The Mysteries of Laura (2014–2016): Season 2, Episode 2 - The Mystery of the Cure for Loneliness - full transcript
Oh, we got one.
It's working, it's working.
Ooh!
Come on! Do it! Do it!
- What! Oh, man.
- Man!
- Let's try that building.
- Yeah!
- This one, right here?
- Yeah.
What? What's that?
I don't know. Zoom in.
Shh!
The boys'll hear you.
Shh.
Ow! Ow!
- That's a first.
- Yeah, for what?
That I've been called the loud one.
I guess that's what you do to me.
Oh, God.
No, no, no! Don't! Don't check it.
Jake.
- Hey. You up?
- What's up?
We have a case.
Dead female in Soho.
Okay. I'll be out front in 20.
Oh, no!
When I said 20, I built in two
for post-game spooning.
You got a case, and
I should get going anyway.
Little guys will be up any second.
Thanks for indulging me.
The boys are still a little raw.
It's only five months since
their dad was almost killed.
- But wasn't.
- Thankfully.
Yeah. Of course, thankfully.
But, look, I'm in this for the long haul.
You know that.
- But...
- But, it's always
this for work or, that for the kids.
What about you, Laura Diamond?
When do you get to be happy?
You know I love it when
you say both my names.
Mmm...
Encore tonight?
I'll throw some
pebbles at your window.
It's just an old night light.
I'm sure there's another one in the garage.
It's a bad-ass ninja nightlight
that always travels with them for a reason.
Without it they get completely disoriented,
and half of their pee misses the toilet.
All right, all right. I will bring it by.
Is that a... Is that a hickie on your neck?
You know what, just don't look at my neck.
Look at your own neck.
Just don't let Santiani see it.
I'm sure it violates some
NYPD-no-hickie policy.
Really?
So, you are fine with it?
Of course.
After everything you've
done for me this last year,
if anyone deserves to be happy, it's you.
Ah.
Thanks.
Inviting female, single, mid '20s.
Yep. Nina Dickerson.
- 23 and a month.
- As I said.
All her cash is here, and her credit cards.
So, not a burglary.
Chips, cheese strudel.
Excellent choices.
Linguine Bolognese, another winner.
- Dessert before dinner?
- Oh, she's my kind of gal.
Might be an actress.
Make up, photos for reference.
Maybe for a zombie movie.
Can't imagine what else you'd
use all that white and gray for.
She had a big night planned.
Fancy dress, great manicure,
candle-lit dinner for two.
She's sick.
The recycling bin is filled with
spent prescription bottles.
Why pull all the labels?
Well, so you recycle,
but didn't need the rest of the world
knowing your business.
I say, good habit for anybody.
No hair, no eyebrows,
foam in the corners of her mouth.
- Chemo.
- Sure seems like it.
I say we're looking at a suicide.
What makes you think that?
Only thing in the world
that smells like hemlock?
- Hemlock!
- Oh, that's old school, but still effective.
All right. Well, I'm
calling it as a suicide.
Whoa, hey, hey. Hang on. Let's run
the hemlock bottle for prints first.
- On what grounds?
- There's no suicide note.
The pill bottle on the floor is nearly full.
- Don't do that.
- What?
Make a mountain out of a molehill.
The captain already doesn't
like us working together.
- Why the hell not?
- Because you make mountains out of molehills,
- and I indulge you.
- I don't see a molehill.
I see two cops doing their job.
Hemlock and pills to kill yourself?
Why both?
And, who goes through all of this trouble
to end their life, and
not leave a suicide note?
Well, maybe she didn't have anything to say.
Or, she didn't have enough time to say it.
Okay, fine.
Look at the table. Who's the plus one?
You know what, you may be
onto something. Lansoprazole.
It's for acid reflux. Can't
kill yourself with this.
So if she wolfed down a box
of strudel and a bag of chips,
then that would explain the upset stomach.
Well, who cares about a stomachache
when you're offing yourself?
I'm telling you,
someone wanted this to look like a suicide.
She was my favorite tenant.
Sweet, sweet girl.
I can't say I'm surprised she ended it.
Why's that?
Nina was a beautiful,
shapely girl before the chemo,
but then she lost all that weight,
and that beautiful hair of hers.
She was just wasting away.
- What about family?
- She had no one left.
Poor soul was all alone until the cancer.
It was ironic.
- What was?
- She was so sad. Alone.
And then the cancer came and suddenly
people started coming around.
Who were the people?
Who knows? Friends, helpers?
Did Nina ever talk to you about her cancer?
Oh, yes.
We'd talk about our funeral
arrangements together.
I told her I wanted a brass band.
And Nina?
She was never married, so
she wanted a white dress.
A chance to wear it for something.
So, I gave her mine so she wouldn't
have to spend the money.
You're positive she said a white dress?
Oh, yes. Like I said, I gave her mine.
Santiani will never go for it.
Go for what? Evidence?
Not wearing the white dress indicates that
Nina wasn't preparing to kill herself.
Not everyone plans like you do.
Or wears white after Labor Day.
If dying is anywhere on the
horizon, you make a plan.
Oh, that's a bit of a generalization.
Why do you think we
doubled our life insurance
once we started working together?
We doubled our life insurance
when we started working together?
I doubled our life insurance.
We're partners.
One bad situation and our kids
are being raised by Grandpa Leo.
And living like kings off their
zillion dollar insurance payout.
Which my dad would manage
to lose at the track.
- Yeah.
- Look.
If you had known that you
were going to take a bullet,
you damn well would have made a plan.
- Maybe.
- And if Nina had known
that she was going to drink hemlock,
she damn well would have
put the white dress on.
Again, maybe.
Well, "maybe" is enough for an
investigation and Santiani should see that.
Santiani is all about the stats.
Keeping our unsolveds down to a minimum,
so that her weekly reports
to 1PP get high marks.
That's why she's got that homicide board.
Oh, I hate that damn board!
Just because you write something in
dry-erase marker doesn't make it true.
Still, I don't think Santiani is
gonna go for your murder theory.
Let me do the talking.
So, it's murder because she
was in the wrong colored dress?
Who killed her? The fashion police.
You weren't even there! What
makes you so sure it's suicide?
Because I, unlike you,
rely on hard evidence,
of which we have none. Correct, Broderick?
We didn't come away with a single workable
print, other than from the victim.
- There we go.
- On the other hand,
it did all appear too placed and
perfect for there to be no note.
Well, who's she gonna write?
She's a lonely woman with a fatal disease
who simply couldn't take it anymore,
- so she checked out.
- Or, someone forced Nina to drink hemlock
then dumped out the pills to
make it look like suicide.
Please, have you any idea how hard
it is to force hemlock into someone?
- Max, do you mind?
- Hmm?
Stubborn twins teach you how to give
medicine when they don't want it.
- Thank you.
- Happy to help.
That in conjunction with
a full pot of linguine,
a table setting for two.
Maybe there was another
person, a co-conspirator.
Assisted suicide?
Possible, but it still
doesn't explain the dress.
Enough with the dress, already.
This was in the recycle bin too?
LoveReach, NYC. They're the people
who deliver meals to the sick.
Right. They are all
about dying with dignity.
I would not put it past
'em to facilitate a mercy killing.
Then why not protect themselves?
Why not make Nina write a
note that made it very clear
- that it was her intention to die.
- All right.
This investigation needs
a dose of objectivity.
Billy and Meredith will check out LoveReach.
Are you kidding... I... What?
With all due respect, Captain,
Billy and Meredith have no working
knowledge of this case. We do.
Which makes sending them a crap idea.
I'm sorry. Was I not clear?
Billy and Meredith will check it out.
And unless there is something
hinky about LoveReach,
then I'm taking that case
off my homicide board.
You have a client, Nina Dickerson?
Yes.
- Sorry to tell you, she passed.
- Oh, my goodness.
We have reason to believe she
may have taken her own life.
That's hard to believe. I never saw
anyone fight as hard as she did.
She was one of those, you know,
the ones that inspire.
Ms. Parker, did Nina ever
ask about procuring hemlock?
I didn't assist Nina with suicide,
if that's what you're getting at.
Though if she had asked me to I would have.
Well, that would be illegal.
What we're asking is, did you ever
deliver anything besides food to Nina?
There are a lot of
unlabeled meds in her place.
When clients die, they often leave
expensive medications behind.
I sometimes pass those onto other
clients in dire financial straits.
Well, that's not kosher either.
Nina had an awful life that
was ending in an awful way.
If easing her pain was wrong,
you can arrest me right now.
Okay. That won't be necessary.
Can you just tell us which one of your
volunteers made the last delivery to Nina?
It was Ted.
Oh, Ted, did you deliver to
Nina Dickerson yesterday?
Yeah. Why?
NYPD. Ms. Dickerson died yesterday
under mysterious circumstances.
- Oh, my God!
- According to this manifest,
you're the last person to deliver her food.
Which makes you, very likely,
the last person to see her alive.
Whoa, whoa, whoa! Time out.
I was not the last person with Nina.
What's her name? Maureen Ross
came in right when I was leaving.
Should be there on the calendar.
Who's Maureen Ross?
She provides grief support to our clients.
To prepare them for passing.
Yes, it's what we call
an End-of-Life counselor.
So, Maureen Ross was
face-to-face with our victim
discussing the end of our victim's
life around the time her life did end.
I lent a compassionate ear for her sorrow...
Trying to help her reach
a satisfying sense of
life completion.
Life completion?
Looks like you had perfect timing.
I would never hurt Nina.
Or help her hurt herself.
For God's sake, I had
just taken her to chemo.
- When was that?
- Every Tuesday.
We're not supposed to, but
I never saw the harm in just
dropping her off and picking her up.
- Including yesterday, Tuesday?
- Yes.
It was an especially rough day of treatment.
Can anyone verify that you were with her?
A nurse, receptionist?
- As a matter of fact, no.
- Hmm.
Nina never let me go inside the clinic.
She didn't want to appear helpless.
This time it appears she may have had help.
You mentioned doing something
you weren't supposed to do
because you never saw any harm in it.
Could Nina's death have
been one of those occasions?
- The table was set for two.
- You listen to me.
I was there to help her fight
all the way until her final days.
Ask the people on her block.
They saw me last night.
I walked her from my car to the stairs.
I offered to get her some
saltines or chicken soup,
but she just wanted to sleep.
She was too nauseous to eat.
And what time was this?
I'm not feeling it.
Whatever happened in that apartment
happened after she dropped Nina off.
Nina was too nauseous
for broth and crackers?
I've heard when you're getting chemo
even the smell of food can
turn your stomach to knots.
And, yet, she crushed all that junk food?
Maybe before the chemo?
Maybe there was no chemo.
But this lady just said...
She never went inside the clinic with Nina.
The cooking, her healthy nails that should
have been ravaged by the treatment.
Uh, where are you going?
Whoa! Whoa! Was not ready to see that.
What do you think you're gonna
see when you come in here?
There should be a red light
over the door or something.
Red light?
You know why I'm here, right?
Well, I am guessing it is for the same
reason that I was just about to call you.
Wouldn't have anything to do with
Nina Dickerson not having cancer.
God, I'm good!
There is no sign of any
fatal systemic activity.
Lymph nodes, bone marrow, no tumors,
no metastasis in the blood stream.
This woman was cancer free.
But pretended to be dying of
cancer, down to the bald head.
And yet,
there's a preponderance
of active hair follicles.
There shouldn't be any follicles at all.
Looks like she was trying to keep
the growth under control by waxing.
And, that's why her nails
are better than mine.
I have seen a lot of things,
but why fake cancer?
I don't know,
but she was up to something,
and I'm guessing it got her killed.
Techs checked every cabinet, every drawer.
Even Nina's closets.
Are you kidding me?
What do you think you're
going to find in there?
Very clever, Nina.
My name is Laura.
And where do you think I hid my
chocolate from you all those years?
Dirty laundry?
In the crock pot that
your mom insisted we get.
Okay.
Wax to remove the hair
from her face and head.
Make it look she lost it through chemo.
- StairMaster for weight loss.
- Diuretics. Speed.
Take care of everything
the StairMaster couldn't.
You on board now?
Well, it's hard to deny.
She spent a lot of money, yet
Max confirmed that she was broke.
That's how she qualified for LoveReach.
Probably blew her limited funds on the scam.
What's that?
Oh.
"You must do the things
you think you cannot do."
Eleanor Roosevelt.
"Anything's possible,
if you have the nerve."
J. K. Rowling.
This isn't about survival, this
is about keeping up the ruse.
All these photographs of
cancer spots and bruises
they were just to help her do makeup.
Mmm-hmm.
- That's Riverside Park.
- Mmm-hmm.
That's recently.
Okay, if we're gonna figure out who
was in the apartment when Nina died
we're gonna have to untangle
her make-believe life.
Could be the key.
That is, assuming we can
get Santiani on board.
I don't buy it. How would this girl get a
doctor to go along with faking cancer?
She didn't. She had no
history with an oncologist,
no doctor record, no
hospital record, no bills.
She didn't need any of those things.
What kind of person asks a
cancer patient for proof?
But why would anyone
fake something like this?
It's funny you should ask.
Laura has a theory.
Of course she does.
I'll take that as a compliment.
From the most hardened convict to my
own twins, people will do anything
to avoid being alone. You said it
yourself, this was a lonely girl.
Which the neighbor confirmed.
No family, no friends.
She was so desperate to
connect with somebody,
that she took on the
identity of a cancer victim,
so she could become part
of a sympathetic community.
She used make up to look like
she was getting injections,
to make herself look more gaunt, more pale.
It's all part of Nina's elaborate ruse.
- This is hardcore.
- And it worked.
As soon as she started her con,
her life suddenly turned around.
- Turns around how?
- I'll show you.
Even with a simple search, nothing
shows up for Nina before 2013.
Do you know how hard it is to not
show up on the Internet these days?
Meredith has the floor.
Then, boom, cancer. She sets up a blog,
learns the vernacular, joins
virtual cancer support groups.
Borrows bits and pieces of everyone's story
and shapes them into one that suits her.
But still...
Meredith has the floor.
Here she's blogging about
stage two in November.
December she's worse, white
blood cell count dropping.
January, blogging about stage three.
And as she gets more sicker, more
reposts, more likes, more followers.
She went from having no one to being
showered with affection and support.
A worldwide network of friends,
from here to the Philippines.
What's in the corner?
Our big finish.
We found it on Nina's hard drive.
A draft of an unposted blog entry.
"Amazing news, warriors.
White cell count up!
"Could this be the miracle I was hoping for?
"Could it be the word I thought
I'd never hear? Remission?"
It was her end game.
To finally dump the lie and still
keep the friendships she had made.
She was ready to put her story to rest.
Yeah, and look at the date.
This one was gonna post today.
Doubt that's a coincidence.
Well this worldwide network of
friendships, any of 'em in New York?
A lot, but one pops up more than the rest.
Her.
They call themselves the
Warriors of the Ward.
This woman is in nearly
every photo with Nina.
A girl who thinks she's fighting
the good fight with her best friend
who understands truly.
Or she has the same
make-up kit as the victim
and they were working this scam together.
Also a possibility. But if not,
if this woman's cancer was real
and she found out Nina's wasn't?
We're looking at a
possible motive for murder.
Which means we need to keep investigating,
starting with the BFF.
Knock yourselves out,
but I am not waiting forever.
I'm sure this is a shock,
April, but it's true.
But it can't be. I saw her.
We went through the same
treatments. She helped me
through the worst of it.
I'm sorry, but we do have evidence
that proves that she was faking.
So...
So...
Oh.
So, you want me to prove I'm not faking it?
Well, maybe you could ask my nurse?
Watch her jam these into me.
Happens so often I hardly
even notice anymore.
Does this look fake?
How about these?
And my chemo nails.
Pretty, huh?
Call my radiologist, my
oncologist, my hematologist,
they can get you up to speed, trust me.
April, we really are sorry. Truly.
How did you and Nina meet?
Uh, at um,
a charity picnic.
The moderator asked how many
of us had been diagnosed,
and Nina seemed reluctant.
I just told her that she didn't need to
be nervous or shy, I'd been through it.
Yeah, she raised her hand, she hugged
me, and we were friends ever since.
Where were you last night, April?
Here, with my mom.
We watched Pitch Perfect 2,
which was worse than cancer.
This group, The Warriors of the
Ward, how did that get started?
Some Internet reporter called
us that, and it just took off.
That's what grew into the
foundation that Nina and I started
to help raise money for the children's
cancer ward at Eastern Memorial.
- How much money did you raise?
- Oh, I have no idea.
Nina handled all that.
We were saving it all.
You don't think that...
How did the Warriors go about raising money?
After we appeared on the nightly news,
it really just started pouring in.
Through unimaginable pain
and fighting battles of their own,
these two courageous ladies
found the strength to inspire hundreds
of children with cancer to be strong.
I'm Ryan Clarke,
NBC News, New York.
They did some pretty incredible things
together, especially for the sick kids.
Read books, brought art
supplies, put on plays.
The hospital invited them to a ribbon cutting
ceremony for a new children's play facility.
The story ran on the news,
the station was flooded
with calls and emails,
all from people wanting to know
where they should send donations.
- You have something, Carnegie?
- Uh, yeah.
So, when $28,000 rolled in on the first day,
the local station set up a trust fund,
like you do, to receive the donations.
And they signed over control
of that fund, to guess who?
I don't do, "Guess who?"
Nina Dickerson.
Bank statement says they raised
somewhere in the neighborhood of,
hmm, 80 grand.
- That's some neighborhood.
- Maybe somewhere.
In Manhattan, 80 grand will
buy you a half bathroom.
And don't count on the toilet flushing.
How much is in the account now?
- Big fat donut.
- You asked for evidence?
I'd say evidence sprung.
So, that's why she pretended to be
sick. It was all about the money.
It'd certainly appear that way.
Run with it before the trail goes cold.
Find out how these withdrawals were made,
who made them, and where the money is now.
We will. And when we find the
money, we will find us a killer.
Hmm.
And, uh,
you might want to button up.
Oh! You're already here! Good.
I have the financial timeline.
Okay, let's see it already.
Give me 60 seconds to load in.
Oh, uh, Tony left word for you.
Want me to get him on the horn?
Get the timeline.
You haven't mentioned Tony
lately. Things cooling off?
Oh, not at all. Saw him last night.
- And by saw him, I mean...
- Saw him.
Ooh, roger that. So, Tony in, Jake out?
Not running back to Jake
just because he got hurt.
He betrayed me, he ruined our
marriage, he turned my life...
The kids' lives, upside down.
He's got a long way to go
before I would even consider.
I take it pledging his undying love
from his deathbed was not enough.
Oh, you mean the pledge he
made while doped up on morphine
and now doesn't remember making?
Maybe he remembers, but he's keeping his
game face on with Tony in the picture.
Maybe. But regardless,
I'm protecting my family.
When you have kids, you'll understand.
Kids?
- I'm not even seeing anyone.
- Of course you're not.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Hey.
Just whipped up a little something.
Okay. Ready?
Here's where the story aired on the news.
As you can see in this graph,
Nina and April's Warriors
of the Ward account balance
starts just under $30,000.
You like the graph?
I was thinking pie chart, but
at the last minute I went graph.
- It's a nice graph, Max.
- Thank you.
You know, when the news ran with it, both
Nina and April's blogs spiked in subscribers.
Online posts went through the roof.
No visuals? Oh, okay.
'Cause I thought we were
all doing visual aids, so...
On this graph, you can
see the spike in funds
that accompany their cyberspace
attention. See how it goes up and up?
Okay. So where did that money go?
According to April, the money
was earmarked for the cancer ward
at Eastern Memorial Children's Hospital.
Here's a picture of Nina and
April reading to kids at the ward.
But I checked. None of
the money ever goes there.
Instead, it's entirely withdrawn in
small increments over the last year.
So, either Nina or April had
to make those withdrawals?
You would think so, but you'd be wrong.
Only Nina had the check books for the
account, but no checks were written.
The withdrawals were made via ATM.
Oh, come on.
So, both Nina and April had
ATM cards for the account,
but there's no record of either one of
them ever even activating their card.
Well, somebody had to
get their hands on one.
Any card with a magnetic
strip can be cloned.
Uh, hotel key cards, uh, gift cards.
Return that original ATM
card to its rightful owner,
you can drain an account
without anyone noticing.
So, somebody in Nina's
widening social circle
removed increments over an
extended period of time.
No red flags to the bank or Uncle Sam.
I would say, "Who?", is the $80,000
question here. Or is it "whom"?
My guess, it's the same person who
forced hemlock down her throat.
Okay. We need to talk to April again,
and we need footage from the ATMs.
Someone was withdrawing funds? Who?
That's under investigation.
Was there anyone Nina was associated
with that could've been involved?
I can't think of anyone. God...
We have got to get this money back.
It is for life-saving drugs that
so many people cannot afford.
At least I thought it was.
Nina really had me fooled.
Don't beat yourself up.
Seems she had everybody fooled.
Finally, the bank sent the security video.
This is the man that made the
withdrawals from the ATMs.
Do you recognize him?
I don't know.
God, it's really hard to make out his face.
Can I see it?
Ah! Actually, I can make it out.
- You know who that is?
- Not the guy, but I know a junkie when I see one.
- Look how jittery he is.
- Yeah, I see what you're saying.
Where were those ATMs?
Clustered around the West Village.
Mostly one at 6th and Waverley.
That's about a block away from
Washington Square Park, doper central.
And, the last withdrawal was made
the same day Nina was killed.
Okay, this could be our killer.
You two finish up, send me that info. I'm
gonna go take a stroll through the park.
Okay.
- Five-O!
- Come on, man. Don't make me run. Hey!
Argh!
Ahhh!
Help, please! Somebody! Help!
Okay, listen! Listen! I'm
gonna get help, all right?
Help is on the way.
ESU, airbag and bus needed
at 20 Washington Square.
Okay, when I say reach, reach
with one hand. All right?
All right, reach!
You gotta get rid of
the bag. It's too heavy.
You'll never reach me.
Trust me, one shoulder at a time.
- Okay, okay, okay!
- I can't.
I'm gonna count to three.
On three, give me all you got!
One, two, three!
No!
No!
He was a mess long before he took that fall.
Get a look at his arms?
Yeah. Long Island railroad, up and down.
Dark circles, emaciated, two different
sneakers. Addict with a capital "A."
He still managed to steal all
of Nina Dickerson's money.
It was plain as day in the
bank surveillance video.
- Maybe.
- Yeah, but we could have squeezed him.
But junkies don't you play the
long game. You know that...
That kid was at least a conspirator!
Okay, okay. Look at me.
There is nothing you could have done.
Yeah, I know.
Thank you.
I bet my overtime, this kid was nothing
more than a patsy for someone else.
The kid was a dealer.
Could pretty much tell you what
you're going to find in there.
Not in it, on it.
Look.
LoveReach?
What the hell's this kid
doing with LoveReach swag?
You get his ID?
- Here you go.
- Okay.
I'm gonna call this in to Laura and Jake.
- All right.
- Okay?
His name was Danny Tolson.
Is there a Tolson on your delivery list?
Oh, sure is. Anna Tolson, 82.
She's been a care recipient
for a few years now.
Danny's probably her grandson.
Who here is in charge of
deliveries to the grandma?
Ted Burns. He's had that route since 2012.
I know that name from Billy's report.
Yes, he also delivered to Nina.
We're gonna need all of his information.
Social security, address, phone number.
Okay,
so Ted stole Nina's ATM card
during one of his food deliveries.
And while he's delivering, he
gets to know Danny, the junkie.
Okay, so Ted doesn't want his face to
be seen on the ATMs security cameras,
so he hires Danny to make the withdrawals.
No junkie can turn down a payday.
He figures, by the time
he drains the account,
cancer will have claimed
both Nina and April.
And nobody's the wiser. It's a perfect plan.
But then, maybe, Ted discovers
whoopsie, that Nina's been
faking the whole thing.
She's a con artist just like he is,
meaning she'll be around to figure
out what happened to all the money.
And suddenly the plan's not perfect anymore
and he has to dispose of
Nina the old-fashioned way.
Ted lives in Long Island
City just over the bridge.
Uh, is he working today?
I haven't seen him all afternoon.
- He's on the run.
- Or about to be.
NYPD! We have a warrant. Open up.
Police department!
It's clear!
Clear!
Clear.
All clear.
Okay, tell Command, suspect's 90Z.
All LoveReach clients.
People Ted delivered to.
Ugh!
Methodical bastard. He studied the
lives and habits of everyone he visited.
All these terminally ill patients
were just a mark for him.
You can bet he was
stealing from all of them.
And...
He was making very good
scratch from the sales.
Which probably seemed like small potatoes
once he found out how much
bank Nina was putting away.
Yeah, with all the publicity
she and April were getting,
he turned it into his own cottage industry.
You wondered how she paid for
all the makeup? She didn't.
It was all Ted.
So, you're right. He figured out her
scam and instead of exposing her,
he taught her how to be a better fake,
appear more sick.
Knowing it would boost the donations,
which he put right into his pocket.
So, why kill her when
he's making all this coin?
Because she was over it.
The unposted blog draft, remember?
The remission? She was ready
to walk away from their scam.
The dinner, the junk food she was
eating, that was to celebrate.
She could eat again, it was over.
And Ted got himself invited to the party.
And, what do we have here?
- Hemlock.
- Ah.
And I am willing to bet that you are the
same strain that we found in Nina's system.
All right, all this will
help us convict him,
but it's not gonna help us find him.
This might.
Once again, I have little choice but to
bow down before you, Detective Diamond.
Talk to me.
How charming was our Ted?
Honestly, I can't believe what I'm seeing.
These LoveReach people did actually
leave Ted items in their wills.
I knew it! Okay.
Run every person who Ted
ever delivered food to.
Yeah, done. 54 to be exact.
I'm not even half way through this list
and probate court records are
already spitting back stuff.
Six out of 31 so far, have
distributed assets to Ted Burns.
Let me guess, the vintage
watches, antique China.
Signed card collections
from the '36 Yankees.
The entire collection?
Don't know, don't care. And get this.
A 75-year-old Bayside widow left our
conartist her husband's 26-foot outboard.
Outboard? As in a boat?
As in, yes.
Docked, at... Oh, at Dyckman.
I'd be on a boat right now,
if was looking for a getaway.
Okay, Max tell Meredith and Billy
to get over there. We're on our way.
Pier three, slip nine.
- This is it.
- Yeah.
Looks empty.
This is a dead end.
Billy.
Does that look like him? What do you think?
I think we beat him to the boat.
Hey, Ted Burns! Put down the boxes
and put your hands in the air.
No, no, no! Don't make... Argh!
Not again!
Did you cross?
Just crossing Sherman Avenue,
westbound on Dyckman.
Good! Cause he's coming right at you.
He's in a black sedan, plate ends in 2723.
Get the hell out of the way!
Get the hell out of the way!
Aviation One has them turning south.
Okay, this route wouldn't
have been my first choice.
- Let the driver drive, for the love of...
- Oh, that's him!
- Like the route now?
- Meh.
Get out of the car! Get out of the car!
Put your hands in the air
and get out of the car!
Turn around!
Are you kidding me?
What are you, a Neanderthal?
The money that you're
stuffing in your $3,000 suit?
It comes from a cancer charity.
Give me that.
Come on, people. Cough it up!
What would your mother think?
Nina was wasting the perfect con
on making friends, being popular.
It never even occurred to her
there was money to be made.
I couldn't risk her finding
out, getting in my way.
Congratulations.
Now, you're on your way
to a cozy six by eight.
He used her.
The sicker she looked the more
money the two of you raised.
Her losing all that weight, her hair,
Ted decided that for her.
So many lies!
Yes, but what you and Nina
shared, that was not a lie.
She was doing it for you and the Warriors.
She was desperate to be a part of something,
to have a friend like you.
All the money we raised,
will it still go to the children?
Of course.
"Don't worry, Lilly.
"Wherever we go, whatever we do,
"family is family through and through."
Bedtime!
It's not even time yet!
It's so unfair!
No, uh, uh, uh. You gotta pay the toll.
- Thank you.
- Good night.
Love you. Sweet dreams.
Mmm.
- Good night, Momma.
- Good night.
__
Mmm-mmm.
I just put them down.
No lights and sirens for
just a few more minutes.
Okay. No lights,
no sirens, copy that.
How about this?
Is this stealth enough for ya?
Incredibly stealth.
Undercover.
Navy Seal, Special Ops.
Stop it.
Oh!
Really?
What... What are you doing?
I just put the boys down to bed.
Ta-da! No more sticky bathroom floor.
Bless you.
Hey, man. How you feeling?
Good.
Sorry to interrupt.
Nah, nah. No worries.
Ah.
Behave, you two.
Hey. Um...
The Tony thing, it's strictly on the DL.
The boys don't even know that he's here.
It's okay if they did.
And I take it that it's okay with you.
We already covered this.
I know. I just thought that maybe
because you saw us together
that it might make you feel differently.
It doesn't really matter what I feel.
Laura,
is there something you're trying to tell me?
Or that you want me to say?
You already did.
Said what?
Good night, Jake.
It's working, it's working.
Ooh!
Come on! Do it! Do it!
- What! Oh, man.
- Man!
- Let's try that building.
- Yeah!
- This one, right here?
- Yeah.
What? What's that?
I don't know. Zoom in.
Shh!
The boys'll hear you.
Shh.
Ow! Ow!
- That's a first.
- Yeah, for what?
That I've been called the loud one.
I guess that's what you do to me.
Oh, God.
No, no, no! Don't! Don't check it.
Jake.
- Hey. You up?
- What's up?
We have a case.
Dead female in Soho.
Okay. I'll be out front in 20.
Oh, no!
When I said 20, I built in two
for post-game spooning.
You got a case, and
I should get going anyway.
Little guys will be up any second.
Thanks for indulging me.
The boys are still a little raw.
It's only five months since
their dad was almost killed.
- But wasn't.
- Thankfully.
Yeah. Of course, thankfully.
But, look, I'm in this for the long haul.
You know that.
- But...
- But, it's always
this for work or, that for the kids.
What about you, Laura Diamond?
When do you get to be happy?
You know I love it when
you say both my names.
Mmm...
Encore tonight?
I'll throw some
pebbles at your window.
It's just an old night light.
I'm sure there's another one in the garage.
It's a bad-ass ninja nightlight
that always travels with them for a reason.
Without it they get completely disoriented,
and half of their pee misses the toilet.
All right, all right. I will bring it by.
Is that a... Is that a hickie on your neck?
You know what, just don't look at my neck.
Look at your own neck.
Just don't let Santiani see it.
I'm sure it violates some
NYPD-no-hickie policy.
Really?
So, you are fine with it?
Of course.
After everything you've
done for me this last year,
if anyone deserves to be happy, it's you.
Ah.
Thanks.
Inviting female, single, mid '20s.
Yep. Nina Dickerson.
- 23 and a month.
- As I said.
All her cash is here, and her credit cards.
So, not a burglary.
Chips, cheese strudel.
Excellent choices.
Linguine Bolognese, another winner.
- Dessert before dinner?
- Oh, she's my kind of gal.
Might be an actress.
Make up, photos for reference.
Maybe for a zombie movie.
Can't imagine what else you'd
use all that white and gray for.
She had a big night planned.
Fancy dress, great manicure,
candle-lit dinner for two.
She's sick.
The recycling bin is filled with
spent prescription bottles.
Why pull all the labels?
Well, so you recycle,
but didn't need the rest of the world
knowing your business.
I say, good habit for anybody.
No hair, no eyebrows,
foam in the corners of her mouth.
- Chemo.
- Sure seems like it.
I say we're looking at a suicide.
What makes you think that?
Only thing in the world
that smells like hemlock?
- Hemlock!
- Oh, that's old school, but still effective.
All right. Well, I'm
calling it as a suicide.
Whoa, hey, hey. Hang on. Let's run
the hemlock bottle for prints first.
- On what grounds?
- There's no suicide note.
The pill bottle on the floor is nearly full.
- Don't do that.
- What?
Make a mountain out of a molehill.
The captain already doesn't
like us working together.
- Why the hell not?
- Because you make mountains out of molehills,
- and I indulge you.
- I don't see a molehill.
I see two cops doing their job.
Hemlock and pills to kill yourself?
Why both?
And, who goes through all of this trouble
to end their life, and
not leave a suicide note?
Well, maybe she didn't have anything to say.
Or, she didn't have enough time to say it.
Okay, fine.
Look at the table. Who's the plus one?
You know what, you may be
onto something. Lansoprazole.
It's for acid reflux. Can't
kill yourself with this.
So if she wolfed down a box
of strudel and a bag of chips,
then that would explain the upset stomach.
Well, who cares about a stomachache
when you're offing yourself?
I'm telling you,
someone wanted this to look like a suicide.
She was my favorite tenant.
Sweet, sweet girl.
I can't say I'm surprised she ended it.
Why's that?
Nina was a beautiful,
shapely girl before the chemo,
but then she lost all that weight,
and that beautiful hair of hers.
She was just wasting away.
- What about family?
- She had no one left.
Poor soul was all alone until the cancer.
It was ironic.
- What was?
- She was so sad. Alone.
And then the cancer came and suddenly
people started coming around.
Who were the people?
Who knows? Friends, helpers?
Did Nina ever talk to you about her cancer?
Oh, yes.
We'd talk about our funeral
arrangements together.
I told her I wanted a brass band.
And Nina?
She was never married, so
she wanted a white dress.
A chance to wear it for something.
So, I gave her mine so she wouldn't
have to spend the money.
You're positive she said a white dress?
Oh, yes. Like I said, I gave her mine.
Santiani will never go for it.
Go for what? Evidence?
Not wearing the white dress indicates that
Nina wasn't preparing to kill herself.
Not everyone plans like you do.
Or wears white after Labor Day.
If dying is anywhere on the
horizon, you make a plan.
Oh, that's a bit of a generalization.
Why do you think we
doubled our life insurance
once we started working together?
We doubled our life insurance
when we started working together?
I doubled our life insurance.
We're partners.
One bad situation and our kids
are being raised by Grandpa Leo.
And living like kings off their
zillion dollar insurance payout.
Which my dad would manage
to lose at the track.
- Yeah.
- Look.
If you had known that you
were going to take a bullet,
you damn well would have made a plan.
- Maybe.
- And if Nina had known
that she was going to drink hemlock,
she damn well would have
put the white dress on.
Again, maybe.
Well, "maybe" is enough for an
investigation and Santiani should see that.
Santiani is all about the stats.
Keeping our unsolveds down to a minimum,
so that her weekly reports
to 1PP get high marks.
That's why she's got that homicide board.
Oh, I hate that damn board!
Just because you write something in
dry-erase marker doesn't make it true.
Still, I don't think Santiani is
gonna go for your murder theory.
Let me do the talking.
So, it's murder because she
was in the wrong colored dress?
Who killed her? The fashion police.
You weren't even there! What
makes you so sure it's suicide?
Because I, unlike you,
rely on hard evidence,
of which we have none. Correct, Broderick?
We didn't come away with a single workable
print, other than from the victim.
- There we go.
- On the other hand,
it did all appear too placed and
perfect for there to be no note.
Well, who's she gonna write?
She's a lonely woman with a fatal disease
who simply couldn't take it anymore,
- so she checked out.
- Or, someone forced Nina to drink hemlock
then dumped out the pills to
make it look like suicide.
Please, have you any idea how hard
it is to force hemlock into someone?
- Max, do you mind?
- Hmm?
Stubborn twins teach you how to give
medicine when they don't want it.
- Thank you.
- Happy to help.
That in conjunction with
a full pot of linguine,
a table setting for two.
Maybe there was another
person, a co-conspirator.
Assisted suicide?
Possible, but it still
doesn't explain the dress.
Enough with the dress, already.
This was in the recycle bin too?
LoveReach, NYC. They're the people
who deliver meals to the sick.
Right. They are all
about dying with dignity.
I would not put it past
'em to facilitate a mercy killing.
Then why not protect themselves?
Why not make Nina write a
note that made it very clear
- that it was her intention to die.
- All right.
This investigation needs
a dose of objectivity.
Billy and Meredith will check out LoveReach.
Are you kidding... I... What?
With all due respect, Captain,
Billy and Meredith have no working
knowledge of this case. We do.
Which makes sending them a crap idea.
I'm sorry. Was I not clear?
Billy and Meredith will check it out.
And unless there is something
hinky about LoveReach,
then I'm taking that case
off my homicide board.
You have a client, Nina Dickerson?
Yes.
- Sorry to tell you, she passed.
- Oh, my goodness.
We have reason to believe she
may have taken her own life.
That's hard to believe. I never saw
anyone fight as hard as she did.
She was one of those, you know,
the ones that inspire.
Ms. Parker, did Nina ever
ask about procuring hemlock?
I didn't assist Nina with suicide,
if that's what you're getting at.
Though if she had asked me to I would have.
Well, that would be illegal.
What we're asking is, did you ever
deliver anything besides food to Nina?
There are a lot of
unlabeled meds in her place.
When clients die, they often leave
expensive medications behind.
I sometimes pass those onto other
clients in dire financial straits.
Well, that's not kosher either.
Nina had an awful life that
was ending in an awful way.
If easing her pain was wrong,
you can arrest me right now.
Okay. That won't be necessary.
Can you just tell us which one of your
volunteers made the last delivery to Nina?
It was Ted.
Oh, Ted, did you deliver to
Nina Dickerson yesterday?
Yeah. Why?
NYPD. Ms. Dickerson died yesterday
under mysterious circumstances.
- Oh, my God!
- According to this manifest,
you're the last person to deliver her food.
Which makes you, very likely,
the last person to see her alive.
Whoa, whoa, whoa! Time out.
I was not the last person with Nina.
What's her name? Maureen Ross
came in right when I was leaving.
Should be there on the calendar.
Who's Maureen Ross?
She provides grief support to our clients.
To prepare them for passing.
Yes, it's what we call
an End-of-Life counselor.
So, Maureen Ross was
face-to-face with our victim
discussing the end of our victim's
life around the time her life did end.
I lent a compassionate ear for her sorrow...
Trying to help her reach
a satisfying sense of
life completion.
Life completion?
Looks like you had perfect timing.
I would never hurt Nina.
Or help her hurt herself.
For God's sake, I had
just taken her to chemo.
- When was that?
- Every Tuesday.
We're not supposed to, but
I never saw the harm in just
dropping her off and picking her up.
- Including yesterday, Tuesday?
- Yes.
It was an especially rough day of treatment.
Can anyone verify that you were with her?
A nurse, receptionist?
- As a matter of fact, no.
- Hmm.
Nina never let me go inside the clinic.
She didn't want to appear helpless.
This time it appears she may have had help.
You mentioned doing something
you weren't supposed to do
because you never saw any harm in it.
Could Nina's death have
been one of those occasions?
- The table was set for two.
- You listen to me.
I was there to help her fight
all the way until her final days.
Ask the people on her block.
They saw me last night.
I walked her from my car to the stairs.
I offered to get her some
saltines or chicken soup,
but she just wanted to sleep.
She was too nauseous to eat.
And what time was this?
I'm not feeling it.
Whatever happened in that apartment
happened after she dropped Nina off.
Nina was too nauseous
for broth and crackers?
I've heard when you're getting chemo
even the smell of food can
turn your stomach to knots.
And, yet, she crushed all that junk food?
Maybe before the chemo?
Maybe there was no chemo.
But this lady just said...
She never went inside the clinic with Nina.
The cooking, her healthy nails that should
have been ravaged by the treatment.
Uh, where are you going?
Whoa! Whoa! Was not ready to see that.
What do you think you're gonna
see when you come in here?
There should be a red light
over the door or something.
Red light?
You know why I'm here, right?
Well, I am guessing it is for the same
reason that I was just about to call you.
Wouldn't have anything to do with
Nina Dickerson not having cancer.
God, I'm good!
There is no sign of any
fatal systemic activity.
Lymph nodes, bone marrow, no tumors,
no metastasis in the blood stream.
This woman was cancer free.
But pretended to be dying of
cancer, down to the bald head.
And yet,
there's a preponderance
of active hair follicles.
There shouldn't be any follicles at all.
Looks like she was trying to keep
the growth under control by waxing.
And, that's why her nails
are better than mine.
I have seen a lot of things,
but why fake cancer?
I don't know,
but she was up to something,
and I'm guessing it got her killed.
Techs checked every cabinet, every drawer.
Even Nina's closets.
Are you kidding me?
What do you think you're
going to find in there?
Very clever, Nina.
My name is Laura.
And where do you think I hid my
chocolate from you all those years?
Dirty laundry?
In the crock pot that
your mom insisted we get.
Okay.
Wax to remove the hair
from her face and head.
Make it look she lost it through chemo.
- StairMaster for weight loss.
- Diuretics. Speed.
Take care of everything
the StairMaster couldn't.
You on board now?
Well, it's hard to deny.
She spent a lot of money, yet
Max confirmed that she was broke.
That's how she qualified for LoveReach.
Probably blew her limited funds on the scam.
What's that?
Oh.
"You must do the things
you think you cannot do."
Eleanor Roosevelt.
"Anything's possible,
if you have the nerve."
J. K. Rowling.
This isn't about survival, this
is about keeping up the ruse.
All these photographs of
cancer spots and bruises
they were just to help her do makeup.
Mmm-hmm.
- That's Riverside Park.
- Mmm-hmm.
That's recently.
Okay, if we're gonna figure out who
was in the apartment when Nina died
we're gonna have to untangle
her make-believe life.
Could be the key.
That is, assuming we can
get Santiani on board.
I don't buy it. How would this girl get a
doctor to go along with faking cancer?
She didn't. She had no
history with an oncologist,
no doctor record, no
hospital record, no bills.
She didn't need any of those things.
What kind of person asks a
cancer patient for proof?
But why would anyone
fake something like this?
It's funny you should ask.
Laura has a theory.
Of course she does.
I'll take that as a compliment.
From the most hardened convict to my
own twins, people will do anything
to avoid being alone. You said it
yourself, this was a lonely girl.
Which the neighbor confirmed.
No family, no friends.
She was so desperate to
connect with somebody,
that she took on the
identity of a cancer victim,
so she could become part
of a sympathetic community.
She used make up to look like
she was getting injections,
to make herself look more gaunt, more pale.
It's all part of Nina's elaborate ruse.
- This is hardcore.
- And it worked.
As soon as she started her con,
her life suddenly turned around.
- Turns around how?
- I'll show you.
Even with a simple search, nothing
shows up for Nina before 2013.
Do you know how hard it is to not
show up on the Internet these days?
Meredith has the floor.
Then, boom, cancer. She sets up a blog,
learns the vernacular, joins
virtual cancer support groups.
Borrows bits and pieces of everyone's story
and shapes them into one that suits her.
But still...
Meredith has the floor.
Here she's blogging about
stage two in November.
December she's worse, white
blood cell count dropping.
January, blogging about stage three.
And as she gets more sicker, more
reposts, more likes, more followers.
She went from having no one to being
showered with affection and support.
A worldwide network of friends,
from here to the Philippines.
What's in the corner?
Our big finish.
We found it on Nina's hard drive.
A draft of an unposted blog entry.
"Amazing news, warriors.
White cell count up!
"Could this be the miracle I was hoping for?
"Could it be the word I thought
I'd never hear? Remission?"
It was her end game.
To finally dump the lie and still
keep the friendships she had made.
She was ready to put her story to rest.
Yeah, and look at the date.
This one was gonna post today.
Doubt that's a coincidence.
Well this worldwide network of
friendships, any of 'em in New York?
A lot, but one pops up more than the rest.
Her.
They call themselves the
Warriors of the Ward.
This woman is in nearly
every photo with Nina.
A girl who thinks she's fighting
the good fight with her best friend
who understands truly.
Or she has the same
make-up kit as the victim
and they were working this scam together.
Also a possibility. But if not,
if this woman's cancer was real
and she found out Nina's wasn't?
We're looking at a
possible motive for murder.
Which means we need to keep investigating,
starting with the BFF.
Knock yourselves out,
but I am not waiting forever.
I'm sure this is a shock,
April, but it's true.
But it can't be. I saw her.
We went through the same
treatments. She helped me
through the worst of it.
I'm sorry, but we do have evidence
that proves that she was faking.
So...
So...
Oh.
So, you want me to prove I'm not faking it?
Well, maybe you could ask my nurse?
Watch her jam these into me.
Happens so often I hardly
even notice anymore.
Does this look fake?
How about these?
And my chemo nails.
Pretty, huh?
Call my radiologist, my
oncologist, my hematologist,
they can get you up to speed, trust me.
April, we really are sorry. Truly.
How did you and Nina meet?
Uh, at um,
a charity picnic.
The moderator asked how many
of us had been diagnosed,
and Nina seemed reluctant.
I just told her that she didn't need to
be nervous or shy, I'd been through it.
Yeah, she raised her hand, she hugged
me, and we were friends ever since.
Where were you last night, April?
Here, with my mom.
We watched Pitch Perfect 2,
which was worse than cancer.
This group, The Warriors of the
Ward, how did that get started?
Some Internet reporter called
us that, and it just took off.
That's what grew into the
foundation that Nina and I started
to help raise money for the children's
cancer ward at Eastern Memorial.
- How much money did you raise?
- Oh, I have no idea.
Nina handled all that.
We were saving it all.
You don't think that...
How did the Warriors go about raising money?
After we appeared on the nightly news,
it really just started pouring in.
Through unimaginable pain
and fighting battles of their own,
these two courageous ladies
found the strength to inspire hundreds
of children with cancer to be strong.
I'm Ryan Clarke,
NBC News, New York.
They did some pretty incredible things
together, especially for the sick kids.
Read books, brought art
supplies, put on plays.
The hospital invited them to a ribbon cutting
ceremony for a new children's play facility.
The story ran on the news,
the station was flooded
with calls and emails,
all from people wanting to know
where they should send donations.
- You have something, Carnegie?
- Uh, yeah.
So, when $28,000 rolled in on the first day,
the local station set up a trust fund,
like you do, to receive the donations.
And they signed over control
of that fund, to guess who?
I don't do, "Guess who?"
Nina Dickerson.
Bank statement says they raised
somewhere in the neighborhood of,
hmm, 80 grand.
- That's some neighborhood.
- Maybe somewhere.
In Manhattan, 80 grand will
buy you a half bathroom.
And don't count on the toilet flushing.
How much is in the account now?
- Big fat donut.
- You asked for evidence?
I'd say evidence sprung.
So, that's why she pretended to be
sick. It was all about the money.
It'd certainly appear that way.
Run with it before the trail goes cold.
Find out how these withdrawals were made,
who made them, and where the money is now.
We will. And when we find the
money, we will find us a killer.
Hmm.
And, uh,
you might want to button up.
Oh! You're already here! Good.
I have the financial timeline.
Okay, let's see it already.
Give me 60 seconds to load in.
Oh, uh, Tony left word for you.
Want me to get him on the horn?
Get the timeline.
You haven't mentioned Tony
lately. Things cooling off?
Oh, not at all. Saw him last night.
- And by saw him, I mean...
- Saw him.
Ooh, roger that. So, Tony in, Jake out?
Not running back to Jake
just because he got hurt.
He betrayed me, he ruined our
marriage, he turned my life...
The kids' lives, upside down.
He's got a long way to go
before I would even consider.
I take it pledging his undying love
from his deathbed was not enough.
Oh, you mean the pledge he
made while doped up on morphine
and now doesn't remember making?
Maybe he remembers, but he's keeping his
game face on with Tony in the picture.
Maybe. But regardless,
I'm protecting my family.
When you have kids, you'll understand.
Kids?
- I'm not even seeing anyone.
- Of course you're not.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Hey.
Just whipped up a little something.
Okay. Ready?
Here's where the story aired on the news.
As you can see in this graph,
Nina and April's Warriors
of the Ward account balance
starts just under $30,000.
You like the graph?
I was thinking pie chart, but
at the last minute I went graph.
- It's a nice graph, Max.
- Thank you.
You know, when the news ran with it, both
Nina and April's blogs spiked in subscribers.
Online posts went through the roof.
No visuals? Oh, okay.
'Cause I thought we were
all doing visual aids, so...
On this graph, you can
see the spike in funds
that accompany their cyberspace
attention. See how it goes up and up?
Okay. So where did that money go?
According to April, the money
was earmarked for the cancer ward
at Eastern Memorial Children's Hospital.
Here's a picture of Nina and
April reading to kids at the ward.
But I checked. None of
the money ever goes there.
Instead, it's entirely withdrawn in
small increments over the last year.
So, either Nina or April had
to make those withdrawals?
You would think so, but you'd be wrong.
Only Nina had the check books for the
account, but no checks were written.
The withdrawals were made via ATM.
Oh, come on.
So, both Nina and April had
ATM cards for the account,
but there's no record of either one of
them ever even activating their card.
Well, somebody had to
get their hands on one.
Any card with a magnetic
strip can be cloned.
Uh, hotel key cards, uh, gift cards.
Return that original ATM
card to its rightful owner,
you can drain an account
without anyone noticing.
So, somebody in Nina's
widening social circle
removed increments over an
extended period of time.
No red flags to the bank or Uncle Sam.
I would say, "Who?", is the $80,000
question here. Or is it "whom"?
My guess, it's the same person who
forced hemlock down her throat.
Okay. We need to talk to April again,
and we need footage from the ATMs.
Someone was withdrawing funds? Who?
That's under investigation.
Was there anyone Nina was associated
with that could've been involved?
I can't think of anyone. God...
We have got to get this money back.
It is for life-saving drugs that
so many people cannot afford.
At least I thought it was.
Nina really had me fooled.
Don't beat yourself up.
Seems she had everybody fooled.
Finally, the bank sent the security video.
This is the man that made the
withdrawals from the ATMs.
Do you recognize him?
I don't know.
God, it's really hard to make out his face.
Can I see it?
Ah! Actually, I can make it out.
- You know who that is?
- Not the guy, but I know a junkie when I see one.
- Look how jittery he is.
- Yeah, I see what you're saying.
Where were those ATMs?
Clustered around the West Village.
Mostly one at 6th and Waverley.
That's about a block away from
Washington Square Park, doper central.
And, the last withdrawal was made
the same day Nina was killed.
Okay, this could be our killer.
You two finish up, send me that info. I'm
gonna go take a stroll through the park.
Okay.
- Five-O!
- Come on, man. Don't make me run. Hey!
Argh!
Ahhh!
Help, please! Somebody! Help!
Okay, listen! Listen! I'm
gonna get help, all right?
Help is on the way.
ESU, airbag and bus needed
at 20 Washington Square.
Okay, when I say reach, reach
with one hand. All right?
All right, reach!
You gotta get rid of
the bag. It's too heavy.
You'll never reach me.
Trust me, one shoulder at a time.
- Okay, okay, okay!
- I can't.
I'm gonna count to three.
On three, give me all you got!
One, two, three!
No!
No!
He was a mess long before he took that fall.
Get a look at his arms?
Yeah. Long Island railroad, up and down.
Dark circles, emaciated, two different
sneakers. Addict with a capital "A."
He still managed to steal all
of Nina Dickerson's money.
It was plain as day in the
bank surveillance video.
- Maybe.
- Yeah, but we could have squeezed him.
But junkies don't you play the
long game. You know that...
That kid was at least a conspirator!
Okay, okay. Look at me.
There is nothing you could have done.
Yeah, I know.
Thank you.
I bet my overtime, this kid was nothing
more than a patsy for someone else.
The kid was a dealer.
Could pretty much tell you what
you're going to find in there.
Not in it, on it.
Look.
LoveReach?
What the hell's this kid
doing with LoveReach swag?
You get his ID?
- Here you go.
- Okay.
I'm gonna call this in to Laura and Jake.
- All right.
- Okay?
His name was Danny Tolson.
Is there a Tolson on your delivery list?
Oh, sure is. Anna Tolson, 82.
She's been a care recipient
for a few years now.
Danny's probably her grandson.
Who here is in charge of
deliveries to the grandma?
Ted Burns. He's had that route since 2012.
I know that name from Billy's report.
Yes, he also delivered to Nina.
We're gonna need all of his information.
Social security, address, phone number.
Okay,
so Ted stole Nina's ATM card
during one of his food deliveries.
And while he's delivering, he
gets to know Danny, the junkie.
Okay, so Ted doesn't want his face to
be seen on the ATMs security cameras,
so he hires Danny to make the withdrawals.
No junkie can turn down a payday.
He figures, by the time
he drains the account,
cancer will have claimed
both Nina and April.
And nobody's the wiser. It's a perfect plan.
But then, maybe, Ted discovers
whoopsie, that Nina's been
faking the whole thing.
She's a con artist just like he is,
meaning she'll be around to figure
out what happened to all the money.
And suddenly the plan's not perfect anymore
and he has to dispose of
Nina the old-fashioned way.
Ted lives in Long Island
City just over the bridge.
Uh, is he working today?
I haven't seen him all afternoon.
- He's on the run.
- Or about to be.
NYPD! We have a warrant. Open up.
Police department!
It's clear!
Clear!
Clear.
All clear.
Okay, tell Command, suspect's 90Z.
All LoveReach clients.
People Ted delivered to.
Ugh!
Methodical bastard. He studied the
lives and habits of everyone he visited.
All these terminally ill patients
were just a mark for him.
You can bet he was
stealing from all of them.
And...
He was making very good
scratch from the sales.
Which probably seemed like small potatoes
once he found out how much
bank Nina was putting away.
Yeah, with all the publicity
she and April were getting,
he turned it into his own cottage industry.
You wondered how she paid for
all the makeup? She didn't.
It was all Ted.
So, you're right. He figured out her
scam and instead of exposing her,
he taught her how to be a better fake,
appear more sick.
Knowing it would boost the donations,
which he put right into his pocket.
So, why kill her when
he's making all this coin?
Because she was over it.
The unposted blog draft, remember?
The remission? She was ready
to walk away from their scam.
The dinner, the junk food she was
eating, that was to celebrate.
She could eat again, it was over.
And Ted got himself invited to the party.
And, what do we have here?
- Hemlock.
- Ah.
And I am willing to bet that you are the
same strain that we found in Nina's system.
All right, all this will
help us convict him,
but it's not gonna help us find him.
This might.
Once again, I have little choice but to
bow down before you, Detective Diamond.
Talk to me.
How charming was our Ted?
Honestly, I can't believe what I'm seeing.
These LoveReach people did actually
leave Ted items in their wills.
I knew it! Okay.
Run every person who Ted
ever delivered food to.
Yeah, done. 54 to be exact.
I'm not even half way through this list
and probate court records are
already spitting back stuff.
Six out of 31 so far, have
distributed assets to Ted Burns.
Let me guess, the vintage
watches, antique China.
Signed card collections
from the '36 Yankees.
The entire collection?
Don't know, don't care. And get this.
A 75-year-old Bayside widow left our
conartist her husband's 26-foot outboard.
Outboard? As in a boat?
As in, yes.
Docked, at... Oh, at Dyckman.
I'd be on a boat right now,
if was looking for a getaway.
Okay, Max tell Meredith and Billy
to get over there. We're on our way.
Pier three, slip nine.
- This is it.
- Yeah.
Looks empty.
This is a dead end.
Billy.
Does that look like him? What do you think?
I think we beat him to the boat.
Hey, Ted Burns! Put down the boxes
and put your hands in the air.
No, no, no! Don't make... Argh!
Not again!
Did you cross?
Just crossing Sherman Avenue,
westbound on Dyckman.
Good! Cause he's coming right at you.
He's in a black sedan, plate ends in 2723.
Get the hell out of the way!
Get the hell out of the way!
Aviation One has them turning south.
Okay, this route wouldn't
have been my first choice.
- Let the driver drive, for the love of...
- Oh, that's him!
- Like the route now?
- Meh.
Get out of the car! Get out of the car!
Put your hands in the air
and get out of the car!
Turn around!
Are you kidding me?
What are you, a Neanderthal?
The money that you're
stuffing in your $3,000 suit?
It comes from a cancer charity.
Give me that.
Come on, people. Cough it up!
What would your mother think?
Nina was wasting the perfect con
on making friends, being popular.
It never even occurred to her
there was money to be made.
I couldn't risk her finding
out, getting in my way.
Congratulations.
Now, you're on your way
to a cozy six by eight.
He used her.
The sicker she looked the more
money the two of you raised.
Her losing all that weight, her hair,
Ted decided that for her.
So many lies!
Yes, but what you and Nina
shared, that was not a lie.
She was doing it for you and the Warriors.
She was desperate to be a part of something,
to have a friend like you.
All the money we raised,
will it still go to the children?
Of course.
"Don't worry, Lilly.
"Wherever we go, whatever we do,
"family is family through and through."
Bedtime!
It's not even time yet!
It's so unfair!
No, uh, uh, uh. You gotta pay the toll.
- Thank you.
- Good night.
Love you. Sweet dreams.
Mmm.
- Good night, Momma.
- Good night.
__
Mmm-mmm.
I just put them down.
No lights and sirens for
just a few more minutes.
Okay. No lights,
no sirens, copy that.
How about this?
Is this stealth enough for ya?
Incredibly stealth.
Undercover.
Navy Seal, Special Ops.
Stop it.
Oh!
Really?
What... What are you doing?
I just put the boys down to bed.
Ta-da! No more sticky bathroom floor.
Bless you.
Hey, man. How you feeling?
Good.
Sorry to interrupt.
Nah, nah. No worries.
Ah.
Behave, you two.
Hey. Um...
The Tony thing, it's strictly on the DL.
The boys don't even know that he's here.
It's okay if they did.
And I take it that it's okay with you.
We already covered this.
I know. I just thought that maybe
because you saw us together
that it might make you feel differently.
It doesn't really matter what I feel.
Laura,
is there something you're trying to tell me?
Or that you want me to say?
You already did.
Said what?
Good night, Jake.