The Rockford Files (1974) s01e05 Episode Script

1
Would you look at that?
Did you tell me that?
Did you say, "Sandra,
I'm back on the case"?
No, I didn't.
Okay, that's it.
Take it easy. Relax.
You're gonna be just fine.
What are you doing?
Watch out!
This is Jim Rockford,
At the tone, leave your name
and message.
I'll get back to you.
It's Lori at the trailer
park, A space opened up.
Do you want me to save it,
or are the cops gonna let you stay?
I got to be drunk, right?
Yeah.
Otherwise, how would I let
this guy talk me into this?
Yeah.
Will you just shut up
and keep digging?
Nam”
How much deeper?
Maybe another foot.
Just keep digging.
You know, this here,
is just more than against the law.
You know that? This is
a crime against nature.
It's called
Grave robbing.
Keep digging.
Hey, I hit something.
Keep it down.
Here, tie this on it.
Lack at this.
He's got a fold-up winch.
You do this a lot?
Here, hook that onto there.
Okay, come on.
Get out. Move it.
All right,
hold it, right there.
Oh, no.
Give me a workup
and put this guy on IV. Stat,
Yes, Doctor,
Charlotte.
What did he say?
He keeps saying ”Charlotte, ”
Move it. We got to pump this guy
full of plasma or he won't last,.
Yes, Doctor.
Ca“ Dr. Freeman.
We may need a head cutter.
He may be hemorrhaging in there.
Charlotte.
Take it easy, fella.
Move him to Emergency 3 and get
an EKG in there on the double,.
Charlotte.
Charlotte.
Charlotte.
Charlotte?
Charlotte who?
Charlotte Duskey.
Her full name is
Charlotte Anne Duskey.
She disappeared yesterday.
Cleared out her apartment
and left.
Listen, I got to get this story
down to Makeup before lunch.
We can talk then. There's a little
restaurant across the street.
Order me a tuna salad
on white,
a tossed green with the vinegar
dressing and coffee, black.
How about a dill?
Don't mind me,
I'm a little pushy.
I mean,
I'm a real turnoff at first,
but you'll get to like me eventually.
I'll grow on you.
Heavy mayonnaise,
no dill.
Sorry I took so long. But I have
an unorthodox journalistic style.
I don't pyramid.
Drives the editor crazy.
Pyramid?
Yeah. It's a copywriting term.
In a news article,
you're supposed to put the important stuff
at the top and the less
important stuff at the bottom.
I know, it's depressing,
isn't it?
I don't do it that way.
Just drives them crazy.
Look, Miss Turkell.
Sandra.
It's Jim, isn't it?
Yes.
I think we should start
by talking about my fee.
I can't talk to you without
your meter running or something?
I just think that
we should start by
making a professional
arrangement.
How much?
$200 a day, plus expenses.
Do you have 21 Kate cam?
What was that?
People who sell a legitimate
service should have rate cards.
You see, that makes the prospective
client feel that the fees are fixed
and that they don't fluctuate
with the market.
Makes them feel like
they're not being hustled.
Yes, but I like to size up
prospective clients
and then try and gouge them.
You're getting mad.
Mad, me? Whatever for?
Really, I think we're gonna
get along pretty good.
One thing I ought to tell you,
though.
I plan to run this operation.
I mean, I know a great deal about
police procedures and detective work.
So what I need you for is
to kind of go along with me,
in case there are
some really dangerous types,
and you can take care of
them for me.
Take care of them?
Yeah.
Charlotte Duskey is missing
and in trouble.
I'm gonna find her
and help her.
But it could get dangerous,
so I need
a whatchamacallit?
A gorilla?
Do you have a gun?
No, I don't.
As a matter of fact,
I'm scared to death of them.
I also don't like gorillas
for the same reason.
And I don't work for people who try
to tell me how to do my business.
Maybe you
don't know everything.
Maybe you
could stand to listen.
You don't pyramid,
you know all about police work,
you drive your editor nuts,
and you're looking for a
gunslinger to help you shoot people
while you're looking for your best
friend, Charlotte Duskey.
We ought to sell this
to the comics.
If you can't keep up,
you just say so.
What're you talking about?
You just give me time to go home
and get my gun and grease
the axle on my wheelchair.
Wait!
I need help.
If there were time to find somebody
else I would, but there isn't any time.
Maybe she doesn't
want to be found.
There's been a man
hanging around her house.
She's been acting strange,
scared and jumpy.
About a week ago,
she started phoning in sick,
then she wouldn't
leave the house.
Then two days ago,
she asked two guys from the Linotype room
to help her load up her station wagon
and she left, in the middle of the night.
My father and I
owe Charlotte a lot.
Your father?
He owns the paper.
Your father's the editor?
No, Mr. Rockford, the owner is
generally referred to as the publisher.
My Uncle Ted is the editor.
He's the one I'm driving nuts.
Look, in two days,
the trail could be pretty cold.
I know which way she was
heading when she left town.
I found that out by circle
searching the gas stations.
What's that?
A police term.
I called all the gas stations within a certain
circumference of the center of this town.
And there is a self-service station
on Highway 10 that remembers her.
She asked an attendant for a road map
to Elmira. She must've gone there.
That's about 150 miles
south of here.
Circle search, huh?
Yeah.
See, Mr. Rockford,
I told you I'm a dynamite detective.
Charlotte's gonna be very easy to trace
if the trail doesn't get too cold.
Why?
She's driving a red station wagon
and she is a beautiful girl.
I mean, strikingly,
breathtakingly beautiful.
And she is 6 feet tall.
Believe me, people remember her.
Getting interested, huh?
Sandra, all the men in the world
don't subscribe to Playboy.
Do you?
No.
I borrow my father's copy
when he's through with it.
How about it?
You gonna help me?
You're coming along?
That's part of the deal?
Into each life
a little rain must fall.
Don't worry.
You'll get to like me eventually.
Charlotte Duskey?
Yeah, I think
that was her name.
Real tall, right?
About 6 foot? Yeah.
Had a red station wagon,
all loaded up with stuff.
That's her.
Yeah, she was here, all right.
Yeah, caused quite a stir.
Charlotte Duskey.
That was her name.
Where is she?
She's dead.
She was having dinner
right here in the dining room
and keeled over dead.
Doctors said
she had a bad heart.
Congenital heart disease,
he called it.
There was nothing wrong
with Charlotte's heart.
She was as strong as a horse.
The way the doctor
explained it,
big people have to be
careful of their hearts.
Can't take all that size.
I heard that about Great Danes and St.
Bernards, but never people.
Who is this doctor?
The local vet or what?
Listen, mister, Charlotte Duskey is dead.
Heart attack.
She was pronounced officially
dead and left town in a pine box.
No offense, miss.
Thank you very much.
Sure. Not at all.
I don't believe it.
Can I get you some water?
No, I mean,
I really don't believe it.
People like Charlotte just
don't die of heart attacks.
She used to jog at the high
school track every day.
She once told me,
she had a heart rate of 60.
I don't know what's going on
here, but he's lying.
She's not dead.
I don't think
that guy's lying.
What's this for?
It's water.
Is that supposed to make me
all better or something?
What, did you see that
on television?
Bring the fainting woman
a cup of water?
I don't want it.
You're right. It doesn't help.
Now that you mention it,
Dr. Kenilworth was right here
when the woman collapsed.
He was having dinner
at the Inn.
Did Dr. Kenilworth--
Is Dr. Kenilworth married?
Of course.
But he was having dinner alone?
Well, yes.
Where can we find him?
He has a clinic on Ce Street.
Where is that?
Between B and D Street.
North end of town.
Thank you.
Look, Sandra, if you want to talk
to these people, that's fine.
I'll just wait in the car.
But only one person should do the talking,
otherwise, there's no coordination.
You weren't gonna ask that
question and it's important.
If he'd been here for dinner,
he'd have been with his family.
But he was alone.
He was in on the scheme to make
it look like Charlotte died.
Dynamite Detective, where did you
learn about police work anyway?
On the paper.
I cover the crime beat in Longview.
Lot of big crime in Longview.
Yeah, we get our share.
It can get pretty hairy.
The way I hear it, there's a lot of
terrible stuff going on down there.
Gum machines get ripped off
right and left.
You're just mad
because you missed the point.
Did you notice anything else
that was strange?
No. What do you mean?
We're being followed.
There's a guy in a gray sedan.
Where is he? Behind us?
Yeah. He's average looking,
button-down type
with a grim expression
on his face.
You ever seen him before?
I wonder if he's the one
who's been hanging around Charlotte.
I wonder if he's the one
who scared her off.
Let's lose him.
Let's not. He's a lead.
Who knows, maybe later,
I'll want to put on my gorilla suit
and go bounce him around.
Will you stop
making fun of me?
I really
can't discuss my cases
with anyone other than family.
So, if you'll excuse me--
Doctor, I'm with
Lexington General Life.
We're looking for verification of death
so we can pay off the beneficiaries.
I'll need verification of that.
Of course.
I'll give you
my business card.
There, that's my business
card, State Registration Card.
This is my membership card in the
Insurance Investigators Health Plan.
Yes, it all seems to be in order.
Could I see the file, please?
Charlotte Duskey's file,
please.
Practiced here long, Doctor?
About five years.
Where did you
practice before this?
Madam, who are you?
I am a representative of
the Longview News.
Thank you.
Charlotte Duskey owned a sizable
percentage of the newspaper.
You didn't say
where you'd practiced before.
I really don't see
that's any of your business.
Neither do I.
Doctor, it says
It says here that she wasn't
pronounced dead
until two hours after
she arrived at your clinic.
The very good reason for that
is that she didn't die
until two hours after
she arrived at my clinic.
Was she conscious?
Yes.
She asked that her cousin,
Susan Duskey, be contacted.
I called the cousin,
but by the time she arrived,
Charlotte was dead.
The cousin claimed the body
and made arrangements to
have it put aboard the 7:05.
705?
That's a train.
Charlotte's cousin,
what did she look like?
Extremely tall,
almost as tall as the dead woman.
She was very pretty.
Brown hair.
The deceased had red hair.
Could I have a copy of
the file, please?
Yes, fine.
And then you must excuse me.
I have to get back to work.
It's important to know
where he practiced before.
It's gonna help us find out
if Charlotte knew him.
He practiced in Chicago.
How do you know that?
I missed that.
Really?
Kenilworth is
a little too studied.
I get the feeling that he practices that
sincere look in front of the mirror.
I don't like him.
Neither do I.
It's true, isn't it?
What?
Charlotte does own
a piece of the newspaper.
You weren't just laying that
on old Dr. Kenilworth.
It's true.
What are you thinking?
I'm just adding it up
without the equation.
And?
It alters things a little.
I mean, it makes me a little
suspicious of your motives
and it also makes me wonder why
you didn't bother to tell me.
Because it's not important. I mean,
that is a completely unrelated fact.
Charlotte arrived in town
six months ago.
She worked on the paper
as a copy editor.
The paper was in bad financial
trouble, she lent my father $100,000.
She bailed us out.
We gave her stock in return for the cash.
That little detail of the
investigation slipped your mind?
You didn't think it was
important enough to tell me?
That is just not something you
go around telling strangers.
Sandra, a private investigator
is like an attorney
or a doctor.
You confide in him and what
you tell him is privileged.
That's not true.
PI's can be forced to reveal
anything in court.
And most of them would spill
their guts for a $10 bill.
Well, what now?
Wait a minute.
Ace. No.
Aaron Brothers,
with two "A's."
What are you talking about?
Would you reach
in the glove compartment
and get those two little
white boxes out of there?
Thank you.
What are we doing?
You can waste a lot of time on people
if you don't have the right props.
Would you get the ink and the knife
out of the glove compartment, please?
And one of these cards.
The whole secret of a good confidence
game is having the right props.
I think she
left on the 7:05 yesterday.
What seems to be the problem,
Mr. Rockford?
Well, it's a mix-up.
It's a little embarrassing
for us.
Of course, but how does the shipment of
this casket yesterday affect all this?
Miss Susan Duskey
paid for our executive box,
that's the 30756 model,
and she was given the 30756-A,
which is a cheaper model.
It doesn't have
the fluted scrolled handles
or the double-lined
satin headrest.
Actually, it's my fault.
I usually handle all these
purchase orders myself
but this particular one
was handled by Miss Turkell.
She made the mistake.
I don't know
how I can help you.
If you could just give us
the destination of the casket
and then we'd ship
the right one to that location
and the deceased
could be changed
into the proper slumber
chamber for burial, you see.
I'm afraid
I can't help you there.
All of these lading records are handled by
the conductors on the individual trains.
Then they're filed with the gross
receipts at the end of the line.
Who is the conductor?
Maybe I could talk to him.
Let's see, that'd be
Yes, Steve McWilliams.
And where would I find him?
Come down here at 7:05
this evening.
That same train will be
coming through here then.
Thank you very much.
Boy, you are really too much.
Aaron Brothers
Funeral Supplies.
What a disgusting performance.
Don't knock it.
It worked, didn't it?
Yeah, but-- I suppose you'd
rather I beat it out of him.
Maybe show him a gun,
give him a coronary?
Forget it.
I'm getting tired of him.
I'm getting damn tired of him.
What are you doing?
Watch out!
Okay, buddy.
Just who are you, huh?
Now, come on, let's have it.
I haven't got all day.
Harry Stoner,
US Treasury Department, IRS.
I keep meaning to get
that gear shift fixed.
It drops into reverse.
You can bet that thing's
going in the shop today.
I hope you'll accept my sincerest
apologies, Agent Stoner.
Don't you worry, my insurance
company is gonna cover all this.
Here, let me see that.
It's just a scratch.
You're gonna be fine.
You are right on the tender edge
of getting thrown in Leavenworth.
You should do yourself
a big favor
and think about what you
say to me before you say it.
Because I'm a man with
absolutely no sense of humor.
Smart mouths turn me off.
And I'm beginning to suspect
you have a smart mouth.
You're right, I do.
But I'm working on changing that.
Good.
Where's my gun?
It's right over there.
Here, let me get it for you.
I know right where I threw it.
That's NM 21 stow.
So you don't think Miss Duskey is
dead, is that it?
Not necessarily.
She may be dead, I don't know.
But there's a good chance
she's not.
I agree with you.
But I think
for much better reasons.
I don't think neither one of
you really know who she is.
I've known Charlotte Duskey
for-- For six months.
Miss Turkell, we've been watching
her ever since she left Arizona.
Arizona? She told me
she came from Minneapolis.
Charlotte Duskey was born
and raised in Chicago.
She left there
at the age of 20.
Took up with a famous gangster
by the name of Joe Baron.
Miss Duskey was his lady friend.
No, that isn't possible.
Joe Baron died
sometime last year.
That's right.
And after he died
Charlotte went through
his safe and cleaned it out.
That's a theft. What's the
Treasury Department doing in it?
There's some question as to whether
she came into that money legally
and we want our cut.
Baron's son, Joe Jr.,
gave us the estimated value.
$1,200,000 in bills
and negotiable paper.
The inheritance tax due
the Federal Government
is in the neighborhood of--
$300,000.
A little more than that.
$340,000 and some change.
Why were you following us?
Why didn't you just
knock on the front door?
Look, Rockford,
I've been in this business for awhile.
I know people tend to clam up
when they're talking to a Fed.
When I found out you two
were looking for Charlotte,
I decided to follow you
and see where it took me.
By the way, how did you get
to that station manager?
Those train guys are murder
to get anything out of.
He has a little printing press and
he makes up phony business cards.
It's disgusting.
I beg your pardon?
It's nothing. Forget it.
Look, Sandra,
I'm not afraid of him,
I just don't work
on open cases.
And if the Federal Government is
involved, it's an open case.
So I'm off it. Why?
That doesn't make any sense.
Because guys like Stoner
get very exercised
when private citizens start
messing around in open cases.
They warn you first,
and then they take your picture,
and then they
ink up your hands,
and then
they throw you in jail.
I'm just not all that
hooked on you or Charlotte.
How gallant.
All arranged.
I got my ticket.
You better get in touch with your
insurance company about the accident.
Let them know
they'll be getting a call.
I want that all cleared up
before I leave.
Right. That's a good idea.
I'd like a listing for Joe Baron, Jr.
in Phoenix, Arizona, please.
Thank you.
Hello.
That's right.
Joe, some guy, long distance.
Says he knows something about Charlotte.
Record it.
Yeah, what is it?
Is this Joe Baron, Jr?
Yeah. Only it's not Jr.
When my father died, I dropped the Jr.
Yeah. Mr. Baron,
after your father died
did a woman by the name of
Charlotte Duskey
disappear with the contents
from your father's safe?
Who is this?
The tooth fairy.
That's funny.
That's very funny.
You better tell me
who you are, buddy,
or this conversation
ends right now.
We might get around
to who I am
but you got to answer
some questions first.
That is if you're interested
in finding Charlotte Duskey.
You there?
Yeah, let's hear the question.
Are there any estate taxes
pending on that cash?
Why?
Is the Federal Government interested
in finding Charlotte Duskey?
Why?
We're not doing too well,
are we?
Look, who are you, sport?
Mr. Baron, I might be able to
help you find her,
but I got to find out where the
out of bounds markers are first.
All right, I'll tell you what.
You find Charlotte Duskey
I'll give you $20,000.
How's that?
That's not bad. Not bad.
What about the Feds?
Well, that depends.
Is there anyone in particular
you want to discuss?
Yeah. As a matter of fact,
I have.
Amtrak Eastbound,
7:05 Vistaliner to Acerton,
Ash View and South--
Say, you there?
Yeah.
This guy says his name
is Harry Stoner.
I'd say he's about
6 foot tall,
he has no sense of humor,
wears Brooks Brothers suit,
and he has a scar
on his right cheek.
Yeah, he's “at 21 Fed.
Storm used to work for my father.
He quit when my father died.
Yeah, thank you, Mr. Baron.
That's $20,000 for a recovery.
I'll be in touch.
Amtrak Eastbound,
7:05 Vistaliner to Acerton,
Ash View and South--
Find out what train that is and
get a couple of the boys on it.
Tell them to look
for Harry Stoner.
And tell them to watch out
for that other guy.
He sounds like a yo-yo.
Right.
It's all arranged.
My insurance man will be expecting a call.
Good.
Well, goodbye.
Goodbye.
Is that it?
He says goodbye and we go away
just because he's a Federal agent?
He's not a Fed.
He's not?
No, he isn't.
How did you figure that out?
The old cop hunch?
The old lucky guess.
What are we gonna do?
When you were a little girl,
did you ever play doctor?
Huh?
Yes, Doctor,
what can I do for you?
This is Nurse Turkell.
Tell me, did you run across
a man a few cars up,
who claimed to be
a Federal Officer?
Agent Stoner?
What do you think, Doctor?
Well, at least he's aboard.
That much is in our favor.
What are you talking about?
Tell me, what is he saying?
I mean, are his remarks
precise, or was he rambling?
I'm sorry. What?
Mr. Stoner is an outpatient
from Fairview.
He's suffering from a peltomas
symptom with milagrea sympaticus.
Delusions of grandeur.
The old Napoleon complex.
Mr. Stoner thinks
he's a G-man.
Why, he had
a suppressed childhood
and he developed
fantasy images.
Well, is he
is he all right?
I mean, is he dangerous?
Have you had a coffin
on this train lately?
As a matter of fact,
we shipped one to Ash Brook yesterday.
And did he show an obsessive
interest in this coffin?
As a matter of fact,
he asked a lot of questions about it.
I think the best thing to do
would be to lure him
into an empty compartment
and then give him a sedative.
Do you have one we could use?
Compartment Ce
in the next car is empty.
Good. Now, will you go back
and tell Mr. Stoner
that you were talking to the
porter and the porter said that
he had some more information
about Miss Duskey.
And the porter will meet him in
Compartment Ce of the next car.
He seemed so authentic.
Yes, I know.
He's very convincing.
It's one of the characteristics
of milagrea sympaticus.
It really works.
It's fascinating.
Come in.
How's it going, Harry?
Found that coffin yet?
I'm having you put off at the next
stop, and held in custody
until this official
investigation is over.
Now put your hands up,
you're under arrest.
You're about as official as
a cub scout at a rodeo.
It's against the law to
impersonate a Federal Officer.
You ever heard about that,
Harry?
You're the one that could
end up in Leavenworth.
You're dead, Rockford.
I don't think so.
No, I think that you and I should
share any information we may have.
I'd be interested in knowing if that
money that we're chasing is hot.
I'd kill you for $1.20.
I ain't about to mess around
when the stakes are this high.
You're not gonna kill me.
You're gonna trip and fall off
the end of the train.
Business is business.
Come on, now, Harry.
Let us not let this get out of hand.
You should have stayed in Elmira.
Big mistake.
Where's the girl?
I don't know.
She's around the train somewhere.
Open that door.
She goes, too.
This one?
A little shock therapy
ought to help Mr. Stoner.
I hope he can breathe in there.
Sure he can.
I can't imagine
why the Federal Government
is interested in the deceased,
Agent Stoner.
It's money, Mr. Darrow.
Isn't it always?
Charlotte Duskey owes
the Federal Government
a considerable sum of money.
And we think
she's staging this burial
to get out from under
$1 million in back taxes.
It's a good thing we haven't
buried the casket yet.
Since there was no ceremony
to be performed,
and no relatives present,
we just put it off.
So you're in luck.
If you hadn't, we'd have just got
an exhumation order from the court.
No problem.
You know, Agent Stoner,
technically speaking,
I shouldn't open that casket.
It is sealed,
and we do have instructions
from the cousin of
the deceased.
Maybe it might be better
if you did get a court order.
If you'd feel better
with a court order--
How about $50?
Would that make you feel better?
Oh, what--
what Miss Turkell meant was
her cousin Charlotte
was quite dear to her.
I know what she meant,
Agent Stoner.
Yes, $50 would be just fine.
Well, why not?
We can put it on the expense account.
Would you look at that?
I don't believe it.
Do you have an address
for Miss Duskey?
Yes, it's back at the office.
An address in Minneapolis, I think.
I'll want it.
What do I do with the coffin?
We don't want Miss Duskey to know
that we're onto her, so bury it.
And you keep your mouth shut.
Bury it? But it's empty.
How about that?
Call an ambulance.
When I tell it,
it all sounds so melodramatic.
Running away from hoodlums with a
suitcase full of money and bonds.
And then trying to throw them
off by arranging my own funeral.
Like Tom Sawyer or somebody.
Huck Finn.
That's who I meant.
The money was mine.
Joe promised it to me.
I only took what was mine.
And now it's all for nothing.
Those men took
every single penny.
You were lucky you weren't
hurt any worse than you were.
I have a hard head.
I guess I'm right back where I started
10 years ago when I left Chicago.
No, you aren't.
You have an interest in Dad's paper.
And it's doing very well.
And you are going to come back to
Longview with me and help us run it.
So you're gonna be my kid
sister whether I like it or not.
Is that it?
Yeah.
I'm not exactly Venus de Milo
and you're pretty spectacular.
So, I figure that you'll bring all
the eligible bachelors within range,
so that I can have a better
shot at picking out a nice one.
What's wrong with him?
Nothing.
There's nothing wrong with him.
Are you eligible?
For everything but marriage.
I wonder.
Charlotte, come home.
Dad and I both want that.
Okay.
That's really
a crummy thing to do.
You mean I got to pay
for the whole thing?
You pulled off the case
at the station in Elmira.
I'll pay you for your time
and expenses up to that point.
After that,
you were working on your own.
I went back on the case
after I talked to Joe Baron.
Did you tell me that?
No.
Did you come and say, "Sandra,
I'm back on the case"?
No, I didn't.
Okay, that's it.
All right,
I think Charlotte's lying.
I mean, those injuries
aren't that bad.
It's mostly just a nosebleed.
I used to give myself
a nosebleed in prison
every time I wanted to
get out of something.
I think Charlotte
still has the money.
I'll give you a percentage of
the recovery.
If you think that I'm gonna fall for
one of your crazy cons, you're crazy.
All right, but just don't forget.
I offered it.
All right,
hold it, right there.
Oh, no.
Charlotte.
500 cc's of adrenalin.
Stat.
Charlotte.
Where's Charlotte?
Take it easy, fellow.
You've got a bad concussion.
Charlotte.
Take it easy. Relax.
You're gonna be just fine.
We'll have you out of here
in a couple of weeks.
Afternoon, Rockford.
Feeling better?
Stoner, how've you been?
Rotten.
Yeah, me, too.
For a while there,
I thought you was gonna croak.
Two weeks is along time
to be in intensive care.
Well,
I was intensively injured.
I see you're still playing with guns.
What do you want?
The money.
You just never did really get plugged
into this thing right, did you?
You can say that again.
I don't have the money.
And I never thought I'd hear myself say
it, but I don't want it either.
Don't get funny with me,
Rockford.
Because I'll put a pill in you just to
balance the books on that train ride.
You don't mind
if I head for home, do you?
I'm not supposed to
be out too long.
The doctor told me to go straight
home, go to bed, and no excitement.
And I'm just not gonna let you
qualify as excitement
because I don't want to go back in
there and get fed through a tube.
It was in the coffin.
You opened the coffin.
By the time I got away from Baron's
muscle, you were in the hospital.
It was Baron's muscle
that put me there.
They got it?
No.
Who?
You want to talk a deal,
Stoner?
Depends.
What kind of deal? Fee?
Contract? Percentage?
Percentage.
You give me 20% of
the recovery
and I'll tell you
who's got the money.
You got to give me your word that
you're not gonna double back on me
because I'm gonna trust you
to cut me in.
I don't have enough energy
to go along on this one.
Okay.
You got my word of honor.
Who's got it?
Mr. Darrow,
the mortician.
You're kidding.
I made a few calls
while I was in the hospital.
He sold the cemetery
and blew town.
How'd he find out?
I don't know.
Maybe he figured it out.
Maybe I tipped my hand.
I hate to admit it, but
I don't make as good
a Treasury Agent as you do.
Okay, 20%.
Stop the car.
Don't forget to write.
You look awful.
Yeah, I know.
I want to hire you again.
I know.
Charlotte's disappeared again.
I know.
You know, I think you're right.
Nobody beat up Charlotte.
She did that to herself
to throw people off the track.
Those men are still after her,
I think.
I don't think so.
Then why did she
leave Longview?
She went back to dig up her
grave and get the money,
but it isn't there.
Who has it?
Joe Baron has it.
He figured it out and he sent
his men back there to dig it up
and they ripped open the casket and
found it hidden in the headlining.
And don't you go chasing after Charlotte.
She's a fortune hunter.
Believe me, I know the type.
I should leave it alone, huh?
Why not? I am.
I'm supposed to get lots of rest,
drinks lots of liquids,
and avoid excitement.
Do you want me to make you
some chicken soup or something?
No, thank you.
No, I'll just make a few
phone calls and go to sleep.
You go back to Longview
and cover the crime beat.
I'll call you tomorrow
when I'm feeling better.
It happened, didn't it?
What?
I grew on you.
Yeah, you did.
I wonder where the hell
that money really is.