Major Crimes s03e19 Episode Script
Special Master - Part 2
Okay.
The girl.
Grab the girl! Get her out of here! Aah! Pause right there, please.
Buzz! I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't filmed it.
And we would have never have known it was there.
Unless he meant it to be the last thing we saw before a burning house collapsed on us.
If Stroh is communicating with this lunatic I mean, if this Burning Man knew we were coming, we may have walked into a trap.
Talked to a neighbor who saw our Cutlass the Goldsmobile in the driveway a few days ago but didn't get a look at the driver, ma'am.
Where's the victim? - Cause of death? - Strangled.
Definitely sexually assaulted.
And we may have a collectable DNA sample.
Might tell us who he is.
If this Burning Man is our system.
There's a tattoo.
A cat.
- Oh, boy.
- Captain, before the place burned, we found drag marks on the floor.
And the scraped heels on our victim indicate she was placed in the house postmortem.
Liver temp says she died four or five hours before your detectives got here.
Meaning he raped and murdered her some place else.
- What is that? - A digital timer.
The house was rigged to blow an hour after sundown no matter what.
So, he's not trying to kill us.
That's good to know.
So, he came, dumped the victim's body, plugged in the timer, and left.
Alarm goes off, house goes boom.
Uh, Captain? Sorry to interrupt.
Chief Taylor's here.
Where? Oh, uh not here here.
- Down the street, giving a press conference.
- What?! Thank you, everyone.
I'll keep this brief.
The L.
A.
P.
D.
is tracking a suspect we believe is a serial killer - What does he think he's doing? - targeting sex workers - Making the problem bigger, ma'am.
- On the streets of L.
A.
We are currently searching for and hoping to find a gold Oldsmobile Cutlass from the early 1990's.
If anyone sees a vehicle matching this description, particularly near abandoned properties or where sex workers congregate, please call the tip line.
Did you really have to say all that? The number is 1-800 I thought "sex workers" was the politically correct term.
Now our suspect knows we've made his car.
And if you had asked me, I would have withheld I don't need your permission to alert the public - to an imminent threat of rape, - I would have withheld the information, - arson and murder.
- because now the killer can shift his pattern - and change his vehicle.
- His pattern has lasted over 10 years.
We're not talking about a couple of dead prostitutes anymore.
We're talking about 15 women murdered, that we know of.
And he's after more.
I have every available S.
I.
S.
officer on the streets where these women hang out, but we can't reach them all.
Now, if they hear about a gold Oldsmobile Cutlass, that might save someone's life.
Commander? My airships are searching for this car, but, Burning Man has killed in other jurisdictions, so we have to search the whole county for this gold Olds over 1,000 square miles in the dark.
Well, you can stop all of that.
Now that this lunatic knows that we're on to him, he'll dump the car and start hunting for hookers online.
But isn't he rigging vacant houses to burn in advance of his murder? Doesn't that give us something to work with? Sure, but there's over 10,000 abandoned houses just here in the city and who knows how many vacant homes.
Even if we do find Burning Man at his next arson site, the young woman that he's kidnapped will be dead.
We need more resources.
Which is why I just enlisted the 10-million citizens of L.
A.
county in the hunt.
Maybe one of them will report something that will help us.
In the meantime, major crimes works the evidence in these murders.
S.
O.
B.
works the streets.
We need a systematic search of abandoned properties and an organized pursuit for this Goldsmobile.
Is there anything else we should know, Captain? The S.
W.
A.
T.
bodyguards I have for my son should remain in effect until But this Burning Man goes after women.
Phillip Stroh demanded to question Rusty.
He spent the entire time talking about how their destinies were intertwined, and Burning Man kills prostitutes.
Excuse us.
Pardon us, folks.
Uh, last couple of days, no one's had much sleep.
You held back something.
- They know everything I know.
- Just hang on, please, - one second, and what is that? - Lieutenant, you don't really believe that Phillip Stroh predicted three murders out of thin air.
Well, of course not.
He was in communication with someone or somehow.
But he wasn't.
All he had were the books he was reading.
You don't think Phillip Stroh has found God? No, Lieutenant.
I think he's found Mars.
You're right, Captain.
Of all the books we pulled from Stroh's cell, fingerprint analysis proves that this is astrology guide, the Ephemeris, was the most handled, especially these pages here dealing with the first two weeks of January.
Stroh was all over these.
If you look at the symbols of the planets Oh, my God.
Mars is the same as the male sign.
- Mars is the god of war, right? - And fire.
Kind of literal, this guy.
Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa.
Are you saying that Stroh predicted these murders - using astrology? - Well, yes and no.
What does the Ephemeris say about this week, Lieutenant? Ah.
Well, right now, seems to be a lot about Mars conjunct Neptune in Pisces.
Whatever the hell that means.
Well, what that means is I have no idea.
But Mars conjunct Neptune the day before we found our first victim, Shyla.
And it goes on until three nights from now.
That book is how Stroh knows when the next murder will occur.
Come on.
Really? Stroh is sitting in his cell, looking into a crystal ball, using astrology to predict when a killer's gonna strike next? He's not predicting the future, Andy.
He's figuring out the past.
This killer is obviously someone that Stroh is very familiar with.
Who murders prostitutes with some wacky cycle of the planets and then signs his murders with a symbol of Mars? So, if this is about timing, we already know Burning Man is killing right now.
But this pattern, detective, is very important.
When was the last time what is it? um, Mars conjunct Neptune? The Ephemeris doesn't say.
This book only covers the second half of 2014 and 2015.
All right.
I never thought I'd say this, but if we are gonna cover all our bases, we need an astrologer.
Oh.
Sorry.
Trying not to wake you.
Oh, it's okay.
Uh, I've been up since 4:00.
Sleeping in one of these interview rooms isn't all that relaxing.
Uh, you know, I don't believe in past lives or ghosts or astrology, but this room it, um, has a weird energy in it.
Sitting in that chair, a person's whole future can change.
Mine did, a long time ago.
Maybe it's gonna change again.
Oh, no, no, no, no, no.
I I heard about all that destiny crap that Stroh was spreading.
You know, "we're intertwined" and "the end" business.
No.
Stroh is the one who is finished, Rusty, not you.
He signs that deal today, and then you go back to school to finish college Grab your breakfast, and we'll eat in the break room, okay? Yeah, that'll be great.
Thanks.
- All right.
- Mmm.
Is it okay if we take him downstairs to shower in the gym or does he need to stay up on this floor? Oh, no.
Go get him cleaned up.
Morning, kid.
Morning.
So you're all set.
Hey, uh, actually, I I have one question.
How do you get into S.
W.
A.
T.
? S.
W.
A.
T.
? Oh, uh, to get into S.
W.
A.
T.
, you, um you have to have a college degree.
You have to go through the academy and graduate.
Then you serve four years as a patrol officer.
You have to achieve the rank of policeman 3, and you have to pass a lot of written and physical tests - before - Okay.
I I I got it.
Yes.
That something you'd be interested in? No.
Um I just thought maybe that joining S.
W.
A.
T.
would make it Harder for Stroh to get at me.
Oh, no.
Son.
Son, listen.
If you join S.
W.
A.
T.
because of Stroh, you are giving him a say in your destiny.
Look, if you want to spend your days looking over your shoulder, afraid, wondering when the blow will fall, you can just wait till you get married.
So, just live my life without ever giving Stroh another thought? That's right.
Which means that I could go and shower at home and head back to school? That's wrong.
Un until we have him locked away, just go down to the break room, have some breakfast, maybe a cup of coffee, and then, when that son of a bitch is locked up in federal prison forever, we'll all celebrate.
The astrologer's here.
Ah.
Well thanks.
At the moment, Mars is very volatile and dangerous.
It's a very influential planet, you know.
And right now, it's conjunct with Neptune - in sneaky, sneaky Pisces.
- Um Conjunct meaning two planets are in the sky at the same time.
There is no mystery to that.
I love Lieutenant Mike.
I'm so glad you called me and that I was available.
Oh, when Clarissa and I first worked together - on "Badge of Justice" - Oh, geez.
- she did a chart for Jon Worth.
- "Badge of Justice.
" "Badge of Justice.
" Every damn day.
And when everyone said we'd be cancelled, Clarissa said we'd be back.
I didn't have anything to do with that.
I mean, people say I predict things.
I don't predict things.
I just interpret actions of the stars.
Now, um, this is very interesting here.
Clarissa, can this alignment tell us what our killer is going to do next? Hmm Well, no, but I do have a very expensive piece of computer equipment that might.
But of course, the battery is dead on my laptop, so I'm gonna have to plug this in.
If you could give me a little help, here Oh, Sharon.
I I think this is a complete waste of time.
I mean, you're not gonna tell me that you believe this astrology lady, are you? It doesn't matter what we believe, Andy.
It's what the killer believes that counts.
Let's just move this along.
Okeydokey, artichokey.
Here we go.
The current Mars conjunct Neptune started January 12th, 2015.
The one before that, February 4th, 2013.
February 20th, 2011.
March 7th, 2009.
March 25th, 2007.
April 13th, 2005.
How am I doing? Am I doing good? - Batting a thousand.
- Wow.
But wait a minute.
Look at this.
On the 19th.
Wait, that's today, isn't it? Wow.
Saturn is in Sagittarius and squares Mars in Pisces.
No! No? No? What does no mean? The killer has an outside authority, Saturn you guys who are challenging him, but today, that authority also has help from the asteroid Pallas.
Wa wait a minute.
Asteroids have names? Well, the bigger ones, yes.
Pallas.
By any chance, is there someone in prison who the the killer thinks of as an ally, who is actually working with the police to betray him? Yes.
I wonder why the killer would attempt to go ahead with these murders when authority is so strong.
Maybe because the killer thinks that he is the authority.
That's good.
That's very good.
Maybe he relates to this as an aspect of himself or he might think that Pallas is on his side.
Clarissa, is there any chance that you could use all this information to tell us where our next crime might occur? Well, it would be my honor to try.
All that would be required is a pot of ginger tea and $185 an hour.
Is that doable? Okay.
It's all done.
The D.
A.
has agreed to the terms and Stroh is on his way to Judge Schaeffer's chambers to sign the deal and give us the name of the killer.
It's done.
- Okay.
- Hello? Amy, come with us.
Stroh hates women, and if he tries stalling again, we can get a reaction from him.
Lieutenant Tao and Buzz, if you'll continue with Clarissa Stroh may give us a name, but we might not know where he is.
Yeah, uh, Captain, Cooper has found an abandoned gold Oldsmobile Cutlass.
If you can print the car fast enough, we might not need to No, no, no, no.
This deal is going forward.
Lieutenant, if you could take Andy and Julio, but be very, very careful.
Clearly our killer is in an explosive frame of mind.
Let's go.
It's now or never.
Well, you've left it kind of late.
We've connected this monster to 15 murders.
We know he's been killing prostitutes and burning them up for at least 12 years.
And you're just now catching up with him? That's not very impressive.
We also have his DNA.
We might even find his next crime scene while you're standing here.
Continue stalling while another woman dies, and your new deal will disappear.
And when we find this lunatic, we'll file charges against you as his accomplice.
His accomplice? Did you read that in my horoscope today, Rios? Because you certainly didn't find it in any law book.
Failure to report a murder or even to stop one is not a crime.
Otherwise, you'd be as guilty as the man you're looking for.
And the longer we stand here, the greater risk you run of finding the last girl by firelight.
Let me sign my deal, pour my heart out to the special master, and get it over with.
That's what we all want, isn't it? The death penalty has been reduced to life without parole.
You have a guaranteed cell at Bell Tower Minimum Security Correctional in Monterey.
You have a grant of immunity from past crimes, but this grant is only in force after you give us the name and information leading to the arrest of this maniac.
- Are we clear? - We are.
If you could just hand me the pen, please.
And the file that I was asking for yesterday.
You don't know the guy's name?! Of course I do, Stephen, but I don't carry his cellphone number and address in my head.
Thank you.
Oh.
I'm sorry.
Every damn time.
It won't happen again.
Oh! Cooper? I sat on our Goldsmobile for 30 minutes, but I don't think the guy's coming back.
But if his prints are on the inside, game over.
There's an envelope in the front seat, sir! Hey, can we just wait until the bomb guy gives the all clear? "The police are welcome to this car.
Hope you have as much fun with it as I did.
" He even signed it with his little Mars symbol.
Freak.
Anything? Looks carefully wiped down, Lieutenant.
I need time to go over the whole vehicle.
All right.
We'll wait.
Yo, Captain.
Yes, well, as I predicted, and without an astrologer, the killer has abandoned his gold Olds.
And and listen to this.
The license and registration came back to a person who died in 1984.
I mean, that's even before the car was manufactured.
I hope you guys are further along than we are.
No, and I don't know what's taking so long, either.
Why don't you go check? We've been waiting almost, uh, 40 minutes.
Judge Schaeffer? Hold on, Lieutenant.
Judge Schaeffer.
- Hold on.
- What ? Knock it down! Break the door down.
Come on! All right.
Don't you have keys, damn it? Come on! Come on! Oh, my God.
Deputy, shut down the courthouse now.
Now! I'll call the paramedics.
- I'm in pursuit.
- He's still warm.
This is Captain Sharon Raydor, L.
A.
P.
D.
I need EMTs, criminal courts building, third floor, room ? Judge Schaeffer's private chambers.
This is Assistant Chief Taylor.
I want a 10-block perimeter set up around the courthouse.
Stop all traffic.
Search every single vehicle for Phillip Stroh.
He's escaped.
We've got to find this son of a bitch.
He killed Judge Schaeffer.
"Find Jesus of Nazareth"? Since when did Stroh get religion? We did find a lot of spiritual readings in his jail cell at County, but this seems I don't know.
Any idea what that arrow means? There's an arrow in the Mars symbol, and Stroh mentioned an arrow when he interviewed Rusty.
Uh, do you mind if we throw up the sites where Burning Man dumped his bodies on the smart screen over there? - Go ahead.
- Thank you.
Do we think Burning Man helped Stroh escape? He's helping him escape right now.
We have every available unit on the streets, searching for the site of Burning Man's next fire or kidnapping.
Stroh waited until we were stretched as thin as possible to make a run for it.
That was his plan from the beginning.
He was never interested in a deal.
He's not coming after me, is he? Don't worry about it, kid.
You're safe on this floor.
Yeah, but I can't live here.
Look, we have two objectives this Burning Man freak and Stroh.
Where do we concentrate our forces? Burning Man may have already kidnapped his next victim.
That's a valid consideration, Captain, but we still don't have an I.
D.
on the guy.
My suggestion we focus on locating Stroh, and if he is in league with Burning Man, maybe they'll end up together.
Well, we've got video of Stroh running away from the courthouse.
He leaves from the back entrance at 11:18 dressed in Schaeffer's track suit, sunglasses, and baseball cap, hood up.
We discovered the judge's body at noon.
Well, by that time, Stroh had to be over a mile away.
We have officers watching the subways, bus terminals, and Union Station.
We've alerted every area airport, and I flagged the judge's I.
D.
and credit card.
But look how well Stroh planned his escape.
You really think we're gonna catch him getting on a plane or the subway? Stroh is a manhunt, Chief.
Burning Man is a rescue.
We still have a young woman's life to save.
Captain Raydor is right.
You all remember my shadow, Deputy City Attorney Lim, here to sort out our response.
Am I wrong, or did you just agree with the captain? I did.
The L.
A.
P.
D.
is not responsible for the judge's murder or for Stroh's escape, which happened when he was in custody of the county.
Stroh is a problem for the sheriff's office, not us.
And every resource that we shift from Burning Man to Stroh increases the city's liability in the event The next person that Stroh kills isn't gonna care about a liability.
I'm just trying to help you prioritize your investigation.
But how do we pursue Burning Man? We don't even know who he is.
But we do have a clue.
"Find Jesus of Nazareth.
" You can't think that means anything.
It has to, Chief.
While else stop in the middle of his escape to write something on the wall? And Stroh is really helping us because ? The second we find out he's not, all our focus goes back to him.
And that is the deal Stroh really wanted to make his chance to escape in exchange for Burning Man.
And that is the deal we have got to take here.
Emma, if the D.
A.
's office could check the criminal records of all Stroh's clients to see if anyone identified themselves to the arresting officer as Jesus of Nazareth.
- If so - Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
- Who are you? - Clarissa.
Chief, she is a consultant that we have hired to help us figure out Burning Man's M.
O.
I I I I think I've got it.
I think I've got it.
Lieutenant Mike, could could you make the map go away and just leave the icons in place? Sure.
And can we dim these lights just a little bit? Ah, you see, the bodies appear to have been left in a haphazard pattern, but Once you connect the dots It's the constellation Sagittarius.
Yes, that's correct.
And all the bodies line up just as we see Sagittarius in the nighttime sky.
He's he's missing a few bits here three of them.
One here, one here, and another star here at the tip of that arrow.
A pattern has begun to emerge, wouldn't you say? And that pattern is Destiny.
Mike, if you can extrapolate from the missing stars where our next body might be found.
Hmm.
The scale overlay on the map is great, but it's approximate.
I could probably give you the cross streets within a four-block target area? That's close enough for me.
This is the place, sir.
He has the place hot wired to the grid.
All right.
Checking the address.
The house was repo'd in 2009.
Sold, resold, fell out of escrow.
It's been empty the last three years.
I really want to shoot this guy.
Well, don't.
He's probably already kidnapped another girl, and I'd like to find her.
Cooper.
Be careful with that door.
It cannot look forced.
Clear.
Clear.
Clear.
- Clear.
- Clear.
Looks like he's ready to go.
Well, he has another digital timer rigged under here.
It's set for 3:00 A.
M.
Yeah, unplug the damn thing, and I smell accelerant.
All over the place.
And I don't want to be standing around again when a house goes up in flames.
Coop? Undercover can set up outside so Burning Man doesn't see us.
That's no problem, but But by the time the guy gets here, the girl will be dead.
That feels like a problem.
Even when we get ahead of him, we're behind.
So, now what? Well, the media's going full out on this Phillip Stroh escape.
And every time there's a potential sighting reported to the L.
A.
P.
D.
tip line, you can see it here on the incident map.
And then patrol follows up.
There are more sightings than there are police.
We are overloaded, yes, but my hope is that finding Burning Man quickly will lead us to Stroh.
Don't give up just yet.
Captain.
18 years ago, Stroh represented a juvenile sex crime suspect, which is why he didn't show up on the LexisNexis search.
He was under 18, and his records were sealed.
The kid refused to give the arresting officer his legal name and said his name was Jesus of Nazareth.
In keeping with L.
A.
P.
D.
policy, he's still listed under the same name he gave during his arrest.
You may be interested to know there are Nazareths in your records, as well as 130 Jesus Christs and 400 Elvis Presleys.
Our Jesus of Nazareth is Markos Christakis, A.
K.
A.
Burning Man.
Before we release anything to the public, we need to make absolutely sure this is your suspect.
He studied electronics in juvie, so that fits.
Printing up Markos Christakis' license and registration.
There is no Goldsmobile, but he has a van and a street address.
Well, we know Burning Man doesn't kill where he dumps the bodies, so maybe he works out of his house? Look at that date of birth.
Sagittarius.
I could have told you that.
When he was 16, Markos Christakis was arrested for disfigurement and mayhem.
He tied up his victim and sliced her back open with a knife.
He didn't just slice her back.
He used it to carve his signature.
The symbol of Mars.
Good enough for you, Gloria? Oh, yeah.
Wait, wait.
His address the address on his DMV.
I did a search for his home, and Holy crap! Excuse me, Buzz.
So, it was repossessed during the housing crisis and burnt to the ground six years later.
Wait, so, where is this dirtbag? Deputy chief Howard.
Transfer me then.
Destiny's like an arrow.
We're pointed toward the end.
The end of what? Heaven knows.
Clarissa, the arrow inside the constellation of Sagittarius is it aiming at anything specific? Oh, yes.
To the heart of Scorpio, which is a red star called Antares, which is over there somewhere.
Let me see if I can find out how Antares lays out over the city using Burning Man's Sagittarius constellation.
Hold on one second.
Just a second.
Chief, we just got a hit on Judge Schaeffer's credit card.
Someone's trying to get an approval on it to buy a rifle at a sporting goods store in the eastside mall.
Stroh wouldn't give himself away like that, would he? The customer's wearing a hoodie and an orange baseball cap and sunglasses.
All right.
It takes at least 30 minutes to process the paperwork for a rifle, and then he'll need ammunition.
We have time to surround him in the mall.
If it is Stroh and he is armed, we shoot to kill.
- Agreed? - Yes, yes.
Agree.
Well, he can't get away with a rifle.
Surround the mall.
And do not let this asshole escape from us again.
- Shooting only if necessary.
- That's up to Stroh, not me.
Rusty, I'm taking your security detail.
Stuart, Perez.
Don't worry, buddy.
We'll take this guy down.
Way down.
Who knows? Maybe Stroh gets the death penalty after all.
I'm placing Antares, using the scale of Sagittarius, somewhere between Vernon and Lincoln Heights.
Captain, when Stroh represented him as a juvenile, Markos lived with his mom in Boyle Heights.
Boyle Heights works.
Lieutenant Provenza, did you get the information we sent you on Markos Christakis? Because I think we have an address.
All right.
God only knows what we're gonna find in there.
So we use caution.
Everybody comes out in the same condition they went in, and we want Burning Man alive and in one piece, Julio.
Okay.
Sykes, Cooper, go back around.
Take the front.
Julio, check out the inside of the van, please.
Flynn, let's go through the back.
Sure.
Target is sighted.
He's on the first level carrying a gun case and a paper bag, but he's in the big, fat middle of shoppers.
Lots of civilians around.
Let me have the binos.
All right.
Cover left.
And he's getting off the escalator at the south exit.
We're moving to intercept.
Looks like the gun is still in its case.
If he pulls out that rifle in public, you have to permanently diffuse the situation.
Roger that, chief.
Roger that.
Clear.
Clear.
He's out, he's out.
Do you have him, Chief Howard? I see him, Commander.
Stroh is not in the clear.
I repeat, Stroh is not in the clear.
Under no circumstances is he to be allowed to get on that bus with those children.
L.
A.
P.
D.
! Drop you weapon! Don't shoot! Do it right now! Don't shoot me! Right now! All right.
Don't shoot.
Oh, my God.
Where's Phillip Stroh? I don't know.
A guy gave me 40 bucks.
- What guy? Where is he? - He gave me $40 and a credit card and told me to buy a rifle and meet him across the street.
Changed clothes with me for $40.
Look, I'm unemployed.
L.
A.
P.
D.
! If you don't stop, I'm gonna kill you! I said alive! I want him alive! Hold up.
Hold up! All right, you two, come with me.
Cover the back.
Okay.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's all right.
It's all right.
It's all right.
Like shooting at cops, huh? Is that it, you like to shoot at cops?! - Stop! - And kill girls?! Stop! Julio! Julio! Oh, geez, gods.
Get him off of him.
Get him off! Julio, Julio, damn it! Markos Christakis, as much as it pains me to say it, you have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney.
If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you by the state.
Lieutenant, what happened to our suspect? Guy jumped off his roof into an angry Julio.
I I'll fill you in later.
If this psycho is working with Stroh, he's gonna tell us.
Hmm.
Hang in there, okay? Okay, Markos.
Uh, we have a lot of questions for you down the road, but right now, we are interested in one thing and one thing only.
How many women I killed.
Okay.
How many women did you kill? Not enough.
Well, that's helpful, but what we're really interested in is this Where is Phillip Stroh? Phillip? He's not in jail? At the moment, no.
I haven't seen Phillip since I was 20.
Of course, he would call from time to time to congratulate me and encourage my great work the work of gods.
I am a god.
You know that, right? I am Mars come to life.
Yeah, obviously.
But even gods can be betrayed.
Stroh betrayed you.
He helped us.
Stroh is how we caught you.
And if you could tell us where Stroh is right now, and if you have any idea what he's up to, we could make things easier for you.
I'm sorry.
Phillip was nothing more than an advisor, really.
I can only assume he did what he told me to do.
And, uh, what was that? To prepare for my escape long before I needed one.
To have plenty of cash hidden somewhere safe, another identity, weapons.
Oh, and most important never leave a witness.
Never, ever leave a witness.
So, this is what he was talking about.
Stroh said he would change my destiny again and that our fates were intertwined.
Which is why I think your security detail needs to be No.
Just for a few weeks, Rusty.
Not not even for another day.
He can't escape and then leave me locked up.
Rusty, I know how frustrating this is, and I don't want to alarm you, but your life could be at stake here.
Yes, you are right.
It is at stake, because hiding out from Phillip Stroh and and worried about him every day and living my life afraid that's like like dying before he's even killed me, and I I won't do it.
I won't.
Look, tomorrow, I'm going back to school, and I'm going to live the rest of my life as if Phillip Stroh didn't matter, and that's my own arrow pointing to the end.
Besides, if he's really escaped, why risk all that to come after me? - Dr.
Tom? - Yes.
That's me.
And you want to go to the Salton Sea? As a first stop, yes.
But if you could wait around and take me to my next stop, that would be lovely.
Good? So, where else will you be going? Oh, not far.
Maybe just Palm Springs.
The desert is perfect for me this time of year.
Well, I will get you there, Doctor.
I will get you there.
That's what I love about Uber.
You guys are always so reliable.
The girl.
Grab the girl! Get her out of here! Aah! Pause right there, please.
Buzz! I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't filmed it.
And we would have never have known it was there.
Unless he meant it to be the last thing we saw before a burning house collapsed on us.
If Stroh is communicating with this lunatic I mean, if this Burning Man knew we were coming, we may have walked into a trap.
Talked to a neighbor who saw our Cutlass the Goldsmobile in the driveway a few days ago but didn't get a look at the driver, ma'am.
Where's the victim? - Cause of death? - Strangled.
Definitely sexually assaulted.
And we may have a collectable DNA sample.
Might tell us who he is.
If this Burning Man is our system.
There's a tattoo.
A cat.
- Oh, boy.
- Captain, before the place burned, we found drag marks on the floor.
And the scraped heels on our victim indicate she was placed in the house postmortem.
Liver temp says she died four or five hours before your detectives got here.
Meaning he raped and murdered her some place else.
- What is that? - A digital timer.
The house was rigged to blow an hour after sundown no matter what.
So, he's not trying to kill us.
That's good to know.
So, he came, dumped the victim's body, plugged in the timer, and left.
Alarm goes off, house goes boom.
Uh, Captain? Sorry to interrupt.
Chief Taylor's here.
Where? Oh, uh not here here.
- Down the street, giving a press conference.
- What?! Thank you, everyone.
I'll keep this brief.
The L.
A.
P.
D.
is tracking a suspect we believe is a serial killer - What does he think he's doing? - targeting sex workers - Making the problem bigger, ma'am.
- On the streets of L.
A.
We are currently searching for and hoping to find a gold Oldsmobile Cutlass from the early 1990's.
If anyone sees a vehicle matching this description, particularly near abandoned properties or where sex workers congregate, please call the tip line.
Did you really have to say all that? The number is 1-800 I thought "sex workers" was the politically correct term.
Now our suspect knows we've made his car.
And if you had asked me, I would have withheld I don't need your permission to alert the public - to an imminent threat of rape, - I would have withheld the information, - arson and murder.
- because now the killer can shift his pattern - and change his vehicle.
- His pattern has lasted over 10 years.
We're not talking about a couple of dead prostitutes anymore.
We're talking about 15 women murdered, that we know of.
And he's after more.
I have every available S.
I.
S.
officer on the streets where these women hang out, but we can't reach them all.
Now, if they hear about a gold Oldsmobile Cutlass, that might save someone's life.
Commander? My airships are searching for this car, but, Burning Man has killed in other jurisdictions, so we have to search the whole county for this gold Olds over 1,000 square miles in the dark.
Well, you can stop all of that.
Now that this lunatic knows that we're on to him, he'll dump the car and start hunting for hookers online.
But isn't he rigging vacant houses to burn in advance of his murder? Doesn't that give us something to work with? Sure, but there's over 10,000 abandoned houses just here in the city and who knows how many vacant homes.
Even if we do find Burning Man at his next arson site, the young woman that he's kidnapped will be dead.
We need more resources.
Which is why I just enlisted the 10-million citizens of L.
A.
county in the hunt.
Maybe one of them will report something that will help us.
In the meantime, major crimes works the evidence in these murders.
S.
O.
B.
works the streets.
We need a systematic search of abandoned properties and an organized pursuit for this Goldsmobile.
Is there anything else we should know, Captain? The S.
W.
A.
T.
bodyguards I have for my son should remain in effect until But this Burning Man goes after women.
Phillip Stroh demanded to question Rusty.
He spent the entire time talking about how their destinies were intertwined, and Burning Man kills prostitutes.
Excuse us.
Pardon us, folks.
Uh, last couple of days, no one's had much sleep.
You held back something.
- They know everything I know.
- Just hang on, please, - one second, and what is that? - Lieutenant, you don't really believe that Phillip Stroh predicted three murders out of thin air.
Well, of course not.
He was in communication with someone or somehow.
But he wasn't.
All he had were the books he was reading.
You don't think Phillip Stroh has found God? No, Lieutenant.
I think he's found Mars.
You're right, Captain.
Of all the books we pulled from Stroh's cell, fingerprint analysis proves that this is astrology guide, the Ephemeris, was the most handled, especially these pages here dealing with the first two weeks of January.
Stroh was all over these.
If you look at the symbols of the planets Oh, my God.
Mars is the same as the male sign.
- Mars is the god of war, right? - And fire.
Kind of literal, this guy.
Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa.
Are you saying that Stroh predicted these murders - using astrology? - Well, yes and no.
What does the Ephemeris say about this week, Lieutenant? Ah.
Well, right now, seems to be a lot about Mars conjunct Neptune in Pisces.
Whatever the hell that means.
Well, what that means is I have no idea.
But Mars conjunct Neptune the day before we found our first victim, Shyla.
And it goes on until three nights from now.
That book is how Stroh knows when the next murder will occur.
Come on.
Really? Stroh is sitting in his cell, looking into a crystal ball, using astrology to predict when a killer's gonna strike next? He's not predicting the future, Andy.
He's figuring out the past.
This killer is obviously someone that Stroh is very familiar with.
Who murders prostitutes with some wacky cycle of the planets and then signs his murders with a symbol of Mars? So, if this is about timing, we already know Burning Man is killing right now.
But this pattern, detective, is very important.
When was the last time what is it? um, Mars conjunct Neptune? The Ephemeris doesn't say.
This book only covers the second half of 2014 and 2015.
All right.
I never thought I'd say this, but if we are gonna cover all our bases, we need an astrologer.
Oh.
Sorry.
Trying not to wake you.
Oh, it's okay.
Uh, I've been up since 4:00.
Sleeping in one of these interview rooms isn't all that relaxing.
Uh, you know, I don't believe in past lives or ghosts or astrology, but this room it, um, has a weird energy in it.
Sitting in that chair, a person's whole future can change.
Mine did, a long time ago.
Maybe it's gonna change again.
Oh, no, no, no, no, no.
I I heard about all that destiny crap that Stroh was spreading.
You know, "we're intertwined" and "the end" business.
No.
Stroh is the one who is finished, Rusty, not you.
He signs that deal today, and then you go back to school to finish college Grab your breakfast, and we'll eat in the break room, okay? Yeah, that'll be great.
Thanks.
- All right.
- Mmm.
Is it okay if we take him downstairs to shower in the gym or does he need to stay up on this floor? Oh, no.
Go get him cleaned up.
Morning, kid.
Morning.
So you're all set.
Hey, uh, actually, I I have one question.
How do you get into S.
W.
A.
T.
? S.
W.
A.
T.
? Oh, uh, to get into S.
W.
A.
T.
, you, um you have to have a college degree.
You have to go through the academy and graduate.
Then you serve four years as a patrol officer.
You have to achieve the rank of policeman 3, and you have to pass a lot of written and physical tests - before - Okay.
I I I got it.
Yes.
That something you'd be interested in? No.
Um I just thought maybe that joining S.
W.
A.
T.
would make it Harder for Stroh to get at me.
Oh, no.
Son.
Son, listen.
If you join S.
W.
A.
T.
because of Stroh, you are giving him a say in your destiny.
Look, if you want to spend your days looking over your shoulder, afraid, wondering when the blow will fall, you can just wait till you get married.
So, just live my life without ever giving Stroh another thought? That's right.
Which means that I could go and shower at home and head back to school? That's wrong.
Un until we have him locked away, just go down to the break room, have some breakfast, maybe a cup of coffee, and then, when that son of a bitch is locked up in federal prison forever, we'll all celebrate.
The astrologer's here.
Ah.
Well thanks.
At the moment, Mars is very volatile and dangerous.
It's a very influential planet, you know.
And right now, it's conjunct with Neptune - in sneaky, sneaky Pisces.
- Um Conjunct meaning two planets are in the sky at the same time.
There is no mystery to that.
I love Lieutenant Mike.
I'm so glad you called me and that I was available.
Oh, when Clarissa and I first worked together - on "Badge of Justice" - Oh, geez.
- she did a chart for Jon Worth.
- "Badge of Justice.
" "Badge of Justice.
" Every damn day.
And when everyone said we'd be cancelled, Clarissa said we'd be back.
I didn't have anything to do with that.
I mean, people say I predict things.
I don't predict things.
I just interpret actions of the stars.
Now, um, this is very interesting here.
Clarissa, can this alignment tell us what our killer is going to do next? Hmm Well, no, but I do have a very expensive piece of computer equipment that might.
But of course, the battery is dead on my laptop, so I'm gonna have to plug this in.
If you could give me a little help, here Oh, Sharon.
I I think this is a complete waste of time.
I mean, you're not gonna tell me that you believe this astrology lady, are you? It doesn't matter what we believe, Andy.
It's what the killer believes that counts.
Let's just move this along.
Okeydokey, artichokey.
Here we go.
The current Mars conjunct Neptune started January 12th, 2015.
The one before that, February 4th, 2013.
February 20th, 2011.
March 7th, 2009.
March 25th, 2007.
April 13th, 2005.
How am I doing? Am I doing good? - Batting a thousand.
- Wow.
But wait a minute.
Look at this.
On the 19th.
Wait, that's today, isn't it? Wow.
Saturn is in Sagittarius and squares Mars in Pisces.
No! No? No? What does no mean? The killer has an outside authority, Saturn you guys who are challenging him, but today, that authority also has help from the asteroid Pallas.
Wa wait a minute.
Asteroids have names? Well, the bigger ones, yes.
Pallas.
By any chance, is there someone in prison who the the killer thinks of as an ally, who is actually working with the police to betray him? Yes.
I wonder why the killer would attempt to go ahead with these murders when authority is so strong.
Maybe because the killer thinks that he is the authority.
That's good.
That's very good.
Maybe he relates to this as an aspect of himself or he might think that Pallas is on his side.
Clarissa, is there any chance that you could use all this information to tell us where our next crime might occur? Well, it would be my honor to try.
All that would be required is a pot of ginger tea and $185 an hour.
Is that doable? Okay.
It's all done.
The D.
A.
has agreed to the terms and Stroh is on his way to Judge Schaeffer's chambers to sign the deal and give us the name of the killer.
It's done.
- Okay.
- Hello? Amy, come with us.
Stroh hates women, and if he tries stalling again, we can get a reaction from him.
Lieutenant Tao and Buzz, if you'll continue with Clarissa Stroh may give us a name, but we might not know where he is.
Yeah, uh, Captain, Cooper has found an abandoned gold Oldsmobile Cutlass.
If you can print the car fast enough, we might not need to No, no, no, no.
This deal is going forward.
Lieutenant, if you could take Andy and Julio, but be very, very careful.
Clearly our killer is in an explosive frame of mind.
Let's go.
It's now or never.
Well, you've left it kind of late.
We've connected this monster to 15 murders.
We know he's been killing prostitutes and burning them up for at least 12 years.
And you're just now catching up with him? That's not very impressive.
We also have his DNA.
We might even find his next crime scene while you're standing here.
Continue stalling while another woman dies, and your new deal will disappear.
And when we find this lunatic, we'll file charges against you as his accomplice.
His accomplice? Did you read that in my horoscope today, Rios? Because you certainly didn't find it in any law book.
Failure to report a murder or even to stop one is not a crime.
Otherwise, you'd be as guilty as the man you're looking for.
And the longer we stand here, the greater risk you run of finding the last girl by firelight.
Let me sign my deal, pour my heart out to the special master, and get it over with.
That's what we all want, isn't it? The death penalty has been reduced to life without parole.
You have a guaranteed cell at Bell Tower Minimum Security Correctional in Monterey.
You have a grant of immunity from past crimes, but this grant is only in force after you give us the name and information leading to the arrest of this maniac.
- Are we clear? - We are.
If you could just hand me the pen, please.
And the file that I was asking for yesterday.
You don't know the guy's name?! Of course I do, Stephen, but I don't carry his cellphone number and address in my head.
Thank you.
Oh.
I'm sorry.
Every damn time.
It won't happen again.
Oh! Cooper? I sat on our Goldsmobile for 30 minutes, but I don't think the guy's coming back.
But if his prints are on the inside, game over.
There's an envelope in the front seat, sir! Hey, can we just wait until the bomb guy gives the all clear? "The police are welcome to this car.
Hope you have as much fun with it as I did.
" He even signed it with his little Mars symbol.
Freak.
Anything? Looks carefully wiped down, Lieutenant.
I need time to go over the whole vehicle.
All right.
We'll wait.
Yo, Captain.
Yes, well, as I predicted, and without an astrologer, the killer has abandoned his gold Olds.
And and listen to this.
The license and registration came back to a person who died in 1984.
I mean, that's even before the car was manufactured.
I hope you guys are further along than we are.
No, and I don't know what's taking so long, either.
Why don't you go check? We've been waiting almost, uh, 40 minutes.
Judge Schaeffer? Hold on, Lieutenant.
Judge Schaeffer.
- Hold on.
- What ? Knock it down! Break the door down.
Come on! All right.
Don't you have keys, damn it? Come on! Come on! Oh, my God.
Deputy, shut down the courthouse now.
Now! I'll call the paramedics.
- I'm in pursuit.
- He's still warm.
This is Captain Sharon Raydor, L.
A.
P.
D.
I need EMTs, criminal courts building, third floor, room ? Judge Schaeffer's private chambers.
This is Assistant Chief Taylor.
I want a 10-block perimeter set up around the courthouse.
Stop all traffic.
Search every single vehicle for Phillip Stroh.
He's escaped.
We've got to find this son of a bitch.
He killed Judge Schaeffer.
"Find Jesus of Nazareth"? Since when did Stroh get religion? We did find a lot of spiritual readings in his jail cell at County, but this seems I don't know.
Any idea what that arrow means? There's an arrow in the Mars symbol, and Stroh mentioned an arrow when he interviewed Rusty.
Uh, do you mind if we throw up the sites where Burning Man dumped his bodies on the smart screen over there? - Go ahead.
- Thank you.
Do we think Burning Man helped Stroh escape? He's helping him escape right now.
We have every available unit on the streets, searching for the site of Burning Man's next fire or kidnapping.
Stroh waited until we were stretched as thin as possible to make a run for it.
That was his plan from the beginning.
He was never interested in a deal.
He's not coming after me, is he? Don't worry about it, kid.
You're safe on this floor.
Yeah, but I can't live here.
Look, we have two objectives this Burning Man freak and Stroh.
Where do we concentrate our forces? Burning Man may have already kidnapped his next victim.
That's a valid consideration, Captain, but we still don't have an I.
D.
on the guy.
My suggestion we focus on locating Stroh, and if he is in league with Burning Man, maybe they'll end up together.
Well, we've got video of Stroh running away from the courthouse.
He leaves from the back entrance at 11:18 dressed in Schaeffer's track suit, sunglasses, and baseball cap, hood up.
We discovered the judge's body at noon.
Well, by that time, Stroh had to be over a mile away.
We have officers watching the subways, bus terminals, and Union Station.
We've alerted every area airport, and I flagged the judge's I.
D.
and credit card.
But look how well Stroh planned his escape.
You really think we're gonna catch him getting on a plane or the subway? Stroh is a manhunt, Chief.
Burning Man is a rescue.
We still have a young woman's life to save.
Captain Raydor is right.
You all remember my shadow, Deputy City Attorney Lim, here to sort out our response.
Am I wrong, or did you just agree with the captain? I did.
The L.
A.
P.
D.
is not responsible for the judge's murder or for Stroh's escape, which happened when he was in custody of the county.
Stroh is a problem for the sheriff's office, not us.
And every resource that we shift from Burning Man to Stroh increases the city's liability in the event The next person that Stroh kills isn't gonna care about a liability.
I'm just trying to help you prioritize your investigation.
But how do we pursue Burning Man? We don't even know who he is.
But we do have a clue.
"Find Jesus of Nazareth.
" You can't think that means anything.
It has to, Chief.
While else stop in the middle of his escape to write something on the wall? And Stroh is really helping us because ? The second we find out he's not, all our focus goes back to him.
And that is the deal Stroh really wanted to make his chance to escape in exchange for Burning Man.
And that is the deal we have got to take here.
Emma, if the D.
A.
's office could check the criminal records of all Stroh's clients to see if anyone identified themselves to the arresting officer as Jesus of Nazareth.
- If so - Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
- Who are you? - Clarissa.
Chief, she is a consultant that we have hired to help us figure out Burning Man's M.
O.
I I I I think I've got it.
I think I've got it.
Lieutenant Mike, could could you make the map go away and just leave the icons in place? Sure.
And can we dim these lights just a little bit? Ah, you see, the bodies appear to have been left in a haphazard pattern, but Once you connect the dots It's the constellation Sagittarius.
Yes, that's correct.
And all the bodies line up just as we see Sagittarius in the nighttime sky.
He's he's missing a few bits here three of them.
One here, one here, and another star here at the tip of that arrow.
A pattern has begun to emerge, wouldn't you say? And that pattern is Destiny.
Mike, if you can extrapolate from the missing stars where our next body might be found.
Hmm.
The scale overlay on the map is great, but it's approximate.
I could probably give you the cross streets within a four-block target area? That's close enough for me.
This is the place, sir.
He has the place hot wired to the grid.
All right.
Checking the address.
The house was repo'd in 2009.
Sold, resold, fell out of escrow.
It's been empty the last three years.
I really want to shoot this guy.
Well, don't.
He's probably already kidnapped another girl, and I'd like to find her.
Cooper.
Be careful with that door.
It cannot look forced.
Clear.
Clear.
Clear.
- Clear.
- Clear.
Looks like he's ready to go.
Well, he has another digital timer rigged under here.
It's set for 3:00 A.
M.
Yeah, unplug the damn thing, and I smell accelerant.
All over the place.
And I don't want to be standing around again when a house goes up in flames.
Coop? Undercover can set up outside so Burning Man doesn't see us.
That's no problem, but But by the time the guy gets here, the girl will be dead.
That feels like a problem.
Even when we get ahead of him, we're behind.
So, now what? Well, the media's going full out on this Phillip Stroh escape.
And every time there's a potential sighting reported to the L.
A.
P.
D.
tip line, you can see it here on the incident map.
And then patrol follows up.
There are more sightings than there are police.
We are overloaded, yes, but my hope is that finding Burning Man quickly will lead us to Stroh.
Don't give up just yet.
Captain.
18 years ago, Stroh represented a juvenile sex crime suspect, which is why he didn't show up on the LexisNexis search.
He was under 18, and his records were sealed.
The kid refused to give the arresting officer his legal name and said his name was Jesus of Nazareth.
In keeping with L.
A.
P.
D.
policy, he's still listed under the same name he gave during his arrest.
You may be interested to know there are Nazareths in your records, as well as 130 Jesus Christs and 400 Elvis Presleys.
Our Jesus of Nazareth is Markos Christakis, A.
K.
A.
Burning Man.
Before we release anything to the public, we need to make absolutely sure this is your suspect.
He studied electronics in juvie, so that fits.
Printing up Markos Christakis' license and registration.
There is no Goldsmobile, but he has a van and a street address.
Well, we know Burning Man doesn't kill where he dumps the bodies, so maybe he works out of his house? Look at that date of birth.
Sagittarius.
I could have told you that.
When he was 16, Markos Christakis was arrested for disfigurement and mayhem.
He tied up his victim and sliced her back open with a knife.
He didn't just slice her back.
He used it to carve his signature.
The symbol of Mars.
Good enough for you, Gloria? Oh, yeah.
Wait, wait.
His address the address on his DMV.
I did a search for his home, and Holy crap! Excuse me, Buzz.
So, it was repossessed during the housing crisis and burnt to the ground six years later.
Wait, so, where is this dirtbag? Deputy chief Howard.
Transfer me then.
Destiny's like an arrow.
We're pointed toward the end.
The end of what? Heaven knows.
Clarissa, the arrow inside the constellation of Sagittarius is it aiming at anything specific? Oh, yes.
To the heart of Scorpio, which is a red star called Antares, which is over there somewhere.
Let me see if I can find out how Antares lays out over the city using Burning Man's Sagittarius constellation.
Hold on one second.
Just a second.
Chief, we just got a hit on Judge Schaeffer's credit card.
Someone's trying to get an approval on it to buy a rifle at a sporting goods store in the eastside mall.
Stroh wouldn't give himself away like that, would he? The customer's wearing a hoodie and an orange baseball cap and sunglasses.
All right.
It takes at least 30 minutes to process the paperwork for a rifle, and then he'll need ammunition.
We have time to surround him in the mall.
If it is Stroh and he is armed, we shoot to kill.
- Agreed? - Yes, yes.
Agree.
Well, he can't get away with a rifle.
Surround the mall.
And do not let this asshole escape from us again.
- Shooting only if necessary.
- That's up to Stroh, not me.
Rusty, I'm taking your security detail.
Stuart, Perez.
Don't worry, buddy.
We'll take this guy down.
Way down.
Who knows? Maybe Stroh gets the death penalty after all.
I'm placing Antares, using the scale of Sagittarius, somewhere between Vernon and Lincoln Heights.
Captain, when Stroh represented him as a juvenile, Markos lived with his mom in Boyle Heights.
Boyle Heights works.
Lieutenant Provenza, did you get the information we sent you on Markos Christakis? Because I think we have an address.
All right.
God only knows what we're gonna find in there.
So we use caution.
Everybody comes out in the same condition they went in, and we want Burning Man alive and in one piece, Julio.
Okay.
Sykes, Cooper, go back around.
Take the front.
Julio, check out the inside of the van, please.
Flynn, let's go through the back.
Sure.
Target is sighted.
He's on the first level carrying a gun case and a paper bag, but he's in the big, fat middle of shoppers.
Lots of civilians around.
Let me have the binos.
All right.
Cover left.
And he's getting off the escalator at the south exit.
We're moving to intercept.
Looks like the gun is still in its case.
If he pulls out that rifle in public, you have to permanently diffuse the situation.
Roger that, chief.
Roger that.
Clear.
Clear.
He's out, he's out.
Do you have him, Chief Howard? I see him, Commander.
Stroh is not in the clear.
I repeat, Stroh is not in the clear.
Under no circumstances is he to be allowed to get on that bus with those children.
L.
A.
P.
D.
! Drop you weapon! Don't shoot! Do it right now! Don't shoot me! Right now! All right.
Don't shoot.
Oh, my God.
Where's Phillip Stroh? I don't know.
A guy gave me 40 bucks.
- What guy? Where is he? - He gave me $40 and a credit card and told me to buy a rifle and meet him across the street.
Changed clothes with me for $40.
Look, I'm unemployed.
L.
A.
P.
D.
! If you don't stop, I'm gonna kill you! I said alive! I want him alive! Hold up.
Hold up! All right, you two, come with me.
Cover the back.
Okay.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's all right.
It's all right.
It's all right.
Like shooting at cops, huh? Is that it, you like to shoot at cops?! - Stop! - And kill girls?! Stop! Julio! Julio! Oh, geez, gods.
Get him off of him.
Get him off! Julio, Julio, damn it! Markos Christakis, as much as it pains me to say it, you have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney.
If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you by the state.
Lieutenant, what happened to our suspect? Guy jumped off his roof into an angry Julio.
I I'll fill you in later.
If this psycho is working with Stroh, he's gonna tell us.
Hmm.
Hang in there, okay? Okay, Markos.
Uh, we have a lot of questions for you down the road, but right now, we are interested in one thing and one thing only.
How many women I killed.
Okay.
How many women did you kill? Not enough.
Well, that's helpful, but what we're really interested in is this Where is Phillip Stroh? Phillip? He's not in jail? At the moment, no.
I haven't seen Phillip since I was 20.
Of course, he would call from time to time to congratulate me and encourage my great work the work of gods.
I am a god.
You know that, right? I am Mars come to life.
Yeah, obviously.
But even gods can be betrayed.
Stroh betrayed you.
He helped us.
Stroh is how we caught you.
And if you could tell us where Stroh is right now, and if you have any idea what he's up to, we could make things easier for you.
I'm sorry.
Phillip was nothing more than an advisor, really.
I can only assume he did what he told me to do.
And, uh, what was that? To prepare for my escape long before I needed one.
To have plenty of cash hidden somewhere safe, another identity, weapons.
Oh, and most important never leave a witness.
Never, ever leave a witness.
So, this is what he was talking about.
Stroh said he would change my destiny again and that our fates were intertwined.
Which is why I think your security detail needs to be No.
Just for a few weeks, Rusty.
Not not even for another day.
He can't escape and then leave me locked up.
Rusty, I know how frustrating this is, and I don't want to alarm you, but your life could be at stake here.
Yes, you are right.
It is at stake, because hiding out from Phillip Stroh and and worried about him every day and living my life afraid that's like like dying before he's even killed me, and I I won't do it.
I won't.
Look, tomorrow, I'm going back to school, and I'm going to live the rest of my life as if Phillip Stroh didn't matter, and that's my own arrow pointing to the end.
Besides, if he's really escaped, why risk all that to come after me? - Dr.
Tom? - Yes.
That's me.
And you want to go to the Salton Sea? As a first stop, yes.
But if you could wait around and take me to my next stop, that would be lovely.
Good? So, where else will you be going? Oh, not far.
Maybe just Palm Springs.
The desert is perfect for me this time of year.
Well, I will get you there, Doctor.
I will get you there.
That's what I love about Uber.
You guys are always so reliable.