01x07 - Sleuths

[bunniefuu]

Abraham: For centuries, mankind has been the dominant species. We've domesticated animals, locked them up, k*lled them for sport. But a series of recent events seem to suggest all across the globe animals have decided: "no more." And so we were hired, a team of people from different backgrounds, with different specialities: an expert in animal behavior, a journalist, safari guide, foreign intelligence agent, and a veterinary pathologist. Our task: to find out what is happening with the animals, why it's happening, and how to stop it.

Previously on Zoo...

Butler: The Mother Cell is in every single product

Reiden makes.

It's everywhere.

It's all over the world and it can't be stopped.

Where's your husband?

Oh, my husband is back in Paris.

Although he never became my husband.

I learned he was having an affair with my sister.

Jamie: You're talking about your daughter.

Her name is Clementine, she's ten years old she was diagnosed three years ago.

Why aren't you with her?

I've waited too long.

Jackson, hey.

Now's not really a good time.

Jackson: Jamie, listen to me.

Ben k*lled the optometrist.

He isn't FBI.

I don't want to hurt you.

Just give me the Mother Cell.

Okay.

That happened.

(rumbling growl echoes)

(growling continues)

(rumbling growl continues)

What is that?

(growling continues)

The bears.

Oh, wait, I'm sorry. I...

No, no, no. I'm...

Just...

Hey, uh, I wasn't ready.

We're good.

I have everything I need.

This is ridiculous.

I should just turn myself in.

I know. You said that.

Just drink the iced tea.

It will make you feel better.

Jamie: Look, seriously...

I sh*t a man.

An FBI agent.

I can't just walk away from that.

No, a man claiming to be an FBI agent tried to k*ll you and you defended yourself.

Quite capably, as Jackson says.

But we can't prove that.

So let's do something about it.

Let's prove that not-really-FBI-Agent Ben Shafer was working for Reiden.

Instead of...

Abraham: We will.

We will?

Yes.

How?

That I don't know yet.

But we'll figure something out.

Right now we worry about keeping you safe, okay?

48 hours?

You said you could do it in two.

I did.

And I can.

But only for repeat clientele.

Consider us old friends and make it an hour.

I need a name.

For the passport.

Um...

Armstrong.

Nancy Armstrong.

What are you thinking?

It's attractive, that's for sure.

I'm also thinking there's no way we can take this thing to the government.

Not yet.

Look, let's assume for a second that everything that the chemist said was true.

That molecules from this Mother Cell are in every single one of Reiden's products.

We still need proof that this is what's causing the aberrant behavior in the animals.

We need, uh...

I don't want to say a smoking g*ns, that's way too dramatic, but... a bloody Kn*fe?

If we had a bloody Kn*fe, then perhaps we could build a proper case.

We're going to Paris.

Not that I don't love that sentence, but why?

What's in Paris?

A pack of four Eurasian brown bears were being studied for migration and feeding habits.

Two days ago, their trackers went offline.

The bio-lab assumed it was just interference with the satellite.

Then, yesterday, one of the bears showed up in an apartment at the 16th arrondissement and nearly k*lled the woman who lived there.

That bear is now apparently deep in hibernation in a research facility.

Hibernating?

In the middle of summer?

Yes.

And the rest of the pack are still missing.

Sleuth.

Pardon?

A pack of bears is called a sleuth.

Whatever. There...

There's your bloody Kn*fe.

Yeah, well... if there's evidence of this Mother Cell in that bear's bloodstream, then... that would do it.

Perfect. When do we leave?

Chloe: Jamie's passport will be ready in an hour.

We'll have just enough time to make our flight.

Where are you going?

Drugstore.

If we're getting on a red-eye to Paris, I need some melatonin.

Assistant: Yes, I understand.

Will he know who you are?

Okay, no, no, no, no, no.

I'm getting him now.

You forgotten how to knock?

Have you ever heard of something called the Mother Cell?

The Mother Cell?

What's that?

I don't know.

But, someone wants to talk to you.

He says that he has the Mother Cell, and he's willing to give it back.

But he needs something in return.

Transfer it.

(mouthing)

Hello?

Hello.

You don't know me, but you're gonna want to listen very carefully to what I have to say.

Abraham: So how do we tell if he's been infected by the Mother Cell?

Bring me that tray of test tubes over there, will you?

I'm gonna take a blood panel and hope that some foreign elements show up.

If they do, I'll compare their chemical structure with the Mother Cell.

And if they match, we've got our answer.

Jamie: So, basically, you're looking for a... fingerprint.

Chemically speaking.

Mitch: Look at you.

Getting all science.

Ten drops each, in each of those test tubes.

And as a backup, we'll take a DNA sample.

Takes a little longer, but might as well while we're here, right?

Would you mind taking a swab from our friend's mouth, there?

Sure.

(monitor beeping speeds up)

He's waking up.

No, that's okay.

Says you.

No, really. It's...

Even in hibernation, a bear's heart rate increases when a... when a predator approaches.

It's nature's little warning signal.

Apparently, you're quite predatory.

Okay.

This good?

That's perfect.

Put that in one of those little baggies over there.

Huh.

Huh, what?

His eye is normal.

Come take a look.

No defiant pupil.

But that doesn't make any sense.

If he was exposed to the Mother Cell, his pupil should be...

All big and scary.

Yeah.

It should be.

I think you're wrong.

You understand what they've been saying?

Enough of it.

Man: And you are?

And, uh, what, what are you thinking?

Uh, why is he wrong?

Look, these aren't necessarily normal bears.

Exactly what kind of bears are they?

What do you mean, they aren't normal?

I don't know for sure.

But... but they won't necessarily be acting like you'd expect them to.

And like she said, bears of a sleuth stick together.

So if one entered the city, most likely the others will, too.

Perhaps they are traveling underground?

The sewers.

Tunnels. The catacombs.

And that's why they haven't been spotted.

From what we've already seen, these bears... they're unfazed by people.

So if they want food before they hibernate, they're gonna feed on whatever's available.

There are more than 300 miles of sewers and tunnels that run under Paris.

I suppose we'd better get searching.

That was perfect.

You motivated them, maybe got them looking in the right direction...

Hey!

(speaking French)

Uh...

Jean-Michel Lion, Jackson Oz.

Hey.

Hello.

Jean-Michel is a civil engineer.

I did not know you were back.

Your sister said you left town.

I'm just here for a few days.

And why are the Americans, interested in a pack of missing French bears?

I'm sorry, I can't tell you.

(groans) Secret affairs I understand, but, uh...

(chuckles) bears?

If I could tell you, I would.

But I can't.

Okay.

If I get any leads on where they may be, I'll call you straightaway.

Thank you.

(scoffs)

So that's him, huh?

The ex-fiancé.

That's him.

So... there's two beds in the guest bedroom.

And the sofa opens up into a bed as well.

The most important question is... where is the wine?

I hear you French are very famous for it.

In the kitchen. Help yourself.

So I... No defiant pupil?

What does that mean?

I don't know yet.

But it doesn't necessarily mean that the bear wasn't affected by the Mother Cell.

Blood labs should be back in a couple of hours.

Okay.

But why else would a bear be hibernating in the middle of summer?

There are two types of hibernation, okay?

One is what we normally think of...

Yogi Bear goes into a deep suspended animation to survive a winter of scarce resources.

The other is when an animal falls temporarily dormant, so that resources can be biologically redirected.

What does that mean... redirected?

Like, a... caterpillar turning into a butterfly or... when little kids sleep so deeply when they're growing.

So... (chuckles) you mean you think that the bear's changing?

I think it's possible.

The question is... into what?

(cell phone dings)

Hey.

Hey.

Dinner's almost ready.

Cool.

And we should, probably talk about Mitch's new theory about the bears.

Yes.

Delavane wants to see me.

I'll be back as soon as I can.

Jamie... vino?

Thank you.

But it's Nancy.

I should get used to saying it.

As far as names go, it's not so bad.

It was my mother's.

Armstrong was her maiden name.

Abdallah Balogun.

Sorry?

I had another name once, too.

When I was 13 years old, my parents were k*lled in a raid.

Me and my little brothers were taken in by the rebels.

The United Republic Army.

Malik and Kalim.

The rebels fed us and gave us shelter.

But then a few days later, I was made to undertake a... initiation.

(men yelling, children clamoring)

It was their way of breaking me.

Forcing me to... prove my loyalty to them.

They gave me a g*n.

And a single b*llet.

I'm told... that I must choose...

which of my two brothers

I should k*ll.

And I was told that if I did not sh**t one of them, then they would both be k*lled.

I looked into the eyes of my baby brothers... so sweet, so gentle.

And I knew from that moment that they were both condemned.

You see, one of them would die, but the other... like me... would turn into an animal.

So I made the only decision I could.

I chose neither.

And I sent them both - to a better place.

(g*nshots)

Five years later, I escaped from the army and changed my name to Abraham.

And I went somewhere they would never find me.

And even though I knew I did the right thing for my brothers, I've been spending my whole life trying to make up for my choice by protecting the people I care about.

My new family.

And now you are part of that family, too...

Miss Nancy Armstrong.

k*lled him?

An FBI agent!

A dirty FBI agent.

At best.

So you've just said.

Who?

Who k*lled him?

I can't tell you.

A member of my team.

The good news is... I've been tracking channels, and there hasn't been any chatter.

None. It's almost as if they haven't discovered his body yet.

But they will.

And whether he was a real FBI agent on the take for Reiden or posing as an FBI agent, either case, this is now a federal matter, which means they won't stop until they find out who k*lled him, which means eventually they will find us.

And everything we are doing will become public, which will make it impossible to do our job.

So, what are you saying?

You want me to turn them in?

I'm saying, Agent Tousignant, that you may not have asked for it, but nothing is more important than the task you have been given.

To figure out what is happening to the animals and how to stop it.

I am doing that!

As much as you may have come to like them and want to protect them, none of the people on your team are more important than your ability to complete that task.

Do you understand what I'm saying?

Yes, sir.

Okay, but how do we get past the facial recognition?

It's no problem at all.

All we need is an employee with top-level access.

Right, because why would that be a problem?

Chloe: Hey.

How is it going?

Abe had an idea, a good one.

About the bears?

No, about Jamie.

She can't spend the rest of her life running.

We have to get her out of it by proving that Ben Shafer was on Reiden's payroll.

Okay.

Reiden has an office here in Paris.

We're breaking in.

Jackson: So the Paris Reiden office only handles European contracts, but their computer network is linked to the central system back in Boston, which means, if we can hack into their system, we can prove that Ben Shafer was on their payroll.

And how are we gonna do that?

What, the hacking into the system part or the proving it part?

Both.

Here.

It makes more sense if you drink this.

Jackson: Okay.

Second part first.

I've done investigations like this for stories I've written.

Corporations keep track of every penny of their finances, so if there's a payoff to Ben Shafer, it'll be in their accounting records.

We just access the finances and follow the paper trail.

Presuming that he used his real name.

Agreed.

It's not necessarily going to be easy, but there's always something.

Money that moves from one account to another.

Numbers that don't add up.

A pattern.

That's your speciality, right?

Recognizing patterns.

Okay, you say once we access their finances.

How are we gonna do that?

Jackson: That's the cool part.

See, as far as we can tell, all top-level Reiden executives have access to their entire computer network.

But the system doesn't use passwords.

It uses facial recognition.

So we just need to locate an executive with access and then trick their system into thinking they're signing into their account.

Abraham: And that's where you come in.

This is going to be a team effort.

Even Mitch.

We're presuming there are thousands of documents to comb through, so we're going to copy the records onto a computer with enough storage space.

The one in the animal lab.

And what's my role?

You get to have some fun.

Thank you.

You're welcome.

Hey, how's it going?

Almost there.

Six, seven, nine, seven, dot, six, three, zero, dot, six, four.

Six, three, zero, dot... six, four.

Okay, got it.

Good luck.

Thanks.

Hey.

Six o'clock, blue suit, black hair.

He's Antoine Belrose, senior VP, financial strategy.

Got him.

Belrose. VP. Finance.

Good luck.

Why's she stopping?

I don't know.

What's wrong?

The security guard over there, I know him. He's ex-DGSE.

I can't do this... he's gonna recognize me.

We have to get out of here.

We need to come up with another plan.

No. I got this, give me your phone.

But Abe's right... you got to get out of here.

Excusez-moi, Monsieur Belrose?

Oui.

Do you speak English?

Yes.

Fantastic. My name is Scott Polson.

I'm with the Msisimko Safari Camp back in Africa.

Have you been to Africa, Mr. Belrose?

Belrose: Africa?

(chuckles) No, I didn't think so.

Neither did the finance department back in the States, which is why they nominated you for the trip.

What trip?

I knew that you didn't get our letters.

That's probably why you didn't respond.

For the work that you've done for the company, you've been nominated for a trip to Africa, all expenses paid.

You are joking, yes?

I mean, this is some sort of prank?

No, no joke, no prank.

Apparently, you earned the company a fair amount of money last year, Mr. Belrose.

Yes, uh, I did.

Let me just get my calendar out here.

Uh, we have open dates in August and October.

Left.

Though...

I would suggest the fall.

It's a much better time of the year.

Yes.

So how does that work for you?

Sure.

All right, well, August it is.

That's it. Get your bags packed, and we'll be in touch, Mr. Belrose.

Thank you.

No, no, don't thank us.

Thank your colleagues back in the States.

Come on, come on...

Mademoiselle?

Oh, thank you.

Well, damn.

They actually pulled it off.

Dr. Morgan?

Your blood labs are back.

Uh, DNA profile, too.

Thank you.

Something is wrong?

No.

I was hoping there would be something abnormal in the bear's blood work; it turns out there is.

That's, uh, good news, yes?

Yeah, that's good news.

This DNA, however, makes zero sense.

That's abnormal, too?

It looks like it's changing.

(monitor beeps)

I think he's waking up.

Yeah.

Not good.

Hand me some of that sedative over there.

What the hell?

What?

It bent the needle.

Feel this.

Feels like armor.

I don't understand... how is that possible?

I don't have a clue.

(bear roars)

Okay, don't move.

Lab tech: Dr. Morgan, no!

Dr. Morgan.

Dr. Morgan, are you all right?

Yeah.

Jackson: You injected it with what?

A microchip... with an RFID tracker.

What? Why do you have a microchip with an RFID tracker?

In case anyone had any plans to release it back into the wild.

How about this?

Don't ask questions, just be grateful.

Okay, where is he now?

Same as five minutes ago.

He's running through the woods... alongside the highway.

It looks like he's headed towards the, uh...

...Meudon Forest.

The Meudon Forest?

Yeah, that's what I said.

The Meudon Forest is south, but according to the people from the bio-lab, that bear lived west, in Les Hauts-de-Seine.

So, if he's not headed home, he's headed towards the other bears.

Listen, you know how we talked about the bears changing?

Well, I think they've developed some kind of... endoskeleton.

What do you mean?

A hard shell, like a hard shell underneath its skin.

Wait a minute, a shell?

You got to be kidding.

Sadly, no.

Abraham: Okay, so the wildlife services and the police are waiting for us on the other side of the Meudon.

What are you doing here?

Told you I was fine.

Well, I came to make sure you were as fine as you said you were.

You missed quite a party.

Yeah, I can see that.

Hey, that's a nice little scratch.

I know, it's hot, right?

Jackson: Okay.

We're at the forest, Mitch, northwest corner.

Where's the bear?

In the woods.

Due west of you.

Looks like about... 500 yards in.

Looks like Park Services just got there.

(sh*ts f*ring)

Jean-michel: So, is one of you going to tell me what is going on here?

What do you mean?

That bear has some kind of super thick skin.

Huh?

It took three tranquilizer darts to bring it down.

Is this some kind of next-gen w*apon that your agency is experimenting with?

No.

No.

Still no leads on the other three bears?

No, but Park Service is going to cordon off the woods and do a grid search.

If they are here, we'll find them.

Okay, we'll help you look.

Sure.

What is it?

Where's your friend Jackson?

Jackson: Over here!

Abraham: Jackson.

Ice cold.

He's been dead for at least a few days.

Jackson: What is this place?

Jean-michel: It's Fort de Châtillon.

It was built in the 1870s, from the Prussian w*r.

They tore most of it down 40 years ago.

What is it, rafiki?

Bear scat.

Multiple tracks.

Must be three of them.

(scoffs) Delightful.

Jackson: Abe, look at this.

Does that hole look big enough for a bear to get in?

Oh.

Huh?

Guys, I mapped this place for the city.

It's a maze in there... you'll get lost.

Do you have a g*n for me?

Chloe: No.

(Abraham humming softly)

Really?

What?

It comforts me.

(low snarling noise)

Jackson: Shh.

(snarling continues)

What is that?

The bears.

They're snoring.

(snoring)

There's no signal.

I can't call or send.

There's only two of them.

Where's the third?

(under breath): Come on.

(whispering): Okay, guys.

That's three.

Can we go now and alert Wildlife Services?

Let's go.

When we were living together, I was always the one who k*lled the spiders.

What is it?

This is where the bears were sleeping.

Are you certain?

I remember the debris right there in that corner.

Okay.

Let's get out of here.

Come on.

(loud growl)

Just stand your ground.

All right? Don't, don't run away, but don't let it think you're a thr*at.

(roars)

No!

The other bears.

We gotta stop him.

(growling)

(growls) (screams)

(growling)

(roars)

(growling)

You okay?

Yes.

(bear growling)

Hey!

(dart g*n fires)

Hey, bear!

Look right over here!

(growling)

Come get me, buddy!

So my friend can sh**t you in the back!

Huh? Come on over here!

Hey Mr bear!

Right over here!

That's right.

(roars)

Right over here.

Nicely done.

Any time.

Merci.

Mitch: This is the DNA profile of our bear from the lab.

And this is the same bear's DNA six years ago, when he was first tagged.

It changed.

Mm-hmm.

Because of the Mother Cell.

Uh, yes and no.

What does that mean?

Okay, think of it this way: None of the earth's creatures are born perfect. Right?

We all have genetic anomalies.

Be it a birthmark, double-jointed wrists, webbed toes...

But the anomalies that become the norm are the-the ones that are adaptive.

That are more useful to survival.

Like opposable thumbs.

What does it have to do with animals?

The traits we've seen... the bear's endoskeleton, the-the bats flying abnormally high, lions seemingly communicating over long distances...

They all make their species more capable of survival.

Stronger, better.

And what I think...

Just like our ancestors developed opposable thumbs, I think the Mother Cell is just accelerating these mutations in the animal kingdom that we would see occur naturally, but not for another... several generations.

Maybe a couple hundred years from now, depending on how long it takes us to screw up the planet.

But we're seeing it now because of the Mother Cell.

But here's the good news...

If the Mother Cell can make a naturally occurring situation worse... maybe it can do the opposite.

Mitch: Correct.

But what's the opposite?

The Mother Cell can cure the animals?

Dr. Morgan believes so, yes.

He says it will take some time to figure out how to alter the Mother Cell's chemistry to make a vaccine, But he's convinced that his reasoning is sound.

Wow.

This is...

Exciting. Yes, I know.

And the answer to the question you haven't asked me yet is no.

No, I am not going to cut loose the member of my team who k*lled Agent Ben Shafer.

And if you're not happy with the way I'm handling my assignment, you can feel free to replace me.

But until then, now that I know what's happening to the animals, I am going to try to do my best to reverse it.

If that's okay with you.

You surprise me, Ms. Tousignant.

Thank you.

I believe you're waiting for me.

I'm Clayton Burke.

I had to lie to my wife.

She doesn't understand why I had to rush off to Paris and miss our 24th wedding anniversary.

And I have to tell my daughter why she's dying, even though there are people who have a medicine that could save her life.

Her name's Clementine.

She's ten.

We first discovered she had Glazier's Syndrome when she was seven.

So, basically, as long as she can remember, she's been the kid who's dying.

I'm sorry.

That's not what I want to hear from you.

What I want to hear is: yes, of course your daughter can have the drug that can cure her.

Followed by the question: when can we deliver it?

I'm assuming you applied for the stage three trials and your daughter was rejected because she's too young.

Maybe I'm not being clear.

I don't want her placed in a trial.

Seven years of wildly successful trials is enough to convince me that your drug will cure her.

Three months of pills and she'll be... symptom free.

And how do you expect me to do that?

The entire program is under intense FDA screening.

Every dose is accounted for.

Not my problem, is it?

I'll expect a call from you within 48 hours, telling me where and when I can get my medicine.

The Mother Cell.

How do I even know you have it?

Have a nice day.