Major Crimes s06e10 Episode Script
By Any Means Part 1
1 My beautiful family.
Let me just begin by saying how much I love you.
And how much I felt you are in love in return.
How that love encouraged and inspired me every day to be the best person I could be.
I had a great job.
I had a terrific husband, amazing children.
Blessed in this way, I'm not letting bitterness at the end destroy the wonder of all that came before.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
Today we honor Commander Sharon Raydor, a cop's cop, an exceptional mother, a loving wife, and a great good friend.
She was also a person of faith.
She believed in rules and law and God.
These beliefs gave her the strength to lead and compelled her to uphold the values by which we live.
Those of us gathered here today feel her passing as a personal tragedy for which we will mourn for the rest of our lives.
But to the community in which she lived and the civilization she struggled to defend, her death is nothing short of calamity.
In moments like this, we often hear, "It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.
" And so, in my heart [VOICE BREAKING.]
I light a candle in Sharon's honor.
But I curse the darkness, also this awful shadow falling across our hearts, a cloud darkening the principles for which she stood.
I ask that, with Sharon as our example, that we leave her today re-committed to the rule of law and dedicated to the cause of justice for which she sacrificed her life.
[FOOTSTEPS.]
PRIEST: Let us pray.
Lord, into your hands, we commend our sister Sharon.
We thank you for the wonderful things you bestowed upon her life.
We pray that you open the gates of paradise to your servant and elevate the hope of those who remain.
Until we all meet in Christ and are with you and our sister Sharon forever, we ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Detail! Return arms! Detail! Dismissed! It's the, uh, eulogy.
EMMA: Lieutenant.
That was very touching.
Thanks for coming, Emma.
- Um, hard day.
- It is.
And I'm sorry to bring this up, but I have something urgent we need to discuss.
- Here? - It'll only take a second.
You've probably heard that over the last few months, several people connected to Phillip Stroh - Have died, yes, yes.
- Yes.
One suicide, four accidents.
Or five murders all across the country.
But now I have reason to believe that Phillip Stroh is already in L.
A and a potential motive for why he came back.
And that motive would be? I'm trying to verify it through other agencies, but I feel confirmation is imminent.
Do you have protection? Yes.
But I'm not worried about me.
Sorry, Lieutenant.
I'm gonna head out.
Yeah.
Uh, Rios? Expect me in your office sometime late tomorrow morning.
I'll be there.
I'm so sorry for your loss.
We're all clear, ma'am.
We'll be out front if you need us.
Thank you.
Have a nice night.
[MUFFLED SCREAMING.]
[POLICE RADIO CHATTER.]
Correct me if I'm wrong.
You two guys were protecting D.
D.
A.
Rios.
Sir, I did a sweep of the house and the grounds myself.
There was no one here, and there were no alerts from our security alarms all night.
- So, what the hell happened? - Can't say.
We rang the bell in the morning, and when she didn't answer, we entered, turned off the alarm, and we found her in the pool.
And she was outside alone because? She liked to have a swim before bed.
Maybe she didn't want us back here.
I don't know.
"I don't know.
" You guys had one job.
- Nolan.
- NOLAN: Yeah.
Better start sending out your résumés, guys.
This way.
- Andrea.
- Where is she? At the morgue.
She was an officer of the court, and her body does not belong by the side of the pool.
- What happened? - As of now, it's an accidental drowning.
Bullshit.
This was Stroh.
Just give me a second, Andrea.
Give me a second.
- Sanchez.
- Sir, no forced entry, towel is folded up, clothing on the chair.
S.
I.
D.
is skimming the pool for hair samples.
Her cellphone and laptop were still inside the house password-protected, so I sent them over to Cyber - to see what they could do.
- All right.
Emma told me yesterday that she thought Phillip Stroh was back in Los Angeles.
Andrea, do you have any idea where that information could have come from? She always kept me in the loop.
[VOICE BREAKING.]
But I haven't been back to work since I-I know.
It's It's been hell for all of us.
Look, uh, why don't you check Emma's files, her phone logs? [SOBS, SNIFFLES.]
Uh, Amy? - Amy? - Oh.
Hey.
Hey, it's tough.
- It's tough.
I know.
- I know.
I'm sorry, guys.
- I'm sorry.
- We're all doing it.
It's okay, it's okay.
[SNIFFLES.]
Lieutenant, I heard this was an accidental drowning.
Yeah.
A 35-year-old avid swimmer drowns in her own pool.
- Lieutenant.
- Guys.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
We're, uh, still working it.
It's too early for a report.
Maybe I'll hang out for a bit.
Suit yourself.
Just remember that I am the incident commander not you.
Ah, great.
Everyone, this is Karl, Emma's neighbor.
His parents are out of town, but he was nice enough to get up and give us a tour.
Hey.
I'm sorry, guys.
So sad.
She was a really nice person.
Well, thank you.
Um, Mike.
Karl, show them what you showed me.
Right.
Um, well, this gate's been around for forever.
It looks stuck, right? But the bottom's just dug into the ground a little.
If you pull it up [GATE CREAKS.]
Why is the gate even here, Karl? I think the old owners of these houses were, you know, related and sort of going back and forth all the time.
I used this gate, too, like, in middle school.
If a Frisbee would come over, I'd just go through the gate - and, like - Okay, Karl, okay.
Did you hear any noise in your yard last night? Sorry.
No.
I just got back from Thailand day before yesterday, and I-I hit a wall at like 9:00.
Karl, was there ever a lock on this gate? Oh.
Uh yeah.
I wonder where it went.
I, um I might have a picture of it on my phone.
You want me to text it to you? Yes, please.
Number's right there.
Thanks.
I mean, I can climb over this fence easy.
All you got to do is, like, get your hands on No, no, Ka Karl.
We believe you.
- Okay.
- Okay? Can we look around your backyard? - Oh, sure.
Yeah, no problem.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Wait for us.
Wes, get a copy of that photo and text that photo to the rest of us and make sure it gets in the report.
NOLAN: Yep.
As soon as I get it.
And while you're at it, Nolan, you and Paige expand your canvass of the neighborhood to include Karl's street.
I'll go with them and look for home-security cameras.
I'll get S.
I.
D.
to print this gate.
Lieutenant, before you start throwing around - words like "murder" - Less than 24 hours ago, Emma told me that she thought Phillip Stroh was back in Los Angeles, and now she's dead.
You think that's a coincidence? This is an emotional time for your division.
Given your history with Stroh You want to hand over the murder of a Deputy D.
A.
to people it won't upset, good luck.
As for our history, all that means is, we hit the ground running.
And I intend to give chase unless you're replacing me.
Are you replacing me? You better be right about this, Lieutenant.
I am.
Now, if you'll excuse me, we have to bring our so-called history with Phillip Stroh to an end.
SHARON: Like joy, I'm finding that grief can't be absorbed all at once.
It It It's For me, it's coming in stages.
There's, um shock [CHUCKLES.]
And then denial and sorrow and sometimes anger because there's so much more I wanted to do with all of you - [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
- so much more of your lives that I wanted to see.
- Hello? - Oh, hey, Lieutenant.
What are you doing? Just sorting through stuff so Andy doesn't have to.
We've been to the storage unit, and apparently Mom never really threw anything away.
I'm finding art projects, Mother's Day cards my first ballet shoes.
I'm sorry.
[SOBS.]
Andy has life occupancy at the condo, but some of this stuff he doesn't want for example, the Christmas village, which right now I'd like to move into - and curl up like a ball.
- Hm.
Save room for the rest of us.
Hey.
Can you stay for lunch? Um, Ricky, just excuse me a second.
Gus and I have been at it all morning.
There's nothing else for us to do for them right now - except keep them fed.
- Hey, Lieutenant.
Gus.
Very nice of you to pitch in like this.
- Uh, where's Rusty? - He hasn't come out here yet, but I think I heard him in the shower a while ago.
And Flynn? [DOOR OPENS.]
[DOOR CLOSES.]
Really nice, uh, speech eulogy, whatever it was.
Well, I'm just thankful I was able to get through it.
[CHUCKLES.]
Look, there is no good time to ask this.
I need your help with a very difficult notification.
RUSTY: An accidental drowning? No.
This is a murder.
I thought Emma had bodyguards.
What happened? Well, they think someone gained access to her house through a neighbor's yard, but they can't prove it.
Yeah.
Look, how much work have you done on Stroh's other potential victims? Before Rusty gives you the rundown, let me make something clear.
- He is not leaving this building.
- Andy.
Look, I'm sorry, kid.
There's no messing around.
Your mother made me promise that I would take care of you - and protect - I-I start law school in three weeks.
Emma is dead, and we know that Stroh is back.
And I can't Andy, this is not what I meant by "help.
" Yeah? Well, the last time I just stood by and let someone do what they wanted, how did that work out, huh? How did that work out?! Andy in the end, her heart didn't seize.
It It didn't skip a beat.
It just stopped.
And the doctor said that that had nothing to do with us.
Now, Stroh will not stop with Emma.
If you promised Sharon that you would protect this boy, I need him to tell us everything he knows.
First was Gordon Ducrest, Stroh's sixth-grade science teacher.
He was found electrocuted on the side of his house about a year ago.
He was caring for his wife, who has Alzheimer's, and his kids never heard of Stroh.
Next was Stroh's high-school girlfriend Lynn.
Yes.
She was a former lifeguard from Ohio who also drowned in her own pool.
Right.
And her parents say that Lynn and Stroh broke up when they were 16 and they don't remember much about him, though they say he was odd.
- No shit.
- Yeah.
Well, about a month later, Clyde Fowler of Ann Arbor, who taught Stroh in law school, supposedly shot himself.
Now, Clyde's sister says that he was in perfect health and showed no indication of depression and left no note.
She had never heard of Stroh, either.
She also told me that Clyde used to travel two or three time a year to Europe, but that he quit about a year ago, saying that he couldn't afford it anymore.
The traveling stuck out to you.
Why? Well, because Elizabeth Dunn, the Colorado woman who died in a car accident Her ex-husband, Aaron, said the same thing that she used to take their kids over the winter break to all these different places and that she had stopped about a year ago, claiming she was low on funds.
Which brings us to Stroh's stepmother, Carolyn Sayles, who fell off a hiking trail in Arizona.
Yeah, well, one of his stepmothers.
Stroh's father, Tyler, had three wives Stroh's mother, who I can't find; Carolyn Sayles; and then another woman named Jinny.
But Jinny says that she never met Stroh and that Tyler, who died in 1998, never had mentioned him.
Well, that's that's all I have.
PROVENZA: Hobbs? HOBBS: There was nothing in Emma's office suggesting any new information on Stroh, though she noted a conversation with Interpol on her call sheet.
SYKES: Cyber found an encrypted folder on her desktop.
They're working on opening it.
NOLAN: Encrypted folder.
Sounds promising.
Why would Stroh come back now? Revenge? SANCHEZ: What, against your sixth-grade science teacher? That's a big risk to take for something that happened to you when you were 11.
For a normal person maybe, but a psychopath? Who knows what provokes a nutjob like that? RUSTY: Well, my mom said that Stroh coming back might have something to do with the reason he moved to L.
A.
in the first place.
Also, we Aah! [SIGHS.]
[BRITISH ACCENT.]
You scared the shit out of me.
Yeah, I get that a lot.
What have I missed? Um, well, they were just talking about you, actually.
I've, uh, recorded everything if you want to play it back or - Never mind that.
It's just - Dylan you promised me video of their offices, not of your underage hooker.
She's not my hooker.
She's my girlfriend.
Look, I know it's not easy for you, but just chill, seriously, and and be impressed with what I've accomplished.
What you're hearing is a live feed coming from six separate phones.
Apparently Mr.
Provenza wasn't forwarded the photo sent from [AMERICAN ACCENT.]
neighbor bro Karl [LAUGHS.]
who was helping them investigate last night's accident.
My American accent was, like, awesome, dude! [LAUGHS.]
[NORMAL VOICE.]
It's hilarious.
Anyway, as the police were checking out the gate to Emma's backyard, I had a Sniffy in my pocket, creating a rogue access point for their phones.
It gave me their contacts, calendars, browser history, albums.
And the oh-so-innocuous picture they were anxious for me to text them infected all their device with malware, and now I have full autonomous control of their cells.
[CHUCKLES.]
Oh, and, uh, a bonus.
Detective Wes Nolan.
New to me.
Okay.
"Okay"? That's your response? "Okay"? How about, um, "Dylan, what you've done during your five months in L.
A.
is truly amazing.
Setting up this house? Renting the home behind Rios? Putting yourself at risk? Walking around in the very midst of a billion detectives That's courage, Dylan.
That's genius.
" I'm happy you're pleased with yourself, but I still can't see them.
You're about to.
Of course, I could turn on their cellphone cameras, but, uh, that would only give us a view of the ceiling or their pockets.
But Mr.
Buzz has a recognized device paired to his cell, and if it's what I think it is [INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
Score! [LAUGHS.]
They're practically staring at us.
Look.
PROVENZA: no longer a practicing Boy Scout, but always prepared.
Julio, let's collect all the phone data from Emma's lines her home, her work, anything that's Ah, Chief.
I, uh, assume that you're here for an update.
That, and when you get a moment, some some housekeeping issues to discuss.
What? Is this about her office? Are you moving someone in there already? Lieutenant, it hasn't even been a Kid looks miserable about what happened to his mother.
Did you have anything to do with killing her? No.
Doesn't mean I can't enjoy her death a little.
PROVENZA: One second.
Listen.
No one is coming in here to take Sharon's place, all right? Go ahead.
Pack her stuff.
Buzz will help you.
- Buzz.
- Trouble in police paradise.
RUSTY: [SIGHS.]
- Can you get me into that office? - DYLAN: Sorry.
Mr.
Buzz left his cellphone on his desk.
Oh, don't complain.
I'm giving you more than your money's worth here.
Really? If the Cyprus police had kept you until you were tried for what you did to that girl - [FIST POUNDS.]
- She wasn't a girl.
She was 15, fully functional.
She came on to me, not the other way 'round.
I pass for 15, too.
I get carded everywhere I go.
Sounds exhausting.
I know how much it hurts to lose a parent when you're young.
Yeah, I just wish that, um You know, I spent all morning listening to her old voicemails.
I-I wish You could talk to her one last time.
I know.
Before she died, your mother made two video messages in case Well, I copied the one for your whole family onto these yellow flash drives.
The blue one is just for you.
In her note, she said if anything went wrong, to hand these out a week after the funeral, but she didn't know what was about to happen.
And her message to you I think you need to watch right away.
MASON: I hear what you're saying.
This other drowning looks similar to what happened to Rios, but for me to put the department on alert, I need to see proof that Stroh is back.
Well, would another dead body help you with that? Because they're coming.
[SIGHS.]
Here's a compromise.
I'll allow you to investigate Emma's death as a homicide for two more days, but if this turns out to be Stroh, whatever we do, make sure when we get to trial, he can never say that we violated his rights.
Oh, I promise you, Stroh will never speak in a courtroom again.
STROH: Finally, Lieutenant something upon which we can fully agree.
Andy, maybe we won't make our honeymoon, but having our marriage recognized by the Church means we may be together in an even more beautiful place than Ireland.
Ricky, my firstborn and the big [CHUCKLING.]
experiment on which I learned sticking to the values that I tried to convey to you helped me to hold on to them, too.
Oh, Emily, you lived out my childhood dream.
Seeing you dance reminded me of the best moments of my childhood, when I was free, watching myself spin around in the mirror without a care in the world.
Thank you.
Oh, Rusty, I hope you never have to see this and we have many more years together.
But in case I'm not there, beyond how much I love you, I want you to consider how to protect yourself from Phillip Stroh.
Your weapon may be important as your last line of defense, but your true security will come from two things that I know are difficult to accept.
First, Rusty, try not to think of Stroh as a monster.
That is how I have always worked not by distancing myself from criminals, but trying to relate to them.
Imagining Stroh as alien will make him harder to see.
Next, you cannot solve this problem alone.
No matter how much you have learned, you are not a detective.
Share your ideas with with Andy and with the lieutenant.
Let the people who love you and care about you help you.
Trusting people we love makes us vulnerable, I know.
But your ability to allow yourself to be vulnerable here will be your greatest advantage over Stroh.
RICKY: You look a little better this morning.
[BREATHES DEEPLY.]
You sleep okay? Yeah.
Um, not really.
Me neither.
Of course, I don't have a protection detail.
So, Mom never said.
How much danger are you in, really? I-I don't know.
Depends on my connection to these other victims.
And I've talked to everyone who I thought could help, and I-I've looked all over the Internet for any mention of these people, but I still just can't see what we have in common.
Uh-huh.
And when you looked all over the Internet for these people, - you used a search engine? - Yeah.
Well, then the one thing that connects those names is the fact that you looked them up.
You know who else probably looked them up? - [KEYS CLACKING.]
- DYLAN: Can't talk long.
I, um I just wanted to say good morning.
So, uh, good morning, Ella.
[CHUCKLES.]
ELLA: Uh-huh.
So sweet of you to call, but I got to get going.
It's a busy day.
Do you, um Do you think I can stop by tonight? I have an opening at 10:00.
Want me to put you down? I can't afford to save it and you not show.
I'll I'll I'll pay for it whether I get there or not.
Just Just hold it for me, okay? - Okay.
- [DOOR OPENS.]
- Hey, um, I'm sorry, baby.
- [DOOR CLOSES.]
I've I've got to go, okay? - [COMPUTER BEEPS.]
- Hey.
Uh, they're talking to somebody I don't know.
STROH: That's Sharon Raydor's real son.
Probably just more of the same whining, but turn it up.
In my job at Capra, we're sometimes asked to locate computers making specific Internet searches.
- Capra/Denny? Shit.
- Who are they? A major U.
S.
defense contractor.
Cyber experts.
Yeah, I can do that.
They won't find me.
Don't worry.
But with Capra involved, lucky for us we're not on the L.
A.
P.
D.
intranet.
I put through an initial request to my boss' boss this morning, asking for a list of I.
P.
addresses containing everyone who's searched the Web for those five people up there on your board, and we've already matched some users.
I see devices for Sharon Raydor, D.
D.
A.
Hobbs, D.
D.
A.
Rios, Buzz Watson, me.
Patrice Provenza? She has a computer.
I don't.
SANCHEZ: Fritz Howard, Brenda Leigh Johnson, Rusty's home computer.
Finally, one that is identified only by an I.
P.
address based out of Nepal.
Nepal? Someone probably using a proxy server.
Routed it out of Nepal to hide his actual location.
Unprotected proxy server.
My God, you do need my help.
- No.
- SYKES: When were these searches from? This may accelerate things in a good way.
Can you prove that it's Stroh? Probably not, but if we have his I.
P.
address Is it possible to see everything else he searched for, too? Maybe, but Capra/Denny will not respond to a warrant under circumstances like this, so I don't know how you're gonna explain it in court.
Well, we won't ever be in court.
We're bringing Stroh down by any means.
I'm serious.
They're always so certain of themselves, aren't they? But if they can access my Internet searches - It may take a day or two.
- that's great.
This is a good thing, Dylan.
They're finally doing what we want.
Speaking of computers, Cyber says they cracked open that folder on Emma's laptop.
It's some sort of document written in Czech.
Go get it translated, please.
Well, I guess my encrypted folder is about to do its job.
[FRENCH ACCENT.]
You may say "merci" to Interpol officer, M.
Saisset.
He's perfect.
Right.
Okay.
Keep an eye on them.
If I'm not back by midnight, remember to input the combination to your little blackmail clock.
[NORMAL VOICE.]
You mean enter the password to reset my dead-man switch.
It's irritating, that switch, considering how much I spent saving you from the police in Larnaca.
I completely appreciate that.
And And I love the fee we agreed on, but, uh, don't pretend you wanted me as a friend, 'cause we both know you're incapable of that.
And the dead-man switch has nothing to do with blackmail.
It's just to make sure that, should anything happen to me, the FBI will receive a complete dossier on everything you've done and intend to do.
Releasing access to all that information destroys my life, as well as yours, so this isn't blackmail.
This is insurance to make sure that when all this ends, we're both living happily ever after and as far away from each other as possible.
But we're not finished yet, so I'll type the code in early.
You see? I'm safe today.
Dead-man switch.
Well, the name seems fitting.
Listen, this is very important.
Until I get back, no multitasking.
You need to leave your girlfriend alone, listen to these people very carefully.
If you hear the name Bechtel Jim Bechtel, in particular call me immediately.
You got it? Jim Bechtel.
Got it.
Jim Bechtel.
Who the hell is that? [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Sorry to bother you, sir.
- Is this your house? - Yes.
Detective Wes Nolan, L.
A.
P.
D.
Jim Bechtel.
L.
A.
P.
D.
? What's going on? Safety check.
There's been a report of a dangerous man in the area.
Is there anyone else in your house we should be concerned about children, staff? - You alone, sir? - Yes, yes.
No No one's here on Saturdays or Sundays including me, usually.
What What dangerous man? Step back inside the house, please.
Oh, my God.
[BREATHING SHAKILY.]
Phillip? Phillip! - What do you want? - What I've always wanted.
You'll be happy to know my search is almost over.
You're You're a serial killer.
- The police are looking for you.
- They are? Well, I better make this quick, then.
[GASPS.]
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
I told you over and over again I have no idea where Gwendolyn is.
I believe you, but I still need your help.
And so do the police.
You're not working with the police.
I am a little, believe it or not.
I'm glad I found you here instead of your place at the shore.
A little cold out there this time of year.
Please.
This isn't necessary.
I can't help you.
Look, look, look, just leave, Phillip.
I'll never tell anyone you were here.
And I swear There's nothing I can do to help.
[BREATHING RAPIDLY.]
Don't underestimate yourself, Jim.
Is that your computer? Yes.
You logged in? Yes.
Use it if you want.
I will.
And don't move.
Seriously? You keep all your passwords on a Post-it note taped to your computer? That's incredibly dangerous, Jim.
Take the computer.
Take it.
That's very generous.
So unlike the way you treated me when I was a kid.
I'll leave the computer here with you.
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
Aah! Aah! Aah! I pray that this family that we brought to life brings each one of you joy and comfort.
I think I've already gone on longer than I intended, so let me just say that the the most important thing that I want you to remember always is that [VOICE BREAKING.]
I loved you with my whole heart.
And you filled my life filled my life with joy - and grace.
- [REMOTE CLICKS.]
Watching it again, huh? Yeah.
Well, I miss her.
And Emily and Ricky went out with their dad.
Well, pretty soon it's gonna be just you and me, I guess.
No.
No, not just you and me.
Look, as long as we hold on to each other, which is what she wanted, we hold on to her, too.
What's this? [CHUCKLES.]
The wedding photos came today.
[CHUCKLING.]
Oh, my God.
Well, at first, I was thinking, "She didn't even get a chance to see our wedding pictures," but then I thought, "At least she had the ceremony, and she had it where she wanted it.
" That That is a perfect day.
Yeah.
Look at your mother.
Isn't she beautiful? Ah, look.
Here's one of just the two of you there.
Hey, do me a favor, kid.
Turn the light on so I can see it a little better.
[SWITCH CLICKS.]
BUZZ: Looks like we're making progress of a sort, but I still don't know how we're gonna introduce all these searches Ricky got Buzz, just hang on for a second.
Um, everyone, there will be no trial.
But, sir, if Stroh has an accomplice, how we describe this evidence could jeopardize Well, considering how Stroh's accomplices end up, I seriously doubt that it will matter.
So, these blue dots we're looking at They represent the people that Stroh was searching for.
TAO: Brenda Leigh Johnson, Fritz Howard, Rusty Beck, and Louie Provenza.
Ah.
Well, I was feeling ignored.
And then there are names that are totally new to us, like Albert Fularz, retired lawyer in Nevada.
BUZZ: And others we've identified are Catherine Davidson in Atlanta, William Putnam in Austin both living.
Now, here in L.
A.
, we have a Jim J.
Bechtel and a Ms.
Bechtel.
Now, I have a good address on Jim Bechtel.
He's a retired real-estate developer on the Westside, unmarried.
Ms.
Bechtel doesn't show.
- Maybe an ex? - Hmm.
And several different searches for a Gwendolyn.
Gwendolyn Bechtel m-may be Ms.
Bechtel.
He could be trying to find out where she lives 'cause there's also a "Gwendolyn Bakersfield" and a "Gwendolyn Fresno.
" Fresno? [CHUCKLES.]
Stroh must be more desperate than we thought.
Of all the new people, the only match we get in the city of L.
A.
is Jim Bechtel.
All right, let's do a safety check on Mr.
Bechtel's residence.
Amy, why don't you take Cami and pay a call to Mr.
Bechtel's house? Nolan, Nolan, could I Could I see you a second? Sir.
I've got a special assignment for you.
It could be a little risky.
Do you understand what I mean when I say we're going to take Stroh down by any means? - [KNOCKING.]
- Jim Bechtel.
L.
A.
P.
D.
Mr.
Bechtel? [DOGS BARKING IN DISTANCE.]
Car's in the driveway.
Yeah.
Let's Let's look in the backyard.
I'm concerned for his safety.
[EXHALES SHARPLY.]
[LOCK DISENGAGES.]
[SIGHS.]
Okay.
At Missing Persons, we'd have to call this in, ask for permission.
Well, if we're on a wild-goose chase and Stroh isn't at the end of it, you may be back in Missing Persons.
And if your good friend Mason puts someone else in charge of Major Crimes, the lieutenant will retire, and who knows what a new commander would want to do? I mean, it's Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Call it in! Damn it! PAIGE: Four King 64 requesting a backup and paramedics to my location.
Also, notify Major Crimes to respond.
I count five stab wounds, mostly in the abdomen, tightly grouped and angled upward.
Like he was facing the killer.
How long ago? Partial lividity, so dead 10, 15 hours.
Lots of blood around the body.
And a trail of drops heading for the front door.
Victim was probably stabbed here, fell.
I'm not seeing defensive wounds.
SYKES: And no signs of forced entry, though the patio doors were wide open when we got here.
Nothing appears to be stolen.
Phone, wallet, watch all here.
Computer's open with Post-it that says "password.
" - If this is Stroh - It's definitely Stroh.
[SCOFFS.]
Then why change his M.
O.
? I mean, this isn't an accident.
It's a murder.
We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the searches we got from Capra.
But who is Jim Bechtel to Phillip Stroh? Buzz, grab his laptop.
We're gonna have to give it a thorough search.
SANCHEZ: What are you thinking, Tao? That we are going to be finding a lot more bodies before this is all said and done.
- That your work? - They needed a kick in the ass.
This should take us to the next step.
Oh.
Be sure to add that to your little dossier.
Lieutenant, you're gonna want to have a powwow with Chief Mason.
The danger level has gone way up.
Hurry, Lieutenant.
I need this to be over with.
Sorry.
They haven't been able to get around to me yet, so I won't be able to go with you guys to the airport.
It's all right.
And that you wanted to go to the airport with us means you really are family.
I'll tell Andy to come back and get you.
God, I wish you didn't have to leave.
[VOICE BREAKING.]
Me too.
God.
Mom really loved this place, didn't she? I can feel it by how much I want to stay.
Well, you can always visit.
Or Or maybe, uh, you'll tour through L.
A Tour? Rusty, I'm your sister.
And I've come up here specifically to tell you, "Please, please, please take care of yourself.
" Losing Mom is [VOICE BREAKING.]
It's gonna take me maybe the rest of my life to deal with that.
I just I can't lose you, too.
PROVENZA: You were looking for something to make you believe that Phillip Stroh murdered Emma Rios.
Well, our investigation of Emma's death led us directly to the murder of Jim Bechtel.
But what's the connection between a retired real-estate developer in his 70s and the drowning of a prosecutor? Am I missing something? Yes.
You're missing Gwendolyn.
- I did it! Ah! - MASON: Gwendolyn? - I told you sending e-mails - STROH: Dylan.
I'm trying to listen.
On Bechtel's computer, he recently e-mailed with an old neighbor from Chagrin Falls, Ohio, who asked for the whereabouts of his ex-wife Gwendolyn.
We found a divorce filing from the 1980s between a Jim Bechtel and a one Gwendolyn Bechtel, who claimed as her dependent, sir, a 17-year-old son Phillip Stroh.
That means Jim Bechtel was Stroh's stepfather.
But help me with this because I don't understand.
Stroh made a good escape.
Why would he come back? SYKES: Because he's running out of time.
That encrypted file from Emma's computer We finally got it translated from Czech.
They're medical records from a hospital in Prague, dated 11 months ago.
And you'll notice, Chief, that the patient's name has been redacted, but we know he's male, 6'2", 190 pounds.
And, according to his doctor, dying of cancer.
Cancer? Stage 4, terminal, in the lungs.
Slow-moving, but eventually, sir TAO: Explains why he's back.
And going through his bucket list of revenge.
They're buying everything.
It's like you're the Count of Monte Cristo getting back at all the people who've mistreated you.
Oh, come on.
I've done a great job.
- Admit it.
- STROH: I know this is Hollywood, but if you could stop congratulating yourself for just a moment.
I'm trying to listen.
And the Gwendolyn he was searching for all over the Internet was his mother Gwendolyn Stroh.
- MASON: Where is she now? - PAIGE: Hard to tell.
There's no one by the name of Gwendolyn Stroh or Gwendolyn Bechtel in Los Angeles.
Maybe she changed her last name.
Yes, but if we're going to find her, we have to continue to investigate her son Phillip.
All they need now is a hint of where Gwendolyn is, and we're nearly done.
But if he's really here and we're ordering extra protection 48 hours.
That's all I ask, is 48 hours.
I need to take off for a few days myself.
Get ready for a quick exit.
- Don't worry.
I have this.
- I hope so.
Half the fee depends on your finding my mother before they do, and so far Don't worry.
I have one of the best police departments on Earth helping me.
All right.
You guys are the experts here.
Not me.
And for now, Lieutenant, you're right.
We'll figure out what to do after Stroh's in custody.
[ROUND CHAMBERS.]
Or dead at my feet.
Yeah.
Dead at your feet would be kind of perfect.
Let me just begin by saying how much I love you.
And how much I felt you are in love in return.
How that love encouraged and inspired me every day to be the best person I could be.
I had a great job.
I had a terrific husband, amazing children.
Blessed in this way, I'm not letting bitterness at the end destroy the wonder of all that came before.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
Today we honor Commander Sharon Raydor, a cop's cop, an exceptional mother, a loving wife, and a great good friend.
She was also a person of faith.
She believed in rules and law and God.
These beliefs gave her the strength to lead and compelled her to uphold the values by which we live.
Those of us gathered here today feel her passing as a personal tragedy for which we will mourn for the rest of our lives.
But to the community in which she lived and the civilization she struggled to defend, her death is nothing short of calamity.
In moments like this, we often hear, "It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.
" And so, in my heart [VOICE BREAKING.]
I light a candle in Sharon's honor.
But I curse the darkness, also this awful shadow falling across our hearts, a cloud darkening the principles for which she stood.
I ask that, with Sharon as our example, that we leave her today re-committed to the rule of law and dedicated to the cause of justice for which she sacrificed her life.
[FOOTSTEPS.]
PRIEST: Let us pray.
Lord, into your hands, we commend our sister Sharon.
We thank you for the wonderful things you bestowed upon her life.
We pray that you open the gates of paradise to your servant and elevate the hope of those who remain.
Until we all meet in Christ and are with you and our sister Sharon forever, we ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Detail! Return arms! Detail! Dismissed! It's the, uh, eulogy.
EMMA: Lieutenant.
That was very touching.
Thanks for coming, Emma.
- Um, hard day.
- It is.
And I'm sorry to bring this up, but I have something urgent we need to discuss.
- Here? - It'll only take a second.
You've probably heard that over the last few months, several people connected to Phillip Stroh - Have died, yes, yes.
- Yes.
One suicide, four accidents.
Or five murders all across the country.
But now I have reason to believe that Phillip Stroh is already in L.
A and a potential motive for why he came back.
And that motive would be? I'm trying to verify it through other agencies, but I feel confirmation is imminent.
Do you have protection? Yes.
But I'm not worried about me.
Sorry, Lieutenant.
I'm gonna head out.
Yeah.
Uh, Rios? Expect me in your office sometime late tomorrow morning.
I'll be there.
I'm so sorry for your loss.
We're all clear, ma'am.
We'll be out front if you need us.
Thank you.
Have a nice night.
[MUFFLED SCREAMING.]
[POLICE RADIO CHATTER.]
Correct me if I'm wrong.
You two guys were protecting D.
D.
A.
Rios.
Sir, I did a sweep of the house and the grounds myself.
There was no one here, and there were no alerts from our security alarms all night.
- So, what the hell happened? - Can't say.
We rang the bell in the morning, and when she didn't answer, we entered, turned off the alarm, and we found her in the pool.
And she was outside alone because? She liked to have a swim before bed.
Maybe she didn't want us back here.
I don't know.
"I don't know.
" You guys had one job.
- Nolan.
- NOLAN: Yeah.
Better start sending out your résumés, guys.
This way.
- Andrea.
- Where is she? At the morgue.
She was an officer of the court, and her body does not belong by the side of the pool.
- What happened? - As of now, it's an accidental drowning.
Bullshit.
This was Stroh.
Just give me a second, Andrea.
Give me a second.
- Sanchez.
- Sir, no forced entry, towel is folded up, clothing on the chair.
S.
I.
D.
is skimming the pool for hair samples.
Her cellphone and laptop were still inside the house password-protected, so I sent them over to Cyber - to see what they could do.
- All right.
Emma told me yesterday that she thought Phillip Stroh was back in Los Angeles.
Andrea, do you have any idea where that information could have come from? She always kept me in the loop.
[VOICE BREAKING.]
But I haven't been back to work since I-I know.
It's It's been hell for all of us.
Look, uh, why don't you check Emma's files, her phone logs? [SOBS, SNIFFLES.]
Uh, Amy? - Amy? - Oh.
Hey.
Hey, it's tough.
- It's tough.
I know.
- I know.
I'm sorry, guys.
- I'm sorry.
- We're all doing it.
It's okay, it's okay.
[SNIFFLES.]
Lieutenant, I heard this was an accidental drowning.
Yeah.
A 35-year-old avid swimmer drowns in her own pool.
- Lieutenant.
- Guys.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
We're, uh, still working it.
It's too early for a report.
Maybe I'll hang out for a bit.
Suit yourself.
Just remember that I am the incident commander not you.
Ah, great.
Everyone, this is Karl, Emma's neighbor.
His parents are out of town, but he was nice enough to get up and give us a tour.
Hey.
I'm sorry, guys.
So sad.
She was a really nice person.
Well, thank you.
Um, Mike.
Karl, show them what you showed me.
Right.
Um, well, this gate's been around for forever.
It looks stuck, right? But the bottom's just dug into the ground a little.
If you pull it up [GATE CREAKS.]
Why is the gate even here, Karl? I think the old owners of these houses were, you know, related and sort of going back and forth all the time.
I used this gate, too, like, in middle school.
If a Frisbee would come over, I'd just go through the gate - and, like - Okay, Karl, okay.
Did you hear any noise in your yard last night? Sorry.
No.
I just got back from Thailand day before yesterday, and I-I hit a wall at like 9:00.
Karl, was there ever a lock on this gate? Oh.
Uh yeah.
I wonder where it went.
I, um I might have a picture of it on my phone.
You want me to text it to you? Yes, please.
Number's right there.
Thanks.
I mean, I can climb over this fence easy.
All you got to do is, like, get your hands on No, no, Ka Karl.
We believe you.
- Okay.
- Okay? Can we look around your backyard? - Oh, sure.
Yeah, no problem.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Wait for us.
Wes, get a copy of that photo and text that photo to the rest of us and make sure it gets in the report.
NOLAN: Yep.
As soon as I get it.
And while you're at it, Nolan, you and Paige expand your canvass of the neighborhood to include Karl's street.
I'll go with them and look for home-security cameras.
I'll get S.
I.
D.
to print this gate.
Lieutenant, before you start throwing around - words like "murder" - Less than 24 hours ago, Emma told me that she thought Phillip Stroh was back in Los Angeles, and now she's dead.
You think that's a coincidence? This is an emotional time for your division.
Given your history with Stroh You want to hand over the murder of a Deputy D.
A.
to people it won't upset, good luck.
As for our history, all that means is, we hit the ground running.
And I intend to give chase unless you're replacing me.
Are you replacing me? You better be right about this, Lieutenant.
I am.
Now, if you'll excuse me, we have to bring our so-called history with Phillip Stroh to an end.
SHARON: Like joy, I'm finding that grief can't be absorbed all at once.
It It It's For me, it's coming in stages.
There's, um shock [CHUCKLES.]
And then denial and sorrow and sometimes anger because there's so much more I wanted to do with all of you - [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
- so much more of your lives that I wanted to see.
- Hello? - Oh, hey, Lieutenant.
What are you doing? Just sorting through stuff so Andy doesn't have to.
We've been to the storage unit, and apparently Mom never really threw anything away.
I'm finding art projects, Mother's Day cards my first ballet shoes.
I'm sorry.
[SOBS.]
Andy has life occupancy at the condo, but some of this stuff he doesn't want for example, the Christmas village, which right now I'd like to move into - and curl up like a ball.
- Hm.
Save room for the rest of us.
Hey.
Can you stay for lunch? Um, Ricky, just excuse me a second.
Gus and I have been at it all morning.
There's nothing else for us to do for them right now - except keep them fed.
- Hey, Lieutenant.
Gus.
Very nice of you to pitch in like this.
- Uh, where's Rusty? - He hasn't come out here yet, but I think I heard him in the shower a while ago.
And Flynn? [DOOR OPENS.]
[DOOR CLOSES.]
Really nice, uh, speech eulogy, whatever it was.
Well, I'm just thankful I was able to get through it.
[CHUCKLES.]
Look, there is no good time to ask this.
I need your help with a very difficult notification.
RUSTY: An accidental drowning? No.
This is a murder.
I thought Emma had bodyguards.
What happened? Well, they think someone gained access to her house through a neighbor's yard, but they can't prove it.
Yeah.
Look, how much work have you done on Stroh's other potential victims? Before Rusty gives you the rundown, let me make something clear.
- He is not leaving this building.
- Andy.
Look, I'm sorry, kid.
There's no messing around.
Your mother made me promise that I would take care of you - and protect - I-I start law school in three weeks.
Emma is dead, and we know that Stroh is back.
And I can't Andy, this is not what I meant by "help.
" Yeah? Well, the last time I just stood by and let someone do what they wanted, how did that work out, huh? How did that work out?! Andy in the end, her heart didn't seize.
It It didn't skip a beat.
It just stopped.
And the doctor said that that had nothing to do with us.
Now, Stroh will not stop with Emma.
If you promised Sharon that you would protect this boy, I need him to tell us everything he knows.
First was Gordon Ducrest, Stroh's sixth-grade science teacher.
He was found electrocuted on the side of his house about a year ago.
He was caring for his wife, who has Alzheimer's, and his kids never heard of Stroh.
Next was Stroh's high-school girlfriend Lynn.
Yes.
She was a former lifeguard from Ohio who also drowned in her own pool.
Right.
And her parents say that Lynn and Stroh broke up when they were 16 and they don't remember much about him, though they say he was odd.
- No shit.
- Yeah.
Well, about a month later, Clyde Fowler of Ann Arbor, who taught Stroh in law school, supposedly shot himself.
Now, Clyde's sister says that he was in perfect health and showed no indication of depression and left no note.
She had never heard of Stroh, either.
She also told me that Clyde used to travel two or three time a year to Europe, but that he quit about a year ago, saying that he couldn't afford it anymore.
The traveling stuck out to you.
Why? Well, because Elizabeth Dunn, the Colorado woman who died in a car accident Her ex-husband, Aaron, said the same thing that she used to take their kids over the winter break to all these different places and that she had stopped about a year ago, claiming she was low on funds.
Which brings us to Stroh's stepmother, Carolyn Sayles, who fell off a hiking trail in Arizona.
Yeah, well, one of his stepmothers.
Stroh's father, Tyler, had three wives Stroh's mother, who I can't find; Carolyn Sayles; and then another woman named Jinny.
But Jinny says that she never met Stroh and that Tyler, who died in 1998, never had mentioned him.
Well, that's that's all I have.
PROVENZA: Hobbs? HOBBS: There was nothing in Emma's office suggesting any new information on Stroh, though she noted a conversation with Interpol on her call sheet.
SYKES: Cyber found an encrypted folder on her desktop.
They're working on opening it.
NOLAN: Encrypted folder.
Sounds promising.
Why would Stroh come back now? Revenge? SANCHEZ: What, against your sixth-grade science teacher? That's a big risk to take for something that happened to you when you were 11.
For a normal person maybe, but a psychopath? Who knows what provokes a nutjob like that? RUSTY: Well, my mom said that Stroh coming back might have something to do with the reason he moved to L.
A.
in the first place.
Also, we Aah! [SIGHS.]
[BRITISH ACCENT.]
You scared the shit out of me.
Yeah, I get that a lot.
What have I missed? Um, well, they were just talking about you, actually.
I've, uh, recorded everything if you want to play it back or - Never mind that.
It's just - Dylan you promised me video of their offices, not of your underage hooker.
She's not my hooker.
She's my girlfriend.
Look, I know it's not easy for you, but just chill, seriously, and and be impressed with what I've accomplished.
What you're hearing is a live feed coming from six separate phones.
Apparently Mr.
Provenza wasn't forwarded the photo sent from [AMERICAN ACCENT.]
neighbor bro Karl [LAUGHS.]
who was helping them investigate last night's accident.
My American accent was, like, awesome, dude! [LAUGHS.]
[NORMAL VOICE.]
It's hilarious.
Anyway, as the police were checking out the gate to Emma's backyard, I had a Sniffy in my pocket, creating a rogue access point for their phones.
It gave me their contacts, calendars, browser history, albums.
And the oh-so-innocuous picture they were anxious for me to text them infected all their device with malware, and now I have full autonomous control of their cells.
[CHUCKLES.]
Oh, and, uh, a bonus.
Detective Wes Nolan.
New to me.
Okay.
"Okay"? That's your response? "Okay"? How about, um, "Dylan, what you've done during your five months in L.
A.
is truly amazing.
Setting up this house? Renting the home behind Rios? Putting yourself at risk? Walking around in the very midst of a billion detectives That's courage, Dylan.
That's genius.
" I'm happy you're pleased with yourself, but I still can't see them.
You're about to.
Of course, I could turn on their cellphone cameras, but, uh, that would only give us a view of the ceiling or their pockets.
But Mr.
Buzz has a recognized device paired to his cell, and if it's what I think it is [INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
Score! [LAUGHS.]
They're practically staring at us.
Look.
PROVENZA: no longer a practicing Boy Scout, but always prepared.
Julio, let's collect all the phone data from Emma's lines her home, her work, anything that's Ah, Chief.
I, uh, assume that you're here for an update.
That, and when you get a moment, some some housekeeping issues to discuss.
What? Is this about her office? Are you moving someone in there already? Lieutenant, it hasn't even been a Kid looks miserable about what happened to his mother.
Did you have anything to do with killing her? No.
Doesn't mean I can't enjoy her death a little.
PROVENZA: One second.
Listen.
No one is coming in here to take Sharon's place, all right? Go ahead.
Pack her stuff.
Buzz will help you.
- Buzz.
- Trouble in police paradise.
RUSTY: [SIGHS.]
- Can you get me into that office? - DYLAN: Sorry.
Mr.
Buzz left his cellphone on his desk.
Oh, don't complain.
I'm giving you more than your money's worth here.
Really? If the Cyprus police had kept you until you were tried for what you did to that girl - [FIST POUNDS.]
- She wasn't a girl.
She was 15, fully functional.
She came on to me, not the other way 'round.
I pass for 15, too.
I get carded everywhere I go.
Sounds exhausting.
I know how much it hurts to lose a parent when you're young.
Yeah, I just wish that, um You know, I spent all morning listening to her old voicemails.
I-I wish You could talk to her one last time.
I know.
Before she died, your mother made two video messages in case Well, I copied the one for your whole family onto these yellow flash drives.
The blue one is just for you.
In her note, she said if anything went wrong, to hand these out a week after the funeral, but she didn't know what was about to happen.
And her message to you I think you need to watch right away.
MASON: I hear what you're saying.
This other drowning looks similar to what happened to Rios, but for me to put the department on alert, I need to see proof that Stroh is back.
Well, would another dead body help you with that? Because they're coming.
[SIGHS.]
Here's a compromise.
I'll allow you to investigate Emma's death as a homicide for two more days, but if this turns out to be Stroh, whatever we do, make sure when we get to trial, he can never say that we violated his rights.
Oh, I promise you, Stroh will never speak in a courtroom again.
STROH: Finally, Lieutenant something upon which we can fully agree.
Andy, maybe we won't make our honeymoon, but having our marriage recognized by the Church means we may be together in an even more beautiful place than Ireland.
Ricky, my firstborn and the big [CHUCKLING.]
experiment on which I learned sticking to the values that I tried to convey to you helped me to hold on to them, too.
Oh, Emily, you lived out my childhood dream.
Seeing you dance reminded me of the best moments of my childhood, when I was free, watching myself spin around in the mirror without a care in the world.
Thank you.
Oh, Rusty, I hope you never have to see this and we have many more years together.
But in case I'm not there, beyond how much I love you, I want you to consider how to protect yourself from Phillip Stroh.
Your weapon may be important as your last line of defense, but your true security will come from two things that I know are difficult to accept.
First, Rusty, try not to think of Stroh as a monster.
That is how I have always worked not by distancing myself from criminals, but trying to relate to them.
Imagining Stroh as alien will make him harder to see.
Next, you cannot solve this problem alone.
No matter how much you have learned, you are not a detective.
Share your ideas with with Andy and with the lieutenant.
Let the people who love you and care about you help you.
Trusting people we love makes us vulnerable, I know.
But your ability to allow yourself to be vulnerable here will be your greatest advantage over Stroh.
RICKY: You look a little better this morning.
[BREATHES DEEPLY.]
You sleep okay? Yeah.
Um, not really.
Me neither.
Of course, I don't have a protection detail.
So, Mom never said.
How much danger are you in, really? I-I don't know.
Depends on my connection to these other victims.
And I've talked to everyone who I thought could help, and I-I've looked all over the Internet for any mention of these people, but I still just can't see what we have in common.
Uh-huh.
And when you looked all over the Internet for these people, - you used a search engine? - Yeah.
Well, then the one thing that connects those names is the fact that you looked them up.
You know who else probably looked them up? - [KEYS CLACKING.]
- DYLAN: Can't talk long.
I, um I just wanted to say good morning.
So, uh, good morning, Ella.
[CHUCKLES.]
ELLA: Uh-huh.
So sweet of you to call, but I got to get going.
It's a busy day.
Do you, um Do you think I can stop by tonight? I have an opening at 10:00.
Want me to put you down? I can't afford to save it and you not show.
I'll I'll I'll pay for it whether I get there or not.
Just Just hold it for me, okay? - Okay.
- [DOOR OPENS.]
- Hey, um, I'm sorry, baby.
- [DOOR CLOSES.]
I've I've got to go, okay? - [COMPUTER BEEPS.]
- Hey.
Uh, they're talking to somebody I don't know.
STROH: That's Sharon Raydor's real son.
Probably just more of the same whining, but turn it up.
In my job at Capra, we're sometimes asked to locate computers making specific Internet searches.
- Capra/Denny? Shit.
- Who are they? A major U.
S.
defense contractor.
Cyber experts.
Yeah, I can do that.
They won't find me.
Don't worry.
But with Capra involved, lucky for us we're not on the L.
A.
P.
D.
intranet.
I put through an initial request to my boss' boss this morning, asking for a list of I.
P.
addresses containing everyone who's searched the Web for those five people up there on your board, and we've already matched some users.
I see devices for Sharon Raydor, D.
D.
A.
Hobbs, D.
D.
A.
Rios, Buzz Watson, me.
Patrice Provenza? She has a computer.
I don't.
SANCHEZ: Fritz Howard, Brenda Leigh Johnson, Rusty's home computer.
Finally, one that is identified only by an I.
P.
address based out of Nepal.
Nepal? Someone probably using a proxy server.
Routed it out of Nepal to hide his actual location.
Unprotected proxy server.
My God, you do need my help.
- No.
- SYKES: When were these searches from? This may accelerate things in a good way.
Can you prove that it's Stroh? Probably not, but if we have his I.
P.
address Is it possible to see everything else he searched for, too? Maybe, but Capra/Denny will not respond to a warrant under circumstances like this, so I don't know how you're gonna explain it in court.
Well, we won't ever be in court.
We're bringing Stroh down by any means.
I'm serious.
They're always so certain of themselves, aren't they? But if they can access my Internet searches - It may take a day or two.
- that's great.
This is a good thing, Dylan.
They're finally doing what we want.
Speaking of computers, Cyber says they cracked open that folder on Emma's laptop.
It's some sort of document written in Czech.
Go get it translated, please.
Well, I guess my encrypted folder is about to do its job.
[FRENCH ACCENT.]
You may say "merci" to Interpol officer, M.
Saisset.
He's perfect.
Right.
Okay.
Keep an eye on them.
If I'm not back by midnight, remember to input the combination to your little blackmail clock.
[NORMAL VOICE.]
You mean enter the password to reset my dead-man switch.
It's irritating, that switch, considering how much I spent saving you from the police in Larnaca.
I completely appreciate that.
And And I love the fee we agreed on, but, uh, don't pretend you wanted me as a friend, 'cause we both know you're incapable of that.
And the dead-man switch has nothing to do with blackmail.
It's just to make sure that, should anything happen to me, the FBI will receive a complete dossier on everything you've done and intend to do.
Releasing access to all that information destroys my life, as well as yours, so this isn't blackmail.
This is insurance to make sure that when all this ends, we're both living happily ever after and as far away from each other as possible.
But we're not finished yet, so I'll type the code in early.
You see? I'm safe today.
Dead-man switch.
Well, the name seems fitting.
Listen, this is very important.
Until I get back, no multitasking.
You need to leave your girlfriend alone, listen to these people very carefully.
If you hear the name Bechtel Jim Bechtel, in particular call me immediately.
You got it? Jim Bechtel.
Got it.
Jim Bechtel.
Who the hell is that? [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Sorry to bother you, sir.
- Is this your house? - Yes.
Detective Wes Nolan, L.
A.
P.
D.
Jim Bechtel.
L.
A.
P.
D.
? What's going on? Safety check.
There's been a report of a dangerous man in the area.
Is there anyone else in your house we should be concerned about children, staff? - You alone, sir? - Yes, yes.
No No one's here on Saturdays or Sundays including me, usually.
What What dangerous man? Step back inside the house, please.
Oh, my God.
[BREATHING SHAKILY.]
Phillip? Phillip! - What do you want? - What I've always wanted.
You'll be happy to know my search is almost over.
You're You're a serial killer.
- The police are looking for you.
- They are? Well, I better make this quick, then.
[GASPS.]
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
I told you over and over again I have no idea where Gwendolyn is.
I believe you, but I still need your help.
And so do the police.
You're not working with the police.
I am a little, believe it or not.
I'm glad I found you here instead of your place at the shore.
A little cold out there this time of year.
Please.
This isn't necessary.
I can't help you.
Look, look, look, just leave, Phillip.
I'll never tell anyone you were here.
And I swear There's nothing I can do to help.
[BREATHING RAPIDLY.]
Don't underestimate yourself, Jim.
Is that your computer? Yes.
You logged in? Yes.
Use it if you want.
I will.
And don't move.
Seriously? You keep all your passwords on a Post-it note taped to your computer? That's incredibly dangerous, Jim.
Take the computer.
Take it.
That's very generous.
So unlike the way you treated me when I was a kid.
I'll leave the computer here with you.
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
Aah! Aah! Aah! I pray that this family that we brought to life brings each one of you joy and comfort.
I think I've already gone on longer than I intended, so let me just say that the the most important thing that I want you to remember always is that [VOICE BREAKING.]
I loved you with my whole heart.
And you filled my life filled my life with joy - and grace.
- [REMOTE CLICKS.]
Watching it again, huh? Yeah.
Well, I miss her.
And Emily and Ricky went out with their dad.
Well, pretty soon it's gonna be just you and me, I guess.
No.
No, not just you and me.
Look, as long as we hold on to each other, which is what she wanted, we hold on to her, too.
What's this? [CHUCKLES.]
The wedding photos came today.
[CHUCKLING.]
Oh, my God.
Well, at first, I was thinking, "She didn't even get a chance to see our wedding pictures," but then I thought, "At least she had the ceremony, and she had it where she wanted it.
" That That is a perfect day.
Yeah.
Look at your mother.
Isn't she beautiful? Ah, look.
Here's one of just the two of you there.
Hey, do me a favor, kid.
Turn the light on so I can see it a little better.
[SWITCH CLICKS.]
BUZZ: Looks like we're making progress of a sort, but I still don't know how we're gonna introduce all these searches Ricky got Buzz, just hang on for a second.
Um, everyone, there will be no trial.
But, sir, if Stroh has an accomplice, how we describe this evidence could jeopardize Well, considering how Stroh's accomplices end up, I seriously doubt that it will matter.
So, these blue dots we're looking at They represent the people that Stroh was searching for.
TAO: Brenda Leigh Johnson, Fritz Howard, Rusty Beck, and Louie Provenza.
Ah.
Well, I was feeling ignored.
And then there are names that are totally new to us, like Albert Fularz, retired lawyer in Nevada.
BUZZ: And others we've identified are Catherine Davidson in Atlanta, William Putnam in Austin both living.
Now, here in L.
A.
, we have a Jim J.
Bechtel and a Ms.
Bechtel.
Now, I have a good address on Jim Bechtel.
He's a retired real-estate developer on the Westside, unmarried.
Ms.
Bechtel doesn't show.
- Maybe an ex? - Hmm.
And several different searches for a Gwendolyn.
Gwendolyn Bechtel m-may be Ms.
Bechtel.
He could be trying to find out where she lives 'cause there's also a "Gwendolyn Bakersfield" and a "Gwendolyn Fresno.
" Fresno? [CHUCKLES.]
Stroh must be more desperate than we thought.
Of all the new people, the only match we get in the city of L.
A.
is Jim Bechtel.
All right, let's do a safety check on Mr.
Bechtel's residence.
Amy, why don't you take Cami and pay a call to Mr.
Bechtel's house? Nolan, Nolan, could I Could I see you a second? Sir.
I've got a special assignment for you.
It could be a little risky.
Do you understand what I mean when I say we're going to take Stroh down by any means? - [KNOCKING.]
- Jim Bechtel.
L.
A.
P.
D.
Mr.
Bechtel? [DOGS BARKING IN DISTANCE.]
Car's in the driveway.
Yeah.
Let's Let's look in the backyard.
I'm concerned for his safety.
[EXHALES SHARPLY.]
[LOCK DISENGAGES.]
[SIGHS.]
Okay.
At Missing Persons, we'd have to call this in, ask for permission.
Well, if we're on a wild-goose chase and Stroh isn't at the end of it, you may be back in Missing Persons.
And if your good friend Mason puts someone else in charge of Major Crimes, the lieutenant will retire, and who knows what a new commander would want to do? I mean, it's Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Call it in! Damn it! PAIGE: Four King 64 requesting a backup and paramedics to my location.
Also, notify Major Crimes to respond.
I count five stab wounds, mostly in the abdomen, tightly grouped and angled upward.
Like he was facing the killer.
How long ago? Partial lividity, so dead 10, 15 hours.
Lots of blood around the body.
And a trail of drops heading for the front door.
Victim was probably stabbed here, fell.
I'm not seeing defensive wounds.
SYKES: And no signs of forced entry, though the patio doors were wide open when we got here.
Nothing appears to be stolen.
Phone, wallet, watch all here.
Computer's open with Post-it that says "password.
" - If this is Stroh - It's definitely Stroh.
[SCOFFS.]
Then why change his M.
O.
? I mean, this isn't an accident.
It's a murder.
We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the searches we got from Capra.
But who is Jim Bechtel to Phillip Stroh? Buzz, grab his laptop.
We're gonna have to give it a thorough search.
SANCHEZ: What are you thinking, Tao? That we are going to be finding a lot more bodies before this is all said and done.
- That your work? - They needed a kick in the ass.
This should take us to the next step.
Oh.
Be sure to add that to your little dossier.
Lieutenant, you're gonna want to have a powwow with Chief Mason.
The danger level has gone way up.
Hurry, Lieutenant.
I need this to be over with.
Sorry.
They haven't been able to get around to me yet, so I won't be able to go with you guys to the airport.
It's all right.
And that you wanted to go to the airport with us means you really are family.
I'll tell Andy to come back and get you.
God, I wish you didn't have to leave.
[VOICE BREAKING.]
Me too.
God.
Mom really loved this place, didn't she? I can feel it by how much I want to stay.
Well, you can always visit.
Or Or maybe, uh, you'll tour through L.
A Tour? Rusty, I'm your sister.
And I've come up here specifically to tell you, "Please, please, please take care of yourself.
" Losing Mom is [VOICE BREAKING.]
It's gonna take me maybe the rest of my life to deal with that.
I just I can't lose you, too.
PROVENZA: You were looking for something to make you believe that Phillip Stroh murdered Emma Rios.
Well, our investigation of Emma's death led us directly to the murder of Jim Bechtel.
But what's the connection between a retired real-estate developer in his 70s and the drowning of a prosecutor? Am I missing something? Yes.
You're missing Gwendolyn.
- I did it! Ah! - MASON: Gwendolyn? - I told you sending e-mails - STROH: Dylan.
I'm trying to listen.
On Bechtel's computer, he recently e-mailed with an old neighbor from Chagrin Falls, Ohio, who asked for the whereabouts of his ex-wife Gwendolyn.
We found a divorce filing from the 1980s between a Jim Bechtel and a one Gwendolyn Bechtel, who claimed as her dependent, sir, a 17-year-old son Phillip Stroh.
That means Jim Bechtel was Stroh's stepfather.
But help me with this because I don't understand.
Stroh made a good escape.
Why would he come back? SYKES: Because he's running out of time.
That encrypted file from Emma's computer We finally got it translated from Czech.
They're medical records from a hospital in Prague, dated 11 months ago.
And you'll notice, Chief, that the patient's name has been redacted, but we know he's male, 6'2", 190 pounds.
And, according to his doctor, dying of cancer.
Cancer? Stage 4, terminal, in the lungs.
Slow-moving, but eventually, sir TAO: Explains why he's back.
And going through his bucket list of revenge.
They're buying everything.
It's like you're the Count of Monte Cristo getting back at all the people who've mistreated you.
Oh, come on.
I've done a great job.
- Admit it.
- STROH: I know this is Hollywood, but if you could stop congratulating yourself for just a moment.
I'm trying to listen.
And the Gwendolyn he was searching for all over the Internet was his mother Gwendolyn Stroh.
- MASON: Where is she now? - PAIGE: Hard to tell.
There's no one by the name of Gwendolyn Stroh or Gwendolyn Bechtel in Los Angeles.
Maybe she changed her last name.
Yes, but if we're going to find her, we have to continue to investigate her son Phillip.
All they need now is a hint of where Gwendolyn is, and we're nearly done.
But if he's really here and we're ordering extra protection 48 hours.
That's all I ask, is 48 hours.
I need to take off for a few days myself.
Get ready for a quick exit.
- Don't worry.
I have this.
- I hope so.
Half the fee depends on your finding my mother before they do, and so far Don't worry.
I have one of the best police departments on Earth helping me.
All right.
You guys are the experts here.
Not me.
And for now, Lieutenant, you're right.
We'll figure out what to do after Stroh's in custody.
[ROUND CHAMBERS.]
Or dead at my feet.
Yeah.
Dead at your feet would be kind of perfect.