Blue Skies (2026) s01e04 Episode Script

1
♪All right.
Who wants to go first?
So Let me out of here.
All right, so just like
we practiced, dive out
horizontally with your head
in front of your body, okay?
Save the instructions for the amateur.
It's been there.
I'll be back.
Okay.
♪Love you, babe!
I can't look.
He always has to be
the center of attention.
♪Okay.
Let's do this.
Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!
You're gonna miss this, buddy.
Let's get you home.
♪What do we got?
You've heard of Steve Kowalski?
A real estate developer, right?
Multi-millionaire real estate developer.
His company's been
buying up land in the area.
He's our body.
A bungee accident?
Some kind of malfunction.
Friends look at taking
photos, but nothing obvious yet.
Never is.
Meeks and Esposito
are talking to witnesses.
I want you to talk to the
wife and the operator.
Talk to that.
♪Mrs.
Kowalski, I have to call you back.
That's me.
You can call me Jenna.
First, I just wanted to say
how sorry I am for your loss.
I'm Detective Larson.
I just I can't believe it.
I mean, we made our way up.
And he just
♪Mrs.Kowalski, I know you're
upset about your brother.
My sister-in-law planned this
whole thing for his birthday.
It was my suggestion.
He always liked to do these crazy things.
I just I can't believe it.
Can you run me through
it from your point of view?
Hi.
I moved to Crystal Ridge a few months ago.
I wanted to start fresh, so I packed
up the RV and came out here.
So how long after moving here did
you start working for Benji's Benjis?
A few weeks after I set up camp.
And Benji's great.
He's one of the best bosses I've ever had.
So you've only worked here,
what, a couple of months?
I'm a certified jump master.
I know what I'm doing.
I followed all the protocols.
Even when Steve said that he didn't want
any help, I still double-checked everything.
So I recovered the body
several miles downstream.
We need to move.
♪Thanks.
What is it, buddy?
Something's up with this cord.
You're going with your
gut again because
Blue hasn'T failed us
yet, and you know it.
What I was about to say was I'm listening.
And you're right.
Chaos is a good cop.
All right, look.
I'm no expert on this stuff.
So what are you thinking?
Spooters say that they replace
the cords every six months.
Industry standard is once a year,
but Benji airs on the side of caution.
He said the cords are only two months old,
but Blue hasn'T left this spot,
and that means something.
We'll get it sent to forensics ASAP.
All right.
Esposito meets.
Get some more intel from the family.
Larson, you stay on scene.
We'll reconvene at headquarters.
Copy that.
What a way to start the day.
Yeah, that was a rough one.
Listen, Blue was snipping around
the cord that Steve Kowalski used.
This is your world.
Yeah, something definitely seems off.
You know how brittle the rubber is?
And there's a slight discoloration.
What would cause that?
No idea.
But it's not regular wear and tear.
We'll soon find out.
♪Maverick!
Hi.
♪Blue, you said?
Yeah.
Long story of it.
That's what I've been calling him.
Said his name was Maverick.
And he lives up to it.
Doesn'T surprise me
that he's helping on the job.
He's a heck of a canine.
Served his country with honor.
I should have known he was military.
Me?
You two?
Four years.
Yeah, I can see it.
I'm glad I put in my time.
When was he decommissioned?
Same day that he's handling
my best friend Randall.
Medically discharged.
Randall's my best friend.
Well, was until we met this for a bone.
After that, I couldn't compete.
Randall adopted him.
You'd be happy to know that
he turned up safe and sound.
He would be.
Randall passed away recently, unexpectedly.
Then Maverick just disappeared.
We had no idea where he went until now.
I'm sorry for your loss.
Thank you.
I promised Randall if
anything happened to him,
I would take care of him and
give him the best life possible.
So, that's why I'm here.
I'm sorry.
Oh.
That's funny.
You should do that with Randall as well.
You know I Don'T have to go right away.
You can spend a little more
time with him if you want.
Thank you.
But I should go.
I'm on the clock.
Uh Guess this is goodbye.
Don'T think I'd be here
today if it weren'T for you.
Thanks for taking care of him.
I'd say it was my pleasure,
but it was far more than that.
♪All right.
Come on, boy. Let's go.
♪Come on.
It's okay, buddy.
You can go.
Crazy about that Kowalski guy, huh?
Just another day in paradise.
Hey, where's Bloom?
He's not coming in anymore.
What do you mean, what happened?
His owner saw my post.
Or his owner's friend, I guess.
Either way, he's back where he
belongs, which was the goal to begin with.
I didn't even get to say goodbye.
Thought you'd be happy not to
clean Slobber off your desk anymore.
I thought I would be, too,
but I'm gonna miss him.
I'm gonna miss who?
Bloom. What happened?
His owner picked him up.
Oh, I'm sorry.
It's okay. I'm sorry, Larissa.
You okay? I'll be fine.
Okay, so, I spoke with Ryan Miller, and
he agrees that the bungee break looks off.
Well, it's gonna take a
while for forensics to confirm,
so let's keep an open mind about
everything, including persons of interest.
Person of interest.
♪Jenna Kowalski.
When Jenna and Steve got married,
she had to sign an air-tight prenup,
which is standard for a
guy of Steve's net worth.
There goes motives.
Not exactly.
Last month, the lovebirds took out a
massive life insurance policy on Steve.
So, maybe Jenna's trying to cash in.
Okay, well, motive tracks,
but what about means?
She had to be partnered with
someone who had access to equipment.
There's a scooter written all over it.
That dude was nervous.
Possibly.
There's something off about that guy.
Meeks, interview all the
employees at Benji's Bunjis,
talk to anyone who had access to that court,
and keep the rest of the team updated.
That's Posito.
Dig deeper into that family.
And Larson, the wife
is staying at Cliff's Edge.
Dig deeper, but tread lightly.
Got me.
All right. Let's go.
How are you holding up?
Everyone's calling me, asking
me questions, paying their respects.
This must be so difficult.
Yeah.
I know you're hurting a lot right now,
but a few facts have come to
light that we need to discuss.
Okay.
Is there anything you could tell me
that might help with our investigation?
My husband was an amazing man.
He was also a very
powerful and wealthy man.
What What do you mean?
Because of your husband's wealth,
we had to look into his finances.
We found the life insurance
policy that was taken out last month.
You're set to inherit a lot of money.
You think I killed Steve?
I Don'T think anything right now.
I'm just gathering facts.
No, this is crazy.
You've got this all wrong.
I loved Steve.
He didn't even want to prenup.
His father is the one
that forced us to sign it.
Steve got the life insurance policy
because he wanted to protect me.
This is You know what? I can't do this.
Please, just find out
what happened to Steve.
Tell me a man should get a copy.
If anyone finds out, I'm
in some serious trouble.
I know you're sworn in,
but this is stretching it.
Did you sign that out like I told you to?
I'm not a moron, you know.
Rad is a domestic pirate and
check-tied to another case.
Cover myself.
Good. I appreciate it.
Worn to ask if it wasn'T important.
It better be, 'cause both
our necks are on the line.
♪♪♪Thank you.
Meeks, you there?
Yeah, I'm here.
Forensics confirmed the
bungee that killed Steve
Kowalski was highly eroded
due to hydrochloric acid.
The acid has a way of degrading
the internal structure of the cord.
Meaning the outside of the cable would
look intact, but the inside would crumble.
Sorry, I was a chemistry major.
Nerd.
Well, whoever did this wanted
it to look like an accident,
and they knew that hydrochloric
acid would be the best way to do it.
That's premeditation
and access to equipment.
I'll send petroleum to all stores in
the area that carry hydrochloric acid
and see if we can connect
it to one of our suspects.
Did you get anywhere
with Benji's employees?
Yeah, one just got back from vacation.
Her alibi checks out.
The other works as a
computer guy on weekends.
Doesn'T know Jack about
bungees, and I'd venture to
guess he knows even
less about hydrochloric acid.
What about Benji?
He wasn'T in.
They said he'd be back in a bit.
I get the feeling he's scared
of his business going under,
getting sued, so he's not
hanging around unnecessarily.
Who's next on the list?
The man, the myth, the legend.
Scooter.
Heading to his residence now.
All right, keep us posted.
Copy.
Larson, I want you to
find Benji, interview him.
Press him about Scooter.
Will do.
♪We should talk.
We've been averaging about 70 jumps a day.
Let's talk about Scooter.
Scooter.
Bit of a space cadet.
But I was told by everyone there,
he followed protocol to the letter.
This was just an unfortunate accident.
Something like this happened before?
Never happened to me.
So are you worried about that?
Everybody knows the Kowalski family.
It's a powerful name.
I just Don'T want something
to happen to my business.
It's my everything.
Look, I just want you to know that
the danger, it's part of the appeal.
It's what people do extremely
sports in the first place.
Even this park lighting
accident, 12 stitches.
You know how many times
we've got park lighting?
Doesn'T matter how
much experience you have.
The risk, it's the reward.
♪Mm-hmm.
♪Hey, boy.
Got some beef jerky for you.
There you go.
♪Come on, boy.
♪Noah, huh?
What's going on?
I got to Scooter's campsite,
but his RV was gone.
He skipped town.
So right now, I'd say he's
our prime person of interest.
Doug Scooter Bellows.
A couple of arrests under his belt.
Willingly going by Scooter
is arrest-worthy in my book.
Aim into that.
No violent incidents, just arrests for
protests and demonstration, but get this.
The last arrest occurred at the most
recent demo site for Kowalski condominiums.
He protested Steve's company?
Turns out Scooter
isn'T too happy about the
Kowalski corporation
developing land around town.
So he's an activist, but a murderer?
It's motive.
Plus, if he wasn'T involved, why run?
Good point.
We'll put a BOLO out
for Scooter and his RV.
You're gonna want to see this.
What is it?
Benji's Bunji's booking records.
Nadine's the one who booked the trip.
And she told me her
sister-in-law booked it.
But wait, wait. There's more.
So Steve and Nadine's father stepped down
as the CEO of the Kowalski
corporation two years ago
and guess who took over
after the patriarch retired?
Daddy's little girl.
Bingo.
And since Nadine has been steering this
ship, the company has been taking on water.
Of course, Steve wasn'T happy that he
was passed over for the CEO position.
And since the stock prices have been
tanking, he has been quietly campaigning
to flip as many board members as he can
to push his sister out of the top position.
So the sister knew
that Steve was trying to
kick her out, and she
booked the bunji birthday.
Let's bring him in today.
It's a beautiful place, Bill.
It was love at first sight for Claire.
Butter on the spot.
It was her getaway.
Now, just like the house
everywhere I look, just memories.
I see her everywhere.
Where did you get these?
I got them. Let's leave it at that.
Is that why you've been
whispering pines so many times?
Yeah.
That day, I didn't register
right away what happened,
but a few months ago, I
was on a climb, a similar face
to where your wife fell,
and I saw it differently.
It doesn't make sense.
That's why I can't let it go.
Why was an MPs on this?
It was in the park.
Landed on county.
Why?
I Don'T know.
Something's off.
Scooter taking off gives us probable cause.
I'm gonna check out the RV.
That's not how I leave Scooter to me.
Scooter, Scooter, Scooter.
Where you running off to?
Access to equipment.
Documented hatred for the victim.
Flight to avoid prosecution.
And the murder weapon
hydrocolic acid under your sink.
What do you mean murder weapon?
At this point, cooperation
is your best friend.
I didn't do anything.
Then why did you run?
I was the guy's jump master.
I figured that you'd do a quick search
and see that I protested
the Kowalski Corporation.
So you ran?
That makes you look guilty.
I didn't say it was the
smartest thing to do.
Look, even if I did buy your story,
it still doesn't explain the
hydrocolic acid in your RV.
What?
Scooter, come on.
I found it under your sink myself.
I've never seen this before.
When you're ready to talk, you let me know.
I have to say, I'm not very impressed.
My brother is dead.
I almost know nothing about
what happened and who is to blame.
I tried explaining to her that these
things happen and it's no one's fault.
What?
With all due respect,
Mr.Fortner, your wife has
every reason to be angry.
This has been ruled so homicide.
What?
I thought it was an accident.
No. It's murder.
It's his wife.
I mean, I never liked her.
Ms. Kowalski, I know you
want answers, and so do we.
So if the two of you
could answer some of our
questions, maybe we
can answer some of yours.
Of course we'll do anything to help.
Nadine loved her brother and
Steve was one of my closest friends.
Ms. Kowalski, when did you book the trip?
Well, I didn't, but it was a
gift for my brother's wedding.
He got married sometime last year.
You told me that your
sister-in-law booked the trip.
I can't remember.
Okay.
So you Don'T remember booking
the trip or any of the trip's activities?
Nadine's assistant handles all that.
Maybe she did it.
Well, the call to Benji's Bunjis, it
came from your personal cell phone.
And I Don'T understand
why any of this matters.
Why bungee jumping?
Why Benji's Bunjis specifically?
Someone suggested it.
I-I can't remember who.
It was Steve.
And we did what he wanted.
He always got what he wanted.
Never since we were kids.
♪Excuse me.
I think I'd like to leave.
If there's anything else we can
do, you know how to reach us.
Brian, it's Bill.
Hey, Bill.
I've been looking at the files.
And?
And I think it's worth taking a look.
I know Sheriff Al. He's a friend.
I could talk to him.
At some point, yes.
But to get anyone to take this seriously,
friend or not, especially what I'm
suggesting, let's do the work ourselves.
Put the pieces together.
And then maybe they'll listen.
Okay.
And, Ryan, thank you.
It means a lot.
I think I bought something.
Check this out.
It was from last night.
Is that Scooter's RV?
Mm-hmm.
I didn't realize that part of
the park had surveillance.
There isn'T.
I tap into "Fishing
Game" next to a bait site.
Straight shot to Scooter's RV.
Watch this.
♪Freeze it.
Mm-hmm.
The image isn'T clear.
No, but it's a guy who looks like
Scooter entering Scooter's RV with a jug
similar to the one you
found with hydrochloric acid.
What more do you need?
Scooter knew what equipment
they were using the next morning.
He could have stolen the keys to the store,
grabbed the bungee, and
doused it in acid the next morning.
Time line fits.
Any word from those patrol units?
Hmm?
Any hits on where the acid came from?
No, nothing.
Just hardware stores?
Hardware, home improvement, any retailer
that might sell that kind of chemical.
They check any pool supply stores?
Uh Sorry, I didn't even think of it.
It's no big deal.
No, it is a big deal.
I Don'T make that kind of mistake.
You know I'd love it if
you actually messed up.
You're being way too hard on yourself.
I can get to Alden this afternoon.
I'll come with you.
I got it.
You've had a tough day, military.
Take the afternoon off and
help us figure this thing out.
Hey, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up.
Dig in the afternoon off?
We're closed.
You're not closed yet.
Sorry.
It's my golf day.
Nothing like a little unpaid
OT to help Johnny Law.
Hey, that's a spirit.
You sell this brand here?
Sure do.
I need invoices for any hydrochloric
acid sales you made in the last 48 hours.
Right this way, I guess.
Here's a better question.
That thing work?
♪Hey.
Hey.
How you holding up?
You know.
Do you mind?
Of course not.
You can't be all frightened
by me a drink, though.
I'm still on duty.
Do you ever stop?
If I do, you'll know
something is seriously wrong.
Could you be missing a certain someone?
It was the right thing to do.
Blue's home now.
You always were so independent.
What do you mean?
Even in high school,
you didn't need anyone.
Didn'T you go to prom by yourself?
I think you're mistaking
uncool for independent.
Are you kidding?
You were fearless, you didn't
care what anyone thought of you.
Is that how it came across?
Yeah.
I guess my armor did its job.
But it gets heavy after a while.
Don'T you think?
I need to talk to Marge.
Marge?
Marge!
Hey, Jody, give me a minute.
I'm just so busy in the back.
This guy, Scooter, does he work here?
Oh, that weasel, he does not.
It looks like he's washing dishes.
Yeah, that's because last night, I
caught him trying to dine and dash.
Only he was only good with
the dining part, not the dash.
You do that in my establishment,
you're in your spot on the wall of shame.
What happens when you
make the wall of shame?
Well, you're banned for life.
That's after I make you wash dishes
all night to pay for your bill, ha ha.
How many hours was he here exactly?
Till after two in the morning.
That means it couldn't have been
Scooter at his trailer at midnight.
There must be something I missed.
♪♪♪Hey.
Hey, give me that report.
Nice work, Meeks.
Take lead on this.
Larson should take it.
Don'T do that.
Take it to the finish line.
You deserve a win today.
I'll start filling out the report.
Besides, you write like you're
not using your dominant hand.
My handwriting?
You should see the chicken
scratch he puts down.
Thanks for coming back in.
Of course.
Happy to help.
So, listen, we just need
to tie up a few loose ends.
I need to know who had
access to your inventory room.
Every manager has a key.
Managers. So, not Scooter.
Uh, um, Scooter, P.S.
Give me a favor and take
a look at this photograph.
What's this?
That's Nadine Kowalski.
She's the CEO of the Kowalski Corporation.
Does that name ring any bells?
Maybe you need to take a closer look.
Since two gentlemen in the
background, you recognize them?
One of them is Gerald Fortner,
and the other one looks like you.
What the thing is?
At first, I couldn't figure out
how a small business owner
with no discernible ties to
the Kowalski Corporation
manages to get invited to one
of their Black Tie Gal events.
It was a real head-scratcher.
But then I got the location data
from both of your cell phones.
You were both in the exact same location
at the exact same time
on five separate occasions.
Well, Chris, a small community,
that's just a coincidence.
It could be a coincidence, yes.
Let's talk about your paragliding accident.
I think it's safe to say that there aren'
12 stitches underneath that bandage.
That is a hydrochloric acid burn from
tampering with Steve's bungee cord.
I could get a warrant, get the
bandage removed, but I Don'T need to.
We found footage from outside
Scooter's RV from an old hunting camp.
At first, it was hard to tell who it
was, but then I noticed something.
A bandage on the man's left arm.
Same one that you have right here.
It also doesn't help that we have a
video of you buying the hydrochloric acid.
I'm gonna level with your Benji.
We all know you were
involved in this thing.
You could get a reduced sentence if
you name your accomplice and cooperate.
Not sure how many paragliding opportunities
there are in a federal prison.
As for Gerald, well, he's got money,
so he'll take care of his hive, not yours.
♪Okay.
You're right.
I've known Gerald since we were kids.
He told me that Nate Dean's brother
was planning to move against her.
So I offered help.
Gerald, he came up with
how to get rid of the problem
with an accident.
It was all his idea, I swear.
What about the hydrochloric
acid you planted in Scooter's RV?
He wanted to look like an
accident, but Gerald, he figured
we should probably have a
contingency plan just in case.
How'd you do it?
Scooter's a space cadet.
I took the key from the
RV out of his key right.
Left work, got a copy, put it back.
He didn't notice a thing.
The night before the jump, I snuck
into Scooter's RV, and I planted the acid.
In this happy and golden accident,
no one would have even known
it was there in the first place.
Look, when Gerald came to me,
I was days away from bankruptcy.
I needed the money to save my business.
But he convinced me.
He was doing it for his wife.
He was gonna lose the company,
and he knew who'd destroy her.
♪One more thing.
I told Gerald that you were
bringing me in for questioning.
It was planned on flying out tonight.
I think we're done here.
Benji sang like a bird.
I heard.
You were in the observation room?
Figured I'd be on standby,
in case you couldn't deliver.
Thanks for the vote of confidence.
Now all we have to do is find
Gerald and slap the cuffs on him.
We still have time.
Ah, great.
What is it now?
It's probably a DUI checkpoint.
What?
Haven'T you people were asked this enough?
Apologies.
I'm gonna need you to step out of the car.
This is ridiculous.
Step out of the car.
What's going on?
Gerald Fortner, you're under arrest
for the murder of Steve Kowalski.
Have you lost your mind?
I suggest you stay right there
unless you'd like to join him.
What?
How?
Benji?
He didn't.
Oh, he did.
Gerald, what's she saying?
♪You.
♪You did this.
♪To my brother?
I was trying to help.
Well, he was gonna get you
thrown out of the company.
Guess money can't buy
you everything, hey, Gerald?
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say will be used
against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney.
If you cannot afford one,
one will be provided for you.
Do you understand these rights
as they have been read to you?
Oh, God.
Hi.
Hi.
I Don'T understand.
I haven'T known this dog a long time.
Happiest guy in the
world, never enough day.
But ever since I took him this
morning, he hasn'T been himself.
He couldn't even lift his head
off the car seat for some beef jerky.
Him turning down jerky?
Yeah.
The fact is, that's only
one place I've seen
this dog happy since before he ran away.
That's right here.
The best way to honor
my friend's memory is
by giving this dog the best life I can give.
It's giving him the life he wants.
Blue belongs with you.
♪Honey.
♪I'm sorry.
I Don'T normally This is a special dog.
He'll teach you things about
yourself you never knew before.
Listen to him.
Thank you.
Hi.
♪You're back.
You're back.
We came to cheer you up.
Is that Blue?
Blue, you're back.
You're back.
Hey, yes.
I hate to say it.
Happy to see Chaos is back.
Well, expect to see a
lot more of him because
if we pass, he's officially gonna join K-9.
We should be so lucky.
Thank you.
♪See?
Yes.
I'll get some plates.
♪Yeah.
♪♪♪♪♪♪.