Damages (2007–2012): Season 2, Episode 2 - Burn It, Shred It, I Don't Care. - full transcript

NARRATOR: Previously onDamages.

The Bureau's putting together
a case we want Patty to take.

We're gonna need you
to pitch it to her.

Ellen brought this
in. A grand slam.

Infant mortality.

How are you gonna use
this to arrest Patty?

First you get her to bite, then
we'll fill you in on the rest.

PETE: Ellen's in counseling
three or four times a week.

People like you and me,
we only have two options,

forgiveness, revenge.

Let me use the firm's resources to
prove that Frobisher had David killed.



If that company is making people
sick, you have to stop them.

This ends today.

This was hand-delivered.
No return address.

Why did you send this to me?

You're the only one I can trust.

DANIEL: If I go public
with what I know,

it could bring down an industry.

I don't believe you
know my wife, Christine.

You ready to be reasonable?

Now will you help me?

[JUST FOR A THRILLPLAYING]

So, it seems like you're not
gonna tell me the truth after all.

Well, that's okay.

I lied, too.



[CELL PHONE RINGING]

It's Patty.

Hello? Is everything okay?

No, I'm fine. I'm fine. I need
you, there's been an emergency.

Of course.

She wants me to meet
her at her office.

At this hour? Why?

I have no idea.

[SNIFFLING]

[CAMERA CLICKING]

[PEOPLE CHATTERING]

You all right?

I'm fine, yeah. I just
needed some water.

Ms. Hewes, you're an
attorney, aren't you?

Yes.

Are you Mr. Purcell's
attorney?

No.

Do you have any idea why he'd
ask us to call you tonight?

[SIGHS] Well, I saw him
earlier at a charity event.

That's probably why
he thought of me.

Oh?

Excuse me.

I'd like to ask both of
you a few more questions.

All right.

What time did you
drop off your wife?

I told you. It must have been
midnight or so. I can't be sure.

I had to drop her off because it's a
one-way street, and when I came back,

I saw that the door of
the house was unlocked.

That's not like Christine.

And so, then, what happened
when you went inside?

I called her name. And that's
when the guy ran past me.

He slammed me up against the
door, and he took off outside.

Is that how you hurt your head?

It must have been.

Well, had you ever
seen this man before?

No, never.

But like I said, he
was shorter than me.

Blonde, stringy hair.
Aryan or Nordic.

He must have seen my wife
walking alone and followed her.

I ran off after him, but
he was too far ahead.

I was worried about Christine,
so I came rushing back in,

and that's when I...

Right, and that's
when you called 911?

Yeah.

Can you think of anyone who would
want to hurt you or your family?

No.

It's time, Mr. Purcell.

You ready to be reasonable?

Any grievances or threats
that you're aware of?

None.

Daniel.

I've come because I
need your help, Patty.

I'm in trouble. I'm
being threatened.

[EXCLAIMS] Jesus.

[EXCLAIMS]

Jesus, Jesus! Christine.

I'm okay. No, no, I'm okay.

All right. Will you sit down?

He can't have gotten far.

What the hell are you all
doing standing around?

We have patrols canvassing the
neighborhood with your description.

Where the hell is
he? I need candy.

No, you need to
sit down, Daniel.

You want me to find him myself?

He's diabetic.

Can somebody please get some
orange juice for Mr. Purcell?

Anything else you can remember?

PATTY: All right, Detective,
we have to finish this later.

I'm advising Mr. Purcell not
to answer anymore questions.

Put your head between your...

I thought you said you
weren't his attorney.

I am now.

MAN: You ask for this?

You got juice? All right, all
right. Let's get you to my office.

Drink this. It's orange
juice. Okay, can you hold it?

There you are.
There you are, okay.

[WHEN I AM THROUGH
WITH YOU PLAYING]

♪ Little lamb

♪ Smile

♪ When I am through with you

♪ There won't be anything left

♪ When I am through with you

♪ There won't be anything left

♪ When I am through with you ♪

He has a daughter who's staying
with her grandparents upstate.

We're gonna need a team there as
well. I'll get you the address.

How are we on security?

Uh, well, on the way.

What about a hotel suite?

I booked him into the Wooster,

and I leaked to a beat reporter
he's headed to the Waldorf.

Good. This is
Purcell's doctor.

Wake him up. Get him
over to the hotel.

Okay, fine, but Patty, I'm not
sure what we're doing here.

Purcell doesn't need us. He needs
a criminal defense attorney.

This isn't something I can
hand off to another lawyer.

And Patty, the lead plaintiff
from the infant mortality case

is coming in to meet
with you tomorrow.

I can't deal with
that right now.

It's okay. I'll reschedule.
I'll buy us some time.

No, no. Don't reschedule.
Work has to go on.

[SIGHS]

Why don't you take
first chair on the case?

Sure.

If you think that's the best
approach, given the circumstances.

Well, it's time for you to take
lead. You don't need me. Go for it.

[SOFTLY] Daniel. Daniel.

Daniel?

[COUGHS]

We're moving you to a hotel.

[GROANS]

I have to call my daughter.

The paramedics gave
you a sedative.

I think it would be better
to wait until tomorrow.

Here.

I know this is a difficult
time, but we have to talk.

Mmm-hmm.

The detectives will want to
interview you again in the morning,

and we need to get
some things straight.

Why did you lie to the police?

You didn't tell them
about the threats.

You came to me, fearing for
your life, for your family.

They don't need to know that.

Why the hell not?

I don't think you realize
what's going on here.

You were found alone in your
house with your wife's body.

There's no sign of forced entry,
and you lied to the police.

I am going to be a suspect.

You're the spouse. You're
gonna be the suspect.

Patty, I saw the guy who did it.

Who's he working for?

Who's behind this, Daniel?

I can't talk anymore, Patty.

Patty? Yeah?

The car is here.

Okay.

All right. Let's get
you to the hotel.

MAN: This way, ma'am.

Right this way.
Watch your step.

How did it go last
night with Mr. Purcell?

Fine. When I left,
the security guards

were posted at his
door like you asked.

Can you close that for a moment?

Do you think he killed his wife?

I think it's best not
to jump to conclusions.

But you know him.

Do you think he's even capable
of something like that?

I think anyone is
capable of anything.

Well, criminal law
isn't my strong suit,

but I'm willing to
help any way I can.

Thank you.

Uh, Patty? The infant
mortality case. I'm concerned.

The plaintiff might
go to another firm.

She wants you to represent her.

You are the client liaison.

Back up Tom and make sure the plaintiff
feels supported by the entire firm.

And Patty gave the infant
mortality case to Tom Shayes?

Yeah.

So what is Patty's
interest in this murder?

I think Danny Purcell
and her are friends.

I saw him and his wife at
her charity gala last night.

Well, this is not
what we wanted.

I know.

Is there any value
to targeting Shayes?

He's been Patty's
second for years.

I know he's got heaps
of stuff on her.

You want to do this?

All right.

So change of plan. We'll
let Tom take the case.

If this pans out, we'll see if we can
flip him. Use him to get to Patty.

Ellen, are you all
right with that?

Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?

This is going to
destroy Tom's career.

And he could be
looking at jail time.

Tom's a big boy. If he
wants to break the law,

then he can pay the price.

[PEOPLE CHATTERING]

MAN: Take care. WES:
I'll see you next week.

Take it easy. I'll
see you next week.

Take it easy, man.

Hey.

Hey.

How's group?

Are you kidding? It's
fantastic. So fun.

This is the only place where
I knew I could find you.

Do you have a minute? Sure.

So what's on your mind?

I...

I had the chance.

What chance?

To kill him.

The guy who murdered
your fiance?

We were alone in his hospital
room. It was just the two of us.

It would have been so
easy. But I couldn't do it.

Why was he in the hospital?
It doesn't matter.

The point is that I thought
I was there for my fiance,

but I realized getting revenge is
something that he wouldn't want me to do.

And now I just feel
like I blew it.

Then go back to the hospital.

I can't. It's too late.

The guy's been released, and
I have no idea where he is.

Parsons, if you really
want to find someone,

there's always a way.

Anyway, I just... I
had to tell someone

and you were the only
person who I could think of.

[ELLEN LAUGHING]

[WES CHUCKLING]

[CELL PHONE RINGING]

Hello?

Ten minutes? [WHISPERS] What?

Okay. I've got to go.

Do you always have to go?

I told you there are things in
my life that I can't talk about.

Who was that?

Leave it, Wes.

Seriously, who was that?

Don't be here when I get back.

I have to get to the
country house, Patty.

I need to tell Erica.

Well, this won't take very long.

It's very important.

Sending you the
files was a mistake.

What are they?

Our firm was hired to do toxicity
studies on a chemical compound.

Tetracytaphil.

The compound's being developed
commercially under the name Aracite.

Is it toxic?

Extremely.

What is it used for?

Well, they don't tell me that.

Daniel, you're vice president of
your firm, you're head of research.

The firm is obligated to maintain
its client's confidentiality,

even from the researchers.
I get raw data.

I run tests and I
analyze the results.

So you issued your report...

And whoever commissioned
it pressured my firm

to doctor the results.

The firm caved, but they
kept my name on the report!

Daniel, do you think your
firm killed Christine?

They warned me to
keep my mouth shut.

But they're not big enough
to be calling the shots.

Who would commission
a report like this?

We consult for the
energy industry.

These companies are worth
hundreds of billions of dollars.

Any one of them could've
had an interest in my work.

Now you understand
why I can't go public?

I understand why you're afraid.

I'm not going to the police
with this information.

That may be the only way
to keep you out of prison.

I don't care.

I was stupid once.

Now I have a
daughter to protect.

What do you want
me to do with this?

Burn it. Shred
it. I don't care.

If it ever comes to light,
I'll deny every word of it.

Thank you, Patty. I'll call
you when I get to the country.

All right.

Michael. Hey, Mom.

You okay?

I'm fine.

Michael, this is Daniel Purcell.

It's good to meet you.

Yeah, same.

I'll be in touch, Daniel.

I know you were expecting
Ms. Hewes, Monique,

but Tom is Patty's partner.

You couldn't be in better hands.

I assure you, Ms. Bryant.

All of the firm's resources
will be at your disposal.

The insurance companies
need to be held accountable.

They will be. I promise you. We're
going to fight for all those women.

But you are going to be the
face of this class action.

We couldn't hope for a
better representative.

Thank you.

Sure, thank you.

Thank you.

Could I have a moment
alone, Mr. Shayes?

Certainly. Yeah.

I work two jobs, Mr. Shayes.

It would just help so much if I could
get a little something up front.

A little extra to
help pay the bills.

Monique, that kind of
transaction is unethical.

It's against the law, actually.

The settlement is going to
be tens of millions, right?

That may very well be.

But in the eyes of the court,

you'd be getting more money than
the other plaintiffs in this suit.

It's illegal.

I really do want to go with
your firm, Mr. Shayes, but...

But...

I've been approached
by other attorneys.

They said they'd be
able to help me out.

TOM: How much are
we talking here?

MONIQUE: 60,000
would be a Godsend.

TOM: Well, I think
we could manage that.

MONIQUE: How soon?

TOM: Give me 72 hours.

He said yes.

It's never a "yes" until they
actually make the payoff.

So what are your instincts? You
think he's going to follow through?

Seemed ready to go.

Has he ever done anything
like this before?

I don't know.

Well, go about your business.

Agent Hawkins will
schedule another meeting.

And we'll see.

DANIEL: Put some
dirt underneath that.

She wanted to plant
it for her mother.

I've spoken to the police.

There's still no evidence that

anyone else was in
your house that night.

Yeah, of course not.

Daniel, if you get arrested, you're
going to need a defense attorney,

and this whole thing
will be out of my hands,

but if you let me
pursue that report...

No.

Patty, we had this conversation.

Well, eventually,
you're going to have

to sit down with
Detective Huntley.

Any time he wants.

He's going to try to
poke holes in your story.

I can't help you unless you
tell me absolutely everything.

What do you want to know?

Start with your private life.

Did you and Christine have any
financial issues, any debts?

A mortgage. That's all.

Any drug problems?
Gambling problems?

No.

Were you having an affair?

Jesus, Patty.

I know this is unpleasant, but believe
me, it's gonna get a lot worse.

Were you having an affair?

No.

Was Christine?

None that I know of.

Were there any other
problems with your marriage?

Nothing out of the ordinary.

Define "ordinary."

Ordinary. Ordinary
means ordinary.

Did you ever hit Christine?

Enough of this horseshit! What
are we talking about here?

Your temper. We both
know you have one.

I never hit her and
I didn't kill her.

Well, I can't prove that

unless you allow me to pursue
who's actually behind this.

Don't you get it?
None of this matters.

We're never gonna find out
who's actually behind this.

Don't saturate the center now.

Make sure you soak the
periphery, as well.

Surprised to hear
from you, Patty.

Last we saw each other, we were
on opposite sides of a courtroom.

We haven't always
seen eye to eye,

but I called you because you're
the sharpest guy at the EPA.

I gotta ask you
something, Patty.

How in God's name did you get
your hands on those documents?

You know I can't answer that.

Can you explain them?

Well, they're definitely
toxicity studies.

Aracite seems to be an
industrial compound,

but since it's newly developed,
finding out its exact purpose

is going to be
next to impossible.

Why is that?

Some company has spent millions
of dollars to develop it.

They're going to keep a
tight lid on its uses.

I wouldn't ask if it
weren't important, Earl.

Look, let me talk to some of
my colleagues in the field.

I need you to be discreet.

Of course.

Thanks for the heads-up, Earl.

I don't know where Patty
Hewes got this information.

I'm afraid somebody in your
company may have leaked it.

We'll certainly look into it.

These are just copies, you know.

Patty Hewes still
has the originals.

I understand.

I can't tell you how much
we appreciate the tip.

You know how I feel, Wayne.

A good relationship
with the energy industry

is the best way to promote
a healthy environment.

Will I see you up at
Winged Foot next month?

Been working on my
short game all summer.

Hundred bucks a hole, then?

You know better than to give
your money away like that, Wayne.

[LAUGHING]

Yeah. WOMAN: Yes, Mr. Suttry.

Get me a meeting
with Claire Maddox.

It's urgent. WOMAN: Right away.

ELLEN: You wanted to see me?

What is this?

A photograph.

Turns out, someone we know
has been keeping a secret.

ELLEN: A sonogram?

It's a boy.

You're pregnant? Yeah.

Don't tell Deb, though, 'cause
I'm supposed to be on the pill.

Congratulations!

Thank you. Thank you.

WERNER: How is Shayes doing?

Any unusual behavior? Does
he seem nervous, jumpy?

No, no. He's on
top of the world.

He and his wife
are having a baby.

Shit! Sorry. Sorry.
Pam, you can't do this.

No. No, you... Not
on this number.

No. God damn it! I need
to take this. Pam...

All day long with this bullshit.

His wife's leaving him.

Is Tom's meeting with
the plaintiff set?

Yeah, it's ready to go.

Hey, Ellen, if you're having
second thoughts, we can talk.

Just use him to get to
Patty, and I'll be fine.

I've been sitting out
there for half an hour.

In the future, don't
demand a day-of meeting

to clean up another shit storm that
you should have been competent enough

to keep from exploding
out of your own ass.

What is it this time?

[CLEARS THROAT]

We have a containment
problem. It's a legal issue.

It's out of my domain.

By all means, share.

One of my employees
leaked some data.

The documents are
extremely sensitive.

Does Mr. Kendrick know?

Mr. Kendrick doesn't
need to know.

Not if you do your job.

Well, one of us
certainly should.

Who has the documents?

Patty Hewes.

Patty Hewes?

I've been thinking
about you, Ellen.

You're braver than I thought.

You didn't tell me it was him.

It wasn't.

Come on.

Arthur Frobisher had your
fiance killed, didn't he?

No, he didn't. Okay?
Just... It's not like that.

You said in group
you were a lawyer.

You spent half a year
working on a big case.

There was a $2
billion settlement.

And then you went and visited
the guy in the hospital.

Please leave it alone.

Listen to me.

You do not mess with
a guy like this.

Your firm destroyed him.

When he recovers, a guy with this
kind of power is gonna be vindictive.

And he has resources.
He has connections.

And trust me, Ellen. I don't care what
he did. You have to forget about him.

You understand?

Hey.

Thanks, Tom.

I hope you know
what you're doing.

I do.

[KNOCK ON DOOR]

TOM: Come in.

This Daniel Purcell
thing makes no sense.

It's one of Patty's crusades.

Do you know what's
really going on there?

No idea.

Are we turning into a
criminal defense firm?

I mean, that's not
what I signed up for.

Stick with me on the
infant mortality case.

I was hoping you would say that.

Well, you did a terrific
job of hiding it.

How old is Megan now?

Oh, she's 12.

If she wanted to be a
lawyer, would you let her?

It's too late.

She wanted to be the first
woman Supreme Court Justice.

She didn't realize that Daddy
already clerked for one.

I think kids have got a really
basic sense of justice. Don't you?

And then, as we get older,
it just gets all screwed up.

[SIGHS]

I don't think so.

I think you get older, you
realize that the world is unfair

and that Mommy and Daddy
can't make everything okay.

If you want justice, you
got to fight and claw

and do whatever you
have to, to get it.

You've been working
for Patty way too long.

[CHUCKLES SOFTLY]

It's a good thing you
bugged the office.

There's something
on one of the tapes

from last week I
need you to hear.

It was recorded in
the conference room.

MONIQUE: But I've been
approached by other attorneys

who said they would be
able to help me out.

TOM: How much are
we talking here?

MONIQUE: 60,000
would be a Godsend.

TOM: Well, I think
we could manage that.

MONIQUE: How soon?

TOM: Give me 72 hours.

He's already scheduled a payoff.

[SIGHS]

I wouldn't have expected that.

You going to let him
go through with it?

It would be a very
big case for the firm.

It could also put you at risk.

Remember, we gotta
hear a dollar amount.

It can come from you, but
Shayes has got to confirm it.

Copy that.

You want to put that thing away?

What difference does it make?

Put it away.

Here he comes.

[CAMERA FLASHING]

Thank you for
coming, Mr. Shayes.

It's good to see you, Monique.

I feel terrible
asking you to do this,

but 60,000 is going
to save my life.

Well, I'm happy to help.

Mr. Shayes?

Come on, Tommy. It's the
case of a lifetime, come on.

I'm going to give you this,

but it's imperative
that you understand

you can never talk about this.

Mr. Shayes, I'm ashamed
to even ask you for it.

[CELL PHONE RINGING]

Hey, now's not a good time.

Who the hell is calling him?

Hold on a second.

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

TOM: I've got to
take this and...

He's going to walk.

I'll be in touch
with you, Monique.

Thank you.

Shit.

Patty.

Don't take the infant
mortality case.

I need your help with Purcell.
It's not just a murder, Tom.

There's a much bigger case here.

I can't wait to
hear the details.

Game!

Claire, you see me
beat this geezer?

Congratulations.

You have a nice, compact
stroke there, Your Honor.

You're just sweet-talking
me. Did you bring the motion?

It's a replevin action.

I'm seeking preliminary relief

for the immediate
seizure of property.

This is ex parte?

Yes, Your Honor,

because if the other
side knew I was here,

they would destroy the very
files I'm seeking to recover.

Well, I'm gonna need some
time to look this over.

"Patty Hewes and Associates"?
This is who you're up against?

Now is not the time for
personal animus, Your Honor.

Take all the time you need.

Give me the goddamn pen.

Thank you. Mmm-hmm.

Hey!

WOMAN: Excuse me. Hey,
you can't go in there!

What's that? A court order.

Hewes and Associates is in
possession of stolen documents.

There are two ways
this can go, Ms. Hewes.

You hand them over
to us willingly

or we turn this place upside
down till we find them.

PATTY: Claire Maddox?

Tom.

What's up?

Just doing some background
on the infant mortality case.

Oh, I'm not taking it.

Why not? What happened?

Um...

Monique Bryant wanted
money up front.

Are you serious?

$60,000 before she'd
sign a retainer.

What did you say?

I told her, "Forget it."
I'm not that kind of lawyer.

Don't worry, I
didn't tell Patty.

I know you're the one who
brought the client in, so...

Thank you. I am so sorry.

This was a really big
opportunity for you.

Yeah, it's okay.

It turns out Patty
changed her mind,

didn't want me to take
the case anyway, so...

Did she say why?

Why? Because she's Patty.

If you figure her
out, let me know.

You screwed me, Patty.

You gave Earl Jacoby
a copy of my work?

He was appointed by
the oil industry.

Jacoby's in the
pocket of big energy!

Think!

I wanted Jacoby to
leak the information.

You what?

It was the only way to expose who
commissioned the Aracite report.

Do you know this name?

Claire Maddox.
I've heard of her.

She's head counsel of the world's
third-largest energy provider.

Ultima National Resources?

Yeah.

So they commissioned the report?

Yeah.

And they killed Christine.

I'm sorry.

It's okay.

[KNOCK ON DOOR]

Come in.

Hey, I'm taking off. Just wanted
to check on you before I left.

I'm fine, Ellen. Thank you.

How's Mr. Purcell holding up?

Not too well, which
is to be expected.

Did you hear what happened
with Tom's plaintiff?

No.

She wanted a payoff.

Really? How much?

60 grand. Tom turned her down.

Of course he did. I want him
helping me with Purcell anyway.

You were the one who brought
in that case, weren't you?

A woman in grief counseling
referred Monique Bryant to me.

And you didn't suspect anything?

She lost a daughter
and a granddaughter.

Monique was devastated.

Well, you have to
be careful, Ellen.

Everyone is looking
to play an angle.

[THUNDER RUMBLING]

[RAIN PATTERING]

[KNOCK ON WINDOW]

Did you tell anyone about us?

No.

♪ When I am through with you

♪ There won't be anything left

♪ When I am through with you

♪ There won't be anything left

♪ When I am through with you ♪