Murder, She Wrote s06e14 Episode Script

I want a list of all of Mr.
Royce's big losers.
Big losers? Lieutenant Moynihan's personal experience in the stock market has made him a skeptic.
Tonight on Murder, She Wrote.
I want your company.
They'll be ice-skating in hell before I'd ever sell to you.
I feel awful, but it's business.
Oh, it's always business! I'm still troubled by some loose ends.
What loose ends? Well, I'm dumping Wilma to make room for you on my desk.
He's not gonna marry me.
But of course he is.
Lipstick on the glass, lady's apparel.
Cherchez la femme time.
Philip Royce's office.
No, he's in a meeting, Mr.
Nesbitt.
Can you hold on a moment? Right.
He left instructions with me, Mr.
Nesbitt.
He thinks you should sell the Sheldonite options and buy 1,000 of the Atwater Preferred.
The dividend is due tomorrow, and the word is it's up.
Yes, I'll see that he executes the buy order immediately.
Bye.
Hey, Norma.
Where's our Philip this morning? At the dentist.
Again? What is it, root canal? Was there something you wanted, Mr.
Hooper? Yeah.
I thought maybe we could grab some lunch.
Gee, thanks, Mr.
Hooper, but I have a lunch date.
With my fiancé.
You remember.
I told you about him last month when you invited me over for dinner.
And last Tuesday and yesterday.
Norma, sweetheart, I tried to tell you.
You're wasting your talents on that guy.
He is strictly slow-lane material.
Hello, this is Phil Royce.
Sorry, I'm not here to answer the phone right now, but if you leave your number, I'll get back to you as soon as I can.
Mr.
Royce, this is Norma.
It's about 11:15 things I have to go over with you I've missed my hair appointment.
when you get a chance And don't forget you have a lunch appointment with Mrs.
Fletcher this afternoon.
Philip.
Please give me a call.
Philip, darling.
Wake up.
Hi, Candice.
I thought you went home.
Oh, we have to talk about that.
I mean, you have more room here, but my place has the view of the park and the 24-hour security.
Or do you think we should find someplace different? What are you talking about? Well, after we're married.
I mean, we don't need two apartments.
Candice.
Hmm? Look, you're a lot of fun, but I thought we had an understanding.
An understanding? Uh-huh.
You're damn right we had an understanding! All my friends, my father.
He's already drawing up an invitation list! Look, sweetheart, I've already blown two marriages.
Your score is 0 for 3.
Now, I'm just not any good at it, and I don't think that you are, either.
What's wrong with the way things are now? Wrong? I'll tell you what's wrong! I'm gonna be 36 next month! Candice, I think we ought to cool it.
Cool it? You wanna dump me? No! You are not gonna do this to me.
Hello.
Mrs.
Fletcher is here to see Mr.
Royce.
Oh, golly.
Uh, tell her to wait a minute and then send her back, Carol.
Thanks.
Yes.
Is Mr.
Royce there at the Athletic Club? This is his secretary.
Would you page him for me? Yeah, well, try the squash courts.
Tell him to meet his lunch at the Down Town Club.
Give him that message if you can find him.
Thank you.
You must be Norma.
Oh, Mrs.
Fletcher.
So nice to meet you at last.
Well, we've talked so often on the telephone, I feel as if you and I are old friends.
Oh, that's very sweet.
Um, am I early? No! No, he's been tied up in a meeting.
He'll meet you at the club.
I'm supposed to take you over there.
Oh, fine.
Mr.
Royce has worked up a report on your portfolio, Mrs.
Fletcher, and some recommendations.
We can take it along.
Good.
Because I wanna talk to him about some stock a friend of mine in Cabot Cove recommended, Spruce Electronics? Spruce Electronics is okay.
A little overextended PE-wise.
And I think they've taken on too much debt.
But their competition's interesting.
Take Low Sonic, for instance.
They have got the inside track on HDTV.
HDTV? Mmm.
High Definition Television.
Oh.
Wave of the future.
In five years, everybody'll own one.
Low Sonic is in for a big move.
As a matter of fact, I just bought some I mean, Mr.
Royce just bought some for your portfolio this morning.
Well, that's wonderful.
I mean, if you I mean, if Mr.
Royce feels that it's a good buy.
He spends a lot of time on research.
And in meetings.
So often when I call he's in meetings.
He certainly keeps a very busy schedule.
It's a wonder he has time to play golf.
Shall we go? All right.
Those clubs are brand new.
He brought them in yesterday to show everyone.
Jessica! Jessica! Jerome.
My goodness.
You know, you get more distinguished-looking as the years pass by.
You really ought to come and see us more often, my dear.
Well, the way you handle my investments, it hardly seems necessary.
So Philip's been taking good care of you, has he? Well, I certainly have no complaints.
Especially since Norma's been helping out.
Well, I'm happy to hear that.
You know, since Philip's father died, not only my partner but my dearest friend, Philip has had some big shoes to fill.
Candice.
There you are.
Jessica, have you met my daughter? How nice to meet you, Candice.
Hello.
We have to talk, Daddy.
I was just going out, dear.
Now, Daddy! Is something wrong, darling? Everything is wrong! Really, darling, you were quite rude to Mrs.
Fletcher.
What are you so upset about? Philip! We had a very interesting conversation in bed this morning.
You stayed over? Well, that sounds promising.
He's not gonna marry me.
Not marry you? But of course he is.
Did you pick a fight with him? No.
I did everything you told me.
I used every trick in the book.
The man is a complete toad.
He also happens to own half my company, darling.
Now you go back to him and make up.
Never.
I'd rather see him dead.
Sorry.
Oops! Sorry.
Say! You've gotta be J.
B.
Fletcher.
This is Sid Hooper from our office.
Oh, how do you do, Mr.
Hooper? Better than most, J.
B.
Oh, while everybody else is out putting on the old feed bag, I'm up there making money.
Oh, yes.
Stealing a march, that sort of thing? You got it.
Keep me in mind if you decide to put a little more zip in your appreciation.
I mean, Sid Hooper would never put you into that dog, Low Sonic.
That's That's yesterday's newspaper, J.
B.
Or maybe Philip got a hot tip on the golf course.
Have a nice lunch.
And don't order the shark.
They're still alive over there.
Hey, Norma, where've you been? You're ten minutes late! Oh, sweetheart, I'm sorry.
I just totally forgot.
Are you kidding? It took me a half an hour to get downtown! Honey, it's been one of those mornings.
I feel awful, but I can't have lunch with you.
It's business.
Oh, it's always business! It's always business! Mrs.
Fletcher, this is Rudy.
Rudy Bianco, my fiancé.
How do you do, Rudy? Hi.
You've got a very special girl here.
And I think that there's a simple solution to this problem.
Why don't you two go and have lunch together and I'll get a taxi and meet Philip? Oh, Mrs.
Fletcher, that's very nice, but you know, I really think I'd better go along.
We'll have dinner tonight, honey.
I'll make fettuccini.
With marinara.
Okay, okay, okay.
But I'm telling you, this guy's taking advantage of you.
And you tell him I said so.
Nice to meet you.
Gee, Mrs.
Fletcher, I just don't know what happened.
Maybe I forgot to put your lunch on Mr.
Royce's schedule when I typed it up for him last night.
Well, never mind.
It's been a very interesting lunch.
I've certainly learned more about investing than I ever expected to hear from Mr.
Royce.
Oh, there's Gordon Tully.
You know, the one who made the run on Pan Global Airlines last month.
Oh, yeah, the corporate raider.
Mmm.
Yes, I read a profile on him.
Well, hello, Ashcroft.
Mr.
Tully.
Have you been out of town, or hasn't your secretary been giving your phone messages? I've been busy.
Well, let me save you Put a price on it and have your people get in touch with my people.
They'll be ice-skating in hell before I'd ever sell to you, Tully.
You know what your problem is, Ashcroft? You put personal considerations ahead of business.
It's a big mistake.
There are some things money can't buy and some personal considerations beyond monetary valuation.
I doubt you'll stay out of jail long enough to learn what I mean.
Jessica! Sorry I'm late.
Meeting ran long.
You look terrific! Well, thanks.
You know, Philip, you look more like your father every year.
Yeah, that's what everyone says.
So has Norma been taking good care of you? Norma is an absolute jewel, but I'm sure you already knew that.
Right.
Oh, my, look what time it is.
I hope you already ordered.
Well, actually, we've already eaten.
Good.
Isn't the food here terrific? Wonderful.
Tell you what, Jessica.
Why don't I take you to dinner tonight? Oh, I'm sorry, Philip, but I already have dinner plans.
Then let's do breakfast.
I can't very well let you slip away again to New Hampshire without going over your portfolio, can I? Well, um I'd sit down with you this afternoon, but I have an appointment with a couple of the guys over at the Clients, over at the Athletic Club.
Norma, call up Buddy Black and confirm our golf date for tomorrow.
Oh, anyway, breakfast? There's a terrific little place right around the corner from me.
They have croissants flown in fresh every morning on the Concord.
What do you say? Well, I really more or less promised my nephew.
Well, I wanna fill you in on a terrific new stock that I found out about.
Get you in on the ground floor.
It's called Spruce Electronics.
Well, on the other hand, perhaps we do need to have a serious talk.
Let's do breakfast.
I thought we had an understanding, Buddy.
And frankly, I'm disappointed in the results.
Hey, I hit him for 11 grand just last week, Mr.
Tully.
The negotiations have gotten to the delicate stage.
I want you to keep the pressure on him.
It's getting awkward.
I don't know how much more I can get away with.
Just do it, Buddy.
Squeeze harder.
Excuse me, doesn't Mr.
Philip Royce live here? Who are you, lady? My name is Jessica Fletcher.
I had an appointment to have breakfast with Mr.
Royce this morning.
Mr.
Royce won't be having breakfast, this morning or any morning.
Somebody cracked his skull with a golf club.
So, how much did you lose? I beg your pardon? You said the deceased was your stockbroker.
Well, actually, his firm has done very nicely for me.
Oh, yeah? Well, consider yourself lucky, Mrs.
Fletcher.
I let one of those stockbroker guys talk me into a little flyer a couple of years ago.
I put most of my savings into this turkey stock and before I could dump it, I lost 500 bucks! It's all a scam.
These sharp operators are in business to fleece the working stiffs.
Hey, Eddie, there's a glass in the kitchen with traces of lipstick.
Make sure it gets bagged and checked.
Excuse me, Lieutenant, but do you have any idea how this happened? Well, that's what we're trying to find out, ma'am.
Looks like it happened some time late last night.
The cleaning lady found him this morning.
Somebody nailed him with a golf putter.
Oh, that's ironic.
You know, he did mention having a golf date tomorrow.
He did, huh? You got any names? The only name I heard mentioned was a Buddy Black.
But his secretary would know.
Check this, Lieutenant.
I found it behind the sofa.
Lipstick on the glass Ooh, lady's apparel behind the sofa.
Looks like cherchez la femme time.
This wouldn't be your hat, would it, lady? Oh, no.
No.
But you recognize it.
Right? Well, I mean, there's lots of hats like that in New York City.
Whose is it? Dead? Why would anyone wanna kill Mr.
Royce? Well, that's what I'm gonna find out.
Now, you wanna tell me about this hat? Mr.
Royce called me at home after work last night.
He needed his briefcase, so I brought it to him.
I must have left without my hat.
Norma was a very conscientious secretary, Lieutenant Moynihan.
I can vouch for that.
We found the hat behind the sofa, Miss Pulaski.
Just how conscientious were you? Lieutenant, I am an engaged woman.
Lieutenant, perhaps you noticed, there's a telephone number scrawled on his notepad.
Yes.
Yes.
Is this his handwriting or yours? His.
But I don't recognize the number.
It wasn't there when I left last night.
Maybe it was one of his golf pals.
Maybe this Buddy Black? Quick way to find out.
I just heard about Philip.
My God.
Yes, he in? Well, you tell Mr.
Gordon Tully that Lieutenant Moynihan wants to talk to him.
Have him call me at Manhattan South.
Gordon Tully? Whew! Old Phil was traveling in pretty fast company.
This guy Tully, he a golf player? Well, from what I've read, Mr.
Tully is into bigger games.
I didn't even know they were acquainted.
Norma, I'm really sorry about Philip.
But I want you to know I'm dumping Wilma to make room for you on my desk.
Gee, Sid, you're all heart.
Oh, yeah.
And Ashcroft wants me to take over Philip's accounts, so I'll need his computer access code and anything current.
Okay, if that's what Mr.
Ashcroft wants.
Nice to be working with you, J.
B.
Give me a couple of days and I'll shake out the dogs and cats.
Here's the code, and these orders are from this morning.
Excuse me for interrupting the big business here, but I have a murder investigation going on.
Now, when you left the victim's place last night, did you see anything? Anybody hanging around? No.
There was nobody there when I left.
I mean, I didn't notice anyone.
Well, you keep yourself available, Miss Pulaski.
I may need to talk to you again.
A terrible shock, Jessica.
Yes, I know how close you and Philip were.
At least poor Philip's father didn't live to see this.
His only son stuck down by some vicious burglar.
Oh, we don't have any evidence of a break-in, Mr.
Ashcroft.
My guess is it was somebody he knew.
When did you see him last, sir? I guess it was at the club at lunch.
Yesterday? He didn't come back to the office after lunch? No.
Apparently, he had some meetings to attend.
Could he have come back later after you left, Jerome? No, I stayed here in my office working until about midnight.
I would have seen him if he'd come back.
I want a list of all of Mr.
Royce's big losers in the last few months.
Big losers? Yeah, on the theory that it was some irate investor he cleaned out who nailed him.
I'm afraid Lieutenant Moynihan's personal experience in the stock market has made him a skeptic.
Well, we are one of the oldest, most reputable firms on the street.
And it's a matter of company policy to perform an in-house audit whenever a broker leaves the firm.
Sorry to interrupt, Mr.
A.
What is it, Hooper? These buy orders Norma gave me a few minutes ago.
Something's wrong here.
Time dated this morning.
Ten, twelve hours after Mr.
Royce died.
I wanna talk to that secretary again.
So what were you doing? Trying to cover up something funny going on with the accounts? No! Mr.
Royce told me to sign his name.
I mean, he wasn't always here, and those orders had to be processed quickly.
That makes sense, Lieutenant.
Mr.
Royce apparently had a very heavy schedule outside the office.
The impression that I have is that Norma was really running things and very successfully, too.
I mean, she's given me more investment service than Mr.
Royce ever did.
At Ashcroft and Royce, secretaries answer phones, take messages and make coffee.
They do not give financial advice, transact business or forge their boss' signatures! Now on the other hand, I may have gotten the wrong impression.
Now, I am sorry, Miss Pulaski, but you have betrayed the trust that we placed in you.
I would appreciate it if you would clean out your desk immediately.
Excuse me.
Rudy's right.
It's a long way from Flatbush to Wall Street.
Norma, don't sell yourself short.
Maybe you're right, Mrs.
Fletcher.
I mean, it's only a job, right? I guess I'm just upset about Mr.
Royce.
About last night, I had the impression that you didn't tell Lieutenant Moynihan everything.
There was nothing to tell.
Are you sure? It might be very important.
Nothing that Lieutenant Moynihan would be interested in happened last night, Mrs.
Fletcher.
Not so fast, Miss Pulaski! What's wrong, Jerome? Wrong? I'll tell you what's wrong.
The auditor just called.
There's almost two million dollars missing from Philip's accounts.
Miss Pulaski, you and I are going downtown for a little chat about the murder of Philip Royce.
Mr.
Tully never sees anyone without an appointment.
Yes, of course.
I wonder, could you get a message to him? It's rather confidential.
The name again was Jessica Fletcher.
I have interesting information about Mr.
Tully's connection to the late Philip Royce.
And I need to discuss it with him before going to the police.
I'll wait.
London, Hong Kong, Geneva.
I don't want them to know where it's coming from.
The yen's peaked.
It's selling off.
Let me know when it comes down to 134.
Do I know you, Mrs.
Fletcher? We haven't met, Mr.
Tully.
I was a client of Philip Royce and I'm a friend of Jerome Ashcroft.
And what information do you wish to discuss? I understand that you were interested in buying Ashcroft and Royce.
That's not information or even news.
Yes, well, your telephone number was the last thing Philip Royce wrote on his notepad before he died.
I explained that to Lieutenant Moynihan.
Royce phoned me.
According to my log, it was about 8:00 p.
m.
It was business.
Business? My business, Mrs.
Fletcher.
I was here in my office all evening and half the night on the phone to Japan.
My assistant can verify that as well as the telephone company records.
Now, I'm sorry, but you are catching me on a very, very bad day.
So unless you have some other important information to discuss, goodbye, Mrs.
Fletcher.
Lieutenant Moynihan, Manhattan South.
Did you notice anything strange here night before last? Strange? In this town? You gotta be kidding.
Last week, I saw a guy walking a dog with a dress on.
The guy was wearing a dress? What's strange about that? The dog was wearing the dress.
No, I'm talking about the night of the murder.
Between 8:00 and midnight.
Did you see anything? Notice anything? Nothing.
Except the bread delivery.
Bread delivery? Yeah.
I mean, in a neighborhood like this, who eats that much bread? You know what I mean? Anyway, it was about 9:00.
I remember because this guy comes wailing out the door like a bat out of hell, jumps in his truck and burns rubber outta here.
Did you get anything on that truck? A license number? Hey, who do I look like, Cagney and Lacey? Wait a minute.
Yeah.
There was a sign on the truck.
"Bianco's Bakery.
" Listen, meathead, my fiancée had nothing to do with that guy's death.
Wait a minute.
Wait a minute.
Norma Pulaski's your fiancée? Yeah, and you're dealing with Rudy Bianco here.
After I get through with you, you're gonna be handing out parking tickets on Staten Island.
I'm gonna sue your brains out for false arrest.
Yeah, right, you better take a number.
Rudy! Look at this! Somebody's been throwing trash in the flour bin again! That's okay, Gino.
It's mine.
Well, what the hell's it doing in the flour bin? Let me see that.
Let's see what we got here.
Whoa! Look at that.
Must be 20 or 30 grand here.
Where would a guy like you get a wad like that, huh? On a fast horse at Belmont.
They keep good records at the track.
You wanna try again? Okay, I found it.
Oh, that's even funnier.
Yeah, it's the truth.
Somebody broke into my truck when it was parked out back last night.
I found this envelope under the front seat this morning.
You think we're stupid or something? You think we don't know your girlfriend ripped off a couple million dollars? What, are you kidding? Do I look like I'm kidding? We got a make on your truck at the scene of the crime.
I got a witness who'll finger you in a line-up.
Rudy Bianco, I'm arresting you on suspicion of murder and as an accomplice to embezzlement.
Oh, Lieutenant, I just stopped by to see you.
Yeah, well, I'm kind of busy right now, Mrs.
Fletcher.
Yes, well, this wouldn't take very long.
It's about Gordon Tully.
I went to see him.
Yeah, well, you can forget about Gordon Tully because I've got the case all wrapped up.
Yeah, when I confront Miss Pulaski with her accomplice, she's gonna fold up like a wet paper box.
Stick around if you want to.
No! I didn't kill him! And neither did Rudy! And we didn't steal any money! There isn't a jury in New York that's gonna believe this story.
But Lieutenant, you haven't given them a chance to tell you their story.
I mean, perhaps there's an explanation.
Okay.
Okay.
Let's see.
Go ahead.
Like I told you, Mr.
Royce called me at home last night.
He'd left his briefcase at the Down Town Club and he wanted me to pick it up and bring it over to his place.
He was always leaving his briefcase somewhere.
So I called Rudy and I left a message on the machine explaining everything and telling him I'd see him later.
Then I picked up the briefcase and I took it over to Mr.
Royce's place.
It was about 9:00.
It took him a while to answer the door 'cause he was taking a shower.
So I gave him the briefcase.
And he was very nice, you know, he offered me a drink.
Kind of a thank you, I guess.
But I was anxious to get going, you know, 'cause I was already late.
Then there was a banging at the door.
It was Rudy.
Now you gotta understand, Rudy's Italian, and he's never understood about these extra hours I have to put in.
Anyway, I guess he got the wrong idea about me and Mr.
Royce.
I thought he was gonna hit Mr.
Royce, so I had to get between them.
That must be when I lost my hat.
Finally, I backed Rudy off and I got him out of there.
I was so embarrassed.
Rudy was still steamed and roared away in his truck.
I went home and had a good cry.
So Philip was still alive when you both left? Like I said, no jury's gonna buy that.
We checked the prints on the glass.
They're yours, Miss Pulaski.
I told you.
He fixed me a drink.
More likely your boyfriend here, he comes in, he finds you and the victim in the sack.
He grabs a golf club, and wham! But Mr.
Royce was discovered fully clothed in the living room.
Well, then, maybe they killed him to cover up the embezzlement.
Look, he tells me that he finds 25 grand? I mean, how dumb do you think I am? Lieutenant, I am the last person in the world to want to interfere Mrs.
Fletcher, I'd be more than happy to answer any questions that you might have, but later.
You see, right now I gotta talk to a judge about some court orders so that I might try to be able to find where they might have stashed the rest of the money.
Excuse me.
Come on.
Come on, come on.
I haven't got all day, Biffy.
Get on with it! Oh, there you are, Miss Ashcroft.
I'm so glad I caught up with you.
Mrs.
Fletcher, how did you know I was here? Well, I dropped by to pay a call, and your doorman told me that you were out walking your dog and I just took a chance.
Yes, well, I'm in kind of a hurry, Mrs.
Fletcher.
I've got to get over to Bergdorf's and buy something black for Philip's funeral.
Oh, yes, it is such a tragedy.
I mean, it must be such a blow losing your fiancé.
But of course, at least you have the consolation of having been the last person to see him alive, except for the murderer, of course.
What do you mean? Oh, well, Norma mentioned that Philip was taking a shower, and I just assumed that he had plans to go out.
And it seemed obvious or quite natural that it would have been with you, his fiancée.
No, I didn't even see Philip that night.
Matter of fact, we decided to call off the engagement the day before.
Oh, you poor thing.
You mean, you had a lover's quarrel? And now he's dead.
Oh, how sad.
No, it was not a quarrel.
In fact, it was very friendly.
Philip just wasn't the marrying kind.
The fact is he spent more time on the golf links with that pal of his, Buddy Black, than he did with me.
Buddy Black? Well, I never actually met him.
But he hangs out at Philip's golf club.
Look, Mrs.
Fletcher, I've really gotta run.
Yes, well, keep your chin up.
As you say, life goes on.
So Royce and his girlfriend split up.
That happens.
Doesn't mean she tried to part his hair with a golf club.
I didn't say she did.
But I just have a hunch that somebody else came to see Philip that night at his place.
Norma Pulaski and the pumpernickel prince came to see him.
It's a watertight case.
Well, there could be some leaks in the boat, Lieutenant.
Like what? Well, it's possible that someone planted that money in Rudy's truck.
And if they embezzled almost two million dollars, how come you've only found $25,000? I'm working on that.
I've already got a court order to go after hidden accounts.
Unless they've already lost the money playing the market.
Like that loser stock I had, Low Sonic.
Low Sonic? I had some Low Sonic stock.
Oh, Mrs.
Fletcher, I'm sorry to hear that.
You know Never mind.
I think I just remembered something important.
Oh, settling in, Mr.
Hooper? Yeah, Mrs.
Fletcher.
It's starting to feel like home already.
No sense in letting a corner office get cold.
I imagine you're not letting Philip's accounts get cold, either.
You got that right, J.
B.
Old Sid Hooper'll unload the ballast and have you in high fliers faster than you can say "leveraged buy-out.
" I'm very happy to hear that.
Do you remember what you told me down in the lobby about Low Sonics being a "dog"? Right.
Low Sonic is 19th-century stuff.
My question is how did you know that I was invested in Low Sonic? Simple.
I looked in Philip's computer.
I have his computer access now that I'm handling his accounts.
Norma only bought those Low Sonic stocks that same morning.
Now downstairs, you already knew about the purchase.
Uh, Philip must have mentioned it.
Philip never came into the office that day.
No, the only way that you could have known would be if you had had Philip's computer access code and were monitoring his transactions.
And maybe bleeding off some of his funds? No.
Hey, come on, that's crazy.
I mean, didn't you guys arrest Norma and her boyfriend? I mean, that's why they killed him, right? To cover up the money she was embezzling.
What Mrs.
Fletcher says makes a lot of sense to me.
And as a matter of fact, I've got a court order right here to check on hidden accounts.
Why don't we go down to the station, Mr.
Hooper? Have ourselves a little talk.
Okay.
So far we know you withdrew $25,000 from your personal account the morning after Mr.
Royce was murdered.
We also know you have a numbered account in the Cayman Islands.
We're checking on that one.
See, I always knew that no secretary and her boyfriend were smart enough to pull off a scam this big.
It had to be one of these big-shot insiders.
Well, I'm sure that Norma and Rudy will be relieved to know that you were always convinced of their innocence.
Now, wait a minute.
So what happened? Mr.
Royce found out, and you had to kill him, right? Kill him? Hey, no way.
Look, I borrowed a few bucks from old Philip's account, that's it.
Then you did have his access code? His access code was his license plate number.
It didn't take a genius to figure it out.
Look, I knew Norma was running the portfolio.
Philip was a playboy coasting on his father's coattails.
Hey, I was gonna pay it back.
Sure.
That's what they all say.
Well, since Mr.
Hooper wasn't supposed to have the access code, he knew that the suspicion would fall on Norma.
And planting the money in Rudy's truck almost worked.
Detective Moynihan, I assume that you're going to release Norma and Rudy? Right, as soon as I book this financial wizard.
Oh, Lieutenant.
Miss Pulaski and her fiancé'll be out in a minute.
That's wonderful.
But, you know, I'm still troubled by some loose ends.
Loose ends? What loose ends? Well, it's nothing I can really put my finger on.
Well, Gordon Tully had a stake in all this.
Mrs.
Fletcher, we got our killer.
And I already checked Gordon Tully out.
He's got an alibi.
He was on the phone to Japan.
The phone company records back him up.
Yes, but the phone company records don't say who was talking on the phone.
Look, I have to have more than that if I'm gonna take on a guy that's got the juice of Gordon Tully.
Excuse me.
Oh, Mrs.
Fletcher! I don't know how to thank you.
Look, anytime you need any baked goods, you just let me know.
Breads, rolls, Danish, anything you want.
Oh, thank you, Rudy.
That's very sweet of you.
But there's something I wanna ask you about, Norma.
What do you know about Buddy Black? I never met him, but I hear he was some kind of a golf hustler.
A hustler? Mr.
Royce always lost when they played.
Ordinarily, Mr.
Royce handled his personal checking account himself.
But one day, I found a stack of canceled checks in his briefcase all made out to Buddy Black.
Over $50,000 worth, and that was for only one month.
Oh, dear.
Mr.
Black? I don't do lessons anymore, lady.
Oh, I'm not interested in golf lessons, Mr.
Black, although I hear you're very good.
What exactly can I do for you, Mrs Fletcher, Jessica Fletcher.
I understand that we have a mutual acquaintance.
Gordon Tully.
Well, any friend of Gordon's is a friend of mine.
What is it? You and your hubby looking for a sponsor to join the club? Not exactly.
The fact of the matter is I'm involved, quite unofficially, you understand, in the murder investigation of Philip Royce.
Your name came up in the police investigation.
Why would my name come up? Possibly in connection with blackmail? Blackmail? The police are looking very carefully into Mr.
Royce's financial matters, and there are all those canceled checks made out to you.
So maybe Philip wrote me a few checks.
It wasn't blackmail.
I won that money from him playing golf.
Well, that's not the impression that I got from Mr.
Tully, and neither did Lieutenant Moynihan.
What the hell did Tully tell you? Well, I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to discuss that with you, Mr.
Black.
And I believe it's common knowledge that Mr.
Tully was trying to take over Mr.
Royce's firm.
And I did hear that the police are checking Mr.
Tully's alibi for the time of the murder.
They are? That's probably where the blackmail angle comes in, especially in view of the fact that he was murdered with a golf club.
Look, I had nothing to do with Phil's murder.
Okay, so maybe Tully suggested Phil could be had for a few bucks playing golf.
I'm afraid it was more than a few bucks.
Hey, it was Tully's idea, not mine! But you took the money.
I don't know what his game is, or yours either, lady, but if Tully told you I was blackmailing Philip Royce, he's lying to cover his own back.
Mr.
Tully couldn't possibly see you now.
He has a luncheon appointment and he's already late.
Perhaps if you wouldn't mind trying.
Oh, Mr.
Tully, I was hoping that I would catch you.
I wanted to talk to you about Buddy Black.
I'm rather in a hurry now, Mrs.
Fletcher, but if you'd care to ride down with me Oh, thank you.
I advise you to get straight to the point.
This is an express.
I was wondering what you'd have to say to Lieutenant Moynihan when he learns that you arranged for a professional golf hustler to separate Mr.
Royce from a considerable amount of cash.
Why would I do something like that? Assuming, of course, that it's true.
To soften him up so that he'd sell to you? Philip was a big boy.
He shouldn't have bet what he couldn't afford to lose.
But you seem to be implying that I had something to do with his death.
Let me set you straight, Mrs.
Fletcher.
Philip Royce was more valuable to me alive than dead.
Valuable to you? Royce had already agreed to sell me his shares.
We were going to set the deal the next morning, but somebody killed him.
An unforeseen liability.
Now I'll have to buy some other firm.
Have a nice day, Mrs.
Fletcher.
It's not as fancy as the Down Town Club, but the food is fantastic.
I think it's very charming.
They buy all their bread from me.
Six dozen rolls every day.
I was telling Norma, now that she's finished on Wall Street, I could use her down at the bakery.
Well, just because she's lost one job doesn't mean that she's finished on Wall Street, Rudy.
I mean, you'd be amazed at how clever Norma is at financial things.
Yeah, but the hours are better at the bakery.
Norma, Mr.
Tully told me something puzzling.
He said that Philip had agreed to sell his half of the firm.
That might explain it.
Explain what? What he had in his briefcase.
I probably shouldn't have looked, but Mr.
Royce was always walking off with papers in his briefcase that I needed at the office.
Norma, what exactly did he have in his briefcase? A big stack of Ashcroft and Royce shares.
If he were going to sell to Mr.
Tully, that may explain why he was carrying them around.
Look, I'm terribly sorry, but I won't be able to eat lunch with you after all.
I have to find Lieutenant Moynihan.
I'll call you.
I just dropped by to let you know that we've traced all the money that Hooper embezzled, Mr.
Ashcroft.
All of it? Why, that's wonderful.
Yeah, he had it squirreled away in his investment account in the Cayman Islands.
And the funny part of it is that Hooper actually made a couple 100 grand profit on the money.
It's weird.
I was wondering, Jerome, what do you intend to do about Norma? Norma? Oh, Norma.
Well, of course we'll reinstate her job.
As a matter of fact, I have decided to start her in the broker's training program.
Oh, I suppose that means that the company won't be sold to Gordon Tully.
Sell to Tully? Over my dead body.
Mmm, that's right, you have all the shares safely tucked away in your office safe.
I certainly do, Jessica.
Even Philip's shares? Yes.
He left his there for safekeeping.
I'm just curious, what happens to Mr.
Royce's shares now? Actually, we had a contract.
In the event of death, the surviving partner has the option of purchasing the remaining shares at book value.
Book value? It's a very common practice in business because of the tax consequences.
I'd be very happy to answer any of your questions about it, Lieutenant.
I have a question, Jerome.
Was it planned in advance or totally on impulse? When you killed Philip Royce.
I suppose the golf club indicates impulse.
At least it wasn't premeditated.
Kill Philip? Jessica, you must be making a bad joke.
Sadly enough, it's not a joke, Jerome.
I suppose you must have overheard Philip talking on the telephone to Mr.
Tully.
Remember, you told me you were here working late? Yes, I was.
But I told you that Philip never came back to the office.
Yes, that's what you said.
But Philip must have come back to the office, at least to pick up the golf clubs.
They were in his office when I was there before lunch.
And they were in his apartment when we found his body.
But what you didn't know, Jerome, was that Norma delivered Philip's own shares in the company to his apartment a short time before you arrived.
There's only one way they could've gotten into your safe, sir.
I never intended to kill him.
Philip was like a son to me.
After I heard him on the phone agreeing to sell to Tully, I went over there to reason with him.
Philip, you just can't do it.
Sell the firm your father and I spent our lives building up to a cheap scoundrel like Tully? Spare me the platitudes, won't you, Jerome? So you can't stand Tully's guts.
He doesn't measure up to your ethical standards, fine, but that's your problem, not mine.
But, Philip, the name Ashcroft and Royce still means something on On Wall Street.
Right.
It means integrity, respectability, old money, all the garbage that you think is so important.
Well, Jerome, let me tell you something.
Tully is willing to pay for that image.
Pay twice what my shares are worth.
And what will you do? Do? I'll tell you what I'm gonna do, Jerome.
I'm gonna take that money and I'm gonna enjoy it.
Yeah.
That's right.
That way, I won't have to go into that boring office in the morning and add up all those boring figures and deal with all those uptight, boring clients.
And what about Candice? Well, that's another thing, Jerome.
I know what you and she are trying to cook up.
Keep it all in the family.
Well, count me out.
See, that's what finally convinced me to sell.
Not having to deal with that silly, spoiled bitch of a daughter of yours.
I couldn't let a scoundrel like Gordon Tully take over the firm I devoted my life to.
You understand that, don't you? Somebody has got to stand up for the old values.
Here, have some more bread.
Don't mind if I do.
Norma, Lieutenant Moynihan was telling me that he once owned some of your favorite stock, Low Sonic.
Yeah, I took a bath in it before I got out of it.
Gee, that's too bad.
Five hundred bucks right down the old sewer.
But I learned my lesson.
No, I mean it's too bad because it split three-for-one today.
You would have made a killing if you'd kept it.
Uh-oh.
You know, it sounds to me as if Wall Street is still in your blood.
What are you planning to do? I am gonna make it on Wall Street if it's the last thing I do, Mrs.
Fletcher.
I mean, I have got this terrific idea.
Rudy makes this wonderful bread.
"Heart Smart," all natural ingredients.
How does that sound for a name? Well, it's got a real ring.
I'm going to incorporate Rudy's bakery, you know, issue stock.
I figure, eventually, we could syndicate it.
What do you think? You know, knowing Norma, I think that you should buy some of the stock.