Stroke! Stroke!
Pick him up, pick him up!
Son of a bitch!
I mean, Your Honour, good shot.
I'm currently doing an externship for extra credits
as a clerk for Judge Hookstratten.
BJ Hookstratten?
That's more impressive than being in the top 5%.
I don't know offers you've had from Wall Street...
The top 5 in my class, not the top 5%. I'm sorry...
Mr McDeere, we're offering you 68,000 a year
from the leading law firm in Chicago.
- Where else do you have to be? - My job. I'm on lunch break.
I know you've had a lot of offers,
but we have 127 clients that are Fortune 500 companies!
We'll offer you 74,000...
.. requirement for a first-year associate
is only 2,000 hours, not more.
We want you to have a life outside the office.
If you're a Lakers fan, we have a box at the Forum.
I know other firms have been offering you everything.
But with your ability and ambition,
the place for you is our firm.
Let's not talk about the package,
let's talk about what's in the package.
One partner is an ex-governor, two are congressmen.
One is a former secretary of agriculture...
May I take your coat, sir?
- Mitchell McDeere? - Yes.
Lamar Quinn. Come on in.
I'd like you to meet Oliver Lambert - our senior partner.
This is Royce McKnight, our managing partner.
- Welcome. Care for a drink? - I'm fine.
Take a seat, Mitch.
Tired of interviews?
No, sir. I don't quite know what to say.
Unusual for a lawyer.
I can get tongue-tied in many situations, sir,
but it's usually with my wife.
Would you mind describing one... with your wife?
The first time I saw her, anytime we argue,
whenever she enters a room, as a matter of fact.
Might we ask about the rest of your family?
My father was killed in the coal mines,
and my mother remarried and lives in Florida.
Brothers and sisters?
None.
Mitch, I hope you don't think us intrusive
but stability in the family has a special importance for us.
Bendini, Lambert & Locke is just a small Memphis firm,
41 lawyers.
But we're a large family, so we're careful.
Now, sir... Do you have any questions?
Do you have an offer in mind?
It includes a bonus schedule, a low-interest mortgage
so you can buy a home, country club membership,
and we'll lease you a new Mercedes.
You pick the colour, Mitch.
Lamar, you haven't been paying attention.
His wife picks the colour.
- Do I... do I open it here? - Of course.
Unless you can tell us what's in it.
A lawyer worth that offer
shouldn't have to open the envelope.
Mr McKnight, you are the managing partner
at Bendini, Lambert & Locke?
Did Mr Lambert as senior partner
give you instructions regarding my employment?
He did.
Mr McKnight, do you follow Mr Lambert's instructions?
Objection - vague, ambiguous.
Sustained.
What precisely were those instructions?
That you were in great demand and I should make certain
that we obtain your services
before a bidding situation developed.
How did you go about making certain?
I bribed a clerk in the Harvard Law placement office
for the exact amount of the highest offer
and then added 20%.
Mitch, the letter you got from Bendini, Lambert & Locke
was the only one sent out. We want you.
OK. You'll have to leave now. I'm expecting my husband.
To hell with him.
Come here.
Moo shoo pork, Szechwan beef, Mandarin duck...
from Wong Boys.
- It's even got a cork. - What's going on?
You remember the letter I got from that firm in Memphis?
Memphis?
That's what I thought until their offer.
- What was the offer? - They didn't say. It's there.
- It's sealed. - I guessed.
- What? - Yeah, but I'm a good guesser.
Plus a 5% increase the second year.
- Why? - "Why"?
- Whose side are you on anyway? - Yours.
Plus bonuses, a low-interest mortgage.
A home with grass around it?
They want to fly us down to Memphis for a visit.
Been in one limo, you've been in them all.
Bye. See you later, Your Honour.
Hey, Mitch. Come on. Associates first,
then lunch with the partners in our private dining room.
He's our number-one draft pick, so to speak,
and he's being romanced by the big boys
from New York and Chicago and everywhere else,
so we have to sell him on our little firm in Memphis.
Meanwhile, he's going to try not to be embarrassed
while I tell you he's graduating from Harvard with honours.
No one's divorced in the firm?
- No one's divorced in the firm. - Impossible.
No bachelors, either.
- What about women? - They had one once.
Only one?
Yeah, Alice Krauss.
Wobbled around on high heels. Affirmative action on stilts.
All white, all male, all married, huh?
- What's this? - There he goes.
It's different from the Northeast.
The pace, we're almost stately by comparison.
Courteous... And not as gossipy.
- We keep each other's secrets. - I like that.
What do you like about it?
All of it. It's a family. Just the way you said.
I've been teaching in Boston at a private school.
Do you work?
Not since I put Lamar through law school.
- But working isn't forbidden. - Forbidden?
- Working. By the firm. - How could it be forbidden?
It isn't.
Anyway, two babies in 14 months, was all the work I could handle.
- You plan to start a family? - Maybe in a few years.
- The firm encourages children. - How do they do that?
- Hey. How about it? - How about it!
OK. The "Love Boat" band, the secret recipe ribs -
they're a little square, but...
I don't mind square. I like square. Weird, I mind.
What do you mean, weird?
Here's a quote.
The firm doesn't "forbid" me to take a job,
and they "encourage" children. Ask me why.
Because they love kids.
Because children promote stability.
- Want to hear more? - No. You're right.
I'm just going to throw myself over the rail.
- My will is self-explanatory. - OK, OK, OK.
These are nice people, Abby.
OK, I'm more impressed than you are - you grew up with it.
96,000 a year here is like 150 in New York.
Did you ever think I'd make a six-figure salary?
Absolutely.
You did?
Well... your folks are only a few hours away, too.
If we fight, I don't have far to drive?
Exactly.
She made two phone calls from the hotel...
one to her parents and one to the Memphis school board.
She seemed a little reluctant.
I'd hate to lose this young man.
I think she'll come around.
What about Kozinski and Hodges? Have you spoken to Chicago?
I have.
It's not good. We'll have to do something.
I drew the happy face, Mrs McDeere.
Where is Memphis?
- Is that it? - It looks different.
It's prettier than the pictures they sent.
"Mitch and Abby, we've taken the liberty
"of furnishing the house temporarily.
"Just a few things to make you feel at home."
Abby!
Not bad, huh?
Where's yours?
- Don't get up. - Don't worry.
- Mitchell McDeere. - Tad eager, are we, Mr McDeere?
What are you doing? Dutch says you've been here since 6:30.
I'm starting the bar exam work.
No associate's ever failed it. I'll show you your office.
Wally Hudson, contracts. Here to help with the exam.
- Thanks, Wally. - No associate's ever failed it.
First day's a four-hour multiple choice on ethics.
Look at the first six chapters. I'll see you Wednesday, 8:45.
- No associate has ever failed. - No kidding!
Ken Curry, domestic relations.
Mike Hill, wills and estates.
Nina.
Fuck! Please.
Sorry. Can I help you?
Actually, I think I'm here to help you.
I'm Avery Tolar, your designated mentor. Let's go to lunch.
Lunch? But it's not even...
Not even noon. It'll be a working lunch.
Come to my office while I drop this off.
Billing includes how long you spend thinking about a client.
I don't care if you're in traffic, or shaving,
or sitting in a park. My particular field...
Is forming limited partnerships through offshore corporations.
I want you to review the last one I did
for a client named Sonny Capps.
Made 14 million last year.
Paid 4% in taxes and resents every buck.
But he paid us 400,000, so keep him happy.
Look at the deal. Try coming up with something.
I'll call him in the morning.
- Mr Tolar, should I save these? - Please.
- What do you mean "anything"? - What do you think?
You're the risk taker.
You think I'm talking about breaking the law?
- How far do you want it bent? - As far as you can.
So don't risk an IRS audit?
I don't care. They just better not win.
- Yes, Mr Tolar? - Something before lunch?
I should warn you, the firm frowns on drinking
- during office hours. - Iced tea, please.
Bombay martini on the rocks, Ellis, three olives.
On the way.
Senator.
I'm allowed a few minor rebellions.
- Put that in the bedroom. - I made some tea.
I've never had so many people doing things for me.
This is Southern hospitality.
Would you like speed dialling?
My husband's office number...
- Let's see, that's... - We have it, Mrs McDeere.
We do all the installations for the firm.
- What led you to law school? - I can't remember.
Sure you can, counsellor.
I was a delivery boy for a pizza parlour.
One day the owner got a notice from the IRS.
He didn't know much English, even less about withholding tax.
He went bankrupt, lost his store.
That was when I thought of being a lawyer.
In other words, you're an idealist.
No tax lawyer's an idealist.
I lost my job. It scared me.
Being out of work?
No. What the government can do to anybody.
What about you? What led you to law school?
It's so far back, I don't think I can remember.
Sure you can, counsellor.
I used to caddie for young lawyers
off from work on weekdays... and their wives.
I'd look at those long tan legs and knew I had to be a lawyer.
The wives had long tan legs, too.
Ellis, another martini, please.
So we're not a couple of idealists?
Heaven forbid.
- Hi. - Hi.
I'll let Mrs Quinn know you're here.
- Are you sure it's today? - That's what he told me.
Kay?
There's been...
Marty Kozinski and Joe Hodges were killed.
We just got word about 20 minutes ago.
Did you meet them at the barbecue?
- What happened, Kay? - We're not sure.
They were diving off a boat on Grand Cayman,
and then there was some kind of explosion on the boat.
Lamar?
Marty was...
His twin girls are a month older than our son.
I'm very sorry, Lamar.
By the way...
Oliver wanted me to tell you...
You shouldn't be burdened with a student loan.
Excuse me?
If you bring the papers by tomorrow,
the firm will repay it for you.
Kay was scared.
What? She was upset.
There's a difference between being upset and being scared.
- She was scared. - Of what?
- Do you know her that well? - Maybe not.
But I have spent a lot of time with her lately.
They have their own horses.
Two of them. Quarter horses.
Does that make half a horse?
Sorry.
.. and wipe away tears from our eyes.
In the name of the Father and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit, amen.
Let us pray.
Lord, our God, you are always faithful
and quick to show mercy.
Our brother Marty was suddenly and violently taken from us.
Come swiftly to his aid.
Have mercy on him and comfort his family and friends
by the power and protection of the cross.
We ask this through Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
Let us go in the peace of Christ.
I'm just going to say goodbye to Oliver.
I'll catch up with you.
Mrs McDeere. I'm Avery Tolar.
You're the reason I see so little of my husband these days.
He must be the most ambitious man in the world.
One of them.
I mean... leaving you every day just to go off to work.
- I'm sure you could manage. - Just tell me how.
Did you know them well, the men who died?
Yes.
You must be overwhelmed with grief.
People grieve in different ways, Mrs McDeere.
Abby!
Hearsay.
Oh, shit.
- Is he in? - Yes, Mr Tolar.
Hell of a proposal, kiddo.
Just redraft this section on repatriation of offshore funds.
- I need it tomorrow. - Tomorrow? I need another week.
Can't have it, pal.
We are flying to the Caymans tomorrow
- to take on Sonny Capps. - But the bar exam...
It'll be here when you get back, kiddo.
Shall I stay, Mr McDeere? Would you like a sandwich?
No, I'm fine, Nina. You go on home.
- Good night. - Good night.
- So what's good here? - I'm just having coffee.
I'm going with the steak sandwich.
Two steak sandwiches on rolls, please.
Two steak sandwiches on rolls.
You with Bendini, Lambert & Locke?
Yeah. How did you...
Ah. Sorry. I'm just a little...
Looks like they're working you to death.
They do that with new associates, I guess.
- I've just been with them... - Eight weeks.
Sorry, guys, I'm just a little punchy.
That firm looks like a health hazard.
- The hours they make you keep. - The work they make you do.
Kozinski and... Hodges.
Bob Lamm and Alice Krauss.
That's 4 dead lawyers out of 41 in less than 10 years.
None of them over the age of 45.
Beats any life insurance tables I've ever heard about.
Who are you guys?
Could we get those sandwiches to go, please?
We'll probably see each other again.
The car wouldn't start.
I got... caught in this incredible accident...
12 cars... Maybe 13.
And there was a... pregnant woman in one of them.
I helped deliver the baby.
It was a... It was a girl.
They said they're going to name her Abigail.
Come on, Abby.
Why do you think I'm working like this?
- I want you to have... - Wait a minute.
I never asked for anything except for us to be together.
I wanna give you everything you gave up to marry me.
Stop it.
It's sweet.
It's some kind of courtship, but I don't need all that.
Just bring me flowers sometime.
What were you working on all night?
Just... you know, it's... just this stuff...
Avery's got me doing for the Cayman trip.
- Want to have some eggs? - I had some eggs.
Want to have some naked?
You don't even know what moves me about you, do you?
Mitch, I know what you want, but it's not for me.
It's not even for you, and you know it.
It's easy for somebody rich to talk about being poor
like it's some bothersome fly you just wave away.
This isn't about rich or poor.
It's something that won't get fixed with 10 Mercedes.
Hey, that's not fair, Abby. That's not fair!
This is about a mother in a trailer park
and a brother you pretend you don't have.
Have a nice trip.
Just follow me and don't over breathe.
What about Sonny Capps? Aren't we under pressure?
Tremendous pressure. If we don't dive before the bank,
we can't do it.
You can't dive and then fly within 24 hours.
How can you dive so soon after the accident?
We don't know what happened to Kozinski and Hodges.
There was a plane crash last week.
We didn't take a boat to the Caymans, did we?
That's ridiculous. Let us sit down for five minutes.
Thank you.
Son of a bitch pays less than 5% tax and wants to fire us.
The Hyatt.
This new plan is very aggressive,
and it defers all your tax liability for years.
You could start right away.
I'm sorry, sweetheart. I can't talk right now.
These taxes are only deferred, right?
The future tax value is less than half their present value.
- Who says? - After the election...
Are you telling me who's going to be president next?
That would be valuable information.
Mr Tolar has a plan that...
that meets all your needs, whoever's in the White House.
- Let him tell me. - He's trying to.
- Are you his lawyer or mine? - Neither one, sir.
- Why the fuck are you here? - Sonny...
You're not the firm's only concern here.
We put you into deals with other clients
who may be sensitive about exposing their relationships
to outside attorneys.
You hear that, counsellor? That's a veiled threat.
If you're talking about our friends in Chicago,
they don't make money when I pay you fees. You do.
They make money being in business with me.
As long as they're making money,
they don't care who does my taxes.
You don't know me. I'm a nice guy.
Lose me a million bucks, I won't break your leg.
Sonny... Let's not get carried away.
What did I say?
- What did I say? - It's what you didn't say.
What I didn't say? What didn't I say?
"Thank you."
Mr Tolar's schedule virtually guarantees you
zero tax with zero risk.
Your stock would be the face amount of the instalment.
The stock has no value but it's offset against income.
You defer your tax in full, even with a bankable LC.
- Deferred till when? - What do you care?
It's the best interest-free loan you'll ever get.
So the worst is I pay my taxes much, much later?
No. Next year they're closing this loophole.
If you haven't grabbed this proposal,
you'll feel you've been fucked
with a dick big enough for an elephant to feel it.
Do you know that for a fact?
Hey, you like the word "protégé"?
I never had one. You ever been one?
I'm "A", you're "B". Right next door.
- Avery, who's in Chicago? - We'll get to all that.
To hell with it. Clean up and come over.
You earned a good night out.
Mr Abanks, I don't believe it was an accident.
Just think about it.
I lost my son.
I'd have screamed bloody murder if something was wrong.
- You're right. I'm sorry. - Nothing to bury, even.
Just a stone.
They never did find him or the other two.
What other two?
The other two who split the charter.
Your friends and two other guys.
Lawyers?
They were in swimsuits. They paid cash.
- Were they American? - Could have been anything.
One was... I don't know, squat, heavy.
Other guy had long, blond hair... almost white,
with weird blue eyes.
- Mitch? - Yeah.
Grab a Red Stripe. I'm a little slow.
Take your time.
I'm trying to look as pretty as you,
which I'm convinced I can.
It just takes me a little longer.
Anything to munch on?
Yeah. There's some stuff next to the fridge.
It's got a lock on it. Use that key I gave you.
- Do you see it? - Yeah, sure.
Did you find something?
Listen, Capps is a tough guy, but he's also a blowhard.
He loves to give the impression that he's connected.
He thinks it's glamorous.
He said a couple of things.
You're about to take the bar exam.
Here's a multiple choice...
The difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion is:
"A", whatever the IRS says,
"B", a smart lawyer,
"C", 10 years in prison,
"D"... all of the above!
Being a tax lawyer's got nothing to do with the law.
It's a game.
We teach the rich how to play it so they can stay rich.
The IRS keeps changing the rules
so we can keep getting rich teaching them.
It's a game...
One you just played very, very well. Where's your beer?
I decided to wait for the rum.
- I hear it's good down here. - Everything is. Taste it all.
I think that since we're here on this island,
there's things we can do on it... primitive things.
Come on, you deserve it.
Look, this isn't going to happen.
Tell my friend I went back to the condo.
You don't know what you're missing.
Thanks, anyway.
Are you all right? It's OK. Just wait a minute.
Wait a minute. Can I look at this?
- You're not a doctor. - No, but I've...
I've sprained a lot of... I've sprained a lot of ankles.
Mostly mine.
You should... You should ice this.
You should also report that guy.
That was your boyfriend.
That was for money.
- Aren't you going to finish? - I'm sorry.
- You think that's... - It's nothing to do with me.
- Is this too tight? - No.
I work in a travel agency.
I wanted to feel like all those people...
with first-class tickets and pretty clothes.
I guess... I wanted to feel...
rich.
How much would it take to feel rich?
I don't know.
How much would it take to feel safe?
You did that.
You made me feel safe.
Will you stay with me for a while?
Why don't you take the afternoon off?
You deserve it. Spend it with that pretty wife of yours.
Oh, shit, I forgot. She phoned last night.
What did you tell her?
That you were probably walking on the beach.
I was.
I guessed right, then, didn't I?
OK, Mr McDeere.
Just sign where the "X" is, and initial where it's marked.
The man from "Gentlemen's Quarterly".
How you doing, Ray?
Pretty fair. How's yourself?
It's a long time, huh?
It's OK. I've become a patient man.
Don't beat yourself up, kid.
If I wasn't here, I wouldn't want to be here, either.
- You ever talk to Ma? - A few months ago.
- Still with the same guy? - They're all the same guy.
So... You finish law school?
Yeah.
That suit's a dead giveaway.
You get a job on Wall Street? You always said...
No, I'm not. I just...
I went with a firm across the river in Memphis.
- Memphis? - Hey, Ray...
Wouldn't it be funny if I went to Harvard, you went to jail,
and we both ended up surrounded by crooks?
Sonny Capps is thrilled.
McDeere was dazzling.
We should pull Lamar out of that tax seminar
and send Mitch instead.
Let him take the jet.
- Any problem with that, Bill? - No, no. No problem.
So far the kid's been real predictable.
If you're even half right, you'll need help.
- What does Abby think? - I haven't told her.
I guess...
I guess I don't want it to be real.
Nothing's real until I tell it to Abby.
How'd you ever land the job with a brother in the joint?
That's OK. I'd have done the same thing myself.
You were always around for me, Ray...
all those years after Dad died.
I'd have done the same.
You think I tell guys around here my brother's in Harvard?
Jesus, Ray.
listen, I want you to see a friend of mine.
His name's Eddie Lomax.
He's a private investigator in Little Rock. Ex-cop.
Anything I can do for you?
Sure. Get me out of here.
Where to?
Anywhere I can see a whole lot of sky.
I can get through the days - I even eat the food.
It's amazing how much you miss the sky.
Ever plug one of these in, and forgot to put the water in?
No.
- You know what happens? - No.
The lights go out.
He's been dying to see you.
- Tammy! - Mr Lomax will see you now.
Mitch McDeere. I practically went to law school with you.
Ray talked about you every day for three years.
I was his cellmate. Did he tell you it was statutory rape?
She was 17, looked 25.
I got one to four. Sit down. Come on, sit down.
Want some Sweet 'n'Low? Dairy cream?
No. I...
I've got some business I'd like to go over with you.
- I'm leavin'. - Thank you, dear.
That's my secretary. She is terrific.
Her husband's a nut case. He's a truck driver.
He moved here to be close to Graceland.
He thinks he's Elvis.
His name is Elvis. Elvis Aaron Hemphill.
I've run across some strange things,
some things I would never spray-paint on an overpass.
Now... What can I do for you?
- What a nice surprise. - Avery.
They didn't have to disturb you.
- Believe me, it's no bother. - I was just looking for Mitch.
Nina says he hasn't been in all afternoon.
I didn't mean for her to call you.
Didn't he come back with you?
I'll be honest with you.
This is not my area of expertise.
But you think it's possible.
Anything's possible. I'll tell you one thing.
If those guys were feds, you better watch out.
They don't give a damn about you.
I get some pretty pissed-off husbands in here.
On the other hand,
the lawyers at your firm sure as hell seem accident-prone.
I'll see what I can find out.
You better let me call you.
You sure remind me of your brother.
Ray comes up for parole in a while.
He says that, he can last it. What do you think?
There's guys that can do all the hard time
the state gives them.
Whatever Ray had, he used up to get this far.
- Hi. - Hi.
- I didn't think you were home. - Why not?
- No car. - Took it in for service.
Avery brought me home.
Went to the office looking for you.
- I wasn't there. - Apparently not.
I even looked under your desk.
Avery told me you were at MSU law library.
- Avery did. - Avery did.
I spotted your car in the parking lot. It made him edgy.
Avery didn't exactly know where I was.
Probably thought you were with another woman.
I went to see Ray.
Just like that, after all this time.
You're right. I've been stupid.
I would have gone with you on Saturday.
God, I just wasn't... I wasn't thinking.
- How'd it go? - It was...
It was...
God, he... He tried to make it easy for me.
Is he OK?
He's got to get that parole.
You want to try something?
Let's put the books away,
pretend we're back in our old, beat-up apartment, broke,
and we find some money we forgot in pockets.
We'll send out for pizza. Drink beer.
And watch "Star Search".
Who knows where it will lead?
- Your wife. - She's in Cleveland.
She lies.
Don't you answer your phone?
Don't you knock?
Where's your secretary?
Out.
- She left a cigarette burning. - She does that.
Come back in one hour and make an appointment.
Why bother? We're here.
- I'm busy. - Doing what?
I'm getting a pedicure.
What's it to you?
This is going to turn out badly for you,
but we can make it relatively painless.
Why are you asking questions about dead lawyers?
What dead lawyers?
Who hired you to do that?
OK. OK.
Just let me think.
His name...
Was Julio Iglesias.
No! No!
Great.
Just great.
You want to ask him a few questions now?
This is a carefully balanced proposal.
I think it's high-minded, but I think it's fair-minded.
In other words, it's got something to offend everyone.
If you want to follow along, we'll begin on page "I."
We'll review sections 704-B of the IRS code of 1986...
".. with partners' interests in the partnership -
"unless those allocations satisfy the economic effect
"most easily satisfied by taking advantage
"of the safe harbour provisions set forth therein."
So, in an ever-changing sea of tax law...
Watch your step, please.
Hey, brother.
Sister.
Brother, go down the steps towards the pool.
Here you go, brother.
- Voices from the wall. - Thanks a lot.
Who killed Eddie Lomax?
Go over and sit next to the man on the bench.
I appreciate your coming, Mr McDeere.
I'll call you Mitch if I may.
My name is Denton Voyles.
I'm with the Department of Justice.
What happened to Eddie Lomax?
We've been investigating Bendini, Lambert & Locke
for four years.
No lawyer has ever left your law firm alive.
Two tried to leave - they were killed.
Two were about to try - you know what happened.
We have reason to believe that your house is bugged...
your phones are tapped, and your office is wired.
They may have followed you to Washington as we speak.
Are you saying that my life...
Your life as you know it is over.
Your law firm is the representative
of the Morolto crime family in Chicago,
known as the Mafia, the Mob.
I don't believe it.
They set up legitimate businesses with money
from drugs, prostitution... all cash moved offshore.
You believe it.
That's why you talked to Thomas Abanks.
That's why your private investigator got killed.
Maybe 30% of their clients are legitimate.
They bring in a new rookie,
throw money at him, buy the car, the house.
Once your kids are in private schools,
you're used to the good life, they tell you the truth.
You mean every partner in the firm...
Every partner knows.
We suspect most of the associates.
Why don't you get indictments and bust it all up?
We have to have somebody on the inside.
We need to see copies of contracts,
clients' bank records, articles of incorporation.
Wait. You think I'm...
You can say no, but we're going to break this firm.
When that happens, you're going to jail along with the rest.
It'll happen. Believe me.
Why can't I just leave?
That's what Kozinski and Hodges were trying to do.
You have to think this over.
Meanwhile, you and your wife have to behave
as though everything is normal.
Don't discuss this with anyone...
but make a decision.
You help us, we'll make it worth your while.
- Worth my while? - You'll still have a good life.
You mean, in a witness protection programme?
How?
I live somebody else's life in some nowhere place,
and one day, I'm backing out of the driveway
and my car explodes?
Doesn't have to be that way.
I don't need much of a life but it has to be mine.
You got that now?
Get back to the seminar.
Tarrance will negotiate on our behalf.
Why don't you wander back past the Memorial?
Call me anytime, day or night.
The second one's a mobile number.
Let me get this straight.
I steal files and turn them over to the FBI,
testify against my colleagues, send them to jail.
Reveal privileged information
that violates attorney/client confidences,
get disbarred, then testify against the Mafia.
- Unfortunately... - Let me ask you something.
Are you out of your fucking mind?
How long before they find out
Lomax's cellmate was named Ray McDeere...
And when they do, what will they do to him?
They can get to anyone, anywhere.
- What can you do? - Your brother's up for parole.
You cooperate with us - the board will be grateful.
Otherwise...
You know what parole hearings are like.
It could go either way.
Forget about home. Take me to the firm.
I need to see everybody, now.
- I'm on overseas, and... - Right now.
I just had a chat with the FBI.
- They didn't try to coerce you? - No.
- They didn't offer you money? - Nope.
Did they ask you to contact them?
What for?
Exactly what did they want?
The secret files.
Who had those secret files last? Did you, Royce?
I gave them to you.
They also suggested that Hodges and Kozinski were murdered.
Those sons of bitches.
Now we ought to build a case and sue.
This is pure harassment.
And that was it?
That was everything that was said?
Well, as far as I can remember.
It wasn't exactly a sequential conversation.
There was a lot of yelling, mostly by me.
Mitch, we're always fighting the government.
If it isn't the Justice Department, it's the IRS.
We've beat them every time, and they hate us for it.
They can't get to us, so they pick on somebody new.
They invite you to break the law.
It doesn't cost them anything, but it costs you everything.
I don't want you to worry about this.
It's gotten serious enough.
We'll have to get into it legally.
The only other question is who do we bill this hour to?
How about the FBI?
I can't believe that. That is so weird.
I was just thinking about you.
Somebody's burning leaves outside. Did you smell it?
Reminded me of the time...
If you're afraid you'll wake the kids, we don't have any.
Don't say anything. Don't tell me any more.
Everything...
Every single thing
we've said or done since we've been in that house,
nothing has been between us.
Can't we just drive back to Boston tonight?
- They'll find us. - How do you go to work?
- What do you say to Avery? - I talk about work.
That's insane!
I've thought of every way here, in the Caymans, in Washington -
that's all I've done.
If we run, they'd find us, and it gets Ray killed.
- But if you testify... - The FBI will protect us.
Protect what?
What are you going to do?
Go in tomorrow and start to copy files.
I don't have a choice.
Mitch...
What are you saying?
You'll be revealing clients' secrets.
You'll be disbarred - unable to practice law again,
everything you've worked for.
- They can't ask you to do that. - They are not asking!
We have to behave exactly as we have been.
We have to go to work and come home every day
and never wonder about the walls and the wires...
And do nothing we want to do.
Szechwan beef from Wong Boys.
That was the last time I remember laughing.
Come on. Every single day you're blocking this alley.
Leave me alone.
You're using this place as a parking lot.
What the hell are you doing?
Jesus, I was trying to make a copy.
Now you have to have the billing code for each client.
Every time I copy a piece of paper, it's recorded?
Are you trying to kill yourself?
Come on. Nina should do that.
Come down for one night, can't you?
Yeah, well, it used to be worth it.
OK. Well...
Yeah. Maybe next time.
Bye, Cordelia.
- That was Cordelia. - Your wife.
From the song of the same name.
Avery, about those Capps LCs... when's the next Cayman trip?
For me? Next week.
If you think I'd let Sonny Capps see you again, you're crazy.
But write down your thoughts.
I'll be happy to take credit.
Mr Mulholland's called twice about his bills again.
Tell him to take it and... Wait a minute.
- Isn't he just up the street? - Yes. In The Cotton Exchange.
I'll see him later.
Did you order a fried egg sandwich?
A fried egg...
Yes, I did. I did.
Come in.
It's 2.65. The receipt's in the bag.
How did you see them and they didn't see you?
I was under the desk.
I was vacuuming. You want me to draw you a diagram?
I loved him.
I'm sorry, Tammy.
They wanted to know who hired him
and why he was asking questions about them lawyers.
You actually saw them?
One guy was stocky, looked like a wrestler.
He's going to limp the rest of his life
'cause Eddie hit him in the knee with that cannon under his desk.
Other guy was like an albino.
Long, thin hair... almost white.
Dead blue eyes.
My landlady said they came looking for me yesterday.
So I checked into a motel - couldn't think where else to go.
They're going to put Eddie together with Ray.
When they do, it'll lead to you.
I don't want anything bad to happen to you.
Eddie wouldn't like it.
You're in trouble like me.
There's a building nearby called The Cotton Exchange. Maybe you can help.
Hi there, Mitch.
Bill Devasher... firm security.
Mr Locke and Mr Lambert told me about your run-in with the FBI.
Could we have a talk?
Actually, I told them everything.
Sure. This won't take a minute.
Hop in.
So, Mitch, this is a debriefing.
I know pretty much what you told the fellas,
so I kind of got the picture.
It's my job to give you the picture.
What I'm concerned about, son, is this...
The FBI figured they'd get to you.
- What made them think that? - I have no idea.
Well, see I have an idea that they know how important
your wife is to you.
- They might use that. - How?
Avery says last Friday you took the afternoon off.
He figures you might have been with another woman.
Why would Avery think...
How do you know you weren't followed?
Here's your Abby, one day walking to the mailbox,