Murder, She Wrote (1984–1996): Season 8, Episode 20 - Angel of Death - full transcript

MARTIN: The peace
and serenity of Carmel?

FEMALE NARRATOR:
Tonight on Murder, She Wrote.

Mrs. Tremaine cut her
throat with a straight razor.

Vivian has come
back. Vivian is dead.

JESSICA: You have got to deal
with this or be destroyed by it.

They killed my mother.

You're not suggesting
I sleep with Martin.

Don't let the old bastard
take advantage of you.

(GLASS SHATTERING)
What was that?

Strange things have
been going on in the house.

No! No!



(SCREAMING)

(WOMAN SINGING)

(PHONE RINGING)

Hello? MARTIN: Jessica.

Martin?

Yes, dear.

(STUTTERING) Are you involved in
anything terribly important at the moment?

Only the drudgery
of proof sheets.

Look, I think I'd rather
be at the dentist's office.

Oh. You finish your book
and send it off to the publisher

and let your creative
juices ferment again.

A play hangs over your head

like the sword of Damocles
until the reviews come in.

Ah, is that why I didn't get a
card from you at Christmas?



Are you working on another play?

Finished it. Well, at
least I think I have.

Which is really why I
wanted to talk to you.

I want you to read it, Jessica.

I've always relied
on your opinions.

(EXCLAIMING)
Oh, I'd be delighted.

Would you think of sending
me a copy by express mail?

No, no. I really want to
talk to you about it in person.

Is there any way you could just slip
out here to Carmel for a few days?

Oh.

It sounds very tempting, Martin.

But, you know, I'm up to my
eyeballs with these proof sheets.

Well, bring them with you.

What better place to work on them
than the peace and serenity of Carmel?

Please come out, Jessica.
I really need to talk to you.

Is everything all right, Martin?

No, no, it isn't.

But I can't talk about
it on the telephone.

Please come out,
Jessica. I need to see you.

Martin, darling, Angel Of Death

is absolutely the best
thing you've ever written.

I mean, talk about powerful.

It's going to blow them
right out of their seats.

Even in New York right
now, they're excited about it.

Not a word in the papers.
Already everybody knows.

But I gotta be honest
with you, Martin.

I mean, as the director, as your
closest friend, it still needs something.

Yeah. Yeah, so you've
been saying, Barney.

It's just... It's so down.

People aren't going to
want to pay 50 bucks a seat

and walk out of the theater
depressed, even if it is art.

I mean, great art, you know.

Well, Barney, of course if you
don't think you can direct it...

Martin, The Devil's Anvil
was a lock for the Pulitzer.

Everybody said so. It
closed after 43 performances.

Look, if you can't
give them happy,

at least you can give them hope.

Martin, I do think it
would be so much better

if I didn't die in
the second act.

Really?

Look, even Carol agrees.
And she's an actress.

She's got instincts
about these things.

Look, I've got
some ideas, Marty.

I'd like to show you my notes.

Angel Of Death will probably be the
last major work that I will ever write.

I don't want to have it fixed.

Just to sell more tickets.

Marty, I'm talking
to you as your friend.

Closest friend.

Look at Vivian. If she were
alive, she'd tell you the same thing.

Leave Vivian out of it.

My God, can't you
leave her out of it?

Courtney? I'm sorry,
dear, you startled me.

I thought you'd gone to bed.

Cook just told me you
invited Jessica Fletcher.

Jessica. Yes, yes. She'll
be arriving tomorrow.

It would be so much easier for me to manage
the house for you, since mother died,

if you would tell
me these things.

Oh, I'm sorry, dear. It
just slipped my mind.

No, you couldn't have
been a bigger help to me

if you were my
own flesh and blood.

It's just that Uncle
Alex is coming down

from San Francisco tomorrow.

I'd made plans.

Oh, that's fine. Fine. You and
Alex do whatever you want to do.

He and I don't
seem to have much...

Much to talk about lately.

Are you feeling all right?

Oh, yes.

(STUTTERING) I'm just a little

(STUTTERING) tired, I
guess. I think I better go to bed.

Good night. Good night.

(MUSIC BOX CHIMING)

(WOMAN SINGING)

(EXCLAIMS)

Oh, my God!

(GRUNTS)

Christ Jesus.

So with the bottle in
his dressing room empty,

Burton decided to nip over across
the street, to the little bar there,

for a couple of shooters
during intermission.

But the stage door man

wouldn't let him go out of the
theater with his wardrobe on.

So Burton stood there and
took off his Roman helmet

and his breastplate
and his short sword.

Now, the bar across the
street is a working man's bar,

truck drivers, cabbies,
that sort, you know.

So when Burton made
his entrance in full makeup,

his calf-length Roman sandals
and his short Roman tunic skirt...

Well, heads turned,
let me tell you.

So, Burton held up his hand and
said, "Well, what's the matter here?

"I mean, can't a service man
get a drink in this place, eh?"

(MILD LAUGHTER)

Well, there's port in the
library, for those who'd like.

Do you get out to the coast
very often, Mrs. Fletcher?

Well, as often as I can.

Oh, please call me Jessica.

I was out of the
country when Vivian died

and I couldn't make
it to the funeral.

I'm really very sorry.

Thank you. Vivian and I were the
only children. We were very close.

Of course it's difficult on Courtney,
losing her mother that way.

Hmm. Well, I'm sure Courtney
appreciates you staying so close.

I can see that she has a
very special affection for you.

Are you staying over?

Just tonight.

I have to drive back to San
Francisco tomorrow afternoon.

A good lawyer shouldn't stay
too far away from his clients.

They might find out that
they don't really need us.

(CHUCKLING)

Well, now that you've met
everybody, it's time to go back to work.

Now, Martin, you invited
me for a quiet weekend

and then deliver me
into a house full of people.

Well, if I had told you the chaos I
live in, would you have come here?

Of course not.

Well, I'm beginning to wonder if
I'll ever get to correct my proofs.

Well, forget your
proofs for a while.

Take this, find a quiet
place, read it and we'll talk.

Hello!

Mrs. Fletcher, you
seem to have found

one of the loveliest
spots on the grounds.

Next time, bring
some breadcrumbs.

For the squirrels.

Oh, yes.

They were already
here, complaining.

Mrs. Fletcher, this is
my friend, Joe Connors.

How nice to meet
you, Joe. Howdy.

Joe, Mrs. Fletcher writes
those wonderful mystery books.

I don't get much
time for reading.

Well, Martin has all her books.

I'll get one and you can
read it to me sometime.

Yeah, that'd be great.

Well, I'd better
get back to work.

I'll stop by again soon, Lisa.

It was nice to meet
you, Mrs. Fletcher.

Thank you.

What a nice young man.

Joe's a good friend.

He stops by now and
then to see that I'm all right.

Am I interrupting your work?

Oh, no. No, not at all.

I was just reading
Martin's play.

Why don't you come
and sit next to me?

It's nice to have an opportunity
to get better acquainted.

I just marvel at how...

Well, how well that you manage.

It took a while to get over
feeling sorry for myself.

But I'm learning every day.

And Martin's been a great help.

Since the accident, he's let
me stay here in the cottage.

Made me feel like
one of the family.

The accident?

The automobile accident.

That's how I lost my
sight. About a year ago.

But I keep busy.

I have my sculpting. I
see with my hands now.

That sounds fascinating.
I'd love to see your work.

Oh, come around to the cottage
anytime. I'm almost always there.

I will. Thank you.

Good. I'd like that.

Well, what did you think of it?

(CHUCKLES)

Martin, when we first talked
on the phone in New York

and you told me that
something was wrong,

to be honest, that's why I came.

And having read Angel Of
Death, well, I'm glad I did.

You hated it.

No. No, no, no, it's
a very powerful play.

I was very moved
by it and troubled.

It's so dark.

So devoid of hope.

Well, that's life.

I mean, that's
truth, as I see it.

Yes, but that's what
troubles me, Martin.

I mean, your main character,
Mallory, he seems totally driven by guilt.

(SIGHS)

And I've known you long enough,
Martin, to recognize who Mallory is.

Oh, dear. Oh, dear.

I was hoping it wouldn't
be that transparent.

I've been trying
to come to grips

with my feelings since
Vivian killed herself.

Yes, and that's what bothers
me so much about Angel Of Death.

There's so much pain
that's still unresolved.

Well, this would be the last
thing I will have ever written.

Well, I certainly
hope not, Martin.

Well, that's why I
had to talk to you.

I have very little time left.

You see, Jessica,
I'm losing my mind.

Very rapidly, I'm going insane.

Martin, you are clearly
under a great deal of stress.

But, look, in my experience,

people who are really
losing their minds are...

Well, usually, the last to know.

Now, have you
consulted a doctor?

Doctors? About this?

Oh, my God. No, no,
of course not. It's...

But...

Jessica, it's far
beyond doctors. But...

You know the kind
of a life I've led.

Early immediate success.

Oh, God, what a curse.

I've lived a life filled
with artistic arrogance,

filled with total and
complete selfishness.

Everyone who has ever loved
me, I have completely destroyed.

Martin, I have respected your work
all the years that I have known you,

but I have to be honest.

What I'm hearing from you now
sounds more like self-pity than insanity.

Very bravely put,
as a true friend.

But you see, you don't
know, you just don't know.

Vivian has come back.

Martin, Vivian is dead.

And she has come
back to punish me.

I killed her, Jessica.

Martin, Vivian
committed suicide.

I am totally responsible.
Jessica, I have seen her.

Seen her? Where?

Here! Here in the house! Upstairs,
in the hallway, out in the woods.

Not in my dreams, Jessica.

While I'm awake.

Martin, you have got to deal
with this or be destroyed by it.

You have got to see someone.

Yes, that's why you're here.

Thank God you've come.

You look frazzled,
Courtney. Are you all right?

I'm fine, Uncle Alex.

It's just that, well,

running a house for a
literary legend is a full-time job.

Yeah, well, don't let the old
bastard take advantage of you.

He's been a
user all of his life.

Don't worry about me.

You know, Mother never
learned how to stand up to him

and she paid the price.

But I'm stronger than he is,
whether he knows it or not.

I believe you're right.

How's Philip doing?
Behaving himself?

He's fine.

A little underemployed,
but that suits him.

Looking after Martin's investment
portfolio isn't exactly a career,

but it keeps him
from straying too far.

Well, I just wish the two
of you would get out of here

and just make a
life of your own.

We will. Soon.

Oh, hello.

How's Martin?

Well, he was
feeling a little tired.

He thought he'd take a nap.

I was just coming to try to find
you, so I could say goodbye.

I'm going to hit the road
back up to San Francisco.

Try to beat the traffic.

You know, if
you're ever up there

I wish you'd give me
a call. I'm in the book.

Well, thank you. Perhaps I will.

Bye-bye. See you soon.

Courtney, I'm a little
worried about Martin.

Have you noticed
anything that, well,

that might suggest that
he wasn't feeling well?

No, nothing special.

He seems older
since my mother died,

but that's
understandable, isn't it?

Yes.

Vivian's death must have been
very difficult for you, too, Courtney.

More than you could
imagine, Mrs. Fletcher.

But I've come to terms with it.

Yes. Well, I'm going to try
and find a comfortable spot

and get to work on my papers.

(GASPS)

You're on my property!

Well, I'm sorry,
but I didn't know.

Call off your dog, please.

(DOG BARKING) Come!

I thought I was on Martin
Tremaine's property.

(SIGHING) Frightened
the wits out of me!

Tremaine's property
ends there at that tree.

Well, I'm very sorry.

I assure you, I didn't
mean to intrude.

(CLEARS THROAT)

Tell Tremaine it's no good
sending infiltrating patrols!

General Stark's
perimeter is well defended!

COURTNEY: What are
you getting at, Philip?

Do you have any idea what this
place is worth these days, darling?

No, but I'm sure you do.

You should take more interest
in your stepfather's affairs.

He's gonna leave it all to
us. I've seen the papers.

I've seen the will, too, Philip,

and I don't remember
seeing your name on it.

Share and share alike.

Why don't you let
me help you relax?

You smell like a brewery.

And I've got some
things to do downstairs.

Martin, you really should put a
sign on your property line, you know.

Someone could
step on a land mine.

I wouldn't give that
old idiot the satisfaction.

Martin, what you were
telling me this afternoon,

I think you should see someone.

Talk to a professional.

A shrink?

Well, you could start
with a thorough check-up.

I mean, it might be
stress. It might be organic.

But one thing I do know,
you mustn't ignore it.

Well, let's talk
about it tomorrow.

Oh, my dear, I feel so much
better just having you here.

I think we could both do
with a good night's sleep.

I'll see you in the morning.

Good night.

I'll just finish my brandy.

(MUSIC BOX CHIMING)

(GRUNTS)

(WOMAN SINGING)

No! No! No!

No! No!

Martin?

(KNOCK ON DOOR)
Martin, are you all right?

Did you see her?
Did you see her?

Who?

Vivian! She was
here. Oh, my God.

Martin, please,
try to calm yourself.

She'll never forgive me.

What happened? She'll
never give me any peace!

Never, never!

What's the matter?
Martin, are you all right?

Were you having
another bad dream?

(STUTTERING)
Yes, that's what it was.

It must have been a bad dream.

Well, Courtney, did you see
anything outside or on the stairs?

No.

Perhaps you better take
one of those sedatives

that Dr. Blankenship
prescribed for you.

(STUTTERING) Oh, Jessica,
I'm terribly sorry about all this.

Martin, tell me what happened.

No, not now.

You've broken
Mother's music box.

(STUTTERING) Oh, yes, it...

It slipped out of
my hand. I'm sorry.

That should help make you sleep.

Which is, I think,
what we all need.

I'm just dreadfully sorry
about all this, Jessica.

I'll be all right now.

Good night, Martin.

Yeah, good night,
dear. Good night.

Good night, Martin.

(DOG BARKING)

(WOMAN SCREAMING)

WOMAN: No, please.
Somebody help me!

Did you hear that?

Somebody screamed
out there. Yes!

(BANGING ON DOOR)

Oh, Lisa.

For God's sake, help me.

What's the matter?

I don't know, but something
terrible's happened in the cottage!

Barney, I think we
better go take a look.

See if you can
find a flashlight.

Courtney, look
after Lisa for me.

Okay. Okay, come on.

Is there a light switch?

It's Philip.

Yes, ma'am. Thank you very much.

Miss Ryder, let's see, now.

You were asleep in the cottage.

What time did we
say it was? About 1:00.

I'd been asleep when
something woke me.

I can't be sure what it was.

Some noise?

Could it have been
a dog barking?

Possibly. I heard
someone moving around.

Then something touched
me. I was terrified.

Then what happened?

I'm not exactly sure.
Everything happened so fast.

Something was knocked over and
then I heard a gasp, a terrible moan.

I'm not sure what happened next.

I think I started screaming.
I had to get out of there,

but I tripped over something on
the floor and I ran to the house.

Yes, ma'am. You mentioned
something about a knife for cutting clay.

Yes. I think it was probably
an old butcher knife.

Mrs. Fletcher, did you
see that knife out there?

No, no.

Sheriff, I just went
over everything again.

There's no knife out
there in the cottage.

Whoever did it probably
took it with them.

Well, it could be one of
those drifters up the beach.

Miss Ryder, can you give me a reason
why Philip Stoddard was in your cottage

the night he was murdered?

No.

Philip was nice.

He used to come around
sometimes to talk, just being friendly.

But never at night.
Nothing like that.

Yes, ma'am.

Well, that sure is a
puzzlement now, isn't it?

I... I have to call Uncle Alex
and tell him what happened.

You haven't had any sleep. Maybe
you should just rest for a while.

I know that you really must
be feeling bad, Mrs. Stoddard.

I hate to do this, but there's one
more question that I need to ask you.

Do you know of any reason

why your husband would be at
Miss Ryder's cottage at night?

No.

I woke up when I heard
the commotion and...

And I realized he
hadn't come to bed.

Did he ever go for a walk?

Sometimes. Not very often.

Well, now, we've got to
consider every possibility.

Maybe he went for a
walk and saw a drifter

and maybe the stranger
was trying to get in the cottage.

Thank you, ladies.

Sheriff.

Yes, ma'am? Did you forget
to tell me something before?

Well, not exactly. It's...

It's just that Martin told me

that strange things have
been going on in the house.

Like what?

Well, it's a bit awkward, but
Martin said that he saw somebody,

somebody who was
wandering around in the house,

out in the grounds, and
he saw her last night.

Her?

MARTIN: Lisa? Lisa? Lisa.

(MARTIN GROANING)

Jessica. Jessica,
you've got to warn Lisa!

(GASPING) Vivian
is trying to kill Lisa!

Call a doctor right away.

Yes, ma'am.

JESSICA: Well, they've
taken Martin to the clinic.

The doctor says
he's going to be fine.

He thinks it's just a
case of stress and fatigue.

I'm glad to hear that.

They've given him
something to make him sleep,

so I couldn't talk to him.

You know, Sheriff, something
very strange is going on.

Yesterday Martin told me that
he thought that he was going mad.

That he'd seen Vivian.

Of course, I don't happen
to believe in ghosts.

Me, neither.

Not the kind that walk
around in human form.

But I've seen the kind
that live in people's heads.

Tremaine really took his wife's
suicide hard, Mrs. Fletcher.

Sheriff McAllister, I was in Europe
when Vivian took her own life.

Do you have any
idea why she did it?

Well, most people kill
themselves out of despair.

They can't face
something, they can't go on.

Yes.

And I heard that Tremaine
collected conquests.

You know what I mean.

Well, yes, I heard
the same thing.

In the old days.

The suicide was gory.

Mrs. Tremaine cut her throat
with a straight razor in his bathroom.

He found her.

Oh, how awful. I didn't know.

It was never in the newspapers.

Well, they kind of hushed it up.

You know, if he's
starting to see things,

I kind of understand it.

Well, perhaps.

But I can't help but think that
somebody is nudging him along.

Now, his stepdaughter, Courtney,
has been giving him these capsules.

On the label, it says
generic sedative.

Would it be possible
to have those analyzed?

I'll be happy to, ma'am.

You suppose this has
something to do with

Stoddard's murder,
Mrs. Fletcher?

I think it's possible.
Thank you, Sheriff.

Thank you.

JESSICA: I bet you've
got some ideas of your own

about this murder.

Wouldn't surprise
me if it was his wife.

Courtney? Hmm.
Any special reason?

From what I saw, you know,
just stopping by once in a while,

it's like she was on
his case all the time.

And Philip Stoddard,

nothing I could
put my finger on,

but I got the feeling
he had the eye for Lisa.

Hmm.

Did Lisa ever tell you
anything about Philip?

No.

Lisa's still kind of jammed
up about being blind.

It's kind of like she's
closed herself off to men.

Well, she seems
to like you, Joe.

(CHUCKLES)

I've asked her out
a couple of times.

But like she told me. She's
not ready yet to get involved.

Well, thanks for the lift, Joe.

Yes, ma'am.

Jessica, is it true?

I'm afraid so, Alex.

Do they know who killed Martin?

What exactly did
Courtney tell you?

Nothing.

All I got was a short message from my
service that said there'd been a murder.

It wasn't Martin. I'm
afraid it was Philip.

Oh, good God.

ALEX: I'm so very sorry.

I came back down
just as soon as I heard.

I'm glad you're
here, Uncle Alex.

Well, now, how did this
happen, huh? Who did this?

How's Martin?

He's resting at the clinic.
Apparently, it's nothing serious.

Martin collapsed this morning.

Oh.

Yes, leave it to Martin to
do the melodramatic thing.

You don't like him
very much, do you?

(SCOFFS)

I have not had much respect for
him since what he did to my sister.

Yes, yes, I suppose I
can understand that.

But what I can't understand is what
Lisa Ryder has to do with all this.

Oh, don't you?

They killed my mother.
Martin and his lovely little typist.

My mother walked
into the cottage

and found them in bed together,

the day she committed suicide.

I see. Well, I thought it
might be something like that.

Lisa wasn't blind then, was she?

No, she wasn't.

Martin keeps her
around, to feed his guilt.

(THUNDER RUMBLING)

This, too.

You know, I hate to even think
such a thing, but if Martin were to...

If were to die...

Well, you know, his last play,

produced posthumously,
that would be a world event.

Get world attention.

(TITTERING) Oh, Jessica.
How's Martin doing?

Oh, he's resting comfortably.

Apparently it was
only exhaustion. Oh.

He's really been having a
hard time with Angel Of Death.

Have you read it?

Yes.

I wonder if you feel as I do.

I mean, it's
terrific, it really is.

But I just think it
needs a few little things

to make it a little
bit more commercial.

I'm sure as a director you probably
have instincts about those things, Barney.

(THUNDER RUMBLING)

Apparently you have quite
extensive changes in mind.

Those are only
my notes, Jessica.

Yes, well, actually I
came looking for Lisa.

Anyone seen her?

(STUTTERING) Well, as far as
I know, she's out in the cottage.

Hmm.

I don't think she should
be alone at this time,

with this storm coming up.

(THUNDER CRACKING)

(KNOCK ON DOOR)

JESSICA: Lisa, may I come in?

It's open, Mrs. Fletcher.

Oh, thank you. Oh!

Just beat the rain.
May I turn on the light?

Oh, of course. It's
just by the door.

Oh, yeah.

Hope I'm not interrupting you.

Not at all. I was
just tidying up.

Would you like some tea?

Oh, that would be wonderful.

Shall I just help myself?

Did your work get badly damaged?

LISA: Mmm, nothing serious.

It's cracked, but
that's easily fixed.

You know, it really
is quite beautiful.

Thank you.

I have to keep it damp
so it won't dry too fast.

You really are a
remarkable woman, Lisa,

managing the way you do.

I mean, finding something creative
to fill your life takes great courage.

You told me that you lost your
sight in an automobile accident.

Would you mind if I asked
you if you were driving?

No.

Would it, by any chance,
have been Martin?

Yes. Did he tell you?

No. No, but it does explain
some things that were worrying me.

Martin felt so guilty.

He wasn't even scratched,
and I, well, I lost my sight.

When I saw Martin in the
clinic, he was very groggy.

But he said something
that worries me.

He said he thought that you might
be in danger from his dead wife, Vivian.

Martin and I fell in love.

Vivian found us together.

That may be why
she killed herself.

Martin felt so badly about it.

Whatever there had been
between Martin and me,

it was over.

I... I tried to be supportive,
help him through it.

Then there was the accident.

So, here we are.

Life goes on.

Yes.

You know, you really
are remarkable, Lisa.

I mean, well, just now I put the
kettle back on the wrong burner,

but your hand
went directly to it,

almost as if you could see.

My hand sensed the heat.

It's one of the compensations
blind people develop.

(RAIN PATTERING)

Uh-oh. It's beginning
to rain buckets.

I think I should
close that window.

Oh, Lisa, the lights
have all gone out.

(STUTTERING) Do you have
a flashlight or some candles?

It happens every
time there's a storm.

JESSICA: Well, I
think I better report it.

Oh, well, the phone's dead.

LISA: That one was close.

(DOOR OPENING)

Yes.

(GLASS SHATTERING)

What was that?

Lisa, I want you to come
and stand here beside me.

Is everything all right?

There, that's the girl.

(KNOCK ON DOOR)

JOE: Lisa? Lisa,
are you all right?

It's Joe. Yes.

Joe.

There's been a power
outage in the area.

I was making my rounds

and as I came up, I saw
somebody trying to run away.

I couldn't make out who it was.

Are you two all right?

Well, yes.

(GASPING) Someone was either
trying to break into the cottage

or give us the
most awful fright.

I've assigned Joe full time
to keep an eye on the cottage.

I'm curious, Sheriff.

Was Joe Connors
working the night

that Philip Stoddard
was murdered?

Yeah. Patrol. Night shift. Why?

Oh, no reason.

I was about to forget.

That hunch you had about
Tremaine's prescription?

Well, you were right.

Those capsules weren't
the sedative on the label.

Turns out to be Gransaloid.

Powerful. Powerful
anti-depressant.

You know, if it were
misadministered,

I mean, that might have
very dangerous effects.

Would you have any
idea who stands to inherit

if anything should
happen to Martin?

The stepdaughter,
Courtney Stoddard. I checked.

I've been mulling over
the whole situation.

Now, because she's blind, Lisa
keeps the cottage dark at night.

What if Philip Stoddard
were stabbed by mistake?

What if the murderer
intended to kill someone else?

Like Martin Tremaine.

It's a possibility that
we have to consider.

And you still haven't
found the knife?

No, ma'am, not yet.

Sheriff, whoever
killed Philip Stoddard,

if it were somebody
from the house,

they wouldn't have had much
time to dispose of the knife.

Would it be legal to get a
search warrant for the house?

Not only would it be legal,

but it would be wise
and prudent police work.

With all that rain,
there's no tracks.

But somebody was out there.

I mean, the question is why?

(DOG BARKING)

Be careful!

Oh, Blitzen's a big pussy cat.

Oh, you could have fooled me.

He's always coming
around for snacks.

Even Martin feeds him,
just to annoy General Stark.

But I heard him barking.

He only barks at strangers.

Or when he thinks
General Stark wants him to.

Sheriff, what if the killer came
back last night to get something,

something incriminating

that he possibly left behind
when he committed the murder?

Joe checked everything out here.

Did he notice this?

No, ma'am.

I mean, it looks like mud,
but it could be terra cotta clay.

Now, remember, this statue
was toppled off its stand.

Lisa, could I take
this cover off?

Sure.

Now, you see the crack there?

Yes, ma'am.

Lisa, is this hollow inside?

Yes. Terra cotta has to
be hollow to dry evenly.

McALLlSTER: We found this
in your closet, Mrs. Stoddard.

Do you have any explanation?

There's nothing to
explain. It's a keepsake.

It's the costume my
mother wore in her last play.

Sheriff, listen, as an attorney

I fail to see what this dress has
to do with your search warrant.

Well, we were looking for a
murder weapon when we found it.

Mr. Ericson, I can
assure you, it's legal.

Mrs. Stoddard, we also
found this vial of medicine.

It's marked Gransaloid.

It's an anti-depressant the doctor
prescribed for me after my mother died.

I stopped taking it.

Yes, ma'am. The
question is, how did this

get in the vial of sedatives that
you were giving Mr. Tremaine?

How could you do this?

How could you do this to me?

Do you hate me that much?

Hate?

The word isn't strong enough.

I wanted you to pay for all
the pain you caused my mother.

Then it was me that you
meant to kill out in the cottage.

No.

You mean, you
meant to kill Philip?

I'm not saying another word

until I get legal advice
from Uncle Alex.

Sheriff.

The knife isn't in
there, Mr. Ericson.

We've already found it.

You can't prove
anything, McAllister.

Oh, I think we can.

I wouldn't be surprised if
your fingerprints were all over it.

If they weren't,

why were you so desperate
to get it before it was found?

When did you realize that it
was Alex who murdered Philip?

Well, I didn't. At
least not right away.

Until Lisa mentioned that the
dog only barked at strangers.

Yes, but I thought that Alex
was in San Francisco that night.

Well, that's what he
wanted everyone to think.

But when he came
back the next day,

he thought it was you
who had been murdered.

You mean, he thought
that he was killing me?

I'm afraid he hated
you, too, Martin.

He must have come back and been
lurking around somewhere outside,

when Philip slipped
out to pay a call on Lisa.

Alex must have
thought it was you.

MARTIN: Yes, I'd seen
Philip staring at Lisa.

The poor child.

(STUTTERING) I can't
believe she encouraged him.

JESSICA: In the dark, Alex
must have stabbed Philip,

thinking it was you, Martin.

(SCREAMING)

And when Lisa screamed,
alerting the household,

well, he had to act quickly.

So he hid the
knife in the statue

which was split
open on the floor.

He climbed out of the window and
left his handprint on the window sill.

So it was Alex who tried to
break into the cottage last night.

Well, he had to get that
knife before it was found.

And even Courtney didn't
realize that Alex was the murderer?

No. She had her own sick
agenda trying to drive you mad.

(CHUCKLES)

Yes, well, she almost succeeded.

Well, it's almost like a
Greek tragedy, isn't it?

Speaking of plays, Martin.

I know, I've been thinking
about what you said.

I've decided to
rewrite Angel Of Death.

I think that my character
Mallory must have learned

something from his experiences,

wouldn't you say?

Martin, I think you've
made a very wise decision.

(CHUCKLING) Yes.