***Leighton Academy Riding Grounds***

Woody: Fellas...just when you thought you'd seen it all.

Nigel: We've heard that one before.

Woody: She was found her foot caught in the stirrup and the stirrup tangled around her leg. Poor horse practically strangling himself trying to get free of her.

Garret: Any idea how long?

Woody: Apparently the horse has been missing from the s*ab for two days.

Garret: I mean the girl, not the horse.

Woody: Wasn't the girl they came looking after. It was the horse they reported missing. He belongs to someplace called the Leighton Academy.

Nigel: Uh-huh. Private school for girls. For the wealthy, not the rich.

Woody: What's the difference?

Nigel: Rich people make lots of money. Wealthy people sign their checks.

Garret: It's Tammi Eldridge.

Nigel: That's a whole 'nother league.

Garret: No, I'm saying it's her. It's Tammi Eldridge.

Woody: Of the Whittaker trust Eldridge family?

Nigel: Favorite celebutante of the tabloids?

Garret: Yeah, that Tammi Eldridge.

Woody: This is not good. This is not good. In fact, it's bad, because we're talking about rich and powerful people. And when we're talking about rich and powerful people, we're talking press. And I, um, I--I-- I sometimes stammer in front of the press. Unless you want to make the notification yourself. I mean, come on, it's obviously an accident. Right, Doc? It was just an accident?

{Crossing Jordan Intro}

Dean: You have to understand, we've never had an incident like this at Leighton before.

Woody: Dr. Macy, this is the dean of the school.

Dean: William Hargrave. God, this is awful. How could this have happened?

Garret: Mr. Hargrave, would you care to tell me how one of your students could go missing for two days without your reporting it?

Dean: Oh, Tammi wasn't missing. She'd been sent home days ago, suspended. There was nothing to report.

Woody: Suspended for what?

Dean: An accumulation of things. Tammi could be rather difficult.

Woody: All right, well, we're gonna need a contact number for the parents.

Dean: You mean, I don't have to tell them?

Garret: No, sir. That would be my job.

***Morgue***

Sidney: Hey, you okay?

Jordan: Yeah. Sidney.

Sidney: Is that your motorcycle victim?

Jordan: Yeah.

Sidney: He looks pretty good.

Jordan: Yeah, I know. Not a scratch on him. 20 years old, wearing his helmet. It makes absolutely no sense. You know, is Lily in yet?

Sidney: Yeah, she's up front. Come on.

Jordan: He must have just fallen wrong, maybe cracked a rib, punctured a lung. You see, that's why I like four wheels under me.

Sidney: Yeah. I'll catch you later.

Jordan: Okay. Well, turn around, girl. Your services are about to be called upon elsewhere.

Lily: Why, what's up?

Jordan: DOA's brother. He should be with a detective. Look, he wanted to ride back with the body from the scene, but I, you know--

Lily: Oh, motorcycle crash.

Jordan: Brother lost control, DOA was in back. They both fell off their bike. Only one of them got back up again.

Lily: Ohh.

Jordan: Poor guy is a mess. His name is Reggie. I need to get his brother's body into autopsy ASAP. If you don't mind--

Lily: Sure, I'll--

Jordan: Thanks. Good luck.

Santana: Calm down, Mr. Duplaix.

Reggie: They'd have just brought him in. His name is Troy Duplaix.

Lily: Uh, you must be Reggie. I'm Lily. I'm a grief counselor.

Reggie: Oh, my god. This is really happening.

Lily: Is your arm okay?

Santana: He refused treatment at the scene. Detective Santana. I'm not having any luck getting a statement out of him, either.

Reggie: I told you, it was an accident!

Santana: I just need a few more details from you, sir.

Lily: Listen, why don't we take a seat inside? Can I get you some coffee?

Santana: Definitely.

Reggie: I was just trying to get him to the emergency room. He'd been throwing up most of the night.

Santana: Any idea how fast you were going?

Reggie: 30, 35, maybe.

Santana: Fast enough for those narrow roads?

Reggie: I was just trying to-- oh, god, what did I do?

Lily: Reggie, it is so understandable—

Reggie: Can I see him now? Please?

Santana: You know what? He's all yours. Sorry for your loss, Mr. Duplaix. (She gets up and leaves the room)

Lily: One second. Are you? Sorry?

Santana: You questioning my sincerity?

Lily: If not your bedside manner.

Santana: Holding his hand is your job. But...point taken. I'm new to homicide. These desks and public places aren't exactly the cases I've been lusting after.

Lily: Well, hope you find yourself a nice m*rder then.

Santana: Me, too. Thanks.

***Crypt: Troy Duplaix***

Lily: He was all he had. No parents. No other siblings. Reggie lost his job a couple of months ago. Troy moved in to help him out.

Jordan: I want to get his body into autopsy. Find how that fall could have k*lled him. I'd like to talk to him for a few minutes, if you don't mind.

Lily: Okay.

Jordan: Thanks.

(Reggie stumbles as he's leaving the crypt. Jordan catches him.)

Jordan: Ooh, you all right?

Reggie: Sorry.

Jordan: Oh, no, it's okay.

Reggie: I'm okay. I'm okay. I didn't mean to.

Jordan: It was an accident.

Reggie: We always took care of each other. My mom was sick all those years. And it was just the two of us. I'd have done anything for him. You know how that is. He was my brother.

Jordan: I know. I know what you're going through, how difficult this must be.

Reggie: How? You have a brother or sister?

Jordan: No.

Reggie: Then you don't know what it's like to lose someone that close. To be alone in the world.

Jordan: Well, even if I did, I'm not sure that would help you any.

Reggie: I should go now.

Jordan: I'm sorry, Reggie.

***Eldridge Residence***

Mrs. Eldridge: My baby. My sweet, sweet baby. (She reaches for a glass of wine)

Mr. Eldridge: Not on top of the Xanax, dear.

Gavin: I'll take it.

Mr. Eldridge: Look, I want a full investigation on this. If that damn school is in any way liable--

Garret: The dean said she'd been sent home, that you'd been notified of her suspension.

Mr. Eldridge: Well, that man is useless. And a liar. I--I never heard from him.

Mrs. Eldridge: I did. There was no need to involve you. It was nothing you wanted to hear, and certainly nothing new.

Garret: All due respect, Mrs. Eldridge, didn't you wonder where your daughter was?

Gavin: She needed GPS.

Mr. Eldridge: Shut up, Gavin.

Mrs. Eldridge: He's right. You know, Tammi, so damn... independent. I assumed that she was at our place in New York or on the Vineyard.

Mr. Eldridge: Anywhere but here.

Mrs. Eldridge: Can you blame her? The way you ride the girl! (Sobbing)

Mr. Eldridge: Aw, sweetheart.

Garret: Once we've determined the official cause of death, our office will contact you.

Gavin: She fell off a horse! Isn't that cause enough?

Garret: We just want to be thorough.

Mr. Eldridge: Please, I-- I insist on it.

***Leighton Academy*** 

Woody: (Laughs) I thought I was lucky when I got a hot plate in my dorm.

Dean: Well, this is average by Leighton's standards. Difference being that here, these amenities are not a birthright, but a privilege to be earned.

Woody: How does that go over?

Dean: Let's just say that our rules are a first for many of our girls.

Woody: Like for Tammi?

Dean: You know her reputation. When the world was your oyster at 18, who can tell you anything? The saddest part is she was so bright.

Woody: But she had discipline problems.

Dean: The latest was her "borrowing" of a school video camera. She had apparently broken one of her own. Felt obliged to help herself to one of ours without telling anybody.

Woody: Stealing?

Dean: "Unauthorized use of school property" is how our parents prefer to hear it.

Woody: (Chuckles) And what kind of movies was she making--home movies?

Dean: Knowing Tammi, she was headed for Sundance. (Beeper) Damn, it's the public relations office. Word's probably spreading.

Woody: I can lock up when I leave.

Dean: Thank you. (The dorm room is full of pictures of Tammi. Three girls come to the door.)

Luca: It's true, huh? About Tammi?

Woody: Afraid so.

Girl (off camera): Hey, Britney, Sarah, you got a minute?

Luca: Now it'll be all over campus. Stuff like this doesn't happen here. Not ever.

Woody: Were you a friend of Tammi's, Miss...

Luca: I'm Luca. No, not really. I mean, same dorm, same floor, you know? She was nice. Not like people think. Or like the Dean says. He just has issues. Thinks we're all spoiled.

Woody: Do you know anything about this camera that Tammi took?

Luca: Well, if she did, I'm sure she was gonna bring it back. I mean, it's not like she was a klepto or anything.

Woody: What about the movie she was making?

Luca: I don't know. I mean... she was taping a bunch of us one night, just goofing around. I'm not really sure what she was going for, but... she was cool. Kind of like the girl we all wanted to be, you know? Out of the box, and not afraid of anything.

Woody: Okay, Luca. It's okay.

***ME's Office***

Nigel: Well, you'll be impressed to know that I set a personal record for most debris catalogued off a single body.

Garret: Don't miss a splinter. The parents want a full report.

Nigel: What were they like?

Garret: Like people who just lost a child. Money doesn't make that any easier.

Nigel: Well, I imagine not everyone's gonna be devastated. You know, the family has quite a few enemies. I--I see you don't read the gossip columns.

Garret: Can I help you?

Pelone: You must be Dr. Macy.

Garret: I must be. Which would make you...

Nigel: Dr. Mara Pelone. Uh, sorry, I'm just-- I'm a fan.

Pelone: (Chuckles) I was just, uh... they said that you might be here.

Garret: Mm-hmm.

Pelone: The Eldridge family has hired me to perform an independent autopsy on their daughter.

Garret: Of course they have.

Pelone: Nothing personal. It's just that they would—

Garret: It's all right. No preamble necessary. They're within their rights. As long as you understand--

Pelone: I know the drill-- all eyes and no hands until you give me the go-ahead.

Nigel: Nigel Townsend at your service. May I just say that your book on the Lonergan case was a near revelation. It was gripping.

Pelone: Thank you. Thank you, I appreciate that.

Nigel: And your new cable show on the Cortland m*rder was just great stuff.

Garret: Nigel.

Nigel: Yeah? Oh, so I'm gonna go and get the results off the spectrometer.

Pelone: Okay. (Chuckles) I've been getting that reaction a lot lately.

Garret: Yeah, I bet.

Pelone: Do I detect a little hostility, Doctor? While I understand its source, I had hoped that we could rise above it, one professional to another.

Garret: That's fine.

Pelone: That subarachnoid hemorrhage. Hoofprint?

Garret: More like two wounds overlapping.

Pelone: Well, that makes sense, after being dragged around by a horse for two days. There's epidural hemorrhaging around the underlying wounds.

Garret: Which would indicate she was alive when the blows were struck.

Pelone: Blows? You mean from the horse?

Garret: No, the primary wound is oblong, not like any shape I've ever seen on a horse.

Pelone: You can't be thinking homicide?

Garret: I wasn't before, but as you can see--

Pelone: Look how many wounds are on this body, Doctor. You're a long way from a definitive conclusion here.

Garret: What's your hurry?

Pelone: The Eldridge's are waiting for an answer.

Garret: The answer's gonna come from this girl. Look, it's not my fault they're paying you by the hour.

Pelone: I'll be back.

Garret: And I'll be here.

***Autopsy One: Troy Duplaix***

Jordan: Hey, Bug, come give me your two cents on this.

Bug: Eyes look jaundiced. Liver's mottled and engorged. Severe hepatic necrosis. Is that what k*lled him?

Jordan: No, it was a motorcycle crash.

Bug: Really?

Jordan: Yeah.

Bug: Well, that might have finished him off, but this guy was knocking on death's door.

Jordan: So what are we betting here? Lupus? Hepatocellular carcinoma?

Bug: Obstructive cholestasis. Pancreatitis. Could be a laundry list of things.

Sidney: Drumroll, please! We have a winner.

Bug: Is it too late to guess malaria?

Jordan: Oh, now you're just blurting out diseases.

Sidney: Well, did anyone happen to blurt out Huntington's?

Jordan: You're kidding.

Sidney: Tox screen results indicate high levels of antibodies for Huntington's disease.

Jordan: Isn't he a little too young to have Huntington's this far advanced?

Bug: Whoa. Check this out.

Sidney: What did he swallow, a disco ball?

Jordan: Biochips. Here, pass that over.

Sidney: Biochips? What's that?

Bug: Tiny shards of crystal coated with DNA. Used to monitor drug absorption.

Jordan: Drug companies use them in clinical trials. This poor guy was being used as a guinea pig.

Bug: With his consent, presumably.

Jordan: Somehow I doubt he consented to being k*lled.

***Boston Police Precinct***

Garret: It's not definite, Woody, but the shape of the wound and the ante-mortem bleeding make homicide a possibility.

Woody: Jeez, that's what I'm talking about. If you're right, we're gonna have a circus on our hands.

Garret: I know, it's gonna be a mess. Wait a second.

Woody: Isn't that the front of your building? Let's check this out.

Pelone: (on tv) ...I have been working with theMedical examiner's office. And it is my opinion that all indicators at this time point to Tamara's death as being the result of a freak and tragic accident.

Woody: Who is she? Didn't you just tell me—

Garret: Yeah.

Woody: So she disagrees—

Garret: No, the Eldridge’s hired her, and now I think I know why.

Woody: Why?

Pelone: And when we confirm our findings, we will let you know. Thank you.

Garret: You want a circus? They want a cover-up.

***ME's Office***

Pelone: I know how it might have appeared, Doctor, but the media was asking questions, and I merely gave answers based on my judgment.

Garret: It was a preemptive strike, wasn't it?

Pelone: Preemptive of what?

Garret: You tell me. You show up on the payroll, take one quick look at the body, and undercut my judgment on a national newscast.

Woody: Excuse me, Doc, I—

Pelone: Are you questioning my integrity?

Garret: You mean, assuming you actually have some. You heard me speculate m*rder.

Pelone: Yes, and wouldn't you love the notoriety that would bring to your office.

Garret: Don't try to turn this around. I wasn't the one jumping into the spotlight.

Pelone: And that's what you're upset about. You pretend we're not part of the same hypocrisy, but a high-profile case like this could make your career.

Garret: Wait a minute-- "make my career"? Lady, I'm the chief medical examiner for the city of Boston. My career is fairly well made. Maybe your mind goes right to personal advancement, but not mine. All I want here is the truth.

Pelone: And I'm sure I'll see you on a nationwide newscast when you find it.

Woody: (Laughs) Wow.

Pelone: And don't ever call me "lady."

Woody: Cover-up or not, that woman is awesome.

Garret: What do you want, Woody?

Woody: A couple things. First of all, I went back to the school and grabbed Tammi's laptop. Nigel's checking out the files right now.

Garret: Looking for what?

Woody: Apparently she was making some kind of video on her family. Teacher said she was editing it on her computer. Nigel. Yo, Nigel. Nigel! (Nigel has headphones on that are very loud)

Nigel: Whoa!

Woody: Any luck?

Nigel: Ah, sorry to disappoint, chaps. But there will be no screening today. There were lots of mpeg files, but they've all been deleted.

Garret: Can you retrieve them?

Nigel: I'm working on it. But here's the curious thing. The files were deleted yesterday morning at 7:03.

Woody: Yesterday after Tammi was already d*ad?

Nigel: And shortly before the body was found.

Woody: Okay, now I really want to see them.

Garret: Stay on it. I gotta get back to the body.

Santana: So you're saying he was, like, a lab rat?

Bug: Well, we broke down the components of the mystery drug in Troy's system, and there's nothing like it on the market out there.

Jordan: Meaning it's likely in the testing phase. We're flagging all drug companies that might be running trials for Huntington’s.

Bug: Well, I'll see if the search has any hits yet.

Lily: Reggie's here, Jordan.

Jordan: Great.

Santana: You called the brother back in? Why?

Lily: He's still technically your jurisdiction. And you wanted a nice, juicy m*rder.

Santana: But I meant something involving a g*n or a Kn*fe, not some drug testing, whatever this case is.

Jordan: So, Reggie, have a seat.

Santana: I see you got your arm taken care of?

Reggie: Yeah.

Jordan: Whoa, the hospital did that? Sloppy job.

Reggie: That's what no insurance gets you. I wrapped it myself.

Jordan: Oh, well--

Reggie: It's okay, you don't have to--

Jordan: Just relax. I won't bill you. There you go.

Reggie: Thanks.

Santana: Reggie, was your brother hard up for cash?

Reggie: Not at all. He drove a truck. Good money, full bennies. Why you asking?

Jordan: Well, there's a chance that the fall from your bike had nothing to do with your brother's death.

Reggie: Really? What do you mean?

Jordan: Did you know that Troy had Huntington's?

Reggie: No.

Jordan: Do you know what that is?

Reggie: It's a chromosomal mutation. Inherited as an autosomal dominant condition.

Jordan: Well, I'd say that you do.

Reggie: It runs in my family. Our mom died of it. Which means that Troy and I had a 50% statistical chance of inheriting it. Once we did, the chances of surviving longer than 15 years with it are...

Jordan: Was he taking anything for it? Any drugs?

Reggie: There's no cure for Huntington’s.

Jordan: We found something in his system we can't identify. Not available on the market.

Bug: It's called Gabacor. Just came through. It's in the early testing phase with MRC Pharmaceuticals.  

Reggie: I can't imagine Troy taking a chance on something like that.

Santana: The question is, would MRC Pharmaceuticals?

***MRC Pharmaceuticals***

Man: I've checked our files, and apparently we are testing Gabacor as a nerve drug for Huntington's disease.

Jordan: Ooh, are you testing it on people?

Man: No, no, no, my understanding is that it's restricted to rats. Human tests are still several years away.

Santana: Does the name Troy Duplaix mean anything to you?

Man: No--should it?

Jordan: I autopsied him yesterday. He was pumped so full of Gabacor his liver all but exploded on him.

Man: That's not possible.

Jordan: Well, I've got all the test results and his d*ad body to prove it.

Man: Somehow you think he got it here?

Santana: Well, where else would he get it? You're the only game in town testing this stuff.

Man: MRC Pharmaceuticals has nothing to hide.

Jordan: Great, so then you won't mind us checking into your database?

Man: I didn't say that.

Santana: Are you gonna make us get a warrant?

Man: Look, as head of legal affairs, it's my job to deal with all crackpots making bogus claims. Everybody's trying to make a buck.

Jordan: Oh, so that's what you think this is here then? That we're a couple of crackpots.

Man: I didn't say that, either.

Santana: Well, you're not saying a whole lot, are you?

Man: Look—

Jordan: No, you look. You can run all the interference you want. But if we find out you're lying, there won't be a settlement big enough to keep you in business.

Man: Have a nice day.

Jordan: That's your answer? "Have a nice day"?

Man: Be sure and have your parking validated on the way out.

Jordan: Yeah, you know what? Hey, validate this! (She flips him off)

Santana: Jeez, did you...

Jordan: What?

Santana: Woody's right. You're okay.

***Autopsy Two: Tammi Eldridge***

Garret: Second vertebrae fracture... would explain the subarachnoid hemorrhage. Vertebral tear appears as a result of a single blow to her neck. Confirming cause of death.

Woody: Talking to yourself again, Doc?

Garret: Tragic accident. How could she be so irresponsible?

Woody: That doctor's really gotten to you.

Garret: What do you make of this?

Woody: Why don't you describe it to me?

Garret: It's a piece of wood.

Woody: So? We found her body in the woods.

Garret: This is nothing off a tree or a branch. It's compressed and treated. She was h*t with something made of this material.

Woody: Then you were right. It is m*rder.

Garret: And you wonder why that woman really got to me?  

Nigel: Gentlemen! It's show time!

~Videotape~

 Guy: This is so you. Your old man's gonna freak.

Nigel: Looks to be one of those cutting-edge exposes on the trials of growing up insanely wealthy. 'Cause, you know, it's not all trust funds and magnums of crystal. I've just been able to put together some pieces. But I think you'll find it quite interesting.

~Videotape~

 Guy2: A movie about money? Our money? How boring can you get?

Woody: Kid's got a point.

Garret: Let's make a copy for the dean. See if we can put some names to the faces.

Nigel: You've got it.

~Videotape~

Luca: God, why didn't I think of this?

Woody: That's Luca. Lives across the hall from Tammi.

~Videotape~

Luca: I swear, Tammi, you're gonna win, like, an Oscar or something.

Nigel: Quite the little suck-up too.

~Videotape~

Tammi: Hey, everybody, I'm Tammi. But you already know that. And this is my film. For those of you out there-- and you know you're out there-- who have always wondered what it's like to have everything you've ever wanted. And yet somehow, as you'll find out, it's not enough.

Okay, Gavin, get in here! Sit down.

Garret: That's the brother.

~Videotape~

Tammi: First question.

Gavin: Yeah.  

Tammi: What is the biggest upside to being rich as sin?

Gavin: Oh, that's easy. Scoring babes.  

Tammi: Yeah, that's way too easy. Come on, what is the biggest downside of being rich?

Gavin: Having total losers for parents.  

Tammi: Okay, that's what I want. I want the truth.

Gavin: Having a father who's done nothing with his life except inherit a big pile of money, rip off his partners, cheat on his taxes. A mom who is so afraid of getting old that she makes a fool of herself hitting on my friends. And we're supposed to follow in their footsteps. It sucks.

Tammi: Gavin, you have something in your mouth. You ever tell Dad how you feel?

Gavin: Whoa, whoa, hey, wait, Tammi. You're not actually going to show him this, are you?

Tammi: Well, he'll just have to buy a ticket like everybody else.

Gavin: No, no, no, wait. Just erase the last little bit.

Tammi: But that is the point. To show that we are as screwed up, if not more so, as kids with no money.

Gavin: Yeah, and if Dad sees this, I'm gonna find out what it is to have no money. Give me the tape.

Tammi: No way.

Gavin: Tammi, give me the tape.

Tammi: No way.

Gavin: Give me the tape!

Tammi: No way! No! Wait, no!

(Gavin smashes the camera with a baseball bat)

Woody: Well, now we know why Tammi stole the school's camera.

Nigel: I think we finally have a suspect.

Garret: You heard what he said about his father. I think we have two.

***Eldridge Residence***

Garret: We're gonna need hair and blood samples from both you and your dad.

Woody: And your whereabouts the day that Tammi died.

Mrs. Eldridge: How can you do this? My little girl is d*ad! Aren't we suffering enough?

Mr. Eldridge: Our attorney is on his way.

Gavin: There's no way I could do what you're saying.

Woody: Nice rotation, though, when you cracked Tammi's camera with that bat.

Gavin: You saw that? She pissed me off! That's not a crime!

Woody: It may not be, but these were. Uh, two counts of aggravated as*ault, drunk and disorderly.

Gavin: None of those ever stuck.

Mrs. Eldridge: Those were college indiscretions, Detective!

Mr. Eldridge: People in our position are always targets.

Garret: So you get people like Dr. Pelone to make things right. Nothing like a pathologist with a high tv-q to call the dogs off.

Gavin: What?

Mr. Eldridge: Mara Pelone is an expert in her field. In you, I have no such confidence.

Gavin: Wait, wait, wait--you guys hired that lady on the news? You don't think I did this, do you?

Mrs. Eldridge: Of course not. Don't be ridiculous.

Gavin: Look, I was in Palm Beach the past week playing golf! You can call them!

Garret: Is that how you hurt your hand?

Gavin: Yeah, look. Blister. You can tell. I got a bad swing.

Mr. Eldridge: Will you shut up?

Gavin: No, you shut up, Dad. I didn't do anything!

Garret: The problem is your sister was k*lled by a sharp blow with a blunt wooden object, like a baseball bat.

Woody: Talk about a bad swing.

Gavin: No, no, no way, I could never hurt my sister. She's the only friend I had.

***Autopsy One: Troy Duplaix***

Bug: (Drilling) Your affection for power tools is beginning to trouble me.

Sidney: We got Troy's medical records. It seems he was no stranger to County General. Actually, his last visit was the day before he died.

Bug: What, his brother didn't know?

Jordan: Choreic spasms, distonia. Sounds right for Huntington’s.

Sidney: Keep reading. They also did a liver panel. Results are in the normal levels.

Jordan: How could that be? He died of liver failure the very next day.

Bug: Are you sure these are his records?

Sidney: Yeah, look-- they have his social, his address, his date of birth.

Jordan: This is all getting a little too weird for me. The vessels are all clear. I don't understand.

Sidney: Huntington's causes atrophy. No lobes are even dilated.

Bug: But he had the disease-fighting proteins in his system. How did he get the antibodies in his blood?

Sidney: If he doesn't even have Huntington’s...

Jordan: Then why was he taking Gabacor?

***Autopsy Two: Tammi Eldridge***

Pelone: Such a waste.  

Garret: Let me guess. You're here to substantiate Gavin's alibi. Maybe you were playing golf with him in Palm Beach.

Pelone: You were right. I had no business usurping your authority on the case.

Garret: But...

Pelone: But I would hate for you to think I'd actually stoop to tailoring my findings for a fee.

Garret: You've helped this kid out of trouble before, haven't you?

Pelone: Once, on a simple as*ault charge, when he was nowhere near it. Check the record.

Garret: That must make you very proud.

Pelone: Why don't you like me, Doctor?

Garret: I believe we've established that.

Pelone: This isn't about the case. You've had a chip on your shoulder from minute one.

Garret: Because I loathe everything you represent.

Pelone: No need to sugarcoat it. Enlighten me.

Garret: The wholesale presentation of what we do for entertainment's sake. Maybe I'm old-fashioned, but I miss the days when cracking a cause of death or solving a m*rder was about bringing justice to the victims. And peace of mind to the grieving families.

Pelone: I see. You are old-fashioned.

Garret: I could go on.

Pelone: You must be such fun at dinner parties.

Woody: Doc! This is just about to get very interesting.

Nigel: Doctor, good to see you back.

Garret: What is it, guys?

Woody: It's, uh, ahem, about our boy.

Pelone: Brr, did it just get chilly in here?

Garret: No, no, stay. Unless we're boring you outside the spotlight.

Woody: All right, the bad news is that both of their alibis checked out. Dad was getting a root canal that day, and Gavin was playing golf in Palm Beach all last week.

Pelone: And why is that bad news?

Woody: I do not believe Palm Beach. Guy I spoke to sounded set up. Like Gavin had bought himself a built-in alibi.

Pelone: Now you're being paranoid.

Nigel: I would have agreed with you on that, Doctor, except that we took a tissue sample from the blister on the kid's hand, and I just got the results back. It shows high levels of carbon from road tar used by Boston utilities.

Garret: Road tar, what's that got to do with anything?

Pelone: And how did it get there?

Nigel: It's not how it got there. It's that the carbon elements diminish over time.

Garret: Does the tar match any trace from Tammi?

Nigel: No, but from the high levels of carbon that remained, it showed the kid was likely in Boston the day Tammi was k*lled.

Woody: Not sounding so paranoid now, am I?

Pelone: Nice work.

Nigel: Just doing my job, ma'am.

***Eldridge Residence***

Mr. Eldridge: Thank you, Jack. Gavin is out. What is it now?

Woody: He lied to us, Mr. Eldridge. About where he was the day Tammi was k*lled.

Mr. Eldridge: What, you're saying, he wasn't really in Palm Beach?

Garret: Where can we find him?

Mr. Eldridge: I don't know. He took the Viper.

Woody: Fancy car like that, I'm sure it's got a GPS locator. We can track him.

Mr. Eldridge: Look, you have got this all wrong.

Garret: The police are gonna stay here to make sure you don't disappear on us.

Mr. Eldridge: Disappear? Do you have any idea who you are talking to?

Garret: If you're protecting your son, you're gonna have some explaining to do. Come on.

Woody: GPS puts the car right around this curve.

Garret: There.

Woody: Gavvy, what's up, you moonlighting?

Gavin: Man! What are you guys doing to me?

Garret: What are you doing here?

Gavin: What does it look like? Community service.

Garret: Mind if we take a look at your hand?

Gavin: Look, guys, I gotta handle this one myself.

Woody: Handle what?

Gavin: Public lewdness. My dad finds out, he'll disown me, okay? Please--please don't tell him.

~Videotape~

Luca: If I didn't have the money? You mean, like, no money at all? God, I don't know. I'd...probably want to k*ll myself.

Woody: I don't get these kids. They got everything going for them, all that money. You'd think they'd be happier. All they seem to care about is hanging onto it.

Nigel: We all hang on to what defines us, Woody. Maybe that's what Tammi was trying to show.

Woody: Maybe that's what got her k*lled.

Garret: We're still no closer to figuring it out.

Nigel: I don't know. It's not like we were completely wrong, Dr. M., Not technically. We were just following a trail of evidence--

Garret: I'll remember to tell the mayor that when the Eldridge family files their lawsuit. I'll be slinging tar next to Gavin.

Pelone: Actually, his community service ends next week.  

Garret: You here to gloat?

Pelone: Wouldn't dream of it. Though I have spoken to the Eldridge’s, and, no, they're not happy.

Garret: Yeah, well, we're not finished yet. Nigel, are you done cataloging all that debris off Tammi's body?

Nigel: Every seed and bramble.

Garret: Anything unusual?

Nigel: No more shards of compressed wood, if that's what you're asking.

Garret: Okay, I think it's time we go back to the woods where we found her, comb it for evidence.

Woody: That's a lot of acreage, doc.

Nigel: I did find one lonely little tuft of alfalfa grass. It was embedded in her scalp underneath the shard of wood.

Woody: So you're saying it was there before the blow that k*lled her?

Garret: Or embedded by the blow.

Pelone: Alfalfa grass is expensive and hard to grow here.

Nigel: But horses love it. Would it be unlike high-class debs to grow it just for that specific purpose?

Woody: So if we find a patch of alfalfa grass--

Garret: Maybe we find our crime scene.

Pelone: Um, ahem! May I tag along?

Nigel: You're kind of overdressed.

Garret: And there won't be any news coverage.

Pelone: Ah, well, however will I manage?

***ME's Office***

Bug: What's that you're doing?

Sidney: What, you're actually interested in something I'm doing?

Bug: Well, let's just say my normal disdain for you is being outweighed by my curiosity at the moment.

Sidney: See? We're bonding, you and me.

Bug: Yeah, don't push it.

Sidney: I hacked into MRC labs' employee database. We're talking about 6,000 faces. Nationwide.

Bug: Well, try narrowing yourself to their research and development department. They'd be the ones handling the experimental drugs.

Sidney: Oh, yeah, that helps. Down to 440.

Bug: Wait. Back up. There.

Sidney: Are you kidding me?

Bug: Think Jordan's gonna wanna see this.

***Duplaix Apartment***

Santana: Police! Huh. What was going on here?

Jordan: Well, drug absorption charts for Gabacor.

Santana: What's it for?

Jordan: Well, maybe you could tell us, Reggie. Look, we know you worked for MRC as a pharmaceutical engineer. And my guess is that it's you who has Huntington’s.

Santana: That's why you wrapped up your own arm. Couldn't let a doctor see it?

Reggie: I need the sling to control my tremors. When MRC laid me off, I lost my coverage.

Jordan: So you used your brother’s. You went to the hospital posing as him. The antibodies listed in Troy's blood were actually yours.

Reggie: The tests we were running at MRC were years from being complete. I couldn't wait that long. Troy knew that he might get it one day too. When I got too weak to handle the Gabacor, Troy insisted on testing it himself. He was doing it for me.

Jordan: But he had a bad reaction to the Gabacor. You had to get him to the hospital, and he couldn't stay on the motorcycle.

Reggie: He was doing it for me. Just like I'd have done it for him. (Sobbing) I'm so sorry, Troy! Oh, what did I do? What did I do?

***Leighton Academy Riding Grounds***

Nigel: Alfalfa! I'd say we're only looking at a few patches of the stuff.

Woody: And not 50 yards from where Tammi's body was found.

Pelone: Oh, me of little faith. I stand corrected.

Garret: I know it's a needle in a haystack, but it's our last best chance. Let's go.

Woody: I hate to use a tired cliché, but bingo.

Nigel: Same compressed wood you found on Tammi.

Pelone: Looks like blood.

Woody: Doesn't look like a broken bat.

Nigel: Looks more like a polo mallet.

Woody: See? Now, he would know that.

Garret: What are the odds Leighton Academy's got a polo team?

Dean: Most of the equipment that we have is in here. Softball, basketball, cricket.

Garret: Polo.

Dean: Yeah, we've got polo.

Nigel: Okay, now, I'm no expert, but I would imagine those are the mallets. (Nigel fits the piece they found to one of the mallets)

Garret: Let's get it back and check it for prints. You have a roster of the players on the polo team?

Dean: I'm sure we do somewhere, but there's a team photo right over here.

Woody: Well, Nigel and the media princess can take all the prints they want. I got a hunch we're not gonna need them. What can you tell us about that girl?

Luca: Come in. Oh, hi.

Woody: Hi, Luca. How are you? This is Dr. Garret Macy, chief medical examiner. Is this a bad time?

Luca: For what?

Woody: You're packing. You going somewhere?

Luca: Yeah, St. Thomas. A bunch of girls are going. Is there something you guys want?

Woody: We were watching that video that Tammi made just before she died. You know, the one about her family that someone tried to erase.

Garret: Turns out it was about all your families. What life was like with all that money. What it might be like without it.

Woody: And on it, you said that you would k*ll yourself.

Luca: I did? I was only joking. (Cell phone rings) Look, guys, I really should keep packing.

Woody: Oh, Luca, Luca, let me grab that bottle, would you? Just drop it right in there. There you go.

Luca: Why? I-I don't understand.

Woody: We believe that Tammi was lured out of her room for an early morning ride, and then struck in the base of her skull with a polo mallet.

Luca: Look, I don't know anything about that.

Woody: Yes, but you also told me that you and Tammi never hung out, that you weren't really friends. And then I found out that the two of you were teammates. So I'm guessing that you knew each other pretty well.  

Garret: We have the m*rder w*apon, Luca. We found a set of clean prints, right at the base of the handle.

Woody: As soon as we run these... really just a matter of time.

Garret: You wanna tell us about it?

Luca: She wouldn't listen. I tried to reason with her, but she didn't care. I mean...maybe she could live with it, but... you don't talk about money. Ever. It's in poor taste, and it's shameful, and, well, it just isn't done in my family.

Garret: So if they ever found out that you did...

Luca: If anyone ever heard what I said—

Woody: You'd be disowned.

Luca: And then what would I do? I mean, look at me. (Crying) I'm not beautiful, like Tammi. I'm not smart. No personality, no skills. I'm rich. That's what I am. That's all that I am.

Garret: None of that's true.

Luca: She just wouldn't listen.

***ME's Office***

~Videotape~

Luca: (Sobbing) My parents... they don't even know me. That's the arrangement. (Sniffling) The dirty little secret is... I was a mistake. I'm so sick of horses. Sick of this stupid school and all the money they spend to keep me out of their hair. I'm just sick of everything.

Jordan: I think I'm sick of everything myself.

Garret: She's just a kid. A sad, scared kid.

Jordan: Prime material for a movie of the week.

Garret: Please. I've had enough talk about show business for one day.

Jordan: Your new girlfriend?

Garret: Would you... give me a break? How was your day?

Jordan: Uh, not so uplifting.

Garret: What else is new?

Jordan: Yeah, I'm better now, though. I think I just need a stiff drink or a hot bath. I'm not sure which.

Pelone: Both sound good to me.

Jordan: Well, speak of the devil.

Pelone: Oh, is that how he describes me?

Garret: Dr. Jordan Cavanaugh, Dr. Mara Pelone.

Jordan: Well, at last. I love your work, as they say.

Pelone: I've read your name in the forensic journal. You crack a lot of cases.

Jordan: You know, I wouldn't crack any without this man-- Garret. He is a true genius, and quite single.

Garret: Goodnight, Jordan.

Jordan: See ya. Bye, Doctor.

Pelone: Doctor. Bright and beautiful. Well, I'm gonna have to watch out for her when the media grows tired of me.

Garret: You'd have better luck getting her to join the circus.

Pelone: Well, now, aren't they the same thing?

Garret: So...

Pelone: So...come on. You owe me dinner.

Garret: I do?

Pelone: You found Tammi's k*ller, proving me wrong to the Eldridge family. So I gave them their money back.

Garret: Really?

Pelone: Uh-huh.

Garret: I'm curious, exactly... how much did I cost you?

Pelone: Well, let's just say it's probably gonna take more than one dinner.
{"type": "series", "show": "Crossing Jordan", "episode": "04x12 - Family Affair"}