Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001–2011): Season 3, Episode 11 - Law & Order: Criminal Intent - full transcript

[Man Narrating] In New
York City's war on crime,

the worst criminal offenders are pursued
by the detectives of the Major Case Squad.

These are their stories.

[Spectators Chattering]

I need to speak to him. He's got a
busted arm... [Man]Sorry, Officer.

We don't know him.
[Man] Let's go! Ball up!

Maybe you can
take a closer look.

He's a school kid.
That's all I know.

[School Bell Ringing] [Young
Man] Sorry, man. Don't know him.

Guys! You got
midterms next week.

Get on home. [Young
Man] Okay, Coach.



Get outta here.

You a recruiter? I-I'm
lookin' for this young man.

Recruiters know they can't
work on school grounds.

You need to leave.

No. They moved out, I think.
You have any idea where?

Maybe they have family in the neighborhood.
Oh, they got family, all right.

[Scoffing]

It's all good, Elvin.

You get a taste too.
You know, a finder's fee.

With or without
you, I'll find him.

Somebody at a
school or Rucker Park.

They'll tell me. You
don't wanna do that.

You wanna be
standing away from him.

If this doesn't get nailed
down, I could lose my job.



Don't worry. I'm gonna find him.

Maybe you don't
understand, Diego.

I'm in a bad situation.

[People Chattering] [Fuse Trips]

Oh! I get a free throw for that.

- Yo, Mr. Electrician.
- Aw, come on.

[Police Radio Chatter] Bullet cut through
the flex conduit, shorted the lights.

No one heard the shot? Nope.

He had no I. D., no
cell phone, no watch.

Punks used the whole buffalo.

Well, there's no burn marks
on his hands. No track marks.

Doesn't look like a
user. If he was selling,

there'd be a backup
somewhere nearby.

He didn't come back
here for the view.

He was havin' a smoke. He was
shot while putting his cigarette out.

The butt's still stuck to
the bottom of his boot.

The punks left
the buffalo's knife.

We got a match on his prints. He's a
P.I. out of Bensonhurst... Diego Bracho.

If Bracho was worried
about his safety,

he would have kept
the knife closer at hand.

But instead, he felt safe enough
to take his eyes off the shooter...

long enough to
put his cigarette out.

[Inhales] Well, he might
have been meeting a client.

He taught Social Sciences
at I.S. 44, 15 years ago.

In the Bronx. Should have been
enough excitement for two lifetimes.

Here we go. Uh,
receipts for Harlem.

Looks like he's getting paid in
gum... Power Chew sports gum.

These receipts are
from two days ago.

Mm. City parking lot.

A gas station in Queens and two
from the diner down the street here.

One for breakfast,
one for lunch,

with the gas receipt in between.

He had breakfast, went
up to Queens, came back.

Wrote down the mileage.

Twenty-five miles.

Okay, So... Uh,
office is, uh, here.

Uh, gas station is on the 2
100 block of Hazen Street.

Uh, 1 1 miles one
way, 22 miles round-trip.

Still three miles short.

Uh, that's one and a
half mile... one way...

to someplace with
a city parking lot.

Rikers Island?

It was mistaken identity. That
P.I. had the wrong black man.

"Elvin Fergin"?

That's not a common name.
How'd he make a mistake?

I didn't get all up in his head.

You do a life-skills workshop.

Mm, you're studying
for your G.E.D.

A man can turn a page,
be a better example.

I believe that.

What did Bracho want?

We'll pick up every
dope dealer in that park...

till we find the one who says
you put him up to killing Bracho.

Lady, that park's 15 streets
from where my crew works.

It's sacred ground. Nobody
does business in that park.

[Elvin] Guard. [Bangs On Door]

Uh, what park are you
talking about, Elvin?

Elvin's crew works out of the
Carter projects up on 172nd.

That's 40 blocks from
where Bracho was killed.

Elvin assumed we
meant another park.

Maybe one Bracho mentioned.

Fifteen blocks from
the Carter projects.

156th and-and Eighth.

Well, Elvin's right.
That is sacred ground.

Hey, y'all. Hold up. Listen, I don't
know anything about this man right here.

All we do is play ball
here in the Rucker, Officer.

Uh, my partner says he
has stories about this place.

Marv, come here.
Check out her dibs.

- What do you got on,
P. Diddy drapes?
- [All Laughing]

What you all, fashion
police? [Continue Laughing]

Obviously, they don't
know we're the hoops police,

'cause we ought to lock
you up for wearin' those kicks.

Where'd you find those,
on a telephone line?

[All] Whoo! [Laughing]

Hey, uh, my-my partner told me he
saw someone named Earl the Goat play.

Earl the Goat? You
saw that guy play?

This one Saturday,
when I was a kid,

I saw the Goat.

He dunked it, caught it, and he
dunked it again before he landed.

I ain't seen him. You?

What's that, Power Chew?

Is this stuff any good?
Aw, man, that stuff is

awful, dog. That fool
just chew it 'cause it's free.

- So, why is it free?
- They had a giveaway a few weeks ago
when the pros played here.

We had pros show up
unannounced. The kids went crazy.

We caught it all
on hidden cameras.

And this was all for a
Power Chew commercial?

Can we see the footage? We need
to see if this man was there that day.

- He's not on anything we shot.
- We'd like to see it for ourselves.

I'm sorry. It belongs to
the client. They paid for it.

But you're not saying that you,
uh, don't know him, are you?

It's just, um...
That award, can I?

Yeah. "Best Documentary,
Brooklyn Film Festival,

1994, Repo 101."

That would be about a teacher.

Maybe one who became a repo man.

- Yes.
- Maybe Diego Bracho.

The late Diego Bracho.

- He was working for you?
- [Sighs]

Look, the Power Chew people fell in love
with this one kid on... on his cell phone.

He was perfect. They wanted
him for the national campaign.

I thought I had all
the signed releases.

Except for this kid, so you
hired Bracho to find him.

We didn't know his name.
There was nothing to go on.

[Spectators Cheering]
[No Audible Dialogue]

[Deakins] Is that him
with the bum wing?

No, there's nothing wrong
with his... his right arm.

- Look.
- [Tape Squealing]

It's an old basketball exercise.

Put your dominant arm in a sling...
Builds the dexterity in your off hand.

This kid's in a
basketball program.

You know, Elvin said
something about turning the page,

setting a better example.

Elvin's visitors, the last six
months... His lawyer, his parents...

and his brother, Corey, 18.

Look him up. See what kind
of example Elvin's talking about.

You played ball in school?

J.V. Power forward. Gave it up.

[Computer Beeps]
You find this kid?

Well, yes and no.

His parents reported him
missing two weeks ago.

Corey had a game at his
school that Friday night.

He didn't come home
after... or on Saturday.

And his bike's gone.

- Game on Friday... how'd he play?
- He didn't play all but two minutes,
but he was fine.

- He's a good player.
- How was his mood? Any problems?

Except for wantin' more playin'
time, his attitude was great.

He never talked about
runnin' away or hurtin' himself.

I told the police all
this two weeks ago.

And what you didn't tell them is
Corey has an older brother at Rikers.

Corey has a shot at the pros,

and nobody, including Elvin,
wants to mess it up for him.

That's Corey's away bag... when
his team plays outside the city.

That's a birthday gift.

Anyone contact you about Corey?

Maybe a private
investigator. No. No one.

These are about size 48. These
would be your pants, Mr. Fergin.

My wife and I had problems.

I moved into a place up in
Harlem to be near Corey's school...

so he could be with
me during the week.

I moved back here
when he went missing.

- Mrs. Fergin?
- We're fine now.

Mr. Fergin moved in
with his son in August.

No loud noises. No complaints.

The-The furniture, it
comes with this apartment?

- Yes.
- The big TV, the video game
and the sound system... it's all standard?

Uh-huh. Wow.

A place like this,
how much does it run?

Three grand. More
than I can afford.

More than you'd think
Corey's dad could afford.

- [Buzzer Sounds]
- Excuse me.

Before Corey's parents split up,

Corey went to high school back
in Brooklyn where his parents live.

But his father
made it sound like...

that he moved here to Harlem because Corey
was already going to high school here.

So Corey changed schools
after his father moved. It matters?

Well, it does if
Mr. Fergin lied about it.

Corey dunks, shoots from
the outside, plays defense.

He's as gifted a point guard
as I've coached in 30 years.

The whole team is good, especially
these two getting all those three-pointers.

Jace Gleesing and Kyle Davis.

You played? Yeah. High school.

In the city? Maybe
I saw you play.

No. I didn't stick with it.

Ah, maybe with the
right encouragement.

[Bishop]
Mr. Rutherford, you're the

assistant coach. You're
close to the players.

What do you hear?

That he might have
been selling dope.

You know he's got a
brother in prison for dealin'?

Yes, we know.

All the same, we're gonna
need to talk to the players.

We'll need their names.
[School Bell Rings]

I didn't actually
see him sellin' weed,

but everybody
knows he was doin' it.

Well, then it must be true.

You know what? We're
gonna need your addresses.

Here. Just... 'Cause we
might need to talk to you later.

That's Corey's building. You
live there with your parents?

Uh, with my dad. Your dad?

Yeah. My parents, they weren't
getting along, so, uh, he moved in there.

What about you, Kyle?
Is that why you live there?

Well, yeah. Yeah. My
pops needed his own space.

Geez! Sorry. [Bishop] Oh!

Sorry. It's nice.
It's just like Corey's.

You pay for that out
of your paper route?

Uh, no. My parents gave
it to me when they split up.

Oh, what about this...
This fancy watch?

Where'd that come from?

No, I see. You guys... Your parents
split up and you get this stuff, right?

End up at the same school, playing on
the same team, livin' under the same roof.

We gotta get home, 'cause
we got a midterm tomorrow.

You ever read the public
school's rules on athletics?

No. It's what I said.

Me and my wife were
having marital difficulties.

That's why I moved out. [Bishop] No.
Corey needed to be on a championship team.

But a student can't change
schools on the basis of athletics.

That's what the New
York Public School...

Athletic League Rules
and Regulations says.

That's not what happened here.

Mr. Fergin, five exceptional
players, including Corey,

were transferred to
Moses Caro High this year...

because their parents split up.

They all got the same
fancy apartments, same gifts.

- No. I paid...
- Can you show us
the canceled rent checks?

Someone's paying a lot
of money to build this team.

- Who is it?
- But it doesn't have anything to do
with what happened to Corey.

Mr. Fergin, they're sayin'
that Corey was sellin' drugs.

That's why he's missing.

Only you can set
the record straight.

Come on. You're his father.

His name's Curtis Romney.

He came to me about
Corey transferring schools.

My son Elvin told
me to be careful...

because Romney was
involved in sports betting.

I just wanted to give
Corey a better opportunity.

[Young Man] Coach
says you're startin' tonight.

So listen up. Here's the rules. You
get the rock, you dish to Kyle and me.

We clear?

Hey! He asked you a
question! [Shouts, Indistinct]

Hey! What's the problem
here? Ben. Come on.

All right, get out
there, all of ya.

[Chattering]

This is what you've
done... to my team.

It's called grass
roots boosterism...

Giving the community a
team they can be proud of.

Well, I-I call it
"long-term investment."

You recruit the players,

you, uh, touch their young
lives with your generosity,

and then you leave a
stain that they carry through

their college or their
professional career...

A taint that you can
threaten them with...

anytime you need
to shave some points.

And this one... he wanted
more playing time, more money.

Whatever it was, he was
more trouble than he was worth.

My client denies
any involvement.

This conversation is over.

Harbor Patrol just pulled a
body out of the Harlem River.

Male black, 16-20. Any I.D.?

He's 6'5"... I'll take a
flyer it's our missing kid.

Now maybe we can add "known
killer" to Romney's credentials.

The wound's premortem.
Trachea's collapsed.

And these three marks and the bruise...
They look like they could be from knuckles.

Could be.

And then... I'll help.

We have these. Looks like it's
from a club or a pipe... metal or wood.

This looks like
it's from a hex nut.

His watch stopped at 1 1:16
the night of his Friday game.

Uh... Let me do that. [Sighs]

Oh, this is, uh,

red brick dust.

The water in his lungs...
We need a chemical analysis.

Anything you want.

He was punched in the windpipe
and thrown into the water alive.

If it was a pro, he would
have made sure he was dead.

This was more out of control.

What a damn waste.

So, it was true, the rumors.

We don't think it has
anything to do with drugs.

I see that you-you've
won six, uh...

No. Seven championships...
and teaching awards.

I teach Social Sciences.

Front office says that you're
gonna retire at the end of the year.

Be nice to go
out with a... bang.

I play to win every year, or
else there's no point in suiting up.

Does he always beat around
the bush? I can be direct.

You're divorced.
You got no kids.

And basketball is pretty
much it for you, Coach.

You haven't won a championship
in the last seven years.

You might be hungry for a
big win to cap your career.

Hungry enough to get into
business with Curtis Romney?

I can be direct too.

I see a problem
with authority figures.

You defy them.
You disrespect them.

But the truth is, you're
intimidated by them.

It's the mark of a boy
with an indifferent father.

His absence took the joy
out of playing basketball.

By the time I was aware of what
Romney had done, it was too late.

If I'd blown the whistle, the whole
team would have been suspended.

You can't convince me
Romney did this without your help.

No. I believe him.

You... didn't use
Romney's five ringers...

for all your starting lineups.

You mixed in lesser players.

- To make them into better players.
- Yeah.

I don't have anything
to prove on the court.

Not anymore.

Right.

That torch had been passed.

This whole thing was Romney's
play. I had nothing to do with it.

[Goren] Maybe he paid the
bills, but you recruited the players.

- Nah...
- There's nothing like kicking off
a brilliant coaching career...

like a championship
team, right, Mr. Rutherford?

Even if it means getting
in bed with Curtis Romney.

Oh, man. This
thing went so wrong.

I don't know what happened to Corey.
[Bishop] Tell us what you do know.

Corey wanted more playing time. He
worried he wouldn't be scouted for college.

- Romney know he was unhappy?
- No. I didn't need him knowing
I couldn't manage the problem.

And where did Corey direct his
anger... To you or to the other players?

We looked good on the court.
But in the locker room, it was ugly.

Bringin' in all those
hotshots just broke the team.

[Bishop] What did you
do after Corey's last game?

I turned the stat sheet into
Powell, and I met my wife for dinner.

And the players after the game, you
and Coach Powell steer clear of them?

Yeah. Especially after a
close game. It's their time.

The restaurant confirmed Rutherford and his
wife were there until just after 1 1:00.

Another solid alibi.
I'd like to see us pin

a suspect down long
enough to make a case.

Maybe we can pin down
where Corey went into the water.

The lab found high concentrations
of chromite, lead and asbestos...

in the water in his lungs.

The red brick dust in his
sinuses... Building materials.

Uh, the city's been tearing
down a housing project...

on 142nd... and Fifth...

on Harlem River Drive.

Contractor's been cited for
dumping materials into the river.

School's on 124th.
He lived on 1 1 6th.

What's he doing all the
way up on 142nd Street?

One of the players lived on 143rd
and Lennox... two blocks away.

"Benjamin Watkins."

Well, he's been playin'
with the team for three years.

And he was alternating
with Corey on point guard.

"Alternating."

Nice way to say
"cutthroat competition."

You should see
him. He's so excited.

Yes, I will. I'll call when the
plane lands. [Man, Clears Throat]

- Mom, we're ready.
- I have to go.

We can't thank you enough.

Congratulations, Ben.
You're now a Mid-Iowa Tiger.

[Goren] If he went in more downriver
on the opposite side of the dump site,

the concentration would
have been more diluted.

[Bishop] Or if he went in
more upriver, the water in

his lungs would have been
filled with cleaner water.

He was shoved against the rail.

He was punched in the throat
with enough force to send him over.

Yeah, right here.

This is where he went in.

The last time I saw Corey was in the locker
room after the game. Then I went home.

And you were at the game, Ms.
Watkins? Just the second half.

I was working at a plant store down at
Chelsea Market. I'm assistant manager.

And, uh, you and Ben
came home together?

No. I... stayed to
talk with friends.

And-And I was beat. I
just wanted to get home.

But you won that night, didn't you? Didn't
you wanna celebrate with the other guys?

Is it because they felt
that you took Corey's spot?

No. That was my spot for three
years before he came along.

Uh, isn't Corey the
better point guard?

No. Ben is a very good player.

He has a scholarship
from a college in Iowa.

Congratulations.

Paul died five years
ago of a heart attack.

Well, I'm sure he would have
been proud of... the two of you.

[Goren] Ben?

We think that Corey was in
this neighborhood after the game.

- Do you have any idea
why he'd be here?
- No.

Maybe he was following you... wanted
to provoke you, get you into a fight.

Detectives, that's
not what he said.

He wouldn't mess with
me. He knew better.

- What's that supposed to mean?
- Nothin'.

I told you. I just came
home and went in my room.

Yeah, but you won
an important game.

You played well. Why
hide in your room?

Because I didn't play well. I
missed half my free throws.

I just... wanted
to be with myself.

Fifty percent from the
line. That's a rough night.

I don't want you talking to my son
anymore, and I don't want you in my house.

[Goren] Attempted field
goal... 19. Rebound... 22.

Uh, blocked shot... 26.

Uh, field goal... 22.

Steal... 18. You have
something for me?

Ben Watkins said he missed half of
his free throws during Corey's last game.

The box score in the Ledger
has him making 10 out of 12.

What kind of an athlete lies
to make himself look bad?

Well, we tallied up the stats
from the last five games...

and checked them against the
stats the team gave the city league.

They all match except for Ben's.

His stats were
pumped up across the

board... rebounds,
free throws, field goals.

- Somebody's makin' him look good.
- Good enough for a college scholarship.

Maybe this is what Corey
found out was going on.

College education, ticket
out of the neighborhood.

Two lives must
be the going price.

Ben's stats have been inflated
over the last three months.

It has to be either
Rutherford or Powell.

Rutherford's the one with the
motive to pump up Ben's stats...

to hide the fact that there
were ringers on the team.

So Corey Fergin
discovered this fraud. He

confronted Ben Watkins,
who then killed him.

Well, we know Bracho
talked to some of the players.

Ben might have been afraid
Bracho would find out the truth.

He lured him to the
park and shot him.

Mm-hmm. With what gun?

Ben's father died of a heart attack behind
the counter of his convenience store.

It's on 125th Street.

Convenience store.

A gun's practically
standard equipment.

I told you. Paul and
I never owned a gun.

There's nothing in
there but personal items.

It's broken. Empty.

No gun.

You should be relieved,
Mrs. Watkins, but you're not.

Why aren't you? I-I don't
know what you're talking about.

Well... [Ben] Mom!
Why are the police here?

What are you doin'
here? Where's my mother?

She's okay. She's okay.

Where is it, Ben? Tell me where the
gun that your mom kept in the desk is, Ben.

Come on. I don't
have it anymore.

Not anymore. That means you took
the gun. Yeah, but I had to give it up.

Is that why you said Corey didn't wanna
mess with you... you showed him a gun?

- You can't talk to him. He's 17.
- Is that why Corey never called you out...

when he knew that your
stats were phonied up?

My stats? What's
wrong with my stats?

What, are you gonna tell us that
you don't know about that? No more.

Come on. [Exhales]

He doesn't know? No. He
doesn't have a clue about anything.

The gun, he brought it
to school to scare Corey.

Maybe somebody caught
him with it. By someone

who didn't report it...
one of the coaches.

[Goren] Picket-fence play.

Four players in a row,
fifth dribbles behind.

It's old-school. Everything
about Powell is old-school.

I think he stopped buying jackets
when Wilt Chamberlain retired.

These must be his former
players and their kids.

It's beginning to look a little
like Goodbye, Mr. Chips in here.

At least Mr. Chips had a wife.

Cranberry seedling.

With my dad, it was avocado
pits in a glass of water.

TV.

He stood over the sink, and
he ate while he watched TV.

Something you do?

No.

No. I found the same arrangement
when I cleaned out my dad's apartment.

Huh.

Looks like Mr. Chips
is buying a home.

An ad from a home insurance
company. "Call for free quotes."

And he wrote in the margins...
"Fire, theft, sump pump."

Hmm. Sump pump insurance?

Sump pumps keep
water out of basements.

You'd only need to add that to your
policy if you lived in a... a flood plain.

Iowa has flood plains.

We checked
Powell's credit report.

He applied for a mortgage
on a two-bedroom house...

a half an hour's drive
from Mid-Iowa College.

A house? Right.

For Mr. Powell, Ben
Watkins and his mother.

Mr. Powell and Ms.
Watkins are having an affair?

We haven't found any actual
evidence of one in either of their homes.

But Powell probably inflated Ben's
stats to help him get into college.

And he put a down
payment on a house.

It's hard to imagine that he'd do either
unless he had some hope for a relationship.

And Ms. Watkins
gave him that hope?

She might have
said it with flowers.

Powell has a, uh, cranberry
seedling in his kitchen.

Now, according to this, a
gift of a cranberry plant...

"is a cure for
the lonely heart."

That's something a
florist would think of.

I know this guy.

He's a lonely man with
a shot at happiness.

He's gonna fight for it.

Well, lucky for him Karen
Watkins is covering his back.

She won't let her son
tell us about the gun.

She doesn't wanna
jeopardize his scholarship.

Or Coach Powell. Right.

I wonder about her
feelings for Coach Powell.

Romney.

So it was Romney after all.

That's what we told the D.A.

And those searches...
Ben Watkins's home,

my home, my office.

Those were mistakes.

I'm sorry, Coach,
for embarrassing you.

That's not the only
reason I came here.

You know, when the
D.A. prosecutes Romney,

other facts are gonna
come out... facts

that have nothing to
do with Corey's murder.

- Spit it out, Goren.
- Ben's stats.

The D.A. will be obliged to notify
the school board and the college...

that they were altered.

There'll be criminal charges.
[Clears Throat] A civil suit.

Even if you don't go to jail,

they'll take your pension.

But if the college were
to get a letter now...

correcting the stats,

there'd be no harm, no foul.

Look, you shouldn't lose everything
because you helped this kid.

You know, when my father died,

he had just enough money
to, uh, cover his funeral.

That shouldn't happen to you.

Thanks for the heads-up.

Karen, I'm just sayin',

even though Ben
has the scholarship,

he should keep his options open.

He's made up his mind,
Perry. It's all he can talk about.

As long as nothing upsets
what we've worked for.

I've done everything
I can for him, Karen.

I know. You won't
be disappointed.

Ben will be home from the movie
soon. I'll wrap up some cake for you.

Sorry. Bad time, Coach?

There's a game
tonight. I have to prepare.

[Players Chattering,
Muffled] What do you want?

Well, we just hit a snag
in the Romney case.

"Snag"?

I've already told you
everything I know.

I'll explain more when
my partner gets back.

You know, when we
were searching your place,

you were working on
the picket-fence play.

I want the team to know it. They
all play the one-on-one game now.

That picket-fence play, that's...
That's a classic of teamwork.

[Door Opens] That's right.

[Goren] Well, maybe with a little
teamwork, we can all get over this snag.

Ah, Mrs. Watkins. [Chuckles]

Why are you here? This involves
her too. Please have a seat.

So, the snag.

It's the gun. I told you
there was never a gun.

Ben just misunderstood. Now,
look, we all want to make sure...

that Ben gets to
that college in Iowa.

So, Ms. Watkins,

- you kept the gun in the desk.
- Yes. Yes, I did.

[Bishop] And Ben
took it to school.

Yes, I believe he did.

Well, good. Good. Now all we need to
do is explain what happened to that gun.

Ben said that he gave
it up, and I'm thinkin'...

that a benevolent authority
figure... took it away from him.

- You know, a basketball coach
for example.
- All right. I took it from him...

before he did
something foolish with it.

[Goren]And that would be
how long ago? Three months.

[Bishop] And what did you do
with it? I returned it to Mrs. Watkins.

I told her she shouldn't keep a gun
in the house, to get rid of the thing.

I threw it in the river.

[Goren] Three months ago?

That's when Ben's stats
started improving, isn't it?

I guess. I-I'm not sure.

Coach started paying
more attention to Ben.

- I'm sure you noticed that.
- Yes.

You started paying more
attention to... to Coach.

And you paid attention to him,
Coach paid attention to Ben,

Ben's stats kept improving.

- It's nice how that worked out,
isn't it?
- Don't take that tone with her.

You're not gonna keep
denying this, are ya? Are ya?

The cranberry
seedling from your store.

After all, a guy can only...

spend so many nights
eatin' over the kitchen sink.

He can only look at so many
pictures of his former players...

with their wives
and their kids...

before he's gotta grab
that brass ring for himself.

Now you stop this right now.

He told you that...

That he wanted to help
Ben qualify for a scholarship,

how with a little sweat and
a few encouraging words...

He left out the part about
pumping up Ben's stats, didn't he?

It's not true. Ben
earned those stats.

I've seen my son play.
I-I trust Coach Powell.

[Laughing]

You... You know how
to pick 'em, Coach.

Now, you go ahead, Goren.
You get it all out, all that defiance.

You see that? His understanding of what
makes a young man tick... it's like a gift.

You're lucky, you know, he'll be
sharing that with you and your son...

out there on the
flood plains of Iowa.

- What are you talk...
- Okay, that's it!

Oh, was that supposed
to be a surprise?

The coach put a down payment on a
two-bedroom house near your son's college.

Yeah. That's one bedroom for Ben and one
bedroom for you and-and... well, the coach.

Karen, now's not the time.

I think he means now's not the time
to jeopardize your son's scholarship.

Shut up. This is
none of your business!

Perry and I wanted
to keep things low-key,

so Ben wouldn't find out
until we were ready to tell him.

You mean, like the occasional
date or... ride home after the games.

Yes. Perry's been very
proper. I appreciate that.

I'm sure you do.

The game... a few weeks ago,

Corey Fergin's last game.

Coach drive you home?

No. No, I took the bus.

Now, uh, you were thinkin'
about your son's scholarship

when you answered that
question, weren't you?

Wanted to make sure
you did the right thing...

Didn't put the coach outside your home,
a block from where Corey was murdered.

But don't worry. You
know, you-you did fine.

There's one more thing. You said
that you threw the gun in the river. Yes.

Then why were you surprised, when we
opened the compartment, it was empty?

- I-I'm not sure.
- See? There you go, thinkin'
about your son's scholarship again.

You know what? If I was you, I
wouldn't think about it so hard.

Coach Powell faxed the
college a correction of Ben's stats.

He was afraid he'd be charged with
fraud if they discovered what he'd done.

You what? What does that mean?

It means the college
revoked Ben's scholarship.

It doesn't matter, Karen.

I have savings. I'll
pay for his college.

Won't that be paradise, huh?
Livin' off the coach's savings.

Nice little house, middle of
nowhere... Just the three of you.

No, never. I don't love you. This is
about Ben. Couldn't you see that?

Ms. Watkins, did he drive you
home that night after the game?

He used your son to get to
you. He killed another boy.

He told your son that
he was a great player.

He made your son believe it.
What's he gonna say to your son now?

I can still help Ben. I can
make him into something.

Oh, listen to the coach.
He's just molding that clay,

just moldin' it until he
gets what he wants out of it.

I can. I mean it.

Did he drive you
home that night?

- Give me a chance, Karen.
- Yes, he did. He drove me.

He tried to kiss me. I
saw someone watching us.

Karen, please,
don't... Don't do this.

Someone on a bike.

I got out of the car
and went upstairs.

And then, later, he called me.

He said never to tell anyone
he'd been there that night.

It's because Corey confronted
him after seeing him with you.

So he took Corey for a
walk down by the river,

this kid who was just
fightin' for his own future.

[Exhales]

And the gun?

He came over for
coffee the next week.

I left him in the apartment while
I ran down to the laundry room.

He knew where I kept the gun.

Didn't you see how
Ben looked up to you?

Coach, you're under arrest.

Heads-up, huh? You really
got the old man good, didn't you?

Well, that's how I beat all my men
on the court, Coach... head fake.

The way you talk about the game,
it's just as well you stopped playing.

You got no love for it.

Well, he is hardly one to talk.

No, he's right.

I stopped lovin' the game...

when I saw it... it wasn't
getting me what I wanted.

[Howling]