The Guardian (2001) s01e14 Episode Script
Family
What? Morning.
Did a package arrive from booth Allen in Chicago? Hey, is this Burton fallin's office? Is this Burton fallin's office? Yes, it is.
What do you want? What do you care? Bitch.
It was good to see you again, Liz, and, um, I'm sure Jake will do a great job for you.
He's a very bright young man.
Well, I appreciate this, Burton-- aunt Liz? Ohh Nicholas? Ohh! My goodness, look at you.
It's been a long time.
Yeah.
You look great.
Heh heh heh! And I see that you've met my son Jeremy.
I am sentencing you to 1,500 hours of community service.
Using your skills as a corporate attorney to work as a child advocate.
So Liz wants to sell her company to vortex communications.
What kind of company? Advertising.
You've heard of the kleiner automotive angry penguin? Oh, I've seen that one.
"We're freezing prices down here!" Good.
The Western grocery price Terminator? Oh, heh heh! That's funny.
"Don't pay too much, pilgrim.
" Ours.
Great! The hilkin department store lingerie day for men, beer decathlon out in munhall, we do that, and some national stuff, too.
It's a very strong list of clients.
Very.
We bill almost All right.
Well, I'll look over all the papers and see what we can figure out.
Great.
Nice to meet you, Jake.
Yeah, you, too.
If you have any questions, call my accountant.
Mom, come on.
I told my friends I'd be there, like, Don't you want to spend some time with your Uncle and your cousin Nick? No.
till he goes back to boarding school.
I know what you mean.
So, uh, what's with the kid? My nephew.
She's your sister? No, she's my wife's sister.
But now, Jake, I want you to understand I don't like to mix family with business, so that's why I want you on point for this one, ok? Fine.
Got it covered.
I'm looking for James mooney! That's me.
Hi, I'm Agnes lenbert.
I work for social services.
Who's she? Her name is kalaya nirapattanassai.
She's a thai national.
Hello, kalaya.
My name is James.
She doesn't speak much English.
Can we speak in private? Why is she here? She was arrested at the airport yesterday with 2 adult thai nationals who were smuggling heroin.
She was posing as the drug smugglers' daughter.
Where there any drugs found on her? No, she was just there to make it look like a family vacation.
To Pittsburgh.
Heh! Not exactly a thai dream.
No wonder they got caught.
Where's she staying? At a locked shelter for juvenile offenders.
But I don't understand why you're here.
I think she wants asylum.
Do you speak any English? Uncle Joe.
Me and Uncle Joe.
Do you want to stay with Uncle Joe? Does Uncle Joe live here? Does Uncle Joe know you're coming? Uncle Joe.
Me and Uncle Joe.
Get me an interpreter.
I want to make sure she wants to stay.
If she does? I'll see what I can do.
I'm looking for Joe nassurn.
My name is James mooney.
I work for legal services of Pittsburgh.
Does Joe nassurn live here? Do you expect him back? If you see him, tell him that his niece kalaya is at the allegheny children's shelter, and to call me right away.
Jeremy.
What's up? Where's your mom? She's in with your dad.
You're stuck here till they're through? My mom is into us having some time together.
Wants to take me shopping.
The kleiner automotive group doubled their sales to $58 million in the 4 years following the highly visible angry penguin ad campaign, Liz hetherington has won the atta-- the manno and every regional and national advertising award in print, television, and radio.
I tried to buy Liz's company a year ago.
What's different now? Right.
Well, she's been very impressed with the growth of your company over the past year and sees this as a, uh Strong synergistic opportunity.
Let's get some numbers going.
Great.
Mr.
mooney, right? Right.
I'm Joe nassurn, kalaya's Uncle.
But earlier you-- I didn't know who you were.
I had to check you out.
Listen, kalaya's mother, she was a prostitute.
Your sister? Yeah.
She has a bunch of kids.
She try to get them out of Thailand.
She doesn't care how it happen.
So she sells them to drug dealers.
This isn't the first time something like this happen.
Can I see her? Kalaya? Kalaya? Hey! Kalaya? Kalaya? I need an ambulance.
Someone stole my palm pilot.
Oh, well, welcome to the club.
Jake left his wallet in his suit coat.
Yeah, and one of the secretaries is missing her disc player.
Can you excuse us for a second, Jake? You bet.
You gonna talk to Liz about this? About what? Jeremy.
Are you serious? He was out there the whole time.
Well, even if it's true, I'm not gonna call his mother and accuse her only child of stealing from us.
They found 4 small balloons of heroin in her stomach.
One of them leaked.
She gonna be ok? Yeah.
It was touch and go for a minute there, but I think she's gonna be ok.
You ever heard of something like this happening before? Unfortunately, all the time.
They fill balloons or condoms with heroin, they have the kids swallow them, load them up with suppositories to keep them from moving their bowels for 2 or 3 days, then when they get to the contact, they force-feed them laxatives.
Uncle Joe.
Exactly.
This is nice.
Very nice.
To be here with family, it's nice.
Mm-hmm.
So, Jeremy, how's school? I go to the townsend academy, Uncle Burton, located in the lovely cumberland county, away from any civilization, where we enjoy a small teacher-student ratio, great college placement, and the constant aroma of cow dung.
Nick went to prep school.
Did you like it? No, not really.
Jeremy, didn't you want to ask Nick about soccer? No.
Jeremy's on the soccer team.
Yeah, that was months ago, mom.
We thought it would be fun to go down to the civic arena.
They're going to have a professional indoor soc-- they don't want to do that, mom.
Maybe they do.
You know, what is with you? Huh? Suddenly you want to, like, spend time with me, suddenly you're inviting cousin Ernie and Uncle Bert to soccer games.
You want to pass the wine, please? You know what? Allow me.
Jeremy! What? Haven't you read the studies, Liz? A glass a day is actually good for you.
Lowers your blood pressure.
And smoking's good for your lungs, right? What do you expect? You said we're a family full of addicts.
I never said that.
You said that you were the only one who wasn't hooked on something.
That's, of course, unless you count the wine.
You.
And then there's Nick, who's famous for his zany hi-jinx, and Nick's mom, a pill freak.
Jeremy I'm a guest in your house, right? Yeah.
So do you think it would be rude of me if I told you, as a guest, that you're a spoiled little jerk? What do you think? I need a ride to this party.
I am not taking you.
We have guests.
Oh, come on, mom, what am I gonna do? Sit here and watch figure skating-- Sit down.
I'll take you.
It was very nice.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Well, you sure do give your mom a pretty hard time.
I see herLike Twice a year.
Ok? Winter break and then the month of July, and this is the first time she's even ever been around the house.
I don't think she's actually a mom.
She told you about my mom taking pills? Did she? I don't know.
You don't know? You know everything about your mom? The bulls and clippers are on tonight.
The point spread is perfect for a killing.
You want to put 50 on it? You want to tell me why you stole my palm pilot? What are you talking about? From the office earlier today.
I want it back.
You know what, screw you! You know, my father's a little embarrassed to tell your mother, butHeh heh I'm not.
I didn't take anything.
All right, man? I want to set something straight.
Ok.
I never told Anne about your flirting with me.
My mother saw us in the pool one afternoon that summer.
I don't know where Anne was, butWe were wrestling around in the pool, and my mother saw, and she jumped to a conclusion and told my sister.
Ok.
But it was the truth.
Liz, you were a kid.
We were horsing around.
No, we weren't.
Ahem.
What do you want from this vortex deal? My company is in debt for 2 million.
I've borrowed against the house, and my equity line is under water.
So what do you need from the deal? At least $2.
5 million.
I need 2 to take care of the debt, and that would leave me with $500,000 for Jeremy.
For Jeremy? I have cancer.
I'm scheduled to go to the hospital at the end of the week.
I'd like this closed by then.
Oh, God.
I'mI'm sorry, Liz.
I-- melanoma.
They think it might be heading for my lymph nodes.
So what are they gonna do for it? I'm gonna have surgery.
They're gonna cut it out.
I'll do radiation and chemo, and that will be that.
It's not a big deal, Burton.
They'll operate, they'll take it out, and that will be that.
Well, what about Jeremy, does he know about this? Not yet.
When you gonna tell him? Ready? Yeah, yeah.
We'll talk tomorrow, ok? Yeah.
Good night.
Good to see you.
You, too.
Yeah.
That was great.
Thank you.
Mm-hmm.
Nick, I really hope that you and Jeremy can get to know each other.
I mean, after his dad left, he's never really had any kind of male influence in his life.
Uh, but, you know, my father's probably a better choice for that kind of thing.
No, I can tell.
Jeremy could really use a guy like you.
Excuse me.
Liz is sick.
Cancer.
James mooney? Yeah? Jonathan goldsmith from the U.
S.
attorney's office.
I understand Joe nassurn paid you a visit.
That's right.
The police checked the address.
He's disappeared.
Ok.
Joe nassurn has a lot of nieces and nephews, from Thailand, Cambodia, South America.
They come through here loaded to the gills with dope, show up at his apartment long enough to crap it out or puke it up, and then he gives them a small amount of money and sends them back home on the next plane.
What do you want? I want to know the name of the person who put your client on that plane in Thailand.
What will you give her for that? I'll make sure they don't prosecute her back home.
Prosecute? Thai juvenile justice is a lot different than ours.
She wants asylum.
Mr.
mooney, don't be fooled.
This is certainly not her first trip into the states carrying drugs.
Her passport indicates she's been here twice before, and that's just this passport.
She's still a 10-year-old girl who needs a chance.
I understand that, but I can't change the rules.
I'll pay Liz 1 and a half million.
Ok, we need to get to 2.
There's nothing I'd like better than to pay Liz your number, but we're in the second straight year of an ad decline Brian, Liz doesn't have to sell.
She's posting strong growth even in this slow time.
I mean, let's face it.
This is the top ad firm in the city.
Now either you want to do business with this woman, or you don't.
All right, let me talk to my board.
Your board? It was my understanding that you could get to yes.
I can.
Ms.
hetherington offered you an exclusive first-look option because she believed that you would negotiate in good faith.
for that, she has to sign a with strict non-compete terms.
No, Brian, that ties up too much of her time.
Without Liz, this company is nothing but phones and paper, and we'll expect her to get a life insurance policy.
That's not a problem, is it? No.
No, it's not a problem at all.
Come in.
Burton.
I'm confused.
I'm sure you are, Jake.
You ask me to take point, and then you kind of undercut my authority in there.
Yeah, I'm sorry about that.
We could've closed it clean for 1.
75.
I know.
So now we just sit it out? Liz has cancer, Jake.
What? Found out last night.
Is it serious? Mm-hmm.
Burton, I'm so sorry.
You know, you should have told me about this before the meeting.
I--I am trying to get vortex as our client, and I--I really don't want to do a deal with them that can turn out badly.
The U.
S.
attorney wants names from kalaya.
What does kalaya get? Protection from the thai penal system.
Come on.
She'll be dead in the streets.
Yeah.
That's why I didn't take the deal.
I lined up a couple of prospective foster parents.
Do you think we have any kind of a shot in here today? Probably not, Ms.
Agnes.
Hmm.
How did it go today? Well, they want you to get life insurance.
Heh! I can't do it.
Well, then the deal may not come off.
I told you about my little problem because we're family.
It has nothing to do with this deal.
I didn't say a word to them about that.
This is just standard stuff.
When an individual is a commodity, people want insurance.
Fine.
I'll get another lawyer.
What? I'll go kirk and McGee.
Liz, there's other ways to approach this thing.
You never change, Burton.
What does that mean? You lawyer everybody, question everything.
You talk about the rules? I'm asking you to do a simple deal.
And I'm telling you this is not a simple deal.
Did someone tell them about this? Well, I didn't betray you.
You told them, didn't you? Well, of course, I didn't.
I'm trying to help you.
This is exactly how you were with my sister.
I'm not gonna have that conversation, you understand? This is about business.
Right now, your deal does not look so good because you can't get life insurance.
Now I suggest you just relax and look at your other options.
Like what? Like I go to vortex personally, see if I can get them to back off the insurance demand.
They'll probably lower the price, and I'm not even sure they'd go for it, but they might.
But before I do anything, you've got to decide on your lowest number.
Kalaya is an orphan.
If she were to return to Bangkok, she would be reunited with a band of exploitive drug runners.
The odds of her surviving are minimal.
The odds of her living a normal life are zero.
You honor, we cannot grant asylum based on an individual's socioeconomic situation, or a lack of family.
We just can't.
You honor, with the help of social services, we have found a responsible couple willing to take care of kalaya.
If she were to stay here, she would have a chance to live a normal life A chance to be a person And not a 62 pound heroin suitcase.
Hey.
Thank you for-- for not telling my mom.
No, thank you for bringing it back.
Look, uh Nick, the whole reason I took-- no, you don't need to tell me, Jeremy.
Well, I'm in trouble at, uh, at school with some kids.
What do you mean? Well, the thing is I met these kids, uh, from easton, and they take bets on like, uh, like sports games and stuff.
Making book? Yeah, yeah.
Making-- making book.
And, uh, I'm kind of like-- kind of like the representative at my school.
Ok.
Shut the door and sit down.
And so, this kid He bets $5,000 on the alamo bowl over/under.
Right? And loses? It's 44, the over/under, right? And there's, like, and the score is 23 to 20, and so, everything's good.
You know? But then, the quarterback, he fumbles-- ok, just get to the point, Jeremy.
So, this kid ends up losing.
And I go to him, and he doesn't pay me.
Instead, he goes to the Dean, tells the Dean, and the Dean expels me.
When did this happen? Um3 weeks ago.
I don't know.
But there's 2 days left in winter break and I can't even go back to school.
And what about the money? God, I owe this guy $6,000 now, and next week it's gonna be 7.
He says if I don't have it by the end of the week, he's gonna come to my house and take it from my mother, so Let's get some lunch.
All rise.
Having reviewed the petition briefs, and based on arguments presented, I hereby deny the petitioner's request for asylum.
Your honor, may I be heard? You have been heard, Mr.
mooney.
There's no legal basis to grant asylum here.
The petitioner shall be returned to her home immediately upon her release from the hospital.
How long you been out of school? Ahem.
I got kicked out What have you been doing? Oh, you know.
Intercepting mail, phone calls.
Just trying to figure this whole thing out, basically.
Well, you gotta tell your mom.
That's, uh That's the bookie.
I'm not gonna answer it.
What? What? I don't have the money.
What do you want me to do? Ok, you tell your mom, she gives you the money, you're out of debt.
Then you enroll in a public school.
You make it-- you make it sound just so easy.
It's--it's not-- I will give you until tonight to tell your mom.
Nick, please, man.
I will get the money.
Ok? That's--that's not a problem.
I'll get it from this guy who owes me anyway, and I can pay him back with that and she'll never know.
Ok? Uh Please don't make me sorry that I told you this.
Your client will talk? Not on your terms.
What do you want? An s-visa.
No.
You said-- I said that I would talk to the thai authorities.
I didn't say I'd give her a snitch visa.
You want these people, my client will give you names.
And how do I know she's right? How do I know these names haven't been made up? I mean, it's one thing to offer leniency, but for a visa What do you want? I want her to go back as an informant.
Go back? The DEA, with the thai authorities, would follow her.
We could catch them in the act.
That I could sell.
That would get her a snitch visa.
You guys are no better than drug dealers.
Excuse me? You want to use kalaya to do your dirty work.
If she dies in the process, who cares, right? You want the deal? If I don't get 2 1/2, Jeremy will have nothing.
Well, I'll go at it again, but, uh, you should have a backup plan, just in case this thing goes South.
Like what? For openers, talk to your son about his options.
I don't want Jeremy involved in this.
Well, he is involved in this.
Oh, my God.
Jeremy, what happened to you? I was at the mall and these black kids came up to me, and they asked me for some money, so I started to run, but then there were more of them, and they cornered me and they pushed me and took my wallet.
Which mall? Uh, the--the riverside.
That's a pretty crowded place, Jeremy.
Did you tell the police? Uh, no.
I was scared.
Who gave you a ride home? Nick, what is wrong with you? Jeremy No.
If you don't tell her, I will.
Tell me what? UhMom, do you know how in some offices and stuff they'll have like, uh, like a football pool? You mean gambling? Yeah, sure.
Well, they have something like that at my school.
And I kind of got involved.
And usually I'm pretty good at picking the teams.
In September, I was up 9-- just say it.
I owe a bookie $6,000.
We're going to have to tell the school.
Yeah, they know.
Uh They kicked me out.
I swear to God, I will pay you back.
If you let me borrow this money, I will work next summer.
I'll mow lawns.
I'll-- next summer? Whatever it takes I will do.
And, uhAnd with-- I can go to public school, and with the money we save, we can-- Jeremy, please.
Will you excuse us? Yeah, sure.
This my mother? Yeah.
Yeah.
About 12 years old.
Cape COD.
Jeremy! Jeremy! Jeremy! He took my keys.
He doesn't know how to drive.
I'm waiting for that interpreter lady.
I guess she had something to do, orOr something.
The doctor says you're gonna be fine.
Good news.
Kind of wish you wasn't doing this well.
Buy me some time.
But, as it stands, they're gonna release you this afternoon.
They got you on a plane tonight at 10:00.
So That's it.
They're not gonna let you stay.
I'm sorry.
Thank you for trying to help me.
You do speak English.
You still want to stay here? Yes.
We've got one more option.
But you're gonna have to go home first.
You're gonna have to help UsCatch the people who sent you here in the first place.
Do you want me to show them where I get the drugs? Yes.
Yes.
Will you do that? Jeremy, just lie down.
Lie down.
Yeah, hi.
There's been an accident on oakview drive.
Cross street, hickory Ridge.
Yeah.
Yeah, there's a boy, he may be hurt.
I'm ok.
Jeremy, sit down.
Just come back.
Sit down.
Air bags.
It's like hitting A silk bag.
My body just stings.
Oh, God.
Let me tell you something.
The sooner you stop thinking people should cut you slack because your parents got divorced and sent you away to prep school Or because your mom has cancer 'Cause, believe me, believe me No one cares about your problems.
Believe me.
Brian.
Morning.
Good to see you.
Greg.
Greg.
How are you, Brian? All right.
Good to see you.
How are you? So, where are we? I can't accept your offer.
I can't sell you my company because I'm its only real asset, and I may be dying.
I've known I've had cancer for a while now, but I just put it behind me, pretended like it wasn't happening.
I'm sorry, Liz.
I truly am.
I'm not telling you this for your sympathy.
I still want to do business with you.
How do you see doing that? Well, we're suggesting restructuring the deal as a joint venture rather than a purchase.
How do you see this? Liz's clients, her consulting services, her infrastructure and her contacts-- your financial backing.
What terms? Half a million up-front for the business and 50% of all revenue generated by her clients over the next 20 years.
You think you're gonna make it, Liz? I wouldn't be sitting here if I didn't.
You don't have to come in here.
Liz, the other day You told me about my leaving your sister.
You should know that it was the other way around.
I was there, Burton.
Don't start revising history now.
You were just a teenage girl.
She told me all about it.
About the affairs? The pill habit? That's not true.
She left me, all right? Or at least drove me out the door.
She took drugs and she was not faithful.
Leaving her was probably the smartest thing I could have done.
I tried to get custody of Nicholas.
But that was a different time, and I didn't have a chance in hell.
When she got sick, I went back to her to take care of her, to nurse her through to the end.
She was very grateful for that.
Very loving, in fact, and I'd appreciate it if, um That conversation is never repeated, especially around Nicholas.
He doesn't know? His mother's dead.
He loves her and Why take that away from him? You don't need to come in.
When the people in Thailand ask you what happened, just tell them we sent you home and that the others were arrested.
After that, just do what you normally do.
Don't look around, don't act suspicious.
You don't have to find us.
We'll be there.
I can do this, and when I come back, I will ask for James mooney.
Ok? I will ask for you when I come back.
We'd better go.
Be careful.
I thought you started public school today.
Nah, I didn't like it.
Oh, you didn't like it? No, the kids are, like, stupid.
They're studying crap I did, like, 3 years ago.
Plus, I had to go through and then some ass shoved gum in my locker, so I came here.
You visit your mom? No.
You gonna? Yeah.
When? Soon.
Ok? Would you get off my back, please? I just came here to visit and say hello.
Here's how it works.
Sit down.
Radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
Basically, they're gonna bring your mother as close to death as they possibly can without killing her.
She's gonna change before your eyes.
Her hair will fall out.
She will be in a lot of pain.
She will be susceptible to everything.
Ahem.
She's gonna feel ugly and useless and very alone.
And afraid.
And you're gonna have to be tough for her.
You can't treat this like it's your problem that she has cancer, because it's not.
It's hers.
And the further they go and the longer she lasts, the sicker she will get.
And you will pray that she can make it through the next round.
Because if they give up on her, and if she gets too weak, then she will die.
And if she dies, Jeremy, you, uh You do not want to look back at this time and remember that you behaved like a spoiled child.
If she dies and she gives you the gift of letting you into that process The knowledge of what it is And I hope, for your sake That you walk out of this a stronger person.
You have that choice now.
Don't screw it up.
Wheelchair to admitting.
Wheelchair to admitting.
Hey.
How you doing? Oh, fine.
Oh, interesting.
A little reading material, when you get a chance.
Oh, Liz, listen.
I was thinking, it might be very good for the boy if--if you assigned a power of attorney or had a living will.
You'll help me with that? Sure.
Yeah.
Thank you.
I think it's a good idea.
You know.
Thank you.
Oh, Nick.
How you doing? Hi.
Nick How are you doing? It's so sweet of you to come.
I'm just, I'm-- I'm so tired that I'm gonna have to go to sleep.
But--but you both don't need to stay.
No.
That's all right.
It's ok.
Matter of fact, there's a couple of articles in here I want to check out.
I'll be fine.
Don't worry about me or--or Nick.
Do you remember one night when your mother was half asleep, and she was mumbling about Some house she had made up, and she said, "there has to be a room for everything in your life.
"A sleeping room, a happy room, "a playing room, a sad room" "And a room for Nick.
" And a room for Nick.
Hey.
Come on.
She's sleeping.
She's doing good, though.
Did a package arrive from booth Allen in Chicago? Hey, is this Burton fallin's office? Is this Burton fallin's office? Yes, it is.
What do you want? What do you care? Bitch.
It was good to see you again, Liz, and, um, I'm sure Jake will do a great job for you.
He's a very bright young man.
Well, I appreciate this, Burton-- aunt Liz? Ohh Nicholas? Ohh! My goodness, look at you.
It's been a long time.
Yeah.
You look great.
Heh heh heh! And I see that you've met my son Jeremy.
I am sentencing you to 1,500 hours of community service.
Using your skills as a corporate attorney to work as a child advocate.
So Liz wants to sell her company to vortex communications.
What kind of company? Advertising.
You've heard of the kleiner automotive angry penguin? Oh, I've seen that one.
"We're freezing prices down here!" Good.
The Western grocery price Terminator? Oh, heh heh! That's funny.
"Don't pay too much, pilgrim.
" Ours.
Great! The hilkin department store lingerie day for men, beer decathlon out in munhall, we do that, and some national stuff, too.
It's a very strong list of clients.
Very.
We bill almost All right.
Well, I'll look over all the papers and see what we can figure out.
Great.
Nice to meet you, Jake.
Yeah, you, too.
If you have any questions, call my accountant.
Mom, come on.
I told my friends I'd be there, like, Don't you want to spend some time with your Uncle and your cousin Nick? No.
till he goes back to boarding school.
I know what you mean.
So, uh, what's with the kid? My nephew.
She's your sister? No, she's my wife's sister.
But now, Jake, I want you to understand I don't like to mix family with business, so that's why I want you on point for this one, ok? Fine.
Got it covered.
I'm looking for James mooney! That's me.
Hi, I'm Agnes lenbert.
I work for social services.
Who's she? Her name is kalaya nirapattanassai.
She's a thai national.
Hello, kalaya.
My name is James.
She doesn't speak much English.
Can we speak in private? Why is she here? She was arrested at the airport yesterday with 2 adult thai nationals who were smuggling heroin.
She was posing as the drug smugglers' daughter.
Where there any drugs found on her? No, she was just there to make it look like a family vacation.
To Pittsburgh.
Heh! Not exactly a thai dream.
No wonder they got caught.
Where's she staying? At a locked shelter for juvenile offenders.
But I don't understand why you're here.
I think she wants asylum.
Do you speak any English? Uncle Joe.
Me and Uncle Joe.
Do you want to stay with Uncle Joe? Does Uncle Joe live here? Does Uncle Joe know you're coming? Uncle Joe.
Me and Uncle Joe.
Get me an interpreter.
I want to make sure she wants to stay.
If she does? I'll see what I can do.
I'm looking for Joe nassurn.
My name is James mooney.
I work for legal services of Pittsburgh.
Does Joe nassurn live here? Do you expect him back? If you see him, tell him that his niece kalaya is at the allegheny children's shelter, and to call me right away.
Jeremy.
What's up? Where's your mom? She's in with your dad.
You're stuck here till they're through? My mom is into us having some time together.
Wants to take me shopping.
The kleiner automotive group doubled their sales to $58 million in the 4 years following the highly visible angry penguin ad campaign, Liz hetherington has won the atta-- the manno and every regional and national advertising award in print, television, and radio.
I tried to buy Liz's company a year ago.
What's different now? Right.
Well, she's been very impressed with the growth of your company over the past year and sees this as a, uh Strong synergistic opportunity.
Let's get some numbers going.
Great.
Mr.
mooney, right? Right.
I'm Joe nassurn, kalaya's Uncle.
But earlier you-- I didn't know who you were.
I had to check you out.
Listen, kalaya's mother, she was a prostitute.
Your sister? Yeah.
She has a bunch of kids.
She try to get them out of Thailand.
She doesn't care how it happen.
So she sells them to drug dealers.
This isn't the first time something like this happen.
Can I see her? Kalaya? Kalaya? Hey! Kalaya? Kalaya? I need an ambulance.
Someone stole my palm pilot.
Oh, well, welcome to the club.
Jake left his wallet in his suit coat.
Yeah, and one of the secretaries is missing her disc player.
Can you excuse us for a second, Jake? You bet.
You gonna talk to Liz about this? About what? Jeremy.
Are you serious? He was out there the whole time.
Well, even if it's true, I'm not gonna call his mother and accuse her only child of stealing from us.
They found 4 small balloons of heroin in her stomach.
One of them leaked.
She gonna be ok? Yeah.
It was touch and go for a minute there, but I think she's gonna be ok.
You ever heard of something like this happening before? Unfortunately, all the time.
They fill balloons or condoms with heroin, they have the kids swallow them, load them up with suppositories to keep them from moving their bowels for 2 or 3 days, then when they get to the contact, they force-feed them laxatives.
Uncle Joe.
Exactly.
This is nice.
Very nice.
To be here with family, it's nice.
Mm-hmm.
So, Jeremy, how's school? I go to the townsend academy, Uncle Burton, located in the lovely cumberland county, away from any civilization, where we enjoy a small teacher-student ratio, great college placement, and the constant aroma of cow dung.
Nick went to prep school.
Did you like it? No, not really.
Jeremy, didn't you want to ask Nick about soccer? No.
Jeremy's on the soccer team.
Yeah, that was months ago, mom.
We thought it would be fun to go down to the civic arena.
They're going to have a professional indoor soc-- they don't want to do that, mom.
Maybe they do.
You know, what is with you? Huh? Suddenly you want to, like, spend time with me, suddenly you're inviting cousin Ernie and Uncle Bert to soccer games.
You want to pass the wine, please? You know what? Allow me.
Jeremy! What? Haven't you read the studies, Liz? A glass a day is actually good for you.
Lowers your blood pressure.
And smoking's good for your lungs, right? What do you expect? You said we're a family full of addicts.
I never said that.
You said that you were the only one who wasn't hooked on something.
That's, of course, unless you count the wine.
You.
And then there's Nick, who's famous for his zany hi-jinx, and Nick's mom, a pill freak.
Jeremy I'm a guest in your house, right? Yeah.
So do you think it would be rude of me if I told you, as a guest, that you're a spoiled little jerk? What do you think? I need a ride to this party.
I am not taking you.
We have guests.
Oh, come on, mom, what am I gonna do? Sit here and watch figure skating-- Sit down.
I'll take you.
It was very nice.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Well, you sure do give your mom a pretty hard time.
I see herLike Twice a year.
Ok? Winter break and then the month of July, and this is the first time she's even ever been around the house.
I don't think she's actually a mom.
She told you about my mom taking pills? Did she? I don't know.
You don't know? You know everything about your mom? The bulls and clippers are on tonight.
The point spread is perfect for a killing.
You want to put 50 on it? You want to tell me why you stole my palm pilot? What are you talking about? From the office earlier today.
I want it back.
You know what, screw you! You know, my father's a little embarrassed to tell your mother, butHeh heh I'm not.
I didn't take anything.
All right, man? I want to set something straight.
Ok.
I never told Anne about your flirting with me.
My mother saw us in the pool one afternoon that summer.
I don't know where Anne was, butWe were wrestling around in the pool, and my mother saw, and she jumped to a conclusion and told my sister.
Ok.
But it was the truth.
Liz, you were a kid.
We were horsing around.
No, we weren't.
Ahem.
What do you want from this vortex deal? My company is in debt for 2 million.
I've borrowed against the house, and my equity line is under water.
So what do you need from the deal? At least $2.
5 million.
I need 2 to take care of the debt, and that would leave me with $500,000 for Jeremy.
For Jeremy? I have cancer.
I'm scheduled to go to the hospital at the end of the week.
I'd like this closed by then.
Oh, God.
I'mI'm sorry, Liz.
I-- melanoma.
They think it might be heading for my lymph nodes.
So what are they gonna do for it? I'm gonna have surgery.
They're gonna cut it out.
I'll do radiation and chemo, and that will be that.
It's not a big deal, Burton.
They'll operate, they'll take it out, and that will be that.
Well, what about Jeremy, does he know about this? Not yet.
When you gonna tell him? Ready? Yeah, yeah.
We'll talk tomorrow, ok? Yeah.
Good night.
Good to see you.
You, too.
Yeah.
That was great.
Thank you.
Mm-hmm.
Nick, I really hope that you and Jeremy can get to know each other.
I mean, after his dad left, he's never really had any kind of male influence in his life.
Uh, but, you know, my father's probably a better choice for that kind of thing.
No, I can tell.
Jeremy could really use a guy like you.
Excuse me.
Liz is sick.
Cancer.
James mooney? Yeah? Jonathan goldsmith from the U.
S.
attorney's office.
I understand Joe nassurn paid you a visit.
That's right.
The police checked the address.
He's disappeared.
Ok.
Joe nassurn has a lot of nieces and nephews, from Thailand, Cambodia, South America.
They come through here loaded to the gills with dope, show up at his apartment long enough to crap it out or puke it up, and then he gives them a small amount of money and sends them back home on the next plane.
What do you want? I want to know the name of the person who put your client on that plane in Thailand.
What will you give her for that? I'll make sure they don't prosecute her back home.
Prosecute? Thai juvenile justice is a lot different than ours.
She wants asylum.
Mr.
mooney, don't be fooled.
This is certainly not her first trip into the states carrying drugs.
Her passport indicates she's been here twice before, and that's just this passport.
She's still a 10-year-old girl who needs a chance.
I understand that, but I can't change the rules.
I'll pay Liz 1 and a half million.
Ok, we need to get to 2.
There's nothing I'd like better than to pay Liz your number, but we're in the second straight year of an ad decline Brian, Liz doesn't have to sell.
She's posting strong growth even in this slow time.
I mean, let's face it.
This is the top ad firm in the city.
Now either you want to do business with this woman, or you don't.
All right, let me talk to my board.
Your board? It was my understanding that you could get to yes.
I can.
Ms.
hetherington offered you an exclusive first-look option because she believed that you would negotiate in good faith.
for that, she has to sign a with strict non-compete terms.
No, Brian, that ties up too much of her time.
Without Liz, this company is nothing but phones and paper, and we'll expect her to get a life insurance policy.
That's not a problem, is it? No.
No, it's not a problem at all.
Come in.
Burton.
I'm confused.
I'm sure you are, Jake.
You ask me to take point, and then you kind of undercut my authority in there.
Yeah, I'm sorry about that.
We could've closed it clean for 1.
75.
I know.
So now we just sit it out? Liz has cancer, Jake.
What? Found out last night.
Is it serious? Mm-hmm.
Burton, I'm so sorry.
You know, you should have told me about this before the meeting.
I--I am trying to get vortex as our client, and I--I really don't want to do a deal with them that can turn out badly.
The U.
S.
attorney wants names from kalaya.
What does kalaya get? Protection from the thai penal system.
Come on.
She'll be dead in the streets.
Yeah.
That's why I didn't take the deal.
I lined up a couple of prospective foster parents.
Do you think we have any kind of a shot in here today? Probably not, Ms.
Agnes.
Hmm.
How did it go today? Well, they want you to get life insurance.
Heh! I can't do it.
Well, then the deal may not come off.
I told you about my little problem because we're family.
It has nothing to do with this deal.
I didn't say a word to them about that.
This is just standard stuff.
When an individual is a commodity, people want insurance.
Fine.
I'll get another lawyer.
What? I'll go kirk and McGee.
Liz, there's other ways to approach this thing.
You never change, Burton.
What does that mean? You lawyer everybody, question everything.
You talk about the rules? I'm asking you to do a simple deal.
And I'm telling you this is not a simple deal.
Did someone tell them about this? Well, I didn't betray you.
You told them, didn't you? Well, of course, I didn't.
I'm trying to help you.
This is exactly how you were with my sister.
I'm not gonna have that conversation, you understand? This is about business.
Right now, your deal does not look so good because you can't get life insurance.
Now I suggest you just relax and look at your other options.
Like what? Like I go to vortex personally, see if I can get them to back off the insurance demand.
They'll probably lower the price, and I'm not even sure they'd go for it, but they might.
But before I do anything, you've got to decide on your lowest number.
Kalaya is an orphan.
If she were to return to Bangkok, she would be reunited with a band of exploitive drug runners.
The odds of her surviving are minimal.
The odds of her living a normal life are zero.
You honor, we cannot grant asylum based on an individual's socioeconomic situation, or a lack of family.
We just can't.
You honor, with the help of social services, we have found a responsible couple willing to take care of kalaya.
If she were to stay here, she would have a chance to live a normal life A chance to be a person And not a 62 pound heroin suitcase.
Hey.
Thank you for-- for not telling my mom.
No, thank you for bringing it back.
Look, uh Nick, the whole reason I took-- no, you don't need to tell me, Jeremy.
Well, I'm in trouble at, uh, at school with some kids.
What do you mean? Well, the thing is I met these kids, uh, from easton, and they take bets on like, uh, like sports games and stuff.
Making book? Yeah, yeah.
Making-- making book.
And, uh, I'm kind of like-- kind of like the representative at my school.
Ok.
Shut the door and sit down.
And so, this kid He bets $5,000 on the alamo bowl over/under.
Right? And loses? It's 44, the over/under, right? And there's, like, and the score is 23 to 20, and so, everything's good.
You know? But then, the quarterback, he fumbles-- ok, just get to the point, Jeremy.
So, this kid ends up losing.
And I go to him, and he doesn't pay me.
Instead, he goes to the Dean, tells the Dean, and the Dean expels me.
When did this happen? Um3 weeks ago.
I don't know.
But there's 2 days left in winter break and I can't even go back to school.
And what about the money? God, I owe this guy $6,000 now, and next week it's gonna be 7.
He says if I don't have it by the end of the week, he's gonna come to my house and take it from my mother, so Let's get some lunch.
All rise.
Having reviewed the petition briefs, and based on arguments presented, I hereby deny the petitioner's request for asylum.
Your honor, may I be heard? You have been heard, Mr.
mooney.
There's no legal basis to grant asylum here.
The petitioner shall be returned to her home immediately upon her release from the hospital.
How long you been out of school? Ahem.
I got kicked out What have you been doing? Oh, you know.
Intercepting mail, phone calls.
Just trying to figure this whole thing out, basically.
Well, you gotta tell your mom.
That's, uh That's the bookie.
I'm not gonna answer it.
What? What? I don't have the money.
What do you want me to do? Ok, you tell your mom, she gives you the money, you're out of debt.
Then you enroll in a public school.
You make it-- you make it sound just so easy.
It's--it's not-- I will give you until tonight to tell your mom.
Nick, please, man.
I will get the money.
Ok? That's--that's not a problem.
I'll get it from this guy who owes me anyway, and I can pay him back with that and she'll never know.
Ok? Uh Please don't make me sorry that I told you this.
Your client will talk? Not on your terms.
What do you want? An s-visa.
No.
You said-- I said that I would talk to the thai authorities.
I didn't say I'd give her a snitch visa.
You want these people, my client will give you names.
And how do I know she's right? How do I know these names haven't been made up? I mean, it's one thing to offer leniency, but for a visa What do you want? I want her to go back as an informant.
Go back? The DEA, with the thai authorities, would follow her.
We could catch them in the act.
That I could sell.
That would get her a snitch visa.
You guys are no better than drug dealers.
Excuse me? You want to use kalaya to do your dirty work.
If she dies in the process, who cares, right? You want the deal? If I don't get 2 1/2, Jeremy will have nothing.
Well, I'll go at it again, but, uh, you should have a backup plan, just in case this thing goes South.
Like what? For openers, talk to your son about his options.
I don't want Jeremy involved in this.
Well, he is involved in this.
Oh, my God.
Jeremy, what happened to you? I was at the mall and these black kids came up to me, and they asked me for some money, so I started to run, but then there were more of them, and they cornered me and they pushed me and took my wallet.
Which mall? Uh, the--the riverside.
That's a pretty crowded place, Jeremy.
Did you tell the police? Uh, no.
I was scared.
Who gave you a ride home? Nick, what is wrong with you? Jeremy No.
If you don't tell her, I will.
Tell me what? UhMom, do you know how in some offices and stuff they'll have like, uh, like a football pool? You mean gambling? Yeah, sure.
Well, they have something like that at my school.
And I kind of got involved.
And usually I'm pretty good at picking the teams.
In September, I was up 9-- just say it.
I owe a bookie $6,000.
We're going to have to tell the school.
Yeah, they know.
Uh They kicked me out.
I swear to God, I will pay you back.
If you let me borrow this money, I will work next summer.
I'll mow lawns.
I'll-- next summer? Whatever it takes I will do.
And, uhAnd with-- I can go to public school, and with the money we save, we can-- Jeremy, please.
Will you excuse us? Yeah, sure.
This my mother? Yeah.
Yeah.
About 12 years old.
Cape COD.
Jeremy! Jeremy! Jeremy! He took my keys.
He doesn't know how to drive.
I'm waiting for that interpreter lady.
I guess she had something to do, orOr something.
The doctor says you're gonna be fine.
Good news.
Kind of wish you wasn't doing this well.
Buy me some time.
But, as it stands, they're gonna release you this afternoon.
They got you on a plane tonight at 10:00.
So That's it.
They're not gonna let you stay.
I'm sorry.
Thank you for trying to help me.
You do speak English.
You still want to stay here? Yes.
We've got one more option.
But you're gonna have to go home first.
You're gonna have to help UsCatch the people who sent you here in the first place.
Do you want me to show them where I get the drugs? Yes.
Yes.
Will you do that? Jeremy, just lie down.
Lie down.
Yeah, hi.
There's been an accident on oakview drive.
Cross street, hickory Ridge.
Yeah.
Yeah, there's a boy, he may be hurt.
I'm ok.
Jeremy, sit down.
Just come back.
Sit down.
Air bags.
It's like hitting A silk bag.
My body just stings.
Oh, God.
Let me tell you something.
The sooner you stop thinking people should cut you slack because your parents got divorced and sent you away to prep school Or because your mom has cancer 'Cause, believe me, believe me No one cares about your problems.
Believe me.
Brian.
Morning.
Good to see you.
Greg.
Greg.
How are you, Brian? All right.
Good to see you.
How are you? So, where are we? I can't accept your offer.
I can't sell you my company because I'm its only real asset, and I may be dying.
I've known I've had cancer for a while now, but I just put it behind me, pretended like it wasn't happening.
I'm sorry, Liz.
I truly am.
I'm not telling you this for your sympathy.
I still want to do business with you.
How do you see doing that? Well, we're suggesting restructuring the deal as a joint venture rather than a purchase.
How do you see this? Liz's clients, her consulting services, her infrastructure and her contacts-- your financial backing.
What terms? Half a million up-front for the business and 50% of all revenue generated by her clients over the next 20 years.
You think you're gonna make it, Liz? I wouldn't be sitting here if I didn't.
You don't have to come in here.
Liz, the other day You told me about my leaving your sister.
You should know that it was the other way around.
I was there, Burton.
Don't start revising history now.
You were just a teenage girl.
She told me all about it.
About the affairs? The pill habit? That's not true.
She left me, all right? Or at least drove me out the door.
She took drugs and she was not faithful.
Leaving her was probably the smartest thing I could have done.
I tried to get custody of Nicholas.
But that was a different time, and I didn't have a chance in hell.
When she got sick, I went back to her to take care of her, to nurse her through to the end.
She was very grateful for that.
Very loving, in fact, and I'd appreciate it if, um That conversation is never repeated, especially around Nicholas.
He doesn't know? His mother's dead.
He loves her and Why take that away from him? You don't need to come in.
When the people in Thailand ask you what happened, just tell them we sent you home and that the others were arrested.
After that, just do what you normally do.
Don't look around, don't act suspicious.
You don't have to find us.
We'll be there.
I can do this, and when I come back, I will ask for James mooney.
Ok? I will ask for you when I come back.
We'd better go.
Be careful.
I thought you started public school today.
Nah, I didn't like it.
Oh, you didn't like it? No, the kids are, like, stupid.
They're studying crap I did, like, 3 years ago.
Plus, I had to go through and then some ass shoved gum in my locker, so I came here.
You visit your mom? No.
You gonna? Yeah.
When? Soon.
Ok? Would you get off my back, please? I just came here to visit and say hello.
Here's how it works.
Sit down.
Radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
Basically, they're gonna bring your mother as close to death as they possibly can without killing her.
She's gonna change before your eyes.
Her hair will fall out.
She will be in a lot of pain.
She will be susceptible to everything.
Ahem.
She's gonna feel ugly and useless and very alone.
And afraid.
And you're gonna have to be tough for her.
You can't treat this like it's your problem that she has cancer, because it's not.
It's hers.
And the further they go and the longer she lasts, the sicker she will get.
And you will pray that she can make it through the next round.
Because if they give up on her, and if she gets too weak, then she will die.
And if she dies, Jeremy, you, uh You do not want to look back at this time and remember that you behaved like a spoiled child.
If she dies and she gives you the gift of letting you into that process The knowledge of what it is And I hope, for your sake That you walk out of this a stronger person.
You have that choice now.
Don't screw it up.
Wheelchair to admitting.
Wheelchair to admitting.
Hey.
How you doing? Oh, fine.
Oh, interesting.
A little reading material, when you get a chance.
Oh, Liz, listen.
I was thinking, it might be very good for the boy if--if you assigned a power of attorney or had a living will.
You'll help me with that? Sure.
Yeah.
Thank you.
I think it's a good idea.
You know.
Thank you.
Oh, Nick.
How you doing? Hi.
Nick How are you doing? It's so sweet of you to come.
I'm just, I'm-- I'm so tired that I'm gonna have to go to sleep.
But--but you both don't need to stay.
No.
That's all right.
It's ok.
Matter of fact, there's a couple of articles in here I want to check out.
I'll be fine.
Don't worry about me or--or Nick.
Do you remember one night when your mother was half asleep, and she was mumbling about Some house she had made up, and she said, "there has to be a room for everything in your life.
"A sleeping room, a happy room, "a playing room, a sad room" "And a room for Nick.
" And a room for Nick.
Hey.
Come on.
She's sleeping.
She's doing good, though.