Previously on "Major Crimes"...
Last night, while traveling
home from a work session,
my mother, Bonnie Pearl,
was assassinated in her car.
BUZZ: Our, uh, primary suspect
was Erik Walsh.
You think I was involved
because that bitch cost me
everything I own.
Stan is Bonnie's sole heir.
My mother was a vicious, ruthless machine
who'd destroy anything
and everything in her path.
Aiden... he fired me
and said I couldn't use him
as a reference.
If I leave here today
without your signature
and a check covering
two months of Gus's pay,
you have no idea how ugly
this is going to get.
Craig Curtis is the one
you should be investigating.
CURTIS: We have a new location
opening in Hollywood tonight.
Consider yourselves invited.
For the past month,
there have been dozens
of incoming calls about Tackles
designated by the cities
"Burbank/Dallas SA"
with no phone numbers listed.
I think we found our Dallas.
And her name is Vanessa.
♪
♪
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING]
[POLICE RADIO CHATTER]
♪
Okay, what happened?
Front door was unlocked when we got here.
No sign of forced entry,
but, as you can see,
her place was trashed.
Another dead woman with links to Tackles.
Kendall?
KENDALL: She has slight
petechia and cyanosis.
See the bluing of her eyelids and lips?
To me, that suggests asphyxiation.
Goes with this thin indentation
around her neck.
SYKES: It was too thin for Vanessa
to have been strangled by hand,
but a plastic bag could have done it.
If someone were able to tie the bag
around her head and hold it the...
- Commander!
- Whoa!
Are you okay?
Yeah.
I just, uh...
I just needed to sit down.
Buzz, Buzz, uh, let's get her some water.
Uh, Nolan, uh, call Andy.
Tell him to come pick her up.
- Yes, sir.
- No, I don't need anyone to pick me up.
No, no, no, no, no.
I am the incident commander,
and I will not have you
collapsing in my crime scene.
Now, you are overdoing it.
I will call paramedics.
- They can be here in minutes.
- T-This is nothing, Lieutenant.
This is a reaction to the new medication
my doctor put me on. Thank you, Buzz.
Now, there are two coasters here.
Are we thinking that Vanessa
sat down with her k*ller?
- You don't have to do...
- PAIGE: That's my theory.
And we found a blue stem from
a broken glass near the couch.
As if her hand couldn't let go
of what it was holding.
Shards of the same color blue
are in the victim's fist.
BUZZ: Uh, she gripped the glass
with her left hand
and the couch with her right.
SHARON: Like she's glued in place.
There's two coasters here.
Where is the other blue glass?
I'll check the kitchen.
Okay, okay. If Vanessa,
aka "Burbank/Dallas SA,"
was being suffocated,
why didn't she just drop the drink
and then try to protect herself?
SANCHEZ: Uh, her muscles tensed up, sir.
Maybe another assailant held her down.
Another phantom accomplice,
like Bonnie's second sh**t?
I don't believe that.
Well, she has a router,
but no laptop, notebook, iPad.
The k*ller... took her devices?
PAIGE: Couldn't find her wallet,
either, or her cell.
Someone may have grabbed her purse, too.
Again, just like Bonnie Pearl.
Add to that pattern...
Vanessa seemed unafraid of her k*ller.
I mean, she served her m*rder*r a drink.
- Time of death?
- The body's in full rigor.
Well, no sh*t, Sherlock.
She's stiff as a board.
Uh, with liver temp,
I'd say earlier...
between : and : .
TAO: Well, now we know
why she wasn't protesting
in front of Tackles this evening.
SHARON: If she d*ed before
the restaurant's grand opening,
then everyone who attended it
is still suspect.
Uh, sir, Lieutenant Flynn
will be here in .
Uh, did someone mention
the missing books?
This table behind the sofa
looks like it had
a complete row of books on it
until very recently.
Missing books? What was
our k*ller trying to find?
Or hide.
Vanessa has four purple glasses
and four green glasses, just like these.
But I only found two blue ones
in the cupboard.
Well, the third blue glass
broke in Vanessa's hand.
The fourth one walked out
the front door with our k*ller.
Your life is at stake,
you put up a fight.
And Vanessa just sat there.
Why?
Because she was stunned... a lot.
There are areas on the back
of her body and neck
where she was shocked by a stun g*n.
- Stun g*n? Why is there no...
- But there are no burn marks.
I was just about to say that, Cami.
Oh, go ahead.
Well, there's no reason
to say it now, is there?
Why is there no physical
evidence of this stun g*n?
The newest stun g*ns don't leave marks
above the skin's surface.
We don't have the newest stun g*ns?
Ours are about years out-of-date.
Technology advances faster
than the L.A.P.D.'s budget.
Also [CLEARS THROAT] when I magnified
this area of the victim's neck,
I found subcutaneous bruises,
each exactly / inches apart...
the same distance between
two prongs on a stun g*n.
Now, watch this.
I got this from a deputy at County.
See? It fits.
And each time the stun g*n was fired,
the young lady's muscles contracted
almost times per second.
So our m*rder*r att*cked Vanessa
from behind,
managed to zap her
while still getting
a plastic bag over her head.
What a way to go,
especially if the k*ller
was someone she trusted enough
to let in the house.
Well, the m*rder*r may have contacted her
before dropping by.
Her cellphone's missing,
but we can still check
her incoming calls.
Her texts, however...
Let me talk to our intel guys,
see what they can find.
Oh, and the last person I want
notified of Vanessa's death
is her lawyer, Stan Pearl.
No more impromptu press conferences.
♪
So, what now, Lieutenant?
Well, we get the police
in Dover, Delaware,
to notify her relatives,
find out if they know something
that we don't...
and then we talk to the rest
of the former Tackles employees.
ALEX: The last time
I saw Vanessa was with you.
She said she was gonna protest
with us at Tackles last night,
but, not surprisingly, she never showed.
Why "not surprisingly"?
Sh-She doesn't like that
kind of attention.
We had to beg her to come
to the press conference
at Bonnie's office.
Also, it feels like
she's taking Bonnie's death
harder than the rest of us.
- She's not responding to our calls.
- Commander.
How are you feeling?
Much better, Lieutenant.
The extra rest helped.
- Thank you.
- Yeah, you see?
Sharon Raydor slept in,
- and the world didn't implode.
- I mean, I get it,
because her own family life
was so screwed up,
and Bonnie was like a mom to her.
- So, what does Alex have to say?
- Very tough, but very loving.
Well, she doesn't know about Vanessa yet.
- Not sure how she'll take it.
- Of course, the m*rder was so horrible,
and we're all having trouble
wrapping our minds around it.
Did Vanessa go back home to Dover?
Is she dropping out of the suit?
Uh, no.
No, the reason why
you haven't heard back from Vanessa is...
No. No.
[VOICE BREAKING] No, no, wait.
We are very, very sorry.
[SOBBING]
Vanessa d*ed yesterday at home.
We found her last night around...
Oh, my God.
She finally did it? She k*lled herself?
Why would assume
she committed su1c1de, ma'am?
Because a little bit
before we were fired,
she got really...
really depressed. She had insomnia.
The doctor ended up prescribing
her an antidepressant.
And this one night,
she ended up taking
all the pills at once.
Vanessa Blaine attempted su1c1de?
Okay, this is not a good surprise.
We need to find out everything we can
about what was going on in Vanessa's life
right before she was fired.
Well, Chief Mason's still working
on getting cloud backups on her devices.
Brin was living with her at the time
and came home earlier than expected
and ended up having to drag her
all the way to the E.R.
Brin was Vanessa's roommate?
[VOICE BREAKING] Yeah.
Well, no, not exactly.
Brin couldn't afford a place of her own,
so Vanessa agreed to put her up
for a while.
Brin is Miss September.
From the Tackles calendar. Right.
FLYNN: She's not a suspect, is she?
Do you m*rder a good friend
just because she kicks you off the sofa?
Or sh**t your attorney
who's suing your ex-employer?
Vanessa said she needed to be alone.
Brin was angry that she had
to find someplace else to stay,
but was even more worried
that Vanessa would
try and hurt herself again.
They had known each other before Tackles
from this acting class
that they had taken together.
TAO: Vanessa was an actress?
Yeah, can you believe it...
A beautiful young girl
moves to Los Angeles,
seeking her fame and fortune.
Will wonders never cease?
Vanessa worried it would damage
Here she is, Commander.
Vanessa Blaine has one credit,
a TV movie...
"Great White Shark att*ck ."
They had to do number four
because "Shark att*ck "
left so much of the story up in the air.
Vanessa was an aspiring
Hollywood actress.
And who have we met in this case
who has an interest in starlets?
ERIK: I don't recognize her
at all, but, you know,
these girls start
to blend together after a while.
Why, what did this
Vanessa girl say about me?
Well, not much these days.
She d*ed yesterday afternoon
after someone used a stun g*n
on her several times
while holding a plastic bag
over her head.
I g... I get why Erik Walsh
would k*ll Bonnie,
but why Vanessa?
You saw how he treated the actress
in that viral video.
He's a monster.
Okay, so?
So, we found your eBay account
- with a list of movie props you sold.
- Yeah, to pay my damn rent.
And you know what we found
on that list, Erik?
Stun g*ns, just like the ones you used
in your hit "Sudden Vengeance."
Now, is it possible that you held on
to one of those stun g*ns,
you know, as a keepsake?
Guys, those stun g*ns are props, fakes.
I would never let a live w*apon
on a set while I was directing.
Safety issues... my safety in particular.
Yeah, well, since you're
in the business of storytelling,
- we should probably check that.
- Look!
I don't know this girl Vanessa.
And you said she d*ed when?
Yesterday afternoon?
Because I was working all day
around maybe people.
Working where?
West Hollywood, off Sunset.
Can we get an address?
Or a cross street?
It's a Starbucks, okay?
I can't afford an office.
So I go there every day,
and I use their Wi-Fi
to send e-mails to producers
and studio executives
begging for one more chance,
even if it's just television.
My barista, Theo, can vouch for me.
He worked a double yesterday.
Well, we'll make sure that
we chat with Theo.
In the meantime, why don't you, uh...
write it all down for us, Erik.
PAIGE: If our former movie director
really was at the office,
then aren't we left with our suspects
from the grand opening of Tackles?
Who each had time to m*rder Vanessa,
clean up, and head to Hollywood.
Buzz, would you please review your film
from the opening of Tackles last night?
BUZZ: Sure.
[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]
♪
Other than a lot of chanting
from the protestors
and a lot of ogling
from guys in the crowd,
the only suspicious thing might be...
these holsters,
which I didn't really notice
- at the time.
- Is that a stun g*n?
Yeah, one of the new ones, too.
Doesn't leave a mark.
PAIGE: These security g*ons at Tackles
work directly for Craig Curtis?
Yes, and they're definitely over .
Amy and Cami, I think it's time
to notify Mr. Curtis
about Vanessa Blaine's death
and make sure he brings
a little security with him.
Yes, Commander.
♪
[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]
GUS: Rusty.
Hey, Andrea. Long time no see.
- Were you expecting him?
- Yeah.
Uh, this will only take a minute.
Good, because you're on the clock.
Excuse me.
Uh, is Andrea pissed at me?
- Well, I told her that we broke up.
- Oh, I...
You told her why, too, I guess?
Does everybody here just hate me now?
No, not everyone.
Look, I have something for you.
This is yours.
Inside is a great reference from Aiden
and two months' severance pay.
It's not as much as you could've
gotten in a lawsuit,
but the recommendation will help
you to get a better job.
And in the event that
a future employer calls,
Aiden has agreed to speak about you
in the most positive way possible.
You went to talk to Aiden?
- About what?
- This.
Gus, I talked to him about this,
obviously.
- Oh, my God.
- Hey.
What Aiden did to us was immoral,
but what he did to you was illegal.
No one can be fired for...
for not sleeping with the boss.
And I said leave it alone.
I don't want to get paid for...
Oh, man. This is embarrassing.
Oh, so... so you'd...
you'd rather be struggling
to pay your bills and waiting
tables at a diner, Gus?
No, but I-I feel like I'm being
bought off for... for sex.
- It's gross.
- Gross? Okay, well, just so you know,
- when I was being bought off for sex...
- Rusty, that is not what I meant.
...I never made grand, ever.
So if that's what this check is for,
then that must've been
some spectacular sex, Gus.
Look, if... if you won't
do it for yourself,
do it for the other people
that Aiden treated this way.
Other people? What other people?
Oh, y-you think that you're the only guy
that Aiden ever hired or promoted
for reasons not related
to job performance?
Aiden agreed to give you
the reference and the check
because if you sued him, suddenly,
a lot of other people just like you, Gus,
would start coming forward,
and that would not...
Stop. Just stop!
Stop.
I get it.
I was an idiot.
And the answer you were
looking for before...
was twice.
I slept with Aiden twice.
And t-t-the second time was only because
I... I wasn't sure how to say "no."
Yeah, well, it feels
like you couldn't say "no"
the first time, either.
♪
I hope that recommendation
helps to put your career back on track.
♪
[SIGHS] I'm sorry it upset you.
I was never very good at
making you happy.
[CHUCKLES]
Anyway, I have to go. Excuse me.
♪
MASON: We hit the jackpot.
After my guys cracked Vanessa's
six-digit pin on her phone,
they cloned her disk image
onto this device.
Now we have access to all the victim's
texts, calls, and photos.
When did Vanessa last back up her phone?
Three days before her m*rder.
PROVENZA: Three days?
That means that we won't have
any texts from the k*ller
saying that he's gonna stop by
Vanessa's house.
Probably not, but we got
a lot of back and forth
between Vanessa and Bonnie Pearl.
Sometimes Vanessa would even
reach out to Bonnie
in the middle of the night.
Vanessa had trouble sleeping.
So she texted her attorney?
SANCHEZ: Well, Alex Snow said that
out of all the women involved
in the lawsuit
that Vanessa was closest with Bonnie,
even if they argued a little, ma'am.
No, I think that
Bonnie Pearl was more of a...
- maternal figure.
- Exactly.
Every Wednesday morning
for the last two months,
Bonnie would send Vanessa a text
reminding her of her : appointment.
"Don't forget about PM.
You're stronger than you think."
And then a smiley-face emoji.
Wow.
Bonnie Pearl didn't seem
like the emoji type.
"You're stronger than you think."
Was Bonnie talking about
the attempted su1c1de
or the lawsuit, ma'am?
It's hard to say,
but where was Vanessa going
every Wednesday at : p.m.?
If her cell's location services was on...
- It was.
- Let's see what that tells us.
Amy, were you able to convince
Craig Curtis to speak with us again?
He's getting a visitor's badge
downstairs with Cami
and a massive security guy he calls Tick.
Tick? I assume Tick is his given name.
Unknown, but he was asked
to surrender his stun g*n
before coming upstairs.
I held on to it for... safety reasons.
We can call up morgue photos
and see if this fits the profile
of the w*apon used on Vanessa, ma'am.
CURTIS: [SIGHS] This is beginning to feel
like déjà vu, Detective Paige.
What am I doing here again?
You know, there are easier ways
to find out if a guy's into you.
Like, do you have a card or something?
- You're not my type.
- Oh, no? Why's that?
- You're too far over .
- [LAUGHS]
And a sense of humor, too.
Ooh, I love it.
Hey.
Oh, sorry, Tick.
You need to wait outside.
But, uh, help yourself
to the break room next door.
You have the right to remain silent...
Commander, this stun g*n
has a distance of...
/ inches between prongs.
PROVENZA: That's just like one
of the new stun g*ns
that Morales showed us in the morgue.
We'll need more than matching stun g*ns
to connect Curtis to Vanessa's m*rder.
- And Bonnie was sh*t in the head.
- Curtis could've hired
this oversized dirt bag to off Vanessa.
You mind telling me what this is about?
The Miranda Warning shouldn't
make you feel special.
We have to give it to everyone
who talks to us
- in this building.
- RUSTY: Oh, my God.
You guys lie to people
even when you don't need to.
It centers us.
We have bad news,
and we, um,
wanted to inform you in person.
Really? Bad news? What bad news?
One of your former employees...
Vanessa...
d*ed yesterday afternoon.
We found her after the grand
opening of your new restaurant.
[SIGHS] Vanessa's d...
What, was it su1c1de?
m*rder*d... asphyxiated in her own home.
Not before the k*ller used a stun g*n
times on Vanessa's body.
Guess who we know who has access
to as many stun g*ns as he wants.
Oh, come o... W-Why would
I do something like that?!
Because Stan Pearl told you
that he would reach
a much better financial arrangement
with Tackles than his mother ever would.
And Vanessa refused to settle,
so let's ask ourselves,
who benefits from both these murders?
Okay, and then let's ask ourselves,
where was I yesterday afternoon?
Oh, that's right. The answer
is here, with you guys.
Yeah, where were you before
that, between : and : ?
[SCOFFS] I... I was
working out in the morning,
and then I was getting ready
for my opening that night,
so I had a two-hour pep talk
with Bill Landon.
Dr. Bill Landon...
one of your top investors?
Yeah, well, he's also my life coach.
And yesterday, I needed a little help
getting pumped up for the red carpet.
I don't know if this is the exact w*apon,
but it matches up with
the one that att*cked Vanessa.
HOBBS: It's a circumstantial step.
It's still a long way from m*rder.
We need to confirm your session
with Dr. Landon himself.
Yeah, well, good luck
getting ahold of him.
He's doing a seminar in Salt Lake City.
Commander, I think we found Vanessa
Blaine's weekly appointment.
♪
Every Wednesday afternoon
for the past two months,
Vanessa shows up inside this
circle miles from her house.
Within here, we have a parking structure,
a restaurant, a drug store,
and a medical building.
Four stories of doctor's offices
occupied by two dermatologists,
an ENT specialist,
an internist, a proctologist,
a surgery/outpatient center,
and Dr. Jane Cross,
a psychologist whose website
says she specializes
in the after effects of sexual as*ault.
Now, we checked with Dr. Cross's office,
and they would not confirm
why Cross was seeing Vanessa.
Ye Gods. She was r*ped.
Maybe that's why Vanessa tried
to k*ll herself.
And why she said that
no financial settlement
would ever be enough.
So if we accept this theory,
how does it fit
with our pattern of facts?
Well, it explains why Craig Curtis
let a bunch of other women go
from Tackles all at once...
to cover up what he'd done.
Is there a police report
- of this supposed sexual as*ault?
- Uh, no.
Vanessa Blaine could've been
r*ped two years ago.
Curtis can't be arrested on a theory.
We just can't let this assh*le
walk out of here.
What other choice do we have?
Craig Curtis might have r*ped
and m*rder*d Vanessa,
but all we can prove
is that he fired her.
SHARON: Which, in itself,
is not an arrestable offense.
But what we can do, starting now,
is protect everyone else
involved in this lawsuit,
including Vanessa's psychologist,
who may very well know
the name of our r*pist.
SHARON: You sure I can't help?
Not that you need any lessons.
All you need to do is relax.
[CELLPHONE VIBRATES]
Why aren't you going to that
new specialist until Friday?
Because my symptoms
have already gone away,
- and it is less urgent...
- [CELLPHONE VIBRATES]
...than the dead body I have
in the morgue.
What's going on there?
Uh, well, uh, the prep is done.
Now the lasagna just needs to bake.
No, I mean your phone keeps ringing.
You keep declining. Is it Gus?
[SIGHS]
You must be psychic.
Yeah.
I won my first settlement conference...
- [GASPS]
- a severance pay
and a letter of recommendation
for Gus from Aiden.
And don't worry, I wasn't playing lawyer.
Just bluffing like crazy
while Aiden took a moment
to... consider his past.
So Gus isn't the first person
he's done this to?
Well, what are the odds?
Anyway, after considering his options,
Aiden signed a fantastic
letter of recommendation, written by me,
and two months' severance.
When I gave it all to Gus,
he got mad at me.
I'm sure that Gus will come around.
Who cares?
Um... look what came in the mail.
♪
[GASPS]
Your college diploma.
Your college diploma. Oh, my God, Rusty.
- You did this in three years.
- [DOOR OPENS, CLOSES]
I am [CHUCKLES] so proud of you.
I never could have done it
without you, Mom.
Hey, what's going on?
♪
Look.
Oh, wow.
Congratulations, kid.
Thanks, Andy.
[SNIFFLES]
- Hey, Mom.
- Yeah.
- Are you okay?
- Yes, I am incredibly okay.
I'm, uh...
[VOICE BREAKING] I'm so happy.
This is everything that I wanted for you.
It's everything I dreamed about.
I'm so sorry. I'm sorry.
Don't apologize, Mom. I...
I almost cried myself there, so...
Hey, there's a lot going on.
Now if we could just keep you safe...
We'll keep him safe.
As safe as a future attorney can be.
Oh, my son, the lawyer.
After three more years of work.
Oh. Oh!
Oh, my gosh.
You know, I've never felt
this challenged and...
this is the happiest I've...
[VOICE BREAKING] I've ever
been in my entire life.
I have...
I have three children through college
and a perfect husband.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Oh, Rusty.
STAN: You guys just totally screwed me.
Some of the girls are dropping
out of the lawsuit
because you told them
they could be r*ped and k*lled?
Are you deliberately trying
to destroy my whole case?
We are already investigating
two murders related to Tackles.
These young women need to be warned.
Why the hell didn't you tell me Vanessa,
my client for God's sake,
had be m*rder*d?!
Why didn't you tell us that Vanessa
was the victim of a sexual as*ault?
Because I didn't know until you started
asking all these girls about it!
Your mom knew.
She was encouraging Vanessa
to get support.
Well, Mom kept things from me.
Always too busy jetting off
to God knows where
to interview some nobody waitress.
Any girl let go from Tackles
- Any[/i] girl?
- These women were over .
- His mother didn't teach him very well.
- Wasn't enough to call
and ask if they'd like
to be included in the case.
No, she had to look them in the eye.
Stan, it is possible that Vanessa's r*pe
caused her m*rder.
That's why it is so important
that we read all of Bonnie's
notes regarding Tackles.
You guys honestly think
I'm gonna help you?
[LAUGHS] A-After the way
I've been treated?
Buzz?
- I have news reporters following...
- Julio, the commander
wants us to turn up the heat a little.
...asking me if I offed my mother!
Oh, maybe they're on
to something, Stanley.
Where were you before the protest
at the Hollywood Tackles opening?
- I'm sorry?
- At your office? At lunch?
Murdering Vanessa at her house? Where?
Murdering Vanessa, what?!
Why would I do that?!
Because Vanessa would
not come to terms with Craig,
and Craig was not gonna pay anyone out
until everyone agreed not to sue.
Your mother even had a nickname
for her...
"Burbank/Dallas SA."
SA as in... settlement agreement?
SANCHEZ: Vanessa blocked
your big pay day.
She was never going to settle
after being fired and then r*ped.
You hid that from us
until you could k*ll her!
That's bullshit, and you know it!
I-I'm not a m*rder*r or a r*pist, either!
Me, a r*pist? [CHUCKLES]
What happens to your civil case...
- Commander?
- Yes?
Dr. Cross, the psychologist
who was treating Vanessa, is downstairs.
Want me to go get her?
Yes, please, Wes. Bring her to my office.
in an illegible form of chicken scratch.
I'll go to the firm and get them,
- but what I find...
- No, no, no, no, no.
PROVENZA: You're not leaving our sight.
Have your mother's notes
brought over here.
Well, I need a phone.
Please?
God. It's so annoying.
Why didn't Mom tell me about the r*pe?
CROSS: Vanessa didn't
want anyone to know,
and she had to be convinced
to come see me.
Over the years, Bonnie used me to help
with lots of sexual as*ault
cases from her practice.
Bonnie...
Bonnie was a great voice for women,
and silencing her like this is a tragedy.
It is.
It really is.
So, ordinarily,
everything Vanessa told you
would be privileged,
but since her m*rder...
It's horrible. Horrible, horrible.
If Vanessa opened up to you
during her recovery process,
especially if she said anything
about her attacker,
that could be extremely helpful.
Though not necessarily admissible.
You have to understand, the
att*ck was not very long ago,
and she was in my support
group, not one-on-one therapy.
- [CELLPHONE VIBRATES]
- Some women need time
to fully absorb what happened,
especially when they knew their attacker
and feel that they're somehow
partly to blame.
So she knew her r*pist by name?
Yes, but she never identified him.
Though she did finally agree
to describe the details of her as*ault.
Which were?
She accepted an invitation from this man
to join him in his hotel room
for a glass of wine,
to watch the sunset.
To her, it was
a spur-of-the-moment thing.
When you say "spur of the moment,"
did they just run into
each other by accident,
or was this someone
she knew from Tackles,
like a... a customer or a supervisor?
All she said about her r*pist
was that this was a guy that she trusted,
and there was no hint
of sexual advance beforehand.
So Vanessa went up to his room...
And before she finished
her glass of wine,
she started to feel woozy.
She was drugged?
She didn't lose consciousness,
but she had to lie down.
That's when he tied her up to the bed.
God.
He gagged her with a hand towel
and kept saying...
"Trust me" over and over
until he was done.
And then what?
Then he ordered her a taxi.
And they say chivalry is dead.
- [CELLPHONE VIBRATES]
- What is it, Buzz?
Bonnie Pearl's assistants are here
with her notes and files...
two mail carts full.
- I've heard enough.
- Yeah, me too. I'll help.
[DOOR OPENS]
Did Vanessa confide any of this
to her friends after the fact
or call the police?
No.
She thought because she worked
as a Tackles model,
the police would
think she was asking for it.
I tried to convince her
that a work wardrobe
never legitimizes r*pe,
but like so many women
who suffer sexual as*ault,
she internalized the trauma.
So she didn't identify the guy,
but what about a description?
Height, weight, race, hair color?
No.
The name of the hotel?
I'm sorry.
All I can say for sure
is that he was no stranger.
As for what Bonnie knew, I have no idea.
And we won't know, either,
because Bonnie was sh*t in the face.
Unless Bonnie, the lawyer,
wrote it all down somewhere.
He tied Vanessa up.
- He had rope with him in his hotel room.
- And dr*gs.
Doesn't sound spontaneous to me.
Well, we don't know the name
of our r*pist,
but he did give us
one identifying feature.
And that would be?
He is definitely not a beginner.
♪
I guess your phone is broken?
I didn't answer your zillion
texts and calls
because I'm mad and I was at work.
Well, I just want to say
I-I'm sorry and thank you,
and... and it's all clear now
what happened.
And t-the recommendation
and the money will help,
- a-and you didn't have to do all that.
- No, I did, Gus!
Aiden destroyed my relationship,
which was incredibly important to me.
He backed me into a corner...
He didn't back you into a corner.
He fully explained to you
why he was taking me to Napa.
Oh, what, he said that to you?
When he fired me.
He said that you'd come by
to pick me up at work
and that he'd dare you to tell me
that the promotion was
only because he wanted to...
you know...
You just let me go knowing that?
No, Gus...
Without even, like, a heads up?
If I were that important to you...
- Was it, like, some kind of test?
- No, no, it wasn't a test.
You were just... You were so...
excited about Napa.
And I... And yes, I-I behaved badly
when you told me about the promotion.
I just... I didn't want
to hurt your feelings.
And this is better? Nothing?
Nothing is better
- than hurting my feeling?
- No. Gus...
- Now we have nothing!
- Look, here's the problem.
The Gus that I knew... I love that guy.
And... And...
You look like him and you sound like him,
but you are not him,
because the guy that I knew that...
Rusty...
The guy that... the guy
that I thought I knew
never would have hurt me like this.
Rusty, I am that guy that you knew.
And I love you, too.
I promise, you can trust me,
but please...
please... let's just try and fix this.
♪
Was Aiden the first time
you slept with someone else,
or was it just the first time
you decided to tell me?
How do I know that there aren't
more Aidens out there?
Or ?
♪
Oh, my God.
See, I don't know how to trust you again.
And here is...
here is the whole truth, Gus.
If I could... I would forgive you.
I just don't know how.
♪
SYKES: I can't say this is
the start of a pattern,
but back when he was playing
football in college,
a cheerleader named Natalie Reed
accused Curtis
and four of his fellow teammates
of g*ng r*pe.
So our famous restaurateur
also has experience in sexual as*ault.
PAIGE: Natalie claimed the players
slipped her some sort of drug
before the att*ck.
Then how come we never heard of
this previous r*pe before?
SANCHEZ: Uh, because
it wasn't prosecuted, sir,
and it was kept out of the press.
Curtis was about to win the Heisman.
Which would make him not only an MVP,
but, perhaps, a very famous alumnus,
meaning millions of dollars
in future donations.
NOLAN: I talked to the old defensive
coordinator for Craig's team
who had... trouble with the way
things went down back then.
And, according to Natalie's mom,
who's still crying about it, by the way,
her daughter ended up taking
an $ , settlement from the school.
To keep her from reporting
the as*ault to the police.
SYKES: And buy her silence,
and it worked, too... for a while.
Until Natalie jumped off the center
of Tampa's Skyway Bridge
three years later.
And, unlike Vanessa's,
this su1c1de attempt was a success.
She did leave a note, though,
accusing Craig Curtis
and his friends of r*pe.
Her mother e-mailed us this.
Curtis is good for these murders. He is.
But can we prove it?
Well, we may not have the exact stun g*n
or the w*apon that m*rder*d Bonnie,
but her files will help.
Bonnie had discovery requests
from fired waitresses
from all of Craig Curtis's restaurants.
And it turns out that Stan Pearl
was telling the truth.
Bonnie Pearl traveled quite a bit
over the last couple of months,
visiting various cities
with Tackles restaurants.
Yes, but was that
for her Tackles lawsuit,
or was she trying to find out
who r*ped Vanessa Blaine?
Curtis was notified of her m*rder.
Maybe we should see how he reacts
to hearing about her sexual as*ault.
Oh, I agree.
But we may get more
of an unguarded response
if we surprise Mr. Curtis
in his natural habitat.
♪
[MID-TEMPO ROCK MUSIC PLAYS]
Aww. Hey, cutie. Welcome back to Tackles.
Uh, hello, ma'am.
"Ma'am"? So formal. I like it.
You officers want the bar or a table?
We are so not hungry. Is Craig Curtis in?
Oh, uh, Craig doesn't like
to talk to people when he's...
We're L.A.P.D. We don't care
if he wants to talk with us.
We want to talk with him. Understand?
Wow, okay.
[SCOFFS] No need to be rude.
CURTIS: You guys know
about Vanessa's r*pe?
That's... That's a surprise, actually.
Oh, are we not supposed
to know about that?
Like we weren't supposed to know
about Natalie Reed?
Oh, come on. That...
You have any idea how long ago that was?
Yes, and in case you were wondering
about Natalie, she's still dead.
You mention Natalie Reed again,
this conversation is over.
You want to talk about Vanessa, fine.
Yeah, she called me
right after it happened.
She was... Well, she was drugged.
She was scared out of her mind.
Why would she contact you?
Because I just told you, she was scared.
She wanted me to protect her.
You know that taking care of these girls
is a serious part of my job.
Until they turn .
When'd you get this call from Vanessa?
- Can you put a date to it?
- [SCOFFS] Yeah.
Was part of taking care of Vanessa
- f*ring her a month later?
- Her contract expired.
I couldn't make an exception for her
without causing a bigger headache.
- Who r*ped her?
- You know, she wouldn't say.
Probably because she knew
I would do something to the guy.
Here. It was, uh, the th, : p.m.
I'm sitting on the tarmac,
flying back from Vegas,
she calls me, she's crying so hard,
- I could barely understand her.
- Mm, is that what you said
after you and your friends
g*ng-r*ped Natalie?
All right, you know,
shut your mouth, bitch!
You don't know what the hell
you're talking about!
- Sit down right now.
- No, no, no, no, no.
It's okay, Wes.
Let the big man hit the girl.
Go for it, assh*le.
You're gonna talk to me
like that in my place, huh?
For the last time, sit down.
♪
Hey, what the hell's going on?
Drop your w*apon!
You sit your ass down.
♪
Back up. Back it up.
I never r*ped anyone in my life!
And I didn't k*ll Vanessa, either.
You know, I do have an alibi
for that day.
Ask Bill Landon. He'll back me up.
Mm, your friend Dr. Landon's a
little hard to get on the phone.
Yeah, maybe you could help us find him.
I'm sorry it's taken me a while
to get back to you.
I was holding a seminar in Salt Lake,
then a full-day retreat in Santa Barbara,
and now we're off to
one of Vicky's charity galas.
We fight for animal rights
because they can't fight for themselves.
She'll be feeding us to a pack
of rescue dogs
if we're not done in five minutes.
We understand your time
is precious, Dr. Landon.
Oh, everyone's time is
precious, Commander.
It's one of the things we teach
in the Landon Method.
Do you have somewhere my wife
and son can wait while we chat?
Oh, right through here.
Dad, don't over-explain.
- We need to wrap this up in two minutes.
- I heard five.
Seth is right.
This is not a workshop, Bill.
[CHUCKLES] Sorry.
Oh!
See, Seth, uh, manages my schedule.
And then Vicky makes sure that
any attempts at being profound
only occur in front of a paying audience.
It's wonderful, though, don't you think?
Working with your family?
Oh, yeah, mostly.
But, uh, this is one detail
in which they can both remain uninvolved.
So, you'd like to know
if Craig was really with me
on the afternoon the young woman
from Tackles was m*rder*d?
Yeah, that would be helpful.
Well, short answer is "yes."
I had a roughly two-hour talk with Craig,
helping him release expectations.
Let me explain. See...
when Craig first came to me,
he was depressed,
suffering from an injury
that not only ended his career,
but destroyed the life
he'd planned to live.
Oh, and this guy planned, practiced,
sacrificed for a dream
he'd cherished from childhood.
And this incredibly human ability
to see beyond the curve,
like, to look ahead of today,
well, that can morph from
one of our greatest strength
into a debilitating weakness, and why?
Well, because very often,
we arrive at the future,
only to discover that, uh,
it just isn't there.
That instead, we've entered a space
where no amount of planning,
no sacrifice,
no hope will manifest our expectations.
And in this situation,
we must adapt, adapt, adapt,
and find another way to love our lives.
There is no goal greater than this.
Love your life right now.
Which just happens to be
the name of my new book.
I'm gonna leave a copy with you.
"Love Your Life Right Now."
Available next week on Amazon
and in bookstores.
PAIGE: So, after he lost
his football career,
you helped Craig love his life
by opening a tits-and-ass restaurant?
I don't create dreams, Detective.
I just turn them into reality.
You know, you'd be surprised
how often people let
unidentified, misdirected anger,
resentment,
and, yes, fear ruin their lives.
What did Craig have to be afraid
of, if he's so innocent?
Well, fear of the lawsuit, of course,
fear of failure,
fear of the harsh judgment of others.
Harsh judgment? From what?
Letting young women go from a job
just 'cause they hit , that's, uh...
it's right on Craig's brand,
but from a human standpoint,
it's hardly endearing.
[SIGHS] Bill! [CHUCKLES]
Are you talking alibis or the Method?
Those Galápagos penguins
aren't gonna save themselves.
And part of loving my life
is keeping my spouse happy right now.
[CHUCKLING] So anything else?
Doctor, when's your next
intensive seminar in Los Angeles?
Later this week.
You can register on our website.
And feel free to pass
those around if you want to.
We'll call you if we have
any more questions, sir.
Lieutenant?
Questions such as
the long-term effects of guilt.
- Oh, I could talk about guilt for hours.
- Oh, no, no.
Well, I specialize a bit in guilt myself.
Oh, right through here.
Are you really gonna pay good money
to hear this guy talk all day?
No, I just want to make sure
he'll be around if we need him.
We found something. Buzz?
I'm working on it. I'm working on it.
- See?
- Thank you. Okay.
This is a map of
all Tackles locations.
Now, the receipts that Buzz and I found
confirm that over the past two months,
Bonnie traveled to every single
one of these cities.
Looking through Bonnie's files,
we didn't find any actual names
of women she spoke to,
but we did discover
three more double cities
with the initials "S.A."
scribbled by them.
As in "Burbank/Dallas SA,"
a.k.a. Vanessa Blaine.
Yes, ma'am, but no real
phone numbers or names.
But there is a San Diego/Miami SA,
an Indianapolis/Tampa SA,
and a Las Vegas/Atlanta SA.
"S.A." doesn't stand
for "settlement agreement."
It stands for "sexual as*ault."
That would explain
why Bonnie didn't write down
Vanessa's name or phone number
in her call logs, too.
She wanted to keep
the sexual as*ault quiet
until she'd found other victims.
Because Vanessa's r*pist was,
- obviously, very experienced.
- Oh, my God.
Bonnie and Vanessa weren't k*lled
because they were
suing Craig Curtis for damages.
No, they were m*rder*d
to conceal a pattern of sexual as*ault.
And we need to identify
all these other women
before they end up dead, too.
♪
[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]
♪
Are you feeling light-headed again?
No, I'm fine. It's just...
I-It's just what? Y-You can tell me.
I-I can't believe I'm saying this, but...
And I know it's a lot to ask...
But if anything were to happen...
Sharon, nothing is gonna happen.
No, I know. But I-I need to say this.
If anything were to happen, please,
please look after my children.
Of course.
But y-you're gonna be here.
But if I'm not, if something bad
were to happen...
Look, remember,
my own ticker isn't what it used to be.
We'll be... two injured hearts
- b*ating as one.
- [LAUGHS] Oh, God.
That sounds like a...
a bad country-western song.
Look, the kids will be fine. I promise.
- How did I get so lucky?
- [LAUGHS]
I think because
you finally gave in, really.
♪
What?
I've been so happy in my life,
but walking through that door to see
yet another doctor
could change everything.
Not everything.
♪
Never everything.
[SOFTLY] Okay.
♪
♪
06x07 - Conspiracy Theory Part 2
Watch/Buy Amazon
"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.
"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.