NCIS s19e19 Episode Script
The Brat Pack
Flight getting canceled
was not my fault.
So you say.
Cynthia, I didn't create a tropical depression over the Gulf of Mexico.
Maybe you manifested it.
You would do anything to get out of spending a week with my mother.
I love your mother.
Ish.
Oh, no, not again.
Lucas, did you close all the windows before we left, like I asked? Of course, dear.
Well, then how did the neighbor's cat get in again? Oh, my God.
Nana's vase.
That is it.
- Where are you going? - I am going full Karen on the neighbors! They need to leash that furball! We don't have proof that it was the Nelsons' cat.
Yes, we do.
See? It sensed motion right before we came in.
It's that damn cat.
Babe, that's not a cat.
Oh, my God, somebody was in our house.
Cynthia, I didn't create a tropical depression over the Gulf of Mexico.
Maybe you manifested it.
You would do anything to get out of spending a week with my mother.
I love your mother.
He still is.
Oh, no, not again.
Well, I got to say, today was a pretty good day.
Yeah, no murders.
No one missing.
I got to re-sand my Zen garden, which was looking not so Zen.
Hey, I say we slip out early.
I got big plans.
Sounds good.
I've got plans, too.
Oh, you go first.
What you got? Well, I plan on being in bed by 9:00.
Kasie and I got these Halo Views that give you a nightly sleep score.
And Kasie got a 91 the other night.
And I plan on getting a 92.
Wow.
How incredibly exciting.
I have someplace to be as well.
Let me guess In bed by 8:30 and you're going for a 93? No.
Delilah and I have a meeting at Morgan's preschool.
Is everything okay? Yes and no.
See, Morgan's been insisting on wearing a, uh, princess dress to school every single day.
Well, that's adorable.
You know, when I was her age, I wore a mask and carried a spatula everywhere.
I made my mom call me Zorro.
I turned out just fine.
- That's debatable.
- Come on.
But, seriously, a cute little princess dress That's harmless enough, yeah? Well, the school's saying that there's peer issues, and, you know, I don't want her getting picked on.
Wait, but didn't you used to wear a magician outfit all the time when you were a kid? Yeah, and I got picked on.
I bet you looked good in a top hat.
Thank you.
But we were on my father's O-3 salary, so top hats were kind of a luxury.
Maybe you're overreacting? You sound like Delilah.
She thinks that Morgan's just going through a phase.
I'm Team Delilah on this.
Yeah, me, too.
I mean, let Morgan have some fun.
Whoa.
Where's everybody going? Well, um Knight's going to sleep, I'm going to a concert, and McGee is he's being McGee.
Any plans tonight, Parker? Yeah.
In Norfolk.
- What's in Norfolk? - The four of us, investigating a break-in on base housing.
It all happened so fast.
Move! No! Lucas! - You know what? You're lucky.
- Yeah.
We could've been killed.
- Anything taken? - Uh, no.
Anyone know you're supposed to be out of town? Command knew that I was taking leave.
But I'm not surprised this happened.
I've heard there's been a string of break-ins on base lately.
Well, not just lately.
There's one happening right now.
That was Torres.
He's with base security.
They just got a report of a suspicious man entering a home.
- Where? - Two minutes from here.
McGee's on his way there now.
You want to go open a can of whup-ass on this guy? Works for me.
All right, we'll be in touch.
What do we know, McGee? Neighbors haven't seen anyone come out.
I got the back.
Suspect could still be inside.
Assume he's armed.
In position.
We got the front.
Door's open.
Clear.
What was that? Silencer? It's coming from the basement.
That's fresh blood.
NCIS! Five-O! Run! Stop! No one's going anywhere.
I'm just saying, who breaks into somebody's house to have a party? I never did anything like that when I lived on base.
And where were those kids' parents? And it took forever, man.
I was at security until 1:00 in the morning, waiting for these brats to get picked up.
I'm jealous.
We were processing vomit at Casa Party.
I'm a federal agent, man.
I'm not a babysitter.
Hey.
Good news.
The blood you found on the carpet Rhinovirus DNA confirms that it was a nosebleed.
You know, kids Notoriously thin capillaries.
Fascinating.
I don't know how you guys can be so grumpy.
We have free breakfast right here.
I got a sleep score of 42 last night.
Yeah, and I'm gonna need more than a babka to make up for missing my first concert in two years.
Yeah, and I missed my parent-teacher conference, so Delilah let Morgan wear the dress again.
God, is that where this is headed? One day, your daughter's wearing her princess dress, won't take it off.
Next day, she's committing felony trespassing? Okay, yeah, grumpy it is.
We got bigger problems than a dress right now anyway.
Not that your home situation - isn't important.
- But I just spoke to the Norfolk base commander.
There's been six break-ins in the last three months.
And why is this our problem and not base security's? Because the doors at Norfolk unlock via QR codes that refresh every 20 minutes.
The only way to get into a resident's home is either break in or with one of those codes.
And there were no signs of a break-in.
Which means what? To be honest, I didn't hear anything after "QR codes.
" It means that someone hacked into the base's central security system and generated fake codes.
That's a pretty serious security breach.
And pretty impressive for a bunch of teenagers.
We need to get them in here and find out how they hacked the system before the base's security is breached for something far worse than a house party.
Start with that kid on the nanny cam.
Thanks for bringing him in, Mrs.
Richter.
Of course.
We've got nothing to hide.
Noah's a good kid.
More of a follower, though.
I'm sure he just got swept up in whatever the cool kids were doing.
Noah, please answer the question with something - other than a grunt.
- Huh.
It was a party.
Not like we hurt anyone.
None of your friends hurt anyone.
But you did.
You're on video, attacking a petty officer.
That's not me.
You are literally still wearing the same sweatshirt.
For the record, none of the, uh, cool kids committed felony assault.
That little Excuse me.
Should I go get her? No, no, no, no.
Let her go.
Let her go.
Noah Patrick Henry Richter, you better sit up straight and put that listening cap on! - Yes, ma'am.
- I will take your phone, sell your laptop and melt your PlayStation unless you tell me everything! - The parties were my idea.
- What?! We need to bring in suspects' parents more often.
Good cop, mom cop.
We were just trying to have some fun.
What kind of fun were you having in the Monizes' house alone? I was pre-scouting for the party that night.
How did you get the QR codes to enter the houses? I found, um a backdoor channel and hacked into the multi-net.
Son, I love you, but you're not even smart enough to take off the clothes you committed a crime in.
You've been wearing the same hoodie for a week.
Oh, my God.
That ishow it starts.
You couldn't hack a thing.
Who are you covering for, Noah? No one.
It's that girl, isn't it? What girl? Teagan something.
He's been in love with her since the moment she moved in three months ago.
We've got a Teagan Fields in the conference room.
She was supposed to be at a sleepover last night when she snuck out for the party.
Still waiting for her guardians to arrive.
All right.
Let's go introduce ourselves.
Teagan.
Hi.
I'm Agent McGee.
Can I go now? Um, we can only release you to a parent or a guardian.
Because your mom is on deployment, your uncle is on the way.
So I'm stuck here.
And my phone's at three percent.
Just kill me now.
Or we could just get you a charger.
Finally.
A useful adult.
After you tell us about the parties.
So, a few of us base kids hung out in some empty houses.
- Sue us.
- Funny, the residents might do just that.
Your boyfriend Noah said that you were the one that hacked into the keyless entry system.
Ew.
Noah's not my boyfriend.
No? Then why did he cover for you? He likes me.
He's sweet, but kind of mid, you know? This is my boyfriend.
Jayden.
He's valid.
So, um, Teagan, hacking into the, uh, base server, that's, uh, that's pretty impressive.
JavaScript or Python? Neither.
C programming all the way.
Yeah, you don't find that too restrictive? Python and Java may seem easier, but only 'cause they hide their complexities from the Luddite users.
Ouch.
I'm-a go get that charger.
Teagan, how long you been a hacker? I prefer "open source developer.
" And as long as I've been a military brat.
Seven schools in four years.
12 in six for me.
Got me beat.
It was, uh, it was my father's world, I was just living in it.
For me, it's my mom.
I'm pretty much invisible.
I was always, uh, jealous of those kids that didn't have to move around a lot.
Yeah.
Must be nice.
Teagan, we really need to know how you hacked into the base's central security system.
I used a backdoor-embedding algorithm to bypass the detection subroutine in the keyless entry app's code.
You exploited a flaw in the system.
I can open almost any door on base.
Or even hack visitor logs to generate access codes and get someone on base.
Okay, Teagan, you know that you created a major security hazard, right? No one knows the algorithm but me.
You sure about that? A hundred percent.
And last night was my last party, obviously, so we good? Not good.
Agent McGee.
Base commander just called.
There was another break-in last night - on base housing.
- Another party? I don't think so.
It happened after all the kids were in custody.
But the same QR code hack was used.
Well, Teagan says she's the only one that knows that algorithm.
Well, either she's lying and shared it with someone Or someone stole it from her.
She hacked into a military base.
She is not the victim here.
Well, I don't know, maybe she is.
I don't know, she sounds pretty alone.
I could relate to that at her age.
We're not that different.
You weren't a terrorist hacker as a teen.
Yeah, but why? What makes the difference between me and her? You mean, did Teagan's parents let her wear the same Cure T-shirt over and over? Kinda.
Yeah.
And she's not a terrorist.
Okay? They were just trying to have some fun.
Well, they had fun.
And now somebody has the master key to our base at Norfolk.
Parker and I are gonna go check it out.
Resident is Lieutenant Carl Tang.
Came home from leave this morning.
Could tell somebody was in his house.
And we know it wasn't the kids.
Well, doesn't mean they weren't involved.
Well, McGee sure seems to think that Teagan is innocent, though.
Yeah, 'cause he relates to her.
I take it you don't? Well, my dad dragged me all over the world, too, with his career, but I didn't turn out to be a teenage menace.
Oh, we all can't be like the great Jessica Knight.
Oh, that's right.
You were a teenage menace, too.
I straightened myself out eventually.
Hopefully, Teagan will do the same.
Yeah, that's what McGee says, but we all know this is how it starts, and then Lieutenant Carl Tang.
Surface warfare officer.
Lived alone.
Neighbors say he was quiet.
Liked to spend his free time at a base hobby club.
Nice.
Homemade camera from an old tin can.
This man was an inventor.
Maybe this was an accident.
Something, uh, Tang was working on exploded? Right after his house got broken into? Coincidence? I think your former boss had a rule against them.
But that Rule 62? That man was ahead of his time.
I do my homework.
Got something.
I don't think this wiring is part of the TV.
It looks like some kind of detonator.
Clever.
Inside the TV.
Probably used the remote as a trigger.
Tang was targeted.
Why? Well, it was Teagan's algorithm that opened the door.
Let's ask her.
Well, I can talk to her again, but she's not big on sharing.
Try not to get eaten alive.
Knight, you're with me.
Let's go check out Lieutenant Tang's hobby club.
Excuse me, ladies.
Agent Parker, NCIS.
This is Agent Knight.
This your club? Oh, it's everybody's club.
Claudia.
Aviation electrician's mate.
Retired.
Ramona.
I was a Seabee for 20 years.
I oversee builds.
You mind if we ask you a few questions about one of your fellow members? You can ask me anything.
Ditto.
I'm an open book.
You can pick the genre.
Feel free to read as much as you'd like.
Looks like you have this handled.
Did we get your first name? Alden.
Oh, did anyone ever tell you that you have fantastic hair, Alden? Uh, Lieutenant Tang.
Did you know him by any chance? Did? Is Carl okay? There was, uh, an explosion on base this morning.
That was Carl's house? Oh, no, he was the sweetest man.
You notice anything off about him recently? Uh, any unusual behavior? Well, now that you mention it, yeah.
He's been pretty stressed since he started his shore assignment.
He used to come here every night to unwind.
What do you like to do to unwind after work, Alden? Yeah, people always say it, but he was a really nice guy.
Nice enough for someone to plant a bomb in his house? I assume you checked his Footman.
Tang had a-a servant? On a military base? No, the Footman 7000.
It was his pride and joy.
H-He took an off-the-shelf security system and modified it with an integrated CRM platform.
Right.
Which would do what? I-It used an A.
I.
to learn about his guests.
Their preferred air temp, their musical tastes, even their biometric data.
Housed it in a robotic platform that would greet people as they walked in.
Wow, that's creepy.
If you can find it, it might have recorded all sorts of data on who was in his house.
Is my uncle here yet? Yeah, he pulled into the parking lot.
- Great, so can I go now? - No.
No, I, um, I needed to talk to you first.
It'll be quick.
Okay.
What? This man.
Lieutenant Tang.
Do you know him? Never heard of him.
Somebody broke into his house and planted a bomb.
What's that have to do with me? They used your algorithm to get inside.
Now he's dead.
Wait.
You think I had something to do with this? That's not what I'm saying.
Then what are you saying? I'm saying that I think maybe you're not being completely honest with me.
You're just like everyone else.
You don't get it.
You're right.
There's a lot about kids I don't get.
Like why my four-year-old insists on wearing a princess dress every day.
You're comparing me to a four-year-old? No.
No, I'm just saying, maybe today it's princess dresses, and tomorrow it's hacking government buildings.
Maybe you should listen to what she wants.
I do.
Whatever.
Hey.
Right now I'm listening to you.
And if you tell me that you didn't give this algorithm to anyone, fine.
But maybe there's something that you don't know but you know.
You know what I'm saying? Just start from the beginning.
Why did you hack the base server? What did you want? To fit in.
You seem pretty popular to me.
I was a total hermit before I met Jayden on BratChat.
Is that the social media app that you military kids use? I wish I had something like that when I was your age.
We, like, instantly clicked.
He saw how lonely I was, he convinced me to hang out with some of the other base kids.
I finally have friends here, Agent McGee.
I'm happy.
I didn't have anything to do with that explosion.
I believe you.
You find Tang's robot friend? No security system of any kind inside the house.
Could've been destroyed in the blast.
Or maybe someone stole it.
Well, if I was the killer, I sure wouldn't leave behind any kind of incriminating evidence.
All right, so let's try motive, which we are, uh, sorely missing.
So, Tang recently returned from his third sea tour.
CO said his transition to shore was rocky.
Claudia did say that he was having a difficult time at work.
And who's Claudia? President of the Alden Parker Fan Club.
Oh, I need to hear this story.
Hey, wait.
Did either of you see a safe inside of the house, by any chance? Don't think so.
Why? Surface warfare officers work with ONR on experimental weapons, so he would have access to some pretty sensitive information.
And he'd want to keep that secure.
Yeah, weapons intel could sell for big bucks on the underground arms market.
Hold on.
Go back one.
There.
Indentations in the carpet.
Okay, if that was a safe, it's missing now.
And whatever's inside of it.
So, who are we looking for? Foreign intelligence service, maybe an arms dealer.
And a lead is flying in as we speak.
What, is the elevator down again? I wouldn't know.
I took the stairs to boost my Halo activity score for the week.
Which I am crushing, by the way.
Kasie's beating you on sleep and activity? It's not a contest.
Yeah, except for the part where it's a contest.
How many points you got there, Jess? Okay, can we get to the point of your visit? Ah, I am also crushing my case-solving score.
Ah, someone just listed an item matching the description of Lieutenant Tang's creepy little robot butler.
Well, maybe whoever has that also has our mystery safe.
Can you track down the seller's GPS? Is my activity score through the roof right now? Robot guy should be right over here.
Well, that doesn't look obvious at all.
Look at that bootleg WALL-E.
Federal agents.
Gonna need both of you to step against the wall, please.
Hey, we were just talking.
NCIS! Turn it off! Turn it off now! Get out of the car.
Do you know what I did to the last person who tried to run me over? Let them go? Take off your hat.
How old are you? Eighteen.
And a half.
A little young to be an arms dealer.
Huh? You've got the wrong guy.
I'm not an international arms dealer.
Oh, we figured that one out.
And yet you still have a safe full of sensitive military manuals in your trunk.
Weird, huh? You know what's also weird? A dead Navy lieutenant.
I got no idea who that is.
That's the guy you robbed.
And blew up.
See, that's why he's missing half a face.
I didn't blow anybody up.
So you just robbed him? No, I'm the one who was robbed.
Who puts books in a safe? I figured it was jewelry or cash.
So you expect us to believe that you just randomly picked a house to rob hours before a bomb exploded in the living room? I didn't say it was random.
He was supposed to be out of town.
And how do you know that? Lucky guess.
Sailors get deployed - all the time.
- Try again, Zack.
Or maybe we just charge you with murder.
Okay.
It was my brother.
Noah? You guys picked him up the other night? Hoodie boy? Your brother is Noah Richter? Half brother.
Different dads.
Wait till mom cop finds out about this.
His friends like to sneak into empty houses to party.
I figured if anyone noticed anything missing, - they'd get the blame.
- Hmm.
Classy.
But the kids never partied in Lieutenant Tang's house.
No, but they were going to.
And how do you know that? Because I saw the invite on that girl's BratChat thread.
That girl wouldn't be named Teagan, by any chance? She told McGee that she never heard of Lieutenant Tang.
This is Teagan's invite for the party at Lieutenant Tang's house.
She knew exactly who he was.
- She lied to me.
- Why? There's got to be some connection between 'em that we're missing.
And I think I know what it is.
That was Navy Personnel Command.
Tang's shore assignment was in the Second Fleet - Operations Center.
- Right.
Guess whose ship is currently assigned to the Second Fleet.
Chief Petty Officer Melissa Fields.
Teagan's mother.
She's an EOD tech aboard the USS Wilmington.
Tang's responsibility was managing the Wilmington's deployments, and I don't think Teagan would be a fan of his work.
Our victim was about to deploy Teagan's mom to Latvia.
Teagan would have to move again.
But with Tang dead, maybe that deployment doesn't go through.
I think we found our motive.
No.
No, no.
No way.
People have killed for less.
She's a kid.
Hey, I lived with my sister for a week while my niece was in middle school.
The sky is the limit when it comes to puberty.
Okay, don't tell me that.
Please don't tell me that.
Let me go to her house and talk to her, okay? Let me see what she has to say before we haul her in.
Uh, Jimmy wants to talk to me.
Good luck, McGee.
You're probably gonna need it.
I was really hoping not to see this guy again.
This better be worth it.
It is.
I may have an answer as to what killed our lieutenant.
It wasn't the, uh, you know, kaboom? Well, yeah, uh, m-more specifically, it was the shrapnel inside of the kaboom.
U-Uh, but this was no ordinary hardware store IED filled with nails.
In fact, figuring out what it was filled with has been quite the journey.
Skip to the destination.
According to Kasie, the shrapnel inside is over 100 years old and has been degraded by highly acidic soil.
I'm stumped already.
Yeah, so was Kasie.
She recommended we find a metallurgist.
Now, after Agent Knight told us about her trip to Hawai'i, I knew just who to call.
Wait, what did Knight say about me? May I present Ernie Malik from the Pearl Harbor field office.
Nice to meet you, Ernie.
No, no, no, come on, come on.
Wh-What, what did she say about me? I don't recall any specifics.
I think she said he was the smartest guy she's ever met.
- She said that about me? - I don't think she said that.
Yes.
Will So, will Jess be joining us down here? Uh, afraid not.
Just me.
Alden Parker.
Oh.
Supervisory Special Agent Alden Parker.
Of course.
Um, as, uh, Jimmy alluded to, I have extensive knowledge of metallurgy.
As well as world military history, it turns out.
So, the killer built this bomb using pieces from an old artillery shell found in the Alsace region of France.
One of thousands left over from WWI.
Any idea how parts from a World War I explosive ended up in our victim's skull? No idea.
But if you call Jess down, maybe we can brainstorm.
Uh, thanks, Ernie.
Bye.
Wait.
Poor guy.
Seems kind of desperate.
Uh, now back to that, uh, antique bomb.
Maybe it's not such a bad idea to have Agent Knight come down here to brainstorm.
Don't need her.
I think I just figured out how those old bomb parts ended up in Tang's skull.
- How? - Ever wonder why an EOD bomb tech gets assigned to Latvia? No.
And why do you look so worried all of a sudden? I'm NCIS Special Agent McGee.
I need to talk to your niece.
You sure you want to talk to her? She's upstairs in her room.
In a mood.
Yeah, it's pretty important.
Okay.
I'm gonna send her a text, because, uh, Teagan's incapable of hearing my voice - while she has her cell.
- Ah.
Does Teagan's mom know about her little breaking and entering problem? Her team is on radio silence until mission is complete.
She's gonna blow a gasket when she finds out.
What, that her daughter was arrested or that it was during your watch? Oh, geez.
My sister's gonna kill me.
Look, don't beat yourself up, okay? I'm going through the same thing myself.
My kids are four years old.
That's a great age.
When Teagan was four, we'd play pony for hours on end.
Now she doesn't even come out of her room.
Well, except, apparently, to break the law.
Well, that's a comforting thought.
Yeah.
Parker, yeah.
What's up? You need to bring Teagan back to NCIS now.
Why? What's going on? It looks like she built the bomb, McGee.
Wait, bomb? What are you talking about? Do you know why her mom was being reassigned to Latvia? Because she specializes in pre-1950s ordnance disposal.
The stuff left over from our old wars.
Yeah, I can see she really knows her stuff here.
Yeah, she's not the only one.
The bomb was built with old ordnance parts.
Which Teagan would have known about from her mom's work.
Teagan? - What's going on? Hey.
Hey.
- Teagan! Teagan? What's going on? - Can you open this? - No way.
You can't enter a teenager's space uninvited.
Teagan, we're coming in.
What the hell is going on?! You got to be kidding me.
Where is she?! Agent Parker, are you telling me my daughter is gone? NCIS has teams looking for her as we speak.
She's had it rough the last few years.
Moving, fitting in.
Evidence doesn't look good.
Running looks worse.
It doesn't make any sense.
She's been so happy since we came to Norfolk.
I think that's the problem.
Any idea where she'd go? Or maybe who she'd go to? There was a boy.
Um, Noah, I think.
I heard her mention him a few times, but she doesn't open up to me about her love life.
Yeah, Noah is not, uh, not Teagan's boyfriend.
- I mean, he wishes, but - He's too mid.
No, she's with Jayden.
Jayden's valid.
There's no way she's still with that Jayden kid.
I know that much.
What makes you say that? He was supposed to be her date to the Military Child of the Year gala, but he blew her off last minute.
That was the first time they were gonna meet in person.
She was inconsolable.
Wait, did you say that they never met in person? No.
And you don't think that was strange? Yes, but a lot of things about kids today are strange to me.
There's a reason Teagan never met this kid in person.
Because "Jayden" doesn't exist.
He looks like he exists.
That's actually a combination of stock photos.
Check this out.
Teagan was catfished.
Someone with a fake I.
D.
lured her into a relationship.
Which is terrifying.
You got a real I.
D.
? Working on it.
He says he's a 15-year-old from Oceanside, but metadata from his BratChat account suggests he's actually around 40.
Lives in Reston.
Yeah, that's a lot of suspects.
Any idea what he's after? Well, usually, these romance scams are used to steal someone's credit card.
Except Teagan doesn't have one.
Well, it has to have something to do with Tang's murder.
When did Teagan and whoever this guy is start talking? Uh, around three months ago.
That's right when the break-ins started.
And I doubt that that was a coincidence.
No luck on Teagan's BOLO yet.
But we pulled her cell records and recovered a bunch of deleted messages between her and Jayden.
He was the one that talked her into hacking the base server so that people could break into the houses.
He spent a lot of time asking about her mom's EOD experience.
Let me guess.
He asked for the master key to get on base? Yeah.
And she gave it to him.
Teagan did not kill Tang.
The catfisher set her up, used her to get on base.
Then built a bomb using parts that we would trace back to her.
All right, just-just stay with me.
So what is this guy's beef with Tang? We got to find out who he is.
Which means we have to find Teagan.
She just went online.
McGee.
Yeah.
Tapping into her message feed.
Waiting for him where? You got a location? Shopping center in Reston.
But Tang is dead.
Why-why would he risk meeting Teagan in person? To tie up loose ends.
Let's move.
It went straight to voice mail again.
Maybe she's screening your calls.
Or maybe we're too late.
Think positive, McGee.
We need to get Teagan off-site quietly.
If she makes a scene and the killer sees, we lose our shot at catching him.
I have a feeling she's not gonna go quietly.
Hey, Knight, do you have eyes? I just tapped into the CCTV, but half of these cameras are off-line.
Can you get them back on line? Uh this is really McGee's territory.
Sorry, he's our Teagan whisperer.
We need his boots on the ground.
Whoa, whoa.
Hold up, hold up.
Nine o'clock.
Yeah, I see her.
All right, get her in the van.
We'll wait in the wings in case the killer shows.
You waiting for someone? Not that it's any of your business, but I'm waiting for my boyfriend.
Let me guess, it was Jayden's idea for you to sneak out the window? Just like it was Jayden's idea to break into those houses? You don't know anything about him, okay? Actually, you got that backwards, Teagan.
What's that supposed to mean? We called Camp Pendleton.
There's no record of Jayden or his family.
Kasie discovered the picture on BratChat was fake.
You know, Jayden told me not to trust you.
That's because he's not real, Teagan.
He's a bad man and he's trying to set you up for murder.
Stop trying to pull some cop trick on me.
It's not gonna work.
Why would I lie to you, Teagan? Because if you're not lying, then you're saying the one person who ever got me isn't real.
I get you.
Heard that before.
I'm serious, Teagan.
I get you, in every way.
You You are an amazing kid.
You are funny, you are so smart.
Killer taste in music.
A little too sarcastic for your own good, but I don't know, it kind of suits you.
One other thing.
You told me to listen to what my daughter wants.
You know, just because she's four, doesn't mean that what she wants isn't important.
I need you to listen to me now, okay? What you want isn't real.
So right now I need you to come with me, okay? Nicely done, McGee.
We're gonna catch this guy in a van? Yep, we tapped into the mall's surveillance system.
We're going off Kasie's suspect profile.
- There's only one problem.
- What? We don't even know what he looks like.
He knows what I look like.
You could use me as bait.
- So not happening.
- Absolutely not, no.
We can't let him get away.
There is no "we" in this situation.
I'm open to the kid's ideas.
Hack his phone.
We tried that.
It's not on.
I can turn it on.
If you let me.
Have at it.
I can get access to his phone via the BratChat code.
Is this like the tenth law you've broken in two days? Arrest me later.
You used his profile to install a backdoor on his phone months ago? I installed a backdoor on anyone's phone I gave a key to, in case I needed to revoke it.
Okay, I'm in.
I don't have access to his GPS, but I can turn the volume on his ringer all the way up.
All right, let's give him a call.
People don't call anymore, Agent McGee, they text.
You hear that? It's coming from over there.
Keep going, Teagan.
We're getting close.
Torres.
Your 12.
NCIS! Don't move.
Get out of the way! Out of the way! Get on the ground now.
I said get down.
Torres, cuff him.
Nice work, Teagan.
I can't believe I was talking to a homeless Kenny G.
Well done.
His real name is Jason Samuels.
He did seven years on a hit-and-run.
It turns out it was Lieutenant Tang's eyewitness testimony that sent him to prison.
Yeah, his cellmate said that he was obsessed with getting revenge.
And he tried framing Teagan with bomb parts that he bought on the dark web.
Pretty mid.
Very mid.
I appreciate the effort, but you guys should stick with old people talk.
I think she's talking about you.
I can't believe I fell for it.
I should've known.
Don't beat yourself up.
This guy was plotting his revenge while you were still learning how to read.
I was reading at three.
Either way, we would not have caught Samuels without you.
You're welcome.
Bold.
I like this girl.
You know, Teagan, if my daughter is anything like you when she grows up, I'm gonna be very proud.
You'll be proud of her anyway.
She's lucky to have you as a dad.
Why do you say that? You're a good listener.
- Teagan.
- Mom? - Mom! - Honey.
Oh, I'm so glad you're okay.
Thank God.
I thought you were gonna kill me.
Oh, I am.
But right now I just want to hug you.
That's your future, McGee.
You know, minus the, uh, brushes with the law, I hope.
Are you okay? I missed you.
Oh, you're in for it, Tim.
Yeah, well, then I guess I'll enjoy the, uh, princess dress phase while it lasts.
So you say.
Cynthia, I didn't create a tropical depression over the Gulf of Mexico.
Maybe you manifested it.
You would do anything to get out of spending a week with my mother.
I love your mother.
Ish.
Oh, no, not again.
Lucas, did you close all the windows before we left, like I asked? Of course, dear.
Well, then how did the neighbor's cat get in again? Oh, my God.
Nana's vase.
That is it.
- Where are you going? - I am going full Karen on the neighbors! They need to leash that furball! We don't have proof that it was the Nelsons' cat.
Yes, we do.
See? It sensed motion right before we came in.
It's that damn cat.
Babe, that's not a cat.
Oh, my God, somebody was in our house.
Cynthia, I didn't create a tropical depression over the Gulf of Mexico.
Maybe you manifested it.
You would do anything to get out of spending a week with my mother.
I love your mother.
He still is.
Oh, no, not again.
Well, I got to say, today was a pretty good day.
Yeah, no murders.
No one missing.
I got to re-sand my Zen garden, which was looking not so Zen.
Hey, I say we slip out early.
I got big plans.
Sounds good.
I've got plans, too.
Oh, you go first.
What you got? Well, I plan on being in bed by 9:00.
Kasie and I got these Halo Views that give you a nightly sleep score.
And Kasie got a 91 the other night.
And I plan on getting a 92.
Wow.
How incredibly exciting.
I have someplace to be as well.
Let me guess In bed by 8:30 and you're going for a 93? No.
Delilah and I have a meeting at Morgan's preschool.
Is everything okay? Yes and no.
See, Morgan's been insisting on wearing a, uh, princess dress to school every single day.
Well, that's adorable.
You know, when I was her age, I wore a mask and carried a spatula everywhere.
I made my mom call me Zorro.
I turned out just fine.
- That's debatable.
- Come on.
But, seriously, a cute little princess dress That's harmless enough, yeah? Well, the school's saying that there's peer issues, and, you know, I don't want her getting picked on.
Wait, but didn't you used to wear a magician outfit all the time when you were a kid? Yeah, and I got picked on.
I bet you looked good in a top hat.
Thank you.
But we were on my father's O-3 salary, so top hats were kind of a luxury.
Maybe you're overreacting? You sound like Delilah.
She thinks that Morgan's just going through a phase.
I'm Team Delilah on this.
Yeah, me, too.
I mean, let Morgan have some fun.
Whoa.
Where's everybody going? Well, um Knight's going to sleep, I'm going to a concert, and McGee is he's being McGee.
Any plans tonight, Parker? Yeah.
In Norfolk.
- What's in Norfolk? - The four of us, investigating a break-in on base housing.
It all happened so fast.
Move! No! Lucas! - You know what? You're lucky.
- Yeah.
We could've been killed.
- Anything taken? - Uh, no.
Anyone know you're supposed to be out of town? Command knew that I was taking leave.
But I'm not surprised this happened.
I've heard there's been a string of break-ins on base lately.
Well, not just lately.
There's one happening right now.
That was Torres.
He's with base security.
They just got a report of a suspicious man entering a home.
- Where? - Two minutes from here.
McGee's on his way there now.
You want to go open a can of whup-ass on this guy? Works for me.
All right, we'll be in touch.
What do we know, McGee? Neighbors haven't seen anyone come out.
I got the back.
Suspect could still be inside.
Assume he's armed.
In position.
We got the front.
Door's open.
Clear.
What was that? Silencer? It's coming from the basement.
That's fresh blood.
NCIS! Five-O! Run! Stop! No one's going anywhere.
I'm just saying, who breaks into somebody's house to have a party? I never did anything like that when I lived on base.
And where were those kids' parents? And it took forever, man.
I was at security until 1:00 in the morning, waiting for these brats to get picked up.
I'm jealous.
We were processing vomit at Casa Party.
I'm a federal agent, man.
I'm not a babysitter.
Hey.
Good news.
The blood you found on the carpet Rhinovirus DNA confirms that it was a nosebleed.
You know, kids Notoriously thin capillaries.
Fascinating.
I don't know how you guys can be so grumpy.
We have free breakfast right here.
I got a sleep score of 42 last night.
Yeah, and I'm gonna need more than a babka to make up for missing my first concert in two years.
Yeah, and I missed my parent-teacher conference, so Delilah let Morgan wear the dress again.
God, is that where this is headed? One day, your daughter's wearing her princess dress, won't take it off.
Next day, she's committing felony trespassing? Okay, yeah, grumpy it is.
We got bigger problems than a dress right now anyway.
Not that your home situation - isn't important.
- But I just spoke to the Norfolk base commander.
There's been six break-ins in the last three months.
And why is this our problem and not base security's? Because the doors at Norfolk unlock via QR codes that refresh every 20 minutes.
The only way to get into a resident's home is either break in or with one of those codes.
And there were no signs of a break-in.
Which means what? To be honest, I didn't hear anything after "QR codes.
" It means that someone hacked into the base's central security system and generated fake codes.
That's a pretty serious security breach.
And pretty impressive for a bunch of teenagers.
We need to get them in here and find out how they hacked the system before the base's security is breached for something far worse than a house party.
Start with that kid on the nanny cam.
Thanks for bringing him in, Mrs.
Richter.
Of course.
We've got nothing to hide.
Noah's a good kid.
More of a follower, though.
I'm sure he just got swept up in whatever the cool kids were doing.
Noah, please answer the question with something - other than a grunt.
- Huh.
It was a party.
Not like we hurt anyone.
None of your friends hurt anyone.
But you did.
You're on video, attacking a petty officer.
That's not me.
You are literally still wearing the same sweatshirt.
For the record, none of the, uh, cool kids committed felony assault.
That little Excuse me.
Should I go get her? No, no, no, no.
Let her go.
Let her go.
Noah Patrick Henry Richter, you better sit up straight and put that listening cap on! - Yes, ma'am.
- I will take your phone, sell your laptop and melt your PlayStation unless you tell me everything! - The parties were my idea.
- What?! We need to bring in suspects' parents more often.
Good cop, mom cop.
We were just trying to have some fun.
What kind of fun were you having in the Monizes' house alone? I was pre-scouting for the party that night.
How did you get the QR codes to enter the houses? I found, um a backdoor channel and hacked into the multi-net.
Son, I love you, but you're not even smart enough to take off the clothes you committed a crime in.
You've been wearing the same hoodie for a week.
Oh, my God.
That ishow it starts.
You couldn't hack a thing.
Who are you covering for, Noah? No one.
It's that girl, isn't it? What girl? Teagan something.
He's been in love with her since the moment she moved in three months ago.
We've got a Teagan Fields in the conference room.
She was supposed to be at a sleepover last night when she snuck out for the party.
Still waiting for her guardians to arrive.
All right.
Let's go introduce ourselves.
Teagan.
Hi.
I'm Agent McGee.
Can I go now? Um, we can only release you to a parent or a guardian.
Because your mom is on deployment, your uncle is on the way.
So I'm stuck here.
And my phone's at three percent.
Just kill me now.
Or we could just get you a charger.
Finally.
A useful adult.
After you tell us about the parties.
So, a few of us base kids hung out in some empty houses.
- Sue us.
- Funny, the residents might do just that.
Your boyfriend Noah said that you were the one that hacked into the keyless entry system.
Ew.
Noah's not my boyfriend.
No? Then why did he cover for you? He likes me.
He's sweet, but kind of mid, you know? This is my boyfriend.
Jayden.
He's valid.
So, um, Teagan, hacking into the, uh, base server, that's, uh, that's pretty impressive.
JavaScript or Python? Neither.
C programming all the way.
Yeah, you don't find that too restrictive? Python and Java may seem easier, but only 'cause they hide their complexities from the Luddite users.
Ouch.
I'm-a go get that charger.
Teagan, how long you been a hacker? I prefer "open source developer.
" And as long as I've been a military brat.
Seven schools in four years.
12 in six for me.
Got me beat.
It was, uh, it was my father's world, I was just living in it.
For me, it's my mom.
I'm pretty much invisible.
I was always, uh, jealous of those kids that didn't have to move around a lot.
Yeah.
Must be nice.
Teagan, we really need to know how you hacked into the base's central security system.
I used a backdoor-embedding algorithm to bypass the detection subroutine in the keyless entry app's code.
You exploited a flaw in the system.
I can open almost any door on base.
Or even hack visitor logs to generate access codes and get someone on base.
Okay, Teagan, you know that you created a major security hazard, right? No one knows the algorithm but me.
You sure about that? A hundred percent.
And last night was my last party, obviously, so we good? Not good.
Agent McGee.
Base commander just called.
There was another break-in last night - on base housing.
- Another party? I don't think so.
It happened after all the kids were in custody.
But the same QR code hack was used.
Well, Teagan says she's the only one that knows that algorithm.
Well, either she's lying and shared it with someone Or someone stole it from her.
She hacked into a military base.
She is not the victim here.
Well, I don't know, maybe she is.
I don't know, she sounds pretty alone.
I could relate to that at her age.
We're not that different.
You weren't a terrorist hacker as a teen.
Yeah, but why? What makes the difference between me and her? You mean, did Teagan's parents let her wear the same Cure T-shirt over and over? Kinda.
Yeah.
And she's not a terrorist.
Okay? They were just trying to have some fun.
Well, they had fun.
And now somebody has the master key to our base at Norfolk.
Parker and I are gonna go check it out.
Resident is Lieutenant Carl Tang.
Came home from leave this morning.
Could tell somebody was in his house.
And we know it wasn't the kids.
Well, doesn't mean they weren't involved.
Well, McGee sure seems to think that Teagan is innocent, though.
Yeah, 'cause he relates to her.
I take it you don't? Well, my dad dragged me all over the world, too, with his career, but I didn't turn out to be a teenage menace.
Oh, we all can't be like the great Jessica Knight.
Oh, that's right.
You were a teenage menace, too.
I straightened myself out eventually.
Hopefully, Teagan will do the same.
Yeah, that's what McGee says, but we all know this is how it starts, and then Lieutenant Carl Tang.
Surface warfare officer.
Lived alone.
Neighbors say he was quiet.
Liked to spend his free time at a base hobby club.
Nice.
Homemade camera from an old tin can.
This man was an inventor.
Maybe this was an accident.
Something, uh, Tang was working on exploded? Right after his house got broken into? Coincidence? I think your former boss had a rule against them.
But that Rule 62? That man was ahead of his time.
I do my homework.
Got something.
I don't think this wiring is part of the TV.
It looks like some kind of detonator.
Clever.
Inside the TV.
Probably used the remote as a trigger.
Tang was targeted.
Why? Well, it was Teagan's algorithm that opened the door.
Let's ask her.
Well, I can talk to her again, but she's not big on sharing.
Try not to get eaten alive.
Knight, you're with me.
Let's go check out Lieutenant Tang's hobby club.
Excuse me, ladies.
Agent Parker, NCIS.
This is Agent Knight.
This your club? Oh, it's everybody's club.
Claudia.
Aviation electrician's mate.
Retired.
Ramona.
I was a Seabee for 20 years.
I oversee builds.
You mind if we ask you a few questions about one of your fellow members? You can ask me anything.
Ditto.
I'm an open book.
You can pick the genre.
Feel free to read as much as you'd like.
Looks like you have this handled.
Did we get your first name? Alden.
Oh, did anyone ever tell you that you have fantastic hair, Alden? Uh, Lieutenant Tang.
Did you know him by any chance? Did? Is Carl okay? There was, uh, an explosion on base this morning.
That was Carl's house? Oh, no, he was the sweetest man.
You notice anything off about him recently? Uh, any unusual behavior? Well, now that you mention it, yeah.
He's been pretty stressed since he started his shore assignment.
He used to come here every night to unwind.
What do you like to do to unwind after work, Alden? Yeah, people always say it, but he was a really nice guy.
Nice enough for someone to plant a bomb in his house? I assume you checked his Footman.
Tang had a-a servant? On a military base? No, the Footman 7000.
It was his pride and joy.
H-He took an off-the-shelf security system and modified it with an integrated CRM platform.
Right.
Which would do what? I-It used an A.
I.
to learn about his guests.
Their preferred air temp, their musical tastes, even their biometric data.
Housed it in a robotic platform that would greet people as they walked in.
Wow, that's creepy.
If you can find it, it might have recorded all sorts of data on who was in his house.
Is my uncle here yet? Yeah, he pulled into the parking lot.
- Great, so can I go now? - No.
No, I, um, I needed to talk to you first.
It'll be quick.
Okay.
What? This man.
Lieutenant Tang.
Do you know him? Never heard of him.
Somebody broke into his house and planted a bomb.
What's that have to do with me? They used your algorithm to get inside.
Now he's dead.
Wait.
You think I had something to do with this? That's not what I'm saying.
Then what are you saying? I'm saying that I think maybe you're not being completely honest with me.
You're just like everyone else.
You don't get it.
You're right.
There's a lot about kids I don't get.
Like why my four-year-old insists on wearing a princess dress every day.
You're comparing me to a four-year-old? No.
No, I'm just saying, maybe today it's princess dresses, and tomorrow it's hacking government buildings.
Maybe you should listen to what she wants.
I do.
Whatever.
Hey.
Right now I'm listening to you.
And if you tell me that you didn't give this algorithm to anyone, fine.
But maybe there's something that you don't know but you know.
You know what I'm saying? Just start from the beginning.
Why did you hack the base server? What did you want? To fit in.
You seem pretty popular to me.
I was a total hermit before I met Jayden on BratChat.
Is that the social media app that you military kids use? I wish I had something like that when I was your age.
We, like, instantly clicked.
He saw how lonely I was, he convinced me to hang out with some of the other base kids.
I finally have friends here, Agent McGee.
I'm happy.
I didn't have anything to do with that explosion.
I believe you.
You find Tang's robot friend? No security system of any kind inside the house.
Could've been destroyed in the blast.
Or maybe someone stole it.
Well, if I was the killer, I sure wouldn't leave behind any kind of incriminating evidence.
All right, so let's try motive, which we are, uh, sorely missing.
So, Tang recently returned from his third sea tour.
CO said his transition to shore was rocky.
Claudia did say that he was having a difficult time at work.
And who's Claudia? President of the Alden Parker Fan Club.
Oh, I need to hear this story.
Hey, wait.
Did either of you see a safe inside of the house, by any chance? Don't think so.
Why? Surface warfare officers work with ONR on experimental weapons, so he would have access to some pretty sensitive information.
And he'd want to keep that secure.
Yeah, weapons intel could sell for big bucks on the underground arms market.
Hold on.
Go back one.
There.
Indentations in the carpet.
Okay, if that was a safe, it's missing now.
And whatever's inside of it.
So, who are we looking for? Foreign intelligence service, maybe an arms dealer.
And a lead is flying in as we speak.
What, is the elevator down again? I wouldn't know.
I took the stairs to boost my Halo activity score for the week.
Which I am crushing, by the way.
Kasie's beating you on sleep and activity? It's not a contest.
Yeah, except for the part where it's a contest.
How many points you got there, Jess? Okay, can we get to the point of your visit? Ah, I am also crushing my case-solving score.
Ah, someone just listed an item matching the description of Lieutenant Tang's creepy little robot butler.
Well, maybe whoever has that also has our mystery safe.
Can you track down the seller's GPS? Is my activity score through the roof right now? Robot guy should be right over here.
Well, that doesn't look obvious at all.
Look at that bootleg WALL-E.
Federal agents.
Gonna need both of you to step against the wall, please.
Hey, we were just talking.
NCIS! Turn it off! Turn it off now! Get out of the car.
Do you know what I did to the last person who tried to run me over? Let them go? Take off your hat.
How old are you? Eighteen.
And a half.
A little young to be an arms dealer.
Huh? You've got the wrong guy.
I'm not an international arms dealer.
Oh, we figured that one out.
And yet you still have a safe full of sensitive military manuals in your trunk.
Weird, huh? You know what's also weird? A dead Navy lieutenant.
I got no idea who that is.
That's the guy you robbed.
And blew up.
See, that's why he's missing half a face.
I didn't blow anybody up.
So you just robbed him? No, I'm the one who was robbed.
Who puts books in a safe? I figured it was jewelry or cash.
So you expect us to believe that you just randomly picked a house to rob hours before a bomb exploded in the living room? I didn't say it was random.
He was supposed to be out of town.
And how do you know that? Lucky guess.
Sailors get deployed - all the time.
- Try again, Zack.
Or maybe we just charge you with murder.
Okay.
It was my brother.
Noah? You guys picked him up the other night? Hoodie boy? Your brother is Noah Richter? Half brother.
Different dads.
Wait till mom cop finds out about this.
His friends like to sneak into empty houses to party.
I figured if anyone noticed anything missing, - they'd get the blame.
- Hmm.
Classy.
But the kids never partied in Lieutenant Tang's house.
No, but they were going to.
And how do you know that? Because I saw the invite on that girl's BratChat thread.
That girl wouldn't be named Teagan, by any chance? She told McGee that she never heard of Lieutenant Tang.
This is Teagan's invite for the party at Lieutenant Tang's house.
She knew exactly who he was.
- She lied to me.
- Why? There's got to be some connection between 'em that we're missing.
And I think I know what it is.
That was Navy Personnel Command.
Tang's shore assignment was in the Second Fleet - Operations Center.
- Right.
Guess whose ship is currently assigned to the Second Fleet.
Chief Petty Officer Melissa Fields.
Teagan's mother.
She's an EOD tech aboard the USS Wilmington.
Tang's responsibility was managing the Wilmington's deployments, and I don't think Teagan would be a fan of his work.
Our victim was about to deploy Teagan's mom to Latvia.
Teagan would have to move again.
But with Tang dead, maybe that deployment doesn't go through.
I think we found our motive.
No.
No, no.
No way.
People have killed for less.
She's a kid.
Hey, I lived with my sister for a week while my niece was in middle school.
The sky is the limit when it comes to puberty.
Okay, don't tell me that.
Please don't tell me that.
Let me go to her house and talk to her, okay? Let me see what she has to say before we haul her in.
Uh, Jimmy wants to talk to me.
Good luck, McGee.
You're probably gonna need it.
I was really hoping not to see this guy again.
This better be worth it.
It is.
I may have an answer as to what killed our lieutenant.
It wasn't the, uh, you know, kaboom? Well, yeah, uh, m-more specifically, it was the shrapnel inside of the kaboom.
U-Uh, but this was no ordinary hardware store IED filled with nails.
In fact, figuring out what it was filled with has been quite the journey.
Skip to the destination.
According to Kasie, the shrapnel inside is over 100 years old and has been degraded by highly acidic soil.
I'm stumped already.
Yeah, so was Kasie.
She recommended we find a metallurgist.
Now, after Agent Knight told us about her trip to Hawai'i, I knew just who to call.
Wait, what did Knight say about me? May I present Ernie Malik from the Pearl Harbor field office.
Nice to meet you, Ernie.
No, no, no, come on, come on.
Wh-What, what did she say about me? I don't recall any specifics.
I think she said he was the smartest guy she's ever met.
- She said that about me? - I don't think she said that.
Yes.
Will So, will Jess be joining us down here? Uh, afraid not.
Just me.
Alden Parker.
Oh.
Supervisory Special Agent Alden Parker.
Of course.
Um, as, uh, Jimmy alluded to, I have extensive knowledge of metallurgy.
As well as world military history, it turns out.
So, the killer built this bomb using pieces from an old artillery shell found in the Alsace region of France.
One of thousands left over from WWI.
Any idea how parts from a World War I explosive ended up in our victim's skull? No idea.
But if you call Jess down, maybe we can brainstorm.
Uh, thanks, Ernie.
Bye.
Wait.
Poor guy.
Seems kind of desperate.
Uh, now back to that, uh, antique bomb.
Maybe it's not such a bad idea to have Agent Knight come down here to brainstorm.
Don't need her.
I think I just figured out how those old bomb parts ended up in Tang's skull.
- How? - Ever wonder why an EOD bomb tech gets assigned to Latvia? No.
And why do you look so worried all of a sudden? I'm NCIS Special Agent McGee.
I need to talk to your niece.
You sure you want to talk to her? She's upstairs in her room.
In a mood.
Yeah, it's pretty important.
Okay.
I'm gonna send her a text, because, uh, Teagan's incapable of hearing my voice - while she has her cell.
- Ah.
Does Teagan's mom know about her little breaking and entering problem? Her team is on radio silence until mission is complete.
She's gonna blow a gasket when she finds out.
What, that her daughter was arrested or that it was during your watch? Oh, geez.
My sister's gonna kill me.
Look, don't beat yourself up, okay? I'm going through the same thing myself.
My kids are four years old.
That's a great age.
When Teagan was four, we'd play pony for hours on end.
Now she doesn't even come out of her room.
Well, except, apparently, to break the law.
Well, that's a comforting thought.
Yeah.
Parker, yeah.
What's up? You need to bring Teagan back to NCIS now.
Why? What's going on? It looks like she built the bomb, McGee.
Wait, bomb? What are you talking about? Do you know why her mom was being reassigned to Latvia? Because she specializes in pre-1950s ordnance disposal.
The stuff left over from our old wars.
Yeah, I can see she really knows her stuff here.
Yeah, she's not the only one.
The bomb was built with old ordnance parts.
Which Teagan would have known about from her mom's work.
Teagan? - What's going on? Hey.
Hey.
- Teagan! Teagan? What's going on? - Can you open this? - No way.
You can't enter a teenager's space uninvited.
Teagan, we're coming in.
What the hell is going on?! You got to be kidding me.
Where is she?! Agent Parker, are you telling me my daughter is gone? NCIS has teams looking for her as we speak.
She's had it rough the last few years.
Moving, fitting in.
Evidence doesn't look good.
Running looks worse.
It doesn't make any sense.
She's been so happy since we came to Norfolk.
I think that's the problem.
Any idea where she'd go? Or maybe who she'd go to? There was a boy.
Um, Noah, I think.
I heard her mention him a few times, but she doesn't open up to me about her love life.
Yeah, Noah is not, uh, not Teagan's boyfriend.
- I mean, he wishes, but - He's too mid.
No, she's with Jayden.
Jayden's valid.
There's no way she's still with that Jayden kid.
I know that much.
What makes you say that? He was supposed to be her date to the Military Child of the Year gala, but he blew her off last minute.
That was the first time they were gonna meet in person.
She was inconsolable.
Wait, did you say that they never met in person? No.
And you don't think that was strange? Yes, but a lot of things about kids today are strange to me.
There's a reason Teagan never met this kid in person.
Because "Jayden" doesn't exist.
He looks like he exists.
That's actually a combination of stock photos.
Check this out.
Teagan was catfished.
Someone with a fake I.
D.
lured her into a relationship.
Which is terrifying.
You got a real I.
D.
? Working on it.
He says he's a 15-year-old from Oceanside, but metadata from his BratChat account suggests he's actually around 40.
Lives in Reston.
Yeah, that's a lot of suspects.
Any idea what he's after? Well, usually, these romance scams are used to steal someone's credit card.
Except Teagan doesn't have one.
Well, it has to have something to do with Tang's murder.
When did Teagan and whoever this guy is start talking? Uh, around three months ago.
That's right when the break-ins started.
And I doubt that that was a coincidence.
No luck on Teagan's BOLO yet.
But we pulled her cell records and recovered a bunch of deleted messages between her and Jayden.
He was the one that talked her into hacking the base server so that people could break into the houses.
He spent a lot of time asking about her mom's EOD experience.
Let me guess.
He asked for the master key to get on base? Yeah.
And she gave it to him.
Teagan did not kill Tang.
The catfisher set her up, used her to get on base.
Then built a bomb using parts that we would trace back to her.
All right, just-just stay with me.
So what is this guy's beef with Tang? We got to find out who he is.
Which means we have to find Teagan.
She just went online.
McGee.
Yeah.
Tapping into her message feed.
Waiting for him where? You got a location? Shopping center in Reston.
But Tang is dead.
Why-why would he risk meeting Teagan in person? To tie up loose ends.
Let's move.
It went straight to voice mail again.
Maybe she's screening your calls.
Or maybe we're too late.
Think positive, McGee.
We need to get Teagan off-site quietly.
If she makes a scene and the killer sees, we lose our shot at catching him.
I have a feeling she's not gonna go quietly.
Hey, Knight, do you have eyes? I just tapped into the CCTV, but half of these cameras are off-line.
Can you get them back on line? Uh this is really McGee's territory.
Sorry, he's our Teagan whisperer.
We need his boots on the ground.
Whoa, whoa.
Hold up, hold up.
Nine o'clock.
Yeah, I see her.
All right, get her in the van.
We'll wait in the wings in case the killer shows.
You waiting for someone? Not that it's any of your business, but I'm waiting for my boyfriend.
Let me guess, it was Jayden's idea for you to sneak out the window? Just like it was Jayden's idea to break into those houses? You don't know anything about him, okay? Actually, you got that backwards, Teagan.
What's that supposed to mean? We called Camp Pendleton.
There's no record of Jayden or his family.
Kasie discovered the picture on BratChat was fake.
You know, Jayden told me not to trust you.
That's because he's not real, Teagan.
He's a bad man and he's trying to set you up for murder.
Stop trying to pull some cop trick on me.
It's not gonna work.
Why would I lie to you, Teagan? Because if you're not lying, then you're saying the one person who ever got me isn't real.
I get you.
Heard that before.
I'm serious, Teagan.
I get you, in every way.
You You are an amazing kid.
You are funny, you are so smart.
Killer taste in music.
A little too sarcastic for your own good, but I don't know, it kind of suits you.
One other thing.
You told me to listen to what my daughter wants.
You know, just because she's four, doesn't mean that what she wants isn't important.
I need you to listen to me now, okay? What you want isn't real.
So right now I need you to come with me, okay? Nicely done, McGee.
We're gonna catch this guy in a van? Yep, we tapped into the mall's surveillance system.
We're going off Kasie's suspect profile.
- There's only one problem.
- What? We don't even know what he looks like.
He knows what I look like.
You could use me as bait.
- So not happening.
- Absolutely not, no.
We can't let him get away.
There is no "we" in this situation.
I'm open to the kid's ideas.
Hack his phone.
We tried that.
It's not on.
I can turn it on.
If you let me.
Have at it.
I can get access to his phone via the BratChat code.
Is this like the tenth law you've broken in two days? Arrest me later.
You used his profile to install a backdoor on his phone months ago? I installed a backdoor on anyone's phone I gave a key to, in case I needed to revoke it.
Okay, I'm in.
I don't have access to his GPS, but I can turn the volume on his ringer all the way up.
All right, let's give him a call.
People don't call anymore, Agent McGee, they text.
You hear that? It's coming from over there.
Keep going, Teagan.
We're getting close.
Torres.
Your 12.
NCIS! Don't move.
Get out of the way! Out of the way! Get on the ground now.
I said get down.
Torres, cuff him.
Nice work, Teagan.
I can't believe I was talking to a homeless Kenny G.
Well done.
His real name is Jason Samuels.
He did seven years on a hit-and-run.
It turns out it was Lieutenant Tang's eyewitness testimony that sent him to prison.
Yeah, his cellmate said that he was obsessed with getting revenge.
And he tried framing Teagan with bomb parts that he bought on the dark web.
Pretty mid.
Very mid.
I appreciate the effort, but you guys should stick with old people talk.
I think she's talking about you.
I can't believe I fell for it.
I should've known.
Don't beat yourself up.
This guy was plotting his revenge while you were still learning how to read.
I was reading at three.
Either way, we would not have caught Samuels without you.
You're welcome.
Bold.
I like this girl.
You know, Teagan, if my daughter is anything like you when she grows up, I'm gonna be very proud.
You'll be proud of her anyway.
She's lucky to have you as a dad.
Why do you say that? You're a good listener.
- Teagan.
- Mom? - Mom! - Honey.
Oh, I'm so glad you're okay.
Thank God.
I thought you were gonna kill me.
Oh, I am.
But right now I just want to hug you.
That's your future, McGee.
You know, minus the, uh, brushes with the law, I hope.
Are you okay? I missed you.
Oh, you're in for it, Tim.
Yeah, well, then I guess I'll enjoy the, uh, princess dress phase while it lasts.