01x12 - The Assassination of Eddie Morra

[bunniefuu]

Previously on Limitless...

It's about time you and me talked.

Do you know who I am?

Everybody says you're gonna be president soon.

But between me and you, I don't even know if I'm gonna run.

The world needs to be willing to change.

And it takes leaders who are willing to cut through the noise and play the game and win the game.

And that's you?

I think so.

You belong to Mr. Morra now, which means you belong to me.

When I'm on NZT, I can think through all the different angles, every perspective.

Then shouldn't you have known that I was gonna sh**t Casey? You texted me.

Yeah, I... I didn't think you'd sh**t.

Lower your w*apon.

But I did.

(low conversations)

♪

(hinges creaking)

Sorry, ma'am, gonna have to take a quick peek.

The senator's giving a speech a few blocks down.

Senator?

He, uh, holds office in one of two legislative bodies that make the laws for this country.

I know what a senator is.

Have a nice day, ma'am.

(trilling, chirping)

(lock clicks)

(door closes)

♪

Sir?

They're ready for you.

Okay.

(applause, cheering)

(cheering, whistling)

Thank you.

Thank you. Please, sit down.

You know, when the wars were done, they didn't scrap this ship.

They found a new mission for her.

The Intrepid was used as a recovery vessel...

Eddie (to self): Piece of glass just caught the light. for the Gemini and Mercury...

Could be someone with binoculars.

I'd like to give the same dignity to our veterans that we gave to this ship.

Someone's taking a sh*t at me.

Call it 3,300 yards.

That'd be the longest k*ll of all time.

I hire as many vets as I can...

NZT.

Piper.

She'll breathe out before she sh**t, so let's think this through.

Not on the table, obviously.

I could jump out of the way.

Not bad.

But what if the b*llet just grazes me?

Yeah.

That'll do.

(crowd shrieking, screaming)

(phone dings)

They need you upstairs right now.

Brian: I saw the news. Of course I did.

The whole city was talking about what happened to Senator Morra.

Let's review all the ways this could go wrong.

Ah. Jarrod Sands, this is Brian Finch.

He consults with us on priority cases.

Mr. Sands is a security consultant for Senator Edward Morra.

Brian and I know each other.

We are in a clandestine relationship.

The senator and I give him immunity from the side effects of NZT in exchange for him reporting back to me on what you lot get up to.

That explains so... so much.

Should we just arrest him now, then?

If you like.

Or I could take care of him round the back.

Okay, it's not in his best interest to take that approach, but Rebecca is wicked smart.

What if she figures it out?

The senator's sorry he can't be here personally.

Anything my team can do to assist you.

Great. We should also address the fact that you are in a clandestine relationship with Brian.

I'm guessing you give him immunity to NZT's side effects and he tells you what we're up to?

That is so not true.

They know.

Once I'm in the car, nuke the building from orbit.

Yeah, it's the only way to be sure.

(expl*si*n)

I imagined it all kinds of different ways.

Can we talk about Senator Morra's eyes for a second?

Amazing, right?

Blue.

But what really happened was Sands basically ignored me.

And they talked about hate mail.

Senator Morra has some powerful enemies from a few different conglomerates, but personally I'd be surprised if they'd make a play for him.

Was there any evidence at the scene?

Um, no evidence was found at the sn*per's nest, and the only information we got from the two security guards on the scene was a basic description of the woman who they think was the sh**t, so...

Yeah, unfortunately, we've had to use private security.

It's the best I can do until the senator decides whether he's gonna run for president.

We'll interview everyone who works at the hotel.

Thank you, everyone.

The senator will be sincerely grateful for your help.

Rebecca?

Mm-hmm?

Can I have a word, please?

(sighs)

How are you holding up?

I'm all right.

Uh...

Boyle was the one who had to pull the trigger.

But you were dating Casey Rooks, were you not?

But it wasn't serious, so that's why I never filled out the "Status of Relationship" HR form.

I...

They're gonna make this an issue, aren't they?

Like I was trying to hide something.

No, they're not.

Because you're gonna sign the form now, you're gonna back-date it, and I'll make it official.

Why would you do that?

Because you told me the truth.

And I don't think you did anything wrong.

Rook's actions were entirely his own.

The form is just a bunch of lawyers trying to save their asses.

Thank you.

Oh, please.

I've been single ever since I joined the Bureau.

Do you think I haven't slept with anyone here?

We're busy.

How else are we supposed to meet people?

(elevator bell dings)

(sighs)

Eyes front, mate.

They got cameras in here.

I'll tell you everything.

If we get a name, you'll have it right away.

I was gonna e-mail you.

Can you hit 15 for me, please?

Some friends of mine lately, we've been playing this board game called Arkham Horror.

It's this cooperative thing where you work together to defeat the monsters of the Lovecraft canon.

We could always use a fourth.

Oh, sorry, you're probably really busy.

(quietly): You always come off as so desperate.

Hey, James, you know what?

That actually sounds pretty awesome.

Just give me a text, okay?

Oh, wait, I don't have your number.

We've got a name.

The woman who tried to sh**t Mr. Morra is Piper Baird.

So you already know who did it.

We're fairly certain.

Piper used to work for Mr. Morra.

The parting of ways was not amicable.

We supplied her with NZT until she went a bit mad, declared w*r on Mr. Morra and anyone associated with him.

She's been a terrible pain, to be honest.

We're gonna find her, and we're gonna sort the problem out.

But in the meantime, your job is to make sure that the FBI never learn the name Piper Baird.

So you want me to sabotage the investigation?

If the FBI finds this woman before we do, she can tie the senator to NZT.

Which means Mr. Morra goes to jail or flees.

Which means no more booster sh*ts for you.

If she manages to get to Mr. Morra before we get her...

No more booster sh*ts.

(bell dings)

(keyless lock beeps)

Until we have Piper Baird, your fate is tied to Senator Morra's.

Do what you need to do to keep them far away from that woman.

♪

What happened with Casey wasn't anybody's fault but his.

If someone's trying to put it on Rebecca, that's almost as ridiculous as somebody trying to put it on me.

Brian: Boyle is still upset.

I told him he didn't need to k*ll Casey.

I'm guessing I'll be hearing about it for a while.

I paid attention with one ear but mostly spent the drive learning more about the woman I was supposed to be make sure Boyle never found.

Now I don't know what a typical assassin's background is, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't involve a scholarship to study neurochemistry at Johns Hopkins.

Completely normal childhood, good kid, great student, but when her mother's Alzheimer's got bad, Piper dropped out of school to take care of her.

After that, there wasn't much about her.

Not until 14 months ago, anyway.

Her boyfriend was stabbed to death while he was asleep.

Piper was in the apartment, but she ran before the police got there.

She's their top suspect.

(honking) Spelman?

What was that for?

You had that "zoned out" look while I was talking.

(scoffs)

(distorted talking) private security... a woman between five four and five six carried eight or so shopping bags into the suite... didn't leave much behind in the way of evidence...

A woman brought the r*fle in with a bunch of shopping bags, and we don't know anything else. That it?

You know, that "I barely listen to anything you say" recap thing you do?

It's rude.

♪

There was no evidence at all in the suite...

Piper's thorough...

But I couldn't stop staring at something.

There's fresh ink on this drawing.

Actually, I think it's eyeliner.

It's barely even dry.

I wouldn't have noticed it if it wasn't for the NZT, which I think is the point...

Someone's testing me.

That's Piper.

She's on NZT.

Why does she need the laser?

Why risk tipping me off?

She knew I'd have to be on NZT to notice the painting.

Unless...

Dot, dot, dash.

That's Morse code.

She's sending me a message?

You okay, Finch? You look kind of pale.

I'm okay.

Any brilliant insights?

Uh, yeah.

The sh**t apparently used the balcony.

How did we even function before you came along?

Okay, let's head back.

All right, I want you to review the security footage.

See if you have any more of those... penetrating insights.

Find Sammy DiPietro?

She might as well ask me to find Bigfoot.

♪

DiPietro was a union leader with ties to the Mafia.

He vanished in the '70s.

Everyone assumes he's dead, but no one's ever found the body.

And why does Piper want to talk to me, anyway?

Okay, you see that, right?

Piper's good, but she couldn't keep her face off all the security footage.

You got to trim those frames out, and you got to find everything you can about Sammy DiPietro.

I don't know why, but Piper's testing you.

And if she says you can find DiPietro, then you can find him.

(exhales)

(tapping keyboard)

You heard Sands, man.

You don't have a choice.

Yeah, I know.

It's just that... working against the FBI, betraying Rebecca...

Every time I do that, it gets a little bit easier.

You sure you're not slowly turning into Finch?

Building models with colored yarn?

Actually... it's a diagram.

Mm.

But I see your point. Where is Brian?

Said he was running down a hunch.

(whispers): For what it's worth, he seems pretty off his game.

Well, maybe he's internalizing your attitude towards him.

He's very sensitive.

Nah, we're fine.

How'd it go with Naz?

All good. We just...

We're finishing up some paperwork.

I had some time to do some research.

These represent the five longest confirmed sn*per sh*ts of all time.

The record belongs to a British officer who served in Afghanistan: 2,700 yards.

He b*at second place by a whole football field.

This represents the deck of the Intrepid and the hotel where the sh*t was fired.

3,315 yards.

She took a sh*t that would have beaten the old record by six football fields.

Wow.

The round was standard.

It was fired from an off-the-shelf r*fle.

There was no new technology.

Nobody could make that sh*t.

Well, maybe she had some help.

Can you think of anything that would help someone do something that was otherwise impossible?

You're thinking the sn*per was on NZT.

It's a lot of red yarn.

Yeah, and your tape's not as clean as the way Brian would do it.

"Find Sammy DiPietro."

Sounded impossible at first, but when you can plow through 50 years of files in a couple of hours, interesting things can present themselves.

Fritz Wunderlich?

You know, I was always more of a Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau man myself.

As far as German opera goes.

What do you want, kid?

I know you're Johnny "Opera" Velardi.

Hmm, what gave it away?

I know you have ties to the Lotito crime family.

Allegedly. Mmhmm.

I'm just a retired truck driver.

Mm, I know.

And you drove the truck that carried the body of Sammy DiPietro in a steel drum from where he was m*rder*d to where they stashed him.

Been questioned about it 15 different times.

Who are you?

(scoffs) You certainly don't look like a Fed.

It's a long story.

Let's just say I'm a concerned citizen.

To be clear, I don't think you k*lled him.

In fact, you probably didn't even know what it was you were transporting.

I just want to know where you drove the truck that night.

Kid, that was 40 years ago.

Even if I could remember where I drove that truck, why would I start talking after all this time? (zipper opens)

'Cause I'm gonna make you an offer you can't refuse.

(scoffs)

This is a bootleg that even you don't have, Johnny.

You didn't know it, but you were wire-tapped for almost 20 years by the FBI.

(soprano singing aria)

That's your wife.

She's singing to your son when he was a baby.

It's beautiful.

It's Puccini.

I was sorry to read what happened to her.

You know, my aunt had leukemia.

That is the master copy, and it is all yours if you just tell me where you drove the truck that night.

No one will ever know we talked.

♪

The night Johnny "Opera" delivered his truck with its mysterious cargo, he came here.

He said a new concrete floor had been poured.

(door closes) So somewhere in all this concrete lies the body of Sammy DiPietro.

But that's not why I'm here.

Obviously this is where Piper's been hiding, but where is she?

♪

Mom?!

Dad?!

(Dennis laughs)

Hey! Brian!

Hi!

Hi.

Is everything okay here, guys?

Of course. Come, sit.

We're just getting to know your new girlfriend.

♪

What's wrong, Brian?

Nothing, uh, it's just...

I'm surprised to see you.

Here.

With my family.

How could you not tell us that you had a girlfriend?

Uh, he had this whole elaborate plan to introduce us.

I just... kind of got tired of waiting.

Yes, well, our Brian likes to do things in his own way.

On his own time.

That's okay, I-I think I got him pretty well figured out.

Piper was just telling us about your first date.

Oh, yeah?

(timer beeps)

Ah. Oh, well, I assume you're both gonna stay for dinner.

Oh... (chuckles) I don't know yet, Mom.

Piper... quick word on the porch, please?

Brian: Thanks, we'll be right back.

I was sensing some tension between you and your dad.

What did you do?

Listen to me, my family is not a part of this.

You can't really believe that.

Not after being around Morra for this long.

Did you tell anyone I was here?

Relax, I just need to know if you're telling the truth.

Does Sands know where I am right now?

No.

(slow, rhythmic heartbeat)

I'm not here to thr*aten you.

I'm not gonna hurt your parents.

I just don't have much time.

I had to learn everything I could about the person Morra is working with.

Yeah? What did you learn?

Classic middle child, which explains your need for approval.

On the other hand, your fears of living up to your successful older siblings caused you to rebel and reject mainstream success.

"Resorbed Twin."

You really thought that was a reasonable band name?

The most important thing I learned is that you grew up surrounded by love and support, which suggests a strong moral framework.

Why do you care if I have a strong moral framework?

And how long were you in there for?

Seven minutes.

And I care because I know how Morra works.

He has a way of corrupting good people.

You're one of them.

Same way I was.

So it's his fault that you k*lled your boyfriend?

I didn't k*ll my boyfriend, Brian.

Morra did.

Or his people.

And why would they do that?

He came to me when I was writing my dissertation.

I guess he'd read some of my work.

He told me about NZT, how he was trying to alleviate the side effects and how, if I could help him do it, the pill might help my mom.

You invented the enzyme?

Well, me and some other people.

I don't know who they are.

Morra kept us all separate.

He has this way of... making people think he's a good person.

How, no matter what he does, it's all for some greater good.

And one day, I stopped believing that it was about anything other than him.

So I stole a supply of NZT and the enzyme... and he framed me for k*lling Colin as retribution.

That's when I decided he needs to be stopped.

You're running out.

Of NZT, or the enzyme, or both.

You know, something about the attempt on Morra seemed desperate.

He has been on NZT longer than any human being alive.

You had to know that he would see that coming.

But you couldn't wait any longer or you might miss your one sh*t forever.

I'm close to replicating the enzyme, and when I get there, his plan to keep NZT to himself, to keep it from doing all the good you and I know it could... that's all over.

If you saw me as a thr*at, I'd be dead already, so what is this?

Presumably, you want something from me.

You're under his thumb, same way I was.

He took everything from my life that mattered.

He'll do the same to you, trust me.

There's only one way out.

What is that?

You're going to help me k*ll Eddie Morra.

Where are you going?

I can't just leave.

Your mom made meat loaf.

Reporter (on TV): Insiders say they have no idea...

Brian: At the end of the night, I was no closer to knowing if Piper was a disgruntled former operative or a victim of Morra and Sands.

If she was close to making that enzyme, she could be another source for the booster sh*t.

She could get me free of the senator.

Eddie: I'll co-sponsor a new one, give you 40% of whatever you want, which is better than 100% of nothing. Okay?

Well, give my best to Diane.

(phone beeps off)

He's cheating on his wife.

I bring up Diane, makes him a little more pliable.

Did you k*ll Piper Baird's boyfriend?

(sighs)

She found you. I thought she might.

What does she want?

She wants to use you to get to me?

Did you k*ll her boyfriend?

The work we do... it's in the shadows, for now.

I operate in the dark because I have to.

Look, I'll defend what we're building to my dying breath, but I wouldn't k*ll anyone unless they were threatening to do the same thing to me.

Is that an answer?

I didn't k*ll him. She did.

(exhales)

Piper Baird is brilliant, but she is tortured.

And she's a liar.

After I cut her off, she broke into one of my R&D facilities and stole a year's supply of the enzyme.

And now she's running out and she's desperate.

You're torn; I understand.

She's very convincing.

But she can't help you, Brian.

She doesn't know how to make the enzyme.

In a way, you're lucky, because in this situation, the right choice is the pragmatic choice.

And those don't come along every day.

Piper's not done with any of us yet.

One thing left for you to do.

(scoffs) And use the NZT wisely.

Don't you two know me better than that by now?

I'm not going to mean-mug you on this one, Brian.

You know full well how this works.

You're due another sh*t soon and this needs to happen.

Piper came after us.

And now you're the fastest way to get to her.

Listen, son... defend what we're building, Brian.

When you're done, chuck it in the river.

It's untraceable.

(exhales)

Where the hell have you been?

Boyle and I have been trying you all morning.

Yeah, sorry. I had stuff to do.

We got an anonymous tip in the middle of the night.

A woman matching the description the security guards gave you was found hiding in an abandoned building uptown.

SWAT just picked her up.

Boyle's questioning her now.

Who's that?

Her name is Brandy Jo Hawkins.

She just confessed to sh**ting Senator Morra.

Brian: That woman? Brandy Jo Hawkins?

She obviously didn't sh**t Senator Morra, but she makes a great suspect.

She was one of the first female sn*pers in the m*llitary.

She had four confirmed kills in Iraq, then got kicked out of the m*llitary for hitting a superior officer.

She was an easy target to be radicalized by a grass-roots militia.

The way she told it, Brandy had means and motive.

She knew details.

She said a meth dealer gave her an NZT pill.

Senator Morra wants the FBI to stop looking for Piper.

Best way to do that?

Give them a different sh**t.

God knows how he got that poor woman to take the fall.

Okay, so Morra and Sands have their patsy.

That leaves one thing on their to-do list.

Piper.

They want me to k*ll her.

She wants me to k*ll them.

Who do I side with?

Sweater Brian: Why should you side with anyone?

I mean, who says you have to commit m*rder?

They do.

They didn't give me an option of not k*lling anyone.

Badass Brian: Exactly.

That's why there's not even a question here.

You dance with the one that brung ya.

And that is Eddie.

Piper says she'll create the enzyme soon.

She says she didn't k*ll her boyfriend.

But you don't know.

The only thing you do know is that Eddie Morra can help you.

That's for certain.

Rebecca: I'm pretty sure about one thing.

You're not a k*ller.

Sands: No one's a k*ller.

Not until they k*ll, that is.

What are those things you're wearing?

All right, obviously I'm having a hard time with this.

That's why you all are showing up.

So if I could just have a little peace and quiet, I think that I...

Ike: Excuse me?

I'm not sure what I'm doing here, but these things really make me itchy.

Badass Brian: Join Team Badass, Ike.

You get cool leather jackets.

Leather sticks to my skin.

All right, enough!

Dennis: Oh, you're making this too hard, kid.

There's no way out of this.

I mean, one way or another, I'm gonna be forced to do something that I can't.

And if I don't, I'll die.

And it'll blow back on you guys.

Who do you believe?

What?

That's the first thing you're gonna have to decide.

Is Senator Morra a cold-blooded m*rder*r, or did Piper Baird k*ll her boyfriend?

You're never gonna know, so you have to go with what you feel.

Decide who you believe.

Side with them.

And then you can really start thinking.

Brandy Jo Hawkins said she got NZT from a meth dealer.

When's the last time someone below wholesale had a pill to sell?

Mm...

Maybe 18 months? Why?

Something's wrong with her story.

Her blood test confirmed that she had NZT in her system, but I ran a full battery and something else came back, too.

She has Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

It's fatal.

It plays havoc with your coordination.

Yet she managed to get herself into position, take an impossible sh*t, and avoid every surveillance camera.

So something's not sitting right with you, either?

Yeah, well...

It's... she was so smart along the way.

Then, all of a sudden, bam! (snaps fingers)

An anonymous tip, she's sitting right in our lap, telling us everything.

It just seems too easy.

And you know what else?

Her parents' house was in foreclosure up until two days ago, right before we picked her up.

The bank settled, supposedly an accounting error.

Now it's theirs, free and clear.

Well, what if someone settled the debt against her house and in return, she confessed to a crime she didn't commit?

Because of her disease, she'll be dead within the year.

This way, she gets to leave something for her family.

If she's taking a fall... who's it for?

And why would someone on NZT be targeting Senator Morra?

♪ ♪

So, you believe me?

Yeah, I believe you.

I don't know if I trust you.

Piper: I came unarmed, just like you asked.

You know Morra says you're psychotic?

And yet, here we are.

Yeah.

You know what I think?

I think you know what needs to happen.

And I think you know you're the one to do it.

You just need a little help getting there.

He'll take everything that means anything to you, Brian.

He'll do it and he'll say it had to happen to make a better world.

Would you take your hands off me, please?

What is that?

You set me up?

I'm sorry. It was you or me.

(g*nsh*t)

(tires screech)

(grunting)

(train horn blares)

Wait, no.

(screams): No!

(screams)

Sands: We got hold of all the security cam footage.

No one saw your face.

And... we had one of our people from the NYPD pull that g*n with your prints off the scene.

And there's no trace of you being there.

For a botched plan, it went quite well.

Drink that.

I k*lled her.

We got a DNA sample.

It was Piper Baird on those tracks.

What, you didn't think we'd double-check your work?

Believe it or not, I know exactly what you're feeling right now.

Do you know what I did after my first?

I rang my year four teacher.

Cried like I was one of the Sabine women.

Why her, I don't know.

Practically confessed.

I'm lucky she didn't turn me in.

How do you live with it...?

All things pass, Brian.

The volume of your feelings right now?

They'll go down.

This is hard.

But it's like a baptism.

You're an initiate now.

You're a part of the real world.

The strong eat the weak.

Same as it ever was.

(chatting indistinctly)

All right, okay.

You picked the wrong day to come in late.

Senator Morra came by to thank us all personally.

Oh, too bad I missed it.

Goatwhore?

Yeah.

I liked them in high school.

It freaks the people around here out, so leave it up.

I have a question for you.

You don't have to answer right now.

But if you spend some time with it, I think it might help you.

Why are you trying so hard to hold on to the person you were before NZT?

That's who I am.

Well, it doesn't have to be.

I remember Eddie Morra.

He was a terrible writer.

And he lacked the self-discipline and awareness to do anything about it.

I couldn't wait to get rid of him and become somebody else.

But you?

We're different from other people, Brian.

We become more different with every pill we take.

You don't have to run from that.

You can embrace it.

I don't want to be someone else.

I think you do.

You're just not willing to admit it yet.

You're on NZT.

You're above the kind of concerns that you're letting weigh you down.

Put them down, walk away.

You'll feel so much lighter.

I promise.

Brian: No, I wasn't followed.

I went exactly the way you told me to...

Three cabs, two subways, avoided every camera from Federal Plaza to here.

Not easy to do, by the way, in the most photographed city in the world.

Really not easy to do without NZT.

I know what you're thinking...

"She's alive!"

Also, hopefully, "I thought for sure he'd k*lled her."

Because let's be honest...

You're not the person we're trying to fool here.

I'm not k*lling Eddie.

I'm not k*lling anybody.

And if you want to keep up this w*r between you guys, then that's on you.

But in the meantime, I've got an idea.

Luckily I know a lot about jumping in front of subway trains, and she, disturbingly, knows a thing or two about stealing cadavers and rigging them under subway platforms.

There was just one more thing.

We were fairly certain Sands would check the DNA of the body found at the scene to be sure it matched Piper.

Since we couldn't put Piper's DNA into a dead body, I suggested we do it the other way around...

Turn the body into Piper, at least in the system.

(train horn blares) I also knew Sands would be watching the whole time, so we'd have to make it look perfect.

(train horn blares)

You should come away with me.

I have a lab set up.

I'm gonna figure out how that enzyme works, Brian.

You can be free of Morra for good.

The people I love aren't gone yet.

They're here.

If I leave, I-I might as well k*ll them myself.

Can I give you some advice?

Just drop this w*r with Morra.

Figure out how to make that sh*t, and live your life.

You don't get it yet.

If someone doesn't stop Morra, no one's gonna be able to just "live their life."

The whole world's gonna be very different, Brian.

You can't play both sides forever.

You have to leave the country now.

Like we agreed.

If Morra ever finds out that you are still alive, then everything that means anything to me is gone.

You have a nice family.

I hope I get to see you again, under better circumstances.

♪ When I was done dying, my conscience regained ♪
♪ So I began my struggle, a nothingness strained ♪
♪ Out a flash made of time my new form blasted out ♪
♪ And it startled me so and I burst out a shout ♪
♪ At which my legs ran frantic like birds from a nest ♪
♪ And I ran until drained leaving no choice but rest ♪
♪ So I fell asleep softly at the edge of a cave ♪
♪ But I should have gone deeper, but I'm not so brave ♪
♪ And like that I was torn out and thrown in the sky ♪
♪ And I said all my prayers because surely I'll die ♪
♪ As I crashed down and smashed into earth, into dirt ♪
♪ How my skin did explode leaving only my shirt ♪
♪ But from shirt grew a tree ♪
♪ And then tree grew a fruit, and I... ♪