The Pretender s03e11 Episode Script
The Assassin
[Woman.]
Two pair is the power.
[Man.]
Ah, like candy from babies.
Well, I'm in for 50.
Zipper? Oh, with a pair of ducks? I'm out.
- How 'bout it, smokey? - Very charming.
Kiss your mother with that mouth? Fold.
Well, I guess it's you and me, big time.
I'm gonna see the bet.
I need kegger money.
[Laughing.]
I'll see your 50 and I'll raise you 50.
- He's got the flush, Lou.
- Not a chance.
Eleven spades played.
That leaves two left in the deck.
You only need one.
All right.
I will see your 50 and bump you 200.
Oh, looks like you're a little light, mister.
Well, l- I don't have any more cash with me.
I do have my watch.
Will that work? Let's see.
This is an Omega Seamaster.
- Well, it's gotta be worth at least four grand.
- It's worth six.
And I'll give it to you for the $327 bet and your hat.
- You want my hat? - Mm-hmm.
All you have to do is call the bet.
There's a reason they call aces and eights a dead man's hand, Wild Bill.
Do you mind, smokey? Excuse me.
The watch is ticking.
Last call for Hartford, Boston and Albany at Bay 7.
All aboard! He's got the flush, Lou.
Just cut your losses.
Let's get on the bus.
- Shut up.
- Tick, tick, tick, tick.
Tick, tick.
- Fine.
Take it.
- Okay.
- [Sighs.]
- Let's go, Zipper.
- [Woman.]
You boys stop by any time.
- Hey, mister.
- Did you have the flush? - Do you really want to know? - Nah.
- Have a good trip.
[Laughing.]
[Laughing.]
Hell of a bluff, sweetie.
Where did you learn to play cards? I read this book.
It's very good.
- [Bell Dinging.]
- Excuse me? I need a ticket.
Uh, your first thing out, please.
I got a turnaround to Baltimore leaves in 10 minutes.
Perfect.
Thank you.
You want to get on a bus, ride for an hour and come right back? The bathroom.
Do you have a bathroom? It's in the back.
All right, Rachel.
Time to come out of there.
- I'm not running away.
- A bus station? This looks very bad.
I just need time to think.
I don't- I don't- I don't have any luggage.
- You know what's at stake here? - Yes, I know.
Why don't you open the door, and we can settle this like decent human beings? You got three seconds, bitch, or I take you where you sit.
Hey! I believe this is the ladies'room.
Ow.
You can come out now.
- Is he dead? - I don't think so.
Oh, do you have any idea what you've just done? Helped you? Mind your own business! You could get somebody killed! [Man Narrating.]
There are Pretenders among us.
[Jarod.]
I was taken from my family.
Thirty-six hours and he's already demonstrating more talent than any of our others.
How many people died because of what I thought up? Since I broke out, I've spent every moment searching for my past.
[Miss Parker.]
He's a Pretender- A genius who can become anyone that he wants to be.
- The Centre wants him alive.
- Preferably.
[Miss Parker.]
He defends the weak and abused.
Life's a gift.
- You a doctor? - I am today.
"We are pleased to announce our engagement.
Join us in celebrating our newfound bliss.
" Oh, excuse me, but this is whacked with a capital "Y.
" - Boys? - It is the Centre.
Strange bedfellows, for richer or poorer.
Anything new from the bus station? Uh, we're still running the information.
Jarod was all over those surveillance cameras, and he never got on a bus.
Yeah.
Right.
Well, no, I have a team on top of it.
Um, Miss Parker.
I was wondering if maybe I can get out of here.
I have a date tonight.
- A date? - Yeah.
Charlene Reynolds.
She works over in Accounting.
She's very nice, actually, except for the tooth.
I also have plans.
Another trip to the Chuckle Hut? Mary Winfield.
She's giving a reading from her new book of poetry.
- Sounds like a hoot.
- What are you doing tonight, Miss Parker? Good night.
[Elevator Bell Dings.]
- [Machine Beeps.]
- Hi, this is Rachel.
The kids and I can't come to the phone right now.
Leave a message, and we'll call you right back.
Right, gang? - [Children.]
Right! - Tha-Tha-Tha-That's all, folks! [Machine Beeps.]
Are you stupid? Did you forget what I told you? Funny, it's all coming back to me now.
Turn around.
Slowly! What are you doing in my house? - I got your address- - That hand disappears, so do you.
My pocket.
Where did you get this? Off your friend at the bus station.
- Did the company send you? - The bus company? You want to play games, I'm gonna shoot you right here.
In front of your children? You have a beautiful family.
Where are they? - [Cell Phone Rings.]
- [Gasps.]
Yes? I wasn't running.
I wouldn't.
You're telling me he's not one of yours? No.
No, I understand.
I said I understand.
Di- Please tell me what's going on.
Rock Creek Park, 10:00 a.
m.
Oh, yes, I will.
I'll be there.
[Sighs.]
- [Sighs.]
What's your name? - Jarod.
- Turn around, Jarod.
- I'd really rather not.
Turn around.
Have you ever felt completely alone like you're in a dark room, and you can't find the door? My whole life.
That's what they've done to me.
They've taken away the light.
[Grunts.]
I'm sorry.
[Sighs.]
[Whispering.]
What am I gonna do? What the hell- What do you two want? Think of me as the United Nations holding peace talks to avoid a full-scale war.
Don't worry.
I would never attack an unarmed person.
[Giggling.]
You know better than that.
Besides, I think baby sister and I can reach an accord on our own.
Can't we, love? We can die tryin'.
Thought you quit.
Actually, I was just about to clean out my desk which is what I'd like to get back to, if you two don't mind.
You really should get a personal life.
Your father and I have a very special relationship.
Someday I hope you find the happiness that we share.
How could you let this happen? Hey, it's just as strange for me as it is for you that our father's marrying Brigitte.
Hell, I slept with her myself.
Look, just because you haven't found happiness that doesn't mean you should deny it to those around you.
Hmm? [Groans.]
[Sighs.]
Damn.
[Man.]
Hot dogs and pretzels here.
Get your hot dogs and pretzels.
[Carousel.]
[Bell Rings.]
That bruise looks painful.
Where's your hero? What do you want? Take the case under the bench.
- What's in it? - Shut up.
There's a room waiting for you at the Chester Hotel.
The reservation's under the name Andrews.
Take the case and wait there.
I've done everything you've asked.
Can I at least just see them? If it were my call, I'd shoot you in the head right here.
I'll stay in touch.
Will she or won't she? Only her cardiologist knows for sure.
You should probably stock up on red meat and doughnuts while you're at it.
I mean, why waste a perfectly good heart attack? - Have we met? - Thomas Gates.
Friends call me Tommy.
So, what do your friends call you? - I don't have any friends.
- Oh.
Two years, three months, 21 days.
- What? - That's how long it's been since I've had a cigarette.
- How 'bout you? - I stopped counting.
Damn it.
- Do you believe in fate? - Oh, please.
Come on.
A sensible ex-smoker risks her hard-earned two and a quarter to rejoin the nicotine club.
A vending machine malfunctions, giving a stranger in- in jeans and Pendleton time to convince her that she doesn't really want to belong to that club.
Fate.
- [Door Hinges Squeaking.]
- [Bells Jingling.]
[Door Closes.]
[Gasps.]
Now, why would someone run away from the people they loved? Who are you? Someone who's trying to help you find your light again.
And what were you planning to do with this? Get my children back.
It was called the M2 Project.
I was 22 when they recruited me from the University of Virginia.
- "They"? Meaning the company? - The company.
Why was the C.
I.
A.
Interested in college students? We were computer analysts, tops of the class.
They took us and trained us in the creation of covert simulations.
- Simulations? - Hypothetical scenarios.
Kidnapping, sabotage, assassination.
They told us that the files were being created for training situations.
How many people were involved in this M2? Five, including me.
We all had military background.
I was R.
O.
T.
C.
So, you can obviously handle a firearm.
My father was a champion target shooter.
I was a better shot than him.
[Sighs.]
I started reading stories in the newspaper of bombings, terrorist assaults, political murders and I recognized them from the files that we thought up.
You have no idea what that's like, to know people are dying from something you thought up.
To have so much innocent blood on your hands.
I understand.
I begged for a transfer and Renfro looked at me like I'd asked him to give up a kidney.
- Renfro? - Alex E.
The man in charge of M2.
So, what happened? I started to ingest small amounts of poison.
Commercial pesticides.
After a month of throwing up on my desk Renfro actually signed the transfer papers himself.
- Where's your husband? - He walked out on us after Zach was born.
So, after 10 years with no contact with anyone at M2 out of nowhere, they take your children? It was 10 days ago.
I was finishing the dishes.
Melinda and Zachary were at the table drawing pictures.
- [Knocking.]
- I heard a knock at the front door.
Not unusual.
We get salespeople in our area all the time.
- [Barking.]
- Then Maggie, our dog, started barking in the backyard.
- [Knocking Continues.]
- When I heard the knocking again, l- I asked the kids to check on her, and I went to answer the door.
When I opened it and there was no one there, my heart stopped instantly.
I knew there was something wrong.
I went running to the back of the house, and the kids were gone.
Zachary! Melinda! [Sighs.]
I got a call a few minutes later.
I didn't recognize the voice, but the message was certainly clear- I do exactly what they say, or they kill my children.
I don't know who they want me to shoot! They'll tell you when they're ready.
- [Bell Dinging.]
- [Horn Honks.]
I think the guy's in the bathroom.
Too much applejack.
- Here, let me get that for you.
- I can do it myself.
Thank you.
So, you live up on Bryer, don't you? Careful.
They have stalking laws in this state.
I'm restoring the split-level just north of you.
That dump on the hill? There's nothing quite like discovering a 17 th-century hardwood floor under a sheet oflime green linoleum.
I can only imagine.
Don't you have any passions, Miss Parker? - You know my name.
- People talk.
"Gates' Restoration.
'Where everything old is new again.
"' I wrote that myself.
Move over, Hemingway.
Well you have yourself a nice day, Miss Parker.
I have a feeling you deserve one.
So, the camel says, "Hump her? I don't even know her!" Hump her.
- It's a- It's a good joke.
- Broots, I need your help.
- That joke always kills.
- Focus, Shecky.
- Okay.
- Thomas Michael Gates.
- Yeah? - I want you to run him through the system- personal history, family background, the whole nine yards.
And I want this information delivered to my office A.
S.
A.
P.
All right.
Who is he? The quicker, the better.
Miss Parker, did you hear the one about the coyote the, uh- the jackal and the one-eyed armadillo? [Nervous Chuckle.]
Oh, well.
Rachel? I downloaded this picture from the federal archives.
- Do you recognize anyone? - That's Alex Renfro.
- Hmm.
- What? I ran a background check on him.
He's suspected in at least a half a dozen political assassinations and the F.
B.
I.
Had him on their internal top-10 list.
Why "had"? Alex Renfro died in a bus crash in Honduras in 1995.
I also ran a background check on all the other M2 members.
Each one of them is dead, along with their families.
- Each death ruled accidental.
- Oh, my God.
Each M2 death was preceded within 48 hours by a political assassination.
They're doing the same thing to me.
After you do this job they're going to kill you and your family.
[Jarod.]
All right.
Let's go over this one more time.
We know that Renfro and the other members of the M2 unit are dead.
But was there anyone else that you can think of that somehow might have been involved? Nobody.
Think hard.
Don't you think I have? Do you have any idea what a nightmare my life has become? Ten days ago I was planning P.
T.
A.
Meetings and making cookies for a bake sale! Now I'm sitting here waiting for someone to tell me who I'm supposed to kill! I'm sorry.
Maybe we should take a little break.
- Who are you? - What do you mean? You-You rescue me in a bathroom like some phantom out of the night.
You access classified files like it's nothing.
And you seem to feel what I feel before I feel it.
- Who are you? - I'm just a guy waitin' for a bus.
[Knocking.]
[Knocking Continues.]
I'm standin' out here like an idiot pizza boy.
I was in the bathroom.
I'm sorry.
You've made the place very homey.
Not much of a view.
- I hadn't noticed.
- Ooh, relax.
You look guilty, and you haven't even killed anybody yet.
What's this? Open it.
- Where are you going? - The bathroom.
Do you mind? Senator Sanford Ryst.
He's givin'a speech at Slayton Hall tonight.
He's arriving there for a rehearsal in exactly one hour.
[Toilet Flushes.]
What am I supposed to do? We've arranged access through a side service door.
As Reest finishes the rehearsal, you will shoot him once through the forehead.
Nice towels.
Why? Don't mess up Mom.
Thanks.
I'll see you tomorrow.
We're gonna have to stop meetin' like this.
People will talk.
Well, people talk.
I don't usually pay much attention to them myself.
That's good advice.
So, it looks like we're gonna have a full moon tonight.
I hear that happens almost monthly.
Right.
Right.
Look, I know this is a little abrupt, but, uh I was gonna take a drive out to the bluffs and try out my new telescope.
Would you like to join me? Was that the worst pick-up line in the history of pick-up lines? So, you-you want to come? Do I look like a "hangin' out in the woods" kind of gal to you? Well, uh, not in those shoes, no but, uh, you never can tell when people are ready to dive into a new experience.
Know what I mean? Sorry to disturb you, Miss Parker, but there's been a bit of an emergency.
- What kind of an emergency? - The personal kind.
I'll see you back at the office.
Roommate? I have to go.
I'm sorry, but this was a big mistake.
Look, I'll be up by Old Bridge Road if you change your mind.
I won't.
- [Engine Starts.]
- Gotta kick off those shoes one day, Parker.
[Jarod.]
I would suggest a second and third scenario.
Automatic weapon fire from behind the building over here, and a staged auto accident here.
That would leave the transport- You'll never guess who I just ran into.
- [Monitor.
Jarod Continues.]
- What are you doing? Who do you work for? - The C.
I.
A? The N.
S.
A? Who? - This isn't what it looks like.
Good.
'Cause it looks like you've been involved in some pretty ugly stuff.
- Rachel, I can explain- - I trusted you! I trusted you with the lives of my children! Alex Renfro is alive.
I just saw him outside of this hotel.
My guess is he's behind everything that is happening to you.
- Get in the closet.
- You know what he's going to do to you after this is over! - I'm gonna talk to him.
Get in.
- I can help you.
I'm gonna talk to him! Get in! Don't make me choose between you and my children! You're making a mistake.
My mistake.
Rachel, listen to me! [Grunts.]
Damn it.
- What do you think you were doing out there? - My job.
- By spying on me? - By following orders.
Oh.
I have to admit- [Giggles.]
Thomas is cute.
If you like that blue-collar dirt-under-the-fingernails, butt-crack refrigerator repairman type.
Why are you still involved in my life? [Sighs.]
Your father and I love you very much.
- We only want what's best for you.
- Daddy ordered these? You don't know a thing about this man.
He could be a security risk not to mention a sexual deviant.
He's a carpenter.
So he says.
Now, the point is, you are not to have further contact with him until a complete background check is finished.
Mmm.
Was that an order? From the highest level.
Don't fool yourself into thinking you're like them, because you're not.
Never forget where you've come from, Miss Parker.
Ever.
Okay.
Excuse me.
What the hell you doin' here? Is there anything above the control booth? I'm with security.
Uh, nothin' but the catwalk.
- How do I get up there? - That way.
Joe, bring the houselights down to a quarter.
God, please forgive me.
Rachel, don't do this.
[Gasps.]
Stop.
Stop! You asked me once if I knew what it felt like to have innocent blood on my hands.
I do.
I try to run from it.
I spend every day of my life trying to make up for it.
- I'm afraid.
- I know you are.
But if you pull that trigger, if you kill this man there'll be no life left for you or your children.
I don't want to kill anybody.
I have to.
If there is a way to save your children I'll find it or I'll die trying.
I promise you that.
Please? Put down the rifle.
[Sobs.]
[Exhales, Inhales Sharply.]
You just saved his life.
I just killed my children.
[Agent On Radio.]
All units, Eagle 2 is on the go.
[Agent #2 On Radio.]
This is Columbia 5.
Copy that.
Standing by.
[Agent #1 On Radio.]
Secure parking lot.
- Where are we going? - I don't know yet.
- What do you mean, you don't know? - [Cell Phone Rings.]
Hello? I am disappointed in you, Rachel.
- Renfro.
- Still quite the little problem solver, aren't you? Except you've created a sizable dilemma for your children.
- Why didn't you just do what you were told? - Please don't hurt them.
That's out of my control now.
I'll do anything! L-l-I'll do anything! Listen to me, Renfro.
There's a new player at the table.
The white knight from the bus station.
I know you were behind the M2 killings.
I know you faked your own death to avert an F.
B.
I.
Manhunt.
Is this the best hand you have? I have a videotape of you taken this afternoon outside the Chester Hotel.
I have Rachel, your last witness.
So, unless you return the children, unharmed I am going to place a phone call to the F.
B.
I.
And tell them you are very much alive.
There won't be a hole on this planet deep enough for you to crawl into.
- You have 30 seconds to make up your mind.
- [Beeps.]
[Gasps.]
What are you doing? Are you insane? - He'll call back.
- What if he doesn't call back? These are my children! Come on.
You have more innocent blood on your hands.
[Rings.]
- [Exhales.]
- [Rings, Beeps.]
Speak to me.
What's the play? With this guy, cautious.
We meet Rachel, the white knight, exchange the kids for the tapes.
Then we follow them home, and you kill them.
- [Carousel.]
- [Chattering, Screaming.]
Rachel.
It's been a long time.
You look good.
Where are my children? Close.
Very close.
The tape we talked about.
Now, where are the children? What's to keep you from going to the authorities after I turn them over? I don't care what happens to you, Renfro.
I want my family.
I believe you.
- Oh! - Mommy! Mommy! Oh, come here! - I love you! - [Rachel.]
Oh, my God! Our business appears to be done.
Be sure to check the tape.
I wouldn't want you to feel cheated.
[Engine Starts.]
I won't forget this.
[Door Closes.]
How are you, baby? [Laughing.]
[Car Pulling Away.]
Before we get on with the rest of our show I wanted to congratulate you on your masterful hand of poker- your use of low-profile assassins, your own fake death to sever any connection to the killings and your elimination of all witnesses and their immediate families.
Now, I realize that there was no way that you were going to allow Rachel and her children to just walk away even after you got what you wanted.
Like I said before- [Cards Turning Over.]
There's a new player at the table and I'm afraid you're not going to like the hand you were just dealt.
Go ahead.
Open the envelope.
[Sighs.]
Aces and eights.
Dead man's hand.
Which is exactly what you are.
[Siren Wailing.]
Oh, God.
[Police Radio Chatter, Indistinct.]
- Get out of the car! - Let me see your hands! - Get 'em up! - Hands in the air, now! Get your hands up and put 'em on the roof of the car! [Phone Ringing.]
[Ringing Continues.]
- What? - [Jarod.]
It's midnight, Miss Parker.
- What a shock to find you still at the office.
- I was just on my way out.
I met a woman who reminds me of you.
- [Continues.]
- She was smart, compassionate and tortured.
Is that what I am? Like you, she was a prisoner of her past of people who wanted to control her future.
Instead of fighting back, she almost let them destroy her.
Doesn't sound like a happy ending.
Oh, it all worked out in the end.
I hope the same thing happens for you.
- Meaning? - Trust your heart, Miss Parker.
Don't let them take away your happiness.
- [Continues.]
- [Beeps.]
I didn't think you'd come.
Tell me about yourself.
What do you want to know? Everything.
Two pair is the power.
[Man.]
Ah, like candy from babies.
Well, I'm in for 50.
Zipper? Oh, with a pair of ducks? I'm out.
- How 'bout it, smokey? - Very charming.
Kiss your mother with that mouth? Fold.
Well, I guess it's you and me, big time.
I'm gonna see the bet.
I need kegger money.
[Laughing.]
I'll see your 50 and I'll raise you 50.
- He's got the flush, Lou.
- Not a chance.
Eleven spades played.
That leaves two left in the deck.
You only need one.
All right.
I will see your 50 and bump you 200.
Oh, looks like you're a little light, mister.
Well, l- I don't have any more cash with me.
I do have my watch.
Will that work? Let's see.
This is an Omega Seamaster.
- Well, it's gotta be worth at least four grand.
- It's worth six.
And I'll give it to you for the $327 bet and your hat.
- You want my hat? - Mm-hmm.
All you have to do is call the bet.
There's a reason they call aces and eights a dead man's hand, Wild Bill.
Do you mind, smokey? Excuse me.
The watch is ticking.
Last call for Hartford, Boston and Albany at Bay 7.
All aboard! He's got the flush, Lou.
Just cut your losses.
Let's get on the bus.
- Shut up.
- Tick, tick, tick, tick.
Tick, tick.
- Fine.
Take it.
- Okay.
- [Sighs.]
- Let's go, Zipper.
- [Woman.]
You boys stop by any time.
- Hey, mister.
- Did you have the flush? - Do you really want to know? - Nah.
- Have a good trip.
[Laughing.]
[Laughing.]
Hell of a bluff, sweetie.
Where did you learn to play cards? I read this book.
It's very good.
- [Bell Dinging.]
- Excuse me? I need a ticket.
Uh, your first thing out, please.
I got a turnaround to Baltimore leaves in 10 minutes.
Perfect.
Thank you.
You want to get on a bus, ride for an hour and come right back? The bathroom.
Do you have a bathroom? It's in the back.
All right, Rachel.
Time to come out of there.
- I'm not running away.
- A bus station? This looks very bad.
I just need time to think.
I don't- I don't- I don't have any luggage.
- You know what's at stake here? - Yes, I know.
Why don't you open the door, and we can settle this like decent human beings? You got three seconds, bitch, or I take you where you sit.
Hey! I believe this is the ladies'room.
Ow.
You can come out now.
- Is he dead? - I don't think so.
Oh, do you have any idea what you've just done? Helped you? Mind your own business! You could get somebody killed! [Man Narrating.]
There are Pretenders among us.
[Jarod.]
I was taken from my family.
Thirty-six hours and he's already demonstrating more talent than any of our others.
How many people died because of what I thought up? Since I broke out, I've spent every moment searching for my past.
[Miss Parker.]
He's a Pretender- A genius who can become anyone that he wants to be.
- The Centre wants him alive.
- Preferably.
[Miss Parker.]
He defends the weak and abused.
Life's a gift.
- You a doctor? - I am today.
"We are pleased to announce our engagement.
Join us in celebrating our newfound bliss.
" Oh, excuse me, but this is whacked with a capital "Y.
" - Boys? - It is the Centre.
Strange bedfellows, for richer or poorer.
Anything new from the bus station? Uh, we're still running the information.
Jarod was all over those surveillance cameras, and he never got on a bus.
Yeah.
Right.
Well, no, I have a team on top of it.
Um, Miss Parker.
I was wondering if maybe I can get out of here.
I have a date tonight.
- A date? - Yeah.
Charlene Reynolds.
She works over in Accounting.
She's very nice, actually, except for the tooth.
I also have plans.
Another trip to the Chuckle Hut? Mary Winfield.
She's giving a reading from her new book of poetry.
- Sounds like a hoot.
- What are you doing tonight, Miss Parker? Good night.
[Elevator Bell Dings.]
- [Machine Beeps.]
- Hi, this is Rachel.
The kids and I can't come to the phone right now.
Leave a message, and we'll call you right back.
Right, gang? - [Children.]
Right! - Tha-Tha-Tha-That's all, folks! [Machine Beeps.]
Are you stupid? Did you forget what I told you? Funny, it's all coming back to me now.
Turn around.
Slowly! What are you doing in my house? - I got your address- - That hand disappears, so do you.
My pocket.
Where did you get this? Off your friend at the bus station.
- Did the company send you? - The bus company? You want to play games, I'm gonna shoot you right here.
In front of your children? You have a beautiful family.
Where are they? - [Cell Phone Rings.]
- [Gasps.]
Yes? I wasn't running.
I wouldn't.
You're telling me he's not one of yours? No.
No, I understand.
I said I understand.
Di- Please tell me what's going on.
Rock Creek Park, 10:00 a.
m.
Oh, yes, I will.
I'll be there.
[Sighs.]
- [Sighs.]
What's your name? - Jarod.
- Turn around, Jarod.
- I'd really rather not.
Turn around.
Have you ever felt completely alone like you're in a dark room, and you can't find the door? My whole life.
That's what they've done to me.
They've taken away the light.
[Grunts.]
I'm sorry.
[Sighs.]
[Whispering.]
What am I gonna do? What the hell- What do you two want? Think of me as the United Nations holding peace talks to avoid a full-scale war.
Don't worry.
I would never attack an unarmed person.
[Giggling.]
You know better than that.
Besides, I think baby sister and I can reach an accord on our own.
Can't we, love? We can die tryin'.
Thought you quit.
Actually, I was just about to clean out my desk which is what I'd like to get back to, if you two don't mind.
You really should get a personal life.
Your father and I have a very special relationship.
Someday I hope you find the happiness that we share.
How could you let this happen? Hey, it's just as strange for me as it is for you that our father's marrying Brigitte.
Hell, I slept with her myself.
Look, just because you haven't found happiness that doesn't mean you should deny it to those around you.
Hmm? [Groans.]
[Sighs.]
Damn.
[Man.]
Hot dogs and pretzels here.
Get your hot dogs and pretzels.
[Carousel.]
[Bell Rings.]
That bruise looks painful.
Where's your hero? What do you want? Take the case under the bench.
- What's in it? - Shut up.
There's a room waiting for you at the Chester Hotel.
The reservation's under the name Andrews.
Take the case and wait there.
I've done everything you've asked.
Can I at least just see them? If it were my call, I'd shoot you in the head right here.
I'll stay in touch.
Will she or won't she? Only her cardiologist knows for sure.
You should probably stock up on red meat and doughnuts while you're at it.
I mean, why waste a perfectly good heart attack? - Have we met? - Thomas Gates.
Friends call me Tommy.
So, what do your friends call you? - I don't have any friends.
- Oh.
Two years, three months, 21 days.
- What? - That's how long it's been since I've had a cigarette.
- How 'bout you? - I stopped counting.
Damn it.
- Do you believe in fate? - Oh, please.
Come on.
A sensible ex-smoker risks her hard-earned two and a quarter to rejoin the nicotine club.
A vending machine malfunctions, giving a stranger in- in jeans and Pendleton time to convince her that she doesn't really want to belong to that club.
Fate.
- [Door Hinges Squeaking.]
- [Bells Jingling.]
[Door Closes.]
[Gasps.]
Now, why would someone run away from the people they loved? Who are you? Someone who's trying to help you find your light again.
And what were you planning to do with this? Get my children back.
It was called the M2 Project.
I was 22 when they recruited me from the University of Virginia.
- "They"? Meaning the company? - The company.
Why was the C.
I.
A.
Interested in college students? We were computer analysts, tops of the class.
They took us and trained us in the creation of covert simulations.
- Simulations? - Hypothetical scenarios.
Kidnapping, sabotage, assassination.
They told us that the files were being created for training situations.
How many people were involved in this M2? Five, including me.
We all had military background.
I was R.
O.
T.
C.
So, you can obviously handle a firearm.
My father was a champion target shooter.
I was a better shot than him.
[Sighs.]
I started reading stories in the newspaper of bombings, terrorist assaults, political murders and I recognized them from the files that we thought up.
You have no idea what that's like, to know people are dying from something you thought up.
To have so much innocent blood on your hands.
I understand.
I begged for a transfer and Renfro looked at me like I'd asked him to give up a kidney.
- Renfro? - Alex E.
The man in charge of M2.
So, what happened? I started to ingest small amounts of poison.
Commercial pesticides.
After a month of throwing up on my desk Renfro actually signed the transfer papers himself.
- Where's your husband? - He walked out on us after Zach was born.
So, after 10 years with no contact with anyone at M2 out of nowhere, they take your children? It was 10 days ago.
I was finishing the dishes.
Melinda and Zachary were at the table drawing pictures.
- [Knocking.]
- I heard a knock at the front door.
Not unusual.
We get salespeople in our area all the time.
- [Barking.]
- Then Maggie, our dog, started barking in the backyard.
- [Knocking Continues.]
- When I heard the knocking again, l- I asked the kids to check on her, and I went to answer the door.
When I opened it and there was no one there, my heart stopped instantly.
I knew there was something wrong.
I went running to the back of the house, and the kids were gone.
Zachary! Melinda! [Sighs.]
I got a call a few minutes later.
I didn't recognize the voice, but the message was certainly clear- I do exactly what they say, or they kill my children.
I don't know who they want me to shoot! They'll tell you when they're ready.
- [Bell Dinging.]
- [Horn Honks.]
I think the guy's in the bathroom.
Too much applejack.
- Here, let me get that for you.
- I can do it myself.
Thank you.
So, you live up on Bryer, don't you? Careful.
They have stalking laws in this state.
I'm restoring the split-level just north of you.
That dump on the hill? There's nothing quite like discovering a 17 th-century hardwood floor under a sheet oflime green linoleum.
I can only imagine.
Don't you have any passions, Miss Parker? - You know my name.
- People talk.
"Gates' Restoration.
'Where everything old is new again.
"' I wrote that myself.
Move over, Hemingway.
Well you have yourself a nice day, Miss Parker.
I have a feeling you deserve one.
So, the camel says, "Hump her? I don't even know her!" Hump her.
- It's a- It's a good joke.
- Broots, I need your help.
- That joke always kills.
- Focus, Shecky.
- Okay.
- Thomas Michael Gates.
- Yeah? - I want you to run him through the system- personal history, family background, the whole nine yards.
And I want this information delivered to my office A.
S.
A.
P.
All right.
Who is he? The quicker, the better.
Miss Parker, did you hear the one about the coyote the, uh- the jackal and the one-eyed armadillo? [Nervous Chuckle.]
Oh, well.
Rachel? I downloaded this picture from the federal archives.
- Do you recognize anyone? - That's Alex Renfro.
- Hmm.
- What? I ran a background check on him.
He's suspected in at least a half a dozen political assassinations and the F.
B.
I.
Had him on their internal top-10 list.
Why "had"? Alex Renfro died in a bus crash in Honduras in 1995.
I also ran a background check on all the other M2 members.
Each one of them is dead, along with their families.
- Each death ruled accidental.
- Oh, my God.
Each M2 death was preceded within 48 hours by a political assassination.
They're doing the same thing to me.
After you do this job they're going to kill you and your family.
[Jarod.]
All right.
Let's go over this one more time.
We know that Renfro and the other members of the M2 unit are dead.
But was there anyone else that you can think of that somehow might have been involved? Nobody.
Think hard.
Don't you think I have? Do you have any idea what a nightmare my life has become? Ten days ago I was planning P.
T.
A.
Meetings and making cookies for a bake sale! Now I'm sitting here waiting for someone to tell me who I'm supposed to kill! I'm sorry.
Maybe we should take a little break.
- Who are you? - What do you mean? You-You rescue me in a bathroom like some phantom out of the night.
You access classified files like it's nothing.
And you seem to feel what I feel before I feel it.
- Who are you? - I'm just a guy waitin' for a bus.
[Knocking.]
[Knocking Continues.]
I'm standin' out here like an idiot pizza boy.
I was in the bathroom.
I'm sorry.
You've made the place very homey.
Not much of a view.
- I hadn't noticed.
- Ooh, relax.
You look guilty, and you haven't even killed anybody yet.
What's this? Open it.
- Where are you going? - The bathroom.
Do you mind? Senator Sanford Ryst.
He's givin'a speech at Slayton Hall tonight.
He's arriving there for a rehearsal in exactly one hour.
[Toilet Flushes.]
What am I supposed to do? We've arranged access through a side service door.
As Reest finishes the rehearsal, you will shoot him once through the forehead.
Nice towels.
Why? Don't mess up Mom.
Thanks.
I'll see you tomorrow.
We're gonna have to stop meetin' like this.
People will talk.
Well, people talk.
I don't usually pay much attention to them myself.
That's good advice.
So, it looks like we're gonna have a full moon tonight.
I hear that happens almost monthly.
Right.
Right.
Look, I know this is a little abrupt, but, uh I was gonna take a drive out to the bluffs and try out my new telescope.
Would you like to join me? Was that the worst pick-up line in the history of pick-up lines? So, you-you want to come? Do I look like a "hangin' out in the woods" kind of gal to you? Well, uh, not in those shoes, no but, uh, you never can tell when people are ready to dive into a new experience.
Know what I mean? Sorry to disturb you, Miss Parker, but there's been a bit of an emergency.
- What kind of an emergency? - The personal kind.
I'll see you back at the office.
Roommate? I have to go.
I'm sorry, but this was a big mistake.
Look, I'll be up by Old Bridge Road if you change your mind.
I won't.
- [Engine Starts.]
- Gotta kick off those shoes one day, Parker.
[Jarod.]
I would suggest a second and third scenario.
Automatic weapon fire from behind the building over here, and a staged auto accident here.
That would leave the transport- You'll never guess who I just ran into.
- [Monitor.
Jarod Continues.]
- What are you doing? Who do you work for? - The C.
I.
A? The N.
S.
A? Who? - This isn't what it looks like.
Good.
'Cause it looks like you've been involved in some pretty ugly stuff.
- Rachel, I can explain- - I trusted you! I trusted you with the lives of my children! Alex Renfro is alive.
I just saw him outside of this hotel.
My guess is he's behind everything that is happening to you.
- Get in the closet.
- You know what he's going to do to you after this is over! - I'm gonna talk to him.
Get in.
- I can help you.
I'm gonna talk to him! Get in! Don't make me choose between you and my children! You're making a mistake.
My mistake.
Rachel, listen to me! [Grunts.]
Damn it.
- What do you think you were doing out there? - My job.
- By spying on me? - By following orders.
Oh.
I have to admit- [Giggles.]
Thomas is cute.
If you like that blue-collar dirt-under-the-fingernails, butt-crack refrigerator repairman type.
Why are you still involved in my life? [Sighs.]
Your father and I love you very much.
- We only want what's best for you.
- Daddy ordered these? You don't know a thing about this man.
He could be a security risk not to mention a sexual deviant.
He's a carpenter.
So he says.
Now, the point is, you are not to have further contact with him until a complete background check is finished.
Mmm.
Was that an order? From the highest level.
Don't fool yourself into thinking you're like them, because you're not.
Never forget where you've come from, Miss Parker.
Ever.
Okay.
Excuse me.
What the hell you doin' here? Is there anything above the control booth? I'm with security.
Uh, nothin' but the catwalk.
- How do I get up there? - That way.
Joe, bring the houselights down to a quarter.
God, please forgive me.
Rachel, don't do this.
[Gasps.]
Stop.
Stop! You asked me once if I knew what it felt like to have innocent blood on my hands.
I do.
I try to run from it.
I spend every day of my life trying to make up for it.
- I'm afraid.
- I know you are.
But if you pull that trigger, if you kill this man there'll be no life left for you or your children.
I don't want to kill anybody.
I have to.
If there is a way to save your children I'll find it or I'll die trying.
I promise you that.
Please? Put down the rifle.
[Sobs.]
[Exhales, Inhales Sharply.]
You just saved his life.
I just killed my children.
[Agent On Radio.]
All units, Eagle 2 is on the go.
[Agent #2 On Radio.]
This is Columbia 5.
Copy that.
Standing by.
[Agent #1 On Radio.]
Secure parking lot.
- Where are we going? - I don't know yet.
- What do you mean, you don't know? - [Cell Phone Rings.]
Hello? I am disappointed in you, Rachel.
- Renfro.
- Still quite the little problem solver, aren't you? Except you've created a sizable dilemma for your children.
- Why didn't you just do what you were told? - Please don't hurt them.
That's out of my control now.
I'll do anything! L-l-I'll do anything! Listen to me, Renfro.
There's a new player at the table.
The white knight from the bus station.
I know you were behind the M2 killings.
I know you faked your own death to avert an F.
B.
I.
Manhunt.
Is this the best hand you have? I have a videotape of you taken this afternoon outside the Chester Hotel.
I have Rachel, your last witness.
So, unless you return the children, unharmed I am going to place a phone call to the F.
B.
I.
And tell them you are very much alive.
There won't be a hole on this planet deep enough for you to crawl into.
- You have 30 seconds to make up your mind.
- [Beeps.]
[Gasps.]
What are you doing? Are you insane? - He'll call back.
- What if he doesn't call back? These are my children! Come on.
You have more innocent blood on your hands.
[Rings.]
- [Exhales.]
- [Rings, Beeps.]
Speak to me.
What's the play? With this guy, cautious.
We meet Rachel, the white knight, exchange the kids for the tapes.
Then we follow them home, and you kill them.
- [Carousel.]
- [Chattering, Screaming.]
Rachel.
It's been a long time.
You look good.
Where are my children? Close.
Very close.
The tape we talked about.
Now, where are the children? What's to keep you from going to the authorities after I turn them over? I don't care what happens to you, Renfro.
I want my family.
I believe you.
- Oh! - Mommy! Mommy! Oh, come here! - I love you! - [Rachel.]
Oh, my God! Our business appears to be done.
Be sure to check the tape.
I wouldn't want you to feel cheated.
[Engine Starts.]
I won't forget this.
[Door Closes.]
How are you, baby? [Laughing.]
[Car Pulling Away.]
Before we get on with the rest of our show I wanted to congratulate you on your masterful hand of poker- your use of low-profile assassins, your own fake death to sever any connection to the killings and your elimination of all witnesses and their immediate families.
Now, I realize that there was no way that you were going to allow Rachel and her children to just walk away even after you got what you wanted.
Like I said before- [Cards Turning Over.]
There's a new player at the table and I'm afraid you're not going to like the hand you were just dealt.
Go ahead.
Open the envelope.
[Sighs.]
Aces and eights.
Dead man's hand.
Which is exactly what you are.
[Siren Wailing.]
Oh, God.
[Police Radio Chatter, Indistinct.]
- Get out of the car! - Let me see your hands! - Get 'em up! - Hands in the air, now! Get your hands up and put 'em on the roof of the car! [Phone Ringing.]
[Ringing Continues.]
- What? - [Jarod.]
It's midnight, Miss Parker.
- What a shock to find you still at the office.
- I was just on my way out.
I met a woman who reminds me of you.
- [Continues.]
- She was smart, compassionate and tortured.
Is that what I am? Like you, she was a prisoner of her past of people who wanted to control her future.
Instead of fighting back, she almost let them destroy her.
Doesn't sound like a happy ending.
Oh, it all worked out in the end.
I hope the same thing happens for you.
- Meaning? - Trust your heart, Miss Parker.
Don't let them take away your happiness.
- [Continues.]
- [Beeps.]
I didn't think you'd come.
Tell me about yourself.
What do you want to know? Everything.