01x03 - The Great Dissembler

[bunniefuu]

And five, six, seven, eight.

One, two, three, four,

five, six, seven, eight.

How did your mom die?

Your mom mom, I mean.

Brain aneurysm.

Do you remember her?

No, I was only
two when she d*ed.

Sometimes I remember things,
but I realize it's just stuff

people have told me
or stuff in pictures.

Then Kathleen became my mom.

I mean, first, it
was Patty in Germany.

But

really, it was Kathleen.

She took care of us.

Stay here after finals.

You know I have to go home.

Why do you have to?

The trial's not
for a while still.

Because it might be the
last normal-ish summer

with my family.

Okay.

I'll come visit then.

It'll get weird.

I'm not ready for that.

If I go

it doesn't have to be
like a coming out party.

We can also pretend
we're just friends.

Promise me you'll at least call.

Yeah, of course.

The blow poke.

What is it exactly?

Oh, it's a fireplace tool.

Something between a
poker and a bellows.

Nice ride.

Jim Kathleen's
sister had given one

to each of her siblings
one Christmas years ago.

And after we had done

our initial search of the house,

taken measurements, photographs,

she noticed from looking
at those pictures

that it was missing from
the Peterson fireplace.

Now, we don't believe it
was randomly misplaced.

Is there a chance
you experts conclude

she actually d*ed from a fall?

Now, a lot of people
smarter than me

have said from day one

that it could only be
one thing, a b*ating.

Where could it be?

Wherever Kathleen hid the thing.

I don't even remember
Candace giving it to her.

Why would you?

Who the f*ck gives
fireplace tools

as a Christmas gift?

Let alone one fireplace tool.

They're kind of handy.

Michael I swear to
God, that stupid thing

is in there somewhere,

and it ain't covered in blood.

How much to get rid of 'em?

Well, first of all, you
can't just get rid of 'em.

Bats are special that way.

You gotta relocate 'em.

It's not cheap.

Let me go over a couple
of things with my husband

and, um, give us a few days.

Yeah, the longer you wait,
the worse it's going to get.

At least they're
not in the plumbing.

Then you're really,
you're f*cked.

The boys are f*cking us.
Both of them need money.

Clayton's gotten
f*cked by the market.

And Todd's got
this website thing.

What website thing?

Well, I don't know what it is.

With Clayton's qualifications,

he could get a job easily.

He needs to focus
on school right now.

No! Do it again, I dare you.

Mike?

Dog's chewing up the
damn furniture again.

The boys are going to need
your help again, Patty.

Oh dear. I don't know if
now is the ideal moment.

Well, can you refinance
the house again?

- The exterminator's done.
- No, not again.

The banks in Germany frown
on that type of business.

It's not good.

- It's Patty.
- Mike?

Well, things are
really bad at Nortel.

I can't ask Kathleen
for more help.

I understand, but
I really cannot.

So whatever we do to Mike,

it affects them.

Fred Please stop worrying

about Martha and Margaret, Cay.

They're the ones who
decided to support a k*ller.

But they didn't really
have much of a choice.

Jay Look...

I get it's a lot to process

but as your lawyer,

until you give me the
go-ahead to strike,

Michael's going to keep
getting your mother's money

- to pay for his defense.
- Yes.

But I can get them
to delay payment

until we get
allocation sorted out.

Exactly.

I think it's time, Caitlin,
but it's up to you.

I can't make this
decision for you.

I don't really want to
deal with this right now.

I'll be in Durham
for the summer.

Maybe we can talk about it then.

These were all on
Peterson's computer.

Can you confirm these
are photos of you?

Did you have sex with
Michael Peterson?

No.

"I was in the Marines.

Love to f*ck, suck, and rim."

Peterson wrote that to you?

Yeah.

Mr. Wolgamott.

Do you expect me to believe

that after all these emails,
after all these phone calls,

after all this back and forth,

that you two never actually met?

- Never.
- If you say you didn't,

it's not going to get
you out of testifying.

I can't believe you want
to show these in court.

It's a good thing I'm well hung.

I wouldn't go so
far as to say that.

Brad You don't think so?

Did you see this one?

We'll let the jury decide.

Well, I'm not surprised.

- Me neither.
- Alright, Ron.

Uh, get something to
eat and head back here.

David So, uh, that was Ron.

Bill The search turn up anything?
They find the blow poke?

No, no, nothing.

But, uh, apparently.

Deaver's still bashing
in Styrofoam heads

with the one Candace gave them.

Tom And?

Well, that's the good news.

They haven't been able
to show the blow poke

could create that scene.

The bad news is the
DA is on a crusade

to find someone you slept with.

We should talk about the emails.

Which emails?

Uh, between Mike
and Brad Wolgamott.

A few other escorts online.

Wait. An escort? What?

Bill, settle down.

Uh, Todd, maybe you and your mom

can help clean up a bit.

I'll make some coffee.

Sure.

Jean. Please, no family.

Tom, I never met up
with any of those guys.

Yeah, I, I came very close
to meeting up with Brad,

but it didn't happen.

Period.

Sometimes when you listen,

you hear things
you don't want to.

So there are some
emails. So what?

These emails paint a
very vivid picture.

You want a picture?

Huh? I'm a painter, too.

I get up there, and I read this.

In the same email
where Mike's talking

about doing this,
that, and the other,

Mike says,

"Evenings aren't
great for me anyway.

"I'm married.

"Very happily married,

"with a dynamite wife.

"Yes, I know. I know.

"I'm very bi,

and that's all there is to it."

Can I see that?

That's not somebody
hiding something.

That's someone who
clearly loves his wife.

I mean, it's not only
possible, but common

for these kinds of
arrangements to exist.

The French do it all the time.

Without anyone to testify
that Kathleen knew,

it's just conjecture.

Well, unless they get
a guy on the stand

to testify that she didn't know.

I mean, if some
emails and some p*rn

are all they got?

Hey, this is our biggest hurdle,

and I'm already over it.

I'm sorry, I don't understand.

What type of arrangements
exactly are we talking about?

What do we got?

We have no m*rder w*apon,

and no one can say they
slept with Peterson.

Brad Wolgamott's emails
could help solidify motive,

but without proof of a meeting,

it may not be worth it
to put him on the stand.

But if I get up there and I say,

"Do you really think

"do you really think,"

"that Kathleen Peterson"

"that this woman knew

"her husband was talking
about f*cking this"

"and sucking that..."

"And God knows what else."

Rimming.

Y'all even know what that means?

I believe it is, uh, cunnilingus

but from the other end.

Wait, don't you mean
on the other end?

- Even with, uh...
- And people enjoy that?

Even with the Freda Black show

the connection
between the emails

sent in September to Brad

and Kathleen being
k*lled in December

is a little fuzzy.

I want actual infidelity.

That's concrete.
That's the story.

Art Do you recognize
this man right here?

Michael Peterson?

Have you noticed any
kind of strange behavior

with Mr. Peterson or, um,

h*m* relationships

with any of your members?

He's never come in here before?

You're absolutely
positive? You sure?

Dennis Rowe.

He mentioned something
about Peterson.

Dennis Rowe?

Yeah. R-O-W-E.

He said he was fun.

Hey.

Hey. Hey, what's up?

You happy to be back?

Yeah.

I don't know. Yeah.

How's SF? Making
a lot of friends?

Boyfriends?

No.

So, you know, the DA's been
laser-focused on Dad's sexuality.

Well, they were before I left.

Yeah. Right. So,

I mean, you knew about the p*rn

and that Dad was
talking with escorts.

- Dad was cheating on Mom?
- No.

I mean, they had an agreement.

And Dad's happy, and,
and she was happy, so...

Have you talked to him about it?

No. I mean, I don't know.
That's between those adults.

I just feel like we should
be able to have that dialog.

If you want to go
talk to him, go ahead.

Alright? I'll make sure
I'm a hundred miles away.

Yeah, well, I'm glad...

I'm glad you found me too.

Word of mouth, you know.

Yeah. I think so.

I'm seeing people
every other week.

Oh, what the... Surprise!

What's going on?

Got you a massage.

I know it's been a little rough.

I thought you deserved
something nice.

I'm actually running for,

uh, for Durham City
Council, you know.

Some say that the
city council does

more than the mayor's
office, you know, ever does.

- Is that right?
- Oh yeah.

You said you live by that
low-income development, right?

Yeah. Yeah. Bit of an eyesore.

- - Mm-hm.
- - Hi. You want to start face down.

- We'll get going.
- Sure.

How's that face
cradle? Is it okay?

- - Mm-hmm.
- - Right.

How's that pressure?

Mm. Good. Great.

Thank you.

That project could
have been great.

And not just for the
people who need...

Mike.

You gonna be here
the whole time?

I'm just talking to
a future constituent.

Maybe you should go
to Blockbuster now

and, you know, before all
the good movies are gone.

Okay!

James, take care of my wife.

She's a delicate flower.

I'll do my best.

Do you know this guy?
Dennis Rowe? R-O-W-E?

Mike?

No, I don't know
who the hell he is.

You meet a lot of people
when you're campaigning.

Well, apparently, he's
a friend of Lori's.

Kathleen used to babysit him

and his brothers
when they were kids.

My sources say he has a limp.

A limp!

Says you had sex with
him four or five times.

Oh, you're sh1tting me!

- That's what he's claiming.
- Oh my god.

Rather know now than later.

Did he indicate where this
great love affair took place?

He hasn't given a
full statement yet.

Oh, when he does, get it to me.

I'm dying to see it.

- - Will do.
- - Is that it, then?

Uh, yeah. Till we get more.

We're going to
need to digest this

and rethink how we approach it.

When we lived in Germany,

Mike had many dalliances
with men and women,

and I didn't end up at
the bottom of the stairs.

- Patty.
- My ex-wife, everyone.

She'll, uh, she'll
be around all week.

Mike, can I talk to
you for a second?

How-how many more men are
they going to turn up?

I, I don't know, Bill.
I don't keep a diary.

But I'm pretty sure I
never f*cked a cr*pple.

No. You said, "No
affairs, Bill."

Well, they weren't affairs.

I, I never, I never took any
of those guys out to dinner.

It was just sex.

Don't "Michael Peterson" me.

I mean, sex is affairs.

You... lied.

You slept around on Patty.
You slept around on Kathleen.

Well, I, I didn't lie.

What? You heard her.

I slept with men and women
when we were married.

I only had sex with men

since I married Kathleen.

- Don't you get it?
- Kathleen knew?

And answer the question.

You sound like her right now!

"Just answer the
question, Mike."

No, no. She knew,
and she understood.

To say otherwise, it's,
it's just insulting to her.

I should have mentioned
this, uh, before.

I'm going to go to Reno
for a couple of days.

What? Well, for how long?

A couple of weeks.

I just, I need to try
and figure out a balance

between home and Durham.

What? Come on. You can't leave
because you're pissed at me.

That's not why I'm leaving.

I'm leaving because I
want to see my family.

What? Who's going to
take care of everything?

Make sure, make sure
the bills are paid?

Here-here-here's the
latest Nortel check.

You go to the bank,
walk up to the teller,

sign the back, hand it over.

It's not that difficult.

You're, you're here
to take care of me,

not to give me a hard time.

I know it's hard
for you to believe,

it's not all about you.

No, it is! It is all about me.

Make no mistake, for
the next little while

or however f*ckin'
long this takes,

it is about me.

Now when it's your ass
about to go to prison

for the rest of your
life, it can be about you.

Take a breath.

I loved her.

And she f*cking loved me too.

Dennis The first time
was about eight years ago

at the sex shop off the 110.

Then a few years later
again at the YMCA.

- The Forest Hills Y?
- Yeah.

You work out there?

On occasion.

Uh, so you didn't know

who you were having
intercourse with?

No. I didn't know who he was
until I walked into his house,

and Lori introduced me to him.

After the party,
did you tell Lori

about your connection
with Michael?

No, I... I didn't...

I didn't see any reason
to create a problem.

Do you know anyone else
who might have slept

with Michael Peterson?

Um...

You can tell us
now or under oath.

I would talk to Tyrone Lacour.

You're friends
with Tyrone Lacour?

No. Not friends.

We're in a small community.

I told him the story
after the campaign event.

He, he looked up
Michael's picture

and-and-and thought
he looked familiar.

Alright.

Well, Mr. Rowe,

what I'd love for
you to do for me

is write down

what you remember
from your encounters

with Peterson.

Every detail, no
matter how small.

We want to know everything.

Uh-uh. No. Nothing.

Hey. More blood.

Take another look, Tyrone.

Maybe an anonymous
hookup somewhere.

Who's telling you this sh*t?

Someone trustworthy.

Reputable.

I ain't no f*g. Well, if
somethin' comes to mind

give me a call.
You've got my card.

Was that enough time for you?

- - Yes, sir.
- - Let's see what we've got.

What's this list?

Names of other people
I've slept with.

If you're going to get me up
there and ask about Peterson,

I'm guessing I'll also be asked

about the other important
married men in town

I've slept with.

Some of whom I, I think
you know pretty well.

Your friends?

Acquaintances.

Donors, actually.

I don't see this playing
out well for us, Freda.

Outing

innocent people on the stand

in order to show what
Michael Peterson was up to.

Well, we have the autopsy,

the crime scene, the photos,

the emails.

We have our theory.

A man who is hiding

gets caught and explodes.

It all feels circumstantial.

We have a theory

about a motive and
no m*rder w*apon.

Well, I guess we
also still got Brad.

Their search has hit a dead end.

I told you I didn't
know this Rowe guy.

Apparently, you're not
as hot as we thought.

Why did it seem like
everyone wants a piece of me?

Well...

What are you up to this weekend?

- Working for you.
- What? No, forget me.

Just spend time with
your wife and kid, man.

Well, Charlene's not so
crazy about me right now.

Oh yeah? What'd you do?

Renovations and well,
let's just say...

I admire the relationship
you and Kathleen had.

Where she let you be you.

My wife and I are just
not on the same page.

Oh.

Happy to talk my problems,

but, uh, I'm still on
the clock here, Mike.

Well, geez. Never mind. I
can't afford you as it is.

Okay. Well... thank you, David.

Thank me when we
hear "Not guilty."

- Good night.
- Good night.

Nothing! Nothing!

They got nothin'.

- What's going on?
- Rowe guy crapped out.

DA's got nothing.

Dad, this is great.

Hey, Dad.

Would you talk about it with me?

Talk about what?

You really want to talk
about your dad's sex life?

Go to bed, honey.

Okay. Good night.

Oh my god.

Oh!

Hello?

Hey, it's Brad. How's it going?

Uh, well, um...
things are crazy,

but, um, you know, good.

You know, election's coming up.

You?

Not too bad.

So, look, I have to cancel.

- What?
- Yeah.

- Why?
- My schedule's changed.

I have to get up to
Durham and back to Tampa

in less than a day and...

And I just think
my ass might need

at least a couple
days to recover.

Well, uh, let me know when
you're passing through.

For sure.

Promise me something though.

What?

Stay hard till I get there.

Uh, yeah. Alright.

Take care.

Yeah, you too. Bye.

Oh.

Oh, that was really very good.

Thank you so much.

Uh, are you good or...

- I'm good. Yeah. I'll clear out.
- Yeah? Alright.

Thanks again.

Oh...

g*dd*mn bats.

Oh.

Uh, how was the massage?

Amazing. Until I had
to take a shower.

I think the bats are chewing
the pipes or clogging them.

All I know is, it's a problem.

Mm-hmm. I'll figure it out.

Let's just enjoy the night. Hmm?

Hmm.

- Where are the dogs?
- Who cares?

Almost ripped up the rug today.

Oh yeah, I meant to ask.
How'd the talk go with Patty?

Oh, right.

Um, well, uh

she can't refinance
the house again.

It's something... German
laws makes it verboten,

so I, I think we're
going to have to...

I think we're going to have to keep
chipping in to help with the boys.

I know what you're doing here.

Butter me up with a massage
and a romantic night,

and then you ask me to
bail your kids out again

because you let them
get away with m*rder.

Especially Clayton.

I, I know you're mad
at him. I am, too.

You literally bought him
a car when things blew up.

Well, nothing actually
blew up... that time.

Clay got lucky.

And you... are playing me.

Is it working?

The Great Dissembler,
ladies and gentlemen.

I guess we'll do
what we always do,

just figure it out.

Some money for the boys.

We need to deal with
the plumbing first.

And then...

Ohh.

We'll, um...

And then

we'll, um...

Oh... We'll deal
with the bats later.

Hello.

I know you gave them
my name, Dennis.

I will do you like that
Peterson bitch. You hear me?

You shut your mouth.

Shut it.

Tyrone?

sh*t.

What do you think of

when you think of Kathleen?

I think of just these

wonderful and funny moments.

- Hello?
- Shh!

She was so funny.

There's this, there's this
wonderful photo of her

in front of the Imperial Palace
in Tokyo just... looking.

Or just... how we
talk about the kids.

Is it strange for you to be
in the house where she d*ed?

No.

I feel her here.

Just imagine she might walk
through that door any moment,

just smiling,

laughing, just

telling me I'm going to
be late for something.

sh*t.

Sorry.

Can we take a moment?

Yeah.

Come here, Margie.

I know you didn't come
home just to hear me talk.

You finally found someone who
has to listen to your stories.

Come here.

Everyone, I'd like you to meet
my other daughter, Margaret.

Hi. Is it weird being back?

Yeah, it was a little
weird going through town,

like, but it's good to be home.

You guys hungry? Should
we make some lunch?

Michael, are you sure it's
okay to sh**t the girls?

Sure.

You get used to it
faster than you think.

Todd loves it.

Huh? What? Huh?

Come on.

We've kept the office
just the way she left it.

The only things that are
gone are the calendar

and the diary she
had in her desk.

The police took them
pretty early on.

What did Mike take?

Michael hasn't taken anything.

What about Martha and Margaret?

Did they come by?

No one's reached out
this whole time but you.

I sent in my condolences
pretty early on,

but once the
investigation started,

I figured, better
to keep my distance.

I don't know why I thought

that they'd be
interested in this stuff.

Sorry, do you mind if I
have a moment alone here?

Of course.

Take your time.

Good morning.

- Morning.
- The trial's around the corner.

We gotta control the narrative.

I don't see a way around it, so,

the interview would
be filmed here,

but it will be syndicated
to all ABC affiliates.

We can have the eyes
and ears of the country.

What you doing?

Well, I'm just going
through autopsy reports.

That's totally normal.

Nothing's normal anymore.

I know. I was kidding.

Martha...

Hey.

So they want us to do an
interview on the news.

- What?
- I know.

I don't want to do that.

- I know, I...
- So

what do you think?

The reporter, Sonya
Pfeiffer, is a friend,

so no curve balls.

This is what Caitlin
would be doing

for the family if she was here.

Uh, we're not sure.

It's just like a lot of people.

Well, seems like you're already
getting used to an audience.

Yeah, but it's

it's a news show on TV.

It's, like, immediate.

What if we say the wrong thing?

No, you girls will do great.

Alright?

Look, you'll have to accept,

sooner or later,

everyone's going to
know who you are.

I'm not going to push you girls to
do anything you don't want to do.

You know let Caitlin and Candace

piss on our family if
that's what they...

- Dad...
- No. No, I mean it. f*ck them!

I'd rather go to prison

that put you girls
through any more pain.

We're okay.

We'll, we'll do what we have to.

Great. I'm going to get it set.

And, uh, Martha, think
about dyeing your hair.

Bleach blonde isn't
great on camera.

It's really good
to see you, man.

I've been thinking
about you and your dad.

- Yeah.
- Your mom...

Yeah, man. It's,
it's been intense.

I'm telling you, man. Cabo.

Look how tan I am. Right?

I'm f*ckin' hot. Right?

f*ck.

Oh.

Oh.

That's good sh*t, huh?

Man...

You know

- the thing about my dad...
- I love your dad.

Is he's people.

You know?

What I'm starting to realize is

that people are just people.

And they go, and they,
they create these labels.

They just try to
categorize people.

What are you talking about?

It's just my dad is complicated.

- You wanna do another one?
- Yeah.

Dude, I'm telling you,
Cabo's so f*ckin' sick.

You got to get away
from here, man.

f*ck, and I already did, like,
all the groundwork and everything.

Timeshare sh*t there, man.

Like, you can make ten to one

f*cking on your investment,
I'm telling you, dude.

What...?

Oh f*ck.

f*ck.

I'm sorry, Dad, I...

Imagine people seeing my son

getting wasted around town.

They're gonna think we're
a family of assholes.

Clayton's the f*ck up, not you.

You're my centurion.
I need you focused.

I know. I'm sorry, Dad...

Now go on up and have a shower.

- You okay?
- Yeah.

Just, um... give me a minute,

I'll get breakfast ready.

We can do it.

No, it's fine. Just
give me a minute.

What does that mean? Can
you forward me the letter?

Yes, we will.

Bottom line, though, Caitlin's
lawyer was successful

in stopping the payments
coming from Nortel.

She and her biological father

have been identified
as the next of kin.

On the life insurance?

You shouldn't count on it.

After everything
I've done for her.

Greedy bitch.

I can talk to Jackie

about refinancing the
house when I see her.

Maybe dip into Dad's savings.

My dad's in a
nursing home in Reno.

He has some savings that we
were going to probably inherit.

It's not much, but...

Don't be gone too long, Bill.

Please, okay? I need you here.

Don't worry, Mike. I'll
be back soon enough.

Don't worry.

David's a good friend.

I swear I'll make it painless.

You good? Alright.

Well, just, um, imagine
I'm one of the girls

and we're, we're getting
to know each other.

With the interview,
are you going to ask

about our, our
mom-mom in Germany?

No, well, just, just
what you remember.

Uh, the good things.

Thanks. Yeah.

Sonya Okay.

This is Sonya Pfeiffer reporting

for WTVD Channel 11 News.

I'm with the daughters of
novelist Michael Peterson

who is preparing for trial
for the m*rder of his wife

Kathleen.

Today, they break their
silence on the case

in this exclusive interview.

Born to George and Liz Ratliff

in Germany in the 1980s,

where their father was
stationed on a m*llitary base,

Margaret was only two,

Martha not even one,

when he d*ed on a
mission in Panama.

A year later,

their mother d*ed
of a brain aneurysm.

Within the course of two years,

they lost both their
biological parents.

I remember almost
nothing from that time.

Yeah. I, I only remember

what people tell me
about that period.

Two of those people
were Michael Peterson

and his wife at the time, Patty,

who were neighbors
and close friends.

It was confusing

when Michael left
Patty for Kathleen.

- - Exactly.
- - Yeah, confusing but wonderful.

He's an adulterer.

Ka-Kathleen became our mom.

He loved her, and,
and she loved us.

And the wedding was here.

And you two were bridesmaids?

Yeah, we, we, like,
sprinkled rose petals

up the stairs on the
way to their bedroom.

It was like a movie.

Hello?

Margaret Hi, this
is Margaret Blair.

I'm calling to
speak with the DA.

Um, I'm Freda Black.
I'm an ADA here.

Margaret I'm sorry to
be calling so late,

but I've been speaking with God,

and he will not allow me
to stay silent any longer.

"Speak, Margaret,
speak," He said.

I'm sorry. Who did
you say was calling?

Margaret Blair. Liz
Ratliff's sister.

Martha and Margie are my nieces.

I need to tell you about
their mother's death.

You found another woman at
the bottom of the stairs?

Liz had been
complaining for weeks.

For weeks about these, these
migraines she was having.

What the f*ck, Mike?
We're four weeks out!

How could you not tell me?

It was 20 years ago! In Germany!

Why would I, why would
I even think of it?

I was helping her out with
something or other that night,

I don't remember
what, but I left Liz

very much alive and
on her way to bed.

The next morning, the
girls' nanny, Agnes,

woke us up

to tell us she'd found Liz
at the bottom of the stairs.

The Ratliffs were
practically family.

We taught at the same school.

That's it!

Liz's autopsy. It's all there.

Margaret Look, I told you,
this can't be a coincidence.

I know that he raised
you, but he is not good.

That's our dad! You
can say those things!

He's very
manipulative, Margaret.

I haven't even told you half
of what we know about Germany.

I can't talk to you
anymore. Goodbye.

Margaret Beware of
false prophets who...

Jesus Christ...

She's crazy.

It is kind of a
weird coincidence

we've had two moms die at
the bottom of the stairs.

So what are you saying?

I'm not saying
anything. I'm just...

We just haven't talked about it.

Don't freak out on me.

So you think there's
some connection?

I can see why Aunt
Margaret's suspicious.

Mom d*ed of a brain aneurysm

which caused her to
fall down the stairs.

It was an accident.

The same way Kathleen
was an accident.

Yes, exactly.

And, like, isn't that weird?

All of it's weird.

Our dad d*ed
mysteriously in Panama.

In fact, where was Mike
when 9/11 happened?

Oh, stop it, you sound
f*cking ridiculous.

Well, you're starting
to sound like Caitlin.

It's like you
don't even remember

what happened before Christmas.

Yes, I do.

And then Kathleen d*ed.
And now we have to grow up.

Dad has been there
for us always.

He didn't have to take
us in, but he did.

That's all that matters.

So just stop questioning
everything. Just stop.

I can't. Can't. I can't!

Was it strange for Mike

to have been over at
Liz's without you?

Oh no, not at all.

After George d*ed,
Liz needed a man

to help around the house.

Well...

The DA's going to
suggest some infidelity.

You know that, right?

Liz and I were good
friends. That's it.

Under no circumstances

would she put carnal desires
above our friendship.

And as far as Michael's
impropriety, at the time,

he was never very
good at hiding it.

I didn't sleep with Liz.

This is all in German, Mike.

Patty can translate it for you.

It says what I've
already told you.

Liz Ratliff d*ed of a,
of a brain aneurysm.

We'll, um, get a
court-certified translator

and turn it all over to the DA.

We don't want to look like
we're hiding anything.

Well, I'm not.

I'm going to need to speak
with the girls, uh, privately.

- By all means.
- No cameras, please.

Mike, can you please.

Thanks. I'll come get
you when this is over.

The girls knew?

Not just about the
aneurysm, but the stairs?

It's essential you're
honest with me right now.

Ask them.

Hey, girls!

It must feel surreal

you're getting pulled into this.

Look, the most important
thing to me is the truth.

And if there's anything
you want to say

about your mother's death

anything at all,

now's the time to say it.

Wait, which mom's death?

Liz mom.

Your biological mother.

Hey, Mike.

Everything checks out. I'll
stick around in case you need me.

You girls okay?

It's us against them.

And they're, uh,
clearly willing to go

as low as possible to hurt us.

And we can't let them.

There are no secrets
between us anymore.

Rudolph's already
filing a motion

to keep Liz Ratliff out.

We can argue the 404.

Oh yeah. Come on in.

I was just thinking
about these two girls.

How are yours doing?

Oh, they're good.

I've been teasing 'em.

They've been eating
so much mac and cheese

that, that their hair
is going to get curly.

- Never heard of that.
- Mm-hmm.

Hmm.

They're with Van this week.

Uh-huh.

Uh, put him through.

Duane, what you got?

Peterson was standing over her

when he b*at her.

The speck of blood on the inside

of his shorts?

The blood flew upwards.

And that was the last piece.

We've managed to
replicate this crime scene

to a tee with the blow poke.

You got yourself a
m*rder w*apon, sir.

I'm looking forward
to testifying for you.

Great work, Duane.

Hot damn. Uh, send that report.

I knew it.

I could feel it in my gut.

I never told you this before,

but, um...

I lost my brother and
sisters in a house fire

when I was 13.

Jack was ten

and my two little sisters

they were even younger.

Sophie-Anne and Mary.

I got out.

But... they didn't.

I'm so sorry, Jim.

Terrible things just happen.

You know.

Innocent children can
burn up in a fire.

And women can trip and
fall down the stairs

for no reason.

They can.

Start filing a motion.

We're gonna have to dig her up.

We'll need permission
from next of kin.

The girls could say no.

They could.

If they find out she
d*ed of natural causes,

like the original autopsy said

it's gonna look bad for us.

Maybe.

Or maybe we all
find out the truth.

Let the games begin.

"To the esteemed lawyers who
are pursuing the prosecution

"of our father,
Michael Peterson.

"We are writing to convey

"our feelings of
distress in this matter.

"However, seeing that
you have no compassion

"for the memory of our mother,

"we reluctantly consent
to your request"

"to exhume our mother's body."

"We are confident
that you will conclude

"what experts concluded
almost 20 years ago,

"that our mother d*ed
of a brain aneurysm

"and that our father,
Michael Peterson,

"will be vindicated of
these outrageous claims.

Sincerely yours, Margaret
and Martha Ratliff."

Thank you.

Of course, Dad. Anything.

Hold the door, please.

You're going to be smiling
in prison soon, you prick.

All rise.

Oyez, oyez, oyez.

This honorable court
for the County of Durham

is now open and sitting for
the dispatch of its business.

The Honorable Judge
Orlando Hudson presiding.

God save the state and
this honorable court.

You may be seated.

- And good morning.
- Good morning, Your Honor.

This court is now
prepared to hear the case

of the state versus
Michael Iver Peterson.

Mr. Hardin, you may
proceed with your opening.

Thank you, Your Honor.

Good morning.

In a very real sense,

this case is about pretense

and appearances.

It's about things not
being as they seem.

One, two, three, four.