07x06 - Desert Run

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Denver Control,
this is Sierra.

Mayday! Mayday!

This is Sierra.

Mayday! Mayday!

This is Sierra.

Sierra,
this is Echelton Field.

What is your emergency?

Echelton, how high are
the mountains here?

Our field is .

What is your position,
and do you have a transponder?

No transponder.
I'm off course.

The airspeed indicator is
almost to zero.

I've got the nose down
to build up speed.

These are mountain peaks
out here.

How high are they?

Sierra, say your last known
position and altitude.

Bellevue Intersection.

I reported-- Denver.

Sierra, give me your altitude
and present heading.

Can't you get me on radar?!

Denver's trying.
Can you see any ground features?

No, I can't see anything!

Wait a minute.

Out there on the left,

a mountain peak higher
than the plane!

Can't you get me out of here?!

Say your altitude, please.

What is your heading?

Sierra, what is your heading?

I'm out of control!

I'm going down!

Tell my wife!

My husband was never heard
from again.

Mrs. Slocum, there's
been an extensive air search.

Now, if they couldn't
find him...

They told me there's very little
hope of finding Mark alive.

But I keep thinking
of those people,

the ones in Chile,

who lived for days after
their plane crashed.

If Mark's dead,
I'll simply have to accept it.

But he could be
lying out there hurt.

Please, Mr. Mannix.

The official reports
don't show much, Mr. Mannix.

He hit the thunderstorm,
and that was it.

We searched this whole area
in here, but, uh... nothing.

And you gotta know
exactly where to look

and you still need
a lot of luck.

Mm.

They said you got an ADF fix.

Yeah, it was pretty rough
at the time of transmission,

but that would put him
somewhere in here.

Look, I've rented a plane.

Would you mind?

No, I'd be glad to.

We know he was following
the Civil Airway east,

and that would take him south
of Denver.

He reported over
the Bellevue Intersection.

That's ten miles north.

His course must have been right
along this route here.

Which means he was off course
to the south.

, feet.

That's the altitude he was
flying when he reported in

over Bellevue Intersection.

That was his last transmission.

He could be down there
somewhere.

Looks like a town down there.

That's a deserted
old mining town.

There isn't anything around
for miles.

Most Merciful Father,

Who hast been pleased
to take unto Thyself

the soul of this, Thy servant,

grant to us who are still
in our pilgrimage,

and who walk as yet by faith,

that, having served Thee,

with constancy on earth,

we may be joined
in the hereaf...

We may be joined in
the hereafter,

with Thy blessed saints,
in glory everlasting.

Can I help you?

I'm sorry.

I didn't mean to intrude,

but I couldn't find
anyone else in town.

We're the town.

Not many of us left.

We're burying Jeb Carter.

What business you got here?

I'd like to ask a few questions.

Reverend, service over?

Amen.

Willie, Frank, lower it.

Who are you?

Joe Mannix.

What kind of questions?
What'd you want to ask?

Yes, I'm looking for the victim
of a plane crash-- Mark Slocum.

I wondered if--

We don't know anything
about any plane crash here.

Oh, take it easy, Ward.

He was just asking.

You see, Mr. Mannix... uh...

this isn't a tourist town.

This is no kind of town.

And it ain't been
for years.

It's dead.

It's dead as...

as that fella
in the box there.

That's enough, Nell.

Mrs. Foster, you go on home.

Al right.

You better go, too, Mister.

Look, a man's life may be
at stake.

I've got to talk to someone.

Well, the reverend here
baptizes, confirms and buries.

Anything else, you see me.

Mr. Mannix...

it's just we keep to ourselves.

We're all there is to this town.

We're kind of a family.

We value our privacy.

And none of you saw
or heard anything

about a plane that crashed?

Well, I doubt if anyone in
Gopher Flats, besides myself,

ever even heard
of the Wright brothers.

We mean no discourtesy.

Well, uh, maybe tomorrow then.

There ain't been a hotel here
in years.

It's very important.

We ain't got no way
of putting a stranger up.

Are you telling me
you'd rather I left town?

If you put it that way.

There's no other way,
Mr. Mannix.

Good afternoon.

Yes?

I'm looking for Mrs. Slocum.

Is she around?

I'm Mrs. Slocum.

You're married to Mark Slocum?

My, uh, my husband isn't here.

He's been missing for two weeks.

Yes, I know.

I've been looking for his plane.

Do you have some news
about Mark?

No, I'm afraid not.

But I would like to help
any way I can.

Do you know where
he was going that day?

He didn't tell me.

He was always going off
somewhere.

The plane he was flying

was registered
to Monarch Development.

Did he work for them?

He used to.

You have no idea
what he was doing?

I never knew what
he was mixed up in.

Mixed up in?

I mean...

maybe you can't find him because
there's nothing to find.

Maybe he just ran off.

He always comes back.

There'll be a woman
mixed up in it.

There always is.

Like that one that works
at the casino.

Deal, Mrs. Slocum.

Now tell me why.

I didn't do anything wrong.

But you're not Mrs. Slocum.

Mark was a friend of mine.

Well, I imagine you have
a lot of friends.

Tell me,
who paid you to hire me?

Maybe I should talk to the man
who pays your salary.

You're talking to him.

Pleasant surprise, Joe.

It was a surprise to me, too,

when I discovered
the missing airplane

was registered to your company--
Monarch Development.

Oh, it took a little digging
to prove it was your company.

Diversification.

It's too bad about Slocum.

Tragic.
Mm.

Can I buy you a drink, Joe?

I'm good.

Where was he going?

No idea.

Mark had a commercial license.

I used to lend him
a plane all the time.

Good pilot.

Well, I guess it can happen to
any of us, when our time is up.

Yes, we're not all lucky enough

to have the wrong Mrs. Slocum
organize an air search.

Uh, she deals well, too.

Let it ride.

Why did you send her?

If I had asked you
to take the case, would you?

Why not use the real
Mrs. Slocum?

She didn't know
about our connection.

Mark used to do
special favors for me.

Fly friends.

Friends my wife wouldn't like.

You know how it is, Joe.

Friend does you a favor,
you do him a favor.

Although, in this case,

I guess it wasn't much
of a favor

to lend Slocum the plane.

Okay, Hal.

What's the real reason
for the charade?

I can't collect the insurance
unless the plane is found.

It's like a m*rder, Joe--
you got to have a body.

What was Slocum doing this trip?

He said he was flying to L.A.

I figured a chick.

He's supposed to be back
in the morning.

It's hard to believe
he could get so far off course.

Hard to believe.

Hit.

Joe, as long as it's out
in the open,

I'll make it worth your while
to find him.

I'm off the case.

That's what I came
to tell his wife.

Both of them.

Joe.

I want you to find out
what happened to that plane.

Name your own figure.

I'd consider it a favor
if you'd take the case.

There is no case, no leads.

I checked the FAA files,
all the records, territory.

Zero.

Well, if we've got to live
with a mystery,

I guess that's the way
it's got to be.

Mm.

Blake.

Yes, sir.

He smells something.

I think he's going
to follow through.

The order is the same as before.

If he finds the plane, k*ll him.

By

by

Hi.

Do you remember me?

What's your name?

Ellie.

What were you doing?

Well, I was, uh, looking
at those marks over there.

Uh, see, Ellie,
it looks like something heavy

might have been dragged
along there.

Uh, do you have any idea
what it might have been?

Do you remember
a big thunderstorm

about two weeks ago?

Mm-hmm.

Are you afraid of thunder?

We all had to go to the church.

Because of the thunder?

To pray for good weather?

We had to stay there all day.

Uh...

uh, who's "
we?"

My brother and Mrs. Foster
and Jenny.

Were there any men there?

Who made you stay there?

Reverend.

Ellie, uh, tell me,
where is Mrs. Foster's house?

Last one at the end
of the street.

I have to go now.

Ellie...

uh, let's not tell anybody
you saw me here, okay?

The door is never locked.

Come in.

Mrs. Foster?

Why, you're the young man
from the churchyard.

Yes.

Well, I suppose you want
to ask me

about that thunderstorm.

Well, compared to what
they used to be,

that was absolutely nothing.

Why, you should have seen
this place when I was a girl.

Sometimes we would just
float in mud.

Oh, this was a wild town
when I was young,

when I got married.

He was k*lled in .

Uh, here, sit down.

Thank you.

Yes, sir, I...

I ran the Grand Gopher myself
for some years.

They thought a woman couldn't.

Mrs. Foster, I was talking

to a little girl
this afternoon-- Ellie?

Oh, that's Ellie Hutt.

Tom lost his wife
when Ellie was born.

She said she spent the day
after the storm in the church.

Said you were there, too.

What do you suppose the men
were trying to hide

when they shut you all up
in the church?

Well, they say the Devil
finds work for idle hands.

Oh, I forgot the sugar.

Tom Hutt is the only one
who works.

He runs a store.

Ward Gillie and his boys
and the reverend,

they placer a little and...

get enough color
to stay alive and dream.

My son-in-law dreams.

Dreams that his useless leg
is going to be all right

and he's going to get
back to mining,

and that's what keeps Jenny
tied here.

But that's it.

Once you hit gold,
you never give up hope.

Why, this whole country
is just...

uh, is just dotted with mines,
like open tombs.

Can you tell me
where I might find Jenny?

Well, that was clever of you--

Not asking that right off.

Why, she's just
down the street here,

in the house next to the church.

Thank you.

Mm--

By the way,
where is Jeb Carter's place?

There hasn't been a Carter
in Gopher Flats...

You buried him the other day.

You said,
"That fellow in the box."

That seems kind of impersonal

for someone
you must've known very well.

There never was a Jeb Carter
in Gopher Flats, was there?

You're a nice young man.

Take my advice.

Leave Gopher Flats right away.

Thanks for the tea, ma'am.

By

Come in.

Well, hello, Mr. Mannix.

Uh, what can I do for you?

I'd like to talk
to your daughter.

Oh, well,
she's not here right now.

What do you want
to talk to her about?

The day after the storm,

all of the women and children
were put into the church.

So?

Where were you, Mr. Bailey?

Oh, uh, I was right here.

I don't get around well
since the accident.

But I'm getting better
every day.

All I need
is a little doctoring.

Soon as we hit some pay dirt,
I'll be back to work.

I got a...

I got a claim--
never been touched.

It'll prove out the richest
this town's ever seen.

Mr. Bailey...

why were the women and children
put into the church that day?

Oh, uh, some kind of a service,
I guess.

I'm not much of a churchgoer.

My wife used to attend regular.

And Jenny.

But I figure,
you lead a good life,

you get what's coming.

Did you, uh, notice anything
unusual about that day?

Unusual...

Oh, uh, Ward Gillie
was having trouble

with Tom Hutt's tractor.

Straining and, uh... cussing.

What would they be doing
with a tractor here in town?

I don't know.

I... I didn't ask.

Mm.

I thought you left.

I decided to come back.

Here, let me help you
with those.

Thank you.

Uh, it's getting chilly, Pa.

Uh, why don't you put
your jacket on?

All right, Jenny.

Did anybody see you come here?

No.

Just put them right there.

I talked to
your grandmother, Jenny.

You shouldn't have bothered her.

She doesn't know anything.

Uh, she knows one thing.

What?

There is no Jeb Carter.

Please leave us alone.

Who was in the grave?

I don't know.

Was it a man,
or was it something else?

Why don't you just go away
and leave things alone?

Jenny, tell me what happened.

Jenny, you've got to tell me.

Anything wrong, Jenny?

It's all right, Pa.

I'll have supper ready soon.

I think you'd better leave,
Mr. Mannix.

I swear, we were all
in the church that day--

The whole day-- and Pa was here.

I don't know what they did.

One thing's for sure--
they didn't bury Jeb Carter.

Not yet.

He got nothin' out of them.

What if he does find out?

You still got the r*fle,
haven't you?

By

Hold it right there, Mister!

Now, drop the shovel...

turn around real slow.

You were warned to leave town.

You ain't very smart, Mister.

See if he's got a g*n.

Can you think of any reason
why we shouldn't sh**t you?

Grave robber.

I wasn't planning to rob it,
just open it.

Why?

Curiosity.

Just who are you?

A private detective.

Who hired you?

Mark Slocum's wife
is worried about him.

Afraid his plane
may have crashed.

Well, what makes you think
that Mark Slocum

is here in Gopher Flats?

Because Jeb Carter isn't.

{cocks g*n

I wouldn't pull that trigger.

You don't think I'd come here
without some backup muscle?

You'll never get away with it.

What if we try?

You'd be making a big mistake.

You're not
in any real trouble yet.

Not m*rder, anyway,
the way I figure it.

Now, why don't you tell me
exactly what happened.

Maybe I can help you
figure a way out of it.

Mister, you ain't gonna live
long enough to help anybody.

By

What was all that
sh**ting about?

You let Mannix get clean away.

I saw someone snooping around
the edge of town.

Did you get him?

No, but Willie's
still after him.

Now we got two of 'em to get.

Keep looking.

By

Well?

No sign of him, Pa.

Did you get a look at him?

No.

How much you figure
this Mannix knows?

Nothing.

We can always move the coffin.

What if he finds out
about the mine?

He won't get the chance.

We gonna k*ll him?

We've got to catch him first.

By

I've got to talk to you, Jenny.

What were those sh*ts?

Some of them were meant for me.

In there.

Pa's sleeping;
he wouldn't like this much.

Why were they sh**ting at you?

I'm a private detective, Jenny.

I was hired to find Mark Slocum.

I think he's out there,
buried as Jeb Carter.

I don't know nothing about that.

Jenny, if you're mixed up
with these men in any way,

you could be in serious trouble.

I'm not mixed up with them.

All right, then help me.

How?

Gillie mentioned a mine.

Which one would that be?

Ward Gillie stole it away
from Granny years ago.

He and his boys
used to work it sometimes,

but there's nothing left.

It's all boarded up now.

Where is the mine?

Straight down the street at the
far end of town, on the left.

Thanks, Jenny.

You will be careful?

That's part of my job
to be careful.

Open up!

Open up!

Jenny, what is it?

It's all right, Pa.
I'll see who it is.

What do you want?

Mannix come in here?

No.

Here, now,
what is all this?

Your girl may have been
helping our friend Mannix,

hiding him maybe.

What makes you think that?

Well, I was at the far end
of the street,

and I saw some light
coming out of the door.

You let somebody in?

No.

There's no one here
but Pa and me.

I'll just have to
make sure of that.

What makes you think
he'd come here?

I saw the way you looked at him
in the churchyard.

I didn't look at him
no particular way.

Then he ain't been here
since the funeral?

No.

That lie smells
as bad as a skunk.

I saw him coming out of here
earlier tonight.

Where'd he say he was headed?

Ward.

Mannix came to see me.

I-I didn't tell him anything.

You didn't answer me, girl!

Ward!

You take your hands off her

or I'll lay my crutch
across your skull.

Pa...

We'll find him.

By

By

by

by

Hold it!

Right there.

You drop it
or I'll blow your head off.

Well, we got one of 'em.

We got 'em both.

Distributor cap
from Mannix's car.

No way he can get out, except
across miles of desert.

Pa?

No. Just keep an eye on him.

When he comes to,
find out what he knows.

If he knows too much.

Jenny.

Come inside.

I think they're trying
to k*ll Mr. Mannix.

Well, there's nothing
you can do about it, child.

Come on.

Jenny, I want you to tell me
what's going on.

What's happening in this town?

Why were we locked up
in that church?

Why were we burying
somebody named Jeb Carter

who never even lived here?

And why are we so scared,
we can't even talk about it?

Reverend Walker said
he had a way to make us rich.

He and the Gillises said
they had enough money

to get us all out of here.

Money...?

Reverend Walker and Ward Gillie
promising us money?

For what?

Why?

For saying nothing.

For saying nothing about what?

It's bad, isn't it?

Granny, that money,
it was a chance--

The only chance
we'd ever have to get away

and get some help for Pa.

Money for keeping
your eyes closed?

For not wanting to know
what was going on?

Why, Jenny...
what were you thinking of?

I wasn't thinking, Granny.

I wasn't thinking.

For a second,
I thought you was dead.

They went hunting
for your friend, Mannix.

He's no friend of mine.

Be a surprise to him...
he told us all about you.

He was lying.

He didn't even know
I was around.

I was following him.
Following him? What for?

A plane crashed
somewhere around here.

Belonged to my boss.

You telling me you know
what was inside that plane...

besides the pilot?

That's right.

Like what?

Half a million.

Well, why didn't you head
straight for it, then,

instead of going after Mannix?

I thought he'd lead me to it.

Looks like he led you right into
a six-foot hole, friend.

{cocks g*n

Wait a minute... look,
uh, we can make a deal.

Good for everybody.

What kind?
Half the money.

All you gotta do is keep quiet.

We already got all of it.

You k*ll me, you got trouble.

I can handle trouble.

My boss'll come looking for me.

He'll never find you.

Go after him.

By

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By

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by

By

There's a half a million
dollars in there.

I think you'll find
it's skim money

from Hal Morgan's
place in Vegas.

Well, if you're right, you
should be in for a finder's fee.

No, not me, Sheriff.

Jenny Bailey found the money.

Send the reward to her.

Good-bye, Jenny.

I don't know how to thank you.

Take care of yourself.

We'll be fine.

Bye, Mrs. Foster.

Mr. Bailey.

I think that young man
fancies you, Jenny.

Is he coming back?

No, Granny.

But I sure fancied him.