NCIS: Los Angeles (2009–…): Season 11, Episode 21 - Murder of Crows - full transcript

[♪♪]

RHEA: I'm not proud
of where I am today.

I don't mean here
in this club.

Although, to be fair,
it certainly doesn't help.

No offense to you guys.
I mean, I'm sure you're all

lovely people
with even lovelier bunkers.

All I'm saying is that

I thought I'd be
at a different place...

Here you go... at this point in my life.

My friends, they-they keeptelling
me that I need a change.

They tell me I should break out
of my shell a little bit.



Get a hobby.

And I'm always like, "You'reboth cats,
how are you talking,

and why is it in Oprah's
voice?"[whispers]: Let's go.

Mm.

[clicks tongue]
Must be dog people.

No, you're just terrible.

Dad, is that you?

[burps] I'm bored.

[singsongy]: ♪And I'm
in the middle of my set. ♪

At least you're nice to look at.

Oh, I'm nice to look at?

I mean, you're the one
bringing sexy back

with that Unabomber look.

Unfortunately,
I gave upinteractive theater after



my high school's questionable
performance of Hair,

so if you don't mind...

Actually, I've just been told
that is my time.

Uh, you guys have been
a great audience.

Scratch that,
you've been terrible.

Seriously, the worst.
Good night.

ANNOUNCER:
Okay, everybody,

let's give it up for Rhea.

[grunting]

[woman screams]

MAN: Security![glass shatters]

[grunting]

WOMAN:
Leave her alone!

MAN:
Hey, someone stop him!

[yells]

MAN:
Whoa!

[people murmuring]

[♪♪]

N C I S
LOS ANGELES

*NCIS: LOS ANGELES *
Season 11 Episode 21

Episode Title:
"Murder of Crows"

Aired on:
April 19, 2020

Sync corrections by srjanapala

ERIC: Which brings me to
the question at hand.

Why do I do what I do?

Why dol
do what I do?

Well, l-l-let me try
to answer that.

[stammers] Safety.

Uh, s-security.

Um, and...

Sweet mother of Wozniak! Oh,
this is not good.

You're right. It's terrible.

How am I supposed to
give this speech

at the Presence
in Programming Summit

when, I don't even have
the presence to know

why I do what I do?

No, not youand your speech.

Your speech was fantastic.

It made me feel both safeand secure.

You weren't even listening. What?

Deeks, I came all the way
down here to practice,

because you said you'd help me.

We have bigger problems.

What-what?
We have a case?

Yeah, of slander and libel.

The-the Ledgerdid a profile...
No, no, no...

A hit piece on the bar.

I'm sure it's not as bad
as you think.

You ready for this?
It's a "minimalist

ghost town out of touch with
allthat is edgy and provocative."

Oh, this is gonna
ruin my Yelp reviews.

Review. Come again?

You have one review
and Anna wrote it.

Can I live?

You can live. Sorry, go on.

It's hard enough to keep
this place afloat.

Now I got to do it
with bad publicity.

Hey, don't sweat it.
I'm sure it'll be gone

before anyone even sees it.

Because you can remove it
before they...

Oh, Beale, you sweet,
spectacled...

Swedish... Scottish.

[Scottish accent]:
Scottish savior

of mine.

This is why you dowhat you do.

Record scratch. What now?

I need you to just
take down the article.

You want me to
hack their website?

I mean, I think you could
just do a little glitch,

but I'm not here to tell you
how to do your job.

- Feels a little wrong.
- Yeah, so does wearing

a Mandalorian costume to a bris,

but that didn't stop you now,
did it?

B-B-But that was replica
Beskar armor so...

Uh-huh.
Show of hands: who cares?

- Anybody? That's nobody.
- Okay.

Wait!

What if I were to say... please?

What if I were to say...
absolutely not?

Not what I was looking for.
I'm going

to work, and I suggest
that you meet me there soon,

or else Hetty will
try to make an edgy

and provocative case
for firing you.

- Mm-hmm. All right.
- [door closes]

- Thank you.
- You're welcome.

You want to take the lead
on this one?

I don't know what
you're talking about.

Can we fast-forwardthrough
this part for once?

[laughs]: What part, exactly,
are you talking about?

The part where
you pretendl didn't see

what happened back there.

Oh, if you're talking
about the fact

that I ordered a large coffee
instead of a "biggo,"

- Mm.
- I stand by my decision.

I saw what wason your phone.

Oh, congratulations,
you know I haven't

made my steps
for the day.

What I know is you
were lookingat real estate.

Yeah, I'm-I'm browsing.

You're looking to buy.

I'm looking to invest.

In some roots.

In a property.

You already have a property.

Yeah, that I can't live in.
Besides, it's old.

I want, you know...

Have you seen theseturnkey
condos they're building?

They're low maintenance,
it's just like me.

Well, I mean, you know,
the market's tough right now.

It's smart to get in
while you can.

Yeah, that's why I'm looking.

I thought you were browsing.

Okay, see, this is the part that

I would like to
fast-forward through.

All right, yeah.
Just keep walking.

You can get those steps in
all the way to work.

FATIMA: I can't do this anymore.

You don't mean that.

It's not worth it.

[laughs] Maybe not now,
but it can be.

It's like every time
I go out there,

a tiny piece of my soul dies.

Okay, this is dating,
it's not a war zone. Geez.

You've been outof the game awhile.

Yeah, but I've been to
my fair share of war zones.

Good point.

But trust me,
I think this is worse.

All right, give it to me.

How bad could it be?

Well, the last guy I dated was
obsessed with the Eagles.

Band or team?

The band.

And you didn't lock that down?

Wha... are you kidding me?

Henley has the voice of
an injured baby bird

who's begging to be nursed
back to health.

I learn something new
about you every day.

Yeah, well...

Kind of getting the feeling
this is not only about dating.

You're right.

It's everything lately.

Yeah, well, you've been
througha lot in the last few months.

I mean, you're fighting
through it.

I'm just... I'm so tired.

This job can certainly
take it out of you.

That's an understatement.

Fatima, this is exactly
why I'm telling you

that you need to have a
life outside of this job.

It's what gonna get you
throughto the next day.

Yeah. Yeah,
I currently rely on Ruffles

and The Great British Bake Off
to do that.

[both laugh]

- [phone chimes]
- Oh.

Ooh, please tell me that
that's the Eagles fan.

Oh, God no.

But, uh, we do have a case.

Okay, but this doesn't end here.

It is officially my mission to
stop you from wasting away

at home on your

[British accent]:
"soggy bottom."

I didn't peg you
for the Bake Offtype.

Oh, are you kidding me? It's
savage what they did to poor Mary.

[chuckles]

[exhales]

[inhales]

[doors open]

Kensi, Fatima,

please come in.

What is happening
right now?

Um, I'm not sure but I feel like

we're gonna end up buying
a new set of knives.

Do you mind?
I'm trying to be present.

Oh. Well, you're here,
so congratulations,

- you did it. [laughs]
- And now we're here,

so we should probably
get to the case. - Yeah.

Hmm.
Someone's a little snappy.

Oh, she's tired.
She's very, very tired.

[clears throat]
Meet NCIS Agent Robert Forbes.

He's based out of JIATF South
in Key West

but here on an assignment
in Los Angeles.

He was reported missing after
heskipped his 5:00 a.m. check-in,

and didn't report for work.

Given the speed of his
missing persons report,

I'm guessing he was working on
some pretty top secret stuff.

Yeah, that'san understatement.

Looks like "top secret"
is all this guy knows.

He's like the galette des roisof NCIS.

French pastry with
the secret charm inside?

Yeah, maybe I should
get out more.

[clears throat] Uh,
Forbes is abit of an independent operator.

He likes to travel wherever
the project takes him.

Oh, well,
that explainswhy he has no family.

- No spouse, no kids.
- He's currently

providing counterintelligence

for an innovative
network architecture

that the Air Force is developing
to compete with the Chinese.

Okay, so this guy could
have been kidnapped

by one of many
possible enemies.

Or he's currently on the run
after selling his intelligence

to one of his
many new friends.

Well, either way,
we don't havea lot of time to find him.

- Yeah.
- Callen and Sam are headed

to his rental house
in Hollywood.

KENSI: Do we have a last
knownlocation on Forbes?

Uh, only thing I have
is from two days ago.

Facial rec picked him up

at First Presbyterian
in Eagle Rock.

Okay. I guess you and I
are going to church.

Mm. What about Deeks?

[laughs]:
Oh, no, no, no, no.

See, he'd burst into flames
if he ever walked in there.

Plus, he's a little
distracted today,

so it's probably for the best.

[doors open][sighs]

[engine turns off]

Nice neighborhood.

Too quiet.

Yeah, you're right.

It'd be hard to saw
your furniture in half in

the middle of the night
without getting a noise complaint.

Yeah, it'd also be too hard
for someone to grab Forbes

without making a fuss.

I guess you're tired of talkingabout this,
huh?

Well, what can I say? I
wear my heart on my sleeve.

You "wear your hearton your sleeve."

Well...

But if you need a Realtor,
you know, I know a guy.

- Just sayin'.
- [doorbell rings]

[chuckles]
Course you do.

You also know a
tailor, a cobbler.

Remind me again, what was the
name of your candlestick maker?

[chuckles]
[glass shatters]

[alarm blaring]

Federal agents!

CALLEN: Hands where
we can see them.

Don't shoot.
I'm also a federal agent.

I mean, technically,
I-I worked for a federal agency.

Are you guys familiar
with NCIS?

House is clear.

Well, based on the alarm
you just set off,

LAPD should be here
in about five minutes

to arrest you for breaking
and entering.

That means you have
about five minutes

to tell us everything you know.

Well, technically,
four and a half.

I was just admiring
the view outside.

Where do you want me to start?

Try the beginning.

Well, mine was
an awkward childhood

full of big dreams
and even bigger perms.

- [clears throat]
- I'm joking.

You don't have time
to be joking.

Actually, none of thisis funny.

Wow, I forgot how serious
you guys are.

You don't know us.

You're right.
But I do know your kind,

and I know you hate two
things: bureaucracy and BS.

So why don't we cut through
bothand go find Forbes?

Mm-hmm. Okay,
you're not going anywhere

until you tell us who you are
and what you're doing here.

[sighs]
The name is Rhea Moretti.

I used to work at
the NCIS Key West office.

Tech operations, mainly.

That makes sense.

We know your kind as well.

What are you doing
breaking into Forbes' house?

I'm trying to save his life.

What makes you so sure
he's in danger?

Because last night,
someone tried to kill me.

Look, when push comes to shove,
I can heave, and I can ho,

but not Forbes. I mean,
the poor guy has tiny wrists.

And if he's not here,
my gut says that they have him.

Okay, for a former
tech operator,

you leave out a lot of details.

Andre Vargas. He's an arms
dealer out of Mexico.

Forbes and I did a JTF
six months ago

to try to take him down.

Our covers were blown.
The mission failed.

We were pulled out,
and Vargas went underground.

Until last night,
when he showed up in L.A.

and tried to kill me.

Well, if he was forced
to go underground,

it would have cost him
a lot of money.

Could be looking for revenge.

If that's true,
you're not safe here.

I agree.
So where should we go?

We're not going anywhere.

We still need to check this place out.

When LAPD gets here,
they'll take you to the boatshed.

What's that, like, a Crab Shack?

Weird time to eat, but okay.

[chuckles]

Okay, I got two words
for you: kick ball.

I'm pretty surethat's one word.

Yeah, but I had to
separate it for emphasis.

Is there a reason why we'retalking
about playground sports?

No, no, no. It's actually
not only for kids.

There's, you know, adult
leagues all over the city.

Oh, okay.
I see what you're doing.

What? I'm... Okay.

I'm just trying to say
that there are other ways

of getting out of the house
thatdon't involve, you know, dating.

Yeah, you know, I think
I'm good on that front.

NCIS is enough of
a team sport for me.

Tell me about it. Yeah,
maybe we should slow it down.

Well, how about a class?

Are you kidding?

The idea of studying
makes me even more tired.

No, I'm talking about, like,
a cooking class or something.

We could do it together.
Lord knows I need it.

Ever since I moved home,
my mom treats every night

- like a cooking class.
- [laughs]

Oh, how about this...

You know, actually, I have an
idea what we can do together.

Okay. Solve this case?

- You're funny. You're very funny.
- [laughs]

That's weird.

I thought churches
wereopen around the clock.

[door opens nearby]

Yeah, well, everybody needs
a life outside of work.

Hi. Excuse me.

Oh, if you're looking
for the minister,

- he just left for lunch.
- KENSI: Oh, no.

That's okay. We're NCIS,
so perhaps you can help us.

Do you work here?

Oh, I hardly call
what I do work.

I serve at the pleasure
of the parish.

Do you mind answering
a few questions?

Oh, of course, dear.

But I don't know
how much help I'll be.

I don't like to meddle.

Okay. That's not a problem.

Now, if you're looking for
somebody who does,

I'd be happy to introduce you
to Rosemary.

That won't be necessary.

Oh, it seems to me
two CSI agents like yourself

might be highly interested
in talking to an embezzler.

Actually, we're NCIS...
Rosemary embezzles?

You didn't hear it from me.

Because you don't meddle.

Mm-mm. But she's skimming
off the collection plate.

At least I think she is.

My eyesight isn't that great
these days.

Is there any chance
you'rehead of accounting as well?

You're good.

The FBI is lucky to have you.

Okay, you know what, uh,
we would just like to know

if you've seen this man.

He's not part of
our congregation.

So you don't recognize him? Oh, I do.

He comes to those
meetings. KENSI: Meetings?

Alcoholics Anonymous.

They rent the church basement
every Saturday.

Is there anything elseyou
can tell us about him?

They don't call it "anonymous"
for nothing, dear.

But now, if you want to hear
about the redhead

who runs the program...

Actually, we're okay.

Thank you. Thank you so much.
Have a wonderful day.

Oh, you, too. God bless!
[chuckles]

She ain't sober.

RHEA:
Dude, your first marriage

is a total throwaway.

Look, I put everything
into that marriage.

Oh, well, that's your problem.

The only thing worth
putting everything into

is a bagel.

Don't listen to her, Harrison.
Marriages are hard work.

Yeah, well, so is
the conversation with her.

Good luck.

So, you must be Moretti.

And you must be late for
the Hanson reunion tour.

So let's get talking.

Wow.

You're obviously much crueler
than your contemporaries.

Oh, I'm sorry.
Where are my manners?

You know what, that's right.

I left them on the floor
of Cahoot's last night

when I was fighting
for my life.

Cahoot's, you say? It's a club.

Like a "unce-unce" clubor
a "boom-boom" club?

More like a comedy
"Ha-Ha" club.

Oh, wow, that's new information.

So you're a stand-up comedian,
are ya?

Yeah. I'd rather do therapy,
but I lost my insurance

after I quit NCIS,
so it's the next best thing.

And it's why I moved to L.A.

I was finishing up my set
when Vargas came after me.

- After you incapacitated him?
- After I kicked his ass, yes.

Semantics, but noted.

So after you kicked his ass,

did you see or notice anything
that can help us find him?

There was a gray car outside.

Just sitting, idling.

A Buick, or a Ford.

Something your mom
would definitely drive.

That's good. The information.
Not so much the mom joke.

And just for the record,
my momwould never be caught dead

in anything less than
a PT Cruiser.

'Cause she drives one,

and she drives it hard.

I don't do it 'cause I want to.

I do it because I have to.

And pivot,

turn to the audience,
take 'em in.

[doors open]Place your hands to your chest,

'cause you're just too blessed
to be stressed,

and hold for applause.

[applause]Oh.

Uh, hey, didn't...

I didn't-didn't see
you there. [chuckles]

We saw you, Eric Beale.
We saw you.

Oh, and now we see
a new face on the screen.

Yes. Who's this guy?

ERIC: Uh, this is Andre Vargas,
arms dealer extraordinaire.

He's suspected of smuggling
large supplies of weapons

between U.S. and Mexico
for years.

What's his connectionto Forbes?

Forbes worked an op targeting
Vargas six months ago.

Their covers were blown.
The whole thing fell apart.

He was pulled out,
as was this woman,

Rhea Moretti.

Also NCIS. She quit the agency
after the op failed.

Well, it's not a job
for everyone.

- Maybe she didn't have the energy.
- ERIC: Yeah.

Or maybe she couldn't
remember why

she was doing this
in the first place.

Okay, I think you guys need
to get it together.

Uh, where's Moretti now?

Uh, she was attacked
by Vargas last night,

but luckily she got away.

Deeks is talking to her
in the boatshed.

Did you look into
Forbes' finances?

I did, but so far
nothing of note.

Unless you count notes of
bougainvillea and edelweiss.

- What?
- Guy was a bit of an oenophile.

I don't understand.

Oh, uh, that means
wine expert.

No, I-I got that part.

It's just that Forbes is
in recovery.

Oh, well, according to
his credit card statement,

he spent a pretty penny
at Highland Park Wine.

So either he's a collector...

Or he fell off the wagon.

Either way, hopefully,
somebody there

saw him since Saturday.

We should go find out.
Thanks, buddy.

ERIC:
Yeah.

[doors open]

[inhales, exhales]

Well, for a highly trained
agent, he's pretty bad

at reading the signs of mold.

Hmm.

And the signs for parking, too.

Look at all these.

There's got to be at least
ten tickets here.

Well, in his defense,
you do have to have

a PhD to read the
parking signsin this city.

[chuckles]

Apparently, in San Diego, too.

Look at this one, from
early yesterday morning.

See, that's a yellow zone.

That's only allowed after 6:00
on the third Tuesday

of an autumnal equinox.

Look at the address.

It's by the Tijuana border.

And the license plate
on that one

is different from the others.

Could be using a rental.

So Forbes made a secret run
down to the border

on the same day that
our arms dealer, Vargas,

has decided to come
out of hiding.

Maybe Moretti's wrong
about this guy.

Maybe Forbes went down to
Mexicoto bring Vargas back with him.

You think they're
working together?

All signs are starting
to point to that.

All right, this has been
really fun,

but it's time to get serious.

Last time I heard
that, I ended up

in Portland getting
matching narwhal tattoos

with a poet named Stu.

Well, you're talking to somebody

who invented the art
of deflecting through comedy,

so I know what it is
that you're doing.

What I'm doing is
wasting away

inside of this poor man's
Long John Silver's

while my friend is
somewhere suffering,

or worse, dead.

I also know that you're scared,

which is why you need to talk
to me specifically about Forbes.

You guys were close,
were you not?

Yeah. He was like
a big brother to me.

Well, he was also monitoring
everything

that Vargas was doing, so he's
kind of like a big brother

- to him, too.
- Okay, this emotion I'm giving you,

it's a onetime wave, so you
better ride it while it lasts.

Fair enough. When's
thelast time you saw Forbes?

We had lunch about
two months ago,

when he first got to L.A.

I invite him to my shows,
but he's always busy.

You told Sam and Callen
that your guys' cover

was blown in Mexico.
Do you know how?

I'm not one for
office gossip.

What, you think somebody
from NCIS is the leak?

Or FBI, CIA.

I mean, there were so many
hands in that pot.

You think that Forbes has had
any contact with Vargas

since you guys left Mexico?

What, do you think
Forbes was the leak?

That he's working with Vargas?

I think that people
are complicated.

No, Forbes took care
of me down there.

Okay? I was way
out of my league.

That poor guy was going
througha divorce and he still

found time to make me laugh. Divorce?

Yeah, his ex-wife
would call all the time.

He'd have to step out for
hoursjust to calm her down.

Forbes wasn't married.

That's what happens
when you get a divorce.

No, Forbes was never married.

He never had a wife
and he was lying to you.

It's possible that Forbesis
not who you thought he was.

No, that can't be true.

Uh-huh.
Explain to me why

he took a secret trip
to the border yesterday.

[line ringing]

KENSI:
Trivia night.

FATIMA:
You're relentless.

[Kensi laughs]

I, uh, dated a guy
who loved trivia night.

We had to go every week
and it was exhausting.

You're kidding.

No. He was terrible.
He actually thought that Borat

was an element
on the periodic table.

Wow.

I don't know what's worse,
that or the Eagles.

ERIC:
Um, bite your tongue.

"Desperado" is featured heavily

on my Swedish
death cleaning mix.

- Okay. Uh, yeah, don't ask.
- [phone chimes]

What do you got for us, Eric?

Just sent you a photo
of Ellie Martinez.

She's the owner
of Highland Park Wine.

Yep. Got it.

Uh, what doesshe have to do
with anything?

Still trying to figure that out,

but she does have
a criminal record.

Ooh, more like a...

- criminal compilation.
- That bad?

Eh, her greatest hits include:
attempted kidnapping,

domestic battery,
and who can forget

the sweet, sweet harmonies
of wire fraud.

Oh. But looks like she had
a pretty good lawyer.

All her charges were dropped.

KENSI: We got eyes on
Martinez now.

Looks like she's getting
a delivery,

so we'll just give her a chance
to get that settled.

Mm, hopefully we get a chance to
settle some things of our own.

Thanks, Eric.

No problem.
It's why I do what I do.

Whoa, guys. L-Little warning
before you come in here?

You should have
more situational awareness.

Well, I used to have Nell
to help me out with that.

She was my very own
walking, talking,

oftentime cosplaying
motion sensor.

Maybe I should get
a hologram version of her.

Maybe you should justuse your ears.

Any leads from the rental car

that Forbes took
down to the border?

Uh, not really.

It's pretty clear that he
wantedthis trip off the books.

Keep searching the bordercrossings,
see if he was alone

down there and let us know
assoon as you find out anything.

- Yeah. Whoa.
- [beeps]

Gentlemen, halt.

And get ready to
catch this fire. [chuckles]

CALLEN: Who is he?

Uh, Perry Bellamy.
Uh, Moretti saw

a car outside the
clubwhere she was attacked.

I got access to their securitycameras,
got the plates.

The car is registered
in his name.

Hmm. Does he have a record?

Um, not that I can find, but
he's pretty into buying guns.

Especially
out-of-state guns.

CALLEN: Well, maybehe's a straw man,

stockpiling weapons, then funneling them

through the iron pipeline
to guys like Vargas.

Where is he now?

Um, probably halfway through asewer drain,
if I had to guess.

He's on the run?

Oh, no, no, he's a plumber.

Uh, he works for
Connor'sPlumbing in Eagle Rock.

Address is on your phones.

- Okay.
- Thanks, Eric.

[doors open]

[exhales]

ELLIE: Can I help
you two find anything?

KENSI: Yeah. How about an
excuse to get out of a dinner party?

[laughs]: Well, I'm good,
but I'm not that good.

Yeah, rumor has it
there's gonna be fondue.

- That sounds terrible.
- Mm.

Well, maybe you have something
that would pair nicely

with a fountain of cheddar?

I'm sure that
we can find something.

Do you know if your
friendprefers red or white?

Actually, we were hoping
that you could tell us.

I'm not a mind reader,

no matter how many times
I tell my kids I am.

He's a regular here.
Maybe you remember him.

I have so many customers.

Which is why we brought a photo.

Sorry, I can't say I know him.

You sure?
He comes here a lot.

Look, I can't help you, okay?

Yeah, we think you can.

And we're gonna need
you to come with us.

Hopefully you're a bigger fan
of cooperating

than you are of fondue.

This way.

[thunder rolling]

Anna likes to look.

[laughs softly]

You know, I've made it clear,

I don't need to know all
the details of your life.

All right? Please.

Houses. At houses.

It's fun for her.
She-she sends me links.

Well, she's lived
an unpredictable life.

It makes sense
she'd want stability.

Uh, she wants
more than stability.

She's looking
for the whole American dream.

I mean, all of it.

The milk mustaches, apple pie.

What do you think?

Frankly prefer blueberry myself.

I'm talking about Bellamy.

- Oh, he's definitely gonna run.
- Hm.

Mm-hmm. He'll run.

Federal agents!
[stammers, groans]

Ah!

[pipe clatters][grunting]

You had to take
the long way around, huh?

I told you my step count
was low.

- [groans]
- [handcuffs clicking]

Shut up.

It's not what you think.
You got the wrong guy.

You're right.
That's not what we think.

What we think is you're
working with Andre Vargas.

Never heard of him.
Is he in the business?

If by "business,"

you mean illegal arms dealing,
then yes.

Arms dealing?
Ha ha, uh-uh.

No, I'm just a plumber.

[sniffles]
It's a family thing.

My brother's a plumber,
my dad's a plumber,

- my grandfather...
- Let me guess, plumber?

Oh, actually he was a mechanic.

But we got a long history
of getting our hands dirty.

Well, maybe that's what drew
you and Vargas together.

Speaking of dirty hands,

we have your car at the
sceneof an attack last night.

CALLEN: Which means if you don't
starttelling us what we want to know,

you're gonna spend
less time with pipes

and more time behind bars.

All right, fine.

Yeah, I know Vargas.
The guy stole my car.

Now can you take me
to a hospital?

I'm pretty sure
I need stitches.

I'm pretty sure you don't.
Why don't you keep talking?

Look, I haven't done business
with him in months.

He kind of just disappeared,

until he showed up here
yesterday.

He wanted to score
some of your weapons.

All my guns are legal.

But what you do with them
is not.

Especially if Vargas is taking
them back to Mexico with him.

He may have done that before,
but it was different this time.

He wasn't looking for a lot,

he just needed enough
for him and his men.

Did he say why?

You're not getting paid
by the hour here.

He said somebody
took something from him,

he was in L.A. to get it back.

That's all I know.

Doesn't make sense.

Why would Vargas come out
of hiding to do this himself?

If they're working together,
whynot just send Forbes instead?

Maybe we're looking at this
the wrong way.

What if Forbes didn't go down
toMexico to help Vargas sneak in?

What if he went down there
to take something from him?

Vargas finds out, comes after
Forbes to get it back.

Forbes would be dead
the minute he handed it over.

Which means we have to find him
before that happens.

[line ringing]

Wow. I've seen
better interrogations

on The People's Court.

Pay no attention to the
princess in the polka dot.

She's a tough critic.
Then again, we all are.

Why must we tear
each other apart?

Got it.

Are you still spiraling
about the Ledgerarticle?

I am processing the Ledger,

and I don't appreciate
thatyou're inferring that I spiral.

Uh, I have questions,
but it feels like

- this is not a good time.
- FATIMA: It's not.

What did Sam say?

Uh, he thinks that Forbes
took something from Vargas.

Well, it must be something
incredibly valuable

if he's willing to risk
all this for it.

Maybe it's, uh, intel or, uh...

- Or an informant.
- What-what-what?

Okay, uh, slow your rolls,
I'm just spitballing here.

But Forbes was responsible
for securing

an informant from Vargas's camp.

Sorry, you're just
telling us this now?

I... There's not a lot to tell.

I don't have a name,
and Forbes said

he was still
in the vetting process.

All I know is he felt guilty

when we were
pulled out so quickly.

Like he was leaving him behind.

Maybe that's who he was
talking to when he told you

he was talking to his ex-wife.

And now he's putting his
life on the line for him.

We still don't know
what Ellie Martinez

has to do with any of this.

She's holding out
on us for a reason.

Well, sounds like
a really good time to put on

your best Judge Judy
andfigure out what that reason is.

She's nice.

No, no. She's super,
super charming.

Very charming.

I like her.

Hey. Perfect timing.

What do you got?

These were taken

yesterday morning.

That's got to be the
informant. Do we have a name?

ERIC: Her face is hardto make out.

Still searching for an I.D.,
but in the meantime,

you're gonna want to see this.

SAM: That's the ownerof Highland Park Wine.

ERIC: Mm-hmm. Ellie Martinez.

Her shop is just

2.9 miles from this parking lot.

She's working with Forbes.

Well, if that's true,
she hasto know where the informant is.

Hey, I just got a hit onthe
plumber's car Vargas stole.

It's parked outsidea
garage in Glassell Park.

Call Kensi and Fatima.

We need Ellie Martinez
to start talking now.

Quite the criminal record.

I was a different woman
back then.

Oh, yeah?

What changed?

I took up Zumba.

Well, you had to do something
with all the free time you had

after separating
from your husband.

Mm. And it just so
happened to coincide

with your path to the
straight and narrow.

Your husband is mentioned
in every single one of these files,

but his record is oddly clean.

He was a son of a bitch.

A powerful one, at that.

He worked in local government?

City controller.

More of a con-troller
if you ask me.

Did he hit you?

Among other things.

So when you tried to leave,

he filed trumped-up charges
that made you stay?

A lot of women have
nowhere to go for help.

And you've spent the last few
years trying to change that.

Tell us how it works.

Ellie.

You can trust us.

I promise.

Did you know that crows
never forget the face

of a person who hurts them?

In fact,
they even teach other crows

how to identify
that person's face

so he can never hurt
any of them again.

So you are helping other women
who have nowhere to turn.

I give them a place to stay

until they're strong enough
to go out on their own.

And that's why Forbes
came to you.

I don't know how he found me.

But he was desperate
and persistent as hell.

That woman was in danger.

Who is she?

Please, we need to know her
nameand where she's hiding.

[sighs deeply]

Lorena Vargas.

She's in a house
in Angelino Heights.

Give me a pen,
I'll write down the address.

Wait, Lorena Vargas,

as in Mrs. Andre Vargas?

His wife was the informant
against him.

She risked her life to save us,
and we just left her there.

It's not your fault.

You didn't know and
he didn't leave her there.

He went back to save her.
And we need to hurry

before it's too late
to save them both.

[♪♪]

[knocking at door]

[faint whistle]

[choking]

Clear.

Eric, we need an ambulance
over here.

He's alive
but barely.

They could have tortured him

to give up
Lorena Vargas's location.

Well, if Vargas and his men
aren't here,

they may have
already broken him.

If that's true, Kensi and Fatimacould
be walking into an ambush.

[knocking]

Lorena Vargas, this is Special
Agent Kensi Blye from NCIS.

Open up, please.

We need to hurry.

Eric, how much
time do we have?

Vargas and his men traded cars.

I'm canvassing traffic cams now.

What about Callen and Sam?

On their way.

Lorena, I need
you to trust us.

I know you're scared,
but we're here to help.

We're friends of
Robert Forbes.

KENSI:
Vargas is here.

Lorena, open the door![tires screech]

Come on. Move.

- Is anyone elsein here with you?
- It's-it's just me.

Got four of them
including Vargas.

- We need to move.
- Okay. Stay close.

Oh! Get down!

[grunting]

[gunshot]

You good?

I am now.

Come on. Go.

- [shushes]
- [footfalls]

Run. Run.

[both shout]

[grunting]

KENSI: Hey!

Put your weapon down.

Let her go!

Let her go.
[grunts]

[groaning]

You okay?

Sorry, had to take
the long way again.

Thanks.

So it turns out
Vargas's men ransacked

Ellie Martinez's house, too.

They were able to piece together
where she was keeping Lorena.

LAPD found the evidence
in their car.

So Forbes never told them.

SAM: You care about
somebody as much as he does,

he'd die before putting her
in harm's way.

Luckily, he didn't have to.

What happens
to Lorena Vargas now?

Well, she risked her life
tryingto help the United States.

We're going to make sure
that we return the favor.

Well, on that
rare bit of good news,

what do you guys say
we call it?

I thought you'd never ask.

Let's do it.

KENSI:
Loco moco, anyone?

[Sam laughs]

Nah.

[all laughing]

[exhales]

I'll be the first to
admit I'm exhausted.

Well, I'm gladl'm not the only one.

You know what?

You should go home, put
your feet up, relax.

Well, I would if I could,
but I have plans.

Oh...

Well, that's great.

Don't you want to know
with who?

I mean,
I don't want to meddle.

Well, they're with you.

What are you talking about?

Well, you know, you're right.

It's easy to retreat at
the endof these days.

But... I have to fight that.

We should have a little fun.

Yeah. I totally agree,
as I told you today.

Good, because I just so happen
to have some tickets

to a concert
you might be interested in.

Are you...?

Did you get Eagles tickets?

Did you get
Eagles tickets?

Backstage passes.

I... [stammers]How?

I... My friend owes
me a huge favor.

But we need to hurry,
'cause it's at the Forum

and it starts in an hour.

Let's go.
Let's go.

- Oh, my God.
- [both laughing]

[crowd chatter]

[music playing]

Eddie, you're giving me
robot hands.

If you want to keep up, I'm
gonna need some jazz hands.

Deeks, I'm dancing
as fast as I can.

All right.

Deeks, please tell methat you didn't

go on the dark web,

place a plausibly deniable ad
for an experienced hacker,

and trade all your Ethercoin

so that they could remove
one stupid review.

Well, that is
unnecessarily specific,

but, no, I did not have to.

Oh. So, then, one could say

that it wasn't
as bad as you thought?

Well, it turns out that
provocative and edgy

is not all it's
cracked up to be.

You know what? Some people
want the opposite.

Yeah. You didn't open this
placefor the Michelin stars.

You did it so that good people
could have a place to go

for a stiff drink
and a friendly ear.

Cheers! Cheers to that.

Speaking of friendly ears,

you only got 48 hours till
your speech. Let's hear it.

What? No.
Oh.I... I don't have it.

I've been wracking my brain
all day.

I think I've been so busy

trying to make sense
of all these new job offers,

I forgot why
they were interested in me

in the first place.

I don't know. Maybe I should
stop overthinking it.

- Don't do that.
- What?

Not that, you can do that.

Don't stop overthinking it,

because overthinking
is your thing.

Oh, I never thought
of it that way.

Or overthought of it that way.
Can you under-think things?

You're proving my point.
It's exhausting.

You, my friend, are exhausting,

and I say that
in the best version possible.

It's because
it's how you're programmed.

Right? You care
too much about everything

to let anything slide.

It's why you're drawn
to this business,

it's why those companies
want you, it's why...

It's why I do what I do.

It is why you do
what you do.

Now, you have 48 hours.

I want to hear this speech
and I want it from the top,

but this time I want
it with passion.

Five, six, seven.

Oh, not you, Eddie.

You've gone full Fosse on me,
all right?

Dial it back.

[laughs]

[♪♪]

[door opens]

CALLEN:
Thank you.

Castor.

Oh, I thought you guys

- stood me up.
- SAM: Yeah.

We stopped by the Crab
Shack on our way back.

Mm.

You see, he's not always serious.

[chuckles]

I owe you guys an apology.

No. No, you don't.

You did good today.

But I should have seen
the signsbefore today.

Well, signs can
be confusing,

and sometimes it takes a
while to figure them all out.

Yeah, but you're young
and talented.

And I hear
there's still an opening

at the office in Key West,
if you're interested.

- Oh, thanks.
- Mm.

I'll have to get back to you
on that, because I am late.

Do you think your guy
could give me a ride?

Of course.

Where you headed?

Oh, back to the club.

To the club. The club where you
almost died last night?

Oh, please.
Dying's easy...

you know the rest.

Looks like
it's just you and me, kiddo.

Please tell me this is
gonna be a short drive.

Oh, no,
we're gonna have plenty of time

to get into your home life.

Speaking of home lives...

Someone gives you an
inch, you take a yard.

I'm not interested
in the yard or the house.

I'm just glad
you set your sights

on the general direction
of the future.

Now I feel like
I need to buy you a drink.

No. I'm supposed
to be meeting Katherine.

Oh. You got big plans?

She's trying to land a
reservation at Blank.

You gonna fill that in?

It's a restaurant.
It's booked out for months.

It's Blank, a restaurant.

Blank.

Huh.

Don't say it.

CALLEN:
Surprised you don't know a guy.