Quincy M.E. (1976–1983): Season 8, Episode 19 - Murder on Ice - full transcript
Quince, what...
Honey, I got to get down to
workshop and make a microscope.
Oh, now, it's an autopsy...
Just heard that the road
to Broken river is closed.
Wouldn't you know?
The stinkin' phone is dead.
All of you have some
connection to the Litner case.
We can't just stay here
waiting for him to kill us.
If I were you, I'd make sure that
my room was locked up... tight!
He's lured us all here and
he's killing us off one by one.
Gentlemen, you are about to enter the
most fascinating sphere of police work.
The world of forensic medicine.
- To the newlyweds.
- To the newlyweds.
Hot champagne and
baked Alaska, not bad, huh?
Terrific.
Four hours of matrimonial bliss
and still counting. Remarkable!
And they said it would't last.
- Bon voyage you two.
- Thanks John!
Don't forget we have to
change before the plane leaves.
Hey, when did you
two change your plans?
I thought you were
going to Hawaii.
Well, our wedding gift from
Judge Blake and his wife
is the use of their
winter home for a week.
Oh, it's this incredible
old hunting lodge.
- Nothing around
us for 15 miles. Oh...
- More coffee, Dr. Quincy.
- No thanks, Diane...
Is the Judge going to be there?
No, we have the place to
ourselves. Only a caretaker.
Quince, I didn't know
you were a skier.
He's not. But Emily swears
she's going to turn him into one.
Big deal! Marc is a skier.
He said there's nothing to it.
In fact he's
lending me his skis.
Here are the skis, Dr. Quincy.
Well, honey, think of all the good
clean air and the gorgeous scenery.
I can't believe it. I feel like
we've gone back in time.
Is this how you always
get around up here?
No, not likely. Judge Blake
arranged a special ride.
He wanted you folks to
arrive in style, on account...
On account of your...
your honeymoon.
He hardly ever
used this ol' rig.
- You folks, uh, ski?
- My wife does.
PETRIE, Well, we've got a 100
inch base and more on the way.
- That's odd.
- What's odd?
- Looked like Liz McKenna.
- Who?
- Deputy D.A.
- Oh...
I thought you said we were
going to be up here by ourselves.
They don't look like
caretakers to me.
Oh... That is Liz
McKenna and Ken Spool.
Uh, just what every honeymoon
needs. A fourth for bridge.
I'll take the luggage on
around to the kitchen door.
Quincy, I might have known it
was you arriving like Doctor Zhivago.
What is this? Your
idea of a practical joke?
Well, if it is a
joke, it's on us.
Liz McKenna, this
is my wife, Emily.
- Ken Spool, LAPD.
- How do you do?
- Hello!
- I didn't know
you tied the knot.
- Yeah... Thank you.
- Well, congratulations...
Quincy, are you saying that you had
nothing to do with getting us up here.
We were supposed to
have the place to ourselves.
- Liz, when did he invite you?
- He didn't.
I didn't even he owned the
place, until Ken just told me.
I was flown up here by a
big San Francisco law firm,
- for what I thought
was a job interview.
- Mmm-mmm!
And I was told it was a two-day conference
for white collar crime specialists.
Looks like everybody's
been conned.
- Anybody else here?
- Well,
nobody but the caretaker.
And if he knows
anything, he's not talking.
Wait a minute. There's Dorothy.
- Quincy, what a surprise...
- Dorothy.
Julian didn't tell me
he'd invited anyone.
And this must be your
lovely bride, Emily.
- How do you do?
- Liz... Hello, Ken!
Sorry I wasn't here
when you arrived.
- Where's your husband now?
- Well,
he's arriving sometime today.
I've been here for
almost a week on holiday.
It really isn't like Julian to
spring something like this on me.
You're not the
only one, Dorothy.
Each one of us were
snookered by a different story.
Well, one thing's
pretty obvious.
None of us are going to know
anything about what's going on
until the Judge gets here.
So, what we do until then?
I know what I am going
to do. I'm going to go inside
and see if I get feelings
back into my toes.
Well, I'll have Max
put some cider on...
Ahhh... that's great!
Hunting pretty
decent around here?
What kinda game, mostly?
He's a mute, Ken.
His voice box was
shattered in an accident.
He can understand everything
you're saying. He just can't speak.
Oh.
I'm going to go in town
and get some provisions. I...
Don't know what Julian was
planning on feeding all of you.
The question probably
never occurred to him.
I'll be back in about an hour.
Max, I couldn't get the
snowmobile started this morning.
See if you can figure
out what's wrong with it.
The Judge may want to use it.
Ah, you ever hunted, Doc?
- Only with a fishing rod.
- Oh... oh... oh...
Well, this could convert you,
you know. Would you care to try it?
No thanks. We're
still thawing out.
Well, if you change
your mind, let me know.
Uh, I think I'll go outside and see
if I can scare us up a main course.
Huh...
Well, I'd... I'd love to stay
and play chaperone, but I...
I think I'll go
soak in a hot tub.
If the Judge comes back, kick
him in the shins for me, will you?
- Tata...
- Bye!
- Oh, baby, alone at last.
- Yeah, but for how long?
Next thing you know, they're going
to send a herd of elephants in here.
And don't tell me this
isn't the first act of Aida.
Honey, as far as I'm concerned,
there's nobody here but us.
- What's the matter?
- I guess I'm not as
good at shutting out
the rest of the world as you.
Well, honey, let me help you.
Wha... What was that?
It couldn't have been Spool unless
he switched from a rifle to a bazooka.
- You know,
what it sounded like?
- What?
A snow cannon. I've
seen them at Mammoth.
They use them to create tiny little
avalanches before they turn into big ones.
- Sure sounded very close,
I'll tell you that.
- Sure did!
I thought the ski resort
was miles away from here.
- I don't know, honey.
- I'll get it.
- Quincy!
- Hi, Herb.
- Oh! Oh! Oh!
- Well I'll be fried.
- I didn't know you
were going to be up here.
- You knew I was gonna be...
Come on!
- How you doing?
- Fine!
- It's been a long time.
- Long time...
Hi! Did you bring the elephants?
- Elephants? Wha...
- She's suffering
from cabin fever.
Emily, this is Herb Gleason.
- How do you do?
- Hi!
Ahh... Is the Judge here yet?
You better take a ticket.
We're all waiting for him.
Well, I was sure he'd
get here before me.
I saw his car pulling
away at the train station.
I yelled at him, but
he didn't hear me.
Oh, I'm sure he'll be here soon.
Make yourself at home, Sergeant.
Sergeant? What... are...
are you another policemen?
- Yeah, he works with
Monahan in homicide.
- Oh!
Who else is here?
It's a family reunion. There's
Lieutenant Spool, Liz McKenna...
What is this? A law
enforcement convention?
Blake invited me up here to
celebrate the Dallesandro case.
Yeah, well, he used a
different ruse on all of us.
What does that mean?
- Well, we thought
this was our honeymoon.
- It is our honeymoon, honey!
Oh... I see we
have another guest.
- Dorothy!
- Hi, Herb!
I didn't know you
two knew each other.
Oh sure. She gave some psychiatric
testimony on a case I was on once.
That's right. Welcome
to the surprise party.
- Whose party?
- No one's. That's why it's a surprise.
I tell ya if the rest of
the food is this good,
I don't care if we ever
find out why we're here.
- Hey, this is stuck.
- I'm sorry,
the cream's a little frozen.
Max must've put it in
the freezer by mistake.
Was one of you up
on the roof a while ago?
While I was taking my bath, I
distinctly heard footsteps on the roof.
You know, it's a little
late for Saint Nick.
Could it have been Max?
Oh, I don't see how.
He was still in the workshop
when I came back from shopping.
You know, that's the
trouble with you lady D.A.'s.
You just can't to turn it off. You
can't stop accusing somebody.
Uh-huh! It never bothered you
when I was accusing Ronald Litner.
I think of all the time and energy
we all put into convicting Litner...
And then the prison
goes and loses him.
How long ago has it been since
he escaped? About a year right?
I wonder where he is now?
- Could be almost anywhere.
- Ah...
- You know what
I just realized?
- What?
All of you have some
connection to the Litner case.
She got a point.
Gathered around this table are
the two detectives who caught him,
and the D.A. who prosecuted him.
And the medical examiner who
provided the forensic evidence.
And the judge who
convicted him is on his way.
He says there's something
outside he wants me to look at.
Want to come with me?
The cannons been moved.
It's facing in another direction.
- It's been fired recently.
- At what?
- What's it pointing towards?
- The road.
Some slopes alongside.
Now, you and Max go back t o the
house. Herb and I will check out the road.
Holy Mackerel!
The cannon caused an
avalanche and blocked the road.
- This is the only way
to get back to into town.
- We're isolated.
Well, let's take a look.
- It's the top of a car.
- A car?
Get the shovel, will you?
It's Judge Blake. Poor Dorothy!
You know you might feel better if
you just let go and had a good cry.
I spent too many years
crying over that man.
There aren't any tears left.
Ah, he certainly gave me enough
reasons over the years to stop loving him.
I doubt that he ever loved me.
You mean he was
unfaithful to you?
Unfaithful? Fidelity to Julian
was having one mistress at a time.
- And even that was difficult.
- I'm so sorry.
- Liz was one of them.
- Liz McKenna?
I doubt that I could ever prove
it in Julian's courtroom, but...
Between you and me, the
circumstantial evidence is overwhelming.
Dorothy, why don't
you try to get some rest.
I am not going to play
the grieving widow.
There are arrangements
to be made.
You know, I don't know how many times
over the years I wished Julian dead, but...
Right now...
I can't imagine
life without him.
Dorothy!
Tell the others I'll be down
a little while, would you?
All right.
Nobody said
anything about a wake.
I wanted to take
another look at the body.
Why? You don't think
it was an accident?
The car wasn't buried that deep.
And he didn't try to open a window or door.
Now why didn't he try to dig his way out?
What about a heart attack?
You know, could've been that
snow cannon going off that did it.
I don't buy that.
He was sitting bolt upright,
his hands on the steering wheel.
Like he was waiting for
a traffic light to change.
What about carbon
monoxide poisoning?
If it was carbon monoxide, his
skin would've been cherry-red.
What do you think?
I want to take a good look at the
body before I draw any conclusions.
Hello?
Hello!
Uh! Wouldn't you know?
The stinkin' phone is dead.
The storm must've
knocked it out.
Well, that settles it.
As soon as they clear up that
avalanche, we pack up the body
- and drive back
to Broken River.
- Uh-huh! That's impossible.
I heard an update on the radio.
The Timber Lane is closed and
it's buried under three feet of snow.
And the roads won't be
cleared until 24 to 48 hours.
- You mean,
we're trapped up here?
- Well...
Dorothy, we just heard that the
road to Broken River is closed.
Is there any other
way to get out of here?
Well, if the storm lets up, a good
skier might make it through Grover Pass.
What about the snowmobile?
Max is still working on it.
But even if he gets it
running, in weather like this...
The terrain you'd be crossing
is just too treacherous.
Well, if we're going
to be trapped here?
I'd like your permission
to do a thorough
external examination
on your husband's body.
Why?
I think his death was more
than just a simple accident.
What do you mean?
I don't want to jump to any
conclusions, until I've examined him.
What could you do here?
I can establish a lot
with some simple tests.
With the eyepiece of that
telescope and my hand lens,
I might be able to
jerry rig a microscope.
I can't promise anything
but I would like to try.
Now, this whole situation
is so bizarre. Uh...
I... I know that Julian would never
have planned anything like this
without giving me some warning.
Somebody else
might have arranged it.
- Go ahead, Quincy.
- Thank you!
Quince, what...
Honey, I got to get down to
workshop and make a microscope.
Oh, now, it's an autopsy.
What is this? A
busman's holiday?
Honey, I wanted it to be
peaceful and quiet, up here too.
But, I promise you.
I'll make it up to you.
It's not going to be easy.
There's definitely no
signs of suffocation.
There's no obvious
evidence of drugs or alcohol.
Look, no offense, Doc,
but for the last 20 minutes
you've been telling me what it ain't.
- How about
telling me what it is.
- I wish I could.
Let's take another look.
Gotta be missing something.
You know, I... I don't remember
much about Litner from the newspapers.
Wasn't he some kind
of corporate embezzler?
The craftiest embezzler
I ever came across.
He was a partner in a
diamond importing firm.
Ken here was the
first one called in.
Biggest case the white
collar crime unit ever handled.
Diamonds were disappearing
faster then you could count them.
And then Litner's
partner... What's his name.
- Wyndham.
- Yeah, Leonard Wyndham.
He came to me
with his suspicions.
Right in the middle of the
case, somebody got wise
and tried to burn the records.
Some young clerk stumbled
onto it and got killed.
Uh, that's when that
glory-hog Gleason came in on it.
And Litner laundered
his money so well
that we couldn't pin an
embezzlement on him.
But Gleason and Quincy put together
an iron-clad case against Litner,
for the murder of the clerk.
My husband sentenced
Litner to life imprisonment.
Only he escaped.
And you think that Litner had some
score to settle with Judge Blake?
Judge Blake and...
all the rest of us.
Bring that a little
closer, will you?
What is it?
Maybe nothing. Maybe everything.
The tiniest puncture wound
on the back of the neck.
Give me the razor blade.
I'll take a small tissue section.
Thank you.
Dorothy.
Your husband was murdered.
I found an almost imperceptible
puncture wound on the back of his neck.
I looked at a small portion of the tissue
from the area under our microscope.
The blood cells were
what we call "crenated".
- That is they were
scalloped in appearance.
- What does that mean?
I also found some salt
crystals on surrounding skin.
My guess is he was injected with
a highly concentrated salt solution.
And that... you think that
that was enough to kill him?
Injected directly into the spine the
way it was, it meant instant death.
The avalanche was caused
to make it look like an accident.
Herb? Do you think
it could be Litner?
I don't know.
Well, we... we can't just stay
here, waiting for him to kill us!
Whatever we do, it'll
have to wait till morning.
Max, would you see that everyone
has a key to their room, please.
If I were you, I'd make sure
that my room was locked up tight.
Oh for God's sake.
What...
You know, honey, I... I really feel bad
about Dorothy giving up her bedroom to us.
She wouldn't have it any other
way. You heard her, honey.
Have I told you how
beautiful you look lately?
- Do you really
think he did it?
- Who?
Litner. You think he
killed Judge Blake.
- Well, I wouldn't rule
that out as a possibility.
- Hmmm...
But he already has his freedom.
Now why would he risk
getting recaptured and losing it?
Revenge! It's one of the most
powerful human drives there is.
- And talking
about human drives...
- Did you know that
Liz and Judge
Blake had an affair?
- No. Who told you that?
- Dorothy.
Wow! I knew he had a reputation
as a ladies man, but I had no idea.
Now, what if it weren't Litner?
What if the motive weren't
revenge, but jealousy?
- You mean, Dorothy?
- I don't know.
Maybe even a
wronged lover like Liz.
Honey, you've been reading
too many murder mysteries.
Oh!
So has somebody else.
Well, to tell you the truth. I had no
use for lights at this time anyway.
- You think it
could be Gleason?
- Oh, come on, honey!
Ah! Is somebody
knocking at the door?
I hear 'em. I hear 'em.
I don't believe
it, but I hear 'em.
Holy mackerel!
We had all this time
to go on a honeymoon!
Next time I want
to go to Hawaii!
Are you alright, honey?
Are you kidding?
- Dorothy.
- I couldn't say I'm
sorry to bother you, but...
I heard footsteps in the hall and then...
Someone tried to get into my room.
Come on in, Dorothy.
Well, that does it. Now you are
going to stay here with me tonight.
Quincy, you'll switch
rooms with Dorothy.
- I will? I mean I will.
- That's good of you, Quincy.
- Oh, not at all.
- It's the last
door on the right.
Thanks honey!
Um...
Herb?
Herb?
I didn't mean to startle you. I heard
some noise out here. Is something wrong?
I don't know. I smell some
smoke but Herb doesn't answer.
- Herb!
- Herb, it's me. Open up!
I better break it in.
- He's dead.
- Well, how did he die?
- Oh my God...
- Not so sure.
- But he says his face is...
- What's he saying?
Somebody threw the circuit
breaker. That's how we lost the lights.
It's Litner. It has to be!
He has lured us all here and
he's killing us off, one by one.
But the door and windows were
locked. How did he get in here?
Max, see if you can find
something wrong with that lock?
But more important...
Why didn't Herb go to the door
when he smelled all that smoke?
Maybe what killed him, worked a
lot faster than carbon monoxide.
Did you ever smell anything like
that on the white collar crime squad?
Hmm... Bitter almonds.
Probably cyanide
in crystalline form.
Heat from the fire, would
turn it into a lethal gas.
Max cut down that wood himself.
Why wasn't the lethal gas
sucked up into the chimney?
How would somebody
get on the roof?
The only balcony is the
one outside Liz's room.
What's that supposed to mean?
Do you mean, you think someone
actually blocked that chimney?
They had to. The flue was open.
And that's why Herb
couldn't unlock the door.
Looks like part of a broken key.
That was jammed into
the lock from the outside.
Quincy, are you saying
that after he jammed the lock,
Litner got back up on the roof and
removed the obstruction from the chimney?
- He didn't have to.
- So, what did it do? Remove itself?
Exactly... it just melted.
A ball of snow was jammed
into that chimney hours before.
But when we broke down
the door, the fire was still okay.
The fire melted the snow.
The water was caught by
the smoke shelf in the chimney.
After all, it only took a few seconds
for the cyanide gas to kill him.
Looks like some
kind of nightmare.
All the killer had to do
was wait until the fire was lit,
then jam that metal
fragment into the lock.
Cyanide in the wood
box. A jammed lock. But...
How could Litner do that?
How could he possibly do that?
Don't you see?
Haven't you realized?
It isn't Litner after
all. It can't be.
The murderer has to be
someone in this house.
Honey, I thought you were still
asleep. What were you doing outside?
I thought I heard a snowmobile.
- You shouldn't
have been out there.
- Come on...
- You want some breakfast.
- No thanks. Just some coffee. Thanks Max.
Oh, I heard on the radio they had
the plows going most of the night.
They expect to have the
timber road cleared by late today.
Well, that means we're all
still sitting ducks until then.
Well, for all we know Liz,
you could be the hunter.
And what about you, Dorothy?
If you hadn't been so insistent on
everybody locking his door last night,
Herb might still be alive.
Ladies, please! We have enough
trouble without fighting amongst ourselves.
I found some fresh ski
tracks in last night's drift.
They didn't come from the house.
So somebody is
out there, all right.
Is anybody cold except me?
Oh, we're probably low on
firewood. I'll have Max get some more.
No, no, no! I'll get the wood.
It'll give me a chance
to check those tracks.
- Be careful out there,
will you?
- I will.
There's a ridge east of here, I think I
can see the timber road pretty clearly.
I am going to ski over and see
how far those plows have to go.
Okay.
Well, I don't know about
the rest of you, but...
I am going to my room,
and wait for the cavalry.
I'll leave the adventuring
to the rest of you.
- Talk about emptying a room.
- Huh...
- Some kind of honeymoon, huh?
- Well, look at it this way.
If we survive it, marriage
should be a piece of cake.
What would you need with your
overnight case in here, Judge?
We should've gone to Hawaii.
Hawaii's such a beautiful
place. Palm trees...
White sandy beaches...
And if somebody there drops
dead, it's from natural causes.
Quince?
Are you listening to me?
Oh yeah, listen. Max finally
got the snow mobile fixed.
I've been waiting for him to
leave. Do me a favor, will you?
- Sure, what?
- Go into the living room,
keep your eye on the lights. Let me
know if they dim or flickering, okay?
Okay, I am on it.
Honey, did the lights dim?
Yeah, but not as much as
when the cannon went off.
- That doesn't matter. As long as they did?
- Yeah!
But... but what does that mean?
- That clears up
something for me.
- Look what I found, honey.
- What about that?
- Check the date.
Yes... uh...
Did you see Lieutenant
Spool out there?
- He went to get firewood.
- Yeah,
but that was 20 minutes ago.
Where do you keep the wood?
Here's Dorothy.
- Have you seen Spool?
- No. But I did see the snow plows.
Another two or three hours,
and the road should be clear.
- Why? Has something happened?
- That's what
we'd like to know.
Can this door be
locked from the inside.
Well, there's no lock on that
door. Why would there be?
Must've been barricaded.
Get me an ax?
A log wedged
against the... door.
Is he dead?
Yes.
What's going on?
I heard all this no...
Oh my God!
At least this time there's no
doubt about the cause of death.
What I don't understand
is how the killer got out.
If the door was jammed, how
did he get out? It's impossible?
Not for this killer, it isn't.
This killer can go through
doors we have to break down.
Sooner or later he's
going to get us all.
What's this J.K.B?
Well, it's Julian's overnight case.
I dunno what it's doing in here.
What was Spool doing with it?
Whatever is in it, it's enough
to kill for, that's obvious.
- Ugh!
- All right, hold it.
- Don't anybody move!
- Litner!
I don't want to
have to hurt anyone.
So just do as I say.
Hand me that case.
Nice and easy.
You'll never get away with this.
And now the diamonds.
Come on. Hand 'em over.
I don't know what you're talking
about? I don't have any jewelry here.
Your husband's diamonds.
The diamonds! I want 'em now.
I don't know what he's talking about.
Julian didn't have any diamonds.
I'm going to count to five.
And then I want somebody to tell
me where I can find those jewels, huh?
One...
Two... Three... Four...
Max! Max, no!
- How bad is he?
- He's sleeping it off. He'll be okay.
- Is that necessary?
- Are you kidding?
The man's a convicted murderer.
And he's just killed four more times.
I don't know why we just
didn't leave him there to die.
Do you believe that woman?
Well, it'll all be in the hands of
the police before the day is over.
Let's go downstairs
and see if we can relax.
Thank God, it's over.
Dorothy, do you have
a cork of any kind?
- You mean,
like from a wine bottle?
- Yeah!
- Sure in the kitchen.
- Thank you. See you later. Come on.
Would you mind telling me
what you're doing with that cork?
I am using a very old
technique to find a fingerprint.
- Hope it matches.
- With the one you took?
Yeah... and it does!
The phones are working.
I just called the
Sheriff's station. They'll
be here as soon
as the road is clear.
- Good.
- Now I still can't figure out
how Litner got out of that
woodshed after he stabbed Spool.
Max, don't leave please.
I want you to sit down.
Of the three murders Liz, that's
really the simplest to understand.
It's the only one where
the killer's plan miscarried.
Uh, it seemed like
the perfect crime to me.
But it wasn't.
The blood on the log that was blocking the
door makes it fairly clear what happened.
Spool was stabbed, but
it wasn't instantly fatal.
There was a struggle.
He managed to shove his attacker
outside and bar the door with that log.
You see, he accidentally
found the overnight case.
What was in the overnight case?
You whisked it away so
fast. We never got a look at it.
It was a confession.
Signed by Judge Blake, swearing
that he and Spool and Gleason
conspired to frame Litner
and send him to prison.
- I don't believe it!
- You and I were the dupes,
Liz.
Planted evidence,
falsified records.
It's all here.
Litner's partner, Wyndham,
he was the real embezzler.
He used part of the fortune,
in diamonds he siphoned off,
to buy off Gleason and
Spool, then to make sure...
He bought the judge
who tried the case.
See after Litner escaped,
he got in touch with the
Judge and he threatened him.
Then the Judge re-evaluated
the entire situation
and invited Litner
to this little gathering.
Invited Litner? Oh,
I don't believe it.
You haven't heard anything yet.
Wyndham's bribe was enormous.
So he was given another year to
come up with the second instalment.
It was due.
Spool and Gleason came
here expecting to get their share
of an additional three
million in diamonds.
What the Judge
was actually doing
was inviting his
co-conspirators to witness his
confession to
Litner, Liz and myself.
This confession is
addressed to us, Liz.
Well, this is all very
fascinating, Quincy, but it...
It doesn't explain why Litner,
who you say was an innocent man,
would go out and kill three people, when
he was on the verge of total exoneration.
I never said Litner
killed anyone.
Oh, am I going crazy, or
did you not just explain to us
how he stabbed Spool to death?
I described the
killer's actions.
I never said who the killer was.
But it has to be Litner.
When we first got
to the woodshed,
I noticed some ski tracks
leading right up to the door,
alongside Spool's footprints.
Litner had skis.
True. But they aren't
conventional cross-country skis.
They don't need
wax for traction.
They have a tread
on the bottom, instead.
So?
I picked up a twig in the
middle of one of those tracks.
Some fresh ski wax
had scraped onto it.
Those weren't Litner's tracks.
Then whose were they?
They could be yours, Liz.
That's absurd! What
possible motive could I have?
None. Unless you weren't a
dupe, but part of the conspiracy.
Wyndham would never have
dared to try and bribe me.
I believe you didn't do it,
Liz. But for a different reason.
Assuming the same person killed
all three victims, then you didn't do it.
We know you didn't get onto the
roof, to jam snow in Gleason's chimney,
because you passed
us on the road coming in.
And the only time
we weren't with you,
Emily and I were insight
of the door to your room.
You didn't come up that way and
you didn't get up by the balcony
because there were no footprints
in the snow that covered it.
What about Max?
He could've gotten on
the roof with a ladder.
What could Max possibly gain?
Maybe three million
dollars in jewels.
That is if he knew where
the Judge had hid them.
He says he was in the workshop,
when the cannon was fired.
I know you're
telling the truth, Max.
Just before the cannon fired, the lights
dimmed because you had the drill press on.
You wouldn't have had
time to ski over to the cannon
and fire it, let alone
murder the Judge.
I suppose that leaves me.
Well, you do have
the motive, the means,
and the opportunity
to murder all three.
What's my motive? Jealousy?
If so, believe me, Liz
would've been the first to go.
Jealousy may have played a part.
But your motive was no different
than anyone else's. Greed.
Not only did your husband intend
to return the first payoff he took,
but now he was about to
surrender his share of an
additional three
million in jewels.
Uh! What about
Gleason and Spool?
Or are you suggesting
I kill for sport?
No, it's still greed.
With them out of the
way, the whole ball of wax,
all three million
would be yours.
You're forgetting... I was in the
pantry when the cannon was fired,
putting away the
groceries I'd just bought.
They weren't "just
bought", Dorothy.
I found the dated receipt
mixed in with the kindling.
You bought all those groceries
the day before we all arrived.
That's why the
cream was half-frozen.
It had sat out in
your car all night long.
When you told us you were
going in to buy groceries,
you really went to meet
your husband's train.
You told him you'd been shopping,
that he should follow you home.
You stopped where you knew you
were going to set off the avalanche.
You got into your husband's
car and you killed him.
Then you came home
and set off the cannon.
I may be a lot of things,
including perhaps being
capable of murder, but...
One thing I am
not, and that's a fool.
And only a fool would've
killed Julian without
destroying that
alleged confession.
I agree with you.
You're no fool.
You would've destroyed it, had you known
that Julian was going to write it down.
But you didn't.
Why would Dorothy hide the
overnight case in the woodshed
if she didn't know
about that confession?
Because she didn't
hide it there. Litner did.
Timeout. Are you telling us
that they both killed the Judge?
Litner was there, but he had
nothing to do with the murder.
Oh, wait a minute, Quince.
Now you're even losing me.
When Gleason and I
arrived at the avalanche,
there were ski tracks
leading to the car.
They were made by Litner.
He was waiting for the Judge
to arrive. What he didn't expect
was that he would witness the
attempted cover-up of a murder.
What makes you so
sure Litner was there?
His fingerprint.
I found it on Judge
Blake's confession.
He must've gotten
the overnight case
when Dorothy left the car
to shoot off the snow cannon.
He probably expected
to find diamonds.
Instead, he found the blueprint
for his conviction for murder.
Why didn't Litner take his
ticket to freedom and run?
Oh, he intended to.
But then he saw a chance to earn a
lot more. He wanted those diamonds.
So far, I haven't heard or
seen a single shred of evidence
that links me to any
of these murders.
I haven't finished.
When I examined your husband, I found
a few animal hairs on the back of his neck.
But because he was wearing a fur
hat, I didn't pay much attention to it.
Thanks honey!
Then I saw some animal
hairs on Spool's clothing.
And I compared them
under the microscope.
And they both match the
fox lining in your gloves.
The gloves you were wearing when you
killed your husband and Lieutenant Spool.
We're still left with
one big question.
Where are the diamonds that the
Judge was supposedly paid with?
That's the ski pole that Spool
was stabbed with, isn't it?
- The police will
need that for evidence.
- In more ways than one.
Honey, I got to get down to
workshop and make a microscope.
Oh, now, it's an autopsy...
Just heard that the road
to Broken river is closed.
Wouldn't you know?
The stinkin' phone is dead.
All of you have some
connection to the Litner case.
We can't just stay here
waiting for him to kill us.
If I were you, I'd make sure that
my room was locked up... tight!
He's lured us all here and
he's killing us off one by one.
Gentlemen, you are about to enter the
most fascinating sphere of police work.
The world of forensic medicine.
- To the newlyweds.
- To the newlyweds.
Hot champagne and
baked Alaska, not bad, huh?
Terrific.
Four hours of matrimonial bliss
and still counting. Remarkable!
And they said it would't last.
- Bon voyage you two.
- Thanks John!
Don't forget we have to
change before the plane leaves.
Hey, when did you
two change your plans?
I thought you were
going to Hawaii.
Well, our wedding gift from
Judge Blake and his wife
is the use of their
winter home for a week.
Oh, it's this incredible
old hunting lodge.
- Nothing around
us for 15 miles. Oh...
- More coffee, Dr. Quincy.
- No thanks, Diane...
Is the Judge going to be there?
No, we have the place to
ourselves. Only a caretaker.
Quince, I didn't know
you were a skier.
He's not. But Emily swears
she's going to turn him into one.
Big deal! Marc is a skier.
He said there's nothing to it.
In fact he's
lending me his skis.
Here are the skis, Dr. Quincy.
Well, honey, think of all the good
clean air and the gorgeous scenery.
I can't believe it. I feel like
we've gone back in time.
Is this how you always
get around up here?
No, not likely. Judge Blake
arranged a special ride.
He wanted you folks to
arrive in style, on account...
On account of your...
your honeymoon.
He hardly ever
used this ol' rig.
- You folks, uh, ski?
- My wife does.
PETRIE, Well, we've got a 100
inch base and more on the way.
- That's odd.
- What's odd?
- Looked like Liz McKenna.
- Who?
- Deputy D.A.
- Oh...
I thought you said we were
going to be up here by ourselves.
They don't look like
caretakers to me.
Oh... That is Liz
McKenna and Ken Spool.
Uh, just what every honeymoon
needs. A fourth for bridge.
I'll take the luggage on
around to the kitchen door.
Quincy, I might have known it
was you arriving like Doctor Zhivago.
What is this? Your
idea of a practical joke?
Well, if it is a
joke, it's on us.
Liz McKenna, this
is my wife, Emily.
- Ken Spool, LAPD.
- How do you do?
- Hello!
- I didn't know
you tied the knot.
- Yeah... Thank you.
- Well, congratulations...
Quincy, are you saying that you had
nothing to do with getting us up here.
We were supposed to
have the place to ourselves.
- Liz, when did he invite you?
- He didn't.
I didn't even he owned the
place, until Ken just told me.
I was flown up here by a
big San Francisco law firm,
- for what I thought
was a job interview.
- Mmm-mmm!
And I was told it was a two-day conference
for white collar crime specialists.
Looks like everybody's
been conned.
- Anybody else here?
- Well,
nobody but the caretaker.
And if he knows
anything, he's not talking.
Wait a minute. There's Dorothy.
- Quincy, what a surprise...
- Dorothy.
Julian didn't tell me
he'd invited anyone.
And this must be your
lovely bride, Emily.
- How do you do?
- Liz... Hello, Ken!
Sorry I wasn't here
when you arrived.
- Where's your husband now?
- Well,
he's arriving sometime today.
I've been here for
almost a week on holiday.
It really isn't like Julian to
spring something like this on me.
You're not the
only one, Dorothy.
Each one of us were
snookered by a different story.
Well, one thing's
pretty obvious.
None of us are going to know
anything about what's going on
until the Judge gets here.
So, what we do until then?
I know what I am going
to do. I'm going to go inside
and see if I get feelings
back into my toes.
Well, I'll have Max
put some cider on...
Ahhh... that's great!
Hunting pretty
decent around here?
What kinda game, mostly?
He's a mute, Ken.
His voice box was
shattered in an accident.
He can understand everything
you're saying. He just can't speak.
Oh.
I'm going to go in town
and get some provisions. I...
Don't know what Julian was
planning on feeding all of you.
The question probably
never occurred to him.
I'll be back in about an hour.
Max, I couldn't get the
snowmobile started this morning.
See if you can figure
out what's wrong with it.
The Judge may want to use it.
Ah, you ever hunted, Doc?
- Only with a fishing rod.
- Oh... oh... oh...
Well, this could convert you,
you know. Would you care to try it?
No thanks. We're
still thawing out.
Well, if you change
your mind, let me know.
Uh, I think I'll go outside and see
if I can scare us up a main course.
Huh...
Well, I'd... I'd love to stay
and play chaperone, but I...
I think I'll go
soak in a hot tub.
If the Judge comes back, kick
him in the shins for me, will you?
- Tata...
- Bye!
- Oh, baby, alone at last.
- Yeah, but for how long?
Next thing you know, they're going
to send a herd of elephants in here.
And don't tell me this
isn't the first act of Aida.
Honey, as far as I'm concerned,
there's nobody here but us.
- What's the matter?
- I guess I'm not as
good at shutting out
the rest of the world as you.
Well, honey, let me help you.
Wha... What was that?
It couldn't have been Spool unless
he switched from a rifle to a bazooka.
- You know,
what it sounded like?
- What?
A snow cannon. I've
seen them at Mammoth.
They use them to create tiny little
avalanches before they turn into big ones.
- Sure sounded very close,
I'll tell you that.
- Sure did!
I thought the ski resort
was miles away from here.
- I don't know, honey.
- I'll get it.
- Quincy!
- Hi, Herb.
- Oh! Oh! Oh!
- Well I'll be fried.
- I didn't know you
were going to be up here.
- You knew I was gonna be...
Come on!
- How you doing?
- Fine!
- It's been a long time.
- Long time...
Hi! Did you bring the elephants?
- Elephants? Wha...
- She's suffering
from cabin fever.
Emily, this is Herb Gleason.
- How do you do?
- Hi!
Ahh... Is the Judge here yet?
You better take a ticket.
We're all waiting for him.
Well, I was sure he'd
get here before me.
I saw his car pulling
away at the train station.
I yelled at him, but
he didn't hear me.
Oh, I'm sure he'll be here soon.
Make yourself at home, Sergeant.
Sergeant? What... are...
are you another policemen?
- Yeah, he works with
Monahan in homicide.
- Oh!
Who else is here?
It's a family reunion. There's
Lieutenant Spool, Liz McKenna...
What is this? A law
enforcement convention?
Blake invited me up here to
celebrate the Dallesandro case.
Yeah, well, he used a
different ruse on all of us.
What does that mean?
- Well, we thought
this was our honeymoon.
- It is our honeymoon, honey!
Oh... I see we
have another guest.
- Dorothy!
- Hi, Herb!
I didn't know you
two knew each other.
Oh sure. She gave some psychiatric
testimony on a case I was on once.
That's right. Welcome
to the surprise party.
- Whose party?
- No one's. That's why it's a surprise.
I tell ya if the rest of
the food is this good,
I don't care if we ever
find out why we're here.
- Hey, this is stuck.
- I'm sorry,
the cream's a little frozen.
Max must've put it in
the freezer by mistake.
Was one of you up
on the roof a while ago?
While I was taking my bath, I
distinctly heard footsteps on the roof.
You know, it's a little
late for Saint Nick.
Could it have been Max?
Oh, I don't see how.
He was still in the workshop
when I came back from shopping.
You know, that's the
trouble with you lady D.A.'s.
You just can't to turn it off. You
can't stop accusing somebody.
Uh-huh! It never bothered you
when I was accusing Ronald Litner.
I think of all the time and energy
we all put into convicting Litner...
And then the prison
goes and loses him.
How long ago has it been since
he escaped? About a year right?
I wonder where he is now?
- Could be almost anywhere.
- Ah...
- You know what
I just realized?
- What?
All of you have some
connection to the Litner case.
She got a point.
Gathered around this table are
the two detectives who caught him,
and the D.A. who prosecuted him.
And the medical examiner who
provided the forensic evidence.
And the judge who
convicted him is on his way.
He says there's something
outside he wants me to look at.
Want to come with me?
The cannons been moved.
It's facing in another direction.
- It's been fired recently.
- At what?
- What's it pointing towards?
- The road.
Some slopes alongside.
Now, you and Max go back t o the
house. Herb and I will check out the road.
Holy Mackerel!
The cannon caused an
avalanche and blocked the road.
- This is the only way
to get back to into town.
- We're isolated.
Well, let's take a look.
- It's the top of a car.
- A car?
Get the shovel, will you?
It's Judge Blake. Poor Dorothy!
You know you might feel better if
you just let go and had a good cry.
I spent too many years
crying over that man.
There aren't any tears left.
Ah, he certainly gave me enough
reasons over the years to stop loving him.
I doubt that he ever loved me.
You mean he was
unfaithful to you?
Unfaithful? Fidelity to Julian
was having one mistress at a time.
- And even that was difficult.
- I'm so sorry.
- Liz was one of them.
- Liz McKenna?
I doubt that I could ever prove
it in Julian's courtroom, but...
Between you and me, the
circumstantial evidence is overwhelming.
Dorothy, why don't
you try to get some rest.
I am not going to play
the grieving widow.
There are arrangements
to be made.
You know, I don't know how many times
over the years I wished Julian dead, but...
Right now...
I can't imagine
life without him.
Dorothy!
Tell the others I'll be down
a little while, would you?
All right.
Nobody said
anything about a wake.
I wanted to take
another look at the body.
Why? You don't think
it was an accident?
The car wasn't buried that deep.
And he didn't try to open a window or door.
Now why didn't he try to dig his way out?
What about a heart attack?
You know, could've been that
snow cannon going off that did it.
I don't buy that.
He was sitting bolt upright,
his hands on the steering wheel.
Like he was waiting for
a traffic light to change.
What about carbon
monoxide poisoning?
If it was carbon monoxide, his
skin would've been cherry-red.
What do you think?
I want to take a good look at the
body before I draw any conclusions.
Hello?
Hello!
Uh! Wouldn't you know?
The stinkin' phone is dead.
The storm must've
knocked it out.
Well, that settles it.
As soon as they clear up that
avalanche, we pack up the body
- and drive back
to Broken River.
- Uh-huh! That's impossible.
I heard an update on the radio.
The Timber Lane is closed and
it's buried under three feet of snow.
And the roads won't be
cleared until 24 to 48 hours.
- You mean,
we're trapped up here?
- Well...
Dorothy, we just heard that the
road to Broken River is closed.
Is there any other
way to get out of here?
Well, if the storm lets up, a good
skier might make it through Grover Pass.
What about the snowmobile?
Max is still working on it.
But even if he gets it
running, in weather like this...
The terrain you'd be crossing
is just too treacherous.
Well, if we're going
to be trapped here?
I'd like your permission
to do a thorough
external examination
on your husband's body.
Why?
I think his death was more
than just a simple accident.
What do you mean?
I don't want to jump to any
conclusions, until I've examined him.
What could you do here?
I can establish a lot
with some simple tests.
With the eyepiece of that
telescope and my hand lens,
I might be able to
jerry rig a microscope.
I can't promise anything
but I would like to try.
Now, this whole situation
is so bizarre. Uh...
I... I know that Julian would never
have planned anything like this
without giving me some warning.
Somebody else
might have arranged it.
- Go ahead, Quincy.
- Thank you!
Quince, what...
Honey, I got to get down to
workshop and make a microscope.
Oh, now, it's an autopsy.
What is this? A
busman's holiday?
Honey, I wanted it to be
peaceful and quiet, up here too.
But, I promise you.
I'll make it up to you.
It's not going to be easy.
There's definitely no
signs of suffocation.
There's no obvious
evidence of drugs or alcohol.
Look, no offense, Doc,
but for the last 20 minutes
you've been telling me what it ain't.
- How about
telling me what it is.
- I wish I could.
Let's take another look.
Gotta be missing something.
You know, I... I don't remember
much about Litner from the newspapers.
Wasn't he some kind
of corporate embezzler?
The craftiest embezzler
I ever came across.
He was a partner in a
diamond importing firm.
Ken here was the
first one called in.
Biggest case the white
collar crime unit ever handled.
Diamonds were disappearing
faster then you could count them.
And then Litner's
partner... What's his name.
- Wyndham.
- Yeah, Leonard Wyndham.
He came to me
with his suspicions.
Right in the middle of the
case, somebody got wise
and tried to burn the records.
Some young clerk stumbled
onto it and got killed.
Uh, that's when that
glory-hog Gleason came in on it.
And Litner laundered
his money so well
that we couldn't pin an
embezzlement on him.
But Gleason and Quincy put together
an iron-clad case against Litner,
for the murder of the clerk.
My husband sentenced
Litner to life imprisonment.
Only he escaped.
And you think that Litner had some
score to settle with Judge Blake?
Judge Blake and...
all the rest of us.
Bring that a little
closer, will you?
What is it?
Maybe nothing. Maybe everything.
The tiniest puncture wound
on the back of the neck.
Give me the razor blade.
I'll take a small tissue section.
Thank you.
Dorothy.
Your husband was murdered.
I found an almost imperceptible
puncture wound on the back of his neck.
I looked at a small portion of the tissue
from the area under our microscope.
The blood cells were
what we call "crenated".
- That is they were
scalloped in appearance.
- What does that mean?
I also found some salt
crystals on surrounding skin.
My guess is he was injected with
a highly concentrated salt solution.
And that... you think that
that was enough to kill him?
Injected directly into the spine the
way it was, it meant instant death.
The avalanche was caused
to make it look like an accident.
Herb? Do you think
it could be Litner?
I don't know.
Well, we... we can't just stay
here, waiting for him to kill us!
Whatever we do, it'll
have to wait till morning.
Max, would you see that everyone
has a key to their room, please.
If I were you, I'd make sure
that my room was locked up tight.
Oh for God's sake.
What...
You know, honey, I... I really feel bad
about Dorothy giving up her bedroom to us.
She wouldn't have it any other
way. You heard her, honey.
Have I told you how
beautiful you look lately?
- Do you really
think he did it?
- Who?
Litner. You think he
killed Judge Blake.
- Well, I wouldn't rule
that out as a possibility.
- Hmmm...
But he already has his freedom.
Now why would he risk
getting recaptured and losing it?
Revenge! It's one of the most
powerful human drives there is.
- And talking
about human drives...
- Did you know that
Liz and Judge
Blake had an affair?
- No. Who told you that?
- Dorothy.
Wow! I knew he had a reputation
as a ladies man, but I had no idea.
Now, what if it weren't Litner?
What if the motive weren't
revenge, but jealousy?
- You mean, Dorothy?
- I don't know.
Maybe even a
wronged lover like Liz.
Honey, you've been reading
too many murder mysteries.
Oh!
So has somebody else.
Well, to tell you the truth. I had no
use for lights at this time anyway.
- You think it
could be Gleason?
- Oh, come on, honey!
Ah! Is somebody
knocking at the door?
I hear 'em. I hear 'em.
I don't believe
it, but I hear 'em.
Holy mackerel!
We had all this time
to go on a honeymoon!
Next time I want
to go to Hawaii!
Are you alright, honey?
Are you kidding?
- Dorothy.
- I couldn't say I'm
sorry to bother you, but...
I heard footsteps in the hall and then...
Someone tried to get into my room.
Come on in, Dorothy.
Well, that does it. Now you are
going to stay here with me tonight.
Quincy, you'll switch
rooms with Dorothy.
- I will? I mean I will.
- That's good of you, Quincy.
- Oh, not at all.
- It's the last
door on the right.
Thanks honey!
Um...
Herb?
Herb?
I didn't mean to startle you. I heard
some noise out here. Is something wrong?
I don't know. I smell some
smoke but Herb doesn't answer.
- Herb!
- Herb, it's me. Open up!
I better break it in.
- He's dead.
- Well, how did he die?
- Oh my God...
- Not so sure.
- But he says his face is...
- What's he saying?
Somebody threw the circuit
breaker. That's how we lost the lights.
It's Litner. It has to be!
He has lured us all here and
he's killing us off, one by one.
But the door and windows were
locked. How did he get in here?
Max, see if you can find
something wrong with that lock?
But more important...
Why didn't Herb go to the door
when he smelled all that smoke?
Maybe what killed him, worked a
lot faster than carbon monoxide.
Did you ever smell anything like
that on the white collar crime squad?
Hmm... Bitter almonds.
Probably cyanide
in crystalline form.
Heat from the fire, would
turn it into a lethal gas.
Max cut down that wood himself.
Why wasn't the lethal gas
sucked up into the chimney?
How would somebody
get on the roof?
The only balcony is the
one outside Liz's room.
What's that supposed to mean?
Do you mean, you think someone
actually blocked that chimney?
They had to. The flue was open.
And that's why Herb
couldn't unlock the door.
Looks like part of a broken key.
That was jammed into
the lock from the outside.
Quincy, are you saying
that after he jammed the lock,
Litner got back up on the roof and
removed the obstruction from the chimney?
- He didn't have to.
- So, what did it do? Remove itself?
Exactly... it just melted.
A ball of snow was jammed
into that chimney hours before.
But when we broke down
the door, the fire was still okay.
The fire melted the snow.
The water was caught by
the smoke shelf in the chimney.
After all, it only took a few seconds
for the cyanide gas to kill him.
Looks like some
kind of nightmare.
All the killer had to do
was wait until the fire was lit,
then jam that metal
fragment into the lock.
Cyanide in the wood
box. A jammed lock. But...
How could Litner do that?
How could he possibly do that?
Don't you see?
Haven't you realized?
It isn't Litner after
all. It can't be.
The murderer has to be
someone in this house.
Honey, I thought you were still
asleep. What were you doing outside?
I thought I heard a snowmobile.
- You shouldn't
have been out there.
- Come on...
- You want some breakfast.
- No thanks. Just some coffee. Thanks Max.
Oh, I heard on the radio they had
the plows going most of the night.
They expect to have the
timber road cleared by late today.
Well, that means we're all
still sitting ducks until then.
Well, for all we know Liz,
you could be the hunter.
And what about you, Dorothy?
If you hadn't been so insistent on
everybody locking his door last night,
Herb might still be alive.
Ladies, please! We have enough
trouble without fighting amongst ourselves.
I found some fresh ski
tracks in last night's drift.
They didn't come from the house.
So somebody is
out there, all right.
Is anybody cold except me?
Oh, we're probably low on
firewood. I'll have Max get some more.
No, no, no! I'll get the wood.
It'll give me a chance
to check those tracks.
- Be careful out there,
will you?
- I will.
There's a ridge east of here, I think I
can see the timber road pretty clearly.
I am going to ski over and see
how far those plows have to go.
Okay.
Well, I don't know about
the rest of you, but...
I am going to my room,
and wait for the cavalry.
I'll leave the adventuring
to the rest of you.
- Talk about emptying a room.
- Huh...
- Some kind of honeymoon, huh?
- Well, look at it this way.
If we survive it, marriage
should be a piece of cake.
What would you need with your
overnight case in here, Judge?
We should've gone to Hawaii.
Hawaii's such a beautiful
place. Palm trees...
White sandy beaches...
And if somebody there drops
dead, it's from natural causes.
Quince?
Are you listening to me?
Oh yeah, listen. Max finally
got the snow mobile fixed.
I've been waiting for him to
leave. Do me a favor, will you?
- Sure, what?
- Go into the living room,
keep your eye on the lights. Let me
know if they dim or flickering, okay?
Okay, I am on it.
Honey, did the lights dim?
Yeah, but not as much as
when the cannon went off.
- That doesn't matter. As long as they did?
- Yeah!
But... but what does that mean?
- That clears up
something for me.
- Look what I found, honey.
- What about that?
- Check the date.
Yes... uh...
Did you see Lieutenant
Spool out there?
- He went to get firewood.
- Yeah,
but that was 20 minutes ago.
Where do you keep the wood?
Here's Dorothy.
- Have you seen Spool?
- No. But I did see the snow plows.
Another two or three hours,
and the road should be clear.
- Why? Has something happened?
- That's what
we'd like to know.
Can this door be
locked from the inside.
Well, there's no lock on that
door. Why would there be?
Must've been barricaded.
Get me an ax?
A log wedged
against the... door.
Is he dead?
Yes.
What's going on?
I heard all this no...
Oh my God!
At least this time there's no
doubt about the cause of death.
What I don't understand
is how the killer got out.
If the door was jammed, how
did he get out? It's impossible?
Not for this killer, it isn't.
This killer can go through
doors we have to break down.
Sooner or later he's
going to get us all.
What's this J.K.B?
Well, it's Julian's overnight case.
I dunno what it's doing in here.
What was Spool doing with it?
Whatever is in it, it's enough
to kill for, that's obvious.
- Ugh!
- All right, hold it.
- Don't anybody move!
- Litner!
I don't want to
have to hurt anyone.
So just do as I say.
Hand me that case.
Nice and easy.
You'll never get away with this.
And now the diamonds.
Come on. Hand 'em over.
I don't know what you're talking
about? I don't have any jewelry here.
Your husband's diamonds.
The diamonds! I want 'em now.
I don't know what he's talking about.
Julian didn't have any diamonds.
I'm going to count to five.
And then I want somebody to tell
me where I can find those jewels, huh?
One...
Two... Three... Four...
Max! Max, no!
- How bad is he?
- He's sleeping it off. He'll be okay.
- Is that necessary?
- Are you kidding?
The man's a convicted murderer.
And he's just killed four more times.
I don't know why we just
didn't leave him there to die.
Do you believe that woman?
Well, it'll all be in the hands of
the police before the day is over.
Let's go downstairs
and see if we can relax.
Thank God, it's over.
Dorothy, do you have
a cork of any kind?
- You mean,
like from a wine bottle?
- Yeah!
- Sure in the kitchen.
- Thank you. See you later. Come on.
Would you mind telling me
what you're doing with that cork?
I am using a very old
technique to find a fingerprint.
- Hope it matches.
- With the one you took?
Yeah... and it does!
The phones are working.
I just called the
Sheriff's station. They'll
be here as soon
as the road is clear.
- Good.
- Now I still can't figure out
how Litner got out of that
woodshed after he stabbed Spool.
Max, don't leave please.
I want you to sit down.
Of the three murders Liz, that's
really the simplest to understand.
It's the only one where
the killer's plan miscarried.
Uh, it seemed like
the perfect crime to me.
But it wasn't.
The blood on the log that was blocking the
door makes it fairly clear what happened.
Spool was stabbed, but
it wasn't instantly fatal.
There was a struggle.
He managed to shove his attacker
outside and bar the door with that log.
You see, he accidentally
found the overnight case.
What was in the overnight case?
You whisked it away so
fast. We never got a look at it.
It was a confession.
Signed by Judge Blake, swearing
that he and Spool and Gleason
conspired to frame Litner
and send him to prison.
- I don't believe it!
- You and I were the dupes,
Liz.
Planted evidence,
falsified records.
It's all here.
Litner's partner, Wyndham,
he was the real embezzler.
He used part of the fortune,
in diamonds he siphoned off,
to buy off Gleason and
Spool, then to make sure...
He bought the judge
who tried the case.
See after Litner escaped,
he got in touch with the
Judge and he threatened him.
Then the Judge re-evaluated
the entire situation
and invited Litner
to this little gathering.
Invited Litner? Oh,
I don't believe it.
You haven't heard anything yet.
Wyndham's bribe was enormous.
So he was given another year to
come up with the second instalment.
It was due.
Spool and Gleason came
here expecting to get their share
of an additional three
million in diamonds.
What the Judge
was actually doing
was inviting his
co-conspirators to witness his
confession to
Litner, Liz and myself.
This confession is
addressed to us, Liz.
Well, this is all very
fascinating, Quincy, but it...
It doesn't explain why Litner,
who you say was an innocent man,
would go out and kill three people, when
he was on the verge of total exoneration.
I never said Litner
killed anyone.
Oh, am I going crazy, or
did you not just explain to us
how he stabbed Spool to death?
I described the
killer's actions.
I never said who the killer was.
But it has to be Litner.
When we first got
to the woodshed,
I noticed some ski tracks
leading right up to the door,
alongside Spool's footprints.
Litner had skis.
True. But they aren't
conventional cross-country skis.
They don't need
wax for traction.
They have a tread
on the bottom, instead.
So?
I picked up a twig in the
middle of one of those tracks.
Some fresh ski wax
had scraped onto it.
Those weren't Litner's tracks.
Then whose were they?
They could be yours, Liz.
That's absurd! What
possible motive could I have?
None. Unless you weren't a
dupe, but part of the conspiracy.
Wyndham would never have
dared to try and bribe me.
I believe you didn't do it,
Liz. But for a different reason.
Assuming the same person killed
all three victims, then you didn't do it.
We know you didn't get onto the
roof, to jam snow in Gleason's chimney,
because you passed
us on the road coming in.
And the only time
we weren't with you,
Emily and I were insight
of the door to your room.
You didn't come up that way and
you didn't get up by the balcony
because there were no footprints
in the snow that covered it.
What about Max?
He could've gotten on
the roof with a ladder.
What could Max possibly gain?
Maybe three million
dollars in jewels.
That is if he knew where
the Judge had hid them.
He says he was in the workshop,
when the cannon was fired.
I know you're
telling the truth, Max.
Just before the cannon fired, the lights
dimmed because you had the drill press on.
You wouldn't have had
time to ski over to the cannon
and fire it, let alone
murder the Judge.
I suppose that leaves me.
Well, you do have
the motive, the means,
and the opportunity
to murder all three.
What's my motive? Jealousy?
If so, believe me, Liz
would've been the first to go.
Jealousy may have played a part.
But your motive was no different
than anyone else's. Greed.
Not only did your husband intend
to return the first payoff he took,
but now he was about to
surrender his share of an
additional three
million in jewels.
Uh! What about
Gleason and Spool?
Or are you suggesting
I kill for sport?
No, it's still greed.
With them out of the
way, the whole ball of wax,
all three million
would be yours.
You're forgetting... I was in the
pantry when the cannon was fired,
putting away the
groceries I'd just bought.
They weren't "just
bought", Dorothy.
I found the dated receipt
mixed in with the kindling.
You bought all those groceries
the day before we all arrived.
That's why the
cream was half-frozen.
It had sat out in
your car all night long.
When you told us you were
going in to buy groceries,
you really went to meet
your husband's train.
You told him you'd been shopping,
that he should follow you home.
You stopped where you knew you
were going to set off the avalanche.
You got into your husband's
car and you killed him.
Then you came home
and set off the cannon.
I may be a lot of things,
including perhaps being
capable of murder, but...
One thing I am
not, and that's a fool.
And only a fool would've
killed Julian without
destroying that
alleged confession.
I agree with you.
You're no fool.
You would've destroyed it, had you known
that Julian was going to write it down.
But you didn't.
Why would Dorothy hide the
overnight case in the woodshed
if she didn't know
about that confession?
Because she didn't
hide it there. Litner did.
Timeout. Are you telling us
that they both killed the Judge?
Litner was there, but he had
nothing to do with the murder.
Oh, wait a minute, Quince.
Now you're even losing me.
When Gleason and I
arrived at the avalanche,
there were ski tracks
leading to the car.
They were made by Litner.
He was waiting for the Judge
to arrive. What he didn't expect
was that he would witness the
attempted cover-up of a murder.
What makes you so
sure Litner was there?
His fingerprint.
I found it on Judge
Blake's confession.
He must've gotten
the overnight case
when Dorothy left the car
to shoot off the snow cannon.
He probably expected
to find diamonds.
Instead, he found the blueprint
for his conviction for murder.
Why didn't Litner take his
ticket to freedom and run?
Oh, he intended to.
But then he saw a chance to earn a
lot more. He wanted those diamonds.
So far, I haven't heard or
seen a single shred of evidence
that links me to any
of these murders.
I haven't finished.
When I examined your husband, I found
a few animal hairs on the back of his neck.
But because he was wearing a fur
hat, I didn't pay much attention to it.
Thanks honey!
Then I saw some animal
hairs on Spool's clothing.
And I compared them
under the microscope.
And they both match the
fox lining in your gloves.
The gloves you were wearing when you
killed your husband and Lieutenant Spool.
We're still left with
one big question.
Where are the diamonds that the
Judge was supposedly paid with?
That's the ski pole that Spool
was stabbed with, isn't it?
- The police will
need that for evidence.
- In more ways than one.