Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001) s03e01 Episode Script
Undaunted Mettle
In New York City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by the detectives of the Major Case Squad.
These are their stories.
Let's go.
See, I'm an architecture student at Madison, and I'm doing my thesison Mr.
Laurette.
He designed this house back in '76.
I think you have the wrong address.
No, no, this is definitely a Laurette.
If I could just take a quick look I don't think so.
Uh, okay.
I didn't mean to creep you out.
This is my number.
You can call me if you change your mind.
This is a great design, Noah.
Your vision's maturing, but I don't think I can help you.
I just need enough to cover the cost.
I don't have that kind of money.
Yes, you do.
I know you do.
You're wrong, Noah.
And I don't feel comfortable with this other complication.
Noah Preston.
Oh, that's great.
Uh, when can I Sure.
Uh, sure, I guess that'd be okay.
Uh, when can I come by? Okay.
Yeah, I'll be there.
Oh, geez.
Hang in there, buddy.
Hang in there.
Law & Order CI He had his arm out like he was pointing to somebody, and he was trying to say something.
You notice who came in just before him? Just people, you know, hurrying to catch trains.
Okay, thanks.
The detective will take your formal statement.
We have Noah Preston, 25.
New York State driver's license, library card a man after your own heart.
Eighty bucks, no credit cards.
He traveled light.
Very light.
It's raining, he's not wearing a jacket.
He's hardly wet.
He wasn't outside long.
Maybe a cab just dropped him off.
A cab or his own car.
I didn't find any house keys on him.
They could be with his car keys.
Round puncture wound.
Edges look ragged.
No powder burns.
Ink smudges.
Faint.
Looks like some kind of numbers or writing.
Patrol found Preston's car half an hour ago over on 37 th.
It was blocking a hydrant, so we called for a tow.
Then we saw they took all the air bags.
That's where the market is these days.
There's blood drops on the seat.
Looks like Preston was stabbed here.
The killer might have been in the passenger seat.
Maybe Preston picked up some short-term companionship and got played.
They stabbed him and stole his car.
Or there were two crimes and two unrelated perps.
One stabs Preston.
He follows his assailant into the station.
Someone else sees the car idling on the curb and steals it.
Well, I told him.
Yeah? What did he say? He gave me a big hug.
He said it was a great thing I was doing for my sister.
And he said when the time comes, he'll hook you up with a temporary partner.
Oh, no.
I didn't even think of that.
Well, what did you say? I pity the fool.
How about our gal, huh? Surrogate mom? What are those, nightclub stamps? No.
Preston had a habit of jotting notes on his hand.
Some of these, they look like they could be calculations.
Any luck finding the murder weapon? No, but we've got a pretty good idea of what it is.
A Phillips-head screwdriver.
The handyman killer.
"Quoin.
" It's an architectural term for a cornerstone.
Then the numbers are probably measurements.
Could be an engineer or architect.
Those guys love joining professional associations.
Adler Architecture Monday, March 31 Either of you know what he was doing last night? I think he just went home on the West Side.
I think he lived with a girlfriend.
A girlfriend? I thought he was oriented the other way.
I thought he lived in New Jersey with his wife.
Is that his personnel file? Yes.
Same mailbox address.
No dependents listed on his tax form.
No home or cell phone? How did you keep in touch with him? Oh, he carried one of the site phones.
Noah's just a very private person.
When we looked him up on the Architects Forum, we noticed he didn't have his license.
Was there a problem with his work? No.
He was extremely talented.
He just never sat for the exam.
I don't know why.
I encouraged him to.
Well, without his license, he couldn't strike out on his own.
Did he have a lack of self-confidence? Uh, I don't think so.
He was always working on his own designs.
Any of them here? Um No.
This is just the usual stuff we do for the firm.
Noah's designs were bold and grand.
What about this? This isn't the usual stuff.
It's, uh It's an apartment.
This molding on the door, I I think I've seen that before.
It's an Emery Roth building.
Roth, Carrere and Hastings.
1925.
The Ritz Tower.
Neat and tidy.
Everything in its place and a place for everything.
The mind of an architect.
Every tool in that closet except a large Phillips-head.
Our handyman killer was here.
Well, that not be all he took.
It's the whole downtown.
Then we have holes in the picture sequence.
The killer might be in one of these missing photos.
He was a cute kid.
Nice-looking mom.
No pictures of dad.
Maybe this is why.
It's a letter from Noah's professor at Madison.
"Dear Noah,Your father asked me again to impress upon you the importance of taking your licensing exam.
He's despairing you'll ever achieve anything.
" Stage dad.
No wonder he took himself off the radar.
There's also a notation in Noah's handwriting "Call.
" There's a dollar sign next to it.
He hit up his dad? Or our friendly professor.
This has become the most contentious piece of real estate in the world.
I know the waters you have to navigate.
You don't need a captain.
You need an admiral.
I can't predict what our final decision will be.
I know the sentimental favorite is out of the running.
I can't comment.
Abby, the city, the country, wants a monument for the ages.
I build for the ages! Jim had high expectations for Noah.
Even after he moved to Miami last year, he wouldn't stop writing the boy.
How'd you end up the go-between? By default.
I knew Noah's mother.
She was active in historical preservation.
Noah was very close to her.
Did he ask his dad for money recently? - No.
- So it's you he asked? No.
What gave you that idea? Noah did.
He made a note about it.
Well, he never got around to asking.
Now, if you'll excuse me It's kind of surprising that Noah would think that an associate professor would have that kind of spare cash lying around.
What's that supposed to mean? Well, y-you don't have tenure, and you're supporting a wife and well, I think littleJunior spit up on you this morning.
What is this, creamed corn? I bet he has a sideline.
I bet he recruits for prestigious architectural firms.
That's overstating.
Well, you are the man on campus, aren't you? Now, isn't that a a violation of your professorial ethics, Professor? Noah had submitted a design with the downtown reconstruction committee.
A design for a new tower? Yeah.
He wanted my help if the design got to the next stage of the competition.
How much help? For models, studiesabout $50,000.
And, what, you didn't like his design or No.
It was brilliant.
My problem was with Noah.
He said he had a silent partner a licensed architect that he wouldn't name.
And you're wondering if this silent partner really existed, why didn't Noah ask him for the money? Exactly.
Now can I go? Maybe Noah didn't ask because he was freezing out his partner.
Yeah, his silent partner he didn't go quietly.
The more we looked at the other designs, the more we came back to Noah's.
But a kid just out of school, what kind of chance could he really have? That's the appeal, isn't it? That an unknown architect with a breathtaking and heartbreaking designcommemorate a a breathtaking, heartbreaking national tragedy.
Like the the young architect and the Vietnam Memorial.
It's the best of what we're about.
A design chosen on merit, not pedigree.
We heard Noah had a silent partner.
Yes.
And since we don't know how to contact this person, we have to eliminate Noah's design.
Can an architect submit more than one design under his own name? No.
And you'd have no way of knowing if this silent partner submitted a design under his own name? No.
We wouldn't.
The silent partner might've thought he was doing Noah a harmless favor until he found out Noah's design was about to ace out his own.
Twenty designs in the semifinals, most with teams of architects about 40 suspects in all.
So, the killer might have stolen Noah's photos because he was in them.
If we could find out when the photos were taken, we could check for alibis.
The light is is coming from the east.
You can see the shadows are short, so it's probably around noon.
The newspaper boxes are all turned around.
There's a bank on the right.
What is that? Some guy dressed up like a big nickel? A bank promotion.
Well, it can't be every day they have a giant nickel outside their bank.
Office of Ben Laurette, A.
I.
A.
Wendesday, April 2 I've been down there a lot surveying the sites, but I don't remember any accident.
Hit-and-runs happen very fast.
Your secretary said you were taking photos that day.
Maybe you caught something without realizing it.
Anna, bring me the photo set for the second of this month.
This is your design for downtown? Yes.
Something about it that's familiar.
It's familiar because it references my other buildings.
Whether you like it or not, my work has entered your subconscious.
Mm.
And I thought it was last night's pot stickers.
Lucky for me that I like your work, Mr.
Laurette.
This is the Shanghai Hotel.
Yes.
Ready for occupancy next summer.
And the Berlin Concert Hall.
A titanium roof in the shape of a violin.
You have so many buildings, you could have your own city.
The Gradowczyk proposal will be back from the printer tomorrow morning.
Could you run it up to me in Litchfield? Yes, Mr.
Laurette.
Litchfield is where I live with my wife.
We didn't realize you were married.
You don't have any pictures.
I don't need pictures of Sara to remind me I am married.
But during the week you stay in town? When I am in town.
Half of the time, I'm on the road.
My wife is a landscape designer.
She prefers staying up there with her gardens and lawns.
And you stay here with your "garden.
" She doesn't mind? Twenty-eight years of marriage have earned me a little trust.
Look.
What, you you found the hit-and-run? No.
A murder victim.
See this kid with a camera? That's Noah Preston, the young architect who died in Penn Station last week.
I didn't even notice him at the site, not that I would have recognized him.
That's what I couldn't put my finger on.
Your design, it reminds me of Noah's.
I inspire a lot of young architects, even to the point of plagiarism.
What What did they tell us?That it was Well, his design was the sentimental favorite.
And when the sentiment fades away, they run to the real thing, to the powerful vision.
When you're done with the photos, just leave them there.
I guess modesty isn't a required course in architecture school.
I don't think that Laurette was wrong about Noah copying him.
These last few photos that Noah took, they are taken from the the same spot and from the same angle Laurette took his.
He stood in Laurette's footprints.
Yeah.
Maybe he did more than just stand.
No record of any calls between Noah's office and Laurette.
Noah was connecting with Laurette on a whole other level.
That's a museum complex that Laurette designed in Barcelona.
The layoutwhy does it look familiar? 'Cause you've been there before.
Noah used the same spatial relationships in his apartment.
He was trying to live inside Laurette's head.
Well, if he wanted to get inside Laurette's head, he needed more blondes in his life.
You know, Laurette designed three homes in Bergen County.
Noah didn't have any projects in Jersey.
Here.
It's a receipt from the Saddle River Building Department in Bergen County for blueprints of the Laurette homes.
Jared will be coming down from Dartmouth next week with his new girlfriend.
Another one? I didn't realize accounting majors were so lucky.
He's hoping to spend a day with you in the city.
I can't.
I have to be in Chicago.
Hello, Sara! Hello, Ben.
Congratulations.
Howard heard you were a shoo-in for the downtown project.
I'm just happy the old dog's still in the running.
Excuse me.
Laurette here.
Yes, I just got to Chicago an hour ago.
I miss you too.
How are you feeling? Just one more weekend, then I'll be all yours.
Oh.
The people I'm meeting just got here.
I love you too.
Bye.
I'm not sure.
People from the county office said he asked for directions to all the houses.
A lot of people stop by to see the house.
Sometimes they wanna look inside.
I hate to say no, but I don't like strangers in the house.
Serves you and your husband right for buying such a famous house.
I'm not married.
We've seen the other two Laurette homes in the area, and they're a mess.
This one's in original condition.
What What do you do for a living? I'm an archivist.
I work from home.
You must be doing well.
It's a beautiful house.
Can we see the rest of it? I guess strangers with badges aren't exactly strangers.
This is incredible.
This is the original custom-made furniture, isn't it? Laurette designed it all.
It came with the house.
You kept Laurette's layout.
The absence of personal effects that's another Laurette touch.
I didn't think it needed anything else.
It's the way Laurette would have it If Laurette lived here.
That's my taxi.
I have a doctor's appointment.
Are you sure that we can't give you a ride? Oh, that's very kind of you.
I have a taxi service practically on retainer.
I was just too nervous driving.
You know how it is.
You can never be too careful.
New house, new car, all on an archivist's salary.
You think Laurette's got himself a pregnant mistress? At least.
See the window on the far side of the house? That's the master bedroom.
It's a different design than the original.
See, the sash has been cut out in the shape of a dome surrounded by laurel leaves to evoke the Taj Mahal, which was built by the maharajah in honor of his wife.
This is a decorative detail that Laurette has used before.
He used it in the house that he built in Litchfield for his wife, Sara.
"The Taj Mahal is the greatest monument to love ever built.
And it's my way of letting people know I built this house for my wife.
" And he's done the same thing here.
Ms.
Breen isn't his mistress.
She's his wife his other wife.
Meredith Breen is on the tax rolls as the sole owner.
But we pulled the deed from the county and found a quitclaim signed by Laurette, giving up any claim he might have on the house as Meredith's husband.
And the first wife? Sara.
As far as we know, she's alive and well and living in Litchfield.
Maybe they were divorced.
Not that we could find in the New York or Connecticut records.
Noah Preston was obsessed with Laurette.
If he knew about his two wives, he might've tried to blackmail Laurette into being his silent partner.
Before we condemn Mr.
Laurette as a bigamist, make sure he didn't get a quickie divorce from his first wife.
He might have called under some pretense asking about your marriage.
Our marriage? Humph.
No secrets there.
Twenty-eight years, two kids.
We muddle through.
We still love each other.
That's nice to hear.
His name was Noah Preston.
Preston? He wrote me a letter two months ago.
He said he was a student at Madison.
He wanted to ask me about my influence on Ben's work.
Then you talked to him? No.
Ben likes to maintain a certain mystique about his process.
The mystique of a solitary genius.
Well, not all that solitary.
He surrounds himself with young, attractive, uh, architects.
You noticed that, didn't you? It really doesn't bother you? Those little girls are no threat.
Ben and I have teetered on the brink of disaster many times.
We've survived it all.
What kind of disasters? You name it.
Architecture is feast or famine, even for someone with seven world-class buildings to his credit.
Winning the commission for the downtown project will be a godsend.
Oh, just for our information, was your husband here last Wednesday night? No.
He was in Boston for a few days meeting with the Civic Planning Council.
He goes every month.
He's had one project or another there the last dozen years.
The Boston Planning Council has nothing on the books about a meeting with Laurette.
In fact, the last time they discussed a project with him was eight years ago.
Yeah.
Yes.
Okay.
Thanks.
Credit card company is going to fax over Laurette's transactions from the last month.
Sara Laurette has no idea who she's married to.
She's right about feast or famine.
He's had three bankruptcies on his record.
I have to pay my bills the day they come.
Well, some people can't function unless they're in a crisis mode.
You know,they need the stimulus.
All these charges are in the city or in Litchfield.
These are for another card in Laurette's name, with charges in Bergen County.
Must be the card Meredith uses.
Oh, there's a third card under Laurette's name.
All the charges are in Concord, outside of Boston.
Right.
My son had his soccer team over, and we charged pizzas on the card.
The restaurant just gave you our address like that? Well, they didn't really have a choice.
Are you a relative of Ben Laurette? That's a silly question.
I'm Benny's wife, Sydney Laurette.
That's our son, Jason.
Oh.
Well, I mean, we knew he was married, we just pictured someone, um older.
Well, you must be thinking of his first wife, Sara.
Benny was already divorced when I met him.
Are you involved in architecture? No.
That's Benny's thing.
That's why we clicked.
He's able to get away from that world when we're together.
We're looking into a stalking incident last week involving your husband.
Was he here? Yes.
He drove in from New York Wednesday morning.
And Wednesday night did he spend it at home? He went into Boston to meet with the Planning Council.
Then he had to wait for some blueprints he was having delivered from his office.
He was home shortly after midnight.
Who's this stalker? It's an architect.
Uh, Noah Preston.
He was passing himself off as a student at Madison University.
Oh.
I got a call about him.
A few weeks ago, someone from that school called and said there was a kid claiming to be a student who was contacting people to get information about Ben.
Oh? And this person from Madison University, did they leave their name? No.
But it was a woman.
She said she was in their architecture department.
No? All right.
Thank you very much.
No one in the architecture department called her.
They weren't even aware of what Noah was doing.
Well, if Laurette wanted to know how much Noah knew about his marriages, then he might've had someone call Sydneyto see if she had been contacted by Noah.
Who would he have gotten to make that call? One of his starstruck architecture divas? Or maybe another wife.
They showed me a photograph of this architect Noah something.
He was murdered last week.
They wanted to know if he'd come to the house.
They came by my office too.
But what does he have to do with us? Did he wanna hurt you? Meredith, you know I love you and our baby.
But I haven't always been an altar boy.
Ben, altar boys are boring.
I appreciate you saying that, but I was thinking when you go to Boston next week, I'll go with you, and when you're done with your meetings, we could go to Nantucket.
I'd feel guilty thinking of you moping around that hotel room.
Well, I don't want you feeling guilty.
We'll just have to make the most of our time here.
We found blood on the driver's seat and on this part of the center console.
No blood on the passenger seat.
Noah was sitting here.
The wound was here.
If he was facing forward, there'd be blood on the dash.
Maybe Noah's head was turned to the right when he was stabbed.
There would be blood on the passenger seat.
Yeah, unless they had to put the seat back to get at the air bags.
Maybe the seat was here.
That's why there's no blood on the seat, but on the floor.
We got blood here.
There's not much room to sit up there.
The killer had to be sitting back here.
Noah was looking towards the killer.
The killer swung the screwdriver, caught him in the neck.
So the killer wasn't sitting in the front seat.
Right.
Because, uh, air bags are a hazard for pregnant women.
Especially pregnant women who can never be too careful.
If Noah blew the whistle on Laurette, his marriage to Meredith would be invalidated.
His business would take a financial hit.
She couldn't count on him for child support.
Yeah, but a pregnant killer? She's the only one who lied about being married to Laurette.
She had no reason to, except to protect his secret.
Well, if Noah told her about the other wives, she was just trying to salvage what she could.
But if she's known all along that's the more intriguing possibility.
Until you nail down her motive, I'm keeping Laurette at the top of my list.
The classic questions.
What did Meredith know and when did she know it? Bergen County Clerk's Office Hackensack, New Jersey Mondya, April 7 The local college invited Mr.
Laurette to do a weekend seminar.
They asked us to compile some records, but since Meredith was the archivist for the county, she got the assignment.
That's how they met over some dusty papers? They weren't dusty by the time she got through with them.
She compiled a detailed document of all the time that Mr.
Laurette spent in Bergen County.
She had the whole thing bound in leather and then she even made a copy, which she then presented personally to Mr.
Laurette.
She'd done presentations before to local dignitaries, but never on this scale.
This is the scale that would be needed to get Laurette's attention.
Look, she even included a picture of Laurette and his wife, Sara, in 1976.
Meredith always said that Mr.
Laurette was a devoted husband, but I think she knew more about his personal life than he did.
You know, we're gonna need to borrow this for our investigation.
Uh, I'll just fill out some forms.
The devoted husband with enough devotion for three wives.
Sounds like Meredith went into this marriage with both eyes open.
Best of all for her, the rat was probably unaware she was onto his dirty little secrets.
What fun she must have pushing his buttons.
She pushed the biggest one with this.
I mean, a man turns 60, he starts thinking about how he's gonna be remembered.
Who better to preserve his legacy than a trained archivist? The question is did she act alone or did Ben help her? He's still unaccounted for that night.
Sydney, the the wife in Concord, she said that he was in Boston that night waiting for blueprints to be delivered from his office.
Well, maybe he was.
You remember how much Laurette likes personal deliveries.
Right.
The blonder the better.
Mr.
Laurette needed those plans for the Boston Planning Council.
He couldn't wait for next-day delivery.
No, see, your boss isn't doing any business with the Boston Planning Council.
We think the business he had was with you.
So what if it was? Did his wife put you up to this? Why would you think that? He's always this close from getting busted.
It's almost like he does it on purpose.
You can be sure that he does it on purpose.
Well, aren't those nights with him more passionatein those times when he nearly gets caught? Well, you can thank his wife for me.
Because that night in Boston, after she called His wife Sara called him? On his cell.
Sounded like she was on her way up to Boston to surprise him.
You heard his side of the conversation? Yes.
He was sweatin' big ones to change her mind.
He told her it would be 4:00 in the morning before she got in.
What time was the call? Just after 10:00.
Thank you, Ms.
Spooner.
The officer will show you downstairs.
That alibis Laurette, but the call had to be Meredith.
Yeah.
She probably thought that he was with Sydney, and she was toying with him.
She called around 10:00.
If she was driving, she'd be in Boston around 2:00 a.
M, not 4:00.
She had to be on the 12:00 train.
She probably called from Penn Station.
That puts her at the murder scene.
Laurette will never admit she called him.
He'd have to give up his precious secrets.
Meredith might give them up for him.
She thinks that she's the last stop on Laurette's train.
She could be wrong.
Well, we'd still need Laurette to give her up.
He might once he realizes exactly who she killed.
The card worked fine yesterday.
They want to talk to you.
Yes? Yes, I'm aware Mr.
Laurette has two other cards on that account.
But No, two other cards.
Three total.
What do you mean "a fourth card"? Where? Tell the client it's a privilege to live in one of my buildings.
If he Meredith? I'm sorry,Mr.
Laurette.
It's all right.
Leave us alone.
Richard, I have to call you back.
Meredith.
I was buying clothes for our baby, and they refused my card.
And I found out why.
There's another card on your account.
That can't be.
There are a dozen charges all around Mount Kisco.
Charges for lingerie, bed linens.
Who is she? No one.
I swear.
Mr.
Laurette,I'm sorry to disturb you We're sorry to drop in on you like this.
Well, what a surprise.
So you know Mr.
Laurette after all? I never said I didn't.
What is it you want? Uh, it's in connection with Noah Preston.
We found documents that show he was looking into some transactions you made up in Mount Kisco.
I don't have anything to do with Mount Kisco.
Look, we can get into that after Ms.
Breen leaves.
I'm not leaving.
Well, this really doesn't concern you.
Whatever concerns my husband concerns me.
She's your wife? Yes, I'm his wife.
The wife that you told us you've been living with for 28 years? If you mean Sara, he was married to her for 26 years.
He divorced her before he married me.
Why didn't you tell us you were married? Well, Ben is so well-known and I value my privacy.
Now, what about these transactions in Mount Kisco? You husband bought a house there two months ago.
That's not true.
Uh, now, we had a look at it.
There were new windows installed.
Windows with a, uh, uh a personal touch.
The "Laurette touch.
" See? The sashes have been cut out.
It Well, It it looks like the Taj Mahal.
You have windows like these on your house in Litchfield.
Yes.
And come to think of it, you have windows like these too.
This Taj Mahal design, uh, do you have any idea what it means? You son of a bitch! Meredith, it's not true! Then who's this? Why are you marrying her? Marrying her? How could he? He's married to you.
Oh, that wouldn't stop him.
He's got two other wives, Sara and Sydney.
He's still married to them.
You You knew? Yes, I knew.
And I didn't care, because I was the most important.
Remember what you said? I was the only one you'd trust to be the guardian of your memory, of the legend of Benjamin Laurette.
Well, here's your legend! Meredith! I'm getting a lawyer and I'm suing! Hey, hey, y-you can't leave now.
Not when the cat's out of the bag, right, Mr.
Laurette? I don't have to explain myself to you.
It's between me and the people I love.
I couldn't divorce Sara.
It would have broken her heart.
And Sydney I just couldn't say no to Sydney.
And, Meredith, you are so devoted to me, to my work.
Uh, we have proof of that devotion.
Every step that you took that summer in 1976, Meredith documented in this book.
Every meal, every liaison.
And this young woman here that you're sitting next to.
She was staying at your hotel.
You remember her name? Jane Ward? Yes, Jane.
It sounds familiar.
Yeah.
You had a fling with her.
I remember.
Well, here she is in Meredith's book.
I mean, how could you not be moved by Meredith's dedication? Now, here was someone who loved you.
I mean, not for you I mean, who needs that? Meredith loved the legend of you.
The, uh The master of rising steel and glass.
Meredith, I am sorry.
Oh, don't be sorry for her.
Knowing your secret gave her power.
She was the tail wagging the dog.
She would call you, wouldn't she, when you were at Sara or Sydney's? She tell you that she was on her way, she was gonna come see you? No, no.
I never did that.
How about a couple weeks ago Penn Station,you were getting a train? I never called him from Penn Station.
Is that right, Ben? Huh? It would've been right after she killed Noah Preston.
What? After Noah showed up at her door, she worried he might blow the whistle on you.
So we think she visited him at his home, and then she asked him to drive her to Penn Station.
She sat in the backseat, because you can never be too careful.
After she stabbed him, she ran into the station and called you, played her little game with you.
Don't listen to them.
She had a right to be worried about Noah.
He was fixated on you.
Even his designs, they reminded people of your energy.
He was an imitator of no consequence.
! No, he was of every consequence to you.
Jane Ward.
You were her last fling as a single girl.
A month after this photograph was taken, she married her fiance, James Preston.
A few months later, she gave birth to a son.
Noah.
Your son, Ben, your creation, whose every design reflected you.
Noah would've carried the Laurette style far into the 21 st century.
Come on, Ben.
Did she call you from Penn Station, Ben? Ben, don't.
You You bitch! You killed him my future! I'm carrying your future! That? I don't know what that is.
But this was real.
He was real.
Yes, she called me from the station.
She said she had a ticket for the 12:00 train to Boston.
You filthy egomaniac.
! Don't you get it? He would've ruined everything! You would have lost the commission! He would have won my son! A Laurette would have won! Meredith Breen, you're under arrest for murder.
Let's be careful.
Mr.
Laurette, you're gonna have to come downtown and make a statement.
Please.
For a guy who likes chaos, he's about to get it in spades.
Well, buildings may crumble, but infamy's forever.
These are their stories.
Let's go.
See, I'm an architecture student at Madison, and I'm doing my thesison Mr.
Laurette.
He designed this house back in '76.
I think you have the wrong address.
No, no, this is definitely a Laurette.
If I could just take a quick look I don't think so.
Uh, okay.
I didn't mean to creep you out.
This is my number.
You can call me if you change your mind.
This is a great design, Noah.
Your vision's maturing, but I don't think I can help you.
I just need enough to cover the cost.
I don't have that kind of money.
Yes, you do.
I know you do.
You're wrong, Noah.
And I don't feel comfortable with this other complication.
Noah Preston.
Oh, that's great.
Uh, when can I Sure.
Uh, sure, I guess that'd be okay.
Uh, when can I come by? Okay.
Yeah, I'll be there.
Oh, geez.
Hang in there, buddy.
Hang in there.
Law & Order CI He had his arm out like he was pointing to somebody, and he was trying to say something.
You notice who came in just before him? Just people, you know, hurrying to catch trains.
Okay, thanks.
The detective will take your formal statement.
We have Noah Preston, 25.
New York State driver's license, library card a man after your own heart.
Eighty bucks, no credit cards.
He traveled light.
Very light.
It's raining, he's not wearing a jacket.
He's hardly wet.
He wasn't outside long.
Maybe a cab just dropped him off.
A cab or his own car.
I didn't find any house keys on him.
They could be with his car keys.
Round puncture wound.
Edges look ragged.
No powder burns.
Ink smudges.
Faint.
Looks like some kind of numbers or writing.
Patrol found Preston's car half an hour ago over on 37 th.
It was blocking a hydrant, so we called for a tow.
Then we saw they took all the air bags.
That's where the market is these days.
There's blood drops on the seat.
Looks like Preston was stabbed here.
The killer might have been in the passenger seat.
Maybe Preston picked up some short-term companionship and got played.
They stabbed him and stole his car.
Or there were two crimes and two unrelated perps.
One stabs Preston.
He follows his assailant into the station.
Someone else sees the car idling on the curb and steals it.
Well, I told him.
Yeah? What did he say? He gave me a big hug.
He said it was a great thing I was doing for my sister.
And he said when the time comes, he'll hook you up with a temporary partner.
Oh, no.
I didn't even think of that.
Well, what did you say? I pity the fool.
How about our gal, huh? Surrogate mom? What are those, nightclub stamps? No.
Preston had a habit of jotting notes on his hand.
Some of these, they look like they could be calculations.
Any luck finding the murder weapon? No, but we've got a pretty good idea of what it is.
A Phillips-head screwdriver.
The handyman killer.
"Quoin.
" It's an architectural term for a cornerstone.
Then the numbers are probably measurements.
Could be an engineer or architect.
Those guys love joining professional associations.
Adler Architecture Monday, March 31 Either of you know what he was doing last night? I think he just went home on the West Side.
I think he lived with a girlfriend.
A girlfriend? I thought he was oriented the other way.
I thought he lived in New Jersey with his wife.
Is that his personnel file? Yes.
Same mailbox address.
No dependents listed on his tax form.
No home or cell phone? How did you keep in touch with him? Oh, he carried one of the site phones.
Noah's just a very private person.
When we looked him up on the Architects Forum, we noticed he didn't have his license.
Was there a problem with his work? No.
He was extremely talented.
He just never sat for the exam.
I don't know why.
I encouraged him to.
Well, without his license, he couldn't strike out on his own.
Did he have a lack of self-confidence? Uh, I don't think so.
He was always working on his own designs.
Any of them here? Um No.
This is just the usual stuff we do for the firm.
Noah's designs were bold and grand.
What about this? This isn't the usual stuff.
It's, uh It's an apartment.
This molding on the door, I I think I've seen that before.
It's an Emery Roth building.
Roth, Carrere and Hastings.
1925.
The Ritz Tower.
Neat and tidy.
Everything in its place and a place for everything.
The mind of an architect.
Every tool in that closet except a large Phillips-head.
Our handyman killer was here.
Well, that not be all he took.
It's the whole downtown.
Then we have holes in the picture sequence.
The killer might be in one of these missing photos.
He was a cute kid.
Nice-looking mom.
No pictures of dad.
Maybe this is why.
It's a letter from Noah's professor at Madison.
"Dear Noah,Your father asked me again to impress upon you the importance of taking your licensing exam.
He's despairing you'll ever achieve anything.
" Stage dad.
No wonder he took himself off the radar.
There's also a notation in Noah's handwriting "Call.
" There's a dollar sign next to it.
He hit up his dad? Or our friendly professor.
This has become the most contentious piece of real estate in the world.
I know the waters you have to navigate.
You don't need a captain.
You need an admiral.
I can't predict what our final decision will be.
I know the sentimental favorite is out of the running.
I can't comment.
Abby, the city, the country, wants a monument for the ages.
I build for the ages! Jim had high expectations for Noah.
Even after he moved to Miami last year, he wouldn't stop writing the boy.
How'd you end up the go-between? By default.
I knew Noah's mother.
She was active in historical preservation.
Noah was very close to her.
Did he ask his dad for money recently? - No.
- So it's you he asked? No.
What gave you that idea? Noah did.
He made a note about it.
Well, he never got around to asking.
Now, if you'll excuse me It's kind of surprising that Noah would think that an associate professor would have that kind of spare cash lying around.
What's that supposed to mean? Well, y-you don't have tenure, and you're supporting a wife and well, I think littleJunior spit up on you this morning.
What is this, creamed corn? I bet he has a sideline.
I bet he recruits for prestigious architectural firms.
That's overstating.
Well, you are the man on campus, aren't you? Now, isn't that a a violation of your professorial ethics, Professor? Noah had submitted a design with the downtown reconstruction committee.
A design for a new tower? Yeah.
He wanted my help if the design got to the next stage of the competition.
How much help? For models, studiesabout $50,000.
And, what, you didn't like his design or No.
It was brilliant.
My problem was with Noah.
He said he had a silent partner a licensed architect that he wouldn't name.
And you're wondering if this silent partner really existed, why didn't Noah ask him for the money? Exactly.
Now can I go? Maybe Noah didn't ask because he was freezing out his partner.
Yeah, his silent partner he didn't go quietly.
The more we looked at the other designs, the more we came back to Noah's.
But a kid just out of school, what kind of chance could he really have? That's the appeal, isn't it? That an unknown architect with a breathtaking and heartbreaking designcommemorate a a breathtaking, heartbreaking national tragedy.
Like the the young architect and the Vietnam Memorial.
It's the best of what we're about.
A design chosen on merit, not pedigree.
We heard Noah had a silent partner.
Yes.
And since we don't know how to contact this person, we have to eliminate Noah's design.
Can an architect submit more than one design under his own name? No.
And you'd have no way of knowing if this silent partner submitted a design under his own name? No.
We wouldn't.
The silent partner might've thought he was doing Noah a harmless favor until he found out Noah's design was about to ace out his own.
Twenty designs in the semifinals, most with teams of architects about 40 suspects in all.
So, the killer might have stolen Noah's photos because he was in them.
If we could find out when the photos were taken, we could check for alibis.
The light is is coming from the east.
You can see the shadows are short, so it's probably around noon.
The newspaper boxes are all turned around.
There's a bank on the right.
What is that? Some guy dressed up like a big nickel? A bank promotion.
Well, it can't be every day they have a giant nickel outside their bank.
Office of Ben Laurette, A.
I.
A.
Wendesday, April 2 I've been down there a lot surveying the sites, but I don't remember any accident.
Hit-and-runs happen very fast.
Your secretary said you were taking photos that day.
Maybe you caught something without realizing it.
Anna, bring me the photo set for the second of this month.
This is your design for downtown? Yes.
Something about it that's familiar.
It's familiar because it references my other buildings.
Whether you like it or not, my work has entered your subconscious.
Mm.
And I thought it was last night's pot stickers.
Lucky for me that I like your work, Mr.
Laurette.
This is the Shanghai Hotel.
Yes.
Ready for occupancy next summer.
And the Berlin Concert Hall.
A titanium roof in the shape of a violin.
You have so many buildings, you could have your own city.
The Gradowczyk proposal will be back from the printer tomorrow morning.
Could you run it up to me in Litchfield? Yes, Mr.
Laurette.
Litchfield is where I live with my wife.
We didn't realize you were married.
You don't have any pictures.
I don't need pictures of Sara to remind me I am married.
But during the week you stay in town? When I am in town.
Half of the time, I'm on the road.
My wife is a landscape designer.
She prefers staying up there with her gardens and lawns.
And you stay here with your "garden.
" She doesn't mind? Twenty-eight years of marriage have earned me a little trust.
Look.
What, you you found the hit-and-run? No.
A murder victim.
See this kid with a camera? That's Noah Preston, the young architect who died in Penn Station last week.
I didn't even notice him at the site, not that I would have recognized him.
That's what I couldn't put my finger on.
Your design, it reminds me of Noah's.
I inspire a lot of young architects, even to the point of plagiarism.
What What did they tell us?That it was Well, his design was the sentimental favorite.
And when the sentiment fades away, they run to the real thing, to the powerful vision.
When you're done with the photos, just leave them there.
I guess modesty isn't a required course in architecture school.
I don't think that Laurette was wrong about Noah copying him.
These last few photos that Noah took, they are taken from the the same spot and from the same angle Laurette took his.
He stood in Laurette's footprints.
Yeah.
Maybe he did more than just stand.
No record of any calls between Noah's office and Laurette.
Noah was connecting with Laurette on a whole other level.
That's a museum complex that Laurette designed in Barcelona.
The layoutwhy does it look familiar? 'Cause you've been there before.
Noah used the same spatial relationships in his apartment.
He was trying to live inside Laurette's head.
Well, if he wanted to get inside Laurette's head, he needed more blondes in his life.
You know, Laurette designed three homes in Bergen County.
Noah didn't have any projects in Jersey.
Here.
It's a receipt from the Saddle River Building Department in Bergen County for blueprints of the Laurette homes.
Jared will be coming down from Dartmouth next week with his new girlfriend.
Another one? I didn't realize accounting majors were so lucky.
He's hoping to spend a day with you in the city.
I can't.
I have to be in Chicago.
Hello, Sara! Hello, Ben.
Congratulations.
Howard heard you were a shoo-in for the downtown project.
I'm just happy the old dog's still in the running.
Excuse me.
Laurette here.
Yes, I just got to Chicago an hour ago.
I miss you too.
How are you feeling? Just one more weekend, then I'll be all yours.
Oh.
The people I'm meeting just got here.
I love you too.
Bye.
I'm not sure.
People from the county office said he asked for directions to all the houses.
A lot of people stop by to see the house.
Sometimes they wanna look inside.
I hate to say no, but I don't like strangers in the house.
Serves you and your husband right for buying such a famous house.
I'm not married.
We've seen the other two Laurette homes in the area, and they're a mess.
This one's in original condition.
What What do you do for a living? I'm an archivist.
I work from home.
You must be doing well.
It's a beautiful house.
Can we see the rest of it? I guess strangers with badges aren't exactly strangers.
This is incredible.
This is the original custom-made furniture, isn't it? Laurette designed it all.
It came with the house.
You kept Laurette's layout.
The absence of personal effects that's another Laurette touch.
I didn't think it needed anything else.
It's the way Laurette would have it If Laurette lived here.
That's my taxi.
I have a doctor's appointment.
Are you sure that we can't give you a ride? Oh, that's very kind of you.
I have a taxi service practically on retainer.
I was just too nervous driving.
You know how it is.
You can never be too careful.
New house, new car, all on an archivist's salary.
You think Laurette's got himself a pregnant mistress? At least.
See the window on the far side of the house? That's the master bedroom.
It's a different design than the original.
See, the sash has been cut out in the shape of a dome surrounded by laurel leaves to evoke the Taj Mahal, which was built by the maharajah in honor of his wife.
This is a decorative detail that Laurette has used before.
He used it in the house that he built in Litchfield for his wife, Sara.
"The Taj Mahal is the greatest monument to love ever built.
And it's my way of letting people know I built this house for my wife.
" And he's done the same thing here.
Ms.
Breen isn't his mistress.
She's his wife his other wife.
Meredith Breen is on the tax rolls as the sole owner.
But we pulled the deed from the county and found a quitclaim signed by Laurette, giving up any claim he might have on the house as Meredith's husband.
And the first wife? Sara.
As far as we know, she's alive and well and living in Litchfield.
Maybe they were divorced.
Not that we could find in the New York or Connecticut records.
Noah Preston was obsessed with Laurette.
If he knew about his two wives, he might've tried to blackmail Laurette into being his silent partner.
Before we condemn Mr.
Laurette as a bigamist, make sure he didn't get a quickie divorce from his first wife.
He might have called under some pretense asking about your marriage.
Our marriage? Humph.
No secrets there.
Twenty-eight years, two kids.
We muddle through.
We still love each other.
That's nice to hear.
His name was Noah Preston.
Preston? He wrote me a letter two months ago.
He said he was a student at Madison.
He wanted to ask me about my influence on Ben's work.
Then you talked to him? No.
Ben likes to maintain a certain mystique about his process.
The mystique of a solitary genius.
Well, not all that solitary.
He surrounds himself with young, attractive, uh, architects.
You noticed that, didn't you? It really doesn't bother you? Those little girls are no threat.
Ben and I have teetered on the brink of disaster many times.
We've survived it all.
What kind of disasters? You name it.
Architecture is feast or famine, even for someone with seven world-class buildings to his credit.
Winning the commission for the downtown project will be a godsend.
Oh, just for our information, was your husband here last Wednesday night? No.
He was in Boston for a few days meeting with the Civic Planning Council.
He goes every month.
He's had one project or another there the last dozen years.
The Boston Planning Council has nothing on the books about a meeting with Laurette.
In fact, the last time they discussed a project with him was eight years ago.
Yeah.
Yes.
Okay.
Thanks.
Credit card company is going to fax over Laurette's transactions from the last month.
Sara Laurette has no idea who she's married to.
She's right about feast or famine.
He's had three bankruptcies on his record.
I have to pay my bills the day they come.
Well, some people can't function unless they're in a crisis mode.
You know,they need the stimulus.
All these charges are in the city or in Litchfield.
These are for another card in Laurette's name, with charges in Bergen County.
Must be the card Meredith uses.
Oh, there's a third card under Laurette's name.
All the charges are in Concord, outside of Boston.
Right.
My son had his soccer team over, and we charged pizzas on the card.
The restaurant just gave you our address like that? Well, they didn't really have a choice.
Are you a relative of Ben Laurette? That's a silly question.
I'm Benny's wife, Sydney Laurette.
That's our son, Jason.
Oh.
Well, I mean, we knew he was married, we just pictured someone, um older.
Well, you must be thinking of his first wife, Sara.
Benny was already divorced when I met him.
Are you involved in architecture? No.
That's Benny's thing.
That's why we clicked.
He's able to get away from that world when we're together.
We're looking into a stalking incident last week involving your husband.
Was he here? Yes.
He drove in from New York Wednesday morning.
And Wednesday night did he spend it at home? He went into Boston to meet with the Planning Council.
Then he had to wait for some blueprints he was having delivered from his office.
He was home shortly after midnight.
Who's this stalker? It's an architect.
Uh, Noah Preston.
He was passing himself off as a student at Madison University.
Oh.
I got a call about him.
A few weeks ago, someone from that school called and said there was a kid claiming to be a student who was contacting people to get information about Ben.
Oh? And this person from Madison University, did they leave their name? No.
But it was a woman.
She said she was in their architecture department.
No? All right.
Thank you very much.
No one in the architecture department called her.
They weren't even aware of what Noah was doing.
Well, if Laurette wanted to know how much Noah knew about his marriages, then he might've had someone call Sydneyto see if she had been contacted by Noah.
Who would he have gotten to make that call? One of his starstruck architecture divas? Or maybe another wife.
They showed me a photograph of this architect Noah something.
He was murdered last week.
They wanted to know if he'd come to the house.
They came by my office too.
But what does he have to do with us? Did he wanna hurt you? Meredith, you know I love you and our baby.
But I haven't always been an altar boy.
Ben, altar boys are boring.
I appreciate you saying that, but I was thinking when you go to Boston next week, I'll go with you, and when you're done with your meetings, we could go to Nantucket.
I'd feel guilty thinking of you moping around that hotel room.
Well, I don't want you feeling guilty.
We'll just have to make the most of our time here.
We found blood on the driver's seat and on this part of the center console.
No blood on the passenger seat.
Noah was sitting here.
The wound was here.
If he was facing forward, there'd be blood on the dash.
Maybe Noah's head was turned to the right when he was stabbed.
There would be blood on the passenger seat.
Yeah, unless they had to put the seat back to get at the air bags.
Maybe the seat was here.
That's why there's no blood on the seat, but on the floor.
We got blood here.
There's not much room to sit up there.
The killer had to be sitting back here.
Noah was looking towards the killer.
The killer swung the screwdriver, caught him in the neck.
So the killer wasn't sitting in the front seat.
Right.
Because, uh, air bags are a hazard for pregnant women.
Especially pregnant women who can never be too careful.
If Noah blew the whistle on Laurette, his marriage to Meredith would be invalidated.
His business would take a financial hit.
She couldn't count on him for child support.
Yeah, but a pregnant killer? She's the only one who lied about being married to Laurette.
She had no reason to, except to protect his secret.
Well, if Noah told her about the other wives, she was just trying to salvage what she could.
But if she's known all along that's the more intriguing possibility.
Until you nail down her motive, I'm keeping Laurette at the top of my list.
The classic questions.
What did Meredith know and when did she know it? Bergen County Clerk's Office Hackensack, New Jersey Mondya, April 7 The local college invited Mr.
Laurette to do a weekend seminar.
They asked us to compile some records, but since Meredith was the archivist for the county, she got the assignment.
That's how they met over some dusty papers? They weren't dusty by the time she got through with them.
She compiled a detailed document of all the time that Mr.
Laurette spent in Bergen County.
She had the whole thing bound in leather and then she even made a copy, which she then presented personally to Mr.
Laurette.
She'd done presentations before to local dignitaries, but never on this scale.
This is the scale that would be needed to get Laurette's attention.
Look, she even included a picture of Laurette and his wife, Sara, in 1976.
Meredith always said that Mr.
Laurette was a devoted husband, but I think she knew more about his personal life than he did.
You know, we're gonna need to borrow this for our investigation.
Uh, I'll just fill out some forms.
The devoted husband with enough devotion for three wives.
Sounds like Meredith went into this marriage with both eyes open.
Best of all for her, the rat was probably unaware she was onto his dirty little secrets.
What fun she must have pushing his buttons.
She pushed the biggest one with this.
I mean, a man turns 60, he starts thinking about how he's gonna be remembered.
Who better to preserve his legacy than a trained archivist? The question is did she act alone or did Ben help her? He's still unaccounted for that night.
Sydney, the the wife in Concord, she said that he was in Boston that night waiting for blueprints to be delivered from his office.
Well, maybe he was.
You remember how much Laurette likes personal deliveries.
Right.
The blonder the better.
Mr.
Laurette needed those plans for the Boston Planning Council.
He couldn't wait for next-day delivery.
No, see, your boss isn't doing any business with the Boston Planning Council.
We think the business he had was with you.
So what if it was? Did his wife put you up to this? Why would you think that? He's always this close from getting busted.
It's almost like he does it on purpose.
You can be sure that he does it on purpose.
Well, aren't those nights with him more passionatein those times when he nearly gets caught? Well, you can thank his wife for me.
Because that night in Boston, after she called His wife Sara called him? On his cell.
Sounded like she was on her way up to Boston to surprise him.
You heard his side of the conversation? Yes.
He was sweatin' big ones to change her mind.
He told her it would be 4:00 in the morning before she got in.
What time was the call? Just after 10:00.
Thank you, Ms.
Spooner.
The officer will show you downstairs.
That alibis Laurette, but the call had to be Meredith.
Yeah.
She probably thought that he was with Sydney, and she was toying with him.
She called around 10:00.
If she was driving, she'd be in Boston around 2:00 a.
M, not 4:00.
She had to be on the 12:00 train.
She probably called from Penn Station.
That puts her at the murder scene.
Laurette will never admit she called him.
He'd have to give up his precious secrets.
Meredith might give them up for him.
She thinks that she's the last stop on Laurette's train.
She could be wrong.
Well, we'd still need Laurette to give her up.
He might once he realizes exactly who she killed.
The card worked fine yesterday.
They want to talk to you.
Yes? Yes, I'm aware Mr.
Laurette has two other cards on that account.
But No, two other cards.
Three total.
What do you mean "a fourth card"? Where? Tell the client it's a privilege to live in one of my buildings.
If he Meredith? I'm sorry,Mr.
Laurette.
It's all right.
Leave us alone.
Richard, I have to call you back.
Meredith.
I was buying clothes for our baby, and they refused my card.
And I found out why.
There's another card on your account.
That can't be.
There are a dozen charges all around Mount Kisco.
Charges for lingerie, bed linens.
Who is she? No one.
I swear.
Mr.
Laurette,I'm sorry to disturb you We're sorry to drop in on you like this.
Well, what a surprise.
So you know Mr.
Laurette after all? I never said I didn't.
What is it you want? Uh, it's in connection with Noah Preston.
We found documents that show he was looking into some transactions you made up in Mount Kisco.
I don't have anything to do with Mount Kisco.
Look, we can get into that after Ms.
Breen leaves.
I'm not leaving.
Well, this really doesn't concern you.
Whatever concerns my husband concerns me.
She's your wife? Yes, I'm his wife.
The wife that you told us you've been living with for 28 years? If you mean Sara, he was married to her for 26 years.
He divorced her before he married me.
Why didn't you tell us you were married? Well, Ben is so well-known and I value my privacy.
Now, what about these transactions in Mount Kisco? You husband bought a house there two months ago.
That's not true.
Uh, now, we had a look at it.
There were new windows installed.
Windows with a, uh, uh a personal touch.
The "Laurette touch.
" See? The sashes have been cut out.
It Well, It it looks like the Taj Mahal.
You have windows like these on your house in Litchfield.
Yes.
And come to think of it, you have windows like these too.
This Taj Mahal design, uh, do you have any idea what it means? You son of a bitch! Meredith, it's not true! Then who's this? Why are you marrying her? Marrying her? How could he? He's married to you.
Oh, that wouldn't stop him.
He's got two other wives, Sara and Sydney.
He's still married to them.
You You knew? Yes, I knew.
And I didn't care, because I was the most important.
Remember what you said? I was the only one you'd trust to be the guardian of your memory, of the legend of Benjamin Laurette.
Well, here's your legend! Meredith! I'm getting a lawyer and I'm suing! Hey, hey, y-you can't leave now.
Not when the cat's out of the bag, right, Mr.
Laurette? I don't have to explain myself to you.
It's between me and the people I love.
I couldn't divorce Sara.
It would have broken her heart.
And Sydney I just couldn't say no to Sydney.
And, Meredith, you are so devoted to me, to my work.
Uh, we have proof of that devotion.
Every step that you took that summer in 1976, Meredith documented in this book.
Every meal, every liaison.
And this young woman here that you're sitting next to.
She was staying at your hotel.
You remember her name? Jane Ward? Yes, Jane.
It sounds familiar.
Yeah.
You had a fling with her.
I remember.
Well, here she is in Meredith's book.
I mean, how could you not be moved by Meredith's dedication? Now, here was someone who loved you.
I mean, not for you I mean, who needs that? Meredith loved the legend of you.
The, uh The master of rising steel and glass.
Meredith, I am sorry.
Oh, don't be sorry for her.
Knowing your secret gave her power.
She was the tail wagging the dog.
She would call you, wouldn't she, when you were at Sara or Sydney's? She tell you that she was on her way, she was gonna come see you? No, no.
I never did that.
How about a couple weeks ago Penn Station,you were getting a train? I never called him from Penn Station.
Is that right, Ben? Huh? It would've been right after she killed Noah Preston.
What? After Noah showed up at her door, she worried he might blow the whistle on you.
So we think she visited him at his home, and then she asked him to drive her to Penn Station.
She sat in the backseat, because you can never be too careful.
After she stabbed him, she ran into the station and called you, played her little game with you.
Don't listen to them.
She had a right to be worried about Noah.
He was fixated on you.
Even his designs, they reminded people of your energy.
He was an imitator of no consequence.
! No, he was of every consequence to you.
Jane Ward.
You were her last fling as a single girl.
A month after this photograph was taken, she married her fiance, James Preston.
A few months later, she gave birth to a son.
Noah.
Your son, Ben, your creation, whose every design reflected you.
Noah would've carried the Laurette style far into the 21 st century.
Come on, Ben.
Did she call you from Penn Station, Ben? Ben, don't.
You You bitch! You killed him my future! I'm carrying your future! That? I don't know what that is.
But this was real.
He was real.
Yes, she called me from the station.
She said she had a ticket for the 12:00 train to Boston.
You filthy egomaniac.
! Don't you get it? He would've ruined everything! You would have lost the commission! He would have won my son! A Laurette would have won! Meredith Breen, you're under arrest for murder.
Let's be careful.
Mr.
Laurette, you're gonna have to come downtown and make a statement.
Please.
For a guy who likes chaos, he's about to get it in spades.
Well, buildings may crumble, but infamy's forever.