06x06 - Extinction

[bunniefuu]

Previously on "Scandal"...

Mr. McClintock has confessed to the crime of sh**ting Frankie Vargas.

I didn't k*ll Frankie.

I just wanted to see you suffer.

I'm innocent!

I brought something for you.

Is that...

That's your daughter.

That's Olivia.

She's beautiful.

Family doesn't complete you.

It destroys you.

Did you sh**t Frankie Vargas?!

No!

I am not a predator.

I cannot be a predator.

I am very smart prey, trying to help my species survive.

But not for Mellie Grant.

According to the latest polls, the Virginia Senator's first pitch earned her a 14-point bump...

with older male voters.

That's what we're told, isn't it?

That these great, big megalosauruses...

The Godzillas of the world, the monsters we read books about, see films about...

They are the fiercest, they are the strongest, right?

- Right?

- Right.

Wrong.

It's the predators who are actually the most vulnerable.

They're the most sensitive to change.

Take away their food, make any kind of reduction, no matter how infinitesimal, well, that's it.

They're wiped out forever.

It happened to the trilobites, to the tetrapods, and then to the therapsids and the archosaurs and the dinosaurs, and guess what.

More likely than not, it could happen to us, too.

Sandra.

You look well, Eli.

As do you.

So, what did you think?

I can only assume that your omission of Francevillian biota as proof of multicellular life 2.1 billion years ago was intentional.

Oh.

You haven't changed one bit.

You are still the same cocky know-it-all who, after all these years, can figure out just what to say to get on my last nerve.

Are we back in graduate school again?

We are a long way from graduate school.

Eli.

Yes?

It's so good to see you.

How long are you in town?

Well, to be honest, this lecture wasn't my only reason for reaching out to you.

Is that right?

That's right.

This is my new workspace.

Everything's still being set up.

Specimen storage will eventually go over there.

CT scanners arrive tomorrow.

It's a process, as you know, but...

It's beautiful.

Sandra, I...

Oh, tell me this isn't...

It is.

Gondwanan.

Laurasian.

Tetrapodomorpha?

Devonian.

Incredible.

Honey, you ain't seen nothin' yet!

Thermal imaging captured this lying just under the surface in a quarry 30 miles to the north of the Yangtze River last month.

It's isolated, obviously.

That's what I thought, too.

And then...

we found it, Eli.

A Yangchuanosaurus.

The Yangchuanosaurus...

The largest, oldest on record.

This is...

I know.

40 years later.

I mean, could you have ever imagined?

Our dissertations would have read a little differently, don't you think?

I mean, how did you...

Who knows about this?

I've been working with a team, assembled them myself.

There's a private collector paying the bill, Eli.

Paying for all of this.

I could use a partner.

But it would have to be somebody who really knew his stuff...

Mm-hmm.

Somebody who I could trust...

Mm-hmm.

Someone who, despite getting on my last nerve...

Yes.

You're in?

I'm in.

I am in, baby!

Here.

Now, look at this.

What's wrong?

Nothing.

She's sleeping with someone.

Mellie Grant is a single woman.

It's Marcus Walker.

And if word gets out that Mellie is sleeping with a black man...

You lose your base.

This is the part where you're supposed to give me some advice, some grand opinion on the matter.

I'm not interested in play-acting this morning.

Olivia, I am late for work.

You're here, pretending you don't already know what you have to do.

You know.

It's clear.

You just don't want to.

She loves him.

Well, that doesn't matter.

It never matters.

You know that.

That Oval is yours.

It belongs to you.

But you have to get her there.

Now, she wants it.

She wants it almost as badly as you do, but there is a difference.

She is weak.

She is undisciplined.

She is soft.

She has never been hungry for anything.

She has never learned the hard way that love is a privilege reserved for the victor.

But you know.

You understand.

I raised a warrior.

Everyone and everything that you love is a weakness.

Eyes on the prize, baby.

Don't you ever get lonely?

Careful!

Make sure you're only removing the rock matrix and not disturbing the specimen.

Here.

Use a needle if you're not sure.

That's it.

Thanks.

There he is.

Who?

The nerd I remember.

Ooh!

Careful with that.

It's an exact replica of one Barnum Brown excavated at Hell Creek.

I saved this spot for it.

Eventually, everything from the stations in Montana will go here.

I'll clean that ceratopsian from...

Well, I better get back to sanitizing picks and pin vices.

Here are the latest heat scans from the Sichuan dig site, sir.

Thank you, um...

Sarah.

Anything you need, you just give me a holler, m'kay?

Sandra's clean.

I ran her through every database imaginable...

GSX, NSID, Interpol.

Nothing suspicious...

No arrests, no known criminal affiliations.

Unless you're really, really into dinosaurs, her life seems pretty uneventful.

Well, that doesn't mean she's clean.

It might just mean she's good.

There are cameras all over that place.

Someone is watching.

What about the collector?

Well, that is a different story.

What does that mean?

It means the name you gave me doesn't exist.

When did you last check on Olivia?

Last week.

I did my usual sweep.

Why?

Dad, what are you doing here?

I need a record.

A record.

Marvin Gaye.

I hate to bother you, but I have called every record store in town.

They don't have it, and I know you do because I did.

Look, I really need to get through these analytics reports for our demo outreach strategies.

Olivia, please.

This new job of mine, I am surrounded by children.

They don't know who Marvin Gaye is.

They don't know what real music is.

I mean, have you ever heard of a rapper named "Young Thug"?

You put the records away?

Yeah, they're in my closet.

Hold on.

Olivia, a collection like that?

It should be displayed proudly.

I mean, to keep it hidden in the back of some closet, it's a sin.

I don't play them.

I'm busy making a president.

You know we keep losing ground?

They don't like her.

Who?

People...

They don't like Mellie.

I've got my stats team telling me California may come down to San Benito County.

California...

She's from there.

Why don't they like her?

Ah.

Can't help you there, obviously.

This is it?

That is it.

Um...

how long has that car been out there?

That one?

Hmm.

Since the convention, I think.

They're Secret Service, Dad.

They're there for my protection.

And Huck...

Still conducting regular sweeps for listening devices here and at the office?

Every Wednesday.

Tell him to modify his schedule.

He shouldn't be so predictable.

Did you need anything else?

Isaac Hayes?

Curtis Mayfield?

No, this will do for now.

When that second verse hits, it's gonna change their entitled, little lives.

What is this?

A drink.

A drink?

Well, not just any drink.

It's not...

It is.

That was 40 years ago.

Still good.

Mm.

What I remember most about that trip was...

you jumping off the front of the bus at La Flecha...

and running straight to the dig site.

We must have been going 15 miles an hour.

Well, it was a Titanosaurus.

It hadn't moved in 97 million years.

That's not what I remember most about that trip.

No?

No.

No, I remember our last night in Buenos Aires.

You played me this song.

I did.

You poured me this drink.

I did.

It didn't work.

I don't have a lot of regret in my life.

I regret that.

It was 40 years ago.

That's not a lot of time in the scope of things.

Still good.

We don't have anything in there.

Do you want me to...

It's okay.

The closer they are, the better it is for us.

So this is like grad school.

I haven't made out in a closet in decades.

I'm gonna give you one chance not to lie.

Who are they?

Eli...

Who are they?

I don't know.

Tell me now!

I don't know!

Who are they?

I don't know.

Are you working with them?

No.

Are you working with them?!

No!

Where did you meet them?

Please put the g*n down...

Where did you meet them?

They came to my office.

They brought me here.

How many are there?

I don't know.

What do they want?

I don't know.

What do they want?!

I don't know!

They want you.

They want you.

That's all I know.

They brought me here.

They told me to get you.

You lured me here.

They said they would k*ll me.

You could have warned me at the lecture.

They were at the lecture.

They're everywhere.

They're everywhere.

Don't you understand, Eli?

They're everywhere.

Where are you going?

Don't move.

Go get the others.

You want to talk to me?!

I'm right here.

This is a true honor.

You will regret every second of this.

Only weak men harbor regrets.

I'm giving you an opportunity to explain yourself...

To help me understand why you thought you could lure me into a cage and get away with it.

It won't spare you my wrath.

It won't prevent me from ravaging everything that you hold dear.

But I may exhibit an ounce of mercy when I take your life.

Tough talk from someone who sat quietly in a chair waiting for daddy to come home from work.

Or I could k*ll you now.

With the g*n in your holster?

All three of us?

Who would you k*ll first?

Who exactly is in charge here?

Him?

Now I'm in charge.

That's the attention I was looking for.

You can be impressed.

I'm impressed by you.

I respect you.

And because I respect you, let me put your mind at ease.

Sandra is an unwilling participant in all of this...

A tool.

You want something.

Mellie Grant in the White House.

Fixing an election isn't cheap.

Name your price.

It's also not easy.

You wouldn't be here if you didn't have my complete confidence.

You're wondering whether you actually have a choice.

That is something I have never wondered.

But you do understand what's at stake should you opt out?

Olivia will be fine.

But Sandra won't be.

She walks.

Sandra.

We do this, we get the result that you want, Sandra walks free.

You and I?

We never cross paths again, namely for your sake.

I had hoped that we could become friends, but...

Sure.

I can live with that.

This was fruitful.

Get it done, Eli.

You're upset.

Of course I'm upset.

Also confused and terrified.

Don't be.

What is going on?

What the hell is all of this really about?

Is this the CIA?

Is that what this has to do with your old life?

S-Sandra...

Who was that man?

Where did he come from?

His name is Theodore Peus...

Not him.

The man I saw in the closet, the one who...

That wasn't you.

That had to have been someone else, someone else I want to forget entirely.

I'm sorry I mistrusted you.

Sandra, all of this...

All of this is over now.

I told you, it's been taken care of.

What does that mean?

It means I'm protecting you.

It means you're safe now, and you will always remain safe as long as I am watching, protecting, because I got you.

Hmm?

Okay?

I got you.

You better have, Eli.

The question is, will the juggernaut of Grant's political machine be enough to fend off Vargas' impressive grassroots support?

One thing's for sure...

Neither candidate is going to be getting much sleep heading into the final week of the presidential campaign.

Vargas plans to continue his bus tour of the Southwest while Grant wraps up her campaign with a series of rallies in key swing states.

The race for presidency has officially become a game of inches as both campaigns devised strategies and counterstrategies in order to find and win every available vote.

Your slothful pace is truly repugnant.

I'm sorry, sir.

Give it to me.

Name's Jennifer Fields.

Overeager aide on the Vargas campaign who spent a lot of late nights with her boss before she got her ass b*at by one of Cyrus Beene's g*ons.

I mean, look at that...

It's just nasty, right?

Could be what we need.

I asked for something foolproof.

Well, yeah, if something like this were to get out...

It would be a minor setback for Vargas at most.

It would not guarantee a win for Mellie Grant.

What I need, Adam, is a win.

What I'm keeping you around for, against my better judgment at this particular moment in time, is so that you can deliver me a win.

Can you do that?

What about voting machines?

Do we have enough time?

If we pick and choose our counties.

Start with San Benito.

Hmm.

Olivia.

Did you think I wouldn't find out?

Find what out?

The voting machines, the ones you rigged.

Huck said it's some old B613 protocol...

an algorithm, some obscure program.

I don't exactly know the details.

All I know is that you did it so that Mellie would win.

Is that not what you want?

I know how it feels to walk into an Oval Office I stole.

I want to know the feeling of walking into an Oval Office I earned!

And you still can.

This is on me, not you.

You ran an honest, brilliant campaign.

You are still clean.

Listen to me.

Go home.

Go to bed.

Fall asleep knowing that you are going to be victorious.

Forget this conversation ever happened, Olivia.

I undid it, Dad.

What did you do?

The backdoor you used to rig those machines?

Huck guaranteed me that it's been closed.

Even he couldn't get back in if he wanted to.

I will go home.

I will go to bed.

And I will fall asleep knowing that over 100 million families will get to decide who their next President is going to be.

This is their choice, not mine, not yours!

Olivia, this...

Mellie is going to lose.

You are going to lose.

Don't you have any faith in me at all?

Olivia.

Olivia...

Zanzibar?

A hundred miles off the coast.

A little island, more beautiful than anything you could ever imagine.

I am not going to Zanzibar.

What are you talking about?

What are you talking about, Eli?

I cannot just pick up and leave my life here.

I have a job, family, friends.

I have a dog.

If you don't pick up and leave, you aren't going to have a life.

These people...

I know these people.

Then you know that you have to trust me.

I am not going anywhere.

You are going to Zanzibar.

I am not going to Zanzibar.

Aaah!

Aah!

I worked for the United States government.

I know.

No, you don't know.

I ran an organization, that you do not want to know.

But I'll tell you this.

We had a rule...

my rule...

No family, no attachments, no love.

I mean, you loved your country, you loved your mission, you loved your fellow officers.

Everything else was a liability.

That's what I was?

Yes.

A liability?

Yes.

You knew that when you left Buenos Aires?

I knew that the day I met you.

You got married.

Mm.

To the wrong woman.

If...

I was going to break the rule, I should have broken it with you.

You hurt me, Eli.

I know.

You don't know.

You don't know how you hurt me.

When I came back, you were gone.

I thought we were gonna spend our lives together.

I loved you.

I loved you, too.

I still do, which is why you are going to Zanzibar.

You trying to protect me?

Yes.

Then protect me here.

Adam.

Sir.

Tell me we were able to re-rig those machines.

I tried, sir.

I couldn't do it.

Sir, the election is Tuesday.

Maybe if I had more time, I could...

I could whip something together.

It's just, with that level of decryption...

Quiet.

What are you doing here?

My grandmother has the same couch.

You have five seconds.

I hate this couch.

Sandra.

Poor thing.

She was so scared when I showed up, but g*ns have that effect on regular folks, I guess.

You messed up, Coolio.

Geez.

America used to be such a great country built on honor, where your word meant something.

You promised to deliver this election, and you failed.

You lied about rigging the machines in San Benito, and somehow, you thought there wouldn't be any consequences?

Where is she?

One thing at a time.

It's not looking good for Mellie.

It is your job to make it look good for Mellie.

Make right on your promise.

We're on the eve of the election.

That ship has sailed.

So, I should just call my man standing over Sandra right now and tell him to drop the hammer?

I watched you two together.

You care about her.

It's sickening, really.

I could k*ll you right here, right now.

No, Coolio.

You are going to k*ll Francisco Vargas when he takes the stage tomorrow night.

That's...

foolish.

He won't have been sworn in.

I mean, Cyrus Beene would become President.

Come on.

You're smarter than that.

You want me to frame Cyrus for the assassination.

Ding!

Impossible!

Not for the greatest of all time, right?

Figure it out.

For the record, I am the one who is going to give you nightmares.

So, what's the plan?

That big, huh?

Whoa.

You're not kidding.

I haven't seen you like this since...

The plan?

You want to know the plan?

The plan is for you to shut up and do exactly what I say!

Okay.

Understood.

A hit.

Cool.

Here's your new identity.

Bio, I.D.s.

Nelson McClintock.

That's my cover?

Set up on the fifth floor of the parking garage, northwest side of Fairmount Park.

Philly, huh?

Vargas?

Set up.

Await my instructions.

Just the one target?

Set up.

Await my instructions.

What's my exit plan?

Await my instructions.

Yes, sir.

Wait.

The girl on Vargas' campaign...

Jennifer.

Jennifer Fields.

I need to know everything about her.

With projections for Texas and Virginia now clear, this entire election has come down to one state...

California.

It's winner-take-all for those 55 Electoral College votes with only one county left to report, a county that will determine...

Where are we on Sen Benito County?

We'll know soon.

That county?

San Benito County.

San Benito is often considered a bellwether county for California, which hasn't been in play in an election since...

Hold on.

We're getting an update.

This is it!

Turn up the TV!

Loud!

BNC is now ready to call San Benito County and the state of California, and...

this is a surprise.

BNC is projecting that...

Frankie Vargas will carry San Benito County and become the next President of the United States.

Where are you going?

Jake?

Liquor cabinet's back that way.

You need to call Governor Vargas and concede.

It's over.

The race is not over.

We lost.

They won.

It's over.

Make the damn call.

South tunnel clear.

Aah!

You know what gets me?

Cyrus.

Vice President Beeeeene.

It's like having a vampire a heartbeat away from the Oval.

Hello, Philadelphia!

When we started this improbable campaign, we were told this couldn't be done...

That I couldn't do it, that you wouldn't do it.

Well, America, here we are!

We were told that people who came from where we came from couldn't get here, didn't belong here, because we were just...

people...

Mothers and fathers, working men and women, immigrants, laborers, farmers, teachers, janitors, poultry workers.

People without wealth, connections, or advantage.

People without a leg up.

People to whom the vast fortunes of this great nation never trickle down.

We were told this job wasn't for one of us.

Well, America, here we are!

IYa llegamos!

Thank you for thinking differently.

Thank you for thinking about tomorrow, not yesterday, about progress, not decline, about equality, not bigotry, about love, not hate, about hope, not fear.

Thank you for thinking that we really can be a nation of the people, by the people, and for the people.

IHoy si somos una nación de la gente, por la gente, y para toda la gente!

sh*ts fired!

Parking structure!

Fifth floor!

0-1.

Who's got eyes on parking structure?

Starts on parking level 5!

- Keep route secure!

- Blue Five, Blue Five!

Stage right!

Stage right!

Move!

Hey!

You!

Hands up!

Let me see them!

Officer.

Secret Service.

Yeah?

Let's see about that.

You're late.

Had to be careful.

The place is crawling with cops.

Is the r*fle in place?

Parking structure, fifth floor.

Let's go.

The mission is not over.

Is there a problem, soldier?

No, sir.

Sorry, son.

Thank you, sir.

Tell me you have the sh**t.

We got him.

FBI found him hiding in a shed about a mile from the rally.

Nelson McClintock.

Prints on the sn*per r*fle look to be his.

We're sure he's not part of a t*rror1st cell?

Dana?

The CIA has no intel on this guy.

Appears to be homegrown.

At this time, we can confirm that a suspect...

One Nelson McClintock...

Has been apprehended and is being held in custody.

His fingerprints match those found on the m*rder w*apon, and as of now, he appears to have acted alone.

We...

The mighty conqueror returns.

How's Philly?

Did you squeeze in a cheese steak while you were there?

They are so yummy.

Where's Sandra?

First, let's talk about how we're framing Cyrus.

Is this McClintock guy pointing fingers tonight?

No, I have someone else for that.

Super.

Let's get this party started.

Not until I have Sandra.

Let her go.

Are you okay?

I'm fine.

I love you.

I love you, too.

Okay, we get it.

You want to put a ring on it and take her ass to eat shellfish of some kind.

Can we do business, please?

Jennifer, it's me.

Make the call.

Hi.

My name is Jennifer Fields.

It was Cyrus Beene.

He k*lled Frankie Vargas.

There it is.

It's done.

We are done.

Let's go, Sandra.

Let's not go, Sandra.

Excuse me?

Here's the problem with doing good work, Eli.

You make yourself valuable.

And only a fool lets go of a valuable possession.

We both know I'm no fool.

We had a deal.

I think I'd like us to have more deals.

If you think I'm gonna be working for you...

But you are...

because we found your weakness.

It's standing right next to you.

All I have to do is put a g*n to her head, and my wish becomes your command.

These are incredible times, Eli.

Important times.

And if we're going to accomplish what we need to accomplish, we're going to need some muscle, a strong back who can get things done.

A strong back.

So that's it?

You're saying you own me?

So, what, I'll work your fields and shine your shoes and pick your cotton and dance whenever you tell me to?

You put a g*n to the head of the woman I love, and I belong to you?!

You have a streak of weakness, Eli.

We found it.

Don't b*at yourself up.

We're just better than you.

You people.

Always thinking you're better than us.

I have no weaknesses.

No one owns me.

Our account is settled.

Done.

Are we clear?

I got to give it to you.

I did not see that one coming.

Hey, send me the "Butterfly" feed.

What are you doing?

Wherever your daughter goes, we have eyes on her.

And when I say "eyes," I mean we have an actual human being who, when hearing from me, in seconds, can put a b*llet in your daughter's brain.

What do you think?

Do we have a clean sh*t?

Cyrus in jail.

Mellie in the White House.

Make that happen.

Then the real work begins.

Oh, look.

Your bones arrived.

Fun.

Isn't she something?

Look at her.

An amazing predator.

Beautiful and vicious, and...

Can you believe this is for a private collector?

Was it you?

Admit it, Olivia.

This is a gift.

Now you can make a case.

If Frankie dies, Mellie has a legitimate sh*t to the Oval.

But be careful.

You have to play it just right.

I asked you a question.

Yes or no?

If you push Mellie too soon, you look callous.

If you wait too long...

Did you sh**t Frankie Vargas?!

No.

I don't believe you.

Did I think about k*lling him?

Yes.

It was...

It was a genius move.

But you made it very clear during the generals that you did not want my help.

I didn't need it.

San Benito County begs to differ.

You had it right in your hand, and you let it go.

You know better.

You...

You are better.

You are faster, stronger, and smarter than him.

How could you be so weak?

How could you let that man outplay you?

This is what happened, Olivia.

He outplayed you in the generals, he outplayed you tonight when he paid an assassin to sh**t Frankie Vargas.

W-What did you just say?

And there it is...

That streak of weakness, that cr*ck anyone can slip through.

See, that's why you lost because you believe I am a predator, which is...

I am your father.

I am not a predator.

I cannot be a predator.

Not in this world.

I am very smart prey.

Trying to help my species survive.

Think.

Think like them.

Who gains the most if Frankie Vargas dies?

Who has spent decade after decade helping fairer yet less competent men raise their hand on Inauguration Day?

Who would, quite literally, k*ll for this job?

Cyrus Beene loves Frankie.

Cyrus Beene loves Cyrus Beene.

He's always been the most dangerous predator.

I offered you San Benito, and you turned me down.

That cost you the election.

Tonight, you have a second chance at the Oval.

Hmm?

Hmm?

Survival of the fittest, Olivia.

Survival of the fittest.