Murder, She Wrote (1984–1996): Season 11, Episode 19 - School for Murder - full transcript

Hey, Willie, baby.

Takin' you for a
little trip, all right?

Okay. Got it.

Fair exchange is no robbery.

Only if we don't get caught.

Nah.

Look, I'm gonna go
down first and check it out.

And then you can drop
the bag down to me. Okay?

Okay.

See ya.

Seresino?



Professor Nugent!

Breaking curfew again?

Well, no. Well, see, I was
up in my dorm and I was...

I was kinda gettin' a
little hungry and all,

so I was gonna bop on down to Cabot
Cove for about a half an hour just for...

Please. Just save
it for tomorrow.

Professor Purcell may be
more impressed than I am.

Oh, please, sir.
Can't you just, like...

No, I can't! Come on. Let's go.

We serve Prometheus,

who stole fire from the
heavens to serve mankind.

Hail, Prometheus!

Hail, Prometheus!

What is that?



You got it?

Where's the other lowly one?

The creeper busted him.

Due to Mr. Seresino's
customary ineptitude, I imagine.

Nugent's reporting
him to President Purcell.

Are you gonna be
able to help him?

The code of Prometheus, Tyler.

The lowly one fulfilled his
assignment. We protect our own.

Although Seresino is
definitely pushing the envelope.

So, you see, the basic
motivations for murder

really haven't changed much
since those ancient times.

I mean, power,
money, sex, revenge.

But the variations on
these themes are endless.

Now, next time
we'll discuss Wilkie

Collins' landmark novel,
The Woman in White.

Well, is there anything I forgot
to cover, Professor Matthews?

As usual, Jessica,
you didn't miss a beat.

And I learned at least
as much as my students.

Class, let's give a hearty round
of applause to Mrs. Fletcher.

Before you leave, I'd
like to call your attention

to a remarkable
feat of transformation.

Now it seems that last
night while we all slept,

William Shakespeare
morphed into Elvis Presley.

Now, I'm a big fan
of the King of Rock,

but I really revere
the Bard of Avon.

So, if the good genies who
worked this magic wouldn't mind,

I'd like to trade back.
No questions asked.

Thanks, people.

Mike, what happened?

He put it off till
later this afternoon.

He had some urgent
meeting with the trustees.

But, uh, my guess is, how
do you spell "expulsion"?

Not to worry, lowly one. He's
just messing with your mind.

Mike, you did very
well on your essay.

Thank you, Mrs. Fletcher.

Look, I'm sorry I
missed your lecture but...

What's wrong, Mike?

It's nothing a
miracle won't cure.

He's been in trouble

ever since he became a pledge to
that damned Society of Prometheus.

His grades have gone south,
along with his attention span.

I'll tell ya, that club serves no
constructive purpose, except

giving the kids a false
sense of belonging.

Well, maybe the new headmaster
will be able to do something about it.

You're certainly handling
the stress very well, Harry.

Jessica, one doesn't
tap-dance at this institution

without acquiring
some acting skills.

Well, a little more than 24
hours, the suspense will be over.

You can afford the
second thought, you know?

I mean, my dad...

Your dad wants you to be more than
just another Cabot Cove fisherman

like everybody
else in your family.

Yeah.

Well, you know how the drill is.

You're either in or
you're so far out that

you're just a little speck
on the horizon, right?

Yeah. If you're thrown
out, where will you be?

Look, honey...

We can take this, all right.

I mean, we're not the first pledges
to be put through the wringer, are we?

And besides, Colin promised us

that the society will
completely protect us, didn't he?

Harry?

Darling. Sweetheart,
have you heard the news?

Avery Nugent's withdrawn his name
from consideration for headmaster.

Well, I guess Avery figured
he really didn't stand a chance.

Too bad you didn't come to
the same realization, old man.

It'd make the blow easier
to take, don't you think?

All the way around?

I'm sure we can both handle it,
Ryerson, whichever way it falls.

Perhaps you can, Harry.

But I wonder how long she'll
hang on once your prospects fade.

It's not the reason I broke
with you and you know it.

Claire told me about how
she'd had it with your lying, Jim.

That that's why you
left Burnside Academy.

Is that what she
asked you to believe?

Don't let him get
to you, darling.

This was on the
computer bulletin board?

It was staring at me when I
cranked up my machine this morning.

"An agenda for the future of St.
Crispin's Academy, by James Ryerson."

Jessica, look at this.

This is my plan for
changes at the school,

the one I showed you.
Almost word for word.

Oh... Here.

Well, he seems to have
added a few items of his own.

He proposes slashing
the budget for what he calls

"non-essential
courses of study."

Man, the politics around here
make Washington look like a picnic.

Are they always
this vicious, Jessica?

Not in my memory, Irv.

Now, I was going to submit this
when I go before the board tomorrow.

This was the only hard copy.
I had it locked in my desk.

You know, that lock looks as
if it had been tampered with.

It's got some fresh
scratches on it.

Why, the sneaky son-of-a...

Harry! I'm not so
sure it was Ryerson.

A musical question.

Did you ever hear the
creeper creeping? Well, I did.

He was hanging around
late last night when I left.

Well, that might
explain this, Harry.

Ashes from a cigar
in your desk drawer?

Avery Nugent?

But why would he want to help
Ryerson become headmaster?

Sun Tzu was a
philosopher and a general

who led the armies of China
to victory 2,500 years ago.

His strategies are contained in
this remarkable book, The Art of War.

"To succeed it is
necessary to plan secretly,

"to move surreptitiously,

"to foil the enemy's intentions
and balk his schemes,

"so that the day may be won
without shedding a drop of blood."

These, according to Sun
Tzu, are the tactics of victory.

Mr. Forbes!

Yes, sir?

Were we interrupting your
beauty rest, Mr. Forbes?

'Cause it seems that The Art
of War was putting you to sleep.

Not at all, sir. I was up real late,
you know, last night, hitting the books.

Well, some of them may
be about to hit you back.

If you don't score
well on my next test,

then just like the name of
this course, you will be history.

You don't think I listen, but
I do. What you read today,

I agree with a lot of what
that Chinese fellow wrote.

A lot. But not all?

No. For instance,

I believe sometimes that victory
does have to be won by bloodshed.

You know, that is the first
interesting thing I've heard you say.

Good. Let me try
for another one.

After tomorrow, whether it's you or Harry
Matthews that ends up as the headmaster,

Dr. Purcell is still
gonna be your boss.

And he and my grandfather
go back a very long way.

Really? Yeah.

Mr. Forbes, if you
fail my next exam

then I'm sure your
grandfather will want to

know all about my take
on this conversation.

That'll be all, Mr. Forbes.

Well, naturally I'm disappointed,
Sheriff, but thank you anyway.

Oh, Jessica.

Hey, Mrs. F. How's the
annual teaching gig going?

The little monsters
driving you up a wall yet?

Well, so far, only to
the baseboard, Mort.

I'll let you know as soon as
I've got anything, Dr. Purcell.

But like I said, I wouldn't
leap to any conclusions.

Thank you.

Jessica, come in.
Sit down, will you?

Thank you.

I'm afraid I only have a minute.

But you indicated you wish
to discuss young Seresino.

Well, I might've expected it, him
being from right here in Cabot Cove.

Well, his father and
I are very old friends.

Ah, yes. Yes. The fisherman.

Look, expelling Mike would
break his heart and his father's.

Well, Mike should
have thought of that.

You sound as if you've
already reached a decision.

Yes. I have.

Now, Jessica, you're very
friendly with the sheriff.

So you must be aware there's
been a rash of thefts on campus,

both petty and not so petty.

But you're saying that
Mike is responsible?

I was under the impression
that Mort was still looking into it.

Yes, he is.

But my own investigations
lead me to Mr. Seresino.

Uh, Jessica, I'm sorry. Forgive
me. I have another appointment.

Will you excuse me?

Uh, Myles, I have one request.

Would you hold off
for a couple of days?

Give me a chance to
try to get through to Mike.

Well, as a favor to
you, of course, Jessica.

But only two days.

Thank you, Myles.

No, I didn't see him there.

What happened?
You're not expelled?

No!

Just on restriction
till further notice.

Which means I have
to stay inside my room

except for classes, food,
meals and my job, that's it!

Oh, that's fantastic! Yeah!

Uh, good news,
huh? It's all done.

Yeah, it went
okay. Did I tell you?

Now what do you suppose this
show of interest is really about?

When one of our people is
hurting, Tyler, it concerns me.

You understand
that, don't you, Mike?

Careful, Mike. That
sounds like a trick question.

No tricks. Just a
sincere cry for help.

Ryerson is out to bury me, man.

And if I don't score
big on his mid-term,

he's gonna flunk me out and
it is goodbye Harvard Yard.

Yeah? Well, what's this
got to do with me, Colin?

You'll have to make
another midnight run.

I've gotta get an advance
copy of that exam.

You can't, Mike. Dr. Purcell...

Sarah, I can handle this, okay?

Look, Colin, uh,

I really hate to say no
to you but... Then don't.

But I'm gonna have to.

Find another solution
to your problem.

Hold it, Mike. You owe me.

For what?

Who do you think got you
off the hook with Purcell?

Of course he's not gonna
tell you... He already did.

See, it was Mrs. Fletcher
who saved my butt.

Colin, I've just decided you can
take your society and shove it.

Oh!

Come on, Sarah. You're
gonna live to regret that, Tyler.

Mike! Seresino!

Yeah. A nickel on Yale.

A dime on Navy. And another
dime on St. Crispin by 10:00.

No, I just have a hunch.

Yeah. No! I'm supporting
the home team.

Yeah, of course I'm good for it.

Avery? Avery?

Avery?

Avery, I'm talking to you!

I'm not talking to you!

Yes, you are! You
owe me an explanation.

Why did you steal my
material and give it to Ryerson?

I don't know what the hell
you're talking about, Matthews.

Now you let go of me! Excuse me!

Sorry! I'm sorry already.

I thought we were friends,
but... All right! All right!

Hey, come on, you two.

What's the problem?

Nothing, a
misunderstanding, that's all.

It was nothing.

Look, I've gotta go. I've got a
class in about three minutes.

See you at the social, Harry.

Yeah. Of course.

Okay, Mr. Matthews, no games.
What was that really about?

Sheriff, damned if I know.

I'm gonna get you for this.

Barbara, you need a refill.

Face it, Harry, good ideas seem to
float around in the ether at the same time.

It's like back in the 40s,

when physicists were
learning to split atoms.

It's called synchronicity.

That was. This is theft.

I'll tell you what. Why
don't you take your

accusations to Myles
Purcell and the board?

I'm sure they'll be intrigued to
learn the extent of your fantasies.

Look, I'm working.

So am I,

as a guest you should
be extra kind to because

if word gets out who stole that
laptop computer from the math lab...

You did that, all right?

All I did was stand
lookout for you,

'cause you said all you were gonna do
was chalk some graffiti on the blackboard.

Uh-huh. Look, Seresino,
you run this little errand for me,

and I promise you
the laptop computer

won't show up among your
belongings with your fingerprints on it.

Remember the plastic gloves I
said I had to wear 'cause I had a rash?

I didn't have a rash, Mike.

Oh, you wouldn't do this to me.

Believe me, Mike,
I'd hate myself.

But my grandfather would hate
me more if I fail Ryerson's class.

Hey, it's your
choice, lowly one.

Can I get you more punch?

Oh, I would love some.

I don't know, people.

I mean, you write one decent
song, they don't let you forget it.

Well, I certainly haven't.

Love Is Like This was one
of Frank and my favorites.

All right. All right.

Hope I remember it.

Thanks, Mike.

Excuse me.

Mike...

Hey, Jessica. Look I'll
get back to you in a minute.

Uh, Mike. Now. Please.

Listen, I've left several
messages for you.

Yeah. Well, I've been
really busy this week.

I'll get back to you tomorrow,
okay? That may be too late.

Look, Sarah tells me that

Colin Forbes is pressuring you
again to run another errand for him.

Sarah talks too much.

Uh, listen, Mike, I know how
badly you want to succeed here,

to make your father happy.

And I don't believe for a minute
that you're responsible for these thefts

that Sheriff Metzger
is investigating,

but I can't help you
if you don't tell me...

Jessica, I've gotta go, okay?

Thanks, really. I'll be okay.

Sorry.

The kid looks like he's got
about as much hope as I do.

And cigar ash alone
isn't enough to prove

that Ryerson put Nugent
up to steal your paper.

I'm afraid not.

Maybe I could tie Jim down
and torture him into admitting it.

You really should watch where
you're going there, old man.

Leave it alone, all
right. I can take care of it.

Can you?

Mike, you're not thinking about
going along with that creep?

Just leave me alone, please!

All right, what is it?

You know damned well what it is.

It's about you destroying Harry.

Destroying? Aren't we being
a bit melodramatic, Claire?

It's about winning, that's all.

I don't think that's all it is,
not for a New York minute.

Don't flatter
yourself, sweetheart.

Not that I can fault
you for your ego.

You're a very desirable woman,
but we've been over and done with

ever since you decided you needed
a father-figure instead of a lover.

Now you obviously want something,
so I just suggest you get to it.

Jim, what I wanted was for Harry
Matthews to get the headmaster's job,

or not get it, on his merits.

But since that's
no longer possible

because you stole his
paper, and his ideas,

I'm asking you to
do the decent thing

and withdraw yourself
from consideration.

I figured.

Jim, it's been his dream.

It is killing him to lose,
especially this way.

Okay. I could do that. Harry
isn't going to last forever.

But there is a price.

No.

Loyalty. I admire the
hell out of that, Claire.

I'm not asking you to dump him.

We simply become lovers again.

It's better when it's
illicit, don't you think?

God, you really are a pig.

Let go of me, damn it! The
board makes its decision tomorrow.

You have until tomorrow
morning to make yours.

Oh, don't say no, baby.

You just sleep on it.

And when you do, promise me

that you'll think about the way
we were, the way we could be.

I don't have to, Jim.

I'll stop by your
place about midnight.

Hello, Harry.

Credit card bills
for Miss Desmond.

Nothing for you, Harry.

Another catalog for Ryerson.

Envelope for Mr. Nugent.

Oh, I didn't know you knew
anybody at IRS, Avery?

And an envelope from
ASCAP for yours truly.

Yes. Yet another royalty
check for my golden oldie.

Cocktails will be
on moi, kiddies.

Would that I could come
up with a platinum record

someone would keep
paying me for indefinitely.

Amen!

Any news, Harry?
Oh, not a word, Jess.

Harry hasn't been picking up
any of his phone calls, Jessica.

Hello. WOMAN: Is
Harry Matthews there?

Yes, he's here. Would
you like to speak with him?

Well, I'll tell him. Thank you.

President Purcell's
office. He wants to see you.

Both of us?

Just Harry.

Good luck, pal.

So you see, many of
our best mystery novelists

were actually writing out of
their own personal experiences.

How about Jackie Collins?

Well, Miss Collins doesn't
actually write mysteries.

But I understand that she was an actress
before she began writing about Hollywood.

I didn't know that.

Well, Colin, then by accident we
have taught the class something.

Attention, faculty and students.

This is President Purcell
announcing that, effective immediately,

the school board has
selected a new headmaster.

I'm sure you all j join
me in congratulating

Mr. James Ryerson.

Oh! Way to go, Ryerson!

Harry...

I tried calling you all night.

I guess these days,

you just can't count
on anything working out.

No, you don't understand.

I never went to Jim's.

I couldn't.

Thanks.

Probably would've been better if you had.
At least you'd have been with a winner.

Harry, no.

All I ever wanted was you.

And besides, he'll
get his somehow.

Look, this doesn't
change anything.

Nonsense. Everything's changed.

Even Myles Purcell
voted for him, Claire.

A man I've

worked with, I've played bridge and
tennis with for nearly 20 years. And he...

Well, Myles called me into his
office so he could tell me to my face

how he recommended that the
board give the job to Ryerson.

There are other jobs.
There are other schools.

Yeah. And a huge
demand for aging losers.

Harry, no.

Don't turn your
anger against yourself.

Let it out, towards the
man who deserves it.

Let me go with
you, Harry. Please.

I don't know that I like what's
goin' on out at that school lately.

And now these thefts are
escalating beyond just pranks.

I know. I heard. An
expensive laptop computer.

Yeah. Did you manage to have
your little talk with Mike Seresino?

No, and that is as frustrating
as the situation with Harry.

Yeah. I better be goin'.

Isn't that Love Is Like This?

Yes...

Irv Tripler's old recording
from some 20 years back.

Hearing him made me dig it out.

Bringing back a few memories.

I should say.

Sarah? What are you doing here?

Taking a final shot at
talking some sense into you.

Yeah. Well, forget it, all right? Look,
you've gotta get the hell out of here!

No. I'm not going unless you do.

Mike, this can ruin your chances
of ever getting into a decent college.

It could ruin your
life, for God's sake.

Let Colin do his own dirty work.

He doesn't have to. He's got me.

He's bluffing.

He cannot blame that computer theft
on you without incriminating himself.

I can't take that chance
right now, all right?

If I get him a copy of Ryerson's
test, he gives me back the laptop.

I wipe it clean, I put it back and then
I'm safe and through with Colin forever.

Fine. Then I'm helping you.

Looks like they were celebrating
Mr. Ryerson's promotion.

Yeah.

They party hearty, don't they?

Mike!

It's Mr. Ryerson.

What should we do?

For starters, we should
get the hell out of here!

Come on.

Come on. We need
that over here now.

Can't I just go to my desk
and get my lesson plans?

It's just right there on top.
I won't touch anything else.

Sorry, Mr. Tripler, no one's
allowed into the crime scene

until the forensic
team signs off.

So you discovered the body
at 6:30 when you came to work.

Do classes start that early?

I have trouble sleeping.

The door was locked.

No. I have a key. We all do.

When I came in, my first thought
was that the place had been burglarized

and then I saw Mr. Ryerson.

Excuse me, Sheriff.
It's Mrs. Fletcher.

Harry Matthews just
showed up on her doorstep.

Gotcha.

Ah, I was drinking up
at the Blue Raven Inn.

I think they closed
around midnight.

I guess I got in my car

somehow, I remember
thinking I shouldn't be driving.

Anyway, I

must've pulled off
the side of the road

and fallen asleep or passed out.

And that's where I woke up
this morning out on Route 17.

Ryerson was killed between
midnight and 3:00 a.m.

Well, I'm afraid that's the best
I can do in the alibi department.

How was he killed?

He was struck on the side of
the head by a heavy pointed object

that broke his skull.

We haven't been able
to find the weapon yet.

Was there a struggle?

Well, enough to knock
over some things in his office.

I seem to have skinned
my knuckles somewhere.

You have any better
suspects than me, Mort?

Not so far, Harry.

Looks like a lot of
Ryerson's files are missing.

Yes. Including a blue file

that Mr. Ryerson tried to conceal from
me yesterday when I walked past him.

Mort, you said that the office
door lock had been picked.

Yeah. Oh, yeah.

That's good. This lock, uh...
This lock was forced, not picked.

Meaning the intruder
was either in a hurry or...

Or there was more
than one intruder.

Now the struggle happened here.

Mr. Ryerson was hit or pushed

and when he fell back onto this
desk everything went on the floor.

Yeah. Co-mingling with the
debris from Ryerson's party.

We bagged
everything for the lab.

Well, not quite.

Uh, looks like it's from some
kind of a mechanical device.

Well, in a way, you're right.

It's from a little,
tiny bicycle.

Say again, Mrs. F?

So why'd you ask
us to come here for?

Because a deal's a deal,
exactly as I promised.

Now I think all
your prints are off.

But you're welcome to
rub some more if you want.

Yeah. But I never
brought you the exam.

I'm not asking any questions.

I hear a bunch of
Ryerson's files are missing,

including his grade
book and his mid-term.

So, I guess everyone's
passing history this year, huh?

Well, now wait a second.

You don't think that
I killed Mr. Ryerson?

Stuff happens, Seresino.

I'll be accepted at Harvard
way before they sort all this out.

Yeah. Well, suppose that I tell you I
never went near the building last night.

Tyler here, have a couple of clones
running around the campus at night.

But whatever you say,
you guys were acting like

true members of
the society last night.

We protect our own.

Even you, Tyler.

It's a pity you've
chosen to reject us.

Come on, Mike.
Let's get out of here.

Yeah. Get this back
to where it belongs.

By the way, Colin, what were
you doing out there last night?

The reason we asked you
to stop by, Sarah, is that

I recovered something of yours
and I wanted to return it to you.

It's this tiny wheel. I believe
it's off your charm bracelet.

Yes. From this
little, tiny bicycle.

The sheriff and I found it.

In the faculty office.

You were there last night.

I was gonna steal
Mr. Ryerson's mid-term exam.

But when I got inside
Mr. Ryerson was dead.

I got scared, so I ran.

And I was too scared to
tell anyone I was there.

I'm so sorry.

And who was with you, Sarah?

No one.

It was me.

Nice try, Sarah.

Thanks. But, uh, I'm the
one you guys need to talk to.

It's me who broke into
the faculty office last night.

For Colin Forbes?

Uh, yeah. He was forcing me to.

Miss Tyler is still an
accomplice, okay?

Now tell me what the two of you saw
when you went inside. And tell me exactly.

Well, we didn't turn on the
lights, but we had a flashlight.

And we could see right away the place was
pretty messed up from Mr. Ryerson's party.

You know, there was
stuff all over the floor.

Um, a phone...

Papers, trash, a wastepaper
basket had been kicked over.

Yeah. There were
test papers, um...

Pencils, Mr. Tripler's
framed platinum record.

That desk blotter.

And Mr. Ryerson.

Did you happen to notice if
Mr. Ryerson's file drawer was open?

Oh, I don't think so.

No, not when we
were in there at least.

No.

Well, I want to thank
you for coming by, Mike.

Actually, I was just about
to go looking for you.

We lifted a thumbprint off the office
door lock that the DMV identified as yours.

I guess I'm not as
smart as I thought I was.

This is gonna get me kicked
out of St. Crispin's, isn't it?

Well, it's interesting. I just
got a call from St. Crispin's.

Seems that a laptop computer
that they'd reported stolen

was returned, anonymously.

Besides, so many people going
in and out of that office that it'd be

kinda hard to pinpoint exactly
when you touched the lock.

It should never have
gone anywhere else.

The job should be yours.

I hope you will accept mine
and the board's apology.

Myles, Jim Ryerson
victimized both of us.

Hmm, and apparently
a lot of other people.

Anyway, the board has
unanimously authorized me

to offer you the
post of headmaster.

I very much hope
you'll accept, Harry.

Of course.

Come in.

I hate to barge in on you, gentlemen, but
I thought you'd like to know, Dr. Purcell.

We just found a bunch of
Mr. Ryerson's missing files,

several of 'em with
blood smears on 'em.

Where'd you find them?

In your locker, Harry.

I wish I didn't have to do this.

But I'm gonna have to hold you
for the murder of Jim Ryerson.

Ah, look, Mrs. F, I don't like it adding
up this way any more than you do.

But motive, both Harry and
Ryerson wanted the same job.

Ryerson wins it.

By trickery and deceit.

Opportunity, Harry's
got less than no alibi.

Witnesses down at the Blue Raven
heard him threatening to kill Ryerson.

And he leaves the bar early
enough to commit the murder.

And how about those knuckles,
skinned like they'd been in a fight.

And now we find missing
items from Ryerson's files

hidden in Harry's
locker with blood on it.

Look, Harry could've skinned
his knuckles almost anywhere.

Okay, but let's say that
Harry walks into the office,

Ryerson is there.

One ugly word leads to another.

Excuse me, Mort, but
why is that folder blue?

Blue? Oh. It's state police.

A case we're
working on together.

We do our folders in
brown, they do blue. Why?

Well, that's the kind
of file that Mr. Ryerson

was trying to
conceal the other day.

Only his was worn
and much older.

Okay.

Let's assume for a minute that Harry
never went back to the faculty office.

And that Mike and
Sarah are telling the truth.

Well, that would mean a
third party put the bloody files

in Harry's locker
to implicate him.

Perhaps. Mike and
Sarah enter the office,

start to look for Ryerson's
exam, and discover the body.

In all the chaos.

And then they run out of
there as fast as they can.

You know, they said Colin
Forbes saw them afterwards.

Let's see. Sarah.

"Afterwards he said we looked
like a couple of scared rabbits."

That's it, Mrs. F.

Colin Forbes had to be in that
room because he killed Ryerson.

And he heard Mike
picking the lock,

so he had to hide right there
in the office until they left.

Judge Phillips? Yes,
this is Sheriff Metzger.

I need a search
warrant in a hurry.

This looks like the lost and found
of everything that's disappeared

from around here in
the past six months.

Sheriff, everyone in the
society uses this safe.

Including Mr. Ryerson's exam.

I don't know how it got there.

Sure, you don't.

Wanna bet your
fingerprints aren't on here?

Okay.

I broke into the faculty office,

because I didn't trust that chicken-hearted
Seresino to go through with it.

Before I could get in there
I see Mike and Sarah Tyler

come running out empty-handed
and I figured I had no choice.

So I pried open the file cabinet
and I looked through his files.

And when I finally
saw Ryerson's body,

I dropped the folders 'cause
I was so damned surprised.

Now my first thought was that
I'd better take the folders with me

because my fingerprints
were all over them.

And to make sure
nothing pointed at you,

you wiped your prints clean

and planted the folders
in Harry Matthews' locker.

It was unlocked and...

Only you held onto this
exam just in case, huh?

But this was your insurance.

I was 16, drunk,

and where I shouldn't have been,

behind the wheel of a car.

Next thing I knew, the car
was wrapped around a tree,

and a 12-year-old-girl...

She never walked again.

My family moved in with
their wealth and influence.

And the whole thing
was hushed up, forgotten.

Until Jim Ryerson did some digging and
came up with this old state police report.

So he used the report
to blackmail you?

Jessica...

I've devoted my whole career
trying to atone for that mistake.

All the good I may have
done, all the young minds

I've tried to shape, would
have ended in a blink

if Ryerson had dragged
out that old horror story.

God, how I detested that man.

Enough to vote for him.

But not enough to kill him.

One destroyed life is my limit.

I'm returning this
file to the state police.

I'm sure they'll put it back in storage
like the ancient history that it is.

Thank you.

Thank you for coming by, Doctor.

Jessica. Myles.

You still haven't found
the murder weapon, Mort?

Nope. But I figure a few hours and
Colin Forbes will fill in the blanks.

Anyway, I'd better get going.

Andy insisted I let him
play bad cop this time.

And I'm not sure how
long he can maintain it

without feeling
sorry for the prisoner.

Ah, here. Here it
is. Mike's statement.

"We just stood there
looking at the mess.

"The stuff on the floor included
test papers, pencils, stapler,

"that framed record."

Uh-huh.

"A desk blotter..."

So?

That framed phonograph record

is hanging right
there on the wall.

Well, then why would Mike and
Sarah say they saw it on the floor?

Maybe because they did.

I wonder where it was when
Colin Forbes was in the office?

Tenths.

Tenths?

I know who killed Jim Ryerson.

And I've been
looking right at it.

Jessica.

Oh, hello, Irv.

How was boys' choir practice?

How did you know where I was?

The writing on the wall.

That's a hell of a title for a
song. The Writing on the Wall.

Well, it's yours. I won't even
ask to share in the royalties.

Even if you write it.

Excuse me, but why do I get the
feeling that you're talking in code?

Well, let me try to be clear.

It wasn't Avery Nugent who stole
Harry's "Agenda for the Future" material

and gave it to Jim
Ryerson, it was you.

You who planted the cigar ashes.

Never heard that tune before, but if
you hum a few bars, maybe I could play it.

Why would I do that?
Harry's my friend.

He's my best friend
here at St. Crispin.

And you betrayed him because
Jim Ryerson was blackmailing you.

Me?

About what? My
life's an open book.

I've been teaching
music for 14 years.

I'm an established composer, I've got a
platinum record, a Grammy award and...

"Commemorating the sale of a
million copies of Love Is Like This.

"Words and music
by Irv Tripler."

Quite an accomplishment.

Thank you.

You know, when Mike
Seresino and Sarah Tyler

broke in and
discovered the body,

there was clutter from
Mr. Ryerson's struggle with his killer.

Mike and Sarah remembered
that this was on the floor.

And yet the next morning, when the
sheriff got here, it was back on the wall.

So?

So I believe that the killer was still
here when Mike and Sarah came in.

I mean, he had just
murdered Mr. Ryerson.

But he had to wait for them
and then for Colin Forbes to leave

so that he could wipe this
clean and put it back up...

All right! Give me that!

Hold it right there, Mr. Tripler,
or whatever your name is.

My name? What the
hell are you talking about?

The fact that
you're an imposter.

Now the real Irv Tripler
died 16 years ago.

You took his name and kept
collecting the royalties on his hit song.

Now that is criminal fraud.

That's what Mr. Ryerson had on
you and that's why you killed him.

All that may be true, but it
doesn't make me the killer.

No, it doesn't. Except that an
eyewitness has come forward.

One who saw you
coming out of this office

a minute or two
after Colin left.

When you played Love Is Like
This at the reception the other night,

it prompted me to dig out this
old recording and listen to it.

You know, after 20 years,
I'd forgotten how distinctive

the real Irving Tripler's
piano style was.

Irv Tripler had enormous hands,

enabling him to play tenths,
an octave plus two notes.

Like from C to E.

No way those paws of
yours could do that, pal.

I knew I shouldn't have let
them talk me into playing.

Irv Tripler was
such a gentle man.

He used to come and sit at the
piano bar where I played in Cincinnati

and we became friends.

He had no family and when
he got sick, I took care of him.

And his money.

Not the way you think.

I forged his signature on royalty
checks to pay for his medical bills.

And you never reported his death
to the Music Composers Society.

No.

And then except for the royalty checks,
things weren't going so great for me,

so I started teaching music.

As Irv Tripler.

They never would've
hired Joey Mallo.

I love teaching, Jessica.

I use that royalty
money on my students.

I take 'em to concerts. I
buy them records and tapes,

enriched their lives, sort of.

And Irv would've liked that.

And somehow Ryerson found out.

Well, when Jim was a kid
he saw Irv Tripler perform.

At first, he just wanted me to steal
Harry's material, and I hated doing that.

But it was the
price of his silence.

And then after he
became headmaster,

Ryerson said he was gonna cut
way back on the music department.

But why? I did what you wanted.

Because your department
is expendable, that's why.

And because it's politically
correct these days.

You're through around here!

I couldn't believe
what was happening.

Something in me snapped.

No!

So who's your eyewitness?

There wasn't any.

For a while, I didn't think
I'd ever be here again.

So the new headmaster is
going to keep teaching classes?

He's going to be a very
unusual headmaster.

Hi, Professor Matthews. Hi.

Did you see your
welcome home present?

Why no. What... Well, he's back!