Hey, you guys. I'm outta here.
I'm gonna grab a cab. I got a paper to finish.
- I'm just gonna hang. - I'll be there in a minute.
Taxi!
That bone's definitely not human.
- And the hair? - Not human either.
- Well, what is it? - Working fast as I can.
Glad to see you could join us.
I got Cheney on the line. He wants you to brief him.
Tell him I'll call him back.
Two things:
First, you did a hell of a job locating the evidence.
There's no question the perp knows forensics.
Now, as for the other thing...
the--
you know, the victim's hands-- well, maybe--
maybe it was too much to handle, so we'll just forget it.
Is that your version of an apology?
An apology? Is that why you came over here?
- You really are a piece of work. - Well, aren't we a pair?
I think you’re terrific.
You got a hell of an arrest record too.
High marks from all your bosses, definite gold shield potential.
Why you want to throw it all away to chase youth offenders?
Oh, I don't feel I have any need to explain that to you.
Come on, Amelia. Cop to cop.
Cop to cop, let's just leave it at ''personal reasons.''
Okay.
Doesn't have anything to do with your father, does it?
Man, you just keep charging at walls, don't you?
Stubbornness is something we both share.
They say we come into this world with a genetically preordained destiny.
I don't believe it.
For example, neither of my parents had more than an eighth grade education.
Never read more than one book between them-- not one.
I've read thousands.
- I've written a dozen. - What's your point?
My point is that destiny is what you make it.
Whatever happened to your father doesn't mean it's gonna happen to you.
You're a great cop. You'd make a terrific detective.
It's a gift.
Don't throw it away.
Report from the taxi commission.
An NYU student was abducted late last night.
His girlfriend saw him struggling to get out...
as the taxi driver was bludgeoning him with a flashlight.
No description of the driver.
Okay, everybody. This could be our next victim.
Yeah, Tony. Paulie here. It looks like we got another victim.
Did you get a deadline off that evidence yet?
Not yet. Something I was hoping you'd help me with.
Anyone for some ossobuco?
What?
The bone we found at the Wall Street scene--
veal shank...
braised and overly salted to boot.
- Cow bone? - Uh-huh.
And I also found a piece of that old paper...
imbedded in the bone.
Take a look.
What's going on here?
Just do what you need to do as quickly as possible, okay, Richard?
It's about the hair follicles. He says they're not human.
A rodent, probably a rat.
And get this: They were shaved off.
Oh, now we're looking for a rat that shaves.
- I really like that. - I've known a few in my time.
- How 'bout you, Amelia? - More than a few.
It's consistent with underground, that's for sure.
What's he trying to say to us?
Definitely communicating in our language...
leaving clues-- forensic clues at that.
Maybe it's a cop.
Maybe.
Maybe he's trying to share the responsibility of these murders with us.
If we don't figure out the clues in time, the blood's on our hands.
We don't find the victim in time, we're as responsible for the murders as he is.
What you got on the dirt you scraped from the wood, Eddie?
I don't have it 1 00% individuated, but it does appear nitrogen-rich.
- All set, ready to rock and roll. - All right.
- Thanks for rushing. I appreciate it. - All right, Thelma.
Thank you, Richard.
Nitrogen rich, explosive carbons-- where do you find those in New York?
Bomb sites, shooting ranges.
Maybe an old fort or an armoury?
Let's not forget the shit factor, guys.
The what?
Manure becomes a nitrate when it's aged.
That's true.
And you got cow bones, huh?
Old cow bones, old manure. Turn of the century, cows, farms...
pastures, rats--
Dead cows.
Where do you find-- In stockyards.
Slaughterhouses, that's what we want to look for.
Stockyards and slaughterhouses from the turn of the century.
- Let's start there. - Check the internet.
Okay, I want tax records, sanitation records and building code inspections...
last hundred years, okay?
Man, your blood pressure is way up.
- You're pushing it too hard, Rhyme. - I understand, Thelma.
What do we got on the stockyards over there?
- We're almost there. - Okay, that one's no good.
- You okay? - No, I'm not okay.
Can't figure out this damn time line or these shards of cardboard.
I don't know what the hell it means.
We got three defunct stockyards sites.
There's one on the east side, Lexington and the Harlem River viaduct.
Solomon, put the box down, and mark them on the viewer as she calls them out.
Your blood pressure's gonna blow a gasket if you don't slow down.
My body has a mind of its own. It doesn't listen to me.
All right?
What else, Amelia?
Yeah, there's another on the Hudson up at 1 55th.
Mark it down, Solomon.
Look, your stats are going down. You saw him have a seizure the other day.
What else?
There's one underground at Greenwich and Houston.
- Mark it down, Solomon. - Why don’t you knock it off, Lincoln?
I don't need to knock it off!.
What was the first one that you mentioned?
Lexington and the Harlem River viaduct.
- And when did it close? - 1 91 0.
Okay, what about Houston-- Yeah.
- Houston and Greenwich. When is that? - 1 898.
And the Hudson and 1 55th was closed in 1 906.
1 906, 1 898--
All right, let's-- 1 898.
Houston and Greenwich. You call emergency services, Paulie.
Tell them...
meet us at Houston and Greenwich, okay?
Solomon, you get on to Hanson. He'll need about 20 guys.
We'll take Eddie's van.
- You go with them. - Come on, guys. Let's go!
Linc, are you there?
- Yeah, ready. - We're here.
Okay. Amelia?
- Yeah. - Same drill. I want you in first.
Let's do it.
Watch yourself, Amelia.
Oh, man, I don't like this.
I don't like this.
Hey, Linc, I got a bad feeling about this, man.
I think all three of us ought to get in there together.
Not yet, Paulie. Just hold back.
Going down some stairs.
Cement walls.
Wood crates...
large columns.
Smells like manure down here.
Ortiz sure knows his shit.
Always has.
Metal hooks...
and a pen.
It's a slaughterhouse.
- E.S. U. are here. - Hold them off.
Don't let them in there and contaminate the scene.
All right, hold it. Hold up. Hold up!
- You're not to go in. - Why?
- Rhyme's orders. - Fuck him. Get me Cheney on the line.
Crime scene C.O. on air.
Switch to channel22 for E.S. U.
Fuck Rhyme.
Maybe this one's still alive.
Perp didn't leave a deadline.
What does that mean?
It means we're probably too late.
You don't know that, Rhyme.
Get off the line.
Let's move on, Amelia.
You know, there's five basic contaminants to every crime scene.
I'll skip to the worst one.
Other cops.
I think I hear something.
I hate this shit.
I see something. Something's there.
I think I found him.
I can't-- I can't tell if he's alive.
Oh,Jesus. He's covered in rats.
They're all over him.
- We're going in. - No, you're not!
Go, go!
Central, we have shots fired. Shots fired.
Oh, God.
You were right. We never had a shot.
He cut him up pretty bad and left him for the rats.
There's also a big cut in his leg, it's right down to the bone.
The blood attracted the rats.
Goddamn son of a bitch.
You okay?
I'm fine.
Wanna step aside so I can walk the grid?
Yeah.
Yeah, all right, let's back 'em up. Let's give her some room. Come on.
Rhyme, I'm gonna walk the grid.
Okay.
You know what to do.
I found it.
Another cluster.
It's a piece of old paper, just like the other two.
And matchbox.
Somebody get that black suitcase and bring it over here, please.
Pull out the brown envelope.
Sounds like you’re starting to enjoy this work.
Damn. The press is here.
Right there.
Lincoln Rhyme is no longer working this case. I'm taking over. Understood?
You can do what you want, Captain, but you ought to check with Murphy first.
Fuck Murphy, and fuck Rhyme.
This has been cleared downtown. We got a dead kid in there on our hands.
And I for one am not taking the heat for that, you understand?
Call Ortiz. Tell him and his crew to vacate Rhyme's place now, tonight.
Excuse me, but the victim was already dead when we arrived.
And you-- half-assed patrolman working a crime scene--
those days are over.
I'll take that evidence bag now, thank you.
You can take it with a chain of custody voucher, sir.
Are you out of your mind?
Let's go. You're coming with us.
What, are you arresting me?
You just get in the car, and keep your mouth shut to the press.
You're not gonna find any prints. The guy's too good for that.
Well, it looks like we have a nice clean friction print here.
Unless, of course, it's yours.
No, I was wearing gloves when I collected it.
We'll know soon enough.
Put this through, highest priority.
- You got it. - Thank you.
You know, I got a feeling this perp's been in business for a long time.
Yeah, I hear you, but that's Cheney's problem now.
That's what scares me. Do me a favour, will you?
Check if there’s been any homicides in the last 1 2 months...
involving surgically-removed flesh exposing bone.
No problem. I'll see you soon.
- Hope so, Eddie. - Hey, Thelma...
don’t you let him run no circles around you now.
Stay right, Eddie.
Oh, that print-- we just got a positive I.D. on it.
Guy has three extremely violent priors.
Oh, look at that. Taxi license, no less.
We got him.
Way to go, boys. Somebody call the E.S.U.
Now slide out...
nice and easy.
That explains your print, Captain.
He's now the fourth victim of killing spree that has prompted NYPD brass...
to launch a special task force to track the killer.
This morning's raid in Queens follows leads found at an earlier murder site.
Detectives at the scene--
I was hoping you'd show up.
- He's been worried about you. - Yeah, sure.
Viewers will know Rhyme from his book, Scene of the Crime...
a chronicle of old New York's most grisly murders...
that topped the best-seller list earlier this year.
Didn't expect to see you again.
Poor Cheney, huh?
Grabbed the ball with both hands, scored one for the other team.
- I can't really comment at this time. - Yeah.
Well, I tried to warn him that the perp was too smart to leave a print.
How you doing with that stuff?
Not too good.
Two pieces of the puzzle but I don't know what it means.
Maybe this'll help.
Cheney will have your badge for that.
He wouldn't give me a chain of custody voucher, so what could I do?
You could bring it back to him.
The man is a living monument to ineptitude.
True. Let's take a look.
What do you got there?
Third piece of the puzzle.
There's something really strange about it though, so you gotta smell it.
Sure.
- Are you-- - Oh, shit.
Sorry.
Oh, it's okay. Take your time.
You have to put it closer to my nose.
What do you think it is?
Kerosene?
Possibly.
Okay, this just came in from Eddie Ortiz.
Amelia, could you load these into the viewer for me, please?
Sorry about that, Thelma.
E.C.U., view scan.
''Dear Linc, I'm enclosing photos of four unsolved homicides...
which took place in the last 1 2 months.
Flesh has been surgically removed from each of the victims' extremities.
I miss you. Love, Eddie.''
I'm gonna spare myself the pleasure, if you don't mind.
Okay, Thelma.
Zoom.
Same mark.
Right.
Zoom. Zoom.
Same messages.
It's him.
The perp was trying to make contact even then.
But Cheney never put it together.
Dysreflexia seizure, a bad one.
Hang on, hang on. Breathe, Rhyme.
Come on. Breathe with me. Breathe!
The damn catheter's blocked.
Just let me get a B.P. on you. Stay with me.
Breathe!
Hang on, now. Hang on. Just let me check you.
Diastolic's over 1 25. I gotta get it down now.
Just give it a few seconds to work. Come on, breathe with me.
Breathe with me, Rhyme. Rhyme!
Come on, now.
Hang on, Rhyme. Hang on, man.
Is he gonna make it?
If he does, he won't be happy.
What are you talking about?
He's already finalized arrangements to self-terminate.
He's got a doctor friend to help with his ''final transition,'' as he calls it.
But suicide? I mean--
It's the seizures.
Any one of them could put him into a vegetative state.
That's what he fears more than anything.
- Who is it? - Captain Cheney.
What can I help you with?
Police business. Open up, please.
Mr. Rhyme is asleep.
Well, wake him up. I need to see him now.
Let me deal with this asshole Cheney. You watch him.
Anything, just call me. He's all right.
Look, lady.
Now, I hope you know that obstructing justice is a felony offence.
Look, don't ''lady'' me, and I know my rights.
Now, unless you have a warrant, you can't come in here.
Oh, I'm coming in...
'cause I have reason to believe there's stolen evidence in there.
What's your full name?
Thelma what?
Well, what did you say your name was?
You got a smart mouth, and it's gonna get you in trouble one day.
And it may bite your ass if you don't stop trying to aggravate my patient.
I'm gonna leave now, but I'll be back.
And when I come back, it'll be with a warrant.
And I looked everywhere, and I thought the conductor was gonna be so angry.
And I kept on searching everywhere.
And finally, it was right on my lap.
Grandma can't wait to see you.
- What'd I do? - First off...
you're carrying a fare, and your meter's not on.
And number two, your hack license is not properly displayed--
There's laws against molesting the handicapped, you know.
Yeah?
I wasn't a pretty sight, was I?
Thelma told me about your plans for your ''final transition.''
Cop to cop, that subject's not open to discussion.
Why-- would you miss me?
Well, destiny's what we make it, right?
Touché.
Now, you seem to have your reasons for checking out.
I just--
I would have expected more from someone like you.
Well, I might surprise you and...
live forever.
Nothing you could do would surprise me, Rhyme.
Well, look who’s still in the land of the living.
For the moment.
Cheney was here, huffing and puffing.
Promised to return with a warrant.
Sorry I missed him.
If that's him, tell him I'm...
- Say no more. - skiing.
Hello?
Oh, hey, Paulie. Hang on.
Linc, I don't know if this is anything more than a coincidence...
but a taxi inspector was killed today by a cabbie who was off the meter.
Thing about this taxi-- a witness, a male--
wouldn’t give his name--
saw the taxi speeding away with an old man and a little girl inside.
Probably the doer that called.
Jesus, he's got a kid.
And an old man.
- Thank you, Paulie. - Okay.
We better take a closer look at that third piece of the puzzle.
Close.
Three murders, three evidence clusters...
three pieces of paper.
View scan.
Come on, Thelma. You're the queen of puzzles. What do you see?
I'm looking.
What if we lower the little one?
That one.
Now twist that big one around.
Now, doesn't that kinda look like a face?
Mouth, nose, eye.
Enhance.
Fade.
That's a woman's face.
Yes, it is.
It's a logo.
And old, turn-of-the-century...
publisher's logo.
You know it?
I used to own a few of the books--
gothic stories...
crime stories.
The killer is pointing us to an old book.
Can I help you?
I called before about turn-of-the-century crime books.
Around the corner. Help yourself.
Thanks.
Aviation two to central. We're taking a fly-by at the Brooklyn Bridge.
Report appears unfounded at this time.
Will proceed to check East River shore line and advise.
I need more small boats over here to search under the pier.
By the heliport, under the pier.
Lincoln, it was the last murder in the book.
They've got to be along the shore here somewhere.
Listen, the lab says the odour we smelled...
on the third piece of the puzzle is probably diesel fuel.
Now, there's an old boat refuelling station...
at the Staten Island Ferry pier.
Check the pilings under the pier.
Found them!
Over here! Here!
Central, I can see someone with alight...
signaling us from the old Staten Island Ferry pier.
There appears to be two bodies in the water next to the pilings.
Be advised subject signaling is most likely NYPD officer at the site.
Over here! Here!
Under the pilings!
Come over to the ladder.
Central, be advised a ideds are out of the water...
and E.M.S. is working on them at this time.
- On standby. - Clear the airway.
Rhyme, are you there?
Yeah.
It looks like we're too late.
Naw, forget it. He's dead.
Bring the chopper in.
The old man is gone.
They're still working on the girl, but it doesn't look good.
We need a level one task force mobilization now!
- Try again. I know she's still there. - Come on, kid.
Come on, try.
You can do it. Come on.
Breathe.
- There you go! - She's breathing.
I think she's gonna be okay. She's breathing, Lincoln. Can you hear me?
- I think she’s gonna make it. - Yeah. Good.
We got her by the clues that he left for us.
See what you can find around the fuel tanks.
All right.
Lincoln, I found it.
It's a map of some kind, some chunk of a clean bone...
and a piece of a medal or a badge or something.
There's some initials engraved. Looks like...
a ''P'' and a ''B,'' or a--
It's a ''D.'' It's definitely a ''D.''
P.D.-- sounds like a cop's badge.
You think he's gonna kill a cop?
Could be.
- Thelma? - Maps?
Tell me about the map.
Looks like an old subway map.
I don't recognize any of the stations.
You know, when I was scanning those asbestos sites...
I came across a lot of stations that aren't in use anymore.
Okay. There it is-- the oldest station.
On your map, is there an old station indicated at the tip of Manhattan?
Navy Street.
- It's right next to the pier. - Shit.
Cheney's here.
You talking to Rhyme on that thing? Give me the radio.
Listen, Linc. This is Cheney, man. What the hell do you think you’re doing?
Stealing evidence is a goddamn felony. You know that.
To my understanding, there's no chain of evidence voucher.
Oh, yeah? Well, I got some news for you.
You are not a cop anymore. You understand that?
What you are is a fucking meddling cripple.
Now, I'm gonna place your little gofer here under arrest.
You don't mind that, do ya?
Lock her up.
Where'd she go?
I'm inside the Navy Street tunnel.
There's gray dust everywhere. It's all over my shoes.
There's footprints--
one set of foot prints.
Amelia?
Hello, Lincoln, hello.
Amelia? Hello?
The mobile unit you've called is not responding...
or is outside the coverage area.
Recall.
No dust-- He changed the numbers.
78499-- what is it?
What does it mean?
Help me, Rhyme. Help me.
He's gonna kill Rhyme.
Coming.
Hey. What are you doing here?
Is that Amelia?
Bed mode.
Thelma, is that you?
No, it's me, Richard.
Richard. What's up?
Thelma asked me to come by, check the heart-pacing machine.
- Where is Thelma? - Out in the hall.
Phone mode.
I thought it was time we had a little quiet moment together, you and I.
- No interruptions. - Okay.
What's on your mind, Richard?
I think it's time to set the record straight, Mr. Rhyme.
Syracuse-- you remember Syracuse, don’t you?
You wrote an expert opinion.
I've written thousands of opinions, Richard.
Don't fucking tell me you don't remember Syracuse.
They called it an investigation. It was a witch hunt.
There was a forensics cop up in Syracuse, New York.
Marcus Andrews.
Okay, yeah. That was the cop that was...
suspected of tampering with evidence...
in some homicide cases, right?
- Nothing was tampered with. - Six innocent people went to jail.
- One hung himself. - No, no. No.
They went to jail because they were guilty. They were scum.
- But he doctored the serology reports. - No. Nothing was doctored.
He planted blood evidence at the crime scenes.
My work was impeccable.
Where we going with this...
Marcus?
Your report destroyed my life.
You know my report was not a legal finding.
You never gave me the opportunity to defend myself.
- I never even met you. - I was sent to prison for six years.
I spent two more years trying to get to you.
Do you know what happens to a cop in jail? Do you?
Every day-- every single day--
over and over, I was brutalized.
I became a human toilet...
because of your expert opinion.
Well, you will never point the finger of blame at anyone ever again.
You were never as good as they said you were, Mr. Rhyme.
I played you. I tested you.
I gave you every clue.
You and your little helper couldn't save those people.
Their blood is on your hands. You failed.
You failed, you fuck.
Game of chess, Mr. Rhyme. Some people win, some people lose.
I win, Mr. Rhyme. I win, you lose.
What kind of vegetable would you like to be, Mr. Rhyme?
A carrot?
How 'bout a zucchini?
Zucchini? You wanna be a zucchini?
I'm sorry. I didn't hear you.
Did you say zucchini?
You wanna play?
Shall we cut out your tongue, Mr. Rhyme?
How 'bout your eye? Your eye--
we'll just pop it right out of there.
No. Let's leave that for now.
You can watch me. You can watch me while I gut you open...
right down the middle.
What?
What? What?
Can you hear me? Lincoln.
Oh, God.
Step aside now.
I've always loved this view.
I like it too, Doc.
It's looking better every day.
- Hey, how you guys doing? - Santa!
- Good. - Hi!
Ho, ho, ho, ho!
Hey, Linc. You got an operating license for that?
I got a learner's permit.
- How's your boyfriend, Morris? - Oh, he's in Florida.
- He play golf. He's okay. - Playing golf!.
- Captain Flash on wheels. - Yo, Paulie. Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
Hey, Linc, if you’re gonna be cruisin', you might as well be amusin'.
- There you go. - Thank you, Eddie.
It's nice.
- Come on in. - Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
You're looking real good, Mr. Rhyme.
Mr. Rhyme?
It's Lincoln to you. Loosen your shorts.
Oh, my goodness.
Oh, my goodness. Merry Christmas. What are you doing here?
- Merry Christmas, Uncle Lincoln. - Oh, give me a kiss!
Merry Christmas, Kimmy. How are you?
How you doing, Tony? I didn't know you were gonna make this trip.
Wouldn't be a surprise if you knew.
Oh, I'm sorry. Amelia, this is my sister,Janine, her family.
- Amelia. - Yeah, I know. Hi.
- You know? - We've met.
On the phone. How you doing?
Merry Christmas, Lincoln.
Merry Christmas.