Hawaii Five-O (1968–1980): Season 4, Episode 9 - The Burning Ice - full transcript
The wife of a wealthy doctor is shot to death. The physician seems to have a tight alibi while clues point to another man. But the more Five-O probes, the more the obvious turns out not to be. The suspect is arrested while trying to fence the dead woman's jewelry. But he was dying and had little motive to kill the woman. McGarrett & Co. need to dig deeper to find the truth.
Well, darling...
you're home early.
Yes. Betty went to
visit her parents tonight.
She's been doing that quite
often lately, hasn't she, Alex?
Could it be that she's getting
tired of the waiting game?
No, Melissa.
She's a woman
of infinite patience.
We'll see.
By the way... where
were you this evening?
Are you really interested?
Oh!
You were aware of nothing wrong
until you heard the maid scream?
I was working in the
garage using an electric drill.
They make a great deal of noise.
Then I turned it off.
When I heard Amanda screaming,
I ran out of the garage
just in time to see a... A
man running up the driveway.
Then he turned and
started shooting at me.
Steve.
I just talked to the maid.
How is Amanda?
The, uh, sedative you
gave her helped, doctor.
What's her story, Danno?
Just that she heard the
gunshot, uh, went to a window...
saw Mrs. Southmore slumped over,
saw the figure of a
man running away.
Are you sure there's
nothing specific
you can tell us about
the man, doctor?
Oh, he was just a shadow.
How about the
car he was driving?
I only got a glimpse of it.
Oh, you saw it?
Well, I had run
back into the garage,
and when he stopped shooting,
I came back out again
just in time to see
him pulling away in it.
It was an older,
inexpensive car of some kind.
Doctor, do you have a
description of the jewelry
your wife was
wearing this evening?
Yes, I... I think so.
I have, uh, photographs and,
uh, a professional appraisal
of all our jewelry.
Insurance company
insisted on it.
They're right here in the desk.
Got anything?
Yeah. Two slugs
from that garage door...
and a gasoline
credit card receipt...
dated today.
She was wearing this wristwatch,
this necklace,
and her engagement and
wedding rings, of course.
I don't know what all else.
Why don't you just take...?
Here, take all of these.
Thank you.
Oh, tell me, doctor.
Do you know of anyone who
had a reason to kill your wife?
I don't understand,
Mr. McGarrett.
She was robbed. Isn't it
obvious why she was killed?
Well, the obvious
always bothers me, doctor.
Steve. Look at this.
Fresh. McGARRETT: Yeah.
Okay. Get me photographs
and plaster casts.
Maybe we'll get lucky.
There were two shots fired.
One in the chest and
one through the left temple.
Powder burns indicate
the second shot was fired
with the gun right
against the head.
Hm.
Sort of coup de grâce, huh?
Right.
Thirty-eight caliber.
The killer was making
sure, wasn't he?
Very sure.
What kind of a gun was it, Che?
Smith & Wesson.
What about the, uh, plaster
casts of the tire tracks?
Old rubber. Size 600-13.
Tread practically gone on 'em.
A lateral break on one.
Good.
Danno?
What have you got, Danno?
Last night, Mrs. Southmore
had dinner at the, uh, Surfrider
with a Mr. and
Mrs. John Phillips.
Who are they?
Old friends of hers
from San Francisco.
Just visiting here.
She met them about, uh, 6:15.
They left the Surfrider about 8.
Mr. and Mrs. Phillips walked
her to her car. She drove off alone.
The Phillips then went
to a concert at the Shell.
Did their story check
out? All the way.
What about the description
of Mrs. Southmore's jewelry?
Every pawnshop on the
island will have it within the hour.
All right.
I want you to get the
word to every fence in town.
Let them know just
how hot this ice is,
and if they touch it,
they're gonna get burned.
Oh... Steve. Yeah?
What about that, uh,
gas credit card receipt?
Kono's on it.
Sure. I remember her.
Any particular reason?
Yeah. She was
good-looking. With class.
And great legs.
Drove in about 9.
How do you fix the time?
'Cause I close at 9.
She drove in alone.
Yeah.
Yeah, this is Charlie Ling.
What?
The Guru tell you to call me?
Okay. Okay, okay,
okay, what you got?
Uh-huh.
Yeah.
Yeah, I may be interested.
Okay. Make it the...
Waialae overpass in an hour.
You're Charlie Ling?
Am I?
My name is... Skip it.
Look, mister...
what I don't know
ain't gonna hurt me.
Like this stuff you
wanna show me.
Maybe you inherited
it from your...
From your rich auntie.
Maybe not. I... I don't
know and I don't care.
You dig?
Okay, let's see what you got.
Not bad.
What will you give me?
Not great. But not bad.
Well, how much?
What's the rush?
Look, will you just
make me an offer?
This stuff must be pretty hot.
No.
So hot you just wanna
dump it and cut out, right?
No.
Look, mister, forget it.
Man, the way
you're pushing, I...
I wouldn't give you more than
a grand for the whole thing.
A thousand?
Yeah, outside.
Okay.
What?
I'll take a thousand
for all of it.
Okay.
Okay, I'll meet you
inside the main entrance
at Sea Life Park.
In a couple of hours.
What's the matter with
right here, right now?
Because this is all
the bread I got on me.
One dime.
Just enough for a phone call.
This way, anything goes wrong,
I tell the cops I was
just asking you for a light.
Sea Life Park.
Make it noon.
Kimo.
Oh, Steve. Yeah?
I've got something. Like what?
Southmore. He owns a
.38-caliber Smith & Wesson.
Gun number 3798,
registered in his name.
Coffee?
Alex, you don't look well.
You look terribly tired.
It's this horrible business.
I guess the shock
is beginning to tell.
Why don't you let Dr. Berdahl
take your calls for
the next few days?
I'd rather be busy.
You know, it's ironic.
For three years...
the one thing I wanted
was my freedom from Melissa.
But as much as I
wanted my freedom...
for her to be murdered...
Oh, it's horrible.
Alex.
How much do you love me?
What are you really asking?
You said there were
times when you hated her.
Hated the sight of her.
Do you love me so much that...?
Betty.
Oh, you can't believe
I'd do anything like that.
Her death was so... lucky.
Isn't that an
awful thing to say?
But it's true.
Fate stepping in
and giving us this...
This terrible gift.
So I wondered if it was fate,
or if you were so
desperate that...
No. No.
What kind of a way would that be
for us to start
our life together?
You can't mean that.
I'm sorry, Alex.
I am sorry. I love you so.
Can I see you tonight?
Is that wise?
I don't care what people
think. I've got nothing to hide.
Oh, Mr. McGarrett.
Come in. That will
be all, Miss Viati.
Any news?
Yeah.
Your wife was killed with a
.38-caliber Smith & Wesson.
So?
So you have a handgun.
Same caliber, same make,
registered in your name.
That's right.
Oh, I'm sure a lot of
people have a gun just like it.
Doctor, I'm not interested
in a lot of people. Just you.
What was the status of your
relationship with your wife?
Well, it's no secret.
We were... strained,
I guess is the word for it.
I wanted a divorce.
But your wife
wouldn't give you one?
No.
So the last few years,
we went our separate ways.
As for the gun, it's right here.
Well, Che?
Have a look.
The one on the left is
the one I just test-fired
from Dr. Southmore's gun.
You can see the
lands and grooves
aren't nearly as prominent on it
as they are on the one taken
from Mrs. Southmore's body.
Yeah.
So that means she
couldn't have been killed
with Dr. Southmore's gun.
No way.
Hello, Charlie.
Hey. Mr. Williams.
How are you?
Hey, come in, come
in. Sit down, sit down.
Uh, buy you a cup of coffee?
No, thanks.
What can I do for you?
Take a look at these.
Sure.
This stuff hot?
So hot they could
raise blisters.
Stolen from a woman who
was murdered last night.
Maybe we should talk about it.
Hey. Wait a
minute, Mr. Williams.
I... I don't know
nothing about this stuff.
Yeah, I guess we'd better talk.
Right on time.
Have you got the money?
Yeah.
Hey, man.
Relax, man. Relax.
Where you going?
Where you going? Relax.
Steve.
McGARRETT: I'm
gonna ask you again,
Mr. Harper, did you
kill Melissa Southmore?
I don't wanna answer
any more of your questions.
That mean you've
changed your mind,
wanna talk to a lawyer?
I don't need a lawyer.
I'll tell you
something, Mr. Harper.
I've been a cop a long time,
and I've never seen a man
who needed a lawyer more.
We have a statement
from Charlie Ling
that you met him on
the Waialae overpass,
offered to sell
him some jewelry.
This jewelry.
The jewelry you had
in your possession
when you were arrested.
Melissa Southmore's jewelry.
We have a plaster
cast of a tire track.
It matches the tire
on your car exactly.
That puts you at the
Southmore home last night.
Now, if you want to tell
us the rest of the story, fine.
But don't kid
yourself, Mr. Harper,
that we haven't got
you, because we have.
Cold.
All right, Chin. Take him away.
Come on.
All right.
I killed her.
That's what you
wanna hear, isn't it?
All I wanna hear is the truth.
Mrs. Harper?
Yes.
Mrs. David Harper?
Yes.
We're from Hawaii Five-0.
May we come in?
What is it?
It's about your husband.
He's being held on
suspicion of homicide.
Homicide?
And, uh, Charlie Ling said
to meet him at Sea
Life Park at noon.
Let's take this apart and put it
together again, Mr. Harper.
You say you were parked
near the gas station.
You were desperate for money.
I haven't worked in a long time.
You had a gun. You were
gonna hold up the gas station.
Yes.
But then you saw Mrs. Southmore,
noticed her jewelry, uh,
changed your mind about
holding up the gas station,
and followed her instead.
Yes.
But you didn't know
she was going home?
How could I?
All right.
You got to the Southmore
home. Tell me about that.
I told you.
Tell me again.
May I have a glass
of water, please?
Are you all right?
Her car turned into
a driveway. Uh...
I stopped and waited a minute.
What for?
Trying to figure out what to do.
Then I turned off my headlights.
I started up the driveway
toward the garage.
There was a light
on, I looked in.
There was a man...
working on an old c-car.
Are you sure you're all right?
I'm fine.
All right. Go on.
I started toward the house.
I saw lights on around
the swimming pool.
Then I saw the woman.
Standing beside the pool.
Lying on a sort of
chaise. I told you that.
And then she saw you?
Yes. And?
And I shot her.
Just like that?
Yes.
Then you took her
purse and her jewelry.
There was $40 in the purse.
Forty-eight.
Why are you trying to trick me?
Skip it.
And I shot her again.
Why?
To make sure that she was dead.
To be sure that she'd
never be able to identify me.
And you're sure there
was no other reason?
Yes.
Okay.
Then I started back
up the driveway,
and I heard somebody scream.
Then the guy came
out of the garage.
I sort of panicked. I took a...
couple of shots at him,
and he ducked
back in the garage.
And I ran back to
my car and drove off.
And drove straight home?
No.
I drove to the
McCully Street Bridge
and threw the gun
in the Ala Wai Canal.
Please, I can't answer
any more questions.
All right, Chin. Book him.
Jenny...
get me Lieutenant Rice
of, uh, Harbor Patrol.
Tell him I need a
couple of his divers.
Right.
Yeah, Chin. Yeah.
Yeah.
Jenny... raise Danno for me.
Yeah, Steve?
Danno, is Mrs. Harper with you?
Right.
Mrs. Harper, can you hear me?
Yes, Steve, she can.
I'm sorry to have
to tell you this,
but your husband collapsed
when he was being booked.
He's at the hospital.
Danno, take her there.
Right.
I'll be at the hospital.
Dr. Fogeda, Kino 1, stat.
Dr. Fogeda, Kino 1, stat.
Mrs. Harper, this
is Steve McGarrett.
May I see my husband?
Yes, of course.
Nurse.
David?
How do you feel?
David?
It isn't true, is it?
What the police said?
It isn't.
It can't be.
David?
Can you hear me?
Then tell me what
happened. Please.
David?
Please tell me what happened.
He's dead.
Apparently from a
brain hemorrhage.
But that's academic.
What do you mean, it's academic?
He'd have died anyway,
in a matter of weeks.
What makes you say that?
David Harper was a patient
here a few months ago.
He insisted on being
released when he was told
there was nothing that
could be done for him.
He had leukemia.
My husband was a kind and
gentle man, Mr. McGarrett.
A good man.
He never hurt
anybody in his life.
I don't care what
evidence you have.
I don't care what
David said he did.
I know he didn't
kill that woman.
Why do you think he confessed?
Perhaps you can tell me.
Oh, no.
No, Mrs. Harper. No
threats, no intimidation.
Then I don't know.
Your husband said he
needed money desperately.
What did he need it for?
Michael.
Our son.
He's 8 now.
He's in a... A private
school on Maui.
The Lahaina School
for retarded children.
It's expensive.
It was more than we could afford
when we were b... Both working.
And...
Then David became ill.
When they...
told him at the hospital that...
there was really nothing
they could do for him...
he became frantic worrying
about Michael and me.
Especially Michael.
There was no savings.
No... No insurance.
All right. Thank you.
Kono, take her home.
My husband is not a
killer, Mr. McGarrett.
Do we wrap it up?
No, Danno. Something's wrong.
What's wrong?
I don't know, but
we're gonna find out.
Dig up everything you
can on David Harper.
Okay. Get on it.
Hey, Roy. Give me your hand.
Okay.
McGARRETT: You
have anything for me?
There's an awful lot of stuff
down there, but no
gun. At least, not yet.
We've covered
every inch for 50 feet
on either side of that bridge.
McGARRETT: Well...
then, make it a hundred,
will you? ROY: Mr. McGarrett,
that's an awful
lot you're asking.
McGARRETT: I know. - Well, okay.
If it's down there,
we'll get it for you.
McGARRETT: Good. Okay, bruddah.
Look, Mr. Williams,
I swear to you...
Come on, Charlie! Come on.
Harper needed all the bread
he could lay his hands on.
Now, why would he
take only a thousand
for nearly 30,000 worth of ice?
It doesn't make sense.
Okay. Okay, it
doesn't make sense.
But I'm giving it to
you straight, man.
He jumped at the grand.
Sorry, I can't help you.
You're sure? You never
saw the man before?
I'm positive. He's a
perfect stranger to me.
And the name David
Harper means nothing to you?
Not a thing.
Look at it again, doctor.
Think back to the other night.
Try to remember. Could he
have been the man you saw?
Maybe the same
height, same build?
Could be, but... I told you,
what I saw was just a shadow.
I mean, it could
have been anybody.
Mr. McGarrett, I detect
a reluctance on your part
to accept his confession.
Why is that?
Well, doctor, have you ever
run all the tests you can run
on a patient...
gotten all the facts...
and still feel that the
diagnosis is wrong somehow?
That there's something missing?
Yes, that happens.
That answers your
question, doesn't it?
Is the boss in? Yeah.
Ready for this?
What have you got?
Harper, a
conscientious objector.
During Korea, he was called
for induction into the Army.
He refused.
Said under no circumstances
could he take the life
of another human being.
Harper agreed to a
non-combat assignment
rather than be
subject to arrest.
He served in the medical corps.
Doesn't sound like a man
who put a gun to a
woman's head, does it?
Got something, Danno?
I just talked to the Lahaina
Institute for the Retarded.
Uh, the Harper boy's been
there for nearly four years now.
As far as they're concerned,
he can stay forever.
What does that mean?
Means that last week,
they got a cashier's
check for $75,000.
Seventy-five
thousand? From whom?
David Harper.
The man came out of the garage.
I sort of panicked.
I took a couple of shots at him.
He ducked back into the garage.
I ran back to my
car and drove off.
McGARRETT: And
went straight home?
No.
I drove to the
McCully Street Bridge
and threw the gun
into the Ala Wai Canal.
Saimin. Japanese
chicken noodle soup
from my Uncle
Lee's all-night joint.
Thanks, Chin.
I thought your
uncle was Chinese.
Well, he is.
But he's Chinese in a
Japanese neighborhood.
So he's passing.
Say, Steve. Mm-hm?
What have you got against
an easy one once in a while?
Nothing.
If you catch one, let me know.
Well, we've got one. This one.
Harper confessed. You
took him over the jumps.
His story's solid.
Not a crack in it.
You think so?
Let me show you something.
Okay.
Harper lived here.
The gas station where he
said he spotted Mrs. Southmore
is here.
Southmore home is here.
So?
So Mrs. Harper said that
her husband
picked her up at work
someplace in Waikiki,
drove her home.
They arrived home
at 8:45 last night,
give or take a minute or two.
Now, Mrs. Southmore
bought gasoline here
a few minutes before 9.
Now, I drove this
route this afternoon.
Took me exactly 17
and a half minutes.
You mean, Harper could
not have gotten to the station
in time to see Mrs. Southmore.
With a little luck, he could.
And if he made every green light
and averaged, uh,
about 35 miles an hour.
Hm. Well, that's a lot of luck.
Yeah.
And with a lot less luck,
he could have made
it from his house
directly to the Southmore home
in a little over 25 minutes.
Well, that could mean
he was waiting for her
when she arrived home.
Hello? Hello, lieutenant.
Yeah, he's here.
Well, just a
minute. I'll ask him.
It's Lieutenant Rice.
He wants to know if
you want his divers
to go on looking for
Harper's gun in the morning.
Steve?
Steve?
What?
Lieutenant Rice wants to know
if you want him to go
on looking for the gun.
No.
No!
Tell him I just found it.
Well...?
The inside diameter measures
just exactly one
thousandth of an inch larger
than is standard for a
revolver of this make.
It was a good hunch, Steve.
I really should have
checked it myself.
Oh, forget it.
I'm sorry to get you
out of bed at this hour.
Well, for something
like this, anytime.
Next question, Che.
Was the gun rebored?
Well, if the person had
the proper equipment
and the know-how,
it could have been.
But was it?
I think it was.
Not good enough.
I need supporting
evidence. I've gotta have it.
It's right over there.
Right.
It won't take a
minute for a test ring.
Give me a test call on 946-2115.
Right. Okay.
Thanks, bro.
This is gonna be like
looking for a very small needle
in a very large haystack.
Speak English.
Translation: Don't
hold your breath.
Che's taking a long time.
Yeah.
Yeah. Just a minute.
Che? Danny, from the hospital.
Yeah, Danno?
Your hunch was right, Steve.
Southmore donates one day
a week here at the hospital.
Did he see Harper
when he was there?
I couldn't pinpoint that.
But I did find out that a
couple of months ago,
Southmore went
through the hospital files
looking for male patients
with terminal illnesses.
That's good enough,
Danno. Come on in.
Che.
I was just calling you.
Now, let me get this straight.
You're accusing
me of killing Melissa?
Yeah. Would you like me to
run it down for you, doctor?
If you can, yeah.
You wanted a divorce.
Your wife wouldn't
give it to you
without handing you your head,
financially, along with it.
I don't deny that.
So you got an idea.
You searched the
hospital records
for a man who had
a terminal illness
and who needed money.
Needed it desperately.
You settled on David Harper.
You offered him
$75,000, maybe more...
But at least $75,000
to kill your wife,
providing he got himself
caught and finally confessed.
Ridiculous.
Harper had leukemia.
He had nothing to lose.
He'd probably die
before he went to trial.
But there was a hitch.
He just couldn't
bring himself to kill.
So, uh, you tipped your hand.
You were stuck with him so
you made him a proposition.
You'd do the killing if
he took the rap for it,
and he bought it.
So he came here
the other night...
and he waited while
you killed your wife.
He took her jewelry,
make it look like a robbery.
Then you got him to take a
couple of wild shots at you
before he took off.
You're guessing, McGarrett.
You can't prove one
thing that you're saying.
And what is that?
The results of spectrographic
and x-ray diffusion tests...
on some metal
borings that we took
from that boring machine.
The tests prove that
some of the filings
were definitely from the
barrel of your revolver.
After you used the
gun on your wife...
you rebored it.
You, uh, changed the rifling
so that in a ballistics test...
the slugs wouldn't
match. Very clever.
I'm gonna ask you to
come along with me, doctor.
I'm gonna call my
lawyer right now.
Tell him you'll be in my office.
Book him.
you're home early.
Yes. Betty went to
visit her parents tonight.
She's been doing that quite
often lately, hasn't she, Alex?
Could it be that she's getting
tired of the waiting game?
No, Melissa.
She's a woman
of infinite patience.
We'll see.
By the way... where
were you this evening?
Are you really interested?
Oh!
You were aware of nothing wrong
until you heard the maid scream?
I was working in the
garage using an electric drill.
They make a great deal of noise.
Then I turned it off.
When I heard Amanda screaming,
I ran out of the garage
just in time to see a... A
man running up the driveway.
Then he turned and
started shooting at me.
Steve.
I just talked to the maid.
How is Amanda?
The, uh, sedative you
gave her helped, doctor.
What's her story, Danno?
Just that she heard the
gunshot, uh, went to a window...
saw Mrs. Southmore slumped over,
saw the figure of a
man running away.
Are you sure there's
nothing specific
you can tell us about
the man, doctor?
Oh, he was just a shadow.
How about the
car he was driving?
I only got a glimpse of it.
Oh, you saw it?
Well, I had run
back into the garage,
and when he stopped shooting,
I came back out again
just in time to see
him pulling away in it.
It was an older,
inexpensive car of some kind.
Doctor, do you have a
description of the jewelry
your wife was
wearing this evening?
Yes, I... I think so.
I have, uh, photographs and,
uh, a professional appraisal
of all our jewelry.
Insurance company
insisted on it.
They're right here in the desk.
Got anything?
Yeah. Two slugs
from that garage door...
and a gasoline
credit card receipt...
dated today.
She was wearing this wristwatch,
this necklace,
and her engagement and
wedding rings, of course.
I don't know what all else.
Why don't you just take...?
Here, take all of these.
Thank you.
Oh, tell me, doctor.
Do you know of anyone who
had a reason to kill your wife?
I don't understand,
Mr. McGarrett.
She was robbed. Isn't it
obvious why she was killed?
Well, the obvious
always bothers me, doctor.
Steve. Look at this.
Fresh. McGARRETT: Yeah.
Okay. Get me photographs
and plaster casts.
Maybe we'll get lucky.
There were two shots fired.
One in the chest and
one through the left temple.
Powder burns indicate
the second shot was fired
with the gun right
against the head.
Hm.
Sort of coup de grâce, huh?
Right.
Thirty-eight caliber.
The killer was making
sure, wasn't he?
Very sure.
What kind of a gun was it, Che?
Smith & Wesson.
What about the, uh, plaster
casts of the tire tracks?
Old rubber. Size 600-13.
Tread practically gone on 'em.
A lateral break on one.
Good.
Danno?
What have you got, Danno?
Last night, Mrs. Southmore
had dinner at the, uh, Surfrider
with a Mr. and
Mrs. John Phillips.
Who are they?
Old friends of hers
from San Francisco.
Just visiting here.
She met them about, uh, 6:15.
They left the Surfrider about 8.
Mr. and Mrs. Phillips walked
her to her car. She drove off alone.
The Phillips then went
to a concert at the Shell.
Did their story check
out? All the way.
What about the description
of Mrs. Southmore's jewelry?
Every pawnshop on the
island will have it within the hour.
All right.
I want you to get the
word to every fence in town.
Let them know just
how hot this ice is,
and if they touch it,
they're gonna get burned.
Oh... Steve. Yeah?
What about that, uh,
gas credit card receipt?
Kono's on it.
Sure. I remember her.
Any particular reason?
Yeah. She was
good-looking. With class.
And great legs.
Drove in about 9.
How do you fix the time?
'Cause I close at 9.
She drove in alone.
Yeah.
Yeah, this is Charlie Ling.
What?
The Guru tell you to call me?
Okay. Okay, okay,
okay, what you got?
Uh-huh.
Yeah.
Yeah, I may be interested.
Okay. Make it the...
Waialae overpass in an hour.
You're Charlie Ling?
Am I?
My name is... Skip it.
Look, mister...
what I don't know
ain't gonna hurt me.
Like this stuff you
wanna show me.
Maybe you inherited
it from your...
From your rich auntie.
Maybe not. I... I don't
know and I don't care.
You dig?
Okay, let's see what you got.
Not bad.
What will you give me?
Not great. But not bad.
Well, how much?
What's the rush?
Look, will you just
make me an offer?
This stuff must be pretty hot.
No.
So hot you just wanna
dump it and cut out, right?
No.
Look, mister, forget it.
Man, the way
you're pushing, I...
I wouldn't give you more than
a grand for the whole thing.
A thousand?
Yeah, outside.
Okay.
What?
I'll take a thousand
for all of it.
Okay.
Okay, I'll meet you
inside the main entrance
at Sea Life Park.
In a couple of hours.
What's the matter with
right here, right now?
Because this is all
the bread I got on me.
One dime.
Just enough for a phone call.
This way, anything goes wrong,
I tell the cops I was
just asking you for a light.
Sea Life Park.
Make it noon.
Kimo.
Oh, Steve. Yeah?
I've got something. Like what?
Southmore. He owns a
.38-caliber Smith & Wesson.
Gun number 3798,
registered in his name.
Coffee?
Alex, you don't look well.
You look terribly tired.
It's this horrible business.
I guess the shock
is beginning to tell.
Why don't you let Dr. Berdahl
take your calls for
the next few days?
I'd rather be busy.
You know, it's ironic.
For three years...
the one thing I wanted
was my freedom from Melissa.
But as much as I
wanted my freedom...
for her to be murdered...
Oh, it's horrible.
Alex.
How much do you love me?
What are you really asking?
You said there were
times when you hated her.
Hated the sight of her.
Do you love me so much that...?
Betty.
Oh, you can't believe
I'd do anything like that.
Her death was so... lucky.
Isn't that an
awful thing to say?
But it's true.
Fate stepping in
and giving us this...
This terrible gift.
So I wondered if it was fate,
or if you were so
desperate that...
No. No.
What kind of a way would that be
for us to start
our life together?
You can't mean that.
I'm sorry, Alex.
I am sorry. I love you so.
Can I see you tonight?
Is that wise?
I don't care what people
think. I've got nothing to hide.
Oh, Mr. McGarrett.
Come in. That will
be all, Miss Viati.
Any news?
Yeah.
Your wife was killed with a
.38-caliber Smith & Wesson.
So?
So you have a handgun.
Same caliber, same make,
registered in your name.
That's right.
Oh, I'm sure a lot of
people have a gun just like it.
Doctor, I'm not interested
in a lot of people. Just you.
What was the status of your
relationship with your wife?
Well, it's no secret.
We were... strained,
I guess is the word for it.
I wanted a divorce.
But your wife
wouldn't give you one?
No.
So the last few years,
we went our separate ways.
As for the gun, it's right here.
Well, Che?
Have a look.
The one on the left is
the one I just test-fired
from Dr. Southmore's gun.
You can see the
lands and grooves
aren't nearly as prominent on it
as they are on the one taken
from Mrs. Southmore's body.
Yeah.
So that means she
couldn't have been killed
with Dr. Southmore's gun.
No way.
Hello, Charlie.
Hey. Mr. Williams.
How are you?
Hey, come in, come
in. Sit down, sit down.
Uh, buy you a cup of coffee?
No, thanks.
What can I do for you?
Take a look at these.
Sure.
This stuff hot?
So hot they could
raise blisters.
Stolen from a woman who
was murdered last night.
Maybe we should talk about it.
Hey. Wait a
minute, Mr. Williams.
I... I don't know
nothing about this stuff.
Yeah, I guess we'd better talk.
Right on time.
Have you got the money?
Yeah.
Hey, man.
Relax, man. Relax.
Where you going?
Where you going? Relax.
Steve.
McGARRETT: I'm
gonna ask you again,
Mr. Harper, did you
kill Melissa Southmore?
I don't wanna answer
any more of your questions.
That mean you've
changed your mind,
wanna talk to a lawyer?
I don't need a lawyer.
I'll tell you
something, Mr. Harper.
I've been a cop a long time,
and I've never seen a man
who needed a lawyer more.
We have a statement
from Charlie Ling
that you met him on
the Waialae overpass,
offered to sell
him some jewelry.
This jewelry.
The jewelry you had
in your possession
when you were arrested.
Melissa Southmore's jewelry.
We have a plaster
cast of a tire track.
It matches the tire
on your car exactly.
That puts you at the
Southmore home last night.
Now, if you want to tell
us the rest of the story, fine.
But don't kid
yourself, Mr. Harper,
that we haven't got
you, because we have.
Cold.
All right, Chin. Take him away.
Come on.
All right.
I killed her.
That's what you
wanna hear, isn't it?
All I wanna hear is the truth.
Mrs. Harper?
Yes.
Mrs. David Harper?
Yes.
We're from Hawaii Five-0.
May we come in?
What is it?
It's about your husband.
He's being held on
suspicion of homicide.
Homicide?
And, uh, Charlie Ling said
to meet him at Sea
Life Park at noon.
Let's take this apart and put it
together again, Mr. Harper.
You say you were parked
near the gas station.
You were desperate for money.
I haven't worked in a long time.
You had a gun. You were
gonna hold up the gas station.
Yes.
But then you saw Mrs. Southmore,
noticed her jewelry, uh,
changed your mind about
holding up the gas station,
and followed her instead.
Yes.
But you didn't know
she was going home?
How could I?
All right.
You got to the Southmore
home. Tell me about that.
I told you.
Tell me again.
May I have a glass
of water, please?
Are you all right?
Her car turned into
a driveway. Uh...
I stopped and waited a minute.
What for?
Trying to figure out what to do.
Then I turned off my headlights.
I started up the driveway
toward the garage.
There was a light
on, I looked in.
There was a man...
working on an old c-car.
Are you sure you're all right?
I'm fine.
All right. Go on.
I started toward the house.
I saw lights on around
the swimming pool.
Then I saw the woman.
Standing beside the pool.
Lying on a sort of
chaise. I told you that.
And then she saw you?
Yes. And?
And I shot her.
Just like that?
Yes.
Then you took her
purse and her jewelry.
There was $40 in the purse.
Forty-eight.
Why are you trying to trick me?
Skip it.
And I shot her again.
Why?
To make sure that she was dead.
To be sure that she'd
never be able to identify me.
And you're sure there
was no other reason?
Yes.
Okay.
Then I started back
up the driveway,
and I heard somebody scream.
Then the guy came
out of the garage.
I sort of panicked. I took a...
couple of shots at him,
and he ducked
back in the garage.
And I ran back to
my car and drove off.
And drove straight home?
No.
I drove to the
McCully Street Bridge
and threw the gun
in the Ala Wai Canal.
Please, I can't answer
any more questions.
All right, Chin. Book him.
Jenny...
get me Lieutenant Rice
of, uh, Harbor Patrol.
Tell him I need a
couple of his divers.
Right.
Yeah, Chin. Yeah.
Yeah.
Jenny... raise Danno for me.
Yeah, Steve?
Danno, is Mrs. Harper with you?
Right.
Mrs. Harper, can you hear me?
Yes, Steve, she can.
I'm sorry to have
to tell you this,
but your husband collapsed
when he was being booked.
He's at the hospital.
Danno, take her there.
Right.
I'll be at the hospital.
Dr. Fogeda, Kino 1, stat.
Dr. Fogeda, Kino 1, stat.
Mrs. Harper, this
is Steve McGarrett.
May I see my husband?
Yes, of course.
Nurse.
David?
How do you feel?
David?
It isn't true, is it?
What the police said?
It isn't.
It can't be.
David?
Can you hear me?
Then tell me what
happened. Please.
David?
Please tell me what happened.
He's dead.
Apparently from a
brain hemorrhage.
But that's academic.
What do you mean, it's academic?
He'd have died anyway,
in a matter of weeks.
What makes you say that?
David Harper was a patient
here a few months ago.
He insisted on being
released when he was told
there was nothing that
could be done for him.
He had leukemia.
My husband was a kind and
gentle man, Mr. McGarrett.
A good man.
He never hurt
anybody in his life.
I don't care what
evidence you have.
I don't care what
David said he did.
I know he didn't
kill that woman.
Why do you think he confessed?
Perhaps you can tell me.
Oh, no.
No, Mrs. Harper. No
threats, no intimidation.
Then I don't know.
Your husband said he
needed money desperately.
What did he need it for?
Michael.
Our son.
He's 8 now.
He's in a... A private
school on Maui.
The Lahaina School
for retarded children.
It's expensive.
It was more than we could afford
when we were b... Both working.
And...
Then David became ill.
When they...
told him at the hospital that...
there was really nothing
they could do for him...
he became frantic worrying
about Michael and me.
Especially Michael.
There was no savings.
No... No insurance.
All right. Thank you.
Kono, take her home.
My husband is not a
killer, Mr. McGarrett.
Do we wrap it up?
No, Danno. Something's wrong.
What's wrong?
I don't know, but
we're gonna find out.
Dig up everything you
can on David Harper.
Okay. Get on it.
Hey, Roy. Give me your hand.
Okay.
McGARRETT: You
have anything for me?
There's an awful lot of stuff
down there, but no
gun. At least, not yet.
We've covered
every inch for 50 feet
on either side of that bridge.
McGARRETT: Well...
then, make it a hundred,
will you? ROY: Mr. McGarrett,
that's an awful
lot you're asking.
McGARRETT: I know. - Well, okay.
If it's down there,
we'll get it for you.
McGARRETT: Good. Okay, bruddah.
Look, Mr. Williams,
I swear to you...
Come on, Charlie! Come on.
Harper needed all the bread
he could lay his hands on.
Now, why would he
take only a thousand
for nearly 30,000 worth of ice?
It doesn't make sense.
Okay. Okay, it
doesn't make sense.
But I'm giving it to
you straight, man.
He jumped at the grand.
Sorry, I can't help you.
You're sure? You never
saw the man before?
I'm positive. He's a
perfect stranger to me.
And the name David
Harper means nothing to you?
Not a thing.
Look at it again, doctor.
Think back to the other night.
Try to remember. Could he
have been the man you saw?
Maybe the same
height, same build?
Could be, but... I told you,
what I saw was just a shadow.
I mean, it could
have been anybody.
Mr. McGarrett, I detect
a reluctance on your part
to accept his confession.
Why is that?
Well, doctor, have you ever
run all the tests you can run
on a patient...
gotten all the facts...
and still feel that the
diagnosis is wrong somehow?
That there's something missing?
Yes, that happens.
That answers your
question, doesn't it?
Is the boss in? Yeah.
Ready for this?
What have you got?
Harper, a
conscientious objector.
During Korea, he was called
for induction into the Army.
He refused.
Said under no circumstances
could he take the life
of another human being.
Harper agreed to a
non-combat assignment
rather than be
subject to arrest.
He served in the medical corps.
Doesn't sound like a man
who put a gun to a
woman's head, does it?
Got something, Danno?
I just talked to the Lahaina
Institute for the Retarded.
Uh, the Harper boy's been
there for nearly four years now.
As far as they're concerned,
he can stay forever.
What does that mean?
Means that last week,
they got a cashier's
check for $75,000.
Seventy-five
thousand? From whom?
David Harper.
The man came out of the garage.
I sort of panicked.
I took a couple of shots at him.
He ducked back into the garage.
I ran back to my
car and drove off.
McGARRETT: And
went straight home?
No.
I drove to the
McCully Street Bridge
and threw the gun
into the Ala Wai Canal.
Saimin. Japanese
chicken noodle soup
from my Uncle
Lee's all-night joint.
Thanks, Chin.
I thought your
uncle was Chinese.
Well, he is.
But he's Chinese in a
Japanese neighborhood.
So he's passing.
Say, Steve. Mm-hm?
What have you got against
an easy one once in a while?
Nothing.
If you catch one, let me know.
Well, we've got one. This one.
Harper confessed. You
took him over the jumps.
His story's solid.
Not a crack in it.
You think so?
Let me show you something.
Okay.
Harper lived here.
The gas station where he
said he spotted Mrs. Southmore
is here.
Southmore home is here.
So?
So Mrs. Harper said that
her husband
picked her up at work
someplace in Waikiki,
drove her home.
They arrived home
at 8:45 last night,
give or take a minute or two.
Now, Mrs. Southmore
bought gasoline here
a few minutes before 9.
Now, I drove this
route this afternoon.
Took me exactly 17
and a half minutes.
You mean, Harper could
not have gotten to the station
in time to see Mrs. Southmore.
With a little luck, he could.
And if he made every green light
and averaged, uh,
about 35 miles an hour.
Hm. Well, that's a lot of luck.
Yeah.
And with a lot less luck,
he could have made
it from his house
directly to the Southmore home
in a little over 25 minutes.
Well, that could mean
he was waiting for her
when she arrived home.
Hello? Hello, lieutenant.
Yeah, he's here.
Well, just a
minute. I'll ask him.
It's Lieutenant Rice.
He wants to know if
you want his divers
to go on looking for
Harper's gun in the morning.
Steve?
Steve?
What?
Lieutenant Rice wants to know
if you want him to go
on looking for the gun.
No.
No!
Tell him I just found it.
Well...?
The inside diameter measures
just exactly one
thousandth of an inch larger
than is standard for a
revolver of this make.
It was a good hunch, Steve.
I really should have
checked it myself.
Oh, forget it.
I'm sorry to get you
out of bed at this hour.
Well, for something
like this, anytime.
Next question, Che.
Was the gun rebored?
Well, if the person had
the proper equipment
and the know-how,
it could have been.
But was it?
I think it was.
Not good enough.
I need supporting
evidence. I've gotta have it.
It's right over there.
Right.
It won't take a
minute for a test ring.
Give me a test call on 946-2115.
Right. Okay.
Thanks, bro.
This is gonna be like
looking for a very small needle
in a very large haystack.
Speak English.
Translation: Don't
hold your breath.
Che's taking a long time.
Yeah.
Yeah. Just a minute.
Che? Danny, from the hospital.
Yeah, Danno?
Your hunch was right, Steve.
Southmore donates one day
a week here at the hospital.
Did he see Harper
when he was there?
I couldn't pinpoint that.
But I did find out that a
couple of months ago,
Southmore went
through the hospital files
looking for male patients
with terminal illnesses.
That's good enough,
Danno. Come on in.
Che.
I was just calling you.
Now, let me get this straight.
You're accusing
me of killing Melissa?
Yeah. Would you like me to
run it down for you, doctor?
If you can, yeah.
You wanted a divorce.
Your wife wouldn't
give it to you
without handing you your head,
financially, along with it.
I don't deny that.
So you got an idea.
You searched the
hospital records
for a man who had
a terminal illness
and who needed money.
Needed it desperately.
You settled on David Harper.
You offered him
$75,000, maybe more...
But at least $75,000
to kill your wife,
providing he got himself
caught and finally confessed.
Ridiculous.
Harper had leukemia.
He had nothing to lose.
He'd probably die
before he went to trial.
But there was a hitch.
He just couldn't
bring himself to kill.
So, uh, you tipped your hand.
You were stuck with him so
you made him a proposition.
You'd do the killing if
he took the rap for it,
and he bought it.
So he came here
the other night...
and he waited while
you killed your wife.
He took her jewelry,
make it look like a robbery.
Then you got him to take a
couple of wild shots at you
before he took off.
You're guessing, McGarrett.
You can't prove one
thing that you're saying.
And what is that?
The results of spectrographic
and x-ray diffusion tests...
on some metal
borings that we took
from that boring machine.
The tests prove that
some of the filings
were definitely from the
barrel of your revolver.
After you used the
gun on your wife...
you rebored it.
You, uh, changed the rifling
so that in a ballistics test...
the slugs wouldn't
match. Very clever.
I'm gonna ask you to
come along with me, doctor.
I'm gonna call my
lawyer right now.
Tell him you'll be in my office.
Book him.