Painkiller Jane s01e09 Episode Script

My name is jane vasco.
I could use you on my team.
I work for a secret government agency that hunts neuros.
People who can do dangerous things with their minds.
On my first assignment Something a little weird happened, okay, something really weird.
Until i get some answers i'm getting on with my life, doing my job.
Stocking up on aspirin, because I gotta tell ya, pain's a bitch! Big Line Thirsday.
Arsonist has finally been apprehended by local authorities.
After allegedly burning another house to the ground in north salem last night the serial arsonist and public enemy number 1 for this community has apparently been apprehended.
Trial begins today.
Up to the minute coverage right here on action news.
My partner and I were on routine patrol when we saw the flames.
Would you tell the court what happened next.
We arrived at the samuel's house and saw the suspect fleeing from the scene.
When he refused to obey our orders my partner fired a warning shot.
Was that sufficient to stop the defendant from attempting to escape? No, sir.
I fired at the suspect.
My shot hit him in the leg.
It was at that point that we were able to subdue him and take him into custody.
The police alerted us to the fire just after 10:00 am.
Two of our units responded, including emu.
By the time we got there The fire had already reached the second story of the samuel's house.
How long did it take to get control of the fire? It took about an hour before I felt that it was safe for my men to enter the structure.
Would you tell us what you discovered.
Most of the ground floor was gone.
There was enough left of the support beams to keep the house from collapsing.
After you entered What was your first impressions as to what caused the fire? As we passed through the main entry of the house, I noticed a "hot spot.
" could you explain that? Usually the location where the fire begins is the hottest spot.
Usually you'd expect to see the hot spot in a kitchen, near a stove, or in the case of an electrical fire, near wiring or circuit breakers Something like that.
Was that the case in the samuel's house? No.
My first impression was that the ignition point of the fire was a small bathroom on the ground floor.
Is that unusual? It's not unheard of but, yes, it is unusual.
Unless there's indication of flammable materials or electrical problems.
Given what you saw, did you form an opinion? My first reaction was that, like the others This was an arson fire of unknown origin.
Was there anything else of note about this downstairs bathroom? Yes.
And what was that? We found charred, human remains.
Were these "remains" those that were later identified as lucy samuel's, one of the occupants of the house? Yes, sir.
Thank you.
That's all.
Would defense counsel care to present any witnesses at this time? No, your honor.
We would, however, appreciate an expeditious ruling on our request for bail.
Given the severity of the charges, serial arson and second degree murder, i'm going to rule that the defendant will be bound over for trial and held at the county jail.
Bail is denied.
It's just the preliminary, not the trial.
So where do we go from here? To work.
Connor King.
Ex-cop.
Ex-con.
Kinda cute in a borderline sociopath kind of way.
God, i can't believe i just thought that.
Here's the deal: i'm able to heal, and connor isn't, but he keeps taking one for the team.
Either he's mental or there's more to the man than he wants people to see.
Check that, he's definitely mental, but he's also a good act.
He works hard to keep people at arm's length, but then so do I.
Maybe we're more alike than i'd like to admit.
Except he loves to be hated and maybe would hate to know every once in a while he's loved.
Here's what we're up against.
Public opinion's running pretty high.
People want someone to blame.
There is someone to blame.
A pyromaniac neuro.
I work for the government just like you do.
We know the truth here.
The public doesn't know anything of neuros.
So the truth isn't always the best defense.
That's reassuring.
We're not here to reassure you, we're here to acquit connor.
What're we looking at? Facts that don't look good for connor.
First, he's been identified at three of the six fires.
Because we've been on the trail of the neuro who's been starting those fires.
Go on.
Connor, against your orders, broke position and entered that house.
Yeah, to try and apprehend the damn fire starter.
Look, i understand your thinking.
But i want you to consider for a moment how the jury would react if i put any one of you on the stand and asked you testify to the existence of people who possess the ability to start fires with their mind.
The truth isn't always the best defense.
Witnesses have placed connor at the scene of multiple arsons.
He was apprehended exiting the samuel's house And then there's his criminal record.
Is that admissible? Evidence only requires exclusion when probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury.
The present rule recognizes the practice of admitting evidence for a limited purpose and instructing the jury accordingly.
How the hell did you know that? I read up on it last night.
So the judge can admit connor's criminal record.
Given miss vasco's very accurate recital of the law Yes.
Hell, why even bother having the trial! It sounds as if he's already been tried and convicted.
I'm not going to lie to you.
We're facing an uphill battle here.
But the war's not over until we've taken our best shots at all the evidence.
Given everything you told us, it sounds like truth may be our best shot.
Why don't we tell the jury what we're really dealing with.
It's not as if we can't prove it.
Even if you're right You're sworn to silence and secrecy.
Our hands are tied.
Maybe it's time to cut the knot.
What you should have done is made this all go away before it even started.
You'll have to explain that to me, agent mcbride.
As your superior, i do have connections in high places.
As high as they go.
However, they don't extend into the heavens.
Heavens? What is that supposed to mean? Only god can save connor? Don't give me that crap! Disagreement, i encourage, sir.
I will not tolerate insubordination.
Hell, we've covered up the assassinations of foreign leaders.
Our own leaders! But when it comes to connor king The man was shot at the scene By the police.
The case of the decade, solved.
It was on the front pages before they'd read him his miranda.
How, exactly, did you expect us to make that "go away?" then let us present the truth.
Admit to the existence of neuros.
Only as much as we have to.
Need to know.
And when the prosecution demands proof What then? We give it to them! We've got years of caseloads.
That would not only bring something to the surface that we've worked very hard to keep secret But would compromise your team as well.
"Need to know" rapidly becomes full exposure.
It might be connor's only chance.
And it might not.
Are you willing to see your unit de-commissioned to risk a defense that, chances are, no one would ever believe Despite your proof? And if they did believe it and connor was acquitted The result would be a population in panic and our ability to keep our operations a secret and fight these "things" compromised.
Is one man really worth that much? That one man happens to be innocent.
Soldiers do die in battle.
A soldier dying on the field, in combat, is something that can't be undone.
Connor isn't dead.
You know as well as i do He was always a liability.
Liability? What is that supposed to mean? Feed him to the wolves because you don't like his attitude? Consider this, agent mcbride With all you do know If i were to permit this Put you on the stand Armed with all your evidence Simply because the fires are of unknown origin, you can't prove that a neuro is behind them.
Great.
The first time i get you alone and we've got see-thru doors.
My luck's turned to crap.
You know what they say It ain't over 'til it's over.
What the hell do "they" know? They're out there.
If andre sent you to cheer me up, you should know You really suck at it.
Maybe.
But andre doesn't have my legs.
What aren't you telling me? It's the truth.
He's got lousy legs.
Andre just got word No mention of the team, what we do or neuros.
Great.
So i end up looking like a guy who likes to hang around fires.
Who happens to have a criminal record.
We're trying to keep that out.
We'll come up with something.
My neck in a noose.
Connor, listen it Save it, bowers.
We all know the risks.
I'd rather gone down takin' out one of those mental defects but We don't always get to make that choice, i guess.
Andre's still trying to get the truth out.
No, bad idea.
He'd only compromise the team.
If i have go down for this, i go down.
Fall on your sword, man of honor kind of thing.
The hell with that.
Figure at least maybe i'd get a going away present from you and supergirl.
What? Just nice to know that, even in a moment of strength and character, you're still a pig.
Hang in there.
Guard! Twenty-three years old.
Married just under two years.
Killed in an arson fire.
Those faces are what's going to hang connor.
No Regulations and his past are what's going to hang connor.
If they admit his criminal history.
That's no longer an "if.
" the judge is admitting it.
Look, nobody Not even the top arson investigators could figure out how these fires were started.
Hell, even with my brain, if i didn't know about neuros, i wouldn't be able to figure it out.
Your point? What kind of background does connor have that could make him that much of a specialist? Someone who can outsmart even the best? That's pretty slim, riley? They don't care how they started just that they were.
You have something better? I could lie.
I was there with him.
Since i can't testify as to why i was there Why do i have to admit that i was.
About a half a dozen cops as witnesses? My word against theirs? Enough of this.
I don't need two of my people in prison.
Just get up there and answer the questions.
And put another nail into connor's coffin.
Admitting who we are and what we do is not the only truth here, people.
The truth is that there is a neuro out there who did set those fires.
And who stopped setting them the moment connor was arrested.
Doesn't matter.
We find the person that did this And connor walks.
Let's get to work! Look, if you guys would only stick to my pattern, we might find this guy.
Connor already put a dent in your pattern the day he and vasco staked out the samuel's house.
We all agree on this: every target house was two-stories, painted blue, all within a mile of an interstate on ramp.
And all Except one Have garages facing back alleys.
If you say "Except for one" there is no pattern.
Connor played a hunch and he was right.
Sorry, riley.
If we go strictly by your criteria we could miss the next opportunity.
If there is one.
Well i'm sorry, my database isn't set up to predict hunches.
Well maybe it should.
You're fighting the clock on this He goes on trial tomorrow.
They're calling bill cole, connor's former cell mate to testify.
With bail denied, former police officer and convict, connor king faces arson and murder charges today in day 1 of this gripping trial.
A profile of mr.
King, the man behind the match tonight.
Everyone knows connor is crazy, that's why we love him.
But an arsonist, i couldn't believe it.
And yet He's down! Let's get him! Take care of this! Thanks! So much for falling on your sword.
What the hell did you think you were doing? Trying to save my ass.
Which i might've if vasco didn't pull her hero act.
She took two shots to her shoulder To act like a hero.
She'll get over it.
She was trying to protect you, connor from more than just bullets.
How far do you think you'd get if you got away.
You gonna keep me after school, boss? I'm trying to help, what do you want me to do, just throw you to the lions.
I thought you already did that.
Every man has his breaking point.
I know you.
This isn't yours.
Why'd you run? Listen to me you stubborn son of a bitch, we're trying to help you.
We can't do that if you're hiding something from us.
Why'd you run?! Bill cole's gonna testify.
I know.
We tried to keep your past record out of this But you don't know what he knows.
I read your sheet before i took you on the team.
Tip of the iceberg, pal.
Okay Tell me what i don't know.
Sorry, no can do.
The more i know, the more i might be able to help.
Ain't gonna happen.
You're willing to face a murder two rap.
But you won't tell me about this! Unless you're trying protecting someone.
Hunting down "chip monkeys" isn't the only thing worth dying for.
But not facing the consequences of bill cole's testimony is? Come on! I told you when you brought me on board this team, you knew everything about me you needed to know.
You had my word that i would not jeopardize this team or, intentionally, put anyone at risk.
I think i made good on that.
Anything beyond that promise is personal.
Bill cole's scheduled to testify tomorrow.
Nice to know the date and time of your own execution.
So where are we? Pretty much at square one.
Maureen and i came up dry with everyone left on our list.
Route truck drivers, delivery personnel.
Basically every theory we've been working on.
Nothing.
No one had a hunch? Shut up, riley.
No.
No! I know you're the big boss and you guys go out into the field and grab all the glory but you get to do what you do because i'm in here, doing what i do.
And you know what? I'm damn good at what i do! But you're all willing to risk connor's ass because you trust your instincts, your hunches, more than you do what i'm telling you.
I'm right about the pattern, despite connor's lucky guess.
Have you stopped to think that maybe the reason the samuel's house didn't fit the pattern is because connor did start that fire? You don't believe that.
No, but i do believe that if we worked my theory, we might find out who did.
Alright, run it again.
Alright.
Why the guy targets two-story blue houses is anyone's guess.
He's a psycho.
Maybe he grew up in a house like that.
Hated his mother.
His father.
The color blue.
I don't know.
But why the garages facing alleys? Because it gives him access.
There've been six fires.
And no one's spotted the fire starter.
Why? Every house has been within a mile of an interstate.
What does this mean? The guy's on wheels.
What does he do when he finds his target? Park and walk? Or stash his car somewhere in the alleys.
Maybe even a neighboring garage.
It's a long shot.
Do you have anything better? We'll have to interface with the locals, get out in the field.
Interview some neighbors.
Let's roll.
You're going to do it? Like you said, i don't have any better ideas.
Jane, can i have a word.
Yeah.
I told you yesterday i didn't want you committing perjury.
Change your mind? No.
Then what? What i have in mind is a whole lot worse.
today, the judge in the invisible man arsonist case is going to allow testimony of the criminal background of connor king.
Bill cole, a former police officer and partner of the defendant, is scheduled to take the stand this afternoon.
Stay tuned.
Excuse me? Are you bill cole? Yeah.
Got a message for you.
Someone wants to talk to you.
Just head back out.
Down the hall, through the door on the left.
How are you doing? Against the fence with her.
You'd be dead before your hand hit the knob.
What do you want from us? You going to tell me what this is about? It's about two people who are going to testify against a friend of mine.
You still haven't told us who you are.
The man who will kill you if you do.
Right here? With all these cops around? That would be my problem.
Yes, it would be.
And i don't think you'd take that chance.
Try me.
I'm a federal officer Oh, my god.
So this is how it is.
The "big man," connor king doesn't take any chances.
Can't risk anyone finding out that he and i did time together arson charges.
Alright pal, let's see how much of a risk you're willing to take.
What are these photographs? They're our wedding pictures.
The woman in the photograph is Lucy.
She's She was my wife.
I understand the morning of the fire you left for work at around 8:00 am.
Yes, sir.
And lucy, was it typical for her to be home at that hour? Yes.
Lucy worked part time.
She didn't usually leave the house until around noon.
You were at work when the police arrived.
Yes.
Tell us about that.
Two detectives showed up at my office.
They told me there'd been a fire They said that someone That someone had been killed They asked me to come down to the medical examiner's office to make an identification.
And did you do that? Yes.
It was lucy.
The prosecution calls bill cole to the stand.
Mr.
Cole, would you tell the court how you know the defendant, connor king.
I refuse to answer.
Excuse me? I refuse to answer on the grounds that it could incriminate me.
You and mr.
King served time in prison for crimes committed while you were employed by the metropolitan police.
Isn't that so? Objection, leading the witness.
Your honor.
This witness has been granted immunity.
The fifth amendment doesn't apply.
Mr.
Cole.
The court directs you to answer the questions put to you by the district attorney.
Mr.
Cole.
Have you ever been arrested or served time in prison? Mr.
Cole I refuse to answer on the grounds that it might incriminate me.
Your honor.
Mr.
Cole, the court will not be lenient if you continue to refuse to answer.
Answer the question.
I refuse to answer on the grounds that it might incriminate me.
Alright, court finds bill cole in contempt.
Bailiff! How'd it go? We bought some time.
I don't know how much.
Well, we've got something.
Genius boy strikes again.
At least two neighbors to the previous arsons reported that their garage locks had been broken.
The cops said they found oil stains on the cement in both garages.
Not so unusual for a garage.
Except one of the residents doesn't own a car.
And in the other garage, a one-car garage with the car in it The oil stain was off to the side.
And this tells us? I'm having samples run on the oil stains to confirm But from everything we can tell, the quantity of oil and the location is that our boy shows up to do his dirty work on a motorcycle.
It does fit.
Doesn't give us a name but it gets us a step closer.
Even if you're right I'm not sure this actually helps.
Hell, it's more than we had 24 hours ago.
We're forgetting something Connor rides a motorcycle.
the quality of the material is quite good as are the magnification properties.
Your honor, the defense has stipulated that these towels are the same brand and fiber content as those found in the samuel's home.
Noted.
You may proceed.
Doctor.
Turn on that light, please.
I'm sure many of us rember playing with sunlight and magnification as children.
We'll have to imagine that this is sunlight, coming into the courtroom from the outside.
The degree of magnification would affect the amount of time this would take.
As i said, this sample is quite good.
Doctor, is it possible that a magnifying device that you're holding, could that have started the fire in the samuel's house or any of the other fires? Objection.
Speculative.
Whether the device started the fire or not is not an issue.
To date, there's been no evidence entered to indicate that anyone knows how these fires started.
Sustained.
No further questions.
Doctor, in a typical house fire, would solid glass be completely consumed by heat or flame? Damaged, perhaps.
Completely consumed, unlikely.
So if a device had been used in the fire.
Subsequent investigation would have turned up all or part of those magnifying glasses.
That would be true.
If they were made of glass.
It wouldn't take much more than a match flame to turn these into useless ash.
These are made of spun sugar, highly refined.
No further questions, your honor.
Mr.
Beetle, would you tell the court where you're employed? I own and manage a storage facility just outside of cranston.
This is a facility where anyone can rent space to store their belongings.
Precisely.
Do you recall accompanying my investigators to storage unit 14d, two weeks ago friday? Yes, i do.
Were you with them when they entered the unit? They needed my permission and my master key to gain entry.
Among the contents in the unit, did you come across this box of magnifying devices.
In fact, we found about a dozen boxes.
That is one of them.
Do you recognize this form? This is one of our standard, long-term contracts.
And that particular contract How long has the signatory leased space in storage unit 14d? Two years, three months and fourteen days.
Would you read the name of the person to whom the unit was rented? Connor king.
This is a load of crap! Order! This court will take a half hour recess.
You know about this? Of course not.
Do something! I'm doing the best i can! Is this your best? Is this your best?! Remember this face, beetle, rember it! I don't believe it, connor entered the samuel's house against orders.
So when has connor done anything by the books.
Thought he saw something going on, thought he had a window of opportunity to get the neuro and to get out.
But, from inside the suv, you couldn't see what he was doing in the house.
All you can say is that you saw connor enter the house, saw the fire begin and saw him running out.
What the hell is this? It sounds like you guys really think he's guilty! Nice to know where your friends stand when things get tough.
It's not about what we think.
You just answered the questions the d.
A.
Will put to you.
And by the way, bill cole may not be the only one who could testify against connor.
Why don't you tell them what you were telling me.
What? What we were talking about Connor's hunch.
I was thinking about what riley said the other day about things being simple and logical.
We assume that either connor had to be right or riley had to be right.
But given what we learned about the oil stains in the garages I started thinking What if they were both right? If? Let's assume riley is right about the pattern About the importance of the garages.
The samuel's house didn't have an alley-facing garage and didn't fit the pattern.
Maybe we're not dealing with a pyromaniac at all.
Maybe we're dealing with someone who has a motive.
Think about it, lucy lived in a two-storey blue house.
So The neuro wants lucy dead, or maybe scott To cover his tracks, he torches five other blue, two-story houses.
To avoid the risk of being seen, he looks for houses with alley facing garages.
He doesn't realize there's a crazy genius named riley who sees that as part of the pattern.
By the time he gets to the samuel's place, he thinks it's going to look like just another whack job, blue house arson.
You got that background on the samuel house yet? I'll find something, i just need a little bit more time.
Something connor doesn't have a lot of.
If i was you, i could break every bone in my body, slip through these air holes and walk out of here good as new.
If you were me, you'd look a whole lot better in that orange jumpsuit.
Looks pretty grim, huh? We're working on something.
Don't know yet if it'll pay off.
It might help if you told me what happened.
You starting to think i'm guilty? That's not what i said.
It's just that the more we know You know what i want you to know, darlin'.
That's it.
Yeah, it's going to have to be.
Yeah.
I'm on my way.
I gotta go.
Vasco.
Thanks.
See you in court.
What've you got? I found the original computer file of connor's storage locker rental.
So it's legitimate.
No.
What? According to the receipt, connor's rented this unit for a little over two years.
But that's the date on the contract.
Not the date on the file.
The date on the file is only three weeks old.
Maybe it's not the original version.
If someone saved a duplicate copy wouldn't it have a more recent date? It would.
But every file's embedded with a creation date.
Doesn't matter how often it's modified.
This file didn't exist last month.
Then someone is setting him up.
Here's the kicker.
I traced the computer that created it.
The d.
A.
'S office.
Richard stanley.
Connor's attorney.
What?! Why? That doesn't make any sense.
Yes, it does.
Don't give me that! Who do you think you're talking to?! This has got your paw prints all over it.
Richard stanley works for you and like most of the people who work for you He follows orders.
Setting connor up for that storage locker rental was your idea.
You're a team leader, mcbride.
You're not the commander-in-chief.
I protect my people.
Even if it's from the commander-in-chief.
You don't have the big picture.
I've heard that story before.
Sometimes the "little people" have to be sacrificed for the greater cause, is that it? I don't see the greater cause here, sir? Unless it's protecting your ass.
I don't like your tone.
You're not supposed to.
King's a liability to the team.
And to the work we do.
I made a decision.
It was too late to make things "go away" as you'd hoped we could.
If king goes away for this now, the rest of our problems will go away with him.
Sir I'm not prepared to let that happen.
You're the field op, mcbride.
In battle, it's your call.
Policy is mine.
And policy extends beyond personal feelings and loyalty.
You know that as well as i do.
And you might need to give it some serious thought before you do anything you'll regret.
Richard, here's the new deal.
If i find that you do anything to sabbotage connor's chances to get out of this.
If i don't see that you're doing everything in your power to provide the best defense, i want you to remember this: the government spent a lot of money traing me I'm very good at what i do.
I can approach a man from 100 metres and he'll never hear me coming.
I'll let you decide.
Do you want to spend every day for the rest of your life looking over your shoulder, waiting Let's go.
Well, if that's not a motive for murder, i don't know what is.
Everything's in place.
Stanley has his marching orders.
We've got the new witness.
Crowd control? The judge has agreed to clear the courtroom and hear this outside the jury.
So she finds if it admissible Let's hope it doesn't get that far.
Let's hope it doesn't get too hot to handle.
This court is now in session.
Would you state your name for the court? Ellen drake.
Miss drake It is "miss", isn't it? Yes.
Are you familiar with the blue ridge motel? I know the name, i think Have you ever been to the blue ridge motel? I've driven past it.
But you've never actually been on the premises? No.
Your honor, may i approach? Would you look at these photographs.
Would you agree that those are photographs of you? Yes.
What would you say if i told you that those photos were taken from a surveillance camera located in the lobby of the blue ridge motel? And do you see the time stamps on those photographs? Yes.
They date back at least a year, don't they? Yes.
I expect that the reason you perjured yourself in this courtroom is because you were trying to protect someone.
Is it possible that you lied because on the dates in question at the blue ridge motel, you were there with a married man? Yes.
Mr.
Samuel's On the dates those photographs were taken, were you at the blue ridge motel with miss drake? I should inform you, those photographs are enlargements.
The originals show the entire office area.
Let me ask you again On the date in question, were you at the blue ridge motel with miss drake? Yes.
Would it be reasonable to say for the better part of a year, you had been conducting an affair with miss drake.
Your honor Answer the question.
We're in love.
How very nice for you.
Do you own a motorcycle? Yes.
It's a late model torque speedster? Yes.
You should have it checked for oil leaks.
Riding a motorcycle can be potentially dangerous? I suppose.
I'm curious Your wife, lucy, did she ride? No.
But you had some reason to be concerned for her health or welfare.
No.
Why then did you take out a half a million dollar life insurance policy in her name two weeks before she died.
If anyone in the family was high risk, it would be you, mr.
Samuel's.
I thought that If you notice the time stamp on one of the photographs, november 18th, the night before the fire.
Let me ask you something, mr.
Samuel's.
You claim to be in love with miss drake.
Objection.
Overruled.
You meet for an amorous evening the night before your wife dies in the fire.
Two weeks earlier, you take out an insurance policy for half million dollars in her name.
Objection.
Overruled.
Are you psychic mr.
Samuel's Or do things just have a way of working out for you? Your honor! You set the fire that killed your wife, didn't you? No! In fact, you set all the fires hoping to cover up what you did, isn't that true, mr.
Samuel's? Richard, don't! The hell with you! Case closed you son of a bitch.
Sometimes you have to lose something to gain something.
This time, we almost lost connor.
I suppose what i've gained is the realization that, as much as i try to avoid it, we are a team.
And when push comes to shove we stand beside each other.
Some of us might even like each other.
What's this? No champagne? He is cute, isn't he? Warm bottled water and a briefing in 10 minutes.
Welcome back! Thanks.
Hell, this was easy time.
Maybe for you.
I had to teach these guys logic.
Welcome back.
How's stanley? Nothing major.
Vasco did a pretty good job of saving his hide.
You ask me, he'd do a damn good impersonation of a crispy critter.
Glad to have you back.
Well, that's so easy to say, darlin'.
- Actions speak a whole lot louder than words, - Oh yeah, he's back.
One, big happy family.
You got ten minutes learn it well.