01x01 - Pilot

[bunniefuu]

[Cell phone ringing]

This is Troy. Leave a message.

Kate on voice-mail: Are you home? Pick up.

I need food. I want to order something.

I am craving guacamole.

I'm puling up.

[Cell phone ringing]

Hello?

Man: I see you made it home, Kate.

Please leave me alone.

Sorry.

[Cell phone ringing]

[Gasps]

[Screaming]

No! No! No!

No! No! Aah!

[Honking horn]

Aah! Aah! Aah!

Please, somebody! Aah! Aah! Aah!

[Sobbing]

Aah! Ohh!

[Screaming]

No! No!

Somebody, help me!

Aah!

[Wheezing]

Woman: Over 6 million people are stalked each year in the United States.

1 in 6 women, 1 in 19 men.

Stalking is the unwanted or obsessive attention from one person to another.

It's driven by rejection, jealousy, revenge.

[Door opens]

Hi.

I'll take your bag, all right?

I'm gonna get you early, ok?

Ok. How early?

Woman: Stalking can be the result of a relationship gone wrong or delusional fixations that are pushed to extremes.

Anyone can be a stalker...

Ex-boyfriend, spouse, stranger.

Anyone can be a victim, and it's on the rise.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Tinder, whatever app is hot today, we have too much access to one another.

Social media is the number one reason stalking cases have tripled in the last decade.

That's where I come in.

I run TAU, the thr*at assessment unit of the LAPD we are responsible for all stalking cases and threats to individuals, as well as politicians and city employees.

It is our job to assess the level of thr*at in any situation and respond accordingly.

Have I lost you? I'm seeing eyes glaze over.

How about this? Any questions for me?

Did you handle the Selena Gomez stalker?

Second woman: I heard David Letterman had a stalker for over a decade, some lady who kept breaking into his house.

No, I didn't, and, yes, he did, but celebrity stalking makes up only 10% of all stalking cases.

Most victims are like you and me.

[Elevator dings]

Good morning. The lab work came back on the mayor's bloody cake.

It was red food dye mixed with maple syrup.

You were right. It was a prank.

Call the mayor's office?

Yes, and the mayor wants to talk to you.

He scares so easy. I'll call him.

Homicide has more on yesterday's Burbank sh**t.

Turns out it was a city employee targeting street workers.

I'm up. Can I do the assessment?

You can share it with Janice.

I told you.

Janice, can you do background for me?

Two boys at alcott university...

Eric Bates, Perry Whitley.

Good morning. Is this a new case?

It's a favor to the Dean. I have to see her later.

Woman: Detective Larsen is here.

Who?

Detective Larsen, transfer, the new guy.

I put him in the conference room for now.

He's early.

Hi. I'm Lieutenant Beth Davis.

Welcome to L.A.

How you doing? Detective Jack Larsen.

Nice to meet you.

What do you know about him?

From New York, Homicide, 13th precinct, big personality, not for everyone.

Single, never married, sleeps around.

Good for him.

Slept with some high-up's wife. - Oh, and he got the boot.

Apparently he can't help himself.

Beth is gonna hate him.

Beth: 9 years NYPD Homicide.

Good record, decorated.

Why the stalkers unit?

Well, I was hoping to meet Scarlett Johansson.

It's an entirely different skill set.

Our goal is to prevent crime, so there's a lot of case management involved.

A background in mental illness is necessary.

Have you read the manual?

No, but I watched "Fatal Attraction,"

"Obsessed," "My Bodyguard," "Cape Fear," "Swimfan."

Yes, I read the manual.

That was... that was a joke, and I'm well versed in mental illness, everything from schizophrenia, narcissism, bipolar disorder, delusional psychosis... My own!

Another joke.

I get it. I totally get it.

It's a very specific whack job that st*lks and makes threats.

Again, why do you want to be in this unit?

I'm already in this unit.

I filled out the paperwork, my transfer was processed.

Am I wrong?

No.

Because this was starting to feel like an interview.

There are currently 6 Detectives in the unit.

Each Detective is responsible for his own caseload, but we're a small unit, so we work together.

You'll tale me for a month, and then I'll turn you loose.

Did I, uh... did I say something wrong?

What do you mean?

I'm getting a vibe like I just made a really bad first impression.

I know the Scarlett Johansson comment was...

A vibe?

Yeah.

Like you don't like me.

Don't be silly. I'm sporadically rude.

[Knock on door]

Homicide dumped a m*rder on us.

Hi. I'm Janice Lawrence.

Nice tie.

Woman was m*rder*d last night.

Kate Edwards... Single, 28, b*rned alive in her car.

Ben Caldwell. Nice to meet you.

Any prior case files?

The victim reported an intruder in July and again in October, a vandalism report a year prior.

She went to the police several times, Hollywood station, but it was never classified as stalking, so never made its way to us.

All right. Let's go, new guy.

Time for your first assessment.

Reporter: Authorities are searching for a suspect in the m*rder of a young woman Kate Edwards, who was b*rned alive in a fiery expl*si*n.

Sources tell us the thr*at assessment unit of the L.A. police department has been called in to supervise the case, and no other details have been released regarding the ongoing investigation.

We're almost done.

She hasn't been here very long.

The place is barely lived in.

Her mail goes to a mail center.

She's been hiding from someone.

Because she was terrified.

How so?

In the bathroom, she has a clear shower curtain so no one can hide behind it, a platform bed close to the ground so no one can hide under it.

She didn't feel safe, hadn't in a long time.

Look at this room.

For an interior designer, it's not feng shui at all.

The bed should be on this wall facing the door, no, but it's over here because...

She sleeps on the left side of the bed.

Note the cluttered side table on her side facing the door... To watch for a shadow, the footsteps of her stalker to appear under the door.

She had trouble sleeping but refused to take sleeping pills.

There's a full prescription from a year ago inside the medicine cabinet.

She was too afraid to sleep.

And her stalker?

It's a man. Let's face it.

The v*olence of burning someone alive has us men written all over it.

He likes role-playing.

He wants his fantasy, so he breaks into her apartment while she's gone, sleeps in her bed, eats her food, watches her TV, lives in her world.

He would leave little clues so she would know he was here or... just to make her crazy.

What set him off?

The predator you described suffers from eroto-fixation.

He likes the journey. He doesn't want it to end.

Why k*ll her?

I don't know yet, but I impressed you a little bit, didn't I?

There's a neighbor... Troy Gunn. They were good friends.

Kate on voice-mail: Are you home? Pick up.

I need food. I want to order something.

I am craving guacamole.

I'm puling up.

I was here all night.

I had my phone on silent.

You two were close?

Yeah. Real close for the past year.

This whole stalking mess brought us closer.

We met in a spin class at the gym.

She told me she was being harassed at the last place.

I told her that... when next door became available.

She moved in.

Were you two ever involved?

No. We were just friends.

But you wanted more.

No. We were just friends.

Do all the apartments have a view of the Hollywood sign?

On the north side.

You an actor?

I'm a realtor.

But you came to L.A. to be an actor.

Yeah. 10 years ago, but I'm a realtor now.

Was Kate involved with anyone?

The last guy was over a year ago, a banker Larry Myers.

Didn't last long.

Turns out he was married.

She found out. She dumped him.

Could I use your bathroom?

I can't pee next door. It's a quasi crime scene.

Then you're gonna have to go hold it.

You're not gonna snoop through my stuff.

I'm not Kate's stalker.

Yes. Hold it, Jack.

Did Kate ever suspect Larry Myers?

At first. She asked him point blank.

He denied it.

She didn't want to falsely accuse him.

He was married with kids.

Thank you.

[Doorbell rings]

Woman: Larry?

Two detectives are here.

Larry: Sorry to hear about Kate.

Mr. Myers, where were you last night?

Here all night with my wife.

When's the last time you saw Kate?

A year ago. She came to me and asked if I'd been sending her these notes and gifts.

I wasn't, but she thought she was being stalked and was thinking about moving because of it.

She never mentioned anyone she suspected?

No. She suspected me. She thought I was doing it, like I was hung up on her.

Were you?

I made a mistake with Kate, but I'm not the stalker type.

You know, I'm a married man.

Can your wife confirm your alibi last night?

Yes, she can, but she doesn't know about Kate.

Why'd you have an affair?

I'm a miserable middle-aged man.

It's what we do.

His wife backed him up. Is she telling the truth?

I don't know.

I was wondering when that was coming off.

I'm gonna take you back.

I have one more appointment.

I'm sorry I stared at your breasts.

Excuse me?

That's why you don't like me.

When we first met, I-I looked at your breasts.

Seriously?

That's all I could come up with.

I was pleasant and personable, I showed a reasonable amount of intelligence, I'm good-looking, I have a healthy ego.

The only wrong move I made was when my eyes lingered in your upper torso area for a second too long it triggered an instant dislike for me.

How do I fix that?

Why did you do it?

You're wearing a silk blouse, hint of a bra, red fingernail Polish.

I took the male leap that it was meant to be noticed and let my eyes linger in hopes that you would be flattered.

I miscalculated.

And it just got worse.

[Car starts]

Beth: This was uploaded on the university's student web site.

You familiar with this video?

Yeah. I've seen it. Who hasn't?

But I didn't film it, and I didn't post it online.

Do I have to answer these questions again?

I've been discharged. I'd like to get to class.

Please, Perry. Detective Davis is here as a favor to me.

We'll be quick.

Guy in the video... Eric Bates...

He says you filmed this on your laptop over a year ago when you two were roommates.

No. No. He's just claiming that because it's the best story he can come up with to save his ass.

He doesn't want to admit that he showed his little sex tape to all his buddies and then they shared it with the Internet.

You lived together freshman year, and then he moved out in the second semester. Why?

I don't know. He got weird.

Freshman stress, was partying a lot.

His mood swings were insane.

I'm not gonna press charges, ok, but guy needs to chill out.

Why won't you press charges?

Everybody makes mistakes.

Eric has problems, but he's a good guy.

I want to give him a second chance.

Eric: He's lying.

The guy's a pathological liar.

I know I shouldn't have roughed him up.

You did more than that.

You put him in the hospital with a concussion.

And I'm sorry about that, but the guy's been trouble ever since I was roommates with him.

He claims that you made the video yourself and showed it to your friends.

He left his laptop on and recorded me and christie.

I would never film a sex tape.

You were roommates with him freshman year.

Why'd you move out?

It got too much.

At first, he was cool, a little nerdy.

He comes from a good family. Then stuff started happening, little things that you can't prove.

Just got weird. I can't explain it.

You'd catch him in a small lie, he wouldn't give you messages from your friends, things like that?

Yeah.

Neither boy is gay, there are no sexual undertones here.

Isn't that unusual?

Well, there's more to stalking than just romantic obsession.

Perry's fixated on Eric, hero worship, idolization.

But Perry's the victim.

Of the att*ck, but he's lying about the rest.

Did Perry lose a parent or a sibling at a young age?

His mother when he was 4.

How did you know that?

Well, loss and rejection become his comfort zone.

His ex-roommate rejects him, and so he seeks it out.

I'm more concerned about what Eric said about Perry's behavior.

That's campus police jurisdiction. I can't intervene unless you invite me in.

I appreciate the assessment, but we're gonna keep this in house for the moment.

Perry's family are important alumni.

You'll call me if something occurs.

Of course. Thanks for the help, Beth.

This day needs to end.

Tell me about it.

Oh!

Thank you.

Bye, Lori. See you tomorrow.

See you. Bye.

[Screaming]

[Ding]

Aah! Aah!

Aah! Aah! Help me! Help me!

[Ding]

Help me! Help me!

What happened?

[Cell phone ringing]

Hi. Yeah. Yeah.

Tell Beth I can meet her.

I'll be right there.

Jack, voice-over: Lori Carter, 30, works in finance downtown.

She was att*cked in a parking garage.

First responders handled the report.

Is she ok?

Her eyes suffered some burns, but she's ok.

She's gonna be released today.

Good morning.

He's been harassing me for over a year now...

Letters, gifts.

I thought it was harmless.

Why didn't you call the police?

I know the law. You can't prosecute someone for scaring you.

He didn't hurt or thr*aten me.

Do you know Kate Edwards?

Yeah. Not well. She lived in my apartment before me.

I took over her lease.

How do you know her?

Through my spin instructor Kurt.

We went to the same gym.

And Troy Gunn?

There was a Troy who was friends with Kate.

We're going to need access to your home.

Ok, but why?

You haven't heard about Kate?

I work 80 hours a week.

She's not a close friend. What?

She was m*rder*d two nights ago.

b*rned alive.

Stay on this corridor.

I don't want her alone tonight.

I've seen transference in stalking before, but I've never encountered one man who was stalking two women at the same time.

Dual psychosis maybe?

Well, they lived in the same apartment, they went to the same gym.

How about you go to the gym, see who else is a member there, talk to that spin instructor.

I'll meet you at Lori's. We need to find this guy fast.

[Music playing]

Man: Come on, you guys. Don't rest.

Here we go! Let's go!

Do a little harder, and cool down!

Yeah. I feel great. You feel good?

Great job, guys. Great job.

Great class. Great class.

I heard about Kate. Sucks.

She took my class all the time until she moved into her new place.

And Lori Carter.

Yeah. I know her, too. She spins.

I haven't seen her much lately.

She moved into Kate's old apartment.

Which you told her about?

Yep. I knew Kate needed someone to take over the lease.

Out of curiosity, Kurt, is wild your real last name?

The truth, I did a little softcore when I first moved out here.

It's all over the net.

k*lled any chance of an acting career, but the name stuck, so I kept it. Heh.

Where you last night at 10 P.M.

Seriously? I had a spin class at 8:00, did some chest, a shower, and a steam and was out of here right around 10:00.

You know Larry Myers?

Yes. He takes my class, or he did.

I haven't seen him in a while.

He was friends with Kate.

I don't know how close they were, but you should ask Troy.

He would know.

Troy Gunn?

Yeah. Yeah. He's right over there.

Mr. Gunn, how are you?

Detective, what are you doing here?

Oh, I'm new to town. Just checking out the gym.

What is this, some kind of grieving workout?

What are you implying?

You know Lori Carter?

Yeah, I do.

She was att*cked just like your friend Kate Edwards.

Masked man, gas, matches.

Where were you last night?

Home all by myself, and, no, I can't prove it.

Jack: Cool building. I should have looked in this area.

What's the rent for a place like this?

I don't know.

Guess who I ran into at the gym...

Kate's neighbor Troy Gunn.

He knows Lori Carter, too, and he has no alibi for last night either.

"The red dress you wore last Tuesday was hot.

I like your new haircut. It really gets me going."

Jack: How could Lori not call the cops after reading something like that?

Lori is a strong, ambitious professional.

Being a victim is a sign of weakness, so she chose to ignore her fears.

It's very human to dismiss a stalker, or worse... accept it as a part of your daily life.

What?

Nothing.

What?

Get up.

What is it?

It's a crawlspace.

What is it? What are we looking at?

I'm betting we got prints, DNA, and lots of other sticky stuff.

It's a secret viewing room.

So our freak would just lay up there and watch her.

Above her as if he was on top of her.

AFIS has a match for a background check.

The prints belong to a banker.

Let me guess... Larry Myers.

[Music playing]

[Music stops]

How'd you get in here?

The r.A. Let me in.

I explained what happened and came with a peace offering.

I see you have a room to yourself now.

Good for you.

You need to leave.

I really want to work this out, Eric.

Come on. 4 stitches, cracked rib, concussion.

You can listen.

Ok. I'm listening.

Well, first, I just want to say I forgive you.

I'm not gonna press charges.

You lost your temper. I understand.

And?

That's it.

No revenge kick, no payback?

Payback?

You make me sound like I'm some vengeful little bitch.

I just want us to be friends again like before.

Well, we can't be, Perry, not anymore.

How about we just mind our business and leave each other alone?

Fair enough.

Heh. You're... You're funny.

Payback.

You make me sound psychotic.

I mean, if I really wanted revenge, I would have poisoned your beer or something.

I'm not out to get you, Eric.

I'm just disappointed is all.

I didn't k*ll Kate Edwards.

We found fingerprints and semen in the ceiling's crawlspace of Kate's old apartment.

I believe the semen has yet to identified.

Regarding the crawlspace, Larry?

Kate used it for storage.

I helped her move some boxes up there over a year ago.

My fingerprints could easily be there.

Lawyer: My client admits to an affair a year ago with Kate Edwards, but he doesn't even know Lori Carter, and it doesn't matter.

He has alibis for both crimes.

What about the 87 hours of footage we confiscated off your laptop?

What will we find on that?

Lawyer: I'll have that thrown out, and you know it.

Charge my client or let him go.

Jack: We need to talk to his wife.

The only way to charge him is disprove his alibis.

She's got to be lying for him.

Agreed. Did we find anything on the footage yet?

I'll check.

There's someone here for you, Beth.

Anything?

It's a lot of footage, mainly just Kate sleeping.

Larry was definitely stalking Kate Edwards, but there's nothing on Lori Carter yet.

Sometimes he hid his camera on the bookshelf.

Gave him a view of the bathroom.

Beth: What happened?

It's Perry. He's nuts.

He came to see me tonight to make nice and then threatened in that way he does everything.

He can get in my room whenever he wants.

Wait. The campus police can't help you?

I've been to them.

All they know is I kicked his ass.

You know who the guy is.

He's Perry Whitley of the whitleys.

They're not gonna do anything.

I thought you could help.

Eric, your situation is tricky.

I did background on Perry, and he's clean, which makes this so much harder to prove.

The first step would be to get a restraining order, but I can't do that until I have concrete proof.

No one gets it. My girlfriend dropped out of college and won't talk to me because she thinks I make amateur p*rn.

My grades have gone from a 3.0 to failing because I can't eat or sleep or do anything because this guy thinks he owns me.

I know you're scared.

I'm not scared, I'm mad.

Why won't someone help me?

[Bang]

Should we... She can handle herself.

Eric, I know how hard this is, but we have to follow the law.

You need to stay calm.

He's not gonna stop.

Now I've aggravated him more.

I don't want to live like this.

Nobody gets it.

I get it.

Eric, there is nothing you're feeling that I don't know.

Hey. Believe me, I know.

I've been through this, much worse than this, and it will not get the best of you because it will end.

I'm going to help you.

Eric, if you need anything, I'm here, ok?

Call anytime.

Ok. I've got something.

It's Lori Carter.

Larry Myers was stalking both women.

Jack: There he is.

Oh, that's creepy.

Whoa!

There's another person.

Two stalkers?

Larry had a partner.

Keep searching. Find me a face.

Ben: The second stalker never appears on camera in any of the footage.

Did Larry admit to an accomplice?

No. His lawyer shut me down.

Jack's trying to break his wife.

You knew he was having an affair.

Of course I knew.

I predicted it.

Larry isn't special. He's right on point with his midlife crisis.

Started with his 48th birthday.

Suddenly, 50's staring him in the face, and he's thinking about everything he's not gonna be, the life he wanted, the one he got instead.

Started going to the gym.

The gym is where he met Kate, right?

I suppose.

He started staying out late.

I found cocaine in his pants pocket.

He said it wasn't his but a friend's, his new "bro"... His word.

This friend have a name?

I don't remember a name.

Troy Gunn?

No. That doesn't sound right.

It was more like a stage name.

This guy was a trainer at the gym.

Kurt wild?

Yes, that's it.

Jack: They were playing a game, feeding each other's obsession, a midlife crisis, looking for a pulse, and Larry finds it...

Courtesy of a failed actor in need of an audience.

Those two women were props to their own self-obsession.

Kurt wild's real name is Buford Posey.

Good call with the name change.

Domestic abuse, two arrests.

b*at up his girlfriend some years back, anger issues, online gambling conviction, juvenile detention starting at 12.

Larry: Yes, Kurt m*rder*d Kate Edwards, and I don't know where he is.

It was supposed to be fun.

It was harmless, you know?

We each picked a girl to follow.

I picked Kate, he picked Lori.

But you dated Kate.

He didn't date Lori.

Well, Kurt was more into the watching, but he helped me.

He introduced me to Kate and showed me how to flirt with her, hit on her, you know, how to...

Have sex with her.

He coached you.

Yeah. It was like a game till she found out I was married and dumped me, so Kurt suggested a new game.

Why did Kurt want them dead?

Kate didn't want me, and Lori didn't want Kurt, so he said we should start over.

Whole new game, two new picks.

Janice: Kurt is not at his home or work.

We have an apb out.

Where's Lori Carter? Is she save?

She was released from the hospital and is being taken to a friend's house.

Police are with her.

All clear.

Ma'am, we need to get you to your friend's house.

I'll just be a minute.

I need to pack a few things.

Uh, if you don't mind.

I was gonna change, too.

A compromise.

Ok.

How the hell did this happen?

I don't know.

She was changing. We left the door open.

Beth: Ok. He's not gonna k*ll her, not right away.

He would have done it already.

He's spiraling.

He's had a psychotic break, and he's playing the game.

He didn't return to his house.

Traffic is doing a video trail.

What about work?

Gym's closed at this hour.

That's where he met both women, where he met Larry.

All available units urban burn gym on LA brea now.

[Lori screaming]

Unh!

Don't do this, Kurt.

Do you remember what you said to me when I asked you out?

You said that you were seeing someone.

You lied. You think I didn't know?

I know everything about you!

We're friends. We're better as friends.

The game is over. It has to stop.

No! No! No, no, no!

[Sirens]

Aah! Ohh!

[Coughs]

Aah! Aah!

[Coughs]

Don't worry. You won't be alone.

We're gonna do it together.

[Coughs]

[Whimpering]

[Screaming]

No! No!

Help me! Help me! Help me!

Man: We got sh*ts fired.

Wait. Wait.

You don't want to do that.

Jack: Don't move.

Unh!

[Lori crying]

Man: Let's go! Stay down!

Janice: They're gonna take you to the hospital now, and I'll meet you there.

You're gonna be ok.

Ben: I'll see you tomorrow.

What, I get nothing?

What is it you want?

I want you not to hate me.

Can't guarantee that.

All right. Then I'm just gonna say it.

Why do you wear sexy things if you don't want men to notice?

For how I feel in them.

I dress for myself.

Nice try.

Well, good night.

I thought today went well.

I know about New York and the captain's wife.

Deputy chief's wife.

Oh.

I made a lot of mistakes in New York, some things I can't undo.

So you come to L.A. to be a better man?

You do know that most people are incapable of change?

Well, what can I tell you?

I'm an underdog story.

I apologize if it it clouded my initial reaction to you.

Thank you.

All right. We're done here. I'd like to go home.

One more thing. Pure curiosity.

How did you come to run tau?

Why this division?

Well, I was married.

Had a husband and a kid, and he cheated on me with some crazy woman.

She started stalking us, followed us everywhere.

She showed up at my kid's school, she broke into our house, she boiled the family...

Bunny.

I saw that movie, too.

Come on. It was a little funny.

Look. Be patient.

I don't put it out there in the first 5 minutes.

That'd be creepy.

Good night, Jack.

What are you doing here?

Walking.

How'd you find me?

It wasn't hard, Perry.

What do you want?

I know what you're doing.

You're trying to intimidate me.

Unh! What the hell?

[cr*ck]

What I'm doing, Perry, is warning you.

Stay away from Eric.

You can't do that.

What, this?

You're in trouble, lady. I'm gonna report y...

For what?

Aah!

Stalking a stalker? Go for it.

You think they're gonna believe a punk-ass little twit like you?

I can lie better than you, and they believe me.

They always do.

I am not under your family's thumb.

I will come for you.

Stay away from Eric.

[Music playing]

Did you think I wouldn't find you?

Hey, Amanda.

What are you doing here?

New job.

Really? You just chose L.A. out of all the cities in the world?

I saw you at school today.

Stay away from us, Jack.

I moved her to get away from you.

You stay away from my son.

Don't you mean our son?

No. I mean my son. He's mine, not yours.

Amanda.

I mean it, Jack.

You cannot show up here and ruin my life, not again.

That's not why I'm here.

Leave us alone.

I want to change my life. I do. I don't want to be the person you remember. I don't want to be the man my own son... I want to change. Please. I have a right to see my son.

Stay away from us, Jack.

[Music continues]