White Collar s01e04 Episode Script
Flip of the Coin
What are you thinking? I'm thinking it was the accountant, in the law office.
With the illegal wire transfer.
Either that or Colonel Mustard in the library.
We can pull prints on the candlestick.
Let's grab his company's financial records from last year.
They're on file.
You want me to do it? We have clerks for that.
I got something better.
I got you.
Okay.
Pbbt.
[SIGHS.]
Pow.
Sticking around, huh? LAUREN: Yeah.
Hey, is it true you once sent champagne to a surveillance van? That's the rumor.
Been checking up on me? You were part of my thesis at Quantico.
Really? How did we do? Ninety-four.
Not bad.
Find anything interesting? Truth or rumor? Is there a difference? The counterfeit certificates were your only conviction.
But you're implicated in at least a dozen confidence schemes, frauds and forgeries.
Is that why you asked to be reassigned to the White Collar Unit? I wasn't gonna pass up a chance to work with someone I've admired since college.
Play your cards right, we'll make a case or two.
Oh, honey.
I was talking about Agent Burke.
He caught you twice, right? Hey, maybe you can help me because I'm looking for some records.
Yeah.
We got clerks for that.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
Peter? Yeah? Yeah, your wife's here.
She's not alone.
PETER: She look upset to you? No, they look-- They both look upset.
You know, a buddy of mine, he always kept a separate cell phone.
One for the wife, one for the girlfriend.
It helps avoid this kind of crossover.
That's not my girlfriend, okay? I don't have a girlfriend.
It's El's friend, Dana.
They've known each other since high school.
Hi, honey.
We need to talk.
Okay.
Thanks, Jones.
That'll be all.
Have a seat, honey.
So why is Dana here? Is she okay? No, it's actually about her husband, John.
Hot-wings guy.
Remember, he made those hot wings at the barbecue the Cooper barbecue a while back? Right, him.
He was stationed overseas.
He finished last month.
What's the problem? This morning the FBI issued a warrant for his arrest.
All right, what's the last name? Mitchell.
Mitchell.
What happened? Some stolen gold in a storage shed.
They think he brought it.
Dana came to me for help.
She has no idea why he's a suspect.
Think I do.
Well, what is it? It's gold artifacts from Iraq.
Got his prints all over the place.
Hair evidence.
El, this doesn't look good.
Found that file-- This can wait.
ELIZABETH: No.
Neal, come in.
Now, Neal, just because someone's accused of doing something that doesn't mean that that person is guilty, right? Define guilty.
You think he's the best person to ask? Neal? I suppose it's possible.
See? That's what I thought.
This says "whereabouts unknown.
" Is he on the run? He's at his brother's.
I didn't know the address.
If you're keeping information, that's aiding and abetting.
Okay.
I think I grabbed the wrong file.
I'm gonna get the right one.
No, stay.
My turn.
If we have your prints and hair on the scene and you're on the run, are you guilty? Oh, now he's the best person to ask? I think your friend should turn himself in.
I completely agree with you.
That's why I told Dana to tell him what to do.
Turn himself in.
So he is turning himself in.
Yes.
He's gonna be turning himself in to you.
[INAUDIBLE DIALOGUE.]
Peter, thank you.
God, do I feel guilty.
You think he did it? Artifacts from the royal cemetery crypts of Ur in Egypt 1 000-year-old gold.
A lot of money is always a lot of motive.
That's a shame.
Apparently, he melted some of it down.
Hey.
DANA: I'm sorry.
That's all right.
John.
Peter.
I didn't do this.
It was set up.
Your prints were all over the gold, John.
My prints? I gotta go.
Listen, please.
Look, my lawyer said I shouldn't say a word.
When I was overseas, a guy asked me to help him bring some goods to the States.
I said no.
John-- His name's Aimes.
Patrick Aimes.
He's in the State Department.
Just look into it, please.
I will.
Oh, my God.
[CHATTERING.]
Excuse me.
That was surprise on Mitchell's face when we told him his prints were on the gold.
I noticed that.
But that doesn't get him off the hook.
There's something else.
What? What's the statute of limitations on--? Just tell me.
You can't melt down gold without getting splash blisters on your arms no matter how careful you are.
PETER: Well, Mitchell may be burn-free, but that doesn't make him innocent.
Maybe we should check out this Aimes guy.
Already did.
He was working for the State Department overseeing reconstruction of Mosul a few months back.
NEAL: Where is he now? Working for a private security contractor here in New York.
Sounds like he's done well for himself.
I'm gonna go see how well.
NEAL: All right.
AIMES: Every window every room, every child gets that view every morning.
Mr.
Aimes.
Am I interrupting? Peter Burke, FBI.
If you don't mind waiting for me by the cars, we'll finish this in a minute.
If you don't mind, I have a few questions about some stolen Iraqi artifacts.
AIMES: Oh, right.
I had read some important pieces were recently recovered.
That's right.
We have a suspect in custody.
Well, good.
I'm glad to hear justice will prevail.
Given your past experience, you might have some insight as to how a bunch of gold from Mosul finds its way to a storage shed near Fort Monmouth.
Of course.
Call my office.
We'll set up a meeting.
Sure.
PETER: There was one other thing.
The suspect says you framed him.
Any idea why he might say that? I wish I knew.
Is there something else, Agent Burke? Nope.
I got everything I need.
Jones, have every recovered artifact moved to our office ASAP.
I want to re-examine the evidence.
Where's Peter? I thought he called this meeting.
He's been poring over this with the Evidence Recovery Team since he saw blisters on Aimes' bodyguard.
Said something about a breakthrough.
Wow.
I'm looking for clues.
You're looking for your next jail sentence.
God.
Didn't you just join this unit? I didn't even have to go to prison first.
So if you were gonna frame somebody, how would you do it? I've never framed anybody.
Only been framed? Yeah? What for? Counterfeiting stock certificates about a dozen other confidence schemes, frauds and forgeries.
Hear you had a breakthrough.
I got something.
Notice the prints.
Very clean.
Maybe a little too clean? They're all Mitchell's? Yup.
Notice anything else? They're all left-handed.
Uh-huh.
That's improbable.
It's impossible.
What does it mean? I don't know.
NEAL: You think the prints were planted? PETER: Well, it wouldn't be hard, would it? Don't look at me.
It wouldn't be that hard.
Starts by getting a clean set of prints and somebody got Mitchell's.
But only his left hand.
Why only the left? How was the gold found? Anonymous tip.
There's a red flag.
Mm.
Could be.
Easy.
Easy there, Tiger.
Shouldn't you be getting home to Elizabeth? Dana's been with us for a few days.
Oh.
How's that going? She's been through a lot.
Oh, no.
This has gotta be rough on her.
It's gotta be.
Look, I try to be a good person.
You have your moments.
Yeah, just-- I don't-- Is it the crying? Yeah.
I can handle everything else but women crying.
That's all.
I don't know what to do.
I try to fix it.
With you, I give you a slug on the shoulder.
Totally.
And I tell you to cowboy up.
But it's-- We got the print theory.
That might cheer her up.
Yeah, it could be something if I can link it to Aimes or the bodyguard.
What? We've been here an hour.
But in that whole time, you've only touched these bottles with your right hand.
Mitchell had drinks with whoever lifted the prints.
Can you ask him? Marshals are sitting on him.
I could take the time to reach out file the paperwork, go through the usual channels-- Or you could just ask his wife-- Wife.
Right now.
Hey, honey.
Hey, honey.
Hey, Dana.
How you holding up? It's hard, you know.
It's the not knowing that's killing me.
Any news? Well, which do you want first? The good news or the bad news? There is bad news? Not more than there has been.
He's still charged.
It still looks pretty bad.
I'll go with the good news.
There are some evidence anomalies.
Someone may have planted his prints on the gold.
So you mean he really was framed.
It's possible.
I'm curious.
Did he have drinks with anyone recently? The prints are crisp.
Which would indicate a glass or a bottle.
So it was probably for a beer.
[SOBS.]
It's not okay, really.
Yes, it is.
This is the good-news part.
Can I talk to you for a second? PETER: Yeah.
Okay.
I'll be right back.
Mm-hm.
What did I do? [WHISPERS.]
I don't know.
See, she's crying.
Yeah.
I see that she's crying.
Shh! [WHISPERS.]
I need to know if John met someone for a drink.
Maybe he didn't tell her.
She suspect him of cheating? Now I'll let you talk.
This is important.
Go upstairs.
Upstairs.
Thank you.
I'm sorry.
[IN NORMAL VOICE.]
No, it's okay.
Sometimes Peter doesn't realize that he's an FBI agent.
No, it wasn't Peter.
It's.
John and I had a fight before all this happened about a woman who took him for a drink.
John's not the cheating type.
What if he's not the guy that I think he is? What if he really did steal that stuff? I mean.
Look, you heard Peter, okay? Evidence was planted.
Okay? But who is this woman who took him out for a drink? I don't know.
She's a journalist.
She.
She was embedded with John's unit.
And she called about a month ago.
And she wanted to do a follow-up story.
Something like "the life of a returning vet" kind of thing.
Wait.
So they went for a beer? Yeah.
And I was mad at him for not telling me about it beforehand instead of after.
Yeah.
That night, John was more mad about his Yankee cap than he was about the fact that I had accused him of cheating on me.
What happened to the cap? I don't know.
He left it at the bar.
It never turned up.
The hat would explain the hair fibers.
Uh-huh.
You had Elizabeth talk to her? Well, I thought some female intuition would be helpful.
Dana started crying, didn't she? I didn't even do anything.
I had no idea what went wrong.
So who's this other woman? This is Alisha Teagen.
Segment producer.
She was a reporter embedded with Mitchell's unit.
All right, so she invites Mitchell out for a beer.
Let's say she takes that opportunity to lift the prints off of the bottle.
She grabs the baseball hat as an added bonus.
Toss in a little DNA evidence to really lock the case.
Right.
How do we connect her to Aimes? Do they know each other? Other than the fact that they were in Iraq, there's nothing.
If Aimes stole the gold, he isn't gonna ship it himself.
He's gonna get someone else so that his hands stay clean in case they get intercepted.
You know, press credentials aren't a bad way to get by customs.
Let's go talk to her.
PETER: I know, but Cardinals had a baseball team.
Wait here.
I'll check in.
I'm here to see Alisha Teagen.
She's not in yet.
Agent Burke, FBI.
Sorry, sir.
Would you care to wait upstairs? She should be in any minute.
Yeah, why don't I do that? Be sure to let her know Agent Burke with the FBI is here to talk to her.
I'll be sure to do that.
Thank you.
So, what's it like to be on camera? Oh, I'm not on camera.
Really? But your badge here says, "studio access.
" I'm a publicist, actually.
Wow.
How is it up there? Cutthroat.
Looks like they just moved my meeting to 12:30.
Excuse me.
[CELL PHONE RINGS.]
Hello? PETER: Hey.
Peter, where are you? Upstairs, on my way to Alisha's office.
Right here.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
You left me in the lobby.
Well, you looked busy.
Listen, Alisha's on her way in.
I want you to watch how she reacts when the guard tells her there's an FBI agent waiting for her.
No-- TEAGEN: Hi, Phil.
Morning.
Miss Teagen.
There's an FBI agent here to see you.
Sorry? An FBI agent? Said his name was Burke.
Uh.
Tell him today's not a good day.
He's already upstairs.
Did he say what he wanted? To let you know he's here.
Oh, thanks.
WOMAN: Hi, Phil.
Morning, Judy.
MAN: Phil.
Morning, Christian.
Hey, Phil.
Morning.
I ran out of hands.
My card's in my pocket if you just wanna grab that there.
Just get that for me? Don't worry about it.
All right, thanks, bud.
Alisha? Oh, there you go.
Thanks.
Thanks.
[LINE RINGING.]
NEAL: Leave a message.
Neal, I don't know what you're up to.
But whatever it is, stop.
Good morning.
Yeah.
TEAGEN: Hi, Kim.
MAN 1: There you go.
How you doing? Listen.
MAN 2: Watch your backs.
FEMALE ANCHOR: Hi.
I don't think I've seen you around here before.
Oh, I'm Gary.
The new sports anchor.
New sports anchor? New guy brings the coffee, right? Thanks, Gary.
NEAL: Hey, no problem.
What about Leonard? Oh, you didn't hear.
Yeah.
That's why the meeting got moved to 12:30.
I'll take care of it.
Okay.
Don't say anything to Leonard.
Great work, champ.
Hey.
PETER: Alisha Teagen.
Oh, you must be Agent Burke.
I hope this won't take long.
I'm on deadline.
PETER: Have a seat.
I'm curious about the piece that you did on Captain Jonathan Mitchell.
Oh, Mitchell.
Of course.
PETER: What was your impression of him? TEAGEN: He seemed like a good soldier.
That it? To be honest, I didn't find him memorable.
Then why did you have a follow-up on him? I was doing a series of segments on vets returning home.
How they're readjusting to life after the military.
PETER: How did he seem to you? He seemed to be doing fine.
Eager to get back home.
So you took Captain Mitchell out for a beer? Yeah.
He was one of several soldiers I was considering.
Mm.
When you say "considering," what exactly do you mean by that? TEAGEN: We wanted to get a sense of what they were going through.
If the reality lived up to their expectations.
Excuse me.
Did they change the code again? WOMAN: Oh, here.
Use mine.
[COPY MACHINE BUTTONS BEEP.]
There you go.
Thanks.
What exactly are you investigating, Agent Burke? Captain Mitchell was arrested yesterday for the theft of Iraqi antiquities.
Sorry to hear that.
So there was nothing particularly special about Mitchell? No.
In fact, I'm really sorry I couldn't help you further.
Why the rush? I told you I'm on deadline.
Now, if you have no other questions, I'd like to get back to work.
Wait.
My card.
When you think of something else.
If I think of something else.
What was that about? You had me off my game.
You told me to watch her reaction.
I did.
By breaking and entering? Phil let me in.
Who's Phil? The guy at the door-- You wanna know what I found? No.
She got rattled when she heard FBI.
She went to her desk and locked something in a top drawer.
Oh, God.
I didn't steal it.
Photocopied it.
It's a pawnshop ticket.
Bet I know what she was pawning.
No, I didn't see this.
You didn't see this.
But I did see it.
MOZZIE: Hello? Hey, Moz, I got a favor to ask you.
What's up? Check out a pawnshop ticket for me.
[CHATTERING ON TELEVISION.]
How is she holding up? As good as can be expected.
Do you think we could finish watching the movie? Little girl time? Yeah.
Yeah.
I'll find something to do.
Good man.
That's what I keep telling people.
Have fun.
X marks the spot.
Kate loves the classics.
Moz, it's me.
MOZZIE: Yeah.
You nearby? Did your suit put a tail on me? What? No, look.
I think I figured out the map.
It's a Bordeaux label.
Bordeaux with an X.
X marks the spot.
You know, Kate loves the classics.
Yes, she does.
I found a bit of treasure too.
On my way to show you.
Hurry up.
I walk at a delicate pace.
[DOOR KNOCKING.]
That was fast.
Yep.
Coming.
Hey, Mo-- My man.
Expecting somebody? Not at all.
Good.
Come right on in.
Wow, unbelievable.
Last time we had a drink, we made a breakthrough.
Hoping tonight, we can solve the whole damn case.
So Dana still at the house? Yep.
Here's to freeing Captain John Mitchell so I can go back home.
I'll drink to that.
[DOOR KNOCKS.]
I'll get that.
It's probably June.
Photocopy of a pawn ticket, but I got this coin.
What? Sorry, Mr.
Haversham.
June isn't here at the moment.
Oh, well, uh, too bad.
Uh.
Tell her I look forward to our next round of drinks and Parcheesi.
Yep.
PETER: Hang on a second.
MOZZIE: Oh, I'm sorry.
Apparently I'm interrupting something.
Yeah.
Who are you? I'm the neighbor.
Dante Haversham.
Dante Haversham.
And you're dating June? Courting.
Courting.
What can I say? She likes a little cream in her coffee.
You really wanna keep this up? No, I don't.
You're right.
This is-- No.
I know.
How about I just call you Mr.
Haversham? Come on in.
Thought you'd be taller.
Me too.
Well, you're here.
Have a drink.
Oh, no.
I don't drink.
Well, you do tonight.
Gin's good.
PETER: I don't get it.
Girl leaves nothing but an empty bottle behind.
Least she could do was leave a full one.
Guys, I'm right here.
Fair enough.
Fair enough.
Whoo.
Man, look at that view.
Is this why you guys do it? Is this what it's all about? It's not about the stuff.
Moz.
It's about doing what we wanna do.
Who cares about 9 to 5's and 401 K's? Playing by the rules only makes borders that just take away everything that's good about living life.
Moz, Moz, you lived in a storage unit.
Yeah.
But I lived there, man.
I lived.
Long as I don't have to live under anyone else's time or dime I'm a free man.
I can do whatever I want.
Like going to the pawnshop and getting that coin you have in your pocket? Come on.
Let's see it.
It's a hell of a thing.
Islamic dinar from the Abbasid dynasty.
Last seen in the museum in Mosul.
I really shouldn't even know about this.
Alisha's guilty, isn't she? Looks like it.
Ahh.
I'm holding damning evidence and I can't do a damn thing with it.
Your rules, Tin Man, not mine.
Come on, Peter.
Give me the coin.
I can see it now.
"FBI agent illegally obtains evidence.
News at 11.
" That's a hell of a story.
Too bad she can't report it.
Maybe she can.
I want everything set up to go from the top.
Great story on the governor.
Teagen.
Yeah? Got a story for you.
Guy wants to talk about a cover-up in Iraq involving a soldier.
He'll only talk to you.
Why me? Maybe he's a fan of your work.
Got a number? I'll call.
Got something better.
He's here.
McQueen! Let's set up to get this guy on tape.
WOMAN: You know what? You're gonna have to prove that.
MAN: Yes, yes.
TEAGEN: We rolling? Oh, hi.
Hi.
Alisha Teagen.
Good to meet you.
I'm a huge fan.
Thank you.
You look better in person.
Well, thank you.
Okay, you're all miked up.
NEAL: All right.
TEAGEN: Let's get started.
Your name? Oh, we'll get to that.
Just relax.
Take a deep breath.
So why don't we? Why don't we start at the beginning? Okay.
Yeah.
Once upon a time in Iraq, there were two people.
One was greedy and a thief.
The other was pretty and opportunistic.
Together they found a great deal of treasure.
[CHUCKLES.]
This is something we should be discussing off-camera.
Wait, no.
That's the prologue.
I'm getting to the setup.
They smuggled that treasure here, went off without a hitch.
But they needed a fall guy.
Somebody to take the heat off them so they could sell the treasure without interference.
That fall guy is a soldier you know.
John Mitchell.
Well.
Unfortunately, your story is missing something very important.
Proof.
NEAL: Oh, I got proof.
Here.
Recognize this? What this story is missing is an ending.
I'm not sure what happens to Mitchell.
The outcome of his life it may as well be decided on the toss of a coin.
You wanna call it for me? Turn off the cameras.
Turn off the cameras.
MAN: Hold the roll.
I want immunity.
[CHUCKLES.]
You're funny.
What you get depends on what you give me.
Aimes looted Saddam's museum.
He set the whole thing up.
All I did was help him transport it back to the States.
You were his mule.
What was your cut? Well, it doesn't matter.
I haven't seen a dime.
Not even this really old dime? Prosecution hasn't taken immunity off the table.
I needed the money.
Oh, I bet.
I looked at your portfolio.
You lost a lot when the market crashed.
Yeah.
I lost enough.
Look, I still had access to the gold.
So I took some of the smaller pieces and turned them over.
And when you got scared that you were leaving a paper trail you set up Mitchell as a fall guy.
I didn't wanna set him up.
Aimes did.
All you did was get the prints and the hat.
What I wanna know is why you melted some of the pieces down.
He thought if we made it look like most of the gold was gone you wouldn't spend much time searching for it, even after Mitchell was locked up.
Where's the gold now? I don't know.
He moved it on you? Yeah.
I swear, I don't know where it is.
Then you're gonna help us find it.
You're gonna tell Aimes that the FBI has been poking around.
We've been talking to him so he'll believe you.
He won't trust me.
He will if you tell him the case against Mitchell is falling apart.
And that he needs to unload the gold immediately.
What if he gets spooked, hey, and wants to wait? You'll have to convince him that you found a private buyer.
A very rich, very discreet buyer.
So Aimes is willing to meet you at a private gallery later today? Apparently, I'm a wealthy buyer.
And this is your car for the day.
[LAUGHS.]
You're not kidding? It's a Mercedes.
NEAL: Oh, this isn't even an S-Class.
I need to look like I can drop a few million on antiquities.
This says, "Look what I kept in the divorce.
" You can't make this work? What kind of a con man are you? The Neal Caffrey I did my thesis on could make this work.
Moz, wake up.
MOZZIE: Leave me alone.
Come on.
Come on, Moz.
Come on.
Did you draw on my face? What? No.
Aimes is meeting with me today.
Gotta go in as a serious high roller.
Need a car.
I'll get my Slim Jim.
No.
Can't steal it.
Yeah.
We "can't steal it.
" Excuse me.
Could you step away from this car? Thank you.
Man: Whatever.
Yo, you need something? NEAL: Yeah.
Captain told you I was coming, right? Says FBI.
What you talking about? Your limo was involved in a 41 8 last night.
I'm to bring it to the forensic motor pool.
What's the plate on that? XC7-32W.
We're cleaning it now.
Griggs, get this guy out of here.
I didn't get a call about any of this.
Beat it.
Is that our vehicle? Whoa.
We've got gunshot residue.
Looks like she's been snowing back here.
How many of your guys touched this? We're a cleaning company.
Oh, really? Okay.
There's two ways we can do this.
One, I take this car back with me.
No one gets asked any questions.
The second way, we assume whatever's in the back seat belongs to one of you.
Pssh.
It's above my pay grade, pal.
Take it.
Griggs, give him a receipt.
Say no to drugs, chief.
Yeah, whatever.
Oh, we got a high roller coming through.
I thought we gave him a Mercedes.
I guess he made it work.
God, that driver looks familiar.
Is he one of ours? That's Haversham.
Good man.
Relax.
You're gonna be fine.
Yeah.
You have no idea how dangerous Aimes can be.
It's just a game.
Never let them see you sweat, right? Alisha you look lovely.
TEAGEN: This is the gentleman I was telling you about.
This is my business manager.
Charmed.
Likewise.
Come in.
AIMES: Enjoy.
AIMES: How long have you been collecting antiquities? Years.
I also admire the occasional reproduction.
So you're familiar with the Ptolemaic period, then? I am.
Shame the Greeks put an end to it.
Shame you didn't have a better history teacher.
Soter's reign over Egypt ended after the death of Cleopatra in the Roman conquest of 30 B.
C.
, not the Greek or so I've been told.
Would you like to see the actual pieces then? I think I already have.
These aren't reproductions.
Good eye.
They've been here all along? I've always believed the best place to hide something is in plain sight.
Is everything all right? Of course.
She's not holding it together.
Smile, Alisha.
It's almost over.
Yes, can we move this along? Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's going on? Don't play games with me.
You're with the FBI.
Technically, I'm just a consultant.
She's with the FBI.
Regardless, no need for a fifth wheel.
Aimes is on the run.
Jones, you take the front exit.
Go.
Go.
You two, go with him.
Looks like we have a standoff.
No, we don't.
Shoot him.
Then I'll have you on murder too.
Go on.
PETER: You-- Hey! Hey, don't make me shoot you.
[OPERA MUSIC PLAYING OVER RADIO.]
[GUNSHOTS.]
Drop the gun.
Jones, I need immediate backup.
This is not what I needed today.
[TIRES SCREECHING.]
[CRASH.]
I was never here.
JONES: FBI! Gun on the ground! Gun on the ground right now! Hands on your head! Nice bluff.
I know you were bluffing.
Because that's what I would've done.
I'll make sure the courts know that you helped us out.
Looks like you can go home again.
Hi, baby.
[PETER CHUCKLES.]
I'm really proud of you.
PETER: Oh, John's free because of you, El.
Yeah, if you hadn't given me that push.
Well, it was more like a nudge.
Nudge? Maybe a little love tap.
More like a left hook.
Oh, he must be really happy he's going home.
He's not the only one.
With the illegal wire transfer.
Either that or Colonel Mustard in the library.
We can pull prints on the candlestick.
Let's grab his company's financial records from last year.
They're on file.
You want me to do it? We have clerks for that.
I got something better.
I got you.
Okay.
Pbbt.
[SIGHS.]
Pow.
Sticking around, huh? LAUREN: Yeah.
Hey, is it true you once sent champagne to a surveillance van? That's the rumor.
Been checking up on me? You were part of my thesis at Quantico.
Really? How did we do? Ninety-four.
Not bad.
Find anything interesting? Truth or rumor? Is there a difference? The counterfeit certificates were your only conviction.
But you're implicated in at least a dozen confidence schemes, frauds and forgeries.
Is that why you asked to be reassigned to the White Collar Unit? I wasn't gonna pass up a chance to work with someone I've admired since college.
Play your cards right, we'll make a case or two.
Oh, honey.
I was talking about Agent Burke.
He caught you twice, right? Hey, maybe you can help me because I'm looking for some records.
Yeah.
We got clerks for that.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
Peter? Yeah? Yeah, your wife's here.
She's not alone.
PETER: She look upset to you? No, they look-- They both look upset.
You know, a buddy of mine, he always kept a separate cell phone.
One for the wife, one for the girlfriend.
It helps avoid this kind of crossover.
That's not my girlfriend, okay? I don't have a girlfriend.
It's El's friend, Dana.
They've known each other since high school.
Hi, honey.
We need to talk.
Okay.
Thanks, Jones.
That'll be all.
Have a seat, honey.
So why is Dana here? Is she okay? No, it's actually about her husband, John.
Hot-wings guy.
Remember, he made those hot wings at the barbecue the Cooper barbecue a while back? Right, him.
He was stationed overseas.
He finished last month.
What's the problem? This morning the FBI issued a warrant for his arrest.
All right, what's the last name? Mitchell.
Mitchell.
What happened? Some stolen gold in a storage shed.
They think he brought it.
Dana came to me for help.
She has no idea why he's a suspect.
Think I do.
Well, what is it? It's gold artifacts from Iraq.
Got his prints all over the place.
Hair evidence.
El, this doesn't look good.
Found that file-- This can wait.
ELIZABETH: No.
Neal, come in.
Now, Neal, just because someone's accused of doing something that doesn't mean that that person is guilty, right? Define guilty.
You think he's the best person to ask? Neal? I suppose it's possible.
See? That's what I thought.
This says "whereabouts unknown.
" Is he on the run? He's at his brother's.
I didn't know the address.
If you're keeping information, that's aiding and abetting.
Okay.
I think I grabbed the wrong file.
I'm gonna get the right one.
No, stay.
My turn.
If we have your prints and hair on the scene and you're on the run, are you guilty? Oh, now he's the best person to ask? I think your friend should turn himself in.
I completely agree with you.
That's why I told Dana to tell him what to do.
Turn himself in.
So he is turning himself in.
Yes.
He's gonna be turning himself in to you.
[INAUDIBLE DIALOGUE.]
Peter, thank you.
God, do I feel guilty.
You think he did it? Artifacts from the royal cemetery crypts of Ur in Egypt 1 000-year-old gold.
A lot of money is always a lot of motive.
That's a shame.
Apparently, he melted some of it down.
Hey.
DANA: I'm sorry.
That's all right.
John.
Peter.
I didn't do this.
It was set up.
Your prints were all over the gold, John.
My prints? I gotta go.
Listen, please.
Look, my lawyer said I shouldn't say a word.
When I was overseas, a guy asked me to help him bring some goods to the States.
I said no.
John-- His name's Aimes.
Patrick Aimes.
He's in the State Department.
Just look into it, please.
I will.
Oh, my God.
[CHATTERING.]
Excuse me.
That was surprise on Mitchell's face when we told him his prints were on the gold.
I noticed that.
But that doesn't get him off the hook.
There's something else.
What? What's the statute of limitations on--? Just tell me.
You can't melt down gold without getting splash blisters on your arms no matter how careful you are.
PETER: Well, Mitchell may be burn-free, but that doesn't make him innocent.
Maybe we should check out this Aimes guy.
Already did.
He was working for the State Department overseeing reconstruction of Mosul a few months back.
NEAL: Where is he now? Working for a private security contractor here in New York.
Sounds like he's done well for himself.
I'm gonna go see how well.
NEAL: All right.
AIMES: Every window every room, every child gets that view every morning.
Mr.
Aimes.
Am I interrupting? Peter Burke, FBI.
If you don't mind waiting for me by the cars, we'll finish this in a minute.
If you don't mind, I have a few questions about some stolen Iraqi artifacts.
AIMES: Oh, right.
I had read some important pieces were recently recovered.
That's right.
We have a suspect in custody.
Well, good.
I'm glad to hear justice will prevail.
Given your past experience, you might have some insight as to how a bunch of gold from Mosul finds its way to a storage shed near Fort Monmouth.
Of course.
Call my office.
We'll set up a meeting.
Sure.
PETER: There was one other thing.
The suspect says you framed him.
Any idea why he might say that? I wish I knew.
Is there something else, Agent Burke? Nope.
I got everything I need.
Jones, have every recovered artifact moved to our office ASAP.
I want to re-examine the evidence.
Where's Peter? I thought he called this meeting.
He's been poring over this with the Evidence Recovery Team since he saw blisters on Aimes' bodyguard.
Said something about a breakthrough.
Wow.
I'm looking for clues.
You're looking for your next jail sentence.
God.
Didn't you just join this unit? I didn't even have to go to prison first.
So if you were gonna frame somebody, how would you do it? I've never framed anybody.
Only been framed? Yeah? What for? Counterfeiting stock certificates about a dozen other confidence schemes, frauds and forgeries.
Hear you had a breakthrough.
I got something.
Notice the prints.
Very clean.
Maybe a little too clean? They're all Mitchell's? Yup.
Notice anything else? They're all left-handed.
Uh-huh.
That's improbable.
It's impossible.
What does it mean? I don't know.
NEAL: You think the prints were planted? PETER: Well, it wouldn't be hard, would it? Don't look at me.
It wouldn't be that hard.
Starts by getting a clean set of prints and somebody got Mitchell's.
But only his left hand.
Why only the left? How was the gold found? Anonymous tip.
There's a red flag.
Mm.
Could be.
Easy.
Easy there, Tiger.
Shouldn't you be getting home to Elizabeth? Dana's been with us for a few days.
Oh.
How's that going? She's been through a lot.
Oh, no.
This has gotta be rough on her.
It's gotta be.
Look, I try to be a good person.
You have your moments.
Yeah, just-- I don't-- Is it the crying? Yeah.
I can handle everything else but women crying.
That's all.
I don't know what to do.
I try to fix it.
With you, I give you a slug on the shoulder.
Totally.
And I tell you to cowboy up.
But it's-- We got the print theory.
That might cheer her up.
Yeah, it could be something if I can link it to Aimes or the bodyguard.
What? We've been here an hour.
But in that whole time, you've only touched these bottles with your right hand.
Mitchell had drinks with whoever lifted the prints.
Can you ask him? Marshals are sitting on him.
I could take the time to reach out file the paperwork, go through the usual channels-- Or you could just ask his wife-- Wife.
Right now.
Hey, honey.
Hey, honey.
Hey, Dana.
How you holding up? It's hard, you know.
It's the not knowing that's killing me.
Any news? Well, which do you want first? The good news or the bad news? There is bad news? Not more than there has been.
He's still charged.
It still looks pretty bad.
I'll go with the good news.
There are some evidence anomalies.
Someone may have planted his prints on the gold.
So you mean he really was framed.
It's possible.
I'm curious.
Did he have drinks with anyone recently? The prints are crisp.
Which would indicate a glass or a bottle.
So it was probably for a beer.
[SOBS.]
It's not okay, really.
Yes, it is.
This is the good-news part.
Can I talk to you for a second? PETER: Yeah.
Okay.
I'll be right back.
Mm-hm.
What did I do? [WHISPERS.]
I don't know.
See, she's crying.
Yeah.
I see that she's crying.
Shh! [WHISPERS.]
I need to know if John met someone for a drink.
Maybe he didn't tell her.
She suspect him of cheating? Now I'll let you talk.
This is important.
Go upstairs.
Upstairs.
Thank you.
I'm sorry.
[IN NORMAL VOICE.]
No, it's okay.
Sometimes Peter doesn't realize that he's an FBI agent.
No, it wasn't Peter.
It's.
John and I had a fight before all this happened about a woman who took him for a drink.
John's not the cheating type.
What if he's not the guy that I think he is? What if he really did steal that stuff? I mean.
Look, you heard Peter, okay? Evidence was planted.
Okay? But who is this woman who took him out for a drink? I don't know.
She's a journalist.
She.
She was embedded with John's unit.
And she called about a month ago.
And she wanted to do a follow-up story.
Something like "the life of a returning vet" kind of thing.
Wait.
So they went for a beer? Yeah.
And I was mad at him for not telling me about it beforehand instead of after.
Yeah.
That night, John was more mad about his Yankee cap than he was about the fact that I had accused him of cheating on me.
What happened to the cap? I don't know.
He left it at the bar.
It never turned up.
The hat would explain the hair fibers.
Uh-huh.
You had Elizabeth talk to her? Well, I thought some female intuition would be helpful.
Dana started crying, didn't she? I didn't even do anything.
I had no idea what went wrong.
So who's this other woman? This is Alisha Teagen.
Segment producer.
She was a reporter embedded with Mitchell's unit.
All right, so she invites Mitchell out for a beer.
Let's say she takes that opportunity to lift the prints off of the bottle.
She grabs the baseball hat as an added bonus.
Toss in a little DNA evidence to really lock the case.
Right.
How do we connect her to Aimes? Do they know each other? Other than the fact that they were in Iraq, there's nothing.
If Aimes stole the gold, he isn't gonna ship it himself.
He's gonna get someone else so that his hands stay clean in case they get intercepted.
You know, press credentials aren't a bad way to get by customs.
Let's go talk to her.
PETER: I know, but Cardinals had a baseball team.
Wait here.
I'll check in.
I'm here to see Alisha Teagen.
She's not in yet.
Agent Burke, FBI.
Sorry, sir.
Would you care to wait upstairs? She should be in any minute.
Yeah, why don't I do that? Be sure to let her know Agent Burke with the FBI is here to talk to her.
I'll be sure to do that.
Thank you.
So, what's it like to be on camera? Oh, I'm not on camera.
Really? But your badge here says, "studio access.
" I'm a publicist, actually.
Wow.
How is it up there? Cutthroat.
Looks like they just moved my meeting to 12:30.
Excuse me.
[CELL PHONE RINGS.]
Hello? PETER: Hey.
Peter, where are you? Upstairs, on my way to Alisha's office.
Right here.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
You left me in the lobby.
Well, you looked busy.
Listen, Alisha's on her way in.
I want you to watch how she reacts when the guard tells her there's an FBI agent waiting for her.
No-- TEAGEN: Hi, Phil.
Morning.
Miss Teagen.
There's an FBI agent here to see you.
Sorry? An FBI agent? Said his name was Burke.
Uh.
Tell him today's not a good day.
He's already upstairs.
Did he say what he wanted? To let you know he's here.
Oh, thanks.
WOMAN: Hi, Phil.
Morning, Judy.
MAN: Phil.
Morning, Christian.
Hey, Phil.
Morning.
I ran out of hands.
My card's in my pocket if you just wanna grab that there.
Just get that for me? Don't worry about it.
All right, thanks, bud.
Alisha? Oh, there you go.
Thanks.
Thanks.
[LINE RINGING.]
NEAL: Leave a message.
Neal, I don't know what you're up to.
But whatever it is, stop.
Good morning.
Yeah.
TEAGEN: Hi, Kim.
MAN 1: There you go.
How you doing? Listen.
MAN 2: Watch your backs.
FEMALE ANCHOR: Hi.
I don't think I've seen you around here before.
Oh, I'm Gary.
The new sports anchor.
New sports anchor? New guy brings the coffee, right? Thanks, Gary.
NEAL: Hey, no problem.
What about Leonard? Oh, you didn't hear.
Yeah.
That's why the meeting got moved to 12:30.
I'll take care of it.
Okay.
Don't say anything to Leonard.
Great work, champ.
Hey.
PETER: Alisha Teagen.
Oh, you must be Agent Burke.
I hope this won't take long.
I'm on deadline.
PETER: Have a seat.
I'm curious about the piece that you did on Captain Jonathan Mitchell.
Oh, Mitchell.
Of course.
PETER: What was your impression of him? TEAGEN: He seemed like a good soldier.
That it? To be honest, I didn't find him memorable.
Then why did you have a follow-up on him? I was doing a series of segments on vets returning home.
How they're readjusting to life after the military.
PETER: How did he seem to you? He seemed to be doing fine.
Eager to get back home.
So you took Captain Mitchell out for a beer? Yeah.
He was one of several soldiers I was considering.
Mm.
When you say "considering," what exactly do you mean by that? TEAGEN: We wanted to get a sense of what they were going through.
If the reality lived up to their expectations.
Excuse me.
Did they change the code again? WOMAN: Oh, here.
Use mine.
[COPY MACHINE BUTTONS BEEP.]
There you go.
Thanks.
What exactly are you investigating, Agent Burke? Captain Mitchell was arrested yesterday for the theft of Iraqi antiquities.
Sorry to hear that.
So there was nothing particularly special about Mitchell? No.
In fact, I'm really sorry I couldn't help you further.
Why the rush? I told you I'm on deadline.
Now, if you have no other questions, I'd like to get back to work.
Wait.
My card.
When you think of something else.
If I think of something else.
What was that about? You had me off my game.
You told me to watch her reaction.
I did.
By breaking and entering? Phil let me in.
Who's Phil? The guy at the door-- You wanna know what I found? No.
She got rattled when she heard FBI.
She went to her desk and locked something in a top drawer.
Oh, God.
I didn't steal it.
Photocopied it.
It's a pawnshop ticket.
Bet I know what she was pawning.
No, I didn't see this.
You didn't see this.
But I did see it.
MOZZIE: Hello? Hey, Moz, I got a favor to ask you.
What's up? Check out a pawnshop ticket for me.
[CHATTERING ON TELEVISION.]
How is she holding up? As good as can be expected.
Do you think we could finish watching the movie? Little girl time? Yeah.
Yeah.
I'll find something to do.
Good man.
That's what I keep telling people.
Have fun.
X marks the spot.
Kate loves the classics.
Moz, it's me.
MOZZIE: Yeah.
You nearby? Did your suit put a tail on me? What? No, look.
I think I figured out the map.
It's a Bordeaux label.
Bordeaux with an X.
X marks the spot.
You know, Kate loves the classics.
Yes, she does.
I found a bit of treasure too.
On my way to show you.
Hurry up.
I walk at a delicate pace.
[DOOR KNOCKING.]
That was fast.
Yep.
Coming.
Hey, Mo-- My man.
Expecting somebody? Not at all.
Good.
Come right on in.
Wow, unbelievable.
Last time we had a drink, we made a breakthrough.
Hoping tonight, we can solve the whole damn case.
So Dana still at the house? Yep.
Here's to freeing Captain John Mitchell so I can go back home.
I'll drink to that.
[DOOR KNOCKS.]
I'll get that.
It's probably June.
Photocopy of a pawn ticket, but I got this coin.
What? Sorry, Mr.
Haversham.
June isn't here at the moment.
Oh, well, uh, too bad.
Uh.
Tell her I look forward to our next round of drinks and Parcheesi.
Yep.
PETER: Hang on a second.
MOZZIE: Oh, I'm sorry.
Apparently I'm interrupting something.
Yeah.
Who are you? I'm the neighbor.
Dante Haversham.
Dante Haversham.
And you're dating June? Courting.
Courting.
What can I say? She likes a little cream in her coffee.
You really wanna keep this up? No, I don't.
You're right.
This is-- No.
I know.
How about I just call you Mr.
Haversham? Come on in.
Thought you'd be taller.
Me too.
Well, you're here.
Have a drink.
Oh, no.
I don't drink.
Well, you do tonight.
Gin's good.
PETER: I don't get it.
Girl leaves nothing but an empty bottle behind.
Least she could do was leave a full one.
Guys, I'm right here.
Fair enough.
Fair enough.
Whoo.
Man, look at that view.
Is this why you guys do it? Is this what it's all about? It's not about the stuff.
Moz.
It's about doing what we wanna do.
Who cares about 9 to 5's and 401 K's? Playing by the rules only makes borders that just take away everything that's good about living life.
Moz, Moz, you lived in a storage unit.
Yeah.
But I lived there, man.
I lived.
Long as I don't have to live under anyone else's time or dime I'm a free man.
I can do whatever I want.
Like going to the pawnshop and getting that coin you have in your pocket? Come on.
Let's see it.
It's a hell of a thing.
Islamic dinar from the Abbasid dynasty.
Last seen in the museum in Mosul.
I really shouldn't even know about this.
Alisha's guilty, isn't she? Looks like it.
Ahh.
I'm holding damning evidence and I can't do a damn thing with it.
Your rules, Tin Man, not mine.
Come on, Peter.
Give me the coin.
I can see it now.
"FBI agent illegally obtains evidence.
News at 11.
" That's a hell of a story.
Too bad she can't report it.
Maybe she can.
I want everything set up to go from the top.
Great story on the governor.
Teagen.
Yeah? Got a story for you.
Guy wants to talk about a cover-up in Iraq involving a soldier.
He'll only talk to you.
Why me? Maybe he's a fan of your work.
Got a number? I'll call.
Got something better.
He's here.
McQueen! Let's set up to get this guy on tape.
WOMAN: You know what? You're gonna have to prove that.
MAN: Yes, yes.
TEAGEN: We rolling? Oh, hi.
Hi.
Alisha Teagen.
Good to meet you.
I'm a huge fan.
Thank you.
You look better in person.
Well, thank you.
Okay, you're all miked up.
NEAL: All right.
TEAGEN: Let's get started.
Your name? Oh, we'll get to that.
Just relax.
Take a deep breath.
So why don't we? Why don't we start at the beginning? Okay.
Yeah.
Once upon a time in Iraq, there were two people.
One was greedy and a thief.
The other was pretty and opportunistic.
Together they found a great deal of treasure.
[CHUCKLES.]
This is something we should be discussing off-camera.
Wait, no.
That's the prologue.
I'm getting to the setup.
They smuggled that treasure here, went off without a hitch.
But they needed a fall guy.
Somebody to take the heat off them so they could sell the treasure without interference.
That fall guy is a soldier you know.
John Mitchell.
Well.
Unfortunately, your story is missing something very important.
Proof.
NEAL: Oh, I got proof.
Here.
Recognize this? What this story is missing is an ending.
I'm not sure what happens to Mitchell.
The outcome of his life it may as well be decided on the toss of a coin.
You wanna call it for me? Turn off the cameras.
Turn off the cameras.
MAN: Hold the roll.
I want immunity.
[CHUCKLES.]
You're funny.
What you get depends on what you give me.
Aimes looted Saddam's museum.
He set the whole thing up.
All I did was help him transport it back to the States.
You were his mule.
What was your cut? Well, it doesn't matter.
I haven't seen a dime.
Not even this really old dime? Prosecution hasn't taken immunity off the table.
I needed the money.
Oh, I bet.
I looked at your portfolio.
You lost a lot when the market crashed.
Yeah.
I lost enough.
Look, I still had access to the gold.
So I took some of the smaller pieces and turned them over.
And when you got scared that you were leaving a paper trail you set up Mitchell as a fall guy.
I didn't wanna set him up.
Aimes did.
All you did was get the prints and the hat.
What I wanna know is why you melted some of the pieces down.
He thought if we made it look like most of the gold was gone you wouldn't spend much time searching for it, even after Mitchell was locked up.
Where's the gold now? I don't know.
He moved it on you? Yeah.
I swear, I don't know where it is.
Then you're gonna help us find it.
You're gonna tell Aimes that the FBI has been poking around.
We've been talking to him so he'll believe you.
He won't trust me.
He will if you tell him the case against Mitchell is falling apart.
And that he needs to unload the gold immediately.
What if he gets spooked, hey, and wants to wait? You'll have to convince him that you found a private buyer.
A very rich, very discreet buyer.
So Aimes is willing to meet you at a private gallery later today? Apparently, I'm a wealthy buyer.
And this is your car for the day.
[LAUGHS.]
You're not kidding? It's a Mercedes.
NEAL: Oh, this isn't even an S-Class.
I need to look like I can drop a few million on antiquities.
This says, "Look what I kept in the divorce.
" You can't make this work? What kind of a con man are you? The Neal Caffrey I did my thesis on could make this work.
Moz, wake up.
MOZZIE: Leave me alone.
Come on.
Come on, Moz.
Come on.
Did you draw on my face? What? No.
Aimes is meeting with me today.
Gotta go in as a serious high roller.
Need a car.
I'll get my Slim Jim.
No.
Can't steal it.
Yeah.
We "can't steal it.
" Excuse me.
Could you step away from this car? Thank you.
Man: Whatever.
Yo, you need something? NEAL: Yeah.
Captain told you I was coming, right? Says FBI.
What you talking about? Your limo was involved in a 41 8 last night.
I'm to bring it to the forensic motor pool.
What's the plate on that? XC7-32W.
We're cleaning it now.
Griggs, get this guy out of here.
I didn't get a call about any of this.
Beat it.
Is that our vehicle? Whoa.
We've got gunshot residue.
Looks like she's been snowing back here.
How many of your guys touched this? We're a cleaning company.
Oh, really? Okay.
There's two ways we can do this.
One, I take this car back with me.
No one gets asked any questions.
The second way, we assume whatever's in the back seat belongs to one of you.
Pssh.
It's above my pay grade, pal.
Take it.
Griggs, give him a receipt.
Say no to drugs, chief.
Yeah, whatever.
Oh, we got a high roller coming through.
I thought we gave him a Mercedes.
I guess he made it work.
God, that driver looks familiar.
Is he one of ours? That's Haversham.
Good man.
Relax.
You're gonna be fine.
Yeah.
You have no idea how dangerous Aimes can be.
It's just a game.
Never let them see you sweat, right? Alisha you look lovely.
TEAGEN: This is the gentleman I was telling you about.
This is my business manager.
Charmed.
Likewise.
Come in.
AIMES: Enjoy.
AIMES: How long have you been collecting antiquities? Years.
I also admire the occasional reproduction.
So you're familiar with the Ptolemaic period, then? I am.
Shame the Greeks put an end to it.
Shame you didn't have a better history teacher.
Soter's reign over Egypt ended after the death of Cleopatra in the Roman conquest of 30 B.
C.
, not the Greek or so I've been told.
Would you like to see the actual pieces then? I think I already have.
These aren't reproductions.
Good eye.
They've been here all along? I've always believed the best place to hide something is in plain sight.
Is everything all right? Of course.
She's not holding it together.
Smile, Alisha.
It's almost over.
Yes, can we move this along? Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's going on? Don't play games with me.
You're with the FBI.
Technically, I'm just a consultant.
She's with the FBI.
Regardless, no need for a fifth wheel.
Aimes is on the run.
Jones, you take the front exit.
Go.
Go.
You two, go with him.
Looks like we have a standoff.
No, we don't.
Shoot him.
Then I'll have you on murder too.
Go on.
PETER: You-- Hey! Hey, don't make me shoot you.
[OPERA MUSIC PLAYING OVER RADIO.]
[GUNSHOTS.]
Drop the gun.
Jones, I need immediate backup.
This is not what I needed today.
[TIRES SCREECHING.]
[CRASH.]
I was never here.
JONES: FBI! Gun on the ground! Gun on the ground right now! Hands on your head! Nice bluff.
I know you were bluffing.
Because that's what I would've done.
I'll make sure the courts know that you helped us out.
Looks like you can go home again.
Hi, baby.
[PETER CHUCKLES.]
I'm really proud of you.
PETER: Oh, John's free because of you, El.
Yeah, if you hadn't given me that push.
Well, it was more like a nudge.
Nudge? Maybe a little love tap.
More like a left hook.
Oh, he must be really happy he's going home.
He's not the only one.