Castle (2009–2016): Season 5, Episode 19 - The Lives of Others - full transcript

Hey. Did you eat my fries?

You shouldn't have left them.

What is that?

I have no idea.

Call 9-1-1!

Almost there, Castle.

Just another two weeks.

It's already been two weeks.

Two weeks is an eternity.

Yeah, well, maybe next
time we go skiing,

you're not gonna be
such a show-off.

I wasn't showing off.

Okay, I was showing
off a little bit.

But I swear to you,

I can do a tail grab
with my eyes closed

and without breaking my kneecap.

Mm-hmm.

Well, I am off.

Now the retreat is out
of cell phone range,

so if I don't call you
on your birthday,

it is not because
I have forgotten.

I won't think it's because
you've forgotten.

I'll think it's because
you made other plans.

Now wait a minute.

You and Katherine were
supposed to be celebrating

in Bora Bora this week.

No, you're right.

Have a great time
on your retreat...

On your only son's birthday.

It is a spa trip, darling.
Not a guilt trip.

Mwah. He's all yours.

See you in a week.

Bye.

Oh, come on, Castle.

Stop feeling sorry for yourself.

I'll get us a reservation

and I'll take you somewhere
nice for your birthday.

As nice as Bora Bora?

Mm.

Oh.

Katherine, your ride is here.

Oh, great.

- Ride?
- Yeah, we had a body drop.

I asked the boys to pick me up

so I'd have enough time
to make you breakfast.

I'm missing another case?
No. Come on.

Guys, take me with you.

No! Not until you get better.

Castle, how's the knee?

It's not the knee so
much as the boredom.

I thought you writers
liked being alone.

Yeah, if I could write.

But the painkillers
make me a little loopy.

Last night I used the
word "speculate"

three times in the
same sentence.

Mm. You must be bored.

You've actually
gone "Rear Window."

Alexis got me those as
a joke to cheer me up.

I have not yet
resorted to voyeurism.

Then you are missing out.

- What? Let me see.
- No, hey--

Dude, she was just about
to take off her towel.

- Oh, the towel is off.
- Really?

- Yeah.
- Mmm.

Unless the body that
you're looking at is dead,

I suggest you drop
those binoculars.

Okay, Castle.

I will call you and
check on you soon.

Hey, what if I consult by phone?

We could pretend I'm Charlie,
and you're my angels.

Why are men such babies

when they get sick or injured?

It's an evolutionary thing.

Men who can get women
to take care of 'em,

well, they have a greater
chance of survival.

Really, Espo?
Where'd you read that,

"You're making it up" magazine?

Hey, Lanie. So what have we got?

Sorry, sweetie. It's a bad one.

Multiple contusions to the head,

evidence of fracturing at
the base of the skull.

From the patterning,
I'd say she was

repeatedly struck by that bat.

Do we know who she is?

The guard who found her ID'ed
her as Clara Dewinter--

35, lives in Queens,
and married.

What was she doing
in this alleyway

in the middle of the night?

She was an IRS agent.

Worked in this building here.

Apparently, she
was working late.

The employees sometimes
cut across the alley

to get to the parking
garage next door.

Do we have a witness?

No, but we may have
something way better.

What the hell is that?

No idea, ma'am.

Never seen anything like it.

Espo?

It's an infrared camera.

So our attacker could be wearing

some sort of high-intensity
IR lights,

which would be invisible to the
eye but blinding to that camera.

That's pretty sophisticated
for a street criminal.

No, this wasn't a street crime.

The person knew that that camera
was there and took precautions.

This was a premeditated murder.

Wait. Go back.

Right there.

That's our killer's car.
All right.

Let's have tech filter that
image for make and model

and let's see if they can
get us a better look

at our attacker's face.

With all the cutbacks,
her workload increased.

She'd stay late a couple of times
a week trying to catch up,

and on those nights, I'd pick
up an extra shift at the store.

And when was the last
time you saw her?

We had dinner around 7:00,

then, uh...

we both went back to work.

And how did she seem?
Was she nervous, upset?

No. She was fine.

And what--what exactly did
your wife do for the IRS?

Uh, she was an investigator.

She went after tax evaders.

So she must have made enemies.

Yeah, pretty much
everyone she audited.

And was there anyone in particular
that she had trouble with?

Actually... yeah.

We were out at--out at dinner
a couple of weeks ago,

a-and this guy comes barging
into the restaurant

accusing Clara of
destroying his life.

Did she tell you who he was?

Just another tax
cheat she took down.

She said it was no big deal,

but I could tell,
she was rattled.

Can you tell me what
he looked like?

6 feet...

dark hair.

You should check with her work.

She promised to file
a complaint, so...

Looks like we got some beautiful
clear skies with us today.

A nice tail wind's gonna get
us there right away, folks.

We'll be there zero dark
thirty, zero dark quarter to.

Nice, red five.
You're looking good.

Oh, no.
I've got something wrong.

Ooh, that's not good.

Evade! Evade! Evade!

No!

Survivors.

Look,

most IRS agents get threats.

It's the nature of our business.

Did Mrs. Dewinter
report any recently?

No.

Are you sure?

You have to understand,

Clara was a rare breed--

an IRS agent who actually
liked her job.

What's that have to do
with her being threatened?

The thing is,

each threat requires
an investigation,

which is a headache
for upstairs.

It's an unwritten rule that
agents who report threats

don't fare well on
performance reviews.

Well, that unwritten rule
may have gotten her killed.

And since you don't have
a record of the threat,

we're gonna have to take a
look at her audit files

going back at least a year.

Hmm.

Must be writers.

Oh, that better be
for a sick child.

Oh, to be young and...

underemployed.

Whoa. Hold on, guys.
Slow down.

Not a race.

Maybe close the blinds.

Mm-hmm.

All right, you kids.
You have fun.

Someone's home early.

Really?

You're gonna kiss him now?

Oh, maybe next time,
you'll think twice

about being cheatin' cheaters.

Uh-oh.

Someone's got some
'splaining to do.

Hey, guys.

So... tech couldn't
get us a better look

at the attacker's face,

but they're hoping to have an ID
on the car by morning.

How's it going in here?

Well, Clara's colleagues
don't remember

her mentioning any
explicit threat.

But if we're looking for people
whose lives were ruined,

there's no shortage of suspects.

We've got houses that
were repossessed,

bank accounts that were seized,
businesses that were shut down,

and we're only a
couple of months in.

Okay, so let's put
a list together

and pull photos...
see if the husband recognizes anyone.

Right.

Hey, Castle.

Where are you?

I'm at work. Why?

You said you were
bringing home dinner.

Yes, on my way home.

So when are you leaving?

Soon.

When's soon?

Like in...

half an hour.

Fine.

Shut up.

Ooh, he is so on to you.

Ah. Uh-huh.

Here it comes--

the inevitable, huge breakup.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

Don't, don't.
Don't take the knife.

Don't...

No. Uh...

Castle, I'm not gonna
get there any faster--

Oh, no, no, no, no, Beckett,
Beckett, listen...

I think I just saw a murder.

Why aren't they arresting him?

Look, I know what I saw.

He took a knife and followed
her into the bedroom.

I looked in the bedroom.

Everything was fine.
No blood, no body, I swear.

Did you look under the
bed, in the closet?

Castle, the guy was relaxed
and fully cooperative.

He let us poke around
without a warrant.

So he probably hid the body.

If he was completely calm,
he could be a psychopath.

What did he say about the girl?

He admitted they had a fight,
they broke up, and she left.

Not possible.
I would've seen her.

So you were watching
the whole time?

I...

Well, not the entire time.
I had to--

So she could've left
and you didn't see?

It's possible, but--

Because he called her.

Handed me the phone.
I spoke to her.

She confirmed his story.
She was in the car

on her way to her mom's
house in Philadelphia.

All right, thanks, guys.

I'm not crazy.

No, but you do have a
vivid imagination...

And you've been stuck
inside for two weeks.

What were you doing looking
out the window anyway?

- I was...
- Bored?

So you saw what you
wanted to see.

When did you take
your last painkiller?

I was not hallucinating.

Come on, Castle.

You're here with a
broken leg, binoculars,

seeing a "Rear Window" scenario
play out across the way.

I mean, what are the odds?

Astronomical.

All right.

I'm gonna make us some dinner
and then get you to bed.

Seriously?

Oh.

I can explain.

Please don't.

Listen, he was pacing back
and forth in his apartment,

and he kept looking
towards the bedroom.

And then he slept on the couch.

Now why would you
sleep on the couch

when you have a
perfectly good bed?

I could ask you the
same question.

I'll tell you why.

Because he had a
dead body in there.

Ryan and Esposito didn't find it

because he hid it.

Do you realize
what you're doing?

You're obsessing over this

because you have nothing
else to obsess about.

Why don't you just come
with me to the precinct?

Focus on a real murder

instead of wasting your
time on an imaginary one.

Well, actually, I was
thinking about just, uh,

trying to do some writing today.

Okay, as long as by
"writing," you don't mean

staring out the window and
ogling at your neighbors.

No. That would be
immoral and intrusive.

Yeah, like you've never
done that before.

Hey.

Hey. How's Jimmy Stewart?

You know, up half the night

waiting for the neighbor
to move the body.

So did tech get anything

on our killer's
car in the alley?

Yeah, they identified
it as a late-model,

light-colored CLS550.

I've got folks combing
over Clara's audit records

to see if anyone lists that
vehicle on their return.

Hey.

So I just got off the phone

with security at Clara's office.

A few weeks back,

this guy tried to muscle
his way past security.

Now they tried to detain
him, but he broke free

and he tore out of the
parking lot in...

A CLS550.

This looks like the guy Gavin
said was after his wife.

Yeah, so I compared that photo
to Clara's audit files,

and I got a hit on this guy--

Dan Renner.

He is an anti-government
pro-freedom hothead

who made a fortune on a chain
of dry cleaners in Brooklyn

that he's neglected to pay
taxes on in nearly a decade.

And because of Clara's audit,
he's facing criminal charges

and his wife just
filed for divorce.

Sounds like someone who
has an ax to grind.

Or a bat to swing.
Pick him up.

Yeah.

You bought rope and a tarp.

Now what would you
need a tarp for?

It's blood.

You're washing away the--

He's washing away the bl--

They took my house, my marriage,

I was facing a jail sentence.

So, yeah,

I wanted to have a few
words with Mrs. Dewinter...

About the land of the free.

That doesn't mean I killed her.

You know what that is?

That's a silver CLS550, just
like the one you drive,

fleeing her murder scene.

Just like the one I drove.

Look, my 550 was seized by
federal agents two weeks ago.

You can check.

And given what Mrs. Dewinter
was gonna do for me,

I'm the last person
who wanted her dead.

Going to do for you?

Yeah.

She came to see me a week ago,

said she needed a favor,
and if I helped her,

she'd make the criminal
charges go away.

What kind of a favor

could she possibly
have wanted from you?

Because of how well
I hid my money--

fake names, multiple IDs--

she asked me to
help her disappear.

Disappear?

Yeah. She said if I helped
her get a new identity,

she'd help me get my life back.

And why would she
want a new identity?

She didn't say.

But now she's dead,
and I'm screwed.

Mr. Renner, where were you
2 nights ago at 1:38 AM?

At my sister's.

Beckett, Castle's calling.

He says it's an emergency.

This is not an emergency.

I caught him red-handed.
Literally red-handed.

Ooh, so then it's
gotta be blood?

What else could it be?

Red paint, tomato juice,

beets, red velvet cupcakes.

He bought a tarp and a rope.

He brought them
into the bedroom,

where I'm betting right now,

he's cutting her into
portable pieces.

Get a warrant.

Search that place before
there's no evidence left.

Esposito spoke to the girl.

We know she's alive.

How do you know
it's the same girl?

It's possible he paid
someone to be his alibi.

Or it's possible something else
entirely is going on here.

Look...

I know that you're lonely
and that you miss me.

I miss you, too.

But you don't have to
keep making up things

to have me come back here.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.
You think this is a ploy to get you here?

Look, I don't mean to be that--

No, I know what you mean.
All right?

And I know what I saw.

All right, you know what?

I have to get back
to the precinct.

Wow.
You really don't believe me.

I'll be back later.

You know what?
Don't worry about it.

I'm fine.

Yo.

What was the emergency?

He wanted me to get a warrant

to search the place
across the way.

Looks like he's taking this
whole thing pretty seriously.

Should we be worried?

I just hope he doesn't
do something stupid.

Where--where are we
with Dan Renner?

His alibi checks out,

and he was telling the
truth about his car.

Maybe he's telling the
truth about Clara as well.

Let's dig deeper into her life,

see if we can find anything.

Thanks.

Oh! Ohh.

He's getting rid of the body.

Beckett's gonna have
to believe me now.

Okay.

Where's the... there we go.
There we--there we go.

No. No. No!

If you thought he was
getting rid of the body,

why didn't you call Beckett?

Well, she thinks it's
all in my head--

a by-product of my
imagination and pain pills.

Like that time you
were convinced

my art teacher was
a serial killer.

Come on.
He looked just like the guy

from "America's Most Wanted."

Did you ever stop
to think that maybe

there's an innocent
explanation for everything?

All right,

what is the innocent explanation
for rolling up a rug

and taking it out of your
apartment at 3:00 AM?

Yeah.

That is pretty weird.

Right?

And then he didn't come back
until 4:30 this morning.

Where'd he go?

I don't know, but he's up now.

What's he doing?

- Uh, I--he, uh--
- What?

What do you see?

He's taking off his clothes.

What? Give me those.

Mm. He's cute.

- Ooh.
- All right.

No, I...

Seriously?

You shouldn't be watching this.

Yeah, neither should you.

What the...

That's creepy.

Staring at the phone

won't make it ring.

I learned that in junior high.

You know what?
Maybe I should go over there.

I mean, his birthday
is tomorrow--

Trust me.
He'll call when he's ready.

And you're not gonna
want to miss this.

We went back through all
of Clara's records.

Turns out that she was
hiding something.

Over half a million dollars
in a secret bank account.

She used every legal
trick to hide it.

Nobody, not even her
husband, knew about it.

This girl made 75k a year.

How'd she get her
hands on half a mil?

Well, at first we thought she
was shaking down her auditees,

but then we traced the deposits.

All from businesses
owned or affiliated

to Tommy Valentino.

Tommy "The Shark" Valentino?

Why is an IRS agent taking
payoffs from a crime boss?

I don't know, but
wanting to disappear

and then getting
whacked in an alley--

it's all starting to make sense.

It's been two hours.

What's he doing in there?

Getting rid of evidence--

blood stains... trace DNA.

Pretty soon, there's
gonna be nothing left.

Oh, here he comes.
Here he comes.

What's in the bags?

He took the body out in a rug.

That could be clothing, bedding.

That's her purse.

If they broke up, no way she
left without her purse.

She did not leave
that apartment,

at least not alive.

And now he's obliterating
her identity.

We need to call Beckett.

And tell her what?

That we saw a man donning
gloves and--and a respirator?

For all we know, he's
cleaning the bathroom.

No.

If I'm gonna convince
Beckett I'm not crazy,

I need proof,

something solid.

Dad, you can't break
in to his apartment.

All the evidence we need
is in that shredder.

It'll tell us who the victim is.

We can prove she's missing.

And what if he catches you?

He won't, not if I
have your help.

Next time he leaves,
I'll slip over there.

You keep watch, make sure
he's not coming back.

I go inside, I get
whatever's in that shredder,

and I get out.

Two minutes, tops.

On crutches?

The doctor did say I
need more exercise.

What if I go?
I'm smaller, faster, and younger.

Oh, no, no, no.
If you get caught,

you get a B&E on your record,

and you'll never
become president.

Dad...

He's getting away with murder.

You got a better plan?

You got a long list of
indictments against you,

Mr. Valentino--

assault, racketeering,
murder one--

and yet, no convictions.

I'm lucky that way.

Yeah, well, your luck's
about to run out.

I have evidence connecting you
to payments made to my vic--

Clara Dewinter.

My client has no comment.

Whoa, whoa, wait.
Someone killed Clara?

Oh, it looks like he
does have a comment.

So you're admitting
to knowing her?

Yeah.

But I didn't kill her.

She was my tax consultant.

You paid an IRS agent
half a million dollars

to act as your tax consultant?

You bet your ass.
No one's gonna Al Capone me.

Okay, if this was a
legitimate arrangement,

then why did Clara Dewinter
go to such lengths

to keep that money hidden?

She hid the money
from her husband.

That's why she took this
job in the first place.

She was afraid of him.

She needed the
money to get away.

Tommy The Shark's alibi holds.

He was with some associates
at a nightclub that he owns.

Doesn't mean he didn't
send one of his boys.

Look, if he killed Clara, he
wouldn't have talked to me.

No.

Hiding the money,
planning to disappear--

something else is going on here.

So what do you got
on the husband?

Oh, not much.

He's a manager at a big-name
supermarket in Queens,

no priors, married seven years.

Oh, and he took a million-dollar
life insurance policy out

on his wife only
three months ago.

- Mm.
- That's not suspicious.

You think he did it
and set Renner up?

After what happened
at the restaurant,

it would've been easy.

All he'd have to do is rent
Renner's same CLS sedan

and keep his face hidden.

While making sure
the car was seen.

All right. Pick him up.

All clear. Over.

Dad, no.

Just get the stuff and
get out of there. Over.

It'll only take a minute. Over.

Bleach and paint.

What are you trying to cover up?

Bloodstains?

This is it!

This is where he killed her.

This is why Ryan
didn't see any blood.

It was all in here!

Dad. Dad, he's coming back.

Get out of there.

Get out now!

Dad?

Dad?

Yeah.

He's coming in. Dad!
Dad! He's coming in!

No, I have it handled for now,

but I can't leave
it there forever.

Oh, no! Oh!

No.

Well, I was thinking
Jimmy's boat.

While he's at work.

He'd never know.

You think I did this?

You think I could
possibly hurt my wife?

I told you, we were happy.

Not according to her sister.

She claims that Clara
was terrified of you.

Her sister?

That woman's had it out for
me since we started dating.

Then why did Clara
hide money from you,

and why was she planning
on disappearing?

How should I know?

You took out a sizeable
life insurance policy

against your wife
three months ago.

Why?

I'd like my lawyer. Now.

The supermarket confirmed

he was there the
night of the murder.

Came in at 10:00, left at 3:00.
Can't be him.

All right, get up to that store

and talk to everyone that
was there that night.

Tear apart his financials
and his phone records.

If he hired someone...

we gotta find out who.

Beckett.

Wait. You did what?

And you helped him?

I di--ah, okay.

This is not about what we did.

This is about what he did.

And... check this out.

Now I wasn't able to...

reassemble the
credit cards, but...

I found this in the bag.

An invoice from a
storage facility. So?

Not just any storage facility.
This one's open 24 hours.

Yeah, look what time
he rented the space.

3:43 AM.

Last night at 3:00 AM,

I watched him pull a rug
out of his apartment.

You know what fits in a rug?

A body.

That's where he's storing her

until he can figure
out what to do.

Or the rug belongs
to his girlfriend,

who asked him to
keep it in storage

until she's ready to pick it up.

All right.

Then explain the
bleach, the paint.

And I overheard him say,

"I can't keep it there forever."

Dad, look. Someone's coming.

That's him.

That's the guy she was
having an affair with.

He's looking for her.
He wants to know where she is.

If you leave now,
you can catch him.

You can ask him where she is.

Castle--

Look, if she's really
visiting her mother,

wouldn't the guy she's
having the affair with,

who broke them up,

be the first to know?

Excuse me. Hey! Excuse me.

NYPD. Do you have a minute?

So his name is Brent Lansky.

He and Emily have been taking
a class together at Pace,

and he's been texting her for
the past couple of days,

but so far there's
been no response.

What about her parents?

Ryan tracked them down,

but they haven't heard
from her either.

So I'm not a drug-addled crazy?

Look, I know it
sounds suspicious,

but without a body or a
missing person's report,

I've got nothing to go on.

Well, while you're waiting
for something to go on,

he's already taken most
of the evidence away.

But luckily, I know
what he's done with--

Thank you.

With the body-- in
the storage unit.

You're talking about
an illegal search.

When you do it, it's
an illegal search.

When I do it, it's just illegal.

Castle, this is such a bad idea.

No, this is a brilliant idea.

I break in, I find the body,

then I call downstairs
to the front desk,

tell them that the
lock has been cut.

When they come up to see
if everything's okay,

they find the body
they call the police,

and you have probable cause.

If you stay out here
in the hallway,

you won't be violating
anyone's rights.

There it is.

Okay.

I did not think
this part through.

If you'd just...

Fine, Castle.
But I was never here.

Just unroll it.

Where's the body?

It's in the bags.

Oh, my God. It's her.

Castle...

It's a wig.

And there's clothes in here.

Now can we get outta
here before someone...

sees us?

Illegal search,
breaking and entering?

You're lucky I don't
have your badge.

And you. What in the hell did
you think you were doing?

But all the evidence-- the
rug, the storage space--

Evidence?

I just spoke to your alleged
killer, Mr. Castle.

He got that storage space at
his ex-girlfriend's request.

He was moving her
belongings there,

including her rug.

How do you know he's
telling the truth?

No one's heard from her.

We contacted her. She's fine.

Well, what about the paint
and the--and the bleach?

He discovered mold and
wanted to take care of it.

Anything else?

- Just--
- Uh, sir, Castle is just--

Embarrassing me and
the department?

Oh, and, Mr. Castle,

your neighbor did say that if
you bother him in any way,

he will press charges.

And I will be

so happy to take you
into custody personally.

Hey, Castle.

Is it hard to balance
on those crutches

when you've just had
your ass chewed off?

I'll be in the car.

Did you two comedians find out
anything new on the husband?

Well, there was nothing
unusual in his phone

or financial records.

And we talked to
everyone at the store.

They said he was
there all night.

But they did say that
he was acting weird.

Weird how?

Well, normally on a late shift,
he holes up in his office.

But that night, he spent
all his time on the floor.

He wanted to be seen
'cause he needed an alibi.

That guy is involved.

It's a great theory.
There's only one problem.

We have no proof.

Yet.

Well, I don't say this often,

but... I'm sorry.

I'm sorry I got
you into trouble,

sorry I... lost my mind.

You know what, Castle?
It's okay.

Your overactive imagination

has actually brought a lot
of people to justice.

In fact, it's one of the
things that I love about you.

And... wow.

Happy birthday to me.

If that's my present, I
can't wait to unwrap it.

Later. Right now, let's just
forget about the murder,

go to dinner,
celebrate your life,

come back, and
celebrate some more.

Sounds perfect.

Okay, so the car's gonna
be here in 15 minutes.

Would you like a drink
from the fridge?

The fridge.

What?

He just got a soda
from the cabinet.

So?

So why get it from the cabinet?

Why not get it from the fridge?

Why not... get ice?

Oh, no.

She's in the refrigerator.

Oh, God.
Those plastic trays in the closet?

Those weren't plastic trays.
Those were refrigerator shelves.

Castle...

I don't know who Gates was
talking to on the phone,

but that was not Emily.

Emily is in that fridge.

She's not in the apartment.
She's not in the fridge.

There is no body!

Yes, there is.

Castle, you just
apologized to me.

I rescind the apology.
I take it back.

She's in the fridge.

You know what?
Let's just go downstairs

and wait for the driver there.

I am not going anywhere until
I see what's in that fridge.

What?!

You're gonna stay here and
wait for him to open it?

If that's what it takes.

Okay, fine.

Where are you going?

Castle, I made plans for you,

I dressed up for you,

and I'm not gonna let
you ruin this night.

So what are you gonna do?

I am going to go over there

and open that bloody fridge,

and then you and I
are going to dinner

and never talking
about this again.

No, don't do it.
It's too dangerous.

Not as dangerous as me
if you blow up my plans.

Well, what if he
doesn't let you in?

Look at me.
He's gonna let me in.

Not if there's a body in there.

There's not a body in there.

No, no, Beckett.

No.

No.

Beckett! No!

No!

Where is she?!

She's upstairs!
She's in the apartment!

Wait for me!

NYPD! Open up!

Open up now!

Kick it! Kick it! Kick it!

- Beckett!
- Beckett!

- Beckett!
- Beckett!

- Beckett, you there?!
- Beckett!

Beckett, where are you?

Surprise!

Happy Birthday!

Whoo! Happy Birthday!

Thank you.

It was all fake?

Nothing was real.

You...

You let me think I was crazy?

You let me think you
were gonna die?

But, Castle, you--
you were so bored

over the past couple of weeks,

stuck at home with
no case to solve.

And I saw that this
apartment was for rent,

and I just-- I thought that I--

Richard--

No.

No.

This is...

without a doubt...

the greatest birthday
gift of my life!

How did you do it?

Well, I did have a lot of help.

Yes, you did, indeed.

You were all in on it?

Mm-hmm. Michael, Brent, Emily--

my brilliant acting students.

I, of course, was the director.

And the boys?

- Yeah.
- Oh, yeah. They were great.

Except you didn't have
to kick down the door.

I was in the moment.
We wanted to be convincing.

- Yeah.
- Alexis, you, too?

It's why I bought
you the binoculars.

Even Captain Gates?

Yeah, she jumped at the chance

to dress you down
for any reason.

Where is Captain Gates?

- She couldn't make it.
- Good.

All right!

You really blew my mind.

Yeah, well, I figured
the trickiest part

would be fooling you and...

keep a straight face.

Well, you win the Oscar for

best pretend murder.

I cannot believe the
whole thing was staged.

Staged?

What?

I think I just solved my case.

Does that mean you're
gonna have to go run off

and arrest someone?

No.

Right now I've got other plans.

Happy birthday.

Look, I'm sorry I had
to drag you down here,

but I think you might
actually hold the key

to solving this murder.

Sure, but I already
told you what I know.

Right, that you spotted the
murder being committed

on surveillance, and
then you called 9-1-1.

That's correct.

See, I've looked at this
video dozens of times,

trying to see if I
could find a clue

as to who the murderer was.

And then I realized, I'm
looking in the wrong place.

Do you see that?

See what?

I-it's actually kind
of hard to spot.

Um... that dot right there.

It's graffiti that
somehow magically

appears on that wall.

Here.

I'll play it for you again.

How is that possible?

I don't know.

The only way that it's possible

is if someone tampered
with the feed

and replaced the live image

with footage that was recorded
before that tag was made.

That would be impossible
unless somebody--

Had access to the
surveillance system,

which you have.

And if that is indeed
a prerecorded image,

then that means that
the attack was faked.

And that woman that
is being beaten

and then thrown
into the dumpster

is not the real Mrs. Dewinter.

Now do you notice that she
never actually shows her face?

It's almost as if someone
is pretending to be her,

someone with the same frame,

someone a lot like you.

That is not me.

I'm guessing that
the real Mrs. Dewinter

was killed somewhere else
earlier in the evening,

and that the killer planted
her body in the dumpster

so that it would be there

when you and your colleagues
viewed the faked footage.

That video is the perfect
alibi for the murder.

I didn't even know
Mrs. Dewinter.

No, but you do know her husband.

According to your
personnel file,

you worked night security

at a supermarket in
Queens a year ago.

That is the same store
as Mr. Dewinter.

That's just a coincidence.

Is it also a coincidence that
you rented a CLS550 a week ago?

I didn't kill her.

I know you didn't.

I need you to tell me who did.

They met a year ago
on the late shift

and started an affair.

Once they got together,

Gavin realized that he'd
have to get rid of his wife,

and instead of a messy divorce,

they decided to make a killing.

Some marriage.

No wonder Clara
wanted to disappear.

Yeah, but she didn't
do it fast enough.

So where'd the actual
murder take place?

In the Dewinters' garage.

After dinner, he
bludgeoned her to death

with the bat that he
left in the alleyway,

and then he changed
her into the clothes

that Rigas wore on that tape.

And then just before placing
her body in the dumpster,

Rigas switched to
the dummy feed.

Perfect crime.

Yeah.

Almost.

Well, I'm glad I could
help with the case,

even though it was by accident.

How many murders do you think
we've solved since we met?

I don't know. Um...
maybe a hundred or so.

- A hundred?
- Mm-hmm.

Here's to a hundred more.

You know...

What you...

did for me...

Nobody's ever done
that for me before.

That was... epic!

But you do know that now
I will have to get you back?

Oh, really? And you think
that you can top that?

Oh, just you wait
and see.