Matlock (1986–1995): Season 7, Episode 1 - The Vacation - full transcript
Ben and Leanne go on vacation and meet up with Leanne's college girlfriends. Murder ensues, Ben defends a stranger while Leanne suspects one of her friends is the real killer.
[DOOR OPENS]
[DOOR CLOSES]
Let's go, Dad!
Coming! Coming. Unh. I'm coming.
LEANNE: Let me help you
with that. MATLOCK: I got it.
LEANNE: Let me help you.
- No, I got it.
- Where's your bag?
- In the car.
Why won't you let me help you?
- Because you might hurt your back.
- How do you know?
Because I just hurt mine.
LEANNE: Heh.
- Oh.
- What have you got in here?
- Stuff.
- Stuff?
- Yeah.
You'll be with your friends,
and I brought some books
and some extra
suits and some stuff.
- Dad, we're going to the beach.
- Yeah, but what if there's a dance?
[MATLOCK GRUNTING]
[LEANNE GROANS]
- Hurt your back?
- Just get in the car.
Okay. Yeah.
Right.
[MATLOCK PANTING AND GRUNTING]
- You all right?
- I'm all right. You?
Yeah. You done
everything you have to do?
LEANNE: Yeah. You?
- Yeah.
I guess we're ready.
Oh, this is gonna be great.
It's about a five-hour drive.
We can figure out who's
gonna take what cases,
what kind of computer
we're gonna buy,
who's gonna do the bookkeeping,
figure out how this
partnership is really gonna work.
[LIVELY RAGTIME MUSIC
PLAYING ON STEREO]
[ENGINE STARTS]
Here we go.
[LIVELY RAGTIME MUSIC
PLAYING ON STEREO]
[MUSIC STOPS]
What'd you do that for?
We're lost.
How can we be lost? You
got the map right there.
It was printed in 1961, Dad.
[LIVELY RAGTIME MUSIC
PLAYING ON STEREO]
If you're gonna listen to that
stuff, you should let me drive.
- Why?
- Because when you listen to music,
you don't pay attention.
You weave in and out, you speed.
No, I don't.
[SIREN WAILING]
Seventy miles an hour, my foot.
- Dad, he had a radar gun.
- I don't care what he had,
I wasn't doing 70.
Hey, do me a favor.
Let's not let
this ruin our trip.
From here on out, it's
gonna be smooth sailing.
[TIRE BANGS]
[TIRE CLATTERING]
[TIRE BANGS]
Hmm. Tsk.
[AIR HISSING]
[BRAKES SQUEAK]
[LEANNE SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
JOE: Everybody off. We made it.
[LEANNE GROANS]
[MATLOCK GRUNTING]
DOORMAN: Welcome
to the Tropical Surf.
- Need a hand with those?
LEANNE: I'll get it, Dad.
DOORMAN: I got it.
- Here you go.
[CHATTERING]
JOE: Why don't you
give me that bag?
[MATLOCK SPEAKS
INDISTINCTLY THEN GRUNTS]
MATLOCK: Thank you,
Joe. LEANNE: Thank you.
JOE: Let me give you a hand.
MATLOCK: Thank
you. Appreciate it.
I'll get this, it's
got my stuff in it.
You...? You wanna
just let me in?
LEANNE: Dad, behave yourself.
We are going to have fun, okay?
Hello.
- We're here to check
in. ROLAND: Good.
Welcome to the Tropical
Surf Resort. I'm the manager.
My name is Roland
Holloway. Your name is?
- Mclntyre.
- Matlock.
Reservation's under Mclntyre.
Why don't you go back to
Matlock? You're divorced.
Dad, we're not divorced,
we're separated.
You're not going
back to that jerk.
Could we talk about
this another time?
- Now, what I don't get...
ROLAND: Here we are.
Mclntyre, Leanne.
Now, I do have the two
adjacent rooms that you reserved,
but if you're interested,
one of our two-bedroom,
two-bath villas just opened up.
- Oh, that'd be great.
- No, thanks.
Cost an arm and a leg.
Oh, Dad, but look what you get. A
living room and a little kitchenette.
MATLOCK: We'll take
the adjacent rooms.
We'll take the villa.
We'll split it.
ROLAND: Very good.
[WHISTLING]
Well, could you try Room
480, then, please? Thanks.
- What are you looking for?
- Food.
Dad, you're not
gonna find any food.
Oh, come on.
What we're paying for this place,
there ought to be some cheese
or bologna or peanut
butter or something.
I always thought when you
checked into a nice hotel,
they had a big basket of fruit and
nuts or something waiting for you.
Well, none of my friends are in
their room, probably on the beach.
- I'm gonna go see if I can find them.
- This trip is a real bust.
What I'm talking, a real bust.
I hurt my back.
I got lost. I got a
speeding ticket for $70.
Two new tires, $220.
This villa is $300 a
day and nothing to eat.
I have an idea.
Since we have the car back,
why don't you go to a store
and buy some hot
dogs or something?
Well, I could.
It'll make you feel better.
Dad, I know our trip has not
gotten off to a rousing start,
but things are gonna get better,
so let's just start trying
to have fun right now.
Okay?
[LEANNE GROWLS]
I don't need 12 hot
dog buns. I just need six.
I'm sorry, sir, we don't carry
packages of six hot dog buns.
Well, why should I buy hot dog
buns I'm probably never gonna use?
Sir, the buns come
in packages of 12
because the hot dogs
come in packages of 12.
It's highway robbery.
- Sorry. MATLOCK:
It's highway robbery.
I mean, what if I eat
just six hot dogs, okay?
That's six hot dogs wasted,
six hot dog buns wasted.
There's people starving
to death all over the world.
CLERK: I'm sorry.
- I'm sorry too.
Speeding ticket, two blowouts,
coming in on a hay truck,
a room that costs a
fortune, nothing to eat in it.
- Should've brought
something... CLIFF: Hello there.
Hi. Hey.
Twelve hot dog buns.
- Sorry, did you say something?
- Talking to myself.
Oh.
Say, aren't you Ben
Matlock, the famous lawyer?
I'm Ben Matlock.
Oh. You really are. Oh, that's...
I can't believe... That's great.
I'm standing in the
same checkout line
with the most famous
attorney in the country.
[STAMMERS] What
brings you to Wilmington?
- Vacation.
- Oh, yeah? Me too. Me too.
[CHUCKLES]
Wow. Ha, ha.
You from Atlanta?
Me? No. Uh, no.
From Savannah, actually.
What's the matter?
You remind me of somebody.
I can't quite place who.
Oh. I get that a lot.
Yeah, I guess I have
one of those faces.
That's 37.43.
Thirty-seven forty-three?
Yeah.
Thirty-seven forty-three.
- Doesn't go as far.
- Yeah. Yeah.
Something wrong?
I must've left my
wallet in the hotel.
Will you hold this
stuff till I go get it?
Yeah, all right.
No, no, don't. Don't.
Don't be silly. Here.
- Oh, no, no. I couldn't let you.
- Yes. No, absolutely.
No, it would be my pleasure.
It would be my pleasure.
- Take it. Here.
- Oh, well... Well...
- My pleasure.
- Well, thank you. I'll pay you back.
- Okay.
- Well, where are you staying?
The Tropical Surf.
MATLOCK: I am too.
What's your name?
Cliff. I don't want you
to go out of your way.
I'll find you, how'd that be?
- Okay. Thanks. CLIFF: Okay.
This might not be such a
bad trip after all. Thank you.
[CHILDREN SHOUTING AND LAUGHING]
LEANNE: Here we
go. BETH: Oh, yeah.
KATHLEEN: Yeah, baby. Just...
- Oh.
[CORK POPS]
[ALL LAUGH]
BETH: Good one. KATHLEEN: Mm.
Bring back any memories, girls?
[ALL LAUGH]
KATHLEEN: Just a few. Just
a few. LEANNE: Whoo! Ha, ha.
Yes. Okay.
- To us. KATHLEEN: Yes.
ALL: To us.
May we never be
apart this long again.
BETH: Here, here.
KATHLEEN: Here, here.
BETH: Next year, I
make Dan keep the kids.
[ALL LAUGH]
What are you gonna do, Kathleen,
put a "gone sunbathing" sign
- in your antique-store window?
- Why not?
You know, Laura and I have
been here since Tuesday?
LEANNE: No kidding.
KATHLEEN: Mm-hm.
Yeah, and I haven't connected.
- But I think Laura...
- You don't know.
I have knocked on your door
quite a few times and you weren't in.
[ALL LAUGH]
- You've been here since
Tuesday? LAURA: Mm-hm.
You, too, can be single,
self-employed and looking around.
- I am single and self-employed.
KATHLEEN: Looking around?
- Mm.
- So where's this father of yours?
He's too old for you.
- If he's breathing, he's not
too old. LEANNE: Kathleen.
[ALL LAUGH]
I'll tell you one thing, you get too
close to him, he might make you jump.
Ooh.
[ALL LAUGH]
LAURA: God.
So is Peter still
seeing that bimbo?
BOY: Hurry up. Give it to me.
I don't know.
You gonna divorce him?
I don't know.
Oh, my gosh, I just remembered
something. I gotta go.
You just got here.
Well, if you must know, I
promised my attorney I'd call him.
See you all later? Bye.
LAURA: Don't leave your towel.
- Okay.
- Bye. LEANNE: Bye.
- Whoops. LAURA: Hmm.
- She's getting a divorce.
KATHLEEN: Mm-hm.
Well, I'll tell you what,
let's go to the bar and see
if we can have some fun.
[LAURA & KATHLEEN LAUGH]
[SCATTING]
- Hi, Dad.
- Hi.
Oh, good. You got your dogs.
Yeah. Enough for a party.
Hi. Adam Bailer, please.
It's Leanne Mclntyre.
Yeah, I'll hold. Will you tell
him I'm calling long distance?
Thanks.
Adam Bailer is my attorney.
That's all I'm gonna tell you,
so let's just skip the third degree.
I just wanted to know
if you wanted a hot dog.
Oh. Yeah.
- Did you find your friends?
- Yes, and they are dying to meet you.
Oh. I ran into the nicest
guy at the grocery store.
- Oh, yeah?
- Yeah.
- Cliff something.
- Oh.
- He's staying here.
- Oh.
Told him to stop by later.
Is he cute?
Um...
- Not bad.
- Ha, ha.
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
Hey, junior.
- Come here often? CLIFF: Um...
Cliff. No, actually, I'm
kind of new to the territory.
Are you gonna
ask us to sit down?
Oh, I'm... Yes.
I... Yes, I'm sorry.
I'm gonna ask. Please
sit down. There you go.
LAURA: Thank you.
- Um, here.
Here you go.
I'm sorry.
I need a seat. Okay.
[CLIFF CHUCKLING]
Hi.
Oh. Um, Scotch
on the rocks for me.
Um, Kathleen.
Kathleen.
A blended margarita for Laura.
CLIFF: Laura. Hi.
- Hi.
- And Beth, a glass of
chardonnay. CLIFF: Hi, Beth.
And you, junior?
Cliff. Cliff.
Okay, Cliff, and you?
Um, I'll just have
what she's having.
KATHLEEN: That'll be two
Scotches on the rocks, please.
- Thank you.
WAITER: Thanks, folks.
So, Cliff.
Tell us about yourself.
I'm a lawyer.
Oh. A lawyer.
[CLIFF CHUCKLES]
He's so cute.
So young.
I'm just down here
kind of looking around.
Oh, what a coincidence.
So are Laura and I.
- Beth is unfortunately married.
- Oh.
Congratulations.
Well, to us.
And to, uh, uh... [SNAPPING]
- Cliff.
- Right. Cliff.
Who's just looking
around like us, right, Laura?
Right.
CLIFF: Mm. Ah. Whew.
Oh, the check.
I'm... I'm sorry. I'll...
Thank you.
[CLIFF SIGHS]
So, Cliff,
how long are you
going to be here?
Depends.
Well, like I said, Beth is married,
but Laura and I are single.
Wanna have some fun?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah. Fun would be fun.
That would be a lot of fun.
Mr. Lewis?
Yes?
ROLAND: We have a problem.
We do?
May I speak to you alone
for a moment, please?
What's the problem?
It's your credit card, sir.
My credit card.
- It's no good.
- What?
Mr. Lewis, we have
checked and double-checked,
and it appears you've
already reached your limit.
Oh, no. No.
No, no, no. That's not possible.
I'm sure the credit card
company just made a mistake.
I'll just pay for the
drinks with cash, that's...
- Ah.
- Okay?
No problem.
Except I just lent all the
cash I had to someone.
ROLAND: And then, of course,
there is the matter of your room.
CLIFF: It's a small
room. I'll just, uh...
I'll write you a check.
ROLAND: I don't think so.
CLIFF: Well, what can I do?
Leave.
No. No. No.
No.
ROLAND: Mr. Lewis, I really
have no choice in this matter.
I'm afraid I must ask you
to vacate the premises now.
The credit card
company made a mistake.
- That happens sometimes.
ROLAND: Mr. Lewis.
Please leave. Now.
- You have no right to do this.
- Sir.
Would you stop pulling me?
I'll tell you, the only one around
here with a problem is you.
BOUNCER: Come on.
CLIFF: I said, get
your hands off me.
You. You're gonna regret this.
Well, you not only pick a baby,
but you pick a broke baby.
MATLOCK: Hey, Cliff!
They, uh... They told me
at the desk you checked out.
Is everything okay?
Ah, my credit's all messed up. The
manager gave me the bum's rush.
- They threw you out?
- Yeah.
Oh, no. Here.
- Here's the money you loaned me.
- Oh.
- And let me write you a
check. CLIFF: A check?
Yeah. For any amount you need.
I mean, you loaned me
money, I'll loan you money.
No, no. You know what I'm gonna
do? I'm gonna go up the street,
I'll find a hotel where the
manager's more understanding.
- I'll be fine. Really.
- You sure?
I'm... Yes, I'm sure. I really
am. Yeah. No problem.
Uh... What do
you do for a living?
Well, as a matter of
fact, I'm a lawyer too.
- No kidding. CLIFF: No. Ha, ha.
MATLOCK: Ha, ha. You're kidding.
- No, I'm not.
- I passed the bar two weeks
ago. MATLOCK: Congratulations.
CLIFF: Thank you.
- Where you gonna hang your hat?
I don't know yet.
I've had a lot of offers.
- Well, yeah. It's a hard
decision. CLIFF: Yeah.
Well, that's actually
the reason I'm here.
I mean, I was at home and
the phone was ringing so much,
and I couldn't think straight.
You know, it seems that every firm
I interviewed with made me an offer.
So I'm biding my time, and
I'm gonna choose the right one.
- Good.
- Yeah, yeah.
Say, you're not in
the market, are you?
Not really.
My daughter and
I just joined forces,
and there's just about
enough work for us, ha, ha.
- Oh. Oh.
- Yeah.
Oh. Okay, well, it was
really nice meeting you.
Well, yeah. My pleasure.
If there's anything I
can do, just let me know.
Oh. Okay, I will.
- Hi, Cliffie. CLIFF: Hi.
- I think they like me.
- Oh.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
Oh, there's Beth.
Everybody wave.
Ah. Jogging, huh?
LAURA: Yeah.
She thinks she's fat.
She's skinny as a rail.
- Bad body image.
- Oh.
Well, I'm gonna go get seconds.
[MATLOCK CHUCKLES]
Thirds, but who's counting?
Leanne, your dad is super.
You and he are so much alike.
Alike?
[LEANNE LAUGHS]
We're about as alike
as salt and pepper.
MATLOCK: Ah.
Well, I'll bet you wish
you had some of this.
You know, we were just talking about
how much you and Leanne are alike.
No, no. We're as alike
as salt and pepper.
[MATLOCK CHUCKLING]
[LEANNE LAUGHS]
Well, let's see now
about this business here.
[SCREAMING]
[ALL MURMURING]
MAN 1: She's over
here. Down on the beach.
MAN 2: Someone call 911!
It's the hotel manager.
I don't understand. When I
came on duty at 5, he was fine.
LIEUTENANT: Did he
say where he was going?
No, but, uh, I assumed
that he went home.
Uh, excuse me.
Lieutenant, the lady who
discovered the body is pretty upset.
Be all right if she
went back to the hotel?
Yeah, just let me
know where she'll be.
Probably somewhere
around the lobby. Excuse me.
LIEUTENANT:
Mr. Holloway married?
No, he's...
He was single.
How could this have happened?
He was a great swimmer. He
almost made the '84 Olympic team.
LIEUTENANT: Even Olympic
hopefuls don't usually go swimming
with their clothes
on, Mr. Tuggle.
Now, you know anybody
who may have argued with him
or who might have fought or
had an altercation with him?
TUGGLE: No. No, I
can't think of anyone.
[SNORING]
[KNOCKING]
LIEUTENANT: Police. Open up.
Step out, please.
Boy, you are one hard man
to track down, Mr. Lewis.
Well... Hey, you need a
search warrant to do that.
LIEUTENANT: Got one right here.
I understand you and Roland
Holloway had a little altercation today.
- Who?
- Roland Holloway.
You know, the manager
of the Tropical Surf.
I need infrared goggles to read this.
Would you tell me what's going on?
LIEUTENANT: Roland Holloway
was murdered about five hours ago.
You wanna tell me what you
were doing late this afternoon?
Lieutenant.
Looks like blood.
After I left the hotel, I
drove around for a little while,
and then I pulled off to the side
of the road and I went to sleep.
I don't have an alibi.
I don't have anything.
I thought you were
going to another hotel.
I would have just been
kicked out of that one too.
I haven't exactly been
honest with you, Mr. Matlock.
Fact is, nobody's beating
down my door to hire me.
In fact, it took me three
times to pass the bar.
Three times?
And I'm broke.
Well, having to admit that
you're strapped is tough,
but don't worry.
Now that I know that
$37 you loaned me
was practically the last
money you had on earth,
- I think even more highly of you.
- I picked your pocket.
I mean, a person who'd loan money
to a perfect stranger like... How's that?
In the store, I lifted your wallet
so that I could loan you the money
to pay for your groceries, and you
would think I was a really great guy.
The reason the wallet was in
the car is because I left it there.
You'd just met me. How'd
you know which car was mine?
I followed you from Atlanta.
You followed me from Atlanta?
And registered
at the same hotel,
and went shopping at
the same grocery store.
All for the opportunity to impress
you and make you wanna hire me.
You went through all
that stuff just to get a job?
I really wanna work for you.
Huh.
I must say, that's a
pretty original plan.
It wasn't mine.
My father thought of it.
Your father?
My last name is, uh, Lewis.
Oh. Lord have mercy.
Lord have mercy. That's
who you remind me of.
You're Billy Lewis' boy.
Hello, Ben.
Hello, Billy.
I guess it wasn't such a
hot idea after all, huh, son?
MATLOCK: I don't
care what you say, Billy.
It was a stupid,
asinine thing to do.
Why didn't you just call me and
tell me to give your boy a job?
- What would you have done if I had?
- I'd have hung up on you.
Seems you answered
your question.
- I didn't even know you had a son.
- Not many people do.
- Thanks to Lucy.
- Damn it, Billy.
When are you gonna
stop blaming your sister
for all the lousy things that
have happened in your life?
I don't blame her. I blame you.
You're the one who dated her,
then dropped her like a hot potato.
I didn't drop her, Billy.
- I went to law school.
- I had to stay home with her.
- She couldn't deal with it.
- Mm.
- I took her in.
- Yeah.
Lucy got mean and ornery.
- Life got hard.
- Ugh.
Then life got good. I
got married, had a son.
- Cliff.
- Mm.
About a year later, my wife
took Cliff and moved out.
Two years of Lucy
was all she could take.
Life got hard again, Ben.
I stayed in Mount Harlan,
but it wasn't the same.
Cliff became a stranger
to me. My own son.
- All on account of Lucy.
- Lucy, yeah.
She's gone, you know?
No, I didn't know. I'm sorry.
Latched on to some
insurance salesman,
hightailed it to St. Petersburg.
- Oh. So life's good again.
- Not.
- Not?
- She made me sell the farm.
Claimed half of it was
hers. Squatter's rights.
She's down in Florida, living off
of half the fruit of my life's labor.
But only a small man
dwells on life's tragedies, Ben.
A big man ignores
his misfortunes,
hauls himself up,
and pays off his debts.
Here's the $726 I owe you.
Why, Billy, thank you.
Talking your kind of
language now, huh, Ben?
Well, here's some more.
- What's that for? BILLY: My
boy didn't kill anybody, Ben.
He can't even kill a chicken
and it's Sunday and
company's coming.
MATLOCK: Soft-hearted.
- Mushy.
What he needs is a good lawyer.
But, since you're already
here, what the hell?
- That's your retainer.
- Two hundred dollars?
Do good by him,
and I'll add to it.
I'm on vacation, Billy.
BILLY: Haven't you caused
enough misery in my family already?
- Will you stop that?
- He's a good boy, Ben.
I don't wanna spend my sunset
years visiting him in a state pen.
So, uh, what are you gonna do?
Become Cliff's lawyer
or be a jackass?
LEANNE: Dad.
Dad, wait a minute.
You are here on vacation,
and you're gonna take this case?
- Ah, well...
- Dad, Dad, Dad.
Dad, there are plenty of lawyers
who live right here in Wilmington.
And a lot of them
are dying for work.
Well, yeah.
There are even lawyers
who Billy Lewis wouldn't dislike
half as much as he dislikes you.
- Yeah.
- And you're gonna take this case?
Well, I just don't think
the boy killed this fellow.
- Uh, what's his name?
- Holloway.
Yeah. Yeah, I
mean, why would he?
I mean, he's just a kid who
doesn't know which end is up.
Billy says he can't
even kill a chicken.
Why would he complicate
his life by killing a person?
Oh, Dad.
I can't fight you for
what you believe in.
I was just hoping that we
could spend this vacation,
you know, doing family things.
- Oh, well, we can.
- Dad,
I know how important
your work is to you.
Mine is to me.
But just this once,
couldn't you tell Billy
Lewis to get another lawyer?
Um...
Well, the first chance I
get, I'm gonna tell him.
May I help you?
Well, um...
See, yesterday I got a
call from Mr. Holloway
saying that somebody
had found a bracelet
with my name engraved on it.
He said that he
would hold it for me.
And now, since he's,
you know, dead now,
I thought that I should
come here and look for it
so that it didn't get
thrown out or something.
Your bracelet would be at
the front desk, not in here.
Just ask one of the clerks to
check in the lost-and-found drawer.
Oh. Okay. Okay. I
will. Thanks, I will.
Uh, but just in case I do find
your bracelet, your name is?
Masterson.
Laura Masterson.
Yeah, this is Charlie.
Listen, I'm down in
Roland's office. Uh...
It may be nothing, but someone
was just in here snooping around.
No, a guest.
I'm pretty sure she's the
girl Roland had an affair with.
Name's Laura Masterson.
MAN: Your Honor, the
defendant is from out of town,
which means he has
no ties to our community.
He's also demonstrated
a propensity for fraud.
And this means that the fact that he
is, for all intents and purposes, destitute
would not deter him
from fleeing jurisdiction.
He'd simply start charging
things to invalid credit cards,
like he's always done.
Therefore, state recommends
bail be set at $100,000.
- CHANDLER: Mr. Matlock.
- Your Honor,
my client is not in the habit
of charging things
to invalid credit cards.
That happened once because he
didn't realize he had reached his limit.
On the contrary, Cliff
Lewis is a fine young man
who in fact just
passed the Georgia bar
with flying colors.
Tell them how he's a volunteer
firefighter in Mount Harlan.
He comes from a small town
where things like integrity, hard work,
self-sacrifice still count for something.
Tell them how he always
donates to the church's blood drive.
There's no reason why he shouldn't
be released on his own recognizance.
- Tell them he doesn't cuss.
- Will you put a sock in it?
[GAVEL BANGING]
I think I've heard
enough. From everybody.
Bail is hereby set at $20,000.
We're adjourned.
[GAVEL BANGS]
MATLOCK: What the
hell's the matter with you?
Did somebody cut the wire
between your brain and your mouth?
Mr. Lewis, may I speak
to you in the hall, please?
I suppose.
Mr. Lewis, my father told me all
about you and your sister, Lucy.
Dropped her like a hot
potato. Did he tell you that?
Yes. Anyway,
considering the bad blood
between you and my dad and
the gravity of Cliff's situation,
it's obvious to me that my
father should not be the one...
Before you go on, there's
something I gotta get off my chest.
You mind?
- No. Go right ahead.
- Yeah.
Well, when Cliff called me
and told me what happened,
that he was thinking about
asking Ben to be his lawyer,
I said, "Well, go
ahead and ask him."
I figured anybody as
cold-blooded as Ben Matlock
was bound to be a good lawyer.
- Mr. Lewis...
- But I also warned him.
I said, "Ask him, but
don't get your hopes up.
Ben Matlock doesn't care
about anybody but himself."
- Mr. Lewis, that is absolutely...
- You mind letting me finish?
I also told him he'd probably
give him some kind of garbage
about being on vacation and
to find somebody else, and...
Well, when Ben just
agreed to take the case,
well, I learned something.
Ben Matlock has
a heart after all.
- Mr. Lewis...
- It's not easy for me to say this, but...
Well, for 43 years, I
was wrong about him.
My eyes have been opened.
Ben Matlock's a decent man.
Realizing this has given me
a whole new outlook on life.
Given me hope.
Renewed my faith in mankind.
[BILLY CHUCKLES]
Oh, I'm sorry for
interrupting. You were saying?
Not important.
Oh.
The cashier's office is
around the corner on the right.
I'll meet you there.
Well, how did it go?
Let's just say you
can keep the retainer.
LIEUTENANT: Mr. Matlock.
Thought you might wanna know.
They did the autopsy
on Roland Holloway.
He sustained a blow
to the back of the head,
but the cause of
death was drowning.
That's not surprising.
But what is surprising is the
water they found in his lung
wasn't seawater,
it was chlorinated.
LEANNE: Hmm.
You mean, he was
drowned someplace else,
- and then dumped in the ocean?
LIEUTENANT: That's the way it looks.
- What about the swimming pool?
- PH doesn't match.
MATLOCK: Hotel have a spa?
- No.
But Roland Holloway did.
This thing here is the
murder weapon, huh?
PH matches exactly.
- Did your men see this?
- That's blood. O negative.
Same as Roland Holloway's,
and it's the same as the blood
that we found in Cliff Lewis' car.
MATLOCK: So I guess you're
saying that Cliff drove over here
and got in a fight
with Roland Holloway,
and then knocked his head
against this thing, and drowned him,
and then put him in the car,
and drove him to the beach,
and dumped his
body in the ocean.
That's pretty much it, yeah.
Oh, come on, lieutenant.
If Cliff Lewis had
wanted to make it look
like Roland Holloway
had drowned in the ocean,
why wouldn't he have
removed Mr. Holloway's clothes?
Why would he have used his
own car to transport the body
when he could've used
Mr. Holloway's van?
And why would he have dumped
the body so close to the hotel?
So Cliff Lewis is
no Rhodes scholar.
You don't even know that
Cliff was here that night.
Oh, yes I do.
See, when I got here,
I found something.
Very interesting.
This.
Now, since there's not a whole lot
of people walking around Wilmington
with a Mount Harlan
volunteer firefighter's pin,
I'd say chances are
that's your client's.
And my guess is that he lost it
when he was killing Roland Holloway.
WOMAN: All right!
Ah. This is so nice.
It's true. The best
things in life are free.
KATHLEEN: Mm. Be
nicer with a couple of men.
LEANNE: Oh, Kathleen.
- So where's your father?
MAN: Grab the sodas! Over here!
[LAUGHS]
He'd probably jump at the chance,
but as you may or may not know,
he's working.
- He took Cliff's case?
LEANNE: He took the case.
I was hoping we'd
have this time together.
Talk about things,
have a few laughs.
But he's not happy if
he isn't working, so...
BETH: I heard they
found Cliff's firefighter pin.
- Yeah, right at the murder
scene. BETH: What do you think?
I don't know.
Either Cliff killed Mr. Holloway,
or somebody else did
and planted Cliff's pin there
to make it look like he did.
- What about the blood?
LEANNE: Well, I'm like my father.
It's hard for me to believe
that Cliff killed that guy.
Maybe somebody found Cliff's car
and used something to
smear that blood on the seat.
Leanne.
What's your guess?
LEANNE: Well, not right
now. He'd lose his job.
Maybe tonight.
[BOTH LAUGH]
LEANNE: Where is Laura?
I don't know.
I think she is having an affair
with someone from the hotel.
- Really? BETH: She's
been acting very strange.
We don't see her
for hours at a time.
And then when we do see her,
she's very vague
about where she's been.
You think the guy's
married or something?
Who knows?
[LOCK BEEPS]
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
LEANNE: Hi, Dad.
- Oh, hi.
- What are you doing?
- Just nosing around.
- Want a mint?
- No, thanks.
What you up to?
I'm looking for Laura.
Beth thinks she's having a little
affair with somebody here at the hotel.
What's wrong?
I heard that Roland Holloway
might have had an affair
with a guest here at the hotel.
You don't...? You
don't suppose it was...?
With Laura? No. Ha, ha.
Well, your three friends heard
that argument he had
with Cliff, so maybe...
Dad, Laura is one
of my closest friends.
Well, I was just
exploring the possibilities.
Laura would never have an
affair with a hotel manager.
She's a woman of very
discriminating taste.
Hotel owner, yes.
But a manager, never.
- Oh.
- That's more my style.
Leanne.
- Hello, Esther.
- Hi, Mr. Tuggle.
[LOCK BEEPS]
[LOCK BEEPS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
[SCREAMING]
Oh, lieutenant. Uh...
What happened?
Well, it appears the lady
was either pushed or shoved
from a balcony up
on the fourth floor.
Mr. Lewis, since
you're, uh, here,
you mind telling me where
you were about 20 minutes ago?
He doesn't have to answer
that till his lawyer's present.
My lawyer is present, Pop.
- Oh. Yeah.
- Go ahead.
I was in the coffee shop with
my father. I heard a scream.
I came running out here
with all these other people.
Lieutenant, you think this death
has something to do with the first one?
Thought had crossed my
mind. But I just ruled it out.
MATLOCK: Oh? How come?
Well, because your
client has an alibi.
BILLY: My boy's not a
killer. MATLOCK: Billy.
My boy didn't have anything
to do with this murder.
Only a jackass would think he
had anything to do with the first one.
- You calling me a
jackass? MATLOCK: No.
BILLY: You're slandering my son.
- Billy! Put a sock in it!
- Well, not till he apologizes.
- This is not Mount Harlan.
This is not your second
cousin once removed
who somehow got elected sheriff.
He's a police lieutenant who
doesn't know you from Adam.
- He does not have to apologize.
- Thank you.
- You best watch yourself.
- Go to your room.
Go to your room.
CLIFF: Come on,
Pop, let's go. Come on.
MATLOCK: Friends all right?
- Yeah, I took them to Beth's room,
then I went back to
the villa to change.
[SNIFFS]
Dad... MATLOCK:
I'm sorry, sweetheart.
I found this note on the floor.
Laura must have left it
there sometime today.
MATLOCK: Oh.
Well, we're sure into it now.
We might as well call Conrad.
BETH: No. We're waiting for
the coroner to release her body.
We'll fly home then.
With her.
She would have
wanted it that way.
No, I don't know, a
couple of days, I guess.
I'll call you when I know.
Okay. I love you too. Bye.
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
I'll get it.
You two doing okay?
KATHLEEN: Been better.
I just called home.
Todd's really upset.
I wish we hadn't come here.
Yeah, so do I. I, um...
I found this note.
Laura must have left it at
our door just before she died.
About H. The manager?
Holloway's murder?
Why would she wanna
talk to you about that?
I don't know. Maybe
she knew something.
I just keep wondering why she
said don't tell Beth or Kathleen.
Well, poor Laura.
Everything was such a secret.
I don't know. Maybe she was
having an affair with the manager
- and didn't want us to know.
- Yeah.
This is really
hard for me to say.
But do you suppose the
"Don't tell Beth or Kathleen" part
meant that she thought you
two might know something
- about Holloway's murder?
- Leanne, we would tell you.
- Of course we would.
LEANNE: I know.
And I know you
don't know anything.
What I meant to say was that if
you do, you know, know anything,
I wanna help you, and my
dad wants to help you too.
Leanne, we're
supposed to be friends.
I can't believe you're
talking to us like this.
I'm sorry.
Put up a pretty good struggle.
Looks like she grabbed for just about
anything she could get her hands on.
- Mm. Was this her room?
- No, it's unoccupied.
- Wonder what she was
doing here. MAN: Lieutenant?
Yeah.
Well, well.
Looks like, uh, one of
those cords, you know,
the kind they hook
to the sunglasses
so they can wear them
around the neck. Yeah.
Wonder what happened
to the sunglasses.
That's all we found.
Maybe she was wearing them.
You suppose somebody
else was, maybe the killer?
Excuse me. Let me see here.
They didn't move the body yet.
MATLOCK: Look there, lieutenant.
I'll bet you anything one of the
last things she grabbed up there
when she was struggling for her life
was that orange cord your man found.
She pulled it so hard, she
made a mark right on her hand.
Bet she jerked the glasses
right off the killer's neck.
All right. Now, let's just say, for
the sake of argument, you're right.
Where are the sunglasses?
Well, they weren't up there, they
must be down here somewhere.
- Yeah, yeah.
- Yeah.
Uh...
- Those her effects?
- Yeah.
- May I?
- Sure.
Okay. All right, so that orange
cord doesn't belong to her.
- Yeah.
- What?
MATLOCK: It's a
receipt for some earrings.
She bought some earrings.
Not made out to her. It's
made out to Roland Holloway.
OFFICER: Lieutenant.
- Yeah.
We just found these in
those bushes over there.
LIEUTENANT: Thanks.
MATLOCK: Oh. See?
This still doesn't prove that
these belong to the murderer.
Look at that. Ferdie's.
Very popular spot.
These glasses could
belong to anybody.
For all we know, they could've
been in these bushes for weeks.
Well, you will test
them for fingerprints.
Oh, yeah, we're gonna test them.
And can I have a picture of
the glasses, and of that cord?
Yeah, we'll get some
real nice pictures.
Mr. Matlock.
Your client has an alibi.
Why are you so interested?
Because I think whoever
killed Roland Holloway
may have also killed Laura.
Yeah?
I think Laura knew too much
about Mr. Holloway's murderer.
- That's an interesting theory.
- I think so.
- And what's Ferdie's?
- It's a disco.
I've written the address
on the pad by the phone.
Well, I'm off.
Conrad, you look pretty happy
for a guy who's going off to work.
Now, don't be fooled, Leanne.
I mean, this is
part of my cover.
I mean, I'm at the beach,
I'm surrounded by
women with bikinis,
I'm on my way to a disco.
Now, what on earth would
I have to be happy about?
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
- Hi. WOMAN: Hi.
So, Dad, what kind of
computer should we get?
- Computer?
- Yeah.
These are some of the
things we need to talk about.
I know you wanna work out of
the house, and that's great with me.
I'm telling you, having a computer
is gonna make both of our lives
so much easier.
Well, I don't know how
to work a computer.
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
Must be Conrad.
[DOOR OPENS]
BILLY: Hello, Ben.
- Billy.
[BILLY SNIFFING]
- Chicken and dumplings.
- I ate every last bit.
BILLY: I'd like an
update on Cliff's case.
Not gonna give you one.
Well, what I gave you the other day,
that wasn't money, Ben, that was me.
It's all I got to show for 40-odd
years of blood, sweat, tears and Lucy.
Tell you what, Billy. I'm
gonna give it back to you.
You're dropping my boy's case?
No, I'm dropping you, Billy. I'm
gonna defend Cliff for nothing.
BILLY: My son's no charity case.
- Billy.
You want more, don't you, Ben?
[MATLOCK SIGHS]
Well, here.
- Billy, go somewhere.
- You owe me a progress report!
- I don't owe you anything!
BILLY: Yes, you do!
- I wanna know what's going on!
- Whoa!
Now, Mr. Lewis, why don't
you go to the beach or the bar?
Just relax somewhere, okay?
And we'll see you another time?
- Meathead.
- Mule brain.
So, what kind of
computer do you want?
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
Thank you.
Hi. Can I help you?
JACKSON: Checking in.
Jackson. Mitchell Jackson.
Okay.
Okay, everything's in order.
Mr. Jackson, if you'll
just sign right here for me.
The bellman will follow
you up with your bags.
Here's your key. You'll be in
Room 474. Enjoy your stay.
I asked for a room
on the ground floor.
That's odd. Whoever took your
reservation didn't make a note of that.
I'll see what I can do.
I'm sorry, sir, we're all booked. I'm
afraid that's the only room we have.
Whenever I come here, I
always stay in a ground-floor room.
Uh...
- Is there a problem? JACKSON: Yes.
When I made my reservation,
I specifically asked for a room
on the first floor, and now he
tells me that you don't have any.
- And your name is?
- Mitchell Jackson.
I'm afraid that he's
right, Mr. Jackson.
But here's what I'm gonna do.
I'm gonna let you have Room 474
for the two nights you're here
and only charge you for one night.
How would that be?
Well, I guess that'll have
to be all right, won't it?
TUGGLE: Good. And please
accept our apologies for the mix-up.
- That's all right.
TUGGLE: Have a good day.
You too.
The bartender told me they've been
selling these sunglasses for years.
But while the sunglasses
don't change from year to year,
the color of the cord
they sell them with does.
Now, that orange cord the
police found in Room 474,
that was sold three years ago.
Oh.
What's that got to
do with the picture?
Well, the people in this
picture all have green cords.
That's because it was
taken two months ago.
That's the color of the
cord this year, green.
This fellow here
has an orange cord.
Exactly my point.
Now, this picture may not prove
that the sunglasses they found
belong to this guy...
But it's an interesting
coincidence,
- isn't it?
- Right.
Dad. We know him.
This is the guy that took
over as manager of the hotel.
It's Charlie, um, something.
- This guy works here in
the hotel? LEANNE: Yeah.
MATLOCK: Hmm.
So, what do you think, Laura somehow
found out he killed Roland Holloway,
- so he killed her too?
- That's a possibility. Um...
I've gotta take care of
something. I'll see you all later.
- Poor Laura. I talked to the family.
- Mm-hm.
- Are they gonna come down here?
- I think so.
Do you wanna have
lunch in my room?
I have to phone home
and see how the kids are.
Hi.
Hi.
LEANNE: Can we talk?
Please?
I am so sorry.
You mean, you don't think
we're murderers anymore.
I never said that. But
when I found Laura's note...
I wouldn't have thought
what you thought.
I jumped to a stupid
conclusion, and I am so sorry.
You two mean so much
to me, you know that.
I'm sorry.
Leanne.
Everybody makes a mistake.
It's okay.
- Where you been all day?
- Around.
Ben tell you what happened?
Yeah, he told me.
Last thing I wanna do is
take charity from Ben Matlock.
Charity has
nothing to do with it.
He's just sick of you hanging around,
butting in where you don't belong.
A trait I picked up from Lucy.
Come on, Pop, enough of
this Aunt Lucy. I'm sick of it.
I'm just... I'm sick
of it. I'm sick of it.
Called home today.
Talked to Mo.
It rained all last week.
Said he's gonna have to
reseed a couple of his fields.
I'm on trial for my life, Pop.
I don't really care about how
soggy somebody's cornfields are.
I'm just saying,
might be a good idea if I
head on home and help him.
That's all.
If that's what you want.
[STAMMERS]
CLIFF: I don't want you to go.
If you're making a pest of yourself,
it's because you care about me.
That's really good to know.
PROSECUTOR: Now, were lab
tests performed on the blood stain
you found on the passenger's
seat of the defendant's car?
Yes, sir. The lab
concluded that the blood
and the strand of
hair that we found
matched those of the
victim, Roland Holloway.
I see. Now, you also
found a blood stain
a few feet away from the Jacuzzi
at the victim's house, did you not?
Yes, sir. The blood we found
there also matched that of the victim.
Any idea how the
blood got there?
The autopsy showed that
Mr. Holloway had sustained a blow
to the back of the head
sometime before he drowned.
The head wounds
tend to bleed a lot.
Now, lieutenant, as someone who's
served in Homicide for eight years,
how would you explain that
blood stain in the defendant's car?
Well, I'd say the victim,
possibly alive but probably dead,
had been in the defendant's car
sometime after suffering
the blow to the head.
You also found this pin at
the victim's home, did you not?
LIEUTENANT: Yes,
sir, that's my tag.
And were lab tests
performed on the pin?
Yes, sir, we found the
defendant's fingerprints on it.
PROSECUTOR: Now, what does
that say right there, lieutenant?
"Mount Harlan volunteer
fire department."
PROSECUTOR: Mount Harlan.
The defendant's from there?
LIEUTENANT: Yes, sir, he is.
PROSECUTOR: Prosecution
would like to enter this into evidence
- as state's Exhibit Number 4.
- So entered.
PROSECUTOR: Lieutenant,
did you find the pin inside
or outside the victim's home?
We found it outside, approximately
three feet away from the Jacuzzi.
Thank you.
CHANDLER: All
right, Mr. Matlock.
Uh, lieutenant, this
blood you found in my...
Uh, suppose someone went to
the trouble to find my client's car.
Suppose that same someone
took a rag or something
and dabbed some blood from
the wound on the victim's head
and then wiped that
blood on the seat of the car.
Would that stain be consistent
with the stain you found?
I suppose so.
MATLOCK: So it's possible the victim
was never in my client's car after all.
- It's possible, yes.
MATLOCK: Thank you.
[TUGGLE'S ENGINE STARTS]
[CONRAD'S ENGINE STARTS]
[PHONE RINGS]
- Yeah, Conrad.
- Hi. It's Leanne. How's it going?
[OVER PHONE] So far, Tuggle's
been to a donut shop, dry cleaners
and a hardware store
and an outdoor café.
- That's it?
- Afraid so.
[TIRES SCREECH]
Whoa. Damn. A herd of teenagers
just decided to cross the street.
- [OVER PHONE] Did you lose him?
- May have. Come on.
Don't worry about it. Sounds
like having you follow him
was a waste of time.
- That's weird.
- What?
CONRAD: He just pulled
off in front of a mailbox.
It's almost like he
was waiting for me.
- Is he onto you?
- Yeah, it looks like it.
But why doesn't he
just go back to the hotel?
What's with the
wild-goose chase?
I have to go back to the
hotel and make a phone call.
- So I'll see you in a
bit, okay? BETH: Bye.
Bye.
MAN: Right there!
Room 474, please.
[PHONE RINGS]
Hello.
Hello?
[SILENCED GUNSHOTS]
Yeah. Yeah, I'll call it in.
MAN 1: Okay. Yeah? You ready?
Up we go.
- Excuse us. MAN 2: Thank you.
MAN 1: Watch it
around the corner.
- Oh... OFFICER: Police only.
Oh, uh...
OFFICER: No, sir. I'm sorry.
- Lieutenant?
- It's okay, let him
in. OFFICER: Yes, sir.
Well, you were right, something
was going on in the hotel.
- Damn.
- Who was it?
Mitchell Jackson,
executive vice president
of Trans Global Airlines.
Somebody shot him
through the window.
LIEUTENANT: Somebody
with a high-powered rifle.
Probably standing right on
top of that rooftop over there.
Yep. Two shots,
right in the heart.
- Professional.
- Mm-hm.
What in the world
is going on here?
CONRAD: Three
murders in two weeks.
Man, I'm never booking
a room in this place.
[MATLOCK CHUCKLES]
LEANNE: Dad,
take a look at this.
The desk must have
been moved recently.
MATLOCK: Oh.
- I didn't notice that before.
- Before?
Yeah, I came up here
after Laura was killed.
Four-seventy-four.
That guy was shot here,
Laura was pushed
off the balcony here.
Not the best room
in the house, is it?
Not lately.
KATHLEEN: Leanne.
We just heard there's been
another murder at the hotel.
Some executive from an airline.
Whoever shot him is a professional.
Does this have anything
to do with Laura?
LEANNE: Well,
nobody really knows yet.
I bet he does.
Hey. That was some kind of fun
- we had this morning, huh?
- I beg your pardon?
That little scenic tour of
Wilmington you took me on?
I don't know what
you're talking about.
CONRAD: You knew I was
following you, didn't you?
Get out of my way.
That's why you deliberately
led me away from the hotel,
so I wouldn't be underfoot when
the hit went down. That was good.
TUGGLE: Al.
The thing that bugs
me is that it worked.
Escort this man
out, he's trespassing.
He gives you any
trouble, have him arrested.
It ain't over, pal.
- Yes.
- Hi. I'm Ben Matlock.
Yeah, I know who you are.
The fella who accosted you
earlier in the lobby works for me.
- But you knew that too, didn't you?
- Of course not, how could I?
I'd like to talk with you a
little bit about, um, murder.
I don't know anything
about murder.
Well, somebody
around here sure does.
Yeah, your client.
If you don't mind, I got a
lot of work to catch up on.
Well, there was one other thing
I wanted to talk with you about.
- What?
- Well, it can wait.
It'll give you time to think
about it. We can talk later.
In court.
TUGGLE: Key execute.
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
TUGGLE: And it works the same.
Morning, lieutenant,
may I help you?
As a matter of fact, you can.
I need for you to come downtown
with us and answer a few questions.
Concerning?
LIEUTENANT: Concerning
the murder of one of your guests,
Mitchell Jackson.
[SIGHS]
How'd it go at
the police station?
How long have you
been sitting in the dark?
A while.
What happened?
They tried to bluff me into thinking
that they have something on me,
but they don't.
You didn't tell them anything?
No.
Everything's okay.
Everything's fine, Kathleen.
Good.
- Hi.
- Hi.
You're here. We thought
you might be in court.
Oh, no. The judge
recessed at noon today.
He plays golf on Fridays.
- Oh, come on in, sit down.
- How's it going?
Well, nothing sure yet,
but we're beginning to think
the common denominator
in all three of the murders is the
hotel manager, Charlie Tuggle.
- He killed three people?
- Well, he's involved somehow.
This latest victim,
Mitchell Jackson,
was put in Room 474
although he asked for a room
on the ground floor,
supposedly because there
weren't any other rooms,
but other rooms were available.
Somebody tampered
with the hotel computer,
probably the manager.
Room 474 is the room
that Laura was pushed from.
LEANNE: It also happens to be
the perfect place to put someone
if you want a
professional hit man,
armed with a high-powered rifle,
sitting across the street to kill him.
Poor Laura.
- What about Laura?
- I don't know.
Maybe she was having an
affair with Roland Holloway,
and when he was killed,
she started looking around
and found out something
about the murder
that she shouldn't have and
was killed so she wouldn't talk.
I feel sure, and so does my dad,
that Charlie Tuggle
is at the bottom of this.
And when we find out
some solid evidence,
I know he's gonna fold.
You can be sure of that.
Well, we should go. Let
you get some work done.
I know this is a
difficult time for all of us
and an odd time for
us to try to have fun,
but I really think it's
important that we be together.
So, what do you say
we go to the clambake?
- Might as well.
- We'll see you there.
Good. Bye.
KATHLEEN: Bye.
[BAND PLAYING COUNTRY SONG]
MAN [SINGING]: Dirty
deed on top of the deck
Cheatin' on you Was
my biggest mistake
I got my poker face on
And I decide to fold
CLIFF: Did I tell you I got a call from
my fourth-grade teacher, Miss Lewellen?
- What'd she want?
- She had heard what had happened.
You know, a lot of people
from Mount Harlan have offered,
you know, to come
testify on my behalf.
Did you tell her that
character witnesses
- are not in the game plan?
- No. I will.
Actually, Ben, if you
don't mind me asking,
- what exactly is the game
plan? BILLY: Have some.
Come on, if I eat it all up, my gall
bladder will be talking to me all night.
Your gall bladder
ever talk to you, Ben?
Occasionally. I
try not to answer.
Dad, Ben and I are
having a conversation.
Don't talk with your
mouth full of food, son.
What's the matter with you?
LEANNE: Nothing. I'm
just waiting for my friends.
[ALL CHATTERING]
I can't believe I left my
sunglasses back in my room. I'll...
You go on, I'll catch
up with you later.
Okay.
- Hi. Hi, sit down,
Beth. CLIFF: Oh, hey.
Hi. Where's Kathleen?
BETH: Oh, she
forgot her sunglasses.
Take Beth
something to eat, Billy.
[MAN SINGING INDISTINCTLY]
[CLICKS]
LIEUTENANT: Looking
for these, Miss Shelton?
Right down here.
[INAUDIBLE DIALOGUE]
One cool drink
of water, that lady.
We caught her red-handed.
Had the rifle in her hand.
Same rifle that she used
to kill Mitchell Jackson.
Of course, she denies it.
But we all know who
she was aiming at tonight,
don't we, Mr. Tuggle?
I don't know what
you're talking about.
Yeah, you do,
Charlie. Yeah, you do.
See, those sunglasses that we
found in the bushes below Room 474
had your fingerprints
all over them.
I lost those sunglasses
who knows how long ago.
They don't prove anything.
Well, Mr. Matlock
came to me yesterday
and suggested that we
roust you. I went along with it.
And we really weren't
trying to rough you up.
The idea was to spook
whoever you were working with.
And sure enough, as
soon as we let you go,
who's waiting for you?
Heh. Why, it's Miss Shelton.
[LIEUTENANT CHUCKLES]
So we started following her.
We saw her dump the
rifle out at that beach house.
She's a pro, Charlie.
You know, pros work
for people in high places.
Because you're a threat to her,
well, that means
you're a threat to them.
That gun's gonna
be loaded next time.
Make no mistake.
Now,
you wanna talk?
Charlie Tuggle had no proof that
Kathleen killed Roland Holloway?
It's his word against hers.
But we know she killed
Mitchell Jackson, don't we?
Leanne did a good job
of setting her up, huh?
Yeah.
Yeah. It was hard on her.
But she did it. It was
a gamble, you know.
But we figured if Kathleen knew
that we thought that Mr. Tuggle
was in on it, why, she'd go for
him. And we were right, weren't we?
Leanne all right?
Yeah, she's all
right. She's, uh...
It's hard. She's losing two friends,
one one way and one another.
There's got to be something
around here somewhere.
CONRAD: I don't
know, Ben, she's a pro,
and pros don't make mistakes.
MATLOCK: Ah,
everybody makes mistakes.
CONRAD: How are we gonna
prove that she killed Roland Holloway
if we can't prove that
she was here that night?
MATLOCK: Well, I don't
know. I don't know. I don't know.
Maybe we can, Conrad.
Maybe we can.
I understand that you've
recently been charged
with the murder
of Mitchell Jackson
and the attempted murder of
Charles Tuggle, is that right?
Well, that doesn't mean
the charges are true.
See, fortunately, in this country, a
person is innocent until proven guilty.
MATLOCK: Oh, I know that.
I hear you've been down
here vacationing with friends.
- That's right. MATLOCK:
It was your idea
- to come to Wilmington, wasn't
it? KATHLEEN: I believe it was.
MATLOCK: Well, why Wilmington?
Why not Cape Cod or the Catskills?
I like the beach here.
You came to Wilmington because
you were told that Mitchell Jackson,
an executive vice president
of Trans Global Airlines,
the man you were hired to
kill, would be staying here.
- Isn't that the reason?
- Objection.
MATLOCK: How
can you object to that?
She was seen
holding the very rifle
that killed the man
when she was arrested.
Your Honor...
MATLOCK: "Your
Honor" all you want to.
CHANDLER: Now,
Mr. Matlock, watch it.
- Sustained.
- Yes, sir.
Charlie Tuggle is
prepared to testify
that you paid him $100,000 to
make sure that Mitchell Jackson
stayed in a specific room
at the Tropical Surf Hotel.
- Why?
- I didn't do that.
And I have no idea why Mr. Tuggle
would perjure himself like that.
A hundred thousand
dollars is a lot of money
for a man with
not many scruples.
PROSECUTOR: Objection.
- I object myself.
- That was uncalled for.
- Sustained.
Mitchell Jackson was
personally responsible
for the purchase of $420 million
of new aircraft for
Trans Global Airlines.
During a fact-finding trip,
he elected not to buy
the Dynatail Aviation jets
that his associates had recommended,
because he felt they were unsafe.
Dynatail Aviation stood to
gain $420 million in business
if Mr. Jackson were dead.
I believe somebody in that
company paid you to kill him.
Is that a question, Mr. Matlock?
Well, it's why you paid Charlie
Tuggle $100,000, isn't it?
You knew if Mr. Jackson
were in Room 474,
you would have a
perfect shot at him
from the rooftop across
the street, wouldn't you?
Objection, Your Honor. This
is compound, it's irrelevant.
CHANDLER: Sustained.
Am I wrong, or is this trial specifically
about the murder of Roland Holloway?
I'm coming to him.
Proceed at your
own risk, Mr. Matlock.
Roland Holloway found out that
somebody bribed Charlie Tuggle
to make sure Mr. Jackson
stayed in a certain room, didn't he?
Only he didn't know it was you.
And when Mr. Tuggle told you
Mr. Holloway was causing trouble,
well, knowing his weakness
with women, you just seduced him.
Then you waited for the
right moment, you killed him.
- Your Honor...
- Your Honor.
CHANDLER: Are we
going anywhere with this?
You betcha. Sir.
Proceed.
You went over to his house,
got in his Jacuzzi with
him, there on his back porch,
and when he least expected it,
you shoved his head
against the edge to daze him.
Then you pushed his
face down in the water
- and held it there until he died.
- Oh, for heaven's sake.
MATLOCK: Then you
pulled him out of the water,
got him in, dressed,
put him in his van,
drove him to the
beach, and dumped him.
And having overheard the
argument he had with my client,
you sought for and
found Cliff Lewis' car,
spread Roland Holloway's
blood all over the seat.
Then you stole his Mount
Harlan volunteer firefighters pin
so you could plant it at
the scene of the crime.
Mr. Matlock, I would never steal
anyone's volunteer firefighters pin,
under any circumstances.
MATLOCK: This receipt
was found in Laura
Masterson's purse
when she fell to her
death from Room 474.
It shows that Roland Holloway
bought a pair of teardrop gold
earrings the day before he died.
I was convinced that Laura
was having an affair with him,
and I was right. That's why
she was investigating his death.
But I was wrong
about the receipt.
Mr. Holloway must
have been quite a guy.
He was having an
affair with Laura,
and he turned right around and
had an affair with her best friend, you.
These earrings, he
didn't buy for Laura,
he bought them for you, just like
that bottle of complimentary wine
he sent up to your room
the day before he died.
And the roses the
day before that.
At least, according
to the hotel records.
[KATHLEEN SCOFFS]
KATHLEEN: All
right. We had an affair.
A very brief, very
shallow affair.
- You ever go to his house?
- Yes, once.
MATLOCK: When?
A couple days before he died.
- Did you go in his Jacuzzi?
- Yes.
MATLOCK: Was it light out?
Yes.
MATLOCK: People see?
- Heh. Probably.
- Did you go in naked?
- What kind of question...?
MATLOCK: What'd you wear?
- A bathing suit.
Yours? Yours?
Well, I don't... You
wore one he gave you.
This one. Didn't you?
Maybe, yes. I guess I did.
MATLOCK: Well, take a good
look. I want you to be sure.
This is the bathing suit you wore in
his Jacuzzi two days before he died.
As far as I can tell, yes,
that's the suit I wore
two days before he died.
MATLOCK: You're
lying, Miss Shelton.
You were there, wearing
this bathing suit that day.
According to this receipt the
police found in his bedroom,
he purchased this bikini not
days before he died but hours.
He bought it that morning.
The only time you could've
worn this bathing suit,
the one he had just bought,
was that afternoon.
It's what you wore when
you killed him, isn't it?
Reasonable doubt.
That's all I ask for my
client, is reasonable doubt.
The good officers of the
Wilmington Police and the FBI
will investigate and find
out who's behind all this.
And they'll find out who
paid you and how much.
Three lives.
Roland Holloway.
Mitchell Jackson.
Laura Masterson, one
of your oldest friends.
How much were they worth?
BETH: Kathleen?
- Go away.
BETH: We were friends
for years and years.
What happened?
A lot of things happened.
Some people's lives turn
upside down, some don't.
LEANNE: You
were never like this.
How could you?
I made a choice.
- Aren't you even sorry about Laura?
- I don't wanna talk anymore.
- Just go. LEANNE: Kathleen.
No.
Go.
[LEANNE SIGHS]
Wasn't much of
a vacation, was it?
- No.
- We lost Laura and Kathleen.
We'll probably never
know why she did this.
- Do you think Charlie Tuggle will...?
- Tuggle will get his.
- You'll give the kids my love?
- Of course.
I'll miss you.
- Bye-bye.
- Safe trip home.
- Cliff. Congratulations.
- Thank you so much.
Thank you.
I've always wanted a chance
to see your father in action.
I guess I just did, up
close and personal.
Yeah, ha, ha. Well...
- Thank you for everything. Really.
- Okay.
CLIFF: Pop?
Something you wanna say?
Thanks for getting him off.
- Now, how about giving him a job?
- Pop.
Well, my money's no good
to you. He's flat-busted broke.
It's only fair to let
him work off your fee.
Billy, I can't make
any promises.
BILLY: Sounds like
you're ducking it, Ben.
Billy, I've got myself, my
daughter, an investigator.
I'll do the best I can.
Dad, could I talk
to you for a minute?
Maybe we could use Cliff.
He could do the legwork
when Conrad's not around.
He knows how to
use the law library.
I bet he even knows
how to use a computer.
[MATLOCK SIGHS]
And look at him.
You know he's gonna come cheap.
Like I say, we'll
do the best we can.
[DOOR CLOSES]
Let's go, Dad!
Coming! Coming. Unh. I'm coming.
LEANNE: Let me help you
with that. MATLOCK: I got it.
LEANNE: Let me help you.
- No, I got it.
- Where's your bag?
- In the car.
Why won't you let me help you?
- Because you might hurt your back.
- How do you know?
Because I just hurt mine.
LEANNE: Heh.
- Oh.
- What have you got in here?
- Stuff.
- Stuff?
- Yeah.
You'll be with your friends,
and I brought some books
and some extra
suits and some stuff.
- Dad, we're going to the beach.
- Yeah, but what if there's a dance?
[MATLOCK GRUNTING]
[LEANNE GROANS]
- Hurt your back?
- Just get in the car.
Okay. Yeah.
Right.
[MATLOCK PANTING AND GRUNTING]
- You all right?
- I'm all right. You?
Yeah. You done
everything you have to do?
LEANNE: Yeah. You?
- Yeah.
I guess we're ready.
Oh, this is gonna be great.
It's about a five-hour drive.
We can figure out who's
gonna take what cases,
what kind of computer
we're gonna buy,
who's gonna do the bookkeeping,
figure out how this
partnership is really gonna work.
[LIVELY RAGTIME MUSIC
PLAYING ON STEREO]
[ENGINE STARTS]
Here we go.
[LIVELY RAGTIME MUSIC
PLAYING ON STEREO]
[MUSIC STOPS]
What'd you do that for?
We're lost.
How can we be lost? You
got the map right there.
It was printed in 1961, Dad.
[LIVELY RAGTIME MUSIC
PLAYING ON STEREO]
If you're gonna listen to that
stuff, you should let me drive.
- Why?
- Because when you listen to music,
you don't pay attention.
You weave in and out, you speed.
No, I don't.
[SIREN WAILING]
Seventy miles an hour, my foot.
- Dad, he had a radar gun.
- I don't care what he had,
I wasn't doing 70.
Hey, do me a favor.
Let's not let
this ruin our trip.
From here on out, it's
gonna be smooth sailing.
[TIRE BANGS]
[TIRE CLATTERING]
[TIRE BANGS]
Hmm. Tsk.
[AIR HISSING]
[BRAKES SQUEAK]
[LEANNE SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
JOE: Everybody off. We made it.
[LEANNE GROANS]
[MATLOCK GRUNTING]
DOORMAN: Welcome
to the Tropical Surf.
- Need a hand with those?
LEANNE: I'll get it, Dad.
DOORMAN: I got it.
- Here you go.
[CHATTERING]
JOE: Why don't you
give me that bag?
[MATLOCK SPEAKS
INDISTINCTLY THEN GRUNTS]
MATLOCK: Thank you,
Joe. LEANNE: Thank you.
JOE: Let me give you a hand.
MATLOCK: Thank
you. Appreciate it.
I'll get this, it's
got my stuff in it.
You...? You wanna
just let me in?
LEANNE: Dad, behave yourself.
We are going to have fun, okay?
Hello.
- We're here to check
in. ROLAND: Good.
Welcome to the Tropical
Surf Resort. I'm the manager.
My name is Roland
Holloway. Your name is?
- Mclntyre.
- Matlock.
Reservation's under Mclntyre.
Why don't you go back to
Matlock? You're divorced.
Dad, we're not divorced,
we're separated.
You're not going
back to that jerk.
Could we talk about
this another time?
- Now, what I don't get...
ROLAND: Here we are.
Mclntyre, Leanne.
Now, I do have the two
adjacent rooms that you reserved,
but if you're interested,
one of our two-bedroom,
two-bath villas just opened up.
- Oh, that'd be great.
- No, thanks.
Cost an arm and a leg.
Oh, Dad, but look what you get. A
living room and a little kitchenette.
MATLOCK: We'll take
the adjacent rooms.
We'll take the villa.
We'll split it.
ROLAND: Very good.
[WHISTLING]
Well, could you try Room
480, then, please? Thanks.
- What are you looking for?
- Food.
Dad, you're not
gonna find any food.
Oh, come on.
What we're paying for this place,
there ought to be some cheese
or bologna or peanut
butter or something.
I always thought when you
checked into a nice hotel,
they had a big basket of fruit and
nuts or something waiting for you.
Well, none of my friends are in
their room, probably on the beach.
- I'm gonna go see if I can find them.
- This trip is a real bust.
What I'm talking, a real bust.
I hurt my back.
I got lost. I got a
speeding ticket for $70.
Two new tires, $220.
This villa is $300 a
day and nothing to eat.
I have an idea.
Since we have the car back,
why don't you go to a store
and buy some hot
dogs or something?
Well, I could.
It'll make you feel better.
Dad, I know our trip has not
gotten off to a rousing start,
but things are gonna get better,
so let's just start trying
to have fun right now.
Okay?
[LEANNE GROWLS]
I don't need 12 hot
dog buns. I just need six.
I'm sorry, sir, we don't carry
packages of six hot dog buns.
Well, why should I buy hot dog
buns I'm probably never gonna use?
Sir, the buns come
in packages of 12
because the hot dogs
come in packages of 12.
It's highway robbery.
- Sorry. MATLOCK:
It's highway robbery.
I mean, what if I eat
just six hot dogs, okay?
That's six hot dogs wasted,
six hot dog buns wasted.
There's people starving
to death all over the world.
CLERK: I'm sorry.
- I'm sorry too.
Speeding ticket, two blowouts,
coming in on a hay truck,
a room that costs a
fortune, nothing to eat in it.
- Should've brought
something... CLIFF: Hello there.
Hi. Hey.
Twelve hot dog buns.
- Sorry, did you say something?
- Talking to myself.
Oh.
Say, aren't you Ben
Matlock, the famous lawyer?
I'm Ben Matlock.
Oh. You really are. Oh, that's...
I can't believe... That's great.
I'm standing in the
same checkout line
with the most famous
attorney in the country.
[STAMMERS] What
brings you to Wilmington?
- Vacation.
- Oh, yeah? Me too. Me too.
[CHUCKLES]
Wow. Ha, ha.
You from Atlanta?
Me? No. Uh, no.
From Savannah, actually.
What's the matter?
You remind me of somebody.
I can't quite place who.
Oh. I get that a lot.
Yeah, I guess I have
one of those faces.
That's 37.43.
Thirty-seven forty-three?
Yeah.
Thirty-seven forty-three.
- Doesn't go as far.
- Yeah. Yeah.
Something wrong?
I must've left my
wallet in the hotel.
Will you hold this
stuff till I go get it?
Yeah, all right.
No, no, don't. Don't.
Don't be silly. Here.
- Oh, no, no. I couldn't let you.
- Yes. No, absolutely.
No, it would be my pleasure.
It would be my pleasure.
- Take it. Here.
- Oh, well... Well...
- My pleasure.
- Well, thank you. I'll pay you back.
- Okay.
- Well, where are you staying?
The Tropical Surf.
MATLOCK: I am too.
What's your name?
Cliff. I don't want you
to go out of your way.
I'll find you, how'd that be?
- Okay. Thanks. CLIFF: Okay.
This might not be such a
bad trip after all. Thank you.
[CHILDREN SHOUTING AND LAUGHING]
LEANNE: Here we
go. BETH: Oh, yeah.
KATHLEEN: Yeah, baby. Just...
- Oh.
[CORK POPS]
[ALL LAUGH]
BETH: Good one. KATHLEEN: Mm.
Bring back any memories, girls?
[ALL LAUGH]
KATHLEEN: Just a few. Just
a few. LEANNE: Whoo! Ha, ha.
Yes. Okay.
- To us. KATHLEEN: Yes.
ALL: To us.
May we never be
apart this long again.
BETH: Here, here.
KATHLEEN: Here, here.
BETH: Next year, I
make Dan keep the kids.
[ALL LAUGH]
What are you gonna do, Kathleen,
put a "gone sunbathing" sign
- in your antique-store window?
- Why not?
You know, Laura and I have
been here since Tuesday?
LEANNE: No kidding.
KATHLEEN: Mm-hm.
Yeah, and I haven't connected.
- But I think Laura...
- You don't know.
I have knocked on your door
quite a few times and you weren't in.
[ALL LAUGH]
- You've been here since
Tuesday? LAURA: Mm-hm.
You, too, can be single,
self-employed and looking around.
- I am single and self-employed.
KATHLEEN: Looking around?
- Mm.
- So where's this father of yours?
He's too old for you.
- If he's breathing, he's not
too old. LEANNE: Kathleen.
[ALL LAUGH]
I'll tell you one thing, you get too
close to him, he might make you jump.
Ooh.
[ALL LAUGH]
LAURA: God.
So is Peter still
seeing that bimbo?
BOY: Hurry up. Give it to me.
I don't know.
You gonna divorce him?
I don't know.
Oh, my gosh, I just remembered
something. I gotta go.
You just got here.
Well, if you must know, I
promised my attorney I'd call him.
See you all later? Bye.
LAURA: Don't leave your towel.
- Okay.
- Bye. LEANNE: Bye.
- Whoops. LAURA: Hmm.
- She's getting a divorce.
KATHLEEN: Mm-hm.
Well, I'll tell you what,
let's go to the bar and see
if we can have some fun.
[LAURA & KATHLEEN LAUGH]
[SCATTING]
- Hi, Dad.
- Hi.
Oh, good. You got your dogs.
Yeah. Enough for a party.
Hi. Adam Bailer, please.
It's Leanne Mclntyre.
Yeah, I'll hold. Will you tell
him I'm calling long distance?
Thanks.
Adam Bailer is my attorney.
That's all I'm gonna tell you,
so let's just skip the third degree.
I just wanted to know
if you wanted a hot dog.
Oh. Yeah.
- Did you find your friends?
- Yes, and they are dying to meet you.
Oh. I ran into the nicest
guy at the grocery store.
- Oh, yeah?
- Yeah.
- Cliff something.
- Oh.
- He's staying here.
- Oh.
Told him to stop by later.
Is he cute?
Um...
- Not bad.
- Ha, ha.
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
Hey, junior.
- Come here often? CLIFF: Um...
Cliff. No, actually, I'm
kind of new to the territory.
Are you gonna
ask us to sit down?
Oh, I'm... Yes.
I... Yes, I'm sorry.
I'm gonna ask. Please
sit down. There you go.
LAURA: Thank you.
- Um, here.
Here you go.
I'm sorry.
I need a seat. Okay.
[CLIFF CHUCKLING]
Hi.
Oh. Um, Scotch
on the rocks for me.
Um, Kathleen.
Kathleen.
A blended margarita for Laura.
CLIFF: Laura. Hi.
- Hi.
- And Beth, a glass of
chardonnay. CLIFF: Hi, Beth.
And you, junior?
Cliff. Cliff.
Okay, Cliff, and you?
Um, I'll just have
what she's having.
KATHLEEN: That'll be two
Scotches on the rocks, please.
- Thank you.
WAITER: Thanks, folks.
So, Cliff.
Tell us about yourself.
I'm a lawyer.
Oh. A lawyer.
[CLIFF CHUCKLES]
He's so cute.
So young.
I'm just down here
kind of looking around.
Oh, what a coincidence.
So are Laura and I.
- Beth is unfortunately married.
- Oh.
Congratulations.
Well, to us.
And to, uh, uh... [SNAPPING]
- Cliff.
- Right. Cliff.
Who's just looking
around like us, right, Laura?
Right.
CLIFF: Mm. Ah. Whew.
Oh, the check.
I'm... I'm sorry. I'll...
Thank you.
[CLIFF SIGHS]
So, Cliff,
how long are you
going to be here?
Depends.
Well, like I said, Beth is married,
but Laura and I are single.
Wanna have some fun?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah. Fun would be fun.
That would be a lot of fun.
Mr. Lewis?
Yes?
ROLAND: We have a problem.
We do?
May I speak to you alone
for a moment, please?
What's the problem?
It's your credit card, sir.
My credit card.
- It's no good.
- What?
Mr. Lewis, we have
checked and double-checked,
and it appears you've
already reached your limit.
Oh, no. No.
No, no, no. That's not possible.
I'm sure the credit card
company just made a mistake.
I'll just pay for the
drinks with cash, that's...
- Ah.
- Okay?
No problem.
Except I just lent all the
cash I had to someone.
ROLAND: And then, of course,
there is the matter of your room.
CLIFF: It's a small
room. I'll just, uh...
I'll write you a check.
ROLAND: I don't think so.
CLIFF: Well, what can I do?
Leave.
No. No. No.
No.
ROLAND: Mr. Lewis, I really
have no choice in this matter.
I'm afraid I must ask you
to vacate the premises now.
The credit card
company made a mistake.
- That happens sometimes.
ROLAND: Mr. Lewis.
Please leave. Now.
- You have no right to do this.
- Sir.
Would you stop pulling me?
I'll tell you, the only one around
here with a problem is you.
BOUNCER: Come on.
CLIFF: I said, get
your hands off me.
You. You're gonna regret this.
Well, you not only pick a baby,
but you pick a broke baby.
MATLOCK: Hey, Cliff!
They, uh... They told me
at the desk you checked out.
Is everything okay?
Ah, my credit's all messed up. The
manager gave me the bum's rush.
- They threw you out?
- Yeah.
Oh, no. Here.
- Here's the money you loaned me.
- Oh.
- And let me write you a
check. CLIFF: A check?
Yeah. For any amount you need.
I mean, you loaned me
money, I'll loan you money.
No, no. You know what I'm gonna
do? I'm gonna go up the street,
I'll find a hotel where the
manager's more understanding.
- I'll be fine. Really.
- You sure?
I'm... Yes, I'm sure. I really
am. Yeah. No problem.
Uh... What do
you do for a living?
Well, as a matter of
fact, I'm a lawyer too.
- No kidding. CLIFF: No. Ha, ha.
MATLOCK: Ha, ha. You're kidding.
- No, I'm not.
- I passed the bar two weeks
ago. MATLOCK: Congratulations.
CLIFF: Thank you.
- Where you gonna hang your hat?
I don't know yet.
I've had a lot of offers.
- Well, yeah. It's a hard
decision. CLIFF: Yeah.
Well, that's actually
the reason I'm here.
I mean, I was at home and
the phone was ringing so much,
and I couldn't think straight.
You know, it seems that every firm
I interviewed with made me an offer.
So I'm biding my time, and
I'm gonna choose the right one.
- Good.
- Yeah, yeah.
Say, you're not in
the market, are you?
Not really.
My daughter and
I just joined forces,
and there's just about
enough work for us, ha, ha.
- Oh. Oh.
- Yeah.
Oh. Okay, well, it was
really nice meeting you.
Well, yeah. My pleasure.
If there's anything I
can do, just let me know.
Oh. Okay, I will.
- Hi, Cliffie. CLIFF: Hi.
- I think they like me.
- Oh.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
Oh, there's Beth.
Everybody wave.
Ah. Jogging, huh?
LAURA: Yeah.
She thinks she's fat.
She's skinny as a rail.
- Bad body image.
- Oh.
Well, I'm gonna go get seconds.
[MATLOCK CHUCKLES]
Thirds, but who's counting?
Leanne, your dad is super.
You and he are so much alike.
Alike?
[LEANNE LAUGHS]
We're about as alike
as salt and pepper.
MATLOCK: Ah.
Well, I'll bet you wish
you had some of this.
You know, we were just talking about
how much you and Leanne are alike.
No, no. We're as alike
as salt and pepper.
[MATLOCK CHUCKLING]
[LEANNE LAUGHS]
Well, let's see now
about this business here.
[SCREAMING]
[ALL MURMURING]
MAN 1: She's over
here. Down on the beach.
MAN 2: Someone call 911!
It's the hotel manager.
I don't understand. When I
came on duty at 5, he was fine.
LIEUTENANT: Did he
say where he was going?
No, but, uh, I assumed
that he went home.
Uh, excuse me.
Lieutenant, the lady who
discovered the body is pretty upset.
Be all right if she
went back to the hotel?
Yeah, just let me
know where she'll be.
Probably somewhere
around the lobby. Excuse me.
LIEUTENANT:
Mr. Holloway married?
No, he's...
He was single.
How could this have happened?
He was a great swimmer. He
almost made the '84 Olympic team.
LIEUTENANT: Even Olympic
hopefuls don't usually go swimming
with their clothes
on, Mr. Tuggle.
Now, you know anybody
who may have argued with him
or who might have fought or
had an altercation with him?
TUGGLE: No. No, I
can't think of anyone.
[SNORING]
[KNOCKING]
LIEUTENANT: Police. Open up.
Step out, please.
Boy, you are one hard man
to track down, Mr. Lewis.
Well... Hey, you need a
search warrant to do that.
LIEUTENANT: Got one right here.
I understand you and Roland
Holloway had a little altercation today.
- Who?
- Roland Holloway.
You know, the manager
of the Tropical Surf.
I need infrared goggles to read this.
Would you tell me what's going on?
LIEUTENANT: Roland Holloway
was murdered about five hours ago.
You wanna tell me what you
were doing late this afternoon?
Lieutenant.
Looks like blood.
After I left the hotel, I
drove around for a little while,
and then I pulled off to the side
of the road and I went to sleep.
I don't have an alibi.
I don't have anything.
I thought you were
going to another hotel.
I would have just been
kicked out of that one too.
I haven't exactly been
honest with you, Mr. Matlock.
Fact is, nobody's beating
down my door to hire me.
In fact, it took me three
times to pass the bar.
Three times?
And I'm broke.
Well, having to admit that
you're strapped is tough,
but don't worry.
Now that I know that
$37 you loaned me
was practically the last
money you had on earth,
- I think even more highly of you.
- I picked your pocket.
I mean, a person who'd loan money
to a perfect stranger like... How's that?
In the store, I lifted your wallet
so that I could loan you the money
to pay for your groceries, and you
would think I was a really great guy.
The reason the wallet was in
the car is because I left it there.
You'd just met me. How'd
you know which car was mine?
I followed you from Atlanta.
You followed me from Atlanta?
And registered
at the same hotel,
and went shopping at
the same grocery store.
All for the opportunity to impress
you and make you wanna hire me.
You went through all
that stuff just to get a job?
I really wanna work for you.
Huh.
I must say, that's a
pretty original plan.
It wasn't mine.
My father thought of it.
Your father?
My last name is, uh, Lewis.
Oh. Lord have mercy.
Lord have mercy. That's
who you remind me of.
You're Billy Lewis' boy.
Hello, Ben.
Hello, Billy.
I guess it wasn't such a
hot idea after all, huh, son?
MATLOCK: I don't
care what you say, Billy.
It was a stupid,
asinine thing to do.
Why didn't you just call me and
tell me to give your boy a job?
- What would you have done if I had?
- I'd have hung up on you.
Seems you answered
your question.
- I didn't even know you had a son.
- Not many people do.
- Thanks to Lucy.
- Damn it, Billy.
When are you gonna
stop blaming your sister
for all the lousy things that
have happened in your life?
I don't blame her. I blame you.
You're the one who dated her,
then dropped her like a hot potato.
I didn't drop her, Billy.
- I went to law school.
- I had to stay home with her.
- She couldn't deal with it.
- Mm.
- I took her in.
- Yeah.
Lucy got mean and ornery.
- Life got hard.
- Ugh.
Then life got good. I
got married, had a son.
- Cliff.
- Mm.
About a year later, my wife
took Cliff and moved out.
Two years of Lucy
was all she could take.
Life got hard again, Ben.
I stayed in Mount Harlan,
but it wasn't the same.
Cliff became a stranger
to me. My own son.
- All on account of Lucy.
- Lucy, yeah.
She's gone, you know?
No, I didn't know. I'm sorry.
Latched on to some
insurance salesman,
hightailed it to St. Petersburg.
- Oh. So life's good again.
- Not.
- Not?
- She made me sell the farm.
Claimed half of it was
hers. Squatter's rights.
She's down in Florida, living off
of half the fruit of my life's labor.
But only a small man
dwells on life's tragedies, Ben.
A big man ignores
his misfortunes,
hauls himself up,
and pays off his debts.
Here's the $726 I owe you.
Why, Billy, thank you.
Talking your kind of
language now, huh, Ben?
Well, here's some more.
- What's that for? BILLY: My
boy didn't kill anybody, Ben.
He can't even kill a chicken
and it's Sunday and
company's coming.
MATLOCK: Soft-hearted.
- Mushy.
What he needs is a good lawyer.
But, since you're already
here, what the hell?
- That's your retainer.
- Two hundred dollars?
Do good by him,
and I'll add to it.
I'm on vacation, Billy.
BILLY: Haven't you caused
enough misery in my family already?
- Will you stop that?
- He's a good boy, Ben.
I don't wanna spend my sunset
years visiting him in a state pen.
So, uh, what are you gonna do?
Become Cliff's lawyer
or be a jackass?
LEANNE: Dad.
Dad, wait a minute.
You are here on vacation,
and you're gonna take this case?
- Ah, well...
- Dad, Dad, Dad.
Dad, there are plenty of lawyers
who live right here in Wilmington.
And a lot of them
are dying for work.
Well, yeah.
There are even lawyers
who Billy Lewis wouldn't dislike
half as much as he dislikes you.
- Yeah.
- And you're gonna take this case?
Well, I just don't think
the boy killed this fellow.
- Uh, what's his name?
- Holloway.
Yeah. Yeah, I
mean, why would he?
I mean, he's just a kid who
doesn't know which end is up.
Billy says he can't
even kill a chicken.
Why would he complicate
his life by killing a person?
Oh, Dad.
I can't fight you for
what you believe in.
I was just hoping that we
could spend this vacation,
you know, doing family things.
- Oh, well, we can.
- Dad,
I know how important
your work is to you.
Mine is to me.
But just this once,
couldn't you tell Billy
Lewis to get another lawyer?
Um...
Well, the first chance I
get, I'm gonna tell him.
May I help you?
Well, um...
See, yesterday I got a
call from Mr. Holloway
saying that somebody
had found a bracelet
with my name engraved on it.
He said that he
would hold it for me.
And now, since he's,
you know, dead now,
I thought that I should
come here and look for it
so that it didn't get
thrown out or something.
Your bracelet would be at
the front desk, not in here.
Just ask one of the clerks to
check in the lost-and-found drawer.
Oh. Okay. Okay. I
will. Thanks, I will.
Uh, but just in case I do find
your bracelet, your name is?
Masterson.
Laura Masterson.
Yeah, this is Charlie.
Listen, I'm down in
Roland's office. Uh...
It may be nothing, but someone
was just in here snooping around.
No, a guest.
I'm pretty sure she's the
girl Roland had an affair with.
Name's Laura Masterson.
MAN: Your Honor, the
defendant is from out of town,
which means he has
no ties to our community.
He's also demonstrated
a propensity for fraud.
And this means that the fact that he
is, for all intents and purposes, destitute
would not deter him
from fleeing jurisdiction.
He'd simply start charging
things to invalid credit cards,
like he's always done.
Therefore, state recommends
bail be set at $100,000.
- CHANDLER: Mr. Matlock.
- Your Honor,
my client is not in the habit
of charging things
to invalid credit cards.
That happened once because he
didn't realize he had reached his limit.
On the contrary, Cliff
Lewis is a fine young man
who in fact just
passed the Georgia bar
with flying colors.
Tell them how he's a volunteer
firefighter in Mount Harlan.
He comes from a small town
where things like integrity, hard work,
self-sacrifice still count for something.
Tell them how he always
donates to the church's blood drive.
There's no reason why he shouldn't
be released on his own recognizance.
- Tell them he doesn't cuss.
- Will you put a sock in it?
[GAVEL BANGING]
I think I've heard
enough. From everybody.
Bail is hereby set at $20,000.
We're adjourned.
[GAVEL BANGS]
MATLOCK: What the
hell's the matter with you?
Did somebody cut the wire
between your brain and your mouth?
Mr. Lewis, may I speak
to you in the hall, please?
I suppose.
Mr. Lewis, my father told me all
about you and your sister, Lucy.
Dropped her like a hot
potato. Did he tell you that?
Yes. Anyway,
considering the bad blood
between you and my dad and
the gravity of Cliff's situation,
it's obvious to me that my
father should not be the one...
Before you go on, there's
something I gotta get off my chest.
You mind?
- No. Go right ahead.
- Yeah.
Well, when Cliff called me
and told me what happened,
that he was thinking about
asking Ben to be his lawyer,
I said, "Well, go
ahead and ask him."
I figured anybody as
cold-blooded as Ben Matlock
was bound to be a good lawyer.
- Mr. Lewis...
- But I also warned him.
I said, "Ask him, but
don't get your hopes up.
Ben Matlock doesn't care
about anybody but himself."
- Mr. Lewis, that is absolutely...
- You mind letting me finish?
I also told him he'd probably
give him some kind of garbage
about being on vacation and
to find somebody else, and...
Well, when Ben just
agreed to take the case,
well, I learned something.
Ben Matlock has
a heart after all.
- Mr. Lewis...
- It's not easy for me to say this, but...
Well, for 43 years, I
was wrong about him.
My eyes have been opened.
Ben Matlock's a decent man.
Realizing this has given me
a whole new outlook on life.
Given me hope.
Renewed my faith in mankind.
[BILLY CHUCKLES]
Oh, I'm sorry for
interrupting. You were saying?
Not important.
Oh.
The cashier's office is
around the corner on the right.
I'll meet you there.
Well, how did it go?
Let's just say you
can keep the retainer.
LIEUTENANT: Mr. Matlock.
Thought you might wanna know.
They did the autopsy
on Roland Holloway.
He sustained a blow
to the back of the head,
but the cause of
death was drowning.
That's not surprising.
But what is surprising is the
water they found in his lung
wasn't seawater,
it was chlorinated.
LEANNE: Hmm.
You mean, he was
drowned someplace else,
- and then dumped in the ocean?
LIEUTENANT: That's the way it looks.
- What about the swimming pool?
- PH doesn't match.
MATLOCK: Hotel have a spa?
- No.
But Roland Holloway did.
This thing here is the
murder weapon, huh?
PH matches exactly.
- Did your men see this?
- That's blood. O negative.
Same as Roland Holloway's,
and it's the same as the blood
that we found in Cliff Lewis' car.
MATLOCK: So I guess you're
saying that Cliff drove over here
and got in a fight
with Roland Holloway,
and then knocked his head
against this thing, and drowned him,
and then put him in the car,
and drove him to the beach,
and dumped his
body in the ocean.
That's pretty much it, yeah.
Oh, come on, lieutenant.
If Cliff Lewis had
wanted to make it look
like Roland Holloway
had drowned in the ocean,
why wouldn't he have
removed Mr. Holloway's clothes?
Why would he have used his
own car to transport the body
when he could've used
Mr. Holloway's van?
And why would he have dumped
the body so close to the hotel?
So Cliff Lewis is
no Rhodes scholar.
You don't even know that
Cliff was here that night.
Oh, yes I do.
See, when I got here,
I found something.
Very interesting.
This.
Now, since there's not a whole lot
of people walking around Wilmington
with a Mount Harlan
volunteer firefighter's pin,
I'd say chances are
that's your client's.
And my guess is that he lost it
when he was killing Roland Holloway.
WOMAN: All right!
Ah. This is so nice.
It's true. The best
things in life are free.
KATHLEEN: Mm. Be
nicer with a couple of men.
LEANNE: Oh, Kathleen.
- So where's your father?
MAN: Grab the sodas! Over here!
[LAUGHS]
He'd probably jump at the chance,
but as you may or may not know,
he's working.
- He took Cliff's case?
LEANNE: He took the case.
I was hoping we'd
have this time together.
Talk about things,
have a few laughs.
But he's not happy if
he isn't working, so...
BETH: I heard they
found Cliff's firefighter pin.
- Yeah, right at the murder
scene. BETH: What do you think?
I don't know.
Either Cliff killed Mr. Holloway,
or somebody else did
and planted Cliff's pin there
to make it look like he did.
- What about the blood?
LEANNE: Well, I'm like my father.
It's hard for me to believe
that Cliff killed that guy.
Maybe somebody found Cliff's car
and used something to
smear that blood on the seat.
Leanne.
What's your guess?
LEANNE: Well, not right
now. He'd lose his job.
Maybe tonight.
[BOTH LAUGH]
LEANNE: Where is Laura?
I don't know.
I think she is having an affair
with someone from the hotel.
- Really? BETH: She's
been acting very strange.
We don't see her
for hours at a time.
And then when we do see her,
she's very vague
about where she's been.
You think the guy's
married or something?
Who knows?
[LOCK BEEPS]
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
LEANNE: Hi, Dad.
- Oh, hi.
- What are you doing?
- Just nosing around.
- Want a mint?
- No, thanks.
What you up to?
I'm looking for Laura.
Beth thinks she's having a little
affair with somebody here at the hotel.
What's wrong?
I heard that Roland Holloway
might have had an affair
with a guest here at the hotel.
You don't...? You
don't suppose it was...?
With Laura? No. Ha, ha.
Well, your three friends heard
that argument he had
with Cliff, so maybe...
Dad, Laura is one
of my closest friends.
Well, I was just
exploring the possibilities.
Laura would never have an
affair with a hotel manager.
She's a woman of very
discriminating taste.
Hotel owner, yes.
But a manager, never.
- Oh.
- That's more my style.
Leanne.
- Hello, Esther.
- Hi, Mr. Tuggle.
[LOCK BEEPS]
[LOCK BEEPS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
[SCREAMING]
Oh, lieutenant. Uh...
What happened?
Well, it appears the lady
was either pushed or shoved
from a balcony up
on the fourth floor.
Mr. Lewis, since
you're, uh, here,
you mind telling me where
you were about 20 minutes ago?
He doesn't have to answer
that till his lawyer's present.
My lawyer is present, Pop.
- Oh. Yeah.
- Go ahead.
I was in the coffee shop with
my father. I heard a scream.
I came running out here
with all these other people.
Lieutenant, you think this death
has something to do with the first one?
Thought had crossed my
mind. But I just ruled it out.
MATLOCK: Oh? How come?
Well, because your
client has an alibi.
BILLY: My boy's not a
killer. MATLOCK: Billy.
My boy didn't have anything
to do with this murder.
Only a jackass would think he
had anything to do with the first one.
- You calling me a
jackass? MATLOCK: No.
BILLY: You're slandering my son.
- Billy! Put a sock in it!
- Well, not till he apologizes.
- This is not Mount Harlan.
This is not your second
cousin once removed
who somehow got elected sheriff.
He's a police lieutenant who
doesn't know you from Adam.
- He does not have to apologize.
- Thank you.
- You best watch yourself.
- Go to your room.
Go to your room.
CLIFF: Come on,
Pop, let's go. Come on.
MATLOCK: Friends all right?
- Yeah, I took them to Beth's room,
then I went back to
the villa to change.
[SNIFFS]
Dad... MATLOCK:
I'm sorry, sweetheart.
I found this note on the floor.
Laura must have left it
there sometime today.
MATLOCK: Oh.
Well, we're sure into it now.
We might as well call Conrad.
BETH: No. We're waiting for
the coroner to release her body.
We'll fly home then.
With her.
She would have
wanted it that way.
No, I don't know, a
couple of days, I guess.
I'll call you when I know.
Okay. I love you too. Bye.
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
I'll get it.
You two doing okay?
KATHLEEN: Been better.
I just called home.
Todd's really upset.
I wish we hadn't come here.
Yeah, so do I. I, um...
I found this note.
Laura must have left it at
our door just before she died.
About H. The manager?
Holloway's murder?
Why would she wanna
talk to you about that?
I don't know. Maybe
she knew something.
I just keep wondering why she
said don't tell Beth or Kathleen.
Well, poor Laura.
Everything was such a secret.
I don't know. Maybe she was
having an affair with the manager
- and didn't want us to know.
- Yeah.
This is really
hard for me to say.
But do you suppose the
"Don't tell Beth or Kathleen" part
meant that she thought you
two might know something
- about Holloway's murder?
- Leanne, we would tell you.
- Of course we would.
LEANNE: I know.
And I know you
don't know anything.
What I meant to say was that if
you do, you know, know anything,
I wanna help you, and my
dad wants to help you too.
Leanne, we're
supposed to be friends.
I can't believe you're
talking to us like this.
I'm sorry.
Put up a pretty good struggle.
Looks like she grabbed for just about
anything she could get her hands on.
- Mm. Was this her room?
- No, it's unoccupied.
- Wonder what she was
doing here. MAN: Lieutenant?
Yeah.
Well, well.
Looks like, uh, one of
those cords, you know,
the kind they hook
to the sunglasses
so they can wear them
around the neck. Yeah.
Wonder what happened
to the sunglasses.
That's all we found.
Maybe she was wearing them.
You suppose somebody
else was, maybe the killer?
Excuse me. Let me see here.
They didn't move the body yet.
MATLOCK: Look there, lieutenant.
I'll bet you anything one of the
last things she grabbed up there
when she was struggling for her life
was that orange cord your man found.
She pulled it so hard, she
made a mark right on her hand.
Bet she jerked the glasses
right off the killer's neck.
All right. Now, let's just say, for
the sake of argument, you're right.
Where are the sunglasses?
Well, they weren't up there, they
must be down here somewhere.
- Yeah, yeah.
- Yeah.
Uh...
- Those her effects?
- Yeah.
- May I?
- Sure.
Okay. All right, so that orange
cord doesn't belong to her.
- Yeah.
- What?
MATLOCK: It's a
receipt for some earrings.
She bought some earrings.
Not made out to her. It's
made out to Roland Holloway.
OFFICER: Lieutenant.
- Yeah.
We just found these in
those bushes over there.
LIEUTENANT: Thanks.
MATLOCK: Oh. See?
This still doesn't prove that
these belong to the murderer.
Look at that. Ferdie's.
Very popular spot.
These glasses could
belong to anybody.
For all we know, they could've
been in these bushes for weeks.
Well, you will test
them for fingerprints.
Oh, yeah, we're gonna test them.
And can I have a picture of
the glasses, and of that cord?
Yeah, we'll get some
real nice pictures.
Mr. Matlock.
Your client has an alibi.
Why are you so interested?
Because I think whoever
killed Roland Holloway
may have also killed Laura.
Yeah?
I think Laura knew too much
about Mr. Holloway's murderer.
- That's an interesting theory.
- I think so.
- And what's Ferdie's?
- It's a disco.
I've written the address
on the pad by the phone.
Well, I'm off.
Conrad, you look pretty happy
for a guy who's going off to work.
Now, don't be fooled, Leanne.
I mean, this is
part of my cover.
I mean, I'm at the beach,
I'm surrounded by
women with bikinis,
I'm on my way to a disco.
Now, what on earth would
I have to be happy about?
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
- Hi. WOMAN: Hi.
So, Dad, what kind of
computer should we get?
- Computer?
- Yeah.
These are some of the
things we need to talk about.
I know you wanna work out of
the house, and that's great with me.
I'm telling you, having a computer
is gonna make both of our lives
so much easier.
Well, I don't know how
to work a computer.
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
Must be Conrad.
[DOOR OPENS]
BILLY: Hello, Ben.
- Billy.
[BILLY SNIFFING]
- Chicken and dumplings.
- I ate every last bit.
BILLY: I'd like an
update on Cliff's case.
Not gonna give you one.
Well, what I gave you the other day,
that wasn't money, Ben, that was me.
It's all I got to show for 40-odd
years of blood, sweat, tears and Lucy.
Tell you what, Billy. I'm
gonna give it back to you.
You're dropping my boy's case?
No, I'm dropping you, Billy. I'm
gonna defend Cliff for nothing.
BILLY: My son's no charity case.
- Billy.
You want more, don't you, Ben?
[MATLOCK SIGHS]
Well, here.
- Billy, go somewhere.
- You owe me a progress report!
- I don't owe you anything!
BILLY: Yes, you do!
- I wanna know what's going on!
- Whoa!
Now, Mr. Lewis, why don't
you go to the beach or the bar?
Just relax somewhere, okay?
And we'll see you another time?
- Meathead.
- Mule brain.
So, what kind of
computer do you want?
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[ALL CHATTERING]
Thank you.
Hi. Can I help you?
JACKSON: Checking in.
Jackson. Mitchell Jackson.
Okay.
Okay, everything's in order.
Mr. Jackson, if you'll
just sign right here for me.
The bellman will follow
you up with your bags.
Here's your key. You'll be in
Room 474. Enjoy your stay.
I asked for a room
on the ground floor.
That's odd. Whoever took your
reservation didn't make a note of that.
I'll see what I can do.
I'm sorry, sir, we're all booked. I'm
afraid that's the only room we have.
Whenever I come here, I
always stay in a ground-floor room.
Uh...
- Is there a problem? JACKSON: Yes.
When I made my reservation,
I specifically asked for a room
on the first floor, and now he
tells me that you don't have any.
- And your name is?
- Mitchell Jackson.
I'm afraid that he's
right, Mr. Jackson.
But here's what I'm gonna do.
I'm gonna let you have Room 474
for the two nights you're here
and only charge you for one night.
How would that be?
Well, I guess that'll have
to be all right, won't it?
TUGGLE: Good. And please
accept our apologies for the mix-up.
- That's all right.
TUGGLE: Have a good day.
You too.
The bartender told me they've been
selling these sunglasses for years.
But while the sunglasses
don't change from year to year,
the color of the cord
they sell them with does.
Now, that orange cord the
police found in Room 474,
that was sold three years ago.
Oh.
What's that got to
do with the picture?
Well, the people in this
picture all have green cords.
That's because it was
taken two months ago.
That's the color of the
cord this year, green.
This fellow here
has an orange cord.
Exactly my point.
Now, this picture may not prove
that the sunglasses they found
belong to this guy...
But it's an interesting
coincidence,
- isn't it?
- Right.
Dad. We know him.
This is the guy that took
over as manager of the hotel.
It's Charlie, um, something.
- This guy works here in
the hotel? LEANNE: Yeah.
MATLOCK: Hmm.
So, what do you think, Laura somehow
found out he killed Roland Holloway,
- so he killed her too?
- That's a possibility. Um...
I've gotta take care of
something. I'll see you all later.
- Poor Laura. I talked to the family.
- Mm-hm.
- Are they gonna come down here?
- I think so.
Do you wanna have
lunch in my room?
I have to phone home
and see how the kids are.
Hi.
Hi.
LEANNE: Can we talk?
Please?
I am so sorry.
You mean, you don't think
we're murderers anymore.
I never said that. But
when I found Laura's note...
I wouldn't have thought
what you thought.
I jumped to a stupid
conclusion, and I am so sorry.
You two mean so much
to me, you know that.
I'm sorry.
Leanne.
Everybody makes a mistake.
It's okay.
- Where you been all day?
- Around.
Ben tell you what happened?
Yeah, he told me.
Last thing I wanna do is
take charity from Ben Matlock.
Charity has
nothing to do with it.
He's just sick of you hanging around,
butting in where you don't belong.
A trait I picked up from Lucy.
Come on, Pop, enough of
this Aunt Lucy. I'm sick of it.
I'm just... I'm sick
of it. I'm sick of it.
Called home today.
Talked to Mo.
It rained all last week.
Said he's gonna have to
reseed a couple of his fields.
I'm on trial for my life, Pop.
I don't really care about how
soggy somebody's cornfields are.
I'm just saying,
might be a good idea if I
head on home and help him.
That's all.
If that's what you want.
[STAMMERS]
CLIFF: I don't want you to go.
If you're making a pest of yourself,
it's because you care about me.
That's really good to know.
PROSECUTOR: Now, were lab
tests performed on the blood stain
you found on the passenger's
seat of the defendant's car?
Yes, sir. The lab
concluded that the blood
and the strand of
hair that we found
matched those of the
victim, Roland Holloway.
I see. Now, you also
found a blood stain
a few feet away from the Jacuzzi
at the victim's house, did you not?
Yes, sir. The blood we found
there also matched that of the victim.
Any idea how the
blood got there?
The autopsy showed that
Mr. Holloway had sustained a blow
to the back of the head
sometime before he drowned.
The head wounds
tend to bleed a lot.
Now, lieutenant, as someone who's
served in Homicide for eight years,
how would you explain that
blood stain in the defendant's car?
Well, I'd say the victim,
possibly alive but probably dead,
had been in the defendant's car
sometime after suffering
the blow to the head.
You also found this pin at
the victim's home, did you not?
LIEUTENANT: Yes,
sir, that's my tag.
And were lab tests
performed on the pin?
Yes, sir, we found the
defendant's fingerprints on it.
PROSECUTOR: Now, what does
that say right there, lieutenant?
"Mount Harlan volunteer
fire department."
PROSECUTOR: Mount Harlan.
The defendant's from there?
LIEUTENANT: Yes, sir, he is.
PROSECUTOR: Prosecution
would like to enter this into evidence
- as state's Exhibit Number 4.
- So entered.
PROSECUTOR: Lieutenant,
did you find the pin inside
or outside the victim's home?
We found it outside, approximately
three feet away from the Jacuzzi.
Thank you.
CHANDLER: All
right, Mr. Matlock.
Uh, lieutenant, this
blood you found in my...
Uh, suppose someone went to
the trouble to find my client's car.
Suppose that same someone
took a rag or something
and dabbed some blood from
the wound on the victim's head
and then wiped that
blood on the seat of the car.
Would that stain be consistent
with the stain you found?
I suppose so.
MATLOCK: So it's possible the victim
was never in my client's car after all.
- It's possible, yes.
MATLOCK: Thank you.
[TUGGLE'S ENGINE STARTS]
[CONRAD'S ENGINE STARTS]
[PHONE RINGS]
- Yeah, Conrad.
- Hi. It's Leanne. How's it going?
[OVER PHONE] So far, Tuggle's
been to a donut shop, dry cleaners
and a hardware store
and an outdoor café.
- That's it?
- Afraid so.
[TIRES SCREECH]
Whoa. Damn. A herd of teenagers
just decided to cross the street.
- [OVER PHONE] Did you lose him?
- May have. Come on.
Don't worry about it. Sounds
like having you follow him
was a waste of time.
- That's weird.
- What?
CONRAD: He just pulled
off in front of a mailbox.
It's almost like he
was waiting for me.
- Is he onto you?
- Yeah, it looks like it.
But why doesn't he
just go back to the hotel?
What's with the
wild-goose chase?
I have to go back to the
hotel and make a phone call.
- So I'll see you in a
bit, okay? BETH: Bye.
Bye.
MAN: Right there!
Room 474, please.
[PHONE RINGS]
Hello.
Hello?
[SILENCED GUNSHOTS]
Yeah. Yeah, I'll call it in.
MAN 1: Okay. Yeah? You ready?
Up we go.
- Excuse us. MAN 2: Thank you.
MAN 1: Watch it
around the corner.
- Oh... OFFICER: Police only.
Oh, uh...
OFFICER: No, sir. I'm sorry.
- Lieutenant?
- It's okay, let him
in. OFFICER: Yes, sir.
Well, you were right, something
was going on in the hotel.
- Damn.
- Who was it?
Mitchell Jackson,
executive vice president
of Trans Global Airlines.
Somebody shot him
through the window.
LIEUTENANT: Somebody
with a high-powered rifle.
Probably standing right on
top of that rooftop over there.
Yep. Two shots,
right in the heart.
- Professional.
- Mm-hm.
What in the world
is going on here?
CONRAD: Three
murders in two weeks.
Man, I'm never booking
a room in this place.
[MATLOCK CHUCKLES]
LEANNE: Dad,
take a look at this.
The desk must have
been moved recently.
MATLOCK: Oh.
- I didn't notice that before.
- Before?
Yeah, I came up here
after Laura was killed.
Four-seventy-four.
That guy was shot here,
Laura was pushed
off the balcony here.
Not the best room
in the house, is it?
Not lately.
KATHLEEN: Leanne.
We just heard there's been
another murder at the hotel.
Some executive from an airline.
Whoever shot him is a professional.
Does this have anything
to do with Laura?
LEANNE: Well,
nobody really knows yet.
I bet he does.
Hey. That was some kind of fun
- we had this morning, huh?
- I beg your pardon?
That little scenic tour of
Wilmington you took me on?
I don't know what
you're talking about.
CONRAD: You knew I was
following you, didn't you?
Get out of my way.
That's why you deliberately
led me away from the hotel,
so I wouldn't be underfoot when
the hit went down. That was good.
TUGGLE: Al.
The thing that bugs
me is that it worked.
Escort this man
out, he's trespassing.
He gives you any
trouble, have him arrested.
It ain't over, pal.
- Yes.
- Hi. I'm Ben Matlock.
Yeah, I know who you are.
The fella who accosted you
earlier in the lobby works for me.
- But you knew that too, didn't you?
- Of course not, how could I?
I'd like to talk with you a
little bit about, um, murder.
I don't know anything
about murder.
Well, somebody
around here sure does.
Yeah, your client.
If you don't mind, I got a
lot of work to catch up on.
Well, there was one other thing
I wanted to talk with you about.
- What?
- Well, it can wait.
It'll give you time to think
about it. We can talk later.
In court.
TUGGLE: Key execute.
[COMPUTER BEEPS]
TUGGLE: And it works the same.
Morning, lieutenant,
may I help you?
As a matter of fact, you can.
I need for you to come downtown
with us and answer a few questions.
Concerning?
LIEUTENANT: Concerning
the murder of one of your guests,
Mitchell Jackson.
[SIGHS]
How'd it go at
the police station?
How long have you
been sitting in the dark?
A while.
What happened?
They tried to bluff me into thinking
that they have something on me,
but they don't.
You didn't tell them anything?
No.
Everything's okay.
Everything's fine, Kathleen.
Good.
- Hi.
- Hi.
You're here. We thought
you might be in court.
Oh, no. The judge
recessed at noon today.
He plays golf on Fridays.
- Oh, come on in, sit down.
- How's it going?
Well, nothing sure yet,
but we're beginning to think
the common denominator
in all three of the murders is the
hotel manager, Charlie Tuggle.
- He killed three people?
- Well, he's involved somehow.
This latest victim,
Mitchell Jackson,
was put in Room 474
although he asked for a room
on the ground floor,
supposedly because there
weren't any other rooms,
but other rooms were available.
Somebody tampered
with the hotel computer,
probably the manager.
Room 474 is the room
that Laura was pushed from.
LEANNE: It also happens to be
the perfect place to put someone
if you want a
professional hit man,
armed with a high-powered rifle,
sitting across the street to kill him.
Poor Laura.
- What about Laura?
- I don't know.
Maybe she was having an
affair with Roland Holloway,
and when he was killed,
she started looking around
and found out something
about the murder
that she shouldn't have and
was killed so she wouldn't talk.
I feel sure, and so does my dad,
that Charlie Tuggle
is at the bottom of this.
And when we find out
some solid evidence,
I know he's gonna fold.
You can be sure of that.
Well, we should go. Let
you get some work done.
I know this is a
difficult time for all of us
and an odd time for
us to try to have fun,
but I really think it's
important that we be together.
So, what do you say
we go to the clambake?
- Might as well.
- We'll see you there.
Good. Bye.
KATHLEEN: Bye.
[BAND PLAYING COUNTRY SONG]
MAN [SINGING]: Dirty
deed on top of the deck
Cheatin' on you Was
my biggest mistake
I got my poker face on
And I decide to fold
CLIFF: Did I tell you I got a call from
my fourth-grade teacher, Miss Lewellen?
- What'd she want?
- She had heard what had happened.
You know, a lot of people
from Mount Harlan have offered,
you know, to come
testify on my behalf.
Did you tell her that
character witnesses
- are not in the game plan?
- No. I will.
Actually, Ben, if you
don't mind me asking,
- what exactly is the game
plan? BILLY: Have some.
Come on, if I eat it all up, my gall
bladder will be talking to me all night.
Your gall bladder
ever talk to you, Ben?
Occasionally. I
try not to answer.
Dad, Ben and I are
having a conversation.
Don't talk with your
mouth full of food, son.
What's the matter with you?
LEANNE: Nothing. I'm
just waiting for my friends.
[ALL CHATTERING]
I can't believe I left my
sunglasses back in my room. I'll...
You go on, I'll catch
up with you later.
Okay.
- Hi. Hi, sit down,
Beth. CLIFF: Oh, hey.
Hi. Where's Kathleen?
BETH: Oh, she
forgot her sunglasses.
Take Beth
something to eat, Billy.
[MAN SINGING INDISTINCTLY]
[CLICKS]
LIEUTENANT: Looking
for these, Miss Shelton?
Right down here.
[INAUDIBLE DIALOGUE]
One cool drink
of water, that lady.
We caught her red-handed.
Had the rifle in her hand.
Same rifle that she used
to kill Mitchell Jackson.
Of course, she denies it.
But we all know who
she was aiming at tonight,
don't we, Mr. Tuggle?
I don't know what
you're talking about.
Yeah, you do,
Charlie. Yeah, you do.
See, those sunglasses that we
found in the bushes below Room 474
had your fingerprints
all over them.
I lost those sunglasses
who knows how long ago.
They don't prove anything.
Well, Mr. Matlock
came to me yesterday
and suggested that we
roust you. I went along with it.
And we really weren't
trying to rough you up.
The idea was to spook
whoever you were working with.
And sure enough, as
soon as we let you go,
who's waiting for you?
Heh. Why, it's Miss Shelton.
[LIEUTENANT CHUCKLES]
So we started following her.
We saw her dump the
rifle out at that beach house.
She's a pro, Charlie.
You know, pros work
for people in high places.
Because you're a threat to her,
well, that means
you're a threat to them.
That gun's gonna
be loaded next time.
Make no mistake.
Now,
you wanna talk?
Charlie Tuggle had no proof that
Kathleen killed Roland Holloway?
It's his word against hers.
But we know she killed
Mitchell Jackson, don't we?
Leanne did a good job
of setting her up, huh?
Yeah.
Yeah. It was hard on her.
But she did it. It was
a gamble, you know.
But we figured if Kathleen knew
that we thought that Mr. Tuggle
was in on it, why, she'd go for
him. And we were right, weren't we?
Leanne all right?
Yeah, she's all
right. She's, uh...
It's hard. She's losing two friends,
one one way and one another.
There's got to be something
around here somewhere.
CONRAD: I don't
know, Ben, she's a pro,
and pros don't make mistakes.
MATLOCK: Ah,
everybody makes mistakes.
CONRAD: How are we gonna
prove that she killed Roland Holloway
if we can't prove that
she was here that night?
MATLOCK: Well, I don't
know. I don't know. I don't know.
Maybe we can, Conrad.
Maybe we can.
I understand that you've
recently been charged
with the murder
of Mitchell Jackson
and the attempted murder of
Charles Tuggle, is that right?
Well, that doesn't mean
the charges are true.
See, fortunately, in this country, a
person is innocent until proven guilty.
MATLOCK: Oh, I know that.
I hear you've been down
here vacationing with friends.
- That's right. MATLOCK:
It was your idea
- to come to Wilmington, wasn't
it? KATHLEEN: I believe it was.
MATLOCK: Well, why Wilmington?
Why not Cape Cod or the Catskills?
I like the beach here.
You came to Wilmington because
you were told that Mitchell Jackson,
an executive vice president
of Trans Global Airlines,
the man you were hired to
kill, would be staying here.
- Isn't that the reason?
- Objection.
MATLOCK: How
can you object to that?
She was seen
holding the very rifle
that killed the man
when she was arrested.
Your Honor...
MATLOCK: "Your
Honor" all you want to.
CHANDLER: Now,
Mr. Matlock, watch it.
- Sustained.
- Yes, sir.
Charlie Tuggle is
prepared to testify
that you paid him $100,000 to
make sure that Mitchell Jackson
stayed in a specific room
at the Tropical Surf Hotel.
- Why?
- I didn't do that.
And I have no idea why Mr. Tuggle
would perjure himself like that.
A hundred thousand
dollars is a lot of money
for a man with
not many scruples.
PROSECUTOR: Objection.
- I object myself.
- That was uncalled for.
- Sustained.
Mitchell Jackson was
personally responsible
for the purchase of $420 million
of new aircraft for
Trans Global Airlines.
During a fact-finding trip,
he elected not to buy
the Dynatail Aviation jets
that his associates had recommended,
because he felt they were unsafe.
Dynatail Aviation stood to
gain $420 million in business
if Mr. Jackson were dead.
I believe somebody in that
company paid you to kill him.
Is that a question, Mr. Matlock?
Well, it's why you paid Charlie
Tuggle $100,000, isn't it?
You knew if Mr. Jackson
were in Room 474,
you would have a
perfect shot at him
from the rooftop across
the street, wouldn't you?
Objection, Your Honor. This
is compound, it's irrelevant.
CHANDLER: Sustained.
Am I wrong, or is this trial specifically
about the murder of Roland Holloway?
I'm coming to him.
Proceed at your
own risk, Mr. Matlock.
Roland Holloway found out that
somebody bribed Charlie Tuggle
to make sure Mr. Jackson
stayed in a certain room, didn't he?
Only he didn't know it was you.
And when Mr. Tuggle told you
Mr. Holloway was causing trouble,
well, knowing his weakness
with women, you just seduced him.
Then you waited for the
right moment, you killed him.
- Your Honor...
- Your Honor.
CHANDLER: Are we
going anywhere with this?
You betcha. Sir.
Proceed.
You went over to his house,
got in his Jacuzzi with
him, there on his back porch,
and when he least expected it,
you shoved his head
against the edge to daze him.
Then you pushed his
face down in the water
- and held it there until he died.
- Oh, for heaven's sake.
MATLOCK: Then you
pulled him out of the water,
got him in, dressed,
put him in his van,
drove him to the
beach, and dumped him.
And having overheard the
argument he had with my client,
you sought for and
found Cliff Lewis' car,
spread Roland Holloway's
blood all over the seat.
Then you stole his Mount
Harlan volunteer firefighters pin
so you could plant it at
the scene of the crime.
Mr. Matlock, I would never steal
anyone's volunteer firefighters pin,
under any circumstances.
MATLOCK: This receipt
was found in Laura
Masterson's purse
when she fell to her
death from Room 474.
It shows that Roland Holloway
bought a pair of teardrop gold
earrings the day before he died.
I was convinced that Laura
was having an affair with him,
and I was right. That's why
she was investigating his death.
But I was wrong
about the receipt.
Mr. Holloway must
have been quite a guy.
He was having an
affair with Laura,
and he turned right around and
had an affair with her best friend, you.
These earrings, he
didn't buy for Laura,
he bought them for you, just like
that bottle of complimentary wine
he sent up to your room
the day before he died.
And the roses the
day before that.
At least, according
to the hotel records.
[KATHLEEN SCOFFS]
KATHLEEN: All
right. We had an affair.
A very brief, very
shallow affair.
- You ever go to his house?
- Yes, once.
MATLOCK: When?
A couple days before he died.
- Did you go in his Jacuzzi?
- Yes.
MATLOCK: Was it light out?
Yes.
MATLOCK: People see?
- Heh. Probably.
- Did you go in naked?
- What kind of question...?
MATLOCK: What'd you wear?
- A bathing suit.
Yours? Yours?
Well, I don't... You
wore one he gave you.
This one. Didn't you?
Maybe, yes. I guess I did.
MATLOCK: Well, take a good
look. I want you to be sure.
This is the bathing suit you wore in
his Jacuzzi two days before he died.
As far as I can tell, yes,
that's the suit I wore
two days before he died.
MATLOCK: You're
lying, Miss Shelton.
You were there, wearing
this bathing suit that day.
According to this receipt the
police found in his bedroom,
he purchased this bikini not
days before he died but hours.
He bought it that morning.
The only time you could've
worn this bathing suit,
the one he had just bought,
was that afternoon.
It's what you wore when
you killed him, isn't it?
Reasonable doubt.
That's all I ask for my
client, is reasonable doubt.
The good officers of the
Wilmington Police and the FBI
will investigate and find
out who's behind all this.
And they'll find out who
paid you and how much.
Three lives.
Roland Holloway.
Mitchell Jackson.
Laura Masterson, one
of your oldest friends.
How much were they worth?
BETH: Kathleen?
- Go away.
BETH: We were friends
for years and years.
What happened?
A lot of things happened.
Some people's lives turn
upside down, some don't.
LEANNE: You
were never like this.
How could you?
I made a choice.
- Aren't you even sorry about Laura?
- I don't wanna talk anymore.
- Just go. LEANNE: Kathleen.
No.
Go.
[LEANNE SIGHS]
Wasn't much of
a vacation, was it?
- No.
- We lost Laura and Kathleen.
We'll probably never
know why she did this.
- Do you think Charlie Tuggle will...?
- Tuggle will get his.
- You'll give the kids my love?
- Of course.
I'll miss you.
- Bye-bye.
- Safe trip home.
- Cliff. Congratulations.
- Thank you so much.
Thank you.
I've always wanted a chance
to see your father in action.
I guess I just did, up
close and personal.
Yeah, ha, ha. Well...
- Thank you for everything. Really.
- Okay.
CLIFF: Pop?
Something you wanna say?
Thanks for getting him off.
- Now, how about giving him a job?
- Pop.
Well, my money's no good
to you. He's flat-busted broke.
It's only fair to let
him work off your fee.
Billy, I can't make
any promises.
BILLY: Sounds like
you're ducking it, Ben.
Billy, I've got myself, my
daughter, an investigator.
I'll do the best I can.
Dad, could I talk
to you for a minute?
Maybe we could use Cliff.
He could do the legwork
when Conrad's not around.
He knows how to
use the law library.
I bet he even knows
how to use a computer.
[MATLOCK SIGHS]
And look at him.
You know he's gonna come cheap.
Like I say, we'll
do the best we can.