03x09 - Sweet Revenge

Episode transcripts for the TV show "Major Crimes". Aired: August 2012 to January 2018.*
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"Major Crimes" is a successor spin-off of "The Closer" in which Captain Sharon Raydor takes over as head of the LAPD's Major Crimes Division.
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03x09 - Sweet Revenge

Post by bunniefuu »

[Police radio chatter]

Tao: Provenza, if you don't mind.

Thank you.

Seven feet.

Hold onto it, please. Please. Hold on.

Guy liked to party.

Well, looked like the last time the victim checked his computer was at 2:37 A.M.

You can let go now.

The b*llet descended 16 inches over a downward trajectory of 2.26 degrees.

Provenza: That would put the sn*per where?

Clean sh*t from the roof of that tall building across the street, sir.

That could be right.

Could be?

Well, my measurements might be off a little.

All right. Sanchez, go over there and see if the k*ller left anything behind.

So, what the heck is Sweet Revenge, anyway?

Our victim, Travis Hall, runs a website that lets guys get back at their ex-girlfriends by posting naked pictures of them online.

It's called revenge p*rn.

Whatever happened to scribbling the girl's name on a bathroom stall?

Well, this seems to pay better.

And the victim's assistant told patrol he arrived this morning and found his boss m*rder*d and himself out of a job.

His alibi's good.

Any reason why his boss would be up in the middle of the night on his computer?

Why are men ever up late at night on their computers?

Also, according to neighbors, Hall had a lot of girlfriends who came and went at all hours.

The lock on the door is a keypad.

I wonder how many of his girlfriends had the code?

Are you telling me that women were interested in this creep?

See? You should never give up.

Buzz: Oh, God.

Come read some of these letters on the victim's bulletin board.

Sykes: "These photos have ruined my life.

"I'll do anything if you take them down."

Buzz: Look what he wrote underneath.

"You'll do anything? Too late, dumb bitch. Enjoy your pain."

He put this stuff up like he was proud of it.

Everyone who wrote this guy is a potential suspect.

All right, let's take it all with us, damn it.

Oh, look at this...

An FBI warrant from six weeks ago.

[Scoffs] We've only been here an hour and we've already caught up with them, you know?

Maybe all this can be their problem.

[Police radio chatter]

I found a b*llet.

And it's from a long r*fle, so maybe a sn*per from across the street.

Like everyone said.

Ah, yes. Thank you for picking up.

And how are you this morning, very special agent Fritz Howard?

My neck is k*lling me, and my shoulder.

My arm, too.

Did you hurt yourself?

I don't think so.

I've been bent over box after box of inventory I have to label before officially retiring from the FBI.

Also, moving everything from Wilshire to the special operations bureau, that was hard.

I'm a little stressed out about being a boss.

Sharon: You'll adapt.

Deputy Chief Howard has a nice ring to it.

Thanks.

It's gonna be an interesting change.

Mm. Brenda ends up taking this job she's been meeting on in Washington, the whole thing could be a bit of a juggling act.

But I think we can handle it.

Oh, Sharon. Sharon.

I'll meet you there, Sharon.

Hey, look, I-I cannot pick up Ricky at the airport by myself. I barely know him.

And... and he does not like me very much.

Why would you say that?

Well, because ever since you started divorcing Jack, he's been, like, really distant on the phone.

Rusty, you and Ricky are going to be brothers.

Picking each other up at the airport is what families do.

It'll be fine. Don't worry.

Travis: It's not my fault they're embarrassed of themselves.

I wasn't there when they undressed, and I didn't pay anyone to snap the photos.

How is it my fault?


Our investigation concluded that Sweet Revenge Online nets over $10 million a year.

How come the bureau hasn't already shut down this website?

Unfortunately, legally, it's protected speech.

Women have been physically threatened by Mr. Hall.

That's a violation of California law, too.

No, no, no, no, no.

We didn't know anything about that I could just as easily ask, until today.

"why didn't the L.A.P.D. do anything?"

If the FBI had passed this information along...

We followed the money, hoping to shut down the site by identifying fraud or racketeering.

The pictures themselves don't help us.

What if these photographs were obtained illegally?

We needed evidence of either theft or hacking.

We could never get it.

m*rder gives the L.A.P.D. better grounds for a warrant.

You said Sweet Revenge netted $10 million a year.

How much of that went to this Travis Hall dirtbag?

Less than 5%.

No, Hall's just the, uh, front man.

Key player is a guy named Scott Ward, who, uh, may be a little mobbed up.

We've invited Mr. Ward over for a chat.

He's coming with his lawyer.

Alan Burke. Terrible guy.

Regardless, a sn*per att*ck might make Mr. Ward feel that his own safety requires him to cooperate.

I'd be happy to help with that interview.

Better use my FBI connections while you still can.

Burke: Is this thr*at to my client?

'Cause we came down here under the assumption we'd be helping you find a k*ller, not submit information about my client's legitimate business activities.

The L.A.P.D. thinks these legitimate business activities might be a legitimate motive for m*rder.

Flynn: The sn*per who k*lled your partner, he might just have you in the cross hairs too, Mr. Ward.

Okay, first, Travis and I were not partners.

Scott, these are blatant intimidation techniques.

I'm not intimidated, Alan. I'm freaked out.

Okay? The L.A.P.D. didn't k*ll Travis, okay?

Look, he might have been the perfect person to promote Sweet Revenge, but the website was my idea, put together with my investors and my servers.

So if people connected to it are getting k*lled...

God.

Same way with Travis' website...


Any likely suspects among the letter writers?

How about all of them?

And their fathers, too.

I'm telling you, captain, this Scott Ward guy's not gonna hang around here forever.

What is taking Tao so long?

No one else could get this done as fast as Mike.

We just need to hold on.

Okay, for centuries, women have been dumping men without a second thought.

We're putting a big dent in that pattern.

And the world's a better place for it.

Flynn: Well, considering you're providing the planet with such a noble public service, how come you stayed out of the spotlight and let your friend Travis take all the bows?

Anything to do with all these threatening letters?

Burke: Successful businesses attract complaints.

I have it.

Interview 1.

We're not concerned about it.

Scott: Besides, you said you were looking for a sn*per.

I mean, do you really think a woman could do something like this?


I think there could be a line of them.

Look, my client warned Travis about hanging out with drug dealers, not to mention all the hookers he had over.

This tragedy is more about Travis' lifestyle than it is about Scott's business.

Uh-huh.

Well, maybe after the FBI and the L.A.P.D.

Get a good look at your client's servers, we'll agree with you.

Nice try. But unless you have evidence of money laundering or racketeering, federal government's not going anywhere near my client's servers.

Flynn: This is not about double-checking your bookkeeping anymore.

This is about m*rder.

The judge just signed a warrant granting us permission to search through all your data.

So if you have any idea who k*lled Travis, You know what? You were never interested now is a perfect time. in having us help you identify suspects.

You know, Alan, I think...

Alan, we should just pro...

No. You, Scott, you're not talking anymore.

You are coming with me... now.

Hey, Scotty.

You don't want to help us, let me give you some advice...

Stay away from windows.

Scott.

I hate to say it, captain, but I think we need to keep an eye on Scott Ward, for safety's sake.

Agreed. Let's get Amy on that.

And roll out S.I.S. She's gonna need backup.

Sykes.

Lieutenant.

Talking to the people who wrote letters.

I have a suspect.

That's him, Keith Price. Ex-army ranger.

After his wife's pictures got posted, she k*lled herself.

Well, that's good motive.

And army rangers have mandatory sn*per training.

And can hide in plain sight without leaving a trace behind.

Tao: All right. Before we turn down sn*per alley, I'd like to check my measurements against the autopsy, in case I missed something.

Okay.

Ricky: Hi, mom. [Gasps]

Ricky!

Hi!

Hi!

Oh!

Oh, my gosh.

Look at you. Oh, my gosh. What is this?

Got a little scruff. It's cute.

Thank you.

Uh... boy, you guys got back here quickly.

Yeah. Well, uh, Rusty's...

He knows his way around the big city.

Yeah.

I also know how to take directions well.

Lieutenant, do you remember my son Ricky?

Hey. How are you, Ricky?

Good to see you again. Captain.

Yeah?

Um... we're going to, uh, hold our ex-ranger until we can run a background check on him, okay?

Um, why don't we go into my office for a moment?

Sure.

Rusty, you too. Come on.

Well, my biggest news is that we're not planning on going public anymore because a larger Internet-security firm offered us a buyout.

Aw, does that mean you're gonna have to work for someone else?

I don't know. Maybe I'll just, you know, take the cash and travel.

And I haven't really stopped since college, right?

And a house and a car only tie you down.

Right, Rusty?

Oh, I don't know.

I've never really thought about that before.

Well, you don't have to, I guess.

And I'd, uh, I'd like to spend more time in L.A.

What?

Yeah, yeah.

I want to take you out for dinner tonight, mom, and we could, you know, talk about the future a little.

I don't think I'm going to get out of here for dinner.

You're working tonight?

Mom, I just got off the plane.

I thought we were gonna spend some time together.

I know. I am so sorry.

I have a sn*per problem.

Uh, maybe you and Rusty could grab a bite to eat, and then we can have breakfast together tomorrow, I hope.

I'm sorry. I'm...

Ricky: Yeah.

Okay.

L-let me just grab my stuff, and then I'll run you home.

Okay, when S.I.D. pulled all this crap offline, instead of shutting down, the website switched over to something called...

Ricky: Mirror servers?

Yeah. Hey, Ricky.

Andy.

The data will still be intact, but you're gonna need some help getting through their firewalls.

Where's Lieutenant Tao?

Provenza: Oh, he's at the morgue obsessing over b*llet trajectories.

Well, mom, these are most likely load-balanced servers running Apache...

Hi.

Or, uh, maybe Fedora under Linux.

Nothing advanced... I could probably get these booted up and reset the root passwords.

Do you guys have someplace I could plug this stuff in?

Oh, I'm sorry.

Oh, I don't... I don't really need you guys.

I know, honey, but we have chain-of-custody issues, and you're not an officer of the court.

Gotcha.

And I'll just stay out of your way.

Thanks. Sorry to inv*de your space.

Turnabout is fair play, right?

[Telephones ringing]

I... I'll just wait in the break room.

Our army ranger has been read his rights and has agreed to cooperate.

Thank you.

Flynn: Don't worry.

We'll keep an eye on Dr. Einstein here until Mike gets back.

Just don't let your suspect confess before I get a chance to look at Sweet Revenge Online's finances.

Mm. Um, lieutenant, if I go long, will you check on Mike's progress?

All rangers specialize in firearms.

Uh, sorry to interrupt.

Captain Sharon Raydor.

Um, thank you, Lieutenant Price for agreeing to cooperate...


How's Tao getting back here from the morgue, oxcart?

I've been told that the pictures of your wife did not get posted on Sweet Revenge Online in the usual way.

That's right. They were stolen.

How did that happen?

I've been away from my family for three of the past five years, and Kelly... my wife...

Kelly thought the pictures of herself might... bridge the distance.

Personal pictures, and I kept them on my laptop.

She sent you these photos by e-mail?

To my private account, yes.

And that would have been the end of it, except coming home, I had my laptop out in the airport when I got a phone call.

I answered it.

I stood up and stretched my legs for just one minute, and when I sat back down, my laptop was gone.

And that's how your wife's pictures were posted on the Sweet Revenge website?

Yes.

I tried to have them taken down before one of the students in her 9th-grade math class or another teacher found out, or my son, who goes to the same school, saw them.

[Sighs]

I wrote Mr. Hall and explained the situation to him as best I could.

How'd Mr. Hall respond?

[Sighs]

[Voice breaking] With lewd photos of himself sent to my wife's e-mail address, asking what the big deal with nudity was.

So I... I paid one of those online-reputation services to make the pictures of Kelly disappear, and they were taken down for less than a day.

[Sniffles]

And then someone from her school saw them.

Word got around, and my son... He saw the pictures.

I tried to explain to him that this was meant to be something private between his mom and me...

But he didn't see it that way, and neither did the principal, who gave Kelly the choice between resigning [Sniffles]

And a hearing in front of the school board.

So, that day, on the way home from school, she pulled the car over, on the side of the road, and...

She jumped from the Colorado Street Bridge.

Yes. Yes, she did.

[Sniffles]

I looked away from my laptop for one minute, and the world changed.

[Cellphone beeps]

Do you have any weapons, Lieutenant Price?

Amy says Scott Ward could be on the move.

Where the hell is Tao? Damn it!

I can give you the combination and consent to search my house.

[Cellphone vibrates]

Hello.

Tao, what are you doing?!

Looking at what is left of Travis Hall's head.

I was expecting to find a wound consistent with a 7.62 cartridge fired from over 50 yards away.

But the b*llet entered the cranium 3

1/2 centimeters right of the midline, and the w*apon was placed directly against the scalp.

There was definitely a sn*per sh*t from across the street.

Right, and I'm glad I don't have to explain that, because that was not the cause of death.

There's circular stippling on the wound and patches of blood where the hair was yanked from your victim's head.

You mean, uh, like he was... like the k*ller...

Grabbed the victim from behind.

Right.

Do not pull my hair.

With his left hand, while with the right, he sh*t point-blank into the back of Hall's head.

So, the m*rder w*apon was pointed...

Up, yes, it was.

Ooh.

Oh, my God.

I've just been putting all this pressure on a man who lost his wife, and he didn't k*ll Hall?

Not with a r*fle, and here's the b*llet that did the job.

It's from a 9mm handgun.

Okay, so, the same night that Travis Hall gets his head blown off, a sn*per sets up across the street?

That doesn't make any sense.

Unless someone was trying to mislead us.

Our key suspect has long-range-weapons training.

Keith Price, angry army vet, sends a letter threatening to k*ll Travis Hall.

Could have been known by everybody working at Sweet Revenge Online, including Scott Ward.

All right, subject is moving toward Olive.

This is his third time around the block.

I have to think he's waiting for something... or someone.

Hey, we got a bogey at the Jaguar.

[Arguing indistinctly]

Scott: Me? You know what you... you know what you did.

W... hey!

[g*nf*re]

Sykes: R-63, sh*ts fired at my location from the east side of the street.

S.I.S. Units, block off the north side.

Let's go.

[Tires screech]

Should I roll paramedics?

No. They don't look hurt.

Number one has a small-frame 9mm in his possession.

R-63, we have a possible sn*per...

Location unknown.

Have responding units set up a perimeter to the north and south.

I repeat, we have a sn*per.

Approach with caution.

sh*ts were fired at Scott Ward.

And the guy he was with came from 7.62 cartridges.

Same as the r*fle at our first crime scene.

Also the same... our sn*per didn't hit anybody.

But in his coat, Scott Ward had a 9mm and since Travis Hall was sh*t with one of those, I sent his w*apon on to ballistics.

Whatever you can give us, chief, to catch this sn*per.

I've got the entire neighborhood blocked off, and S.I.S. is searching it, along with 30 patrol officers and two dogs trained in fear scent.

The sn*per isn't getting away, though how he's involved, I don't know.

Tell us about the man who got into the fight with Ward.

His I.D. says he's Ryan Brooks, and his name has a flag on it from the FBI.

Well, since he's about to become a deputy chief, maybe Agent Howard wouldn't mind explaining that.

I'll hurry Warden Brooks through booking for you.

Meanwhile, I'm taking Sykes back to help Cooper.

I feel the need for a little in-person supervision.

Mm-hmm.

Keep me posted.

Yes, sir.

[Door opens]

Sorry we've gone so late.

Lieutenant Mike is back at the servers now, so you and Ricky are cleared to go to dinner.

How does that sound?

Okay.

I'm so sorry.

If I wasn't looking for a sn*per, you know...

I-I-it's not your fault.

But we need to rethink this whole adoption thing, because Ricky is not into it at all.

A little pushback from siblings is natural.

When I was pregnant with Ricky, Emily told me several times she didn't want a little brother.

She was 3.

Oh, they're always 3.

Look, Ricky hasn't thought this through.

I can tell.

I'll talk to him in the morning, and I'm sure that whatever issue he has, we can get it straightened out.

Sharon, I know you're a great deal maker and...
Hey.

Hey.

Servers are up and running.

Lieutenant Tao can do the rest.

So, I'm ready whenever you are, Rusty.

Have you thought about where you and Rusty might like to go eat?

Oh, I'm... I'm gonna raid the refrigerator when I get home.

I'm... I'm pretty tired.

Yeah, it's almost, uh, wow, 9:30.

I'm sorry you have to work late. Mm.

Oh.

See you for breakfast.

I hope so. Probably, yes.

Great.

Okay, well, it looks like you have your work cut out for you, so good luck.

Thank you, Rusty.

Um, you guys have a great night.

Mm-hmm. Love you.

Love you, too.

Sanchez: It wasn't a fight, exactly.

Ryan Brooks and Scott Ward pushed each other around in public...

Not very well, but we can still hold them on battery charges.

Anything the FBI can share with us about Mr. Brooks?

He invests in high-tech startups.

The FBI investigated him for tax evasion... got nowhere.

Well, maybe our old friend Scotty, here, will be more forthcoming now that somebody is sh**ting at him.

Plus, Lieutenant Price was in our custody when the second sh**ting took place, so he couldn't have been involved.

I think we should wait until ballistics is finished testing all the weapons at his house before releasing Price.

Someone was framing our army ranger for a reason.

Maybe Mr. Ward can tell us why.

Provenza: Just to be clear, Scott, are you waiving your right to an attorney?

Oh, yeah. Yeah.

Do not call Alan Burke, that bastard.

He's the one that told Ryan I was getting weak in the knees.

You guarantee my safety, and I will tell you whatever you want to know.

Okay. Well, you realize that the g*n that you're concealing, the Ruger LC9, is the exact make used to k*ll Travis?

If I k*lled Travis with that g*n, do you really think I'd be stupid enough to carry it on me?

Yeah, I needed it to defend myself.

From Ryan Brooks?

W-why would he want to hurt you?

'Cause that... that idiot Travis was threatening him, demanding more money and saying that if he didn't get what he wanted, he was gonna go to the FBI.

About their legitimate business practices.

Ryan answers to powerful people, people that would be vulnerable to questionable publicity.

So, that's why you met him on the street, to talk about a public-relations problem?

No, no, obviously, he wanted me to go out to his car so I would be in the open.

It was a setup.

Ryan tried to have me assassinated.

He's pushing the sn*per angle.

Okay.

So did we.

Except the sn*per hasn't k*lled anyone.

You said why he wanted Travis dead.

Why did he want to k*ll you?


Because I know how our site ties to his other sites, which is where the real money is.

The real money.

W-what do you mean "the real money"?

I'll tell you.

But first, I need immunity.

Get me immunity. I'll tell you everything.

There's nothing to tell! I'm not a k*ller!

Look, I'm an investor who provides startup capital for various online enterprises.

Sir, are you saying that... that you had nothing to do with Travis Hall's death, nothing to do with the sn*per who sh*t at Scott Ward this afternoon?

sh*t at Scott?!

Scott lured me to his apartment to have me k*lled!

You want to give immunity to Scott?!

Give it to me!

I know all of the secrets.

I'm sure we can come to an understanding.

We'll see about that.

Excuse us.

Allow me to present the server logs for Sweet Revenge Online.

Over and over, you can see they used buffer overflow, path name, and SQL injection att*cks to exploit vulnerabilities in e-mail servers.

Buzz.

Uh, Sweet Revenge hacked into people's computers to steal images.

Ah. Thank you.

We got it.

Fritz: The L.A.P.D. got farther in 12 hours than the FBI did in six months.

You know, I think I'm gonna like it over here.

Well, to be fair, we had a warrant.

Federal government's computer fraud and abuse act makes every instance of unauthorized access to and theft from private e-mail accounts a class "B" felony.

It's punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

There's hundreds of violations in those records.

And that's not just leverage. That's justice.

And Sweet Revenge.

Sharon: Wait.

Wait, we still have a sn*per out there, and I don't know how he connects.

This is why Ryan Brooks was trying to k*ll you, isn't it?

He knew you could cut a deal on the hacking charges, like Travis tried to do, and send him to prison for life.

N-no. Um, this is... It's just part of the crime.

Do you want to know the whole thing?

Let me get another lawyer... not Burke.

No, no, no, no, no. No, no.

Now, you listen to me.

We've got a sn*per on the loose.

We can't wait for you to get a lawyer.

You want to make a deal? Fine.

We'll arrest you, turn you over to the FBI.

Or you can revoke your right to counsel, tell us the whole ugly story.

We can work on leniency later, based on your cooperation.

But if while we're standing here the sn*per kills someone, you're on your own.

So, you have the right to remain silent and be an idiot and to get a lawyer and go to jail for the rest of your life.

Or... you could revoke and help us.

It's up to you.

[Clears throat]

No, wait, wait, wait, wait!

Hold on, hold on.

I revoke.

All right?


[Panting] Now, here's the deal.

When Ryan and I started Sweet Revenge Online, we had no idea how much money we could make, but Ryan knew no matter what our site took in, he would make 10 times as much linking off of it.

What kind of links?

All those reputation services promising to scrub people's pictures off of Sweet Revenge Online in exchange for cash.

Those were Ryan's.

So, he was using your website as a starting point for blackmail.

People pay.

He just puts the pictures somewhere else.

They pay again.

They pop up again, over and over.

Eventually, people... you know, they just...

They run out of money, or they... give up.

Or commit su1c1de.

[Sighs]

Hacking just got elevated to extortion.

If Travis was threatening to expose them, that's motive for his m*rder.

But who pulled the trigger?

Hmm.

[Dog barking]

Come up slowly with your hands raised.

Slowly so we can see them. Now!

Connor: Okay, okay, okay.

Okay, I'm sitting up, so don't... don't sh**t me, please.

[Barking continues]

[Footsteps approach]

Morning, mom.

Morning, darling.

Find your sh**t?

Our sn*per, yes.

As it turns out, he was the son of an army ranger.

His mother committed su1c1de.

He's a very troubled young man.

Hmm.

You're not gonna be adopting him, too, are you?

Let's discuss this adoption, because I feel your lack of enthusiasm from a great distance, and I'd like to know... what's that about?

Okay.

[Sighs] Right off the bat, I want you to know that I understand a lot of what you're going through.

Dad was a letdown as a husband.

Emily left for New York to do her ballet thing.

I left for Palo Alto.

I don't make it home all that often.

You work all the time.

It's a recipe for loneliness.

And... and I... mom, I have a lot of sympathy for you on that score.

And, also, you are incredibly giving and caring, but, mom, t-t-that kid, he is... he's a hustler, and he's... and a con artist, and I think that he's taken advantage of you.

A-and look... look, you did so much for me.

You were tough and honest when I needed it, and now I think I need to do the same for you.

I need to take the hit like you did and... and be the bad guy for a minute and step in to say that this is not a good idea.

[Sighs]

May I ask, have you, by any chance, been talking with your father about this?

Yeah, we talked a few times.

I mean, he's... he's worried about you.

Mom, I'm worried about you. I am.

Like, helping the kid a little bit, that's great, but t-t-t-to make him legally your son...

I just... I think that we need to take a giant step back here, and just re-eval...

Hold on. Hold on.

Before we go back, I should clear up a big misunderstanding that you have.

Okay.

I'm not asking your permission to adopt Rusty, or Emily's permission.

I see great things in this boy, and I mean that from the bottom of my ever-so-lonely heart.

Come on, mom.

You know that I did not mean loneliness as a criticism.

I was only pointing out the fact...

It's clear what you're pointing out.

Now I'm pointing out to you...

If you don't develop a little human compassion for this young man who grew up with none of the advantages you took for granted every day of your life, then I'm gonna leave here wondering where I went wrong as a mother.

Mom. Mom, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

Hang on.

Look, I-I'm... I'm gonna have children one day.

So is Emily.

Do you really want your grandkids calling that boy "Uncle Rusty"?

That is a whole lot better than what I'm thinking of calling you right now.

Mom!

Richard William Raydor, you listen to me, and you listen to me good.

You've got one chance to get this right.

You need to turn your attitude around right this minute, because if you make Rusty feel unwelcome in this family after all of his and my hard work, I will be just so... disappointed.

Oh, my God.

I am so disappointed in you right now, I don't even know what to say.

[Door closes]

Sykes: The att*cks look like a father-son assassination team.

Given his age and the circumstances of his mother's death, it's a little easier to understand.

Tao: And though the other g*ns from Lieutenant Price's house didn't match up to the m*rder, the sn*per r*fle we found with Connor...

It was used in both att*cks.

The boy has been read his rights, and he'll talk, but maybe we shouldn't ask him if he...

No, we have to do this in order.

Flynn: We already know what he's gonna say, and two confessions could gum up the works.

But they could also be a solution.

Just be ready to follow up with the father.

Amy, let's hear the boy out.

Connor: I k*lled Travis Hall.

Same way I tried to k*ll Scott Ward, but I missed.

And I... I did it on my own, so my father knows nothing about it.

So, how'd you k*ll Travis?

I just... I set up on the building across the street, and when I saw him in the window, I sh*t.

It was easy.

What time was that?

I... I don't know.

Sometimes between 11:30 and 12:00.

So, you fired through the window, and you sh*t Travis from across the street?

Yeah.

Wrong answer.

Travis Hall wasn't k*lled by a PSG1 but by a handgun, up close.

You didn't have anything to do with his m*rder, did you?

Yeah, I did.

Yeah, no, I k*lled him from across the street.

Maybe you thought that you were helping your dad by sh**ting at this man, but you're not helping him or yourself now by lying.

I'm not lying, all right?

No, I k*lled Travis.

I k*lled him because he k*lled my mom.

Your mother committed su1c1de.

No, he made her do that, all right?!

She... she was fine before, okay?

[Breathing heavily]

And my mother... I never got the chance to tell her...

[Sniffles] [Voice breaking]

I said some really terrible things to her.

Listen to me, Connor.

I'm a mother, and I promise you, your mother knew you were sorry.

No, she didn't.

[Sniffles] She didn't know.

If she knew, she wouldn't have jumped.

She did know.

Mothers know, and whatever you said, no matter how terrible, that is not why your mother k*lled herself.

And you're not making things better for her by saying you k*lled people when you didn't, so tell us the truth.

Why did you fire your g*n at those men yesterday?

[Breathing heavily]

Look, [Sniffles] I did k*ll Travis, okay?

I k*lled him.

Now, whatever I said before, I... I was... I mean, I was just lying about how, but... but I k*lled him, okay?

So, you can let my dad go now, okay?

I mean, you have me now, so... so please, just let him go.

Please.

How much longer am I gonna be held here without being charged?

Well, we'll be releasing you soon, Mr. Price.

We have a confession in the m*rder of Travis Hall,
and we apprehended the sn*per who also fired upon two other men while you were in custody yesterday afternoon.

Same r*fle was used in both sh**t, so that's it.

If you don't mind my asking, who k*lled Hall?

Oh, well, we're sorry to have to tell you this, sir, but it was your son, Connor.

That's not... that's not possible.

He already confessed.

But the good news is since he's 15, he can't be sentenced as an adult.

No, no, no, no, no. Hold on. Hold on.

Wait. Connor's innocent.

[ Breathing heavily]

If you look closely at the physical evidence, you'll see that Hall wasn't k*lled by a sn*per.

He was sh*t close-range with a 9mm handgun.

Really? How do you know that?

Because after my wife d*ed, I couldn't get Travis' face out of my mind, so I blew it off his head!

That's how I know.

How is this anything except premeditated m*rder in the first?

I don't know.

We need to remind you, you have the right to remain silent.

I've already waived!

Okay.

Let's start... with how you gained entry into Hall's apartment.

It was easy.

I paid one of Hall's whores to get the security code.

Any particular reason why you chose a 9mm Ruger?

I set up a computer alert for anything to do with Sweet Revenge Online, which pointed me to an Instagram photo of Scott Ward waving his Ruger around at a party.

Okay, w... let me get this straight.

Y-you wanted to frame Scott Ward, but first, you wanted to frame yourself with a sn*per sh*t?

Why?

So you'd look at me hard off the bat, and then, when you found the second b*llet, you'd go after Ward or Ryan Brooks.

I guess I just overestimated your skill as investigators.

Wait, you had your son fire upon these other two men while you were in custody because you thought you framed yourself too well?!

No, no. That... [Breathing heavily]

That was never the plan.

He didn't know what I was doing.

Your son did fire at Brooks and Ward yesterday afternoon.

It's only luck that no one was wounded.

It's not luck!

I taught Connor to sh**t, so if he didn't hit anybody, he was trying to miss.

Write it all down.

[Sighs]

I looked away from my laptop for one minute.

Yeah? Well, you looked away from your son, too.

It's getting to be a bad habit for you.

Write it all down, and we'll see how it checks out.

Then maybe we can help your son.

What will happen to the boy?

Can't just walk away. He endangered lives.

Well, he shouldn't spend the next 10 years in prison, either, just for trying to protect a parent.

His impulse was right.

It's the way he acted on it that requires a response.

Bad impulse control.

That's what keeps us all in business.

Welcome to the L.A.P.D., soon-to-be deputy chief Howard.

Welcome to the L.A.P.D.

[Door opens, closes]

Uh, you know, mom, some day soon, you and Rusty are gonna have to come to San Francisco and let me take you to this place.

Got the best dumplings in the world.

Huh.

Well, from all the stuff you've been inviting us to do tonight, it sounds like everything's better up north.

How did you manage to survive growing up here in L.A.?

Well, it's not so bad being here...

You know, if you don't mind breathing air you can see.

And how would you describe inhaling all of the fog where you live?

[Laughs]

Funny. He's a funny guy.

Okay.

Funny guy.

I have one question for you...

Before you officially become the little brother I never wanted.

I'm interested in what your idea of family is and what the word means to you... "family."

Well... I guess... it means that the people in your life who you've decided t... to love no matter what, and the people who are going to love you back no matter what.

Sharon: Sounds pretty good to me...

Loving each other no matter what.

Not bad.

All right, little brother.

Any questions for me?

Yeah. Uh, just one.

sh**t.

Who cuts your hair?

[Laughs] W-what?

[Snorts]

Don't snort-laugh. I...

[Laughs] Don't be laughing.

I cut my hair.

[Laughing] It saves me tons of money. What?

[Laughing] Well, that explains it.

Oh, oh.

Okay, are... y... all right.

Like a lot of other decisions I've made recently, I am... rethinking it.

Thank God. [Laughs]

I am. I'm rethink... stop it.

I'm rethinking it.

Fritz: Have you heard back from the D.A. about that boy, Connor Price?

Supervised probation and therapy, living with his aunt.

It's the best we could do.

[Sighs] I guess it is.

Last one.

And thanks for your help.

Maybe an ex-FBI guy can work out over here after all.

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Julio.

I'm gonna say good night to Mike.

Per your instructions, I've done a complete data dump.

Hey, Mike, could you do me a favor...

And keep what I'm about to tell you in complete confidence?

Sure.

Even Brenda can't know this, all right?

No kidding around. I got to know I can trust you.

Of course you can.

I'm taking a back exit.

I need you to meet me downstairs with two aspirin and a bottle of water, and then I need you to drive me to the hospital.

Wait, wait, wait, can you tell me what the hell is going on?

I'm having a heart att*ck.

Meet me up front, take me to the ER.

It's St. Louis.

Holy crap.

Holy crap. Holy crap.
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