Billions (2016–…): Season 3, Episode 2 - The Wrong Maria Gonzalez - full transcript

Previously on "Billions"...

You know those poison-tip arrows

that go through one
guy and kill another?

As long as it doesn't come from you.

You get someone else to ask her.

Won't track back to me.

You come through for me,
I'll pay off your house.

People are getting sick on Ice Juice.

Freezing the assets?

Now, that's an Ivan Koloff bear
hug you're putting on the man.

You're squeezing the breath out of him.



But now you owe me.

A favor to be named later.

Back channeling, patronage.
I lost my taste for it.

Just don't forget,
it was the back channels and deal-making

that put you in that position.

Remind me again,
and it's the last meal we share.

It is still Axe Capital,

no matter who's making
the day-to-day decisions.

Are you sure?

I know it's Axe's faith
that confers value on me

until I have a track record of my own.

Unless it becomes necessary,
I will not leave.

I'm holding in my hand
Robert Axelrod's signature

relinquishing his ability
to trade securities.



Well...

ol' Samson got a real buzz cut.

- Hold on.
- ♪ Between the rain ♪

Bobby. Are you okay?

I went down to the crossroads.

What?

I made a mistake.

The deal. I can't do it... not trade.

I've worked my entire life

putting myself in a position
where I would be truly free...

no limits, nothing I couldn't do.

And with one signature,

I've stripped myself of all of that.

It wasn't the signature that did it.

It was the living like
there were no rules.

That's what made the
signature necessary.

Wendy? You all right?

Yeah. Don't wake up the kids.

I'll be right up.

I can't do this now.

Realize that limits,

constraints, they can be useful.

Letting someone else run
Axe Capital gives you

a chance to realign who you are.

To get good at letting go.
Which is a different

kind of freedom.
A more powerful kind of freedom.

Now go to sleep.

Even if it were a good idea,
which it's not,

there is nothing you can do to
regain control at this hour.

_

We need to meet.

These fuckers can take
away my ability to trade

but not my ability to see.

Insightful guy like you,
how you gonna turn it off?

I'm not. I can't. I don't want to.

If you can't trade on the insights,
who can?

Only those who I have
reason to trust absolutely.

- And that's me.
- It better be.

Because no one can know I'm
behind any of these trades.

Well, our doors wouldn't be
open if it wasn't for your,

um, let's say goodwill.

And when we're done,
those doors are gonna open

on to a much bigger shop.

Been hoping to hear from you.

I've been wanting to expand,

but I've never been great at the raise.

That'll no longer be a problem
for Old Oaks Investments.

Your money is always good here.

You can't direct funds,
so how's this work?

Let's dive the fuck in.

I'll be in touch.

- So, this is the way it's done?
- Yeah.

And there's really
nothing we can do but...

Hope the wheel of fate favors us.

Welcome to old New York,
where judicial assignment's

still determined by the spin of a wheel.

Hey, it beats
having Chief Judge Morgenstern

make 'em after a long night
of gin at the goulash joint.

- Drinking or playing?
- Both.

For the United States
v. Robert Axelrod...

...Judge Leonard Funt.

Do I have to say it?

You really don't.

You just got Funted.

Ha!

How bad is this?

Funt is a true believer in
the power of a free market.

Old school Libertarian.

He's the best friend Bobby
Axelrod could have on the bench.

Well, if Connerty builds the case right,
the judge doesn't matter.

Wrong.

You need to find a way
to get Funt off the case.

So the wheel spits out another name?

No. Only one spin,

then it's up to Chief Judge Morgenstern.

The other judges lobby him,
depending on if they want

on or off. So you need
to stunt that process.

That is tampering twice over.

No. It's finesse.

I don't break promises,
so our unappetizing deal holds.

- Mm.
- But it will not expand.

Fate has dealt our hand.

Now we play it.

Chuck.

What couldn't be talked
about on the phone?

We got judge-fucked in the Axelrod case.

And, uh, I don't mean "We,
the people," I mean...

We. Our family.

- Fuck.
- Yeah.

We need a judge who
believes that the rich

have gotten away with
too much for too long.

And one who won't allow
Axelrod to create a distraction

by alleging I set up a roach
motel and lured him in.

Axe can't do that without
essentially admitting his guilt.

I know.

That's one of the things
keeping me up at night.

You know what I risked...
what I gave up... to get him.

What would he give to get me?

Everything.

Well, the judge we drew
is Leonard Edward Funt.

Isn't that good news?
Doesn't he owe you...

Yes, there is a debt.

I once did him a kindness.
But back then, during a case,

I tried to allude to
the favor in conference,

and that man hammered me
for even hinting at it.

Seemed to grow larger as he talked,

the way some men can when
they're not pretending

to dignity and honor but they're
actually made of the stuff.

You withdrew the request?

I did.

And I fear it would be even worse today.

See, if he wouldn't return a
favor back when it was fresh,

why would he do so now?

But that's not what happened, is it?

He didn't actually refuse.
He didn't say no.

Not in so many words.

What he did was:
spare himself the question

by putting a tougher one to you.

It's about will, Chuck.

Impose your will on
him until he does what

he needs to and repays the debt.

Why, you are a marvel.

Go.

Do what you have to do.

I've recently invested nine
billion of Axe Cap's money

back into the market. In phases.
And now when it's time

for the next phase,
another two billion...

You can't.

Why?

There's a velvet rope around it.
So to speak.

What's actually around it?

A directive from Axe that
the money remain untouched.

Is he considering moving the
funds or deploying them elsewhere?

Never mind. You don't know.

Don't I?

Maybe Axe is hedging.

Against the main fund?

Against you.

Ah. The two billion.

I told them: velvet rope.

Spoken like a man who's still
mad he never got into Xenon.

I'm on it, Taylor.

This is clean.
And it does what you need,

how you need.
Tracks it all in real time.

We've also swept the apartment.

There are no listening devices,
no visual recording devices,

no compromising devices of any kind.

But guests leave eyes and ears,
so we should sweep often.

- Who else visits?
- The women.

Wand them.

He will.

So, this is the Counter Intel team,
the new Halls.

I don't think they care for that.

Why should I trust you
to do anything other than

point me to the nearest avocado toast?

For whom have you worked?

Is this just a walk on the wild side
to spice up the b-school essays?

How much you doing this for the money?

You can answer him.

In re bona fides,
John built the code for

four successful startups in
high school then Stanford,

then was asked to travel
to 71 countries for DARPA

and Other Government Agency,

all which he did without complaint.

And Timmy Dones has a
military background.

What fucking war were you in?

Mr. Hall fought the
wars you've heard of.

I fought the ones you haven't.

As for your other questions.
It's none of your business,

smashed spring pea toast
is the new avocado toast,

and 70 percent.

Are we clear to talk to
Mr. Wagner going forward?

Discuss anything except
women you care about.

Yeah, so, the two billion.

Ah, and here I was thinking
you came to keep me company.

Look, I know you're giving it
to outside funds,

not on the surface.

It'll get routed around the world first,

but then it will land in certain funds,

and suddenly they'll get hot
as Farrah Fawcett in '76.

Don't do it. One errant e-mail,

one recorded call,
one trade that tracks back

to you... and it's Hassan chop!

We're done. All of us.

There's no need for it, bwana.

Satisfy your urges some other way.

Buy yourself something.

I bought it all already.

Probably thrown it out.

What about that vintage
Cheetah you've been eyeballing?

Look, this is not
a message I'm born to carry.

It goes against everything
I've built my life on.

But for you,
holding back is essential right now.

You're right about hiding the money.

That's too dangerous. What if I didn't?

- Huh?
- I could have Taylor move it,

on-the-books, perfectly legal
disbursements to outside shops.

Bobby... that's right,
I'm not calling you "Mr. President,"

I'm calling you "Bobby"
because I've never used

your first name and I want to underline
how serious this moment is.

You've called me Bobby before.

Strategic mistake, but not nearly as big

as the one you're making if
you ask Taylor to do this.

They have nothing to
gain by going along.

They get to keep their
princely fucking job.

If you fire them,
it will look like what it is.

And you can't have it appear
you're illegally meddling.

Especially when you're
illegally meddling.

- My point...
- I get your point.

So you won't take the two billion?

I get your point.

Let's leave it at that.

Ah!

If it isn't George and Edward.

Which one of you will give
up the throne for love?

That seems like a stupid reason.

You must be George.

Are you coming to our game later,
Uncle Wags?

Is it official Little League?

- Yeah.
- Can't. Banned for life.

Well, here we are
on the Axelrod case together,

so, you know,
we got our fairy tale ending after all.

You been working out?
You look like you've been working out.

There's no good way to
answer that question.

Is it ping pong? You back at the tables?

Uh, can I get a lawyer?

Excuse me, Ms. Gonzalez...

Special Agent Terri McCue, FBI.

Uh, me llamo Bryan Connerty,

uh, Federal prosecutor.

He's also second alternate

at the World Table Tennis Championships.

I'm really not... that good.

Ms. Gonzalez, we don't care
about your immigration status.

That's not what we do.

We may even be able to help
you if you cooperate with us.

We want to speak to you
about your boss, Victor Mateo.

Mr. Victor, he's very good.

He and his wife, they sponsor me for

the green card, so I don't need help.

You're not eligible for a green
card if you've committed a crime.

A crime? No. No, no, no.

Let's put it up on the colortini.

That couple near you snapping
selfies were undercover agents.

Mr. Victor made me do it.

Did Mr. Victor give you the vial?
Did he pay you?

It was someone else. A woman.
But I know that it was for him.

Him and his wife, son monstruos.

One time I drop a glass licorera...
Baccarat.

Then Missus, she break the
tail light to my car to punish.

I had to drive home afraid
that I get pulled over

and sent back to Guatemala.

Now I take the bus.

I want to know how it worked.
When and where...

The way that Mr. Victor and his
wife are... I can't be late.

Or do I have to tell them...

No, no, no. Don't... don't say anything.

After work, you'll come to my
office and give a statement.

Lo prometo.

Yeah, what is it?

My maid was late today.

She's never late.

We have a real problem. We need to meet.

Group of guys who own this car,

it's a smaller club than
the one that owns NBA teams,

only 29 ever built.

Which is exactly why I'm buying it.

Which is why I'm gonna
let you outbid me.

Thanks. Sounds like you want something.

I do.

I want in on the new shit.

You're raising money for new ventures,
count me in.

Thanks, but I'm not looking
to give up any more equity.

You're saying no to money?

Look, Axe, let me answer
the question you didn't ask,

and this pains me to say...

I don't want your money.

I've got too many eyes on me,
and I can't be

anywhere near the shit show
you're in the middle of right now.

Noted.

Michael Panay.

You haven't gone home
with a car this year.

Is it the one you had your
heart set on all along?

If Bill Thomas built a toaster,
I'd skip work to buy that.

But you won't actually
buy this car, will you?

Because you've been downsizing,
hoping no one would see.

We're not downsizing.

I was on the other side
of the Alperin trade.

I know how much you lost.

Well, I know you're not exactly
trending in the right direction, either.

Maybe we help each other.

I lead the early bidding,
knock out the dabblers,

then you swoop in at your desired price.

What's your number?

Mike, I'd pedal
the fucking Flintstones car

before I went in on this with you.

You sure?

I know my people.

She's been approached.

I'll handle it.

You know what this means, don't you?

They'll be coming for the others.

If that bursts into flame,

I'm denouncing you to Governor Danforth.

It's a focus exercise.

And Danforth is just in the play.

At the real Salem trials,
the judge was William Stoughton.

Careful, that sounds like
something a witch would know.

Also: We're looking good
on the two billion.

Now that got you focused.

I'm here to break the glass.

In case of emergency, you know?

Breathe, then talk.

We're getting hit by a tsunami.

- Shit. Did the Fed hike...
- No. Actual tsunami. In Brazil.

No way. Brazil doesn't have tsunamis.

The worst they get is ressacas do mar.

"Sea hangover."

Am I the only person here
who's loved a Portuguese woman?

Brazil does not normally have tsunamis.

Black swan event.

How heavy are we in Brazil?

Jim Morrison at the end.

Our newly redeployed funds
are affected in dozens

of different ways,
among the most notable,

- Brazilian sugar and shipping.
- So we buy sugar futures.

Impending shortage means prices go up.

Everyone will do that, but sure.

A few of the moves I'm already making.

Shorting Brazil's largest debt holder,

buying long-dated VIX calls.
Also buying solar, wind,

and every alternative energy play
not dependent on government subsidy.

Um, is no one worried

about the people, you know, in Brazil?

If you want to pretend
you're concerned, see Wendy.

He's not pretending, Wags.

If you really care, start a walk-a-thon.

Tough Mudders are the new walk-a-thons.

But don't bring that shit to me.

Our own foundation was set
up for just these situations

as a kind of emotional
and fiscal catch-all

for you to use as a tool for you to get

your conscience out of the way.

I wondered why you
showed at this meeting,

you fucking vulture.

What would salve my conscience
and my wallet is if I was

a fucking contractor in Brazil.

Too bad their leading
construction company's

a scandal factory.

Can't get into bed with
a firm that's had almost

100 executives indicted.

Our principal has been indicted.

If it's a money-maker, we do it.

Legal trouble does not
mean you can't fulfill

your teleological purpose.

We're on the clock, people.

Now's the time to earn your paychecks.

There's something I always wondered:

Why aren't you Charlie?

Feels like you would have

- been a great Charlie.
- No, I agree.

Oh, Charlie Rhoades, yeah,
that guy's yer best friend.

- Yeah.
- Right?

Sure. Call ol' Charlie,
see if he can fill in, uh,

as a fourth for tennis
or on a double date

or just ride around smashing mailboxes.

Yeah. Charlie. The best.

But in our household,
my father was Charles.

And every now and then someone,

business associate, the guy
who managed one of his buildings,

who would get just a little casual,

accidentally let a Charlie fly.

The world would stop dead.

"Do I look like a fucking
'Charlie' to you?"

And that was that.

The guy would piss himself,
and the day would continue.

So, he was Charles, and you were Chuck.

And Good Time Charlie was somewhere else

out on the town having all the laughs.

Christ, man.

Don't I know it.

And how 'bout now?

You just show up in my
chambers for the laughs.

No. No.

I am here in your chambers
to put myself in your debt.

In my debt.

That's right.

I was thinking back to
our last meal together,

wherein you told me
I ought never mention

the favor I had done you again.
And I promised then,

and I intend to keep that promise.

And so I am here to ask of you a favor,

not as repayment to me but the opposite.

Oh, this must be big.

Judge Funt is stepping
off the Axelrod case.

No one knows.

And when he does, Morgenstern
will make a special appointment

of the judge who convinces
him he most wants the case.

As often as not,
that's the first judge to ask.

And you need that to be me.

We'll time it out so it will be.

Now, there are those
that would frame this

as a favor for you,
because it's a marquee case.

But I won't.

You would be doing me a service.

And all you're asking
is that I be the judge,

not that I rule in Dake's favor,

not that I'd be slanted in any way.

That's right. It's that straightforward.

Win. Lose. Draw.

I want you on that bench because
I know you can't be bought.

You can't be bent. You can't be worked.

Dake has a strong case.

I want it heard fairly
and without prejudice.

And if I grant this request...

There is nothing you can ask me

that I'll refuse you for
the rest of our days.

If I agree,
I would take those words as gospel,

Chuck. And I would not
be bashful to collect,

should the need arise.

I'd be honor bound to deliver.

That's too small a play.
It won't save us.

Keep looking.

Axe would be out on that
floor screaming at them

like Gordon Ramsay until they delivered.

Hm. You're more Alton Brown.

The ideas they're bringing...
Some deployable,

some useful as a benchmark
of what other firms

will be thinking and how
we need to do better,

but none platonically good.

Your first round of
investments coinciding

with your first crisis.

That would be a lot for anybody.

Axe was already considering
sidecarring two billion.

And you think today will
make the decision for him.

I am acutely aware of the
way people look at me.

I have cultivated,
through achievement and discipline,

a mystique that compensates
for my lack of track record.

A loss shatters that,

and with it the confidence
of everyone who works here.

In their eyes... in Axe's eyes...
I become simply inexperienced.

I can't let that happen.

That's why I need to get
through today unscathed.

The way you think Axe would.

It's important in your job that
you face unpleasant realities.

Axe Capital may lose money today,

probably will.

You know that, right?

No.

Wags, I'm coming in.

The place is getting crushed without me.

Can I stop you?

No.

You sure I can't stop you?

You know that painting of
Washington crossing the Delaware.

In the boat with all his troops?

I forget what it's called.

I think it's called Washington
Crossing The Delaware...

- You didn't forget.
- No.

And do you know why it's called that?

Because at the moment that
his troops were facing

the sting of battle,
Washington was right there

with them, leaning into the wind.

Not back at home jerking off.

I'll admit,
Washington Crossing the Delaware

would look pretty fucking strange
without George Washington.

Then how can you ask me not to
be with my troops right now?

Well, Washington was
allowed to talk to his men.

He was allowed to lead.

When we walk out of this elevator,

you're gonna see it is
quite a different situation.

But it is what's
required under your deal.

This is Ari Spyros,
Director of Compliance

and Risk Management for Axe Capital.

It's 12:09 p.m. I am
here with Robert Axelrod

and will stay with him anywhere
he goes inside these walls,

ensuring compliance with his
preclusion from the secur...

I'm looking at small
sugar companies in Asia.

We pick one...
invest in it, grow it, help it.

Not a big fan of...

Oh, shit.

What do you think he'd say about that?

Bobby Axelrod doesn't
grow mom-and-pop shops.

He buys 'em out, turns 'em out.

That can't happen with this one.

Hmm.

Well, then it sounds like your
idea doesn't fucking work.

Whoo.

Um...

Oh, I don't like nothing
between me and the water.

We called first. You
knew we were coming.

Yeah, doc says I gotta swim.

Right.

We need to talk to you about...

About some unexplained coincidences.

If I can sort you out...

In the last year,
your house was paid off.

Yeah, my wife came into some money.

Mm.

And your kids,
they stopped taking student loans.

Marcie's dorm room business,
it's really taking off.

I'm sorry, do you...
do you want a towel, or...

- I'm good.
- You're fair.

So, you got sick from Ice Juice.

The person behind its
poisoning was Bobby Axelrod,

the same man you tried
to cooperate against.

You think he targeted me deliberately?

Wow, that's a long road
to travel for revenge.

But if he did it, I hope you nail him.

That juice made me puke
so hard I bust a lung.

Hence the swimming.

Anything else?

Okay. Drop by any time.

Guy flashes a little brain,
and you turn into Dudley Do-Right?

I thought under the circumstances
I acquitted myself admirably.

A lot of people think
you can't get a good

flat white outside of Australia.

They forget, there's no such thing
as a good store-bought flat white.

It's the tongue temperature.

_

Oh, please, I'd love to hear more
of your expertise on flat whites.

So I just had
a fun little poolside chat

with some friends who are
very curious about you,

me, and beverages.

Thanks.

Oh, shit, he's leaving.

Hey, Mafee.

You sure a lunch break's
the thing right now?

Nothing urgent that you
should be getting...

Are you testing me?

Like that waiter in 'Club?

I'm not allowed to talk to you
about this. Right? I'm not?

Or do you want me to, because...

Hey.

Hey.

Got any summer plans?

No.

Guess Lara and I will need
to talk about it. The kids.

I don't like to go far.
We got a spot in Mystic.

While the family's looking
at the boats and shit,

I can play a little pai gow.

I was planning
to go back and climb Kili.

How much vacay time is
it culturally appropriate

to take here?

Ah, maybe I'll just do base camp.

- Korst.
- Scandinavian shipping company.

While the South American
companies are down for

the count, these guys will
have a shot at a monopoly.

- We should buy in two days.
- Four days, when it bottoms.

But this is going to help
dig us out a little more.

Good work.

Will you make sure Axe
knows it came from me?

Why would you think we're
communicating about trades?

What?

That would be illegal.

I know. But...

What are you saying about me?

What are you saying
about the place you work?

Actually, if he hates it,
that would be worse.

Don't say anything.

It is now 1:47 on the 9th day of...

- Really?
- What?

I'm sitting in my office,
which I paid for,

seeing how things run without me.

Won't work.

People are afraid to take chances
with you here. To be wrong.

Or they want a slap on the ass from you.
Which you can't give.

Move over, Zapruder. I got this.

Actually, I think
this falls within my dominion,

and the stick can be
really tricky for noobs...

Hmm. Guess it was tricky.

Why didn't you anticipate the tsunami?

Maybe I should have when that

underground earthquake
hit off Mozambique.

Strange conditions
bring strange results.

That's what brought this on.

You knew right then
but you couldn't act.

Maybe you would have
used your experience

to think more globally.

Maybe you would have been cautious.
De-risked.

The mature move.

Is that a dig?

It's not.

You have more experience.

You connect points I don't
even know to look for.

I understand how hard it is
to have things inside you

that you can't communicate.

I can't imagine how hard it
must be to know how to say them

and still not be allowed to.

And yet, you are not allowed to.

Have you heard me direct any trades?

The people out there don't
know who they're looking to.

Since it can't be you,
it needs to be me.

If you can't live with that,
I can be the one who leaves.

You'll probably make up
the losses but get yourself

banned for life or worse.

I'm leaving,

and I'm taking the two billion.

I'll send instructions shortly
about what to do with it.

And at 1:53 p.m.,

Robert Axelrod...

has left the building.

I'm glad I caught you.

You wouldn't have if my fucking car guy

could time his job right.

Yeah, George Washington had the
same problem leaving Trenton.

Wags told you?

Texted me while you were
rampaging through the office.

I wasn't rampaging. I was inspiring.

You know Washington didn't actually

- stand in the rowboat, right?
- Of course.

Structurally unsound,
and he'd have made himself a target.

Yet you worry about neither.

It's hard to shut it off, Wend.

I know.

But if you can't,
you will lose the battle and the war.

Do you want me to come with you?

Stay here with Taylor.

They need some senior
officer for back up.

You're fired.

Find out when Judge
Funt's court is in recess.

Yep.

A Mr. Allerd is here for you.

I'm Karl Allerd, your new AUSA.

I think I'd remember if I
hired a new line prosecutor.

Remember when Dake said
there'd be a favor to be named?

Ah.

You're the favor.

You don't trust me.

Hell, I wouldn't from your chair.

A Spy In the House Of Lords
and so forth. Yes.

So I'll earn your trust.

- Will you?
- I look forward to seeing that trick.

That'll be a neat trick.

Ms. Sacker, our Head of Crim,
will get you situated.

- I will?
- Mm.

Mm, I will.

Hey, I've been revising my idea.

There's a division of
a struggling company

in Thailand, that I think...

Wait, is this the sugar company?

Is it, is this the same damn deal?

No... It's just one facet of the company

that I think could be
promising to look into.

It started out
as a family business, and...

So this is... this is the same deal.

- Not really...
- Kimmy,

this piece of shit ain't Axe Cap.

What are you working on?

Nothing.

I want to see all Ben Kim's
search results for the day.

You mean, like, browser results, or...

Everything he did today.

Hey, you on your way home?

Nope.

Chief. You got to get on your way

if you want to make it in time to take

the princelings to Little League.

Have Bruce take 'em.

You got it.

He's been home
three weekends this year.

I'm almost positive one of them
was his assistant's mistake.

And he assumes I never
say anything about him

fucking his way through
the entire New York pool.

But if you can leave Axe...

You give me courage, Lara.

You're smart, Lilly.

You had a career for a second.

You know your shopper isn't your friend,

personal trainer doesn't think
you're actually making progress,

and all the charities you
give money to don't actually

honor you when they honor you.

But on some level,
you believe every bit of it.

You think the attention
you receive is deserved.

But when that fades,
when every relationship

in your life reveals itself to
be a trade on your husband's

net worth,
you may say "Fuck false friends,"

but you'll be hiring a
PR rep the first time

your Halloween costume
isn't mentioned in Page Six.

So keep your own courage, Lilly.

And while you're at it,
consider keeping that husband.

Because while he may not give
you what you think you want,

he lets you keep on being
Mrs. Keith Currier Smith,

and I'm pretty sure
that's what you need.

Now you're trying to decide
whether to be pissed or grateful.

Definitely grateful.

Whoa!

Here you go.

Have fun.

Thanks, Bruce.

We got your latest request.

It's a big lift. Hard transfer.

International withdrawals
and deposits like this

do not get done same day.

- So?
- It's not the sort of thing

most clients ask for. Especially
not when they're drawing heat.

These are my needs.

Either you meet them or you can't.

We can get it done.
But this isn't a reusable pipeline.

Fine by me.

She's supposed to be here by 5:30.

- It's already...
- I know what time it is. Call it in.

I'd like to have a person of
interest picked up. Gonzalez, Maria.

No Social.

Yeah.

D.O.B. 1/22/79.

You think she got cold feet?

I think that's best case.

You have her already.
That's great news. Where?

Hold her. She's mine.

She got picked up in an ICE sweep.

She's currently at the Varick
Street Detention Center.

Are you gonna bring Maria?

She's right there.

Who is that?

Maria Gonzalez.

That may be a Maria Gonzalez,

but that is not our Maria Gonzalez.

That is the wrong Maria Gonzalez.

Do you have someone else
here with that name?

We did until she was
put on a goodbye charter

from Newark Liberty.

It's got to be some
bureaucratic screw-up.

No, it doesn't.

Somebody knew she was gonna be picked up

before we did and got to her info.

_

This has Axe written all over it.

They deported the wrong Maria Gonzalez.

Our witness is on a plane
that lands in 90 minutes.

We need her met on the ground
in Guatemala and returned.

There are a lot of, uh,
high-level, deeply uncomfortable

calls required to make that happen.
DOJ. DHS. State.

And they all start with your boss.

I really don't want to call the
Attorney General about this.

He's publicly stated
this case matters to him.

Ollie, you're a bit of a rara avis,
aren't you?

You got no "hat,"
no one looking out for you,

and yet you have risen.

Maybe it's because you
have an immaculate record.

Some guys don't trust immaculate record.

I do. I have an immaculate record.

Thank you, General.

That was from a movie.

You don't watch movies, do you, Ollie?

I re-watch The Decalogue every year.

Uh, well, I read what you sent me.

Just to make sure I have it straight:
We got the wrong Guad?

That is indeed the case.

Say it.

We got the wrong Guad.

But Maria Gonzalez, our Maria Gonzalez,

is a key cooperator.

We need her back. And since this
is an extraordinary situation...

Well, in one respect.

In another, it's just the way
things are supposed to go.

The right Maria Gonzalez came
into this country illegally,

she stayed illegally,
and she committed a fraud

on the stockholders of that
snake-bit juice company.

She is three times illegal.

That makes her removable,
and she was removed.

Um...

Next time...

instead of asking me
to undo your fuck-up,

maybe just see to it that
the situation remains like

our holy Mother of Mercy,
blessedly un-fucked.

How'd that go?

Does Axe ever hesitate?

Why?

I'm hesitating. Can't pull the trigger.

Markets are closed. Overseas play?

Ben Kim found a big
opportunity in Thailand.

A troubled public company with
a promising sugar division.

He spotted a good target
but just couldn't quite

figure out how to hit it...
or didn't have the courage

to shoot at it.

We need to keep working
with him on that.

But you see the play?

Yes. A PIPE.
Private investment in public equity.

Basically,
we take ownership of a spin-off,

and a commission from
brokering its sale.

So, why the hesitation?

It will be the single largest
investment I've made as CIO,

and a type Axe Cap
has never made before.

If you make this move,
where do you end up for the day?

Unscathed?

This would lock in a loss.

Yes. The high-reward
plays are all high-risk.

It's good you can't run it by Axe.

Forces you to hear your
own voice and trust it.

You'll probably do the right thing.

And when the day comes you get
one wrong, that'll be good, too.

Because I'll realize I'm
mortal and it's not so bad?

Because it'll be fucking horrible

and you'll do anything you can
to avoid that feeling again.

Hey.

You know what, Bobby?

I'm gonna do you a favor:

You're off the hook.

If you don't want 50-50 custody,
you don't need to have it.

I can tell other people it's 50-50,

and I can come up with
something to tell the boys, too.

Why the fuck do you think
I don't want the kids?

You had them for one day,
at a time when you don't

have to go to work,
and you ditched them.

You let them be airlifted
into Little League.

I mean, it was mortifying.

I didn't mean to embarrass them.

They weren't embarrassed.

They didn't know to be,
which is a whole other thing.

You know, I don't know if
you need to work on your case

or go on a trip

or become a fucking cobbler,

but it doesn't seem like you
are where you need to be.

And I'd offer to help,
but my help doesn't seem

to be what you want, either.

I have everything positioned and ready,

and yet...

Judge Funt still has
the case on his docket.

My bag is packed,
but I can't seem to walk out the door.

If I fail at this, everything is dashed.

For then I will have ruined myself

in his eyes

and exposed my position.

Only a fool doesn't
look at the downside.

But only a coward allows
it to dissuade him

from that which he knows he must do.

I know you're not a coward.

I don't like the sound of that
word coming out of your mouth.

Neither do I.

I'll see you at home. After.

Chuck?

No one takes this shortcut anymore.

This isn't your courthouse.

Are you lost?

Oh, right where I need to be,
Judge Funt,

which is, unfortunately, in your way.

Ah.

The Axelrod case.

You had to know a day
like this would come.

I never asked you...

You didn't have to.

Your son's doing well, I hope,

made the most of his medical career.

Yeah, he's a good doctor.

That's what I wanted for him.

If he hadn't have supplied
those future sons of Hippocrates

with Adderall,
some other med student would have.

I won't let you dictate my rulings.

The bench cannot be
tainted by personal debts.

Name another favor.

I know that this is the biggest
case that you've ever drawn.

Well, that's something that you
would think about in my shoes,

but I don't.

No, you wouldn't.

And you wouldn't hide
in a hallway waiting

to pounce when I walked by.

But I am not the man you are.

Oh.

You're not here to ask
me to shade my rulings.

You're here to ask me to step off it.

It's a hard laydown.
And I'm asking you to lay it down.

Ask yourself

who you really are, Chuck.

Are you the man that's
reduced to collecting debts

of the soul like...
like old Mr. Scratch?

Well, as with all stories
about that being,

the debt is due, even if, especially if,

it is not fair or even
right to collect it.

Believe me, my...
my insides hurt making this request.

Oh, I don't believe that even a little.

You like your insides just as they are.

You want to be right here,
making these moves.

You need that feeling in your
stomach to know you're alive.

I really think I am sorry.

Fuck you, Chuck!

I'll recuse myself.

My tab is clear.

May I?

Do you want me to call the
Secretary of the Treasury

and ask for a personal loan?

I just heard DeGiulio is the
new judge on the Axelrod case.

Not our dream judge, but fair-minded,

likely to hew closely to the law,
rule narrowly.

That'll favor us a lot more than Funt.

Well, then,

I guess it's a gift.

Chuck.

I know his fingerprints.

Are you gonna do something about this?

I'm not in the habit of rejecting gifts.

Do you know about White Day in Japan?

Over there on Valentine's Day,
women buy presents

for their salarymen bosses,
and those presents are displayed

for all to see,
so the most important thing is the size.

That's how others know that
the recipient is valued.

A month later, on White Day,
the men give a return gift

of two to three times the value.

So if there's a salaryman
you don't respect,

you get him something
small but expensive.

Chuck just gave you diamond cufflinks,

and when White Day comes,
you're gonna have to give him

something that costs a lot more.

I didn't like you kicking me out.

I apologize if I was rude.

I don't give a fuck about rude.

It showed you were distracted.

How did we do today?

Just executed a huge PIPE.

We're going to arb a
Southeast Asian sugar company.

Fun.

If all my projections hold,

we're still down five percent overall.

Anyone else would have lost 12

or done something stupid to get even.

Booking the loss was the only way.

I'm not pulling the two billion.

It's yours to invest.

I really thought you didn't trust me.

That's why you were in the office
looking over everyone's shoulder.

I was in the office, because as of now,

I don't know what else
to do with myself.

And...

as much as I can trust anyone
with my name and my money...

I trust you.

I am irrelevant.

You want the money because you
want the stake, the control.

You need the game to
remember who you are.

I've decided how I'm going
to invest that two billion.

I'm going to diversify,
invest in outside funds.

I'll hear pitches,
among them your hand-picked favorites.

And after I give them the money,

I'm going to be a passive investor.

Thank you.

You're not doing this 'cause I need it.

You need it.

You're giving me a place to
play so I stay off your field.

And you want the benefit of
my moves on our bottom line

in case there's another disaster.

I'm your hedge.