Cold Case s07e12 Episode Script

Mrs.
Welter, sorry to keep you waiting.
Mr.
Denton, i'd like the results of your investigation.
What is that you have on, mrs.
Welter? It's intoxicating.
Any major dude with half a heart moonlit mist.
Surely will tell you, my friend you're stalling, Mr.
Denton.
I don't like it when men keep me waiting.
Then let's get down to business.
The good news, Mrs.
Welter, is that your husband carl is rich.
The bad news is, he's banging the secretary, myrtle bartlett.
Hot little number.
Wednesdays and thursdays.
Room at the capricorn motel.
Lunch at the regent.
Then took her shopping.
Bought her several undergarments at macy's and a bottle of perfume-- Moonlit mist.
Oh.
Here, let me see.
Upside down.
Reminds me of a chinese circus I saw once.
I'm glad you find this funny, Mr.
Denton.
People on the street have all seen better times Flexible son of a bitch though, ain't he? Any major dude with half a heart surely will tell you, my friend any minor world that breaks apart falls together again when the demon is at your door Oh, lana, sweetheart, come here and let me see your shoes.
You've seen them already.
Twice.
Hey, hey, that's my medicine.
Wilson katz is here.
I told him you need a minute.
For what? We can't have you looking like you've been in a bar fight.
cbs Don't suppose Mrs.
Welter paid her bill? no.
I'm sick of taking these penny-ante cases.
Maybe katz has got a big job.
Probably just scraps, but All right, go ahead.
Let the bald bastard in.
I can tell you all I know the where to go, the what to do What do you got? Workers uncovered the bones this morning.
Male.
Csu estimates late 30s.
Site engineer thinks the body was there when the foundation was poured.
Contacted lni to get a date on the original build permit.
Unlucky worker or union scab.
Well, carrying a gun, not a hammer.
Techs recovered it with the body.
It's a.
32.
Murder weapon? Not likely.
Found in a holster on the body.
They got a hit on the serial numbers.
It's registered to a harold denton.
Harry denton.
Ring a bell? Ex-vice cop.
Took a swing at his captain.
One of us? No, they washed him out, and harry went over to the dark side and became a private investigator.
Ah, it's bunch of scumbags.
Creeping around the bushes, snapping shots of cheating husbands and wives.
They're not all bad.
I had one do me a solid on a rape case a couple years back.
These guys are all the same.
They're thinking they're solving mysteries like sam spade.
That harry's game? I got a buddy in vice who will rember him.
Probably just taking cases to get by.
Looks like harry took the wrong case.
harry denton, 40 years old.
cbs M.
e.
Says the dental records are a match.
Well, missing persons report filed may 11, 1974, by harry's secretary lana parker.
Reported the safe in harry's office had been cleaned out.
A list of harry's last appointments, so that's about it.
Assigned really punched the clock on this one.
Harry burned some bridges around here.
You talk to iab? Odd.
There's no mention of harry hitting his captain.
Got drummed out for taking the note.
Harry was dirty? Yeah, booted off the force in '71.
Started up denton investigations right after.
Different times back then.
The way I heard it, a lot of cops on the take.
Didn't stop with dacron and disco.
Recovered a.
38 caliber bullet embedded in the breast bone, suggesting a posterior point of entry.
Shot in the back.
Probably running from something.
What do you got, nick? Well Spent a riveting hour down at the licensing and inspection office.
Hbt construction did the cement work may 8.
How about a list of company employees? Besides the name, I got a bunch of nothing.
The outfit went belly up in the '80s.
Got a minute? I'm kind of in the middle of something here, pops.
You should have called before you came down.
You find something out? What Did ma say something? Didn't have to.
I know when something is up.
Hey, look, pops, it's not a good time right now.
We'll talk later.
I'll come back.
We'll grab lunch tomorrow.
I promise.
Harry finally turned up.
Yeah, under a three-story office building and seven tons of concrete.
Shot in the back.
Kept his desk.
Even left his medicine.
Harry was one of the good ones.
You filed the missing person's report? A lot of good that did.
Harry was persona non grata with the philly p.
d.
On account of him getting kicked off the force? Kept telling me without a body or evidence of foul play, they were going under the assumption he'd skipped town.
Not like harry? Harry wasn't the type to turn tail.
Trust me, there were times I wish he had.
You took over harry's business after he disappeared? That's right.
I knocked off harry so I could get rich taking photos of cheating spouses.
I've seen people kill for less.
Harry could be a real pain in the ass, but his heart was in the right place.
What sort of casework did harry specialize in? If it had a pulse and a wallet and walked through that door, we took the job.
This is a list of the cases harry was working on.
Anything we should know about? Krebs was a tail job-- Went nowhere.
O'keefe-- a cheating husband.
Same as barb welter.
What about the one that says "counselor"? Wilson katz.
Big-shot lawyer.
He and harry served in the navy together.
Harry ever work for him before? A little bit of this, a little bit of that, but always on the qt.
cbs I see business is going well, harry.
It's nothing.
Oh, silk.
Oh, you must be keeping some swanky company these days, wilson.
I remember when you was wearing plastic shoes and eating at the automat.
Knock it off, harry.
I'm here about a client.
You know my rates.
This client requires discretion.
To ensure that discretion, the client is willing to double your rates.
All right, enough with the cryptic jive, katz.
Just tell me the job.
Lana, be a sweetheart-- Go out and grab us a couple coffees, would you? When I came back, they were gone.
Ever find out what the case was? I asked, but harry wouldn't tell me.
Is katz sill around? He's still practicing.
Making problems disappear.
For a fee, of course.
Not a fan? Know the difference between a mosquito and a lawyer? One's a blood-sucking parasite, the other's an insect.
The season opener's a ways off, Mr.
Katz.
That it is, detective.
How can I help you? We're here about your old friend, harry denton.
They found his body buried under an office building in center city.
I'm not surprised.
Harry kept bad company.
Lawyers included? Hmm.
I'm afraid so.
You hired harry right before he was killed.
Perhaps.
What was the job? I have my client's privacy to protect.
I bet those fancy clients of yours would love opening their morning paper, seeing your name linked to a murder investigation.
E I retained harry's services at the behest of a client.
Name? Caroline hargreave.
Wind huh.
Some lunk of goldfish, huh? Koi-- flown in direct from kyoto.
Don't touch them.
You say you'll stay with him Be a darling, wilson, and fetch my robe.
I see you go again looking for a home.
Hell of a view.
Harry denton, denton investigations.
Wilson says you're good at finding things.
Depends on what i'm looking for.
Harry's the right man for the job.
I need you to find my daughter, mr.
Denton.
Her name's michelle, but we call her bunny.
Pretty girl.
Beauty can be a burden.
Runaway? Last week.
It happen before? no.
Helps if I know why she decided to scram.
Bunny's father stan recently passed away.
Heart attack.
Quite a shock.
And bunny took it hard? Adored her father.
She started acting out.
I'd rather not involve the police again.
Again? Last month they picked her up for reckless driving.
Wilson says you're the discrete type.
You betcha.
Anything else I should know? To make a long story short, I plan on sending her to oakdale-- Camp for troubled teens.
And bunny resisted.
We had a terrible fight.
She took a car and ran away.
I'm worried she's in trouble.
What sort of trouble? I'm afraid she fell in with some undesirables.
Bohemians and radicals.
Oh, well, you got to watch out for those types.
Did a number on patty hearst.
That's where you come in, mr.
Denton.
I want my daughter back safe and with a minimum of fuss.
I'll start today.
Wilson, see to it that mr.
Denton gets his money.
Looking for a home But harry was too late.
He didn't find her? Bunny died in a car accident several days later.
When was this? As e may 6, 1974.
Caroline was heartbroken.
Blamed herself for not acting sooner.
This is rush from homicide.
Got a possible 10-37.
A dui suspect driving a dark gray chevy cobalt, license number 9 Tracked down the owner of hbt construction, carl welter.
Hbt was one of a series of shell companies set up to take advantage on non-union contracts.
And what's the connect to harry? Welter's wife barb hired harry to check up him.
Harry captured a few kodak moments between carl and his secretary.
Booked for agg assault in '75.
Settled a dispute with one of his subcontractors with a piece of rebar.
And harry gets a concrete coffin.
Hbt construction.
One of your company's poured the foundation, carl.
I'd have to have a date and an address, and even then, I can't promise you nothing.
May 8, 1974, Could have been one of ours.
I'm guessing disposing of bodies is a big code violation.
Oh-ho, I don't know nothing about that.
Could have been some illegal that fell asleep on a job; it wouldn't be the first time.
Man's name was harry denton, private eye.
Did a little work for your wife, barb.
Okay, so I wanted to wring his neck.
Wouldn't you? Taking my time, choosing my line tryin' to decide what to do looks like my stop don't wanna get off You seen her? How about you? Seen her? Seems to me you don't want to talk about it seems to me you just turn your pretty head and walk away Get off! Get your hands off me! Just doing my job, kid.
That woman is not my mother! Get in the Get your hands off me! Get in! You can't do this! You son of a bitch! What is with you people?! Say the word, harry! Easy, easy, frenchie.
Branching out to kidnapping underage girls, denton? Stray glee-clubber.
What's on your mind, carl? The photos you took are gonna cost me a bundle.
Well, maybe we can work sosmething out, seeing as how your wife neglected to pay her bill.
What'd you have in mind? I see the number 500, and those negatives of you and the steno doing the motel mambo disappear.
How do I know I can trust you? Oh, you don't.
My advice? Patch things up with the missus.
It's cheaper in the long run.
Yeah, I'm starting to see that.
$400.
$600! All right, all right, $500.
Frenchie, release Mr.
Welter.
Bunny's keys ought to be in that bag.
Take her to mexico.
A couple of margaritas, a little nude snorkeling, a tennis bracelet, she'll forgive you.
You just turn your pretty head and walk away.
The son of a bitch was right about mexico.
'course, she ran off with a shoe salesman a couple of years later.
Describe the girl you saw harry with.
Blonde, she was real pretty.
She wasn't too happy about being put in that trunk.
Yeah, that looks like her.
Could have done something about it.
And have harry's pet gorilla twist my head off? Remember when this was? Let's see.
The wife and I left for puerto vallarta the very next day for cinco de mayo, so it was may 4.
Looks like someone had a little irish breakfast.
Oh, my.
I hear moe kitchener got picked up for dui last night.
Imagine that.
Spoke to my buddy in vice.
He said harry's whole unit was on the take.
Captain hung 'em out to dry when they opened up a corruption probe.
The captain was probably taking more money than all of them.
Probably why harry clocked him.
I pulled the accident report on bunny.
"lost control of the car around a curve.
Hit a tree and burst into flames.
" Problem is, welter says he saw harry with bunny two days before the accident.
With this french character.
Some pet gorilla.
Katz says they never contacted him, though.
So, lana thinks harry helped french dodge a manslaughter charge.
Ran the name alias.
Came up vapors.
Well, figure harry and french were scheming to shake down caroline hargreave.
It's a pity they don't last longer.
Spoke to your lawyer.
He told me.
This whole thing brings up terrible memories.
About your stepdaughter bunny? yes.
We got along just fine until stan died.
That when she took off? She was very emotional girl.
Had a history of it on her mother's side of the family.
Tried everything I could to help her.
Including hiring a private investigator.
Oh, Mr.
Denton-- he was my lawyer's idea.
I never trusted that man.
Like try and shake you down? The night before the accident, he came over here and gave me some cock-and-bull story about needing more money.
Looks painful.
Makes them easier to handle.
See? That's a dragon's eye.
This one here's an american beauty.
How about that? Wilson said you had news to report.
Have you located bunny? Not exactly.
The investigation's hit a couple of snags.
You need more money, mr.
Denton? Well, there is a direct correlation between results and money especially with these recovecbrys jobs.
Very well.
I'll have wilson advance you more funds.
What do you call this? Primrose.
Ah, primrose.
I can't have bunny running wild, to god knows what sort of dangers.
I expect results, mr.
Denton.
Oh, I'm onto something all right.
I knew right then he was up to something.
Was he after money or gardening tips? I knew he had bunny.
You should have gone to the police.
Yeah, a lot of things I should have done.
Instead, I hired his assistant, had her check up on him.
Lana.
Yes.
She agreed to help me for a price, of course.
But the next night I got the call about the accident.
I blame myself.
I should have just let her go.
Left a few things out, lana.
Caroline hargreave hired you to check on harry.
She wanted her daughter back.
So you double-crossed harry.
She called me and asked me to check on him.
She no longer trusted harry.
What about you? I figured harry and french were cooking up some scheme.
Well, I don't know why I came here tonight I got the feeling that something ain't right i'm so scared in case I fall off my chair and I'm wondering I figured she'd send somebody, but I didn't think it'd be you.
Well, what do you think, harry? She wants her daughter back.
I bet she does.
Tell her I'm off the case.
What's going on? How much she paying you? Enough to open my own agency.
It's always the pretty ones you don't see coming.
French! Stop her! Come on.
She's gonna get away! Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right hurry, get in! Stuck in the middle with you well, you started out with nothing and you're proud that you're a self-made man oh, my god, stop the car, harry! Bunny.
Harry told me to get the hell out of there and keep my mouth shut.
He was still looking out for you even though you betrayed him.
I still think about him all the time.
That the last time you saw harry? Came back to the office to apologize, and french was there.
Cleaning out the safe? Put a gun in my face and told me to keep my mouth shut.
What the hell? Can't you see i'm taking a table nap? Been a lot of those lately.
What do you got? Some other case.
Don't worry about it.
Um, french's real name is chuck jaworski.
Did a stint in graterford for extortion, resisting arrest, assault.
Old school bad-ass.
Harry helped him dodge a manslaughter charge.
Did some pro bono snooping for french's defense lawyer.
Good guy to have in your debt.
You check on that address tinicum lana gave us? Yeah, a lot of mice and daddy longlegs, but no french.
Put word out to the local watering holes a neighbor said he frequents.
Got his info out to patrol.
He turns up, I'm on it.
Now, if you don't mind.
Detective rush.
See you found some good company.
Dui checkpoint popped up right outside my favorite watering hole.
cbs Imagine that.
A good thing, getting folks like you off the street.
I'll make bail.
Thought you already got out on bail.
Sure a philly judge will think twice.
This is harassment.
Place you're gonna end up once your lawyers run out of motions to file is a whole lot worse than this.
The least I can do is get you out of the tank and into a cell.
Comes with a cell mate, though.
Not a bad guy.
As long as he's on his meds.
See that Mr.
Kitchener and tiko get acquainted.
hey.
hey.
What have been up to? Not hungry.
Ld case she told you, huh? You could've told me earlier, you know.
Well, she asked me not to.
That's it, then.
What? It's over.
We want this all behind us.
So drop it.
Drop it? Pop, ma was robbed.
Knocked to the ground This is what your mother wants.
Yeah, but, well, I want to make sure this guy doesn't do it again.
Olvidate.
We canceled the cards and the money doesn't matter.
I know.
Pop, you asked me to look into this.
I'm gonna find him.
You do what you have to do.
As far as your mother's concerned, it's over.
Podemos comer ahora? Yeah.
Don't you come in pairs? Not today.
What are you, buying next round? Maybe after you come down to the station and answer a few questions about harry denton.
Like hell I am.
Sure you want to ph@ush this, gramps? Not the first cop I mopped the floor with.
Go ahead.
Take your best shot.
I'll live.
But you'll be picking your dentures off the floor when I'm finished.
@ah@ That some kind of asian move? Now, we can do this all over downtown, or we can just call it a mulligan.
Ah, hell.
Mulligan.
So, what were you and denton doing with bunny hargreave? I promised harry I'd keep my trap shut.
Harry's dead.
Somebody shot him.
Well, at least he's got an excuse how come he don't call me up no more.
Lana said she caught you trying to break into his safe.
Yeah, okay, I might have done something like that, but I didn't kill harry.
I owe that guy my life.
So what were you guys trying to do? Shake down caroline hargreave? The rich broad? He had her daughter stashed in your safe house.
nah.
Harry was trying to protect that girl.
From what? Beats me.
I mean, I don't understand the ins and outs or what have you.
I just did what harry told me to do.
You followed? @ai@ Went through precautions, all right? Did like you said.
You have any problems? Just lana.
She suspect anything? Nope.
If she did, I scared her good.
Look, here.
I need you to make sure that your buddy at the morgue keeps his trap shut about that loaner.
Something wrong? What kind of job is this? The kind that could get us both locked up.
I'm trying real hard to do the right thing here, french.
You're getting soft, harry.
Shut up.
All right.
I need you to go see frank bandini, tell him we need a full kit-- I.
d.
, passport, birth certificate, the whole deal.
We're gonna need a name.
We need a name.
For what? Your new life.
Clara.
Clara dunaway.
only me, you and dead harry know she's alive.
Whose body was in the wreck? Some jane doe I borrowed from the morgue.
Why'd harry flip the script? Asked him the same.
Said he was trying to make things right.
So where's bunny now? Where else nobody gonna look for you? Pine barrens, new jersey.
Bunny hargreave? Haven't heard that name in 35 years.
How did you find me? Spoke to french.
Now, did you know harry was dead? I knew something bad had happened when he didn't come back.
Hoping you can fill us in on that.
Why didn't harry take you back home? Take it you met my stepmother.
She thought you died in that wreck.
Sure she put on quite a show for you.
She hired harry to find you.
Yeah, so she could ship me off to oakdale.
Place wasn't a summer camp.
Unless you count drug therapy or electric shock as activities.
Why would caroline send you to a place like that? She wanted to keep me quiet.
About what? How she killed my father.
What if she finds me? She can't.
You're dead, remember? Your new i.
d.
I never want to see her again.
Well, next time you do see her, it'll be in a court.
I have proof that your stepmother poisoned your father.
Found this in her greenhouse.
Is this what you saw her give him? yes.
He had a cough, so she made him some of her special soup.
What is it? Foxglove.
Deadly poisonous and can cause a heart attack.
Your stepmom told him it was primrose.
So I wasn't imaging things.
Nope.
Of course we can't prove any of this, 'cause she went and had the body cremated.
Will she get away with this? Don't worry.
Old harry's still got a few tricks up his sleeve.
Why are you helping me? You could've just taken me back to her, and no one would've ever known what she did.
I don't know.
Guess I got sick of people expecting the worst of me.
She'll try to ruin you.
Little late for that.
Might find this hard to believe, but I used to be a cop.
You must have been a good cop.
I had my moments.
Got caught up in some stuff I shouldn't have been.
One thing leads to another and Next thing I know i'm "anything for a buck" harry.
Took the money, did the job, didn't ask questions.
Didn't matter what side I was on.
Hell, I figured everybody was guilty of something, so why not make a buck off it? But you're helping me.
Got to admit, it feels pretty good.
Harry was the only one who believed me.
About caroline killing your father.
He said it wasn't the first time that she poisoned somebody.
Said she'd killed her first husband and that he had proof.
Now, harry go to confront her? I figured she got to him like she did to anybody who got in her way.
When harry didn't come back, french took me to jersey.
Stanley hargreave died of a heart attack in april 1974.
A fit with poisoning? The m.
e.
Said that foxglove combined with an already weak heart will result in a heart attack.
They didn't catch it back in the day.
Stanley was 58 years old, had a history of heart trouble.
I mean, there's no way of saying for sure unless we have a body.
Oh, she's come a long way.
Well, you cleaned up pretty good, mandy.
Excuse me? A solicitation charge in tulsa.
Everyone has something in their past that they're ashamed of.
Well, little more than a few misdemeanors and a change of name.
I'm no longer that person.
Moved on.
You killed your way out of white trash.
What are you talking about? Ever been married before? I think you know of my marriage previous to stan.
Well, stan wasn't the first husband to die on you.
Uh, insurance claim for melvin grover.
Autopsy report said he died of food poisoning in '64.
One was a heart attack, the other an unfortunate accident.
Unfortunate only that harry figured out that you'd poisoned before.
Is that what this is all about, me outliving my husbands? It happens all the time.
Men are the weaker of the species.
Genetics had nothing to do with why you outlived them.
I wouldn't know anything about that.
Harry did.
Just like he knew why you wanted bunny back so bad.
I wanted to help her.
Bunny was a mixed-up girl.
She seemed pretty clearheaded when I spoke to her.
What are you talking about? Harry @@faked bunny's death.
That was a jane doe in that car.
Is this some kind of game? Bunny knew you poisoned her dad.
You have no proof of that, detective.
Harry did.
And you shot him to silence him.
Why would I do that? Hiring Mr.
Denton was my lawyer's idea.
Wilson katz? yes.
And harry never contacted you after the "accident," right? I was busy arranging bunny's funeral.
I let wilson deal with everything.
He had power of attorney over my affairs.
Of course he did.
Wilson said he would take care of it, and I took him at his word.
Sit down.
You're not going anywhere.
I'd like to speak to my lawyer.
Well, he's in the next room getting ready to flip on you.
Oh, I doubt that very much.
That's one cold bitch.
Tracked down the brother of caroline's first husband.
Says a lawyer contacted him june of '74.
His name's on the exhumation report.
Wilson katz.
Maybe that's the proof harry was talking about.
counselor.
I'd like to speak with my client, caroline hargreave.
She has a right to legal counsel.
Well, you might want to consider some for yourself.
What would you like to know, detective? Remember melvin? who? The first husband of mandy mae smith.
That's your signature on the exhumation request.
I was acting on behalf of caroline hargreave.
Oh, just loyal that way? Digging up her dead ex-husband, or Something else? I know how this game is played, detective.
Been at it since before you were born.
You had caroline's first husband cremated a week after harry was killed.
I had power of attorney over her affairs.
And power to get rid of that body, too.
You met with harry after the accident.
I figure he pointed out caroline's habit of offing her husbands.
I already told you I met with harry-- to pay him.
That was before we figured out harry had bunny.
If that's all you have, detective, i'll take my chances in court.
It's not.
We spoke to the owner of the building you buried harry in.
You put in a bid to buy it.
You were outbid by Ten grand You cheap bastard.
I know this looks bad.
Eh, save it for the jury.
Tell them how she put you up to it I was her attorney-- It was my job to protect her.
Yeah, but you were harry's buddy.
At least hethought so.
If only harry had just done his job.
Yeah? What job was that? hmm? Bring bunny back so caroline could silence her? Harry tried to tell me, and I Wouldn't listen.
To tell you what? What caroline was up to? Look, she's in that room throwing you under the bus.
You don't think I know that? She set the whole thing up that way.
Then don't let her walk for what she did to harry.
Give me something.
She was smarter than me.
Smarter than stan.
Even you, detective.
What does she have over you? 'cause she's Playing you for a sucker.
Even now.
She was so beautiful.
You just wanted to make things right for her.
What's this about, harry? I figured I'd give you a chance to get in front of this.
What are you talking about? It's over.
Bunny's dead.
Your services are no longer need.
I figured out why she wanted bunny back so bad.
Whatever bunny said to you, it's not true.
Caroline killed her husband, wilson.
Now, I'm guessing she had a couple of million reasons to do it, but it's still murder.
Have you been drinking, harry? She fed him poison, made it look like a heart attack.
You have no proof of that.
Oh, I have proof.
And bunny saw her do it.
Bunny's dead.
It's a real tragedy.
But it's over.
It's not over.
i Dragon's eye.
It's just roses.
Guy like you ain't buying fresh roses, wilson.
What'd she do, wink at you or something? no.
It's more than that.
Oh Oh, you stupid son of a bitch, you love her, don't you? Why, she's got you all turned around, hasn't she? Now, I strongly advise you to walk out that door, harry, and forget all about this.
She's done it before, wilson.
Next time you're giving her a foot rub, ask her about her first husband.
Yeah.
Didn't know about that one, huh? Name's melvin grover.
Married him back when she was mandy mae smith.
W- well, you've concocted a hell of a story.
It's not a story.
And I'm not letting this get swept under the rug.
That never stopped you before.
Listen, you dumb bastard, get away from this.
Get as far away as you can! I'm going to the police.
Wait, wait, wait.
What's it gonna cost for you to forget this nonsense, huh? Ten thousand? Twenty? I'm not that guy anymore.
Just take the money, harry.
Now, that's the harry I know.
I'm going to the police.
With what? A couple of names? The rantings of a dead girl? Take the money, harry.
Not this time.
Stop right there.
You ain't gonna shoot me.
You don't know that.
Must be one hell of a retainer she's got you on, wilson.
May god bless and keep you always