Without a Trace s04e13 Episode Script
Rage
- Take the next spot.
- Yeah.
Left, right.
That's it.
Good, good, good.
- Come on, couple more.
- So my hands can fall off? Sorry, I get carried away.
Gonna have to carry me out.
You had enough? - No, actually, I think I have another - Hey, who's the unlucky fella? - Excuse me? - That look in your eyes.
It's gotta take either an ex-husband or boyfriend to get you that motivated.
Actually, we're teachers, so that's about all the motivation she needs.
I don't doubt that.
I'm Mitch.
I'm Laverne, this is Shirley.
Well, call me Fonzie and we can live out our little fantasy together.
Yeah, keep dreaming.
I was talking to Laverne.
Actually, Mitch, we're just gonna try and finish our workout here, so Please, don't let me stop you.
But you know if you wanna do tutoring on the side, you will find me a very willing student.
- Claire! - What are you, nuts? Oh, man.
I'm bleeding, you crazy bitch.
You know, if you're lesbos, just say so.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
- That was - Stupid.
- Yeah, no kidding.
- I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
- I don't know why - I don't either.
Are you all right? Let's get a drink.
Let's get out of here.
No, you go on ahead.
I think I have a few more rounds left in me.
Even after that? Especially after that.
Come on, go on.
Really, go on.
I'll see you tomorrow.
All right then.
See you, Rocky.
Bright and early.
All right, so, what do we got? Claire Hunter, 27, teacher at Woodley Prep.
No-show at work, no call, no answer, no car in her parking space.
- So maybe she's just playing hooky.
- School says that's not her m.
o.
The friend who called it in says she got into an altercation last night with a guy named Mitch at the First Street Gym, which is not far from here.
We don't know if she ever got home.
She is organized.
Yeah, she's also a safety freak.
There's about 10 locks on that front door.
Oh, Sam.
We've got blood.
And it's fresh.
"First Street Gym.
" - Perhaps she made it home after all.
- Yeah, but in what condition? Oh, God.
Why did I leave her there alone? I should have stayed.
Did Claire have problems with any other students or their parents? What kind of problems? The way she went off on Mitch.
See her do anything like that before? No, never.
That's what was so completely odd.
It was totally unlike her.
Girls, can we have five minutes please? Claire's always the cool head in the room, especially with the kids.
She's a great teacher.
Seriously, no one goes above and beyond the way Claire does.
And then he left and told my mom he wasn't coming back anymore.
I'm sorry, Bella.
I mean, why would he say that? Because people say and do things they don't mean all the time.
I hope so.
Hey, you're tougher than you think, Bella.
It's not gonna be easy, but I'm here for you, okay? Trust me, it'll all work out.
Okay.
Thanks, Miss Hunter.
Now, give it to me.
Okay.
- What was that about? - A very nasty divorce.
Two parents who think they're doing a great job of sparing her the drama.
Where do you find the energy? I can barely get homeworks graded and you're out here saving the world.
Yeah, right.
What you said made me feel better and I didn't even know the problem.
Well, I figure it's hard enough being a kid.
Why not try and build them up a little before life has a chance to slap them down? - So she's got a bit of a cynical side? - Who doesn't? But hers, I can understand.
Her parents died when she was a kid, she grew up in foster care.
I think that's why she's so good with the kids.
- It's like they're her mission.
- Right.
And are there any boyfriends or ex-husbands in the picture? Well, there was Pete, but they broke up a couple weeks ago.
- Do you know why? - Sounds like they had a fight.
- You don't know what that was about? - No.
So, what's Pete's last name? I don't know, but he's a fireman.
And he always wore T-shirts and stuff that said "Ladder Company 60" on them.
Great.
Hey.
Just hang in there, okay? We're gonna find your friend.
Thanks for your time.
- Does my nose look broken to you? - I didn't say broken.
I said bloody.
Witnesses said you got popped good.
Yeah, who said, the other lesbian? Well, the woman who hit you is now missing.
And there was a bloody gym towel found in her apartment.
- Really? - Really.
So until we get the blood results back we're gonna need someone to verify where you were last night.
Who? I live alone.
There's a shock.
Wait.
- Look there was another guy.
- Oh, another shock.
No, but there was.
Okay, I admit I did see her afterward, but not because I was waiting.
I'd showered at the gym and was headed out to my car.
Oh, my God.
What is it? What happened? Look at me, look at me, look at me.
She was across the street, having some kind of argument with this guy.
And then he got in the car and they drove off together.
He was taller than her.
- I didn't get a good look.
It was dark.
- Of course, it was.
- Okay.
I admit it sounds a little - Convenient.
I'm just telling you what I saw.
Well, you're gonna see a lot more of this room, so make yourself comfortable.
Looks like Mitch is off the hook.
Blood on the towel is AB positive.
- He is B negative.
- Yeah, what about Claire? According to the school's last blood drive, she is O negative.
Unless she somehow changed her blood type when she changed her name.
- What? - Her real name is Claire Harvey.
A year and a half ago, she had it legally changed to Claire Hunter.
Do we know why? I don't know.
Maybe she was running from something.
Claire Harvey? No.
I knew her as Hunter.
We only dated a couple of months.
She's a great girl, you know.
I hope she's okay.
When's the last time you saw her? About two weeks ago.
So the night you broke up? Yeah.
How do you know that? Tell me about the fight you had.
What? What fight? Well, it wasn't friendly, by any means.
I had a few drinks.
But that whole night was like a freak show.
I had just got there.
Kid walked out of the bathroom.
- Oh, Ray, this is - What the hell's this? Just tutoring.
He came after basketball practice.
Yeah, I bet he did.
Give you a little slam-dunk in your bedroom? - Pete, please.
- Please, what? What do you think this looks like? - It's nothing.
- Did I ask you? - Go Go home, Ray, I'll - Yeah, go home, Ray.
- That's a good idea.
- I'll see you tomorrow.
We'll work on that stuff tomorrow afternoon, okay? Thanks.
- What the hell is wrong with you? - Wrong with me? - Yeah.
- Am I in the twilight zone? The kid's half-naked.
He's got scratches It's nothing, Pete.
He's a student I'm trying to help.
Yeah, help how, with his zipper? - You should leave.
- What? You're drunk and angry.
I don't fight with angry drunks.
- You want me to leave? - Get out.
This looks bad, Claire.
This looks real bad.
Did you get the boy's name, by any chance? I don't know.
Roy or Chuck or something.
And you don't think she was just tutoring him? Would you? Okay, I've got 36 male students enrolled in her classes.
- All present and accounted for? - Hang on.
You know, I hope this doesn't turn into another Letourneau.
It happens.
I remember my son had a crush on his 8th grade teacher.
Well, a crush is one thing.
Yeah, that's what I thought, until I went to the school and she had a blouse on that I wouldn't wear for lingerie.
- Seriously? - Oh, yeah.
- What did you do about it? - I told her to put some clothes on.
Good for you.
Okay.
Got three boys absent from Woodley today and two of them were excused.
And the one that wasn't? Seaver, Raymond Seaver.
Wait a minute, I've seen that name here a few times.
All right, here it is.
Ray Seaver.
Claire has him assigned the last three weeks for after-school private tutoring.
How often? Every day.
So you weren't aware that your son wasn't in school today? I barely look up from my desk till closing.
I'm a broker.
My wife's head of cardiology That's no excuse.
We should've checked messages.
- I know.
- We're up and out so early.
Ray gets himself off to school every morning.
- The last time you saw him was when? - Last night.
- Bed time? - Bed time.
Does he ever talk about his Algebra teacher, Claire Hunter? Miss Hunter? What about her? Well, we think that they may be having an inappropriate relationship.
- What? - You mean sexual? Unless you can think of a legit reason they would be spending time outside of school together.
No.
Dennis, the workshop.
We were called into a parent-teacher conference a few weeks ago.
Ray's grasp of complex equations is certainly advanced.
Almost at a college level.
- Really? - That surprises you? Well, sort of.
His grades are always fairly good, but We sometimes worry that Ray is underachieving.
Not when it comes to algebra which is why I wanted to ask you both about his day after school.
- What about it? - Ray tells me you both work late? Well, most nights, yeah.
- Why? - I volunteer a workshop after school.
Advanced college prep.
Ray's a perfect candidate.
- How many kids? - It's a small group.
Great kids, all gifted like Ray.
There is no small group.
There's no workshop.
She has him scheduled for private tutoring but the school has no record of it.
We think she's taking him home.
- Oh, my God.
- You're saying she's molesting our son? We believe it's possible.
Sam, we got a hit off the AMBER Alert.
- Where? - They were at a gas station off the Freehold exit on the Jersey Turnpike, 11:30 last night.
Headed south for a little romantic getaway.
There's nothing romantic about it.
- Hello, I'm kidding.
- Hey.
When did Claire change her name from Harvey to Hunter? A year and a half ago.
That's when she left her previous teaching job.
You think she was having sex with a student? Unfortunately, it's starting to look that way, yes.
Not the Claire I knew.
Why don't you tell me about the Claire Harvey you knew? She was incredibly sweet and so dedicated.
Really knew how to make learning fun for the kids.
All right, if she was so dedicated, why'd she leave mid-semester? Nothing to do with any impropriety, I can tell you that.
But I do think she had some personal problems.
Yes? Good.
Excuse me.
- What are you doing here? - You look terrific.
Great to see you.
- You shouldn't be here.
- You lost a lot of weight.
You look great.
- Is there a problem? - No, Mrs.
Evans, he's leaving.
- Hey, wait a minute.
- Get off of me.
What did you expect me to do? I had to come down here.
- You wouldn't even answer my calls.
- You won't take a hint.
I thought I made it clear.
I don't wanna see you again.
Sir, do I have to call Security? No, no, I'm I'm going.
For now.
You okay? Yes, I'm fine, thank you.
Right, now, how long after this happened did she quit? A week or two.
She left a note with no forwarding address.
And when I tried to call her, her phone was disconnected.
Mrs.
Evans, why didn't you call the authorities? Now I wish I had, but you had to have known Claire.
She wasn't the type to worry about.
Like the way she handled that guy.
Nobody ever pushed her around.
Thank you.
- You ready for this? - What? Claire's father.
- I thought her parents were dead.
- Claire Hunter's parents are dead.
This is Charles Harvey, paroled 2004.
Okay.
Former sergeant with the N.
Y.
P.
D.
Court record says he was cleaning his service revolver Oh, get this.
- When it went off accidentally and killed his wife.
And the jury bought that? Bet his fellow cops responding to the scene didn't hurt his case.
Well, they didn't help too much.
Because alcohol was a factor, he still got 20 years for manslaughter of which he served 15.
So, Claire changed her name to get away from Daddy.
Where is he now? Parole board has his current address in Toms River, New Jersey.
Do you have the surveillance photo that shows Claire and Ray pumping gas? Yeah, I got it here.
Freehold, New Jersey.
- Freehold? - Yeah.
Let's see, okay.
That's three exits north of Toms River.
So, what, you think? You think she was taking this kid to her father's? I hope not.
FBI? - What the hell do you want? - It's about your daughter, Claire.
- Who? - Oh, come on, Mr.
Harvey.
We know all about you.
You guys make me sick.
Treat us like we work for you.
Yeah, well, you're not a cop anymore.
- Have you seen your daughter recently? - Recently? Okay, Charlie, we'll go with your question.
Yeah, last night.
- Was she alone? - No, she had some kid with her.
I hardly noticed him, I was so shocked to see her.
I'll bet, after 18 months.
And almost 15 years before that.
What did she want? Nothing.
Just to say hello.
Maybe your parole officer could jog your memory.
She had a few things she wanted to get off her chest.
Where have you been? You been hiding yourself? I can't believe you kept the place.
You wanna come in? I got some beers, soda You know, this isn't a social call, Dad.
Well, then, what is it? Who's the kid? He's a student of mine.
I need you to do something for me, Dad.
Like what? I want you to tell him what your anger cost you.
The thing that happened with your mother cost 15 years of my life - What happened is you took her life.
- I didn't mean it.
- I was drunk, I had a DUl - Ray has a situation at home.
An abusive situation.
He won't let me tell police.
- Won't let you? - He trusts me.
- I can't mess with that.
- He's 15 Do you have any idea how long it took me to trust after what you did? - Oh, now it's all back on me, huh? I need you to do this for me.
Please.
Help me, help me show him what's at stake.
I want him to see and hear firsthand what doing nothing about his father could lead to.
Well, you came to the wrong place.
Yeah, what was I thinking? That a pathetic, drunken murderer like you could ever help anybody.
Son of a bitch! - Wait, Claire, I'm sorry.
- Yeah, you sure are.
But it's okay.
I know you can't help it.
And she was right too.
I can't help it.
I never could.
Seems she saw her mother's death differently from how you saw it.
She was just a kid then.
I mean, her mother and me, we fought like married couples do.
And Lydia was no walk in the park.
Claire would not look the way she does if she was still around.
I daresay you wouldn't be the man you are today if she was still around.
We done here? You bet, Charlie.
You have a nice day.
Wish I could have canceled my entire day.
I can't tell you how difficult it's been to focus.
Yeah, we can only imagine.
I don't really understand why you're here if you don't have my son.
We have to ask a few questions about your husband.
Okay.
Has your husband ever been abusive to you or your son? No, never.
Look, if this woman is seducing my son, why are you asking me about Dennis? Okay, Ray's blood type.
Is it AB positive? Yes.
How do you know that? Because it's on a towel we found in Claire Hunter's closet.
Someone made your son bleed the night they disappeared.
If it wasn't Claire and you know who it was now would be a good time to tell us.
It was nothing.
Just a one-time thing.
Was it your husband? It was an accident.
Ray had confronted him the day after I spoke to Miss Hunter.
You spoke to her? When? Day before yesterday.
She came to the hospital.
We had almost this exact same conversation.
The more I see of your son, doctor, the more I'm convinced of it.
I'm telling you my husband would never lay a hand on him.
Ray denies it, too, but I know the signs.
He comes to school most mornings shaking like a leaf.
Oh, that's ridiculous.
Look, Dennis may have to discipline Ray sometimes, but never like that.
What about you? Does he discipline you the same way? Excuse me, that's a little too personal.
Only doing it for Ray.
Well, thank you for that, but I'll take it from here.
Believe me, if there's anything going on, which I'm sure it's not I'll take care of it.
- You better, before I do.
I could see that she was serious, but I never dreamed that she would take Ray.
You still haven't told us how Ray got hit.
Really, it was nothing.
With all due respect, when a kid gets hit, it's something.
And it was enough to make him run off to find Claire that night.
It was that same night.
Dennis was We were fighting about something.
What the teacher had said.
And Ray tried to stick up for me.
And Dennis It was just a bloody nose.
Where is Dennis now? I thought he was at home but last I called, he was out looking for Ray and the teacher.
This whole thing has really gotten him in an awful state.
Look, just stay where you are, we will come to Hello? Hello? - Damn it.
- Who was that? Dennis Seaver, Ray's dad.
- Oh, you reached him? - No, he reached us.
What did he say? Ray called his cell phone five minutes ago from a motel in Hoboken.
He wants Dennis to meet him there.
Claire's getting ready for a confrontation.
Yeah, well, with Ray in the middle, that would not be good.
Martin? FBI.
Ray, put your hands where I can see them.
- Clear.
- Where's Claire? Who are you? I'm Vivian and this is Martin.
We're with the FBI.
- Your dad? Is he somewhere with Claire? - No.
Now, you know you gotta tell us the truth.
I am.
My dad's not here.
Okay.
- This is all my fault.
- What do you mean? I just didn't know how to tell her.
I mean, not until today.
Hey.
- How long have I been asleep? - Most of the day.
You hungry? I got you a sandwich.
Not really.
Did my father scare you last night? I never should have taken you there.
I only thought it would help you see how important it is that we deal with this.
- I still don't want to.
- I know.
It's why I've been thinking.
I have to go to the police whether you want to or not.
- What? - No, Claire.
I told you, we can't.
And we can't do nothing, Ray.
I can't let him hurt you anymore.
- But it's not that bad, really.
- You have to stop saying that.
- What happened with your mother? - What? You never told me how she died.
Just she got shot and your dad said he didn't mean it.
My father's a liar.
- Well, I know you say that, but - I don't want to talk about it.
- Too bad.
- Ray, I don't want to talk No.
You want me to take on my dad and you can't even talk about yours? Tell me.
We were in the yard.
My mom and I had made cupcakes.
And my dad was Well, he was in his usual place: Drunk, screaming at a ball game and angry.
He was always so angry.
He had been passed over for a promotion a bunch of times and it was always someone else's fault.
Mainly my mother's.
I mean, the things he would say.
Him calling her fat and stupid, just to make himself feel better.
But she just took it too.
For a long time.
That is, until he started in on me.
It's okay, baby.
It's okay.
For the first time I saw my mother stand up to him.
For the first and last time.
"It's okay, baby.
" Those were the last words she said to me.
Hey, hey, that's not gonna happen to you, Ray.
Your dad's gonna get help.
That's not my dad.
He's not like that.
Nothing like that.
You've been saying that for days Because it's not him.
What? It's my mom.
She's the one that beats me.
She's the one that screams and punches and throws stuff and my dad just takes it.
Your mother? I've been too embarrassed to tell you the truth.
But it's not him, it's her.
It's my mom.
She's the one that hits me.
I'm sorry, Claire.
Please don't be mad, okay? And did Claire get mad? No, not at me.
Then what happened? She sort of paced around the room a while.
Kind of quiet.
She was worried about leaving me alone.
Then she told me to call my dad.
That was about an hour ago.
- He hasn't been here? Still on his way? - No, I'm here.
Dad.
I'm sorry.
It's okay, Ray.
It's okay.
It got bad in the last year or so when Pam took over her department.
She's a good woman.
I mean, the work she does, the lives she saves.
You ever hear of the God complex? - What about it? - Well, it's like this.
Your wife's in control in the O.
R but when things don't go her way at home, then: You have to understand that Pam's father pushed her and her brothers much harder than she's ever pushed Ray.
- You saying she was abused as well? - They all were.
And she wasn't the smartest in her family.
It's the only way that she knows how to deal with things.
And with the stress, the pressures at work and my job keeping me out of the house, and Ray.
He's a great kid.
He's just not that driven.
He's 14, Mr.
Seaver, 14.
Give the kid a break.
And I think it's time you stopped making excuses for your wife.
Doctor's downstairs in interrogation.
She doesn't know we found Ray.
Let's go talk to her.
Sam and Danny found her at the hospital.
Parking attendant said he heard a skirmish.
- Was it with Claire? - Oh, she's denying everything.
So far.
Look, would you mind if I talk to her alone? You want to or you need to? A little bit of both.
- You okay? - Not especially.
You gonna be okay in there? I promise I won't hurt her.
Okay, knock yourself out.
What's going on here? Thanks for coming down, Pamela.
Your agents drag me down here without so much as a word about my son.
Your son's here.
- Oh, my God, you found him? - Yeah, he's upstairs with his father.
Well, can I see him? What, are you not concerned that your son's been left alone with your abusive husband? Well, like I told your agents, it was one time.
Besides, it's a private family matter.
You know, I can't stop thinking about that riddle.
- What? - You know the one.
Father and son are in a car accident.
The father's killed.
The son gets taken to the hospital.
The doctor takes one look at him and says, "I can't treat him, it's my son.
" Because the doctor's the mother.
That's right.
Of course, you know it.
But a lot of people get stuck.
Just like Claire.
When she realized that Ray was being abused she automatically assumed it was his father.
Which was fine by you, apparently.
I want to see Ray.
Now.
You know, my childhood was no picnic.
But I never used it as an excuse to beat my son.
I wanna see my son! Don't scream at me, Pamela.
I don't like it.
Now, Ray and his father both tell the same story.
Ray stood up to you and you punched him in the face like you have on many occasions.
- That is a lie.
How did this become about me? That teacher kidnapped my son! You're not even looking for her! You think I like the fact she took your son? She needs help, but then so do you.
Now, I know that she was at the hospital.
So, what did she say and where did she go? - Like I told your agents, I don't - Don't tell me you don't know! Now, what did she say and where did she go? I was leaving the office and she was there, waiting for me.
- It was you.
- What did you do with my son? - What did you do with him? - Where is he? I trusted you to take care of Ray.
And you took care of him, didn't you? I don't know what you're talking about.
Let go of me! Please don't hit me, please don't hit me.
And that was it.
She left.
Your agents arrived a few minutes later.
- No idea where she was headed? - No.
Now can I see my son? I'm afraid he'd prefer not to see you.
Got a call from Jersey State Police.
Shots fired at Toms River.
- Claire's father? - It's his house.
Claire? You all right? I guess.
I'm Special Agent Johnson with the FBI.
- Did Ray's dad show up at the motel? - Yeah.
They're together.
What about Ray's mom? She's at our office.
Good.
Good.
I'm sorry I hit her.
It's a problem of mine.
I know.
Now, is that why your dad's in there, because of your problem? No.
No, no.
It's because of his.
Hey, Dad.
Claire, I Oh, jeez, baby, you should have called.
Don't, Dad, don't.
Just Just leave it.
Leave it.
You're not staying.
I just I asked you to do one thing for me last night, Dad.
But you just You really can't, can you? Yeah, I can, but just not that.
I just can't talk about her, babe.
Because you know what you did.
It's like you said.
I just can't help it.
I can't either.
It's the part of you that's in me.
Only I'm not gonna let it ruin my life.
Good.
Don't.
Okay.
You take care, then.
Claire.
I just thought I hoped that if After I'd done my time, that all might be forgiven.
Even with you.
I mean, that's why I kept this house, after all these years.
For when you came back.
I know.
Oh, no.
Okay.
It's okay.
All those years he was in prison just knowing he was alive gave me someone to blame for my life.
Yeah, but because of what he did to you, you chose to help kids like Ray.
And did I? - Did I help Ray? - Yeah, you did.
Maybe not how I would have done it, but you did.
How can I miss someone that I've wanted dead for so long? Adapted by:
- Yeah.
Left, right.
That's it.
Good, good, good.
- Come on, couple more.
- So my hands can fall off? Sorry, I get carried away.
Gonna have to carry me out.
You had enough? - No, actually, I think I have another - Hey, who's the unlucky fella? - Excuse me? - That look in your eyes.
It's gotta take either an ex-husband or boyfriend to get you that motivated.
Actually, we're teachers, so that's about all the motivation she needs.
I don't doubt that.
I'm Mitch.
I'm Laverne, this is Shirley.
Well, call me Fonzie and we can live out our little fantasy together.
Yeah, keep dreaming.
I was talking to Laverne.
Actually, Mitch, we're just gonna try and finish our workout here, so Please, don't let me stop you.
But you know if you wanna do tutoring on the side, you will find me a very willing student.
- Claire! - What are you, nuts? Oh, man.
I'm bleeding, you crazy bitch.
You know, if you're lesbos, just say so.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
- That was - Stupid.
- Yeah, no kidding.
- I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
- I don't know why - I don't either.
Are you all right? Let's get a drink.
Let's get out of here.
No, you go on ahead.
I think I have a few more rounds left in me.
Even after that? Especially after that.
Come on, go on.
Really, go on.
I'll see you tomorrow.
All right then.
See you, Rocky.
Bright and early.
All right, so, what do we got? Claire Hunter, 27, teacher at Woodley Prep.
No-show at work, no call, no answer, no car in her parking space.
- So maybe she's just playing hooky.
- School says that's not her m.
o.
The friend who called it in says she got into an altercation last night with a guy named Mitch at the First Street Gym, which is not far from here.
We don't know if she ever got home.
She is organized.
Yeah, she's also a safety freak.
There's about 10 locks on that front door.
Oh, Sam.
We've got blood.
And it's fresh.
"First Street Gym.
" - Perhaps she made it home after all.
- Yeah, but in what condition? Oh, God.
Why did I leave her there alone? I should have stayed.
Did Claire have problems with any other students or their parents? What kind of problems? The way she went off on Mitch.
See her do anything like that before? No, never.
That's what was so completely odd.
It was totally unlike her.
Girls, can we have five minutes please? Claire's always the cool head in the room, especially with the kids.
She's a great teacher.
Seriously, no one goes above and beyond the way Claire does.
And then he left and told my mom he wasn't coming back anymore.
I'm sorry, Bella.
I mean, why would he say that? Because people say and do things they don't mean all the time.
I hope so.
Hey, you're tougher than you think, Bella.
It's not gonna be easy, but I'm here for you, okay? Trust me, it'll all work out.
Okay.
Thanks, Miss Hunter.
Now, give it to me.
Okay.
- What was that about? - A very nasty divorce.
Two parents who think they're doing a great job of sparing her the drama.
Where do you find the energy? I can barely get homeworks graded and you're out here saving the world.
Yeah, right.
What you said made me feel better and I didn't even know the problem.
Well, I figure it's hard enough being a kid.
Why not try and build them up a little before life has a chance to slap them down? - So she's got a bit of a cynical side? - Who doesn't? But hers, I can understand.
Her parents died when she was a kid, she grew up in foster care.
I think that's why she's so good with the kids.
- It's like they're her mission.
- Right.
And are there any boyfriends or ex-husbands in the picture? Well, there was Pete, but they broke up a couple weeks ago.
- Do you know why? - Sounds like they had a fight.
- You don't know what that was about? - No.
So, what's Pete's last name? I don't know, but he's a fireman.
And he always wore T-shirts and stuff that said "Ladder Company 60" on them.
Great.
Hey.
Just hang in there, okay? We're gonna find your friend.
Thanks for your time.
- Does my nose look broken to you? - I didn't say broken.
I said bloody.
Witnesses said you got popped good.
Yeah, who said, the other lesbian? Well, the woman who hit you is now missing.
And there was a bloody gym towel found in her apartment.
- Really? - Really.
So until we get the blood results back we're gonna need someone to verify where you were last night.
Who? I live alone.
There's a shock.
Wait.
- Look there was another guy.
- Oh, another shock.
No, but there was.
Okay, I admit I did see her afterward, but not because I was waiting.
I'd showered at the gym and was headed out to my car.
Oh, my God.
What is it? What happened? Look at me, look at me, look at me.
She was across the street, having some kind of argument with this guy.
And then he got in the car and they drove off together.
He was taller than her.
- I didn't get a good look.
It was dark.
- Of course, it was.
- Okay.
I admit it sounds a little - Convenient.
I'm just telling you what I saw.
Well, you're gonna see a lot more of this room, so make yourself comfortable.
Looks like Mitch is off the hook.
Blood on the towel is AB positive.
- He is B negative.
- Yeah, what about Claire? According to the school's last blood drive, she is O negative.
Unless she somehow changed her blood type when she changed her name.
- What? - Her real name is Claire Harvey.
A year and a half ago, she had it legally changed to Claire Hunter.
Do we know why? I don't know.
Maybe she was running from something.
Claire Harvey? No.
I knew her as Hunter.
We only dated a couple of months.
She's a great girl, you know.
I hope she's okay.
When's the last time you saw her? About two weeks ago.
So the night you broke up? Yeah.
How do you know that? Tell me about the fight you had.
What? What fight? Well, it wasn't friendly, by any means.
I had a few drinks.
But that whole night was like a freak show.
I had just got there.
Kid walked out of the bathroom.
- Oh, Ray, this is - What the hell's this? Just tutoring.
He came after basketball practice.
Yeah, I bet he did.
Give you a little slam-dunk in your bedroom? - Pete, please.
- Please, what? What do you think this looks like? - It's nothing.
- Did I ask you? - Go Go home, Ray, I'll - Yeah, go home, Ray.
- That's a good idea.
- I'll see you tomorrow.
We'll work on that stuff tomorrow afternoon, okay? Thanks.
- What the hell is wrong with you? - Wrong with me? - Yeah.
- Am I in the twilight zone? The kid's half-naked.
He's got scratches It's nothing, Pete.
He's a student I'm trying to help.
Yeah, help how, with his zipper? - You should leave.
- What? You're drunk and angry.
I don't fight with angry drunks.
- You want me to leave? - Get out.
This looks bad, Claire.
This looks real bad.
Did you get the boy's name, by any chance? I don't know.
Roy or Chuck or something.
And you don't think she was just tutoring him? Would you? Okay, I've got 36 male students enrolled in her classes.
- All present and accounted for? - Hang on.
You know, I hope this doesn't turn into another Letourneau.
It happens.
I remember my son had a crush on his 8th grade teacher.
Well, a crush is one thing.
Yeah, that's what I thought, until I went to the school and she had a blouse on that I wouldn't wear for lingerie.
- Seriously? - Oh, yeah.
- What did you do about it? - I told her to put some clothes on.
Good for you.
Okay.
Got three boys absent from Woodley today and two of them were excused.
And the one that wasn't? Seaver, Raymond Seaver.
Wait a minute, I've seen that name here a few times.
All right, here it is.
Ray Seaver.
Claire has him assigned the last three weeks for after-school private tutoring.
How often? Every day.
So you weren't aware that your son wasn't in school today? I barely look up from my desk till closing.
I'm a broker.
My wife's head of cardiology That's no excuse.
We should've checked messages.
- I know.
- We're up and out so early.
Ray gets himself off to school every morning.
- The last time you saw him was when? - Last night.
- Bed time? - Bed time.
Does he ever talk about his Algebra teacher, Claire Hunter? Miss Hunter? What about her? Well, we think that they may be having an inappropriate relationship.
- What? - You mean sexual? Unless you can think of a legit reason they would be spending time outside of school together.
No.
Dennis, the workshop.
We were called into a parent-teacher conference a few weeks ago.
Ray's grasp of complex equations is certainly advanced.
Almost at a college level.
- Really? - That surprises you? Well, sort of.
His grades are always fairly good, but We sometimes worry that Ray is underachieving.
Not when it comes to algebra which is why I wanted to ask you both about his day after school.
- What about it? - Ray tells me you both work late? Well, most nights, yeah.
- Why? - I volunteer a workshop after school.
Advanced college prep.
Ray's a perfect candidate.
- How many kids? - It's a small group.
Great kids, all gifted like Ray.
There is no small group.
There's no workshop.
She has him scheduled for private tutoring but the school has no record of it.
We think she's taking him home.
- Oh, my God.
- You're saying she's molesting our son? We believe it's possible.
Sam, we got a hit off the AMBER Alert.
- Where? - They were at a gas station off the Freehold exit on the Jersey Turnpike, 11:30 last night.
Headed south for a little romantic getaway.
There's nothing romantic about it.
- Hello, I'm kidding.
- Hey.
When did Claire change her name from Harvey to Hunter? A year and a half ago.
That's when she left her previous teaching job.
You think she was having sex with a student? Unfortunately, it's starting to look that way, yes.
Not the Claire I knew.
Why don't you tell me about the Claire Harvey you knew? She was incredibly sweet and so dedicated.
Really knew how to make learning fun for the kids.
All right, if she was so dedicated, why'd she leave mid-semester? Nothing to do with any impropriety, I can tell you that.
But I do think she had some personal problems.
Yes? Good.
Excuse me.
- What are you doing here? - You look terrific.
Great to see you.
- You shouldn't be here.
- You lost a lot of weight.
You look great.
- Is there a problem? - No, Mrs.
Evans, he's leaving.
- Hey, wait a minute.
- Get off of me.
What did you expect me to do? I had to come down here.
- You wouldn't even answer my calls.
- You won't take a hint.
I thought I made it clear.
I don't wanna see you again.
Sir, do I have to call Security? No, no, I'm I'm going.
For now.
You okay? Yes, I'm fine, thank you.
Right, now, how long after this happened did she quit? A week or two.
She left a note with no forwarding address.
And when I tried to call her, her phone was disconnected.
Mrs.
Evans, why didn't you call the authorities? Now I wish I had, but you had to have known Claire.
She wasn't the type to worry about.
Like the way she handled that guy.
Nobody ever pushed her around.
Thank you.
- You ready for this? - What? Claire's father.
- I thought her parents were dead.
- Claire Hunter's parents are dead.
This is Charles Harvey, paroled 2004.
Okay.
Former sergeant with the N.
Y.
P.
D.
Court record says he was cleaning his service revolver Oh, get this.
- When it went off accidentally and killed his wife.
And the jury bought that? Bet his fellow cops responding to the scene didn't hurt his case.
Well, they didn't help too much.
Because alcohol was a factor, he still got 20 years for manslaughter of which he served 15.
So, Claire changed her name to get away from Daddy.
Where is he now? Parole board has his current address in Toms River, New Jersey.
Do you have the surveillance photo that shows Claire and Ray pumping gas? Yeah, I got it here.
Freehold, New Jersey.
- Freehold? - Yeah.
Let's see, okay.
That's three exits north of Toms River.
So, what, you think? You think she was taking this kid to her father's? I hope not.
FBI? - What the hell do you want? - It's about your daughter, Claire.
- Who? - Oh, come on, Mr.
Harvey.
We know all about you.
You guys make me sick.
Treat us like we work for you.
Yeah, well, you're not a cop anymore.
- Have you seen your daughter recently? - Recently? Okay, Charlie, we'll go with your question.
Yeah, last night.
- Was she alone? - No, she had some kid with her.
I hardly noticed him, I was so shocked to see her.
I'll bet, after 18 months.
And almost 15 years before that.
What did she want? Nothing.
Just to say hello.
Maybe your parole officer could jog your memory.
She had a few things she wanted to get off her chest.
Where have you been? You been hiding yourself? I can't believe you kept the place.
You wanna come in? I got some beers, soda You know, this isn't a social call, Dad.
Well, then, what is it? Who's the kid? He's a student of mine.
I need you to do something for me, Dad.
Like what? I want you to tell him what your anger cost you.
The thing that happened with your mother cost 15 years of my life - What happened is you took her life.
- I didn't mean it.
- I was drunk, I had a DUl - Ray has a situation at home.
An abusive situation.
He won't let me tell police.
- Won't let you? - He trusts me.
- I can't mess with that.
- He's 15 Do you have any idea how long it took me to trust after what you did? - Oh, now it's all back on me, huh? I need you to do this for me.
Please.
Help me, help me show him what's at stake.
I want him to see and hear firsthand what doing nothing about his father could lead to.
Well, you came to the wrong place.
Yeah, what was I thinking? That a pathetic, drunken murderer like you could ever help anybody.
Son of a bitch! - Wait, Claire, I'm sorry.
- Yeah, you sure are.
But it's okay.
I know you can't help it.
And she was right too.
I can't help it.
I never could.
Seems she saw her mother's death differently from how you saw it.
She was just a kid then.
I mean, her mother and me, we fought like married couples do.
And Lydia was no walk in the park.
Claire would not look the way she does if she was still around.
I daresay you wouldn't be the man you are today if she was still around.
We done here? You bet, Charlie.
You have a nice day.
Wish I could have canceled my entire day.
I can't tell you how difficult it's been to focus.
Yeah, we can only imagine.
I don't really understand why you're here if you don't have my son.
We have to ask a few questions about your husband.
Okay.
Has your husband ever been abusive to you or your son? No, never.
Look, if this woman is seducing my son, why are you asking me about Dennis? Okay, Ray's blood type.
Is it AB positive? Yes.
How do you know that? Because it's on a towel we found in Claire Hunter's closet.
Someone made your son bleed the night they disappeared.
If it wasn't Claire and you know who it was now would be a good time to tell us.
It was nothing.
Just a one-time thing.
Was it your husband? It was an accident.
Ray had confronted him the day after I spoke to Miss Hunter.
You spoke to her? When? Day before yesterday.
She came to the hospital.
We had almost this exact same conversation.
The more I see of your son, doctor, the more I'm convinced of it.
I'm telling you my husband would never lay a hand on him.
Ray denies it, too, but I know the signs.
He comes to school most mornings shaking like a leaf.
Oh, that's ridiculous.
Look, Dennis may have to discipline Ray sometimes, but never like that.
What about you? Does he discipline you the same way? Excuse me, that's a little too personal.
Only doing it for Ray.
Well, thank you for that, but I'll take it from here.
Believe me, if there's anything going on, which I'm sure it's not I'll take care of it.
- You better, before I do.
I could see that she was serious, but I never dreamed that she would take Ray.
You still haven't told us how Ray got hit.
Really, it was nothing.
With all due respect, when a kid gets hit, it's something.
And it was enough to make him run off to find Claire that night.
It was that same night.
Dennis was We were fighting about something.
What the teacher had said.
And Ray tried to stick up for me.
And Dennis It was just a bloody nose.
Where is Dennis now? I thought he was at home but last I called, he was out looking for Ray and the teacher.
This whole thing has really gotten him in an awful state.
Look, just stay where you are, we will come to Hello? Hello? - Damn it.
- Who was that? Dennis Seaver, Ray's dad.
- Oh, you reached him? - No, he reached us.
What did he say? Ray called his cell phone five minutes ago from a motel in Hoboken.
He wants Dennis to meet him there.
Claire's getting ready for a confrontation.
Yeah, well, with Ray in the middle, that would not be good.
Martin? FBI.
Ray, put your hands where I can see them.
- Clear.
- Where's Claire? Who are you? I'm Vivian and this is Martin.
We're with the FBI.
- Your dad? Is he somewhere with Claire? - No.
Now, you know you gotta tell us the truth.
I am.
My dad's not here.
Okay.
- This is all my fault.
- What do you mean? I just didn't know how to tell her.
I mean, not until today.
Hey.
- How long have I been asleep? - Most of the day.
You hungry? I got you a sandwich.
Not really.
Did my father scare you last night? I never should have taken you there.
I only thought it would help you see how important it is that we deal with this.
- I still don't want to.
- I know.
It's why I've been thinking.
I have to go to the police whether you want to or not.
- What? - No, Claire.
I told you, we can't.
And we can't do nothing, Ray.
I can't let him hurt you anymore.
- But it's not that bad, really.
- You have to stop saying that.
- What happened with your mother? - What? You never told me how she died.
Just she got shot and your dad said he didn't mean it.
My father's a liar.
- Well, I know you say that, but - I don't want to talk about it.
- Too bad.
- Ray, I don't want to talk No.
You want me to take on my dad and you can't even talk about yours? Tell me.
We were in the yard.
My mom and I had made cupcakes.
And my dad was Well, he was in his usual place: Drunk, screaming at a ball game and angry.
He was always so angry.
He had been passed over for a promotion a bunch of times and it was always someone else's fault.
Mainly my mother's.
I mean, the things he would say.
Him calling her fat and stupid, just to make himself feel better.
But she just took it too.
For a long time.
That is, until he started in on me.
It's okay, baby.
It's okay.
For the first time I saw my mother stand up to him.
For the first and last time.
"It's okay, baby.
" Those were the last words she said to me.
Hey, hey, that's not gonna happen to you, Ray.
Your dad's gonna get help.
That's not my dad.
He's not like that.
Nothing like that.
You've been saying that for days Because it's not him.
What? It's my mom.
She's the one that beats me.
She's the one that screams and punches and throws stuff and my dad just takes it.
Your mother? I've been too embarrassed to tell you the truth.
But it's not him, it's her.
It's my mom.
She's the one that hits me.
I'm sorry, Claire.
Please don't be mad, okay? And did Claire get mad? No, not at me.
Then what happened? She sort of paced around the room a while.
Kind of quiet.
She was worried about leaving me alone.
Then she told me to call my dad.
That was about an hour ago.
- He hasn't been here? Still on his way? - No, I'm here.
Dad.
I'm sorry.
It's okay, Ray.
It's okay.
It got bad in the last year or so when Pam took over her department.
She's a good woman.
I mean, the work she does, the lives she saves.
You ever hear of the God complex? - What about it? - Well, it's like this.
Your wife's in control in the O.
R but when things don't go her way at home, then: You have to understand that Pam's father pushed her and her brothers much harder than she's ever pushed Ray.
- You saying she was abused as well? - They all were.
And she wasn't the smartest in her family.
It's the only way that she knows how to deal with things.
And with the stress, the pressures at work and my job keeping me out of the house, and Ray.
He's a great kid.
He's just not that driven.
He's 14, Mr.
Seaver, 14.
Give the kid a break.
And I think it's time you stopped making excuses for your wife.
Doctor's downstairs in interrogation.
She doesn't know we found Ray.
Let's go talk to her.
Sam and Danny found her at the hospital.
Parking attendant said he heard a skirmish.
- Was it with Claire? - Oh, she's denying everything.
So far.
Look, would you mind if I talk to her alone? You want to or you need to? A little bit of both.
- You okay? - Not especially.
You gonna be okay in there? I promise I won't hurt her.
Okay, knock yourself out.
What's going on here? Thanks for coming down, Pamela.
Your agents drag me down here without so much as a word about my son.
Your son's here.
- Oh, my God, you found him? - Yeah, he's upstairs with his father.
Well, can I see him? What, are you not concerned that your son's been left alone with your abusive husband? Well, like I told your agents, it was one time.
Besides, it's a private family matter.
You know, I can't stop thinking about that riddle.
- What? - You know the one.
Father and son are in a car accident.
The father's killed.
The son gets taken to the hospital.
The doctor takes one look at him and says, "I can't treat him, it's my son.
" Because the doctor's the mother.
That's right.
Of course, you know it.
But a lot of people get stuck.
Just like Claire.
When she realized that Ray was being abused she automatically assumed it was his father.
Which was fine by you, apparently.
I want to see Ray.
Now.
You know, my childhood was no picnic.
But I never used it as an excuse to beat my son.
I wanna see my son! Don't scream at me, Pamela.
I don't like it.
Now, Ray and his father both tell the same story.
Ray stood up to you and you punched him in the face like you have on many occasions.
- That is a lie.
How did this become about me? That teacher kidnapped my son! You're not even looking for her! You think I like the fact she took your son? She needs help, but then so do you.
Now, I know that she was at the hospital.
So, what did she say and where did she go? - Like I told your agents, I don't - Don't tell me you don't know! Now, what did she say and where did she go? I was leaving the office and she was there, waiting for me.
- It was you.
- What did you do with my son? - What did you do with him? - Where is he? I trusted you to take care of Ray.
And you took care of him, didn't you? I don't know what you're talking about.
Let go of me! Please don't hit me, please don't hit me.
And that was it.
She left.
Your agents arrived a few minutes later.
- No idea where she was headed? - No.
Now can I see my son? I'm afraid he'd prefer not to see you.
Got a call from Jersey State Police.
Shots fired at Toms River.
- Claire's father? - It's his house.
Claire? You all right? I guess.
I'm Special Agent Johnson with the FBI.
- Did Ray's dad show up at the motel? - Yeah.
They're together.
What about Ray's mom? She's at our office.
Good.
Good.
I'm sorry I hit her.
It's a problem of mine.
I know.
Now, is that why your dad's in there, because of your problem? No.
No, no.
It's because of his.
Hey, Dad.
Claire, I Oh, jeez, baby, you should have called.
Don't, Dad, don't.
Just Just leave it.
Leave it.
You're not staying.
I just I asked you to do one thing for me last night, Dad.
But you just You really can't, can you? Yeah, I can, but just not that.
I just can't talk about her, babe.
Because you know what you did.
It's like you said.
I just can't help it.
I can't either.
It's the part of you that's in me.
Only I'm not gonna let it ruin my life.
Good.
Don't.
Okay.
You take care, then.
Claire.
I just thought I hoped that if After I'd done my time, that all might be forgiven.
Even with you.
I mean, that's why I kept this house, after all these years.
For when you came back.
I know.
Oh, no.
Okay.
It's okay.
All those years he was in prison just knowing he was alive gave me someone to blame for my life.
Yeah, but because of what he did to you, you chose to help kids like Ray.
And did I? - Did I help Ray? - Yeah, you did.
Maybe not how I would have done it, but you did.
How can I miss someone that I've wanted dead for so long? Adapted by: