Alert: Missing Persons Unit (2023) s03e06 Episode Script
Lillian
1
Joan.
What's going on?
He's missing.
What do you mean, he's missing?
It's a good thing, Joan.
We just can't tell anyone.
You hear me?
Well, what if he comes back?
He won't! It doesn't matter.
This is our chance!
[LILLIAN] Hold!
Hold action, please!
I'm sorry, I can't have
Aurora cross downstage
without the stage-left spot.
I'm totally losing her.
Phil we open in two days.
I'm watching shadow puppets up there.
Phil, can you bring up the house lights?
- Sure thing.
- Thanks.
[PHIL] Let's bring up the house lights.
Hey, uh, Lil?
Can we sidebar for a sec?
[WOMAN] And you just let
me know which one I use.
- Great.
- [CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY]
[SECOND WOMAN] Okay.
[MAN] Okay, Carsten,
you want to head up there
You're asking for things
you never asked for before.
I know how much is riding on this,
and it's just not good enough.
It's going to be perfect.
You have sunk millions into this place.
The whole city is watching.
Oh, and word is,
your playwright's a freakin' disaster.
You are not a disaster
you're just a little stressed.
Here's what we're gonna do.
I'm gonna call "dinner."
You and I are gonna
share a bottle of wine,
maybe some greasy pasta,
then we're gonna come back,
we're gonna finish rehearsals.
How's that sound?
Can we make it chicken parm?
[WOMAN TALKING, INDISTINCT]
Phil?
Let's take dinner.
Great job, everybody!
Let's break for dinner early.
Thank you.
[MAN] Are we ready to have
Oh, hold on a sec.
I'm gonna go grab my script.
'Kay. I'll meet you out front.
[MAN] Sure. I actually
have a sandwich in the fridge,
but I can
[WOMAN ANSWERS, INDISTINCT]
[DOOR OPENING]
[DOOR BANGING]
Is someone there?
[FOREBODING THEME RISES]
Ceel?
Phil?
[CRACK]
[THUD]
Yo.
It's gas station coffee it
sucks but it's really strong.
I was about to give it to Kemi.
Your car was not in the garage.
Yeah. Sid borrowed it.
- Why?
- 'Kay. I'm gonna tell you.
Put your coffee down first.
Why?
So you don't throw it at me.
Uh-huh?
Sid had her first O.B.
appointment today.
And she didn't ask me to
go? She didn't ask you to go?
She said she wanted
to handle it by herself.
I didn't press her on it.
Don't Don't fathers usually
attend those type of functions?
I'm just curious.
- [KEYS JANGLING]
- I brought the keys back.
Okay. So we're doing this again?
You guys are talking about me.
So if you're gonna be man-babies,
let's do this.
- Hey! He's the man-baby.
- What are you, a babysitter?
Oh, my god. Can we just be adults?
We are adults.
We can all be adults,
but you're still my little girl.
Okay? You took a year off of school,
you're not telling us
who the father is
things we'd like to know.
I told you I would talk to
you about it when I was ready.
So, I met this guy from Penn State,
we had a few drinks,
didn't use protection
- Oh!
- Okay! All right, enough! Please.
You don't have to get anatomical.
Okay, just continue. Sorry.
I'm gonna stay here
until I have the baby.
End of story.
And we respect that.
We want to be as much a part of it
as you want us to.
- Thank you.
- Right, Jay?
Yeah, right! I'm sorry, I'm still at
Penn State Peter not
wearing a jimmy-hat.
Okay, so the Mayor called.
- I'm gonna go.
- All right.
- Love you.
- Love you, too.
- Love you too, Mike.
- Bye.
Why Why'd the Mayor call?
[KEMI] He got a call
from one of his donors.
A "Lillian Waverly" is missing.
- Gone since last night.
- Who's that?
Big Broadway playwright.
She's premiering her new show
at the Bainbridge St. Theatre.
Wait, that's the theater
that had that fire,
like, 15 years ago, right?
- Yeah.
- Like 80-something people died.
Yeah. So, they were
supposed to reopen on Friday.
It was a big black-tie
event the whole deal.
Maybe she doesn't like parties.
Patrol says there was signs of blood,
so we are looking at an abduction.
Jay, go, and, uh, take
Helen with you to run trace.
Why aren't you coming?
Interim Lead Officer duties.
Houston's got me doing
paperwork till the next solar eclipse.
I gotta sign off on all
your property damage.
Well, I was just actually thinking
I'm gonna run a bus off a
bridge while I'm out, so
Yeah, wouldn't be surprised.
Oh, my gosh! This place is beautiful.
Yeah, if you're into gold paint.
If you like Lillian Waverly.
I'm guessing that you do?
Lillian's work is life-changing.
You either get it or you don't.
But if you do ohh!
You feel it in your soul.
She was the hottest
playwright on Planet Broadway.
Why was?
She had a bunch of a
hits, won a ton of awards,
but a couple of years ago,
she went into self-destruct mode.
Had a $10-million show
about to start previews,
and she pulled the plug.
She took off for some
retreat in the Catskills
and went totally dark.
It was a real-life theater tragedy.
Certainly a tragedy
for the people who put
up the 10 million dollars.
Sounds like motive to me.
Missing Persons?
Yeah.
I'm Phil. Stage Manager.
Thank God you're here.
So, what do you think
happened to your playwright, Phil?
She's not just our
playwright! She's my friend.
Okay, who are you?
Celia Fischer!
Patron of the arts!
I can't believe this happened.
You have to find her.
That's what we're doing here.
Where do you think she was
taken from? Let's start there.
- Follow me.
- 'Kay.
[QUIETLY] Settle down.
Okay, so what can you tell me
about these investors
that Lillian pissed off?
No one likes to lose money.
They were angry, but
this? No, that can't be.
Anybody else you can think
of she had a problem with?
No. Lillian could be demanding,
but she's respectful of everyone,
and she's hardest on herself.
You may want to tell him
about the, uh, incidents.
Yeah, yeah. What incidents?
Reopening the theater has
had some community pushback.
What kind of pushback?
Pressure to deny permits,
problems during renovations.
My office was broken into.
It's Philly.
Bunch of whackadoos
accused us of profiting off
the tragedy of the fire.
Well, it's a pretty big deal.
A lot of people lost their lives. Right?
This place went up like a powder keg
during a matinee. I can
see how people'd get upset,
'cause you're putting a fresh
coat of paint on the place,
and then serving cocktails in the lobby.
That's not what we did.
And most of the city wants this to work.
Okay. I mean, I heard
that, prior to your purchase,
there was talks of a memorial park.
What good is a park gonna do? A statue?
I mean, this this
is a living memorial.
I want this to be a place of healing.
Detective. I've got something!
Okay. You guys hang tight.
What's up?
This is weird.
There's traces of blood,
but no directionality to the droplets.
The blood was put
here like this was staged.
Inadvertent pun.
Gotcha.
So the kidnapper left a trail?
And the trail leads thattaway.
Okay.
[CREAKING]
Can you grab that, Helen? Please.
Oh, yeah.
Sorry. Okay.
There we go.
- Can you open it now?
- Oh, right. Of course.
[HELEN] Oh
Funny way to leave a message.
It's a QR code that leads to a webpage.
Somebody went to a lot of trouble
what is it they want us to see?
- Please don't do this.
- [KIDNAPPER] Celia Fischer,
you were told not to open the theater,
but you didn't listen to me.
Listen to her!
I know you don't want to hurt me.
Just do what he asks.
[KIDNAPPER] I mean
this close that theater down.
- Issue the Alert.
- Yeah.
[MISSING ALERT BLARING]
[OVERLAPPING ALERTS BLARING]
[KIDNAPPER] If Celia Fischer
thinks the police can save you,
she's wrong.
[REPORTER] The historic
Bainbridge St. Theatre
was devastated by fire in May 2010,
taking the lives of 87
men, women, and children.
Leaving the historic
1910 structure in ruin.
The theater was recently purchased
by local entrepreneur Derrick Fischer,
whose wife, Celia,
will be reopening the
theater with a new play
from award-winning Lillian Waverly.
[HITS KEY]
That's a news report
from three months ago.
You think Lillian's kidnapping
had something to do with the fire?
Maybe. I followed up with the investors
that sued Lillian after
she pulled the plug
on her last play.
They got a lien on her future earnings,
so hurting Lillian only hurts them.
Any other haters?
A couple of theater fans who think
that she didn't deserve her last Tony.
An actress who did a staged reading,
and then she got mad
when the play went up
and she didn't get cast.
It's all pretty mild.
Yeah, well, abducting a
woman to shut down a theater
that's kind of the opposite of mild.
Which brings us back to the fire.
[PHONE CHIMES]
All right. That's Helen.
She's got something.
See if you can figure
out who built that website.
Yeah.
[KEYS CLACKING]
These came from the note card.
Looks like they're smudged.
Yeah. See the bad definition
in the loops and arches?
May be from moisture,
adhesive on the fingertips
but no way to I.D. them.
Well, we both saw the video.
This lady's in trouble.
Keep trying for me, yeah?
Mm-hmm.
[BLURTS] It's Lillian Waverly.
When I was 16,
my aunt took me to see
The Quantum of Sarah.
It changed my life.
Whatever it takes.
- Thanks.
- Mm-hmm.
[MIKE] Sorry to keep you waiting.
I keep seeing Lillian
all tied up like that,
every time I close my eyes.
I'm sorry.
I'm not usually like this, I'm just
Whoa, hey, hey.
It's okay. All right? You're scared.
I get it.
Um, what can I do to help?
Well, based on the video,
we think that you should
postpone opening night
and close the theater just for now.
Yes, of course.
Lillian is special.
We've spent months together,
but she still surprises me
every single day.
She's brilliant and she's passionate,
and she doesn't deserve this.
And we are gonna do
everything that we can
to find her. Okay?
- [RAPPING ON DOOR]
- [DOOR OPENS]
Sorry. We got a walk-in off
the Alert possible witness.
Okay. See what they got,
and shout if you need me.
Gotcha.
Oh, I know exactly who she is.
Sent my systolic through the roof
when I heard they were gonna reopen.
So, you worked for the
Bainbridge St. Theatre,
- Ms. Grayson?
- I was an usher in the early 2000s.
I loved that place.
Got the autograph of
Mr. James Earl Jones once.
Look at you!
That's truly special.
You were saying about the theater?
I was there the night of the fire.
I wasn't physically hurt,
but I remember the smoke,
and the screams.
You can't ever get a sound
like that out of your head.
I can imagine.
When I heard they were reopening,
I got nostalgic, so I
went to take a look.
Know who I saw?
Right across the street?
Reed Tillis.
That's the man who owned the theater
prior to the fire?
The snake himself.
He inherited the theater.
Ran it into the ground.
There's blood on his hands.
And you're sure it was Tillis?
I'm sure. I'd know him anywhere.
But it's odd.
What is?
After all the wrongful death lawsuits,
he declared bankruptcy,
and left town.
With that woman missing
now, I thought I'd report it,
because why is he back?
You been drinking today, Mr. Tillis?
Why do you ask?
You smell like the bar
mat at the TGI Friday's.
[SIGHS] This is about
that damn theater, isn't it?
It always is.
If I could still afford her,
I would call my lawyer.
Okay. Here's the thing.
A couple months ago,
new owners had a break-in.
Mrs. Fischer's office was tossed.
They didn't have a good security system,
but the diner across the
street had a fancy new system.
Cameras and everything.
That's a good angle on you, isn't it?
[SHATTERING]
Okay, fine. You got me on B-and-E.
Go ahead, lock me up.
Get a headline out of it. I
make a great punching bag.
Yeah, I feel terrible for you.
Just tiny little tears on the inside.
You have any idea how
expensive it is to run a theater?
- I don't.
- I was just keeping the doors open
and then some outdated
breaker box overloads and it
I lost everything.
I think that the 87
people that lost their lives
lost a bit more than you did.
You think I don't know that?
[GRUNTS] Don't know.
All right, Mr. Tillis. What
What were you after?
Fischer's heart.
What's the problem with Celia Fischer?
No, not her.
Her husband Mr. Moneybags.
After the fire,
the theater was standing evidence
in all the lawsuits, so
I couldn't even tear it down,
and then Fischer made an offer.
Finally, I could recoup
something, right?
He paid me pennies on the dollar,
all so his chippy wife
could have her own
little slice of Broadway.
And I found out that the
city was gonna pay me more
to turn it into a memorial
park, but my lawyer told me
the only way that I
could get out of the deal
was if I could prove
that Fischer's appraisal was fraudulent,
so I went looking.
You didn't find anything?
[REED SCOFFS BITTERLY]
I don't even own that
tinder box anymore,
and it's still ruining my life.
I didn't take that playwright.
Look at me.
I'm a drunk.
But book me for the burglary.
Go ahead. Knock yourself out.
Keep a unit on Tillis, but
I don't make him for this.
The guy's a jackass, not a threat.
You gotta see something!
Channel 5! Hurry.
[KEMI] Okay!
We've heard the reports
that we will be
postponing opening night.
They are false.
We will not respond to blackmail.
I am the owner of
Bainbridge St. Theatre,
and I assure you
the show will go on.
Now, I'm happy to answer
any of your questions.
[CELIA] What the hell were you thinking?
A woman's life is in danger!
You know that, and clearly don't care!
Really?
Suddenly you're the
saint in all this, are you?
I was doing the right thing.
Now, that's a change of pace, isn't it?
[NOTIFICATION CHIMES]
Oh, my god.
Open the link.
[CLICK]
[LILLIAN] Please let me talk to her.
If I can just talk to Celia
Please. No!
No! [SCREAMING]
- [GAS SPLASHING]
- I do not want to do this!
[KIDNAPPER] Why are
you not listening to me?
[LILLIAN SCREAMING] Ah! Help!
Ah!
Help me!
[KIDNAPPER] You have until 6:00 tonight.
[KIDNAPPER] Close the theater
or she burns.
[LILLIAN] Celia! Help, please! Help me!
[DOG YAPS]
Tell me her name again?
Uh, his name is Ursula.
Ahh.
As in, "Le Guin."
It's my favorite author.
Ahh.
And where'd you get the little guy?
Ankara, Turkey.
You brought a dog back from Turkey?
Yeah.
What was I supposed to do?
Have you seen his face?
He licked my feet, so, it was game over.
Okay.
Anyway, I'm here
about that playwright, Lillian Waverly.
Yeah, I heard about that.
A Broadway playwright gets grabbed?
That is not a good look for Philly.
No, it is not. And here's the thing.
The kidnapper is posting
threats to a website,
and Kemi cannot get the I.P. address.
What's the website?
I got it here.
Look at you you got
your own computer now
and everything.
Turbo speed at 3.7 Gigahertz.
Eat my digital dust, bad guys.
Okay, let's see.
All right. Well, whoever
is uploading to this site
is using a Tor browser,
but I have a brand-new packet-sniffer
that totally slaps, so
all I have to do is identify
the WiFi that they're
using to update the site
And then you can find
out where it's coming from?
Exactly.
As they say in Turkey, orada.
The Jefferson Royal
a luxury boutique hotel on South 17th.
I know the Jefferson Royal.
It's right down the street
from the theater. This is great.
- Mm-hmm.
- Thank you.
- Anytime.
- I'll see ooh.
Actually, um
I do have another favor.
That favor tab is exploding.
You remember when I texted
you that Sidney's pregnant?
Yes, vividly.
Remember when I texted you back, saying
that I was shocked that the baby-daddy
was not in a full-body cast yet?
Yeah. I don't I don't
wanna hurt the guy.
I just I do need his name, though.
What for?
Gonna buy him an ice cream.
No, I just I just
want to talk to him.
Can you help me out?
How do you expect me to find him?
You could hack Sidney's school email?
And I've just
conveniently written it on
- Oh!
- The backside of this paper.
Wow, premeditated and everything.
That is wildly invasive.
That's coming from the woman who, uh,
posted a Brigadier
General's porn search history
because he insulted her.
Okay, he had it coming.
This? I'm not so sure that
I am comfortable with this.
Will you just do it?
Please. I'm not gonna
do anything stupid.
Please.
Famous last words.
[DOOR OPENS]
Hey!
Good job!
Hey, next time, you wanna pee on him?
I think that's a great idea.
Wayne said the WiFi
used to update the website
was on a guest network
at the Jefferson Royal.
So, it's a longshot,
but I searched the registry
to see if Reed Tillis stayed there.
- At the Jefferson?
- Mm-hmm.
That guy blew his hotel
budget on rot-gut rye.
I mean, ain't that the truth,
but, um [CHUCKLES]
Let me show you this
I found something very interesting
a deluxe suite under the
name "María Irene Fornés"
on a corporate credit card
belonging to none other
than the D.B. Fischer Fund.
That Celia's husband's company?
That is the one.
What is his motive
for kidnapping Lillian?
I don't know, insurance ploy maybe?
Don't know. Let's
bring him in and find out.
Okay.
Mr. Fischer, help me
understand your position here.
I'm gonna need you to be more specific.
You refuse to shut the theater down.
Lillian Waverly was
taken from the theater,
but the scene was investigated,
and cleared by your people.
I'm impeding nothing. All good?
No, not quite.
We have a hotel room
that was booked with your company card
that we believe is tied to the crime.
My wife booked that room. She
uses pseudonyms for privacy.
Half the cast and
crew are staying there.
She said it'd be more convenient.
Our primary residence is in Gladwyne.
You may not be familiar.
It's very expensive.
You know, rich guys go
to jail same as poor people.
I've seen it happen.
Then those rich people
aren't rich enough.
Look, Detective
"Detective Sergeant,"
and you'll say it with some respect.
[TAKING A DEEP BREATH]
[SIGHS]
My wife's been cheating on me, okay?
Oh, she hid it pretty well.
Turned location services
off on all her devices,
so I found a necklace that
I could hide a GPS chip in.
Gave it to her for good luck,
and she's been wearing it ever since.
That's how I confirmed she was cheating,
that's also why I won't be
shutting down the theater.
She doesn't get to parade
around a saint to the arts
using my money, while
also cheating on me.
Who was she having an affair with?
Lillian Waverly.
I hope that clears things up.
Well, what it does, Mr. Fischer,
is it gives you a motive.
Fischer's assistant
gave me his calendar.
Wow, when does this guy sleep?
I mean, never apparently.
He does have an alibi for
the time that Lillian was taken.
Fischer was triple-booked
at a ribbon-cutting
for a new commercial development,
dinner at Chestnut Hill, and
you cannot make this up
a phone call with the Mayor.
Apparently he and the
Fischers are all good buddies.
Yep, so the hubby is out.
Uh, but if he didn't take Lillian,
there was still someone
at the hotel, posting on the website.
Can you go through the registry?
Let's see. The show
booked a block of rooms,
but there's still
50 other people who
are still registered.
It's gonna take me a minute.
Yeah, and there's only
three hours till the deadline.
I don't care what Fischer says,
I want the theater
closed and everybody out.
All right.
[DOOR SHUTS]
Joan.
- What's going on?
- He's missing.
What do you mean, he's missing?
It's a good thing, Joan!
We just can't tell anyone. You hear me?
Well, what if he comes back?
He won't.
It doesn't matter. This is our chance
You know, you've been working very hard.
I feel inspired.
Lemme deal with the theater folk, huh?
These people are just
trying to do their jobs,
so, let's try and be respectful?
I'll be very respectful!
[WOLF-WHISTLES LOUDLY]
Sorry!
But we've gotta shut you down.
Rehearsal's over.
- What the hell is going on?
- Hi, Phil. You remember me?
We gotta get everybody
off the stage, like now.
We were told to keep rehearsing.
Yeah, Phil, I have not been in a theater
since my daughter's
recital of the Nutcracker
which was lovely.
This is next level. This is marvelous.
But these people could be in danger.
You could be in danger.
We gotta shut you down.
Buddy, I don't wanna fight with a cop.
I got acid indigestion
that could eat a battery,
a bad back from sitting on
folding chairs my whole life,
- but my hands are tied.
- Why?
Fischer'll have your
ass if you shut down?
It was implied.
Well, how about this?
Hard hats.
Hard hats? What?
Yeah, nobody's wearing a hard hat.
Your ladder is the wrong
height, so we come in,
we shut you down on an OSHA violation.
Everybody gets out
safely no harm, no foul.
Okay, fine.
This better not bite me in the ass.
[OVER PA SYSTEM]
Actors, out of costumes.
Crew, stand down.
We need to vacate the
premises immediately.
Thank you.
Yes, thank you.
Philadelphia PD
appreciates your cooperation.
Those damn fresnels
in the window again
No. No, Phil.
No! Off the stage, now.
Let me just shut
everything down properly.
Take a second. God knows
we don't want another fire.
They're weird theater
people, aren't they?
[ELECTRICITY ZAPPING]
Oh!
[MAN] We're en route now.
Mike said you whistled in the theater.
That is bad luck. It is very bad luck.
Don't do that. It wasn't me.
It was this breaker box. Okay?
Someone jacked with these wires.
Wasn't an accident it was a sabotage.
- Sabotage?
- Yeah.
That never ends well in the theater.
In Phantom, Carlotta thinks
she's sabotaging Christine,
but all she's really
doing is setting herself up
as a target for revenge.
You've seen Phantom, right?
Just dust it, please.
- Okay. Dusting.
- Thanks.
[KEMI] Mrs. Fischer,
I have to apologize to you,
because I have to ask
you a few questions
that might feel intrusive.
Whatever I can do to help.
I understand that you were
in a romantic relationship with Lillian.
[CHUCKLES UNEASILY]
I I'm married.
[BREATH CATCHES]
I wasn't expecting to fall in love.
- Really, I
- No, no.
I'm not here to judge.
All I care about is
getting Lillian back.
[CHUCKLES]
I saw a production
of her first play
in New York.
It changed me,
and I started my own little company,
and I dreamed of, one day,
being able to produce one of her plays.
More of a a pipe dream.
But then I heard talk that
she'd had a breakdown
and nobody wanted to touch her work.
So, you gave Bainbridge
St. A second life,
and Lillian deserved
one, too am I close?
I wanted our premiere to matter,
so I told her
that I had a company and a playhouse,
and I had total faith in her.
At first, it was just a
working relationship,
but then, Lillian is just so
alive.
Derrick doesn't care what I think,
hasn't in years, but she did.
Made me feel like I was
like I was awake again.
This is all my fault.
No.
You cannot blame
yourself for falling in love.
If I hadn't brought her here,
if I hadn't set this all in motion,
she would still be here with me.
She'd still be safe.
And we are going to work
to make her safe again.
Together.
I promise you.
Okay?
Holy moly.
Okay, I did not see this coming.
What? You didn't see what coming?
This print it's the
same as the one I lifted
from the card the kidnapper left.
Mike said that you couldn't
get a print off of that card.
I couldn't I.D. it
because I thought the
print was compromised,
but it's not the print
it's the finger.
The finger has a disfigurement.
Okay, can you explain that?
Fingerprints are encoded deep down,
between the dermis and epidermis,
which means they can survive anything
short of serious injury or
third-degree burns.
Uh-huh. So
someone with a burnt fingertip
was skulking around this theater
a theater known for its historic fire?
You think it was Colonel
Mustard with a candlestick?
Our suspect's not just
somebody angry about the fire.
- [SHUTTER SNAPS]
- They were in the fire, too.
Correct.
I'll get this over to the office.
Thank you.
Okay, so we're looking
for victims burned
in the Bainbridge St.
Theatre fire in 2010.
All the survivors were treated
at the Logan Square Memorial.
I compiled a list of everyone
who suffered burns on their hands.
- So where's that leave us?
- According to the list,
ten of the injured
suffered third- and fourth-degree burns,
which is enough to
alter the fingerprints.
Uh, since then, two
of the ten have died.
All right. Let's get units rolling.
We'll need to track
down the remaining eight.
Yeah, before you do
um, there is a familiar
name on this burn-victim list.
- Mare Grayson?
- Mm-hmm.
That the woman who
tried to throw Reed Tillis
under the bus?
Yep, and she also specifically told me
that she was unharmed in the fire.
Now, why do you think
she'd lie about that?
I couldn't tell you,
but I very much would
like her to tell me.
I'm bringing her back in.
Hi.
Why are we in this room?
You know, we really
appreciate you coming back in.
I can imagine how hard it is,
reliving all of this.
Losing so many colleagues in that fire
must've taken its toll.
I told you. Of course it did.
Was it enough of a toll
that you'd want to take
out that anger on someone?
Do you think?
No.
I had nothing to do with this.
Then why lie about your injuries,
if you had nothing to hide?
I've lived with the scars
almost longer than
I've lived without them,
but they don't define me.
A woman's missing and I tried to help,
but I didn't want to
get in any trouble
not after the protests.
What protests?
I run a group
called "Shouting Fire
in a Crowded Theater."
We organized after Reed Tillis
decided to make a profit
instead of a memorial park.
And how many are in your group?
A few dozen.
Mostly survivors, relatives of victims.
How did they take the news
of the reopening of the theater?
They were hurt.
Angry.
Some more than others.
Our email chain got a little heated.
I want you to know
that I don't stand for that.
What do you mean, stand for what?
A call for violence.
Vandalism.
This isn't how I do things.
I told them to stand
down, we'd lost, but
some of the others were
more volatile on the subject.
Ms. Grayson,
did someone in your
group suggest harming
the people that were
involved in the reopening?
Ms. Grayson?
There are lives are at stake.
I'm sorry.
At the time,
I just thought they were empty threats.
I need to see all of
those emails right now.
Please follow me.
Mike? Mike!
Come here for a second.
Okay, so I compared
the eight burn victims
from the hospital records
to the email list from
the protest group,
and there's one name in common
- Robert Krasnow.
- Who's he?
He's a computer
programmer. Lives in Ardmore.
He was badly injured in the fire,
and based on his emails,
he has a violent objection
to the reopening of the theater,
and get this
for the last two months,
Robert Krasnow has been employed
by the Bainbridge St. Theatre.
Tell me we have that theater cleared.
I mean, the last that I had heard,
Celia Fischer
was on-site, locking up.
I'll send a unit over to the theater!
[DOOR OPENING]
[THUD]
Robert?
What are you doing here?
I thought the crew had all left.
I thought I was alone.
Wh What's going on?
Your hands
you always wear gloves.
Oh, my God.
You were in the fire?
I didn't know.
You didn't care.
[PHONE RINGS]
The police are on their way.
You really shouldn't
be here, Mrs. Fischer.
- [YELP]
- [THUD]
- Hey.
- Hey.
What's, uh, what's the emergency?
And that thing does
not have a a visitor pass.
Yeah, well, he is a rule-breaker,
just like his mama.
- Thank you.
- Mm-hmm.
What What's with the
redactions, Watergate?
Oh, I just figured that your daughter
deserves a little bit of privacy.
- Don't you think?
- [JASON GRUMBLES]
Don't worry, everything that
you need to know is there.
His name is Victor Thompson.
He is 24 years old.
He is a graduate
student at Penn State
with stellar grades, I might add.
He and Sid met
at an inter-collegiate open-mic night,
- which is adorable.
- Mm.
I'm about to tell you the
rest, but I'm gonna need you
to promise not to throw anything, first.
That's not a great sign.
Yeah.
So it seems like our Young Vic
is about to do his doctorate studies
in Sustainable Urban
Development at Oxford.
Okay. Well, when do
I start throwing things?
He leaves for the U.K. in two days,
so that is the emergency.
Oh! Oh, I see.
So he gets my daughter pregnant
and then he thinks he's
just gonna skip the country?
- Is that right?
- Well, "ish".
"Ish"? Give me his address, please.
Why? So you can chemically castrate him?
- No, not chemically.
- Jason
Okay, lookit. I'm just
gonna go talk to him
man to man, when this case is over.
I'm gonna drive up to Penn,
have a conversation with him,
maybe I'll rearrange his
Regard for the female sex?
Something like that.
[QUIETLY] Celia, baby, look at me.
Hey, hey
[GASPS]
- Hi!
- It's okay.
- Hi.
- It's okay
Hi! Are you okay?
I was so worried about you.
It's okay. I'm okay. I'm okay.
Hey.
[CLICK]
Robert, look, look.
I am
I had no idea that you
were hurt in the fire.
Okay? And I am so sorry.
Why didn't you come to me?
What would have been the point?
We care about our crew.
We could have talked about it.
We can help you.
Okay? W We want to listen.
[CLICK-CLICK]
Thank you so much.
All right, so there
were signs of a struggle,
but no Celia.
The theater had been cleared by then,
so also no witnesses.
Jason sent me this
it's a list of all the names
of people lost in the fire.
Wait a minute.
There's two victims with
the last name "Krasnow"
a woman, age 37,
and a ch child, age 6.
[GASPS]
He lost his wife and child.
- And it destroyed him.
- We have a motive.
We have opportunity.
He took those women to punish them
for reopening the theater.
I mean, I sent a unit to his house,
but it was totally cleared out.
I put out a B.O.L.O., no hits yet.
Wait. When I spoke to Fischer,
he said that he, uh, gave
Celia a piece of GPS jewelry.
He thought she was having an affair.
- The rich are weird.
- Yeah.
Call Fischer.
We need to see if it's still
- transmitting a signal.
- I'm on it.
I'm grabbing Jay. Call
when you have a location.
I got you.
I lost
everyone who means anything to me
in that fire.
They were my whole world!
Katie would've graduated
college this year.
[THUMP]
This is their stuff.
People told me I
should give it away, but
it's all I have left.
[SNIFFS DEEPLY]
[SIGHS]
My only job was to protect
them, and I couldn't even do that.
Look, Robert, I'm I'm so sorry.
I I truly am.
But closing down the
theater won't bring them back.
[SHAKING] Every time
I look at that theater,
I watch them burn all over again.
Look, I can tell that you're in pain.
Okay? I can see that!
There There must be
something that I can do to help.
It's too late!
You had your chance!
No one takes responsibility.
Not you, not Reed Tillis, not the city!
This won't bring back
your wife or your daughter.
[SNAPS] Don't talk about them!
[HUFFS AND GRUNTS]
It's okay, baby.
Just close your eyes
and hold on to me. Okay?
- [SPLASHING]
- [YELPING]
No! No! No o o!
[ROBERT RAGING]
[FUEL SPLASHING]
The GPS beacon in Celia's necklace
definitely shows
that she's in that area.
The device isn't sophisticated,
so the signal is weak.
This has gotta be wrong, Kemi.
I don't think so.
It's like a sea of storage units.
I'm getting a lot of interference.
Maybe the device is losing power.
I I don't know.
But you should be in the ballpark.
You know ballparks are very big, right?
Just keep looking for
her! She should be there.
I mean, there's no
vehicles. There's no sound.
There's nothing.
[JASON] Hold on, hold on.
Stop. Stop.
[MIKE] Hey, we'll call you back!
It's gasoline.
- You good?
- Yeah.
[RUMBLING]
Robert Philadelphia PD.
Step outside. Get on the ground.
No.
Hey, hey. Listen to me. Listen to me.
We know what happened.
This right here is not the answer. Okay?
Think your wife and
daughter would want this?
Someone has to pay!
No, no. No one has to
pay. This is not gonna help.
Do you know what it's like?
I already feel dead inside!
I know. All right? Trust
me. We lose people.
It hurts to stay put.
It hurts to move on.
But this is not the answer.
[SOBBING] I couldn't save them!
Okay, all right. I got it.
But you can save three people right now.
Yeah, you can!
Just let the girls go.
Give me the flare, okay? Come on.
[JASON] Come on! Come on,
come on, come on, come on.
Get 'em behind the car. Behind the car.
It's gonna be okay. All right?
Just give me the flare.
Come on.
I just want to be with them again.
- [THUD]
- [WHOOSH]
No, no, no!
Slips through my fingers ♪
Everything I've got ♪
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
I know it's been a terrible time,
but that was amazing!
[CHUCKLES]
Please, tell Ms. Waverly if
she ever goes missing again,
- MPU will find her.
- [CHUCKLES]
Matinee opening is not ideal,
- but I think we pulled it off, right?
- Yeah!
How are you holding up?
Poor Robert Krasnow made me realize
I've been handling things all wrong.
What do you mean?
I've only been thinking about myself
and about the theater,
not about the community
that we're here to serve,
so I'm donating a portion
of the profits from Aurora
to the Burn Unit at
Logan Square Memorial.
Oh, that's so wonderful. Wow.
Um, I'm so glad you liked it,
but there's just one
last thing I need to do.
[HELEN] Oh, yeah. Of course.
[ONSTAGE DIALOGUE, INDISTINCT]
[WOMAN] Thank you for your support.
I'm leaving you, Derrick.
We both know you won't.
You can't.
I'll destroy you in court.
Hmm. That's interesting, Derrick,
because I wonder what
the courts would have to say
about you
tracking me without my consent.
I bet a judge will think
that entitles me to a little something,
don't you?
[AUDITORIUM DOORS OPEN]
If you hadn't been a
bastard, I might not be alive.
So
thank you.
[ENTHUSIASTIC APPLAUSE]
How does it feel to have
another hit on your hands?
I've written a lot of stories,
but you know what I think?
Tell me.
I think our story tops them all.
[CAMERA SHUTTERS SNAPPING]
Whoo!
[MUSIC THROBBING]
You know, you didn't
have to come with me.
Uh, yes, I did, for protection.
Oh, you think I need protection?
Oh, no, honey, you're
fine. Protection for the kid.
Ah, got it.
Victor Thompson?
- He's right there.
- The kid in the red?
Behave, otherwise I
will sic Ursula on you.
[JASON] Who's Victor Thompson?
Victor Thompson?
Victor Thompson!
I'm Sidney's dad. The cop.
You guys, beat it.
You, have a seat.
[GIRLS] Oh, hi!
Ah! That's not very comfortable.
[GRUNTS AND SIGHS]
Okay, uh, so, um
here's the thing.
I was young, once.
Um, maybe a little stupid.
Who knows, maybe
I'm still a little stupid?
Oh, he is. I can confirm that.
[JASON] Thank you. Anyway
I'm just curious, uh,
where in that head of yours
did you think that you could
get my daughter pregnant,
abandon her,
and that there would
not be a consequence?
I don't understand that.
Jay, calm down.
- What are you talking about?
- What am I talkin' about?
You're the college kid.
Why don't you tell me?
Okay.
Yeah, I'm leaving.
Okay? But I asked Sid to come with me.
I love her.
You do, huh?
Yeah.
And I know having a baby is a big deal.
Okay, and the timing isn't great
but I thought we could make it work.
So, what happened?
She said "no."
She said that she couldn't leave you,
that you've lost too many people.
I see.
- Hey.
- Hey.
What are you guys doing here?
I thought we were going to dinner.
We are. Just, uh, have
a seat for a second.
Okay.
[JASON CHUCKLES]
I, uh, I know what
you were trying to do
and I I could not
be more proud of you.
This decision has to be
about you, not about me.
Yeah.
I just knew how important
it was for me to be here right now.
Your dad's gonna be fine, Sid.
I wasn't just talking about him.
We're the only family
that we have left, guys,
and I just worry about both of you.
That's really sweet.
Look, if this is what
you really want to do
really, really what you want to do
you gotta get out of here.
Not Not forever, obviously.
No. Just until you find
your own path in life,
and if that includes
another country for a while
We, uh we want you
to fly, baby girl. Okay?
Just do me a favor
don't start drinking tea regularly.
That would be a bummer.
You guys are really gonna be okay?
Yeah.
We got each other, right?
Not just at work.
We're gonna join a dart league.
No. We're not.
He's still warming up to the idea.
Go have an adventure, okay?
Okay.
And what if I want to come back home?
Then he'll change diapers.
I'm gonna miss both of you a lot.
Let's go have dinner, please.
But, uh, Dad One is paying.
I'll flip you for it.
- How about that?
- No, no, no, no.
Flip me for it? You do this thing where
you always just conveniently
forget your wallet.
You think that that's a
convenient forgetting?
That was a rhetorical
no, I don't think that It's
Okay, you guys! Both of you!
Joan.
What's going on?
He's missing.
What do you mean, he's missing?
It's a good thing, Joan.
We just can't tell anyone.
You hear me?
Well, what if he comes back?
He won't! It doesn't matter.
This is our chance!
[LILLIAN] Hold!
Hold action, please!
I'm sorry, I can't have
Aurora cross downstage
without the stage-left spot.
I'm totally losing her.
Phil we open in two days.
I'm watching shadow puppets up there.
Phil, can you bring up the house lights?
- Sure thing.
- Thanks.
[PHIL] Let's bring up the house lights.
Hey, uh, Lil?
Can we sidebar for a sec?
[WOMAN] And you just let
me know which one I use.
- Great.
- [CONTINUES INDISTINCTLY]
[SECOND WOMAN] Okay.
[MAN] Okay, Carsten,
you want to head up there
You're asking for things
you never asked for before.
I know how much is riding on this,
and it's just not good enough.
It's going to be perfect.
You have sunk millions into this place.
The whole city is watching.
Oh, and word is,
your playwright's a freakin' disaster.
You are not a disaster
you're just a little stressed.
Here's what we're gonna do.
I'm gonna call "dinner."
You and I are gonna
share a bottle of wine,
maybe some greasy pasta,
then we're gonna come back,
we're gonna finish rehearsals.
How's that sound?
Can we make it chicken parm?
[WOMAN TALKING, INDISTINCT]
Phil?
Let's take dinner.
Great job, everybody!
Let's break for dinner early.
Thank you.
[MAN] Are we ready to have
Oh, hold on a sec.
I'm gonna go grab my script.
'Kay. I'll meet you out front.
[MAN] Sure. I actually
have a sandwich in the fridge,
but I can
[WOMAN ANSWERS, INDISTINCT]
[DOOR OPENING]
[DOOR BANGING]
Is someone there?
[FOREBODING THEME RISES]
Ceel?
Phil?
[CRACK]
[THUD]
Yo.
It's gas station coffee it
sucks but it's really strong.
I was about to give it to Kemi.
Your car was not in the garage.
Yeah. Sid borrowed it.
- Why?
- 'Kay. I'm gonna tell you.
Put your coffee down first.
Why?
So you don't throw it at me.
Uh-huh?
Sid had her first O.B.
appointment today.
And she didn't ask me to
go? She didn't ask you to go?
She said she wanted
to handle it by herself.
I didn't press her on it.
Don't Don't fathers usually
attend those type of functions?
I'm just curious.
- [KEYS JANGLING]
- I brought the keys back.
Okay. So we're doing this again?
You guys are talking about me.
So if you're gonna be man-babies,
let's do this.
- Hey! He's the man-baby.
- What are you, a babysitter?
Oh, my god. Can we just be adults?
We are adults.
We can all be adults,
but you're still my little girl.
Okay? You took a year off of school,
you're not telling us
who the father is
things we'd like to know.
I told you I would talk to
you about it when I was ready.
So, I met this guy from Penn State,
we had a few drinks,
didn't use protection
- Oh!
- Okay! All right, enough! Please.
You don't have to get anatomical.
Okay, just continue. Sorry.
I'm gonna stay here
until I have the baby.
End of story.
And we respect that.
We want to be as much a part of it
as you want us to.
- Thank you.
- Right, Jay?
Yeah, right! I'm sorry, I'm still at
Penn State Peter not
wearing a jimmy-hat.
Okay, so the Mayor called.
- I'm gonna go.
- All right.
- Love you.
- Love you, too.
- Love you too, Mike.
- Bye.
Why Why'd the Mayor call?
[KEMI] He got a call
from one of his donors.
A "Lillian Waverly" is missing.
- Gone since last night.
- Who's that?
Big Broadway playwright.
She's premiering her new show
at the Bainbridge St. Theatre.
Wait, that's the theater
that had that fire,
like, 15 years ago, right?
- Yeah.
- Like 80-something people died.
Yeah. So, they were
supposed to reopen on Friday.
It was a big black-tie
event the whole deal.
Maybe she doesn't like parties.
Patrol says there was signs of blood,
so we are looking at an abduction.
Jay, go, and, uh, take
Helen with you to run trace.
Why aren't you coming?
Interim Lead Officer duties.
Houston's got me doing
paperwork till the next solar eclipse.
I gotta sign off on all
your property damage.
Well, I was just actually thinking
I'm gonna run a bus off a
bridge while I'm out, so
Yeah, wouldn't be surprised.
Oh, my gosh! This place is beautiful.
Yeah, if you're into gold paint.
If you like Lillian Waverly.
I'm guessing that you do?
Lillian's work is life-changing.
You either get it or you don't.
But if you do ohh!
You feel it in your soul.
She was the hottest
playwright on Planet Broadway.
Why was?
She had a bunch of a
hits, won a ton of awards,
but a couple of years ago,
she went into self-destruct mode.
Had a $10-million show
about to start previews,
and she pulled the plug.
She took off for some
retreat in the Catskills
and went totally dark.
It was a real-life theater tragedy.
Certainly a tragedy
for the people who put
up the 10 million dollars.
Sounds like motive to me.
Missing Persons?
Yeah.
I'm Phil. Stage Manager.
Thank God you're here.
So, what do you think
happened to your playwright, Phil?
She's not just our
playwright! She's my friend.
Okay, who are you?
Celia Fischer!
Patron of the arts!
I can't believe this happened.
You have to find her.
That's what we're doing here.
Where do you think she was
taken from? Let's start there.
- Follow me.
- 'Kay.
[QUIETLY] Settle down.
Okay, so what can you tell me
about these investors
that Lillian pissed off?
No one likes to lose money.
They were angry, but
this? No, that can't be.
Anybody else you can think
of she had a problem with?
No. Lillian could be demanding,
but she's respectful of everyone,
and she's hardest on herself.
You may want to tell him
about the, uh, incidents.
Yeah, yeah. What incidents?
Reopening the theater has
had some community pushback.
What kind of pushback?
Pressure to deny permits,
problems during renovations.
My office was broken into.
It's Philly.
Bunch of whackadoos
accused us of profiting off
the tragedy of the fire.
Well, it's a pretty big deal.
A lot of people lost their lives. Right?
This place went up like a powder keg
during a matinee. I can
see how people'd get upset,
'cause you're putting a fresh
coat of paint on the place,
and then serving cocktails in the lobby.
That's not what we did.
And most of the city wants this to work.
Okay. I mean, I heard
that, prior to your purchase,
there was talks of a memorial park.
What good is a park gonna do? A statue?
I mean, this this
is a living memorial.
I want this to be a place of healing.
Detective. I've got something!
Okay. You guys hang tight.
What's up?
This is weird.
There's traces of blood,
but no directionality to the droplets.
The blood was put
here like this was staged.
Inadvertent pun.
Gotcha.
So the kidnapper left a trail?
And the trail leads thattaway.
Okay.
[CREAKING]
Can you grab that, Helen? Please.
Oh, yeah.
Sorry. Okay.
There we go.
- Can you open it now?
- Oh, right. Of course.
[HELEN] Oh
Funny way to leave a message.
It's a QR code that leads to a webpage.
Somebody went to a lot of trouble
what is it they want us to see?
- Please don't do this.
- [KIDNAPPER] Celia Fischer,
you were told not to open the theater,
but you didn't listen to me.
Listen to her!
I know you don't want to hurt me.
Just do what he asks.
[KIDNAPPER] I mean
this close that theater down.
- Issue the Alert.
- Yeah.
[MISSING ALERT BLARING]
[OVERLAPPING ALERTS BLARING]
[KIDNAPPER] If Celia Fischer
thinks the police can save you,
she's wrong.
[REPORTER] The historic
Bainbridge St. Theatre
was devastated by fire in May 2010,
taking the lives of 87
men, women, and children.
Leaving the historic
1910 structure in ruin.
The theater was recently purchased
by local entrepreneur Derrick Fischer,
whose wife, Celia,
will be reopening the
theater with a new play
from award-winning Lillian Waverly.
[HITS KEY]
That's a news report
from three months ago.
You think Lillian's kidnapping
had something to do with the fire?
Maybe. I followed up with the investors
that sued Lillian after
she pulled the plug
on her last play.
They got a lien on her future earnings,
so hurting Lillian only hurts them.
Any other haters?
A couple of theater fans who think
that she didn't deserve her last Tony.
An actress who did a staged reading,
and then she got mad
when the play went up
and she didn't get cast.
It's all pretty mild.
Yeah, well, abducting a
woman to shut down a theater
that's kind of the opposite of mild.
Which brings us back to the fire.
[PHONE CHIMES]
All right. That's Helen.
She's got something.
See if you can figure
out who built that website.
Yeah.
[KEYS CLACKING]
These came from the note card.
Looks like they're smudged.
Yeah. See the bad definition
in the loops and arches?
May be from moisture,
adhesive on the fingertips
but no way to I.D. them.
Well, we both saw the video.
This lady's in trouble.
Keep trying for me, yeah?
Mm-hmm.
[BLURTS] It's Lillian Waverly.
When I was 16,
my aunt took me to see
The Quantum of Sarah.
It changed my life.
Whatever it takes.
- Thanks.
- Mm-hmm.
[MIKE] Sorry to keep you waiting.
I keep seeing Lillian
all tied up like that,
every time I close my eyes.
I'm sorry.
I'm not usually like this, I'm just
Whoa, hey, hey.
It's okay. All right? You're scared.
I get it.
Um, what can I do to help?
Well, based on the video,
we think that you should
postpone opening night
and close the theater just for now.
Yes, of course.
Lillian is special.
We've spent months together,
but she still surprises me
every single day.
She's brilliant and she's passionate,
and she doesn't deserve this.
And we are gonna do
everything that we can
to find her. Okay?
- [RAPPING ON DOOR]
- [DOOR OPENS]
Sorry. We got a walk-in off
the Alert possible witness.
Okay. See what they got,
and shout if you need me.
Gotcha.
Oh, I know exactly who she is.
Sent my systolic through the roof
when I heard they were gonna reopen.
So, you worked for the
Bainbridge St. Theatre,
- Ms. Grayson?
- I was an usher in the early 2000s.
I loved that place.
Got the autograph of
Mr. James Earl Jones once.
Look at you!
That's truly special.
You were saying about the theater?
I was there the night of the fire.
I wasn't physically hurt,
but I remember the smoke,
and the screams.
You can't ever get a sound
like that out of your head.
I can imagine.
When I heard they were reopening,
I got nostalgic, so I
went to take a look.
Know who I saw?
Right across the street?
Reed Tillis.
That's the man who owned the theater
prior to the fire?
The snake himself.
He inherited the theater.
Ran it into the ground.
There's blood on his hands.
And you're sure it was Tillis?
I'm sure. I'd know him anywhere.
But it's odd.
What is?
After all the wrongful death lawsuits,
he declared bankruptcy,
and left town.
With that woman missing
now, I thought I'd report it,
because why is he back?
You been drinking today, Mr. Tillis?
Why do you ask?
You smell like the bar
mat at the TGI Friday's.
[SIGHS] This is about
that damn theater, isn't it?
It always is.
If I could still afford her,
I would call my lawyer.
Okay. Here's the thing.
A couple months ago,
new owners had a break-in.
Mrs. Fischer's office was tossed.
They didn't have a good security system,
but the diner across the
street had a fancy new system.
Cameras and everything.
That's a good angle on you, isn't it?
[SHATTERING]
Okay, fine. You got me on B-and-E.
Go ahead, lock me up.
Get a headline out of it. I
make a great punching bag.
Yeah, I feel terrible for you.
Just tiny little tears on the inside.
You have any idea how
expensive it is to run a theater?
- I don't.
- I was just keeping the doors open
and then some outdated
breaker box overloads and it
I lost everything.
I think that the 87
people that lost their lives
lost a bit more than you did.
You think I don't know that?
[GRUNTS] Don't know.
All right, Mr. Tillis. What
What were you after?
Fischer's heart.
What's the problem with Celia Fischer?
No, not her.
Her husband Mr. Moneybags.
After the fire,
the theater was standing evidence
in all the lawsuits, so
I couldn't even tear it down,
and then Fischer made an offer.
Finally, I could recoup
something, right?
He paid me pennies on the dollar,
all so his chippy wife
could have her own
little slice of Broadway.
And I found out that the
city was gonna pay me more
to turn it into a memorial
park, but my lawyer told me
the only way that I
could get out of the deal
was if I could prove
that Fischer's appraisal was fraudulent,
so I went looking.
You didn't find anything?
[REED SCOFFS BITTERLY]
I don't even own that
tinder box anymore,
and it's still ruining my life.
I didn't take that playwright.
Look at me.
I'm a drunk.
But book me for the burglary.
Go ahead. Knock yourself out.
Keep a unit on Tillis, but
I don't make him for this.
The guy's a jackass, not a threat.
You gotta see something!
Channel 5! Hurry.
[KEMI] Okay!
We've heard the reports
that we will be
postponing opening night.
They are false.
We will not respond to blackmail.
I am the owner of
Bainbridge St. Theatre,
and I assure you
the show will go on.
Now, I'm happy to answer
any of your questions.
[CELIA] What the hell were you thinking?
A woman's life is in danger!
You know that, and clearly don't care!
Really?
Suddenly you're the
saint in all this, are you?
I was doing the right thing.
Now, that's a change of pace, isn't it?
[NOTIFICATION CHIMES]
Oh, my god.
Open the link.
[CLICK]
[LILLIAN] Please let me talk to her.
If I can just talk to Celia
Please. No!
No! [SCREAMING]
- [GAS SPLASHING]
- I do not want to do this!
[KIDNAPPER] Why are
you not listening to me?
[LILLIAN SCREAMING] Ah! Help!
Ah!
Help me!
[KIDNAPPER] You have until 6:00 tonight.
[KIDNAPPER] Close the theater
or she burns.
[LILLIAN] Celia! Help, please! Help me!
[DOG YAPS]
Tell me her name again?
Uh, his name is Ursula.
Ahh.
As in, "Le Guin."
It's my favorite author.
Ahh.
And where'd you get the little guy?
Ankara, Turkey.
You brought a dog back from Turkey?
Yeah.
What was I supposed to do?
Have you seen his face?
He licked my feet, so, it was game over.
Okay.
Anyway, I'm here
about that playwright, Lillian Waverly.
Yeah, I heard about that.
A Broadway playwright gets grabbed?
That is not a good look for Philly.
No, it is not. And here's the thing.
The kidnapper is posting
threats to a website,
and Kemi cannot get the I.P. address.
What's the website?
I got it here.
Look at you you got
your own computer now
and everything.
Turbo speed at 3.7 Gigahertz.
Eat my digital dust, bad guys.
Okay, let's see.
All right. Well, whoever
is uploading to this site
is using a Tor browser,
but I have a brand-new packet-sniffer
that totally slaps, so
all I have to do is identify
the WiFi that they're
using to update the site
And then you can find
out where it's coming from?
Exactly.
As they say in Turkey, orada.
The Jefferson Royal
a luxury boutique hotel on South 17th.
I know the Jefferson Royal.
It's right down the street
from the theater. This is great.
- Mm-hmm.
- Thank you.
- Anytime.
- I'll see ooh.
Actually, um
I do have another favor.
That favor tab is exploding.
You remember when I texted
you that Sidney's pregnant?
Yes, vividly.
Remember when I texted you back, saying
that I was shocked that the baby-daddy
was not in a full-body cast yet?
Yeah. I don't I don't
wanna hurt the guy.
I just I do need his name, though.
What for?
Gonna buy him an ice cream.
No, I just I just
want to talk to him.
Can you help me out?
How do you expect me to find him?
You could hack Sidney's school email?
And I've just
conveniently written it on
- Oh!
- The backside of this paper.
Wow, premeditated and everything.
That is wildly invasive.
That's coming from the woman who, uh,
posted a Brigadier
General's porn search history
because he insulted her.
Okay, he had it coming.
This? I'm not so sure that
I am comfortable with this.
Will you just do it?
Please. I'm not gonna
do anything stupid.
Please.
Famous last words.
[DOOR OPENS]
Hey!
Good job!
Hey, next time, you wanna pee on him?
I think that's a great idea.
Wayne said the WiFi
used to update the website
was on a guest network
at the Jefferson Royal.
So, it's a longshot,
but I searched the registry
to see if Reed Tillis stayed there.
- At the Jefferson?
- Mm-hmm.
That guy blew his hotel
budget on rot-gut rye.
I mean, ain't that the truth,
but, um [CHUCKLES]
Let me show you this
I found something very interesting
a deluxe suite under the
name "María Irene Fornés"
on a corporate credit card
belonging to none other
than the D.B. Fischer Fund.
That Celia's husband's company?
That is the one.
What is his motive
for kidnapping Lillian?
I don't know, insurance ploy maybe?
Don't know. Let's
bring him in and find out.
Okay.
Mr. Fischer, help me
understand your position here.
I'm gonna need you to be more specific.
You refuse to shut the theater down.
Lillian Waverly was
taken from the theater,
but the scene was investigated,
and cleared by your people.
I'm impeding nothing. All good?
No, not quite.
We have a hotel room
that was booked with your company card
that we believe is tied to the crime.
My wife booked that room. She
uses pseudonyms for privacy.
Half the cast and
crew are staying there.
She said it'd be more convenient.
Our primary residence is in Gladwyne.
You may not be familiar.
It's very expensive.
You know, rich guys go
to jail same as poor people.
I've seen it happen.
Then those rich people
aren't rich enough.
Look, Detective
"Detective Sergeant,"
and you'll say it with some respect.
[TAKING A DEEP BREATH]
[SIGHS]
My wife's been cheating on me, okay?
Oh, she hid it pretty well.
Turned location services
off on all her devices,
so I found a necklace that
I could hide a GPS chip in.
Gave it to her for good luck,
and she's been wearing it ever since.
That's how I confirmed she was cheating,
that's also why I won't be
shutting down the theater.
She doesn't get to parade
around a saint to the arts
using my money, while
also cheating on me.
Who was she having an affair with?
Lillian Waverly.
I hope that clears things up.
Well, what it does, Mr. Fischer,
is it gives you a motive.
Fischer's assistant
gave me his calendar.
Wow, when does this guy sleep?
I mean, never apparently.
He does have an alibi for
the time that Lillian was taken.
Fischer was triple-booked
at a ribbon-cutting
for a new commercial development,
dinner at Chestnut Hill, and
you cannot make this up
a phone call with the Mayor.
Apparently he and the
Fischers are all good buddies.
Yep, so the hubby is out.
Uh, but if he didn't take Lillian,
there was still someone
at the hotel, posting on the website.
Can you go through the registry?
Let's see. The show
booked a block of rooms,
but there's still
50 other people who
are still registered.
It's gonna take me a minute.
Yeah, and there's only
three hours till the deadline.
I don't care what Fischer says,
I want the theater
closed and everybody out.
All right.
[DOOR SHUTS]
Joan.
- What's going on?
- He's missing.
What do you mean, he's missing?
It's a good thing, Joan!
We just can't tell anyone. You hear me?
Well, what if he comes back?
He won't.
It doesn't matter. This is our chance
You know, you've been working very hard.
I feel inspired.
Lemme deal with the theater folk, huh?
These people are just
trying to do their jobs,
so, let's try and be respectful?
I'll be very respectful!
[WOLF-WHISTLES LOUDLY]
Sorry!
But we've gotta shut you down.
Rehearsal's over.
- What the hell is going on?
- Hi, Phil. You remember me?
We gotta get everybody
off the stage, like now.
We were told to keep rehearsing.
Yeah, Phil, I have not been in a theater
since my daughter's
recital of the Nutcracker
which was lovely.
This is next level. This is marvelous.
But these people could be in danger.
You could be in danger.
We gotta shut you down.
Buddy, I don't wanna fight with a cop.
I got acid indigestion
that could eat a battery,
a bad back from sitting on
folding chairs my whole life,
- but my hands are tied.
- Why?
Fischer'll have your
ass if you shut down?
It was implied.
Well, how about this?
Hard hats.
Hard hats? What?
Yeah, nobody's wearing a hard hat.
Your ladder is the wrong
height, so we come in,
we shut you down on an OSHA violation.
Everybody gets out
safely no harm, no foul.
Okay, fine.
This better not bite me in the ass.
[OVER PA SYSTEM]
Actors, out of costumes.
Crew, stand down.
We need to vacate the
premises immediately.
Thank you.
Yes, thank you.
Philadelphia PD
appreciates your cooperation.
Those damn fresnels
in the window again
No. No, Phil.
No! Off the stage, now.
Let me just shut
everything down properly.
Take a second. God knows
we don't want another fire.
They're weird theater
people, aren't they?
[ELECTRICITY ZAPPING]
Oh!
[MAN] We're en route now.
Mike said you whistled in the theater.
That is bad luck. It is very bad luck.
Don't do that. It wasn't me.
It was this breaker box. Okay?
Someone jacked with these wires.
Wasn't an accident it was a sabotage.
- Sabotage?
- Yeah.
That never ends well in the theater.
In Phantom, Carlotta thinks
she's sabotaging Christine,
but all she's really
doing is setting herself up
as a target for revenge.
You've seen Phantom, right?
Just dust it, please.
- Okay. Dusting.
- Thanks.
[KEMI] Mrs. Fischer,
I have to apologize to you,
because I have to ask
you a few questions
that might feel intrusive.
Whatever I can do to help.
I understand that you were
in a romantic relationship with Lillian.
[CHUCKLES UNEASILY]
I I'm married.
[BREATH CATCHES]
I wasn't expecting to fall in love.
- Really, I
- No, no.
I'm not here to judge.
All I care about is
getting Lillian back.
[CHUCKLES]
I saw a production
of her first play
in New York.
It changed me,
and I started my own little company,
and I dreamed of, one day,
being able to produce one of her plays.
More of a a pipe dream.
But then I heard talk that
she'd had a breakdown
and nobody wanted to touch her work.
So, you gave Bainbridge
St. A second life,
and Lillian deserved
one, too am I close?
I wanted our premiere to matter,
so I told her
that I had a company and a playhouse,
and I had total faith in her.
At first, it was just a
working relationship,
but then, Lillian is just so
alive.
Derrick doesn't care what I think,
hasn't in years, but she did.
Made me feel like I was
like I was awake again.
This is all my fault.
No.
You cannot blame
yourself for falling in love.
If I hadn't brought her here,
if I hadn't set this all in motion,
she would still be here with me.
She'd still be safe.
And we are going to work
to make her safe again.
Together.
I promise you.
Okay?
Holy moly.
Okay, I did not see this coming.
What? You didn't see what coming?
This print it's the
same as the one I lifted
from the card the kidnapper left.
Mike said that you couldn't
get a print off of that card.
I couldn't I.D. it
because I thought the
print was compromised,
but it's not the print
it's the finger.
The finger has a disfigurement.
Okay, can you explain that?
Fingerprints are encoded deep down,
between the dermis and epidermis,
which means they can survive anything
short of serious injury or
third-degree burns.
Uh-huh. So
someone with a burnt fingertip
was skulking around this theater
a theater known for its historic fire?
You think it was Colonel
Mustard with a candlestick?
Our suspect's not just
somebody angry about the fire.
- [SHUTTER SNAPS]
- They were in the fire, too.
Correct.
I'll get this over to the office.
Thank you.
Okay, so we're looking
for victims burned
in the Bainbridge St.
Theatre fire in 2010.
All the survivors were treated
at the Logan Square Memorial.
I compiled a list of everyone
who suffered burns on their hands.
- So where's that leave us?
- According to the list,
ten of the injured
suffered third- and fourth-degree burns,
which is enough to
alter the fingerprints.
Uh, since then, two
of the ten have died.
All right. Let's get units rolling.
We'll need to track
down the remaining eight.
Yeah, before you do
um, there is a familiar
name on this burn-victim list.
- Mare Grayson?
- Mm-hmm.
That the woman who
tried to throw Reed Tillis
under the bus?
Yep, and she also specifically told me
that she was unharmed in the fire.
Now, why do you think
she'd lie about that?
I couldn't tell you,
but I very much would
like her to tell me.
I'm bringing her back in.
Hi.
Why are we in this room?
You know, we really
appreciate you coming back in.
I can imagine how hard it is,
reliving all of this.
Losing so many colleagues in that fire
must've taken its toll.
I told you. Of course it did.
Was it enough of a toll
that you'd want to take
out that anger on someone?
Do you think?
No.
I had nothing to do with this.
Then why lie about your injuries,
if you had nothing to hide?
I've lived with the scars
almost longer than
I've lived without them,
but they don't define me.
A woman's missing and I tried to help,
but I didn't want to
get in any trouble
not after the protests.
What protests?
I run a group
called "Shouting Fire
in a Crowded Theater."
We organized after Reed Tillis
decided to make a profit
instead of a memorial park.
And how many are in your group?
A few dozen.
Mostly survivors, relatives of victims.
How did they take the news
of the reopening of the theater?
They were hurt.
Angry.
Some more than others.
Our email chain got a little heated.
I want you to know
that I don't stand for that.
What do you mean, stand for what?
A call for violence.
Vandalism.
This isn't how I do things.
I told them to stand
down, we'd lost, but
some of the others were
more volatile on the subject.
Ms. Grayson,
did someone in your
group suggest harming
the people that were
involved in the reopening?
Ms. Grayson?
There are lives are at stake.
I'm sorry.
At the time,
I just thought they were empty threats.
I need to see all of
those emails right now.
Please follow me.
Mike? Mike!
Come here for a second.
Okay, so I compared
the eight burn victims
from the hospital records
to the email list from
the protest group,
and there's one name in common
- Robert Krasnow.
- Who's he?
He's a computer
programmer. Lives in Ardmore.
He was badly injured in the fire,
and based on his emails,
he has a violent objection
to the reopening of the theater,
and get this
for the last two months,
Robert Krasnow has been employed
by the Bainbridge St. Theatre.
Tell me we have that theater cleared.
I mean, the last that I had heard,
Celia Fischer
was on-site, locking up.
I'll send a unit over to the theater!
[DOOR OPENING]
[THUD]
Robert?
What are you doing here?
I thought the crew had all left.
I thought I was alone.
Wh What's going on?
Your hands
you always wear gloves.
Oh, my God.
You were in the fire?
I didn't know.
You didn't care.
[PHONE RINGS]
The police are on their way.
You really shouldn't
be here, Mrs. Fischer.
- [YELP]
- [THUD]
- Hey.
- Hey.
What's, uh, what's the emergency?
And that thing does
not have a a visitor pass.
Yeah, well, he is a rule-breaker,
just like his mama.
- Thank you.
- Mm-hmm.
What What's with the
redactions, Watergate?
Oh, I just figured that your daughter
deserves a little bit of privacy.
- Don't you think?
- [JASON GRUMBLES]
Don't worry, everything that
you need to know is there.
His name is Victor Thompson.
He is 24 years old.
He is a graduate
student at Penn State
with stellar grades, I might add.
He and Sid met
at an inter-collegiate open-mic night,
- which is adorable.
- Mm.
I'm about to tell you the
rest, but I'm gonna need you
to promise not to throw anything, first.
That's not a great sign.
Yeah.
So it seems like our Young Vic
is about to do his doctorate studies
in Sustainable Urban
Development at Oxford.
Okay. Well, when do
I start throwing things?
He leaves for the U.K. in two days,
so that is the emergency.
Oh! Oh, I see.
So he gets my daughter pregnant
and then he thinks he's
just gonna skip the country?
- Is that right?
- Well, "ish".
"Ish"? Give me his address, please.
Why? So you can chemically castrate him?
- No, not chemically.
- Jason
Okay, lookit. I'm just
gonna go talk to him
man to man, when this case is over.
I'm gonna drive up to Penn,
have a conversation with him,
maybe I'll rearrange his
Regard for the female sex?
Something like that.
[QUIETLY] Celia, baby, look at me.
Hey, hey
[GASPS]
- Hi!
- It's okay.
- Hi.
- It's okay
Hi! Are you okay?
I was so worried about you.
It's okay. I'm okay. I'm okay.
Hey.
[CLICK]
Robert, look, look.
I am
I had no idea that you
were hurt in the fire.
Okay? And I am so sorry.
Why didn't you come to me?
What would have been the point?
We care about our crew.
We could have talked about it.
We can help you.
Okay? W We want to listen.
[CLICK-CLICK]
Thank you so much.
All right, so there
were signs of a struggle,
but no Celia.
The theater had been cleared by then,
so also no witnesses.
Jason sent me this
it's a list of all the names
of people lost in the fire.
Wait a minute.
There's two victims with
the last name "Krasnow"
a woman, age 37,
and a ch child, age 6.
[GASPS]
He lost his wife and child.
- And it destroyed him.
- We have a motive.
We have opportunity.
He took those women to punish them
for reopening the theater.
I mean, I sent a unit to his house,
but it was totally cleared out.
I put out a B.O.L.O., no hits yet.
Wait. When I spoke to Fischer,
he said that he, uh, gave
Celia a piece of GPS jewelry.
He thought she was having an affair.
- The rich are weird.
- Yeah.
Call Fischer.
We need to see if it's still
- transmitting a signal.
- I'm on it.
I'm grabbing Jay. Call
when you have a location.
I got you.
I lost
everyone who means anything to me
in that fire.
They were my whole world!
Katie would've graduated
college this year.
[THUMP]
This is their stuff.
People told me I
should give it away, but
it's all I have left.
[SNIFFS DEEPLY]
[SIGHS]
My only job was to protect
them, and I couldn't even do that.
Look, Robert, I'm I'm so sorry.
I I truly am.
But closing down the
theater won't bring them back.
[SHAKING] Every time
I look at that theater,
I watch them burn all over again.
Look, I can tell that you're in pain.
Okay? I can see that!
There There must be
something that I can do to help.
It's too late!
You had your chance!
No one takes responsibility.
Not you, not Reed Tillis, not the city!
This won't bring back
your wife or your daughter.
[SNAPS] Don't talk about them!
[HUFFS AND GRUNTS]
It's okay, baby.
Just close your eyes
and hold on to me. Okay?
- [SPLASHING]
- [YELPING]
No! No! No o o!
[ROBERT RAGING]
[FUEL SPLASHING]
The GPS beacon in Celia's necklace
definitely shows
that she's in that area.
The device isn't sophisticated,
so the signal is weak.
This has gotta be wrong, Kemi.
I don't think so.
It's like a sea of storage units.
I'm getting a lot of interference.
Maybe the device is losing power.
I I don't know.
But you should be in the ballpark.
You know ballparks are very big, right?
Just keep looking for
her! She should be there.
I mean, there's no
vehicles. There's no sound.
There's nothing.
[JASON] Hold on, hold on.
Stop. Stop.
[MIKE] Hey, we'll call you back!
It's gasoline.
- You good?
- Yeah.
[RUMBLING]
Robert Philadelphia PD.
Step outside. Get on the ground.
No.
Hey, hey. Listen to me. Listen to me.
We know what happened.
This right here is not the answer. Okay?
Think your wife and
daughter would want this?
Someone has to pay!
No, no. No one has to
pay. This is not gonna help.
Do you know what it's like?
I already feel dead inside!
I know. All right? Trust
me. We lose people.
It hurts to stay put.
It hurts to move on.
But this is not the answer.
[SOBBING] I couldn't save them!
Okay, all right. I got it.
But you can save three people right now.
Yeah, you can!
Just let the girls go.
Give me the flare, okay? Come on.
[JASON] Come on! Come on,
come on, come on, come on.
Get 'em behind the car. Behind the car.
It's gonna be okay. All right?
Just give me the flare.
Come on.
I just want to be with them again.
- [THUD]
- [WHOOSH]
No, no, no!
Slips through my fingers ♪
Everything I've got ♪
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
I know it's been a terrible time,
but that was amazing!
[CHUCKLES]
Please, tell Ms. Waverly if
she ever goes missing again,
- MPU will find her.
- [CHUCKLES]
Matinee opening is not ideal,
- but I think we pulled it off, right?
- Yeah!
How are you holding up?
Poor Robert Krasnow made me realize
I've been handling things all wrong.
What do you mean?
I've only been thinking about myself
and about the theater,
not about the community
that we're here to serve,
so I'm donating a portion
of the profits from Aurora
to the Burn Unit at
Logan Square Memorial.
Oh, that's so wonderful. Wow.
Um, I'm so glad you liked it,
but there's just one
last thing I need to do.
[HELEN] Oh, yeah. Of course.
[ONSTAGE DIALOGUE, INDISTINCT]
[WOMAN] Thank you for your support.
I'm leaving you, Derrick.
We both know you won't.
You can't.
I'll destroy you in court.
Hmm. That's interesting, Derrick,
because I wonder what
the courts would have to say
about you
tracking me without my consent.
I bet a judge will think
that entitles me to a little something,
don't you?
[AUDITORIUM DOORS OPEN]
If you hadn't been a
bastard, I might not be alive.
So
thank you.
[ENTHUSIASTIC APPLAUSE]
How does it feel to have
another hit on your hands?
I've written a lot of stories,
but you know what I think?
Tell me.
I think our story tops them all.
[CAMERA SHUTTERS SNAPPING]
Whoo!
[MUSIC THROBBING]
You know, you didn't
have to come with me.
Uh, yes, I did, for protection.
Oh, you think I need protection?
Oh, no, honey, you're
fine. Protection for the kid.
Ah, got it.
Victor Thompson?
- He's right there.
- The kid in the red?
Behave, otherwise I
will sic Ursula on you.
[JASON] Who's Victor Thompson?
Victor Thompson?
Victor Thompson!
I'm Sidney's dad. The cop.
You guys, beat it.
You, have a seat.
[GIRLS] Oh, hi!
Ah! That's not very comfortable.
[GRUNTS AND SIGHS]
Okay, uh, so, um
here's the thing.
I was young, once.
Um, maybe a little stupid.
Who knows, maybe
I'm still a little stupid?
Oh, he is. I can confirm that.
[JASON] Thank you. Anyway
I'm just curious, uh,
where in that head of yours
did you think that you could
get my daughter pregnant,
abandon her,
and that there would
not be a consequence?
I don't understand that.
Jay, calm down.
- What are you talking about?
- What am I talkin' about?
You're the college kid.
Why don't you tell me?
Okay.
Yeah, I'm leaving.
Okay? But I asked Sid to come with me.
I love her.
You do, huh?
Yeah.
And I know having a baby is a big deal.
Okay, and the timing isn't great
but I thought we could make it work.
So, what happened?
She said "no."
She said that she couldn't leave you,
that you've lost too many people.
I see.
- Hey.
- Hey.
What are you guys doing here?
I thought we were going to dinner.
We are. Just, uh, have
a seat for a second.
Okay.
[JASON CHUCKLES]
I, uh, I know what
you were trying to do
and I I could not
be more proud of you.
This decision has to be
about you, not about me.
Yeah.
I just knew how important
it was for me to be here right now.
Your dad's gonna be fine, Sid.
I wasn't just talking about him.
We're the only family
that we have left, guys,
and I just worry about both of you.
That's really sweet.
Look, if this is what
you really want to do
really, really what you want to do
you gotta get out of here.
Not Not forever, obviously.
No. Just until you find
your own path in life,
and if that includes
another country for a while
We, uh we want you
to fly, baby girl. Okay?
Just do me a favor
don't start drinking tea regularly.
That would be a bummer.
You guys are really gonna be okay?
Yeah.
We got each other, right?
Not just at work.
We're gonna join a dart league.
No. We're not.
He's still warming up to the idea.
Go have an adventure, okay?
Okay.
And what if I want to come back home?
Then he'll change diapers.
I'm gonna miss both of you a lot.
Let's go have dinner, please.
But, uh, Dad One is paying.
I'll flip you for it.
- How about that?
- No, no, no, no.
Flip me for it? You do this thing where
you always just conveniently
forget your wallet.
You think that that's a
convenient forgetting?
That was a rhetorical
no, I don't think that It's
Okay, you guys! Both of you!