The Protector (2011) s01e05 Episode Script
Revisions
All of us people sometimes tell lies and when we do it simply signifies I got to go turn back to school all people can't feel that I follow nature's rule I don't know if you realize before you get your respect, you got to be humanised I got to go turn back to school all people can't feel that I follow nature's rule I don't know if you realize before you get your respect, you got to be humanised Oh! The Protector 1x05 Revisions Neighbors heard a shot last night, called 911, but since everything's all gated and echo-y up here, the patrol car couldn't find anything.
The housekeeper comes in this morning, finds the victim floating face-down in the spa.
We got an I.
D.
? Yeah.
Dr.
John Gardner.
Who? You know, the Maestro.
What? You've never seen the reality show "Top Docs"? He was one of the Beverly Hills plastic surgeons that they followed.
Would you say you watch a little TV or a lot of TV? It helps me sleep at night.
You wouldn't know it, but this was a very, very handsome man.
Do you think the shooter meant to blow his face off like that? Single shot, back of the head, close range.
I'd say they just wanted to make sure that he was dead.
Do we have a time of death? Coroner puts it around 10:15.
That lines up with the 911 call.
He was drinking alone? Dr.
Gardner's wife was at a birthday party in Palm Springs last night.
She's been notified about the death and a friend is bringing her home.
I'm gonna go take a look in the house.
Yeah, I'll be up in a minute.
Glo? Glo! Here I am.
Oh! Ow! I'm okay.
Here I come.
Hey.
Hey, 'Chelle, I'm -- I'm over here.
Hey.
The shooter came up through here.
He'd probably get scratched up, but he'd avoid the perimeter alarm and the gate cam.
What'd you find inside? It looks like a grab and go.
No sign of the victim's wallet, watch, or phone.
The medicine cabinet was cleaned out.
But all of the art and electronics weren't touched.
Sheppard.
Yeah, okay.
Mrs.
Gardner has just arrived.
Mrs.
Gardner? Yes? Hi.
I'm Detective Dulcett.
This is Detective Sheppard.
We're very sorry for your loss.
Ma'am, in order for us to find the person who did this -- Oh.
Are you okay? It's okay.
Here.
Sit down.
I'm sorry.
A friend of mine gave me a Xanax on the drive home.
It's okay.
We understand.
I can't believe that John's gone.
He made all the decisions.
I'm not sure what to do.
Is there anybody you can call? A girlfriend is coming over later.
Mrs.
Gardner, why don't you take some time and rest, and we can come back later this afternoon and talk then.
Thank you.
I thought you were gonna go back to the house so you could take the kids to school.
No, James flew in last night, and the boys stayed at the hotel with him.
Oh, is he here for a court thing? No, it's an us thing.
I mean, it's a good us thing.
The buyers of our old house finally closed escrow, so we're gonna sign the papers tonight.
That is a good thing.
Oh, are these from the website? Yeah.
It's crazy, right? The butt lifts, the tummy tucks.
Did you see the girl who had the elf ears? Yeah.
I probably would have started with the nose, but whatever.
All right, look -- I'm starting to think about this, right? And I'm starting to think what -- I want to hear you say this killing was personal.
Okay.
It was personal.
- I want you to mean it.
- I do.
- You do? - Well, I don't know.
I think I do.
Because if it's personal, I can tell the Captain there wasn't some random lunatic running around the hills up there and all the Gardners' rich-ass neighbors will calm the hell down and quit calling 911 every time a dog farts or a truck backfires.
Sir? Captain Litvack is on the phone again.
He's holding for you.
Personal.
Why not? Okay, so when you say "personal" Well, I don't think this is just some random robbery gone wrong, you know? I mean, look at all the moving parts that the shooter had to manage.
Okay, you got access, alarms, camera, neighbor -- I mean, that's a whole lot of effort for what? A-a-a bottle of pills, a wallet? I mean, that's crazy, right? Hmm.
And why shoot him like that, you know? I mean, the guy is sitting there blissed out in his hot tub.
I mean, why kill him if he wasn't a threat, unless killing him was the point? Okay.
Motive? You know, what -- love, money, revenge.
I mean, he was a rich man.
Let's start with money.
Who stood to benefit the most from his death? Here's another one.
So, more fan mail from your new little friend? You make it sound like it's more than it is.
My bad.
I thought the notes and the presents and the e-mails from Detective Cummings for the past two weeks fooled me into thinking that he wants to go out with you.
"Are you thirsty yet?" Why aren't you going out and having a drink with this man -- this sexy, sexy man? I I I don't know.
I don't know, and I don't want to think about that right now.
Let's just, uh -- let's head over to Beverly Hills, okay? That's where Gardner's practice was.
And he had a partner -- a guy named Nolan Miller.
- We really should go talk to him.
- All right.
Uh, excuse me.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Can you hold, please? Yeah, we're here -- Hi.
I can reschedule you with Dr.
Miller.
Yes, one moment.
Thanks for holding.
Yes.
Tomorrow we've got -- Excuse me.
Oh, I-I'm m m sorry.
No problem.
We're just, uh, we're here to see Dr.
Miller.
Oh.
Okay.
Well, just hang on.
We're just, uh, we're here to see Dr.
Miller.
Okay.
Oh.
You have to see one of these before-and-after pictures.
They're amazing.
- Better.
-Hmm.
- Better.
- Mm-hmm.
- Way too big.
- Yeah.
Oh.
You know what? Straight helps.
Mm.
Oh, my God.
What the hell is that? Oh, are you serious? - It's a -- - No, I know what it is.
I have one.
I just -- I just -- never seen one look quite like that.
Maybe that's why she came in and got it fixed.
Wow.
That's the same one? Alrighty then.
Oh.
Oh.
That's one you don't see in the books.
She'll be beautiful in two weeks.
I'm Rhonnie.
I'm Dr.
Gardner's assistant.
Dr.
Miller is still in surgery.
He's, um, he's trying to cover all of the post-op patients.
Okay.
I'm sorry.
It's okay.
I can't believe that someone wouldUm, was it a robbery, or That's what we're trying to figure out.
Do you know anybody that might want to harm him? The man helped people.
You know, he, uh He saved lives.
You mean like yours? Uh, Dr.
Gardner helped out at several women's shelters.
A lot of the women would come in with fractured jaws and -- and broken noses.
Dr.
Gardner would -- would fix them up.
Were you one of those women? He -- he gave me a new life.
I had dated a guy, and he had a temper.
I finally got up the nerve to leave But he tracked you down.
At -- at -- at the shelter.
He said he was sorry and You know, that he loved me, and I-I didn't -- I didn't even see the razor.
But, uh, after he cut me, he laughed And he said that nobody would ever want me.
So that's when you met Dr.
Gardner.
Uh, all I have now are these revisions.
It's a term we use to, you know, repair something and improve it.
How did this man feel about Dr.
Gardner helping you? Did it seem to upset him at all? Did he ever threaten either one of you? UmNo, well, you know, Darryl's changed.
He, um -- he did an anger-management program when he was inside.
52 weeks of meetings.
What's Darryl's last name? He didn't do this.
O-o-okay.
Oh, please -- don't mess up his parole.
He is -- he's not a murderer.
- Then there is nothing to worry about.
- Look, Rhonnie, you really need to give us Darryl's last name.
I-it's Carson.
Okay.
Just tell Dr.
Miller that we're gonna need to come back this afternoon.
What time does he get out of surgery? Um -- after 3:00.
Oh, that's Lisa Gardner.
She's our flagship patient.
He operated on his own wife? Oh, no.
She's, uh, Dr.
Miller's patient.
Oh.
Excuse me.
Yes.
Thank you very much.
All right, look, I'm gonna get ahold of Buerge and see if he can pull Carson's jacket.
Maybe he can get a work address from his parole officer.
The way Rhonnie talked about Dr.
Gardner -- you think they were an item? Eh, probably more reverential than romantic, but maybe the old boyfriend has a different opinion.
If you could revise one thing, what would it be? You mean like surgery? I don't know.
I'd do my feet.
I hate my feet.
In a perfect world, I'd have long, lean, elegant feet.
Well, who sees your feet? I do.
And if I did it, I'd do it for me, not some foot-digging dude, if that's what you're asking.
So, what would you do? I don't know, you know.
I mean, nothing hangs quite the way it did, if you know what I mean.
And a couple of nine-pound babies didn't do me any favors.
And, again, there's always the flaming elephant in the room.
I guess I could do my scars.
I hadn't really thought about it for quite some time, but I don't know.
What do you think? I really don't know much about them.
I mean, do they bother you? Hang on.
Got another e-mail from Buerge.
A picture of Rhonnie Johnston pulled from Darryl Carson's case file.
Lovely.
Mr.
Carson.
Mr.
Carson! Darryl Carson! Hey, you should never interrupt a saw operator.
Detectives Dulcett and Sheppard.
We'd like to speak to you for a moment, sir.
What happened to your face? Well, there was a time when I might have said, "What happened to yours?" But I've bettered myself of late.
Congratulations on that, sir, but the question still stands.
What happened to your face? I'm gonna go back to work, ladies.
We need to ask you some questions about the murder of Dr.
John Gardner.
- Rhonnie send you here? - Where were you last night, sir? She trying to drag my name into this? No, see, you already did that when you took a razor blade to her face.
Now just answer our question, okay? - Where were you last night? - Leave me the hell -- Bitch! Yeah, I'm a bitch with a badge.
Get up! I got an alibi.
I was in the system all night.
- Where? - Hollywood station.
Lucky for me, I got popped for some B.
S.
bar fight, huh? I mean, I'm not always this good-looking.
What time were you arrested? Early, like 11:00.
Oh, okay, so -- that's long enough to get down the hill from the Gardners', go find a bar, get a couple of drinks, and settle your nerves after killing somebody, right? Hey, come on.
I think he picked that fight so he could establish his whereabouts.
What do you think, 'Chelle? Oh, yeah.
He just said it was some bull-- I didn't kill Gardner.
Yeah, but you threatened him in the past.
You knew where to find him, you knew there'd be drugs and cash, and, from the burglaries in your rap sheet, you knew how to get around home-security systems.
And there's even an old gun charge.
I wasn't convicted of that.
Man, this is all her fault.
Rhonnie always loved playing the victim.
So it's her fault that you sliced her face open like that? I'm not proud of that.
She turned out okay, didn't she? I mean, hell, that doctor even gave her a better nose.
So you've seen her.
One of the conditions of your parole is that you have no contact with Rhonnie Johnston.
I saw her at the mall a few months ago.
I didn't even wave, okay? Rhonnie's no good for me.
I know that now.
Did she tell you she was banging that doctor? Yeah, how do you think she paid for that new face? I don't really care about all that.
I really don't.
I don't care whether it's true.
And who can blame her? He's rich, successful, handsome.
She must have eaten him up after putting up with you.
I didn't kill -- you know what? Write it down.
I want to know where you were, I want to know the name of the bar, and you'd better be specific.
'Cause nothing would make us happier than keeping you off the streets for a very long time.
I really hate that guy.
Yeah, well, I hope we find something to hold him, but I don't think he killed Gardner.
I mean, a guy like Carson, he gets pissed at you, he doesn't sneak up and put a bullet in the back of your head.
No, a guy like that, he -- he carves his name in your face.
So you really don't think he did it? Hey, Sheppard, Dulcett.
I got uniforms canvassing all around the Gardners' house, but you know how rich people are about answering their doors.
Maybe it depends on the face they see when they open the door.
Believe me, I had every intention of making detective rookie here hike those hills in his Sunday go-to-meeting shoes, but then the bastard went and did something useful.
Well, shame on you, detective.
I've been looking at the Gardners' medical practice -- credit cards, mortgages, insurance.
He's had more than his share of lawsuits.
Great.
Well, keep us posted.
Seriously, you run in these things? Well, seriously, can you run at all? Look, it's after 3:00.
Let's head over to Beverly Hills and talk to Dr.
Miller, okay? Okay.
- There she is.
- James! - Is everything all right? - Everything's fine.
Well, it's good to see you again.
And congratulations on finally selling that house.
Thanks.
Congratulations to you, too.
What's that? Salt.
Uh Okay.
Don't eat that.
Felix said he got married again.
Yeah.
UhThai woman.
Bai-ming.
She's nice.
They're -- they're very happy.
- You're like two hours early.
- Yes.
I, uh, thought maybe we could, uh, go somewhere, and, uh Talk.
Well, now, you said that like it was a bad thing.
No.
I-I don't mean that.
I have to be somewhere, so Okay.
Did you bring the thing for me to sign? I did.
Right here.
Oh.
Brought a pen, too.
So you're sure that we're getting the best price? I'm sure we're not gonna get any price unless you sign it.
Are you, uh Feeling resistant again? No, I'm not feeling resistant, I'm just -- you know, I'm just not wanting us to get taken to the cleaners.
- It's a good house.
- Yes, it is.
If you're having any doubts, I'm more than happy to talk about them.
No.
I'm good.
I am good.
So, um, walkthrough is at 7:00? - Yes.
- Great.
- I'll see you tonight.
- All right, I'll see you then.
Okay.
Oh.
James looks good.
Yeah.
- Everything okay with you two? - Yeah.
You know, look, I'm always gonna love him, right? He's the father of my kids.
Man, he has to analyze everything, and sometimes it's just exhausting, you know? Yeah, that's the downside of being a shrink.
He probably can't shut that part of his brain off.
Yeah.
It's funny -- when we first started dating, we used to stay up all night talking.
Just talking.
He was, like, the first person who really wanted to know all about me.
Every detail, good or bad.
Hmm.
I guess that's part of what made me fall in love with him.
Hmm.
Yeah.
There's nothing like somebody who really gets you, you know? It's like a drug.
Until it's not.
After a while, it was like, you know, "Can't we just be in the moment and not put every single feeling under the microscope?" Relationships.
Yeah.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Hi.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Will you hold, please? Thank you for holding.
Yes.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Can you hold, please? I can't help it.
It's just sitting there.
Look at this one.
Dr.
Miller: We sent everyone home.
We got through all the must-see cases.
What a terrible day.
I guess there'll be a lot of those.
You know, I worry about Lisa.
She's always depended so completely on John.
I understand that Dr.
Gardner did a lot of pro bono work.
Did that interfere with the practice? That work always generates P.
R.
, and it's always very good for the business.
You know, but, besides that, I think John really needed to feel serious again.
You can only do so many double-D augmentations without starting to feel a bit ridiculous.
That's us in college.
Me, John, and Lisa.
Hmm.
Wow.
I wouldnever have guessed that that was Lisa Gardner.
Thank you.
"Thank you"? What the hell was that? It's like he created her.
Maybe she wanted to be somebody else.
Yeah.
I mean, she's such a beautiful woman, but she just seems Fake? Trapped, you know? I mean -- you know what? The more I'm thinking about it, the more I'm starting to feel like Lisa Gardner has motive.
Who knows? Maybe she got tired of being revised and decided to cash out.
Hey, did -- did Romeo ever find those insurance documents for the Gardners? Let's give him a shout.
So, how much does Mrs.
Gardner stand to benefit? Well, her husband's policy pays her about five mil.
Add the house in the hills to that -- just about nine mil all-in.
I might bend a couple rules for that kind of payday.
What about Dr.
Miller? Miller is worse off without him.
Right now, I would say that it's the widow who stood to gain the most.
Oh.
Here she is.
That's her? She seems pretty frail.
Maybe she was just designed to look that way.
How can I help? It's standard procedure for us to investigate the beneficiaries of a murder victim.
I understand.
Especially when the insurance payout is substantial.
Let me make this easy for you, detective.
Yes, I'm going to inherit a lot of money, but I didn't need to kill my husband to get it.
John didn't want anyone to know about it, but he had stage IV brain cancer.
He had less than three months to live.
Bad news about Rhonnie's ex.
Looks like Darryl Carson's alibi checks out.
.
The bartender and two other customers put him in the bar at the time of the murder.
Damn.
You know, I really hate to kick this guy loose.
Yeah, me too.
You know, we can hold him overnight for that stunt he pulled in the lumberyard.
May make him think twice about going all neanderthal next time he -- Afternoon, detectives.
Hey.
A buddy of mine from patrol.
Look at you, all proud of patrol.
You still missing the action? Some days less than others.
Anyway, my buddy stopped this tagger in Hollywood a couple hours ago.
Kid had more than spray paint in his backpack.
"Dr.
John Gardner.
" Do you think this kid is the shooter? No.
I already looked into it.
He has a solid alibi.
What about prints on the bottle? S.
I.
D.
pulled a couple.
They're running them now.
I hate to upset the L.
T.
, but this could be the very thing that he doesn't want it to be.
A random home invasion? Eh, I'm still not buying it.
I just keep thinking, who benefits most from Gardner's death, you know? Look, the wife had, what -- a couple months to wait before he was dead anyway? And the partner is worse off without him, you know, so Hey, that tagger in there -- did he know the name of the guy who sold him the meds? No, but he's gonna show us where he scored.
I mean, I figured we'd sit on the spot, see if the dealer comes back.
You going, too? Yeah, why not? There's always room for one more.
Well, as much as I would love to chaperone, I have got some papers to sign tonight.
You guys have fun.
All right.
Night.
Initial here and here.
Last one.
That does it.
The new owners take possession as of 7:00 a.
m.
tomorrow morning.
- Okay.
- Congratulations.
Thanks very much for all your help.
Mm-hmm.
- Oh, your pen.
- Thanks.
Thanks again.
What are you gonna do with your half? Well, I already spent most of it, you know, going in on the house with Davey.
You mean when you rescued him again? Sorry.
Old habits.
The kids will have mostly good memories of this house, won't they? We used to We used to laugh a lot here, you know? Remember how you could hear everything in this house? It was I miss the bar at Hal's.
You want to get a drink at Hal's? Hello? You thirsty? Well, that still works.
This part was always pretty good.
Yeah.
We haven't done that in a while.
No, we haven't.
It's a nice way to say goodbye to the house.
Can I ask you a question? Sure.
Did my scars ever bother you? You know the answer to that.
Why are you asking now? I don't know.
No reason.
There's always a reason.
James, I swear to God, you got to stop doing that.
- I'm sorry.
- Okay.
I'm sorry.
It's okay.
Good morning.
Good morning.
You guys have any luck with that tagger last night? Pssh.
No.
Romeo and Buerge are taking him back out this morning.
They're staking out the place where the kid scored the meds, hoping the dealer makes an appearance.
Hey, all your escrow papers get signed last night? You guys close the deal? Yep.
Closed the deal.
What? Really? You and James? W-w-what, was it being back in the old house again? What? I don't know, you know.
It just sort of happened.
Okay, so, did you talk about it afterwards? No.
The last thing I wanted to do is have a big ol' talk.
Well, maybe it's time -- you know what? R.
A.
C.
R.
has compiled those street-view surveillance videos from the Gardners' neighborhood.
I'm gonna watch it in the conference room.
You want to come? Ohhhh.
All right.
This is the only cam on the block with a view of the street, and this is from below the hill, 11 minutes before the gunshot.
Do we at least have the round trip? Yes, we do.
It is 21 minutes later.
Right there.
All by himself on both sides of the murder.
Not that his own mother could I.
D.
him from this tape.
Yeah, that's got to be our guy.
Now, all we have to do is find him and get him to give up whoever hired him.
Lieutenant? I just got a call from Wilshire Division.
Rhonnie Johnston, the woman who worked for Dr.
Gardner Well, she was found dead in her apartment this morning.
You should go over and see if it connects the Gardner case.
- Is that him? - No.
That's him, in the hoodie! Hey, man.
What flavor'd you get? What? Get on your knees! Hands behind your back.
On your feet.
Hey, Buerge, this man's a doctor.
Card's name says he's John Gardner, M.
D.
No, no, I found that.
Look, these aren't my pants.
I found these pants.
Mm-hmm.
Nice save, rookie.
Thank you.
I'd have hit him harder.
Yeah.
- Good thing he went your way.
- Yeah.
I can't get a confirmation that Darryl Carson is still in central jail.
How is this possible, when we put him in the system ourselves? You know how it is.
Sometimes people slip through thecracks.
I got to get a BOLO out on Carson.
Keep checking central jail.
We got to find him.
If he did this Hey, 'Chelle, come here and look at this.
One sec.
They're receipts from the Four Seasons Hotel.
Look whose name the room is booked under.
Dr.
Nolan Miller? Champagne, couples massage.
Rhonnie Johnston was having an affair with Dr.
Miller? Yeah, but I-if Gardner was the one that she idolized What if she was trying to make him jealous? Okay.
What if, somehow, Carson knew and then he got out of jail last night? Hang on.
Sheppard.
Yeah, okay.
All right.
I'll be there.
Buerge and Romeo picked up the shooter.
I'm gonna go down there and talk to him.
He may have been the one who killed Rhonnie, as well.
It's Detective Dulcett again.
Have you found this guy Carson? Oh, come -- come on.
How hard could it be? You're worried that Carson somehow got out and killed Rhonnie Johnston.
Yes, sir.
He was a no-show on the bus to court this morning, and nobody can seem to tell me where he is.
I'd love to say it's impossible for a grown man to get lost in the system, but with a daily pop of 19,000, you and I both know that's not true.
Marlene? Yes, sir? Would you please get me the intake desk at county jail? Of course, sir.
Right away.
Thank you.
- Who'd you talk to at county? - The watch commander.
I also spoke with Carson's parole officer, but he didn't get a notification of parole hold.
What about Wayside? Maybe county was too crowded.
Nobody has ever heard of him at Wayside.
I checked all the jails.
- Son of a bitch.
- Absolutely, sir.
Sir, county for you on line one.
Thank you so much, Marlene.
Oh, you're quite welcome, sir.
What? Her cat threw up last night.
She's worried.
I didn't say nothing.
This is Lieutenant Valdez at R.
H.
D.
Patch me through to Lieutenant Moran, please.
We were on a robbery table together.
This guy is exhausting.
Hey, Pete, it's Felix.
Yeah, it's been a while.
She's good.
Thanks for asking.
Actually, Gail and I split up about three years ago.
I'm remarried now.
Bai-ming.
Bai-ming.
She's Thai.
Thailand.
Yeah, I-I like the food, too.
It's coconut milk.
Oh, my God.
Yes, it is a refreshing surprise.
Listen, Pete, I need -- Pete, I need your help.
Yeah, we sent you guys a Darryl Carson -- resisting, battery on a police officer.
Nobody at your place seems to know where he is.
Well, he just came off a deuce at Corcoran, so he knows the tricks.
Maybe he's hiding out at psych or the medical dispensary.
Yeah, I do know a place that's very authentic.
It's in the strip mall in Hollywood.
Okay.
Thanks.
He's checking.
Okay.
Guess who gets to take Moran out for authentic Thai next week.
Thank you, sir.
Darryl Carson.
He was in a bar fight in Hollywood yesterday.
They got him.
Y-you can hang on to him for now.
Thanks, Pete.
He was in the infirmary all night.
Said he had a migraine.
So, somebody else killed Rhonnie Johnston.
Looks that way.
Thank you, sir.
Who is she? You've never seen her? Am I supposed to remember everybody that I see? How about everybody that you've killed, starting with last night.
Is she the reason I'm here? Because that's easy.
I've never seen her, and I have an alibi for last night.
You can check.
I was at my cousin's house.
- How about the night before? - Uh, I don't know.
I'll check.
Look, this is very, very bad.
I know, and it's because of the credit cards.
Look, I've already explained to the other cops that these are not my pants.
It's not your pants that are getting you in trouble, Toby.
It's your hat and your hoodie.
You were wearing them in the video.
You're on a security camera a couple blocks away from the Gardners.
I saw you on it just like I see you now.
You haven't changed your clothes.
Yeah, but look, a lot of people dress like me, and a lot of people look like me.
Yeah, okay.
You know what blowback is, Toby? When you fire a weapon like the .
38 that killed Dr.
Gardner, something pretty amazing happens.
The discharge creates a vacuum that sucks back debris as far as 18 feet away.
And you were less than four feet away.
That means that you have got little bits of the doctor's hair, blood, and brains all over you.
Someone paid you to kill Dr.
Gardner -- someone who didn't have the courage to do it themselves.
This was not your idea.
Now, I don't really think that it's fair that you get punished while that person gets away.
Do you? Who came to you, Toby? Hmm? Who paid you to do this? Dr.
Nolan Miller, you're under arrest, sir, for the murder of John Gardner.
Please put your hands behind your back.
Call my attorney.
Hey, 'Chelle, why don't you finish this and take him downtown, okay? I'm gonna check something out.
I'll be there in a little bit.
You got it.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say or do will be held against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney.
Sorry to keep you waiting, gentlemen.
We were just tying up some loose ends in the Rhonnie Johnston murder.
You knew that she was killed last night? My client has nothing to say.
Of course.
Dr.
Miller isn't being charged with her murder.
It's just that since you worked with the victim, we thought that you would want to know.
We suspected Darryl Carson, Rhonnie's old boyfriend.
He had a motive, priors, and he was primed.
But we have since confirmed that Mr.
Carson was locked up, and so the number of suspects has gotten smaller.
So, who killed Rhonnie Johnston? We found these in her apartment.
That's your client's name and his credit-card number.
It was used for champagne, couples massages.
And then when we arrested you in your office this afternoon, I noticed a look that you got from Lisa Gardner.
So I drove back to the Four Seasons and I took the receipts and a photo, and no one there remembered seeing you with Rhonnie Johnston.
But everyone remembered seeing you with Lisa Gardner.
Rhonnie must have gotten these from your office and saved them as proof.
But then, last night, it dawned on her -- you had motive.
So she confronted you, maybe she threatened to tell the police, and you went over to her apartment, tried to reason with her, pay her off -- anything but let her ruin the plan.
But she was loyal to Dr.
Gardner, and the only way to shut her up -- I mean, really shut her up -- is to strangle her, right? But here is the best part of all.
The best part of all is how you have been hung out to dry.
It must have really been a dream come true for you when she made her move a couple of months ago.
Yeah, but women like Lisa Gardner are really expensive.
You really had us fooled there for a while.
I mean, I just could not figure out how you stood to benefit from your partner's death.
I mean, the insurance was only gonna pay you, what, 5 million? But you stood to make more than that from the practice.
And you probably already know this, but since you're responsible for Dr.
Gardner's death, you lose all claim to the $5 million.
Here's the thing that I don't think that you saw coming.
I found a separate insurance policy.
I dug it up with two of our forensic accountants.
Took the better part of the afternoon.
Now, guess who gets the business' $5 million insurance payout should you go down.
Oh, come on.
I think you know the name.
Lisa.
Ding, ding, ding! Lisa Gardner.
Yes.
She gets your money and her money to spend, all to herself.
And the real kicker is she didn't have to feel bad about setting up her husband, because he was dying anyway.
What? John Gardner had terminal brain cancer.
He had just under three months to live.
So, you see, the twist in all of this is that Lisa Gardner's plan was not to get rid of her husband.
No, it was to get rid of you.
So, here is the question that I have for you, Dr.
Miller.
Since you are the one who designed this monster How would you like to be the one to take her apart? Get out of the pool, Mrs.
Gardner.
Dr.
Miller gave you up.
He told us everything.
I don't understand.
Get out of the pool.
You can get dressed, or I can take you downtown like that.
It's up to you.
And you know what? Please don't bother with that whole stumbling fake-frailty thing.
I mean, that really started to bother me.
- You think you know who I am? - No, I don't.
I think that you're a woman who made a choice.
You made the outside beautiful because the inside is socorrupt.
And now that Nolan Miller sees that -- well, he's gonna testify against you.
You can put me on the stand.
It'll be his word against mine.
Yes, and I am sure that you will play that part brilliantly! The broken, victimized widow.
But unfortunately for you, Mrs.
Gardner, juries tend to believe doctors.
Give me your hands, please.
Lisa Gardner, you are under arrest for conspiring to murder John Gardner.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
Okay.
Good night.
Love you.
See you in a couple of weeks.
Nick is I know.
- He's a handful.
- Yeah.
So, uh, when's the cab coming to pick you up? I've got a couple of minutes to talk, if that's what you're asking.
No, I was actually asking when the taxi was coming to pick you up.
I'm kidding.
I really enjoyed last night.
James -- just listen for a second, okay? I'll be brief -- for me.
And you are welcome to talk, but you're not obliged in any way, okay? Although it is welcome.
Last night was lovely.
I could be with you like that a million more times.
That part's always been easy for us.
Always.
You asked me if your scars bothered me.
They don't.
Is back where you used to know And you and I both know the problem has never been your scars.
It's about The sharing of the story of your scars.
Of what your mother let happen.
And as much as I love what we had, and miss it Hold onto your special friend I can tell that it's time for you to share your story with someone else.
Now you stay inside this foolish grin though any day, your secrets end then again years may go by You're a good man.
Okay.
I'm gonna go.
Okay.
Yeah.
You saved your own special friend I'll see you in a couple of weeks.
Yeah.
I will see you in a couple of weeks.
You stay inside this foolish grin when, every day your secrets end then again Hey, guys? Years may go by years may go by
The housekeeper comes in this morning, finds the victim floating face-down in the spa.
We got an I.
D.
? Yeah.
Dr.
John Gardner.
Who? You know, the Maestro.
What? You've never seen the reality show "Top Docs"? He was one of the Beverly Hills plastic surgeons that they followed.
Would you say you watch a little TV or a lot of TV? It helps me sleep at night.
You wouldn't know it, but this was a very, very handsome man.
Do you think the shooter meant to blow his face off like that? Single shot, back of the head, close range.
I'd say they just wanted to make sure that he was dead.
Do we have a time of death? Coroner puts it around 10:15.
That lines up with the 911 call.
He was drinking alone? Dr.
Gardner's wife was at a birthday party in Palm Springs last night.
She's been notified about the death and a friend is bringing her home.
I'm gonna go take a look in the house.
Yeah, I'll be up in a minute.
Glo? Glo! Here I am.
Oh! Ow! I'm okay.
Here I come.
Hey.
Hey, 'Chelle, I'm -- I'm over here.
Hey.
The shooter came up through here.
He'd probably get scratched up, but he'd avoid the perimeter alarm and the gate cam.
What'd you find inside? It looks like a grab and go.
No sign of the victim's wallet, watch, or phone.
The medicine cabinet was cleaned out.
But all of the art and electronics weren't touched.
Sheppard.
Yeah, okay.
Mrs.
Gardner has just arrived.
Mrs.
Gardner? Yes? Hi.
I'm Detective Dulcett.
This is Detective Sheppard.
We're very sorry for your loss.
Ma'am, in order for us to find the person who did this -- Oh.
Are you okay? It's okay.
Here.
Sit down.
I'm sorry.
A friend of mine gave me a Xanax on the drive home.
It's okay.
We understand.
I can't believe that John's gone.
He made all the decisions.
I'm not sure what to do.
Is there anybody you can call? A girlfriend is coming over later.
Mrs.
Gardner, why don't you take some time and rest, and we can come back later this afternoon and talk then.
Thank you.
I thought you were gonna go back to the house so you could take the kids to school.
No, James flew in last night, and the boys stayed at the hotel with him.
Oh, is he here for a court thing? No, it's an us thing.
I mean, it's a good us thing.
The buyers of our old house finally closed escrow, so we're gonna sign the papers tonight.
That is a good thing.
Oh, are these from the website? Yeah.
It's crazy, right? The butt lifts, the tummy tucks.
Did you see the girl who had the elf ears? Yeah.
I probably would have started with the nose, but whatever.
All right, look -- I'm starting to think about this, right? And I'm starting to think what -- I want to hear you say this killing was personal.
Okay.
It was personal.
- I want you to mean it.
- I do.
- You do? - Well, I don't know.
I think I do.
Because if it's personal, I can tell the Captain there wasn't some random lunatic running around the hills up there and all the Gardners' rich-ass neighbors will calm the hell down and quit calling 911 every time a dog farts or a truck backfires.
Sir? Captain Litvack is on the phone again.
He's holding for you.
Personal.
Why not? Okay, so when you say "personal" Well, I don't think this is just some random robbery gone wrong, you know? I mean, look at all the moving parts that the shooter had to manage.
Okay, you got access, alarms, camera, neighbor -- I mean, that's a whole lot of effort for what? A-a-a bottle of pills, a wallet? I mean, that's crazy, right? Hmm.
And why shoot him like that, you know? I mean, the guy is sitting there blissed out in his hot tub.
I mean, why kill him if he wasn't a threat, unless killing him was the point? Okay.
Motive? You know, what -- love, money, revenge.
I mean, he was a rich man.
Let's start with money.
Who stood to benefit the most from his death? Here's another one.
So, more fan mail from your new little friend? You make it sound like it's more than it is.
My bad.
I thought the notes and the presents and the e-mails from Detective Cummings for the past two weeks fooled me into thinking that he wants to go out with you.
"Are you thirsty yet?" Why aren't you going out and having a drink with this man -- this sexy, sexy man? I I I don't know.
I don't know, and I don't want to think about that right now.
Let's just, uh -- let's head over to Beverly Hills, okay? That's where Gardner's practice was.
And he had a partner -- a guy named Nolan Miller.
- We really should go talk to him.
- All right.
Uh, excuse me.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Can you hold, please? Yeah, we're here -- Hi.
I can reschedule you with Dr.
Miller.
Yes, one moment.
Thanks for holding.
Yes.
Tomorrow we've got -- Excuse me.
Oh, I-I'm m m sorry.
No problem.
We're just, uh, we're here to see Dr.
Miller.
Oh.
Okay.
Well, just hang on.
We're just, uh, we're here to see Dr.
Miller.
Okay.
Oh.
You have to see one of these before-and-after pictures.
They're amazing.
- Better.
-Hmm.
- Better.
- Mm-hmm.
- Way too big.
- Yeah.
Oh.
You know what? Straight helps.
Mm.
Oh, my God.
What the hell is that? Oh, are you serious? - It's a -- - No, I know what it is.
I have one.
I just -- I just -- never seen one look quite like that.
Maybe that's why she came in and got it fixed.
Wow.
That's the same one? Alrighty then.
Oh.
Oh.
That's one you don't see in the books.
She'll be beautiful in two weeks.
I'm Rhonnie.
I'm Dr.
Gardner's assistant.
Dr.
Miller is still in surgery.
He's, um, he's trying to cover all of the post-op patients.
Okay.
I'm sorry.
It's okay.
I can't believe that someone wouldUm, was it a robbery, or That's what we're trying to figure out.
Do you know anybody that might want to harm him? The man helped people.
You know, he, uh He saved lives.
You mean like yours? Uh, Dr.
Gardner helped out at several women's shelters.
A lot of the women would come in with fractured jaws and -- and broken noses.
Dr.
Gardner would -- would fix them up.
Were you one of those women? He -- he gave me a new life.
I had dated a guy, and he had a temper.
I finally got up the nerve to leave But he tracked you down.
At -- at -- at the shelter.
He said he was sorry and You know, that he loved me, and I-I didn't -- I didn't even see the razor.
But, uh, after he cut me, he laughed And he said that nobody would ever want me.
So that's when you met Dr.
Gardner.
Uh, all I have now are these revisions.
It's a term we use to, you know, repair something and improve it.
How did this man feel about Dr.
Gardner helping you? Did it seem to upset him at all? Did he ever threaten either one of you? UmNo, well, you know, Darryl's changed.
He, um -- he did an anger-management program when he was inside.
52 weeks of meetings.
What's Darryl's last name? He didn't do this.
O-o-okay.
Oh, please -- don't mess up his parole.
He is -- he's not a murderer.
- Then there is nothing to worry about.
- Look, Rhonnie, you really need to give us Darryl's last name.
I-it's Carson.
Okay.
Just tell Dr.
Miller that we're gonna need to come back this afternoon.
What time does he get out of surgery? Um -- after 3:00.
Oh, that's Lisa Gardner.
She's our flagship patient.
He operated on his own wife? Oh, no.
She's, uh, Dr.
Miller's patient.
Oh.
Excuse me.
Yes.
Thank you very much.
All right, look, I'm gonna get ahold of Buerge and see if he can pull Carson's jacket.
Maybe he can get a work address from his parole officer.
The way Rhonnie talked about Dr.
Gardner -- you think they were an item? Eh, probably more reverential than romantic, but maybe the old boyfriend has a different opinion.
If you could revise one thing, what would it be? You mean like surgery? I don't know.
I'd do my feet.
I hate my feet.
In a perfect world, I'd have long, lean, elegant feet.
Well, who sees your feet? I do.
And if I did it, I'd do it for me, not some foot-digging dude, if that's what you're asking.
So, what would you do? I don't know, you know.
I mean, nothing hangs quite the way it did, if you know what I mean.
And a couple of nine-pound babies didn't do me any favors.
And, again, there's always the flaming elephant in the room.
I guess I could do my scars.
I hadn't really thought about it for quite some time, but I don't know.
What do you think? I really don't know much about them.
I mean, do they bother you? Hang on.
Got another e-mail from Buerge.
A picture of Rhonnie Johnston pulled from Darryl Carson's case file.
Lovely.
Mr.
Carson.
Mr.
Carson! Darryl Carson! Hey, you should never interrupt a saw operator.
Detectives Dulcett and Sheppard.
We'd like to speak to you for a moment, sir.
What happened to your face? Well, there was a time when I might have said, "What happened to yours?" But I've bettered myself of late.
Congratulations on that, sir, but the question still stands.
What happened to your face? I'm gonna go back to work, ladies.
We need to ask you some questions about the murder of Dr.
John Gardner.
- Rhonnie send you here? - Where were you last night, sir? She trying to drag my name into this? No, see, you already did that when you took a razor blade to her face.
Now just answer our question, okay? - Where were you last night? - Leave me the hell -- Bitch! Yeah, I'm a bitch with a badge.
Get up! I got an alibi.
I was in the system all night.
- Where? - Hollywood station.
Lucky for me, I got popped for some B.
S.
bar fight, huh? I mean, I'm not always this good-looking.
What time were you arrested? Early, like 11:00.
Oh, okay, so -- that's long enough to get down the hill from the Gardners', go find a bar, get a couple of drinks, and settle your nerves after killing somebody, right? Hey, come on.
I think he picked that fight so he could establish his whereabouts.
What do you think, 'Chelle? Oh, yeah.
He just said it was some bull-- I didn't kill Gardner.
Yeah, but you threatened him in the past.
You knew where to find him, you knew there'd be drugs and cash, and, from the burglaries in your rap sheet, you knew how to get around home-security systems.
And there's even an old gun charge.
I wasn't convicted of that.
Man, this is all her fault.
Rhonnie always loved playing the victim.
So it's her fault that you sliced her face open like that? I'm not proud of that.
She turned out okay, didn't she? I mean, hell, that doctor even gave her a better nose.
So you've seen her.
One of the conditions of your parole is that you have no contact with Rhonnie Johnston.
I saw her at the mall a few months ago.
I didn't even wave, okay? Rhonnie's no good for me.
I know that now.
Did she tell you she was banging that doctor? Yeah, how do you think she paid for that new face? I don't really care about all that.
I really don't.
I don't care whether it's true.
And who can blame her? He's rich, successful, handsome.
She must have eaten him up after putting up with you.
I didn't kill -- you know what? Write it down.
I want to know where you were, I want to know the name of the bar, and you'd better be specific.
'Cause nothing would make us happier than keeping you off the streets for a very long time.
I really hate that guy.
Yeah, well, I hope we find something to hold him, but I don't think he killed Gardner.
I mean, a guy like Carson, he gets pissed at you, he doesn't sneak up and put a bullet in the back of your head.
No, a guy like that, he -- he carves his name in your face.
So you really don't think he did it? Hey, Sheppard, Dulcett.
I got uniforms canvassing all around the Gardners' house, but you know how rich people are about answering their doors.
Maybe it depends on the face they see when they open the door.
Believe me, I had every intention of making detective rookie here hike those hills in his Sunday go-to-meeting shoes, but then the bastard went and did something useful.
Well, shame on you, detective.
I've been looking at the Gardners' medical practice -- credit cards, mortgages, insurance.
He's had more than his share of lawsuits.
Great.
Well, keep us posted.
Seriously, you run in these things? Well, seriously, can you run at all? Look, it's after 3:00.
Let's head over to Beverly Hills and talk to Dr.
Miller, okay? Okay.
- There she is.
- James! - Is everything all right? - Everything's fine.
Well, it's good to see you again.
And congratulations on finally selling that house.
Thanks.
Congratulations to you, too.
What's that? Salt.
Uh Okay.
Don't eat that.
Felix said he got married again.
Yeah.
UhThai woman.
Bai-ming.
She's nice.
They're -- they're very happy.
- You're like two hours early.
- Yes.
I, uh, thought maybe we could, uh, go somewhere, and, uh Talk.
Well, now, you said that like it was a bad thing.
No.
I-I don't mean that.
I have to be somewhere, so Okay.
Did you bring the thing for me to sign? I did.
Right here.
Oh.
Brought a pen, too.
So you're sure that we're getting the best price? I'm sure we're not gonna get any price unless you sign it.
Are you, uh Feeling resistant again? No, I'm not feeling resistant, I'm just -- you know, I'm just not wanting us to get taken to the cleaners.
- It's a good house.
- Yes, it is.
If you're having any doubts, I'm more than happy to talk about them.
No.
I'm good.
I am good.
So, um, walkthrough is at 7:00? - Yes.
- Great.
- I'll see you tonight.
- All right, I'll see you then.
Okay.
Oh.
James looks good.
Yeah.
- Everything okay with you two? - Yeah.
You know, look, I'm always gonna love him, right? He's the father of my kids.
Man, he has to analyze everything, and sometimes it's just exhausting, you know? Yeah, that's the downside of being a shrink.
He probably can't shut that part of his brain off.
Yeah.
It's funny -- when we first started dating, we used to stay up all night talking.
Just talking.
He was, like, the first person who really wanted to know all about me.
Every detail, good or bad.
Hmm.
I guess that's part of what made me fall in love with him.
Hmm.
Yeah.
There's nothing like somebody who really gets you, you know? It's like a drug.
Until it's not.
After a while, it was like, you know, "Can't we just be in the moment and not put every single feeling under the microscope?" Relationships.
Yeah.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Hi.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Will you hold, please? Thank you for holding.
Yes.
Dr.
Gardner's office.
Can you hold, please? I can't help it.
It's just sitting there.
Look at this one.
Dr.
Miller: We sent everyone home.
We got through all the must-see cases.
What a terrible day.
I guess there'll be a lot of those.
You know, I worry about Lisa.
She's always depended so completely on John.
I understand that Dr.
Gardner did a lot of pro bono work.
Did that interfere with the practice? That work always generates P.
R.
, and it's always very good for the business.
You know, but, besides that, I think John really needed to feel serious again.
You can only do so many double-D augmentations without starting to feel a bit ridiculous.
That's us in college.
Me, John, and Lisa.
Hmm.
Wow.
I wouldnever have guessed that that was Lisa Gardner.
Thank you.
"Thank you"? What the hell was that? It's like he created her.
Maybe she wanted to be somebody else.
Yeah.
I mean, she's such a beautiful woman, but she just seems Fake? Trapped, you know? I mean -- you know what? The more I'm thinking about it, the more I'm starting to feel like Lisa Gardner has motive.
Who knows? Maybe she got tired of being revised and decided to cash out.
Hey, did -- did Romeo ever find those insurance documents for the Gardners? Let's give him a shout.
So, how much does Mrs.
Gardner stand to benefit? Well, her husband's policy pays her about five mil.
Add the house in the hills to that -- just about nine mil all-in.
I might bend a couple rules for that kind of payday.
What about Dr.
Miller? Miller is worse off without him.
Right now, I would say that it's the widow who stood to gain the most.
Oh.
Here she is.
That's her? She seems pretty frail.
Maybe she was just designed to look that way.
How can I help? It's standard procedure for us to investigate the beneficiaries of a murder victim.
I understand.
Especially when the insurance payout is substantial.
Let me make this easy for you, detective.
Yes, I'm going to inherit a lot of money, but I didn't need to kill my husband to get it.
John didn't want anyone to know about it, but he had stage IV brain cancer.
He had less than three months to live.
Bad news about Rhonnie's ex.
Looks like Darryl Carson's alibi checks out.
.
The bartender and two other customers put him in the bar at the time of the murder.
Damn.
You know, I really hate to kick this guy loose.
Yeah, me too.
You know, we can hold him overnight for that stunt he pulled in the lumberyard.
May make him think twice about going all neanderthal next time he -- Afternoon, detectives.
Hey.
A buddy of mine from patrol.
Look at you, all proud of patrol.
You still missing the action? Some days less than others.
Anyway, my buddy stopped this tagger in Hollywood a couple hours ago.
Kid had more than spray paint in his backpack.
"Dr.
John Gardner.
" Do you think this kid is the shooter? No.
I already looked into it.
He has a solid alibi.
What about prints on the bottle? S.
I.
D.
pulled a couple.
They're running them now.
I hate to upset the L.
T.
, but this could be the very thing that he doesn't want it to be.
A random home invasion? Eh, I'm still not buying it.
I just keep thinking, who benefits most from Gardner's death, you know? Look, the wife had, what -- a couple months to wait before he was dead anyway? And the partner is worse off without him, you know, so Hey, that tagger in there -- did he know the name of the guy who sold him the meds? No, but he's gonna show us where he scored.
I mean, I figured we'd sit on the spot, see if the dealer comes back.
You going, too? Yeah, why not? There's always room for one more.
Well, as much as I would love to chaperone, I have got some papers to sign tonight.
You guys have fun.
All right.
Night.
Initial here and here.
Last one.
That does it.
The new owners take possession as of 7:00 a.
m.
tomorrow morning.
- Okay.
- Congratulations.
Thanks very much for all your help.
Mm-hmm.
- Oh, your pen.
- Thanks.
Thanks again.
What are you gonna do with your half? Well, I already spent most of it, you know, going in on the house with Davey.
You mean when you rescued him again? Sorry.
Old habits.
The kids will have mostly good memories of this house, won't they? We used to We used to laugh a lot here, you know? Remember how you could hear everything in this house? It was I miss the bar at Hal's.
You want to get a drink at Hal's? Hello? You thirsty? Well, that still works.
This part was always pretty good.
Yeah.
We haven't done that in a while.
No, we haven't.
It's a nice way to say goodbye to the house.
Can I ask you a question? Sure.
Did my scars ever bother you? You know the answer to that.
Why are you asking now? I don't know.
No reason.
There's always a reason.
James, I swear to God, you got to stop doing that.
- I'm sorry.
- Okay.
I'm sorry.
It's okay.
Good morning.
Good morning.
You guys have any luck with that tagger last night? Pssh.
No.
Romeo and Buerge are taking him back out this morning.
They're staking out the place where the kid scored the meds, hoping the dealer makes an appearance.
Hey, all your escrow papers get signed last night? You guys close the deal? Yep.
Closed the deal.
What? Really? You and James? W-w-what, was it being back in the old house again? What? I don't know, you know.
It just sort of happened.
Okay, so, did you talk about it afterwards? No.
The last thing I wanted to do is have a big ol' talk.
Well, maybe it's time -- you know what? R.
A.
C.
R.
has compiled those street-view surveillance videos from the Gardners' neighborhood.
I'm gonna watch it in the conference room.
You want to come? Ohhhh.
All right.
This is the only cam on the block with a view of the street, and this is from below the hill, 11 minutes before the gunshot.
Do we at least have the round trip? Yes, we do.
It is 21 minutes later.
Right there.
All by himself on both sides of the murder.
Not that his own mother could I.
D.
him from this tape.
Yeah, that's got to be our guy.
Now, all we have to do is find him and get him to give up whoever hired him.
Lieutenant? I just got a call from Wilshire Division.
Rhonnie Johnston, the woman who worked for Dr.
Gardner Well, she was found dead in her apartment this morning.
You should go over and see if it connects the Gardner case.
- Is that him? - No.
That's him, in the hoodie! Hey, man.
What flavor'd you get? What? Get on your knees! Hands behind your back.
On your feet.
Hey, Buerge, this man's a doctor.
Card's name says he's John Gardner, M.
D.
No, no, I found that.
Look, these aren't my pants.
I found these pants.
Mm-hmm.
Nice save, rookie.
Thank you.
I'd have hit him harder.
Yeah.
- Good thing he went your way.
- Yeah.
I can't get a confirmation that Darryl Carson is still in central jail.
How is this possible, when we put him in the system ourselves? You know how it is.
Sometimes people slip through thecracks.
I got to get a BOLO out on Carson.
Keep checking central jail.
We got to find him.
If he did this Hey, 'Chelle, come here and look at this.
One sec.
They're receipts from the Four Seasons Hotel.
Look whose name the room is booked under.
Dr.
Nolan Miller? Champagne, couples massage.
Rhonnie Johnston was having an affair with Dr.
Miller? Yeah, but I-if Gardner was the one that she idolized What if she was trying to make him jealous? Okay.
What if, somehow, Carson knew and then he got out of jail last night? Hang on.
Sheppard.
Yeah, okay.
All right.
I'll be there.
Buerge and Romeo picked up the shooter.
I'm gonna go down there and talk to him.
He may have been the one who killed Rhonnie, as well.
It's Detective Dulcett again.
Have you found this guy Carson? Oh, come -- come on.
How hard could it be? You're worried that Carson somehow got out and killed Rhonnie Johnston.
Yes, sir.
He was a no-show on the bus to court this morning, and nobody can seem to tell me where he is.
I'd love to say it's impossible for a grown man to get lost in the system, but with a daily pop of 19,000, you and I both know that's not true.
Marlene? Yes, sir? Would you please get me the intake desk at county jail? Of course, sir.
Right away.
Thank you.
- Who'd you talk to at county? - The watch commander.
I also spoke with Carson's parole officer, but he didn't get a notification of parole hold.
What about Wayside? Maybe county was too crowded.
Nobody has ever heard of him at Wayside.
I checked all the jails.
- Son of a bitch.
- Absolutely, sir.
Sir, county for you on line one.
Thank you so much, Marlene.
Oh, you're quite welcome, sir.
What? Her cat threw up last night.
She's worried.
I didn't say nothing.
This is Lieutenant Valdez at R.
H.
D.
Patch me through to Lieutenant Moran, please.
We were on a robbery table together.
This guy is exhausting.
Hey, Pete, it's Felix.
Yeah, it's been a while.
She's good.
Thanks for asking.
Actually, Gail and I split up about three years ago.
I'm remarried now.
Bai-ming.
Bai-ming.
She's Thai.
Thailand.
Yeah, I-I like the food, too.
It's coconut milk.
Oh, my God.
Yes, it is a refreshing surprise.
Listen, Pete, I need -- Pete, I need your help.
Yeah, we sent you guys a Darryl Carson -- resisting, battery on a police officer.
Nobody at your place seems to know where he is.
Well, he just came off a deuce at Corcoran, so he knows the tricks.
Maybe he's hiding out at psych or the medical dispensary.
Yeah, I do know a place that's very authentic.
It's in the strip mall in Hollywood.
Okay.
Thanks.
He's checking.
Okay.
Guess who gets to take Moran out for authentic Thai next week.
Thank you, sir.
Darryl Carson.
He was in a bar fight in Hollywood yesterday.
They got him.
Y-you can hang on to him for now.
Thanks, Pete.
He was in the infirmary all night.
Said he had a migraine.
So, somebody else killed Rhonnie Johnston.
Looks that way.
Thank you, sir.
Who is she? You've never seen her? Am I supposed to remember everybody that I see? How about everybody that you've killed, starting with last night.
Is she the reason I'm here? Because that's easy.
I've never seen her, and I have an alibi for last night.
You can check.
I was at my cousin's house.
- How about the night before? - Uh, I don't know.
I'll check.
Look, this is very, very bad.
I know, and it's because of the credit cards.
Look, I've already explained to the other cops that these are not my pants.
It's not your pants that are getting you in trouble, Toby.
It's your hat and your hoodie.
You were wearing them in the video.
You're on a security camera a couple blocks away from the Gardners.
I saw you on it just like I see you now.
You haven't changed your clothes.
Yeah, but look, a lot of people dress like me, and a lot of people look like me.
Yeah, okay.
You know what blowback is, Toby? When you fire a weapon like the .
38 that killed Dr.
Gardner, something pretty amazing happens.
The discharge creates a vacuum that sucks back debris as far as 18 feet away.
And you were less than four feet away.
That means that you have got little bits of the doctor's hair, blood, and brains all over you.
Someone paid you to kill Dr.
Gardner -- someone who didn't have the courage to do it themselves.
This was not your idea.
Now, I don't really think that it's fair that you get punished while that person gets away.
Do you? Who came to you, Toby? Hmm? Who paid you to do this? Dr.
Nolan Miller, you're under arrest, sir, for the murder of John Gardner.
Please put your hands behind your back.
Call my attorney.
Hey, 'Chelle, why don't you finish this and take him downtown, okay? I'm gonna check something out.
I'll be there in a little bit.
You got it.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say or do will be held against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney.
Sorry to keep you waiting, gentlemen.
We were just tying up some loose ends in the Rhonnie Johnston murder.
You knew that she was killed last night? My client has nothing to say.
Of course.
Dr.
Miller isn't being charged with her murder.
It's just that since you worked with the victim, we thought that you would want to know.
We suspected Darryl Carson, Rhonnie's old boyfriend.
He had a motive, priors, and he was primed.
But we have since confirmed that Mr.
Carson was locked up, and so the number of suspects has gotten smaller.
So, who killed Rhonnie Johnston? We found these in her apartment.
That's your client's name and his credit-card number.
It was used for champagne, couples massages.
And then when we arrested you in your office this afternoon, I noticed a look that you got from Lisa Gardner.
So I drove back to the Four Seasons and I took the receipts and a photo, and no one there remembered seeing you with Rhonnie Johnston.
But everyone remembered seeing you with Lisa Gardner.
Rhonnie must have gotten these from your office and saved them as proof.
But then, last night, it dawned on her -- you had motive.
So she confronted you, maybe she threatened to tell the police, and you went over to her apartment, tried to reason with her, pay her off -- anything but let her ruin the plan.
But she was loyal to Dr.
Gardner, and the only way to shut her up -- I mean, really shut her up -- is to strangle her, right? But here is the best part of all.
The best part of all is how you have been hung out to dry.
It must have really been a dream come true for you when she made her move a couple of months ago.
Yeah, but women like Lisa Gardner are really expensive.
You really had us fooled there for a while.
I mean, I just could not figure out how you stood to benefit from your partner's death.
I mean, the insurance was only gonna pay you, what, 5 million? But you stood to make more than that from the practice.
And you probably already know this, but since you're responsible for Dr.
Gardner's death, you lose all claim to the $5 million.
Here's the thing that I don't think that you saw coming.
I found a separate insurance policy.
I dug it up with two of our forensic accountants.
Took the better part of the afternoon.
Now, guess who gets the business' $5 million insurance payout should you go down.
Oh, come on.
I think you know the name.
Lisa.
Ding, ding, ding! Lisa Gardner.
Yes.
She gets your money and her money to spend, all to herself.
And the real kicker is she didn't have to feel bad about setting up her husband, because he was dying anyway.
What? John Gardner had terminal brain cancer.
He had just under three months to live.
So, you see, the twist in all of this is that Lisa Gardner's plan was not to get rid of her husband.
No, it was to get rid of you.
So, here is the question that I have for you, Dr.
Miller.
Since you are the one who designed this monster How would you like to be the one to take her apart? Get out of the pool, Mrs.
Gardner.
Dr.
Miller gave you up.
He told us everything.
I don't understand.
Get out of the pool.
You can get dressed, or I can take you downtown like that.
It's up to you.
And you know what? Please don't bother with that whole stumbling fake-frailty thing.
I mean, that really started to bother me.
- You think you know who I am? - No, I don't.
I think that you're a woman who made a choice.
You made the outside beautiful because the inside is socorrupt.
And now that Nolan Miller sees that -- well, he's gonna testify against you.
You can put me on the stand.
It'll be his word against mine.
Yes, and I am sure that you will play that part brilliantly! The broken, victimized widow.
But unfortunately for you, Mrs.
Gardner, juries tend to believe doctors.
Give me your hands, please.
Lisa Gardner, you are under arrest for conspiring to murder John Gardner.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
Okay.
Good night.
Love you.
See you in a couple of weeks.
Nick is I know.
- He's a handful.
- Yeah.
So, uh, when's the cab coming to pick you up? I've got a couple of minutes to talk, if that's what you're asking.
No, I was actually asking when the taxi was coming to pick you up.
I'm kidding.
I really enjoyed last night.
James -- just listen for a second, okay? I'll be brief -- for me.
And you are welcome to talk, but you're not obliged in any way, okay? Although it is welcome.
Last night was lovely.
I could be with you like that a million more times.
That part's always been easy for us.
Always.
You asked me if your scars bothered me.
They don't.
Is back where you used to know And you and I both know the problem has never been your scars.
It's about The sharing of the story of your scars.
Of what your mother let happen.
And as much as I love what we had, and miss it Hold onto your special friend I can tell that it's time for you to share your story with someone else.
Now you stay inside this foolish grin though any day, your secrets end then again years may go by You're a good man.
Okay.
I'm gonna go.
Okay.
Yeah.
You saved your own special friend I'll see you in a couple of weeks.
Yeah.
I will see you in a couple of weeks.
You stay inside this foolish grin when, every day your secrets end then again Hey, guys? Years may go by years may go by