Covert Affairs s01e11 Episode Script

Thanks.
The Career Intelligence Medal.
For a lifetime of service to the Agency.
Congratulations, Paul.
This place gives out more awards than the Boy Scouts.
As a former Eagle Scout, I disagree.
If the real intention was to keep up morale, they'd spike this punch.
Hey, you know, you're still on the clock.
Don't drink and drone.
I'll drink to that.
I just faux-clinked.
You didn't hear it, but that's what I did.
No, I got it.
Cheese? Hells, yeah.
Didn't do as well on the test as you were hoping, huh, Freddie? Maybe this will help.
LEO says GER.
What does that mean? Loss of Electrons is Oxidation.
Gain of Electrons is Reduction.
Thanks, Professor Anton.
You'll do fine.
Hello, Professor Sabine.
Ben Mercer can't save you now.
Annie? Can you come with me, please? My name is Ben Mercer.
I'm a former CIA operative.
Hands up.
Now.
I want to come in from the cold.
Can you hold still, please? We're about to begin.
You don't have to stay here, Annie.
We can fact-check his story with a transcript later.
No.
I want to be here.
Polygraph for debrief of former operative, Ben Mercer.
You entered the Agency straight out of college.
Yes.
You rose to classified level eight.
Yes.
And then, two years ago, you turned your back on us.
I went my own way.
Yes or no, please.
Yes.
Do you hate America? No.
So, it was Annie Walker.
Annie didn' know I was CIA.
Do you know that for a fact? We We need to dispense with the bureaucratic nonsense.
What you need to know is if you can trust me.
And to do that, you need to know what happened two years ago.
I was in Sri Lanka, working with my handler, Jai Wilcox.
I had brought a chemist, a professor named Anton Sabine, to meet with a major arms dealer.
Sabine was unaware of the danger that I was putting him in.
Did the CIA ask you to do this? Since I was deep cover, it was my call.
It was the only way I could have gotten inside the arms dealer's organization.
They needed a chemist.
I provided.
I was trading a life for access.
But you didn't end up doing this.
I met Annie.
And, um I admired her spirit.
I realized that there were more noble ways to lead one's life.
So, I made a change.
You went rogue.
I refused to submit an innocent man to a life of making weapons for terrorists.
Instead, I shepherded him underground and I found him a new life as a science teacher in Hong Kong.
And this was for you to decide? At the end of the day, I can only trust myself.
What about Annie Walker? What about her? Do you trust her? Yes.
Thanks, Annie.
We need to go into matters above your clearance.
Hey.
Hi.
Jai, were you ever going to tell me that you were stationed in Sri Lanka? Or that you knew Ben Mercer? I would like nothing more than to explain things to you.
But so much of what I need to tell you is classified.
The problem with this job is that excuses like that are valid.
How well did you know him? For a while, I thought I knew him well.
Hello, Arthur.
You've been a naughty boy.
Because I've been systematically eliminating security threats that the Agency is too hypocritical to address? What are you doing here, Ben? At the Agency.
Today.
The scientist that I relocated two years ago, Professor Anton Sabine, has been abducted.
And I suspect that the arms dealer, Felix Artigas, has finally found him in Hong Kong, and taken him, against his will, to Sri Lanka to develop chemical weapons.
If Artigas gets Sabine's technology, he will be able to supply terrorists with virtually undetectable chemical IEDs.
That's why I'm here.
You need the CIA's help? I have a way in.
A former asset in Sri Lanka.
But I need Agency resources and credibility.
And after going rogue for two years, you expect us to give them to you? Yes.
Do you think he's telling the truth? Polygraph said as much.
We all know you can't trust a polygraph.
We also know that if he is and we don't act on it, that's tragic.
I just ran down the Hong Kong angle.
St.
Andrew's Middle School has won the city science fair the past two years.
I'd imagine there are a lot of private schools in Hong Kong that excel in science.
Yes, but each year's winner has credited a Mr.
Anton.
Now, the school says he's a British national, but the U.
K.
Citizens Registry has no record of him.
Photo? None.
And he has been absent the past two days.
It might be him.
Here's what we're going to do.
We're going to assume that Mercer is both telling the truth and is not to be trusted.
So, we send him to Sri Lanka to meet his asset, but with Annie Walker as his handler.
No, I will go.
I can handle Ben.
No.
He eluded you once before in Sri Lanka, Jai.
We'll be putting her in danger.
She's not ready.
Oh, I think she is.
She's never been involved in something as emotional as that.
And we have to trade on that emotion.
Mercer feels something for Annie.
He'll listen to her.
Annie goes.
It's the only way.
Bring her in here.
Oh, Annie.
I just happened to be walking by.
Amazing timing.
What did they ask you to do? I can't talk about it.
They want me to shadow Ben.
Be his handler on a mission.
No.
That is very dangerous, and that is not okay.
I'm talking to Joan.
I can handle myself.
It's not about your spy-craft.
You're my friend.
Call me protective.
No.
Don't.
I want to go.
Please.
Okay.
Come with me.
GPS tracker.
I can keep track of you at all times.
Keep it someplace inconspicuous and safe.
Now, if something happens, something bad, then forget about protocol.
Call the number on this card.
Whose number is that? It's my number.
I created it specifically for this mission.
Consider it your "get out of jail" card.
Thanks.
It's not free.
If you use it, you owe me a sandwich.
Everything is going to be fine.
Yep.
I can't believe it took something like this to finally get your digits.
If half the General Counsel office is here without an appointment, I'm guessing this is less than good.
It has emerged that Liza Hearn is poised to print an article about this.
You picked a hell of a day.
We need you to get all your documents and memos together to help us craft a strategy.
What is your strategy going to be? That's being crafted.
Thank you for meeting me.
Whenever my head was spinning I'd come out here and look at this wall.
Try and remember what it's all about.
You've been gone for a long time.
You sure you still remember what it's all about? I don't want you to come on this mission.
It's gonna be too dangerous.
And they They don't trust me.
I'm not sure I trust you.
You don't get to decide things for me anymore.
I'm coming on this mission.
You and Ben will fly separately.
Once you arrive in Colombo, you have to assume that you are always being followed.
You'll have a series of checkpoints to keep contact.
You'll follow him to the square near the Old Courthouse.
Ben will look to you, and if it seems you haven' been followed, give him a sign and he'll leave a mark for his contact.
Lone Star.
So, now, we wait until tomorrow.
Who is this guy? Lone Star? Tamil warlord.
Well, he used to be until the Tamil surrender.
But he buys his weapons from Artigas, so he's still very tapped in.
Who gave him the name Lone Star? You? Yes.
Sounds like you.
I think it works.
Don't you? Fireworks.
Yeah.
It's September.
It's the Hindu Vel festival.
Follow me.
Ah.
Hey! What's up, man? What are we doing here? Why are we getting Kothu Roti now? It's like the cheeseburger in Sri Lanka.
You can get it anywhere.
At the Hindu Vel festival, you can only get this Kothu Roti special here.
Sit down.
Here, sir.
Try this.
Delicious, right? It's okay.
Nice try.
Hey, uh So, this isn't just about the food.
It's about the mission.
It's about both.
I'm not doing any more unsanctioned ops, so I don't really know why I'm here.
Your friend, Liza Hearn, is poised to publish an article that could damage our agency.
Well, with all due respect, that's kind of her job, isn't it? We can't seize her notes, because she keeps them in a safe in her editor's office.
We can't come at her for treason because she hasn't outed her source, and she hasn't named anyone directly.
So, we need you to contact her.
Persuade her to hold back the article.
She hasn't talked to me since you and I planted that false flag.
Oh.
Women forgive a lot.
Don't forget that.
You are married to my boss, so I can't go anywhere near that statement.
Auggie.
This article would affect missions on the ground.
It would be putting our operatives in jeopardy.
I'll see what I can do.
I didn't call ahead, but this is time-sensitive.
Of course.
So, this is the situation.
If Liza Hearn's article comes out and says what we think it will, there's going to be a lot of scrutiny of Arthur.
Scrutiny.
Scrutiny that may force him to leave his post as Director of Clandestine Services.
I see.
Can we count on your cooperation? Happy to hand over any files or memos you may need.
I'm not here for files or memos.
No, that would be below your pay grade.
The Director has taken notice of your credentials, your work in Nairobi, Brussels, and here.
That's good.
I'm glad.
Hypothetically, if you were approached by the vetting committee to take over as DCS, would you pursue it? You are hypothetically asking me if I would take my husband's job? Off the record.
This is the CIA, Alex.
Nothing's on the record.
I know it's a lot to think about.
But consider this.
You'd be the highest-ranking woman in the history of this agency.
And you'd do an amazing job.
Hypothetically.
This conversation is classified.
Any mention of it to Arthur would be a violation of CIA protocol.
Sean.
It's not a national holiday, so you must be here because you want something.
I need some advice.
My move would be to create some separation between yourself and Arthur Campbell.
That's not what I need advice about.
It's the advice you need to hear.
Ben Mercer, whose handler I supposedly was, was he taking orders from anyone else? Two kinds of people succeed at the CIA.
Those who are very good at taking orders, and those who cannot take orders.
Ben couldn't and can't.
He is extraordinary.
You knew him.
I knew him very well.
You think you know what you need, but you don't.
I know enough.
Remember my advice.
You'd best look out for yourself.
Take some initiative.
And how would you suggest I do that? If you're asking me that, then you're not taking initiative.
Enjoy the view.
Lone Star is in.
And I imagine he'll have us picked up momentarily.
Whoa.
Hey, man.
Come on.
Even though I knew it was coming, I can't say I like the treatment.
Lone Star has always been paranoid.
It's his process.
There's paranoid, and then there's psychotic.
We're only blindfolded.
Not tied up.
Remember the last time we were on the road out of Colombo? Very different time.
Very different circumstances.
I didn't know the first thing about you then.
I can't say I know much more now.
You don't have to know the specifics about somebody to know who they truly are.
I think you do.
Oh, okay.
What do What do What do you know? Um You're a huge fan of the band Underworld.
You have a constellation of freckles on your right shoulder blade.
You're ticklish.
True, true, and true.
Don't go looking any further, because that's about all there is to me.
We're here.
I've been here before.
Really? When? After you left me at the beach.
That doesn't sound too good.
Anybody who comes here is trying to forget something.
Or someone.
Hello, Lone Star.
Forgive me for not standing.
Did you bring what I wanted? Just place them in my alms bowl.
You are a prince among men, Ben Mercer.
Who is the girl? My associate.
Hmm.
Much prettier than your last handler.
Surprisingly lascivious for a man of the cloth.
Oh, I am just pretending.
A monk would never ask for cash.
How's 50,000 American dollars? Some tea, perhaps? You should get something for your money.
Oh, no.
Uh I think the information will do just fine.
Ah, yes.
The information.
Artigas has the professor.
He's probably forcing him to weaponize the sarin gas as we speak.
My sources tell me he's at Nimananntha Sthanaya.
Nimananntha Sthanaya.
Biggest house.
Hmm.
Is that it? I'm not really feeling like I'm getting my money's worth.
Well, that is all I have got.
Life isn't always Fair.
You all right? You all right? Whoa.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
The tea.
We've got to go.
Come on.
Go, go! Just curious.
Of all the places in Sri Lanka, we had to come here? Well, it's out of the way, it's monsoon season, and no one is here.
Where are you going? Somewhere else.
Look.
I understand you not wanting to be here.
With me.
But this is the safest place until we can get back to Colombo.
How long do we have to stay here? We can leave at dawn.
You're pretty good at that, aren't you? You got me out of work on a weekday.
I must have really had a thing for you.
Why am I here? This is an apology.
A proper one.
I gained your trust under false pretenses.
I lied about who I was.
It was my job, and I am sorry.
Not going to cut it, Auggie.
Okay.
How about this? I'm happy I did it.
You're happy you lied? No.
I'm happy I met you.
When people see you, they see an overzealous journalist, who is hell-bent on speaking truth to power.
But you're more than that.
You're principled, caring, and sometimes, sweet.
And I got to see that.
You can't see.
Okay.
You've been sufficiently charming.
Now, what do you want from me? It's not a want.
It's a need.
I need you to hold off on publishing the article you're working on.
Just for 72 hours.
So Langley can properly refute it? No.
Please just trust me.
How do I know I can trust you? You'll never fully know.
That's what trust is.
That's not trust.
That's faith.
Then, have faith.
Please.
Seventy-two hours.
No word from Annie or Ben in several hours.
They've blown through a scheduled check-in.
We've got ears on the rails.
Okay.
Stay on it.
What's the matter? This article.
The lawyers in my office.
I can hear the drums beating.
If I lose this job, the rest of my career will be a coda.
I'll never get an opportunity to go further.
I'm sorry, Arthur.
I think you've done a fantastic job.
Thanks.
I searched up and down the beach and north a bit.
It's all quiet.
In the morning, we'll head into Colombo and we'll get an ops team deployed to Indonesia.
Artigas' biggest house is his villa in Bali.
I hope Sabine is okay.
How well did you know him? Well, to gain his trust, I had to get to know him.
The more I got to know him, the more impressed I was with him.
He's He's smart.
He's honest.
He's kind.
You couldn't give him up.
No.
I couldn't.
When we were here, did you ever think about telling me the truth? The full truth? I know my note wasn't enough.
But at the time, it was all I could do.
So, you felt you could only go so far as to tell me nothing at all? When I was CIA, the best thing about it was feeling like I was doing something important.
But the most important thing that ever happened to me is you.
Come on.
We've got to move.
You guys missed your checkpoint.
How did you find us? Auggie can be helpful when he wants to be.
Okay.
Tell the Indonesian military to keep me posted.
Okay, we have a tactical rescue of the professor scheduled in an hour in Bali.
We need to get back to Colombo.
I have a general aviation flight scheduled to take us back to Langley.
So, question.
Why are you here? Because I was worried.
Because you needed me.
So, your being here isn't sanctioned.
Wow.
You, of all people? Really? Ready? Go, go, go, go, go! Let's go.
Maybe Artigas was tipped off.
But the ops team said that the place looked like it hadn't been occupied for weeks.
Well, what do we do now? What about Sabine? We make our way to Mauritius by boat.
We visit some old contacts I have there.
Mauritius by boat.
Yeah.
Yeah, what contacts? You said yourself Lone Star was your one remaining connection.
You struck out.
Admit it.
What do you want to do? You want to go home? Yeah, to Langley.
Exactly.
Langley.
It's not safe here.
And even if you don't care about that, don't put Annie at risk.
Don't make this about me.
He's right.
It isn't safe.
We should leave.
I'll go get our gear and pull the truck around.
Liza.
How did you know? You're one of the few women I know who prefers No.
19 over No.
5.
Plus, we were supposed to meet right about now, so I gave it a shot.
Here's your perfume and various other sundries you left at my house.
Mingus Dynasty.
And some Atari T-shirts.
What, you're returning Mingus? I didn't really get it.
I thought you liked it.
I guess we both lied to get what we wanted out of our relationship.
Touché.
Are we done here? Uh-uh.
One more thing.
Thank you for holding off on the article.
You helped us on a number of missions.
Missions? Yeah.
My article didn't contain any operational details.
It was purely about Arthur Campbell.
He played you.
He seems to have.
So, why are you smiling? Because now, Arthur owes me.
You are always two moves ahead, Auggie.
Got to be in this game.
Hey.
A word of warning.
I don't know who your source is, but be careful.
I don't know a spy who is in it solely for the greater good.
Except for maybe you.
That's not mine.
Hello, Liza.
Our next chat may get you that Pulitzer.
I have to talk to you.
Okay.
The Director and the General Counsel are already looking to replace you as the DCS.
Well, I know.
I told you that.
The vetting committee has asked me to consider taking the job.
I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, but they asked me not to.
Agency protocol.
But I've realized that our marriage comes first.
I've let this place come between us far too often.
You have to take it.
The DCS job.
You have to take it.
No.
After all these years of marriage, you still find ways to surprise me.
Arthur, this place is better off with both of us here.
Let's fight this witch hunt together.
It is going to get ugly.
And when it does, we are going to fight back.
Hard.
And in the end, we will both still be working here where we belong.
You up for it? You know I am.
He's not coming back, is he? I don't think so.
You had to shut down his plan.
His plan? Ben's plans only involve himself.
He has his own agenda.
Our flight is in an hour.
I know.
Ben knew that, too.
- Hello? - Annie, are you okay? Yeah.
Why? What are you doing in the Pettah district? I'm not.
I'm at our rendezvous point.
Your GPS doesn't say so.
I'm here.
And I'm wearing my bracelet.
Ben and I must have switched bracelets at the beach after After what? Uh, never mind.
Uh, just give me the location.
All right.
It says you're on Chaitya Road, and that you're 500 feet up in the air.
Is that even possible? Nimananntha Sthanaya.
Biggest house.
That's what Lone Star was talking about.
Ben must be up there.
Yeah, okay.
Hold on.
This needs to go vertical.
The building is owned by Ceylon Luxury Property Development.
Our WTO detailee informs us that Artigas is a silent partner.
We have to assume Mercer is working his own angle here.
How can we assume that? He went rogue before, Annie.
We don't have time to get an ops team in place.
So, you two need to go up there for recon and possible extraction of Sabine.
And Ben.
We'll have a helicopter at the ready if you get Sabine.
Jai? You have permission to take down Mercer if necessary.
Got it.
Jai, would you really shoot Ben? It's just a precaution, Annie.
He's not playing us.
I know it.
Look.
I hope you're right.
But if you're wrong, I will not hesitate to do what I need to do.
How do I know I can trust you? I'm telling you.
It's too hot out there.
I'm going to take the professor to Indonesia myself.
The city is crawling with CIA.
The only way this is going to work is if I take Sabine to Indonesia with me.
But you already know that.
I need him alive.
That's my specialty.
Come on.
I can't believe this.
He's moving Sabine.
I have to take him out.
Ben, what are you doing? Get out of here.
Both of you.
Let him go, Ben! What is this? See, Felix? I told you this city is crawling with them.
I trusted you.
The truth is complicated.
Get out of here! Go! They've got him! Go! Put it down.
Put it down.
Annie! We've got to get up to the roof! Come on.
Come on.
Hurry! Ben! Ben! Ben!