NCIS: Origins (2024) s01e17 Episode Script
Darlin', Don't Refrain
1
WHEELER: There were three bugs,
and it's my fault they got in.
It's a damn disaster.
One day, you're teaching your
little boy to play the piano,
and the next, he's vandalizing
26 headstones with his friends.
Wheeler.
Oakley is my guy.
Nobody here contacts him
directly, understood?
Melanie found out about something called
"Operation Sundown."
I asked Bugs about it, and he shut down.
BUGS: The mission comes first.
Operation Sundown? Who killed Melanie?
Was it the man on the phone?
MAN: Jamison, we're still family.
You know that, don't you?
(DISTANT GUNSHOT)
FRANKS: Sandman's still out there.
("TEACH YOUR CHILDREN" PLAYING)
OLDER GIBBS: The day your child is born,
everything changes.
I'm sure that's true for
every parent around the world.
The delivery room nurse told me
newborns are nearsighted.
They drink you in.
Everything else
blurs into the background.
That's how they first start loving you.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
Huh?
(MOTHER LAUGHING)
Because the past ♪
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
OLDER GIBBS: My daughter Kelly told me
she loved me every day.
But there was one time
she said she hated me.
(LAUGHTER)
She was angry because
I said it was too cold
to swim in the ocean.
- He's a liar.
- Enough, Jason.
It'll be years before Guns N' Roses
comes back to San Diego,
and Dad promised he'd take me.
That was before you
desecrated a cemetery.
We will no longer be going
to the concert, obviously.
Dad, you don't understand
- (PHONE RINGING)
- Got to be kidding me.
- (TV REPORTER CHATTERING)
- SHELLY: I'll get it.
JASON: Dad, please.
I'll never ask you for anything again.
- told us they arrested Sandman.
- Right?
Remember when this little guy
came out to do a victory lap?
Due to the tireless work of
our special agents and staff,
- NIS has arrested
- JASON: Dad, please just hear me out.
the sniper known as Sandman.
The GNR concert, you swore
Enough!
You are not going to the damn concert.
You're failing most of your classes,
you just got arrested.
You're an embarrassment.
SHELLY: Mary Jo just called.
She said the regional director
wants to see you.
He can't possibly put all the blame
for this on you, can he?
Want to bet? The buck stops with me
- Jason!
- What is wrong with you?!
(SCREAMS) Ow!
- Oh! Jason!
- Son of a bitch!
- SHELLY: Oh, my God.
- Oh.
Oh, my
You need stitches.
Yeah, right.
I'll just call my boss and tell him
I'm going to be late for my ass-reaming
because my son just stabbed me
with a fireplace poker.
- I'll get you some Band-Aids.
- (PAINED GRUNT)
Don't you ever ask them why ♪
OLDER GIBBS: It broke my heart
when Kelly said she hated me that day.
I wished I could go back to the way
she looked at me when she was born.
Happiest day of my life.
And know they love you. ♪
♪
Oh, Bugs. You dumbass.
(SIGHS)
You wanted to tell me.
FRANKS: Huh?
Bugs.
He wanted to tell me who the
real Sandman was, but, uh
I, uh, I couldn't get
through to him in time.
(DOOR OPENS)
Ballistics came back, Mike.
The bullet that killed Bugs
was fired from the same gun
that killed Sandman's other victims.
You guys have any luck
at the sniper's hide?
Nah, Rando and Dominguez spent hours
at the water supply place,
came up empty.
No casings, no nothing.
What's this say?
He's got "post-bully scarring"
on his feet?
Post-bullous.
But that's Lenora's findings.
She doesn't like it when I butt in.
No, I do not.
FRANKS: What's post-bullous scarring?
That.
Caused by prolonged
exposure to crude oil.
At least, that's what
he told the prison doctor.
Bugs never mentioned
working on an oil rig.
There's nothing in his file.
Maybe it's in the shredded
document probie's trying
to Humpty-Dumpty back together.
There's a shredded document?
FRANKS: Before Bugs
took one to the dome,
he mentioned an op called "Sundown."
Gibbs thinks it was written
on the shredded document
in our basement.
What was Gibbs doing reading
shredded documents in the basement?
FRANKS: Mary Jo, get me Wheeler.
Where the hell is he?
You're looking
a little skinny there, Cliff.
Did you lose some weight?
Yes, sir, I've had some, um
issues, gastro stuff.
Irritable bowel disease, probably.
- Could be.
- My ex-wife had that.
Took a hell of a toll on our sex life.
How's Shelly?
She's great, sir, thank you.
Mm.
I'm not gonna BS you, Cliff.
I brought you in this morning
to fire you.
Sir, if I may just
No. But headquarters won't let me.
See, some sailors
got handsy at a conference,
and now the brass is afraid canning you
will lead to more bad PR.
It still doesn't change the fact
that your office is a mess.
The IG's breathing down my neck
over your miles-long list of calamities.
Yes, sir, I hear you,
but we have things buttoned up now.
Buttoned up?
Didn't you just find listening devices
planted all over your office?
(DISTORTED): Now the
entire city's in a panic
because Sandman's still out there.
I can assure you that Sandman
is our top priority.
Well, that brings me
absolutely zero solace, Cliff.
The FBI wants back in on this,
and I don't blame them.
(ECHOING): You are gonna run
a joint investigation.
And you're gonna make damn sure
that NIS comes out smelling like a lily.
Understood, sir.
Or you will be looking for a new job.
I-I'm excited to get
these problems rectified.
♪
(INTERCOM RINGS)
MARY JO: Morning, Cliff.
Barrett's secretary called
and gave me a heads-up
there was doings at his office.
(GROANS) Great.
Anything you want me to know about,
or handle or dispose of?
I didn't whack anybody,
Mary Jo, I, uh
I-I had a thing with a can opener.
Happens to the best of us.
Get me Agent Oakley at the FBI.
And, um, Mary Jo?
Thank you.
You're welcome.
(INTERCOM BEEPS)
It's vertical.
Vertical.
Here you go. Horizontal.
You don't have to announce it
every time, Phil.
Well, people are supposed
to shred lengthwise
so it cuts through the words.
Shredding widthwise negates
the value of shredding.
Yeah, you mentioned that. Several times.
WOODY: Don't pester our guest, Phil.
Put a rush on Bugs's bloodwork.
Looks like he had elevated
levels of oxidized trace metals,
benzine, his hydrocarbons
are off the charts.
No idea what that means.
Of course not.
People who look like you don't
need to learn big science words.
It means Bugs was inhaling pollutants
for a prolonged period.
- Yeah.
- And my guess would be
smoke from oil fires.
Phil and I have seen this a lot
in the Hellfighters
back from Desert Storm.
That's what they used
to call the guys who
Capped the burning oil wells.
Yeah, I know.
Bugs didn't serve in Desert Storm.
Ooh, found a good one.
Operation Sundown,
a catastrophic mishandling of
a critical security detail
involving a key asset.
Wow. Nicely done, Phil.
And just when I was worried
you were dead weight.
There's nine strips.
I found seven of them.
It's not a competition.
If it was, I'd be winning.
"Boyd, aka Bugs,
had worked closely
with a second sniper."
You think that's the guy
we're looking for?
All right, I don't have much time.
Let's get to it.
Hey, Dalton "Basement."
Uh, Lala sent me over.
She's been going around
questioning everybody
about shredded documents.
And since I am the
number one office shredder,
she wants me to weed out my own papers.
So it's you we have to blame
for all this?
No. I don't accidentally
shred vital documents.
When I shred, it's with caution.
It's with care.
Horizontal shredding?
I know, right? It's amateur hour.
I can't believe she's back at it.
No matter how many times
I tell her not to,
she still shreds widthwise.
Who's "she"?
FRANKS: It said Operation Sundown
was a big ol' screw-up or something.
You don't remember
seeing nothing like that?
- No.
- LALA: You sure, Gail?
It was written on a
document you shredded.
I don't read the documents.
I just shred whatever's in this box.
(SCOFFS)
Why is your face like that, Gail?
A couple of times,
I did shred real faxes
that I didn't know were
attached to junk faxes.
You think that's what happened here?
You're asking us?
MARY JO: What's all this about?
Apparently, I shredded
a really important document.
If Gail shredded it, it was in the box.
You should be blaming whatever dummy
put it in there, not her.
She just admitted to
inappropriately shredding faxes.
Boss, when you're done making
Gail feel bad, I got something.
Dustin Cruz.
I was reading my notes
from when he got shot on the beach.
Before he ran that CD factory,
he was a "consultant"
at Flintport Security.
Private military contractor?
Yeah. One the CIA hired
to do off-the-books jobs
during the Gulf War.
Woody thinks Bugs spent time in Kuwait.
Maybe he landed at Flintport, too.
Worked there with Cruz.
Oh, maybe that's what Sundown is.
An op they were doing together?
Pipe down, Gail.
WHEELER: Franks!
My office. Now.
Find out if Gail's right.
Sit.
I ain't got time to sit, Cliff.
What, you couldn't hear nothing
from your perch out there?
Damn it, Mike, I said sit.
(GRUNTS)
How'd you hurt your paw?
I'll just cut to the chase.
I am holding on to my job by a thread.
And it is your fault.
Oh, so you're gonna blame me
for the whole Bugs situation?
The boy confessed.
You crossed a line interrogating him,
and you know it.
We both better hope to God
that tape never sees the light of day.
So I gave him a nudge, Cliff.
When'd you start wearing a dress?
You're not dismissed.
FBI wants a joint task force,
and given the optics,
Regional wants us
to welcome them with open arms.
Just keep 'em out of my way.
I called Agent Oakley
and I asked him to run point.
You'll report to him.
Why would you go and do
something stupid like that?
Because my entire career
is depending on it.
And I trust him more than I trust you.
You'll report to Oakley
at 0800 tomorrow.
Now you're dismissed.
These FBI boys sure are
making themselves at home.
Yep.
What happened to Kowalski's bread?
The FBI happened.
They want us
in the conference room in five.
FRANKS: Listen up.
I don't trust these
molasses-movin' FBI pricks
as far as I can throw 'em.
Soon as they tell us
a whole lot of nothing,
we're gonna do what we do
and we're gonna figure out
what Operation Sundown was.
Sons of bitches.
OAKLEY: Flintport's Operation Sundown.
The CIA hired Flintport to run
a protection detail in Kuwait.
Who were they protecting?
Ahmad Safar, a CIA asset.
So much for them having
a whole lot of nothing.
OAKLEY: Lee, you want to jump in here?
Safar was providing intel
on the movements
of the Iraqi Republican Guard.
Sundown was created to
protect him and his family.
Where you getting all this?
- Let him finish, Mike.
- I'm just saying,
you called 'em last night,
they already put together
a damn slideshow?
SABATO: The op called for four snipers
to provide round-the-clock protection
for Safar, his wife and son.
Since the op was a catastrophe,
I'm guessing it didn't work out?
OAKLEY: Safar's
collaboration was discovered.
He and his family
were eliminated by insurgents.
What about the snipers protecting 'em?
They doze off?
We don't know.
Bugs Boyd was one of the snipers
on Operation Sundown, wasn't he?
OAKLEY: Mm-hmm.
Dustin Cruz?
He was their supervisor.
Who were the other three snipers?
We don't know.
Why not?
Seem to know every
other damn thing about this.
And you should've known, too.
Like I told Wheeler,
we faxed over this intel
to you months ago.
What happened?
Doesn't matter.
We're all up to speed now.
Mission goes south.
Sandman takes out his supervisor.
Then takes out Bugs to stop him
from talking about his next move.
So what's his next move?
Is he going after
someone else at Flintport?
Anybody who worked there
is a potential target
or could be Sandman himself.
We need a comprehensive list
of all Flintport employees.
The company is dissolved.
And we don't have any paper trail.
- Didn't say it would be easy.
- (KNOCKING AT DOOR)
Sorry for interrupting, sir.
Your wife's on the phone.
She says it's urgent.
FRANKS: This all goes back to Sundown,
Oakley.
You better get your people on it.
Figure out what the hell
went wrong out there.
Enough. Mike.
Franks!
Agent Oakley
all of my agents are at your disposal.
- Damn, you really pissed him off.
- (DOOR CLOSES)
That how he hurt his hand?
Let's go.
What did he do now?
SHELLY: Skipped school.
Got caught stealing
Guns N' Roses tickets
at the record store.
Where is he?
He's in the back
of a squad car. (SNIFFLES)
The mall cops handed him over
to Carlsbad PD.
I do Rotary with the assistant chief.
I'll call him.
Don't bother, they already figured out
he's your kid and called me.
I told them to bring him to you.
No, no, no, Shelly, not today.
I'm so tired of this always being on me.
You never deal with him.
Really? Because my mangled hand
says otherwise.
My God, I knew you were gonna
milk that for all it's worth.
Yeah, I found the bloody pants
you left on display for me.
Such a martyr.
Believe it or not, I am doing my best
to be there for you and Jason.
It's tough to be there for him
when you're never home.
And don't you dare say,
"Work's been crazy"
because you found plenty
of time to get your rocks off.
That's over.
For months now.
And given your own
extracurricular activities,
maybe don't throw stones.
Your son's police escort should
be showing up at any time.
- Go get him.
- No, Shelly, I
(LINE CLICKS)
(SPEAKING QUIETLY)
WHEELER: Thank you.
Straight up to my office.
You hear me? My office, now.
He got tall.
What did I miss?
Oakley handed out his assignments.
Vera is drawing up
a profile on the Sandman
with one of them FBI guys.
Apparently, he and her did
some profiling on other cases,
so they're thick as thieves.
And the FBI's got Gibbs watching
all Vera's old interviews with Bugs.
They want to see if he can
pick up something sniper-y
she might've missed.
Give us a clue into who his partner was.
Oakley and the other girl G-man
are calling anyone
who could've had any connection
to Cruz or Flintport.
WHEELER: What about
Dominguez and Randolf?
FRANKS: They tracked down Cruz's uncle.
He was acting squirrely on the phone.
Said he was too busy to come in.
So they're taking
a drive down to see him.
He owns some weirdo store
in Chula Vista.
(ENTRY BELLS JINGLE)
(CREEPY CIRCUS MUSIC PLAYING)
LALA: People actually buy this crap?
Would you be, like, super
bummed if I waited in the car?
Yeah, that's not happening. (SIGHS)
I'm not at all clairvoyant,
but somehow I just know
that horrible things have happened here.
VINCENT: Be right with you.
I'm lightening little Gwen's hair.
And I got bleach on my shirt.
Vincent Cruz?
- RANDY: Oh, boy.
- LALA: We called you earlier.
Hoping to talk about your nephew?
VINCENT: Dustin's dead.
Sandman shot him.
Were you two close?
Yeah, he loved me.
Most of my family
wants nothing to do with me.
Really? Why?
Look, Vincent, um
we see that you're busy,
and we would like to get out
of here as soon as possible.
Did Dustin ever talk to you
about a company called Flintport?
Or something called Sundown?
He was in charge of the snipers.
They they protected people.
Did he ever talk to you
about any of his coworkers?
He wasn't allowed to say names.
Do you remember him
telling you anything at all?
Just that the guy in charge was
missing the tip of his finger.
- (GUNSHOT)
- (WOMAN SCREAMS)
Stay here. Stay inside.
- MAN: It's Sandman! He's back!
- MAN 2: Run! Run!
- (GUNSHOT)
- (PEOPLE CLAMORING)
- I'll take east side.
- West. Copy.
(GUNSHOT)
(CLAMORING CONTINUES)
- (GUNSHOT)
- (HORN BLARING)
Whoa. Are you okay?
- Are you okay?
- Yeah, yeah.
Get inside, right now!
Federal agent!
Everybody, get inside, right now!
(ENGINE BACKFIRES)
- Stop revving your car, you idiot.
- Hey!
- You're freaking everybody out!
- Hey! Hey!
You're making people
think it's the Sandman.
Federal agent. Stop.
(GRUNTS)
NIS! Stop!
- Do you realize what you've done?
- Hey!
(MAN CRIES OUT)
- RANDY: You okay?
- Yeah.
Car was backfiring.
There were no gunshots.
Everybody, false alarm.
We're federal agents.
It's not Sandman, you're all okay.
- (SIRENS APPROACHING)
- (MAN GROANS)
BUGS: I think helping people
is how you show love.
What do you think?
VERA: Ah, hold on,
I need to change tapes.
(KNOCK AT DOOR)
Man, they really put Baby in the corner.
FBI's got me rewatching all these tapes.
And they're up in
the conference room, door shut.
I think Franks is right.
We can't trust these guys.
You two get anything from Cruz's uncle?
Guy owns a doll store.
Didn't wear a shirt.
It was a whole thing.
He did tell us
that the owner of Flintport
is missing part of a finger, though.
Guess that's better than nothing.
But, dude, things really
popped off out on the street.
A guy's car backfired,
everyone thought it was Sandman,
all hell broke loose.
(IMITATES SCREAMING)
Some dude freaked out,
and he threw an elbow into Lala.
What? You got elbowed? Are you okay?
Mm, I'm fine.
Whole city's on edge, man.
It's only getting worse.
GIBBS: I should've been
out there with you guys.
I'm not learning anything
from these tapes
that Vera doesn't already know.
You think Franks can get me out of here?
Hey. There you guys are.
Well, it took us forever,
but Woody, Phil and I
were finally able to piece
the Sundown doc back together.
And this thing's got
a boatload of intel.
That's great, Dalton Basement.
RANDY: Yeah.
But we forgot to mention
the FBI already gave us
a copy of it, so
♪
(WHIRRING)
(ROCK MUSIC PLAYING OVER HEADPHONES)
(MUFFLED): How's it going, kid?
You remember me?
My girlfriend used to babysit you.
I remember.
You like bread?
So, why'd you get arrested?
JASON: Today?
(CHUCKLES)
My dad promised me I could go see GNR,
but now he says I can't,
so I tried to steal the tickets.
Stealing ain't good.
Especially if you get caught.
Did my dad send you to talk to me?
No, you and I are in the same boat.
He ain't happy with me, either.
(SIGHS)
What'd you do?
I screwed up. Went too hard on a guy,
got him to say some things
that wasn't true.
Now your dad's taking the heat for it.
So all that stuff on the news
is your fault?
(MOUTH FULL): I wouldn't say all of it.
But yeah, more or less.
At least you're being honest about it.
Yeah, to a 15-year-old,
not to your daddy.
I wouldn't admit nothing to him.
He doesn't deserve to hear the truth.
He lies about everything.
(SIGHS) Look, I don't want
to get involved
in no family squabble,
but you've always been a good kid.
Why you been acting like a moron?
All right, you don't got to tell me.
I'm gonna make you a deal.
You tell your daddy what's
been eating at you, and I'll
(SIGHS)
I'll own up to my thing, too.
What do we get out of that?
Thought you said you want your daddy
to be more honest with you?
Truth begets truth.
OAKLEY: Franks?
A word?
Hey, Jason.
I'm Noah, a friend of your dad's.
We met once a while back.
Your guy at the DoD came through.
Faxed over a list of the four
executives at Flintport.
And get this,
three were murdered
in the last few months.
All in different parts of the country.
Sandman's taking out his bosses.
Who's left standing?
Head of the company.
Name's Kevin Rayburn.
For years, this guy's been a ghost.
He knows how to hide.
He's former Special Ops.
No tax returns, no employment history.
Not even a credit card.
The only proof Rayburn exists
are a couple offshore accounts
and condo in downtown San Diego
rented under an alias.
There's also a record of
an ER visit to Coronado Hospital
after he lost the tip of his finger.
File called it a lawnmower accident,
but I'm guessing
it's something more exotic.
This guy checks all the boxes
of someone leading a dark ops
contractor like Flintport.
Federal agents!
Sit up slowly, hands on your head.
OAKLEY: He's kept a low profile.
Probably why Sandman hasn't
been able to find him yet.
He's kicking.
It's Rayburn.
Hey. Wake up.
BUGS: I don't really think
anything's good or bad.
I think it just is.
Things happen. Life's chaotic.
You can't really control it.
I don't know anything else
other than that.
Oh
Damn it!
(LINE RINGING)
FRANKS: This is Franks.
I ain't at my desk right now
(PHONE RINGING)
Wheeler.
Rayburn's secure.
But we can't move him until
my guys clear the building
with lines of sight to the street.
Might be a while.
WHEELER: He talking?
Barely breathing.
Guy's wasted.
We're trying to force-feed him coffee.
Beautiful.
Hey, I, uh, said hi to your boy earlier.
How are you and Shelly holding up?
Would you believe it
if I told you he stabbed me
with a fireplace poker yesterday?
Sorry, I shouldn't
be dumping this on you.
It's late.
Take your kid home.
I'll call you if anything comes up.
WHEELER: Jason.
Come on.
Time to go.
RAYBURN: Remind me why you're here.
Dude. For the tenth time,
we think the sniper Sandman
is coming after you
because of Operation Sundown.
Did I just see a little twinkle
of life in your eye?
We need the names of the snipers
that were involved in the op.
I don't know their names.
I hired Dustin Cruz, he
he hired the snipers.
What makes you think I'm a target?
'Cause all the players
in Sundown are getting got.
And you were the one
calling the shots, right?
The mission was to protect
the Safar family.
And they all got murdered.
What went wrong?
How did the insurgents
slip past your snipers?!
M
My snipers weren't there.
After the war
Saddam set Kuwait on fire.
700 oil wells were burning.
Uncle Sam needed those wells capped.
And he was willing
to pay millions to get it done.
So I pulled all my guys off my ops
and I turned them into Hellfighters.
You left that family to be slaughtered.
All for a payday.
Them pills are starting
to make a lot of sense.
VERA: So you just quit
playing basketball, then?
No, I practiced all summer long.
And by the next year, I made the team.
VERA: You didn't give up.
BUGS: I don't know,
I just really couldn't
keep anything inside anymore.
It was driving me nuts.
we developed the survival skills.
Not that you survive that way,
because it's not really surviving
It's almost like
you're not really thinking.
Everything's driven by instinct,
and it's either you
or that, you know, fight-or-flight.
You're always observing
the world as an outsider.
I think once you're gone, you're gone.
GIBBS: Mary Jo,
I really need to talk to Franks.
The FBI has got me sidelined down here.
I think something's up with them and
- Damn it.
- BUGS: I don't know,
it's like being robbed at gunpoint.
Have you ever been robbed before?
sucked back into the void
remember anything
before you were born?
(STAMMERS) Like,
we all shared something
Will you just have him call me, please?
From the way I grew up,
I wanted to be part of
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER)
Napolean said, "Victory
goes to those who persevere,"
or something like that.
VERA: Oh, I like that quote.
And good on you for not giving up.
- Working that hard
- (TAPE REWINDING)
BUGS: and give up.
Napolean said,
"Victory goes to those who persevere,"
(ECHOES): or something like that.
LUKE: Our trauma's not our fault.
But our recovery is our responsibility.
- "Victory
- "Victory
belongs to the most persevering."
"goes to those who persevere,"
or something like that.
- SABATO: Hey.
- Hey.
Oakley asked me to come check on you.
You good?
Uh, yeah, I'm good.
I'm just getting some air.
Excuse me.
(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
♪
Leroy.
Hey, man.
Uh, is this a bad time?
No such thing, brother.
What are you doing here?
You said stop by anytime.
So, I'm stopping by.
Yeah, come in, come in.
Just on the phone with Georgie.
Talking him through his
crisis of the evening.
Well, first one, at least.
Hey, Georgie, sorry about that.
Leroy just stopped by.
He says hey.
Georgie. Let me call you back.
No, no, no, it's okay, uh
Last thing we need is Georgie in crisis.
I got to hit the head anyway.
Yeah, yeah, down the hall, to the left.
Yeah.
Sorry, buddy. Repeat that last part.
Okay.
Georgie, we had the same
thing happen last week.
Same situation, right?
How'd you handle it that time?
Okay.
LUKE: Okay.
All right, you got this. Okay?
(LUKE CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY)
(LOCK CLICKS)
Well, Georgie, to me it sounds like
you know what the right choice is.
I just hope you make it.
(SWITCH CLICKS)
♪
LUKE: We've been
doing a lot of outreach.
(ECHOING): We've been doing
a lot of outreach.
(GUNSHOT)
VERA: Three listening devices total.
One in the front bullpen
under Carl's desk.
WHEELER: They must've
been planted by someone
who had regular access to the base.
LUKE: Missed you at the meeting tonight,
brother.
Don't.
Remove your holster.
Slowly.
Now.
The head of Flintport was Special Ops.
Everything you're doing at the VA,
it's all just a cover, huh?
To get access to military records?
To find out who he is and hunt him down?
No.
I care about everyone in my group.
Including you, brother.
But if you don't
hand over your weapon
I'm gonna shoot you in the head.
Why haven't you already?
Because I wasn't lying
when I said I care about you.
And you're a sniper, just like me.
So you should understand
why I'm doing all this.
Your weapon!
Now.
- (GUNSHOT)
- (BREATHING SHAKILY)
Okay.
I'm doing it.
(GRUNTING)
(GRUNTING)
(GRUNTING)
(CHOKING)
(STRAINING)
(GASPING)
(SCREAMS)
(GURGLING)
(SCREAMS)
(GRUNTS)
(GASPS)
(GIBBS PANTING)
(BOTH GRUNTING WEAKLY)
(PANTING)
How far would you go
to protect your family?
We didn't know their names.
So we gave them names of our own.
We called them Sarah,
William and Sammy.
Me and Bugs watched them through
that scope for months.
We were protecting them.
Sarah made them breakfast every morning.
Her husband William
picked her fresh flowers
on his way home every night.
Their son Sammy never left
the house without hugging them.
If he forgot, he'd come running back in.
Me and Bugs, we never had
a family like that.
Either of us.
They deserved to be protected.
(PAINED GRUNT)
(GROANING)
Do you think I'm bad?
(PANTING)
I think you killed innocent people.
They weren't innocent.
They were responsible
for taking us off that post.
What about Melanie Hewitt?
Those people who caught
stray fire on the beach?
What about Bugs?
He was with me.
He was with me the whole time.
I never wanted to lose him.
He was my brother, like you.
Everyone thinks snipers are killers.
We're really just protectors.
We're killers, too.
(APPROACHING FOOTSTEPS)
Can I sit?
Jason, if this is about those tickets,
so help me, God
It's not.
I just think maybe
I owe you an explanation.
Like, the truth about
what's been eating at me.
"Eating at you"?
Oh.
Oh S-Sure.
I'm all ears, Jason.
I know you have a girlfriend.
Uh
Who told you that?
Heard you and Mom arguing.
And
sometimes I've heard you
on the phone late at night,
whispering.
I don't have a girlfriend.
Dad.
Stop lying to me, please.
Truth is, I-I have
I've made some mistakes.
Done some things I'm not proud of.
But, uh, those mistakes
are not happening anymore.
So you and Mom aren't getting divorced?
No.
I'm so sorry that you've been
carrying this, Jason.
I let you down.
I let your mom down.
But I promise you, I will be better.
Hey.
I'm done lying.
You believe me, right?
(PHONE RINGING)
I'm so sorry, Jason, I have to
(PHONE RINGING)
(SIGHS)
(PHONE BEEPS)
Yeah. Wheeler.
OAKLEY: How's your Agent Gibbs?
Franks just brought him home
from the hospital.
Said he's pretty banged up,
but that he'll be okay.
Where's Rayburn?
We called in psych.
They put him on a 5150 hold.
You doing okay?
No, not really.
Anything I can do?
I really appreciate you taking my call,
and running point on this for me.
I mean that.
I always take your calls, Wheeler.
You just don't always like
what I have to say.
I'll be down in a minute.
Okay, we, uh we done here?
Only if you'll promise me that
you'll get your hand looked at.
Don't let it get infected, Cliff.
I'm sorry. I just can't stop caring.
Goodbye, Noah.
("NOVEMBER RAIN" PLAYING)
GIBBS: I applied pressure to the wound,
but it did little to stop the bleeding.
Fletcher's breathing became shallow,
and then stopped before
emergency services arrived.
Okay, man. I think we got it.
I believe my use of deadly force
was justified in order to preserve my
LALA: Gibbs.
We got it.
(SIGHS)
♪
(SNIFFLES) I'm good.
You guys can go.
(SIGHS HEAVILY)
Yeah.
You look great.
(EXHALES)
'Cause nothing lasts forever ♪
You okay?
And we both know hearts can change ♪
Yeah.
Go home.
I thought we were gonna
take shifts watching him,
in case he has a concussion.
I'll wake him up every couple of hours.
In the cold November rain ♪
Go home to your family.
I got him.
We've been through this
such a long, long time ♪
Just trying to kill the pain ♪
♪
(DOOR OPENS)
FRANKS: Cliff?
Thought you went home for the night.
I came back to get something.
Why are you sitting in the dark?
I don't know.
I like the dark.
You and Jason have a little
man-to-man earlier today?
We had a sandwich.
(CHUCKLES SOFTLY)
Well, whatever you said
to my boy, Mike
thank you.
WHEELER: Sir, that's the report the FBI
faxed over to NIS on Operation Sundown
not long after Bugs Boyd was arrested.
I made a choice to have it shredded.
Why?
Because I thought we had the right guy.
And it was in my best interest
to keep the Sandman case closed.
No, Cliff, why are you
telling me this now?
Because it's the truth.
And I am trying to be a better man.
Well, the truth just got you suspended.
Indefinitely.
Understood, sir.
Thank you for your time.
(DOOR OPENS)
OLDER GIBBS:
Looking through a sniper scope
must be a lot like
being a nearsighted newborn.
The background is blurry.
So you fall in love with what's clear.
(TYPEWRITER CLACKING)
♪
We've been through this
such a long, long time ♪
Just trying to kill the pain ♪
Ooh, yeah ♪
Well, lovers always come
and lovers always go ♪
And no one's really sure
who's letting go today ♪
Walking away ♪
If we could take the time
to lay it on the line ♪
I could rest my head just knowin' ♪
That you were mine, all mine ♪
OLDER GIBBS: Now, I'd give
anything to hear Kelly say she hated me.
Then darlin', don't refrain ♪
OLDER GIBBS: I'd give
anything to hear her say anything.
Or I'll just end up
walkin' in the cold ♪
OLDER GIBBS: Now, looking back,
I know that even my saddest days
with her were happy.
Because she was there.
Or I'll just keep on walkin' ♪
In the cold November rain. ♪
WHEELER: There were three bugs,
and it's my fault they got in.
It's a damn disaster.
One day, you're teaching your
little boy to play the piano,
and the next, he's vandalizing
26 headstones with his friends.
Wheeler.
Oakley is my guy.
Nobody here contacts him
directly, understood?
Melanie found out about something called
"Operation Sundown."
I asked Bugs about it, and he shut down.
BUGS: The mission comes first.
Operation Sundown? Who killed Melanie?
Was it the man on the phone?
MAN: Jamison, we're still family.
You know that, don't you?
(DISTANT GUNSHOT)
FRANKS: Sandman's still out there.
("TEACH YOUR CHILDREN" PLAYING)
OLDER GIBBS: The day your child is born,
everything changes.
I'm sure that's true for
every parent around the world.
The delivery room nurse told me
newborns are nearsighted.
They drink you in.
Everything else
blurs into the background.
That's how they first start loving you.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
Huh?
(MOTHER LAUGHING)
Because the past ♪
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
OLDER GIBBS: My daughter Kelly told me
she loved me every day.
But there was one time
she said she hated me.
(LAUGHTER)
She was angry because
I said it was too cold
to swim in the ocean.
- He's a liar.
- Enough, Jason.
It'll be years before Guns N' Roses
comes back to San Diego,
and Dad promised he'd take me.
That was before you
desecrated a cemetery.
We will no longer be going
to the concert, obviously.
Dad, you don't understand
- (PHONE RINGING)
- Got to be kidding me.
- (TV REPORTER CHATTERING)
- SHELLY: I'll get it.
JASON: Dad, please.
I'll never ask you for anything again.
- told us they arrested Sandman.
- Right?
Remember when this little guy
came out to do a victory lap?
Due to the tireless work of
our special agents and staff,
- NIS has arrested
- JASON: Dad, please just hear me out.
the sniper known as Sandman.
The GNR concert, you swore
Enough!
You are not going to the damn concert.
You're failing most of your classes,
you just got arrested.
You're an embarrassment.
SHELLY: Mary Jo just called.
She said the regional director
wants to see you.
He can't possibly put all the blame
for this on you, can he?
Want to bet? The buck stops with me
- Jason!
- What is wrong with you?!
(SCREAMS) Ow!
- Oh! Jason!
- Son of a bitch!
- SHELLY: Oh, my God.
- Oh.
Oh, my
You need stitches.
Yeah, right.
I'll just call my boss and tell him
I'm going to be late for my ass-reaming
because my son just stabbed me
with a fireplace poker.
- I'll get you some Band-Aids.
- (PAINED GRUNT)
Don't you ever ask them why ♪
OLDER GIBBS: It broke my heart
when Kelly said she hated me that day.
I wished I could go back to the way
she looked at me when she was born.
Happiest day of my life.
And know they love you. ♪
♪
Oh, Bugs. You dumbass.
(SIGHS)
You wanted to tell me.
FRANKS: Huh?
Bugs.
He wanted to tell me who the
real Sandman was, but, uh
I, uh, I couldn't get
through to him in time.
(DOOR OPENS)
Ballistics came back, Mike.
The bullet that killed Bugs
was fired from the same gun
that killed Sandman's other victims.
You guys have any luck
at the sniper's hide?
Nah, Rando and Dominguez spent hours
at the water supply place,
came up empty.
No casings, no nothing.
What's this say?
He's got "post-bully scarring"
on his feet?
Post-bullous.
But that's Lenora's findings.
She doesn't like it when I butt in.
No, I do not.
FRANKS: What's post-bullous scarring?
That.
Caused by prolonged
exposure to crude oil.
At least, that's what
he told the prison doctor.
Bugs never mentioned
working on an oil rig.
There's nothing in his file.
Maybe it's in the shredded
document probie's trying
to Humpty-Dumpty back together.
There's a shredded document?
FRANKS: Before Bugs
took one to the dome,
he mentioned an op called "Sundown."
Gibbs thinks it was written
on the shredded document
in our basement.
What was Gibbs doing reading
shredded documents in the basement?
FRANKS: Mary Jo, get me Wheeler.
Where the hell is he?
You're looking
a little skinny there, Cliff.
Did you lose some weight?
Yes, sir, I've had some, um
issues, gastro stuff.
Irritable bowel disease, probably.
- Could be.
- My ex-wife had that.
Took a hell of a toll on our sex life.
How's Shelly?
She's great, sir, thank you.
Mm.
I'm not gonna BS you, Cliff.
I brought you in this morning
to fire you.
Sir, if I may just
No. But headquarters won't let me.
See, some sailors
got handsy at a conference,
and now the brass is afraid canning you
will lead to more bad PR.
It still doesn't change the fact
that your office is a mess.
The IG's breathing down my neck
over your miles-long list of calamities.
Yes, sir, I hear you,
but we have things buttoned up now.
Buttoned up?
Didn't you just find listening devices
planted all over your office?
(DISTORTED): Now the
entire city's in a panic
because Sandman's still out there.
I can assure you that Sandman
is our top priority.
Well, that brings me
absolutely zero solace, Cliff.
The FBI wants back in on this,
and I don't blame them.
(ECHOING): You are gonna run
a joint investigation.
And you're gonna make damn sure
that NIS comes out smelling like a lily.
Understood, sir.
Or you will be looking for a new job.
I-I'm excited to get
these problems rectified.
♪
(INTERCOM RINGS)
MARY JO: Morning, Cliff.
Barrett's secretary called
and gave me a heads-up
there was doings at his office.
(GROANS) Great.
Anything you want me to know about,
or handle or dispose of?
I didn't whack anybody,
Mary Jo, I, uh
I-I had a thing with a can opener.
Happens to the best of us.
Get me Agent Oakley at the FBI.
And, um, Mary Jo?
Thank you.
You're welcome.
(INTERCOM BEEPS)
It's vertical.
Vertical.
Here you go. Horizontal.
You don't have to announce it
every time, Phil.
Well, people are supposed
to shred lengthwise
so it cuts through the words.
Shredding widthwise negates
the value of shredding.
Yeah, you mentioned that. Several times.
WOODY: Don't pester our guest, Phil.
Put a rush on Bugs's bloodwork.
Looks like he had elevated
levels of oxidized trace metals,
benzine, his hydrocarbons
are off the charts.
No idea what that means.
Of course not.
People who look like you don't
need to learn big science words.
It means Bugs was inhaling pollutants
for a prolonged period.
- Yeah.
- And my guess would be
smoke from oil fires.
Phil and I have seen this a lot
in the Hellfighters
back from Desert Storm.
That's what they used
to call the guys who
Capped the burning oil wells.
Yeah, I know.
Bugs didn't serve in Desert Storm.
Ooh, found a good one.
Operation Sundown,
a catastrophic mishandling of
a critical security detail
involving a key asset.
Wow. Nicely done, Phil.
And just when I was worried
you were dead weight.
There's nine strips.
I found seven of them.
It's not a competition.
If it was, I'd be winning.
"Boyd, aka Bugs,
had worked closely
with a second sniper."
You think that's the guy
we're looking for?
All right, I don't have much time.
Let's get to it.
Hey, Dalton "Basement."
Uh, Lala sent me over.
She's been going around
questioning everybody
about shredded documents.
And since I am the
number one office shredder,
she wants me to weed out my own papers.
So it's you we have to blame
for all this?
No. I don't accidentally
shred vital documents.
When I shred, it's with caution.
It's with care.
Horizontal shredding?
I know, right? It's amateur hour.
I can't believe she's back at it.
No matter how many times
I tell her not to,
she still shreds widthwise.
Who's "she"?
FRANKS: It said Operation Sundown
was a big ol' screw-up or something.
You don't remember
seeing nothing like that?
- No.
- LALA: You sure, Gail?
It was written on a
document you shredded.
I don't read the documents.
I just shred whatever's in this box.
(SCOFFS)
Why is your face like that, Gail?
A couple of times,
I did shred real faxes
that I didn't know were
attached to junk faxes.
You think that's what happened here?
You're asking us?
MARY JO: What's all this about?
Apparently, I shredded
a really important document.
If Gail shredded it, it was in the box.
You should be blaming whatever dummy
put it in there, not her.
She just admitted to
inappropriately shredding faxes.
Boss, when you're done making
Gail feel bad, I got something.
Dustin Cruz.
I was reading my notes
from when he got shot on the beach.
Before he ran that CD factory,
he was a "consultant"
at Flintport Security.
Private military contractor?
Yeah. One the CIA hired
to do off-the-books jobs
during the Gulf War.
Woody thinks Bugs spent time in Kuwait.
Maybe he landed at Flintport, too.
Worked there with Cruz.
Oh, maybe that's what Sundown is.
An op they were doing together?
Pipe down, Gail.
WHEELER: Franks!
My office. Now.
Find out if Gail's right.
Sit.
I ain't got time to sit, Cliff.
What, you couldn't hear nothing
from your perch out there?
Damn it, Mike, I said sit.
(GRUNTS)
How'd you hurt your paw?
I'll just cut to the chase.
I am holding on to my job by a thread.
And it is your fault.
Oh, so you're gonna blame me
for the whole Bugs situation?
The boy confessed.
You crossed a line interrogating him,
and you know it.
We both better hope to God
that tape never sees the light of day.
So I gave him a nudge, Cliff.
When'd you start wearing a dress?
You're not dismissed.
FBI wants a joint task force,
and given the optics,
Regional wants us
to welcome them with open arms.
Just keep 'em out of my way.
I called Agent Oakley
and I asked him to run point.
You'll report to him.
Why would you go and do
something stupid like that?
Because my entire career
is depending on it.
And I trust him more than I trust you.
You'll report to Oakley
at 0800 tomorrow.
Now you're dismissed.
These FBI boys sure are
making themselves at home.
Yep.
What happened to Kowalski's bread?
The FBI happened.
They want us
in the conference room in five.
FRANKS: Listen up.
I don't trust these
molasses-movin' FBI pricks
as far as I can throw 'em.
Soon as they tell us
a whole lot of nothing,
we're gonna do what we do
and we're gonna figure out
what Operation Sundown was.
Sons of bitches.
OAKLEY: Flintport's Operation Sundown.
The CIA hired Flintport to run
a protection detail in Kuwait.
Who were they protecting?
Ahmad Safar, a CIA asset.
So much for them having
a whole lot of nothing.
OAKLEY: Lee, you want to jump in here?
Safar was providing intel
on the movements
of the Iraqi Republican Guard.
Sundown was created to
protect him and his family.
Where you getting all this?
- Let him finish, Mike.
- I'm just saying,
you called 'em last night,
they already put together
a damn slideshow?
SABATO: The op called for four snipers
to provide round-the-clock protection
for Safar, his wife and son.
Since the op was a catastrophe,
I'm guessing it didn't work out?
OAKLEY: Safar's
collaboration was discovered.
He and his family
were eliminated by insurgents.
What about the snipers protecting 'em?
They doze off?
We don't know.
Bugs Boyd was one of the snipers
on Operation Sundown, wasn't he?
OAKLEY: Mm-hmm.
Dustin Cruz?
He was their supervisor.
Who were the other three snipers?
We don't know.
Why not?
Seem to know every
other damn thing about this.
And you should've known, too.
Like I told Wheeler,
we faxed over this intel
to you months ago.
What happened?
Doesn't matter.
We're all up to speed now.
Mission goes south.
Sandman takes out his supervisor.
Then takes out Bugs to stop him
from talking about his next move.
So what's his next move?
Is he going after
someone else at Flintport?
Anybody who worked there
is a potential target
or could be Sandman himself.
We need a comprehensive list
of all Flintport employees.
The company is dissolved.
And we don't have any paper trail.
- Didn't say it would be easy.
- (KNOCKING AT DOOR)
Sorry for interrupting, sir.
Your wife's on the phone.
She says it's urgent.
FRANKS: This all goes back to Sundown,
Oakley.
You better get your people on it.
Figure out what the hell
went wrong out there.
Enough. Mike.
Franks!
Agent Oakley
all of my agents are at your disposal.
- Damn, you really pissed him off.
- (DOOR CLOSES)
That how he hurt his hand?
Let's go.
What did he do now?
SHELLY: Skipped school.
Got caught stealing
Guns N' Roses tickets
at the record store.
Where is he?
He's in the back
of a squad car. (SNIFFLES)
The mall cops handed him over
to Carlsbad PD.
I do Rotary with the assistant chief.
I'll call him.
Don't bother, they already figured out
he's your kid and called me.
I told them to bring him to you.
No, no, no, Shelly, not today.
I'm so tired of this always being on me.
You never deal with him.
Really? Because my mangled hand
says otherwise.
My God, I knew you were gonna
milk that for all it's worth.
Yeah, I found the bloody pants
you left on display for me.
Such a martyr.
Believe it or not, I am doing my best
to be there for you and Jason.
It's tough to be there for him
when you're never home.
And don't you dare say,
"Work's been crazy"
because you found plenty
of time to get your rocks off.
That's over.
For months now.
And given your own
extracurricular activities,
maybe don't throw stones.
Your son's police escort should
be showing up at any time.
- Go get him.
- No, Shelly, I
(LINE CLICKS)
(SPEAKING QUIETLY)
WHEELER: Thank you.
Straight up to my office.
You hear me? My office, now.
He got tall.
What did I miss?
Oakley handed out his assignments.
Vera is drawing up
a profile on the Sandman
with one of them FBI guys.
Apparently, he and her did
some profiling on other cases,
so they're thick as thieves.
And the FBI's got Gibbs watching
all Vera's old interviews with Bugs.
They want to see if he can
pick up something sniper-y
she might've missed.
Give us a clue into who his partner was.
Oakley and the other girl G-man
are calling anyone
who could've had any connection
to Cruz or Flintport.
WHEELER: What about
Dominguez and Randolf?
FRANKS: They tracked down Cruz's uncle.
He was acting squirrely on the phone.
Said he was too busy to come in.
So they're taking
a drive down to see him.
He owns some weirdo store
in Chula Vista.
(ENTRY BELLS JINGLE)
(CREEPY CIRCUS MUSIC PLAYING)
LALA: People actually buy this crap?
Would you be, like, super
bummed if I waited in the car?
Yeah, that's not happening. (SIGHS)
I'm not at all clairvoyant,
but somehow I just know
that horrible things have happened here.
VINCENT: Be right with you.
I'm lightening little Gwen's hair.
And I got bleach on my shirt.
Vincent Cruz?
- RANDY: Oh, boy.
- LALA: We called you earlier.
Hoping to talk about your nephew?
VINCENT: Dustin's dead.
Sandman shot him.
Were you two close?
Yeah, he loved me.
Most of my family
wants nothing to do with me.
Really? Why?
Look, Vincent, um
we see that you're busy,
and we would like to get out
of here as soon as possible.
Did Dustin ever talk to you
about a company called Flintport?
Or something called Sundown?
He was in charge of the snipers.
They they protected people.
Did he ever talk to you
about any of his coworkers?
He wasn't allowed to say names.
Do you remember him
telling you anything at all?
Just that the guy in charge was
missing the tip of his finger.
- (GUNSHOT)
- (WOMAN SCREAMS)
Stay here. Stay inside.
- MAN: It's Sandman! He's back!
- MAN 2: Run! Run!
- (GUNSHOT)
- (PEOPLE CLAMORING)
- I'll take east side.
- West. Copy.
(GUNSHOT)
(CLAMORING CONTINUES)
- (GUNSHOT)
- (HORN BLARING)
Whoa. Are you okay?
- Are you okay?
- Yeah, yeah.
Get inside, right now!
Federal agent!
Everybody, get inside, right now!
(ENGINE BACKFIRES)
- Stop revving your car, you idiot.
- Hey!
- You're freaking everybody out!
- Hey! Hey!
You're making people
think it's the Sandman.
Federal agent. Stop.
(GRUNTS)
NIS! Stop!
- Do you realize what you've done?
- Hey!
(MAN CRIES OUT)
- RANDY: You okay?
- Yeah.
Car was backfiring.
There were no gunshots.
Everybody, false alarm.
We're federal agents.
It's not Sandman, you're all okay.
- (SIRENS APPROACHING)
- (MAN GROANS)
BUGS: I think helping people
is how you show love.
What do you think?
VERA: Ah, hold on,
I need to change tapes.
(KNOCK AT DOOR)
Man, they really put Baby in the corner.
FBI's got me rewatching all these tapes.
And they're up in
the conference room, door shut.
I think Franks is right.
We can't trust these guys.
You two get anything from Cruz's uncle?
Guy owns a doll store.
Didn't wear a shirt.
It was a whole thing.
He did tell us
that the owner of Flintport
is missing part of a finger, though.
Guess that's better than nothing.
But, dude, things really
popped off out on the street.
A guy's car backfired,
everyone thought it was Sandman,
all hell broke loose.
(IMITATES SCREAMING)
Some dude freaked out,
and he threw an elbow into Lala.
What? You got elbowed? Are you okay?
Mm, I'm fine.
Whole city's on edge, man.
It's only getting worse.
GIBBS: I should've been
out there with you guys.
I'm not learning anything
from these tapes
that Vera doesn't already know.
You think Franks can get me out of here?
Hey. There you guys are.
Well, it took us forever,
but Woody, Phil and I
were finally able to piece
the Sundown doc back together.
And this thing's got
a boatload of intel.
That's great, Dalton Basement.
RANDY: Yeah.
But we forgot to mention
the FBI already gave us
a copy of it, so
♪
(WHIRRING)
(ROCK MUSIC PLAYING OVER HEADPHONES)
(MUFFLED): How's it going, kid?
You remember me?
My girlfriend used to babysit you.
I remember.
You like bread?
So, why'd you get arrested?
JASON: Today?
(CHUCKLES)
My dad promised me I could go see GNR,
but now he says I can't,
so I tried to steal the tickets.
Stealing ain't good.
Especially if you get caught.
Did my dad send you to talk to me?
No, you and I are in the same boat.
He ain't happy with me, either.
(SIGHS)
What'd you do?
I screwed up. Went too hard on a guy,
got him to say some things
that wasn't true.
Now your dad's taking the heat for it.
So all that stuff on the news
is your fault?
(MOUTH FULL): I wouldn't say all of it.
But yeah, more or less.
At least you're being honest about it.
Yeah, to a 15-year-old,
not to your daddy.
I wouldn't admit nothing to him.
He doesn't deserve to hear the truth.
He lies about everything.
(SIGHS) Look, I don't want
to get involved
in no family squabble,
but you've always been a good kid.
Why you been acting like a moron?
All right, you don't got to tell me.
I'm gonna make you a deal.
You tell your daddy what's
been eating at you, and I'll
(SIGHS)
I'll own up to my thing, too.
What do we get out of that?
Thought you said you want your daddy
to be more honest with you?
Truth begets truth.
OAKLEY: Franks?
A word?
Hey, Jason.
I'm Noah, a friend of your dad's.
We met once a while back.
Your guy at the DoD came through.
Faxed over a list of the four
executives at Flintport.
And get this,
three were murdered
in the last few months.
All in different parts of the country.
Sandman's taking out his bosses.
Who's left standing?
Head of the company.
Name's Kevin Rayburn.
For years, this guy's been a ghost.
He knows how to hide.
He's former Special Ops.
No tax returns, no employment history.
Not even a credit card.
The only proof Rayburn exists
are a couple offshore accounts
and condo in downtown San Diego
rented under an alias.
There's also a record of
an ER visit to Coronado Hospital
after he lost the tip of his finger.
File called it a lawnmower accident,
but I'm guessing
it's something more exotic.
This guy checks all the boxes
of someone leading a dark ops
contractor like Flintport.
Federal agents!
Sit up slowly, hands on your head.
OAKLEY: He's kept a low profile.
Probably why Sandman hasn't
been able to find him yet.
He's kicking.
It's Rayburn.
Hey. Wake up.
BUGS: I don't really think
anything's good or bad.
I think it just is.
Things happen. Life's chaotic.
You can't really control it.
I don't know anything else
other than that.
Oh
Damn it!
(LINE RINGING)
FRANKS: This is Franks.
I ain't at my desk right now
(PHONE RINGING)
Wheeler.
Rayburn's secure.
But we can't move him until
my guys clear the building
with lines of sight to the street.
Might be a while.
WHEELER: He talking?
Barely breathing.
Guy's wasted.
We're trying to force-feed him coffee.
Beautiful.
Hey, I, uh, said hi to your boy earlier.
How are you and Shelly holding up?
Would you believe it
if I told you he stabbed me
with a fireplace poker yesterday?
Sorry, I shouldn't
be dumping this on you.
It's late.
Take your kid home.
I'll call you if anything comes up.
WHEELER: Jason.
Come on.
Time to go.
RAYBURN: Remind me why you're here.
Dude. For the tenth time,
we think the sniper Sandman
is coming after you
because of Operation Sundown.
Did I just see a little twinkle
of life in your eye?
We need the names of the snipers
that were involved in the op.
I don't know their names.
I hired Dustin Cruz, he
he hired the snipers.
What makes you think I'm a target?
'Cause all the players
in Sundown are getting got.
And you were the one
calling the shots, right?
The mission was to protect
the Safar family.
And they all got murdered.
What went wrong?
How did the insurgents
slip past your snipers?!
M
My snipers weren't there.
After the war
Saddam set Kuwait on fire.
700 oil wells were burning.
Uncle Sam needed those wells capped.
And he was willing
to pay millions to get it done.
So I pulled all my guys off my ops
and I turned them into Hellfighters.
You left that family to be slaughtered.
All for a payday.
Them pills are starting
to make a lot of sense.
VERA: So you just quit
playing basketball, then?
No, I practiced all summer long.
And by the next year, I made the team.
VERA: You didn't give up.
BUGS: I don't know,
I just really couldn't
keep anything inside anymore.
It was driving me nuts.
we developed the survival skills.
Not that you survive that way,
because it's not really surviving
It's almost like
you're not really thinking.
Everything's driven by instinct,
and it's either you
or that, you know, fight-or-flight.
You're always observing
the world as an outsider.
I think once you're gone, you're gone.
GIBBS: Mary Jo,
I really need to talk to Franks.
The FBI has got me sidelined down here.
I think something's up with them and
- Damn it.
- BUGS: I don't know,
it's like being robbed at gunpoint.
Have you ever been robbed before?
sucked back into the void
remember anything
before you were born?
(STAMMERS) Like,
we all shared something
Will you just have him call me, please?
From the way I grew up,
I wanted to be part of
(OVERLAPPING CHATTER)
Napolean said, "Victory
goes to those who persevere,"
or something like that.
VERA: Oh, I like that quote.
And good on you for not giving up.
- Working that hard
- (TAPE REWINDING)
BUGS: and give up.
Napolean said,
"Victory goes to those who persevere,"
(ECHOES): or something like that.
LUKE: Our trauma's not our fault.
But our recovery is our responsibility.
- "Victory
- "Victory
belongs to the most persevering."
"goes to those who persevere,"
or something like that.
- SABATO: Hey.
- Hey.
Oakley asked me to come check on you.
You good?
Uh, yeah, I'm good.
I'm just getting some air.
Excuse me.
(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
♪
Leroy.
Hey, man.
Uh, is this a bad time?
No such thing, brother.
What are you doing here?
You said stop by anytime.
So, I'm stopping by.
Yeah, come in, come in.
Just on the phone with Georgie.
Talking him through his
crisis of the evening.
Well, first one, at least.
Hey, Georgie, sorry about that.
Leroy just stopped by.
He says hey.
Georgie. Let me call you back.
No, no, no, it's okay, uh
Last thing we need is Georgie in crisis.
I got to hit the head anyway.
Yeah, yeah, down the hall, to the left.
Yeah.
Sorry, buddy. Repeat that last part.
Okay.
Georgie, we had the same
thing happen last week.
Same situation, right?
How'd you handle it that time?
Okay.
LUKE: Okay.
All right, you got this. Okay?
(LUKE CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY)
(LOCK CLICKS)
Well, Georgie, to me it sounds like
you know what the right choice is.
I just hope you make it.
(SWITCH CLICKS)
♪
LUKE: We've been
doing a lot of outreach.
(ECHOING): We've been doing
a lot of outreach.
(GUNSHOT)
VERA: Three listening devices total.
One in the front bullpen
under Carl's desk.
WHEELER: They must've
been planted by someone
who had regular access to the base.
LUKE: Missed you at the meeting tonight,
brother.
Don't.
Remove your holster.
Slowly.
Now.
The head of Flintport was Special Ops.
Everything you're doing at the VA,
it's all just a cover, huh?
To get access to military records?
To find out who he is and hunt him down?
No.
I care about everyone in my group.
Including you, brother.
But if you don't
hand over your weapon
I'm gonna shoot you in the head.
Why haven't you already?
Because I wasn't lying
when I said I care about you.
And you're a sniper, just like me.
So you should understand
why I'm doing all this.
Your weapon!
Now.
- (GUNSHOT)
- (BREATHING SHAKILY)
Okay.
I'm doing it.
(GRUNTING)
(GRUNTING)
(GRUNTING)
(CHOKING)
(STRAINING)
(GASPING)
(SCREAMS)
(GURGLING)
(SCREAMS)
(GRUNTS)
(GASPS)
(GIBBS PANTING)
(BOTH GRUNTING WEAKLY)
(PANTING)
How far would you go
to protect your family?
We didn't know their names.
So we gave them names of our own.
We called them Sarah,
William and Sammy.
Me and Bugs watched them through
that scope for months.
We were protecting them.
Sarah made them breakfast every morning.
Her husband William
picked her fresh flowers
on his way home every night.
Their son Sammy never left
the house without hugging them.
If he forgot, he'd come running back in.
Me and Bugs, we never had
a family like that.
Either of us.
They deserved to be protected.
(PAINED GRUNT)
(GROANING)
Do you think I'm bad?
(PANTING)
I think you killed innocent people.
They weren't innocent.
They were responsible
for taking us off that post.
What about Melanie Hewitt?
Those people who caught
stray fire on the beach?
What about Bugs?
He was with me.
He was with me the whole time.
I never wanted to lose him.
He was my brother, like you.
Everyone thinks snipers are killers.
We're really just protectors.
We're killers, too.
(APPROACHING FOOTSTEPS)
Can I sit?
Jason, if this is about those tickets,
so help me, God
It's not.
I just think maybe
I owe you an explanation.
Like, the truth about
what's been eating at me.
"Eating at you"?
Oh.
Oh S-Sure.
I'm all ears, Jason.
I know you have a girlfriend.
Uh
Who told you that?
Heard you and Mom arguing.
And
sometimes I've heard you
on the phone late at night,
whispering.
I don't have a girlfriend.
Dad.
Stop lying to me, please.
Truth is, I-I have
I've made some mistakes.
Done some things I'm not proud of.
But, uh, those mistakes
are not happening anymore.
So you and Mom aren't getting divorced?
No.
I'm so sorry that you've been
carrying this, Jason.
I let you down.
I let your mom down.
But I promise you, I will be better.
Hey.
I'm done lying.
You believe me, right?
(PHONE RINGING)
I'm so sorry, Jason, I have to
(PHONE RINGING)
(SIGHS)
(PHONE BEEPS)
Yeah. Wheeler.
OAKLEY: How's your Agent Gibbs?
Franks just brought him home
from the hospital.
Said he's pretty banged up,
but that he'll be okay.
Where's Rayburn?
We called in psych.
They put him on a 5150 hold.
You doing okay?
No, not really.
Anything I can do?
I really appreciate you taking my call,
and running point on this for me.
I mean that.
I always take your calls, Wheeler.
You just don't always like
what I have to say.
I'll be down in a minute.
Okay, we, uh we done here?
Only if you'll promise me that
you'll get your hand looked at.
Don't let it get infected, Cliff.
I'm sorry. I just can't stop caring.
Goodbye, Noah.
("NOVEMBER RAIN" PLAYING)
GIBBS: I applied pressure to the wound,
but it did little to stop the bleeding.
Fletcher's breathing became shallow,
and then stopped before
emergency services arrived.
Okay, man. I think we got it.
I believe my use of deadly force
was justified in order to preserve my
LALA: Gibbs.
We got it.
(SIGHS)
♪
(SNIFFLES) I'm good.
You guys can go.
(SIGHS HEAVILY)
Yeah.
You look great.
(EXHALES)
'Cause nothing lasts forever ♪
You okay?
And we both know hearts can change ♪
Yeah.
Go home.
I thought we were gonna
take shifts watching him,
in case he has a concussion.
I'll wake him up every couple of hours.
In the cold November rain ♪
Go home to your family.
I got him.
We've been through this
such a long, long time ♪
Just trying to kill the pain ♪
♪
(DOOR OPENS)
FRANKS: Cliff?
Thought you went home for the night.
I came back to get something.
Why are you sitting in the dark?
I don't know.
I like the dark.
You and Jason have a little
man-to-man earlier today?
We had a sandwich.
(CHUCKLES SOFTLY)
Well, whatever you said
to my boy, Mike
thank you.
WHEELER: Sir, that's the report the FBI
faxed over to NIS on Operation Sundown
not long after Bugs Boyd was arrested.
I made a choice to have it shredded.
Why?
Because I thought we had the right guy.
And it was in my best interest
to keep the Sandman case closed.
No, Cliff, why are you
telling me this now?
Because it's the truth.
And I am trying to be a better man.
Well, the truth just got you suspended.
Indefinitely.
Understood, sir.
Thank you for your time.
(DOOR OPENS)
OLDER GIBBS:
Looking through a sniper scope
must be a lot like
being a nearsighted newborn.
The background is blurry.
So you fall in love with what's clear.
(TYPEWRITER CLACKING)
♪
We've been through this
such a long, long time ♪
Just trying to kill the pain ♪
Ooh, yeah ♪
Well, lovers always come
and lovers always go ♪
And no one's really sure
who's letting go today ♪
Walking away ♪
If we could take the time
to lay it on the line ♪
I could rest my head just knowin' ♪
That you were mine, all mine ♪
OLDER GIBBS: Now, I'd give
anything to hear Kelly say she hated me.
Then darlin', don't refrain ♪
OLDER GIBBS: I'd give
anything to hear her say anything.
Or I'll just end up
walkin' in the cold ♪
OLDER GIBBS: Now, looking back,
I know that even my saddest days
with her were happy.
Because she was there.
Or I'll just keep on walkin' ♪
In the cold November rain. ♪