Battle Creek (2015) s01e07 Episode Script

Excuse me.
Excuse me.
Okay.
FBI's beating us to our crime scene now? Milt found out about the case first.
There was nothing I could do.
What? How'd he find out? Facebook.
Two teenagers stumbled onto the scene and posted it.
Somebody tipped off Milt when it went viral.
Apparently, he has quite the following online.
Yeah, and in his continued effort to collect "likes," he offered to help.
Why so much press? We find Jimmy Hoffa? That foot was in the water.
It has a buoyant, rubber-sole sneaker, so it's either a very recent killing, and the killer dismembered our victim, and then They dumped the entire body.
There's no indication of trauma at the point of severance.
The foot must have detached and floated to the surface.
We're dredging the lake now.
We also took a sample of the DNA, and if we're lucky, we'll find a match in the system.
Hey, I don't need luck or a computer, or even the rest of this body to tell me that this victim here was entangled in some sort of criminal activity.
The swoosh is too thick, the stitching is unevenly spaced the mid-sole has dots, this shoe is a knock-off.
It's quite possible that he bought a pair, but it's also quite possible that he was in the business.
How do you know this? Growing up, I got knock-off shoes for my birthday.
That's an interesting gift.
Which birthday? All of them.
Um Absolutely not.
Russ, I need you to go and see Constance.
We don't need help.
We have the FBI.
They know everything.
Whoa, whoa, whoa who's Constance? She's a con artist.
She knows this world.
She's been in prison about a year on a six-year sentence, for using fake iPhones to con a cell phone store.
So I'm assuming Constance is the one who bought you the shoes every year? Someone close to you? Someone who loves you? Wrong.
She's my mother.
Interesting.
Our assumption is these shoes weren't sold in Foot Locker or any other reputable retailer, which means that they're probably The expression, "Why are you making a federal case out of this" springs to mind.
She wants to know why you're in Battle Creek.
Oh.
Of course.
We-we-we set up a satellite office here to assist the local authorities with local crime.
Interesting.
Yeah.
You have really great skin.
Thank you but if-if we could People as good-looking as you don't get fired or demoted so easy, so you must have really screwed up.
Or you weren't fired or demoted, you want to be here because, for you, it's not about the glory, it's about the job.
And I can tell from your blush it's true.
You really care.
You're a fool.
She's conning you.
To what end? Once again, you're a fool.
You do foolish things.
She's a con; she cons.
Your victim didn't buy or sell these shoes.
Birthday gift? - Hmm? - No.
He got them as a test run.
The manufacturer made a handful of these shoes to whet the appetite of the distributor.
Then Nike discontinued making the model these were based on, and these never even made it to market.
And if you didn't like the birthday shoes, you should've just said so.
I'm sorry if my refusal to wear them every year wasn't a big enough hint for you.
They looked exactly like the real ones.
No one could tell.
I could.
Ms.
Agnew, do you know which distributors were sent these shoes? No.
Okay, well, see you in five years.
But luckily for you, I know who will know.
And who will also know who's gone M.
I.
A.
Okay, great.
If you could just write that down for me.
Yeah.
You know, the light in here is so terrible, I'm worried I'm going to write the wrong name.
Wow Six minutes.
I can't believe it took you this long to try to con your way out of prison.
Fine, I'll give you the name.
But I've been out of the game for a year.
Markets change, aliases change.
And no one's gonna talk to you.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
Are you serious? Constance here has been extremely helpful.
I think our best option is to take her into the field with us.
No, your best option is to not believe a word that she says.
It's served me well for many years.
It's only temporary.
And we'll be supervising you the entire time.
Of course.
He seems really sweet.
Don't worry, Russell.
It's going to be fun.
I have fallen from the steepest mountain Disarticulation was caused by submerged decay of the ankle joint.
We didn't find a match in our system.
Blood tests reveal that the victim is male.
Foot measurements suggest that he was between five-foot-eight and six-foot-one.
Decomposition, average temperatures of the lake and how well the shoe protected the foot while underwater set time of death between six and 18 months ago.
That's within the time frame you said the manufacturers sent - the shoes.
- Yes, the time frame that my mother pulled out of her ass just happens to fit within the time frame that you pulled out of your ass.
I made imprints of the victim's foot and shoe to run through the system.
And then there's this.
A small puncture wound below the big toe.
There's a matching hole in the shoe right here.
The victim was wearing shoes when it happened.
Yeah, but he didn't replace the shoes.
Which meant that either he was short of cash, - or he was - Or that death occurred immediately after the wound.
So whatever he did to get the wound, it was one of the last things he did before he was killed.
Right.
Constance, how do we find, uh Henry Briggs? Well, first, we eat.
Mmm.
Mmm.
Russell, are you sure you don't want any of this? Sorry, I'm not hungry.
I find it hard to eat, knowing there's a killer on the loose.
So dramatic.
Russell, there's always a killer on the loose.
There always will be a killer on the loose.
That doesn't make this moo goo gai pan any less delicious.
Mmm.
See? You should learn from him.
Relax.
Enjoy.
At some point, we were gonna have to stop for a bite.
Okay.
Excuse me.
Hey, wh-wh-whoa.
Where do you think you're going? To buy a Prada bag.
Hey, Cheng.
Connie? Oh, my God, I didn't know you were out.
Just temporarily.
How you doing? Mid-level counterfeiters, they import in small quantities.
And then they hide their stash in random places to evade the cops.
Well, I wouldn't really call myself mid-level.
Cheng, this is my son, Russell.
He's a cop.
I'm definitely not mid-level.
I-I dream about being mid-level.
But I'm really not even in the business.
The thing about mid-level guys They know how to find the upper-level guys.
We're looking for Henry Briggs.
Henry? Cheng, we're not here to arrest you, but if you keep playing us, we will.
I got an address.
Yeah.
What's your next play? You knew that we wouldn't need you after you gave us the address.
So you wouldn't let us just walk in here unless you had a plan to keep us from sending you back to prison.
Henry's Russian-Mob-connected, so he's not going to fold because you flash a badge.
You want information from him, you're gonna have to finesse it.
So who in this room is capable of finesse? - Wow.
- Yeah.
I'm gonna need better clothes.
How'd it go? I had to ask Guziewicz to buy clothes for my mommy.
Take a wild guess.
Now I have to Uh-uh, time to go, time to go.
Well, what's the hurry? I'm just getting to know your friends.
Did you know both of Holly's parents are accountants? All right, let's go.
Guz said no to the clothes.
Well, maybe I can get something someplace with Holly.
- Oh.
- No.
I'll take you shopping.
How's your mom doing in there? Does she need anything? Oh, I don't think so.
And-and-and she's not my mom.
She's his mom.
Hello.
Hi.
Uh, we've told the last four sales girls the same thing, so maybe you could tell the next four that come through here to come up with a new opening line.
Actually, I don't work here.
Well, that was odd.
Bizarre.
Th-They've been ogling you since you and I walked through the door.
What, seriously? You didn't notice that? Well, you've looked at you, right? I don't really think about that, Russ.
Sure, my parents passed down certain physical traits, but we all get stuff from our mothers, right? You were blessed with deductive reasoning skills from your mom.
Shh.
She's right there.
Hey, listen, she and I might share the same DNA, but we're nothing alike at all.
- Nothing? - Nothing.
She raised you, alone.
I'm sure she sacrificed for you.
She used me.
From the age of six.
I was just I was a prop.
I was helping her out with all of her cons.
You owe it to yourself and Constance to work out your issues, Russ.
Hey, listen.
I love my mother.
But my mother's a crazy, manipulative, lying bitch who doesn't love anybody or anything, okay? Doesn't make me happy.
But it also doesn't eat away at me like it used to.
Oh, boys? I'm ready to go.
Wait uh, uh, how did you? Oh, it was an intricate plan of sales women and a very attractive FBI agent.
Nadine's? How'd you afford Nadine's? Well, honey, this is not my style.
Give me that.
That's my credit card.
- Yeah, same number as last year.
- But there's not enough credit - in my account for this.
- Oh, sure there is.
I raised your limit.
The answer to your security question is your mother's maiden name.
Genius.
We found a match to the shoeprint found at the break-in you had last year.
- Which break-in? - The one where the guy stepped on a nail while he was running for it.
Oh, yeah.
Should've seen that guy try to hop the fence.
You found him? We found his foot.
Ouch.
You got my security footage, right? Yes, but we haven't been able to identify him yet.
You have any idea what unit he was attempting to access? No.
As soon as he saw me, he ran.
Then we're gonna need a list of all of them.
Everyone who was renting from you at the time.
All right.
Come on.
- Hi.
Holly Dale? - Uh-huh.
I'm Max Archer with Battle Creek Intelligencer.
I hear you're the media person for the BCPD.
Yeah.
Not that we really need a media person.
We don't get a lot of requests.
How can I help you? I'm doing a profile on the officer investigating the detached foot at Goguac Lake.
Oh, cool.
You should contact the FBI about Agent Chamberlain.
I'm sure they have a whole "Agent Chamberlain"? No, my story's on Detective Russ Agnew.
Oh.
Cool.
Yeah, he's received a number of citations.
Uh, uh, yes, he has.
Um, I can provide you with the mayor's commendation He's also received a number of civilian complaints, a suspension, illegal searches on private property.
So, I was just wondering why is a man like this still on the force? Russ is a smart and dedicated detective who loves this town.
So, that gives him license to do whatever he wants? Whenever he wants? No, of course not.
So, you agree that his behavior's out of control? Okay, that's not fair.
Yes, Russ may be a little, um rough around the edges Okay.
No.
Wait.
Oh, can I start over? Okay, you don't deal with the press a lot.
I get it.
Um, look, I'm publishing my story in a few days.
I will give you some time to draft up an official statement.
Seriously? You're not going in there without a wire.
Because you're worried about me or because you want to see me dead? I was in jail yesterday.
I'm supposed to be in jail today.
You think he doesn't know that? You don't think he's maybe a wee bit suspicious? Possibly wants to pat me down? If she was gonna run, she would've run while we were waiting outside the change room.
What are you? What? He hey, hey! You're gonna blow our cover! No, no, hey.
Whatever she learns in here, she's gonna dole out to us by the teaspoon.
We need to hear what she hears.
What do you hear? Uh, sounds like, uh Alex Trebek? Hey! Oh! I should've put a sock on the door.
What harm did I really cause? You hijacked a murder investigation to help you track down an ex-boyfriend.
The victim's been dead over a year.
He's waited for justice this long.
Well, you waited this long to get laid.
What are you what are you doing here? Everyone's gone to lunch except you.
You think you have something to prove? There are people who value you.
Why are you wasting time trying to impress people who don't love you at the expense of people who do? You don't get back the time you miss with them, you know? Once you screw it up, you screw it up forever.
Who is that man? Why is his face on the screen? Uh, he's the guy who used to be attached to the foot downstairs.
His face is being put through the FBI system.
Russell! I'm sorry, Constance.
We're gonna have to take you back to prison.
His name is Arnold Mathis.
He's my old partner.
From the con that got me sent to prison.
Oh, how convenient.
Just when we decided to send you back, you all of a sudden remembered this guy Your mom is telling the truth.
Our murder victim is her old partner.
Oh, just-just send me back to prison.
At least I'm safe there.
Come on, no one wants you dead.
You got busted on the cell phone con because of an anonymous phone tip.
You know, the-the police, they found you.
They found the million dollars from the con in Mathis's basement, but no Mathis.
I assumed he skipped town.
We'll need to know the names of everyone you've conned and everyone who knew about those cons.
I didn't tell anyone anything.
Mathis probably told his dad.
Oh, isn't that sweet? His dad was his mentor.
Yeah, the Barrymores of bunco.
And as for my so-called victims In a good con, you don't know you've been conned.
Then the last one was obviously not a good con.
Nick Shaw.
I went into his store, bought an iPhone.
A few days later, I came back with fake burns on my face and a lawyer.
And Mathis played the lawyer? Yeah, we told Shaw the phone exploded and that it was counterfeit.
The guy goes and looks in his stockroom, and finds a box-load of fake phones.
Mathis again? He got a job at the docks under an alias.
He managed to slip the phones into the shipment himself.
Shaw owned five stores.
He didn't want the publicity.
He settled fast and big.
- $1 million.
- Oh, my God.
Okay, we'll talk to your victim and Mathis Senior.
And-and I just hang out here? You got anything I can read while I'm waiting to be killed? You know what? We'll have Font watch over you while you're here, all right? Mae you can come up with a list of all the people that you've victimized.
He told me about his big score.
Then a year goes by without so much as a word.
I could just feel something like this happened.
I take it that the people around here don't know about your time on the chain gang? Actually the church knows about my past.
And they also know that I've moved on from that life.
I think you're conning us.
'Cause people like you don't change.
All that ever changes is the venue, the victims.
Look at that collar.
Collar cost you five dollars.
And now you're living in a house paid for by your latest marks? Your son didn't have a chance.
This is hardly the place, Russ, okay? I think that you turned your son in, so you could send him to prison, so you could take his money.
But when he tried to run, you confronted him, and it ended badly.
He wound up dead, and the cops wound up with the money! You have absolutely no evidence to suggest that any of that is true.
I'm gonna match your voice to the anonymous phone tip.
Say something, anything.
You're right.
I didn't make that phone call.
And I didn't kill him.
But I might as well have.
I've lived a terrible life.
My son became a con man because of me.
He thought his life was made 'cause he made a million dollars.
It's nothing.
Can't save your soul.
You son told you that he made a million dollars? Yeah.
He told me that that was his half of the con.
A reporter came by today.
He's doing a story on Russ.
Really? That's cool.
Yeah.
That's what I said.
Ah.
One of those stories.
Mm-hmm.
And you're worried about Russ? I'm worried about the department.
Of course you are.
Okay.
Uh here's what we're gonna do.
Nothing.
Give Russ a heads-up and draft a statement saying that this office stands by him.
Really? That-that's it? Uh, there's nothing we can do to stop the article? We could revoke the First Amendment, but I think that might take too long.
This office has survived worse.
Russ is a big boy.
He has been suspended before.
I am sure he will be suspended again.
You pretended to be a marriage counselor? That's kind of low, isn't it? Well, marriage counselors are con artists.
I mean, charging someone to talk to you so you can tell them to talk to each other? It's a little harsh? Your wife would certainly think so.
You've got a reminder on your desk from your wife.
The time is underlined three times.
No one underlines something three times unless someone else has forgotten it two times.
You want to avoid the counselor, tell your wife you love her.
Everything else is secondary.
I don't know that anything's that simple.
Especially marriage Tell your wife you love her.
People are idiots.
Oh, Mother.
Mathis's half was a million dollars, so we still have another million out there and a killer.
The cops tore my house apart.
They searched everywhere.
The only money they found was the million in Mathis' garage because that's all there was.
I'd like to take your word for it, but I have zero intention of taking your word for it.
Why didn't the store owner tell the cops how much money he really lost? I got Because he was hiding something, too.
Look.
Nick Shaw, the owner of the cell phone store that you conned He's the nephew of Frank Jerome, the Detroit mobster.
The FBI's been trying to arrest this guy for years.
You conned the Mob? I conned a schmuck with a few cell phone stores.
Forgive me if I didn't check his family tree.
Okay, I suspect that Nick has been laundering Mob money through his store.
That's why he was so eager to settle.
Constance, if you turn over the money, we may be able to take down some serious criminals.
Hey, you conned some really bad people who won't hesitate to hurt you to get what they want, so, please, for once in your life, I'm begging you, just tell me the truth.
I am telling you the truth, Russell.
There's no money.
I didn't lie.
I only got scammed out of $1 million.
Let me tell you our three theories.
One you're telling the truth, so you didn't say anything because there was nothing to be said.
Theory number two You're laundering money for the Mob.
Your business was too small to lose $2 million, so you didn't say anything because it was easier to write it off than it was to try to explain it to the IRS.
Theory number three You didn't say anything because well she cut you in.
Now, this theory, Nick It has the advantage of scaring the crap out of you.
Because if your uncle finds out that this is what we're talking about, then you're gonna wind up a dead man! We got scammed out of $2 million.
Wait right here.
You're very good at your job, Russell.
Thank you, Mother.
Where's the million dollars? He told you what you wanted to hear.
He told you the answer that would keep him alive.
That doesn't mean it's true.
So everyone here is lying except for you.
Does that seem right to you? - Hey.
- What? My people just found the rest of Mathis's body and the murder weapon at the bottom of Goguac Lake.
Got the ballistics report on the murder weapon.
It's a .
38-caliber Smith and Wesson registered to a Jo Ryan.
Well, I'm not familiar with that name.
Are they connected to Uncle Frank's crime syndicate? No.
No, it's it's one of my mother's aliases.
My mother's our killer.
You and Mathis conned Nick Shaw out of $2 million, each hiding your share in a different spot.
And then you killed Mathis so you could take his cash.
Only the anonymous tip screwed you up.
And the police got to his money before you could.
You know, Russ, I'm a little insulted you think I'm stupid enough to shoot a guy with my own gun and then dump the gun with the body.
Well, who knew that you owned a gun? And who had access to it? And who knew your aliases? In answer to all three of those questions she did.
This doesn't make sense.
Okay.
Let's just say I'm wrong and somebody is setting you up for the million dollars.
Then just tell us where it is.
And we'll go find it and find the person who's after it, and then the murder charges go away.
The killer goes away.
Don't you see? I've spent my whole life worried that you were gonna get hurt.
Please don't do this.
Please.
Just just tell me where the money is.
There's there's no money.
Okay, I eliminated all the storage unit renters from suspicion.
There's no connection to Shaw, Mathis or your mother.
I'm sorry, Russ.
That's okay.
Don't worry about it.
Can you do me a favor? My mother probably used a boat to dump Mathis's body.
Can you go down to the marina, see if anyone rented a boat last spring or summer under one of her aliases? Okay.
What? I think you should cut your mom some slack.
I was chatting with her when she was handcuffed to my desk, and I think she genuinely feels guilty about the mistakes she made raising you.
You were chatting with my mother? Yeah.
My mother doesn't chat.
My mother has an agenda.
My mother always has an agenda.
Yeah, well, I think her agenda is to express personal regret Here it is I'm assuming that this list was on your desk during your little soul-sharing session? Fourth page, third name down.
This name is more heavily crossed out than the other ones.
She distracted you so she could cross it out.
Angela Gorée is one of my mother's aliases.
Mathis knew.
He was there for the money.
The money's in that storage unit.
She conned me.
Anybody see my phone? You know, you two should start a support group.
Hey, Russ, I didn't know you were an actor.
Unless you think a million dollars could be hidden in a picture frame, put that down.
And if she didn't care, why would she keep all these mementos? If she cared, Milt, why would she keep everything in storage? You berated Mathis's dad for not loving his son enough to give him a normal life.
I mean, look around.
There are boxes and boxes of normal here.
Your mother perfect? No.
How? Yeah.
We don't need to find the money.
Hey.
I looked you up.
I wanted to get a better sense of your work so I could figure out another story to offer you in trade.
The funny thing is I did find another great story.
You've been arrested several times in Detroit for disorderly conduct, driving under the influence, several other offenses.
Does the newspaper know all that? Are you blackmailing me? - No.
- Do you have any idea what you're stepping into? This is a better story.
Precinct so corrupt, even the office manager's committing crimes.
Agnew gets fired, you get fired.
I get a Pulitzer.
I don't care about my job.
If your criminal record doesn't scare you, here's what I've learned from working here.
Convictions are just the surface.
So, what do you think I'm gonna find if I keep digging? Texts to hookers? Gambling habit? Drug use? You're certifiable.
Fine.
I'll drop the article.
I I hear you're doing some remodeling.
Shut up.
You're here because you're still involved in an ongoing investigation, but everyone in the squad room is too afraid to have you near them.
Doesn't mean we have to talk.
Right.
Sorry.
It-it's just that we have a certain amount in common.
Both single mothers of complicated sons.
My son is complicated.
Your son is ill-tempered, distrustful, impatient and stubborn.
But he deserves to be happy.
So, whatever game you are playing this time, just stop.
Hey.
Niblet got a hit at the boat rental place up at Goguac Lake.
Jo Ryan that would be you Rented a boat up there last year around the time of Mathis's death.
We got means, motive and opportunity.
No, no.
I-I did not rent a boat.
All this proves is that whoever is setting me up is doing a really good job.
If it was anyone other than your mother, you'd find it odd that it's all piling up so neatly, Russ.
Since my choices are trust the evidence or trust her I understand, but what if you could trust her? Is your name Constance Louise Agnew? Yes.
Did you defraud a cell phone store owner a year ago? Yes.
Was your partner in this crime Arnold Mathis? Yes.
Did you receive $2 million as a result of the fraud? Wait.
Wait a minute, you didn't say we were gonna talk about this.
You said we were going to talk about the murder.
I lied.
Repeat the question.
Did you receive $2 million as a result of the fraud? No.
Do you have $1 million hidden somewhere? No.
Did you kill Arnold Mathis? No.
Wh-What's happening there? Wh-Why are you reacting that way? I am not a killer.
Do you love your son? What? Where do you get off asking my mother that question? She's your mother you deserve to know you're loved.
Back off, Milt, all right? I'm a grown man.
Do you love your son? Of course I love my son.
No, Russ, please.
It's wrong.
The machine was wrong.
About what? Which lie wasn't a lie? I love you.
Bye.
Sorry, Russ.
I don't know what's worse: learning your mother's a killer or learning she doesn't love you.
I've always known my mother doesn't love me.
Here to pick up Constance Agnew.
Thank you, Marcus.
We're even.
Glad you called, babe.
Yeah, me, too.
So, where do we go from here? Henry, you know I love you, right? Of course.
I want you always to remember that.
Hey! Turn right.
You conned your mother? Well, technically, I conned everyone, which includes my mother.
Font's phone took a left six blocks up.
The gun registration? There was no actual serial number.
Th-The boat rental? Didn't exist.
You put her in danger, Russ.
You're using her as bait To send her after the money so that she would draw out the killer.
Well, if she just told me where the money is, then I wouldn't have to.
Anyway, she's completely safe as long as - Oh, no.
- What? Font's phone died.
Okay.
We know that she was going west.
Oh, that's great.
That narrows it down to the area between here and Lake Michigan.
Yeah, we just got to think.
You know, th-there's got to be an answer.
We just we just got to figure it out.
Damn it.
Oh, my God.
What? Your mother's innocent.
Yeah, I know.
Well, that means if-if the polygraph was wrong, what else was it wrong about? Hey.
Your mother loves you.
Drive.
Come on, drive.
Let's go.
Let's go.
Go.
Lucky I had a second car nearby.
You knew about the cash? I overheard you and Mathis talking about the cell phone store con.
Wow, so so this, us, th-this was all a con? That's not to say I didn't enjoy myself immensely.
Wow.
You killed Mathis.
I confronted him.
Tried to force him to tell me where his million was.
He didn't.
Then I made the anonymous call so that people wouldn't be wondering why Mathis was missing.
Then I waited for you to lead me to your half of the score.
Thankfully, you are five years ahead of schedule.
Hey.
That's my mother.
I'm gonna get real angry if you shoot her.
Give me that.
Give me that.
Come on.
Come on, come on.
You've been tracking me? Until the phone died.
And then I realized You would never save my damn hockey trophies.
You little bastard.
You conned me.
Turn around.
Good night, Constance.
Good night.
It's 4:30.
I know, it's Little League.
- Excuse me.
- Mm-hmm.
Can you tell me where the DA's office is? Uh, yeah, it's on the third floor.
Uh, right next to the stairs.
Oh, could I ask you something? You work at the Intelligencer.
What is the deal with Max Archer? He really seems to have it out for cops.
Oh, Max.
Between you and me, he has a Napoleon complex.
He has to be at least six-one.
Not unless five-four is the new six-one.
I had to know if you were good enough for my son.
So you conned me.
Relax, you passed.
I blackmailed a man.
For nothing.
As I said You passed.
There is nothing going on between me and your son.
I know, but there should be.
Hey, you're still here? Oh, for a few more minutes.
You out at another marriage counseling appointment? Uh, no, we canceled.
Th-the two of you canceled, and yet you're out? Uh-huh.
Huh.
Thank you, Constance.
Hey.
It's time to go.
Okay.
Hey, Marjorie, it's me.
Is she around? At some point, she's gonna have to talk to me.
Okay, just just tell Mom that I called.
Thanks, Steve.
I know that I was given everything I could take From the moment I was living, I was dying to make Nothing out of something or real out of fake You keep an eye on Milt.
I don't trust him.
Okay.
The mother in the market with her kids in a line Let's go.
Take care, Mom.