NCIS (2003–…): Season 4, Episode 20 - Cover Story - full transcript

[SIREN WAILING]

MAN 1:
Let's move. Let's go.

Get those BAs up.
Pull a cord in half.

- Let's get ready to roll.
MAN 2: Pulling two-and-a-half.

MAN 1: Davis, get those utilities
turned off, quickly.

- Move it.
DAVIS: I'm on it, sir.

MAN 1:
We're in front. You start the back.

MAN 3:
Scotty, you're with me. Let's move.

Fire Department. Let's go. Uhn!

[FIRE ALARM BEEPING]

You two spread out, clear the
bedrooms. I'll take the kitchen.

MAN 1: We'll cover these down here.
MAN 2: All right. I got the right.

[BREATHING HEAVILY]

[GRUNTS]

Every damn time.

False alarm, fellas.

Just another overcooked bird.
Or something.

[BEEPING STOPS]

Tough to tell after six hours in the--

Oven.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER,
MUSIC PLAYING]

[GRUNTS]

Double americano for Thom.

Aren't you Thom?

- Yes, thank you. Sorry.
- Must need that badly.

Don't even recognise your own name.
Medium mocha coming up.

It's my other name.

- Two names, huh?
- Well, two jobs.

It's Thom when I'm writing.

Not that I've actually written
anything in weeks.

Writer's block?

Creative stifling.

I am crumbling under the pressure
of expectations.

Oh, you're Thom E. Gemcity.

Your photo's on the back cover.
I loved Deep Six.

Thanks.

Landon. Thank you.

Can't wait to see
what happens next.

You and me both.

Two weeks until my deadline,
I'm stuck here on Chapter 7.

- Well, it could be worse.
- How's that?

It could be Chapter 6.

[CELL PHONE RINGS]

LAN DON:
Okay, we've got a half-caf percent latte

and a medium double decaf.

- McGee.
LANDON: And here you go.

Yeah.

- The otherjob.
LANDON: Good luck.

[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING]

TONY:
"Ferris Bue/Ier's Day Off. "

John Hughes masterpiece.

There's a guy that didn't have
time for writer's block, probie.

Sixteen Candles, Uncle Buck,
The Breakfast Club.

I do not have--

I'm just struggling to find out

the most efficient way
to tell my next story.

Now do you think Hughes
writes on a computer

or does he use
an old-fashioned typewriter like you?

Well, I'm sure he uses a computer,
Tony. Most writers do.

Did you ever consider converting?

I don't think that's the reason
for my--

Were you gonna say writer's block?

- I like my typewriter.
- But it doesn't like you.

It's a classic tale of unrequited love
between a boy and his machine.

You can use that if you want.

But remember,
you gotta have a love story.

I can see the poster already.

The house is leased
to Petty Officer Darren Cove.

No roommates but according
to the neighbours, he is rarely alone.

GIBBS:
I can tell.

Got a fridge full of beer.

- No hard alcohol.
ZIVA: Except for this.

Ooh!

If smells could kill, I think
we just found our murder weapon.

I'm concerned with
where they came from.

Neighbours said this was
a notorious party house.

Maybe someone
brought in the mixers.

And they left with them too.

Seems like a lot of effort
for a couple of drinks.

Wasted effort.

McGEE: The blood starts
at the Ping-Pong table.

- Beer pong.
- Huh?

This is tragic.

Don't tell me you've never played
beer pong before, probie?

What did you do at MIT?

- Studied.
- That figures.

Well, beer pong is a drinking game,

the object of which
is to take the Ping-Pong ball

and try to get
it into the other team's cups.

Show me how it's done.

This is a crime scene,
not a frat house.

You hearing voices, probie?

Figured you saw Gibbs coming.

| just don't think this is
the time or the place

to showcase my beer-pong skills.

What?

It seems out of character.

[LAUGHS]

Yeah. Yeah.

No, you may not use me
to get over your writer's block.

- McGee has writer's block?
- No, McGee does not.

Just do what you did last time.
Write about us.

Okay, I've told you guys
a million times.

- The book is not about you.
- No, of course not.

It's about Special Agent Tommy.

- And Officer Lisa.
- DiNozzo.

And L.J. Tibbs.

[CHUCKLING]

GIBBS:
Get this.

Looks like McGee
wasn't the only writer here today.

Bag it.

McGEE: Petty Officer Cove
joined the Navy three years ago

right out of high school.

His 00. says he's a little immature,
but basically a good kid.

A good kid with a criminal record.

Since enlisting,
he's been arrested twice.

Both misdemeanours.

Public intox in '04 and
a noise-ordinance violation last July.

"Works to live and lives to party."

His, uh, ahem, C.O.'s words.

Guys in his command call him
Darren "Diddy" Cove. Heh.

VVhy?

It's a reference
to Sean "Diddy" Combs.

The Puff Man. P. Diddy.

Rap impresario. Went out with J.Lo.

Petty Officer Cove
was on duty yesterday.

McGEE: Left the base at 1800,
hasn't been seen since.

And neither has his
blue Ford Ranger.

Should be in his garage,
but it's not.

Which means his attacker took it.

Or Petty Officer Cove
went for a drive.

With that blood loss,
it's doubtful he was conscious.

If it was all his blood.

Well, Abby will tell us because Cove's
blood sample is in his medical records.

ZIVA: Thank you.
- I'm gonna go check the BOLO,

see if he's got a hit on the pickup.

That's not necessary, McGee.

Norfolk Police just found it abandoned
along Highway 5.

[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING]

I've noticed oversized dice
like these in numerous vehicles.

Do they serve a purpose?

Hello? Tony?

- What?
- Do they serve a purpose?

Fuzzy dice?
Pretty good redneck indicator.

Other than that,
no, they don't serve a purpose.

We've got a lot more blood
back here, boss.

Think this was used
to cover the body?

Yeah. Or bodies.

[CELL PHONE RINGS]

Yeah, Abs. I'm listening.

McGee,
you look like you've seen a goat.

Huh?

Oh, ghost. "Seen a ghost."

Yeah.

You know what déja vu is?

[SPEAKS |N FRENCH]

My French is better than my English.

Right.

- So?
- What?

The déja vu?

I can't place it.

By any chance,
did you start dating someone, McGee?

Dating? Please.

I spend every spare minute
I have writing.

Hang on a second.
McGee, get this towed back to lockup.

Yeah. Go on, Abs.

Abby's got something.

[SIGHS]

Watch out. It's Halloween
at Coyote Ugly. Piper Perabo.

Oh, if you liked that one,
you're gonna love this.

It's a Sciuto original.

I like to call it "Bottoms Up."

Oh!

I had no idea you were a bartender,
Abby.

Well, my Uncle Teddy
used to own a bar on Canal Street.

And | used to bartend on weekends.

The case, Abby.

Gibbs, you haven't even seen
my famous Fire Bomb.

[BLOWS]

It can wait. 80 I tested the blood
that was in Petty Officer Cove's house.

Most of it was his,
but one sample did not match.

ZIVA: It could have been
from a prior accident

or an altercation
at one of his parties.

Or it could be the killer's.

I also removed the prints
from our mystery cocktails.

One-half of our drinking duo
was definitely Petty Officer Cove.

- The other half?
- Well, it's a work in progress, Gibbs.

Tell me you have more to this, Abby.

Have I ever let you down?
Don't answer that.

I'm using my mass spectrometer
to break down the molecular structure

of the cocktails in question.

Guessing that's where
these come in.

Well, you guess correctly.

I think I've made over 100
delightful beverages

trying to find

the match.

The weird thing is, this baby isn't
in any bartending guide anywhere.

It's made out of Jagermeistern

Cherry soda, vanilla vodka,
lemon juice and a splash of Tabasco.

It's called a "Hairy Hangover."

And you came to know this how,
McGee?

| created it.

Our missing petty officer
is a character in my next book.

McGEE: "Cameron Meyer is
a good old boy from Northern Virginia.

He was born with not much,
raised with even less.

All he wants out of life
is a good girl and a great truck.

As of yesterday, he's halfway there.

He dropped his life savings
on a blue Ford Ranger."

[SIGHS]

- That's it?
- Tony, it's all here.

The fuzzy dice, the cinnamon rolls,
red track jacket.

Petty Officer Cove
is Cameron Meyer.

But how is that possible, McGee?

[SIGHS]

My writing isn't entirely fiction,
okay? My stories are--

Sometimes I base my characters
on people |--

Work with?

See. People I see.

You've seen Petty Officer Cove
before?

Every morning at my coffee shop.

But how come you didn't
recognise his photograph?

He only uses the drive-through.

To me, he's just the
large-coffee-with-a-cinnamon-rolI guy

in the blue pickup truck.
I never saw his face.

Whoa, wait a minute. Back up.

Your coffee shop has a drive-through?
Ha.

That's-- That's not important.

Just because you based your
character on a person who is missing

does not necessarily mean
the two of them are related, McGee.

GIBBS:
Yeah, it does.

You created the drink.

Made it up about a month ago.

How did two glasses of it
get from your head

to inside Petty Officer Cove's
house?

- Someone's read your book.
- Your papers under lock and key?

Well, I sent my publisher a copy
a couple weeks ago,

- but, you know, I'm sure she--
- Address.

Um...

Boss, there's more.

After Deep Six hit stores,

my publishing firm
received a ton of e-mails

addressed to Thom E. Gemcity.

TONY:
Tons?

Most of them were
autograph requests

or feedback on the novel,
but in the last couple weeks

my publisher says that we've
gotten some really weird letters.

I didn't say anything, because
I assumed they were harmless.

DiNozzo, with me.

McGee, you stay here with Ziva.
Start going through your book.

- What exactly am I looking for?
- Answers, McGee.

Miss Crawshaw
will be with you shortly.

Oh, you gotta be kidding me.

TODD: Is there anything else
I can get you while you wait?

TONY: Yeah, a barf bag.
TODD: I'm sorry?

arugula.

You're Timothy's people.

GIBBS: A few weeks ago, he sent you
a draught of his next book?

Partial. It wasn't finished yet.

Yeah, it still isn't, is it?

How many of your people
have read the book?

Zero.

No one in my agency
has access to advance material

without the writer's consent.

Except you.

[CHUCKLES]

Writers are notoriously insecure.
Soft, even.

Well, that doesn't sound like our
little Timmy McGee, now, does it?

Whether they ask for it or not,

I provide coddling, prodding,
protection.

Anything it takes
to keep those elusive muses singing.

Agent. . .?

Gibbs.

Here we go, Rock Hollow:

The Continuing Adventures
of L.J. Tibbs.

How's this connected
with your investigation?

A person's missing. We believe
it's related to the contents of that book.

Oh.

Guess ljust made myself
your prime suspect.

Sounds about right.

[CHUCKLES]

I may be the only one in the firm
who's read it, Agent Gibbs,

but I can guarantee you
I'm not the only one in the city.

McGee hasn't given the book
to anyone else, Miss Crawshaw.

Obsessed fans always find a way
to get material early.

They dig through trash,
hack computers,

anything short of writing it
themselves.

And believe me, Timothy has some
of the craziest fans I've ever seen.

Yeah, we know about the letters.

Yeah, there are three that stand out.
Todd, bring me those three--

Gemcity letters?

No return addresses.
Each one's stranger than the last.

I bet the psychopath you're looking for
is somewhere in that envelope.

What makes you think
we're looking for a psychopath?

Don't you read crime novels?

They are always psychopaths.

"I am sending this letter
to express my gratitude

for the literary gift you've given me.

The majesty of your writing

is far beyond anything
this planet has ever seen."

A rave review.

Rave indeed, Jethro. Yeah.

In fact, it's quite possible that Michael
is Timothy's greatest admirer.

Admirer or stalker, Duck?

At this point,
I'd say he is no immediate threat

- to himself or anyone else.
- "At this point"?

Well, one does not become
a predatory stalker overnight, Jethro.

The mind typically goes
through three stages.

This letter, strange as it may seem,
is only at stage one:

- the attraction stage.
- And the other two?

Well, on the surface, this letter,

written by Andrew,
would appear more normal.

But phrases like
"I breathe for your words"

- and "you need me" might suggest--
- Othen/vise.

Ah.

Yeah, because of that sense
of desperation,

I'd categorize that letter as stage two:
obsession.

- What's stage three?
- Well, read for yourself.

GIBBS: "I know you think of me often,
just as I think of you.

Please don't make me do something
we'll both regret."

Now that letter has an aggressive
and threatening tone.

For that reason,
it falls into the final stage:

destruction.

Three letters, three stages.

I know what you're thinking, Jethro,
but it's no coincidence.

Although the letters may appear
to be very different,

the writing style
is nearly identical in all three.

- The same person wrote all three?
- Mm-hm.

And judging by the postmarks,

the letters were written and sent
over a period of several weeks,

during which time the writer
became increasingly delusional.

- Motive?
- Oh, I can't say for certain.

But I say the answers can be found
in Timothy's new book.

The writer believes

that Timothy's fiction
is very much real.

[SIGHS]

Tony, about--

[PAPER RUSTLING]

Done.

- So?
- I'm confused.

[CLEARS THROAT]

We're trying to find
something useful...

Confused by what?

Phew. The plot, the back-story.

Pretty much everything.

The whole thing
doesn't make sense.

Ziva, what about you?

Um... Not as confused as Tony.

Well, I haven't finished it yet.
It's just a rough draught.

Very rough.

- I'm sorry, McGee.
- Who's the killer, anyway?

- I don't know yet.
- Heh. There's your problem.

I mean, you always have to know
where your story is going.

That's Fiction Writing 101.

Not the way I choose to write, Tony.

And he wonders
why he has writer's block.

Can we focus on the problem here?

We've got a missing person
and our only lead is my book.

- Well, that's not much of a lead.
- She's right. We don't even know

- how the book factors in.
GIBBS: We do now.

The letters were written
by the same person.

He thinks the book is real.

And believes Petty Officer Cove
is a part of it.

It means we're gonna have to go
everywhere he's been.

Well, we've already done that, though.
His home, work, hangout spots.

I'm not talking about
Petty Officer Cove.

I'm talking about your good old boy
with the pickup truck,

Cameron Meyer.

High Side Creek where Cameron goes
to clear his head.

McGEE: Thematically, this location
is very important, boss.

TONY: You've been saying
the same thing all morning.

Spread out.

TONY: Why would Cameron
come to a picnic area to think?

In his book it's not a picnic area,
it's his favourite fishing hole.

- Thank you, Ziva.
TONY: Don't you think it's a cliché

to have your character alone,
staring into the serene wilderness?

No. If it was,
I wouldn't have written it, Tony.

I mean, knowing Cameron,
if he was bummed out,

wouldn't he just go to the Wing Shack
with some buddies

- and toss back a few brews?
ZIVA: Or talk to a priest?

Don't forget that he's very religious
now that his father died.

- Good point.
- No, it isn't.

Cameron keeps his emotions
bottled up.

When he's upset, he comes here.

AftenNards, he always feels better.

GIBBS:
Not always.

McGEE:
That's him.

That's Petty Officer Cove.

Then who is this?

That's Jerrod Brenner.

That's another character
from my book.

[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING]

DUCKY:
Two bodies,

both with nearly identical stab wounds
in the chest and abdomen.

It appears that Petty Officer Cove
may have put up a bit of a struggle.

Note the remnants of skin tissue
and blood under the fingernails.

Now, both men have been deceased
for less than 24 hours.

That is not all they have in common.

They're also both characters
in McGeek's next book.

Yes, from what I hear, Timothy,
in your next novel,

L.J. Tibbs has a love interest.

Yes, I hear that it's an Army--

I don't think we need to
talk about that.

Army what, McGee?

Uh... Lieutenant.

Colonel.

Lieutenant colonel.

You got a murder weapon, Duck?

Yes, well, that's
where things get interesting, Jethro.

Both wounds are circular,
about one inch in diameter.

[IN UNISON]
Javelin.

Chapter 4, my characters
Cameron Meyer and Jerrod Brenner

they murder a convenience store clerk
to cover up an extortion.

Javelin, believe it or not.

That is for what they
were originally intended, Anthony.

A javelin is a modern-day
murder weapon.

I applaud your creativity, McGee.

Of course,
well, given the circumstances...

[SIGHS]

Oh, dear.

Now I'm gonna have to read
his new book.

TONY: Petty Officer Darren Cove
and Adrian Corbett,

the inspiration behind
two of McGee's characters,

Cameron Meyer
and Jerrod Brenner.

- Any connection?
McGEE: Not that we've found.

Corbett worked as a valet
at Alfonso's Steakhouse.

Your favourite.

That's how I got to know him.

For my book,
I borrowed his physical details.

The nose ring, birthmark
on the face and the neck.

What was his job?

Valet at a steakhouse. But I did
change the name of the restaurant.

From Alfonso's to Alfredo's.

Don't need to be Sherlock Holmes
to figure that one out.

GIBBS: The note from
Petty Officer Cove's apartment.

"One down, two to 90,"
means the killer's not finished.

How many more of your characters
did you base on real people?

Hey.

How many?

Just the team.
You, Tony, Ziva, everyone.

You happy, Tony? Finally admitted it,
I based both my novels on you guys.

- Means we're all potential targets.
- Boss, I'm sorry.

Ducky, Abby, Palmer, 24-hour
security detail until we find this psycho.

Twenty-seven javelins sold in
the DC. area in the past six months.

Twenty-one were paid for
by credit cards.

All by track coaches
and athletic directors.

- What about the last six?
- Cash transactions.

[CELL PHONE RINGS]

- Yeah.
ABBY: Got something for you.

I got it, Abs. We'll be right down.
Go. Go.

Not you.

Two men are dead
because of me, boss.

- You got a javelin, McGee?
- No, but I own a typewriter.

It's a typewriter, not a shotgun.

It cost two men their lives

because I based my fictional book
on real people.

Then put these on.

[HAN DCUFFS CLATTERING]

- You just confessed, right?
- Not exactly.

There's no midground, McGee.

You either put on the cuffs
or you find who's responsible.

- How?
- This guy's inside your head.

- You get inside his.
- Boss, it's not that simple.

- I still don't know how my story ends.
- You figure it out, McGee.

You write the ending to this
or the killer will.

[SIGHS]

ZIVA:
Well, McGee feels bad enough.

TONY: Only makes it worse
that he admitted it.

ZIVA: It was no secret
he was writing about us.

Oh, come on. It's not about us.

I mean, the whole part about Lisa
and her broken heart?

The memento she keeps
from a relationship

- that never had a chance to happen?
- Yeah. Where's he getting that?

Or the scene between
Lisa and Tommy

where they pour out their hearts
to each other and spill their secrets?

[CHUCKLES]

When he tries to explain the profound
nature of his identity crisis?

Yeah. I mean, the hidden struggle
between who he is

and what he's becoming.
I don't know what that is.

- Yeah, totally unrealistic.
- Would never happen.

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS,
DOOR OPENS]

GIBBS:
What do you got, Abs?

Three hours' sleep.

My apartment flooded last night.

Did you know trying to flush voodoo
dolls down the toilet is a bad idea?

I do now.

- Where's Gibbs?
- He's chomping out McGee.

- Chewing.
- So a little birdie told me

that both of you have read the first half
of McGee's new book.

- A little birdie, huh?
- And don't even ask,

because I will not reveal
my source even if you torture me.

- Ducky?
- Yes. All right.

- Let's hear it.
- Hear what?

The book. At the end of Deep Six,
goth forensic specialist "Amy Sutton,"

she broke up with her boyfriend

because she was digging
somebody else.

Who's the somebody else?

No, yeah. Um...

Yeah, that part
didn't really come up yet.

Yeah, I think he's planning on
revealing it, uh, um...

You know, second part of the book.

You guys are so lying.

[GASPS]

He's gay.

This somebody else,
I had a feeling

because Amy always wants
what Amy cannot have.

- Does she know?
GIBBS: Know what?

Forensic specialist Amy,
she fell in love with a gay guy, Gibbs.

- Is that why I'm here?
- No.

Then Amy's on her own.

[WHISPERS]
We'll talk later.

[NORMAL VOICE]
I ran the blood samples

that we pulled off the two bodies.

Petty Officer Cove had unidentified
blood on his right forearm and hand.

[TYPING]

- Matched the blood from his house.
- Our killer's DNA.

I'm no investigator,
but odds are you're right.

- That's good work, Abs.
- I also checked

Petty Officer Cove's Ford Ranger

and Thom E. Gemcity's
c-mail for prints.

TONY: "C-mail"?
- Yeah, it's like cuckoo mail.

I don't know. ljust made it up.
Nothing on the truck.

All the latent prints
belonged to Petty Officer Cove.

But on the c-mail,
there's dozens of different prints.

That makes sense because paper mail
gets processed through post offices,

- delivery trucks, mail rooms.
- Exactly.

There's still one spot
that only the sender touches.

The back of the stamp.
You pulled a print?

Not only did I pull a print,
I already got a match.

Todd Ryder. Arrested last year
for possession of marijuana.

[DOOR SLIDING]

Looking for something, Timothy?

[DOOR CLOSES]

I'm just looking.

Petty Officer Cove

wasn't just a partier.
I called his elderly parents.

He visited them
two hours every single day.

This guy,

Adrian Corbett,

he just got married.

Yes, I took off his wedding ring.

[EXHALES]

And not quite the notorious playboy
I made him out to be, huh?

Appearances can be deceptive.

Every single word I wrote
was wrong.

No, every word you wrote
was fiction.

That's why they call them
characters.

But they're not just characters
in a book.

They're real people

and real families.

Were.

l sympathise with the way you feel,
Timothy.

[DUCKY GRUNTS]

But you are not to blame
for any of this.

Tell them that.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

Todd.

Oh, God.

[TODD WHIMPERING]

TODD: Look out.
- What do you call that?

Running, I think.

[PANTING, SOBBING]

Todd, hey.

[DIALLING, MUMBLING]

Where's his car?

- Where's his car?
- Employee lot. Around back.

Get out of the building.
They know. They're chasing me!

Oh! Okay.

[WHIMPERING]

GIBBS:
You should have left the top down.

Put your hands
on top of your head.

- Hah.
- Nice of you to join us, DiNozzo.

I thought I was gaining ground.

He's got a very unorthodox
running style.

It's very effective, though.

Not effective enough.

I didn't wanna do it.

I told her it was a bad idea.

McGEE:
I actually trusted her.

There is no way
you could have known, McGee.

Ziva's right, probie.
It's not your fault.

But if you even think about
writing a third novel, I'll kill you.

When Abby finds out
who her character

really feel in love with,
you will already be dead.

[DOOR OPENS]

I have been Sitting here
half the night, Agent Gibbs.

What am I being charged with?

Tampering
with a federal investigation.

Resisting arrest.

I told you already. I wasn't running,
I was late for an appointment.

And murder.

[CHUCKLES]

You think | murdered someone?

Their names
are Petty Officer Darren Cove

- and Adrian Corbett.
- Never heard of them.

Okay.

Well, how about Cameron Meyer
and Jerrod Brenner?

- Have you heard of them?
- I think so.

They're characters
in Tim's next book.

- The book someone is killing over.
- Too bad you can't find them.

I think we have.

You wrote the letters.

- What? Why would I?
- Todd gave you up.

- Well, I can explain.
- Well, I sure hope so.

I wrote the letters,
but only to create a bigger buzz.

Stalkers mean more press,
more press means increased revenue.

You made up a stalker
to sell more books?

Yes, I did.

- She's lying.
- If she is, she's quite good.

She publishes fictional novels
for a living, Ziva.

She knows how to tell a good story.

I'm with Ziva.

This woman lives to sell books.

Look, it may sound unorthodox,

but I do one interview
about those letters

and Gemcity's book sales
jump through the roof.

I didn't think he needed the help.

Heh. There is no such thing
as enough sales.

What I did might be wrong,

but there's no way
I could ever kill anyone.

Why should I believe you?

Those letters
were a strategic business move.

I would do anything to help my client
sell more books.

Anything?

[SCOFFS]

Well-played, boss.
You'll get her in round two.

- There won't be a round two, DiNozzo.
- But she didn't break.

- I know. I was there.
- She didn't do it, did she?

She's your publisher. You tell me.

I think she's telling the truth.

That makes two of us.
I compared Crawshaw's DNA

to the mystery blood pulled off
of Petty Officer Cove.

She did not do it.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

Read this a thousand times
and come up with nothing.

Then maybe we should Spitball ideas
and see what sticks.

- What? Did I say it wrong?
- No, you got that right.

No, that's good.
So start with what we know.

Campfire.

TONY: Well, we know
there's a killer on the loose.

- One down, two to go.
- And he's already killed number two.

In your book, Cameron Meyer

and Jerrod Brenner
only have two things in common.

They extorted money and both
murdered a convenience-store clerk.

The killer was seeking revenge
for the clerk's death?

No, clerk's a throwaway character.
I didn't even bother to name him.

The stalker letters are fake, so we
don't even know that he's delusional.

GIBBS: He murdered two characters
from a work of fiction, McGee.

Okay, so he's probably delusional.

But that doesn't mean
he's looking for revenge.

TONY:
You gotta have motive, probie.

Well, I am not convinced
that the answer is in my book, Tony.

Maybe the answer
is in how he got the book.

Definitely didn't get it
from Crawshaw.

She'd never do anything
to jeopardise sales.

It means he got it from you.

- Well, I keep everything locked up.
- It wasn't a question.

It's you or Crawshaw.

Trust your instincts, Tim.
They're usually right.

Take the lead on this one.
All we can do is assist.

Okay.

From the beginning,

Page 1.

[CHUCKLES]

I'd say we played that one nicely,
boss.

The whole good-guy,
bad-guy technique.

GIBBS: DiNozzo.
- Yeah?

Assist.

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

Hold the elevator.

[TYPING]

Ooh.

Aah! Ah!

I am using muscles
I didn't even know I had.

No wonder you only
got to Chapter 6.

Chapter 7.

[JAZZ RECORD PLAYING]

- It's jazz. Helps me clear my mind.
- N-n-- Coltrane is jazz, McGee.

This is a soundtrack
to a bad '70s porno

shot in the San Fernando Valley.

I'm just trying to re-enact every detail
of my writing process here, okay?

I'm sorry, did you say something?
My ears are bleeding and I can't--

I can't--

- Thank you.
- Trying to show you

- what I do when | get stuck.
- Blocked.

Whatever. Up, come on.

- I'm in the middle--
- Up.

Okay.

Now, sometimes when I'm in trouble,
I take a few minutes to freewrite.

- "Freewrite"?
- Stream of consciousness.

About my characters, my story arcs,
my possible plot lines, everything.

- No filter.
- No filter.

Whatever pops in my head
goes right to the page.

Aah-ah-ah.
Write. Be free. Just do it.

Freewrite.

Be free.

| get it.

If! like it, I put it in my binder.

If not...

[WHIRRING]

- Do you always use your shredder?
- Always.

TONY: You everjust take a stack
of pages and toss it in the trash?

- Never.
- You ever misplace a binder

or lost a copy of a book?

No, and no.
The only way the killer got my book

is if he broke into my apartment,
made a copy and returned the original.

I am a federal investigator,

so I'm sure I would know if someone
tried to break into my place.

We're missing something.

While we're trying to figure it out, he is
planning on how to kill his next victim.

Or he's already killed them.

Sorry, I was just freethinking.

It's like he's here in the room with me,
looking over my shoulder as | write.

Type.

[INSERTING PAPER]

Because technically,
what you do is type.

You don't really write.
That would be--

| type.

That's how he does it.

Looked over your shoulder?

[EXHALES]

| type.

Tony, | type.

- Boss, I got it.
- Film?

- It's from my typewriter.
- Typewriter ribbons.

That's how the killer read my book.

- Well, where did he get the ribbons?
TONY: Trash.

Killer must've picked them out
of McGee's Dumpster.

That means he had access
to all my notes and my ideas.

Which means the murders
may not be based on just the book.

McGEE: All these pages are a product
of my freewriting.

[WHISPERS]
Freewriting?

I'll explain it later.

One of my possible endings

involves Cameron Meyer
and Jerrod Brenner killing me.

Agent McGregor.
It's a character I based on myself.

If the killer is confusing fiction
with reality, then you've got a motive.

He's protecting you.

He's already killed two
of the characters. Who's the third?

I haven't decided yet,

but Meyer and Brenner
are the only characters

that wanted me, McGregor, dead.

Then why does he think
there are three?

I don't know. I decided it'd be stupid
to kill McGregor.

- Everyone likes him too much.
ZIVA: Well, not everyone.

"Forensic specialist Amy Sutton
offered her heart

to Agent McGregor
only to be rejected.

Using sign language, she tells her deaf
mother that she can't live without him.

He's going to have to go."

Yeah, "go" as in leave the agency.
Not "go" as in "go."

Does the killer know that?

GIBBS:
Abby?

ZIVA:
She's not answering her cell.

- Security detail?
- Shift change.

Theyjust arrived on duty
outside her apartment.

- She's gone.
- Not answering her home phone.

GIBBS: Send them in.
- Secure the apartment.

No, she's not there.
Her apartment's flooded.

She's staying with Sister Rosita
and the girls.

- Sister Rosita?
- From her bowling team.

The bowling nuns.

[CELL PHONE VIBRATING]

[PHONE BEEPS]

[ABBY GASPS]

Hi, Amy.

- Still no answer.
- Call again, McGee.

I can't believe I let this happen.

Abby knows how to take care
of herself, McGee.

And she's got a crew of nuns
watching her back.

Nuns are on a spiritual retreat.
She's on her own.

[TYRES SQUEALING]

Are you here to see someone?

Because the sisters,
they're gone for a minute.

They went to the church
and they should be back anytime.

If you were smart,

you would've just let him go, Amy.

My name's Abby.

I know rejection is hard,

but let's face it,

you're not good enough for him,
anyway.

Good enough for who?

Special Agent McGregor.

[TYRES SQUEALING]

You two take the back.
McGee, you're with me.

I'm sure there's some sort
of communication problem here.

Don't talk to me like I'm stupid.

I know what you said.

That makes one of us.

How were you planning to do it, huh?

- Do what?
- Kill him.

With poison?

I bet with your forensic training,

I'll bet you could come up
with something pretty--

I wouldn't do that.

I will say,

I've always respected your courage,
Amy.

[GUN COCKS]

TONY:
Drop your weapon.

He said drop it. Now.

Officer Lisa. Agent Tommy.

I'm afraid I can't do that.

You don't know it yet,
but your partner's in danger.

Landon?

- Landon, what are you doing?
- l'm protecting you.

- McGee, who is this guy?
- He's a friend.

LANDON:
Don't!

I have to do this.

Landon, she's not gonna hurt me.

- It's just a book. It's not--
- Finished yet.

Tell him the ending,
Agent McGregor.

Tell him what happens.

It's not what you think, Landon.

Amy and l...

Amy and | get married.

You--? You marry her?

Yeah, I do.

That means that if you kill her, you're
killing the only woman I ever loved.

[PANTING]

McGEE:
Landon, I really do love her.

It just took me a while
to figure it out.

[LANDON BREATHING HEAVILY]

[DROPS GUN DOWN]

- I was only trying to help.
- You killed two people.

[HAN DCUFFS CLICKING]

But I had no choice.

- They set a wedding date yet?
- Guest list is full, buddy.

Are you okay, Abs?

Oh, with the amount
of bad guys after me,

| feel like I'm dating Spider-Man.

- Abby, I'm so sorry.
- We need to talk.

I know this is all my fault--

Agent McGregor cannot marry Amy
in the end.

McGee, they're all wrong
for each other.