Elementary s06e12 Episode Script
Meet Your Maker
1 Your sister told me you're really good at this sort of thing.
I try.
So, Lin told me that one of your friends went missing? Uh, her name is Maria Rodriguez.
I haven't talked to her in four days.
Have you checked with her family, gone by her place? Well, that's where it gets complicated.
You see, I haven't actually met Maria in person.
We met online in the comments section of a news site.
Started exchanging PMs.
Eventually got friendly enough that she gave me her real name and that she lived in the city.
We'd chat every day, and then, four days ago, she just went silent.
Could be she just got busy.
No, I don't think so.
Last time we talked, she said that she was dealing with something.
Some problem.
She didn't go into details, but I got the impression that she was in trouble.
Now she's gone.
I don't think that's a coincidence.
Mr.
Clary, Lin told me that you're one of the best real estate agents at her firm.
So I'm assuming that you're fairly well off.
Are you familiar with the term "catfishing"? You meet a woman online.
She strikes up a friendship.
After a while, she hints that she's having trouble and needs money.
No, Maria's not like that.
In fact, I offered her money to help her out of the jam that she was in.
She never responded.
Look, I'm (clears throat) really worried about her.
I just want you to look into it.
You don't even need to tell me where she is.
I just just want to know that she's safe.
So, this Maria Rodriguez, she's a resident of New York, is she? As far as the client knows.
The problem is, it's a pretty common name.
- Yeah.
- She's one of 200 in a 30-mile radius.
But your Maria is late 20s, early 30s, isn't she? That should narrow the field a bit, surely.
Oh, to about three dozen candidates.
That's still a lot of people.
- Hmm.
- Any advice? Well, I needn't remind you that the vast majority of detective work is work.
The, uh, dogged drudgery of chasing down every lead, upending every chestnut shell to find that metaphorical pea.
I was hoping for a more elegant solution than knocking on the door of every Maria Rodriguez in New York.
What is that? A catapult? Uh, technically, it's a trebuchet.
It's a scale model of a much larger device.
Just as I thought.
You recall the hiker who was killed by a blow to the head not far from Fort Covington? Yeah, I read that link you sent me.
I now believe she was struck by a bail of marijuana launched via trebuchet from Canada to the U.
S.
As far as your missing Maria goes, I, too, would much rather solve a case via a single quick deduction than by hundreds of hours of hard labor.
You know, when it comes to that, I can be the most incurably lazy devil that ever stood in shoe leather.
Right.
Lazy.
That's you.
Okay, so I guess I'll start making calls and knocking on doors in the morning.
I'd offer to help, but, um Detective Marcus Bell? Deputy Strider Lincoln, U.
S.
Marshals Service.
Strider? Like Lord of the Rings? My parents are nerds.
I guess you are, too.
How can I help you, Deputy? Looking for a fugitive? Looking for you, actually.
My bosses hear good things about you.
In fact, they think you'd be an excellent candidate for the Service.
They'd like you to consider putting in an application.
You're kidding.
You apply, you're looking at 150 days training at Glynco, and then a fast track into Fugitive Apprehension.
(chuckles) That's great, but to be honest, I'm not sure where all this is coming from.
Oh, I've seen your file.
It's impressive.
Hard to believe we're the first ones to headhunt you.
You'd like Fugitive Apprehension.
It's righteous work.
I'll think about it.
Do that.
Don't think too long.
This isn't the kind of offer that comes around more than once.
(cell phone ringing) Hey.
Hey.
I'm on a job for a private client.
He wanted me to find a woman named Maria Rodriguez, only he didn't know where she lived.
You want me to run her name? No.
I'm pretty sure I found the place.
Super let me in to look around.
And? I think she's been kidnapped.
Elementary 6x12 Meet Your Maker Believe it or not, this Maria's door was only the ninth one I knocked on.
There was no answer.
I noticed some blood on the sill.
The super let me in.
Found all this, and I called you.
And you're sure this is the Maria Rodriguez you were looking for? I took a photo of that picture, sent it to the client.
He confirmed that's his friend.
Nothing seems to be stolen? Doesn't look like it.
Her purse is over there.
There's almost $200 in it and a bunch of gift cards.
I think she made these.
I don't know.
Maybe that's how she earned her living.
You said you think they took her alive.
There's evidence of blood.
I found footprints by the back door, which would suggest that she walked out under her own power.
Based on these other prints, assailant was male.
Size-12 feet.
He broke in, waited for her, probably grabbed her as soon as she walked in the front door.
I'm hoping she was taken for ransom.
'Cause the other reasons a male kidnapper would take a female victim alive aren't good.
I'm sorry, but no.
No one called.
No one asked for ransom.
And if they had, my husband and I would have already paid for it.
Same for my brother and his wife.
And neither of our families has much, but we would have figured it out.
SISTER: You said that you found her purse, but that you didn't find her phone.
Doesn't that mean that you can ping it or whatever? We tried.
It's either been turned off or destroyed by the person who took her.
Can you think of anyone who had a grudge against your sister? Maybe an ex-boyfriend? No.
Maria broke a few hearts in high school, but none of her exes are like that.
They're good boys.
We're gonna want a list, just in case.
HOLMES: It's also possible she was targeted because of a more recent entanglement.
A business associate, current lover.
Was she involved with anyone or anything questionable? Truth is, we don't know much about what Maria is up to these days.
Once she went off to college, she didn't really associate with anyone from the old neighborhood.
Not even family.
SISTER: We only see her a few times a year.
We go out to dinner.
And? Uh, past couple years, every time that we went out, she insisted on paying, but thing is, she always used gift cards.
We found gift cards in Maria's wallet.
She pays for everything with them, and she never seems to run out.
One time, I tried to get her to tell me where she was getting them, but she just laughed it off.
I don't know-- y-you asked if she might be doing something questionable.
Could she be forging those cards? Uh, I just need to discuss something with my colleagues.
One second.
So, what didn't you want to say to them? I think Maria might have been up to something a little unsavory.
When Watson described the crime scene, the gift cards in Maria's purse didn't stand out.
I mean, they often go unused.
That's how the issuers make their money.
Her sister said she used them all the time.
And has a seemingly endless supply.
Additionally, Maria, she's an attractive young woman with no discernible means of income.
And you said you found a high-end video camera and tripod in her apartment.
And expensive lingerie, too.
You're thinking she's a cam girl? She dresses up, gets online, does a little show-and-tell for money.
Cam girls often get gift cards and other tokens of appreciation from their fans.
Her attacker could have seen her online, then tracked her down.
All right.
When we're done in there, I'll get CCS to look into the gift cards.
Sometimes they're attached to the e-mail addresses of the people who sent them.
I'll let you know where they lead.
Going out of my mind all morning.
I still can't believe I was right about Maria being in trouble.
This is my partner, Sherlock.
Pleasure.
We wanted to talk to you about some new developments.
Your friend, Maria, seems to be a fan of gift cards.
In the last month alone, she's been the recipient of almost 50 of them.
As far as the police can tell, all of them were sent by men.
At first, we thought this confirmed our theory that Maria was working as a cam girl.
You mean one of those women that let men watch them over the Internet? (chuckling): I'm sorry, that doesn't sound right.
Because it is, in fact, not right.
Not precisely so.
According to these ads that we tracked down, Maria, aka "Queen Mariposa" worked as a fin-dom.
A financial dominatrix.
Fin-doms cater to men who get a sexual thrill from giving money to pretty women, usually in a scenario that appears coercive.
Now, a typical fin-dom interacts with her clients-- or "paypigs," as they're charmingly known-- via video chat.
In their sessions, they will cajole, threaten and humiliate a man into sending them money and/or gifts.
It's basically consensual extortion.
But you already knew that because you're one of her clients.
What if I am? The NYPD's current thinking is that one of Maria's paypigs kidnapped her.
Maybe they got in too deep and blamed her.
Maybe they thought they could force her to give the money back.
You're saying I'm a suspect? Well, all of Maria's clients are suspects.
But you gave more money than most.
Best we can tell, almost $20,000 over the past two years.
If I had done anything to Maria, then why would I hire you to find her? Good question.
And it's the only reason we're having this conversation here rather than at the precinct.
Call it a courtesy to a friend of the family.
The reason why I didn't tell you the truth is because I have a wife and a job, and I really didn't want this stuff to get out.
Everything I said about me and Maria is true.
We're friends.
We chat all the time for free.
I'm not in too deep.
Maria's good that way.
She doesn't take more than she knows the clients can afford.
Maria's neighbors heard loud noises coming from her apartment Saturday around 10:00 p.
m.
We think that's when Maria was taken.
Can you account for your whereabouts? Yes.
A few of us stayed late to get a property ready for an open house on Sunday.
You can ask your sister.
She was there.
She'll tell you, we didn't leave till after midnight.
Can you think of anything else that might be helpful? Anyone that Maria had a problem with? Other clients that maybe threatened her? She did mention one guy.
She said that he had said some pretty terrible things about her on a message board.
What sort of things? She didn't say.
She wasn't really worried about him.
He was a kid.
He was clear on the other side of the country.
She mention his name? No, uh, but she did mention the name of the Web site.
Uh, BlackPill4U.
"Black pill"? You're certain? Yeah.
You know it? Not the Web site, no.
But I'm familiar with the term.
Doesn't bode well for Miss Rodriguez.
"Marcus Bell, U.
S.
Marshal".
It has a nice ring to it.
(laughs) Yeah, well, so does "Dr.
Bell," but I'm not about to quit my job and go to med school.
Come on.
You're not the least bit intrigued? I knew a lot of Marshals back when I clerked for Judge Yamamoto.
They were good guys, real pros.
It'd be a big change.
I'd have to go to Georgia for training.
Then, after that, they can assign me anywhere.
Well, sounds like an adventure.
Maybe an adventure I don't want to go on alone.
Are you asking me to move with you? What? No.
I mean I mean, you're here.
We're here.
I'd never ask you to leave New York.
You could try.
You serious? I don't know.
I guess that depends how serious you are.
It wouldn't be easy for you to pull up stakes.
Yeah, it wouldn't be impossible, either.
Like I said, I clerked for a federal judge.
I've got connections.
Speaking of connections, who's yours? What do you mean? The Marshals I knew said it was nearly impossible to get into the Service.
They accept like one out of 20 applications.
They don't recruit.
Obviously, they do.
No.
The kind of visit you got this morning, somebody made that happen.
What, you think I got an angel looking over my shoulder? You must.
The question is-- who? WATSON: Art Schultz? We're consultants with the NYPD.
We'd like a word.
About? BlackPill4U.
The site that you operate on the Dark Web.
It's a meeting place for the InCel community.
- The what community? - InCel community.
Short for "Involuntary Celibacy.
" No point in denying it.
We know people who are good with computers.
They were able to unmask you as the site's administrator and ping your location.
It's nothing, okay? It's just a place for people to talk about their problems.
HOLMES: Their chief problem being the wrong-headed belief that they've been forced into celibacy by an oppressive conspiracy of sexually unavailable women.
I read the posts on your site.
Gets pretty nasty.
Not surprising, given that "taking the black pill" is InCel slang for embracing the worst kind of misogynistic nihilism.
Here's one where a person claims it should be legal to rape any woman who has had sex outside of marriage.
Or another one that says any woman who has an abortion should be forced into government-controlled sex slavery.
They're joking, obviously.
Then how do you explain one of your members who went on a rampage at their college campus, killing 12 people, mostly women? Or the person who opened fire on a group of female engineers in Montreal? InCel boards like yours have been banned by every major Internet hosting service for encouraging violence and hate.
That's why you went underground and moved BlackPill4U to the Dark Web.
Obviously, you didn't go dark enough.
We have questions for you.
Answer them, or we'll tell our friends at Homeland Security all about you.
Fine.
I'll talk to you.
Just not in here.
We're looking for a missing woman who works as a financial dominatrix by the name of Queen Mariposa.
HOLMES: One of your members posted that he'd given her everything.
Even drained his college fund to prove how much he loved her.
Still, she rejected him, humiliated him.
And then some other members on the site suggested that he track Queen Mariposa down, kidnap her.
A few days ago, Mariposa was actually kidnapped.
We think the person who started that thread may be the one who did it.
We want his name.
I'm sorry, but all the posters on our site are anonymous.
They don't even have user names.
Just little icons.
True, but there is a donation button on your site.
So, when people give money, they get special fonts, they get a bigger character count, and they even get a gold star under their icon.
HOLMES: The person we're looking for has a little gold star, which means you have his credit card information.
Give it to us, or start packing for Guantanamo Bay.
Your choice.
His name is Kyle Spikowski.
He's from Sioux City, Iowa.
(phone camera clicks) That last IP address-- he logged on to your site this morning from somewhere in the city.
I'll call Marcus, let him know that we have a positive I.
D.
on the kidnapper.
Who are they? That's Homeland Security.
ART: But you promised you wouldn't tell them about me if I talked to you.
Yes, but you play den mother to a pack of would-be rapists and mass shooters, so you can see how lying to you would be the highlight of my day.
Look on the bright side-- you don't seem to enjoy the company of women, and that shouldn't be a problem for the next five to ten years.
That the guy Joan called about? - Spikowski? - Yep.
What about the girl? Not with him, but you should see this.
After I issued the Finest Message, Highway Patrol spotted Kyle's car, pulled him off the highway and saw that.
He didn't go for it? They drew on him too fast.
Pulled him out of the car, did a search.
That's when they found this.
Guy was ready for war.
Any idea with who? According to the navigation app on his phone, he was headed to a women-only gym in Park Slope.
They saw me there, didn't they? Who? The sluts at the gym.
I went there last night to stake it out.
I didn't think anyone noticed me, but I was wrong.
- They knew, right? - They knew what? (chuckling): They were gonna get what was coming to 'em.
Of course they knew.
Women always know.
What about Maria Rodriguez? She get what was coming to her? What are you talking about? How do you know Maria? Somebody beat her bloody and kidnapped her, Kyle.
Seeing how you threatened to do exactly that on a message board, we're thinking it was you.
What? No.
Someone hurt Maria? Yeah, you hurt her.
I would never hurt Maria.
Everything I was gonna do at that gym, it was for her.
It was in her honor.
I was gonna show her just how much I love her.
Please, you gotta find her.
I'll-I'll do anything.
I'll confess to anything.
Please just find her.
Did you find her yet? Is she safe? Sorry, Kyle.
There's no sign of Maria.
Well, you gotta let me go.
Let me help you find her.
I didn't hurt anyone.
And no one knows Maria better than I do.
I can help you.
Kyle, you were driving around with a trunk full of guns you stole from your neighbor.
You also basically admitted you were gonna carry out a mass shooting.
You're not gonna be going anywhere for a while.
You want to help us? Answer our questions.
Starting with: Why should we believe you when you say you didn't kidnap Maria? You posted a plan of how to abduct her on BlackPill4U.
I didn't mean it.
I was just showing off for some buddies.
WATSON: Maria was taken from her apartment Saturday night.
- Where were you? - Saturday night? I was driving through Ohio.
I took a toll road.
Cost me $17.
50.
I-I tried to use my credit card, but it wouldn't go through, so this lady came out of the toll booth.
Told me I had to pay cash.
She was a bitch.
I told her so.
But I put the receipt she gave me in my glove compartment.
BELL: We'll look for it.
And if you really did interact with that toll-booth operator, we'll find her.
Hard to imagine she would forget a charmer such as yourself.
I got here yesterday morning, and I couldn't find Maria.
I thought maybe she was angry at me 'cause I said some dumb things to her last time we talked.
So I figured I'd show her how much she means to me and hurt the people who hurt her.
You're talking about the women at the gym? It used to be Maria's gym, but she had to quit because they raised their rates too high.
It wasn't fair.
If she was kidnapped Saturday night, that means it would've happened right after she got back from her trip.
What trip? She was on a trip.
Uh, Austin, San Francisco, Denver, Seattle, Chicago, Toronto, Boston.
She told you she was going to all those cities? No.
A couple years ago, I sent her an e-mail to her phone, and put spyware on it so I'd always know where she was.
If you knew Maria was traveling, why'd you come to New York? 'Cause I knew Boston was her last stop.
She did the same exact trip last year.
The same cities in the same order.
So, when I saw she was on the move from Boston, I got in my car and started driving.
Telling us to scoop that guy up probably saved a lot of lives.
I'll make a few calls, confirm he was where he said he was.
I'm more interested in Maria's road trip than his.
Her job is pretty unorthodox, but she still might go on the occasional business trip.
Perhaps she met with some of her clients in person.
Well, might explain why she would go to all the same cities on all the same dates two years in a row.
We'll ponder that while you verify Spikowski's alibi.
Well, actually, if you don't mind pondering on your own for a while, I was hoping to have a word with your partner.
Yeah.
I'll see you at home.
I got a visit yesterday from a U.
S.
Marshal.
Deputy by the name of Strider Lincoln.
Strider? It's only the second-dumbest name I've ever heard.
He basically offered me a job.
Said I came highly recommended but didn't mention who did the recommending.
I did a little digging.
Guess whose name came back.
Yours.
(chuckles) I don't get it, man.
You trying to get rid of me? Yeah, I am.
After a fashion.
You remember I fully supported your interest in becoming a sergeant two years ago? Hmm? Right up until the moment that you told me it was more about a pay increase than about the work.
Hmm? Still, I thought a fire had been lit.
I thought it was only a matter of time before you identified a new challenge.
And then, two years later When I was at Scotland Yard, I was only too happy to watch the moss gather under the policemen I worked with.
Only, to me, they were just a means of gaining access to people and places that I otherwise couldn't.
And they were just happy to stay and take credit for my work.
But it's never been like that with us, has it? No.
You're too good a detective.
So I want something better for you.
Something something more.
Why the Marshals? Well, I considered and dismissed the DEA and ICE because their missions often don't align with your values.
The ATF, Secret Service, they're too narrow in focus.
And like many in the department, you dislike the FBI because of their rigidity and high-handedness, so that left the U.
S.
Marshals Service, an elite agency, renowned for their professionalism.
I appreciate you looking out for me, but I'm happy here.
And if it ain't broke Yes, but it will break.
The captain, he will retire.
And then Watson and I, we'll be forced to seek greener pastures without our sponsor.
And you'll be left working with policemen who may view you, quite unfairly, as a lesser satellite no longer tethered to the luminaries you once orbited.
You'll also have to deal with a new superior who might come with their own protégés.
Your access to the best, most challenging cases will be curtailed, perhaps eliminated.
You will be diminished.
Look, there are worse fates, yes, but there are better ones.
The trick is knowing the right one when you see it.
He figured out that you're the one who recommended him to the Marshals.
He did.
And? We'll see.
I hate to think of him leaving us, but I get it.
Of course you do.
You change careers the way that most people change clothes.
- Hey.
The point being that you have to take risks in order to be the best version of yourself-- as you obviously have.
So, have you, uh, made anything of Maria's national tour? I called Derek to ask him if, uh, he knew if any of Maria's fin-dom clients lived in any of the cities that Spikowski mentioned.
He said he didn't know.
But he insisted that Maria's clients never met with her in person.
So I did a search on all the cities and dates, see what I could come up with.
Following her favorite band? Actually, she was following a tour.
Just not the kind you're thinking of.
That last stop is in New York.
I thought we could pay them a visit in the morning.
The only question is, do we show up in our normal clothes, or do we go in costume? (jazzy music playing) Kind of wish we weren't here on business.
This Makermagic Fest looks fun.
I suppose a gathering of tinkerers, crafters and science enthusiasts could have some vague appeal.
And while Maria might not seem the type to attend, I agree her toys would fit right in.
Question is, did she meet someone or something on her travels which led to her kidnapping? Whoa.
Love the visor, dude.
Uh, Robot PD.
No cutting the line.
NYPD.
Consultants, technically.
We'd like to talk to one of the organizers.
Um, I'm one of the organizers.
Is there something wrong? This is Maria's third year with us.
Everyone loves her, and her toys sell like hotcakes.
I can't believe she's been kidnapped.
Can you think of anything that was unusual about Maria this time around? Any run-ins? Any customers that seemed aggressive? I mean, Maria's a pretty girl, so sure, she has to deal with stuff like that sometimes.
But it's not just the customers.
- What do you mean? - One of the other vendors, this guy named Roman Livingston, he's been hanging around Maria's booth a lot.
Roman can be kind of full of himself.
Thinks he's God's gift to the ladies.
And he doesn't like taking no for an answer.
Is he here today? He was supposed to be.
He's a blacksmith.
He makes swords and daggers and fancy kitchen knives.
Works a forge right on-site.
Big crowd-pleaser.
But, uh, he disappeared after our stop in Boston.
I didn't think much of it.
Sometimes vendors skip a city here or there, but after you told me about Maria I don't know.
You might want to look into him.
Hey.
It's me.
I'm at the house you sent me to, and based on what I'm looking at, I'm pretty sure Roman Livingston isn't our kidnapper.
Matter of fact, I think he's another victim.
That didn't take long.
Small place.
Not a lot to search.
WATSON: Which is not to say we did not find anything interesting.
There are pictures of Roman and Maria all over the place.
They were a couple.
We found this under the couch.
Must have gotten kicked there when Roman got abducted.
Looks like he put up a hell of a fight.
It was unlocked, so we checked the texts.
It confirms they were in a relationship.
It's mostly heart emojis, the occasional zucchini.
Then a few days before they got abducted, their texts got more interesting.
Maria: "I'm sorry I got us into this.
" Roman: "It's not your fault.
" Maria: "I can't do it anymore.
We need to get away from them.
" Any idea who she's talking about? They never spelled it out.
Could be related to Maria's financial domination.
Could be unconnected, but it sounds like they got into business with some pretty nasty people.
Seems like their bad business caught up with them.
At least one assailant abducted Maria from her apartment, but no less than three people took Roman.
There are three different sets of boot prints here, one set of bare feet.
None of the prints match the person who took Maria.
So it seems like they did run afoul of some sort of criminal conspiracy.
Assuming the barefoot one was Roman, they took him this way, but there's nothing back here.
Appears that Roman's property extends further than one might think.
WATSON: Looks like some of his equipment is missing.
Maybe the kidnappers took it? Suggests the work that they were doing here had more to do with smithing than sexual extortion.
You think Roman was being forced to make something for someone? Him and Maria.
Her texts implied that she'd gotten them both into something.
Something she didn't want to do anymore.
Some of it delicate work.
Much like the toys Maria makes.
What's all that? Metal scraps from the work that they were doing here.
It's called "flashing.
" It's the stray scraps of metal that are around a metal part after it's been punched out a machine press.
The flashing has to be stripped away so the part can be used.
You think, if you can fit all the pieces together, the space in the middle will show us what they were making? Ah.
Straight edges likely towards the center.
They're from multiple pressings, so I'm focusing on the darker pieces.
Should all be from the same part.
This is a recoil spring.
And this is an extractor.
So they weren't making knickknacks to sell at their makers' events.
They were making pistols.
This looks like the frame for a .
45.
BELL: Full-metal, semiautomatic M1911-A1 pistol.
Maria and Roman were making ghost guns.
No serial numbers, no purchase records.
Completely untraceable.
And worth about a grand apiece on the street.
WATSON: We found scraps from at least a dozen pistols in Roman's workshop.
There's no telling how many more he and Maria made.
We think they were being forced to make them, probably by street-level dealers or black-market wholesalers.
HOLMES: When Maria and her blacksmith swain tried to extricate themselves from the arrangement, they were abducted, perhaps to make them continue their work, keep the merchandise flowing.
WATSON: The good news is, if we find out who's been selling their guns, we can figure out who kidnapped them.
Actually, I might be able to help with that.
The ATF has been looking for guns exactly like the ones you're talking about.
Apparently, they've been showing up all over the Eastern Seaboard for the last couple of years.
It's almost 100 arrests here of people who committed crimes with the kind of gun we're talking about.
Maybe we can get someone to flip, tell us who sold them the gun they used.
Pretty sure the ATF already went down that road.
- Nobody talked.
- Well, we'll just have to find a point of leverage that they missed.
BELL: Another stack of case files from the ATF's New York field office.
Joan says she's still tracking down more from other offices.
Anything jump out at you? So far, no one appears to be a suitable candidate for snitching.
These I rejected out of hand, and these the ATF applied whatever possible pressure they could to get them to cooperate, with no success.
Well, there's plenty more where they came from.
Listen, about the U.
S.
Marshals You decided not to apply for the job.
I-I appreciate everything you said.
Seriously.
It's just my mom's here.
Chantal would have to uproot her life.
Not to mention the timing's all wrong.
Those are indeed factors, but the one that's most important to you, you're keeping to yourself, aren't you? The captain.
You feel that leaving him would be disloyal.
Everything you know about being a detective-- I mean, the stuff that really matters, the stuff that makes you great-- did you learn it yourself, or did someone teach you? I think we know that it's the former.
Right, so imagine it was different.
Imagine someone tapped you.
Took you under their wing, made you who you are as a professional.
You think you could just walk away from them? The Marshals don't accept anyone over the age of 36, so by the time the captain's days are done, you'll likely be too old to apply to the Marshals Service.
I know what I'm passing up.
And I know what I'm staying for.
I'm good with it.
Well, it's your decision.
In the meantime, think we've found our man.
You're wasting your time.
ATF already tried to get me to rat on the person who sold me the gun.
I wouldn't talk then, so why would I talk now? Two people's lives are in danger now.
That makes us more likely to talk to the D.
A.
about a deal for you.
You just have to give us a name.
- Oh, that's it? - Look, you didn't hurt anyone when you robbed that bank; just scared a few tellers by waving a gun in their faces.
We can work with that.
Sorry.
I'm not a snitch.
A portion of the money you stole-- almost $50,000-- was never recovered by the police.
I hauled ass from that bank, but the cops got onto me pretty fast.
I lost the 50 grand during the pursuit.
That's funny.
My friend thinks you stashed it at the home of your mistress.
What are you talking about? I'm married going on 20 years.
I don't have a mistress.
Then who's Crissy Olsen? My friend, see, he noticed that she's visited you a lot upstate.
She signs in as a "prison outreach volunteer", but far as we can tell, you're the only prisoner she reaches out to.
But what really jumped out is that the address on the license she uses to check in with the guards is just two blocks from the bank you robbed.
Made my friend wonder if that's where you lost the 50K.
You realize that if Crissy's house got searched and that money turned up, she'd be charged as an accessory after the fact.
You'd also have to explain to your wife how you know her.
You can't.
First, you're gonna give me the name of the person who sold you the gun.
Second, you're gonna make sure that 50K makes its way back to the bank.
Crissy will stay out of jail, your wife will never find out about her, and we'll get our gun dealer.
It's a win-win-win.
I bought the gun from a guy named Enrique Moncada.
He lives out in Wyandanch.
Enrique Moncada, this is Suffolk County PD.
We have you surrounded.
Put your hands where we can see them and get down on the ground.
(gunfire) OFFICER: Gun, gun, gun! Shots fired! (indistinct police radio chatter) What a mess.
I advised the locals to pick Moncada up on the street, but they wanted to grab him at his residence.
Their jurisdiction.
They get to call the shots.
I hung back like they asked.
Then everything went to hell.
It was over by the time I got here.
ESU guys say he went for his gun.
A hand-forged .
45 M1911 pistol.
The locals found a dozen more just like it in a shed out back.
So Moncada was definitely selling the ghost guns made by our kidnap victims.
We searched the house and the property.
There's no sign of Maria or Roman anywhere.
And our best chance at finding them just committed suicide by cop.
You were looking at his tattoos? Enrique Moncada was a member of Los Ladrones.
It's a motorcycle gang with a largely Latino membership.
Well, makes sense they're the ones who took Maria and Roman.
Los Ladrones run a lot of guns.
And some of the pistols Moncada had on hand were brand-new, as if they were made after the kidnapping.
So we were right about the kidnappers.
They wanted Maria and Roman to keep making guns for them.
I got a look at some of Moncada's merchandise before the local police took it away.
Some of the newer pistols were rather shoddily made.
Not Maria and Roman's usual craftsmanship.
You think someone else was making them? Novices.
More precisely, students.
Then Maria and Roman are teaching people how to make their ghost guns.
I imagine Los Ladrones are compelling them to do so.
Once they've trained their replacements, they won't need them anymore.
They won't let them go.
They'll kill them.
We need to find them before that.
We're working to identify the members of the gang.
Properties they own.
We'll move on them as soon as we find out where they're holding Maria and Roman.
HOLMES: We can speed up that process.
We've already met a member of Los Ladrones.
We just have to invite them back to the precinct.
You want to see the one on my belly, too? We're good.
Thanks.
Tattoos confirm what we already suspected.
You're a member of Los Ladrones.
Your mustache gave you away, in case you were wondering.
I don't have a mustache.
But you did, until you shaved it off yesterday.
Presumably to look the part of the concerned brother.
But your uneven tan revealed that you recently sported a handlebar mustache, which is popular amongst Los Ladrones.
We're guessing you're the one who came up with the idea of your sister and her boyfriend making guns for your gang.
When they decided they didn't want to do it anymore, you kidnapped 'em.
I never touched Maria.
No.
Your boot prints are a match for a set that we found outside Roman's home.
Someone else took Maria.
Are they still alive? Did I used to run with Los Ladrones? Yeah.
Used to.
But I'm out of that life now.
If some of those fools took Maria and her boyfriend, I don't know anything about it.
Hope you're better at maths than you are at lying.
What's that supposed to mean? BELL: It means that if Roman and your sister are dead, we're gonna charge you with murder and conspiracy.
You'll go to prison for the rest of your life.
If they're alive and you tell us where to find them, you'll probably just get 15 to 20 for kidnapping and gunrunning.
The choice is yours.
Doctors want to keep her for observation, but looks like she's gonna be fine.
How's Roman? He caught a lungful of smoke from one of ESU's flash grenades, but nothing to worry about.
Between him, her and the brother, we might have enough to take down this whole gang.
If you thought the Marshals were interested in you before Sherlock told you? No.
Deputy Lincoln paid me a visit yesterday.
He wanted more background on you.
Pretty standard stuff when an agency like that sets their sights on you.
When I mentioned to Sherlock that he and Joan might also get a visit, he copped to throwing your name in the ring.
He also told me that you're planning to turn them down.
- Captain - Marcus, let me finish.
I'm hoping I can talk you out of that.
Marcus, this is a great opportunity.
Did Sherlock tell you why I'm planning to turn them down? No.
He didn't need to.
I get how big a decision this is, so if you decide to tell them no, I'll understand.
But if you decide to see this thing through, I just want you to know that I'd be so proud of you.
No.
Trebuchet.
T-R-E-B-U-C-H-E-T.
It's a sort of catapult.
I believe that drug smugglers are operating one from the southwest end of Chemin Beaver.
(doorbell ringing) Yes, in Quebec.
I'll e-mail you the pertinent details, but the trebuchet has already claimed one innocent life.
You need to find it before it takes another.
- Come in.
- Thanks.
I can't stay.
I just wanted you to know I put in my application to the Marshals Service.
I have to finish up my masters in criminology first, but after that, if all goes well, I report to training at Glynco in six months.
I know you're gonna want time to break in a new human badge, so I figured I'd tell you now.
Six months notice.
That's more than fair.
(chuckles softly) Have a good night.
I don't need it It's all right, it's all right It's all right now I'm fine with how it all went down.
I try.
So, Lin told me that one of your friends went missing? Uh, her name is Maria Rodriguez.
I haven't talked to her in four days.
Have you checked with her family, gone by her place? Well, that's where it gets complicated.
You see, I haven't actually met Maria in person.
We met online in the comments section of a news site.
Started exchanging PMs.
Eventually got friendly enough that she gave me her real name and that she lived in the city.
We'd chat every day, and then, four days ago, she just went silent.
Could be she just got busy.
No, I don't think so.
Last time we talked, she said that she was dealing with something.
Some problem.
She didn't go into details, but I got the impression that she was in trouble.
Now she's gone.
I don't think that's a coincidence.
Mr.
Clary, Lin told me that you're one of the best real estate agents at her firm.
So I'm assuming that you're fairly well off.
Are you familiar with the term "catfishing"? You meet a woman online.
She strikes up a friendship.
After a while, she hints that she's having trouble and needs money.
No, Maria's not like that.
In fact, I offered her money to help her out of the jam that she was in.
She never responded.
Look, I'm (clears throat) really worried about her.
I just want you to look into it.
You don't even need to tell me where she is.
I just just want to know that she's safe.
So, this Maria Rodriguez, she's a resident of New York, is she? As far as the client knows.
The problem is, it's a pretty common name.
- Yeah.
- She's one of 200 in a 30-mile radius.
But your Maria is late 20s, early 30s, isn't she? That should narrow the field a bit, surely.
Oh, to about three dozen candidates.
That's still a lot of people.
- Hmm.
- Any advice? Well, I needn't remind you that the vast majority of detective work is work.
The, uh, dogged drudgery of chasing down every lead, upending every chestnut shell to find that metaphorical pea.
I was hoping for a more elegant solution than knocking on the door of every Maria Rodriguez in New York.
What is that? A catapult? Uh, technically, it's a trebuchet.
It's a scale model of a much larger device.
Just as I thought.
You recall the hiker who was killed by a blow to the head not far from Fort Covington? Yeah, I read that link you sent me.
I now believe she was struck by a bail of marijuana launched via trebuchet from Canada to the U.
S.
As far as your missing Maria goes, I, too, would much rather solve a case via a single quick deduction than by hundreds of hours of hard labor.
You know, when it comes to that, I can be the most incurably lazy devil that ever stood in shoe leather.
Right.
Lazy.
That's you.
Okay, so I guess I'll start making calls and knocking on doors in the morning.
I'd offer to help, but, um Detective Marcus Bell? Deputy Strider Lincoln, U.
S.
Marshals Service.
Strider? Like Lord of the Rings? My parents are nerds.
I guess you are, too.
How can I help you, Deputy? Looking for a fugitive? Looking for you, actually.
My bosses hear good things about you.
In fact, they think you'd be an excellent candidate for the Service.
They'd like you to consider putting in an application.
You're kidding.
You apply, you're looking at 150 days training at Glynco, and then a fast track into Fugitive Apprehension.
(chuckles) That's great, but to be honest, I'm not sure where all this is coming from.
Oh, I've seen your file.
It's impressive.
Hard to believe we're the first ones to headhunt you.
You'd like Fugitive Apprehension.
It's righteous work.
I'll think about it.
Do that.
Don't think too long.
This isn't the kind of offer that comes around more than once.
(cell phone ringing) Hey.
Hey.
I'm on a job for a private client.
He wanted me to find a woman named Maria Rodriguez, only he didn't know where she lived.
You want me to run her name? No.
I'm pretty sure I found the place.
Super let me in to look around.
And? I think she's been kidnapped.
Elementary 6x12 Meet Your Maker Believe it or not, this Maria's door was only the ninth one I knocked on.
There was no answer.
I noticed some blood on the sill.
The super let me in.
Found all this, and I called you.
And you're sure this is the Maria Rodriguez you were looking for? I took a photo of that picture, sent it to the client.
He confirmed that's his friend.
Nothing seems to be stolen? Doesn't look like it.
Her purse is over there.
There's almost $200 in it and a bunch of gift cards.
I think she made these.
I don't know.
Maybe that's how she earned her living.
You said you think they took her alive.
There's evidence of blood.
I found footprints by the back door, which would suggest that she walked out under her own power.
Based on these other prints, assailant was male.
Size-12 feet.
He broke in, waited for her, probably grabbed her as soon as she walked in the front door.
I'm hoping she was taken for ransom.
'Cause the other reasons a male kidnapper would take a female victim alive aren't good.
I'm sorry, but no.
No one called.
No one asked for ransom.
And if they had, my husband and I would have already paid for it.
Same for my brother and his wife.
And neither of our families has much, but we would have figured it out.
SISTER: You said that you found her purse, but that you didn't find her phone.
Doesn't that mean that you can ping it or whatever? We tried.
It's either been turned off or destroyed by the person who took her.
Can you think of anyone who had a grudge against your sister? Maybe an ex-boyfriend? No.
Maria broke a few hearts in high school, but none of her exes are like that.
They're good boys.
We're gonna want a list, just in case.
HOLMES: It's also possible she was targeted because of a more recent entanglement.
A business associate, current lover.
Was she involved with anyone or anything questionable? Truth is, we don't know much about what Maria is up to these days.
Once she went off to college, she didn't really associate with anyone from the old neighborhood.
Not even family.
SISTER: We only see her a few times a year.
We go out to dinner.
And? Uh, past couple years, every time that we went out, she insisted on paying, but thing is, she always used gift cards.
We found gift cards in Maria's wallet.
She pays for everything with them, and she never seems to run out.
One time, I tried to get her to tell me where she was getting them, but she just laughed it off.
I don't know-- y-you asked if she might be doing something questionable.
Could she be forging those cards? Uh, I just need to discuss something with my colleagues.
One second.
So, what didn't you want to say to them? I think Maria might have been up to something a little unsavory.
When Watson described the crime scene, the gift cards in Maria's purse didn't stand out.
I mean, they often go unused.
That's how the issuers make their money.
Her sister said she used them all the time.
And has a seemingly endless supply.
Additionally, Maria, she's an attractive young woman with no discernible means of income.
And you said you found a high-end video camera and tripod in her apartment.
And expensive lingerie, too.
You're thinking she's a cam girl? She dresses up, gets online, does a little show-and-tell for money.
Cam girls often get gift cards and other tokens of appreciation from their fans.
Her attacker could have seen her online, then tracked her down.
All right.
When we're done in there, I'll get CCS to look into the gift cards.
Sometimes they're attached to the e-mail addresses of the people who sent them.
I'll let you know where they lead.
Going out of my mind all morning.
I still can't believe I was right about Maria being in trouble.
This is my partner, Sherlock.
Pleasure.
We wanted to talk to you about some new developments.
Your friend, Maria, seems to be a fan of gift cards.
In the last month alone, she's been the recipient of almost 50 of them.
As far as the police can tell, all of them were sent by men.
At first, we thought this confirmed our theory that Maria was working as a cam girl.
You mean one of those women that let men watch them over the Internet? (chuckling): I'm sorry, that doesn't sound right.
Because it is, in fact, not right.
Not precisely so.
According to these ads that we tracked down, Maria, aka "Queen Mariposa" worked as a fin-dom.
A financial dominatrix.
Fin-doms cater to men who get a sexual thrill from giving money to pretty women, usually in a scenario that appears coercive.
Now, a typical fin-dom interacts with her clients-- or "paypigs," as they're charmingly known-- via video chat.
In their sessions, they will cajole, threaten and humiliate a man into sending them money and/or gifts.
It's basically consensual extortion.
But you already knew that because you're one of her clients.
What if I am? The NYPD's current thinking is that one of Maria's paypigs kidnapped her.
Maybe they got in too deep and blamed her.
Maybe they thought they could force her to give the money back.
You're saying I'm a suspect? Well, all of Maria's clients are suspects.
But you gave more money than most.
Best we can tell, almost $20,000 over the past two years.
If I had done anything to Maria, then why would I hire you to find her? Good question.
And it's the only reason we're having this conversation here rather than at the precinct.
Call it a courtesy to a friend of the family.
The reason why I didn't tell you the truth is because I have a wife and a job, and I really didn't want this stuff to get out.
Everything I said about me and Maria is true.
We're friends.
We chat all the time for free.
I'm not in too deep.
Maria's good that way.
She doesn't take more than she knows the clients can afford.
Maria's neighbors heard loud noises coming from her apartment Saturday around 10:00 p.
m.
We think that's when Maria was taken.
Can you account for your whereabouts? Yes.
A few of us stayed late to get a property ready for an open house on Sunday.
You can ask your sister.
She was there.
She'll tell you, we didn't leave till after midnight.
Can you think of anything else that might be helpful? Anyone that Maria had a problem with? Other clients that maybe threatened her? She did mention one guy.
She said that he had said some pretty terrible things about her on a message board.
What sort of things? She didn't say.
She wasn't really worried about him.
He was a kid.
He was clear on the other side of the country.
She mention his name? No, uh, but she did mention the name of the Web site.
Uh, BlackPill4U.
"Black pill"? You're certain? Yeah.
You know it? Not the Web site, no.
But I'm familiar with the term.
Doesn't bode well for Miss Rodriguez.
"Marcus Bell, U.
S.
Marshal".
It has a nice ring to it.
(laughs) Yeah, well, so does "Dr.
Bell," but I'm not about to quit my job and go to med school.
Come on.
You're not the least bit intrigued? I knew a lot of Marshals back when I clerked for Judge Yamamoto.
They were good guys, real pros.
It'd be a big change.
I'd have to go to Georgia for training.
Then, after that, they can assign me anywhere.
Well, sounds like an adventure.
Maybe an adventure I don't want to go on alone.
Are you asking me to move with you? What? No.
I mean I mean, you're here.
We're here.
I'd never ask you to leave New York.
You could try.
You serious? I don't know.
I guess that depends how serious you are.
It wouldn't be easy for you to pull up stakes.
Yeah, it wouldn't be impossible, either.
Like I said, I clerked for a federal judge.
I've got connections.
Speaking of connections, who's yours? What do you mean? The Marshals I knew said it was nearly impossible to get into the Service.
They accept like one out of 20 applications.
They don't recruit.
Obviously, they do.
No.
The kind of visit you got this morning, somebody made that happen.
What, you think I got an angel looking over my shoulder? You must.
The question is-- who? WATSON: Art Schultz? We're consultants with the NYPD.
We'd like a word.
About? BlackPill4U.
The site that you operate on the Dark Web.
It's a meeting place for the InCel community.
- The what community? - InCel community.
Short for "Involuntary Celibacy.
" No point in denying it.
We know people who are good with computers.
They were able to unmask you as the site's administrator and ping your location.
It's nothing, okay? It's just a place for people to talk about their problems.
HOLMES: Their chief problem being the wrong-headed belief that they've been forced into celibacy by an oppressive conspiracy of sexually unavailable women.
I read the posts on your site.
Gets pretty nasty.
Not surprising, given that "taking the black pill" is InCel slang for embracing the worst kind of misogynistic nihilism.
Here's one where a person claims it should be legal to rape any woman who has had sex outside of marriage.
Or another one that says any woman who has an abortion should be forced into government-controlled sex slavery.
They're joking, obviously.
Then how do you explain one of your members who went on a rampage at their college campus, killing 12 people, mostly women? Or the person who opened fire on a group of female engineers in Montreal? InCel boards like yours have been banned by every major Internet hosting service for encouraging violence and hate.
That's why you went underground and moved BlackPill4U to the Dark Web.
Obviously, you didn't go dark enough.
We have questions for you.
Answer them, or we'll tell our friends at Homeland Security all about you.
Fine.
I'll talk to you.
Just not in here.
We're looking for a missing woman who works as a financial dominatrix by the name of Queen Mariposa.
HOLMES: One of your members posted that he'd given her everything.
Even drained his college fund to prove how much he loved her.
Still, she rejected him, humiliated him.
And then some other members on the site suggested that he track Queen Mariposa down, kidnap her.
A few days ago, Mariposa was actually kidnapped.
We think the person who started that thread may be the one who did it.
We want his name.
I'm sorry, but all the posters on our site are anonymous.
They don't even have user names.
Just little icons.
True, but there is a donation button on your site.
So, when people give money, they get special fonts, they get a bigger character count, and they even get a gold star under their icon.
HOLMES: The person we're looking for has a little gold star, which means you have his credit card information.
Give it to us, or start packing for Guantanamo Bay.
Your choice.
His name is Kyle Spikowski.
He's from Sioux City, Iowa.
(phone camera clicks) That last IP address-- he logged on to your site this morning from somewhere in the city.
I'll call Marcus, let him know that we have a positive I.
D.
on the kidnapper.
Who are they? That's Homeland Security.
ART: But you promised you wouldn't tell them about me if I talked to you.
Yes, but you play den mother to a pack of would-be rapists and mass shooters, so you can see how lying to you would be the highlight of my day.
Look on the bright side-- you don't seem to enjoy the company of women, and that shouldn't be a problem for the next five to ten years.
That the guy Joan called about? - Spikowski? - Yep.
What about the girl? Not with him, but you should see this.
After I issued the Finest Message, Highway Patrol spotted Kyle's car, pulled him off the highway and saw that.
He didn't go for it? They drew on him too fast.
Pulled him out of the car, did a search.
That's when they found this.
Guy was ready for war.
Any idea with who? According to the navigation app on his phone, he was headed to a women-only gym in Park Slope.
They saw me there, didn't they? Who? The sluts at the gym.
I went there last night to stake it out.
I didn't think anyone noticed me, but I was wrong.
- They knew, right? - They knew what? (chuckling): They were gonna get what was coming to 'em.
Of course they knew.
Women always know.
What about Maria Rodriguez? She get what was coming to her? What are you talking about? How do you know Maria? Somebody beat her bloody and kidnapped her, Kyle.
Seeing how you threatened to do exactly that on a message board, we're thinking it was you.
What? No.
Someone hurt Maria? Yeah, you hurt her.
I would never hurt Maria.
Everything I was gonna do at that gym, it was for her.
It was in her honor.
I was gonna show her just how much I love her.
Please, you gotta find her.
I'll-I'll do anything.
I'll confess to anything.
Please just find her.
Did you find her yet? Is she safe? Sorry, Kyle.
There's no sign of Maria.
Well, you gotta let me go.
Let me help you find her.
I didn't hurt anyone.
And no one knows Maria better than I do.
I can help you.
Kyle, you were driving around with a trunk full of guns you stole from your neighbor.
You also basically admitted you were gonna carry out a mass shooting.
You're not gonna be going anywhere for a while.
You want to help us? Answer our questions.
Starting with: Why should we believe you when you say you didn't kidnap Maria? You posted a plan of how to abduct her on BlackPill4U.
I didn't mean it.
I was just showing off for some buddies.
WATSON: Maria was taken from her apartment Saturday night.
- Where were you? - Saturday night? I was driving through Ohio.
I took a toll road.
Cost me $17.
50.
I-I tried to use my credit card, but it wouldn't go through, so this lady came out of the toll booth.
Told me I had to pay cash.
She was a bitch.
I told her so.
But I put the receipt she gave me in my glove compartment.
BELL: We'll look for it.
And if you really did interact with that toll-booth operator, we'll find her.
Hard to imagine she would forget a charmer such as yourself.
I got here yesterday morning, and I couldn't find Maria.
I thought maybe she was angry at me 'cause I said some dumb things to her last time we talked.
So I figured I'd show her how much she means to me and hurt the people who hurt her.
You're talking about the women at the gym? It used to be Maria's gym, but she had to quit because they raised their rates too high.
It wasn't fair.
If she was kidnapped Saturday night, that means it would've happened right after she got back from her trip.
What trip? She was on a trip.
Uh, Austin, San Francisco, Denver, Seattle, Chicago, Toronto, Boston.
She told you she was going to all those cities? No.
A couple years ago, I sent her an e-mail to her phone, and put spyware on it so I'd always know where she was.
If you knew Maria was traveling, why'd you come to New York? 'Cause I knew Boston was her last stop.
She did the same exact trip last year.
The same cities in the same order.
So, when I saw she was on the move from Boston, I got in my car and started driving.
Telling us to scoop that guy up probably saved a lot of lives.
I'll make a few calls, confirm he was where he said he was.
I'm more interested in Maria's road trip than his.
Her job is pretty unorthodox, but she still might go on the occasional business trip.
Perhaps she met with some of her clients in person.
Well, might explain why she would go to all the same cities on all the same dates two years in a row.
We'll ponder that while you verify Spikowski's alibi.
Well, actually, if you don't mind pondering on your own for a while, I was hoping to have a word with your partner.
Yeah.
I'll see you at home.
I got a visit yesterday from a U.
S.
Marshal.
Deputy by the name of Strider Lincoln.
Strider? It's only the second-dumbest name I've ever heard.
He basically offered me a job.
Said I came highly recommended but didn't mention who did the recommending.
I did a little digging.
Guess whose name came back.
Yours.
(chuckles) I don't get it, man.
You trying to get rid of me? Yeah, I am.
After a fashion.
You remember I fully supported your interest in becoming a sergeant two years ago? Hmm? Right up until the moment that you told me it was more about a pay increase than about the work.
Hmm? Still, I thought a fire had been lit.
I thought it was only a matter of time before you identified a new challenge.
And then, two years later When I was at Scotland Yard, I was only too happy to watch the moss gather under the policemen I worked with.
Only, to me, they were just a means of gaining access to people and places that I otherwise couldn't.
And they were just happy to stay and take credit for my work.
But it's never been like that with us, has it? No.
You're too good a detective.
So I want something better for you.
Something something more.
Why the Marshals? Well, I considered and dismissed the DEA and ICE because their missions often don't align with your values.
The ATF, Secret Service, they're too narrow in focus.
And like many in the department, you dislike the FBI because of their rigidity and high-handedness, so that left the U.
S.
Marshals Service, an elite agency, renowned for their professionalism.
I appreciate you looking out for me, but I'm happy here.
And if it ain't broke Yes, but it will break.
The captain, he will retire.
And then Watson and I, we'll be forced to seek greener pastures without our sponsor.
And you'll be left working with policemen who may view you, quite unfairly, as a lesser satellite no longer tethered to the luminaries you once orbited.
You'll also have to deal with a new superior who might come with their own protégés.
Your access to the best, most challenging cases will be curtailed, perhaps eliminated.
You will be diminished.
Look, there are worse fates, yes, but there are better ones.
The trick is knowing the right one when you see it.
He figured out that you're the one who recommended him to the Marshals.
He did.
And? We'll see.
I hate to think of him leaving us, but I get it.
Of course you do.
You change careers the way that most people change clothes.
- Hey.
The point being that you have to take risks in order to be the best version of yourself-- as you obviously have.
So, have you, uh, made anything of Maria's national tour? I called Derek to ask him if, uh, he knew if any of Maria's fin-dom clients lived in any of the cities that Spikowski mentioned.
He said he didn't know.
But he insisted that Maria's clients never met with her in person.
So I did a search on all the cities and dates, see what I could come up with.
Following her favorite band? Actually, she was following a tour.
Just not the kind you're thinking of.
That last stop is in New York.
I thought we could pay them a visit in the morning.
The only question is, do we show up in our normal clothes, or do we go in costume? (jazzy music playing) Kind of wish we weren't here on business.
This Makermagic Fest looks fun.
I suppose a gathering of tinkerers, crafters and science enthusiasts could have some vague appeal.
And while Maria might not seem the type to attend, I agree her toys would fit right in.
Question is, did she meet someone or something on her travels which led to her kidnapping? Whoa.
Love the visor, dude.
Uh, Robot PD.
No cutting the line.
NYPD.
Consultants, technically.
We'd like to talk to one of the organizers.
Um, I'm one of the organizers.
Is there something wrong? This is Maria's third year with us.
Everyone loves her, and her toys sell like hotcakes.
I can't believe she's been kidnapped.
Can you think of anything that was unusual about Maria this time around? Any run-ins? Any customers that seemed aggressive? I mean, Maria's a pretty girl, so sure, she has to deal with stuff like that sometimes.
But it's not just the customers.
- What do you mean? - One of the other vendors, this guy named Roman Livingston, he's been hanging around Maria's booth a lot.
Roman can be kind of full of himself.
Thinks he's God's gift to the ladies.
And he doesn't like taking no for an answer.
Is he here today? He was supposed to be.
He's a blacksmith.
He makes swords and daggers and fancy kitchen knives.
Works a forge right on-site.
Big crowd-pleaser.
But, uh, he disappeared after our stop in Boston.
I didn't think much of it.
Sometimes vendors skip a city here or there, but after you told me about Maria I don't know.
You might want to look into him.
Hey.
It's me.
I'm at the house you sent me to, and based on what I'm looking at, I'm pretty sure Roman Livingston isn't our kidnapper.
Matter of fact, I think he's another victim.
That didn't take long.
Small place.
Not a lot to search.
WATSON: Which is not to say we did not find anything interesting.
There are pictures of Roman and Maria all over the place.
They were a couple.
We found this under the couch.
Must have gotten kicked there when Roman got abducted.
Looks like he put up a hell of a fight.
It was unlocked, so we checked the texts.
It confirms they were in a relationship.
It's mostly heart emojis, the occasional zucchini.
Then a few days before they got abducted, their texts got more interesting.
Maria: "I'm sorry I got us into this.
" Roman: "It's not your fault.
" Maria: "I can't do it anymore.
We need to get away from them.
" Any idea who she's talking about? They never spelled it out.
Could be related to Maria's financial domination.
Could be unconnected, but it sounds like they got into business with some pretty nasty people.
Seems like their bad business caught up with them.
At least one assailant abducted Maria from her apartment, but no less than three people took Roman.
There are three different sets of boot prints here, one set of bare feet.
None of the prints match the person who took Maria.
So it seems like they did run afoul of some sort of criminal conspiracy.
Assuming the barefoot one was Roman, they took him this way, but there's nothing back here.
Appears that Roman's property extends further than one might think.
WATSON: Looks like some of his equipment is missing.
Maybe the kidnappers took it? Suggests the work that they were doing here had more to do with smithing than sexual extortion.
You think Roman was being forced to make something for someone? Him and Maria.
Her texts implied that she'd gotten them both into something.
Something she didn't want to do anymore.
Some of it delicate work.
Much like the toys Maria makes.
What's all that? Metal scraps from the work that they were doing here.
It's called "flashing.
" It's the stray scraps of metal that are around a metal part after it's been punched out a machine press.
The flashing has to be stripped away so the part can be used.
You think, if you can fit all the pieces together, the space in the middle will show us what they were making? Ah.
Straight edges likely towards the center.
They're from multiple pressings, so I'm focusing on the darker pieces.
Should all be from the same part.
This is a recoil spring.
And this is an extractor.
So they weren't making knickknacks to sell at their makers' events.
They were making pistols.
This looks like the frame for a .
45.
BELL: Full-metal, semiautomatic M1911-A1 pistol.
Maria and Roman were making ghost guns.
No serial numbers, no purchase records.
Completely untraceable.
And worth about a grand apiece on the street.
WATSON: We found scraps from at least a dozen pistols in Roman's workshop.
There's no telling how many more he and Maria made.
We think they were being forced to make them, probably by street-level dealers or black-market wholesalers.
HOLMES: When Maria and her blacksmith swain tried to extricate themselves from the arrangement, they were abducted, perhaps to make them continue their work, keep the merchandise flowing.
WATSON: The good news is, if we find out who's been selling their guns, we can figure out who kidnapped them.
Actually, I might be able to help with that.
The ATF has been looking for guns exactly like the ones you're talking about.
Apparently, they've been showing up all over the Eastern Seaboard for the last couple of years.
It's almost 100 arrests here of people who committed crimes with the kind of gun we're talking about.
Maybe we can get someone to flip, tell us who sold them the gun they used.
Pretty sure the ATF already went down that road.
- Nobody talked.
- Well, we'll just have to find a point of leverage that they missed.
BELL: Another stack of case files from the ATF's New York field office.
Joan says she's still tracking down more from other offices.
Anything jump out at you? So far, no one appears to be a suitable candidate for snitching.
These I rejected out of hand, and these the ATF applied whatever possible pressure they could to get them to cooperate, with no success.
Well, there's plenty more where they came from.
Listen, about the U.
S.
Marshals You decided not to apply for the job.
I-I appreciate everything you said.
Seriously.
It's just my mom's here.
Chantal would have to uproot her life.
Not to mention the timing's all wrong.
Those are indeed factors, but the one that's most important to you, you're keeping to yourself, aren't you? The captain.
You feel that leaving him would be disloyal.
Everything you know about being a detective-- I mean, the stuff that really matters, the stuff that makes you great-- did you learn it yourself, or did someone teach you? I think we know that it's the former.
Right, so imagine it was different.
Imagine someone tapped you.
Took you under their wing, made you who you are as a professional.
You think you could just walk away from them? The Marshals don't accept anyone over the age of 36, so by the time the captain's days are done, you'll likely be too old to apply to the Marshals Service.
I know what I'm passing up.
And I know what I'm staying for.
I'm good with it.
Well, it's your decision.
In the meantime, think we've found our man.
You're wasting your time.
ATF already tried to get me to rat on the person who sold me the gun.
I wouldn't talk then, so why would I talk now? Two people's lives are in danger now.
That makes us more likely to talk to the D.
A.
about a deal for you.
You just have to give us a name.
- Oh, that's it? - Look, you didn't hurt anyone when you robbed that bank; just scared a few tellers by waving a gun in their faces.
We can work with that.
Sorry.
I'm not a snitch.
A portion of the money you stole-- almost $50,000-- was never recovered by the police.
I hauled ass from that bank, but the cops got onto me pretty fast.
I lost the 50 grand during the pursuit.
That's funny.
My friend thinks you stashed it at the home of your mistress.
What are you talking about? I'm married going on 20 years.
I don't have a mistress.
Then who's Crissy Olsen? My friend, see, he noticed that she's visited you a lot upstate.
She signs in as a "prison outreach volunteer", but far as we can tell, you're the only prisoner she reaches out to.
But what really jumped out is that the address on the license she uses to check in with the guards is just two blocks from the bank you robbed.
Made my friend wonder if that's where you lost the 50K.
You realize that if Crissy's house got searched and that money turned up, she'd be charged as an accessory after the fact.
You'd also have to explain to your wife how you know her.
You can't.
First, you're gonna give me the name of the person who sold you the gun.
Second, you're gonna make sure that 50K makes its way back to the bank.
Crissy will stay out of jail, your wife will never find out about her, and we'll get our gun dealer.
It's a win-win-win.
I bought the gun from a guy named Enrique Moncada.
He lives out in Wyandanch.
Enrique Moncada, this is Suffolk County PD.
We have you surrounded.
Put your hands where we can see them and get down on the ground.
(gunfire) OFFICER: Gun, gun, gun! Shots fired! (indistinct police radio chatter) What a mess.
I advised the locals to pick Moncada up on the street, but they wanted to grab him at his residence.
Their jurisdiction.
They get to call the shots.
I hung back like they asked.
Then everything went to hell.
It was over by the time I got here.
ESU guys say he went for his gun.
A hand-forged .
45 M1911 pistol.
The locals found a dozen more just like it in a shed out back.
So Moncada was definitely selling the ghost guns made by our kidnap victims.
We searched the house and the property.
There's no sign of Maria or Roman anywhere.
And our best chance at finding them just committed suicide by cop.
You were looking at his tattoos? Enrique Moncada was a member of Los Ladrones.
It's a motorcycle gang with a largely Latino membership.
Well, makes sense they're the ones who took Maria and Roman.
Los Ladrones run a lot of guns.
And some of the pistols Moncada had on hand were brand-new, as if they were made after the kidnapping.
So we were right about the kidnappers.
They wanted Maria and Roman to keep making guns for them.
I got a look at some of Moncada's merchandise before the local police took it away.
Some of the newer pistols were rather shoddily made.
Not Maria and Roman's usual craftsmanship.
You think someone else was making them? Novices.
More precisely, students.
Then Maria and Roman are teaching people how to make their ghost guns.
I imagine Los Ladrones are compelling them to do so.
Once they've trained their replacements, they won't need them anymore.
They won't let them go.
They'll kill them.
We need to find them before that.
We're working to identify the members of the gang.
Properties they own.
We'll move on them as soon as we find out where they're holding Maria and Roman.
HOLMES: We can speed up that process.
We've already met a member of Los Ladrones.
We just have to invite them back to the precinct.
You want to see the one on my belly, too? We're good.
Thanks.
Tattoos confirm what we already suspected.
You're a member of Los Ladrones.
Your mustache gave you away, in case you were wondering.
I don't have a mustache.
But you did, until you shaved it off yesterday.
Presumably to look the part of the concerned brother.
But your uneven tan revealed that you recently sported a handlebar mustache, which is popular amongst Los Ladrones.
We're guessing you're the one who came up with the idea of your sister and her boyfriend making guns for your gang.
When they decided they didn't want to do it anymore, you kidnapped 'em.
I never touched Maria.
No.
Your boot prints are a match for a set that we found outside Roman's home.
Someone else took Maria.
Are they still alive? Did I used to run with Los Ladrones? Yeah.
Used to.
But I'm out of that life now.
If some of those fools took Maria and her boyfriend, I don't know anything about it.
Hope you're better at maths than you are at lying.
What's that supposed to mean? BELL: It means that if Roman and your sister are dead, we're gonna charge you with murder and conspiracy.
You'll go to prison for the rest of your life.
If they're alive and you tell us where to find them, you'll probably just get 15 to 20 for kidnapping and gunrunning.
The choice is yours.
Doctors want to keep her for observation, but looks like she's gonna be fine.
How's Roman? He caught a lungful of smoke from one of ESU's flash grenades, but nothing to worry about.
Between him, her and the brother, we might have enough to take down this whole gang.
If you thought the Marshals were interested in you before Sherlock told you? No.
Deputy Lincoln paid me a visit yesterday.
He wanted more background on you.
Pretty standard stuff when an agency like that sets their sights on you.
When I mentioned to Sherlock that he and Joan might also get a visit, he copped to throwing your name in the ring.
He also told me that you're planning to turn them down.
- Captain - Marcus, let me finish.
I'm hoping I can talk you out of that.
Marcus, this is a great opportunity.
Did Sherlock tell you why I'm planning to turn them down? No.
He didn't need to.
I get how big a decision this is, so if you decide to tell them no, I'll understand.
But if you decide to see this thing through, I just want you to know that I'd be so proud of you.
No.
Trebuchet.
T-R-E-B-U-C-H-E-T.
It's a sort of catapult.
I believe that drug smugglers are operating one from the southwest end of Chemin Beaver.
(doorbell ringing) Yes, in Quebec.
I'll e-mail you the pertinent details, but the trebuchet has already claimed one innocent life.
You need to find it before it takes another.
- Come in.
- Thanks.
I can't stay.
I just wanted you to know I put in my application to the Marshals Service.
I have to finish up my masters in criminology first, but after that, if all goes well, I report to training at Glynco in six months.
I know you're gonna want time to break in a new human badge, so I figured I'd tell you now.
Six months notice.
That's more than fair.
(chuckles softly) Have a good night.
I don't need it It's all right, it's all right It's all right now I'm fine with how it all went down.