Murder, She Wrote (1984–1996): Season 9, Episode 6 - Night of the Coyote - full transcript

They say it's haunted up there. People
have claimed to have seen skinwalkers.

Skinwalkers? Witches.

(SPEAKING NAVAJO)

Does anyone know how much
Cutter stole from the stagecoach?

Whatever it is, it's
probably worth millions.

Max, you know, it's not over.
Silverville is still a big attraction.

It's none of your
business, all right?

Max was after
the stolen treasure.

Be careful, Mrs. Fletcher.
Fortune fever is real contagious.

I wanted to kill him last night.

You're fired.



(MAN URGING HORSES)

Whoa, whoa.

All right. Hand over the box.

Real slow.

Damn you, Cutter McGee!

Oh, I can't believe that poor
man has to do that twice a day.

You've just witnessed the last
stage robbery in New Mexico,

pulled in 1898 by Cutter McGee.

Cutter lived most
of his life at sea,

and after this holdup
Navajo Indians stole his pony,

and he was captured
by the posse,

and the fortune he stole that
day has never been recovered.

Don't forget the Cutter McGee
Museum at the end of the street.

It's well worth the
price of admission.



Come on, I want you to meet Max.

Okay.

Max, this is Jessica
Fletcher. Jessica, Max Teller.

How do you do,
Mr. Teller? Mrs. Fletcher.

Susan told me you were coming.

Welcome to
Silverville. Thank you.

How'd you like the show?

Oh, it was very entertaining.

You know, this is a
fascinating old town.

When was it abandoned?

1905. The old silver
mine was tapped out,

and the town was
practically deserted overnight.

The whole story is in the
museum. Have you seen it yet?

No, we're on our way over there.

Excuse me, Mr. Teller.

The axle's broken again.

I could use a check for Matt, and get
him out here to fix it before tomorrow.

All right, Earl. I'll have it
for you when he gets here.

Excuse me. That was
a very impressive fall.

Thank you, ma'am.

Max. Ben Judson
is waiting for you.

Oh, God, that's
right. Thanks, Betty.

Don't you forget, you're
having dinner with us tonight.

Oh, I'll be there. Promise.

Sorry to keep you.
Oh, no problem.

I know business
can be unpredictable.

Look, you guys
gave me three months

to catch up on my loan.
Now what do you want?

Max, I'm not here for the bank. I
have a personal proposition for you.

Personal? Well, go on, Judson.

I want to buy Silverville.

It's not for sale.
Now, look, Max,

it's only a matter
of time before we...

Before the bank
has to foreclose.

This way, at least you'd get
some equity out of the place.

You default, and those FDIC
bloodhounds'll be sniffing around again.

Don't you worry. That's
not gonna happen.

Yeah? Well, you
do yourself a favor.

You think about it.

I thought vultures
waited till you were dead

before they started
picking your bones.

I'm gonna get
this place, Teller.

JESSICA: You know, your work
has taken on a whole new dimension

since you moved out here, Susan.

The desert does
things for me, Jess.

Every day I see
it for the first time.

The light changes,
the sky moves.

God knows what it is, but it has...
It's given me a whole new perspective.

Mmm. You'd like the
one I bought last year

in Santa Fe, Mrs. Fletcher.

Alamo Canyon At Dusk.

Charles was my first
sale in New Mexico.

Told me I was
in the right place.

(TIMER DINGING) Really?

Uh-oh, something's telling
me the lasagna's ready.

Will you guys excuse me?

Max was telling me that you're writing
a book about the silver strike here,

and doing research
at the museum.

Yeah, it's a dry historical
treatise. It's hardly a bestseller.

Oh, don't be so sure about that.

No, no, no.

Do you live here in Chaco
Springs, Mr. Strickland?

I wish. No, most of the
time I'm in Albuquerque,

teaching at the university.

Oh, hello, Max.

Ah, now, here is the man with
more raw data on Cutter McGee

than anyone else
in this country.

You just make sure your
book makes Silverville famous.

We'll have tourists flooding
in here in search of treasure.

Me, I'm in search of dinner.

You know, I noticed that Cutter
never lost his seafaring ways.

In the museum, his sextant and
chronometer and all of his charts

were in perfect condition.

Yes, he used them to find
his way around the desert.

A word to the wise, Mrs.
Fletcher, don't get Max started

on his lost treasure scam. It
sells tickets, but that's about it.

SUSAN: So, what
do you think of him?

I assume you mean Max.

Oh, was I that obvious?

Well, if you mean the way
your eyes never left him.

Yes, yes, I think
he's very charming.

Well, you know,
after the divorce,

I swore I would never
get involved again.

Love's sneaky like
that. It blindsides you,

just when you don't want it
and you think you don't need it.

Nice setup you got here.

Tony, what the hell
are you doing here?

I came to see you. Come
on, I'll buy you breakfast.

We can shoot the breeze
about the good old days.

Look, I'm real busy right now. How
about the next time you're coming through?

How about right now?

Four years, Maxie.

Not even a birthday card?

Tony, you made your own trouble.

You almost took
me down with you.

What the hell do you want?

My share of what was
in that offshore account.

I don't owe you a thing.

Maybe you need some
time to think about it.

That's okay. I
know all about time.

Forget about the cops, though.

I'm clean now. They can't touch
me. Now, you, on the other hand...

I'm sure a lot of folks would be real
interested to hear how you got the money

to buy this place.

Oh, I can't believe
I lost my pen. Oh.

You know, it was my
favorite. I've had it for years.

I know how you feel. I'm the
same way about my brushes.

Well, we'll check the museum.
Maybe somebody found it.

Oh, I hope so. You
know, it's amazing to me

that anything can
grow around here.

There are some plants out here on Navajo
land that you won't find anywhere else.

Sounds promising.

I'm gonna take a
walk down there.

You'll find a lot
of magic out there.

(COYOTES HOWLING)

And a very good day to you, too!

Rabbit brush.

Kind of eerie the way it
echoes up here, isn't it?

Yes. Yes, it is.

Hear it at night, and you'll
know why the shamans believe

that the spirit of Coyote
brings evil into the world.

They say he's always lurking,
ready to strike at the unwary.

Sam Keeyani.
Pleased to meet you.

Jessica Fletcher. How
do you do, Mr. Keeyani?

Just Sam. You picked
a nice place for a walk.

It's Coyote Canyon.

Gets a little tough further up,
though. There's a lot of loose rocks.

In other words,

I shouldn't go any further.

That's smart. It gets
dark quickly up here.

They say it's haunted up there. People
have claimed to have seen skinwalkers.

Skinwalkers?

Witches. Not that I believe
in the old superstitions, but...

It's just that sometimes you see things in
the shadows that you can't quite make out.

You want to see me, Mr. Teller?

Yes, Earl.

I've been checking
the hay delivery,

and it looks like he shorted us.

Oh, yeah?

Your petty cash
slip says fifty bales.

There's only thirty out there.

Yeah, well, Carlos called and said
his regular truck was in the shop.

He's gonna bring out
the rest in the morning.

Is that so? Look...

I called the feed company and
got your orders from last year.

Every time, you put in for
more than they delivered.

Yeah, well, I must've
screwed up, you know.

I never was much at math.

Bull!

You've been deliberately shorting my
orders and selling the balance on the side.

Now, get out of
here. You're fired.

Yeah? Well, big deal.
This job sucks, anyway.

Just give me my
pay, and I'm gone.

Forget it. You're not getting
another dime out of me.

I want what's coming to me.

Yeah? Or what?

FIREFIGHTER: Gotta make
sure those embers are out.

Max! Max, are you all right?

Yeah, I'm okay.
Nobody hurt, thank God.

This is terrible. Did you
manage to save anything?

We haven't been inside yet. But I doubt
if there's much left of the collections.

Well, good morning,
Mrs. Fletcher.

Nice to see you again.

Well, thank you,
Sheriff Keeyani.

That's still just
Sam. Excuse me.

Would you all just
step back, please?

(FIREFIGHTERS CHATTERING)

It's arson.

Give me some
samples for the lab.

Sheriff, it could
have been electrical.

I've been meaning
to rewire this place.

Make any enemies
lately, Mr. Teller?

Did you hear what I said?

Now, just think about it. Someone
doesn't like you a whole lot.

I fired Earl yesterday.

No, it wasn't Earl.

How the hell do you know that?

Look, don't give
me any double talk.

If it is arson, talk to Earl.

Mr. Teller, we'll give
it our full attention.

And that includes what
Earl was up to last night,

except I don't think
that's your problem.

Now, you think about it. Maybe you'll
come up with something that'll help.

I'll be in my office.

I'd better go with him.

Well, Mrs. Fletcher, I guess
you'll need a ride back to town.

Thank you, Sheriff.

And I promise you the best
cup of coffee in Chaco Springs.

Would you like chocolate
or cinnamon on top?

Oh, nothing, thanks.

Here you go.

Thanks.

If you tasted that sludge
they serve down at the diner,

you'll know why I
got this monster.

Oh, that is delicious.

Well, thank you.

If you don't mind my saying so,

you have a rather curious
way about you, Sheriff.

Yeah? How's that?

Well, this morning
in Silverville,

you put on an
Oscar-winning performance,

allowing people to think you were getting
your answers from divine inspiration.

I suspect there was
a simpler explanation.

Go on.

When you looked up at the sky, apparently
in a trance, you were smelling the air.

I noticed the faint
odor of gasoline.

And then when you let the
dirt dribble through your fingers,

you wanted to see, in fact,

if the wind was coming
from the burnt-out building.

Am I mistaken?

Well, I guess I'll be a little
more careful next time I run into

an innocent-looking
tourist in the desert.

(LAUGHS)

Now, what about my missing pen

suddenly appearing like that?

Oh, somebody found that in front
of the museum and they turned it in.

I figured, who else in town would own
an expensive pen like that except a writer?

The way I did it,
just a little more fun.

But on a case, I'm
not just fooling around.

If a suspect has no
idea what I'm doing,

he's liable to assume
that I know more than I do.

And that's when he
makes his mistake, right?

Yeah.

But what I don't understand is, how could
you be so sure that Earl didn't do it?

When I was a kid on the rez,
we all learned how to read tracks.

I'd rather have learned how to ride
a bike, but we couldn't afford one.

Anyway, the tracks in front
of the museum this morning

were kind of messed up, but I did
find a partial imprint of a gasoline can.

Further up the
street it was clearer,

and I found tracks heading towards the
building deeper on one side than the other.

Possibly from carrying a heavy
object, like a full can of gas?

You got it.

And on the other side, the same tracks
running away, only evenly weighted.

I see.

But why do you discount Earl?

Well, in all the years
that I've known him,

Earl's always worn boots. These
were sneakers. About size ten.

And it's doubtful that he'd have
changed his shoes to fool you.

Exactly.

Max, you know, it's not over.

Silverville is still
a big attraction.

You and I could rebuild
the museum together.

I mean, you know I can help.

I don't need your money.

There's a lot more to Cutter McGee than
hitting up tourists for ten bucks a head.

What is it, Max? Please,
please don't shut me out.

Look, there are just some things that I
have to keep to myself for now, Susan.

All right?

No. No, it's not all right.

Damn it, Max, I have
shared everything with you,

and there's still a large part of your
life that you're not letting me into.

It's none of your business.

Okay. Fine. And whatever
it is, you can keep it,

'cause I'm not
interested anymore.

Damn.

(DOOR CLOSING)

Hi, there, Alice.

Hello, Sheriff.

Please, just Sam. So
how's your car running?

Fine. And yours?

So when are you gonna take
me up on that offer for dinner?

One of these days.
I'll let you know.

I chased her for five miles
on the interstate, doing 90.

Let her off with a warning.

Never done that before.

She's very pretty.

I found out she works
over at the mayor's office,

so I made sure they send
her over for any paperwork.

It's just a matter of time.

Mrs. Fletcher. Sheriff, I
thought this might be useful.

Oh, from the museum?

Yes, it's an inventory
I was working on.

It's got all the items
that were out on display,

but there were several boxes in
the back I hadn't even opened yet.

I understand the Smithsonian
has the same problem.

Thanks. I'll check it out.

I hope this doesn't give you
the wrong opinion of New Mexico.

You know, this morning's
disaster is not a good introduction.

I'd like to correct that,
if you have some time.

Well, a little, until
Susan gets back.

Well, good. I'll drive
you back to her place.

And on the way, it'll be the Charles
Strickland Historical Scenic Drive.

What do you say? I'd love it.

Well, if it ain't Tonto.

(HORSE NEIGHING)

Son of a... That's
Sheriff Tonto to you.

Dumb horse, hold still!

I want to talk to
you about last night.

What, you heard about it?

The whole town's
talking about it.

Yeah? Well, he had it coming.

What'd he do, go
and file a complaint?

Earl, before you
say anything else,

I'm gonna have to
read you your rights.

Oh, come on, Sheriff.
So I punched a guy out.

Ain't no federal case.

Punched who?

Chuck Warren, down
at the Broken Horseshoe.

The jerk was giving me a hard
time. He shouldn't have done that,

not just after I'd been
canned. So I popped him.

What time did you leave?

Don't know. 2:00, maybe.

Did you go to
Silverville last night?

No. Why?

Someone burnt down Max's museum.

Well, it couldn't have
happened to a nicer guy.

Look, there's about 20 guys that'll
tell you I was at the Horseshoe all night.

If you think I did it,
you're wasting your time.

Yeah, I guess so.

That's nice war paint, chief.

Max? Are you in there?

I appreciate your coming
here, Sheriff, but I don't know

what Max's death
has to do with me.

You were close friends. I thought maybe
you might have been with him last night.

Well, we've gone out
a few times, that's all.

Sheriff, losing a friend
can be very difficult,

let alone under these
kinds of circumstances.

Yes, of course, you're right.

Do you know what
time he was killed?

Somewhere between 8:00
and 10:00, as far as we can tell.

Will you excuse me,
please? I have work to do.

Will you excuse me, Sheriff?

Susan...

I wanted to kill him last night.

I thought something had
happened between you.

After the fire, I offered
to help him out financially.

He seemed to think he was going to
get a big windfall from Cutter McGee.

He actually resented my offer.

I was furious.

And you didn't see
him again after that?

Yes, later. A lot later.

I began to think that
I was foolish, and...

I went by the office about 8:00,

and he was there. With
Betty, that secretary of his.

He was all over her.

Oh, no. Oh, I'm so sorry.

They didn't see me. I
just left. I was so angry

and confused and hurt, I couldn't
even talk to you when I got home.

But I didn't kill him, Jess.

Did you touch anything when you
came in and found the body this morning?

No, I ran right out, and I
called you from in there.

Well, it looks like he had company.
We'll check those for prints.

What time did you
leave last night?

I usually leave around 6:00.

First mistake. That's not what I
asked you. So why did you stay late?

I didn't say that.

You didn't have to.

It's best to tell the truth.

Max was in a lousy mood all
day, what with the fire and all.

I was ready to go home
when he asked if I'd stay,

so we had a couple of drinks.

He was telling me about how
he was gonna make a fortune.

Next thing, we ended up...

You know.

Nothing like that
ever happened before.

He was still alive
when you left him?

(STAMMERING) About 8:30
he said he had to meet someone,

and he left the
office. I went home.

Do you know who he was meeting?

No. But a couple of days ago

Ben Judson told Max he
wanted to buy this place.

Max said no.

Maybe after the fire
he changed his mind.

Sheriff, call just came in. Some guy's
been picked up driving Max Teller's car.

SAM: What were you doing
with Max Teller's car, Mr. Sable?

I was sightseeing.

Hey, come on, so I was parked in
the red zone. What's the big deal?

They just let you out
of jail in Los Angeles.

Now, that's a long way
from Chaco Springs.

Max Teller was
murdered last night.

Now, what were you
doing driving his car?

If I'd killed him,

you think I'd be hanging
around here driving his car?

Okay, look,

Max and me, we... We had a
mail-order business out in California.

It wasn't doing very much

until I started milking the
customers' credit cards for cash

and putting the money offshore.

When Max found out
about it, he went to the DA,

turned state's evidence,
and I got the four years.

What about the stolen money?

Max turned over some
of it to throw them off.

But he conveniently forgot to tell
the DA about the offshore account.

When I got out, the
money was gone,

and I figured that Max used
most of it to buy Silverville.

Did you arrange to
meet him last night?

No.

No, the last time I saw Max
was yesterday afternoon.

He wanted to buy me off. He
said he had some money coming in.

Hey, look, he was my meal
ticket. I wasn't about to kill him.

That's all for now, Mr. Sable.

You're free to go.

But stick around until
you hear from me.

I've met rattlers I
like better than him.

I just don't have
enough to hold him.

At least not till
he sheds his skin.

He's the third person that Max
told that he had money coming in.

Well, maybe he decided
to sell the place after all.

Perhaps. But he mentioned to Susan
that it was coming through Cutter McGee.

I wonder if it's possible that
Max was after the stolen treasure.

Be careful, Mrs. Fletcher.
Fortune fever is real contagious.

Well, I'm going to see what I can find
out about Cutter McGee in the library.

Do you believe people can
meet in dreams, Mrs. Fletcher?

Well, I like to keep
an open mind. Why?

Well, my Uncle Ashie made me
promise that I'd bring you to see him.

He says you visited
him many times before.

I don't recall having met him.

Not even in a dream.

But with this kind of
setup, how can I say no?

MAN: There you go.

Excuse me, there seems to be some
editions from the Silverville Advocate

that are missing
from the year 1898.

I wonder if you could help me.

Nope. It's already been
reported by Mr. Strickland.

There's nothing I can do. Probably
the only copies in existence.

You wouldn't happen
to have any other

material about Silverville
from that period?

Two photographs of the
town marshal on horseback.

Six bills of lading
for hay feed.

A postcard from Roger in Atlantic
City to his cousin Lucille, saying,

"The water's fine. Come on out."

And that. Worthless.

Company went out of business
in 1905. That's all we got.

Well, thank you very much.

Mrs. Fletcher, hello again.
What are you doing here?

Well, I'm just trying to find
out more about Cutter McGee.

Oh, well, I think
I can help you.

Oh. Will you two shush!

Here.

Let me see... Oh!

Wait a minute...

I have the only known
photo of Cutter McGee.

Probably taken about 1896.

What a character. And
he really wore that cap?

I thought that Max was taking
liberties out there in Silverville.

No, no, I showed him that.

You know, I'm going to miss Max.

We got to know each other pretty
well going through his old material.

Tell me, does anyone know how
much Cutter stole from the stagecoach?

Oh, no, that's still
the big mystery.

I've heard everything from gold
bullion to bags of silver dollars.

Whatever it is, it's probably
worth millions by now.

Come on in,
Sheriff. Have a seat.

You want a cup of coffee?

No, thanks. I won't take
up much of your time.

Oh, that's all right. We don't
see each other that often.

I've been meaning
to tell you that

when the council voted
on your appointment,

I campaigned to stop it.

Yes. Yes, I did.

But times have changed, and
we have to change with them.

When my great-granddaddy
moved West,

he was attacked
twice by Indians, and...

I guess we have
something in common, then,

seeing as my great-grandma was murdered
by a bunch of boozed-up white settlers.

Uh, yes. Well, what
I mean to say is,

I don't remember when the
department was run better, and...

Well, the Chamber of Commerce
will give you its full support

when your contract
is up for renewal.

I appreciate that, Mr. Judson.

Now, what can I do for you?

I expect you heard about
Max Teller's death this morning.

Yes. Yes, I did.
We will miss him.

I understand you tried
to buy Silverville from him.

The land comes
with water rights.

I needed them to expand my herd.

And of course there's no
conflict with you running the bank?

Conflict, hell.

Max would have gotten his money
out before the bank foreclosed,

and the bank would have
avoided another default.

And you'd have gotten the
water. Only he didn't want to sell.

If you think I killed Max to
get Silverville, you're crazy.

I see. You've frozen
Mr. Teller's accounts?

His personal and his commercial
accounts. Also a safety deposit box.

I'll send a deputy
over for the box.

Thank you for your time.

Tell me, what exactly did your
uncle mean about meeting me before?

Well, he wasn't too clear.

See, he operates on a different
wavelength than everybody else.

He's a shaman.

That's a healer, isn't it?

Well, they're more than
healers, they're spiritual leaders.

Keepers of the
tribe's oral history.

Some of Ashie's
stories go back centuries.

Well, I'm definitely looking
forward to meeting him.

Assuming that we
haven't already met.

(LAUGHS)

Here we are.

(SPEAKING NAVAJO)

He's happy that you're
visiting him again.

I'm happy to be here.

(SPEAKING NAVAJO)

He wants to repay you for your time
together. Is there anything he can do?

I recently heard a
story about a white man

who was captured after
losing his horse to the Navajos.

That was about 90 years ago.

Do you recall any
stories from that time?

(SPEAKING NAVAJO)

(SPEAKING NAVAJO)

There was a man from his
grandfather's clan who had fallen sick,

and a shaman wanted to protect
him from the curse, so they went out

and gathered rabbit brush to
burn for ash to put on this man,

to hide him from
the evil spirits.

(SPEAKING NAVAJO)

While they were gathering this,
they saw a belagaana, a white man.

He was alone, so
they chased him,

but he hid in the rocks and was
protected by the enemy spirits.

(SPEAKING NAVAJO)

After two days, the
belagaana came out for water.

They gave him some,
but they kept his horse.

This white man was touched by
the spirit of Coyote, the trickster,

and he was killed
by his own people.

Fascinating.

Please thank your uncle for me.

Is there anything that I can do?

In my many visits with
you, through your books,

I have enjoyed many
hours of pleasure.

I ask only one thing, you sign,
"To my good friend, Ashie."

With great pleasure.

To be a shaman, one must
have good friends in high places.

Hi, Jess. Hi.

Want some tea?

Oh, yes, I'd love some tea.

Well, can you see anything
interesting in the flames?

I was just thinking
about Max. Cream?

No, thanks.

I feel like I've been on a roller
coaster the last couple of days.

I'm not surprised.

(SIGHING)

This is the first time
that I have let myself

feel this way about
a man since Roger.

That's a while back.

I didn't think I could ever
go through this again, Jess.

I mean, the prospect of losing
someone as close as that.

You know, since
I've been alone I've...

I've done things, I've been places
that I never would have dreamed of.

More than anybody I know.

I often wish that Frank and I
could have shared it together.

Still, I've been lucky.

I've had lots of wonderful
friends along the way.

So have I. So have I.

JESSICA: Traces of sand were
found in the bullet wound and in the hair.

You know, it looks to me as if
Max was killed somewhere else,

and then moved into his office.

You got it. Here.

We found this in
his safe deposit box.

The only prints on it are Max's.

May I? Go ahead.

Theodore McGee,
as in Cutter McGee?

The same. The last entry is on the day
before he robbed the Silverville stage.

You'd think this would've
been on display in the museum.

Then why did he lock it up?

Maybe Max really was
after the stolen money,

and this told him where it was.

Remember what I
said about fortune fever.

Anyway, it ends
before he even stole it.

Unless... That's it.

It's right here, in
the front of the book.

We've got to go to the library.

Why?

Because unless my guess is wrong, this
will not only tell us where Max was killed,

but also where the
stolen treasure is hidden.

Now, Charles Strickland
told me that McGee

used his sextant to
navigate in the desert.

Which means that the
numbers in the front of this diary

could refer to map references.

Now, longitude and latitude. He left out
North and West designates to disguise it.

Now, let me see. 36 degrees,

23 minutes North, 109 degrees,

12 minutes West.

Well, that would put it
50 miles west of Silverville.

I don't have enough men
for that kind of search.

Unless we narrow
it down somehow.

Well...

(SIGHS)

Rabbit brush.

Your uncle said they
were collecting rabbit brush

when they found McGee?

Yes, for protection
against evil.

There's not a whole lot of places
rabbit brush grows around here.

In fact, only one that I
know of. Coyote Canyon.

Two sets of prints going
up, one following the other,

but only one coming back down.

The ones coming
back down are deeper.

Could he have been carrying
something or somebody?

Like Max Teller's body? These
sneaker prints match the arsonist's

found out at Silverville.
They stop here.

There's prints everywhere.

Sheriff, could that be blood?

Eddie, this is Sam. You copy?

Sure thing, Sheriff.

I want a forensic team up
here at Coyote Canyon, ASAP.

I'm on it.

What did your uncle mean when he said
that McGee had the spirits of his enemies

on his side?

The Anasazi, or Ancient
Enemy. That's the Navajo name

for the people that lived
here before we arrived.

There's an old Anasazi
burial cave up there.

A traditional Navajo
tries to avoid dead bodies.

In the old days they never
would have followed him up there.

McGee drew a skull
and crossbones.

Maybe we just might
use it to catch the killer.

I thought you'd want to get
this back as soon as possible.

Thank you, Sheriff.

I'll just get you
to sign a receipt.

All right.

Charles Strickland, please.

(PHONE RINGING)

Hello.

Mr. Strickland, this
is Jessica Fletcher.

Oh, hi. How's the
research going?

Well, better than
I'd hoped, actually.

The police gave me access to
Max Teller's safe deposit box.

Yeah? What was inside it?

Cutter McGee's diary. But
what I really wanted to tell you

was that I think I know exactly
where McGee hid the stolen strongbox.

Well, I thought perhaps
we could confirm it together.

Of course. Where do
I meet you, and when?

(COYOTES HOWLING)

Who is it?

Charles Strickland.

Were you expecting someone else?

Yes. Max Teller's killer.

I'm sorry to disappoint you.
Have you found that strongbox yet?

Yes. Yes, I believe I have.

My God, you're right!

(LAUGHING)

This must be it!

Yes. I suppose you
realize that the contents

of this box could
make us both very rich.

I'm very much aware
of that, Mrs. Fletcher.

(GRUNTING)

Bonds?

Bonds?

That's right. From a company that
went bankrupt about 90 years ago.

(EXCLAIMING)

You killed Max Teller for
these worthless pieces of paper.

You know, you keep talking like that,
someone's liable to take you seriously.

I can't let that
happen, Mrs. Fletcher.

SAM: Don't do it,
Strickland! It's over.

Deputy.

Wait, wait, wait.

I had nothing to do
with Max's death.

You want to straighten
him out, Mrs. Fletcher?

When we first met
at Susan's house,

you denied the existence
of the stolen treasure.

I found it odd that later you
were speculating about its value.

Everyone was talking
about it. So what?

But you went further.

I noticed in your briefcase a
book on celestial navigation.

You told me that McGee
used to navigate in the desert.

But now your interest seemed
to be more than just academic.

Today we found sneaker
prints up in the canyon,

where forensics says
that Max was killed.

The same prints the
arsonist left in Silverville.

The same ones you're
making right now.

Yeah, but everyone wears these shoes.
Come on, this is purely circumstantial.

True enough.

That's why we
arranged this charade.

Not only have you shown
your willingness to kill,

but my guess is that
ballistics will match your gun

with the bullet that
killed Max Teller.

You want to tell us how
you got mixed up in this?

(SIGHING)

You know, when Max first let
me use Silverville for research,

he wanted to see if there was any
chance we could find this lost fortune.

I didn't believe in it. Then one
day he showed me McGee's diary.

Then you realized
what the numbers were.

Well, not at first. Later I realized
that if those were map coordinates,

I could get that
treasure for myself.

I knew his sextant was
limited in its accuracy,

so first I got that
book you saw me with,

then I stole the sextant
from the museum,

and then burned it
down to cover the theft.

If the sextant had been
the only thing missing,

it would have looked suspicious.

I was then able to
recreate his reading.

And in the library, I found this
newspaper report on Cutter McGee's trial

with a description of where
he was captured, dying of thirst,

and that description
matched this canyon exactly.

Then you took those
editions out of the library,

so that no one else
could follow the clue.

Then I started looking
under cover of darkness.

It was still a big area. Somehow, Max
got suspicious and followed me out here.

He accused me of a double-cross,

said he was gonna turn me
in for burning down his place.

I panicked and shot him.
It all happened so quickly.

Then I took his body
back to Silverville,

'cause I didn't want the police
crawling all over here finding my treasure.

Let's go.

Just a second. How did you
know where this place was?

From the Navajo archives. Oral
history from the Sheriff's uncle.

In his own way, he told us
about the Anasazi burial cave.

Mrs. Fletcher realized that
the skull and crossbones

wasn't a reference to pirate's
treasure, but to the skeletons in here.

I guess dead men do tell tales
after all, right, Mr. Strickland?

Oh, Jess.

I wish you could stay
for a few more days.

Well, so do I.

But if I don't get to Cabot Cove
soon, my garden is going to be

so overgrown I won't be
able to get in the front door.

Gonna be all right?

Yeah, I'll be okay.

I just can't get over the fact that
Charles Strickland committed murder

over a bunch of scrap paper.

You give him one little chance,

and Coyote the
Trickster'll work his evil.

Murder for gain hardly needs
a supernatural explanation.

(COYOTES HOWLING)

You never know.