12x03 - The Secret of Gila Junction

[bunniefuu]

FEMALE NARRATOR:
Tonight on m*rder, She Wrote.

DRIVER: Nothing ever
happens in Gila Junction.

Is everybody happy?

(ALL CHEER)

TINY: But I'm getting real close
to the treasure now, real close.

But don't tell anybody.

Be our little secret.

Got a problem
with that, Pilgrim?

Yeah, you bet there is,
Mr. Whoever You Are.

Just stay away from my daughter.

Sorry, baby. Gotta go.

You are not gonna
get away with this!

I have reason to believe there is a
massive cover-up going on around here.

JESSICA: There's no way
that I'm going to get involved.

NORMA: The pot is
finally coming to a boil.

HAWKINS: All right, who's in?

MALE PLAYER 1: Yeah, I'm in.

MALE PLAYER 2: You better
have those aces, Hawkins.

MALE PLAYER 3: I
think he's got 'em. I'm out.

MALE PLAYER 1: Well, I
got two-fifty says he doesn't.

FEMALE PLAYER: I
think you're bluffing, Todd.

I'll see ya

and I raise ya.

(DOOR CRASHING)

MALE PLAYER 1: Hey, hey, hey!

(ALL CLAMORING)

MALE PLAYER 2:
What's going on here?

Just give him all your
money. All your money.

HAWKINS: You want the ring, too?

MALE PLAYER 3:
Just take the money.

There you go.
Nobody's gonna get hurt.

(TIRES SCREECHING)

MAN: Anybody get
a license number?

This is Todd Hawkins. I got a
situation that requires special attention.

(TIRE HISSING)

Kinda unusual for
anybody to get off here.

Don't expect too
much, Mrs. Fletcher.

Why's that?

Well, nothing ever
happens in Gila Junction.

(LAUGHS) Ah.

(CREAKING)

(WHISTLING)

Hello. Could...

(SCRAPING)

Excuse me. I was
looking for the sheriff.

Oh. Well, you found him.

Oh. I thought...

Well, being a sheriff in a town
this size is only a part-time job.

I mostly use the lockup to store
extra supplies for the gas station.

Well, what can I do for you?

Well, my friend...
Maybe you know her,

Norma Shey? Oh.

She was supposed
to meet me here, but...

(CHUCKLES)

That's Norma for you.
Always running late.

She's probably out at her
pottery furnace, lost track of time.

Oh. Well, come on.

We'll give her a jingle on
the phone. Take your bag?

Thank you.

WHITEY: Marge!

(DOOR CLOSES) (SIGHS)

What?

Hey, when a man comes
back all gritty from a trip,

is it too much to ask his wife
to have clean laundry waiting?

What do you do around
here all day anyway, missy?

Besides memorize
Cosmopolitan magazine?

I also deliver the mail.

Oh, that's it, run
to your daddy now.

Tell him how mean I am to you.

(DOOR SLAMS) (SIGHS)

(RINGING) SPENCER: No answer.

Funny she doesn't
have her machine on.

You sure she was expecting you?

Well, it was a bad connection when I
spoke to her yesterday from Las Vegas,

but I'm sure that
she understood.

(RINGS)

Spencer's Gas.

Hey, hon, how's it going?

Whoa, whoa, whoa,
slow down, Deena.

DEENA: Looks like
it went off the road.

Uh-huh. How bad's the car?

(HORSE NEIGHING)

Yeah. Okay, where
you at exactly?

Okay, be right there.

Norma?

My girlfriend found Miss Shey's
car in a ditch out in the desert.

And?

Wasn't anybody in it.

(MOTORCYCLE APPROACHING)

(SIGHS)

So, you're back.

Whoa.

Who's been twisting
your tail? Huh?

Let me guess. He's twice as
old as you are and half as bright?

(CHUCKLES)

Now, that's my girl with
the million dollar smile.

Yeah, well, where
were you last night?

We could have had
the whole evening.

I was taking care of business.

Chasing other women, I bet.

Yeah. Got real lucky, too.

Crap game over in Newtonville.

Why don't you buy
yourself a little present?

I don't want your money.

Oh!

I told you.

I told you, he saw us the other
night out at that old Army base.

Don't worry about it.

Yeah, but you don't know Whitey.

He's got a crazy temper,
and he might just...

Tiny won't say a
word. He listens to me.

I'm just so tired.

I'm just so tired of this
small-minded, dried-up, nowhere town.

Why can't we just take off?

Yeah, sure, baby.
One of these days.

Well, I am not going to wait
indefinitely, Pete. I gotta make a move.

You don't mind my
saying, Mrs. Fletcher,

you don't seem that
worried about Norma.

Well, I suppose it's because

she's always lived
a charmed life.

When Norma was with
the Associated Press,

she covered riots,
earthquakes, wars.

Really? She never
talks about any of that.

Oh, she was even a prisoner
of the Viet Cong for one day.

I mean, then she
escaped into the jungle.

Wow. Imagine that.

As long as she could walk away,

it'll take more than running
into a ditch to stop Norma.

MALE NEWSREADER ON RADIO: A backing
from the governor could go a long way

in this tightly
contested primary race.

In other news, the Truck
Stop Bandit has struck again.

This time, in Bishop, Arizona.

This is KHCK-FM, Phoenix's
choice for new country and old...

Oh, heck, maybe I'm
just being a crybaby.

And you have a right to be.

I want to take that
husband of yours,

grab him, and shake him.

I wanted so much
more for you, honey.

Well, look around, Dad.
Who else was there?

Yeah, you're right.

And that's why I should
have dumped this place

when you and Deena were little,

and raised you where you
could have had some advantages.

Like maybe in
Phoenix, or Tucson...

Hey, hindsight's always 20/20.

You did the best you could,
and you hung onto your dream.

Yeah.

But to tell you the truth,

your sister, well, she always
kinda fit in around here.

You, on the other hand,
I was always thinking that

you would be
moving on, you know?

Who knows? I
might still just do that.

(TELEPHONE RINGS)

Gila Grand Hotel.
Cal Harding speaking.

(MAN CHATTERING ON PHONE)

The reason I didn't call is that
I don't have anything to report.

Mr. Parks, we agreed on 60 days,

and according to my
calculations we still have 18 to go.

And I can guarantee you,
it'll be taken care of by then.

Thank you very much for calling.

And I was burdening
you with my problems.

Anything serious?

Nah. Nothing for
you to worry about.

Creech, what kinda name is that?

Navajo.

Oh, yeah? You're working for
the Great White Father now, huh?

What you... What you
gonna survey, Chief?

Routine stuff.

They're thinking of widening
the road north of town.

How... long you gonna be around?

(BOTH CHUCKLING)

As long as it takes. Got a
problem with that, Pilgrim?

Who the hell he think he is?

Hey, Pete.

What's up, buddy?

Listen! Listen what
happened. I'm getting real close.

I was out last night
excavating for the treasure.

Yeah? What else is new?

Look!

I found this on a cactus spike
right near where I was digging.

That's real, ain't it, Pete?

Why, that's part of
the treasure, for sure!

Tiny, your long lost treasure is
supposed to be, what, 20, 30 years old?

Mmm-hmm.

Well, the date on this
bill here is 1993. See?

TINY: Well, so how
come it looks so old?

I don't know.

But I'll tell you what.

I'll just hold
onto this for you,

and we won't tell
anybody about it.

Be our little secret.

Okay.

Okay.

It's a lucky thing you
just came by this far out.

Oh, it's my job. I'm with the
Fish and Wildlife Department.

It looks like she had a blowout.

SPENCER: Yeah, well,
lucky she didn't catch on fire.

There were some footprints
leading off up the road.

But then over there, they
go out into the open desert.

I tried to follow 'em, but it's
awful rocky and I lost the trail.

(VEHICLE HONKING)

(LAUGHS)

Well, looks like you called
that one, Mrs. Fletcher.

I might have known.

Thanks a lot, Wayne.
I'll be fine now.

MAN: See you, Norma.

Jessica! What are you doing
out in this neck of the woods?

Oh, thank goodness.

Oh, are you a
sight for sore eyes!

Here, let me give you a hand.

You know, this is
my own fool fault.

I took a spin, I got so
distracted looking at the scenery,

and I drove myself
right to a ditch.

Oh, but I'm sure that I...

You could have
broken your ankle.

Oh, no, I think
it's just sprained.

I tried to take a shortcut
back to the highway,

and stepped right
into a prairie dog hole.

Oh. Well, we
should tape that up.

Oh, thanks. Yeah. I'll
get your car locked down.

Okay.

What is this all about, Norma?

I'm sure I saw a b*llet
mark on your tire rim.

Okay, we'll talk about it later.

Jess, as I would've said, if I
hadn't been unavoidably detained,

welcome to Gila Junction.

Thank you, Norma.

NORMA: So after all those
years of living out of a suitcase,

finally I have a home of my own.

Oh, what a wonderful studio!

Isn't it great? I've mostly
been working in ceramics lately.

And that clay is
such a lovely color.

Yeah, you can only find
that clay in one special place,

and it's right around here. Ow!

Now, Norma, Dr. McFarland said

that you really have to take it easy
on that ankle for at least a week.

Okay, okay.

All right. Now, no
more small talk.

Who put a b*llet in your tire,

and why don't you want
anybody to know about it?

Look, it's not that I won't
ever tell anybody about it.

It's just... I know.

You're just not sure
who you can trust.

This is beginning
to sound like a replay

of that book that you were working
on years ago about Agent Orange.

Jess, this could be just
as big and just as dirty.

Now I've had to go
have a stupid accident.

I really need your help.

Well, look, I can extend
my stay a few days.

I can cook for
you, run errands...

No. I mean help.

I think I know what
you mean, Norma.

And the answer is no.

All right, I'll lay
it out for you.

I have reason to believe there is a
massive cover-up going on around here.

Cover-up? Of what?

Some top secret stuff that took
place out at the old Army base,

back, like, 25 years ago.

Dangerous chemical and
biological warfare experiments

that I think are still affecting
the area around here.

I think they may be poisoning
people for miles around.

Well, I think that's a
very serious supposition.

I know it is, and I can't get
any answers out of anybody.

All the way from the
local retired sheriff here,

up to the State Capitol
and the Pentagon.

But I must be
getting close, Jess.

Why else would people
be taking sh*ts at me?

I have no idea, Norma.

But my advice to you is either drop it
immediately or get some help from the law.

In any event, there's no way
that I'm going to get involved.

Okay, Jess. You
leave me no choice.

I'm just going to have to
follow up these leads myself.

Ow! Ow!

Norma, I may never
forgive you for this.

Thank you, Jess.

Now, may I suggest you start

by getting yourself up to
speed on my research?

(EXHALES) Yeah.

(FLIES BUZZING)

(PEOPLE LAUGHING)

(PEOPLE CHATTERING)

(POP MUSIC PLAYING)

Oh, I almost forgot.

This came for you
today. It looks important.

It's from the Department
of the Interior.

Whoa! Wait, wait, they're
offering me a promotion,

and a new job in the national
park on the Olympic Peninsula.

Well, that's way up
near Seattle, right?

Incredible! Hey, Dad,

someone in the family is
finally escaping Gila Junction.

So, what do I hear? One of
the girls is finally flying the nest?

Yeah, well, I'll
believe it when I see it.

Hey, didn't the doctor tell
you to stay off of that leg?

Oh, doctors tell you
all kinds of things.

There's nothing wrong
with me that a couple

of tall, cool vodka
and tonics won't cure.

And where's Jessica?

I put her to work.

Well, have you given
any thought to what I said?

Yes, I did.

And I don't think so, Cal.

I'm just not ready to play house
with anybody again right now.

Besides, I like our
arrangement the way it is.

Don't you?

Yeah.

Mr. Parks, what
are you doing here?

Just came in for a look around.

I wasn't expecting to see
you for another 18 days.

Since it seems unlikely you'll be able to
come up with the balloon payment by then,

I felt that it'd be
prudent to assess

what we'll need to invest here

to make this place profitable.

I see.

(DINGING)

(GROANING)

That's what happens when
you try to cheat, buddy boy.

(CAR ENGINE STARTING)

(HORSE NEIGHING)

So I was walking in the desert,

and I fell down this hole,

and there was a kind
of a room down there,

and a chest, you know,
like a pirate's chest,

and it was all full
of money, all full.

Oh. So what did you do, Tiny?

Well, I climbed out, and
I went off to tell my mom,

but before I got back,
there was this storm,

and when I got back,
everything kind of looked different.

So I grabbed a shovel,
and I started to look for it.

When was this, Tiny?

Eight... No, 19 years ago.

But I'm getting real close to the
treasure now, Mrs. Fletcher, real close.

But don't tell anybody.

Tiny. Are you boring the nice
lady to tears with your tall tales?

Oh, gee, I hope not.

Then you better
get back to work.

Excuse me, Mrs. Fletcher.

Good luck, Tiny.

My goodness, that's quite a bit
of memorabilia you've got there.

WHITEY: Twenty-one
years of my life.

Saw a lot of the world.

JESSICA: Oh, yeah.

That bridge right there, it
looks very much like the one

at that abandoned Army
base just outside of town.

You've got sharp
eyes, Mrs. Fletcher.

Can I help you with something?

Oh, just a tube of
toothpaste, please.

No problem. Toothpaste's
right there, Mrs. Fletcher.

Yeah, I was stationed there,

at Camp Rosslyn for
most of my first hitch.

Camp Rosslyn?

I read somewhere that that was
connected to the Chemical Warfare Branch.

That's two forty-five.
Fifty, three, four and five.

Thank you.

Have a nice day, Mrs. Fletcher.

Pete, I don't like that you're
hitting on my daughter.

Look, Cal, with all due respect,

when I'm not on the
job, my time is my own.

Just stay away from my daughter.

Which one?

Oh, Mr. Creech.

Mr. Harding.

Well, looks like we got a
thirsty Native American here.

Or maybe we're still not allowed
to sell firewater to redskins.

Mr. Creech, would you
overlook Pete's bad manners?

What would you like?

Some change for the jukebox,
please, and a glass of Merlot.

Oh.

We have been through
this so many times, Spencer.

Deena, don't you think I
want to leave Gila Junction?

I mean, if I could find a
buyer for the gas station,

if I just had enough
money to take the chance.

If? How much is enough?

We are so young. What
do you have to lose?

I don't want to lose you, Deena.

Am I interrupting anything?

SPENCER: We're just talking.

I just wanted to congratulate
you on your good news.

Thanks, Pete. See you around.

Rude.

CREECH: Oh, yeah,
a real tourist Mecca.

(MAN CHATTERING OVER PHONE)

No, things are
going very nicely.

MAN: Good.

I ought to be able to terminate
matters here very soon.

Keep me posted.

Yeah. I'll be in touch.

Well, I thought you forgot.

We're off for tonight.

It's Deena, isn't it? You're
starting up with her again.

Hey, you're the
one I'm crazy about.

Just got a little
business to take care of.

Oh, yeah, right. What
am I supposed to do?

Just go home and
watch TV with Whitey?

Sorry, baby. Gotta go.

That's it?

NORMA: Jessica, I
must be losing my touch.

You are here for four hours,
and you make the connection

that Whitey Deaver was
stationed at Camp Rosslyn?

Well, it was pure luck.

I just happened to remember
seeing that bridge from the bus.

Well, from the way you
described his reaction,

it's obvious he knows something

about whatever it was
that went on out there,

and he's just afraid
to talk about it.

Maybe. I just wonder if it's the
same "whatever" you think it is.

What do you
mean? I don't follow.

Well,

Tiny and the treasure that
he's endlessly searching for.

I mean, he said that it
was 18 or 19 years ago.

Well, that would be just about the
time that Whitey Deaver was at the camp.

Yes, but hold it, Jessica.

When you're talking
about Tiny, you know,

he does live in
major fantasy land.

Yeah, but he was very specific.

Yeah, he's specific about
Jack and the Beanstalk, too.

Anyway, now we've
got this guy Creech

claiming to be a
government surveyor,

I think the pot is
finally coming to a boil.

I made up an agenda
for us tomorrow.

We've got quite
a heavy schedule.

Norma, I think it's wonderful

that you haven't changed a bit.

But I am still a person
who needs her sleep.

Now, can we save
this until breakfast?

Of course we can.
I'm sorry, Jess.

Sleep well.

I'm just going to sit up and noodle
with this for a little while more.

Well, get some sleep now.

Okay, I will.

Night-night. Night-night.

(TELEPHONE RINGING)

(FAX BEEPING)

(DOOR OPENS)

Norma, would you
happen to have...

Norma?

(CAR ENGINE STARTING)

(CLANKING)

(HISSING)

Wow!

Wow!

(GRUNTS)

(LAUGHS)

(HISSING)

Hey, now wait a minute.
Let's talk about this.

There's plenty
here for both of us.

Let's be sensible here.

Let's divvy this up and go home.

(g*n FIRES)

TINY: Well, right after
I found the treasure,

somebody hit me. Real hard.

Did you see who it was?

No, Spencer, I didn't.
And when I woke up,

there was blood everywhere,

and Mr. Creech was
standing over me.

Thanks, Tiny.

Why did you stop, Mr. Creech?

I just happened to be on the
way up to my surveying site

when I saw this
pickup parked here,

and I thought they
might need some help.

And when I got
here, I found this guy.

Okay, boys, you
can take him away.

Yes, sir.

You okay, Spencer? You look
a little green around the gills.

Uh, no, I'm okay, thanks.
Just... All that blood.

Mmm-hmm. What'd you find?

Well, cause of death was a
s*ab wound to Whitey's chest.

Looks like the m*rder w*apon
might've been Whitey's own Kn*fe.

We found it
clutched in his hand.

Oh, so you figure maybe
the k*ller struggled with Whitey

and then turned his
own blade on him?

Could've played out just
that way, Spence, yeah.

The k*ller might've
got nicked, too.

In any event,
it's fairly certain

that the k*ller's clothes would
have gotten blood on them.

You've got a
point, Mrs. Fletcher.

That's why I
brought her out here.

So, you gonna do
some tests? DNA?

Of course, Spencer.
That's standard procedure.

Oh, yeah, right. Of course.

I hope I'm doing
the right stuff.

I'm really not used
to this kind of thing.

Well, you're doing
just fine, Spencer.

Is that the trunk
that Tiny dug up?

Yeah. He said when he
opened it that it was full of money.

JESSICA: Tiny's
long-lost treasure.

Doesn't quite figure, though.

The dates on these coins
and bills are all fairly recent.

I wonder if what Tiny found
was your Truck Stop Bandit's loot.

Hey, sure.

And then Whitey and someone
else showed up and fought over it.

The other guy won.

JESSICA: Spencer,

look at that.

It's a ski mask. It's like the
one on the wanted flyers.

JESSICA: It's Whitey's.

Whitey was the
Truck Stop Bandit?

Spencer! Where's Whitey?

Is Whitey hurt bad?

Isn't Mr. Creech's
surveying assignment

supposed to be north of town?

Well, yeah, that's what
he's told everybody.

Oh, hey, should I consider
him a suspect, Mrs. Fletcher?

Well, 'cause I wasn't. I
mean, if Creech did it,

why draw attention to himself
by calling the m*rder in to me?

Maybe to put himself
above suspicion.

Oh, wow, I am
definitely in deep water.

Here, let me give
you a hand with that.

Thanks. Maybe I ought
to get the State Police

to send some people
down to help me. I...

Look, you're doing fine,
Spencer. Just one step at a time.

(SIGHS)

Sure be nice if that
Creech fella did do it.

I'd hate to think it was
someone who lives here.

This is Hawkins.

It's me. I just
wanted to check in.

What's up?

A complication has come up.

How big a complication?

It's minor.

Yes, the money's
still in play, but...

HAWKINS: You
fooling with me, boy?

CREECH: I'm not running games
on you, Mr. Hawkins. I'd never do that.

If you don't trust
me, I'm outta here.

Cool down, Creech,
I trust you. What?

HAWKINS: I trust you.

CREECH: Okay. Have
I ever let you down?

(SIGHS)

You know, I'm
absolutely shocked.

I've wanted Whitey out of
my family's life so many times,

but to have it happen
like this? Uh-uh.

Nope.

Cal, I came by to
see you last night.

And?

Well, you weren't there, so I
hung around waiting for you.

I finally fell asleep
on your sofa.

When I woke up this morning,
you still hadn't come home.

You don't think...

Norma,

when Deena told me that she was
seriously considering moving away,

taking that job out of town,

I got so depressed I
drove out into the desert,

and I sat there last
night looking at the stars,

thinking about my
kids, and I fell asleep.

Don't you believe me?

I had no idea you were
coming by to see me last night.

Well, neither did I, until I got
this fax from my buddy in Phoenix.

JESSICA: I requested
this re-transmission

of a fax that Norma
received last night.

In answer to her query, the Arizona
Highway and Roads Department

has no record of a George
Creech on their payroll.

Well, then, who the heck is he?

Well, that's one good question.

Another one is, where does
that sort of clay there come from?

Why is that important?

Because this morning
at the crime scene,

I saw the same red dust
on Mr. Creech's pick-up.

Well, there's only one place
around here you can find that stuff.

Out at the old Army
base. I'll go check it out.

Good.

Some shock about Whitey.

But at least he
left you the store.

Mortgaged to the hilt. The only thing
Whitey left me was a big pile of bills.

But he was telling everybody
he bought store fixtures, and...

Forget it.

The only real money that Whitey
ever saw was in that strongbox

that Tiny dug up.

Pete, there's no way
he was the bandit.

He's just not smart enough.

So who do you
figure got the money?

Why don't you tell me?

Me?

Come on, Pete.

We've know each
other for a long time.

Your secrets are safe with me.

Whatever you did, you did
it for us and for our future.

Uh-uh, baby. I mean,
you're terrific and all,

but I didn't k*ll your husband.

You're lying, and
you're being greedy.

Whitey d*ed for that
money, and as his widow,

I am entitled to my share.

The hell with this!
I'm outta here.

You are not gonna
get away with this!

Harvey, I ordered three kegs,

but your man only delivered two.

HARVEY: You sure, Cal?

Hold on a second.

(FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING)

Oh!

(DOOR OPENS AND CLOSES)

(GASPS)

All right, Mrs.
Fletcher, I'm listening.

Mr. Creech, I know
how this looks,

but I realized that I
was in the wrong room,

and then when I heard
you coming in, I panicked.

Let me explain
something to you...

(DOOR OPENS)

Put the g*n down right now.

Oh, thank you, Spencer.

Ma'am, I asked you to
just wait until I could...

Well, I was afraid
that he might get away.

Well, you're lucky I
showed up when I did.

Sheriff, there's been
a misunderstanding.

Yeah, you bet there is,
Mr. Whoever You Are.

All right, I'm not
a state surveyor.

I was hired by Todd Hawkins,

owner of the truck stops the
stick-up artist has been hitting.

I'm a private investigator.

SPENCER: George
Creech is his real name.

Look, Sheriff, you're welcome
to call Mr. Hawkins to confirm.

I'm in Gila Junction because
I traced some of the bills

taken from the
most recent robbery.

Spencer, maybe Mr. Creech would be willing
to let us in on what else he's found?

Yeah, besides a dead body.

Well, the other morning I
was tracking the bandit's car

to its hiding place
in the high desert,

and then I realized
another car was tracking me.

Norma.

So it was you who sh*t out
her tire and almost k*lled her.

No, that wasn't me.

I think he's telling
the truth, Spencer.

It was probably the bandit.

Whitey.

And incidentally,
ma'am, you're right.

I found the getaway car up
where you thought it would be.

Is that all you've come across?

That's all.

Except, I just located an item
from the bandit's stolen goods.

A ruby ring taken
from Mr. Hawkins.

Where'd that turn up?

Over at the general store.

There were too many
people around to ask about it.

I was gonna go back later.

It's on Marge Deaver's finger.

MARGE: I found it in Whitey's
dresser drawer with a wad of bills.

He said he won big in a
poker game the other night.

What he meant
was, he took the pot.

Marge, you had no idea that
Whitey was the Truck Stop Bandit?

Well, he was always complaining
that we were strapped for cash.

Said that I was
spending too much.

I mean, I could
hardly stand him,

but, no, I still can't believe that
he was the robber, Mrs. Fletcher.

Come on, Marge.

While he was doing a number
on you, he was burying a fortune.

Literally.

I mean, it's ironic how
after taking all those risks,

Whitey would end up
the loser he always was.

You got that right, Dad.

I mean, he winds up with only a
pinky ring to show for all of his troubles.

Spencer, you might
want to take a look at this.

Huh. It's an old Army .45.

I believe the wanted
flyer says the warning sh*t

the bandit fired in one of the
robberies was a .45 caliber?

It appears to have been
fired not too long ago.

The State Police can
run a ballistics test.

And even if it turns
out to be Whitey,

we still don't know who the
k*ller is or where the money went.

Why do you have
to go away, Pete?

It's just time to move on.

Well, you're my best friend,
Pete, and I'm gonna miss you.

Maybe he's not
leaving, after all.

Hand over the saddlebag, Pete.

Saddlebag? What the
hell's going on, Spencer?

Is it a crime to leave town now?

You know, ever since we
were kids, you've been jealous...

There's blood on some
of this money, Pete.

Hey, I don't know
where that came from.

Why don't you ask him? He's been
sniffing and skulking around town.

What do you think, Mr. Creech?

I think on behalf of my client,

I'll be filing a property
claim for this money.

How do you like that?

I'm sure that the rest of that
$100,000 that Whitey stole

will turn up in good time.

Now can we get
back to the cover-up?

I'm afraid you're
not going to like this.

It's from an old friend
of mine at the Pentagon.

The only secret connected
with Camp Rosslyn

is a payroll robbery that
they're still investigating.

Took place 20 years
ago. (GROANS)

All in cash. And they
never found it or the thieves.

Tiny's treasure.

He probably stumbled
over the money

shortly after the thieves hid
it, and then they removed it,

and poor Tiny's been
hunting for it ever since.

(CLICKS TONGUE) Well,
that's the end of my conspiracy.

Easy come, easy go.

Boy, would you look at the mess
that that clay makes of my hands.

JESSICA: Oh, yeah. You
could do with some loving care.

(JESSICA CHUCKLES) Mmm-hmm.

(GASPS)

I'm going to have
to use your phone.

Sure.

I hope Mr. Creech hasn't
checked out of his hotel room yet.

(PHONE RINGING)

I think I know who the
real Truck Stop Bandit was.

MAN: Ma'am.

Oh, hi, Mrs. Fletcher. I was
just doing a rough inventory.

Whitey used to take
care of all that for me.

But, anyway, you don't want
to hear about my problems.

What can I do for you?

I just heard some
very surprising news.

I was talking to Mr. Creech,

and it turns out that there's
good reason to believe

that Whitey wasn't behind
all the robberies, after all.

Oh, well, I'm confused.

What about all the evidence?

I mean, the ski
mask, and the g*n?

There's a simple
explanation for it, Marge.

You are the Truck Stop Bandit.

Me?

(STAMMERS) You gotta be kidding.

Every time Whitey was out of town
on business, there was a robbery.

There, you see? He was...

But Mr. Creech checked, and
Whitey actually was meeting

with various suppliers and
wholesalers in Carson City

and elsewhere, while
you were always left alone.

So you think that every
time he turned his back on me

that I ran off and
held up people?

Do you have any proof of that?

You virtually confessed
in front of us all.

I didn't pick up
on it at the time

but it was when we were
talking here before, about Whitey.

You got that right, Dad.

I mean, he winds up with only a
pinky ring to show for all of his troubles.

You're wearing the ruby
ring on your middle finger.

Now, Mr. Creech confirmed
that the real owner,

Todd Hawkins, wore
the ring on his pinky.

Now, only the person who took it
from him would have known that.

(STAMMERING)
No, no, I... That's...

There must be some
kind of misunderstanding.

I read that in the paper,
or on TV, or something.

I'm afraid not.

All information about the ring
was withheld from the press.

The ski mask belonged to Whitey,

but you wore it and hid
it out there in the desert

with the money that you stole.

SPENCER: Once
we search this place,

I'm sure we'll find the
other clothes you wore.

Probably some more
trinkets and souvenirs

from the robberies
with your prints on 'em.

It all worked perfectly
for you, Marge.

Once he was dead, Whitey
took the blame for your robberies.

All you had to do was plant
part of the stolen money on Pete

to cover the m*rder,
and you were home free.

All right.

All right.

I did the robberies,
but I did not k*ll Whitey.

You'll have a chance to
tell that to the Circuit Judge.

Anything wrong, Mrs. Fletcher?

No, not anymore, Mr. Creech.

Marge Deaver
is telling the truth.

Someone else k*lled her husband.

But to be absolutely sure, I'll
need to speak to the Highway Patrol.

(SNIFFLES)

Hey, Cal.

How you doing, Spencer?

Where's our
mysterious Mr. Creech?

He checked out and left.

Can't be.

Well, we had an appointment to
write up the paperwork on the ruby ring

and the recovered
money for his...

(TELEPHONE RINGING)

Gila Grand Hotel.

Mmm-hmm.

What?

MAN: Mr. Creech was involved in
a fatal accident. Is the sheriff there?

You better hear this, Spencer.

It's the Highway Patrol.

Hello. There's been an accident.

A man named
Creech ran off the road.

Well, was he badly hurt?

Well, he's dead.

We found the checkout
receipt from the hotel

and a bag stuffed
with a whole lot of cash.

I mean, a whole lot.

I'll be right out.

What happened, Spencer?

What happened?

JESSICA: It's all
there, Spencer.

The rest of the money you took
after you k*lled Whitey Deaver.

You faked me out!

It was Mrs. Fletcher's idea.

If we made you think that I'd
located the money and run off with it,

you'd get nervous enough to
check where you'd hidden it.

And I led you right to it.

No, but, look, you're jumping
at the wrong conclusion.

(STAMMERING) I mean, sure, I
found the money, but I didn't k*ll Whitey.

Tell him, Mrs. Fletcher.

It was the blood, Spencer. It
got on everything, the money...

I mean, certainly it
soaked the k*ller's clothing

so when you got
back in your tow truck,

blood got on the
seat covers and...

What blood? There's not
a spot of blood anywhere.

Oh, you did a good job
of cleaning up afterwards.

Probably b*rned
your stained clothing

and scrubbed down
the car's interior.

Oh, I don't have to
listen to any more of this.

I didn't realize it either,

until Marge tried to lower the
blinds in the store this afternoon.

She couldn't, because
the cord was twisted,

and that's what
made me remember.

SPENCER: Oh, come on. Does
this make sense to you guys?

I remembered your
seatbelt, Spencer.

I saw something then, but
it didn't register at the time.

There was a spot on the belt
that wasn't there the day before.

It was the one spot of blood
that you missed and it's still there.

Maybe you think that you cleaned
all the blood off the upholstery.

Now that the lab boys
know where to look,

they're sure to find
more in the fabric.

Look, I never meant
to k*ll anybody.

Whitey'd been acting suspicious,

so I followed him
out to the desert.

And when I saw him knock
Tiny unconscious over the money,

I moved in.

And decided to
get rich for yourself.

No, no, no, it wasn't
like that exactly.

I mean, there was a moment
when I could have arrested Whitey,

and then he pulled his
Kn*fe and lunged at me,

made my b*llet miss, and I had
to fight him for the damn Kn*fe.

Guess Whitey was
reading my mind.

He was thinking if I
had money like that,

I wouldn't lose Deena.

It was the only way I could afford to
leave Gila Junction and go with her.

It's now official. The
Department of Highways

will be adding an off ramp to the
freeway about half a mile away.

Well, that should
be good for business.

And that will be none too soon.

Well, honey, I guess you're off.

Best of luck up north.

Thanks, Dad.

Don't you worry about
your daddy, Deena.

I'm gonna take good care of him.

After everything
that's happened,

I am through chasing phantoms.

All I want now is to
have a great relationship.

And more wonderful
friends like you, Jessica.

Norma.

Well, Mrs.
Fletcher, was I right?

About what?

Nothing ever happens
in Gila Junction.

(LAUGHS)