that not only he drove for the cartel boss, but, sometimes, for each of these men, the narco, the soldier and the policeman, on both sides of the border.
Naturally, he didn't want to speak about his work, but I put him under pressure.
Eventually, I learned all there was to know about these men.
I thought I'd clean up this mess once and for all.
I was a believer.
I was naive.
Who's this? The girl they killed with the limousine.
I'm not changing the grade.
She can file as many official complaints as she likes, I'm not changing it.
I know her family is a pain in the ass, but if we let her in the door at this stage, trust me, they will not stop.
You can repeat what I already told them, which is, there's still lots of term left, plenty of opportunity to bring her grade up.
Okay? Good morning.
What's that you're using there? Beer.
Oh.
What for? To kill the slugs.
They like the taste.
They crawl inside.
And they die in the cup.
Fantastic.
Making friends? Yes.
I feel like my every move is being watched.
Don't mind them.
They're not used to me having visitors.
I'm honoured.
They've been taking care of me since I was little.
Your mom and dad, are they still with us? Yes.
I don't think she likes me.
How did you get on to her? She teaches at the university.
She cited a work of mine.
One thing led to another.
She cited your work.
An appeal to flattery.
People flatter me every day, Helen, they're not all agents.
She's been polishing your apple since day one.
I know how to vet an asset.
You have an awfully hands-on technique.
Look, she's intelligent, beautiful, she's in a unique position of power.
She'd make a tremendous recruit.
Yeah.
She has people coming and going through the university.
She's magnetic.
She has connections here, she has connections over there.
Helen, I'm telling you, she might be Gold fucking Mountain.
How did you first notice her? She walks past my window every morning on her way to class.
I evaluated her for months before I ever acknowledged her.
She walked by your window every morning? Just waiting for you to prick up and take notice.
You've got to admire her patience.
It's impossible.
She walks like a duck, she talks like a duck, and she comes from a long line of military ducks.
Your judgment is clouded.
She may very well turn out to be Gold Mountain, but I've seen this opera before.
Meaning what? You climb the mountain, you fall madly in love or obsess, or whatever you want to call it you extract all the gold, then the honeymoon comes to an end, and, slowly, they all become traitors in your eyes.
That's not true.
Tell it to Martha Gascoyne.
You have a problem down here.
The box has a tag on it.
What kind of tag? I don't know, looks like a GPS.
Don't touch it.
I'll call you back.
Dee, open up.
Babe? Fuck is all this? It's okay, just have a seat for a minute.
No, no, no, no, no.
No, no Dee, everybody loves you here, please Everyone here can fuck right off.
Move.
Sorry, Dee, not gonna happen.
Ah! Fuck Grab her legs.
Grab her legs.
No! No! Hit her, hit her.
Hit her.
Flip her over, flip her over.
Flip her over.
Tie her hands up.
Shh Just relax! Fuck you! Shh! Shh No! Shh Just relax.
Go start the van.
Go.
Go, go, go, go.
Holy shit.
Get away from me! Stop it! Shh! Ow! God! Stop! - They're trying to kidnap me! - Open the door! Call the police, please! Call the police! She got you bad.
On the next Romeo Section.
She'd make a tremendous recruit.
Your judgment is clouded.
I'm going to reward your loyalty.
I'm making you a member of our brotherhood.
Now, he's asking me to get out of rehab.
The Romeo Section, next Wednesday at 9:00 on CBC.