Scarecrow and Mrs. King (1983–1987): Season 3, Episode 8 - Reach for the Sky - full transcript

International Federal Film.

Billy Melrose. This is
Allan Aghaney calling.

Melrose here.

We've gotta talk.

Remember to mind
your manners, Billy.

Will do. I'm on my way.

This saves me the trouble
of coming after you, Zorbel.

You broke into my place.

You stole my copy of
the satellite cash transfers.

Yes, you did. I have
surveillance cameras.

You've been moving millions
of dollars back and forth.



Hong Kong, Zurich.
But not your millions.

Maybe Cyclops?

We'll find out. I've got help
coming to pick your brain. Sit.

Allan? You here?

"Remember to mind your manners."

Cyclops.

"An agent may disobey direct
orders if..." Fill in the blank.

If the agent's superior is not
in command of all the facts.

Right. "But the agent must
take responsibility if he is..."

- Wrong.
- Right.

Amanda, stop. Billy is not giving
me the test. He's giving you the test.

- I know, but I'm just doing it out loud.
- Well, relax.

It's just a refresher test for
level-one operatives. You can ace it.

Hmm.



- Come on. Where the hell is Billy?
- Well, you know...

he's probably stuck in traffic.

Uh, Amanda, this is Billy
Melrose we're talking about.

The man who uses his
stopwatch to steep his tea.

- Hmm.
- No, he knows your test was for 9.

Besides, he has never been 20 minutes late
without calling since I came to work here.

This is trouble.

- Amanda?
- Hmm?

- Why don't you go up to Operations.
- Okay.

Maybe they got word from Billy and
just didn't send it down or something.

Uh, could I leave these
here with you for a minute?

- Okay. I'll wait here.
- Okay. I'll be right... Operations.

- Yeah.
- Okay.

Yeah, okay. Right,
I got that stuff.

Dr. Smyth?

Billy's gone rogue.

Heh. What are you talking about?
He's been pushing this desk too long.

He's a rogue elephant, Stetson.

He's out there right
now, thrashing about.

He asked me last night if
he could go back into the field.

I told him no. N-double-O, no.

- What is this about?
- About 48 hours before his career ends.

He's trying to prove somebody killed
a banker friend of his, Allan Aghaney.

Not our business.

Allan Aghaney. I've heard
Billy mention that name before.

The International Bank
of New Hebron, right?

The same. Suicide last night.

Now, here's my point.

Aghaney's bank is... Was
one of our credit banks.

We use it to move operational funds
abroad. Small stuff, but covert, delicate.

Now the bank
president kills himself.

As long as it's a police
matter, it's not our concern.

But we can't get caught up in it
when the bank examiners descend.

- You said "murder" before.
- Billy said "murder."

He doubts that a man of Aghaney's character
embezzled funds from a bank he started.

What's the main issue here?
Murder, embezzlement or Billy?

Secrets. Secrets are
always the main issue.

I pulled our funds out
of that bank this morning.

I'm satisfied we're not
compromised. That's it, fini.

No. No, not for
Billy. Not for a friend.

He let his personal feelings
get in front of the agency's safety.

The worst thing for a man who knows
as many of our secrets as Melrose.

Can't let a rogue go long.

He'll trash everything.

But how long will you give him?

The book says to do it now.

I should know, I wrote it.

But I won't get officially
on top of it for two days.

Two days?

And this is unofficial? No help?

Don't involve the agency.

And we never had
this conversation.

We never do, sir.

- There you go. Let me give you a hand.
- No, that's classified information.

Francine, I'm not
looking at them.

- Amanda.
- There you go.

I am in charge of departmental
administration while Billy is out.

- You on assignment?
- Mr. Melrose is gonna give me...

- Where is Mr. Melrose?
- That is on a need-to-know basis.

- I need to know.
- I don't need to tell you.

Francine...

Why he encourages this spy fantasy
of yours, I really will never fathom.

Why don't you just check out.

Because we don't need any
superfluous bodies around here now.

What...?

Huh.

I'm telling you what
you did wrong, Zorbel.

You acted very
foolishly and impetuously.

No, no, we have no
confidence in you at all.

You could have handled
this in any number of ways.

Death always raises the
most annoying questions.

Enough. This is an open line.

Come over. I don't intend for you
to jeopardize the whole operation.

What's she doing?

Telling one of the computer guys to
get a haircut, but she's getting closer.

What's that they say
about power corrupting?

- Lee, she's getting closer.
- I know, I know.

The only thing we've got is
this empty file on Robert Zorbel.

Yeah, hi, Jeanie.
I'm here, yeah.

Now listen, don't worry, okay?

I'll talk to you later.
All right, bye-bye.

Billy's wife doesn't
know either.

- Here comes Francine.
- Whoa.

- Okay, interrogation, ahem, procedures.
- Yeah.

What are you doing in here? This is
not a lounge. This is my office now.

Oh, well, we're studying
for my test, Francine.

- No test today.
- No test today?

Mr. Melrose is out with the flu.

The flu. Ooh. Ugh.

Too bad. I'm sorry to hear that.

I'm glad there's no test though. I
mean, everybody hates to take a test.

You know how to drive, but you hate to take
your driver's test. Don't you? I do. Bye.

Bye.

Amanda. AMANDA: Yeah.

I just checked the files.

Allan Aghaney was an intelligence
officer for his own country.

He and Billy put in a lot of field time
together before Aghaney went into banking.

Well, look at this. Last night at 7:27,
Mr. Melrose got a call from Mr. Aghaney.

- It wasn't much of a conversation.
- Mm-hm.

He just said, "We've gotta meet,"
and "Mind your manners, Billy." Heh.

- "Mind your manners"?
- Yeah, look at that. "Mind your manners."

That's an old expression
from Billy's generation.

It means to follow up on your recognition
codes, mail drops and so on, to the T.

Oh.

What I gotta figure out is what
Aghaney is using it for now.

- If we could figure that out, then...
- Before you become so enthused...

this is not a "we" case,
this is a "me" case.

We could use a little
enthusiasm about now.

Yes, we can, but Billy's
trouble might be very dangerous.

I am supposed to be unofficial.

Look, who could be
more unofficial than me?

You're right.

I'm Lee Stimson, auditor for the
Federal Board of Bank Examiners.

This is my associate, Mrs. Kane.

We need to speak to the bank
officer in charge immediately.

Hello, Mr. Stimson.
I'm Robert Zorbel...

vice president in charge
of International Accounts.

I'm acting president
since Mr. Aghaney's death.

I'm relieved that you're here.

I've been in turmoil all morning
long. There's something terribly wrong.

- Put it this way.
- Thank you.

Mr. Allan Aghaney
was a true patriot.

Loved his country, did
everything for his countrymen.

But I'm not prepared to
say that he was without stain.

Are you charging
him with improprieties?

From what the police tell
me, he took his own life.

And the note he left suggests that it
had something to do with the bank.

As you will find out, his lending practices
were, uh, shall I say, less than regular.

- Could you be more specific?
- As specific as you would like.

I pulled the entire loan register. The
601's filed with the Federal Reserve.

The electronic cash
transfer flow charts.

- Where would you like to begin?
- Oh, the 601s, I guess.

The 601s? AMANDA: Mm-hm.

I would have thought
the ECTF charts.

Those too.

We'll... We'll examine
everything, Mr. Zorbel, believe me.

If there are grounds here, we'll
expect complete cooperation.

Please, understand, Mr. Allan
Aghaney was a personal friend.

But I am not prepared to
perjure myself, not even for him.

If he was dipping into the
till, I won't cover for him.

If you'll excuse me, please...

my secretary will give you
all the material that you need.

Was there something a
little bit suspicious about him?

Yeah. Well, Billy took his
file for some reason, huh?

- What do you say we find out?
- Right.

Okay, penthouse.

The easiest trick to lose a tail is to
punch a lot of buttons in an elevator.

Let's see if it stops on the way down.
If not, I'll go up, you watch the lobby.

- That way, he can't get by us.
- Right.

Some unexpected business at
the bank detained me. I apologize.

Why'd you kill Aghaney?

He left me no choice.
He broke into my place.

He took my notes on yesterday's
test. He could have figured it all out.

You left the notes
where he could find them?

I've been involved in
this project for months.

Security has been adequate. If I made any
mistake, it was underestimating Aghaney.

I overestimated you.

- Good afternoon.
- Oh.

Were you looking for an entire
suite or just a cozy little office?

Well, actually, I'm
interested in the penthouse.

This is the penthouse.

Oh. Uh, what about my associate who
was ahead of me about two minutes ago?

Is he here?

Sorry, but you're the first
person I've seen all day.

Oh.

Let me show you one
of our spacious suites.

It can be furnished in any
style, contemporary, traditional.

Mr. Caanan, I think
you should see this.

- He told me he was a bank auditor.
- Your doctored books can't be convincing.

It's a fishing
expedition, that's all.

A satellite crime like ours
has never been dreamed of.

You don't imagine
that he'll figure it out?

Aghaney came close.

He was looking at the bare
outline. That's all, nothing more.

Have faith.

I hired you to steal a billion
dollars. I want more than faith.

I'm going to call a
full Cyclops meeting.

If they agree, I'll bring the
schedule forward to tomorrow.

- What about him?
- You set the time, Zorbel.

You brought him down on our
heads. If he gets any closer...

I'll expect you to deal
with him decisively.

Yes, sir.

And I think I'll send
Daisy along to guarantee it.

Mother, I know he's been rehearsing
for a month. I made his costume.

Your son will be disappointed
if you don't make it.

There's no way I'm gonna miss
seeing Jamie play Rip Van Winkle.

- I wouldn't want you to miss that.
- Really. Look, I gotta go, okay?

- Promise.
- I'll work late tonight.

- I won't work late tomorrow night.
- Sure?

- Anyway, I'm driving over there.
- Right. Okay. Okay.

Just tell me honestly
that you're gonna be there.

- Yes, Mother. Okay, bye-bye.
- Say it.

- Was he up there?
- Just a sales office.

- You didn't see him, elevator didn't stop.
- Maybe he went down the stairs.

- He's still up there somewhere.
- Thirty-nine floors.

I bet that saleswoman was just a front.
Maybe we can find a connection there.

- Lee. Shh.
- What?

- Okay, come on. We'll lose him.
- Wait, easy, easy.

- He's heading to the bank.
- Right.

- I wanna look at his apartment.
- Okay.

You grab a cab. Get
on back to the agency.

You take my computer key card and you
start tracking down who owns this building.

- Uh, leases, parent companies...
- This is what always happens.

- What?
- I have to go back to the agency.

- We've got to divide the work.
- I agree.

Let's divide the work. You follow
the paper trail, I'll follow Zorbel.

- Think you can break into Zorbel's place?
- No.

- Well?
- Call me a cab.

- You're a cab.
- Thank you.

- You're back?
- Just passing through, Francine.

So I've always thought.
Have you seen Lee?

- I haven't seen him all morning.
- I can honestly say...

at this moment, I do not
know precisely where Lee is.

- Amanda. Amanda.
- Honestly. Honestly.

Listen to me. I have debriefed
seven of the KGB's top men, all right?

The cleverest liars on
the face of this earth.

I can tell when somebody is
speaking the truth from a mile away.

Francine, do I look
like a clever liar?

Then you should be able
to tell I'm telling the truth.

I've got it all on film.

I notice you didn't take
any casing pictures.

Just leave Zorbel a note
telling him we were here.

I don't care about Zorbel.

Well, that's too bad, because
he certainly cares about you.

I covered the lens.

Will you forget about him.
I've come to take you back.

Now, if Dr. Smyth wasn't slightly
imperfect, you'd already be sanitized.

You know that? Fortunately,
he has a nice spot.

If I stop now, Allan
Aghaney died in vain.

- He left me an envelope...
- Billy...

with some of his notes of what
he'd pierced together for insurance.

- Minding his manners?
- Yes, he was always careful.

It looks like some kind of
big-league bank robbery.

- Maybe a billion dollars.
- A billion dollars?

Bank of New Hebron
can't carry that cash.

Well, it's not just
one bank. It's banks.

It has something to do with a
scheme involving satellites...

and microwave transmissions.

- International electronic cash transfers.
- High-tech?

Who do you think can
execute something like that?

A single dot on every side.

Yeah, I've heard about this.

A very fancy kind of
calling card for Cyclops.

Cyclops?

Listen to me. You're
not thinking straight.

- Let me take you back inside.
- No, no.

- We can do it. We can do it...
- No, no, no, not yet.

Cyclops is real and it's deadly.

It killed Allan Aghaney
and I want my revenge.

Now, believe me, Scarecrow,
I am not going soft in the brain.

Cyclops is the most powerful
collection of international criminals.

Damn it! Cyclops
is a myth, Billy.

Smart money even
admits it doesn't exist.

- Smart money isn't always right.
- You killed Allan Aghaney.

Aghaney was a
fool too. Let's go.

Stay out of this, Scarecrow.
I'll get Cyclops on my own.

No. BILLY: Let him live.

- I'll go with you peacefully.
- Certainly.

No point in provoking
you to foolish resistance.

You still have so
much to tell us.

Stay the hell out
of this, Scarecrow.

Miss, excuse me.

Two guys came out of here. Is
that them in the car over there?

Look, you can't blame yourself.

- Then who can I blame?
- Nobody.

Do I blame Billy, a guy who's
out there risking his career...

maybe even his life,
for a friend's memory?

- No, we've gotta find him.
- We are gonna find him.

Now, look, I found out a
lot about that building, okay?

First of all, ha, ha, I
found the extra floor.

What?

- We counted 40 floors.
- Right.

The blueprints registered
with the fire department...

These are all the numbers.
- -show that there are 41.

The key box in the elevator
had to be for that hidden floor.

I finally found out who
owns the building. Look.

I've never seen so
many fake corporations.

What?

Hadn't been for Love's Fatal
Flaw, I'd never have figured it out.

Love's Fatal Flaw?

One of those romance
novels that my mother reads.

The main character was
this guy who tricked women...

and their daughters and their
daughters, and he'd seduce them.

- Yeah.
- But he was a real-estate crook.

- That's how I got most of my clues.
- Get to the point.

I'm going to. The building is
owned by Charles Caanan.

I checked Central Data. They
don't have a thing. Ring any bells?

- Charles Caanan?
- Yeah, Caanan. C-A-A-N-A-N.

No, it doesn't ring any bells
for me, but it might for TP.

- Who's TP?
- T. Percival Aquinas.

Works at the Library
of Congress nowadays.

When I was trained, he was
an instructor. One of the best.

What did he teach?

Organizational conspiracy
was his specialty.

Ten years ago, he was sending
up red flags about Cyclops.

- No one ever then believed it existed.
- Does it exist?

- Billy thinks so.
- Well...

He mentioned it today
and now he's disappeared.

Physical punishment is useless
with this man. We've tried everything.

Extended psychological trauma
could work, but there isn't the time.

Now, this was his
fourth shot of zybillium.

He should be babbling
uncontrollably, but all we get is this.

What is he saying?

It's a Vedic Sanskrit
text. A mantra, if you will.

Freely translated, uh, "One
heart, one life, one truth."

That and his Social Security
number are all we can make him say.

- This is an interesting man.
- Increase the zybillium.

We must be cautious.
Too much could kill him.

I said, increase
the zybillium. Now.

I'm sorry to hear about Mr. Melrose,
particularly if Cyclops is involved.

Are you sure it exists?

As positive as I am
that this checker game

is going to go very bad
for me, Lee, my boy.

Ha, ha. Well, look, forget
about the checkers, huh, TP?

Now tell me what you
know about Cyclops.

Now, I could filibuster into the next
week and hardly scratch the surface.

- Could you hit the highlights for us?
- Yeah.

All right. Cyclops is the code
name for one of the most powerful...

and secret criminal organizations
in the western hemisphere.

It was founded here in
Washington in the mid '50s.

Six members, replaced only in the
event of death, natural or otherwise.

All of whom share one common trait, a
voracious appetite for money and power.

Uh, both of which they've
accumulated in great amounts.

Funny how it's never enough.

TP, we've got a name.
Caanan. Charles Caanan.

- Does that mean anything to you?
- Mr. Caanan?

Very good, Lee,
my boy. Mrs. King.

We know he owns, um, Omega
Resources. Is he involved in Cyclops?

Involved? If Cyclops
was the devil himself...

Mr. Charles Caanan
would be his black heart.

- Lee?
- Mm-hm.

If, um, Cyclops is involved...

think maybe we
should get some help?

Nope. We're on our own.
Dr. Smyth made that very clear.

I'm on my own. You're
on your way home.

Oh, no. No, no, no. You
need me. You really...

- You still need me.
- Amanda, listen.

Just listen to me. You
know, you're lucky.

You guess at answers,
you use your intuition.

But it'll take more
than a sixth sense...

to take care of Cyclops
and get on that hidden floor.

Okay, look, I'll supply the sixth
sense, you get on the hidden floor.

Sounds like a plan.

Come on.

Gentlemen.

Shall we begin?

Mr. Zorbel.

Gentlemen.

- You sure you can get it?
- I don't know.

I'm sure you can. You
were the only fraternity guy...

who could get into the back door
of the Kappa house in 10 seconds.

- Did I tell you that?
- Yeah, you told me. I was a Kappa.

- You were a Kappa?
- Yeah, I told you that.

- Yeah, you did.
- Yeah.

I've never seen
anything quite like this.

Aha.

Ah.

There.

You sure you wanna
go through with this?

Yeah. Yeah.

- Hold it right there.
- Oh, thank goodness.

Another human being.

I have been stuck in that thing
for what must have been hours...

going up and down, up and down.

I got on at six just to zip up to seven
and borrow a little coffee from Purchasing.

And that thing ran away with me, up
and down, up and down, up and down.

What floor is this?

What floor doesn't make
any difference. It's private.

How did you get up here?

I pushed the button.

There have been a few inconveniences,
but we now have them well under control.

Inconveniences?

Sounds more like serious
complications of the entire project.

Aghaney's suicide
raised a few eyebrows.

Melrose appears to
be working on his own.

An old stag stumbling out of
retirement. Nothing to worry about.

One billion dollars is a great
deal to worry about, Charles.

I'm worried. Our
associates are worried.

You and we can't
afford to stumble.

We won't. The plan.

- Okay?
- Yeah.

Please.

You big turkey, I'm
gonna call my lawyer!

You're gonna have the biggest
lawsuit you ever saw in your hands!

- Unh!
- You big bozo.

- Assault and battery, buster.
- Ow!

What the hell's
going on here? Unh!

Look. LEE: Billy.

- Yeah.
- Which room is that?

Oh, I don't know.
There are 18, 19 rooms.

- Look at that. Three or four corridors.
- Wait, look.

That one must be Caanan's
office. This needs a key.

- The key.
- The guard, the guard.

You're right.

Okay, this one.

- I pulled the entire loan register.
- There's Zorbel.

This is tomorrow's list
of the private codes...

of every bank with
which we have accounts.

With these codes, we can
use the banks' own computers...

to credit our accounts with
money that doesn't exist.

And you do this by tampering
with satellite communications.

We send our own
more powerful signal...

overriding the satellite transmissions
and thereby moving money at will.

Well, gentlemen,
tomorrow at this time...

Cyclops will have
secured a cool $1 billion.

Not bad for a day's work.

We'll begin at
precisely 9:30 a.m.

By 10:30, we're
$1 billion richer.

I believe Mr. Zorbel's
presentation is now complete.

Thank you.

As always, unanimous
vote is necessary.

In favor?

Then we shall proceed.

But unfortunately we won't be needing
your services any longer, Mr. Zorbel.

- I know that woman.
- Thank you, my dear.

- I, too, like you, loathe
incompetence. MAN: Precisely.

I think I speak for the board...

when I say that we all hold you entirely
responsible for the operation, Charles.

He was your man.

Now, if the operation
succeeds, you'll get all the glory.

If it fails, you pay the
price. Do you understand?

Oh, I understand,
and I won't fail.

Use the tetra
monoxide on Melrose.

It leaves a nicer, more
natural-looking corpse.

It could be any one of these.
- Well, pick a direction.

Well...

- That way.
- That way it is.

Go on.

Come on.

Amanda, get back.

Come on, Amanda.

Locked.

Billy!

Come on. Come on.

- Billy, you all right?
- Damn it, Lee.

- I told you to stay out of this.
- I know, I know. Look.

Caanan and his cronies are in
his office. Now, can you walk?

- Help him. Stay put and out of trouble.
- We'll stay with you.

It's the best way to
stay out of trouble.

- All right.
- Come on, sir.

Mother, we've been working all night.
We're only halfway through the editing.

- You know what time it is? Morning.
- Is it already light outside?

Are you standing
on a street corner?

That's not traffic.
Those are sound effects.

What about the play?
Do you have any idea?

Yes...

No, Mother. Jamie's play isn't
until tonight. I'm not gonna miss it.

The play was last
night, beard and all.

I missed Rip Van Winkle?

You did. Where have you been?
When are you coming home?

Mother, please, tell
Jamie I'm so sorr...

Listen, never mind. I'll
tell him when I get home.

- You better.
- Yes, Mother. It won't be too much longer.

I hope not. Love you.

All right, Mother, I
love you too. Bye-bye.

- Amanda.
- Yeah.

I think we've got it.

All right.

- Zorbel said "overpower," right?
- Right.

If he uses a microwave dish
close to an Earth station...

he can overpower
real satellite signals.

Yeah, but how are you
gonna steal money like that?

Banks don't move money around
anymore. They move energy, electronic cash.

Caanan's gonna use microwaves to
put a lot of it into the Cyclops accounts.

If we don't stop him, it'll be the
first billion-dollar bank job in history.

Well, we'll stop him.

How are we gonna stop him?

All we have to do is find
their microwave dish by 9:30.

Oh, it could be anywhere in the District.
- Yeah.

See, there are only four
commercial microwave stations.

They've gotta be close to one of them.
- The agency chopper.

Yeah.

Look, I'll start from the phone company
and work out in concentric circles.

Amanda and I will
cover the street.

You flush them out. We'll
wait for them downstairs.

- Right.
- All right.

Good luck. BILLY: Yeah.

Let's get this baby in the air.
Got a lot of ground to cover.

We're on our way, Scarecrow. Let
me know when you see something.

We're heading north
from the Beltway.

We'll check out the
southwest sector first.

No, there's nothing
suspicious-looking yet.

We'll make a quick sweep
of the southeast sector...

then rendezvous
with you at 16th and M.

Roger. We'll pull
over and wait for you.

There's nothing much
happening over here.

Pretty quiet down here too.

Scarecrow, we're at 16th
and M. Do you read me?

I gotcha, Billy. I'm following Mass
Avenue to Rhode Island Avenue.

- I can see the phone company's dish.
- Do you see anything else?

No, not yet. I'm gonna swing down Dupont
Circle down to Pennsylvania Avenue...

then up towards
you on 16th, okay?

Okay, I got it.

Okay, let's head up north to
Dupont, along Connecticut.

Keep us posted,
Scarecrow. It's 9:23.

- I know.
- It's 9:23.

Transmissions from
Zurich are coming through.

A touch early. So
unlike the Swiss.

No luck yet, Billy.

Damn it, where are they?

The link to the Northwest Bank
of Washington is coming over.

We don't have much time left.

Whoa, what's this?

Billy, do you read me?
I think I got something.

Near Potomac Park, middle of
the block between 19th and 20th.

They're on the roof of
a new parking garage.

- We're on our way, Scarecrow.
- Right here, sir. Right there.

Hey.

Keep them away. Start shooting.

We're hit! Damn it!

Where did he go?

Get in the car. I think we're
gonna have company in a second.

Get in the car, Amanda.

That's far enough.

Good work, Amanda.

- Well, Francine. Ha, ha.
- Hi.

Bet you're glad Billy's back. Don't
have to hold down the fort by yourself.

- I think I sabotaged the fort.
- What's the matter?

Requisition for
employee coffee beans...

accidentally got typed on
an agency transfer form.

The computer allotments accidently got
filed with the agency expense accounts...

giving Johnson a $40,000
reimbursement check.

- Oh, gosh.
- Oh, yeah.

Francine, look, don't worry.
Just explain to Mr. Melrose.

- I'm sure he'll understand.
- You know Billy.

Desmond, my
office, on the double.

Excuse me.

I leave this place for 10
minutes and all hell breaks loose.

Uh, sir...