NCIS: Hawai'i (2021–…): Season 1, Episode 17 - Breach - full transcript
When a ransomware attempt causes a dam to malfunction, Ernie and a team of hackers are tasked to find the culprit quickly, before all power and water is cut off on the island. Also, Lucy and Whistler work together, giving Whistler a chance to apologize to Lucy and mend their relationship.
♪
Let's get this over with.
Take your time, brother.
Got to love this view.
Yeah. Beautiful.
Here you go.
Very smooth, Tom.
Yeah?
Well, it's a little hard
to operate down here.
Gonna need to replace
this valve. It's rusted out.
Damn it!
Sounding a little grumpy there.
Let's just wrap this up.
Well, the quicker you finish,
the quicker we hit the bars.
I figure we kick off at
Barefoot, if you're up to it.
As the saying goes, we build,
we fight.
We party all night. Hooyah!
What the hell was that?
It's probably just
the tower settling.
They doing a release?!
There's nothing scheduled.
I need to get out of here now!
Come on, Tom.
Double-time.
Dax, help me!
Help!
I can't get it open!
Tom?
Tom?!
♪
Hey.
Hey.
Every letter of
the alphabet here?
Weird, especially since
it's supposed to be an accident.
Who's our victim?
Petty Officer
Second Class
Thomas Priestley,
Naval Construction Group.
What was a Seabee
doing out here?
Dam provides power
for civilians and military.
Crew comes out every year
for annual inspection.
According to Priestley's
partner, Petty Officer
Dax McCaffrey,
there's an automated
water release every hour.
But shortly after they started,
the system rebooted,
activating and opening
the control gates,
locking Priestley in the well.
The dam released
off schedule.
How would that happen?
It shouldn't.
Whenever inspections
are underway,
power at the dam is suspended.
Petty Officer McAffrey insists
proper protocol was followed.
I don't know. Maybe
it's some sort of system error.
No. You don't get
a full-court press
like this for system errors.
Could be sabotage,
maybe a terrorist attack,
but whatever it is,
we need to get in touch with the
company that controls the dam.
It's owned and operated
by Oahu Water Supply.
Track them down,
and I'll confer
with our friends here.
Roger that.
Kai, cue Ernie up.
See if he can get to the bottom
of this malfunction.
You know, once
the tea is gone,
you can just pop those
bad boys in your mouth.
You don't actually need
the straw for the boba.
The boba straw is
four millimeters wider
than your standard straw.
"Why," you ask?
I didn't.
Because it was designed
specifically
to suck the boba out of it.
Use the straw,
it's the law.
I stand corrected, and bow
to your boba brilliance.
I've just... I've
never seen anyone
take their snack
so seriously.
You sound like my mom.
I'm not sure
that's a compliment.
Growing up back East,
there was an international
market near my mom's work.
Sometimes she'd take us there.
They had a boba stand.
This was before
it was so popular.
Ooh, the olden days.
I would beg her for one
every time we would go by.
They were expensive,
we didn't have that much money,
but she would do it every time.
Aw. 'Cause
she loved you.
Or she wanted to shut me up.
Either way, it was delicious,
and I made sure to make it last.
Now you drown yourself
in those pearls of sugar
any time you want.
No, once a week,
just like with my mom.
Even pleasure
should be taken seriously.
I'm not sure
that tracks, but...
Oh, actually, I-I left
my credit card in the shop.
I'll be right back.
Really?
Yeah.
What the hell?
I didn't call an Uber.
I'm sorry. What's going on?
You need to come with us.
Hey!
Ernie?
Ernie!
Hey!
Tell me again
what Lucy said.
Two black SUVs pull up.
Men in suits grab Ernie
off the street.
Just like that?
Just like that.
Lucy's with HPD now.
They tried to track down
the SUVs, but they're gone.
What about Ernie's phone?
It was turned off.
No email? Text?
Some kind of hidden message to us?
Nothing.
Okay. There's got
to be CCTV footage.
Not much to go off.
No plates, men in suits
unidentifiable.
The problem is,
we sort of need Ernie
to find Ernie.
Our computer expert
getting scooped up
right after the dam
has a system malfunction
that drew every federal agent
on the island to investigate.
You think
it's related?
Look at the SUVs.
Black Suburbans.
Reads like government.
Ernie's government.
If some other agency
needed him,
couldn't they use a phone
like normal people?
It's bad manners,
and you know
whose manners are the worst...
FBI didn't grab Ernie.
I mean, kind of
your guys' thing.
Make a big show with all
those sunglasses y'all wear.
I assure you it wasn't us.
Who then? CIA?
Well, when the CIA
grabs you, no one sees.
That doesn't help.
Ernie being taken
isn't your fault.
Yeah, but I should've
stopped it.
How?I don't know.
Gotten an actual license plate,
or followed 'em
or jumped on the damn hood
of the car. I...
There's nothing
you could have done.
What are you doing?
Just being supportive.
Well, stop. It's weird.
What? Being supportive is weird?
The way you're doing it,
all nice and sweet, and...
Maybe hands to ourselves, okay?
Right. Yeah, okay.
Tell me
you got something.
No pulse on Ernie yet.
Sorry. Bad turn of phrase.
FBI hasn't found him,
but based off your hunch,
I pulled a list
of federal agencies
not usually on the island.
That's a lot of names.
Government's got people coming
in and out all the time.
Look at this group right here.
All arrived
within the last day.
Direct from D.C.,
same flights.
Got some Homeland folk,
bunch of NSA analysts.
And then there's Hank Braddock.
Hank Braddock from Justice?
Who's Hank Braddock?
One of the old guard.
Hard-charging maverick.
Thought he was on track
for Deputy Director,
but they gave him RDET instead.
You think this is RDET?
We need to find out.
That starts
by locating Braddock.
I'll make a few calls.
Do it in the car. Lucy,
with us.
Hey, what's-what's, uh, RDET?
I was gonna ask you.
Ransomware and Digital
Extortion Task Force.
It was initiated
a little over a year ago
to combat the rise
in ransomware attacks.
The system breakdown at the dam
could be a cyberattack.
That's a safe bet.
Credentials out.
Anyone see Ernie?
Not yet.
Authorized personnel only.
Special Agent in Charge
Jane Tennant.
NCIS. You weren't invited.
Well, since you probably took
one of my people,
I'm saying we are.
Step outside,
and I'll explain.
Ernie! Thank God.
I was so worried!
Lucy, hush. I'm busy.
Ow!I thought you were kidnapped,
or being tortured.
Lucy, I'm sorry. I'm okay.
We were all worried.
Well, you should be,
but not for me.
We have got four hours
before a ransomware attack
takes out water and power
on the entire island.
Look, we're all friends here.
Friends don't kidnap other
friends' computer specialists.
Situation is severe.
Severe methods were called for.
This is sounding less and less
like an apology, Braddock.
I don't apologize
for doing my job,
and I'm not here
to coddle you.
I'm Alan Mateo,
CEO of Oahu Water Supply,
and I think I can explain.
Someone should.
Two days ago,
we got a ransom demand
on our internal server.
The threat was credible, and
we were given 48 hours to pay.
So the dam release that killed
Petty Officer Priestley
was a proof of concept play?
Your sailor
was collateral damage.
Not the way I'd word it
to his family.
Of course not.
My guys were
already en route
when it happened, but as
you know, it made a big noise.
You should have alerted NCIS.
Clock was ticking.
There was no time.
Time enough
to stage Ernie's abduction.
How much are
they asking for?
$5 million.
Or they shut down our system,
and we potentially lose
all water and power on Oahu.
We have a few hours left
to track them down
and eliminate the threat.
Or-- just spitballing--
we pay the ransom,
which we're ready to do.
The official position
of RDET is we don't pay
or negotiate with ransomers.
The official position
of my board
is that you can't stop us.
But Mr. Mateo here is willing
to delay the payment
a little longer in order
to give us a fighting chance,
in the spirit of cooperation.
Right?
We're giving you a little rope.
Well, my team's here to help.
FBI, too.
Look, I don't need more cooks.
What I do need is to figure out
how the suspects gained access
to the system.
According to Ernie,
the source of the attack
was some sort of pineapple.
Like the fruit?
No, like a Wi-Fi router.
Giving the suspects
access to the system.
Someone would
have had to put
a physical device
within our network.
Give Jesse and Kai a heads up.
We need to track
this pineapple down.
We have three hours
and 20 minutes left.
Let's make it count.
Employees on site
at the dam control
center were able
to locate the
Wi-Fi pineapple.
No one noticed it before?
Hidden under a utility panel.
Who put it there?
We ran through
all dam personnel.
No red flags, no unauthorized
trips to the control center.
So we took it a step further.
We checked incident reports
and police blotters.
There was a trespassing incident
reported a few weeks ago.
Yeah, a maintenance door
was broken into.
HPD never pursued
an investigation.
Why not?
Nothing was stolen or damaged.
And trespassing's
not unusual.
That dam is a prime site
for thrill-seekers.
Teenagers doing all kinds
of cliff dives,
putting themselves
in stupid situations.
Well, follow up
with any leads from HPD
and let me know what you find.
We need to track down
whoever placed that pineapple
before the next attack.
We have been more
than cooperative here,
but I have a responsibility
to my customers.
Braddock doesn't seem
to understand.
I can't let service go down.
Considering the military
makes up a big part
of your customer base...
And considering
a Navy sailor was killed
on your company's property...
You should continue
to cooperate.
Do you understand what happens
if the power grid goes down?
It wouldn't be some sort
of rolling brownout.
No. It would be catastrophic.
Every service you have--
gas, communications, food,
medical care--
runs on electricity.
The island would be paralyzed.
Followed by a steep
uptick in crimes, fires,
possibly mass panic.
Okay, that all sounds bad,
and that's why our focus is
to find the people responsible
and to stop 'em,
but if you want
to pay the ransom...
Then I end the threat,
full stop.
I'm sure you're all great
at your jobs,
but I'm trying to be, too.
I need to discuss with my board.
Guy's just covering his ass.
Well,
try and see it
from his point of view.
His point of view is
to pay off the ransomers
so they can do it again.
More complicated than that.
No, no. No.
Sometimes there's no nuance.
It's just right and wrong.
I'm gonna go check on Ernie.
You need water?
No.
Something to eat?
No.
Maybe a sandwich?
I'm good, Lucy.
Come on. A genius can't do
whatever it is you're doing here
on an empty stomach.
I'm not just any genius.
You okay?
I'm fine.
But shouldn't you be focused
on the screen that way?
Don't need to.
Why?
You do something brilliant?
Yup.
I built a program
to hunt vulnerabilities
within the code already
in the power grid network.
So instead of looking
for the ransomware,
you're looking for the road
the ransomware took.
It's a virtual bloodhound, baby.
Well, we wouldn't even be
in this position
if you'd installed
the original software.
You're right
to think I'm that good,
but you're wrong
about the software.
The system was built
15 years ago.
There would have been
no risk contingencies
for someone placing a pineapple
within the network.
I mean, even in the
best-planned systems,
humans are the wild card.
All this programming
must be exhausting.
Ah. It is the rocky
path to Jericho.
No clue what that means,
but I bet these guys do.
Do you know any of 'em?
Red jacket is Titus.
He's what we call
a "white hat."
Made his bones going
after hackers
who attacked voting systems.
Oh, and, uh, who's the one
in the Unabomber hoodie?
Felicia. She's infamous.
She used to run
with the DarkSide.
The gold standard
of black hat hackers.
White hat, black hat.
Cat in the Hat.
What's it all mean?
White hats hack for us.
Black hats hack for themselves.
Looking for money,
power, chaos.
Like executing
ransomware attacks?
How can you trust her?
I barely trust anyone.
But Felicia's generally
good people.
At least, since Braddock
caught her trying
to bring down the NASDAQ.
I'm sorry. How does
getting caught make her good?
Because people are complicated,
Lucy, just like code.
And just like code,
there's always a weakness
in the system.
Oh! Amazing!
What is it?
A hidden code.
Elegant.
It's beautifully written.
Some sort of backdoor, I think.
I-I'm not sure.
Is it connected to the breach?
Yes. No. Maybe. Uh,
look, I got to dig in.
How long will it take?
20 minutes, 20 days.
We have less than two hours.
Agent Braddock.
You have a lead on our hackers?
We're following up on a break-in
from the dam a few weeks back.
Doesn't sound promising.
Well, considering
my team's only been read in
for about an hour,
I'd disagree.
You're right.
I should've brought you into
this grade A cluster sooner.
You know what
Mateo's doing there?
Getting his board
and his insurance company
to approve the ransom.
Well, did you explain to him
that paying doesn't guarantee
an end to the threats,
it only incentivizes
future attacks?
Learned a long time ago.
No one responds
to reason, only action.
He's panicking.
We can't. We have to work
with the time we have,
and the best tech minds
on the island.
I appreciate your confidence,
but it's my head on a pike
if Hawai'i's grid goes down.
Well, you can keep your head
where it is for now.
We have a line on a suspect who
may have placed the pineapple.
We caught his image
on a CCTV near the dam control
same day as the break-in.
Well, go get him.
According to his rap sheet,
this is where Rodney resides.
Guy's in and out of state--
identity theft, burglary, but
nothing on his profile
suggests hacking.
Ah, maybe he learned
computers at Halawa.
Their continuing ed
is second to none.
We've got a runner!
I'll cover the front.
NCIS. Stop!
Come on, get up.
What are you doing, man?
Let go of me!
I didn't do nothing, bro!
Yeah.
You definitely run
like an innocent man.
Jesse and Kai have our
pineapple suspect in custody.
Questioning him now.
Great.
'Cause I'm on the verge of
slipping through this backdoor.
Could make contact with
the ransomware code any moment.
We could beat this deadline yet.
Doesn't matter.
Mateo paid the ransom.
He what?!
We still have, like, 20 minutes.
His board got nervous.
I couldn't stop him.
The money's been transferred.
If they keep their word,
the ransomware disappears,
along with our chance
to find these hackers.
All right, look, that's a big
"if," Ernie, okay? Keep working.
Mateo may think
he solved his problem,
but we still have
a killer to find.
I swear to God,
I've been clean
since I got out of prison.
Sure. We believe you, Rodney.
Except for the little B and E
at the Nuuanu Dam two weeks ago.
Not me.
We got video of you
parking half a mile away.
And we got your fingerprints
all over the pineapple.
The what now?
Stop stalling.
Who are you working for?
You guys are blowing this
out of proportion.
I don't think so.
We take threatening
to shut down all water and power
on the island
kind of personal, Rodney.
Especially when you demand
$5 million in ransom.
What ransom?
No more lying, Rodney.
Okay, look,
I admit I was hired
to place that Wi-Fi thing.
They paid me a grand. That's it.
Who's they?
Where'd you get the pineapple,
Rodney?
We need names,
numbers, locations.
I don't know, guys.
No, we're not
playing around here.
If you don't tell us now,
something very bad
is going to happen.
What kind of bad?
That kind of bad.
Power's out
on the entire leeward side.
Utilities and Internet service
is down all over the island.
Pearl Harbor's running
on backup generators.
But it's not sustainable.
I don't understand.
We paid the ransom.
What else do they want?
The risk-reward is heavily
skewed to the hackers here.
Chances of getting caught
are already close to zero.
As long as they have access
to the system,
they can shut down
water and power at any moment.
This is what you get
when you listen
to the board
and not the professionals.
It's the governor.
I got to answer.
What a jackass.
So we have no idea
what they'll do next.
Uh, we'd have a fighting chance
if any of us had power
for our computers.
My guys are getting the backup
generators on-line.
You're welcome.
Oh, yes.
All right, it feels like
there's two options
for the hackers here.
Either that was practice,
or it was a distraction.
Oh, if it's practice,
it's not for water and power.
Hackers played their hand
with this last attack.
You just said
they can turn the power
on and off at will.
Yeah.
They could've, but they're...
they're gone, out of the system.
So there's no way to track them?
Well, the program I built
isolated a piece of code
they exploited.
I need some time,
but I may be able
to find out who they are.
Um, if you're trying
to intimidate me,
it's working.
This isn't intimidation.
This is just reality, man.
Half the island is down.
We don't know
when it's coming back up.
I didn't do this.
Yes, you did, by placing
this simple device,
you created this nightmare.
Blood's on your hands,
too, Rodney.
Dead sailor
at the Nuuanu Dam.
That's just the start.
Oxygen tanks will stop working
at the hospitals.
Accidents will increase
in the streets.
Communications will shut down.
Total mayhem.
All because of you, Rodney.
All right, look,
when I got out,
I was hard up.
An old friend of mine told me
about this dark website
called "back-page."
Supposed to be
anonymous.
Respond to an ad, do the job,
get paid in crypto.
You don't know what a pineapple
is, but you know crypto?
You think I don't read?
Crypto's the future, bro.
Okay, so you responded
to an ad.
Mm-hmm.
They wanted you
to place the pineapple.
Yeah.
How did they get it to you?
Box in the mail
two days before the job.
I got rid of the packaging...
Ah, you're really not trying
to help yourself here.
Let me finish. I got
rid of the packaging,
but I remember
where it was shipped from.
I got one of those
photogenic memories.
You don't say.
Delivery Depot, Akron, Ohio.
Oh, my. Just...
Please tell me
that this a bleat of victory.
It's unbelievable, though I
should have guessed all along.
But how could I? How could I?
You got our hackers?
Something better.
I got the source.
The source of the hack?
The source of the
entire system,
of everything
that's modern software.
A hidden signature, deep in
the mother code. Look! Look!
Look!
Okay, well, do you know
whose signature it is?
Does Beethoven know Mozart?
Well, I mean, of course he did
'cause Mozart was his teacher.
And this is my teacher,
though I never met the man.
Kevin Rooker.
The Rook! The Rook! The Rook!
Look, I know
you're expecting me to react,
but I don't understand.
He's the grandfather of every
program that runs the world.
His code laid the groundwork
for most
infrastructure systems today.
I mean... he's the Matrix.
Sounds like lot of systems
that he could exploit
if he wanted to.
Yeah, well, technically, yes,
but doesn't fit his character
at all. He's a purist.
Doesn't care about money,
fame, success, society.
That sounds suspicious to me.
He walked away
from the tech world years ago.
And where did he walk to?
No one knows.
He just... vanished.
Well, we got
to figure out where he is
and see if he's behind this
or can help us stop it.
Good luck with that.
Kevin Rooker has been off
the grid for ten years.
Before that,
he was everywhere.
Started with the NSA
right here in Hawai'i
where he developed many
of their programs.
Then he went independent.
Did contract work
for the government,
financial institutions.
And, of course,
utility companies.
All right. Why'd he quit?
NSA wanted his help
with cyber warfare--
weaponizing his source code
to go after
foreign infrastructures.
He refused,
but NSA went ahead with it.
That was enough for him.
He walked away, disappeared.
Well, how disappeared is he?
Well, NSA's not
gonna let someone
like Rook too far out
of their sight.
It took some digging,
but I was able to find him
right here
where it all started--
abandoned farmhouse in Waialua.
Maybe a secret hideout
abandoned farmhouse
for ransomware attacks?
All right.
Why don't you two find out?
As in, uh,
us two? Her and me?
That a problem?
Not at all.
No, it's totally awesome.
Great.
I'm heading back to Pearl.
Water and power is still out
on the leeward side.
Red Cross is setting up
food and shelter,
but resources are limited.
You guys follow up
on Rodney's Akron lead?
Got the FBI checking out
Delivery Depot,
trying to figure out who sent
the pineapple, but nothing yet.
Rodney did give us access
to his back-page profile.
Here's his communication
with the suspect who hired him.
Instructions on how to place
the pineapple, turn it on.
Keep reading.
There's details in there that
not just anyone would know.
Yeah, shift changes,
CCTV blind spots.
Even descriptions
of the people who work security.
It'd be nearly impossible for
our hackers to know this stuff.
Unless they had
an inside man.
Someone who works at the dam.
We already looked
into their employees.
Time to look again.
This is Rook's
secret hideout?
Could be.
Hard to tell.
Should we go in?
Ernie's running a back trace
on the Internet connected
to the address.
So, should we go in?
We should wait.
This is ridiculous.
Well, this is the job.
No. Not the waiting.
Us.
There is no us.
Yes, I know. That part's done.
But we should be able
to move past it, be cordial
and not want
to crawl out of our skin
every time we're in a room
or a car together.
You want to be friends.
Yeah, I think we could be.
Sure.
Sure. We can, uh,
forget about the past
and how you lied to me,
broke my heart and
just pretend it didn't happen.
Okay, that's not
what I'm saying.
Which part did I get wrong?
Well, I don't want
to pretend it didn't happen.
I know that I hurt you.
But I would like forgiveness.
How am I supposed to forgive
you? You never even apologized.
I apologized.
No.
No. You tried to explain
your out-of-town girlfriend,
tried to blame circumstances.
But not once did you say,
"Hey, Lucy, I'm really sorry
that I hurt you."
Oh, you're right.
I know.
I should have apologized.
Then why didn't you?
Well, I guess because I figured
that once I did...
...this would truly be over.
Check it out.
That's Rook.
Hey, hey, what are you doing?
He went inside.
Yeah, I know.
So we should, too.
He could be armed or could have
other suspects with him.
All right. Then what?
I'll take the lead.
Is that an alarm?
NCIS!
What's going on here?
We were just about to rock.
My programming days
are behind me.
And I'm not a hacker.
I don't even use email.
And yet,
a backdoor in your
infrastructure software
has been used
to shut down the Nuuanu Dam.
Half the island is without
power, and a Navy sailor's dead.
That sounds like
a "you" problem.
Becomes a you problem
when we take you away in cuffs.
I walked away from coding
years ago
for exactly this reason.
You let computers run
your world,
you risk computers
destroying it.
I'm sorry. Can we just
address the fact
that one of the
greatest coders
in the world is
in a garage band?
Band's just a hobby.
My real passion is building
and refurbishing guitars.
It's a far cry from building
the world's largest
infrastructure systems.
Music is simple,
and hard to weaponize,
though you people have tried.
Got a lot of animosity
towards the government.
Look, the problem
sounds terrible,
if not entirely plausible.
Hard to believe
someone could have accessed
my backdoor
since they're not me.
Strong argument for your guilt.
But if they did,
they're wasting their time
turning off the power
for a few dollars.
So much more they could do
with the source code.
What do you mean?
You have no idea how many
systems my code's imbedded in.
Okay. So either you did this...
I didn't.
Or...
you're the only one
who can help us
figure out
who did and why.
I can't.
Your band will understand.
I can't be drawn back in.
A man died this morning
because someone took control
of your code.
This isn't about you.
It's about all the other people
who might get hurt.
Lucy and Whistler were able
to get Rook to cooperate.
They're en route to the
command center now.
But we are still one
inside man short.
We looked back
into all the dam employees,
anyone who worked I.T.
or might have been involved
with system maintenance.
And?
None of them look good for this.
The best person
to coordinate the attack
would be someone
who knows the codebase
and has full access.
Yeah, but not just any
utility worker could do this.
It takes skill
to break into the system.
And right now,
the best hackers
on the island have full access.
That's right. Get a list of all
the hackers working with RDET.
Ernie,
this is...All my dreams
becoming reality.
Loyal and dutiful protégé
at your service.
Call me Kevin.
You can call me Ernie,
or "Ern" for short.
No, just Ernie.
No one calls me "Ern."
I don't know why
I even said that. I'm so giddy.
Yep.
Shouldn't-shouldn't you tell him
where to look?
Well, Mozart knows how to find
an aria in an oratorio.
More of a Robert Fripp man
myself.
Looks like some I.T. hack threw in
an addendum to my code.
Forced the system
to try to upgrade
for automated
and remote management.
That's how they got control
of the system.
Oh, it's not part
of your original code.
That's why it was
vulnerable to attack.
Hack hacking, as
far as I can tell,
but it got the job done.
The problem is with the rest
of the software,
not my mother code.
How do you know that for sure?
I built a master codebase
with a unique access key.
No one living or dead
can get full control.
And what's the unique
access key?
Him.
Part of my signature
is what's called
a compiler backdoor.
It's a particular
set of commands.
I put one in every
system I built.
When the student is ready,
the master appears.
Teach me your ways.
Sorry.
Let me get the power
back up first.
This doesn't add up.
Ransomware attackers
usually get in,
get their money and get out
before they can be traced.
Our suspects got their ransom,
still went through
with the attack,
and have been quiet ever since.
Well, there are dozens
of other systems
Rook worked on.
Hackers could target them next.
Yeah, but Rook's here now.
And he has an access key in all
the major systems he's coded.
So he can stop the hackers.
There's nothing more
that they can exploit.
No, unless their plan all along
was to draw him out.
Once the ransom was paid,
they had no other cards to play.
The hackers had to escalate
to bring Rook out of hiding.
He could be the target here.
Jesse and Kai need me.
Keep at it.
No wasted effort. No mistakes.
Elegant.
Why did you ever retire
and deny the world your talents?
I had nothing left to give.
I was too tied up in the work.
What I did became
who I was.
And there was no more pleasure,
only more work.
Yeah. It can be hard
to separate the two.
Power's restored. Resetting.
All right. Executing commands.
Everything seems to be
running smoothly.
Rook.
We need to get you
out of here, now.
What's going on?
Rooker's the target
of this whole operation.
Let's go.
What are you talking about?
We checked out every cyber
engineer RDET brought in.
None of them, not even the
black hats, popped suspicious.
But then we started
looking into
which of them
might have ties to Akron, Ohio.
Where the pineapple came from.
Thank God.
All right,
tell me what you learned.
We tracked down family members,
college buddies.
We found this.
One of the RDET agents
was in Pittsburgh
days before the pineapple
was shipped.
Less than two hours' drive
to Akron.
Who was it?
Hank Braddock.
RDET team leader.
Come on.
Get in the car.
Hey.
Hey, sorry,
uh, where you taking Rook?
We're taking him
to a safe house.
We'll keep him secured
until the threat is gone.
And, uh, where is this
safe house?
Wouldn't be very safe if I said.
Seems maybe he's safest here,
you know,
surrounded by federal agents.
Don't tell me my job,
I won't tell you yours.
And who are you texting?
Just my boss. She should know.
You don't need to do that.
It's all good.
I'm telling you to stop.
Ernie!
I think you just saved my life.
No way was I letting him
get you twice in one day.
Do we have any idea where
Braddock could be taking Rook?
Went back over
recent phone calls,
texts, emails. Nothing.
Talked to HPD,
they put a BOLO out.
FBI's tracing his phone,
his email, his Internet.
Can't get far.
Dude's a professional
hacker hunter.
He knows how to hide.
But he doesn't know how to hack.
Are we saying somehow he put the
ransomware into the Dam system?
He's been involved in ransom
attacks for over a decade.
Knows enough hackers who'd do it
for the right price.
But why? He's supposed
to be one of the good guys.
Spent his whole career
watching bad guys
get away with millions.
Passed over for promotions.
I mean, maybe he's over it.
But he got his ransom
and still kidnapped Rook
in broad daylight.Guys, the
$5 million is nothing.
He's after the brass ring.
What's that?
We know Rook's mother code
is used in operating systems
across governments
and private institutions.
Not just utilities.
Airlines, retailers.
Banks.
The Royal Bank
of the Netherlands?
If Rook opens up that system,
Braddock could walk away
with hundreds
of millions of dollars.
Alert the bank.
Yeah, I'm working on it, just...
What's wrong?
Hold on, my computer's
being weird.
They hack into your system, too?
No.
It's Rook.
He just sent a message?
Using an open access system
wherever he is to communicate.
Even in the best coded systems,
humans are the wild card.
Yeah, and what a brilliant
wild card.
Can you imagine how scared
he is? Gun to his head,
life on the line, and he
manages to send me a message?
It's really just like...
Hey, Ernie, since
his life is on the line,
maybe tell us where he is?
Sorry.
Lanai Lookout Post.
The Lookout.
It's remote, it has power,
it's close to the water.
Perfect escape route.
Let's move.
You in the bank's system?
I am, but this isn't gonna work.
Just transfer the money.
They're gonna notice
a hundred million dollars
has gone missing.
That's my problem.
You're right about that.
You got nothing but problems.
Just stay away.
Or what? You'll shoot Rook?
I certainly hope not.
Look,
you're already responsible
for one death.
That wasn't supposed to happen.
I didn't know about
the maintenance crew.
None of it should have
happened, Braddock.
Your whole career
was spent fighting this.
And what was my
reward? RDET?
Chasing hackers until they
put me out to pasture?
No. That's a bunch of bull.
This isn't the answer.
You are gonna back away.
Rook is gonna
finish the transfer
and I'll disappear.
There's nowhere to go.
Yeah, I know. Your
team is out there.
I get it.
But I still got some fight left.
Uh, uh...
done.
Come on.
Hey.
Ow.
They're on the move.
Braddock.
Put your hands up.
It's over.
You okay?
Yeah.
Stop!
Put the gun down.
You got a job to do?
Do it.
Just give up.
No one was supposed to get hurt.
No one else has to.
Just one more.
Braddock...
Braddock!
Not today, buddy.
Nice setup, man.
You're being kind.
Nah, man, no.
You made this a home.
Something I could never achieve.
That's why I gave it up.
No matter how good
I was, it just never
made me happy.
But I guess you are.
Me? Happy?
Yeah, I guess.
Honestly?
I haven't thought about it.
Oh. Uh, sorry. Just...
Swept all your
digital footprints
since coming back online.
You can now return
to your life
of peace and no one will know
you were back.
Thank you, Ernie.
It's really
that easy.
Go back to guitars.
Never touch a computer again.
Find what makes
you happy, Ernie.
Hey.
Hey.
FBI get the money
returned to the bank?
Yep.
And we got a lead on the hacker
who helped Braddock
with the ransomware.
Guy will be in cuffs by morning.
Cool.
Well, have a good night.
Lucy.
Can we put a pin in the
difficult conversation?
Yeah.
Just one thing.
It's all my fault.
I was scared of...
breaking up with Cara.
Of starting something
with you, because...
...you're the most
amazing woman I've ever met.
And I am...
truly so sorry I hurt you.
Thank you.
Let's get this over with.
Take your time, brother.
Got to love this view.
Yeah. Beautiful.
Here you go.
Very smooth, Tom.
Yeah?
Well, it's a little hard
to operate down here.
Gonna need to replace
this valve. It's rusted out.
Damn it!
Sounding a little grumpy there.
Let's just wrap this up.
Well, the quicker you finish,
the quicker we hit the bars.
I figure we kick off at
Barefoot, if you're up to it.
As the saying goes, we build,
we fight.
We party all night. Hooyah!
What the hell was that?
It's probably just
the tower settling.
They doing a release?!
There's nothing scheduled.
I need to get out of here now!
Come on, Tom.
Double-time.
Dax, help me!
Help!
I can't get it open!
Tom?
Tom?!
♪
Hey.
Hey.
Every letter of
the alphabet here?
Weird, especially since
it's supposed to be an accident.
Who's our victim?
Petty Officer
Second Class
Thomas Priestley,
Naval Construction Group.
What was a Seabee
doing out here?
Dam provides power
for civilians and military.
Crew comes out every year
for annual inspection.
According to Priestley's
partner, Petty Officer
Dax McCaffrey,
there's an automated
water release every hour.
But shortly after they started,
the system rebooted,
activating and opening
the control gates,
locking Priestley in the well.
The dam released
off schedule.
How would that happen?
It shouldn't.
Whenever inspections
are underway,
power at the dam is suspended.
Petty Officer McAffrey insists
proper protocol was followed.
I don't know. Maybe
it's some sort of system error.
No. You don't get
a full-court press
like this for system errors.
Could be sabotage,
maybe a terrorist attack,
but whatever it is,
we need to get in touch with the
company that controls the dam.
It's owned and operated
by Oahu Water Supply.
Track them down,
and I'll confer
with our friends here.
Roger that.
Kai, cue Ernie up.
See if he can get to the bottom
of this malfunction.
You know, once
the tea is gone,
you can just pop those
bad boys in your mouth.
You don't actually need
the straw for the boba.
The boba straw is
four millimeters wider
than your standard straw.
"Why," you ask?
I didn't.
Because it was designed
specifically
to suck the boba out of it.
Use the straw,
it's the law.
I stand corrected, and bow
to your boba brilliance.
I've just... I've
never seen anyone
take their snack
so seriously.
You sound like my mom.
I'm not sure
that's a compliment.
Growing up back East,
there was an international
market near my mom's work.
Sometimes she'd take us there.
They had a boba stand.
This was before
it was so popular.
Ooh, the olden days.
I would beg her for one
every time we would go by.
They were expensive,
we didn't have that much money,
but she would do it every time.
Aw. 'Cause
she loved you.
Or she wanted to shut me up.
Either way, it was delicious,
and I made sure to make it last.
Now you drown yourself
in those pearls of sugar
any time you want.
No, once a week,
just like with my mom.
Even pleasure
should be taken seriously.
I'm not sure
that tracks, but...
Oh, actually, I-I left
my credit card in the shop.
I'll be right back.
Really?
Yeah.
What the hell?
I didn't call an Uber.
I'm sorry. What's going on?
You need to come with us.
Hey!
Ernie?
Ernie!
Hey!
Tell me again
what Lucy said.
Two black SUVs pull up.
Men in suits grab Ernie
off the street.
Just like that?
Just like that.
Lucy's with HPD now.
They tried to track down
the SUVs, but they're gone.
What about Ernie's phone?
It was turned off.
No email? Text?
Some kind of hidden message to us?
Nothing.
Okay. There's got
to be CCTV footage.
Not much to go off.
No plates, men in suits
unidentifiable.
The problem is,
we sort of need Ernie
to find Ernie.
Our computer expert
getting scooped up
right after the dam
has a system malfunction
that drew every federal agent
on the island to investigate.
You think
it's related?
Look at the SUVs.
Black Suburbans.
Reads like government.
Ernie's government.
If some other agency
needed him,
couldn't they use a phone
like normal people?
It's bad manners,
and you know
whose manners are the worst...
FBI didn't grab Ernie.
I mean, kind of
your guys' thing.
Make a big show with all
those sunglasses y'all wear.
I assure you it wasn't us.
Who then? CIA?
Well, when the CIA
grabs you, no one sees.
That doesn't help.
Ernie being taken
isn't your fault.
Yeah, but I should've
stopped it.
How?I don't know.
Gotten an actual license plate,
or followed 'em
or jumped on the damn hood
of the car. I...
There's nothing
you could have done.
What are you doing?
Just being supportive.
Well, stop. It's weird.
What? Being supportive is weird?
The way you're doing it,
all nice and sweet, and...
Maybe hands to ourselves, okay?
Right. Yeah, okay.
Tell me
you got something.
No pulse on Ernie yet.
Sorry. Bad turn of phrase.
FBI hasn't found him,
but based off your hunch,
I pulled a list
of federal agencies
not usually on the island.
That's a lot of names.
Government's got people coming
in and out all the time.
Look at this group right here.
All arrived
within the last day.
Direct from D.C.,
same flights.
Got some Homeland folk,
bunch of NSA analysts.
And then there's Hank Braddock.
Hank Braddock from Justice?
Who's Hank Braddock?
One of the old guard.
Hard-charging maverick.
Thought he was on track
for Deputy Director,
but they gave him RDET instead.
You think this is RDET?
We need to find out.
That starts
by locating Braddock.
I'll make a few calls.
Do it in the car. Lucy,
with us.
Hey, what's-what's, uh, RDET?
I was gonna ask you.
Ransomware and Digital
Extortion Task Force.
It was initiated
a little over a year ago
to combat the rise
in ransomware attacks.
The system breakdown at the dam
could be a cyberattack.
That's a safe bet.
Credentials out.
Anyone see Ernie?
Not yet.
Authorized personnel only.
Special Agent in Charge
Jane Tennant.
NCIS. You weren't invited.
Well, since you probably took
one of my people,
I'm saying we are.
Step outside,
and I'll explain.
Ernie! Thank God.
I was so worried!
Lucy, hush. I'm busy.
Ow!I thought you were kidnapped,
or being tortured.
Lucy, I'm sorry. I'm okay.
We were all worried.
Well, you should be,
but not for me.
We have got four hours
before a ransomware attack
takes out water and power
on the entire island.
Look, we're all friends here.
Friends don't kidnap other
friends' computer specialists.
Situation is severe.
Severe methods were called for.
This is sounding less and less
like an apology, Braddock.
I don't apologize
for doing my job,
and I'm not here
to coddle you.
I'm Alan Mateo,
CEO of Oahu Water Supply,
and I think I can explain.
Someone should.
Two days ago,
we got a ransom demand
on our internal server.
The threat was credible, and
we were given 48 hours to pay.
So the dam release that killed
Petty Officer Priestley
was a proof of concept play?
Your sailor
was collateral damage.
Not the way I'd word it
to his family.
Of course not.
My guys were
already en route
when it happened, but as
you know, it made a big noise.
You should have alerted NCIS.
Clock was ticking.
There was no time.
Time enough
to stage Ernie's abduction.
How much are
they asking for?
$5 million.
Or they shut down our system,
and we potentially lose
all water and power on Oahu.
We have a few hours left
to track them down
and eliminate the threat.
Or-- just spitballing--
we pay the ransom,
which we're ready to do.
The official position
of RDET is we don't pay
or negotiate with ransomers.
The official position
of my board
is that you can't stop us.
But Mr. Mateo here is willing
to delay the payment
a little longer in order
to give us a fighting chance,
in the spirit of cooperation.
Right?
We're giving you a little rope.
Well, my team's here to help.
FBI, too.
Look, I don't need more cooks.
What I do need is to figure out
how the suspects gained access
to the system.
According to Ernie,
the source of the attack
was some sort of pineapple.
Like the fruit?
No, like a Wi-Fi router.
Giving the suspects
access to the system.
Someone would
have had to put
a physical device
within our network.
Give Jesse and Kai a heads up.
We need to track
this pineapple down.
We have three hours
and 20 minutes left.
Let's make it count.
Employees on site
at the dam control
center were able
to locate the
Wi-Fi pineapple.
No one noticed it before?
Hidden under a utility panel.
Who put it there?
We ran through
all dam personnel.
No red flags, no unauthorized
trips to the control center.
So we took it a step further.
We checked incident reports
and police blotters.
There was a trespassing incident
reported a few weeks ago.
Yeah, a maintenance door
was broken into.
HPD never pursued
an investigation.
Why not?
Nothing was stolen or damaged.
And trespassing's
not unusual.
That dam is a prime site
for thrill-seekers.
Teenagers doing all kinds
of cliff dives,
putting themselves
in stupid situations.
Well, follow up
with any leads from HPD
and let me know what you find.
We need to track down
whoever placed that pineapple
before the next attack.
We have been more
than cooperative here,
but I have a responsibility
to my customers.
Braddock doesn't seem
to understand.
I can't let service go down.
Considering the military
makes up a big part
of your customer base...
And considering
a Navy sailor was killed
on your company's property...
You should continue
to cooperate.
Do you understand what happens
if the power grid goes down?
It wouldn't be some sort
of rolling brownout.
No. It would be catastrophic.
Every service you have--
gas, communications, food,
medical care--
runs on electricity.
The island would be paralyzed.
Followed by a steep
uptick in crimes, fires,
possibly mass panic.
Okay, that all sounds bad,
and that's why our focus is
to find the people responsible
and to stop 'em,
but if you want
to pay the ransom...
Then I end the threat,
full stop.
I'm sure you're all great
at your jobs,
but I'm trying to be, too.
I need to discuss with my board.
Guy's just covering his ass.
Well,
try and see it
from his point of view.
His point of view is
to pay off the ransomers
so they can do it again.
More complicated than that.
No, no. No.
Sometimes there's no nuance.
It's just right and wrong.
I'm gonna go check on Ernie.
You need water?
No.
Something to eat?
No.
Maybe a sandwich?
I'm good, Lucy.
Come on. A genius can't do
whatever it is you're doing here
on an empty stomach.
I'm not just any genius.
You okay?
I'm fine.
But shouldn't you be focused
on the screen that way?
Don't need to.
Why?
You do something brilliant?
Yup.
I built a program
to hunt vulnerabilities
within the code already
in the power grid network.
So instead of looking
for the ransomware,
you're looking for the road
the ransomware took.
It's a virtual bloodhound, baby.
Well, we wouldn't even be
in this position
if you'd installed
the original software.
You're right
to think I'm that good,
but you're wrong
about the software.
The system was built
15 years ago.
There would have been
no risk contingencies
for someone placing a pineapple
within the network.
I mean, even in the
best-planned systems,
humans are the wild card.
All this programming
must be exhausting.
Ah. It is the rocky
path to Jericho.
No clue what that means,
but I bet these guys do.
Do you know any of 'em?
Red jacket is Titus.
He's what we call
a "white hat."
Made his bones going
after hackers
who attacked voting systems.
Oh, and, uh, who's the one
in the Unabomber hoodie?
Felicia. She's infamous.
She used to run
with the DarkSide.
The gold standard
of black hat hackers.
White hat, black hat.
Cat in the Hat.
What's it all mean?
White hats hack for us.
Black hats hack for themselves.
Looking for money,
power, chaos.
Like executing
ransomware attacks?
How can you trust her?
I barely trust anyone.
But Felicia's generally
good people.
At least, since Braddock
caught her trying
to bring down the NASDAQ.
I'm sorry. How does
getting caught make her good?
Because people are complicated,
Lucy, just like code.
And just like code,
there's always a weakness
in the system.
Oh! Amazing!
What is it?
A hidden code.
Elegant.
It's beautifully written.
Some sort of backdoor, I think.
I-I'm not sure.
Is it connected to the breach?
Yes. No. Maybe. Uh,
look, I got to dig in.
How long will it take?
20 minutes, 20 days.
We have less than two hours.
Agent Braddock.
You have a lead on our hackers?
We're following up on a break-in
from the dam a few weeks back.
Doesn't sound promising.
Well, considering
my team's only been read in
for about an hour,
I'd disagree.
You're right.
I should've brought you into
this grade A cluster sooner.
You know what
Mateo's doing there?
Getting his board
and his insurance company
to approve the ransom.
Well, did you explain to him
that paying doesn't guarantee
an end to the threats,
it only incentivizes
future attacks?
Learned a long time ago.
No one responds
to reason, only action.
He's panicking.
We can't. We have to work
with the time we have,
and the best tech minds
on the island.
I appreciate your confidence,
but it's my head on a pike
if Hawai'i's grid goes down.
Well, you can keep your head
where it is for now.
We have a line on a suspect who
may have placed the pineapple.
We caught his image
on a CCTV near the dam control
same day as the break-in.
Well, go get him.
According to his rap sheet,
this is where Rodney resides.
Guy's in and out of state--
identity theft, burglary, but
nothing on his profile
suggests hacking.
Ah, maybe he learned
computers at Halawa.
Their continuing ed
is second to none.
We've got a runner!
I'll cover the front.
NCIS. Stop!
Come on, get up.
What are you doing, man?
Let go of me!
I didn't do nothing, bro!
Yeah.
You definitely run
like an innocent man.
Jesse and Kai have our
pineapple suspect in custody.
Questioning him now.
Great.
'Cause I'm on the verge of
slipping through this backdoor.
Could make contact with
the ransomware code any moment.
We could beat this deadline yet.
Doesn't matter.
Mateo paid the ransom.
He what?!
We still have, like, 20 minutes.
His board got nervous.
I couldn't stop him.
The money's been transferred.
If they keep their word,
the ransomware disappears,
along with our chance
to find these hackers.
All right, look, that's a big
"if," Ernie, okay? Keep working.
Mateo may think
he solved his problem,
but we still have
a killer to find.
I swear to God,
I've been clean
since I got out of prison.
Sure. We believe you, Rodney.
Except for the little B and E
at the Nuuanu Dam two weeks ago.
Not me.
We got video of you
parking half a mile away.
And we got your fingerprints
all over the pineapple.
The what now?
Stop stalling.
Who are you working for?
You guys are blowing this
out of proportion.
I don't think so.
We take threatening
to shut down all water and power
on the island
kind of personal, Rodney.
Especially when you demand
$5 million in ransom.
What ransom?
No more lying, Rodney.
Okay, look,
I admit I was hired
to place that Wi-Fi thing.
They paid me a grand. That's it.
Who's they?
Where'd you get the pineapple,
Rodney?
We need names,
numbers, locations.
I don't know, guys.
No, we're not
playing around here.
If you don't tell us now,
something very bad
is going to happen.
What kind of bad?
That kind of bad.
Power's out
on the entire leeward side.
Utilities and Internet service
is down all over the island.
Pearl Harbor's running
on backup generators.
But it's not sustainable.
I don't understand.
We paid the ransom.
What else do they want?
The risk-reward is heavily
skewed to the hackers here.
Chances of getting caught
are already close to zero.
As long as they have access
to the system,
they can shut down
water and power at any moment.
This is what you get
when you listen
to the board
and not the professionals.
It's the governor.
I got to answer.
What a jackass.
So we have no idea
what they'll do next.
Uh, we'd have a fighting chance
if any of us had power
for our computers.
My guys are getting the backup
generators on-line.
You're welcome.
Oh, yes.
All right, it feels like
there's two options
for the hackers here.
Either that was practice,
or it was a distraction.
Oh, if it's practice,
it's not for water and power.
Hackers played their hand
with this last attack.
You just said
they can turn the power
on and off at will.
Yeah.
They could've, but they're...
they're gone, out of the system.
So there's no way to track them?
Well, the program I built
isolated a piece of code
they exploited.
I need some time,
but I may be able
to find out who they are.
Um, if you're trying
to intimidate me,
it's working.
This isn't intimidation.
This is just reality, man.
Half the island is down.
We don't know
when it's coming back up.
I didn't do this.
Yes, you did, by placing
this simple device,
you created this nightmare.
Blood's on your hands,
too, Rodney.
Dead sailor
at the Nuuanu Dam.
That's just the start.
Oxygen tanks will stop working
at the hospitals.
Accidents will increase
in the streets.
Communications will shut down.
Total mayhem.
All because of you, Rodney.
All right, look,
when I got out,
I was hard up.
An old friend of mine told me
about this dark website
called "back-page."
Supposed to be
anonymous.
Respond to an ad, do the job,
get paid in crypto.
You don't know what a pineapple
is, but you know crypto?
You think I don't read?
Crypto's the future, bro.
Okay, so you responded
to an ad.
Mm-hmm.
They wanted you
to place the pineapple.
Yeah.
How did they get it to you?
Box in the mail
two days before the job.
I got rid of the packaging...
Ah, you're really not trying
to help yourself here.
Let me finish. I got
rid of the packaging,
but I remember
where it was shipped from.
I got one of those
photogenic memories.
You don't say.
Delivery Depot, Akron, Ohio.
Oh, my. Just...
Please tell me
that this a bleat of victory.
It's unbelievable, though I
should have guessed all along.
But how could I? How could I?
You got our hackers?
Something better.
I got the source.
The source of the hack?
The source of the
entire system,
of everything
that's modern software.
A hidden signature, deep in
the mother code. Look! Look!
Look!
Okay, well, do you know
whose signature it is?
Does Beethoven know Mozart?
Well, I mean, of course he did
'cause Mozart was his teacher.
And this is my teacher,
though I never met the man.
Kevin Rooker.
The Rook! The Rook! The Rook!
Look, I know
you're expecting me to react,
but I don't understand.
He's the grandfather of every
program that runs the world.
His code laid the groundwork
for most
infrastructure systems today.
I mean... he's the Matrix.
Sounds like lot of systems
that he could exploit
if he wanted to.
Yeah, well, technically, yes,
but doesn't fit his character
at all. He's a purist.
Doesn't care about money,
fame, success, society.
That sounds suspicious to me.
He walked away
from the tech world years ago.
And where did he walk to?
No one knows.
He just... vanished.
Well, we got
to figure out where he is
and see if he's behind this
or can help us stop it.
Good luck with that.
Kevin Rooker has been off
the grid for ten years.
Before that,
he was everywhere.
Started with the NSA
right here in Hawai'i
where he developed many
of their programs.
Then he went independent.
Did contract work
for the government,
financial institutions.
And, of course,
utility companies.
All right. Why'd he quit?
NSA wanted his help
with cyber warfare--
weaponizing his source code
to go after
foreign infrastructures.
He refused,
but NSA went ahead with it.
That was enough for him.
He walked away, disappeared.
Well, how disappeared is he?
Well, NSA's not
gonna let someone
like Rook too far out
of their sight.
It took some digging,
but I was able to find him
right here
where it all started--
abandoned farmhouse in Waialua.
Maybe a secret hideout
abandoned farmhouse
for ransomware attacks?
All right.
Why don't you two find out?
As in, uh,
us two? Her and me?
That a problem?
Not at all.
No, it's totally awesome.
Great.
I'm heading back to Pearl.
Water and power is still out
on the leeward side.
Red Cross is setting up
food and shelter,
but resources are limited.
You guys follow up
on Rodney's Akron lead?
Got the FBI checking out
Delivery Depot,
trying to figure out who sent
the pineapple, but nothing yet.
Rodney did give us access
to his back-page profile.
Here's his communication
with the suspect who hired him.
Instructions on how to place
the pineapple, turn it on.
Keep reading.
There's details in there that
not just anyone would know.
Yeah, shift changes,
CCTV blind spots.
Even descriptions
of the people who work security.
It'd be nearly impossible for
our hackers to know this stuff.
Unless they had
an inside man.
Someone who works at the dam.
We already looked
into their employees.
Time to look again.
This is Rook's
secret hideout?
Could be.
Hard to tell.
Should we go in?
Ernie's running a back trace
on the Internet connected
to the address.
So, should we go in?
We should wait.
This is ridiculous.
Well, this is the job.
No. Not the waiting.
Us.
There is no us.
Yes, I know. That part's done.
But we should be able
to move past it, be cordial
and not want
to crawl out of our skin
every time we're in a room
or a car together.
You want to be friends.
Yeah, I think we could be.
Sure.
Sure. We can, uh,
forget about the past
and how you lied to me,
broke my heart and
just pretend it didn't happen.
Okay, that's not
what I'm saying.
Which part did I get wrong?
Well, I don't want
to pretend it didn't happen.
I know that I hurt you.
But I would like forgiveness.
How am I supposed to forgive
you? You never even apologized.
I apologized.
No.
No. You tried to explain
your out-of-town girlfriend,
tried to blame circumstances.
But not once did you say,
"Hey, Lucy, I'm really sorry
that I hurt you."
Oh, you're right.
I know.
I should have apologized.
Then why didn't you?
Well, I guess because I figured
that once I did...
...this would truly be over.
Check it out.
That's Rook.
Hey, hey, what are you doing?
He went inside.
Yeah, I know.
So we should, too.
He could be armed or could have
other suspects with him.
All right. Then what?
I'll take the lead.
Is that an alarm?
NCIS!
What's going on here?
We were just about to rock.
My programming days
are behind me.
And I'm not a hacker.
I don't even use email.
And yet,
a backdoor in your
infrastructure software
has been used
to shut down the Nuuanu Dam.
Half the island is without
power, and a Navy sailor's dead.
That sounds like
a "you" problem.
Becomes a you problem
when we take you away in cuffs.
I walked away from coding
years ago
for exactly this reason.
You let computers run
your world,
you risk computers
destroying it.
I'm sorry. Can we just
address the fact
that one of the
greatest coders
in the world is
in a garage band?
Band's just a hobby.
My real passion is building
and refurbishing guitars.
It's a far cry from building
the world's largest
infrastructure systems.
Music is simple,
and hard to weaponize,
though you people have tried.
Got a lot of animosity
towards the government.
Look, the problem
sounds terrible,
if not entirely plausible.
Hard to believe
someone could have accessed
my backdoor
since they're not me.
Strong argument for your guilt.
But if they did,
they're wasting their time
turning off the power
for a few dollars.
So much more they could do
with the source code.
What do you mean?
You have no idea how many
systems my code's imbedded in.
Okay. So either you did this...
I didn't.
Or...
you're the only one
who can help us
figure out
who did and why.
I can't.
Your band will understand.
I can't be drawn back in.
A man died this morning
because someone took control
of your code.
This isn't about you.
It's about all the other people
who might get hurt.
Lucy and Whistler were able
to get Rook to cooperate.
They're en route to the
command center now.
But we are still one
inside man short.
We looked back
into all the dam employees,
anyone who worked I.T.
or might have been involved
with system maintenance.
And?
None of them look good for this.
The best person
to coordinate the attack
would be someone
who knows the codebase
and has full access.
Yeah, but not just any
utility worker could do this.
It takes skill
to break into the system.
And right now,
the best hackers
on the island have full access.
That's right. Get a list of all
the hackers working with RDET.
Ernie,
this is...All my dreams
becoming reality.
Loyal and dutiful protégé
at your service.
Call me Kevin.
You can call me Ernie,
or "Ern" for short.
No, just Ernie.
No one calls me "Ern."
I don't know why
I even said that. I'm so giddy.
Yep.
Shouldn't-shouldn't you tell him
where to look?
Well, Mozart knows how to find
an aria in an oratorio.
More of a Robert Fripp man
myself.
Looks like some I.T. hack threw in
an addendum to my code.
Forced the system
to try to upgrade
for automated
and remote management.
That's how they got control
of the system.
Oh, it's not part
of your original code.
That's why it was
vulnerable to attack.
Hack hacking, as
far as I can tell,
but it got the job done.
The problem is with the rest
of the software,
not my mother code.
How do you know that for sure?
I built a master codebase
with a unique access key.
No one living or dead
can get full control.
And what's the unique
access key?
Him.
Part of my signature
is what's called
a compiler backdoor.
It's a particular
set of commands.
I put one in every
system I built.
When the student is ready,
the master appears.
Teach me your ways.
Sorry.
Let me get the power
back up first.
This doesn't add up.
Ransomware attackers
usually get in,
get their money and get out
before they can be traced.
Our suspects got their ransom,
still went through
with the attack,
and have been quiet ever since.
Well, there are dozens
of other systems
Rook worked on.
Hackers could target them next.
Yeah, but Rook's here now.
And he has an access key in all
the major systems he's coded.
So he can stop the hackers.
There's nothing more
that they can exploit.
No, unless their plan all along
was to draw him out.
Once the ransom was paid,
they had no other cards to play.
The hackers had to escalate
to bring Rook out of hiding.
He could be the target here.
Jesse and Kai need me.
Keep at it.
No wasted effort. No mistakes.
Elegant.
Why did you ever retire
and deny the world your talents?
I had nothing left to give.
I was too tied up in the work.
What I did became
who I was.
And there was no more pleasure,
only more work.
Yeah. It can be hard
to separate the two.
Power's restored. Resetting.
All right. Executing commands.
Everything seems to be
running smoothly.
Rook.
We need to get you
out of here, now.
What's going on?
Rooker's the target
of this whole operation.
Let's go.
What are you talking about?
We checked out every cyber
engineer RDET brought in.
None of them, not even the
black hats, popped suspicious.
But then we started
looking into
which of them
might have ties to Akron, Ohio.
Where the pineapple came from.
Thank God.
All right,
tell me what you learned.
We tracked down family members,
college buddies.
We found this.
One of the RDET agents
was in Pittsburgh
days before the pineapple
was shipped.
Less than two hours' drive
to Akron.
Who was it?
Hank Braddock.
RDET team leader.
Come on.
Get in the car.
Hey.
Hey, sorry,
uh, where you taking Rook?
We're taking him
to a safe house.
We'll keep him secured
until the threat is gone.
And, uh, where is this
safe house?
Wouldn't be very safe if I said.
Seems maybe he's safest here,
you know,
surrounded by federal agents.
Don't tell me my job,
I won't tell you yours.
And who are you texting?
Just my boss. She should know.
You don't need to do that.
It's all good.
I'm telling you to stop.
Ernie!
I think you just saved my life.
No way was I letting him
get you twice in one day.
Do we have any idea where
Braddock could be taking Rook?
Went back over
recent phone calls,
texts, emails. Nothing.
Talked to HPD,
they put a BOLO out.
FBI's tracing his phone,
his email, his Internet.
Can't get far.
Dude's a professional
hacker hunter.
He knows how to hide.
But he doesn't know how to hack.
Are we saying somehow he put the
ransomware into the Dam system?
He's been involved in ransom
attacks for over a decade.
Knows enough hackers who'd do it
for the right price.
But why? He's supposed
to be one of the good guys.
Spent his whole career
watching bad guys
get away with millions.
Passed over for promotions.
I mean, maybe he's over it.
But he got his ransom
and still kidnapped Rook
in broad daylight.Guys, the
$5 million is nothing.
He's after the brass ring.
What's that?
We know Rook's mother code
is used in operating systems
across governments
and private institutions.
Not just utilities.
Airlines, retailers.
Banks.
The Royal Bank
of the Netherlands?
If Rook opens up that system,
Braddock could walk away
with hundreds
of millions of dollars.
Alert the bank.
Yeah, I'm working on it, just...
What's wrong?
Hold on, my computer's
being weird.
They hack into your system, too?
No.
It's Rook.
He just sent a message?
Using an open access system
wherever he is to communicate.
Even in the best coded systems,
humans are the wild card.
Yeah, and what a brilliant
wild card.
Can you imagine how scared
he is? Gun to his head,
life on the line, and he
manages to send me a message?
It's really just like...
Hey, Ernie, since
his life is on the line,
maybe tell us where he is?
Sorry.
Lanai Lookout Post.
The Lookout.
It's remote, it has power,
it's close to the water.
Perfect escape route.
Let's move.
You in the bank's system?
I am, but this isn't gonna work.
Just transfer the money.
They're gonna notice
a hundred million dollars
has gone missing.
That's my problem.
You're right about that.
You got nothing but problems.
Just stay away.
Or what? You'll shoot Rook?
I certainly hope not.
Look,
you're already responsible
for one death.
That wasn't supposed to happen.
I didn't know about
the maintenance crew.
None of it should have
happened, Braddock.
Your whole career
was spent fighting this.
And what was my
reward? RDET?
Chasing hackers until they
put me out to pasture?
No. That's a bunch of bull.
This isn't the answer.
You are gonna back away.
Rook is gonna
finish the transfer
and I'll disappear.
There's nowhere to go.
Yeah, I know. Your
team is out there.
I get it.
But I still got some fight left.
Uh, uh...
done.
Come on.
Hey.
Ow.
They're on the move.
Braddock.
Put your hands up.
It's over.
You okay?
Yeah.
Stop!
Put the gun down.
You got a job to do?
Do it.
Just give up.
No one was supposed to get hurt.
No one else has to.
Just one more.
Braddock...
Braddock!
Not today, buddy.
Nice setup, man.
You're being kind.
Nah, man, no.
You made this a home.
Something I could never achieve.
That's why I gave it up.
No matter how good
I was, it just never
made me happy.
But I guess you are.
Me? Happy?
Yeah, I guess.
Honestly?
I haven't thought about it.
Oh. Uh, sorry. Just...
Swept all your
digital footprints
since coming back online.
You can now return
to your life
of peace and no one will know
you were back.
Thank you, Ernie.
It's really
that easy.
Go back to guitars.
Never touch a computer again.
Find what makes
you happy, Ernie.
Hey.
Hey.
FBI get the money
returned to the bank?
Yep.
And we got a lead on the hacker
who helped Braddock
with the ransomware.
Guy will be in cuffs by morning.
Cool.
Well, have a good night.
Lucy.
Can we put a pin in the
difficult conversation?
Yeah.
Just one thing.
It's all my fault.
I was scared of...
breaking up with Cara.
Of starting something
with you, because...
...you're the most
amazing woman I've ever met.
And I am...
truly so sorry I hurt you.
Thank you.