HETTY: Previously on NCIS: Los Angeles.
[Armed men are assaulting Dovecote; Nell shuts her in the bathroom.]
CALLEN: Nell?
[G finds her]
CALLEN: She's never killed anyone before.
[OPS center.]
SAM: Those intruders were there to kidnap Hetty.
[Washington. Hearing then Museum]
HETTY: So, you used me.
VANCE: I protected you, still am.
[Hetty’s file in the car; gun with silencer onto it]
NELL: Somebody paid $250,000 to find out where Hetty lives.
[Boatshed.]
ERIC: Guys, take a look at this.
SAM: Mattias.
CALLEN: With Hetty's personal information for sale, he probably thought he could go in quietly and grab her.
GRANGER: So, what do we do now?
CALLEN: We hunt him down, and we kill him.
------------------ ZAPPING -----------------
[Venice Beach. Mattias in on a bench, reading and watching around. He closes his book when he sees an old man carrying a plastic bag.]
[The old man is in a garage; he unlocks his car, opens the trunk, puts his bag into it, turns around – and Mattias stands in front of him. The German smiles, the other guy looks astonished and scared. Mattias stabs him in the chest. The man falls backwards into the trunk; Matthias grabs the keys, closes the trunk – locking up the body]
♫ ♫ NCIS: LA 6x04 ♫ ♫ The 3rd Choir ♫ ♫
♫ ♫ Original Air Date on October 20, 2014 ♫ ♫
[Washington. Hetty is alone on a bench outside]
MAN: Henrietta?
HETTY: Admiral Kilbride, to what do I owe the pleasure?
KILBRIDE: May I?
HETTY: Well, it's a free country. For the time being.
[He sits down]
KILBRIDE: Must say it's strange seeing you here in D.C.
HETTY: No stranger than seeing you here, landlocked.
KILBRIDE: We all make sacrifices for the greater good. It's actually not so bad here.
HETTY: It would be a beautiful city, if you got rid of all the damn politicians.
KILBRIDE: You think you could do a better job?
HETTY: Monkeys could do a better job.
KILBRIDE: So, maybe it's time to consider returning to Washington.
HETTY: I'd rather be taken off to Montelupich.
KILBRIDE: We have better food.
HETTY: I have a job. Or at least I did when I left. I also have people who need me.
KILBRIDE: We have people here who need you.
HETTY: I am not a politician, Admiral. I never have been, I never will be.
KILBRIDE: I would never insult you by suggesting anything of the kind. I just think you could have a bigger impact here. We need someone with your skills and experience.
HETTY: Ah, there's the rub. My experience. I thought I was sent here to protect me.
KILBRIDE: You were.
HETTY: But it sounds like you want to send me off into the sunset behind a desk.
KILBRIDE: I'm offering you the chance to impact policy, Henrietta.
HETTY: If you or anyone else thinks I'm no longer capable of the job, just say so, and request my resignation.
KILBRIDE: I would never do that.
HETTY: Good, because I'd probably tell you to go to hell. And now if you'll excuse me, I'm late for my daily flogging.
[Two security men are looking at her; one nods]
KILBRIDE: Ah.
[They stand up, she starts leaving]
HETTY: I hope you and Vance aren't using these hearings to do your dirty work. You never know what secrets an old woman might reveal in the throes of her dementia.
[She walks away]
[Los Angeles. Cemetery. A hooded man unlocks a vault; he goes in; uses disks to move away a piece of granite; there’s a safe inside the grave. And a lot of money inside the safe. The man takes the bills and puts them into his rucksack]
[OPS center. Matthias’s file is on the large screen. Eris is asleep in front his computer. Sam comes in]
SAM: Wake up, Beale, time for school!
ERIC: Mom?
SAM: Your mom call you by your last name?
ERIC: Well, step-mom. She was strict.
SAM: Clearly. I brought you some breakfast-- egg whites, protein shake.
ERIC: Thank you.
SAM: What's wrong? You allergic to dairy?
ERIC: No, I just, uh...I usually eat cereal.
SAM: That's probably why you crash, Cap'n Crunch.
ERIC: You know, uh, Hetty doesn't allow food in Ops, right?
SAM: Well, Hetty isn't here right now, and I need you at full-blown Beale. Come on, where's Callen?
ERIC: I don't know. He was all over the city last night. Uh, he's covered about 300 miles in the last eight hours. What's he doing?
SAM: Hunting. Where is he now?
ERIC: I don't know. He turned his phone off about an hour ago.
SAM: Where's his car?
ERIC: Uh...Oxford Avenue between Wilshire and Sixth. It's been for about 90 minutes. Maybe he finally fell asleep.
SAM: No, he's not sleeping. That's right around the corner from the Western-Wilshire Metro Station... He could be anywhere.
[Gym. Wallace is handing one of his men a file]
WALLACE: Keep this one accessible.
MAN: All right.
WALLACE: Agent Blye, Detective Deeks.
[Deeks snorts loudly; they’re walking across the gym]
KENSI: How long are these Department of Justice jokers gonna be digging through our files? Geez, we should be charging them rent.
DEEKS: Or call the exterminator. Hey, what do you think of the name Shepherd?
KENSI: For what?
DEEKS: What do you mean, for what? For a kid.
KENSI: Fine, if he's raising goats?!
[Deeks laughs]
DEEKS: Though technically, that would be a goatherd.
KENSI: Not a bad name--Goatherd Deeks.
DEEKS: I'm sorry that I asked.
KENSI: Why? Did you get some bimbo pregnant?
DEEKS: Hey, not yet.
KENSI: You better be talking about one of your stripper friends.
DEEKS: I don't have any stripper friends. Oh. No, I do have acquaintances who on occasion dance...
KENSI: Not unlike yourself.
DEEKS: ...to make ends meet.
KENSI: Ooh, I bet they make their ends meet. A lot. Okay, you never told me about your stage name. Um, let me guess. Um... Magic Marty.
DEEKS: Yeah.
[Kensi laughs]
KENSI: Dirty Deeks. No, no, no. Uh...Scabby Spice.
[She laughs loudly- they’ve reached the bottom of the stairs]
GRANGER: I need to talk to you two.
KENSI: We carpooled.
DEEKS: Yeah, going green.
KENSI: Yeah, saving the planet.
DEEKS: You know, it's like Superman. Except, of course, I wear my underwear on the inside of my pantaloons.
KENSI: When he remembers to wear underwear.
[Granger glares at her]
KENSI: I'm kidding. I was just kidding. He wears underwear, I think. I'm assuming, I don't know. We're just...just partners.
DEEKS: Partners.
GRANGER: Where's Jones?
KENSI: Uh, is she not in, yet?
GRANGER: No. She's not returning my calls.
DEEKS: Well, in all fairness, she did just kill somebody. So, maybe she needs some time to process that.
GRANGER: Well, unfortunately, time is something we're running out of. We've got a former East German operative gunning for Hetty, and I need all hands on deck.
[Callen is walking up – he takes the stairs]
GRANGER: Agent Callen. Callen!
[G doesn’t stop; neither looks at him]
DEEKS: Maybe he didn't hear you. Nope.
[OPS center. Callen hurries in]
SAM: Where have you been?
CALLEN: Looking for Mattias. Did you find anything?
ERIC: Not yet, still searching. But we've alerted LAPD, Homeland Security, FBI, and the Sheriff's Department.
CALLEN: That's not good enough. I want every bounty hunter, gang member, and Girl Scout hunting for this guy.
SAM: You sure that's a good idea? We spook this guy, we may never find him.
CALLEN: Oh, we're gonna find him, 'cause we're gonna make it impossible for him to cross the street without us knowing it. Tap into your social media networks and put his face out there. I want everyone within a 500-mile radius knowing what Mattias looks like. And offer a reward.
ERIC: A reward?
[Callen empties his rucksack onto the table]
CALLEN: $236,000.
SAM: Where'd you get this?
CALLEN: It's mine. Everything I got.
------------------ ZAPPING -----------------
[Hetty is in the hearing room, alone. Thomas comes in]
THOMAS: Where is everybody?
HETTY: It's your circus.
THOMAS: Well, I'm glad to see that you're feeling better.
HETTY: Are you?
[He smiles – touché!]
HETTY: How much longer are you planning on dragging out this fiasco?
THOMAS: Well, I think it's best if we wait for the others.
HETTY: I don't bite, Congressman. Unless, of course, I'm provoked.
THOMAS: I prefer to have everything on the record, Ms. Lange.
HETTY: Of course you do.
THOMAS: It's called accountability. Something that you don't seem to think applies to you. Your people and your, uh, black budgets and your secret operations--you seem to think that you can run around doing whatever the hell you please with total impunity.
HETTY: What we do is protect people like you and your family, so your wife can eat at Le Grange today without worrying about being blown up by a bomb. And your daughter can attend George Washington without being kidnapped by extremists.
THOMAS: And how would you know where my wife is having lunch today?
HETTY: Accountability. And for the record, you don't want to know the sacrifices we make, because if you did, you would be so ashamed of your actions, this hearing and your pathetic excuse for a career.
[The doors open- the commission members come in]
JONES: I'm sorry. Are we late? We were told the hearing was pushed back by a half hour.
THOMAS: By whom?
[He glares at Hetty – she smiles]
[OPS center. Granger enters with Deeks and Kensi]
GRANGER: Care to tell me what's going on?
SAM: A reward's being offered for information on Mattias.
GRANGER: I'm not authorizing that.
CALLEN: You don't have to 'cause I already did, with my own money.
[Granger looks down...]
GRANGER: All support personnel out. You can work from auxiliary stations.
[They walk out; so does Eric]
GRANGER: Not you, Beale. Secure the room.
[Beeping; Locks]
GRANGER: From here on in, we're at the principalities level.
DEEKS: Principality? Uh, uh, a state ruled by a prince?
KENSI: No, "principalities." It's, uh, one of the nine orders of angels that make up the third and highest choir.
DEEKS: Oh.
SAM: Hetty's version of Code Red.
GRANGER: Until further notice, we don't operate with any personnel outside this room. Same with our system, Beale. I want us isolated from everything and everyone. No more leaks.
ERIC: Yes, sir.
GRANGER: So where are we?
KENSI: Hetty's Cold War enemy, Mattias Draeger, arrived on a plane along with several other German shooters.
SAM: Shooters who tried to kidnap Hetty. When that didn't work, they tried to kill us. Until we took 'em out.
KENSI: Had they succeeded, Hetty would have been left extremely vulnerable.
DEEKS: And we would be, you know, dead.
ERIC: Well, if he's smart, Mattias is halfway to Dusseldorf by now.
CALLEN: But we're not gonna let that happen.
DEEKS: The last time Mattias was here it was for a book of Cold War secrets. He was never after Hetty. So why is he now?
CALLEN: It doesn't matter why he's here. Just that we find him.
[He grabs his bag and leaves – without looking at the others]
[Washington. Hearing]
THOMAS: We all make important decisions that affect the lives of others. We use protocol because history has taught us which decisions protect the most lives.
HETTY: When you're in the middle of a war, Mr. Thomas, history is being made in the present moment, and protocol can seem a little outdated.
THOMAS: Mm. So you believe that you have the authority to change protocol whenever you see fit?
[Hetty’s phone buzzes – She reads: “your uncle Mattias is back in town”; she staggers under the blow]
HETTY: What would you do if a family member of yours was kidnapped, Mr. Thomas?
THOMAS: Is that a threat, Ms. Lange?
HETTY: It's hyperbole. I'm asking you to humor me for the sake of argument.
THOMAS: W...I don't see the humor in the question.
HETTY: Neither do I. How far would you go if the life of a family member was threatened?
THOMAS: I would use every resource available to me, within the law, to save them. But this case is not about my family.
HETTY: But it is about mine.
THOMAS: And therein perhaps lies the problem. Because the agents and the support personnel that you oversee are not your family. They are, in fact, employees of the U.S. government. They are human assets. They...
[He’s reading papers. She stands up. And walks to the door]
JONES: Ms. Lange, is there a problem?
THOMAS: Where the hell do you think you're going?!
[She waves; the security man opens the door. Thomas speaks to her attorney]
THOMAS: What is she doing? What is she doing now?!
OGILVIE: One moment, please.
[He runs behind Hetty; catches up in the hallway]
OGILVIE: Hetty, what are you doing?
HETTY: I'm going home.
OGILVIE: You can't.
HETTY: I need to get back to Los Angeles.
OGILVIE: They won't let you go anywhere.
[There are security guards and her personal watchers…]
HETTY: Horsefeathers.
[The elevator bell dings – people get out; she hurries in]
HETTY: Enjoy my lunch when it arrives, Mr. Ogilvie.
[Inside the hearing room; a security agent whispers to Thomas]
THOMAS: Come on, how tough could it be to locate one little woman in a heavily secured building? Lock the place down. Nobody enters, nobody leaves until we find her.
[An alarm blares]
THOMAS: What the hell is that?
[Jones smiles – she gets the trick]
JONES: Fire alarm.
THOMAS: She did this. She's relentless.
[They’re pissed off but have to leave…]
[A window opens out of the 3rd floor. Hetty is standing in the frame; she looks down at a container full of plastic bags and papers. She secures her glasses, crosses]
HETTY: Oh, of all the mornings I forgot to stretch.
[She breathes and jumps out…She lands with a groan]
HETTY: Maybe I am getting too old for this.
------------------ ZAPPING -----------------
[Sam and Callen are in the streets; they distribute pics of Mattias with their cards.]
ERIC: [Over phone] Hey, um, just checking in. Again. Uh...give me a shout when you can. Let me know if you need anything.
[Nell is at home- hunched up on her couch, a cushion in the arms; her phone and gun and on a coffee table. She hears Eric. There’s a knock at the door – again. She grabs her gun. The knocking continues –she hesitates, rises, heads to the door. She looks through the spyhole and sighs. She opens the door]
NATE: How's it going, kiddo?
[He has a gentle smile]
NELL: Been better.
[But her behavior doesn’t say so…]
NATE: So I've heard. You want to step out and get some fresh air? I'll even get you a cup of coffee if you put... that away.
[Callen and Sam are speaking with Salazar, head of the Mission Street Gang – watched by gang members]
SALAZAR: What did he do?
SAM: It's not important.
CALLEN: There's a reward if you help us find him. 236,000 dollars.
[Salazar scoffs]
SALAZAR: For that kind of money, I'll have him stuffed and mounted for you.
CALLEN: No. You leave that to us. This guy's dangerous.
SALAZAR: I'm dangerous.
SAM: You spot him, you call us and you stick with him. Nothing more.
[Salazar sighs]
SALAZAR: Yeah. Okay. This better not be a joke.
CALLEN: Does it look like I'm joking?
[Salazar scoffs quietly and leaves them]
SAM: I hope you know what you're doing.
CALLEN: I know exactly what I'm doing. I'm flushing him out.
SAM: Flushing him out. Even if it creates a mob of vigilantes? I want to get this guy, too. I just don't want to set the city on fire to do it.
[Stubborn G gets into the car; Sam shakes the head…]
[Venice Beach]
NELL: I mean, I knew this day would come. You know? I... We prepared for it.
NATE: You can prepare all you want. What you think you'll feel is usually the furthest thing away from how you actually do.
NELL: That's the strangest part. It's like...It's not even a feeling. It's like there was a feeling there and now it's just... gone.
NATE: That's your subconscious doing its best to suppress it. Killing someone goes against every moral fiber ingrained in you since birth.
NELL: Right. And I know that here. He was a cold-blooded killer, and it was me or him, but...I just can't stop thinking about the people who brought him into this world and...
NATE: Nell, you're the victim of a post-shooting trauma. You know, that man forced you to shoot him. He did this to you.
NELL: Look, I just think if I found myself in a similar situation, I wouldn't choose to feel this way again.
NATE: If there's even an ounce of truth to that, you shouldn't go back to the field. Because it's not just your own life you're protecting out there.
[Bullpen. Deeks is checking files out of a box]
KENSI: Did you find anything in Mattias' file?
DEEKS: Nothing. Oh! Except for a dead cockroach. That's not dead. It's not dead. It's not a dead cockroach. It's... Not gonna use...
[He grabs a mug on Kensi’s desk]
KENSI: Uh, what are you doing? That's...Hey.
DEEKS: Now he's dead. Not dead. What the hell? Not... Are you kidding me?
KENSI: And you're the guy who's supposed to have my back?
DEEKS: Well, it's so smart and crafty. Surprisingly... swift. Don't...- You're gonna...
KENSI: Stop
DEEKS: He's gonna bite you. He's not gonna...Don't.
[She has taken the box down and tramples it underfoot]
KENSI: Now you got it. You did...you did good. That's why we're partners.
ERIC: I think I found something.
[They follow him upstairs]
[OPS center. Eric is briefing Sam, Callen, Kensi and Deeks]
ERIC: The body of one Ryan Greene was found in a trash bin off skid row this morning. He was last seen in Venice Beach yesterday. His murder was captured by a parking lot surveillance cam.
DEEKS: So why would Mattias kill this guy?
KENSI: Maybe he's looking for a new identity.
[Granger enters]
GRANGER: Hetty's missing. She walked out of the hearing and disappeared.
SAM: Did you tell Hetty about Mattias?
GRANGER: Yeah, I had to.
CALLEN: She's coming here. You played her into his hand. Why the hell would you do that?
GRANGER: She needed to know what was happening.
[G walks out - Granger looks at Sam]
GRANGER: And you need to keep him under control.
SAM: On it, sir.
[He follows his partner]
ERIC: Ryan Greene's cell phone was just turned on. And someone just used his credit card at a Venice surf shop to buy a beach towel.
GRANGER: Find him.
[Military airport. The engines of a plane are whirring; it’s ready to take off with soldiers. Admiral Kilbride appears at the door]
KILBRIDE: Where do you think you're going?
SEARGEANT: Camp Pendleton, sir.
KILBRIDE: I wasn't talking to you, Staff Sergeant.
[Hetty’s head moves forward – she’s sitting among the soldiers]
KILBRIDE: You can't just walk out of a congressional hearing.
HETTY: I can and I did. And if they want my job, I quit. I'm going home.
KILBRIDE: To take on Mattias Draeger? Which is exactly what he wants and what I've been trying to avoid.
HETTY: Would you prefer he be running around Washington?
KILBRIDE: I prefer you follow orders.
HETTY: I've never let anyone fight my battles for me.
KILBRIDE: Are you trying to test my patience?
HETTY: I'm trying to protect my people. Hollace, please, let me do this.
[He sighs]
KILBRIDE: And what am I supposed to tell Congressman Thomas?
HETTY: Tell him I think he's an ass.
[Soldiers can’t help muffled laughter]
KILBRIDE: Keep me informed.
[He leaves the plane]
[Venice Beach. Callen, Sam, Kensi and Deeks - looking for Mattias, or at least for the dead man’s phone...]
CALLEN: How we doing, Eric?
[OPS center. On screen: 4 dots (the agents) are following the phone ID spot]
ERIC: Should be right on top of him.
[Sam and G exchange a look; the place is crowded]
SAM: I don't see him. Kensi? Deeks?
DEEKS: Maybe he's in one of the shops, or he ditched the phone in the trash can.
CALLEN: Call it.
[OPS center. Eric dials the number]
ERIC: It's ringing.
[Venice Beach. A man pulls out of his pocket a ringing phone.]
SAM: I got him. Sports coat.
DEEKS: That's not Mattias.
[The guy is much younger]
KENSI: No, but he could be working with him.
CALLEN: Or he's clueless.
[The guy is watching the phone, puzzled]
CALLEN: Mattias could have slipped the phone in his pocket to throw us off the trail.
[Sam comes close from the guy’s back and grabs his arms – he pushes him down against a car; G, Kensi and Deeks are threatening him with their guns]
SAM: Federal agent!
CALLEN: Where's Mattias Draeger?
[Sam searches him]
SAM: Gun.
[He throws it to G)
SAM: He's wearing body armor.
[G looks up – spots a flash of sun reflection]
CALLEN: Sniper! ten o'clock high!
[At that moment the sniper shoots- Sam protects himself with the guy who takes bullets in his vests; people scream; Mattias is the shooter; the guy is hit once more; the agents hide behind cars and shoot back]
CALLEN: Cover me!
[Deeks, Sam and Kensi shoot together while G runs to the building- bullets ricochet around Mattias; he strips down his riffle, wraps it into the beach towel – G is in the stairs. He reaches the roof – nobody…Deeks and Kensi put their guns down…Sam stands up; G, on the roof, shakes the head...They missed him...]
------------------ ZAPPING -----------------
[Boatshed.]
GRANGER: A full-on gun fight at Venice Beach?
DEEKS: We were fired on. It was a trap.
SAM: Mattias killed that guy and dumped his body, knowing we would track his phone.
CALLEN: What's the word on Hetty?
GRANGER: Well, I've been alerted by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's office that she's on a military flight heading this way.
KENSI: Well, how long before she gets here?
GRANGER: Maybe four hours.
[G rushes to the door]
GRANGER: Where are you going?
CALLEN: Ops.
GRANGER: Not now. Wallace and her team are still on site.
[G stops, looks at him]
CALLEN: I don't care.
GRANGER: Well, I do. They're gonna have a heyday with this latest stunt.
CALLEN: Let 'em.
[He’s gone]
GRANGER: Agent Hanna...I thought I told you to contain your partner.
SAM: We were taking sniper fire. We followed protocol.
CALLEN: Well, his bounty isn't protocol.
SAM: Callen is cool. Stop trying to act like he's going off the reservation.
GRANGER: Hetty is the closest thing he has to family, so whatever cool he has is about to evaporate. Our operations are already under the microscope, so if you can't keep him under control, I'm gonna have to pull him off this.
SAM: You try it, and he will go rogue, and I'll join him.
GRANGER: ...Consider yourselves warned.
[Sam leaves the boatshed. Granger glares at Kensi and Deeks – stunned by the scene]
GRANGER: Don't you two have something better to do?
[OPS center. G is angry- frustrated]
CALLEN: You have to have something. The guy was firing a rifle on a rooftop in broad daylight.
ERIC: I'm looking. Most surveillance cameras are pointed down, not up.
CALLEN: And no one reported seeing Mattias?
ERIC: No. Sorry.
CALLEN: Who's the dead guy?
ERIC: Uh, his name is Demitri Beriliev. He's here on a student visa.
CALLEN: He's Russian.
[Bullpen. Sam is working at his desk. Wallace joins him]
WALLACE: Look, I'm sorry we got off on the wrong foot. I was sent here with a mission, just like you.
SAM: Oh, no, no, no. I chase bad guys, not good guys.
WALLACE: Well, maybe when all of this is over, I can buy you a drink...as a peace offering.
SAM: I'm married.
WALLACE: Oh. That's not in your record.
SAM: Yeah, well, a lot of things that aren't in my record, or Callen's or Hetty's or any of us.
WALLACE: Sorry. I...None of your other, uh, team members were married. I guess I just assumed...Yeah. I mean, it must be hard...in your line of work.
SAM: It can be hard in any line of work. Anything worthwhile is worth the effort, right? My wife used to be an operator. She understands better than most.
WALLACE: Lucky.
SAM: Oh, yes, I am.
[Callen is coming up -on phone; the line is ringing]
WALLACE: Agent Callen.
[She leaves; Sam is embarrassed]
CALLEN: What was that all about?
SAM: No idea.
[G stares at him; Sam doesn’t look at his partner]
CALLEN: Well, what she ask you?
SAM: I don't know.
[He laughs]
SAM: It was nothing.
CALLEN: Okay.
[Callen dials again; the phone line rings while he sits down; Sam is reading papers…]
SAM: So stop looking at me.
CALLEN: I'm not looking at you. Now, I'm looking at you 'cause you're looking at me. Why are you acting so weird?
SAM: I'm not acting weird.
CALLEN: You're acting weird. Wow. I did not see that coming.
SAM: I don't know what you're talking about.
CALLEN: You know exactly what I'm talking about.
SAM: Uh, no, I don't.
CALLEN: This is how you act when you get hit on. You obviously made an impression on her. I'm sure it probably had something to do with your driving.
[He’s watching his phone; Sam throws a pen at him; he uses a file as a shield]
CALLEN: We need to pick up Arkady.
[He rises]
SAM: Why?
CALLEN: 'Cause he's not answering my calls, and because the guy that was helping Mattias is a Russian national.
SAM: You don't think Arkady has anything to do with this, do you?
CALLEN: For his sake, I hope not.
[He walks out- Sam follows]
[Hetty’s office. Granger and Nate sit down]
GRANGER: So, are you saying Nell may be gun-shy?
NATE: Look, Nell is great at what she does. Am I convinced she's ready for the next step in undercover work? That remains to be seen.
GRANGER: Well, she's been well-trained, and she has the skills.
NATE: Yes, but it's the mindset. That's something you cannot teach. It can be honed and improved, but being able to live with killing another human is something inherent. It's a deeper part of the human condition.
GRANGER: Are you talking about the soul?
NATE: If that's what you want to call it.
GRANGER: I will never forget the first person I had to kill, but it never haunted me. What does that say about my soul?
NATE: Look, this is all very new to Nell. I'll have a better understanding of her abilities once it settles in.
GRANGER: Well, we don't have time for it to settle in. We need all the help we can get right now.
NATE: Which is why I'll stick around until the situation is resolved. You guys could use me in the field.
GRANGER: Good.
[Off to...]
[...A weights room. Arkady is here. But in front of coffee and a newspaper, at a table]
CALLEN: Not answering your phone?
ARKADY: I've been busy. How did you find me?
SAM: Your ex-wife's sister.
ARKADY: Which one?
CALLEN: Svetlana.
ARKADY: Aah, she always talked too much. Must be genetic.
CALLEN: Arkady, what are you doing here?
ARKADY: My doctor told me to join gym.
SAM: Yeah? Probably expected you to work out.
ARKADY: I'm between sets.
CALLEN: Our old German friend Mattias is back in town. He's already tried to kill us...twice, as a matter of fact.
[He shows the Russian‘s photo on his phone]
CALLEN: Once using a Russian decoy as bait.
SAM: You know anything about this, or are you too busy working on your figure?
[Arkady smiles]
ARKADY: I don't know anything about it.
CALLEN: He tried to kidnap Hetty.
ARKADY: ...
CALLEN: What?
ARKADY: ... In case you haven't noticed, Cold War is back, only it's not so cold lately. And for someone like your Hetty who has a head full of secrets they'd love to get their hands on, this is just the beginning.
SAM: What does that mean?
ARKADY: I mean, it will get worse before it gets better, and your Hetty won't be the only target.
SAM: Who else will they go after?
ARKADY: Use your imagination.
CALLEN: We're not playing around, Arkady. Who else will they go after?
ARKADY: I don't know!! And to be honest, I don't care. I've got my own problems.
CALLEN: We will be your problem if you don't start to level with us.
ARKADY: You don't scare me...but they do, because I am one of the people they will come after.
[G wheels around and walks to the door]
SAM: Don't strain yourself.
[He leaves the gym; Arkady sights...]
[Bullpen.]
KENSI: I can't find a connection between Mattias and the dead Russian.
DEEKS: So where does a German spy hide out? Wienerschnitzel?
KENSI: You're a Wiener schnitzel.
DEEKS: That's true. I used to have this Austrian girlfriend who used to call me her...
KENSI: Cocktail wiener?
DEEKS: Sausage king!
NATE: Oh, I see that nothing has changed here.
DEEKS: Oh!
KENSI: Nate!
DEEKS: Hey.
[Kensi hugs Nate]
DEEKS: What's up, brother?
[He gives Nate a big hug, patting his back]
KENSI: What are you doing here?
NATE: Well, Granger wanted me here for Nell, and I wanted to be here for Hetty.
ERIC: Got him.
DEEKS: What?
ERIC: Got him.
[He puts a video onto screen: Mattias is sitting between 2 gang men]
SALAZAR: Check it out. We got the guy you're looking for. Now where's our money?
KENSI: Alert Callen and Sam.
[She walks away with Deeks]
[The green door of a bathroom is full of bullets...Nell is watching photos: next is the dead guy she shot; zoom on his chest...Her phone buzzes]
NELL: Hello?
[Hetty is on phone in the plane]
HETTY: I need a sitrep, Ms. Jones.
NELL: Hetty? Where are you?
HETTY: Somewhere over Kansas. Where is Mattias Draeger?
NELL: I don't know.
HETTY: Well, I don't want anyone going after him until my return.
NELL: It's probably too late. I'm sure Callen and the others are already out there looking for him.
HETTY: You don't know?
NELL: No, I'm not at work. I am... I'm home.
HETTY: Why? Are you ill?
NELL: I'm not.
HETTY: Nell, what's going on?
NELL: Hetty, I shot someone.
HETTY: Oh, I see.
NELL: And he died.
HETTY: Was it self-defense?
NELL: Yes. But it all happened so fast, and now I'm not...
HETTY: I know, Nell. I know. But I need you to focus. Chin up. I'm on my way back to Los Angeles and I'm going to need to hit the ground running. Understood?
NELL: Yes, ma'am.
HETTY: Good girl. Do you have a pen?
NELL: Go ahead.
[Notebook replaces the photo on her tablet]
HETTY: I'll going to need a chopper from Pendleton to Santa Monica airport and a car there waiting with some of my weapons.
NELL: Got it.
[Salazar’s house. G jumps out of the Challenger and rushes to the door]
SAM: Slow down, G. We should wait for backup.
CALLEN: I'm not risking this guy getting away.
SAM: Hey.
[Muffled music is playing inside the house. G knocks at the door]
CALLEN: Yo, Salazar.
SAM: Maybe they moved him.
[G wants to open the door; Sam blocks his hand]
SAM: Hey. Last time was a trap.
CALLEN: I know that!
[Sam tries to calm him down]
SAM: We bring him in alive. Promise me.
CALLEN: I'm done making promises.
SAM: G, don't...
[Callen is already in]
CALLEN: Salazar?
SAM: Federal agents.
CALLEN: We got bodies.
[Salazar men…G’s heart misses a beat: there’s a man on a chair; a bag on the head – motionless. They carefully and anxiously get closer; G pulls off the bag]
CALLEN: Salazar.
[Sam spots something under the chair- tied to the bag]
SAM: Grenade!
[They dive out through the window while the grenade explodes- the blast throws them and debris onto the ground]
------------------ ZAPPING -----------------
[Santa Monica Airport. The chopper pilot takes Hetty to a car]
[Salazar’s house. Police and firemen are working. Deeks and Kensi meet Sam and Callen at the door]
DEEKS: You guys okay?
SAM: Better than Salazar's gang.
KENSI: What the hell happened?
SAM: These guys didn't even put up a struggle. I think Mattias used them. He must have found out about G's reward. Used it against us to lure us out.
CALLEN: So where is he? And why wasn't he waiting to pick us off when we came out? Why isn't he shooting at us right now? I mean... Mattias is old school, just like Hetty. And they're always playing a long game.
SAM: Okay, so what's the long game?
CALLEN: ...Hetty.
DEEKS: Well, that game's gonna get a lot easier when Hetty shows up.
[G’s phone rings]
CALLEN: What do you got, Eric?
ERIC: [Over phone] Mattias isn't dead.
CALLEN: Yeah, we figured that part out.
[OPS center. Eric is staring at footage from the boatshed]
ERIC: He was just in the boatshed.
[Salazar’s house]
SAM: What?
[OPS center.]
ERIC: The silent alarm went off. It was Mattias. Granger and Nate are there now, but Mattias is gone.
[Salazar’s house]
ERIC: [Over com] The place is clear.
CALLEN: We'll meet 'em there.
KENSI: How the hell did he know about the boatshed?
DEEKS: Because he's good. Scary good.
[They move, going to the cars]
CALLEN: If Mattias found the boatshed, why didn't he just try and ambush us? Why didn't he set a trap?
SAM: He used Ryan Greene to lure us into the kill box the same way he feigned his own capture for your ransom.
CALLEN: So what the hell was the appearance at the boatshed all about? If he wanted to lure us there, why didn't Nate or Granger find anything?
SAM: Maybe they weren't looking in the right place.
[G takes a beat]
CALLEN: That son of a bitch.
SAM: What?
[G looks under the Challenger]
SAM: What? What are you doing?
[G finds a tracker…]
CALLEN: The beach. He lured us there. Probably watched our arrival.
SAM: Why use a tracking device if you were planning on killing us?
CALLEN: Backup plan?
SAM: Or maybe he wasn't planning on killing all of us.
CALLEN: He's gonna keep one of us alive to lead him back...
SAM: To Hetty.
[Sam shouts and waves while G dials – the line rings]
SAM: I need these two squad cars moved.
ERIC: [Over phone] Callen?
CALLEN: Eric,
[Policemen run to the cars]
CALLEN: we think Ops may be compromised.
[OPS center.]
ERIC: Whoa, what?
[Salazar’s house]
CALLEN: Mattias tagged our cars at the beach, he tracked 'em back to the boatshed, which means he's probably on his way to Ops.
[OPS center.]
ERIC: [Looking around, anxious] Like, Ops Ops?
SAM: [Over com] Eric, you can handle this.
[Salazar’s house]
SAM: Just get everyone out of there, find Hetty and divert her.
[OPS center.]
ERIC: Where?
[Salazar’s house]
CALLEN: Anywhere but Ops.
[OPS center. Eric exhales]
ERIC: Oh, boy.
[He types frantically on his keyboard]
[♫ Smiling, Hetty is slowly walking in the tunnel, like someone glad to be back home...♫]
[The Challenger is running fast…]
ERIC: [Over com] Guys, Hetty's already in the building.
CALLEN: Then get her out of there!
[♫ Hetty taps her desk with satisfaction; sits down. ♫ A door closes. ♫ She stares on her left]
HETTY: Mattias, my old...
[He’s coming up from her right!]
HETTY: whatever the hell you are.
MATTIAS: Good to see you again, Henrietta.
[Eric is in the mezzanine; he stops dead: Mattias has a gun in the hand; Hetty is unarmed, at her desk.]
MATTIAS: It's been a while.
[Eric hurries back to the OPS]
ERIC: He's here. Mattias is here, with Hetty, in her office.
[Hetty’s office]
HETTY: How did you get in here?
MATTIAS: Let's just say...
[He looks at a badge before throwing it on a table]
MATTIAS: Dennis won't be returning from lunch.
HETTY: Am I missing something or have you lost your mind? Because I can't figure out the logic in all of this.
MATTIAS: Longevity. Be honest, did you ever think either one of us would live this long?
HETTY: You haven't planned for your retirement, have you?
MATTIAS: I thought my retirement would be a bullet.
HETTY: Well, hopefully it still will be.
MATTIAS: What can I say? You're my nest egg.
HETTY: You are crazier than I am if you think you're going to get out of here alive.
MATTIAS: Yes, well, let's talk all about that on our flight back to Moscow. Shall we?
[He raises his gun]
HETTY: Shoot me...you won't get five feet without being killed. It's over, Mattias. I'm not budging from this chair.
[He smiles]
MATTIAS: I think you will...if I give you this.
[He pulls out a syringe]
MATTIAS: I seem to recall you having a very bad experience with this once.
HETTY: You are an evil son of a bitch.
MATTIAS: We are what they made us. Let's go.
[She sighs - slowly rises]
WALLACE: Excuse me, Ms. Lange. We haven't had a chance to discuss the...
[Mattias can’t help looking at her; Hetty moves incredibly fast: her gun falls down into her hand from the sleeve and she shoots. Wallace gasps in shock. Mattias is only surprised! Hetty wants to shoot again but Wallace has seen Mattias’ weapon and throws her at him. They fight – Hetty walk away. Mattias shoots in Wallace’s leg]
WALLACE: Aah!
[She falls down, clasping the wound in her hands, grunting.]
WALLACE: Aah!
[Hetty is carefully coming up to Mattias – who hides to wait for her]
HETTY: The Mattias I knew...
[Wallace is grunting]
HETTY: ...would never have worn body armor. You're getting soft. Come out, come out, you German bastard and fight like a man.
[Mattias raises his gun – Hetty is in front of a mirror; the German shoots but the bullet hits the mirror as Hetty was got out of its way by someone (appeared from nowhere) tackling her onto the floor. Both crash heavily on the stones; kneel up and stay behind a pillar; Nell is firmly holding her gun]
HETTY: Nell?
NELL: Hetty, what are you doing?
HETTY: I'm trying to call him out.
NELL: You're gonna get yourself killed.
HETTY: Good to have you back, Nell.
[Wallace, grunting, is crawling toward Hetty’s office. Mattias shoots her again!]
WALLACE: Oh! Aah!
HETTY: Mattias!
[OPS center. Eric has eyes on the scenes, thanks to the surveillance cameras]
ERIC: Inspector Wallace has been shot. Mattias is on the colonnade.
[The Challenger stops at the wooden door. Callen and Sam run inside – before carefully looking for Mattias. Sam sees Wallace at the foot of Hetty’s office]
MATTIAS: Both of you: throw down your weapons and walk to me, Henrietta, or I'll kill her.
[Sam waves to G. Hetty whispers]
HETTY: Oh, bugger.
[She shakes the head]
HETTY: All right.
NELL: [Quietly] Hetty, don't.
HETTY: [Quietly] Do what he says. Let's get this over with.
NELL: Great.
[Her gun clatters on the floor. Hetty puts hers down. Sam waves again to G – they step forward. They meet Deeks and Kensi and gesture them to reach the other staircase. Hetty is walking to Mattias. Poor Wallace is groaning. Nell spots the agents in the stairs. Mattias is pushing Hetty in front of him toward the exit]
CALLEN: That's far enough.
[He and Sam are threatening him from the mezzanine. On the colonnade, Deeks and Kensi are aiming at him all the same. And a door opens: Nate and Granger, armed. Mattias is surrounded by 3 duos. Nell picks up her weapon]
HETTY: He's wearing a vest. Head shots only.
[Guns aim higher...]
MATTIAS: In the old days, someone would have killed me by now.
HETTY: That's your problem, Mattias. Too much nostalgia.
[She slowly turns around and raises a hand to his gun]
HETTY: We both know you don't have the balls.
[He smiles; hands it...as soon as she gets it, she pulls the trigger- he takes the bullet in the knee]
MATTIAS: Aah!
HETTY: Sorry. Touchy trigger.
[Mattias is groaning on the floor; Granger cuffs him; Nate joins Nell; Sam kneels near Wallace]
NATE: You good?
NELL: Thanks.
[They exchange a look]
[Sam helps Wallace sit up]
SAM: You okay?
[Wallace nods]
SAM: Guess I owe you that drink after all.
[She has a short laugh – he gently strokes her shoulder]
WALLACE: Somebody owes me a whole bottle!
DEEKS: One, two, three, German.
[He and Kensi help Mattias rise. His leg gives way]
DEEKS: Wow, that looks like it hurts.
[Mattias is grunting. Kensi looks at G. Callen sighs in relief; he walks to Hetty; she wheels around]
CALLEN: Welcome back.
[She smiles broadly]
HETTY: Thank you, Mr. Callen.
[Black screen]
HETTY: It's good to be home.
------------------ ZAPPING -----------------
