Hawaii Five-O (1968) s09e14 Episode Script

Man in a Steel Frame

McGARRETT: Cathi.
Cathi.
CHIT: It's regulation for bringing in a murder suspect.
The shots were fired from your gun.
But how, Danno? How? How much I look forward to having McGarrett here with us.
Here, where he'll die a thousand deaths.
DANNY: If Yoshi's story is true, Steve will be off the hook and we'll be able to prove there was a gun switch.
That story better hold up, or else the head of Hawaii Five-0 is gonna wind up in prison.
WOMAN: Here.
McGARRETT: Hey.
Good game, fellas.
DANNY: Thank you.
Hey, Yosh, you bandit, you didn't tell me your pupil was doing that well.
His game has been improving.
- Your game really is improving, Steve.
- Thank you, Danno.
Yosh, take a bow.
[PHONE RINGS.]
- Phone call for you, Mr.
McGarrett.
- Oh, thanks, Walt.
- Hello? CATHI [ON PHONE.]
: Oh, Steve? - Yeah.
Hi, Cathi.
- I'm so glad I caught you.
Something's come up.
I've got to see you right away.
What's the problem? I'll tell you when you get here.
Well, I was just heading back to the office, Cathi.
- Uh, won't it wait until this evening? - No.
Please.
Please, could you come now? It's important.
Okay, uh, I'll be out in about 20 minutes.
Huh.
McGARRETT: Cathi? Cathi? [PARROT SQUAWKING.]
Hey, Cathi.
Where are you, honey? Cathi? [GROANS.]
McGARRETT: Cathi.
Oh, dear God.
Oh, God.
Cathi.
Cathi.
Operator.
Operator.
Operator.
Operator.
[GROANING.]
Central.
This is McGarrett, Five-0.
Central, this is McGarrett, Five-0.
Come in please.
Central, will you respond, please? Oh, God.
Steve, somebody already reported it.
Couldn't have been more than two minutes ago.
Reported it? How could they report it? Are you sure it was the same address? FRANK: I'm positive.
- Who called it in? Some guy who didn't wanna leave his name.
Same old story, Steve.
He didn't wanna get involved.
All right, Frank.
You better alert the lab team and also the medical examiner.
Tell them I'll meet them back at the house.
Will do.
WOMAN [OVER PA.]
: Lavena West, featuring the evening dress in green chiffon and satin.
The print is of the Lawai leaf, a Hawaiian fern.
And her dress is accessorized by a neck scarf made of the same - Did you design that? - Yes.
Pretty.
The dress or what's in it? Both.
How long have you been a dress designer? Oh, too long.
But I would like to know more about your line of work.
When John introduced us last night, he didn't tell me you were a policeman.
Oh, a policeman only in a manner of speaking.
What matter are you speaking? Well, I'm in charge of a special investigative unit for the state of Hawaii.
Then you are a super cop.
Some cops are super when you get to know them.
- I know you already, McGarrett.
- Oh? I talked with John for nearly ten minutes on the phone last night.
Result? I know everything there is to know about Steve McGarrett.
Must have had a pretty dull life if you can get it all in ten minutes.
[CATHI CHUCKLES.]
Now you have me at a definite disadvantage.
Why? Because you know everything about me and I know nothing about you, except you're a very successful fashion designer.
And you would like me to fill in the blank spaces? You mentioned married, I noticed that you don't wear rings.
Is there a reason? May we order now? I have to get back to work.
Sure.
Sure.
What would you like? CHIT: Steve.
Steve.
Hello, Chit.
Victim's name is Cathi Ryan.
She was shot twice at close range.
Did you find the body? Yeah.
She had called me earlier.
When I got here, that's how I found her.
Approximately what time was that? I left the tennis club at 3:40.
It took me about 20 minutes to get here, just about 4.
Homicide didn't get your call till 4:15.
Why? After finding Cathi's body, somebody clipped me from behind.
When I came to, that phone was ripped out of the wall.
I tried to use it, I couldn't get a dial tone.
I went out to my car, and something happened to that radio also.
So when you found that both the telephone and the radio were out of order, you placed your call to H.
P.
D.
From a pay phone? That's right.
I see.
Steve? Listen.
[SIGHS.]
[DIAL TONE.]
It can't be, l I couldn't get a dial tone.
You got hit on the head? Ow.
Um Why don't you get a breath of air and I'll take a look around.
Steve, I just heard about Cathi.
I'm so sorry.
I can't believe it.
Thanks for coming, Danno.
Something very strange going on here.
I feel like I'm in a vise.
Are you all right? Yeah, I just feel a little groggy from that blow on the back of the head.
- Who's inside? - Chit Matsuda.
Funny thing, I get the feeling after talking to him that he's got me pegged as the prime suspect.
You are, Steve.
H.
P.
D.
Got a description of the suspect from an anonymous telephone call.
It fits you perfectly.
The color of your car, make, and partial on your license plates.
- What? - Hi, Danny.
Steve, I've got something I wanna show you.
- Do you recognize this? - Sure, it's my watch.
I found it beneath the body of the victim.
- You found it beneath Cathi's body? - That's right, Steve.
My God.
- Steve, you sure you're all right? - Oh, my God.
I feel kind of sick.
You may have a concussion.
Better let Doc have a look at you.
Put out a call on Five-0 frequency for Steve McGarrett to contact H.
P.
D.
, Code 6.
OFFICER: Twenty-one to Central.
MAN [ON RADIO.]
: Attention all Five-0 units.
Steve McGarrett to contact H.
P.
D.
, Code 6.
Repeat.
All Five-0 units, Steve McGarrett to contact H.
P.
D.
, Code 6.
How could it be? It appears your radio is no longer out of order, Steve.
May I see your service revolver? Would you agree it's recently been fired? Yeah.
Fired? Shall I read you your rights, Steve? My rights? No.
No, that won't be necessary.
These aren't necessary either, Steve, but as you know, it's regulation for bringing in a murder suspect.
Any idea who posted my bail? Don't look innocent, fellas.
You came up with 50,000 big ones, didn't you? You went into hock up to your ears.
Well, not quite that far, Steve.
Chin pitched in too.
I don't know what to say, except thank you.
The frame was carefully thought out and executed, which means we're dealing with a top pro.
It also means we've got a long, uphill struggle ahead of us.
We'll find out who's behind it if we have to turn over every rock on this island.
- Yeah.
- The ballistic report came in, Steve.
The shots were fired from your gun.
But how, Danno? How? How were they fired from my gun? Steve, I just came from Doc's office.
He finished testing those blood samples.
You guessed right.
You were drugged.
The question is why? Why? The drug was hallucinogenic.
Doc says it was administered to confuse you.
Now, your guilt or innocence might depend on whether or not you know for certain the victim was already dead when you arrived at the house.
- Do you know? - No.
I thought I did.
I'm more confused than ever.
Well, I have something, Steve.
Might not be very much, but I've been putting an arm on every contact I've ever done business with on the street.
I got a name.
It's supposed to be connected.
- What is it? - Boni Oro.
Mean anything to you? Other than "cowboy" in Hawaiian, no.
Maybe it's a nickname.
Well, I'll try and run it down.
SECRETARY [ON INTERCOM.]
: Telephone, Mr.
Williams, line one.
Williams.
Steve, it's H.
P.
D.
We may have a break.
Yeah, go ahead.
Yeah.
Where? Okay.
Got it.
They traced the tread markings on the tire tracks we found near the beach house to a military surplus sale at Hickam Field.
The tires were sold at public auction to a V.
I.
P.
Rent-A-Car.
Hmm.
That's a long shot, Danno.
- But we better look into it.
- I will.
Uh, Manicote wanted to see me.
I better go over.
Danno? Thank you.
It's, uh, a clam dip.
- Did you make it? - No.
Aloha Instant Foods.
CATHl: Well? - Mm.
Good.
Ha, ha.
I bet you say that to all of the cooks.
I might as well fess up.
I never was and never have been a card-carrying member of the Apple Pie sorority.
As a matter of fact, boiling water is about the extent of my culinary talents.
Cathi, do you mind if I ask you a personal question? That all depends.
The period before you came to the islands a year ago, that part of your life You never seem to want to talk about it.
Is there a reason? I suppose you have the right to know.
After all, we've been together for over two months.
I don't claim any rights, Cathi.
You have to want to tell me.
I do.
I had a husband and a child.
A little girl, Amy.
We, my husband, Frank, and I, we had a sailboat.
Every Sunday we'd go sailing.
With both of us working it was our one day together.
Our family day.
Amy adored sailing.
Cathi, if you'd rather not talk about it, it's okay with me.
No, I have to.
It was windy, and there were swells.
The boat capsized.
Amy was on the other side of the boat from me.
I couldn't get to her in time.
[SOBBING.]
I watched her drown, Steve.
I saw her die.
Poor girl.
What about your husband? His body was never recovered.
The only true feeling I've had since that day is self-pity.
Something to feed on.
Like an addiction I haven't been able to kick.
I'll help you kick it, Cathi.
Will you? Try me.
I can't ask for anything more than that, can I? - Hello, John.
- Dan.
- Sit down.
- Thank you.
Um I'm sorry about all this mess with Steve.
If there's anything I can do to help, don't hesitate to ask.
Thank you.
I appreciate it.
I'll tell you the truth, I don't know what sort of help I can be given the overwhelming evidence.
He admits the means and the opportunity, but there's one very important thing still missing: Motive.
- He was seeing the girl.
- John, that's no secret.
Dan, I've gotta be frank with you.
Perhaps more so than I would be with Steve.
With that good citizen's anonymous phone call and all that evidence, I don't know that a jury is going to quibble over a motive.
What kind of good citizen calls in a possible homicide and doesn't even leave his name and address? It's happened before, people who don't wanna get involved.
- You know that as well as I do.
- I don't buy it this time.
Where was this witness that he could give an accurate description of Steve and his car? In Steve's pocket? I have a half a dozen men trying to locate him.
Well, you won't locate him, John.
You know why? Because the only witness to what happened in that cottage is the real killer.
If we use two days either side of the day Miss Ryan was killed as our criteria, we're talking about a dozen cars.
What is the current disposition of those 12 cars, Mr.
Arnold? Uh, four of them are still on the premises.
- And the other eight? - I'm afraid they've been re-rented.
Mr.
Arnold, we'd like to have a lab team come over and check out the four cars you have here.
All right.
In the meantime, I'd like the local addresses for the other eight cars off the rental contracts.
I'm gonna try to have H.
P.
D.
Run them down.
- Hello, Mr.
McGarrett.
- Ah.
Hello, Yoshi.
I heard about your trouble.
I'm sorry.
Thanks, Yosh.
I appreciate that.
I hope everything works all right for you.
Yeah, so do I.
Excuse me, I have to give a lesson now.
McGARRETT: You're a ringer.
- You lost, McGarrett.
- Yeah, but I lost honorably.
I thought you said you hadn't played in over a year? What I didn't say is I used to be top seeded on my college team.
- Well, I demand a rematch.
- You got it.
Have you decided about tonight? - It's the concert.
- The concert? I know you'd hope I'd say the ballgame.
You bet I did.
Would you be willing to buy me the biggest box of popcorn? McGARRETT: Yeah, it's blackmail, but, uh, you got it.
With or without butter? CATHl: Butter, no salt.
Ha-ha-ha.
McGARRETT: Ah.
Then it's the ball game, huh? CATHl: It was all the time.
McGARRETT: Okay.
[CATHI CHUCKLES.]
DANNY: Steve? - Steve.
- Oh.
Hi, Danno.
You come up with anything on Paniola? Yeah.
Turns out to be a street name for our old friend Sam Wailua, Charlie Ing's top enforcer.
With Charlie Ing still in prison, you think Sammy boy could still be loyal? I'd bet on it.
Trouble is, we can't act on what we've got.
Why not? Wailua's been in San Francisco since last Friday.
- He's not due back until tomorrow.
- Which gives him an unshakable alibi.
Still gonna have him picked up the minute he gets off that plane.
Good, Danno.
There's something Something's still disturbing me though.
What's that? When I go before the grand jury, I have to be absolutely certain in my own mind what happened at Cathi's house.
When I think about it, I find myself getting more and more confused.
I'm not sure anymore if Cathi was already dead when I got there.
According to Doc, that's the reason you were drugged.
To raise doubts in your mind.
Well, someone did one hell of a good job.
I wanna go back to that cottage, Danno, and reconstruct it.
Walk it again.
Come on back with me.
ING: So everything went smoothly? VAUGHN: Like silk.
ING: Good.
- What about the money? - Don't be impatient.
- We have an arrangement.
- And I haven't forgotten.
I'll let you know where the money is hidden as soon as I get word from my outside associates that McGarrett is in that steel box.
Oh, man.
Come on.
How many times do I have to tell you guys? Top soil.
When do you want me to come back? When I send for you.
You can't know how much I look forward to having McGarrett here with us.
Among so many that he's imprisoned.
Here, where he'll die a thousand deaths.
Not knowing which day will be his last.
Now, I got here at 4:00, give or take a minute either way.
According to Chit Matsuda, the anonymous call from our mystery man came in at 4:06.
Then that gave the killer just about six minutes.
Now, I called to Cathi from about here.
When she didn't respond, I went up to her bedroom.
[INAUDIBLE DIALOGUE.]
Steve, what about Cathi's phone call to you at the tennis club? It had to be made with someone holding a gun to her head, Danno.
This is all an interesting hypothesis.
- There's only one problem.
- What's that? Who's gonna believe it? DANNY: Che.
CHE: This is our baby, Danny.
We took soil samples from the tire treads, and it's identical to the soil taken at the house.
- Same, uh, sulfur content? - Right.
Also found traces on the gas and brake pedals.
- What about the tire casts? - Well, they match.
Although the right rear tread casts aren't from a surplus tire.
Why would a rent-a-car company put three surplus wheels on and not four? Well, evidently, some time prior to the killing, our suspect must have had a flat, because here's our fourth tire.
That explains your strange set of tire casts.
Well, on the chance that he might have fixed the flat himself, I went over every inch of this trunk.
And I pulled a couple of beautiful prints from the jack.
- You put them on the wire? CHE: Already done.
Good.
Now all we have to do is find out who rented this car the day of the killing.
You satisfied? Completely.
My plane leaves for Maui at 2:00.
The address is 112 Papulu Road.
Where exactly is the money hidden? ING: There's a false panel in the back of the mirror in the bathroom.
It seems like an odd place to deposit money.
Not when you consider McGarrett's men were closing in around us when I made the deposit.
Good luck.
Good luck to you.
He's picking up some money for me in Maui.
When he returns, have him killed.
- Any forwarding address? - Hmm, no.
[PHONE BUZZES.]
Excuse me, please.
Front desk.
Yeah, just a moment.
It's for you, Mr.
Williams.
Uh, why don't you take it over there? Thank you.
- Williams.
- We scored, Danny.
Washington says the prints lifted from the jack belong to a Malcolm Vaughn out of Detroit.
Two arrests for suspicion of homicide and no convictions.
Did you get a current mug shot of Vaughn? Copies have already been run off and been distributed to all hotels, restaurants, inter-island airlines and auto rentals on all the islands.
Nice going, Chin.
Stick close in case something comes up.
- I have just one more question.
- Yes? Who made Mr.
Watson's reservation? "Hawaiian Adventure for the Aloha Construction Corporation.
" Thanks.
Aloha Construction, huh? President and chief officer, Sam Wailua.
That makes two bad marks for Sammy boy.
His plane is due in an hour.
Duke's waiting for him at the airport.
Hold it, Danno.
Hold it.
That's it.
I just realized that there is a place where my gun is accessible at least two times a week.
In my locker at the tennis club.
Let's go.
Besides myself, there's one other person that has access to the keys.
- Who's that? - Yoshi.
Okay, Walt.
Thank you.
Why, Yoshi? - Why what? - Why did you do it? Why did you take my gun from my locker and replace it with an identical model? Who did you give my gun to? Ha, ha, I don't know what you're talking about.
Yoshi, we've been friends for a long time, and lying is not gonna help anything.
Now, my job and my reputation are at stake.
I need some answers.
According to Walt, you're the only other person who had access to the keys.
Mr.
McGarrett, you gotta believe me when I tell you I had no idea what they were up to.
"They"? Who are they? It all happened so fast.
It was about a week ago.
I left the club and went to get my car.
These two guys were waiting for me.
They forced me to drive them to one of the lookouts on Diamond Head.
They said they had my sister.
They threatened to OD her on morphine unless I did exactly what they told me to.
And that was to switch my gun, huh? I'm sorry, Mr.
McGarrett.
But what choice did I have? None, I guess.
When was the last time you saw your sister? About two days before the killing.
But later, I was worried about Sachito, so I contacted them and told them I wanted to talk to her.
How did you contact them? Like they told me to.
I placed an ad in the classifieds of the Advertiser.
They met me at my apartment the next day.
They placed the call and I spoke to her.
They called from your apartment? No.
From a phone booth at Kapiolani Park.
Do you know exactly where the booth is? - Yes.
- Let's go, Danno.
You know better than to operate as a cop when on bail, and you know better than to let him.
Let's get one thing clear, John.
Dan Williams is not to be held responsible for anything That's not the point.
You shouldn't have done anything.
You might have had your bail revoked.
What do you want me to do? Stand by and have my life destroyed? That's not the point.
The point is, I don't wanna be placed in a position to have to defend your actions to the press.
Would you like me to recant? Save you and the state a little embarrassment? If Yoshi's story is true, Steve will be off the hook and we'll be able to prove there was a gun switch.
The story had better hold up, or else the head of Hawaii Five-0 is gonna wind up in prison.
Here's your search warrant.
Let's all hope that girl is there.
Freeze.
[SCREAMS AND CRIES.]
Sachito.
Come here.
We're police officers.
We're police We're police officers.
Everything's going to be all right.
[PANTING AND CRYING.]
It's going to be all right now.
Steve, I just heard you made it off the most-wanted list.
Yeah.
With Yoshi's statement and the help of some good friends.
Good to be back, Chin.
[PHONE BUZZES.]
McGarrett.
Put him on, please.
Yes, Duke? Good.
Get him over here right away.
Duke just picked up Sam Wailua at the airport.
What's the beef, McGarrett? I just got off a plane.
I've been off this island for over a week.
So I understand.
Then make me understand why you had me picked up.
Oh, you're gonna find out why.
Just a minute, pal.
Just a minute.
I run a legitimate construction company.
I pay taxes.
I give to the poor.
I believe that you also do some importing.
Importing of people who come equipped with certain talents.
Like him.
You recognize him? No.
Why should I? Because you made two phone calls from your home here to his place of residence in Detroit.
- And what does that prove? - That you just lied to me.
- Prove it.
- Yeah, I'll prove it.
I'll prove it.
The man you brought here was a shooter, an assassin.
His name is Malcolm Vaughn.
He happened to kill a lady that I was very fond of.
And I'm gonna burn you for it if it's the last thing I do on earth.
Mark it down.
Bring him in, Danno.
Who built the frame, Sammy? You've got exactly ten seconds or you get hit with murder one.
Was it Charlie Ing? Look, maybe we can work out some kind of deal.
I don't make deals.
Was it Charlie Ing? You've got five seconds.
I'd like to talk to you privately.
Okay, McGarrett.
Okay.
It was Charlie.
He said they couldn't do anything to him.
I mean, he's already serving life.
Yeah? Well, transporting a killer across a state line is a federal offense.
And I'm going after a federal indictment.
I'm gonna have him transferred to a prison on the mainland where he won't be surrounded by friends or be able to make deals.
Now, there's one more thing I want from you.
The shooter, Vaughn.
Where is he? Charlie has him holed up in this place over on Maui.
- Barney.
- How's it going? - All right? - Danno.
- Are they in there? - Well, as far as we know, Vaughn and a local girl are the only ones in there.
Okay.
[WHINES.]
Quiet.
Quiet.
Is Vaughn inside? Is he alone? Okay, take her.
Cover me.
[VAUGHN CHOKING AND YELLING.]
VAUGHN: Get off! Okay! DANNY: Take it easy, Steve.
Take it easy, you're gonna kill him! Steve, take it easy.
Take it easy, you're gonna kill him! Are you all right? Yeah, I'm all right, Danno.
Let's go, Steve.
Let me help you.

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