[A man is speaking on phone at home]
MAN: I told my lawyer I’d agree to mediation if Magda dropped the preconditions.
WOMAN [over phone]: she never appreciated you.
MAN: I know, I know, Mom. At least it’s not as ugly as divorce court.
WOMAN: no, you’re right. I agree with you.
MAN: thanks Mom.
WOMAN: keep your chin up.
MAN: yeah, I’m trying.
WOMAN: I love you. I’ll see you later.
MAN: Okay. All right, I love you too. Bye.
[He hangs up, and sighs. He hears a door banging and heads looking at. The noise comes from a baby bedroom: a window is open. He closes it, and takes with nostalgia a comfort object-rabbit. He looks at a photo: he’s with a wife and a Baby…In the room, a Teddy bear is recording the scene. He’s suddenly grabbed by the neck and there’s the awful sound of a blade cutting a throat (grunting)…He falls down… (gags and thuds)]
♫ ♫ NCIS: LA 1x09 ♫ ♫ Random on purpose ♫ ♫
♫ ♫ Original Air date on November 24, 2009 ♫ ♫
[Callen is entering the office and is stuck in front of the desks, looking puzzled. Sam joins him]
SAM: Mornin', g. When did that happen? [He’s as surprised as G. Kensi is the third newcomer]
KENSI: Hey, guys. Whoa. [Same astonished look] Who did this?
CALLEN: Don't know.
KENSI: Where's all our stuff?
CALLEN: Don't know.
SAM: Think it's safe to go in.
CALLEN: Don't know.
SAM: I'm saying I think it's safe to go in.
KENSI: Am I seeing assigned seats?
SAM: Yep, I'm here. This is nice, nice! [He sits down happily] Oh, look, They even sharpened my pencils.
CALLEN: Do you write with pencils?
SAM: No.
KENSI: Could be one of Nate's psych experiments.
SAM: I'm not one of Nate's lab rats.
[Callen looks at a mail sorter]
CALLEN: You ever known me to receive mail?
SAM: Nope.
CALLEN: Send mail?
SAM: Nope.
NATE: Organization and productivity are directly correlated. Cleanliness is next to, um...[they stare at him] efficiency.
KENSI: So, you moved our stuff?
NATE: I tried to stop her.
CALLEN: Hetty. She's the only one...
[She’s just appeared behind him…and smiles at his face]
HETTY: Continue, Mr. Callen, continue.
CALLEN: With the authority...
HETTY: Ah. Hmm…Nate, if your comment that "they might be miffed" constitutes trying to stop me, I suggest you learn more forceful techniques of self-assertion. Not that I would have listened. People, this is an office. Insofar as you have equipment necessary to your duties, you'll find it in your desks. Insofar as you had "stuff," you'll find it all upstairs in trash bags.
NATE: Most of it's Kensi's.
HETTY: You're welcome to add a personal touch or two. But let's not again have it looking like a fraternity lounge. Now, if you'll follow me, we have work.
[They stay downstairs and look at a monitor; Eric and Dom are sit in front of computers]
HETTY: Chief petty officer Frank McEllon was murdered last night. He was one of the navy's top engineers.
ERIC: He worked on super-cavitation. Really cool technology. Puts a bubble around a submarine, quadruples its speed.
DOM: From 25 knots top speed fully submerged to 100 knots.
CALLEN: Nifty trick.
SAM: A trick you'd want to keep secret.
HETTY: Murder and possible espionage. Both balls are in your court, Mr. Callen. [She leaves them]
ERIC: Hey, new bullpen's great, huh?
[They all give him a nasty look…]
[Sam, Callen and Kensi are searching McEllon’s house]
SAM: An enlisted sailor lives here?
CALLEN: It's a little too upmarket, isn't it?
SAM: Way upmarket.
[They join Kensi in the baby’s room]
KENSI: Mobiles go over cribs, right?
SAM: Huh. Looks like baby moved out.
CALLEN: Probably not by herself.
SAM: Now, the alarm system showed this window open just before the murder.
[He takes his cell phone] (phone beeping)
SAM: Eric...There's a house directly behind us. They have a security cam…Thanks.
CALLEN: So, McEllon hears a noise, then he comes in.
SAM: Killer takes him from behind, no struggle.
CALLEN: Mcellon's six foot. So, the killer's strong, he's quiet.
SAM: Knows how to use a knife. [Miming]
KENSI: Hey, guys. [She’s at the window] What do you see?
CALLEN: Huh...Dusted for prints, but there aren't any. This was the only window open, So he came and went through here.
KENSI: The whole crime scene is like this. Do you know what the forensics report is going to find? Absolutely nothing. No prints, fibers, hairs. This guy didn't leave a trace.
[Sam has just grabbed the teddy bear and looks at it closely] (fabric tearing) [He shows the toy]
SAM: Nanny cam.
CALLEN: With a front-row seat…
[Downstairs. Sam and Callen are on their phone]
CALLEN: Okay, Eric, thanks.
SAM: Keep looking, Dom.
[They face each other and speak together]
SAM: Dom's trying to track down--
CALLEN: Eric says that the window--
[They stop- and speak again together]
SAM: --Mcellon's wife.
CALLEN: --the killer used...
[They stop- and speak again together]
CALLEN: The killer knew...
SAM: The wife split a month...
[Kensi joins them and tosses up to find out who’ll speak first]
KENSI: Callen.
CALLEN: The…Was I heads or tails?
KENSI: I'm not telling you.
CALLEN: The window that the killer used was not covered by the security camera out back.
KENSI: Our guy must've cased the house first then.
CALLEN: But Eric found another camera next door.
SAM: Hmm.
CALLEN: Now, this is video from four days ago. [it plays on his phone: a man looks at the camera] He's running facial recognition, but there's been no hits yet.
KENSI: And now it's your turn, Sam.
SAM: McEllon's wife split with the baby a month ago. Dom's still trying to track her down.
CALLEN: Financials?
SAM: Turns out McEllon's money is clean. He designed sub technology before he joined the Navy. His patents are lucrative.
CALLEN: Why would a wealthy engineer enlist?
SAM: The same reason Pat Tillman left the NFL to join the Army. Patriotism. McEllon signed on after 9/11.
KENSI: So, a patriotic guy sells secrets?
CALLEN: That would make him unpatriotic, Kensi.
KENSI: You were tails, for the record.
CALLEN: Can I have my phone, please? Thank you very much.
SAM: Heh. (chuckles)
[.NCIS office. Sam and G. are sitting at their desks]
CALLEN: Feels… weird.
SAM: I like it. I'm over here, You're way over there.
[Eric whistling]
SAM: You see the forensics report?
CALLEN: No. [They get up and head to the OPS center]
SAM: It's right there in your in-box.
CALLEN: I thought it was the out-box.
SAM: Kensi was right. The killer left no DNA. No fibers, no hairs, no prints, nothing. Never seen anything like it.
[OPS center. Everyone is already here when Sam and Callen enter. Kensi hands G. a file. Director Vance is on screen]
CALLEN: Thanks.
VANCE: Agent Callen, agent Hanna.
CALLEN: Director.
VANCE: NSA completed a preliminary review. Sub program's security protocols do not appear to have been breached. Espionage or not, this case is still a priority. That's why I'm sending our top forensic specialist to assist you.
SAM: But there are no forensics.
VANCE: Our forensic expert has a theory about this crime. That's, shall we say, original. Thinks McEllon is the victim of a serial killer. No other law enforcement organization in this country thinks this killer even exists. Can't say I do either.
CALLEN: And you're sending this person why?
VANCE: I was ganged up on. [Video off]
CALLEN: [incredulously] Who gangs up on the director of a federal agency?
HETTY: Oh, you'd be surprised, Mr. Callen.
CALLEN: And who's the expert? [They’ll be more surprised!!]
Woman: Oops, I think I took a wrong turn. Hello?
ERIC: Abby? We're in here.
ABBY: There you are. Hi. Wow, this place is seriously cool!
--------------------- ZAPPING ------------------
[Eric and Abby are in front of the large screen. All the others look closely at them]
ABBY: So, how do you...?
ERIC: [demonstrating] Double tap, get the menu, fill the screen. It's all very intuitive.
ABBY: No wonder McGee can't stop talking about this. [Smile fads on Eric’s face…]
ABBY: So, I'm sure Leon has told you that I know who killed McEllon.
ERIC: Wait, you call him Leon?
ABBY: You don't?
ERIC: Not successfully.
ABBY: Give it time.
CALLEN: You have a name for us, Abby?
ABBY: He's called the phantom.
CALLEN: By whom?
ABBY: By me.
SAM: Anyone else?
ABBY: No, just me.
HETTY: Well, I'm-I'm going to leave you kids to it. But I must say, Abby, you are the first NCIS employee I've ever met with a sense of style. You'd all do well to note that one can be functional and stylish at the same time. Right, Mr. Beale?
[Eric nods, Hetty leaves, G. can’t help a smile]
KENSI: So, Abby, the forensics report has no evidence of the killer.
ABBY: That's why I call him the phantom. 14 murders in two years. I mean, it took me a while to see his pattern, but…Okay, pull up the list of his murders, please.
[Eric obeys]
ABBY: This is a private web site for forensic specialists.
ERIC: Abby's a rock star among them.
ABBY: I've been blogging about the phantom for a few months. I'm trying to get local police departments to pursue him.
[Callen comes closer to the list on the screen]
CALLEN: A 67-year-old black female poisoned in Tampa.
ABBY: The killer left nothing. No hair, no DNA, no fibers. Zippity-do-dah.
SAM: 22-year-old white male shot in Des Moines.
ABBY: No trace of a killer.
KENSI: 37-year-old Asian female in Boise.
ABBY: With a crowbar! Do you know how hard it is to cudgel someone to death with a crowbar and leave no forensic evidence? I mean, the cases with zero forensics are rare. Like-like every few years kind of rare. And this is 14 in two years.
CALLEN: Okay. Have any of the local PD's pursued this phantom theory?
ABBY: Not one. I mean, can you believe that?
SAM: Now, serial killers are either organized or disorganized. This guy's organized in leaving no forensics.
KENSI: But completely disorganized in everything else. I mean, random victims, weapons, locations. It just doesn't look like one single killer.
ABBY: He makes it look random on purpose. That's how I knew that McEllon was a phantom victim. Not just the no forensics part, but he never repeats himself. Like he's never cut the neck of a 40-year-old white guy before, see?
CALLEN: Clearly, you've spent a lot of time on this.
ABBY: If you wanna get my attention, show me a crime scene and tell me there's no clues.
ERIC: Oh, we have a clue. This guy. Casing the house three days before the murder.
ABBY: Whoa, okay. The phantom's not really the kind of guy to let himself get caught on camera. But three days prior, scoping the place out? Maybe he's finally slipped up.
[Hetty’s office. Callen sits down opposite to Hetty]
CALLEN: (sighing) I'm just curious. Why you pressured Vance to send Abby.
HETTY: He wasn't buying her phantom theory. He needed goosing.
CALLEN: So you want us chasing the phantom?
HETTY: Mr. Callen, is that what you think?
CALLEN: I don't know. There's... There's been some meddling around here, and I'm a little fuzzy on the command chain.
HETTY: This case lacks forensics. As your operations manager, I procured for you our best scientist. To help you. You, as head agent, are free to pursue whatever theory of crime makes the most sense. There's no fuzziness, Callen. You still shoot the ducks. I just row the boat.
[Callen nods]
[NCIS office. Downstairs. Sam, Abby, Callen and Kensi are watching footage from the Teddy bear camera with Dom]
KENSI: What is he holding, a rabbit?
SAM: He misses his little girl.
CALLEN: Hang on. [He points at the screen] Let me see here, and here. It's the same fabric, top and bottom.
DOM: Overalls?
ABBY: It's a full bodysuit. That explains it! He doesn't leave it, he takes it with him!
SAM: Takes what with him?
ABBY: Hair, and fibers, and skin. Evidence. Every day we lose 50,000 dead epidermal cells--That's 1.5 pounds per year. We have to go to this crime scene.
KENSI: Abby, the crime scene is done.
ABBY: Yeah, and they found nothing.
CALLEN: So you want to go, why?
ABBY: Because I think I can find something.
CALLEN: All right. [Without any excitement…]
[McEllon’s house]
KENSI: CSI guys tracked through dirt. The scene's completely contaminated, Abby.
ABBY: I'm not looking for footprints that leave dirt, I'm looking for footprints that remove dirt.
KENSI: Okay, so you're thinking that...Come with me. Smart thinking, Abby. You live up to the hype.
[Girls go up, men stay downstairs. Sam watches his phone]
SAM: Dom found e-mails from Magda McEllon threatening to kill her husband.
CALLEN: I'm going to need to talk to her.
SAM: Gotta find her first.
KENSI: Yo, Callen, Sam. In here.
[Boys join girls into the baby bedroom]
ABBY: So, most footwear is electrically neutral. But some bodysuits made for chemical workers or doctors, they have a tiny electrostatic charge.
KENSI: Electrostatic charges, they pick up dust. Just like those dust cloths you see advertised on late night TV.
CALLEN: You know about cleaning products?
SAM: You watch late night TV?
ABBY: I can get the full pattern from his bootie in this dust here, [She lights a “footprint” on the ground] and then I can find you the make and a manufacturer.
CALLEN: Huh. Thank you, Abby Sciuto.
ABBY: You're welcome, G. Callen.
[Callen is taking a pic of a mail on McEllon’s desk]
SAM: So where do we start looking for Magda McEllon? (shutter snaps)
[Callen shows his partner the mail]
SAM: Zuggler-smith. I hate lawyers.
[Zuggler-Smith office]
RECEPTIONIST: Ms. Jenkins has left for lunch.
SAM: See, I told you she said the restaurant.
(Elevator bell dings) [The receptionist looks at people waiting for it and gasps slightly]
CALLEN: Oh, there she is.
RECEPTIONIST: Enjoy your lunch.
SAM: Thank you.
[Outside. Sam and Callen are walking with Ms. Jenkins]
JENKINS: My job, I deal with a lot of jerks. Frank McEllon was a real gentleman. Even to his wife, who demanded two-thirds of his submarine patents... Things he had invented before they even met.
CALLEN: You advised him to fight.
JENKINS: With the future value, hell, yes.
SAM: They're already a gravy train if he can afford to hire you.
JENKINS: You're cute. Frank told me they'd be worth a lot more soon. Top secret and all, but that had to mean the Navy liked his inventions. That's a lucky wife. She's a widow, not an ex.
CALLEN: So Magda McEllon gets it all. [Jenkins nods]
SAM: So, um, when your people went to serve her with the papers, where'd they go?
[Jenkins smiles…]
♪ ♪ [Venice. Sam stops is car and the Special agents head to Magda’s place] ♫
SAM: Five years married to a button-down Navy guy. She splits, moves down here to get a taste of the crazies.
CALLEN: I used to live here.
SAM: Well, you and crazy speaks for itself.
CALLEN: That's her. [A blond woman is starting running]
SAM: Oh, she's fast.
CALLEN: Fast for a short girl.
SAM: I said she's fast. [They must run to follow her]
CALLEN: I said she's short. Nanny cam, McEllon's killer was the same height as he was. She's got the motive, she's just not tall enough.
SAM: But he is. [Magda has stopped and is speaking with a guy]
CALLEN: That's the guy that was casing McEllon's house.
[They kiss before she runs again]
MAGDA: Gotta go!
CALLEN: Ah...Boyfriend-girlfriend. She's not even divorced yet.
SAM: (chuckles)
CALLEN: Did you see other partners after I was shot?
SAM: Oh, no, I'm a loyal guy, G.
CALLEN: Mm-hmm. Think old lover boy over there's loyal?
SAM: Loyal enough to do Magda's bidding?
[The man glances at them. Callen grabs eccentric sun glasses (with guns) and tries them]
CALLEN: What do you think, ten bucks?
SAM: (whistles): Don't do it. (Chuckles)
[The guy glances once more and starts leaving in the opposite]
CALLEN: Now, is that a casual walking away or an I-see-two-guys-that-may- be-law-enforcement walking away?
SAM: I might look like law enforcement.
CALLEN: Yeah? What do I look like?
SAM: Like you grew up here.
[He taps G.’s shoulder. They walk behind the guy who sees this and starts fleeing]
[He grabs a bike and throws it in the agents way] (Bystanders yelling)
MAN1: Come on!
MAN2: What are you doing man?!
[He grabs a rollerblader and throws her into the agents arms]
ROLLERBLADER: Aah! Unh.
SAM: Unh.
CALLEN: Unh.
MAN3: What happened?
[People yell, the man grabs a biker and pushes him: (grunts) he runs with his motorcycle (engine revs) drives to a parking lot where a trailer crosses his way. (horn honking, tires squealing)
DRIVER: Watch out!
[He turns round and heads very fast towards the agents-(engine revving) they each punch him and Bike and biker fall down heavily]
MAN: (grunting)
[Callen and Sam lean towards him]
CALLEN: You hurt?
MAN: Uh-huh.
CALLEN: Good.
------------------- ZAPPING --------------------
[Kensi is waiting in a car with Dom. They spot Magda ending her training]
KENSI: There's Magda McEllon. I'll talk, you get the video.
DOM: Okay.
KENSI: Make sure you zoom in on her reaction. [She grabs her NCIS badge]
DOM: You're on.
[Boathouse. Questioning room. Callen sits down opposite to the man they caught]
CALLEN: So what's your name?
BROCK: Cyrus hill.
CALLEN: (laughs): That's funny. You don't actually look like a Cyrus. Facial recognition says that your name is Ted Brock. Why'd you run?
BROCK: I thought you were going to steal my stuff.
CALLEN: It had nothing to do with the two outstanding arrest warrants? So, basically, what you do is you butter up rich ladies and then you steal their things. What I want to know is, where were you last night?
BROCK: I had a date.
CALLEN: Mm-hmm.
BROCK: With Magda McEllon.
[Venice]
KENSI: Magda McEllon? Hi. I'm special agent Kensi Blye. I need to speak with you. Please have a seat.
[They sit down on a bench. Dom stands a little further and starts recording] (beep)
KENSI: This is, uh, difficult. I'm sorry to have to tell you, but...Um...Your husband was murdered last night. I'm sorry.
[Magda looks astonished, and starts crying]
MAGDA: Oh, my god. How? Where?
KENSI: In his house.
MAGDA: (choked sob)
KENSI: I'm really sorry, but I need to ask you this. Where were you last night?
[Boathouse]
BROCK: I took magda to dinner at the Ivy.
[Venice]
MAGDA: I-I was... I was here, with-with Lilly, my baby.
[Boathouse]
CALLEN: And lilly?
BROCK: She hired a babysitter.
[Next room, Sam and Nate are watching closely both scenes on the same screen]
MAGDA: [over radio] We only have child care daytimes.
SAM: I'll take her story over his.
NATE: Facial cues: eyebrows, parted lips. Her surprise is genuine. She didn't know. Guys, she just skewered his alibi, let's get to motive.
[In the questioning room, Callen hears Nate]
[Venice]
KENSI: Tell me something. How long have you known this man?
MAGDA: Cyrus? A few weeks. Why?
KENSI: Actually, his name is Ted.
[Boathouse]
CALLEN: Ted, I'm guessing that you wanted the submarine patents that Magda would get if her husband was dead.
BROCK: I have no idea what you're talking about.
[Venice]
KENSI: did you tell ted about your husband's patents?
MAGDA: Yes. By mistake. I was...Pissed off after a phone call from Frank's lawyer.
[Boathouse]
SAM: He knows about the patents, G.
CALLEN: Hmm. Magda just called you a liar.
BROCK: She's out there? She can hear me?
CALLEN: You weren't with her last night. You knew about the patents and that she might lose them in the divorce. So you went to McEllon's house last night, and you killed him. Now she is a rich widow, and she dates you.
BROCK: Wait, that-that-that isn't true. Magda! I-I didn't kill anybody!
CALLEN: You cased the house four days ago. The security camera across the street. That's why you picked a different window last night when you killed him.
BROCK: I-I didn't kill him!
CALLEN: Then why did you case the house, Ted?
BROCK: Magda said he kept ten grand in bearer bonds. I saw the security camera. I didn't go in. I'm not a B&E guy.
CALLEN: So, where were you last night?
BROCK: (sighs) Brentwood. Lady friend.
CALLEN: She rich?
[OPS center. Eric puts a file on the screen for Sam and Callen](beeping)
ERIC: So, what happened to lover boy Brock?
SAM: He was what he said he was. So we turned him over to LAPD for those outstanding warrants. And back to square one.
CALLEN: Magda's not involved, we've pretty much ruled out espionage.
SAM: We have a killer who wears fancy suits and studies security cams.
CALLEN: We're missing motive.
ERIC: Maybe because it's random.
SAM: Oh. Abby got you on board?
CALLEN: He wishes.
SAM: (chuckles)
ERIC: So, um, do you guys know about the birthday paradox? Abby discusses it on her blog. How many people do you need in a room to have an even chance that two of them have the same birthday?
SAM: I don't know. 182 and a half.
ERIC: Only 23. And with 57 people it's a 99% chance that two of them have the same birthday. True randomness includes repeats.
SAM: A truly random group of murders would have at least two white males in their 20s.
ERIC: Yeah, or two gunshot deaths. Or two stabbing deaths. But there are no repeats. It's hard to do.
CALLEN: If the M.O. is to make it all appear random, Then why kill McEllon when there are so many other easy targets?
SAM: And if it is the phantom, then he changed his M.O. Now, why would he do that?
[Eric joins Abby downstairs: she’s working on a computer]
ERIC: Hey, so, good news. Flagstaff PD's going back to their crime scene.
ABBY: Jose Piñon, electrocuted in his bathtub five weeks ago. I told them to look for dust prints. I hope nobody cleaned the floor.
[Abby received an e-mail. On her screen, there’s a footprint]
ERIC: So, um...So that's the, uh... The bootie pattern?
ABBY: Yep. It was left inversely in the dust on the floor at the McEllons' house. It's a pattern from a Hazmat suit made by ProtectorSuits Inc. I e-mailed them for a distribution list, but they're not open till morning.
ERIC: Oh. Well, so, then, if we have to wait until...Until morning, then...
ABBY: Are you trying to ask me out, Eric?
[Hetty listens carefully from her office…]
ERIC: Yeah.
ABBY: Okay, just checking. Go ahead.
ERIC: Maybe, uh, a drink at, say, SteamPunk?
ABBY: It's only the coolest place I’ve wanted to go, but never been west of the Mississippi. Yes. [She gets up, grabs her bag] How did you know about SteamPunk?
ERIC: Uh, you mentioned it online somewhere.
ABBY: You've been reading my blog... A lot.
[SteamPunk. The bar is crowded. Rock music is playing.] ♪ ♪ [Abby and Eric head to a table with a drink]
ABBY: So, along with seeing this awesome club, I wanna see the Museum of Jurassic Technology and the Car Museum.
ERIC: Oh. Have you seen out back? There's hot rods everywhere.
ABBY: Yeah. This is where they hang out. That's what makes this place so cool. And I want to see an earthquake. Well, I-I mean, I know you can't see an earthquake, but I-I want to feel one. I mean, the whole earth shaking- I mean, just a small one, where no people or animals get hurt. But doesn't it feel cool?
ERIC: Yeah, I-I guess it feels kind of funky. When-when no one gets hurt. Um, do-do you want another, uh...Whatever this is? [He points at his glass]
ABBY: You're on refills. I'm gonna go check out the hot rods.
[She’s gone!]
[NCIS Office. Sam and Nate join Kensi and Callen at the desks]
SAM: Flagstaff PD found footprints in the dust. Same size, same pattern. Abby's right...The Phantom's real.
KENSI: Oh, my God, I am buying that woman a beer.
CALLEN: I'll buy her a brewery, but I still need to know, why McEllon? The Phantom's other victims were all easier targets.
NATE: That's not the only difference. All the other cases happened in smaller cities with PDs that didn't have the resources to nationalize the case. But now Los Angeles?
KENSI: Second biggest PD in the country.
SAM: And he gets NCIS involved. A federal agency. That's not random.
CALLEN: You hit McEllon because of NCIS.
NATE: Yeah, but what does that get you, other than caught?
CALLEN: It gets you abby sciuto.
♪ ♪ [SteamPunk parking lot. Abby gasps: fabulous cars are around her]
[NCIS Office]
SAM: The one person calling attention to you when you're trying like hell to stay off the radar.
KENSI: He must have had access to her blog. She only reported her Phantom theory on her closed forum.
CALLEN: He hacks into that, sees that she's a threat, kills someone from the Navy to draw her out. Where is she?
♫ [SteamPunk parking lot. Abby comes close to a car…]
[NCIS Office]
HETTY: They went to a bar. A place she talked about before online.
[The agents get up very fast. Callen grabs his phone]
CALLEN: Eric.
[SteamPunk]
ERIC: Hey, callen. You guys should come down here. This place is awesome….♪ ♪ What?
[SteamPunk parking lot. Someone puts a hand on Abby mouth]
ABBY: (muffled groaning)
[Her attacker sticks a syringe into her neck. She faints]
[SteamPunk. Inside, Eric sprints. Outside, Abby is pulled into a van]
[Eric checks the parking lot]
ERIC: Abby! ….Abby!
[On the ground, he spots her handbag. He looks desparate…]
------------------------ ZAPPING -----------------------
[Hetty’s office. Nate stands behind Hetty, they’ve a video call with Director Vance]
VANCE: (over phone): Where was she abducted?
HETTY: In a dark parking lot, Leon. But no video, and so far, no witnesses.
VANCE: Nate, I want brass tacks.
NATE: The good news is he abducted her instead of killing her outright. Probably wants to gloat and show her he's superior. The bad news is, she does pose a major threat to him, so he will kill her. Probably soon.
VANCE: All right. You keep me in the loop. Gibbs and his team are en route to Manassas airport. He's trying to get a favor with the FBI to borrow their G5. He'll be with you by midday.
HETTY: Let's pray abby has that long.
♪ ♪ [SteamPunk. Callen and Sam enter, push their way through the crowd (SAM: Excuse me, excuse me) and speak to the barman]
SAM: Excuse me. Have you seen this woman? Hey! I'm talking to you.
MAN: I don't care, big Muggle cop without a warrant.
[Sam grabs his shirt and pulls him closer]
SAM: Listen! I don't know what "Muggle" means, but I don't have time for this, Marilyn Manson.
CALLEN: Sam, let's do this all at once. [He takes Abby’s photo and turns the music off –by pulling wire out]
(music shuts off, crowd protests)
MAN1: Hey!
MAN2: It’s a party, man!
CALLEN: [he raises the photo over his head] Hi. This woman was abducted from here 30 minutes ago. Anyone see anything? …Anyone? We need your help.
BARMAN: She was here with a blond dude. Creepy-looking guy in flip-flops.
CALLEN: He's okay. Anyone else? Please. Anyone? Her name is Abby. Please, we need your help.
[Sam notices a waitress looking uncomfortable. He comes closer]
SAM: Please. She's a friend of mine.
WAITRESS: Guy came in yesterday. Gave me this. [A pic of Abby] He said she was an old friend. Asked me to text him if she came in. He gave me 100 bucks.
CALLEN: What did he look like?
WAITRESS: Like you. Like the blond guy she was here with.
CALLEN: He and I don't really look alike.
WAITRESS: I'm sorry. All Muggles look the same.
[NCIS Office. Dom and Eric work on computers, Kensi brief Callen. Sam is working further with Nate]
KENSI: Okay, we've identified every person who's had access to Abby's online forum, except one. Check out Mike287.
DOM: He mentions SteamPunk. He suggests that she'd love it if she went to L.A.
KENSI: Post is two months old, which means he's been planning it for that long.
CALLEN: Yeah, he's setting a lot of bait. Who is mike287? Come on, guys. Bust down his door.
KENSI: Poses as Mike Kinkirk, L.A. County criminalist. The real Kinkirk has been in hospice for months.
DOM: He's using onion routers to hide the computer he posts from, but I'm pretty sure he's actually in L.A.
NATE: That makes sense. All this planning to lure out Abby, and like Callen was saying, it's a lot more work than he's ever had to do before. Easier to do it in a familiar place.
SAM: Home-field advantage.
ERIC: Okay, the encrypted phone that the bar woman sent the text to belongs to Zuggler-Smith. That's McEllon's law firm. They bought 30 secure phones
for their attorneys six months ago.
NATE: That's not all they bought. They took delivery of a whole bunch of HAZMAT suits. Deliveries going back two years.
CALLEN: That's when the Phantom started killing. So, he's a lawyer?
KENSI: Figures.
SAM: Yeah, but which lawyer? Doesn't say who actually received the suits, and we don't know who the firm issued the phone to.
ERIC: I'm firing up the OPS center now.
CALLEN: Law firm's our only lead. [He glances at Kensi] We go undercover.
(Fan blades whirring)[All is blurry. Abby is tied on a a chair]
PHANTOM: (echoing): Are you comfortable?
ABBY: (echoing): I can't move.
PHANTOM: It's, uh... Just a little chemical...[Normal voice] It's, uh... Just a little chemical restraint. It'll wear off slowly. You'll start feeling your fingers and your toes first.
ABBY: So, it's not quite a creepy dungeon.
PHANTOM: I made it for you, Abby. You who named me. Phantom.
[Abby is in front of a bed. The phantom is just a shape]
ABBY: If I could have caught you, I would have.
PHANTOM: And yet, I caught you. You went right where I asked you to go.
ABBY: You're Mike287.
[She spots a camera] (jackhammering in distance)
ABBY: You making a little Abby movie?
PHANTOM: Oh, that's for watching you when I go to work. I took the day off today so we could be together. After all, Abby, we're a team.
ABBY: There's no "I" in your team.
PHANTOM: You'll resist at first, and maybe I'll wait for you to come around. Or... Maybe I won't.
ABBY: The only people coming around are my friends. And they're going to smash through the door...Wherever the door is...And they're going to put you
in prison where you belong. Creep.
PHANTOM: Couple of things. First, anyone comes in here, the place bursts into flames. Butane. And second, I'm good at what I do.
ABBY: You're the definition of the opposite of good.
PHANTOM: In part, thanks to you, I won't wear the suit on smooth floors anymore. There will be no more phantom footprints.
ABBY: I didn't blog about that.
PHANTOM: No, you told Flagstaff PD. They posted it when they found them. And, by the way, don't call me a creep!
ABBY: You're right. We just met. It's not polite to judge. I just...I have this... This itch. It's... Right on the tip of my nose. Could you just help me, please?
[The Phantom comes into the room, raises his finger…and Abby bites it]
PHANTOM: (screaming in pain) Don't you dare! [His finger is bleeding. He faces Abby]
PHANTOM: Calm... Calm.
ABBY: That's what you look like.
[Zuggler & Smith office. Kensi (classy) heads to the receptionist, a woman]
KENSI: Who's better, Zuggler or Smith?
RECEPTIONIST: For what, ma'am?
KENSI: For getting every stinking penny.
RECEPTIONIST: You've come to the right place. Have a seat, please.
[Cellen enters and spots Kensi. He stops dead]
CALLEN: I -don't -believe -it.
KENSI: I was here first, you weasel.
CALLEN: Uh-huh. So, you're going to spend my money to screw me out of my money?
KENSI: So hard you're going to want to crawl back to the sewer you came from.
CALLEN: All right, that's it.
KENSI: Don't do it.
[Callen grabs her handbag]
KENSI: Don't touch me. Give back my purse. [He pulls her arms, she stands up] Don't touch me!
CALLEN: Fine. See if they take your business.
KENSI: Huh!
[The receptionist smiles slightly]
CALLEN: How are you going to pay the retainer? I froze you out of all the accounts. Or maybe they'll take in-kind contributions, like you so freely gave to the pool guy.
KENSI: Shut up.
CALLEN: And the gardener.
RECEPTIONIST: Security to the front, please.
CALLEN: And the driver, and the personal trainer. Know what?
KENSI: Shut up. You shut up!
[She grabs flowers in a pot and throws them to Callen’s head; she misses]
RECEPTIONIST: Security to the front, please.
CALLEN: You are crazy...
[Out of his mind, Callen runs to her]
KENSI: No! No, no, no. Get off of me!
CALLEN: You are crazy. One crazy woman. You know that?
KENSI: Get off of me!
RECEPTIONIST: Security. Security.
[They fight. 2 security men come and start dealing with the angry couple. A 3rd one, Sam, heads to the hall- People are out of their office because of the shouting match]
GUARD1: sir!
GUARD2: easy, Miss, easy.
GUARD1: Let her go. [he’s pulled Callen away of Kensi]
SAM: It's all right. Go back into your offices. It's under control.
KENSI: I gave you GUARD1: everything!
[Sam is in an hallway]
SAM: I'm in. Which way do I go, Eric?
[OPS center. Eric is watching closely his monitor]
ERIC: Okay, I think you want the last room on your left.
[Zuggler & Smith office]
SAM: You think?
ERIC: [over radio] It's not like we had a lot of time to plan, Sam.
[OPS center]
ERIC: I hacked the surveillance system, buzzed through a lot of old video,
[Zuggler & Smith office]
ERIC: [over radio] and caught a woman giving out a cell phone. She's the chief admin. She keeps a roster in her right desk drawer. It's the best I got.
[Sam opens the drawer in the empty office, takes the roster]
[OPS center]
[Eric watches him on 2 screens, and can catch the roster with Sam’s button camera]
ERIC: Capturing video now. Got it, Sam.
[Zuggler & Smith office]
[Sam puts the roster back into the drawer, and leaves the office; at that right moment, Jenkins is heading to it with a man]
MAN: I'll do it, Miss Jenkins.
JENKINS: and by tomorrow, thanks.
[Sam leans forwards an employee]
SAM: Hey, how are you? We had a little thing up front.
WOMAN: Oh, okay.
[Jenkins doesn’t notice him, Sam can go away]
[He joins G. outside]
SAM: Hey! Kensi?
CALLEN: On her way back.
ERIC: [over radio] Guys, I found who the phone was signed out to.
[OPS center]
ERIC: Mike Smith, founding partner. I hacked into his computer, it's been idle for two days. I don't think he's been at work. He logs on as Mike287 and visits Abby's blog regularly. I'm sending you his license.
[Street]
CALLEN: Address is 287 Bruckner. Mike287.
[OPS center]
ERIC: …Oh, boy…Abby's alive! He's streaming live video from his house to his computer at work. At least I hope it's live. He's with her.
[The camera Abby spotted is recording live…]
[Street]
CALLEN: All right, we're ten minutes out.
[He and Sam start rushing]
[OPS center]
ERIC: Hold on, hold on. This can't be his house. The room she's in looks like it doesn't have any windows.
[Street]
ERIC: [over radio] It's gotta be a commercial space. I'm thinking...
[OPS center. Keyboard clicking]
ERIC: Yeah, 458 north fig. The law office is expanding to the building next door.
[Street]
ERIC: [over radio] Smith owns it.
CALLEN: We're standing right in front of it.
[They enter the building]
SAM: Eric said no windows. Basement!
[They run to the basement door and take their guns]
[OPS center]
ERIC: Guys, he's moving towards her.
[458. They enter the basement. First thing they see: blood trails. A man is obviously dead]
SAM: Mike smith. He's not the phantom.
CALLEN: We're in the wrong place.
SAM: So was he…
----------------------- ZAPPING ---------------------
[Sam and Callen are back in the 458 entrance]
SAM: He's been dead two or three days, Eric.
CALLEN: The phantom works in the law firm. Smith, his boss, gets suspicious so he kills him. I bet there's no forensics in there either.
[OPS center. Kensi and Eric are sitting at the computer desk- behind them, Nate, Dom and Hetty look closely to the screens]
KENSI: Sam, we got him. Check your phone.
[458]
KENSI: [over radio] Mike287 posts from Smith's work computer.
[OPS center]
KENSI: At those specific time codes, we found this guy.
[458]
CALLEN: The receptionist.
SAM: Front desk at the law firm.
[OPS center]
ERIC: Male receptionist is Tom Smith. Your dead guy's his Uncle Mike.
[458]
SAM: The boss is your uncle, you have the run of the place.
CALLEN: So, wherever he's got Abby, he's probably got the run of that place, too.
[OPS center]
ERIC: Okay, there's nothing in Tom's name, but his uncle has a doz-- had a dozen-- real estate holdings. Office buildings, warehouses, it could be any of them.
CALLEN: [over radio] So we check them all out.
[Outside the 458]
CALLEN: We'll take half, Kensi and Dom, you take the other half. Eric, find out if LAPD can lend a hand.
[OPS center]
[Kensi and Dom are gone]
ERIC: Already on it.
CALLEN: [over radio] Oh, and Eric. Eyes on Abby?
ERIC: Still streaming.
[Phantom’s place]
ABBY: What's the bed for?
TOM: (sighs) [He raises his glass] To you, who empower me.
[OPS center]
ERIC: Wait, he's toasting her? I thought he was gonna gloat. What's with the wine and the bed?
HETTY: Men love women who appreciate them, and she alone has appreciated him.
NATE: I don't buy it. He's too smart. He knows she's his downfall. He knows that she won't come around. At best he's just playing with her.
ERIC: Playing, like chess?
NATE: More like a bear with a salmon.
[Phantom’s place. Abby can move her fingers]
ABBY: You must have been good at math.
TOM: Good at everything.
ABBY: So, Tampa? That was your first?
TOM: My fifth.
ABBY: So, what four did I miss?
TOM: Well, they were before the suit. My first was in Chico. My first human, I mean. Animals, whew...! Before that there were dozens of animals. That's how I knew I was built for this, really-- I just couldn't stop killing animals. It was such intense pleasure.
ABBY: It's not fun. It's awful. And you are awful. Every person and animal that you killed had a life, and people that loved them and deserved them alive. I'm not on your side. I've never been on your side, and I will never be on your side.
TOM: I know. But it was fun to pretend. Do you want to pretend? [He taps the bed] Buy yourself another night of life? After all, you'll be able to move soon.
[Abby spits]
ABBY: Look at that.
TOM: Yeah. And look at this. […a big red…axe!]
[Los Angeles]
CALLEN: Four down, eight to go. Kensi?
KENSI: Make that five down, seven to go.
ERIC: Got two black and whites dispatching now.
CALLEN: We don't have time to search seven buildings, even with local PD. Find where that camera is now!
[OPS center]
ERIC: Camera's fixed, there's no swing. Wait, I do have zoom.
NATE: Zoom out, Eric. Go wide so we can see the building.
HETTY: Eric? Eric!
ERIC: I don't believe it. She's signing to the camera; that's sign!
NATE: Do you read sign language?
ERIC: Since I was seven. She's finger spelling. All right, "noise" something. I can't read. It's like when someone's mumbling. Her fingers are slurred. "noise..."construction...Construction noise!" That's half the message.
HETTY: Then start looking for construction sites.
[on the map construction sites appear among Smith’s holdings]
ERIC: Callen, there's a warehouse on the corner of 6th and Ardmore owned by Smith. Construction down the block.
[Sam and Callen jump into the car]
CALLEN: On our way.
[Phantom’s place]
TOM: The truth is, you're just not smart enough for me, Abby. Because you're there and I'm here. And now the great forensic specialist dies without any evidence of her killer. And it will be fun for me, Abby.
[Sam stops his car at the right place]
ERIC: [over radio] I've almost got the second half of the message. Uh, okay, it's "noise," uh..."d-doors..." doors? "noise, doors..." (sighs). Um... "doors." It's... Um...It's...
[Sam and Callen are just about rushing into the warehouse]
SAM: Wait.
ERIC: Guys, stop!
SAM: Wire.
ERIC: Abby's signing "construction noise, doors booby-trapped."
CALLEN: So, how we getting in, Eric?
ERIC: …Okay, skylight, fire escape north side.
[Inside the warehouse]
TOM: I'll leave. Trip the door fuse remotely, place will go kaboom, and the Phantom remains traceless.
ABBY: You're not traceless.
TOM: Oh, come on, Abby. You know butane burns hot enough to destroy evidence.
ABBY: You have my teeth marks in your finger. Creep.
[Sam and G. are on the roof. They see Abby through the skylight]
CALLEN: Miami?
SAM: No, Miami was half the height, and we still got all busted up.
CALLEN: One of us may land soft enough and get the shot.
SAM: Yeah, if one of us is Peter Pan.
[Warehouse]
TOM: I saved the white-woman-in- her-late-20's slot for you.
[OPS center- Eric stares at the video]
ERIC: Guys!
[Warehouse. Tom raises the axe close to Abby’s face]
TOM: You should be honored.
[OPS center. Everyone is panicking]
ERIC: Guys, gotta go now!
[Warehouse]
[Tom raises high the axe, ready to strike]
(crashing and gunshots)
[G. is flying and shouting –he’s getting down with a rope! Glass bits fall down on Abby’s head]
TOM: (grunts)
[The Phantom falls on his back and dies…]
[OPS center]
HETTY: (sighing) Oh, God!
[Roof of the warehouse: Sam is hanging on the fire hose, the “rope” Callen used]
SAM: (grunting) You've got to lay off the doughnuts, buddy.
[Warehouse]
CALLEN: You okay?
ABBY: Yeah. Thank you, G. Callen.
CALLEN: [whispering] You're welcome, Abby Sciuto.
[NCIS Office. Sam and G. are back, with Abby]
DOM: Des Moines PD got a traffic-cam shot of Smith near the crime scene.
KENSI: And Tampa PD found him on a flight manifest leaving after the murder.
CALLEN: You've solved 15 murders in as many hours, Abby. How's that feel?
ABBY: Almost as good as being alive.
[They hug, she kisses his cheek]
SAM: Hey, I lowered him down.
ABBY: And you did it perfectly.
[they hug]
HETTY: The post-incident medical evaluation is not optional, Abby. They're waiting for you. Go, go.
ABBY: Hetty, I'm so sorry, but there's something way more important that I have to do first.
HETTY: What could possibly...?
ERIC: [interrupting from upstairs] Abby, on screen in 30 seconds.
ABBY: That.
[She runs up. She stops near Eric, they speak in sign language, they hug, she runs to the OPS center]
ABBY: Gibbs, Gibbs, I'm okay! I know you were coming to save me. But these guys, they were amazing, really. I mean...You should see what they can do
with a fire hose. McGee, you were so right about how cool this place is. I mean, not as cool as home, 'cause nothing's as cool as home. And I can't wait to see you guys again. It was scary and all, but we got him! We got the phantom! Amazing! I mean, really...
[Sam, Hetty and Callen join Eric standing at the door and looking happily at Abby]
[Callen taps gently on Hetty’s shoulder; she follows him, they stop and look at the desks]
Callen: I wanna show you something.
MAN: Oh, I know there's a small fee. We're going to lend you some resources to search for evidence that Smith was there around the time of the...
HETTY: You're going to tell me that I should have consulted you before...
CALLEN: Nope. My team's getting half a day's desk work done in half an hour. You row pretty good.
HETTY: Thanks.
KENSI: Detective hodges, special agent Kensi Blye, NCIS. Listen...
---------------------------- THE END -------------------------------------------