Wiseguy (1987–2009): Season 3, Episode 21 - Sanctuary - full transcript
Vinnie's crusade against illegal waste dumping uncovers a web of political ties to organized crime figures.
- [Narrator] Tonight on Wiseguy.
- Killed two men yesterday.
- I'll find this guy.
- This guy's a pro.
- We're not the only
people looking for Vince.
- You got a badge?
- No, but I got a gun
that will put a hole
in your forehead and make
you look like you died
on Ash Wednesday.
- The Catholic Church.
- That's what he'd go to.
- Father, help me.
- I'm looking for this man.
- You can't hide from a friend.
- He's right, Vince.
(inspiring music)
- [Narrator]
Previously on Wiseguy.
- We contract the removal
of waste materials
from hospitals and
other health facilities.
- Do you know what happens
to that stuff we take out
of the hospitals?
The bags break open half
the time the stuff goes down
into the sewer and
into the water system.
There is a school right down
the street from the dump.
The sewer carries that
stuff right past it.
These kids are
getting sick from it.
- I'll worry about
the water system.
(grunting and crashing)
- You don't know who
you're screwing with!
- H.E.S. is poisoning our kids.
On your letterhead, if
he's blowing you into me
who else is on his mailing list?
- I'm takin' care of it.
He won't be sendin'
any more letters.
- We ain't gonna
to come after ya.
We're on the clock.
We're gonna to wait for
ya as long as it takes.
(Vince sighs heavily)
(clicks)
(gun bangs twice)
(seagulls crying)
(boat motor thrumming)
(train whistle)
(traffic rumbling)
(urgent heart beats)
(church bells ringing loudly)
(single, mournful bell tolling)
- [Vinnie] Bless me,
Father, for I have sinned.
God forgive me.
I killed two men yesterday.
I've ... I've lost track of
how many men I've killed.
No, wait, wait.
No I haven't, I know
every single one of 'em.
You know, they all sit on my
soul, like little soldiers.
And they have these
mirrored faces
and they're muttering
existential crap at me.
(Vince laughs oddly)
They say,
"I am you
and you are me,
coo-coo-cachoo."
(Vince laughs maniacally)
(banging)
(crying)
I miss my Pete.
(Vince sniffles)
My brother was a priest.
He was killed by a
neighborhood bigot.
It was vehicular homicide.
(Vince sniffles)
I rode ... I rode
in the same truck
with that son of a bitch.
I rode in the same truck
that killed my brother
and I didn't do anything.
I did nothing for
my own brother.
(Vince sighs disgustedly)
(Vince grunts)
But, I've killed
other men for less.
But, Justice says it's okay.
They do. It's right
there in my file.
Justice says, "Hey,
way to go Vince."
When you carry a shield
you can do anything
as long as you take the
time to figure it out.
I could shoot you,
right through this booth
and I'd get away with it.
As long as I took the
time to figure it out.
(Vince half-laughs sadly)
I slug through scum, Father.
I'm a professional scum slugger.
(Vince laughs disbelievingly)
(banging)
They muck up my
boots and my legs,
and they leech me
of whatever it is
that makes me know
right from wrong.
I just can't take anymore of it.
- Son?
- Yeah?
- What is your last name?
(Vince breathes resignedly)
- Terranova.
- Are you an officer of the law?
- What? What law?
What the hell are
you talking about?
I'm an officer of
the government!
I'm a button man
for the bureaucracy!
(Vince cries)
Help me, Father, please.
I was gonna throw
myself off the bridge.
I heard your church
bells ringing.
It was like ... It
was like they were
ringing my last chance.
Father, help me.
(sad music)
- [Father] Son, the bells
in this church haven't wrung
in a decade.
(Vince weeps mournfully)
(heavy raining)
- [Frank] This is very
nice I can see why
you've been so happy
here in the Emerald City.
Is the OCB here any
closer to Vince?
- We didn't tell OCB.
- What do you mean?
- He's here, Frank. I
know it. We'll find him.
- So you just forget
about procedure?
- So what? This is Vinnie
were talking about.
- Oh? So what?
I live my life by the rules.
That doesn't deserve a
merry ole, "So what?"
It's what keeps me from
taking a gun sometimes
and blowing my brains out.
- Sorry.
Maybe you should go
back to New York.
- Maybe I should go
back to New York,
but first we're going to find
Vince, then I'll go home.
[rustling]
What's this?
All right, so?
- [Nona] The police think that
it was a professional hit.
Word on the street is it
they're looking for a guy
who posed as a
drifter named Vinnie.
- Seattle PD made the
slugs, Teflon-coated 38s.
That's standard
issue in Lynchboro.
That's the same gun
Vinnie was packing.
- He'd run.
- He's emotionally wounded prey,
he won't move till he's healed.
Look, these guys Vince
hit were button men.
One of them had a
magnum and the other one
had a tricked-out shotgun and
a holster sewn into his coat.
- All right, we're not the
only people looking for Vince.
Do you have any idea
who they work for?
- We don't know.
(mournful music)
(smacking)
(clunking)
(beeping)
(Harriet sighs happily)
- So what's his name?
- Vinnie ...
he didn't give me a last name.
- So what am I supposed to do?
Call the East Coast and see if
anybody in their organization
knows a guy named Vinnie?
How the hell did you end up
hiring a pro to cart garbage?
- Well, what am I supposed
to do conduct a talent hunt
for these guys?
It's fecal matter Harriet,
no one with brains
wants to touch it.
- So where'd you find him then?
- He showed up at the office.
They all do.
They're either
drugged out or scared.
I thought this one was scared.
- John, I do nothing gaudy,
nothing flashy, nothing stupid.
I pay attention to
detail and I make safe,
conservative decisions.
You hire a professional killer.
(phone buzzing)
- [Secretary] Yes, Ma'am?
- Ah, get me Charles Boden
at the Commissioner's
Advisory Board.
- [Secretary] Yes, Mrs. Weiss.
- Business is troubleshooting.
If you're not good at
that, you're not worth
the fecal matter
you're carrying.
You wouldn't know what real
trouble is though, would you?
Saul took care that 30 years
ago, before you were born.
You've never seen it,
because this is a safe place.
We don't shoot each
other in Seattle.
That's why we survive and
that's why we flourish.
Now, thanks to you, we
got East Coast trouble
on our streets.
(phone buzzing)
- [Secretary] Chairman
Boden, line two.
- Charlie?
- [Charles Boden] I've got
one foot in it already.
- We have to find him Charlie.
- If he's any good
he should be gone.
- [Harriet] Well is he?
- Nah, I think we got
a real Crusader here,
at least that's what
Emmet Soul says.
- Stretch called you?
- He thinks he got
correspondence from the shooter
trying to connect H.E.S.
with that hepatitis crap.
Harriet?
Harriet?
- You know Emmet's an old woman,
you should have dropped him out
of that third-story window
when you had the chance.
- Yeah, but Saul
wanted his suit.
(Charles & Harriet laughing)
- [Harriet] Yeah.
- Anyway, the police
report's here.
Paperwork on the labs should
be coming down any minute.
I'll check back East
see what I can turn up.
- I love you, Charlie.
- You too.
- You want me to just
forget about this?
- I want you to run
your elimination service
the way it should be run.
- I've been at this
thing since college.
It always shows profit,
which you take a piece of
without getting your manicure
in the crap I gotta
move or dealing
with the drones I got
to hire to move it.
- John, I changed your
diapers when you were a kid!
(slow, moody music)
- I'll change your diaper
you incontinent old bag.
(disgusted snorting]
(sirens wailing)
- Is this the man
who rented the room?
(licking sloppily)
- In better days, maybe.
- Give me the key.
- Your guys already
broke the lock.
(door squeaking)
(slow, deliberate music)
(baby crying)
(squeaking brakes)
(slamming car door)
- Hey genius.
what do you know about
the guy staying here
who shot those two guys?
- He left.
- Good. Now tell me
something I don't know.
- You got a badge?
- No, but I got a gun that will
put a hole in your forehead
and make you look like
you died on Ash Wednesday.
- Ask the guy who just left,
he's got a picture of his.
- Vince was here but he's gone.
- Four, one, eight.
Write it down.
Four, one, eight.
- If I just killed two
local mob strong arms,
I'd get out of town.
- Yeah, if it was
a premeditated act,
but this was self-defense.
- Well now it's self
preservation, I'd leave town.
This is a mess.
And you tell me how long
we're going to keep it
from the OCB that one
of their own is going
around murdering local thugs?
- Come on it wasn't murder.
- Well, what do you call it?
- We're not going to get
anywhere by reverting
to emotionalism.
Why don't we work this
like we're looking
for somebody we
don't care about?
- All right.
- We'll find him,
Frank. We'll find him.
- Flop houses don't
have maid service
there are fingerprints in there
from a couple a dozen guys.
- Come on Charlie, how
many of them can be fresh?
- This isn't like buying
bread it takes time.
- Well how long does it
take to run down that plate?
- Nag, nag, nag.
(beeping)
Wait a minute something's
coming through now.
Damn it.
- What is it?
- The plate information
not available.
It's a federal car
we can't talk now.
(dial tone)
- I want you to
get your things out
of Health Elimination Services.
I'm turning it over
to Donna to run.
- Harriet, you're
getting hysterical.
- That's not hysterical.
[hard slapping]
That's hysterical!
Now you've got one
job to do and that is
to get this Vinnie
Didn't-give-me-a-last-name
and bust him up!
If you don't do this
right you're gonna lose
a lot more than your job.
Do you understand me?
Or do you want me to
draw you little pictures?
- Yeah, I understand
you, Harriet.
You don't have to march around
here and smack me around
like you got to
display your virility.
I understand the gravity
of the situation.
- Then do it, instead
of displaying your
grasp of vocabulary.
(heavy, foreboding music)
(Harriet sighs wistfully)
Honest to God Saul,
you left me surrounded
by schmucks.
- Put it on the street,
there's a thousand bucks in it
for anybody who puts me
in touch with this guy.
(mysterious music)
- There's some wine
in the cupboard.
Thank you for the
food before us,
for the shelter around us,
and thank you for the
blessings of Vinnie,
that we might find in other
the strength to find ourselves.
Amen.
- Amen.
- And now, there
was this cash job?
- Yeah.
I went to this place,
Health Elimination Systems
and they paid a
hundred bucks cash
to remove waste from hospitals.
And we take it to this lot
and the bags would leak down
into this drain and the drain
ran right by a public school
where there was an
outbreak of hepatitis.
And all I wanted
to do was sleep.
- But, you're a policeman.
- I just wanted to sleep.
So, I tell this Kousakis
guy that these bags are
probably poisoning the school.
He tells me to shut up, so,
I beat the hell out of him
and stole his watch.
I just wanted to have some
money so I could go to sleep.
And, there was an
article in the newspaper
about the hepatitis.
So, I sent that and a
note about the H.E.S.
to the environmental board.
And the next day Kousakis
sends two guys after me.
- Was there any doubt he'd
send somebody after you?
I don't think there's
a greater disdain
for God than suicide.
- I couldn't ignore the fact
that this guy was
poisoning kids.
- Corruption is everywhere.
- I know.
I'm starting to
doubt myself here.
- Now, now, now, now, now.
This is your sanctuary.
Get some sleep, rest your soul,
and forget about the H.E.S.
The church can put
an end to that.
- What do you mean?
- Well, we'll tell the press
about the leaking bags.
Once it's out in the open,
it's got to be corrected.
- So, what you're saying is
we're both committin' suicide?
- Well, I'm not beating
up on local gangsters
and I'm certainly not
jumping off any bridges.
- No, but you are threatening
a gangster's livelihood
and they take that a lot
more serious than a beatin',
believe me.
- When I went into
the priesthood, I
believed the church's
most fundamental duty
was vanquishing evil.
I was a child, but that
notion hasn't left me,
in spite of the
corrective lectures.
This world of ours,
the church has become a
camp for evil's refugees.
Do you ever wonder
what God thinks?
I wonder all the time.
I think God is decency.
- Sounds like Pete.
- I want to show you something.
Come with me.
Right this way.
We're not just a cathedral
and you're not the
only soul hiding here.
This is something that
you're gonna to like to see.
Right this way.
I've always been hung up on
the notion of God and decency.
I should have been
behind it, at any rate.
To live in that decency, one
is obligated to alert those
who have forgotten it.
(people mumbling)
(baby crying)
My refugees.
Everyday, one or
two more trickle in.
I resent them for not
alerting their fellow citizens
to the indecencies they suffer,
for hiding in this
church and praying to God
for some kind of a miracle.
People are always asking
God to give them things
when they should
be giving to God.
The church is a
sanctuary for the soul,
not a place for
flesh to hide in.
You know, for too long I've
been hiding here myself.
Now don't you worry
about the H.E.S.
I need to come out of
hiding and you need
to soothe your soul and
this is a good place
for both of us to begin.
Let's eat.
I knew your brother.
Not well.
We'd see each other
at conferences
several times a year.
Do you know he was considered
to be a troublemaker?
We'd talk a lot about
rousing this sleeping giant.
But, most of the time
we'd talked about you.
(heartwarming music)
Our cabbage is getting cold.
- [Nona] He hasn't used his
credit card in over two weeks.
- Eh, credit cards
leave a trail,
he couldn't have
much cash though.
- He's resourceful
he'd find cash.
- You're not profiling
his personality.
- No, you're right.
At heart Vince sees himself
as a turn-of-the-century
beat cop mediating
neighborhood disputes.
- Family, that's
what he'd go to.
- Well, he's cut
off from the family.
We should be concentrating
on these two shooters
he headed out with.
- Local runners.
- For Who? Running who's action?
- Could be any of a dozen guys.
Saul Weiss ran things until '81.
They thought there was going
to be a war when he died,
but nothing ever materialized.
- Well who kept it quiet?
- Nobody knows. Maybe Harriet.
- Harriet? Who's Harriet?
- Saul's widow.
How close was Vinnie
with his brother?
- He was very close.
- No, the church.
The church, how many Catholic
churches could there be
in Seattle?
Let's go.
(searching music)
- How many left?
- Three.
- Three more lectures on
the separation of church
and state and the papal position
on sanctuaries, just great.
(doorbell ringing)
(women laughing)
- Wait a minute.
- 418 FBP.
- Oh it is!
(phone rings)
(loud music)
- Yeah?
- [Woman in phone booth]
That car you're looking for,
is there still a grand in it?
- Yeah, where is it?
- [Woman in Phone Booth]
1440 Baker Street.
- Tell John we got the car.
(squealing brakes)
[TV crew member] Hurry up folks.
- There's a site Seattle
hasn't seen in ages.
- What?
- Father Pat and the press,
15 years ago he had
his wrist slapped
for speaking out
on secular issues.
For while they sent him
to wherever they send
loud-mouthed priests to.
- I haven't spent this
much time in church
since confirmation.
- The church cannot
remain silent.
- Excuse me, Father.
- Hmm? Yes?
- I'm looking for this man.
- Haven't seen him.
- It's very important
that I find him, Father.
- Well, good luck.
- Please, Father.
- Ah, look, we're having
a press conference
and I'm a little bit late.
Sorry, I can't help you.
- It's another blank.
(engine revs)
(gear shift clicks into place)
(engine dies)
- What is it?
- This is the only
priest that didn't try
to explain church
doctrine to me.
- How'd the press conference go?
- Ah, they're setting
up the cameras now.
There was a man here
looking for you.
He's gone.
He has no idea you're here.
- Father Pat? Father Pat,
I'm worried about that guy.
- It's all right.
I'm sure he was a policeman
he had your picture.
- What did he look like?
- My height. Early forties.
He had a sad face that you
wanted to like immediately.
- Did he have
round wire glasses?
- Yes, you know him?
- Yeah, I know him.
I guess he knows me better
than I thought he did.
- And if he comes back?
- I don't know.
- Well now, you can't
hide from a friend.
A friend will understand.
- Yeah, but I did something
to him that was very wrong.
I wouldn't blame him
if he didn't want
to be my friend anymore.
- Well, he wasn't angry.
He seemed very
concerned to see you.
- He's right, Vince.
(emotional music)
- Frank.
I'm sorry I ran
out on you, Frank.
I know you're mad at me, I
just couldn't take it anymore.
- It's all right, we
have plenty of time
for my bad temper later.
I'm just glad you're alright.
(urgent, ominous music)
(emotional music)
- I just got some
peace here, you know,
and I need that right now.
Okay?
- I understand.
[ominous music]
How would you like
me to handle this?
Like I never saw you?
- I don't know.
I don't know much of
anything right now,
except that I get
some comfort here.
- I haven't done
this in a while.
- Maybe you shouldn't.
- Oh, no.
The H.E.S. can't
be dumping poisons
without somebody
answering for it.
Why don't you and Vince
wait in the rectory?
It'll take about five minutes.
- Thank you, Father.
- Thanks.
(multiple gun shots firing)
Frank!
[multiple gun shots firing)
(screams)
(chaotic talking)
(camera clicking)
(thudding)
(heavy breathing)
- Argh! Move it!
(confused shouting)
Get out!
(thudding)
All right, punch it.
(squealing tires)
- Vince! What's happening?
(loud squealing tires)
Vinnie! What the
hell are you doin'?
- He shot Father Pat and McPike!
I'm going to kill
that son of a bitch!
- Who?
(clicking)
- Kousakis! I'm gonna kill him!
(blaring horn)
(skidding tires)
(fast-paced, intense music)
(blaring horn)
- You, take him to the airport.
You get on the first
plane going anywhere.
You get there, you stay.
Here's 5K that'll
hold you awhile.
Stay in touch with him.
- What are we doing?
- Taking over things.
It'll take a few days.
Now you go to H.E.S.
and clear my stuff out.
All of it!
Then, this is the
most important thing:
What did I just say?
- The most important thing.
- Meet me at Temple Beth
Jacob, Friday after services.
- Huh? Why?
- Because, neither
of us is Jewish.
(Kousakis slapping)
- Where you going?
- Just do what I
tell you and shut up!
(snapping)
The case.
(locks clicking)
I'll be in touch.
(sirens)
(urgent music)
(creeping music)
(heavy breathing)
(grunting)
(cameras snapping)
- [Male Voice] Hold on. Don't
touch it. Don't touch it.
(ominous music)
(sirens wailing)
- [Police] Okay, let's
keep this area clear
for professional vehicles..
(maniacal laughing]
All right, let's move
along now please.
(frustrated grunting)
(clicking)
(cameras snapping)
[Police] Come on
people, let us through.
Hold it. No, no, No.
- Could you stand back, please?
- [Male Voice] I have no idea.
- [Police] We have no
information for you.
Hold it. Come on folks.
Stay back here.
- Father! Father! Wake up!
- [Male Voice] Can you
give us any information?
(tearing)
Come on officer.
- Gun shot wound,
upper right chest.
No sign of an exit wound.
Give me a compress.
(cameras snapping)
- I got his picture,
the guy with the gun.
When can I have that back?
- You can pick
this up at the lab.
- [Photographer] Please,
I need that camera.
That's my picture of the perp.
The papers are going to
want it, I need that camera.
- I heard the sirens.
- [Photographer] I
need that camera.
- Who's the other victim?
- An OCB agent.
So is the lady.
- I'm Charlie Boden.
- [Photographer] I
need that camera.
- Nona Pope, OCB.
- Get those people out of here.
(unintelligible yelling)
- How bad?
- I don't know about Father
Pat, this one's gone.
- No!
- Wait a minute, wait a minute.
What happened here?
- I was outside.
I need to go with that ambulance
and I need that camera.
- We have some questions?
- Where's your authority?
- Chairman Boden.
- [Nona] That camera
is material evidence
in the attempted murder
of a federal agent.
Please give me the camera.
- Don't make this a
jurisdictional thing.
I'm in control here until
the commissioner arrives.
- Oh your control is
political, not legal.
- It's still control.
- The camera?
- No.
(sirens wailing)
- I'm sorry.
- Why don't you
just shut up, Vince?
(thumping)
You know, I don't want to hear
about what drove you to it.
All I know is Frank McPike
has been shot because of it.
He may even be dead.
(clicking)
Yeah, Code 22 0129.
Report Center 12.
Wharfside Church and Mission.
En route to nearest
trauma center, Seattle PD.
(clicking)
Paul, it's Dan
Burrows, McPike's down.
I put it in the system.
(beeping)
(Dan sighs angrily)
There's your Don
Kousakis for ya.
(Dan breathes deeply)
I don't even know what
hospital to phone.
You are a selfish
bastard, you know that?
(ominous music)
- [Paramedic] Hold it. Hold
it. Something's changed.
In and out of defib in
the last 10 minutes.
He's got no pressure.
(tense music)
(Father groaning)
- Dan, we're at Seattle
General's Trauma Center.
There's a car waiting
for you downstairs.
- [Dan] How's Frank?
- [Hospital staff] Ma'am,
do you know if he's a donor?
- [Nona] I don't know.
- I'm going to Seattle General.
You stay here!
(clicking)
(intense, focused music)
- Are you sure this is the man?
- No. Harriet, we
have to face this.
I think John shot Father
Pat and this Federal badge.
- But this man's
holding the gun.
- That's a 38, there were 45
casings all over the church.
I'm sure they were
shot from a 45
and I know John carries one.
Father Pat was about to
hold a press conference
about H.E.S.
dumping toxic waste.
- Yeah, but I'm remove
from that, there's no link.
- John's a link.
We knew this was
coming sooner or later.
The Pacific Rim is the only
growth market left in America
for our line of business.
We knew sooner or
later they'd move in.
This federal man who
was shot, he's OCB.
Organized crime,
Harriet, they know too.
- You know I practically
raised John from the cradle.
- I know.
[Harriet groaning]
He was so good.
He was so focused on detail.
So aggressive.
(Harriet sighs sadly)
He changed.
[Harriet sniffles]
Running H.E.S.
- Hauling that crap is
no job for a white man.
- I feel guilty about this.
- So do I.
I've known Johnny since
he was just a nipper.
But he's a man now, Harriet,
a man who can hurt us.
- Then, I guess, somebody
will just have to bust him up.
- I'll handle it.
(Harriet sighs sadly)
- He was such a sweet kid.
You know, I think I've got
his first communion picture
somewhere around here.
- I don't want to see his
communion picture, Harriet.
Honest to God, I don't.
- Give me 200 joules and charge.
- Oh my God, Frank.
- All clear!
(thudding jolt)
(flat line buzzing)
- Give me 400 joules and charge.
All clear!
(thudding jolt)
(flat line buzzing)
- Frank.
(Dan cries)
Frank!
[Flat line buzzing]
- [Doctor] I can't help him.
[inspiring music]
- Killed two men yesterday.
- I'll find this guy.
- This guy's a pro.
- We're not the only
people looking for Vince.
- You got a badge?
- No, but I got a gun
that will put a hole
in your forehead and make
you look like you died
on Ash Wednesday.
- The Catholic Church.
- That's what he'd go to.
- Father, help me.
- I'm looking for this man.
- You can't hide from a friend.
- He's right, Vince.
(inspiring music)
- [Narrator]
Previously on Wiseguy.
- We contract the removal
of waste materials
from hospitals and
other health facilities.
- Do you know what happens
to that stuff we take out
of the hospitals?
The bags break open half
the time the stuff goes down
into the sewer and
into the water system.
There is a school right down
the street from the dump.
The sewer carries that
stuff right past it.
These kids are
getting sick from it.
- I'll worry about
the water system.
(grunting and crashing)
- You don't know who
you're screwing with!
- H.E.S. is poisoning our kids.
On your letterhead, if
he's blowing you into me
who else is on his mailing list?
- I'm takin' care of it.
He won't be sendin'
any more letters.
- We ain't gonna
to come after ya.
We're on the clock.
We're gonna to wait for
ya as long as it takes.
(Vince sighs heavily)
(clicks)
(gun bangs twice)
(seagulls crying)
(boat motor thrumming)
(train whistle)
(traffic rumbling)
(urgent heart beats)
(church bells ringing loudly)
(single, mournful bell tolling)
- [Vinnie] Bless me,
Father, for I have sinned.
God forgive me.
I killed two men yesterday.
I've ... I've lost track of
how many men I've killed.
No, wait, wait.
No I haven't, I know
every single one of 'em.
You know, they all sit on my
soul, like little soldiers.
And they have these
mirrored faces
and they're muttering
existential crap at me.
(Vince laughs oddly)
They say,
"I am you
and you are me,
coo-coo-cachoo."
(Vince laughs maniacally)
(banging)
(crying)
I miss my Pete.
(Vince sniffles)
My brother was a priest.
He was killed by a
neighborhood bigot.
It was vehicular homicide.
(Vince sniffles)
I rode ... I rode
in the same truck
with that son of a bitch.
I rode in the same truck
that killed my brother
and I didn't do anything.
I did nothing for
my own brother.
(Vince sighs disgustedly)
(Vince grunts)
But, I've killed
other men for less.
But, Justice says it's okay.
They do. It's right
there in my file.
Justice says, "Hey,
way to go Vince."
When you carry a shield
you can do anything
as long as you take the
time to figure it out.
I could shoot you,
right through this booth
and I'd get away with it.
As long as I took the
time to figure it out.
(Vince half-laughs sadly)
I slug through scum, Father.
I'm a professional scum slugger.
(Vince laughs disbelievingly)
(banging)
They muck up my
boots and my legs,
and they leech me
of whatever it is
that makes me know
right from wrong.
I just can't take anymore of it.
- Son?
- Yeah?
- What is your last name?
(Vince breathes resignedly)
- Terranova.
- Are you an officer of the law?
- What? What law?
What the hell are
you talking about?
I'm an officer of
the government!
I'm a button man
for the bureaucracy!
(Vince cries)
Help me, Father, please.
I was gonna throw
myself off the bridge.
I heard your church
bells ringing.
It was like ... It
was like they were
ringing my last chance.
Father, help me.
(sad music)
- [Father] Son, the bells
in this church haven't wrung
in a decade.
(Vince weeps mournfully)
(heavy raining)
- [Frank] This is very
nice I can see why
you've been so happy
here in the Emerald City.
Is the OCB here any
closer to Vince?
- We didn't tell OCB.
- What do you mean?
- He's here, Frank. I
know it. We'll find him.
- So you just forget
about procedure?
- So what? This is Vinnie
were talking about.
- Oh? So what?
I live my life by the rules.
That doesn't deserve a
merry ole, "So what?"
It's what keeps me from
taking a gun sometimes
and blowing my brains out.
- Sorry.
Maybe you should go
back to New York.
- Maybe I should go
back to New York,
but first we're going to find
Vince, then I'll go home.
[rustling]
What's this?
All right, so?
- [Nona] The police think that
it was a professional hit.
Word on the street is it
they're looking for a guy
who posed as a
drifter named Vinnie.
- Seattle PD made the
slugs, Teflon-coated 38s.
That's standard
issue in Lynchboro.
That's the same gun
Vinnie was packing.
- He'd run.
- He's emotionally wounded prey,
he won't move till he's healed.
Look, these guys Vince
hit were button men.
One of them had a
magnum and the other one
had a tricked-out shotgun and
a holster sewn into his coat.
- All right, we're not the
only people looking for Vince.
Do you have any idea
who they work for?
- We don't know.
(mournful music)
(smacking)
(clunking)
(beeping)
(Harriet sighs happily)
- So what's his name?
- Vinnie ...
he didn't give me a last name.
- So what am I supposed to do?
Call the East Coast and see if
anybody in their organization
knows a guy named Vinnie?
How the hell did you end up
hiring a pro to cart garbage?
- Well, what am I supposed
to do conduct a talent hunt
for these guys?
It's fecal matter Harriet,
no one with brains
wants to touch it.
- So where'd you find him then?
- He showed up at the office.
They all do.
They're either
drugged out or scared.
I thought this one was scared.
- John, I do nothing gaudy,
nothing flashy, nothing stupid.
I pay attention to
detail and I make safe,
conservative decisions.
You hire a professional killer.
(phone buzzing)
- [Secretary] Yes, Ma'am?
- Ah, get me Charles Boden
at the Commissioner's
Advisory Board.
- [Secretary] Yes, Mrs. Weiss.
- Business is troubleshooting.
If you're not good at
that, you're not worth
the fecal matter
you're carrying.
You wouldn't know what real
trouble is though, would you?
Saul took care that 30 years
ago, before you were born.
You've never seen it,
because this is a safe place.
We don't shoot each
other in Seattle.
That's why we survive and
that's why we flourish.
Now, thanks to you, we
got East Coast trouble
on our streets.
(phone buzzing)
- [Secretary] Chairman
Boden, line two.
- Charlie?
- [Charles Boden] I've got
one foot in it already.
- We have to find him Charlie.
- If he's any good
he should be gone.
- [Harriet] Well is he?
- Nah, I think we got
a real Crusader here,
at least that's what
Emmet Soul says.
- Stretch called you?
- He thinks he got
correspondence from the shooter
trying to connect H.E.S.
with that hepatitis crap.
Harriet?
Harriet?
- You know Emmet's an old woman,
you should have dropped him out
of that third-story window
when you had the chance.
- Yeah, but Saul
wanted his suit.
(Charles & Harriet laughing)
- [Harriet] Yeah.
- Anyway, the police
report's here.
Paperwork on the labs should
be coming down any minute.
I'll check back East
see what I can turn up.
- I love you, Charlie.
- You too.
- You want me to just
forget about this?
- I want you to run
your elimination service
the way it should be run.
- I've been at this
thing since college.
It always shows profit,
which you take a piece of
without getting your manicure
in the crap I gotta
move or dealing
with the drones I got
to hire to move it.
- John, I changed your
diapers when you were a kid!
(slow, moody music)
- I'll change your diaper
you incontinent old bag.
(disgusted snorting]
(sirens wailing)
- Is this the man
who rented the room?
(licking sloppily)
- In better days, maybe.
- Give me the key.
- Your guys already
broke the lock.
(door squeaking)
(slow, deliberate music)
(baby crying)
(squeaking brakes)
(slamming car door)
- Hey genius.
what do you know about
the guy staying here
who shot those two guys?
- He left.
- Good. Now tell me
something I don't know.
- You got a badge?
- No, but I got a gun that will
put a hole in your forehead
and make you look like
you died on Ash Wednesday.
- Ask the guy who just left,
he's got a picture of his.
- Vince was here but he's gone.
- Four, one, eight.
Write it down.
Four, one, eight.
- If I just killed two
local mob strong arms,
I'd get out of town.
- Yeah, if it was
a premeditated act,
but this was self-defense.
- Well now it's self
preservation, I'd leave town.
This is a mess.
And you tell me how long
we're going to keep it
from the OCB that one
of their own is going
around murdering local thugs?
- Come on it wasn't murder.
- Well, what do you call it?
- We're not going to get
anywhere by reverting
to emotionalism.
Why don't we work this
like we're looking
for somebody we
don't care about?
- All right.
- We'll find him,
Frank. We'll find him.
- Flop houses don't
have maid service
there are fingerprints in there
from a couple a dozen guys.
- Come on Charlie, how
many of them can be fresh?
- This isn't like buying
bread it takes time.
- Well how long does it
take to run down that plate?
- Nag, nag, nag.
(beeping)
Wait a minute something's
coming through now.
Damn it.
- What is it?
- The plate information
not available.
It's a federal car
we can't talk now.
(dial tone)
- I want you to
get your things out
of Health Elimination Services.
I'm turning it over
to Donna to run.
- Harriet, you're
getting hysterical.
- That's not hysterical.
[hard slapping]
That's hysterical!
Now you've got one
job to do and that is
to get this Vinnie
Didn't-give-me-a-last-name
and bust him up!
If you don't do this
right you're gonna lose
a lot more than your job.
Do you understand me?
Or do you want me to
draw you little pictures?
- Yeah, I understand
you, Harriet.
You don't have to march around
here and smack me around
like you got to
display your virility.
I understand the gravity
of the situation.
- Then do it, instead
of displaying your
grasp of vocabulary.
(heavy, foreboding music)
(Harriet sighs wistfully)
Honest to God Saul,
you left me surrounded
by schmucks.
- Put it on the street,
there's a thousand bucks in it
for anybody who puts me
in touch with this guy.
(mysterious music)
- There's some wine
in the cupboard.
Thank you for the
food before us,
for the shelter around us,
and thank you for the
blessings of Vinnie,
that we might find in other
the strength to find ourselves.
Amen.
- Amen.
- And now, there
was this cash job?
- Yeah.
I went to this place,
Health Elimination Systems
and they paid a
hundred bucks cash
to remove waste from hospitals.
And we take it to this lot
and the bags would leak down
into this drain and the drain
ran right by a public school
where there was an
outbreak of hepatitis.
And all I wanted
to do was sleep.
- But, you're a policeman.
- I just wanted to sleep.
So, I tell this Kousakis
guy that these bags are
probably poisoning the school.
He tells me to shut up, so,
I beat the hell out of him
and stole his watch.
I just wanted to have some
money so I could go to sleep.
And, there was an
article in the newspaper
about the hepatitis.
So, I sent that and a
note about the H.E.S.
to the environmental board.
And the next day Kousakis
sends two guys after me.
- Was there any doubt he'd
send somebody after you?
I don't think there's
a greater disdain
for God than suicide.
- I couldn't ignore the fact
that this guy was
poisoning kids.
- Corruption is everywhere.
- I know.
I'm starting to
doubt myself here.
- Now, now, now, now, now.
This is your sanctuary.
Get some sleep, rest your soul,
and forget about the H.E.S.
The church can put
an end to that.
- What do you mean?
- Well, we'll tell the press
about the leaking bags.
Once it's out in the open,
it's got to be corrected.
- So, what you're saying is
we're both committin' suicide?
- Well, I'm not beating
up on local gangsters
and I'm certainly not
jumping off any bridges.
- No, but you are threatening
a gangster's livelihood
and they take that a lot
more serious than a beatin',
believe me.
- When I went into
the priesthood, I
believed the church's
most fundamental duty
was vanquishing evil.
I was a child, but that
notion hasn't left me,
in spite of the
corrective lectures.
This world of ours,
the church has become a
camp for evil's refugees.
Do you ever wonder
what God thinks?
I wonder all the time.
I think God is decency.
- Sounds like Pete.
- I want to show you something.
Come with me.
Right this way.
We're not just a cathedral
and you're not the
only soul hiding here.
This is something that
you're gonna to like to see.
Right this way.
I've always been hung up on
the notion of God and decency.
I should have been
behind it, at any rate.
To live in that decency, one
is obligated to alert those
who have forgotten it.
(people mumbling)
(baby crying)
My refugees.
Everyday, one or
two more trickle in.
I resent them for not
alerting their fellow citizens
to the indecencies they suffer,
for hiding in this
church and praying to God
for some kind of a miracle.
People are always asking
God to give them things
when they should
be giving to God.
The church is a
sanctuary for the soul,
not a place for
flesh to hide in.
You know, for too long I've
been hiding here myself.
Now don't you worry
about the H.E.S.
I need to come out of
hiding and you need
to soothe your soul and
this is a good place
for both of us to begin.
Let's eat.
I knew your brother.
Not well.
We'd see each other
at conferences
several times a year.
Do you know he was considered
to be a troublemaker?
We'd talk a lot about
rousing this sleeping giant.
But, most of the time
we'd talked about you.
(heartwarming music)
Our cabbage is getting cold.
- [Nona] He hasn't used his
credit card in over two weeks.
- Eh, credit cards
leave a trail,
he couldn't have
much cash though.
- He's resourceful
he'd find cash.
- You're not profiling
his personality.
- No, you're right.
At heart Vince sees himself
as a turn-of-the-century
beat cop mediating
neighborhood disputes.
- Family, that's
what he'd go to.
- Well, he's cut
off from the family.
We should be concentrating
on these two shooters
he headed out with.
- Local runners.
- For Who? Running who's action?
- Could be any of a dozen guys.
Saul Weiss ran things until '81.
They thought there was going
to be a war when he died,
but nothing ever materialized.
- Well who kept it quiet?
- Nobody knows. Maybe Harriet.
- Harriet? Who's Harriet?
- Saul's widow.
How close was Vinnie
with his brother?
- He was very close.
- No, the church.
The church, how many Catholic
churches could there be
in Seattle?
Let's go.
(searching music)
- How many left?
- Three.
- Three more lectures on
the separation of church
and state and the papal position
on sanctuaries, just great.
(doorbell ringing)
(women laughing)
- Wait a minute.
- 418 FBP.
- Oh it is!
(phone rings)
(loud music)
- Yeah?
- [Woman in phone booth]
That car you're looking for,
is there still a grand in it?
- Yeah, where is it?
- [Woman in Phone Booth]
1440 Baker Street.
- Tell John we got the car.
(squealing brakes)
[TV crew member] Hurry up folks.
- There's a site Seattle
hasn't seen in ages.
- What?
- Father Pat and the press,
15 years ago he had
his wrist slapped
for speaking out
on secular issues.
For while they sent him
to wherever they send
loud-mouthed priests to.
- I haven't spent this
much time in church
since confirmation.
- The church cannot
remain silent.
- Excuse me, Father.
- Hmm? Yes?
- I'm looking for this man.
- Haven't seen him.
- It's very important
that I find him, Father.
- Well, good luck.
- Please, Father.
- Ah, look, we're having
a press conference
and I'm a little bit late.
Sorry, I can't help you.
- It's another blank.
(engine revs)
(gear shift clicks into place)
(engine dies)
- What is it?
- This is the only
priest that didn't try
to explain church
doctrine to me.
- How'd the press conference go?
- Ah, they're setting
up the cameras now.
There was a man here
looking for you.
He's gone.
He has no idea you're here.
- Father Pat? Father Pat,
I'm worried about that guy.
- It's all right.
I'm sure he was a policeman
he had your picture.
- What did he look like?
- My height. Early forties.
He had a sad face that you
wanted to like immediately.
- Did he have
round wire glasses?
- Yes, you know him?
- Yeah, I know him.
I guess he knows me better
than I thought he did.
- And if he comes back?
- I don't know.
- Well now, you can't
hide from a friend.
A friend will understand.
- Yeah, but I did something
to him that was very wrong.
I wouldn't blame him
if he didn't want
to be my friend anymore.
- Well, he wasn't angry.
He seemed very
concerned to see you.
- He's right, Vince.
(emotional music)
- Frank.
I'm sorry I ran
out on you, Frank.
I know you're mad at me, I
just couldn't take it anymore.
- It's all right, we
have plenty of time
for my bad temper later.
I'm just glad you're alright.
(urgent, ominous music)
(emotional music)
- I just got some
peace here, you know,
and I need that right now.
Okay?
- I understand.
[ominous music]
How would you like
me to handle this?
Like I never saw you?
- I don't know.
I don't know much of
anything right now,
except that I get
some comfort here.
- I haven't done
this in a while.
- Maybe you shouldn't.
- Oh, no.
The H.E.S. can't
be dumping poisons
without somebody
answering for it.
Why don't you and Vince
wait in the rectory?
It'll take about five minutes.
- Thank you, Father.
- Thanks.
(multiple gun shots firing)
Frank!
[multiple gun shots firing)
(screams)
(chaotic talking)
(camera clicking)
(thudding)
(heavy breathing)
- Argh! Move it!
(confused shouting)
Get out!
(thudding)
All right, punch it.
(squealing tires)
- Vince! What's happening?
(loud squealing tires)
Vinnie! What the
hell are you doin'?
- He shot Father Pat and McPike!
I'm going to kill
that son of a bitch!
- Who?
(clicking)
- Kousakis! I'm gonna kill him!
(blaring horn)
(skidding tires)
(fast-paced, intense music)
(blaring horn)
- You, take him to the airport.
You get on the first
plane going anywhere.
You get there, you stay.
Here's 5K that'll
hold you awhile.
Stay in touch with him.
- What are we doing?
- Taking over things.
It'll take a few days.
Now you go to H.E.S.
and clear my stuff out.
All of it!
Then, this is the
most important thing:
What did I just say?
- The most important thing.
- Meet me at Temple Beth
Jacob, Friday after services.
- Huh? Why?
- Because, neither
of us is Jewish.
(Kousakis slapping)
- Where you going?
- Just do what I
tell you and shut up!
(snapping)
The case.
(locks clicking)
I'll be in touch.
(sirens)
(urgent music)
(creeping music)
(heavy breathing)
(grunting)
(cameras snapping)
- [Male Voice] Hold on. Don't
touch it. Don't touch it.
(ominous music)
(sirens wailing)
- [Police] Okay, let's
keep this area clear
for professional vehicles..
(maniacal laughing]
All right, let's move
along now please.
(frustrated grunting)
(clicking)
(cameras snapping)
[Police] Come on
people, let us through.
Hold it. No, no, No.
- Could you stand back, please?
- [Male Voice] I have no idea.
- [Police] We have no
information for you.
Hold it. Come on folks.
Stay back here.
- Father! Father! Wake up!
- [Male Voice] Can you
give us any information?
(tearing)
Come on officer.
- Gun shot wound,
upper right chest.
No sign of an exit wound.
Give me a compress.
(cameras snapping)
- I got his picture,
the guy with the gun.
When can I have that back?
- You can pick
this up at the lab.
- [Photographer] Please,
I need that camera.
That's my picture of the perp.
The papers are going to
want it, I need that camera.
- I heard the sirens.
- [Photographer] I
need that camera.
- Who's the other victim?
- An OCB agent.
So is the lady.
- I'm Charlie Boden.
- [Photographer] I
need that camera.
- Nona Pope, OCB.
- Get those people out of here.
(unintelligible yelling)
- How bad?
- I don't know about Father
Pat, this one's gone.
- No!
- Wait a minute, wait a minute.
What happened here?
- I was outside.
I need to go with that ambulance
and I need that camera.
- We have some questions?
- Where's your authority?
- Chairman Boden.
- [Nona] That camera
is material evidence
in the attempted murder
of a federal agent.
Please give me the camera.
- Don't make this a
jurisdictional thing.
I'm in control here until
the commissioner arrives.
- Oh your control is
political, not legal.
- It's still control.
- The camera?
- No.
(sirens wailing)
- I'm sorry.
- Why don't you
just shut up, Vince?
(thumping)
You know, I don't want to hear
about what drove you to it.
All I know is Frank McPike
has been shot because of it.
He may even be dead.
(clicking)
Yeah, Code 22 0129.
Report Center 12.
Wharfside Church and Mission.
En route to nearest
trauma center, Seattle PD.
(clicking)
Paul, it's Dan
Burrows, McPike's down.
I put it in the system.
(beeping)
(Dan sighs angrily)
There's your Don
Kousakis for ya.
(Dan breathes deeply)
I don't even know what
hospital to phone.
You are a selfish
bastard, you know that?
(ominous music)
- [Paramedic] Hold it. Hold
it. Something's changed.
In and out of defib in
the last 10 minutes.
He's got no pressure.
(tense music)
(Father groaning)
- Dan, we're at Seattle
General's Trauma Center.
There's a car waiting
for you downstairs.
- [Dan] How's Frank?
- [Hospital staff] Ma'am,
do you know if he's a donor?
- [Nona] I don't know.
- I'm going to Seattle General.
You stay here!
(clicking)
(intense, focused music)
- Are you sure this is the man?
- No. Harriet, we
have to face this.
I think John shot Father
Pat and this Federal badge.
- But this man's
holding the gun.
- That's a 38, there were 45
casings all over the church.
I'm sure they were
shot from a 45
and I know John carries one.
Father Pat was about to
hold a press conference
about H.E.S.
dumping toxic waste.
- Yeah, but I'm remove
from that, there's no link.
- John's a link.
We knew this was
coming sooner or later.
The Pacific Rim is the only
growth market left in America
for our line of business.
We knew sooner or
later they'd move in.
This federal man who
was shot, he's OCB.
Organized crime,
Harriet, they know too.
- You know I practically
raised John from the cradle.
- I know.
[Harriet groaning]
He was so good.
He was so focused on detail.
So aggressive.
(Harriet sighs sadly)
He changed.
[Harriet sniffles]
Running H.E.S.
- Hauling that crap is
no job for a white man.
- I feel guilty about this.
- So do I.
I've known Johnny since
he was just a nipper.
But he's a man now, Harriet,
a man who can hurt us.
- Then, I guess, somebody
will just have to bust him up.
- I'll handle it.
(Harriet sighs sadly)
- He was such a sweet kid.
You know, I think I've got
his first communion picture
somewhere around here.
- I don't want to see his
communion picture, Harriet.
Honest to God, I don't.
- Give me 200 joules and charge.
- Oh my God, Frank.
- All clear!
(thudding jolt)
(flat line buzzing)
- Give me 400 joules and charge.
All clear!
(thudding jolt)
(flat line buzzing)
- Frank.
(Dan cries)
Frank!
[Flat line buzzing]
- [Doctor] I can't help him.
[inspiring music]