Jezebel
There's a ringing in my ear from when I called you
Got this tiny little fear that I won't see you
When that sun goes down again
Reading the paper? You are gonna lose
all of your wired-teen-hyper-texting nano-gizmo street cred.
I'm a rebel. I kick it old school.
- Is this... - Cream, two sugars.
Thanks. Style section. Anything I need to know?
- The '70s are back. - Hmm.
They're like the Highlander, they just won't die.
Morning, Mother. You're dressed early.
I have class.
I believe that's a matter of some debate.
At the New School, funny man.
Look, it's not that I don't appreciate everything you've done,
but a girl has to stand on her own two feet.
What's the class?
Introduction to Life Coaching.
It's always been my desire to make a difference, whether on stage or off.
And I've had cards made.
That's my ID... It says here, I'm your client.
Well, of course you are. Haven't I been telling you what to do your whole life?
Oh, uh, Dad, Julie Schmidt's father's back in rehab,
so a spot opened up to chaperone the D.C. Trip.
Where is the... How did you know Julie's dad was back in rehab?
Must be a wired-teen-hyper-nano thing. So what do you say?
Sorry, kiddo, but with you away, my chaperoning needs reside here.
Or are you forgetting what happened the last time we left her alone?
So she had a little party.
There were lime shards embedded in the walls.
It was Cinco de Mayo.
Exactly.
I hear dead people.
Who was murdered, and was it gruesome?
One victim. Donald Kendall, 18. He was a senior at Redding Prep.
Someone's gonna miss prom night.
Redding Prep?
Private school on Park Avenue.
No trust-fund baby left behind.
What's he doing in a boat?
No idea.
Dr. Parish, how you doing?
Feet are cold.
So, what do you got for me?
Single GSW to the chest, fairly large-caliber.
And, from the lack of blood inside the boat, I'd say he wasn't killed at sea.
- Somebody moved him. - He's got dirt and grass
all on his Chucky T's.
Other than the postmortem voyage, looks like a pop-and-drop.
I'm guessing sometime late last night.
Well, if somebody dragged him here, he couldn't have come from very far.
Let's get uniforms down here to do a perimeter walk.
Get them to go from the boats over there down to Fifth.
And tell them they're looking for a blood pool and possible shell casings.
Roger that.
Esposito, did you check the boathouse?
Not yet.
So why the burial at sea?
The Vikings believed that if you wanted to reach Valhalla, you needed a vessel.
Gun-toting Viking? That's your theory?
No, no, no. They also launched their dead with a sacrificial woman.
And some booze and a good horse.
Do you know what he would have been doing in the park?
- No. - When was the last time
you saw your son alive?
Yesterday, when he left for school.
Do you know, maybe, where he went after?
He was usually with his friends.
He didn't come home for dinner?
Most nights, Donny ate out or at someone else's place.
He hung out with a pretty tight crowd at Redding.
They've all been together since grammar school.
Donny used to have them over all the time.
Only, you moved recently.
Yes, a few months ago.
I was a partner at Lehman. And when it went under, well, we took a big hit.
That can be pretty tough on a teenager.
You get used to a certain way of living, but it was no one's fault.
Do you think Donny was depressed?
No, Donny was strong. But to lose everything you have...
We were just getting by.
I'm very sorry for your loss.
How did you know they moved?
Either the Kendalls really like art, or that Chinese screen
was meant for a much bigger apartment.
I wonder how they could still afford Redding.
Do you know the school?
Oh, I've been kicked out of all of New York's
finer educational institutions at least once.
The irony is, now that I'm rich and famous,
they all claim me as alum and want money.
It is just so rough being you.
My cross to bear.
When the Kendalls said they couldn't afford tuition,
we put Donny on scholarship.
The family had been very generous in the past,
and Donny was one of our brightest. We thought he'd do great things.
Any idea what he would have been doing at Central Park at night?
The truth is, all these kids are icebergs. We only see the tip.
If you want to know the rest, you should probably talk to his friends.
Amanda, Romy, Brandon, Spencer and Max.
It's strange seeing them without Donny.
Thank you.
Thanks.
Breaking news. My parents are off to Abu Dhabi, so I'm in a 'rents-free zone.
Come over tonight for the Dancing with the Stars results show.
Betting opens at 7:30.
My dad's cask-aged 16-year-old single malt opens next.
That was before they moved and everything.
Were any of you with Donny last night?
We hung out after school, but we all headed home around 5:00.
Do you know of any reason he'd be in the park?
Look, you guys, I went to York. I know all about honor codes
and protecting your friends.
You went to York Prep?
How's a Yorkie end up a cop?
Things happen. Things like this.
The point is, is that if you're trying to protect your friend's memory, I get it.
But eventually, the truth comes out.
And the faster it does, the easier it'll be for us to help find who did it.
His family had lost everything.
Not that we cared. But we go out, you know?
We always offered to cover him, but he couldn't handle it.
- Yeah, he just kind of fell apart. - Fell apart, how?
Guys, he can't get in trouble.
He kind of got into drugs.
If he had money problems, how'd he support a drug habit?
He started dealing, in the park.
Classic tragedy.
Prominent family falls into disrepute, scion spirals down.
And bad things happen.
Of course bad things happen. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a tragedy.
Did you know, in the original Greek, "tragedy" literally means "goat-song"?
I know, doesn't make any sense to me, either.
Whatever that first story was, I can't help but think
bad things must have happened to that goat.
Beckett. Mmm-hmm. Yeah.
Okay. Of course. Sure, I'll be right there.
Next time, put it on speakerphone.
I'm gonna wanna see the pictures of those plaid skirts and knee socks.
- Excuse me? - I've seen those York school uniforms.
Okay, I want in on your poker game. I went to public school.
I just told them that to make them feel comfortable.
Well played, Ms. Streep.
Which Meryl? Out of Africa or Mamma Mia!?
- Hey. - Hey.
So, a 911 call comes in last night, about 50 yards from here.
Esposito's following up, but we found this. Looks like mud. It's actually blood.
Figured, he was sitting on top of the bench,
takes one to the chest, falls back over here.
And then he's dragged to the lake.
So what's he doing sitting on a park bench at night?
During my narc days, this area was pretty much an open bazaar,
- especially at night. - A drug deal gone bad.
Fancy private school education don't mean you aren't stupid.
Neither does a career in narcotics.
- What are you talking about? - This is a very large pool of blood.
Lanie said he was shot with a large-caliber bullet.
So, if this kid is dragged when he's a fresh kill,
wouldn't there be more of a blood trail?
He was lying here for a while.
Why would someone come back and move him?
If it was a drug dealer, then he's gonna realize
the cops are gonna think a drug dealer if they find a body here.
Increasing his chances of getting caught.
So he drags the body over there, just to try to throw us off.
I don't know, Castle. A smart drug dealer?
Well, everything evolves. Why not criminals?
- 911 caller? - Yeah, Mrs. Falcigno.
Was walking her dog when she heard the shot last night.
A few seconds later, said she saw a white dude run past her.
I got her looking through mug books of dealers arrested in that area.
Hey, Detective, get over here!
You see someone you recognize, Mrs. Falcigno?
No, I miss your sparkling personality. Yeah! That's the guy I saw, right here.
You sure?
What? Do you wanna give me a lie detector? That's him!
Do you know why you're here?
No idea.
The arresting officer said that he saw you
in a hand-to-hand sale of narcotics in the park.
Must have me confused with somebody else.
Really? Is that what you're giving me? The, "All drug dealers look alike"?
You were arrested with money and dope, Mr. Scoville.
Given the fact that you have two prior felony sales on your sheet,
you should probably come up with something better pretty quick.
Why you jamming me up like this?
What were you doing in the park last night?
What makes you think I was even in the park?
A very reliable witness said she saw you running
towards 72nd Street about midnight.
Shouldn't she put him on his heels? Go straight for the shooting?
It's not about putting him on his heels.
This is about building a case for the DA.
So? I was running in the park, so what?
See? She just got him to put himself at the crime scene.
So running isn't illegal, but shooting someone is.
Shooting someone?
Do you recognize this person? Donny Kendall.
- Never seen him before. - Really?
How come I'm getting the feeling that
you're not being completely truthful with me?
Watch this. Watch her, now.
- I want immunity. - From what, the mumps?
You know what a three-time loser is, Scoville?
It's a person facing a third felony conviction.
Someone just like you, in fact.
- All right. I seen him. - Last night?
Yeah. Last night.
Just placed him with the victim.
- You sell to him? - No.
You're a drug dealer. How'd you know him? You poker buddies?
It was real nice chatting with you, Mr. Scoville.
Maybe you can drop me a line in about 25 years.
All right, all right! Hold up, hold up! All right! I sold to him.
- When? - Last night.
A bunch of other times, too. Him and his little buddies.
- What little buddies? - I don't know. Kids. Friends of his.
Describe them.
Couple of dudes. Couple of chicks. One was Asian. Kind of hot.
Okay. So you're telling me that you saw all of them in the park last night, right?
Yeah.
And now we got some witnesses.
Witnesses who lied.
You guys lied to me.
You were all with Donny when he got shot, weren't you?
Anyone know what obstruction is?
I believe that's when you deliberately give false information
- in a criminal case. - You go to prison for it.
Max? Amanda?
- Yeah. We were there. - You were at the park?
Donny was out of control. We were just trying to stop him.
Why don't I believe you?
Guys, just tell the truth.
Sometimes we'd go to the park, too.
We'd tell our parents we're hanging out at one of our apartments,
but we'd actually go to the park and party. And Donny would...
Would get you whatever you wanted.
So what happened?
We're all just hanging out, having a good time, partying.
And this guy came over, and he's all messed up, and he's got this gun.
And he's yelling at Donny, "Where's my money?
"I need my freaking money!" Donny owes him $200.
- And Donny didn't have it. - Then the guy points the gun.
And there's this loud pop, and you just see Donny's body crumple.
- What did you guys do? - We ran. We just ran.
- You didn't think to call the police? - He was dead.
I mean, we knew he was dead. Calling someone...
Would have just gotten you into trouble.
Did you get a good look at this guy? Do you think you'd be able to identify him?
It was dark, you know? Donny was at the end of the bench.
Who was the closest?
Okay, Romy, this will be easy. When we raise the shades,
- they won't be able to see you. - Are you sure?
I promise. They have no idea who's back here.
You just let me know if you recognize anyone, okay?
Raise the shades, please.
Number one, step forward.
Step back, number one.
Step back.
Number two.
Number two, step forward.
Do you recognize anyone?
Number two.
Where do you recognize him from?
The park. He shot Donny.
Okay.
Are you trying to figure out how to murder someone in their sleep again?
Not this time.
Do you know, when you were little, I used to watch you sleep every night
before I went to bed, just for a few minutes.
It was ridiculous how adorable you were.
Who'd have thought? All these years later, you're still adorable.
What part of snoring and drooling is adorable?
Well, every 10 or 15 breaths, you make a little snort noise,
and then sometimes, you'll even get a little spit bubble...
Okay, Dad, seriously.
- Do you do drugs? - No.
Are you sure? Because you can tell me.
Dad, am I lethargic and uncharacteristically irritable?
- No. - Are my eyes bloodshot
- for no apparent reason? - No, except when you're sick.
- Well, that's an apparent reason. - Right.
- Are my grades plummeting? - No.
Then, according to New York City's guidelines for parents and teachers,
it's a pretty safe bet I'm clean.
You make an excellent case.
Parents are invited to the drug assemblies.
- You should come next time. - Drug assemblies?
Is that what the kids are calling them nowadays?
They serve cookies.
And which of your friends are going on this D.C. Jamboree with you?
Taylor, Kelsey and Paige.
Okay. How do I know they're not bringing the blow,
and partying Winehouse-style?
Um, because you know them really well and they're good kids.
But maybe they're icebergs.
Does this have something to do with that Redding kid?
Dad, he was in Central Park really, really late at night.
That's something I would never do.
But if you did, you could tell me.
I don't want you to feel you ever have to lie to me.
Anything you and your friends have done, believe me,
- I have done worse. - I know.
But the good news is, I'm not you. I just mean, you don't have to worry.
Besides, if I ever got in any real trouble,
my friends would be there to bail me out.
Right.
- Because that's what friends do. - Yeah.
Now, somehow you believe that the Nicaraguans were...
- Gentlemen, gentlemen. - Excuse me. I got to go. I got to go.
Why didn't Donny's friends just give him the money?
- What are you talking about? - These kids always have cash.
You're gonna tell me one of them couldn't spring
a few bucks to save his life?
Castle, some demented drug dealer's waving a gun.
- Um, they probably froze up. - But all of them?
He wasn't asking SAT questions. He was asking for money.
Something these kids probably count in their sleep.
Look, this Scoville is a bad dude, and we got more than enough.
Yeah, with the girl, it's a slam-dunk.
- And who gave you the girl? - Scoville.
So the guy's not a genius.
Okay, okay, say you're right.
Why would these kids peg the wrong guy for a murder?
Simple. One of them did it.
Hey, Beckett.
- Yankman. - Who's the sidekick?
- He's a... - Consultant?
- Consultant. - Yeah?
Well, shouldn't you consult the consultant
before you arrest the wrong guy?
I'm not sure I have the wrong guy yet, Yankman.
Well, my client's not happy. He gave you potential witnesses
and then you used one against him.
Yeah, well, your client wasn't exactly forthcoming.
But I'm willing to reconsider, if he tells me everything he knows.
Don't trust her.
Seeing as how you're facing a murder charge,
why don't you just go with the flow?
Consultant-boy's right. You got nothing to lose.
The night that Donny was killed, you sold to him and his friends, right?
- No. - No?
That's not how you really get her to reconsider.
I didn't sell to them.
- They was working for me. - Working for you?
I supplied that punk. All right? His friends bought off me, too.
Then they'd go play dealer, selling to the upscales in Sheep's Meadow.
- Wait a minute. They sold for you? - Donny, yeah.
The others, it was just, like, a goof.
Like, walk on the wild side. Like, truth or dare.
So where were you when Donny got shot?
I was hanging with my boys, down by the Alice in Wonderland statue.
We didn't see nothing. We heard the shot, took off.
- What about the gun? - I told you. I don't pack.
Criminal record with no firearms convictions
does sort of give it the ring of truth.
If past is prologue, how we doing on reconsideration?
Don't have to answer if you don't want. I know the answer.
Any time. Any time, Beckett.
You got to be kidding me. I already told the brass that we got the guy.
I can see how that'd be a little awkward.
The mayor even called to thank me.
He's in for the Knicks game, by the way.
- Sweet. - Look,
I know everyone likes the violent drug dealer for this.
No, we love the violent drug dealer for this.
Only, the violent drug dealer's story makes more sense than our witnesses'.
Plus, and I know I'm new here,
but aren't you supposed to arrest the right guy?
Okay. Go and talk to the girl again.
But my violent drug dealer stays where he is until I say so.
- See you at the game. - Got it.
So, this dealer asked Donny for the couple hundred he owed him, right?
- Yeah. - And Donny told him he didn't have it?
Right.
- You mind if I take a look at your purse? - Her purse? What for?
I can get a warrant if you want.
Gucci.
What does my bag have to do with anything?
If Donny was such a good friend, why did you let him get shot?
Let him?
You had more than enough money to pay off the guy.
I bet you all had more than enough. And yet Donny is dead.
Why didn't any of you front him the money?
- What are you implying? - She isn't implying.
She's saying your daughter is lying about what happened that night.
There wasn't a guy, was there, Romy?
- I didn't do anything. - Romy.
What really happened to Donny that night?
It was an accident.
- We were just playing a game. - A game?
- Like Russian roulette. - Romy. With a gun?
It was just for fun. We did it all the time.
- For fun? - Where'd you get the gun, Romy?
Spencer had it. We never meant for there to be bullets.
We just pointed the gun at each other and pulled the trigger,
just to see what it felt like.
Then how did Donny get shot?
Spencer bought bullets.
We went up to his summer house in Montauk,
just to shoot around cans and stuff.
One must have got left in by accident.
Who? Who shot him?
Romy, look at me. Who shot Donny?
Max. It was Max.
Detective Kate Beckett, NYPD. I'm looking for Max Heller. Is he here?
No. I'm his mother. What's going on?
I need to see him right now, Mrs. Heller. Do you know where he is?
No, I don't. What is it?
I have a warrant for his arrest.
A warrant? Oh, my God. For what?
He's wanted for murder, Mrs. Heller. Do you understand?
I need you to go and call him on his cell phone, find out where he is.
Tell him not to move. Everything is gonna be all right,
but I need you to do it now. Detective Esposito will go with you.
Get a photograph of him for the APB, please.
Right.
Detective.
Beckett.
What? Where?
Kid's not answering his cell phone. Mom thinks maybe he went to the park.
Yeah, he went to the park
and killed himself.
So, what now? What should I do?
What?
Hey, if you're looking for lunch money, my wallet's on the nightstand.
I lied to you, Dad.
- Oh, can this wait? - No. You need to know.
Oh. Yeah. Yeah, okay.
Remember the holiday formal,
how Kelsey and I went to Taylor's house after?
Well, when we left, it was already raining,
and we tried for, like, half an hour to get a taxi, but we couldn't.
And we were already so soaking wet and cold that
we finally decided to take the subway, even though it was way after 10:00.
Well, considering that getting a cab in the rain
is kind of like winning the Powerball jackpot, I forgive you.
No! Listen. The two was coming, and Kelsey went through the door
and was going down the stairs to hold the door for me,
but when I swiped my card, it was empty.
And I didn't have any time to add any more money to it,
and Kelsey was screaming for me to come, and I was just so tired,
and I was just anxious to get home that, Dad, I...
I don't even want to say it.
What?
I jumped the turnstile.
- Did you make the train? - Yeah.
But the point is I didn't tell you,
even after you were so sweet and concerned yesterday. I'm sorry.
Oh, you actually jumped the turnstile?
But I swiped my card twice the next day and didn't even ride.
Okay.
Sweetie, if that's the worst thing you've done, I'm a happy, happy man.
But I lied to you. Shouldn't you punish me?
Yes. No, you're right.
Mandatory ice cream for breakfast. No excuses.
I'm serious. If you won't, I will.
- I'm serious about the ice cream. - Fine. I'm grounded for a week.
- All right. You're tough but fair. - After the D.C. Trip.
That's my girl.
Thanks, Dad.
Hey. What you doing?
Paperwork to dismiss the homicide charges against Scoville.
Ballistics. Confirms that the gun used on Donny in the park that night
was the same one Max used on himself.
I'm usually better at reading people.
You spent half an hour with Max.
There's no way you could have seen that coming.
Poor kid must have been a mess.
Imagine shooting your best friend and then having to lie about it.
Well, he did more than just lie about it.
What do you mean?
He went back and moved his friend's body.
Having the presence of mind to move the body isn't exactly consistent
with a guilty conscience, is it?
I'd say that's more an act of a cold-blooded killer.
And a cold-blooded killer doesn't suddenly feel guilty enough
- to commit suicide, does he? - Not in any story I'd write.
So if we're right, and Max didn't move Donny's body, then who did?
Looks like your basic, garden-variety suicide.
But you said on the phone that there was something
that wasn't consistent with a suicide.
Looks like suicide, but his shooting hand,
more specifically, his right index finger, has a slight abrasion,
visible only under the scope.
Department autopsy protocol doesn't even call to look for that kind of thing.
And the abrasion means what to you?
That someone may have helped him pull the trigger.
Plus, toxicology has his blood alcohol content at 0.28.
- 0.28? - So he was drunk.
Way drunk!
At 0.28, he may not have even been conscious.
So Max was murdered.
Whoever staged Max's suicide
wanted us to believe that he killed himself out of guilt
over shooting Donny, which makes me think
Max didn't kill Donny, after all.
The other kids corroborated Romy's story,
that Max pulled the trigger.
I didn't say he didn't shoot him. I said he didn't kill him.
Is that a Zen koan one-hand-clapping thing? I...
These kids played a game of pretending to shoot at each other.
What if one of them wanted Donny dead for real?
What better way than to get someone else to pull the trigger?
You think one of the other kids put a bullet in the gun without Max knowing.
- That's our killer. - Oh, I like that.
- You bought the bullets, Spencer. - It was just to screw around.
If by screwing around, you mean intentionally putting a bullet
in a chamber, knowing that Max was gonna shoot Donny, then yes.
- You and I are in total agreement. - Detective Beckett...
If the point of the game was to shoot without bullets,
then why would you have bullets, unless you intended to use them?
I told you. I didn't know there were any bullets in the gun.
Well, somebody did. And I think whoever it is, killed Max.
Your gun, your bullets. From where I'm standing, Spencer, you did it.
So, where were you between 6:30 and 9:00 last night?
Uh...
At my dad's club, The Century, with Brandon.
You better hope that Brandon corroborates that.
Look, I know Romy and Spencer told you guys everything
and that we're all in big trouble.
- But I'm glad. - You're glad.
Yes. We should have just come clean with you guys after the accident.
- You're damn right you should have. - I know.
But we didn't wanna screw Max over.
That's why you fingered the drug dealer, right?
- 'Cause he's expendable. - I told Romy that was wrong,
but she wanted to protect Max.
And that junkie's the one who got Donny into dealing in the first place.
So where were you when Max was killed?
With Spencer, at his dad's club. Ask him. He'll confirm it.
You guys always have your stories straight, don't you?
"We weren't at the park." "It was the drug dealer. " "It was Max."
You guys are always in sync. Maybe that's why I don't believe you.
You don't have to believe me. I have proof.
We'd take these videos, you know, just for laughs. Doing crazy stuff.
Romy's dad, Mr. Lee is like this big IT guy,
and he hooked us up with a file share over Bluetooth.
That way, we'd all get the files.
- Amanda shot this that night. - What is it?
A video.
Of Donny getting shot.
We were all supposed to erase it. But I knew that if the truth came out,
we'd all be screwed.
And after what happened to those kids in that Duke case, I just...
I didn't wanna end up like that.
Here.
Oh, yeah, suck it down, Bran.
- Chug! Chug! - Suck it! Suck it!
- You suck. - You made me spill your drink.
Little Brandon wet himself!
Oh, great, Punk'd is back. Hi, Mom!
All right, let's do this, baby! Blast me, Max-o. Take me out!
Hey! You pulled my mom's Harry Winston tennis bracelet.
- That you stole. - Borrowed.
That's worth more than my entire family.
Cue the violins. Aw!
Come on, guys! My arm's getting tired.
- Okay. - Let's do this!
Okay, here we go.
- Whoo! - All right, all right.
Goodbye, Mr. Anderson.
My God!
You okay?
I was just thinking about Donny's parents,
what they'll go through when they watch that video.
Guess it's not too often you get a murder caught on tape, huh?
Yeah, well, he was smart to keep it.
Otherwise, they'd all be facing a manslaughter charge.
Yeah. That was pretty smart when you think about it, wasn't it?
I know that tone, Castle.
I'm just saying, it's pretty lucky they filmed their little game that night.
Yeah, well, people post crazy stuff on YouTube.
I get filming it the first few times. It's exciting. But the 10th?
The 15th? What was so special about that night?
- Donny got shot. - So the only reason to film it is...
You knew something was gonna happen.
And that was when? Okay, thank you, Mrs. Kendall.
Get this. Donny and Amanda were dating until about a month ago.
When Donny broke it off.
- You weren't in school today, Amanda. - So?
- I wasn't up for it. - Yes. Lying can be so exhausting.
So can losing two of your friends.
We saw the video.
Brandon told me. So now you know everything.
Why'd you shoot the video that night?
I don't know. We did lots of times.
When was the last time, before that night?
I don't remember. Look, I thought you said you saw what happened.
We did. We're just not sure why we saw what happened.
Your decision to make a video that night doesn't make any sense.
Unless you knew something was gonna happen.
You think I knew? It was totally an accident!
There's no way I could have known Donny was gonna get shot.
Sure there is. If you're the one who put a bullet in the gun.
- What? - We spoke to Donny's parents.
We know you two were dating.
We also know Donny broke up with you about a month ago.
- Oh, my God! - It gives you motive, Amanda.
It's not what happened! Yes, Donny broke up with me.
But only because he found out I hooked up with Brandon.
Brandon?
Everything with his family... Donny checked out.
He wasn't there for me and Brandon was.
I bet he was.
It's not like that. Brandon's a really good guy.
A good guy who kept the only copy of a video he told us you shot.
If Brandon kept the video, he had his reasons.
Brandon told you to shoot the video that night, didn't he?
Yeah.
Guess who just changed his story.
Your buddy, Spencer.
Your comrade just gave up your alibi for Max's murder.
You mean Max's suicide, don't you?
And last I checked, I wouldn't need an alibi for that, would I?
The medical examiner concluded that Max's death was a homicide.
Oh.
Well, I'm sure there are any number of experts we can hire
who will disagree with a city employee.
Expert witnesses? Scrambling for alibis?
Sounds like you're already building a defense.
You guys have been running around, accusing everyone of murder.
I figured my turn was coming and I'd better be ready.
Only now, we know it was you.
All three of your friends have solid alibis for the night Max was killed.
- You say, killed. I say, suicide. - Where were you that night?
I took a walk.
I knew you guys wouldn't believe me,
so I asked Spencer to cover for me.
That's what you guys do, right? Cover for each other.
Exactly. Look, Detective, you're hot and everything,
but if you had any actual evidence, you'd have already arrested me.
Me? I have a video that proves Max killed Donny.
You really think a jury's gonna believe he didn't get drunk and off himself?
This is just a game for you, isn't it? Like selling drugs in the park.
Well, if it was, looks like I'd be winning.
But, hey, if you think I did it, let's see you prove it.
I hate that kid!
You know, actually having to prove things is really tedious.
- Welcome to my world. - Brandon had this all planned.
He gets Max to shoot Donny, then gets Max drunk and kills him.
There's no such thing as a perfect crime, Castle.
Not yet. But one day I'm gonna write it.
Okay. We canvassed every store, stand and homeless guy
from the park's entrance at 72nd to the scene.
And no one remembers seeing Max or Brandon last night.
If we can't put Brandon at Max's murder scene,
then the DA will never move.
These kids were hooked on video sharing.
There has to be something.
I already scrolled through every video, audio, photo and text file on that thing.
Guess we weren't lucky enough to have Max take video of Brandon killing him.
Funny thing is, if he did, Brandon would have known.
It would have popped up on his shared folder as soon as their phones...
- Synced. - Thank you.
Synced. If they were together when Max was murdered,
then their phones would have automatically synced.
There'd be a record.
You have the right to have a lawyer present, Brandon.
If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed to you.
He could afford a million lawyers.
She still has to advise me of my rights, right?
- Right. - Anyway, that's cool.
I don't want a lawyer. This is way more fun.
Maybe you'd like to just sign a confession, then?
Sure.
I confess...
That I'm dying to cop a feel under your cop blouse.
There. Now I feel so much better.
You sure you don't wanna call somebody? Your parents, maybe?
Why would I worry them?
You know, I made a call just a little while ago to my bookie.
Sweet.
I was standing in the street outside Nobu, waiting for my car.
- Oh, yeah? I love that place. - The black squid pasta is amazing.
Anyway, I was talking on the phone when the valet pulled up with my car.
And all of a sudden, my call got cut off. I realized
The Bluetooth in my car picked up the call automatically,
because they were linked.
You told us that all your phones auto-share media files
- via a Bluetooth link, right? - So?
So your phone linked with Max's phone the night he was killed.
It's a digital fingerprint that places you within 20 feet of Max
at the time of his murder.
You did say if she got some actual evidence, she should arrest you.
You took advantage of Max's guilt over Donny's death,
and you got him blackout drunk. And then you put a gun in his hand,
pressed it against his temple, and then you pulled the trigger.
Why would I do that?
To cover your tracks over killing Donny.
- Why would I kill Donny? - Amanda.
Amanda is with me, not Donny.
Yeah, only after Donny lost all his money.
Which makes you sloppy seconds.
That had to eat you alive, knowing that Amanda had been with Donny.
Especially 'cause he got way more than just under her blouse, right?
I have that video that shows that Max killed Donny, not me.
And arranging that was very impressive.
Fooling Spencer, Romy and Amanda wasn't that hard.
They didn't handle the gun. But Max was another story.
He actually pulled the trigger, and he just couldn't let it go, could he?
And then he remembered, you gave him the gun.
So he called you and asked to meet you.
We have a record of the call.
You knew something was up,
so you brought the gun and, what, vodka?
Or was Max a Scotch guy? He knew all about you,
Donny and Amanda. He had to wonder,
"Did you set me up to kill my best friend?"
And when he realized you had, he wasn't gonna keep it quiet, was he?
Even with you telling him you'd all go to jail.
If only Max had been strong enough just to man up,
if only Donny realized he didn't belong with you guys anymore,
he and Amanda were through, well, then,
none of this would have been necessary.
Weak people just don't get it, do they, Brandon?
Sometimes, they just have to be led to the truth.
Exactly.
Did he just say "exactly"? 'Cause I heard him say "exactly."
Yeah. I heard it, too.
He tricked me. You tricked me.
- It's called "admission against interest." - Just a fancy term for "confession."
- Pretty sweet, huh? - Mmm-hmm.
And the funny thing is, I bet you thought you were pretty clever
to go back and move Donny's body, right?
But the thing is, is we would have never figured it out if you hadn't.
Well, she would have never figured it out.
Oh, like, you would have figured it out.
I definitely would have figured it out.
- Are you kidding me right now? - Honest truth.
Straight face. From my heart.
Let's go! Power up.
- I don't want to be late. - You're coming?
You're looking at the official replacement chaperone.
Yay!
I just realized I have some business to take care of in D.C., anyway.
- Really? - Yeah, I got to pick out a spot
for my monument, just in case.
I think Washington and Lincoln already have the good ones.
- Maybe they can move Jefferson. - Oh, yeah. I'm sure.
All right, you two kids, hurry off now. You don't wanna miss any of the fun.
- Any of your fun, you mean. - It's not what you think.
No, it's exactly what I thought.
Now, does this look like a wild group? For your information,
I am hosting a seminar for my life coaching class,
- "Be the Change You Want To See." - How very Zen of you.
Dad, come on, be supportive. She's trying to help people.
- Yeah, to my liquor cabinet. - No.
This is going to be a very civilized affair.
Now, off, off, off, off. Have fun!
Okay! Who wants a drink?