Cold Case s07e16 Episode Script

He flings him into the ropes, and, oh, a devastating clothesline.
Hey, Timmy.
Your dad's here.
Do I have to go? What's up, buddy? Ready to hang with your old man? What do you expect, Mick? You blow him off every other weekend.
What do you expect when you bad-mouth me the way you do? Oh, you think I'm the reason you two have problems? "Bring your dad to school day"-- he didn't even bother asking you 'cause he knew you wouldn't show.
Is that true, Timmy? * Tommy used to work on the docks * * Union's been on strike * * He's down on his luck * * It's tough * CROWD Machine! Machine! Machine! * So tough * Machine! You know, I would've came to your school if you'd told me about it.
It's no big deal.
Already had another dockworker there anyway.
You give Ma the money you owe her? What are you gonna do, break my thumbs or something? I'll take care of it.
* She says we gotta hold on * * To what we've got * Look at your Machine now! Looks like he broke down.
You want more? You want blood?! * We'll give it a shot * * Oh * CROWD Garbage! Garbage! Garbage! * Livin' on a prayer * Look at that.
Can bend his arm and everything.
These are pretty cool dolls, huh? They're wrestlers.
* Oh, oh, livin' on a prayer * Like to see them unload a cargo ship.
Mom says dockworkers are dirty.
And wrestlers ain't? Wrestlers are the coolest, strongest guys on the planet.
* We used to make it talk, so tough * What, so you'd like me better if I throw on some tights, go prancing around a ring? Shut up, Dad.
They're cool.
* We gotta hold on to what we've got * * It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not * * We got each other and that's a lot * * For love * * We'll give it a shot * * Oh * * We're halfway there * CROWD Machine! Machine! The new WIC Heavyweight Champion Machine! Machine! Mick "The Machine" Malone! Yeah! * Livin' on a prayer * .
44 Magnum.
Traded in during an anonymous Guns for Groceries program.
It's a cannon.
A lot of groceries for this thing.
Ballistics got a hit.
The gun killed a Mick Malone, June of '86.
A dockworker.
Killed at the pier.
Yeah, Mick had a reputation for busting kneecaps as low-level muscle for the Longshoreman's Union.
Dangerous moonlighting.
FigureMick's death was related.
But keep reading.
Mick was also a wrestler for the WIC, indie circuit.
That where Humpty Dumpty comes in? Bear Jacobs.
Gun's registered in his name.
We pulled him from a match.
You mean he doesn't dress like that all the time? Waitin' forever.
missed out on tonight.
Well, you got bigger concerns, Bear.
You found my baby! Where was she? You're pretty excited to own a gun with a body on it.
A body? Hell you talkin' about? Mick "Machine" Malone.
In the WIC together.
I didn't kill Mick.
Only wrestled him a couple of times.
Crowd loved him.
Then how do you explain this whole you owning the gun situation? I ain't had her since March of '86.
And I know exactly where she went.
Hey! You report the gun stolen, Bear? Wanted to find the son of a bitch myself.
Guy was a jobber to the mid-carders.
Hired toeteat every night? Jumped around the circuits.
Only got work 'cause he could do a Commie accent.
Cold War saved his ass.
Who was this guy? Red Scare.
Don't know his real name.
Remember where you were when Mk got killed? Twenty-some years ago? Where were you? It's not my gun that killed a guy.
June 16, 1986.
Probably at the Traffic Light.
Dated a waitress there.
Sapphire.
Well, Bear, your new ring is going to be a holding cell till she vouches for you.
Might want to call for some extra clothes.
Gets chilly downstairs.
Hey, when I get out, you gonna give me my gun back? Yeah, I'll have it gift wrapped for you.
Mick "The Machine" Malone.
Twenty-eight.
Murdered June 16, 1986.
Baby-face of the WIC.
Baby-face? Good guy.
Would've headlined against other heels as the fan favorite.
Lil apparently was a Hulkamaniac back in the day.
You like that nonsense? Oh, it distracted me for a few hours every Saturday.
Hmm.
Assigned talked to some wrestlers back in '86, and Lance Kotrola, WIC's promoter.
Well, Mick's last match was ten days before he was killed, against "Sweet" Sil Tavern.
Well, Mick had a nine-year-old son, Tim, with ex-wife, Rachel.
Night Mick was murdered, she was with Tim at the hospital.
Did a midnight shift at the local diner.
I'll reach out to the son, see what he knows.
Let's pay Lance a visit, too.
Might know who the Red Scare was.
Hey, uh, either of you heard from Vera? Uh, think he's tracking down Bear's alibi.
Yeah.
Supposed to have breakfast with him, but the dude never showed.
Left him a couple messages myself.
He's probably just hungover somewhere.
You know what's going on with him? Whatever it is, he's keeping it to himself.
You were at the hospital the night your dad died? Broke my arm playing football.
Got a cast, nothing big.
Your dad ever mention a wrestler named Red Scare? Red Scare? Nah.
I thought he got killed 'cause of something he did down here.
We're just looking into a wrestling connection.
Wrestling brought us closer.
Brought us all closer.
Look what I got for you, buddy.
Bill "The Thrill"! Awesome! Yeah, don't look now, but someday that's gonna be a Mick Malone doll.
I mean, wrestler.
Yeah, you wish, Dad.
Oh, I wish? Where did you learn that move? I've been getting in the ring a little bit.
Going to this wrestling school.
No way! That's the coolest thing I've ever heard.
It's the coolest thing I've ever done.
But you're still unloading cargo? Yeah, I mean, I'm not going to quit my job.
You know, maybe someday, right, buddy? Yeah.
I can't tell who's the adult between the two of you.
Look, wrestling's honest work.
It beats debt collecting.
That's not saying much.
What happens if you get hurt in the ring? Nah, it's fine.
It's all for show.
Nobody really gets hurt.
Anyways, here.
It's, uh it's from my first match.
It's not much.
I'm just a jobber now, but I'll get more if I stick with it.
Okay.
Great.
Still need a ring name, though.
I was thinking maybe you could come up with something, Timmy.
Yeah, something cool, you know.
Like "The Machine.
" The Machine? Like you're unstoppable.
Like you grind people up and drill 'em into the mat.
See, now that's the coolest thing I've ever heard.
You ready to hang with your old man? Totally.
Let's go.
That was probably the happiest time from when I was a kid.
My dad coming back in my life like that.
You know any of the wrestlers your dad hung out with? No.
Mom never let me go to any of his matches.
But I got every bootleg tape I can find with him on it.
Mind if I take a look at those? Be my guest.
You know, I'm pretty sure the only reason he got in the ring was because of me.
Quite an operation, Lance.
That chair you're in-- ten grand.
Yeah, you know, the WWE, they had these perfect polished little matches back in the '80s.
And I said screw that with two words: garbage wrestling.
I guess bloodlust is where it's at, even if it's fake.
Well, my matches may be predetermined, but they're far from fake.
Athletes have to have pretty big brass ones to rep the WIC.
Guys like Mick Malone? Is that what this is all about? Well, Mick stopped wrestling ten days before he died, after his match with Sil Tavern.
Why was he off the card? Kayfabe.
You know, keeping up appearances outside of the ring.
Acting.
More time off to build hype for a feud.
Sil and Mick have any real beef behind the scenes? Please.
Someone in the family does well, we all do well.
Red Scare part of that family? Are you kidding? I fired that crackhead over 20 years ago.
He got a real name? Nate Beecher.
What was the deal with him and Mick? Well, they were both jobbers, trying to move up the ranks, but Mick was a natural at what mattered most Not only am I the champion, but I also have the greatest title of them all: The Sweet One.
Men are honored to lose to Sil Tavern.
Then they can run to their girlfriends and tell them they were just beaten by the prettiest there ever was.
Oh, and ladies, if you notice, this face not a scratch on it.
Cut.
Superb.
Okay, who's next? You, Red Scare, let's see what you got.
* Cold in vain, she said * I Red Scare.
My dropkicks like missiles from Gorbachev.
Cut.
Lame.
Anybody with some freakin' personality here, please.
* You'd put an arrow through my heart * MICK Well, let me tell you something, Lance.
When the big boss man in the sky created The Machine, he gave me one job: crushing punks like sissy S Tavern.
And until you're in that driller slam, and you hear that one two, three, I'll be putting in overtime.
So get ready all you gearheads out there, 'cause The Machine is going to work! Yeah! What do you think, you're better than me? * Round and round * * With love we'll find a way * * Just give it time, time, time, time * * Round and round * Mick had headliner written all over him.
Red Scare-- just a jealous loser that I kicked to the curb.
Know where he is now? Last I heard that 'mo was mastering the fine art of cot wrestling with his cell mate.
Must have sucked being the Detroit Lions of wrestling.
Huh, Red Scare? I was a good wrestler.
No one did the Russian like me.
Too bad you couldn't be as good a criminal.
Rap sheet a mile long.
Always getting pinched.
You steal that? Doesn't look familiar.
That's not what Bear says.
I don't know a Bear.
How about a Machine? You know Mick Malone? Nope.
Then you must have hit your head pretty good when he slammed you to the ground like a rag doll.
What's your point with all this? We'll go slow, so try to keep up.
This .
44 is the gun that killed Mick.
If you don't talk, slap the gun theft on you, you got another seven years.
Even more for Mick's murder.
Well, hypothetically, if I'd taken Bear's gun, imagine it had some worth, so I wouldn't have kept it more than a few weeks.
Hypothetically, what might you have done with it? Traded it for some stuff.
What kind of stuff? Well, steroids, hypothetically.
And I'd have sent it to this guy, Sil Tavern, known for the good juice.
Sent? Like, in the mail? Might have been in Tampa at the time.
All right, you sent a gun through the mail? Hypothetically.
But I made him sign for it.
I ain't stupid.
Bottom line-- I didn't have that gun, Sil did.
Ooh, that's a good one.
Thanks.
I appreciate it, guys.
"Sweet" Sil Tavern.
I saw you wrestle when I was a kid.
Yeah, well, this is just temporary.
I'll be back in the ring soon.
All right, pic, two for ten, both of you.
Maybe later.
You ever own a .
44 Magnum? I used to work security, but I never needed a piece like that.
Well, took us forever to find this stupid tracking slip and now you're going to lie? It's a .
44 Magnum.
Sent from Nate Beecher.
It's the gun that killed Mick Malone.
Mick Malone.
We were good friends.
The more we beat each other up, the closer we got.
Rivalry ever spill outside the ring? No way.
We had a great thing going.
You know, Lance worked it all out.
We were the perfect baby-face/heel combination.
So what about the gun? I got it from Nate, but I sold it right after.
To who? Well, to Mick actually.
So you just happened to sell it to the dead guy? Yeah.
I didn't need it.
I gave him a deal on it.
Mi said something about doing side jobs, extra cash, like that.
Debt collecting? Maybe.
Indies don't pay much.
Mick was just trying to take care of his son.
Did whatever it took for his family.
It's our first garbage match so we're gonna need to sell it, okay? Sil is going to get a club with barbed wire out from under the ring.
Barbed wire? Okay, Mick, you wince with every shot.
You're in pain.
But the moment you duck, the tides are turned.
You hit Sil and he drops the club.
I don't see what we need all this garbage stuff for.
I'm tired of people saying we're fake.
Okay, they want real, we'll give 'em real.
We'll blow the WWF out of the freakin' water.
I told my kid I'd bring him to the match tonight.
Watch his old man win the belt.
So? So I don't want my kid seng me all cut up with barbed wire.
Well, I guess you'll bring him to a different match, won't you? Look, don't tell me what to do with my kid.
You want to wrestle or not? Hey, hey, guys.
We're cool.
Lance, you know, I was talking about the TV deal.
This feud will get it.
And, Mick, your kid, right? Do some garbage.
This works out, you can quit the docks.
Get him whatever he wants.
Fine.
All right.
All right.
Take that adrenaline into the ring, huh? Just with the club, hit me in the back instead of the face.
Yeah, yeah, man, no problem.
* He really makes a scene * * Play dirty, like dirty boys do * I get what Mick was going through, trying to be a good dad.
I got a son, too.
I'd do anything for him.
Mick and Lance butt heads often? Don't see why they would have.
We all got our TV deal right after that, and everybody was happy.
Do you remember where you were when Mick got shot? Yeah.
Um I was out with the boys.
We had a card that night.
You got any names? I'm sure I could drum 'em up.
Well, you're gonna have to come with us till you do.
Look, could it not be here in front of the fans? Only got a few minutes left.
Sorry, Sil.
Let's go.
Oh, come on.
Talked to Sapphire from the Traffic Light.
Broke up with Bear in '82.
Well, the guy was only four years off.
Ain't the only thing he was off about.
Turns out, he and Mick collected debts together for the Longshoremen.
Any info on that traveling gun? I found who donated it to Guns for Groceries off surveillance at the grocery store.
Jordan Pope.
Lived in Alaska through June of '86.
He couldn't be our doer then.
Said he found the gun in Juniata Park, fall of '86, a few months after the murder.
You okay, Belen? What's wrong? I saw him.
Have a seat.
The scum who assaulted you? Where? He was mowing a lawn in my neighborhood.
I called the police.
They're already here.
Morning.
What happened, Scotty? Uh I had to make an arrest.
Guy put up a little resistance.
Everything on the up-and-up? Oh, yeah.
Yeah, no worries.
Go get checked out, cleaned up and we'll talk about it later on.
Sure thing.
Now, Scotty.
Hey.
You okay? You should see the other guy.
This have to do with, um? You get him? Yeah.
You forgot to mention that you and Mick worked together-- muscle for the union.
Makes me look bad.
Well, not as bad as your alibi going south, Bear.
Sapphire dumped you way before '86.
What difference does it make? Didn't you find the Red Scare? It was your gun.
You and Mick collecting debts.
Where did it go wrong? The night Mick was killed Check Spank-Me Escorts.
Okay.
Mick looked out for me.
Got me the job wrestling.
But his troubles went beyond the mat.
I told you what happened.
What kind of a person does that? You bastard! Why, because I want Timmy to see his dad good at something? Last time you'll see him at all.
No, no.
You're not taking him away from me.
We'll see about that.
Timmy Timmy, I'm fine, okay? I'm fine, buddy.
Hey, it's all pretend.
I'll see you soon.
Okay? I'll see you soon.
Rachel What was the fight about? No idea.
But if Mick's ex thought he'd give up his kid, she had another thing coming.
Just spent an exhilarating time down at family court.
Yeah, you bond with the city workers? Rachel filed for sole custody four days before Mick's murder.
Said Mick hung around some unsavory folk.
Wrestlers or dockworkers? She also claims Mick abandoned Tim in a warehouse in Baltimore the night of his last match.
All right, let's get her in here.
Miller's picking her up now.
Yeah, Tim, too.
See what was going on in that family.
Hey, Valens around? Um, no.
I'm his partner.
You're from Central, right? Yeah.
Detective Pierson.
Saw you did the search warrant after Scotty made that arrest last night.
Yeah, my case initially.
Guess Detective Valens had a beat, went to the scumbag's place, nobody answered.
But, you know, the door was already ajar.
He heard some noises, went in to investigate and found the ID's.
Yeah, yeah, that's what I figured.
Hmm.
What went wrong, Rachel? We had Tim young.
Drifted apart.
Mick violent with you guys? No.
He just had no clue what being a real father was.
What do you mean? Well, his father was up in Graterford.
I guess he realized that he was heading down the same path with Tim, not really being a father.
Tried to turn it around.
That's not what you thought when you filed for sole custody.
You said that he got Tim out of school, took him to Baltimore, then left him there.
It took me two hours to drive up there and get him.
I found him in a warehouse.
All by himself.
Mick tell you what happened? He said he got hurt in the match.
But unless you're dead It's no excuse, right? That's a lot of time and money to get sole custody.
Enough to make you want to take matters into your own hands? I was working the night Mick was killed.
Check it out.
I did.
You took a two-hour break.
Right around the time Mick was shot.
I snuck off to see my son.
He was in the hospital.
For a broken arm.
Broken arm? Who told you that? He was in a coma for five days.
A coma? Why? Look, Ma had nothing to do with it, okay? You see her tell your dad to stay away from you? So people argue, you know? So what? It's not exactly the image you painted earlier.
You never said she filed for sole custody.
Sole custody? I-I didn't know that.
What happened when he left you alone in that warehouse? Look, I was just trying to wrap my head around it all, okay? Around what? My dad told me it was all fake.
Yeah! Yeah! CROWD Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! * So what is wrong with another sin? * He's going for the belt.
* The bitch is hungry * * She needs to tell * If he gets there, he retains the title.
* More days to come, new places to go * * I've got to leave, it's time for a show * Machine! Machine! Machine! Machine! * Here I am * * Rock you like a hurricane * * Here I am * The new WIC champion "Sweet" Sil Tavern! Dad Dad! Yeah I thought he was dead.
Then I saw him at the docks, and he said he was okay.
It was all just pretend.
I-I tried to tell him that sometimes people get hurt.
We got in an argument about it.
When? After seeing Mick at the docks.
The night Tim went to the hospital? Yeah.
He couldn't understand why his father would tell him something that wasn't true.
And he, um, he went to his room and Then I heard it footsteps on the roof.
Timmy? Tim! I, uh I shouldn't have fought so hard to keep them apart, you know? I mean, maybe if if Mick could have talked to him, you know? He just He wanted to be like his dad.
Found the video from Mick's last match.
If Mick knew that stunt was coming, would he have brought his kid to that match? He spent 12 hours in the E.
R.
after that fall.
"Acute axial compression.
" It's when the vertebrae mash together, right? Could have been paralyzed for life.
Now check this out.
Right after the match Get that out of my face.
I ain't gonna tell you again.
Oh.
It's a .
44 Magnum.
Sold it to Mick, my ass.
Sil had it the whole time.
Let's get him out from holding.
Lance, too.
He forgot to mention his star wrestler nearly broke his neck.
Scotty.
Um Pierson found this under the radiator.
He didn't want it to get mixed up in the-the reports.
Anything you need on this, Scotty, whatever it is you got it.
Thanks, Lil.
The names you gave us Well, one's in Japan and the rest are all dead.
In our business, if you make it to 50, you're a survivor.
Well, Mick didn't make it to 30.
When did you sell him that .
A couple months before he died.
Get that out of my face.
I ain't gonna tell you again.
Match was from ten days before Mick was killed.
Right after you threw him off a scaffold.
I must have sold it to him later than I thought.
Don't lie to me, Sil.
If Mick's gone, you stay champion.
I didn't kill him.
You got no problem throwing him on his head from 20 feet up.
Your idea to go off script? No.
Lance's? No.
I mean You mean what? I didn't go off script.
So Mick brings his kid to the one match that he's supposed to lose? That was an accident.
We got Lance in the next room.
Any bets he'll throw you under the bus? What do I care if Sil's in the other room? This has nothing to do with me.
God, you're wasting your time here.
Trust me, there's a lot I'd rather do than talk to you, ass-clown.
Ass-clown? Who in this room owns a multimillion-dollar empire? Raise that hand again you'll lower a stub.
FYI-- the WIC attorney's been nofied, for Sil as well.
We'll let you know when he call Why do you need a lawyer? You have something to hide? Its my right, Detective.
Saw a tape of Mick flying through that table.
It a cool stunt.
Yeah, first of many.
You get your TV deal after that match? I sure did.
So really, everything you got is because of Sil.
Excuse me? Sil was a genius.
It was his idea, right? Throwing Mick off that scaffold? Ideas don't happen unless they come from my brain.
I am the WIC.
You seem like a leech promoter to me.
Every move, every grunt, every punch in that ring-- that's me.
I create everything.
Including Mick's fall? Something funny? I can't believe I almost fell for that.
The good cop, bad cop.
You two ought to be tag team partners.
Mick must have been real pissed about that fall you created.
He come talk to you after he could walk again? I think I'm just going to wait for my lawyer.
Is that okay with you? Lawyer for the WIC.
You can't rep Lance and Sil.
Pick one.
Lance.
How do I know you're a lawyer? You could be anybody.
Doing some digging on Sil.
Anything I could find.
No felonies, but A fender bender.
Check out the location.
Wyoming Avenue.
That's right near Juniata Park.
That's, what, about ten minutes from the docks? Sil had a passenger with him.
Guess who? They were together the night Mick was murdered? So who pulled the trigger? Lawyers are on their way.
Got about ten nutes to figure it out.
You ever been to Juniata Park, Sil? Um It's not a not a trick question.
It's just that you were in an accident out there the night that Mick was killed.
Why were you with Lance? Mick was your friend.
You're both single parents doing whatever it took to take care of your kids.
We had a lot in common.
Yeah, that's strange, 'cause that isn't what Adam said.
Your son.
Yeah, I tracked him down.
You haven't seen him in a while, huh? I see him when I can.
Every 15 years? You must not try very hard.
I mean, he's right here in Philly.
I'd do anything for my son.
Except stick around.
See, you preach about family, but it's Mick who was the one who was trying to be a good dad.
Don't you think his son deserves to know what happened to him? I went to see Mick that night.
Where? At the docks? I heard what happened to his kid.
I went to the hospital.
With Lance? No.
Alone.
I told him that I was sorry for the match for hurting him.
But that Lance was going to promote the hell out of the rematch.
We'd both get rich, you know? So, you leave the hospital and Mick's still alive? Then you hook up with Lance he's dead.
Lance gave me my career.
Without Lance I'd be nothing.
You're living off of ten dollar autographs.
He's going to get me back in the ring soon.
I'm only one match away from being on top again.
When are you going to wake up from the spell of that guy, Sil? Lawyer call yet? Not yet.
In the meantime, thought you could tell us what you were doing in Sil's car in Juniata Park the night Mick was killed.
I'm sure my attorney would love to do it.
Why don't you go fetch him for me, ese.
Good cop, get out.
Wait, wait, where you going? See if your lawyer called.
Whoa, wait a minute! Look, I didn't mean all that.
Hey! Brought an associate to represent Sil.
Got it.
They're both in the lobby.
Now? Pinstripe suits, red tie.
Okay, got it.
Um, just sit tight, and let me see if I can get somebody to go down and get you.
Somebody get me out of here! Any more comments, tough guy? Cat got your tongue? You know, I'm gonna get a soda.
Want one? Yeah.
Hey, Lance.
Let's take a walk.
Okay.
That guy is loco.
Tell me about it.
It's that Latin temper.
Yeah, yeah.
So it looks like he beat you to it.
"Sil came and picked me up.
He told me he shot Mick by the docks.
" That's Lance's signature, right? But that's a lie.
Then what's the truth, Sil? Okay, Sil, get up.
No.
No.
I talked to the D.
A.
Your car, your gun.
Take a jury 20 minutes to convict you.
It was Lance.
Lance told me that Mick had agreed to do the stunt.
But he didn't.
Mick said if Lance wanted him to get back in the ring, he could come tell him himself.
You tell Lance that? I told him that Mick wanted to be with his kid.
His son was in a coma.
But Lance didn't care.
And you went along with whatever Lance said.
We all did.
Except for Mick.
That's what pissed Lance off the most.
Next time I tell you to do something, you better damn well do it.
Can't do anything without you telling me.
You know why? 'Cause that's how I want it.
Now where's that gun? What the hell is your problem? I finally bring my kid to a match, and you throw me through a table? Last I checked, I make the rules.
Not for me.
I'm done dancing to your tune.
Okay, okay, you're pissed that your kid saw you lose.
Fine.
Okay, bring him to the next one.
It'll be the best match he's ever seen.
You will be the champion for the next two years.
No, thanks.
You leave when I ring the bell.
You got that? We just got the TV deal, okay? Do you know how much money we are going to make on the next match? Clean the crap out of your ears.
I'm done! Just can't handle it, is that it? You'd rather be out here unloading cargo and busting thumbs? No more debt collecting.
All aboveboard now.
Oh, well, I'm sure your kid's real proud to have a punk loser for a dad.
See what it feels like every night in the ring.
* It's all the same * * Only the names will change * * Every day * * It seems we're wasting away * * Another place * * Where the faces are so cold * * I'd drive all night * * Just to get back home * * I'm a cowboy * * On a steel horse I ride * * I'm wanted * * Dead or alive * * Wanted * * Dead or alive * * Sometimes I sleep * * Sometimes it's not for days * * The people I meet * * Always go their separate ways * * 'Cause I'm a cowboy * * On a steel horse I ride * * I'm wanted * * Wanted * * Dead or alive *