Cold Case s03e17 Episode Script
Superstar
# Helen Reddy's "I Am Woman" # # I am woman, hear me roar # # in numbers too big ignore # # and I know too much to go back and pretend # # 'cause I've heard it all before # # and I've been down there on the floor # That's it, Andi! That's a winner! Match point.
I need a sec.
Be right here.
# But look how much I gained # # if I have to # # I can do anything # # I am strong # That's my sister.
I know.
Everyone knows.
Close it out, Andi.
One more, and you're on the map with Billie Jean.
And Fritz goes the way of Bobby.
# You can bend but never break me # # 'cause it only serves to make me # # more determined to achieve my final goal # # and I come back even stronger # Run around it! # and I come back even stronger # # Not a novice any longer # # 'cause you've deepened the conviction in my soul # Put it away! Yes! Attagirl! Yes, yes, yes! # I am invincible # Nice match.
You've come a long way, baby.
Enjoy your moment, superstar.
# I am woman, watch me grow see me standing toe-to-toe # # as I spread my lovin' arms across the land # # but I'm still an embryo # # with a long, long way to go # My sister was a great tennis player.
Born with a racket, as they say.
She played for Penn university? Number one varsity, her first year.
Sounds like a star.
My dad said given another year or two, she would have gone to Wimbledon.
But then she was murdered.
Remember Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs? Battle of the sexes.
We won.
Few weeks later, Penn U had its own version of that match, for a fund-raiser.
Andi for the ladies? And like Billie Jean, she won.
The next morning, she was found dead.
Strangled, in her room.
Cops look at the guy she beat? For quite a while.
Nothing stuck? Then her case just kind of stalled.
It's been a dark cloud hanging over us 33 years.
Sure.
What brings you in now, Emily? My dad's moving to Florida.
I've been cleaning out his house.
I found a bunch of Andi's old tennis stuff, including this.
Is that a towel? The one she used the night of the match.
It was still in her bag.
I got sick after I handled it.
Poison control found traces of sodium nitrate.
It's, uh, lethal in high doses.
Someone really wanted to hurt Andi.
I don't want to be a bother, but I thought maybe it was related to her murder.
Could have been the doer's first attempt.
So find out who dosed this towel maybe we find the person who brought down a rising star.
- What'd you do this time? - Nothing.
Ah, I missed dinner.
Big deal, right? Because of work, or because you were at the bar? Ran into a guy I know.
I buy one, he buys one, we talk.
Next thing I know, it's 2:30.
Julie wait up? In that creepy rocking chair I hate.
You gotta do something about this.
It's a circle game.
It'll work out.
So where are we going? Victim's family.
Coed strangled after a battle of the sexes tennis match.
I need an egg sandwich for this.
Andi Simmons, 18.
Found strangled in her dorm room, day after her big win.
No sign of forced entry.
So she knew her attacker.
Any candidates? A Fritz Adams, the guy she beat.
Men's number one player, cops' number one suspect.
Senior guy loses to a freshman girl? It's kinda hard to live down.
Especially when it's splashed all over the front page.
No alibi, but they still couldn't build a case against him.
Family lawyered him up, job fizzled.
Other lead was some hang-up phone calls Andi was getting.
Someone calling and whispering "superstar.
" - Could've been Fritz? - He never copped to it.
Any chance this poisoned towel was a prank? The dose was practically lethal.
Where do they get the sodium nitrate? Chemistry building at Penn U is right next to the courts.
Well, the towel narrows it down to someone close to Andi.
With access to her gear, the night of the match.
Thins out the suspect pool.
Vera and Jeffries are with the family, getting names.
Well, we already know one.
Fritz.
Might as well start with the top guy.
- See you're pulling up stakes.
- Yeah.
Dad's had enough Philly winters.
My sister lives in Palm beach.
Be nice to live near family.
So this towel Emily found could be a new direction on Andi's murder.
If my girl was poisoned, I don't see why you missed it.
- Cause of death was strangulation.
- I know that.
And standard autopsy doesn't test for poison.
The point is, someone had it out for Andi.
Any ideas why? Envy.
'Cause of her talent? What she had was rare.
This was no dime a dozen kid.
Know who might have tampered with her gear that night, planted this towel? Of course I do.
The guy you've been looking at for 33 years.
- Fritz Adams.
- Maybe this towel finally nails the bastard.
'Cause I know for a fact he loaned her another one.
When was that? Week before the big match.
Saw it with my own eyes.
# I feel the earth move under my feet # # I feel the sky tumbling down # # I feel my heart start to trembling # Run around that, Andi.
I would've had it, but I broke a string.
You sweat a lot for a girl.
Borg sweats a lot.
Is that what the headband's about? Okay, you got your racket.
Get back out there, kiddo.
You know, most people, when they go away to college, bring their stereo, not their dad.
Your serve.
Damn it! Screw this! Screw this match! - Fritzcome down.
- This is rigged, lose-lose.
- What's your problem? - I'm screwed, that's my problem.
I never should've agreed to this thing.
It doesn't help me if I win.
I'm supposed to win, you're a girl.
Thanks a lot.
But if I lose, I'm over.
So win.
Fritz made a big show of laughing it off when Andi won the big match, but I'd seen his true colors.
All his fears come true? He tanked the season.
Never even tried the pros.
Did you see him with Andi after the match at all? Last time we saw her was out on court one after her win.
Surrounded by people toasting her.
Right, Em? It's how I always remember her.
Nothing's been right since.
Lost the brightest light in my life.
Fritz Adams? Hi, there.
Here for the ladies' clinic? Do we look like we're here for the ladies' clinic? - What then? - Detective Rush, Miller.
It's about Andi Simmons.
I've been down this road way too many times.
The towel turned up, Fritz.
That supposed to mean something to me? - You tell us.
I give up.
The towel Andi used at your match, was laced with sodium nitrate.
Sodium what? Ladies, I'm a jock.
I don't do chemicals.
Well, maybe fear of getting whipped by a girl got you to crack a book.
I lost a match.
That's no reason to kill someone.
Unless your temper got the best of you.
We hear you had a real meltdown with Andi at a practice match.
You ever see John Mcenroe chuck a racket? That's just tennis.
But after she beat you, you lost any chance of going pro.
I had a one-time problem with Andi.
That was nothing compared with the girls she was with day to day.
Her teammates? Talk about a bunch of hens with ruffled feathers.
Who was the most ruffled? Grace Andersen.
- The team captain? - And my girlfriend at the time.
She have something against skirts? Let's just say she's more Billie Jean than Chrissie.
She's been in the paper like three times this week.
- Four.
Oh! Thanks for joining us.
Am I late? I'm sorry.
- We have a challenge match.
- I know.
It was supposed to start 10 minutes ago.
I was doing an interview.
We all know you're a big superstar, Andi, but tennis should come first.
You're right.
This guy just kept talking.
Tell him you have practice and that being late is frowned upon.
I will.
Promise.
Look, why don't you take a game for every minute I'm late? Oh, right.
No, I mean it.
I deserve it.
It's 6-0, 4-0 yours.
Two games away from winning.
And you can serve.
Andi still won? Grace didn't take a game? She was a good captain, didn't vent in public.
But behind closed doors? She had a lot of bad nights.
Andi was making her crazy.
Think she could have poisoned this towel? Grace was a grind on the court and off.
Doesn't sound like an answer to me.
She was a chem major.
Spent half her time in the lab, and the other half on the courts.
- Giving her means, motive - And opportunity.
So Andi's a phenom, Grace is a grinder.
And they hate each other.
- Like Mozart - and that other guy.
Exactly.
Saw it when I played college ball.
No one hates god-given talent like a second-stringer.
Excuse me.
You're Will, right? Yes.
I'm Julie, Nick Vera's wife.
Of course.
Uh, this is John Stillman, Scotty Valens.
- Nice to meet you.
- Same here.
Nicky says nice things.
Um, he's out on the street, have a seat.
I'll call him.
We got some god-awful coffee.
No, that's okay.
Could you just give him this? Uh, sure.
Thanks.
- Nice seeing you again.
- Yeah.
Bye.
Way to go.
Crap.
I met her once, four years ago.
That'll help his cause, trying to get out of the woodshed.
I didn't know things were so bad.
Well, he didn't seem worried yesterday.
But this ain't a good sign.
Met your old boyfriend, Grace.
Fritz Adams? - Oh, really? Is he bald and fat? I take it you're not in touch.
Uh, things didn't end well with us.
He said you had a little problem with Andi Simmons.
Oh, I wouldn't call it little.
A lot of fur flying between you two? I was number one for three years, and then Andi takes it away.
For a high-strung, type-A bulimic like me? Big problem.
- You work all that out? - Yes, thanks.
So when Andi and Fritz played in the battle of the sexes, - who were you rooting for? - Oh, I was Switzerland, neutral.
I know if I'm choosing between my boyfriend and a girl I despise, I'm going with the guy.
Maybe that's where the towel comes in.
Andi's towel was laced with sodium nitrate.
And I'm Marie Curie? Crossed our mind.
I had a lot of things to work through back then, - aforementioned emotional issues.
- But? I was in a study group the night she was killed, for one thing, - with three other people.
- We'll need those names.
And more importantly, Andi's win actually meant something to me.
- Women's lib, you know.
- Oh, boy.
Was Andi a big activist? No.
And that was a problem.
You look great, you know.
You don't have to do that.
MYOB, okay? "I don't really have an opinion about title IX.
- "I just want to play tennis.
" - What? - Tell me you were misquoted.
- Um, no.
Title IX protects women athletes.
- I just think of myself as an athlete.
- Hey leave your little backyard, kid.
There's a revolution going on.
Ever wonder why we have to use the chem building bathroom to change for practice? I guess I never thought about it.
The guys have a locker room.
According to Fritz, it's beautiful.
Title IX gets us a locker room, a van, decent budget, same as the guys.
I care about tennis, not politics.
Hey, bambi, wake up! This is our moment.
You're our golden girl.
And I'm not gonna let you blow it.
Sounds like the coach was a dragon lady.
Breathing fire all over Andi.
Lot of sore points between them? Biggest one was Andi's dad wanted Susan fired, not that it happened.
Because Andi died first.
I guess that's true.
You think Susan could've harmed her? She was radical.
Believed in making change by any means necessary.
I ain't doing that interview.
You remember the battle of the sexes match in '73? Court one, Andi Simmons brought Fritz Adams to his knees.
That was a great day.
I enjoyed it.
Good for the cause.
Knocked the bastards down a peg.
Fair to say you take a pretty extreme view on politics? - Have to.
No one gives you an inch without a fight.
And now, you've climbed all the way up to athletic director.
Say what you mean.
If Andi was getting in the way of your agenda She was good for my agenda.
She just needed enlightenment.
We also heard her dad wanted you fired.
'Cause he didn't want to stop coaching her.
But after Andi died, you kept your job.
I hear you.
So? - Bill was a tennis dad, overreaching pain in the ass.
We tussled over Andi.
Both wanted your piece of her.
'Cause she was so special.
But we came together when we ran into a real enemy.
Run around, run around.
Nice! And put it away! We just had a three hour practice, Bill.
- Don't start.
- She's my player.
Who put a racket in her hands when she was four years old? Was that you, Susan, or was that me? So this is the superstar they're all talking about.
Arnold Brown, athletic director.
Oh, hey, hello, good to meet you.
Bill and Andi Simmons.
- They say you're the next Billie Jean King.
- I'd like to be.
And I hear there's a battle of the sexes match scheduled? Fritz Adams and I are playing, number one against number one.
Sounds like something you dreamed up, Susan.
Just trying to raise money, since we've got such a crap budget.
Let me guess.
The trolls at the women's center put you up to this.
No.
I want to play.
I want to win.
Well, that certainly would be interesting, uh but problematic, too.
Why? These are complicated times, Andi.
A lot of demands being made.
I'm just going out there to play.
It's not complicated for me.
Still, this title IX business is a slippery slope.
We don't want to embarrass the university, and we have an obligation to men's athletics.
Embarrass? This kid is dynamite.
She's gonna make you proud.
It's harmless enough to have an exhibition game.
But an upset could stir the pot.
It'll be bad for everyone.
You mean, I should throw the match? Due respect, I doubt Fritz needs the help.
You haven't seen what this girl can do.
And I always play to win.
Maybe I wasn't clear.
An upset is not a possibility.
And I'll be watching.
To him, that was the last word.
He was so sure Andi would just obey him.
And lose on purpose? In his mind, that's what they had agreed to.
But then Andi won.
And was dead the next day.
The Penn athletic director, Arnold Brown, died four years ago.
Dead suspect.
Love that.
He's all over these articles on title IX, big opponent.
The same guy who wrote those stories covered Andi and women's tennis, Eric Witt.
I know that name.
He writes a sports column for the Philly post.
Well, maybe he can tell you how the A.
D.
took it when Andi disobeyed him.
Heading over there.
You doing okay, Nicky? Going home tonight.
By invitation? Ambush.
She'll give me her come-to-Jesus, I'll beg forgiveness, we'll settle back in.
Familiar drill, huh? One that's getting less and less interesting.
May be time to change it up.
A.
D.
Brown went ballistic, when Andi won that match.
Yeah, because now she's the poster child for title IX.
And he wanted things to stay just like they were.
Women athletes, back of the bus.
So maybe he retaliated after Andi won? Actually, I can vouch for his whereabouts that night.
- Yeah? - He was at the paper with me.
Doing what? Breathing down my neck.
Didn't want me to glorify her in the story.
But you kind of did, anyway.
You should have seen my first draft.
You get any heat from the other players for all the press you gave Andi? Grace Andersen didn't like it.
Well, Grace has an alibi.
Kind of relieved to hear that.
Why's that? There there was an incident at a reception.
Go on.
It was the night before the match, at an athletic alumni event.
Drinks were flowing pretty good.
Hi, everyone.
Where's the attractive headband? Hey, sport.
- What's the problem? - I don't know what they get out of it.
- Out of what? - Treating me like that.
Lets them win for a second.
Off court, since they can't do it on.
Oh, no! It's the superstar! Don't say that.
I've been getting some weird calls.
Well, it's the price of fame.
I come in peace, Andi, to apologize.
- Forget it.
- No, I gotta! I gotta apologize for yelling the other day, when we played.
You're yelling now, too.
You're funny.
And, uh, foxy, too.
Fritz, stop it.
You're, you're drunk, sport.
What did you call me, twit boy? Hey, Eric.
- Hi, Grace.
- Get ready.
You're gonna have a big story tomorrow.
- What about? - Believe me, you'll know.
You didn't think to mention this when Andi turned up dead? I just thought Grace was venting.
I plead love-sick college kid.
I never thought my Grace could hurt someone.
"Your" Grace? I'd been covering her for three years.
Had a crush.
Occupational hazard.
You seeing it with a clear head now? Gotta admit.
Always wondered what she meant by that.
You said you and Fritz broke up, Grace, but never mentioned why.
He was a bad boyfriend.
Night before the match, we hear he was all over Andi.
Pawing her right in front of you.
He did that kind of thing.
Charming, huh? Well, this night, it ticked you off enough to promise Eric Witt a big story, right? - Premeditation is murder one, Grace.
- I have an alibi.
So maybe someone else did your dirty work.
I wasn't talking about Andi, that wasn't the story.
What then? The towel.
I soaked it in sodium nitrate at the chem lab.
Okay.
- But the dose wasn't lethal.
I made sure of that.
You wanted to poison Andi so she'd lose the match? No, the towel was meant for Fritz.
Your bad boyfriend.
Have you ever been dragged through the mud so many times by a guy that you lash out in an inappropriate way? You consider poisoning someone "inappropriate"? He humiliated me.
So you wanted to humiliate him.
Make sure he lost.
But he didn't end up with the towel.
Late in the match, Andi grabbed his towel by mistake.
Afterwards, I tried to get it back.
Andi? I feel dizzy.
- The champagne, maybe.
- Maybe.
- You don't have to help me.
- I want to.
You were great out there.
Think maybe now we'll get the stuff Susan wants for the team? I hope so.
Me, too.
'Cause this bathroom is really bad.
Grace, I know I screwed it up somehow.
But I'd like to be friends with you guys.
It wasn't you.
It was us.
I think I have to get better at being with people.
I've spent so much time playing tennis, but the only real friend I have is my dad.
We're all going out tomorrow night.
Trying this new "tex-mex" thing.
- You want to come? - Yeah.
- Andi? - That's my dad.
Come on, kiddo, we gotta go over these numbers.
- Tomorrow night? - Tomorrow night.
Andi's dad took her home? Yeah.
He didn't tell you that? Do you really have to bring this to work? Embarrass me there? I don't know where else to find you.
Okay.
Sitting target.
Throw your daggers.
- Something's different this time.
- Really? 'Cause to me, it's exactly the same.
I go AWOL for a couple hours, I don't call you on the dot when I say I will, and you go off the rails.
- Right.
- And a small thing like a guy coming home late turns into a three-hour referendum on all the cheap things Nick Vera's ever done.
Not this time.
I get a pass tonight, why? Usually I wait up and worry.
Where is he? Who's he with? Is she pretty? I been walking the line.
When your girlfriend from high school showed up last year? Nothing happened with her.
I came to your work.
I watched you from the car.
- To check on me.
- No.
To see what you liked.
She was wearing this beautiful white coat.
So, the next day, I went out and bought one just like it.
- Jules - Wore it for months.
- But - you didn't notice.
And it didn't keep you home.
Asking a lot of a coat.
Anyway the other night, I waited.
But I didn't worry.
And when I heard you come in, I wasn't glad.
I wished you were still gone.
Well, that is different.
I think it's time, Nicky.
- What about this baby thing? - What? Maybe we gotta do it now.
You have to be able to offer a good home for that.
It could save us, Jules.
Bring us together.
This isn't a good home.
I'm done.
So you saying this, 12 years in? Talk me out of it.
You told us the last time you saw Andie was out on court one.
- That's right.
- But that was a lie.
What? - Someone saw you leave with her later.
Headed back to the dorm.
I have a a lot of regrets in my life.
The worst one was that night.
Did you hurt your daughter? Of course not.
Then what? I've tried to forget it.
Our last conversation.
You had a whole life together, Bill.
The last time you spoke doesn't define all that.
I was more than her dad.
I was her coach, her mentor.
And she was my best friend.
I couldn't give that up.
But Andi wanted something else? Friends of her own.
A life outside of tennis.
The last time I saw my girl I was trying to keep her from any of that.
Nice work out there, kiddo.
Nine unforced errors, though.
- Two double faults.
- Still, I played well.
But you're still using that overhead backhand.
- It just feels right.
- But it's not disciplined.
After all the buckets we did, I don't see why you fall back on junk.
Let's talk about it tomorrow.
Were you drinking tonight? - I had some champagne.
- Andi I'm afraid we're losing our focus.
Who's that at this hour? Someone keeps calling and hanging up.
- Is it a boyfriend? - No.
'Cause that would explain why your tennis is suffering.
I don't have a boyfriend, but I am starting to make friends, I think.
You know what? I made a mistake.
- College isn't right for you.
- But I'm just starting to like it.
It's too distracting.
We should be on the tour.
We'll train for a few months, hit the tri-state tournaments Hello! Who is this? Dad - You sleep off that alcohol.
We'll pack up in the morning.
But I want to stay here.
We're going on tour, Andi, and that's the end of it.
Dad, that's not what I want! I know what you want better than you do.
We've got something special here, and we're not throwing it away.
- We? - That's right, we! Who put a racket in your hand when you were four years old? - You did.
Who took you to every tournament, every lesson? - You.
I spent 14 years making you what you are.
You act like you're not even grateful.
I didn't want her to get over me.
Didn't matter in the end.
I lost my girl.
You have another girl.
You ever find out who that caller was? Wrong number, he said.
Then he called me something.
"Sport.
" It stuck with me, because it was odd.
Occupational hazard.
Falling for the athletes you covered.
Isn't that what you said? - Yeah.
- That's why you were sweet on Grace.
- Is that a crime? No, but in '73, you were done writing about Grace.
Now you were writing about Andi.
I might have nursed a light crush on her.
Well, you put her photo in the paper over and over.
Nothing lightweight about that.
Something might've been growing.
Between you and Andi? We might even have ended up together, if she wasn't killed.
No.
How would you know? Well, I know guys like you.
Always setting your sights too high on girls that are, - well, out of your league.
- That's not true.
And when they give you the brush-off, you get frustrated.
Bitter.
"Bitch thinks she's better than me?" I don't know what you're saying.
Andi didn't have feelings for you.
She never would've.
She was a big tennis star on the verge of going pro, and you were just this little - fan.
- I wasn't just some fan.
I put Andi Simmons on the map! - I know you called her that night.
- Wrong.
- And that you came to her room.
- No, I didn't.
Well, that's the paper that ran after she won.
Didn't hit campus till the next day.
How else did it get in her room that night, underneath her dead body? Sport.
I just came to show her what I did for her.
And she wasn't even grateful.
No, she wasn't.
Eric.
- Is someone here? - No.
Why? - Well, I just didn't want to interrupt.
- It's pretty late.
Yeah.
This can't wait.
Here, go ahead, read it.
You're the story.
The superstar.
You know, Eric, that word is really starting to creep me out.
I'm the one who named you that.
It caught on, and everyone calls you that now, but I was the first one.
- Anyway - I was the first one to see it.
- And I see something else.
- What's that? I see how great we could be together.
We? Eric! This is what you want.
How do you know? You don't even know me! I don't know you? I write about you every day.
- So? Andi, geez, I'm the reason you're in the paper! No, you're not! It's me, not we.
It's my life.
I don't need people telling me what I want.
Boy, this has gone to your head.
You should leave.
You've gotten really stuck up.
I'm the one who made you here, you might show some gratitude.
You're not even grateful.
Take your paper and go.
And stop calling me and hanging up.
I know it's you.
It's really pathetic.
- I'm the one who made you! - Eric! You hear me, Andy! I made you! # Elton John's "Your song" # # It's a little bit funny # # this feeling inside # # I'm not one of those who can easily hide # # don't have much money but boy, if I did # # I'd buy a big house where # # we both could live # # if I was a sculptor # # but then again, no # # or a man who makes potions # # in a traveling show # # I know it's not much but it's the best I can do # # my gift is my song and this one's for you # # and you can tell everybody # # this is your song # # it may be quite simple but now that it's done # # I hope you don't mind I hope you don't mind # # that I put down in words # # how wonderful life is # # while you're in the world # # so excuse me forgetting # # but these things I do # # you see, I've forgotten if they're green or they're blue # # anyway, the thing is # # what I really mean # # yours are the sweetest eyes # # I've ever seen # # and you can tell everybody # # this is your song # # it may be quite simple but now that it's done # # I hope you don't mind I hope you don't mind # # that I put down in words # # how wonderful life is # # while you're in the world # #I hope you don't mind I hope you don't mind # # that I put down in words # # how wonderful life is # # while you're in the world #
I need a sec.
Be right here.
# But look how much I gained # # if I have to # # I can do anything # # I am strong # That's my sister.
I know.
Everyone knows.
Close it out, Andi.
One more, and you're on the map with Billie Jean.
And Fritz goes the way of Bobby.
# You can bend but never break me # # 'cause it only serves to make me # # more determined to achieve my final goal # # and I come back even stronger # Run around it! # and I come back even stronger # # Not a novice any longer # # 'cause you've deepened the conviction in my soul # Put it away! Yes! Attagirl! Yes, yes, yes! # I am invincible # Nice match.
You've come a long way, baby.
Enjoy your moment, superstar.
# I am woman, watch me grow see me standing toe-to-toe # # as I spread my lovin' arms across the land # # but I'm still an embryo # # with a long, long way to go # My sister was a great tennis player.
Born with a racket, as they say.
She played for Penn university? Number one varsity, her first year.
Sounds like a star.
My dad said given another year or two, she would have gone to Wimbledon.
But then she was murdered.
Remember Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs? Battle of the sexes.
We won.
Few weeks later, Penn U had its own version of that match, for a fund-raiser.
Andi for the ladies? And like Billie Jean, she won.
The next morning, she was found dead.
Strangled, in her room.
Cops look at the guy she beat? For quite a while.
Nothing stuck? Then her case just kind of stalled.
It's been a dark cloud hanging over us 33 years.
Sure.
What brings you in now, Emily? My dad's moving to Florida.
I've been cleaning out his house.
I found a bunch of Andi's old tennis stuff, including this.
Is that a towel? The one she used the night of the match.
It was still in her bag.
I got sick after I handled it.
Poison control found traces of sodium nitrate.
It's, uh, lethal in high doses.
Someone really wanted to hurt Andi.
I don't want to be a bother, but I thought maybe it was related to her murder.
Could have been the doer's first attempt.
So find out who dosed this towel maybe we find the person who brought down a rising star.
- What'd you do this time? - Nothing.
Ah, I missed dinner.
Big deal, right? Because of work, or because you were at the bar? Ran into a guy I know.
I buy one, he buys one, we talk.
Next thing I know, it's 2:30.
Julie wait up? In that creepy rocking chair I hate.
You gotta do something about this.
It's a circle game.
It'll work out.
So where are we going? Victim's family.
Coed strangled after a battle of the sexes tennis match.
I need an egg sandwich for this.
Andi Simmons, 18.
Found strangled in her dorm room, day after her big win.
No sign of forced entry.
So she knew her attacker.
Any candidates? A Fritz Adams, the guy she beat.
Men's number one player, cops' number one suspect.
Senior guy loses to a freshman girl? It's kinda hard to live down.
Especially when it's splashed all over the front page.
No alibi, but they still couldn't build a case against him.
Family lawyered him up, job fizzled.
Other lead was some hang-up phone calls Andi was getting.
Someone calling and whispering "superstar.
" - Could've been Fritz? - He never copped to it.
Any chance this poisoned towel was a prank? The dose was practically lethal.
Where do they get the sodium nitrate? Chemistry building at Penn U is right next to the courts.
Well, the towel narrows it down to someone close to Andi.
With access to her gear, the night of the match.
Thins out the suspect pool.
Vera and Jeffries are with the family, getting names.
Well, we already know one.
Fritz.
Might as well start with the top guy.
- See you're pulling up stakes.
- Yeah.
Dad's had enough Philly winters.
My sister lives in Palm beach.
Be nice to live near family.
So this towel Emily found could be a new direction on Andi's murder.
If my girl was poisoned, I don't see why you missed it.
- Cause of death was strangulation.
- I know that.
And standard autopsy doesn't test for poison.
The point is, someone had it out for Andi.
Any ideas why? Envy.
'Cause of her talent? What she had was rare.
This was no dime a dozen kid.
Know who might have tampered with her gear that night, planted this towel? Of course I do.
The guy you've been looking at for 33 years.
- Fritz Adams.
- Maybe this towel finally nails the bastard.
'Cause I know for a fact he loaned her another one.
When was that? Week before the big match.
Saw it with my own eyes.
# I feel the earth move under my feet # # I feel the sky tumbling down # # I feel my heart start to trembling # Run around that, Andi.
I would've had it, but I broke a string.
You sweat a lot for a girl.
Borg sweats a lot.
Is that what the headband's about? Okay, you got your racket.
Get back out there, kiddo.
You know, most people, when they go away to college, bring their stereo, not their dad.
Your serve.
Damn it! Screw this! Screw this match! - Fritzcome down.
- This is rigged, lose-lose.
- What's your problem? - I'm screwed, that's my problem.
I never should've agreed to this thing.
It doesn't help me if I win.
I'm supposed to win, you're a girl.
Thanks a lot.
But if I lose, I'm over.
So win.
Fritz made a big show of laughing it off when Andi won the big match, but I'd seen his true colors.
All his fears come true? He tanked the season.
Never even tried the pros.
Did you see him with Andi after the match at all? Last time we saw her was out on court one after her win.
Surrounded by people toasting her.
Right, Em? It's how I always remember her.
Nothing's been right since.
Lost the brightest light in my life.
Fritz Adams? Hi, there.
Here for the ladies' clinic? Do we look like we're here for the ladies' clinic? - What then? - Detective Rush, Miller.
It's about Andi Simmons.
I've been down this road way too many times.
The towel turned up, Fritz.
That supposed to mean something to me? - You tell us.
I give up.
The towel Andi used at your match, was laced with sodium nitrate.
Sodium what? Ladies, I'm a jock.
I don't do chemicals.
Well, maybe fear of getting whipped by a girl got you to crack a book.
I lost a match.
That's no reason to kill someone.
Unless your temper got the best of you.
We hear you had a real meltdown with Andi at a practice match.
You ever see John Mcenroe chuck a racket? That's just tennis.
But after she beat you, you lost any chance of going pro.
I had a one-time problem with Andi.
That was nothing compared with the girls she was with day to day.
Her teammates? Talk about a bunch of hens with ruffled feathers.
Who was the most ruffled? Grace Andersen.
- The team captain? - And my girlfriend at the time.
She have something against skirts? Let's just say she's more Billie Jean than Chrissie.
She's been in the paper like three times this week.
- Four.
Oh! Thanks for joining us.
Am I late? I'm sorry.
- We have a challenge match.
- I know.
It was supposed to start 10 minutes ago.
I was doing an interview.
We all know you're a big superstar, Andi, but tennis should come first.
You're right.
This guy just kept talking.
Tell him you have practice and that being late is frowned upon.
I will.
Promise.
Look, why don't you take a game for every minute I'm late? Oh, right.
No, I mean it.
I deserve it.
It's 6-0, 4-0 yours.
Two games away from winning.
And you can serve.
Andi still won? Grace didn't take a game? She was a good captain, didn't vent in public.
But behind closed doors? She had a lot of bad nights.
Andi was making her crazy.
Think she could have poisoned this towel? Grace was a grind on the court and off.
Doesn't sound like an answer to me.
She was a chem major.
Spent half her time in the lab, and the other half on the courts.
- Giving her means, motive - And opportunity.
So Andi's a phenom, Grace is a grinder.
And they hate each other.
- Like Mozart - and that other guy.
Exactly.
Saw it when I played college ball.
No one hates god-given talent like a second-stringer.
Excuse me.
You're Will, right? Yes.
I'm Julie, Nick Vera's wife.
Of course.
Uh, this is John Stillman, Scotty Valens.
- Nice to meet you.
- Same here.
Nicky says nice things.
Um, he's out on the street, have a seat.
I'll call him.
We got some god-awful coffee.
No, that's okay.
Could you just give him this? Uh, sure.
Thanks.
- Nice seeing you again.
- Yeah.
Bye.
Way to go.
Crap.
I met her once, four years ago.
That'll help his cause, trying to get out of the woodshed.
I didn't know things were so bad.
Well, he didn't seem worried yesterday.
But this ain't a good sign.
Met your old boyfriend, Grace.
Fritz Adams? - Oh, really? Is he bald and fat? I take it you're not in touch.
Uh, things didn't end well with us.
He said you had a little problem with Andi Simmons.
Oh, I wouldn't call it little.
A lot of fur flying between you two? I was number one for three years, and then Andi takes it away.
For a high-strung, type-A bulimic like me? Big problem.
- You work all that out? - Yes, thanks.
So when Andi and Fritz played in the battle of the sexes, - who were you rooting for? - Oh, I was Switzerland, neutral.
I know if I'm choosing between my boyfriend and a girl I despise, I'm going with the guy.
Maybe that's where the towel comes in.
Andi's towel was laced with sodium nitrate.
And I'm Marie Curie? Crossed our mind.
I had a lot of things to work through back then, - aforementioned emotional issues.
- But? I was in a study group the night she was killed, for one thing, - with three other people.
- We'll need those names.
And more importantly, Andi's win actually meant something to me.
- Women's lib, you know.
- Oh, boy.
Was Andi a big activist? No.
And that was a problem.
You look great, you know.
You don't have to do that.
MYOB, okay? "I don't really have an opinion about title IX.
- "I just want to play tennis.
" - What? - Tell me you were misquoted.
- Um, no.
Title IX protects women athletes.
- I just think of myself as an athlete.
- Hey leave your little backyard, kid.
There's a revolution going on.
Ever wonder why we have to use the chem building bathroom to change for practice? I guess I never thought about it.
The guys have a locker room.
According to Fritz, it's beautiful.
Title IX gets us a locker room, a van, decent budget, same as the guys.
I care about tennis, not politics.
Hey, bambi, wake up! This is our moment.
You're our golden girl.
And I'm not gonna let you blow it.
Sounds like the coach was a dragon lady.
Breathing fire all over Andi.
Lot of sore points between them? Biggest one was Andi's dad wanted Susan fired, not that it happened.
Because Andi died first.
I guess that's true.
You think Susan could've harmed her? She was radical.
Believed in making change by any means necessary.
I ain't doing that interview.
You remember the battle of the sexes match in '73? Court one, Andi Simmons brought Fritz Adams to his knees.
That was a great day.
I enjoyed it.
Good for the cause.
Knocked the bastards down a peg.
Fair to say you take a pretty extreme view on politics? - Have to.
No one gives you an inch without a fight.
And now, you've climbed all the way up to athletic director.
Say what you mean.
If Andi was getting in the way of your agenda She was good for my agenda.
She just needed enlightenment.
We also heard her dad wanted you fired.
'Cause he didn't want to stop coaching her.
But after Andi died, you kept your job.
I hear you.
So? - Bill was a tennis dad, overreaching pain in the ass.
We tussled over Andi.
Both wanted your piece of her.
'Cause she was so special.
But we came together when we ran into a real enemy.
Run around, run around.
Nice! And put it away! We just had a three hour practice, Bill.
- Don't start.
- She's my player.
Who put a racket in her hands when she was four years old? Was that you, Susan, or was that me? So this is the superstar they're all talking about.
Arnold Brown, athletic director.
Oh, hey, hello, good to meet you.
Bill and Andi Simmons.
- They say you're the next Billie Jean King.
- I'd like to be.
And I hear there's a battle of the sexes match scheduled? Fritz Adams and I are playing, number one against number one.
Sounds like something you dreamed up, Susan.
Just trying to raise money, since we've got such a crap budget.
Let me guess.
The trolls at the women's center put you up to this.
No.
I want to play.
I want to win.
Well, that certainly would be interesting, uh but problematic, too.
Why? These are complicated times, Andi.
A lot of demands being made.
I'm just going out there to play.
It's not complicated for me.
Still, this title IX business is a slippery slope.
We don't want to embarrass the university, and we have an obligation to men's athletics.
Embarrass? This kid is dynamite.
She's gonna make you proud.
It's harmless enough to have an exhibition game.
But an upset could stir the pot.
It'll be bad for everyone.
You mean, I should throw the match? Due respect, I doubt Fritz needs the help.
You haven't seen what this girl can do.
And I always play to win.
Maybe I wasn't clear.
An upset is not a possibility.
And I'll be watching.
To him, that was the last word.
He was so sure Andi would just obey him.
And lose on purpose? In his mind, that's what they had agreed to.
But then Andi won.
And was dead the next day.
The Penn athletic director, Arnold Brown, died four years ago.
Dead suspect.
Love that.
He's all over these articles on title IX, big opponent.
The same guy who wrote those stories covered Andi and women's tennis, Eric Witt.
I know that name.
He writes a sports column for the Philly post.
Well, maybe he can tell you how the A.
D.
took it when Andi disobeyed him.
Heading over there.
You doing okay, Nicky? Going home tonight.
By invitation? Ambush.
She'll give me her come-to-Jesus, I'll beg forgiveness, we'll settle back in.
Familiar drill, huh? One that's getting less and less interesting.
May be time to change it up.
A.
D.
Brown went ballistic, when Andi won that match.
Yeah, because now she's the poster child for title IX.
And he wanted things to stay just like they were.
Women athletes, back of the bus.
So maybe he retaliated after Andi won? Actually, I can vouch for his whereabouts that night.
- Yeah? - He was at the paper with me.
Doing what? Breathing down my neck.
Didn't want me to glorify her in the story.
But you kind of did, anyway.
You should have seen my first draft.
You get any heat from the other players for all the press you gave Andi? Grace Andersen didn't like it.
Well, Grace has an alibi.
Kind of relieved to hear that.
Why's that? There there was an incident at a reception.
Go on.
It was the night before the match, at an athletic alumni event.
Drinks were flowing pretty good.
Hi, everyone.
Where's the attractive headband? Hey, sport.
- What's the problem? - I don't know what they get out of it.
- Out of what? - Treating me like that.
Lets them win for a second.
Off court, since they can't do it on.
Oh, no! It's the superstar! Don't say that.
I've been getting some weird calls.
Well, it's the price of fame.
I come in peace, Andi, to apologize.
- Forget it.
- No, I gotta! I gotta apologize for yelling the other day, when we played.
You're yelling now, too.
You're funny.
And, uh, foxy, too.
Fritz, stop it.
You're, you're drunk, sport.
What did you call me, twit boy? Hey, Eric.
- Hi, Grace.
- Get ready.
You're gonna have a big story tomorrow.
- What about? - Believe me, you'll know.
You didn't think to mention this when Andi turned up dead? I just thought Grace was venting.
I plead love-sick college kid.
I never thought my Grace could hurt someone.
"Your" Grace? I'd been covering her for three years.
Had a crush.
Occupational hazard.
You seeing it with a clear head now? Gotta admit.
Always wondered what she meant by that.
You said you and Fritz broke up, Grace, but never mentioned why.
He was a bad boyfriend.
Night before the match, we hear he was all over Andi.
Pawing her right in front of you.
He did that kind of thing.
Charming, huh? Well, this night, it ticked you off enough to promise Eric Witt a big story, right? - Premeditation is murder one, Grace.
- I have an alibi.
So maybe someone else did your dirty work.
I wasn't talking about Andi, that wasn't the story.
What then? The towel.
I soaked it in sodium nitrate at the chem lab.
Okay.
- But the dose wasn't lethal.
I made sure of that.
You wanted to poison Andi so she'd lose the match? No, the towel was meant for Fritz.
Your bad boyfriend.
Have you ever been dragged through the mud so many times by a guy that you lash out in an inappropriate way? You consider poisoning someone "inappropriate"? He humiliated me.
So you wanted to humiliate him.
Make sure he lost.
But he didn't end up with the towel.
Late in the match, Andi grabbed his towel by mistake.
Afterwards, I tried to get it back.
Andi? I feel dizzy.
- The champagne, maybe.
- Maybe.
- You don't have to help me.
- I want to.
You were great out there.
Think maybe now we'll get the stuff Susan wants for the team? I hope so.
Me, too.
'Cause this bathroom is really bad.
Grace, I know I screwed it up somehow.
But I'd like to be friends with you guys.
It wasn't you.
It was us.
I think I have to get better at being with people.
I've spent so much time playing tennis, but the only real friend I have is my dad.
We're all going out tomorrow night.
Trying this new "tex-mex" thing.
- You want to come? - Yeah.
- Andi? - That's my dad.
Come on, kiddo, we gotta go over these numbers.
- Tomorrow night? - Tomorrow night.
Andi's dad took her home? Yeah.
He didn't tell you that? Do you really have to bring this to work? Embarrass me there? I don't know where else to find you.
Okay.
Sitting target.
Throw your daggers.
- Something's different this time.
- Really? 'Cause to me, it's exactly the same.
I go AWOL for a couple hours, I don't call you on the dot when I say I will, and you go off the rails.
- Right.
- And a small thing like a guy coming home late turns into a three-hour referendum on all the cheap things Nick Vera's ever done.
Not this time.
I get a pass tonight, why? Usually I wait up and worry.
Where is he? Who's he with? Is she pretty? I been walking the line.
When your girlfriend from high school showed up last year? Nothing happened with her.
I came to your work.
I watched you from the car.
- To check on me.
- No.
To see what you liked.
She was wearing this beautiful white coat.
So, the next day, I went out and bought one just like it.
- Jules - Wore it for months.
- But - you didn't notice.
And it didn't keep you home.
Asking a lot of a coat.
Anyway the other night, I waited.
But I didn't worry.
And when I heard you come in, I wasn't glad.
I wished you were still gone.
Well, that is different.
I think it's time, Nicky.
- What about this baby thing? - What? Maybe we gotta do it now.
You have to be able to offer a good home for that.
It could save us, Jules.
Bring us together.
This isn't a good home.
I'm done.
So you saying this, 12 years in? Talk me out of it.
You told us the last time you saw Andie was out on court one.
- That's right.
- But that was a lie.
What? - Someone saw you leave with her later.
Headed back to the dorm.
I have a a lot of regrets in my life.
The worst one was that night.
Did you hurt your daughter? Of course not.
Then what? I've tried to forget it.
Our last conversation.
You had a whole life together, Bill.
The last time you spoke doesn't define all that.
I was more than her dad.
I was her coach, her mentor.
And she was my best friend.
I couldn't give that up.
But Andi wanted something else? Friends of her own.
A life outside of tennis.
The last time I saw my girl I was trying to keep her from any of that.
Nice work out there, kiddo.
Nine unforced errors, though.
- Two double faults.
- Still, I played well.
But you're still using that overhead backhand.
- It just feels right.
- But it's not disciplined.
After all the buckets we did, I don't see why you fall back on junk.
Let's talk about it tomorrow.
Were you drinking tonight? - I had some champagne.
- Andi I'm afraid we're losing our focus.
Who's that at this hour? Someone keeps calling and hanging up.
- Is it a boyfriend? - No.
'Cause that would explain why your tennis is suffering.
I don't have a boyfriend, but I am starting to make friends, I think.
You know what? I made a mistake.
- College isn't right for you.
- But I'm just starting to like it.
It's too distracting.
We should be on the tour.
We'll train for a few months, hit the tri-state tournaments Hello! Who is this? Dad - You sleep off that alcohol.
We'll pack up in the morning.
But I want to stay here.
We're going on tour, Andi, and that's the end of it.
Dad, that's not what I want! I know what you want better than you do.
We've got something special here, and we're not throwing it away.
- We? - That's right, we! Who put a racket in your hand when you were four years old? - You did.
Who took you to every tournament, every lesson? - You.
I spent 14 years making you what you are.
You act like you're not even grateful.
I didn't want her to get over me.
Didn't matter in the end.
I lost my girl.
You have another girl.
You ever find out who that caller was? Wrong number, he said.
Then he called me something.
"Sport.
" It stuck with me, because it was odd.
Occupational hazard.
Falling for the athletes you covered.
Isn't that what you said? - Yeah.
- That's why you were sweet on Grace.
- Is that a crime? No, but in '73, you were done writing about Grace.
Now you were writing about Andi.
I might have nursed a light crush on her.
Well, you put her photo in the paper over and over.
Nothing lightweight about that.
Something might've been growing.
Between you and Andi? We might even have ended up together, if she wasn't killed.
No.
How would you know? Well, I know guys like you.
Always setting your sights too high on girls that are, - well, out of your league.
- That's not true.
And when they give you the brush-off, you get frustrated.
Bitter.
"Bitch thinks she's better than me?" I don't know what you're saying.
Andi didn't have feelings for you.
She never would've.
She was a big tennis star on the verge of going pro, and you were just this little - fan.
- I wasn't just some fan.
I put Andi Simmons on the map! - I know you called her that night.
- Wrong.
- And that you came to her room.
- No, I didn't.
Well, that's the paper that ran after she won.
Didn't hit campus till the next day.
How else did it get in her room that night, underneath her dead body? Sport.
I just came to show her what I did for her.
And she wasn't even grateful.
No, she wasn't.
Eric.
- Is someone here? - No.
Why? - Well, I just didn't want to interrupt.
- It's pretty late.
Yeah.
This can't wait.
Here, go ahead, read it.
You're the story.
The superstar.
You know, Eric, that word is really starting to creep me out.
I'm the one who named you that.
It caught on, and everyone calls you that now, but I was the first one.
- Anyway - I was the first one to see it.
- And I see something else.
- What's that? I see how great we could be together.
We? Eric! This is what you want.
How do you know? You don't even know me! I don't know you? I write about you every day.
- So? Andi, geez, I'm the reason you're in the paper! No, you're not! It's me, not we.
It's my life.
I don't need people telling me what I want.
Boy, this has gone to your head.
You should leave.
You've gotten really stuck up.
I'm the one who made you here, you might show some gratitude.
You're not even grateful.
Take your paper and go.
And stop calling me and hanging up.
I know it's you.
It's really pathetic.
- I'm the one who made you! - Eric! You hear me, Andy! I made you! # Elton John's "Your song" # # It's a little bit funny # # this feeling inside # # I'm not one of those who can easily hide # # don't have much money but boy, if I did # # I'd buy a big house where # # we both could live # # if I was a sculptor # # but then again, no # # or a man who makes potions # # in a traveling show # # I know it's not much but it's the best I can do # # my gift is my song and this one's for you # # and you can tell everybody # # this is your song # # it may be quite simple but now that it's done # # I hope you don't mind I hope you don't mind # # that I put down in words # # how wonderful life is # # while you're in the world # # so excuse me forgetting # # but these things I do # # you see, I've forgotten if they're green or they're blue # # anyway, the thing is # # what I really mean # # yours are the sweetest eyes # # I've ever seen # # and you can tell everybody # # this is your song # # it may be quite simple but now that it's done # # I hope you don't mind I hope you don't mind # # that I put down in words # # how wonderful life is # # while you're in the world # #I hope you don't mind I hope you don't mind # # that I put down in words # # how wonderful life is # # while you're in the world #