The Better Sister (2025) s01e03 Episode Script

1
Previously on The Better Sister
- [siren wailing]
- [grunts]
[Guidry] You Ethan?
I’m Detective Guidry.
This is my partner, Detective Bowen.
There was an incident
involving your father.
He didn't make it.
You should know we contacted
- Nicole Macintosh.
- [Chloe] You know that
Nicky's an addict
and she hasn't seen him in many years.
But she's still his legal guardian.
We have a few more questions
for Ethan if--
- It's fine.
- No. I'm your mother.
Go to your room. That is final.
[Chloe] I found this Lyft receipt.
And wh-what is this company-- Gentry?
Uh, they seem like
every other group we represent, but
I'll check it out.
Hey, Arty, is everything okay?
[Arty] The detectives are outside
with NYPD. There's nothing I can do.
Search warrant for the premises.
- Who's the commanding officer here?
- Finally.
Michelle Sanders. I've been hired by the
family as counsel for Ethan Macintosh.
They have information that we don't.
[Ethan] Kevin said something
different than I did.
- [Nicky] You don't have to touch me!
- [Guidry] Ethan Macintosh,
you are under arrest
- for the murder of Adam Macintosh.
- No, no-- Come on.
You can get out of my way!
[intriguing music playing]
[Adam] What was going through your head?
Adam, please.
Baby
you could have killed somebody.
[boy] Ethan.
Yo, Ethan.
You want?
[weak chuckle]
[Adam] So you were playing with it
after you stole it?
What, you show off to your friends
'cause you're so fucking cool?
Adam.
- [echoing] Hey, Mac.
- [regular volume] Hey, Helen.
[Adam] Are you out of your mind?
[echoing, indistinct chatter]
It was pretty tough to make.
[continues indistinctly]
- The fuck?
- [Adam] Could have shot yourself
- in the fucking head.
- Adam.
Gun!
Ethan
this could follow you around
for the rest of your life.
♪
[sighs]
Sonia,
tell Nora to put a pause
on the fucking press roundups.
[doorbell rings]
I can't believe they took him,
those miserable bastards.
- [door closes]
- It's a fucking nightmare.
- And the paparazzi's circling out front.
- Downstairs?
Bunch of rats scurrying.
Oh, God. Jesus.
He only just got arrested last night.
They know Murder in the Hamptons--
perfect family
not so perfect.
You know people love that shit.
- Yeah.
- At least your doorman
is keeping them at bay, for now.
Oh, no, no, A-Arty's not like that.
[chuckles] Yeah.
I'm glad you trust him.
But I'd-I'd add a few hundred bucks
to whatever it is you're paying him.
Insurance.
You look like shit.
The optics of your situation
is starting to worry the board.
Aren't you the board?
I am, but everyone's got an ass to kiss,
you know that.
And right now my board is concerned
that you're not gonna be able to give
The Real Thing the attention it deserves.
That was fast.
Well, no, that's not
how they're saying it.
They're offering condolences.
If there's anything they can do,
don't hesitate.
But soon there are gonna be whispers
of a potential replacement.
Suggestions of a sabbatical, a break.
Albeit one that never ends.
By the time you're ready to come back,
whoever you've trained
will have taken your place,
your name on the masthead
replaced with hers.
The person I've trained
or the person you pick?
Don't do that.
[haunting music]
We're on the same side.
You need to make it clear
at the board meeting tomorrow
you're not going anywhere.
Oh, fuck, I completely forgot.
[Catherine] My driver
can take you out there.
- Prep on the road.
- I already have.
But I-I got to ready.
I got to handle this.
No. You're perfect.
[chuckles]
Grief is something
people can connect to.
Makes you human.
Relatable.
You're someone people want to root for.
That's why everyone loves the Kennedys.
[chuckles] That's a shaky parallel.
It is a heartbreaking story
no one can turn away from.
So you make that work
for the next chapter of your story.
Can we wait on packaging this, please?
Spinning this as opportunity
is ghoulish, I know.
What we're really
talking about here is you
and your strength,
generally and in this moment.
It will only make the magazine better.
It will only make you better.
Good.
[door opens]
- [door closes]
- [Nicky] A little early for a visit, no?
How long have you been there?
Just a little bit, Jackie O.
She seems
to have her priorities straight, though.
"I know you're worried about your kid,
but let's not forget about the brand."
[scoffs] Far as surrogates go,
pretty hard right turn away from Mom.
You know,
she's more like a sister, actually.
Catherine is brilliant
and she is helping me navigate
some very tricky terrain.
"Brilliant" is an overused term,
as is "genius."
- She's a legend.
- As is "legend."
She's one of the first female,
Black multimillionaires in this country,
and one of the only Black women
to ever run a Fortune 500 company.
Did you write the Wikipedia page yourself?
[scoffs]
I just-- I actually can't with you.
Chloe, nobody gives a shit
about the two of you
and your little dance for your board.
Oh, you mean my job?
Yeah, that thing
that paid for Ethan's whole life.
And what a life.
- I'm gonna print my notes.
- Okay.
That's for your meeting tomorrow.
And today, Ethan has a hearing
and, Chloe, we still
don't know shit about it.
I have been trying to get through to her.
She is not picking up, okay?
Jesus. You don't think
I'm going crazy right now?
Try again. You're not paying her enough?
- Fine. Happy to.
- [line ringing]
[Sanders] You've reached
Michelle Sanders.
- Please leave a message.
- [beep]
Hi, Michelle.
This is Chloe Taylor, um, calling again.
Would you please call me back
as soon as you have any information
about today's hearing whatsoever?
I would really appreciate it.
Also, we still have no info
regarding where Ethan is being held.
Manhattan is saying Long Island
and vice versa.
So, please call me.
- Fine.
- Okay.
[line ringing]
That's a good idea.
[policeman] East Hampton
Police Department.
Hi. Detective Guidry, please.
- One moment.
- This bitch.
This is Detective Nan Guidry.
Hi. Detective Guidry,
this is Chloe Taylor,
Ethan Macintosh's mom.
Where is Ethan being held?
Uh, Suffolk County Detention.
I'm sorry, I thought you knew that.
Appreciate the runaround. Thank you.
Oh, my God. Now what?
- Let's just go out there.
- Great.
I am so tired of waiting.
- Great. Let's fucking go there.
- Let's go.
- Good.
- All right.
- Good.
- Go get changed.
Why would I?
Your age,
a passing understanding of decorum,
a camel toe that can be seen
from outer space.
[short chuckle]
[pensive music]
Why didn't they call the cops?
It wasn't loaded.
They knew I wasn't gonna do anything.
Then why did you bring it?
It was a mistake.
Got put in my bag by accident.
You get in a lot of trouble, Ethan?
[eerie music playing]
[Adam] Whose is it, Ethan?
[Ethan] I was holding it for a friend.
Dad, I swear
it isn't mine.
Whose is it, Ethan?
So you were
actually holding it for somebody?
Are you telling me the weed was Kevin's?
Oh.
H-He had some people
to-to meet up with that night.
My dad would have lost it
if he ever found out,
so I-I couldn't be with Kevin,
in case he got caught or something.
That's
that's why I left him on the beach
and told him
to pick me up when he got done.
[phone vibrates]
Is that my mom?
She can be intense.
[weak chuckle]
She's just worried.
You know, now might be a good time
for a break.
Hmm?
Maybe we can both use something to eat.
[sniffles]
Thanks.
Was I okay?
Nine times out of ten,
first interview's all bullshit anyway.
It's all right.
We're just getting to know each other.
The time's gonna come
when the prosecutor's gonna paint you
as a violent kid
who's capable of killing his father
who has no plausible alibi.
So I'm hoping that by the time I get back,
after you've gotten some food
in your stomach
and a little time to think about things,
you'll give me something more than
"It was put in my bag by accident."
[whimsical music playing on speakers]
[Guidry] Official autopsy report
just came in.
Bill Braddock's office.
Got to cross him off our list.
What about the labs--
blood stain on the shoe?
Ethan's own.
Probably from the cut on his arm,
fist fight with the pops
before he killed him.
Mm.
Hello.
- [car door closes]
- [Bowen] Mr. Braddock,
Detectives Bowen and Guidry here.
[Guidry] You're a difficult
man to get hold of.
[Bill] There's a lot to process,
as you can imagine,
on top of the usual business.
How can I help you?
On the day of his murder,
we know Adam Macintosh
and Jake Rodriguez were working
with the Gentry Group,
and we also know that
you sent him on a second meeting
with them alone.
[Guidry] What we want to know is why.
You like Adam better?
A little competition's healthy
between boys.
[Bowen] Was there tension between
Mr. Rodriguez and Mr. Macintosh
regarding this competition?
They understood their differing appeals.
Adam was a rigorous thinker.
Gentry took a liking to him.
He seems to have feted them
with a send-off meal out in Queens.
Adam ever mention, uh, an issue
with anyone from the Gentry Group?
Never. Wasn't a squeaky wheel.
Any of his files regarding
the Gentry Group might be relevant
- to our investigation?
- I can't imagine they would be.
Lawyers aren't known
for their imaginations.
Oh, mine is quite vivid, I can assure you.
And all of Adam's files
would be protected under attorney-client
privilege, until subpoenaed.
Subpoena in process, via the prosecution.
Whom am I having the pleasure
of speaking to right now?
Nan Guidry.
Well, I look forward to complying
upon receipt, Mrs. Guidry.
Or is it Ms.?
Detective'll do.
Please do reach out if I can answer
any more questions, Detective.
[hangs up]
That queen is deleting files as we speak.
Not that it matters.
Maybe Jake Rodriguez really was jealous.
Sure, but enough to kill him?
Uh, okay, I can't read your size two font.
Jake Rodriguez's phone records,
per your request.
A bunch of calls back and forth
to an unregistered number,
some on the night of the murder.
Single guy spends a lot of time
with an attractive couple.
It's a tricky triangle.
I could like it
if it actually supported
any of the other evidence
or the arrest we already made.
Always yucking my yum.
Okay, I do not
want to hear the words "yuck" or "yum"
cross your lips ever again in my presence.
- [chuckles]
- Do you hear me? Thank you.
- [engine starts]
- Let's get out of here.
[suspenseful music playing]
[scoffs]
Right, and now
the room's such a fucking mess.
♪
[phone closes]
[sighs]
[mariachi music playing on speakers]
You look good, buddy.
Like a man.
If only you'd just stand up straighter.
- Jesus.
- [indistinct chatter]
Thank God, I'm starving.
- Uh, hot dog, ketchup.
- Okay, man.
Uh, two for me please.
Mustard, no ketchup.
- Let's just start with one, all right?
- You got it, bro.
Hey, come on, man.
His age, my average was, what, four?
Yeah, well, you were
fueling a swim scholarship.
It's different.
- Make it three.
- All right.
Eso. There you go. There we go.
- [speaking Spanish]
- There you go.
- We can give it to Mom.
- Muchas gracias.
- Buen provecho, boys.
- Thank you.
[Adam] I mean, if you, like,
exercised, ever.
- [elevator bell dings]
- [elevator doors open]
Will you just relax?
You have, like, five more in the closet
that look exactly like this.
Hey, car's around the side?
Fan club will never know you left.
- Thank you.
- Hey.
- No, no, no, no
- No, no, I found that.
I'm pretty sure it's yours.
- Thank you.
- Least I can do.
[Chloe] Faster, please.
[Nicky scoffs]
[percussive music playing]
[door closes]
[locks click]
[sighs] Okay.
This thing's like a spaceship.
Can you take those down, please?
This is more comfortable for my back.
[sighs]
Well, it's disgusting and dangerous.
[sighs] Only if you're a bad driver.
[chair motor humming]
Oh, my God.
Will you just do me a favor?
There's a phone in my bag.
Will you pull it out and plug it
into the console, please?
Yes, boss.
[tense music playing]
Where'd you get this?
I found it in my office.
I think it might be Adam's.
Adam's?
Yeah. Nicky, just plug it in.
Uh, Chlo, I'm pretty sure
this runs on coal.
There's a dongle on the console.
[chuckles] A what now?
A universal charger. Come on.
[chuckles]
I do love hearing you say "dongle."
[phone rings]
Oh.
Okay.
Hey, Bill.
I'm in the car with my sister Nicole.
- [Nicky] Howdy.
- [Bill] Uh, well, hello.
Listen, I wanted to follow up
on the Gentry Group of it all.
- Oh, great.
- Yeah. As I suspected,
Adam was having meetings out at JFK
- on Friday.
- I knew that.
And when I asked my younger colleagues
about Kew Gardens, they explained
the clients often like to experience
a little bit of local flavor
when they come to town.
I see.
Anyways, it's a dead end.
I told those stupid detectives
who called this morning as much.
Yeah, I mentioned the Lyfts to them.
Who-who called?
Oh, they double teamed me.
Hey, is the smug one a lesbian?
- Loud and proud.
- [chuckles] Knew it.
And the threats against you--
- have they followed up?
- Doubtful.
But Catherine's guy's looking into it.
Well, listen, if they're just gonna
sit around on their lazy asses,
- I'd be happy to play the heavy.
- [Chloe] No.
It's all right, Bill.
All right, well, if you change your mind,
the offer stands.
- Stay safe, you too.
- Okay, thank you.
- [sighs]
- Okay, well, now you know.
Yeah.
[cell phone chimes]
Oh, Nicky.
- That's-- This is--
- [Nicky] Yeah, okay, okay.
Looks empty, Chlo.
What do you mean?
There's no calls, no texts.
There's no contacts in the contact book.
I don't think it was used.
[sighs] What the fuck, Adam?
What were you doing
with an empty burner phone?
If I say "dealing drugs,"
will you get mad?
Yeah.
- Dealing dru--
- Don't say it.
- But what if--
- Don't.
- Maybe it was your
- Shh.
- housekeeper Analisa's.
- Shh. Shh.
- [phone closes]
- Maybe she's dealing drugs. [sucks teeth]
[atmospheric music]
She seems to have bought it.
The benefit
of a grieving widow's distraction.
For now.
So, Gentry confirms a meeting with Adam
that we don't have in our books.
Adam starts taking Lyfts out to Queens
on his own personal account.
Was he making a play
to steal Gentry as a client?
Well, he was ambitious.
I fully suspected it, had been for months.
But Gentry entertains it?
Leaving me?
[chuckles softly]
Well, you are sort of an asshole.
An asshole who's been
burying their bodies for a long time.
Whatever law firm it is
that's trying to poach Adam
wanted him
to bring Gentry along as a client.
Adam makes a show
of what he can do for Gentry
in greener pastures,
but Gentry doesn't take kindly
to having their intimate details
used as a deal sweetener.
So they confirmed
the solo meeting with Adam,
knowing that it would get back to me.
They only had to confirm it
because he's dead.
Regardless, Adam has made a mess
that needs cleaning up.
And what--
Latinos are famous
for their cleaning skills?
You said it, not me.
Lord knows what else he left
lying around that house with him.
Bless his soul.
So you'll head out to the house
since you're going that way anyway?
Your secretary told me
that you were meeting with the counsel
you referred for Ethan.
I'm sure that Chloe really appreciates
the support.
And don't wear those trousers
around the office anymore.
They're very distracting.
[line ringing]
No.
Confirmation from Gentry's
got him down a different path.
Well, I'm headed out there now.
Can stop by tonight.
[reporter] have, of late,
been observing changing mating rituals
of gazelles in the Serengeti.
[Mark Hamilton] I've never seen them
so frisky, for lack of a better word.
Frisky gazelles.
- Turn it up.
- [sniffles]
[reporter] What effect this extra
conjugation will have remains to be seen.
[scoffs] Wait nine and a half months,
you'll see the effects.
Gazelles don't have
the same gestational period as humans.
[Hamilton] Uh, but,
uh, our research is showing that
You do not
know the gestational period of gazelles.
[chuckles]
I do.
Why would I make something like that up?
[laughs] But why
would you ever know that?
I know things.
Okay, boss.
- I know things.
- Sure.
[anchor] Good afternoon.
Late on Friday night,
Attorney Adam Macintosh
was brutally stabbed to death
inside his Long Island home.
- [phone chimes]
- [Chloe] Call Michelle Sanders.
[Siri] I'm sorry. I didn't get that.
Call Michelle Sanders.
- Calling Mitchell Sampson.
- [line ringing]
No, not fucking Mitchell.
I said call Michelle Sanders.
Okay. I'll just--
I'll dial it for you, okay?
I'm sorry.
- I didn't find a Michelle Sampson.
- Would you just
fucking call Michelle fucking Sanders?!
Fuck!
[cries]
[somber music playing]
Ah
[whimpers]
Fuck. I mean, what the fuck
is gonna happen today?
Is he gonna go to jail?
- No.
- [gasps]
Jesus Christ, Nicky.
What if he did it?
What if he did it?
He didn't do it.
Chloe.
You know him.
You know that.
Do I?
Chloe.
[sniffles, sighs]
He didn't, honey.
He didn't, I promise.
- [sighs]
- I know he didn't.
Everything is going to be okay.
How? How?
[sniffles]
- [sighs]
- Just do the next indicated thing.
And what the fuck is that?
Find the person who did it.
- Right.
- Right. Okay.
- All right. Okay.
- Yeah. Okay.
[indistinct chatter]
- Hey.
- Hey.
Hey. Good to see you.
Thank you for meeting me.
Is that all you're gonna thank me for?
[chuckles] And for taking the case.
I owed you. You called, I came.
I walked right into that clusterfuck
of my own volition.
Sister wives thing--
that-that's new for me.
Black people don't do that shit.
We do other shit.
- How do you mean?
- Well, it's not every day
a woman marries her sister's ex-husband.
Oh, yeah, well sure.
- There's that.
- Yeah.
There's that.
But it's the kid I can't get a read on,
you know?
He's-he's just not
what you would expect.
Yeah, he's his own person.
Chloe's done a great job with him.
Well, uh, uh, they both,
uh, have. Or did.
It's
Well, assuming
the hearing goes as I think it will,
moms will take him home tonight.
What can I get for you today?
Caesar salad, extra croutons,
and probably fish
- with steamed vegetables for him.
- Fish-- [sighs]
He's watching his figure.
Thank you.
Yeah. [laughs]
So, I'm sorry. You-- So, uh
Ethan's other mom-- she's in town?
Mm-hmm.
- Do you know her?
- Uh, no.
They've mentioned
Adam's ex a couple times.
Unstable.
They had a restraining order against her.
You know, they always got cagey
about whatever happened back then,
and I-I didn't, uh I didn't press.
Didn't realize you two were that close.
- Not at first.
- Mm-hmm.
Neither of us ever
really fit in to the club.
You know, a place like Braddock,
you check a box.
I was brown, he was poor.
- White enough, but not really white.
- Mm.
First gen to go to college, both trying
to do better than your parents did.
Yeah, I get it.
Big deal to get where we are,
but, uh
he never really enjoyed it.
Hmm.
Not like you.
[chuckles] Yeah, right. Sure.
You didn't have
to come all the way out here.
Murray's Cheese basket
would have sufficed.
Oh, no, hey
I had to come out here anyway.
The deck's being resurfaced.
And, uh
I really appreciate it.
You all right?
[scoffs] I don't know.
Not really. [chuckles softly]
[phone vibrates]
- Sorry.
- It's okay.
Hey.
All right. Be right there.
[turn signal clicking]
[Chloe sighs]
[ambient music playing]
Okay. Let's go.
No, I'm not going in there.
- What?
- You got it.
Just don't let them walk all over you.
You know what? Yeah.
Maybe you should stay in the car.
We don't need you punching any cops today.
Okay.
I'll be back.
[Guidry] All the incisions
were three and a quarter,
except the one on the neck.
Looks like the assailant yanked
to get the knife out there.
It's a wider gash.
Smooth, very common blade type.
Kind they sell at every corner store,
right in between the bongs
and fake Viagra.
You ever take that stuff? Horny goat weed?
Here.
What-what are you talking about?
City's rotten with this kind
of paraphernalia, is what I'm saying.
Ample opportunity for the kid
to purchase the knife that did this.
And where is it now?
Tosses it.
- What?
- Mm, mm.
Say it, Bowen.
Alarm was disarmed
20 minutes before Adam was killed.
Chloe said they never set it.
Most people don't
lie to the cops that confidently.
So, maybe it wasn't a lie.
- Maybe Adam set the alarm.
- Right. Yeah.
And the kid disarmed it.
Kid's not the only one in the house
that has the code.
[scoffs]
[ominous music playing]
[gasps softly]
It's as good as dead.
Remember how I showed you?
Nicole.
I'll do it.
[Hank] It's the merciful
thing.
♪
I told her to keep it clean.
[Bowen] It's a beautiful ring.
Probably cost as much as my car.
- Incoming widow.
- Oh.
I need to speak with you both.
I found this in my apartment.
Just, you know, get the metadata.
Uh, this isn't the Genius Bar, ma'am.
Clearly.
But I thought you said
you had tech people.
This may be hard to hear, Ms. Taylor,
but, uh, we don't work for you.
What about the pornography that I gave you
that was sent to my home in Manhattan?
Any progress with that?
Fingerprinted, sent by someone
with an alibi the night in question.
Yeah, hating your politics not a crime,
but, uh, we'd be happy to help you
with a restraining order against her.
Okay. W-What about the Lyft receipts?
Which your husband's boss
and client confirmed
were trips made
in the regular course of business.
Okay. I hired my own cybersecurity expert.
- Okay? I did that.
- While we appreciate
the legwork there,
the animosity directed at you
coming from your own place of work
does not concern our case as of now.
[Chloe] Why the fuck not?
[door squeaks open]
[door closes]
[sighs] Look, I'm a mother, too.
And I feel for you, I feel for your son.
But maybe we ought to just
head to the hearing?
Starts in about half an hour.
Fuck. [muttering]
Fuck was that?
That, my friend, was entitlement.
What's with not giving the ring back?
Gives us a reason to pay another visit.
Uh, not sure about that hat.
Nor I that mustache.
Ladies.
- Hey.
- Hi.
[door closes]
So, Ethan, there's a change of plans.
The hearing got moved up.
Why?
Cases like these, sometimes they just
push things through more quickly.
Smaller courthouse,
they're just not used to dealing
with this kind of attention, you know?
This might be a good thing, though.
Means we can hopefully
get you home sooner.
Does my mom know?
Yes. Here's what's gonna happen.
Prosecutor will talk first, then it's me.
It's a pre-trial hearing.
You don't need to say a word.
I'll be next to you
the whole time. All right?
How you feeling?
I don't know.
Scared, I I guess.
That's good. That's really good.
The judge will want to see that.
I'm gonna tell them you loved your dad.
You would never do anything to hurt him.
- We're gonna tell them the truth.
- [knocking]
We're coming.
[eerie music playing]
It wasn't a mistake,
bringing the gun to school.
I was trying to get rid of it.
I was afraid to have it in the house.
Hands behind your back, Ethan.
Oh, wow.
- [Nicky scoffs]
- Hey, there she is.
- [Chloe] Oh, my God.
- [Nicky] Ten points for hitting
- this asshole.
- [Chloe scoffs] Get out of the road.
- [Nicky] Just-- This is nuts.
- [reporter] And we see the vehicle with,
presumably, Chloe Taylor inside.
[clamoring continuing]
[̈Nicky] What do we do?
Keep our heads down. We don't say a word.
We bring Ethan home.
- [paparazzo] All right.
- Ms. Taylor, right here. Into the lens.
- [photographer] Hey, Ms. Taylor!
- [woman] Ms. Taylor!
- [man] Got a question for you.
- Where were you
- [male reporter] Chloe, care to comment?
[all clamoring]
We're not sure
if she will be giving
- any statement.
- Don't know how you deal with this.
[clamoring continuing]
[sighs]
[Chloe] Uh, Macintosh. Okay.
[tense music playing]
- It's got to be this way.
- Yeah, let's go down here.
Okay.
[gallery murmuring]
- [clears throat]
- [spectator] Is that her?
[doors close]
[Nicky gasps softly]
All rise.
Court is now in session.
The Honorable Judge Edelman presiding.
Full courtroom on this humid day.
Sit, sit.
[sighs]
The charge against the defendant,
Ethan Macintosh,
is murder in the second degree.
How does your client
wish to plead at this time?
My client pleads not guilty, Your Honor.
[Edelman] Mr. Willis,
you'd like to set bail at?
[Willis] Thank you, Your Honor,
but, given this isn't any ordinary case,
Ethan Macintosh is awaiting trial
for the violent murder
of his father, Adam Macintosh.
Suffolk County recommends the defendant
be remanded without bail.
[Sanders] Your Honor,
- Ethan Macintosh is no murderer.
- Wait, what?
He's a sweet, sensitive,
17-year-old boy who's just lost his dad.
[Willis] The defense may go on
listing the defendant's
positive attributes, but that doesn't
change the evidence against him.
Because not only does he have no alibi
for the hour during which
Adam Macintosh was murdered
but his DNA was found underneath
Adam Macintosh's fingerprints.
It's his son.
[Willis] And blood was found
on Ethan's shoe.
- It's Ethan's own blood.
- [Edelman] Mm, Counselor,
let's keep it courteous.
Evidence also suggests that Ethan
disarmed the security system
before staging a breaking and entering
to cover up his crime.
The items he reported stolen
were later found in his possession.
[Sanders] The prosecution has
shockingly declined to note that
the murder weapon was not among them.
Your Honor, the prosecution is clearly
trying to force me to preview my case.
Ethan Macintosh is heartsick and afraid.
Now he is specifically terrified
that he's going to bear
the consequences of a crime
he did not commit. He is terrified
that he is going to be separated
from his stepmother,
a highly well-respected
public figure whom he
loves deeply, and who has raised him
since he was a little boy.
A woman who has enabled Ethan
to have a history
of avoiding consequences. If I may.
[chuckles]
- [scoffs]
- This is a kid who,
when found with
a large quantity of marijuana,
had the means to pay off his friend
to cover it up.
A kid who,
when he brought a gun to school,
- had parents who made a donation
- Oh, God.
to make it all go away. So what's to say
this isn't a kid who,
after murdering his father
won't have the means to escape justice?
Ethan Macintosh is innocent
and whatever concerns
Your Honor might have
are easily addressed
with electronic monitoring.
[Willis] Your Honor, ask yourself,
if he had darker skin,
where would he be spending the night?
[gallery murmuring]
I think you and Ms. Sanders
know the answer.
Counselor, I agree that the consequences
of being held without bail
would be severe.
But on the other hand,
I don't want a situation
where we release the defendant
only to find out that
he's chartered a private jet
to the Swiss Alps.
The defendant is hereby
remanded without bail.
[somber music playing]
- Hands behind your back.
- [Nicky] Baby!
Shut the fuck up.
- Shut the fuck up.
- [panting]
[reporters clamoring]
[Nicky whimpering]
- [Chloe] Don't let them see you like this.
- [Nicky crying] Fuck.
[reporter] Nicole, over here.
Did you get bad news?
Why are you so upset?
- Uh
- Get in the car.
[reporter] How's Ethan holding up?
- Uh
- What do you think his chances are?
Did he do it?
[clamoring continuing]
- [crying] Oh, my God.
- [car door opens]
[both gasping]
[Sanders] Okay, I know
this is upsetting--
I'll just say I did it.
- Absolutely not. Absolutely not.
- What? No. No.
- I did it.
- I did.
- That will only make Ethan look guiltier.
The detectives have your phone
pinging in Ohio
the entire night of the murder. Now, look,
there's a restaurant down the road,
it has a blue awning.
We're gonna meet there,
talk next steps. Okay?
Okay.
- [Sanders] See you there.
- Okay.
- A nightmare.
- Just put your seatbelt on. Let's go.
[Nicky] Oh, my God.
Oh
Excuse me. Can you move, please?
How are you just, like, smiling right now?
- [officer] Back it up.
- Fuck. Oh
Well, that's not how
I expected the day to go.
Ethan did not kill Adam.
And what happened today
doesn't mean he did,
but
but this is just the beginning
of a long and complicated process.
Sometimes these things are delayed,
rescheduled once, twice, even three times.
Yeah, but doesn't Ethan
have a right to a speedy trial?
County courts drag out setting dates,
especially with a brain surgeon
like that in charge.
What's up with the tissues?
This is going to help us.
We need this time
- to come up with alternative theories.
- [Nicky] Okay, what about
the break-in thing
the prosecutor mentioned?
He didn't seem to buy it.
And for good reason.
Here.
You can see the room
has been messed up a little bit--
drawers opened,
papers on the floor, that sort of thing--
but the window was broken from the outs--
[server] Iced organic matcha.
- Thank you.
- [Sanders] Thanks.
But here you can see the window
was broken from the outside,
after the room was tossed.
So, the prosecutor was just
starting to make the point
that there actually wasn't a robbery.
- It was staged.
- Whoever killed Adam
just wanted
to make it look like there was.
Oh, my God. Oh, my God.
[Sanders] Now, all of that's
well and good. He's got a job to do.
And ours is to prove
that person
couldn't have been Ethan. Okay?
So, who else has access
to that alarm code?
[soft, dramatic music playing]
I don't know. We don't use it.
We-we don't set it.
Adam clearly did.
And it's not like Ethan didn't know it.
I-- I don't know. I--
Housekeeper? Housekeeper, she knows.
The housekeeper's cleared.
Well, when do we get to see him?
During visiting hours,
Ethan's legal guardian can go anytime.
So I I-I don't see him.
Just for now.
I know that's not the best news--
No, it's not
because that's my son in there.
- I know.
- [Nicky] But you're gonna do everything
in your power
to make sure she can see him?
Yes, of course.
'Cause he needs her.
I understand.
I got to level with you here.
Chloe from the outside,
you look perfect.
Even your good friend, Jake,
on the inside-- he buys that.
But every family's got complications,
secrets, painful histories.
What led to Ethan living here?
To the restraining order?
Now, you may want
to keep this stuff in the past,
but whatever's happened between you two,
it's very clear you both love that boy.
You want him home?
Tell me everything.
[Breezy sings "She Keeps Bees"]
Holding ♪
the railing
[Nicky] Jesus.
Winding stairwell ♪
I fell down ♪
Natural ♪
That don't faze me ♪
It's the ♪
life I agreed ♪
My bargain for the plea ♪
Where are your cleaning supplies?
I-- I just can't.
Going for a run.
[haunting music playing]
[Hank] You could always
come with us, make it a family affair.
I'd rather stick my face in the blender.
[laughs]
[snorts] May
Maybe next time,
I'll leave Nicole at home.
[door closes]
[Hank] Nicole, you know, like,
she does it on purpose.
- [water splashing]
- [Hank] She only cares about herself.
You can't tell her,
you can't teach her shit.
- She's not right in the head.
- [Sheila] Mm-hmm.
[Hank] She knows better.
Like,
she wants you to know she knows
[door closes]
by being
a pain in the ass.
[chuckles] Even when she was
a baby. [snorts]
They come out who they are.
[knife closes]
[panting]
[birdsong]
[door opens]
[keys clatter]
Hey.
Hey. What, uh,
- what are you doing here?
- What the hell did you say
to Michelle Sanders?
What?
What did you say, about us,
about Ethan?
I said that he was a good kid.
I said you were a happy family.
You know, with a complicated history.
Just Nothing she didn’t already know.
And the restraining order?
It's public record, Chloe.
She’s gonna see it if she hasn’t already.
What else did she say about us?
Nothing.
Well, you better keep your mouth shut.
All right.
Keep it fucking shut.
I will. I’m sorry.
Can I get a glass of water?
Yeah.
- [sighs]
- Yeah. Of course.
[pulsing music playing]
I've missed you.
[exhales]
[intriguing music playing]
♪
♪
♪