Your lieutenant said you'd be here for three days.
Max. I just need to check out the drop-off point with Mendez.
Excuse me, Lieutenant. Mendez's file's on my desk.
Much appreciated.
Vince Wilson, Broward Narcotics.
Stan Switek. How you do?
Fill him in.
You came down here to make the big catch, huh?
I was lucky to get an angle on Mendez.
Hey, you mind if I take a pinch? Help yourself.
So what's your cover? I own a trucking company up in Broward,
and he wants me to move his product around the state.
So you're a mule. Um. With style.
Department gave me a 359 Longhorn Pete just to make deliveries.
No kidding. No kiddin'.
Impounded this baby from a guy that ran a floating crap game out of the back of the trailer...
till some good old boy dealt him a couple of flat tires.
Who you got riding shotgun? Ah, I like to go it alone.
That way I know everybody I'm working with.
Well, everybody deserves a partner now and then.
Hear this Mendez is a real snake. Makes a nice boot.
[Laughs] Listen, you make sure you stop on back. We'll have a brewski. Hey, on me.
All righty. All right.
[Sighs] See you later.
So you like this spot? Shoot, location makes me no difference.
The money's right, I can park me a piggyback on a divin' board.
That's a 26-wheeler, son.
Well, Mr. Mendez.
How do?
Tell him I checked the road. It's perfect.
No trouble gettin' a truck in here.
He likes your boots.
He wants to know how you can afford 'em... on a cop's salary.
[Crockett On Radio] It's us.
No kidding. We've only been here...
an hour and 47 minutes.
We had to make a stop at the vet.
Oh. What, did Elvis take a bite out of one of Sonny's girlfriends?
That's real cute, wise guy.
The poor guy ate a six-pack and cut his gums on the plastic rings, all right?
[Tubbs] Think this is your boy Rickles.
Stay awake, girls. Showtime.
?? [Man Singing]
[Camera Shutter Clicks]
[Crockett] Oh, sweet lips and cutie-pie.
Only one of youse goes inside.
Inside?
I thought you were taking me to meet this Bolivian— Mendez.
He's in the museum.
?? [Continues]
Hey, guys. Either this is a costume party,
or we got an uninvited guest.
[Tubbs On Radio] Just what we need, a spectator.
Hey.
What are you guys doing?
Oh, beautiful. I thought you guys had this handled.
You're not gonna dust him here, are you? Let me handle him.
Beat it, old man.
?? [Continues]
Call for backup. We got a citizen involved.
Everybody's crashing the party. We gotta abort.
[Tubbs] Too late, man. It's going down.
Just be cool. I'll walk you through this.
Mendez, wait. Rickles, show him the money.
Show him the money! No! Wait!
?? [Continues]
?? [Fades]
[Man] Look, you bring my briefcase to the Excelsior by tomorrow morning, or I'm gonna have someone else do the deal.
You got it?
[Tubbs] That call came in about an hour ago at the St. Vitus.
[Castillo] What else do we have?
[Sighs] Rickles distributes for the Bolivian.
He wanted me to mule 50 keys over to Baton Rouge for him.
I told him on a domestic pickup and delivery, I gotta have part of the action.
That's how I got to meet the bad guy.
They were just supposed to cut me in for two keys on a trial run,
not panic the bad guys and a dead rent-a-cop.
It was supposed to be intros and surveillance.
We weren't gonna make a move until he brought us all his product.
Will Rickles turn over on Mr. Mendez?
[Scoffs] He's too scared.
I think he'd rather do a stretch.
Excuse me. Here are the pictures from last night.
Gina and Trudy got copies. They're on their way over to the Excelsior.
[Castillo] What about the briefcase?
Well, we, uh, swept the place five times. Dead end.
The civilian?
Uh, the security guard, he was dead on the scene.
His name was Albert Cavanaugh.
Um,
we're trying to run down the next of kin from his driver's license.
The D.E.A. Guy from San Antonio who brought it two months ago was after the Bolivian.
Is this the same guy? [Castillo] Maybe.
Describe the briefcase.
It was a green skin of some sort, like python or lizard.
Switek, see if Customs confiscated something we can substitute.
Pick up two keys from Property. Take it over to the boat.
Okay.
Reset the deal with him. I want Mr. Mendez. I want the 50 keys.
Well, what if we can't match the briefcase?
Just stay on the boat till Mr. Mendez makes his move.
Sonny.
Come on.
[Cylinder Spins]
[Bell Dings]
[No Audible Dialogue]
Ah, these desperate criminals. And the lengths we have to go to catch 'em.
Well, girlfriend, lookee here.
What's that note say?
"Can we"—
Who's askin'? I'll give you two guesses.
Oh, please. Better drink both of these drinks and go over there.
Company.
That old man was at the museum.
And Switek's got his picture. Yep.
You want something?
Yeah. To brighten up your miserable life.
[Scoffs] ¿Qué?
That's gotta be the briefcase. Stay with him. I'll go call Sonny.
That's right, puppy dog. I found it.
I don't have time to play a long hand. So find me somebody that knows how to deal.
I'm in Room 415.
Boat's a damn mess. I don't know what the hell I'm paying that dock boy for.
The line's uncoiled, the compass ain't covered.
I must have told him 500 times to put this winch away.
I ought to take it down to the marina office and make him eat it.
[Sighs]
Sonny, the museum guard is dead.
It was a bad break. Why don't you just let it go?
[Seagulls Squawking]
[Sighs] We never get even, do we?
You can't, man.
Look, maybe you should sit this one out.
You feel guilty, you make mistakes.
Get the—Wh-What, are you crazy? I signed on for the duration, pal.
Speaking of mistakes.
Gentlemen.
Hey, what the— Hey. What are you doin'? I'm clean.
[Scoffs]
Very professional. A definite step up from last night.
Don't put that on us, pal.
I didn't make that decision.
Yeah, you wereJohnny-on-the-spot though, weren't you?
Hey, I went to the mat.
But once the Bolivian gets stuck on an idea,
like the fact that you cost him two keys and his favorite briefcase, well—
Yeah, we're gonna make that good.
How you gonna handle the briefcase? Don't worry about it. We'll replace it.
- You just reset the meet. - Replacement ain't gonna get it. He wants his briefcase.
So, in the rare event it doesn't, uh, walk itself onto your boat, here's where I'll be.
You might want me to talk to the man.
And what's the price tag on that conversation?
[Phone Ringing] Say, uh, 30 large. Ten in front, five points a week on the rest.
Thirty? Uh-huh. Yeah.
Sonny, remember that old man you saw waiting outside the museum last night?
Well, he just showed up with a green briefcase.
Wanna come take a look?
Absolutely. [Tubbs] You place a high value on your time.
Man's gotta make a livin'. Know what I mean?
Yeah, I know what you mean.
Know what I like about you, Rickles?
Not a damn thing.
Backstroke.
I saw it with my own eyes.
Believe me. It's your briefcase.
[Scoffs] He's an old fool. [Speaking Spanish]
I'll take him to you myself.
Hey, handsome.
Why don't you buy me a drink and tell me where you're from?
'Cause I wasn't born yesterday.
[Elevator Bell Dings] Nice try, honey.
Ernie and me, we're the guys that brought aerobics to Detroit.
We're down here for a national ad campaign, and we're looking for some actresses we can give some screen tests to and, uh—
Well, gee, I'd like to help you guys out, but, uh, I'd be late for my prayer meeting.
[Chuckles] As a matter of fact, here's my ride to the convent now.
Uh, come on, Sister Calabrese. I got the old man's room number.
Let's wait for Sonny at the desk.
Excuse me. Are you a nun too? Oh, yeah, right. Sure.
Read my Bible.
[Sighs]
[Knocking]
It's open.
Okay, viejo. Where's the briefcase?
I hid it. Where's your boss?
Waiting for us to take it to him.
Now you listen good, buddy. Now you tell your boss if he wants his merchandise back,
he's gotta bring me $10,000 in cash, face-to-face.
¿Comprende? Now get up.
Get out of here. Get! Go!
Get! Get!
?? [Man Singing]
?? [Continues]
[Grunts]
Look out, Roy! The Rujeros! [Gunshot]
?? [Continues]
Nitroglycerin.
Beautiful.
A dealer with a bad ticker.
It's not in the room.
You better cough it up, jack.
I'd rather take it with me first.
If that's the way you want it. [Crockett] Let me tell you something.
This Bolivian's heavy on our case, so we got nothin' to lose.
Well, a dead man can't give you what you want.
This Bolivian you're so scared of, is that the same guy that was over at the museum?
Yeah. He's the guy whose coke you found.
Well, then he's the guy that's gonna pay me my finder's fee, isn't he?
[Sighs] Let me explain somethin' to you.
This Bolivian, he don't mess around.
He probably don't even know how to spell "mess around."
He's been known to whack people for puttin' a scratch on his car.
Look, man, you're in no shape to be collecting from anyone.
Why don't you give us what you found, and we'll see if we can make it work?
I'm callin' the shots here.
Now, you guys watch my back, maybe I'll cut you in for a little bit.
[Sighs]
We can't help you if you don't know what you found.
Let's talk.
[Door Opens]
[Door Closes] Looks like payday.
So what do we do, bust him? Take him downtown and lean on him real good?
Dude might check out before he rolls over. I say we play him.
Who the hell is he? He doesn't even know who the Bolivian is.
Maybe I can get some prints off of this.
I'll take it downtown and meet you back at the boat.
Lieutenant, Sonny took the old man to the boat.
And I'm not too happy about this, but I think we're gonna have to play along with his game...
in order to get next to the Bolivian's supply.
Put the deal back together through Rickles.
Crockett asked about the museum guard's family.
No one's claimed the body.
Lfhis mind's somewhere else, I want him off the case.
I'll let you know.
No, no, no. That's one half hour, Rickles.
You meathead.
I used to run the Gulf in that speedboat's granddaddy.
What this guy Rickles have to say?
We're on our way to meet with him to discuss your finder's fee.
Well, where's your partner?
He's on his way here. Somebody to look after you.
Look after me? Hell, I'm runnin' this operation.
Now wait a minute.
This guy doesn't know you. And if you spook him, there'll be blood everywhere.
Well, I'll follow in your partner's car, but if this joker from the museum is there, I wanna see him.
The old man wants you to pay a finder's fee.
Burnett and Cooper are coming over here to talk about it.
Half hour.
What do you want me to tell them?
[Line Clicks, Dial Tone]
Burnett and Cooper— [Speaking Spanish]
[Spanish] Either they deal him over to us, or they're out of business.
Said no deals. Just kill them.
?? [Man Singing]
Jose, Raoul. [Spanish]
?? [Continues]
Sounds a little thin to me.
- Aah, Crockett! - [Gunfire]
[Tires Squealing]
[Gunfire Continues]
[Horn Honking]
[Gunfire Continues]
He's still breathing. Shoot him.
Ah, to hell with him. Let him die slow.
?? [Continues]
Hey, we were gonna talk. Oh! You—
You set us up. What are you talking about?
[Groans, Coughs]
Hey, you know that's not me. I don't make hits. I make deals.
Then make one right now.
[Coughs] Okay, just let me breathe.
[Coughing Continues] I'm on your side.
I wanna move those 50 keys as bad as you, but it won't happen unless the Bolivian gets his property back.
That ain't hard. The old man's got it and wants to make a deal.
This finder's fee's a deal breaker. Can't you take it from him?
Excuse me, but this is my deal. Aaah!
You tell your boss if he don't come see me face-to-face, I'm gonna sell his stuff on the street,
and there won't be no 50-key deal.
Now you hit the ground runnin'.
What happened? Wouldn't pay their check?
Chumps. What you got?
We I.D.'d the old man off the prints from the gun.
What's his name? Jake Pierson.
Lives in one of them old traps down in South Beach.
You okay? Mm-hmm.
Gina, why don't you take the old man back to the boat?
Sonny.
We got the old man's apartment.
What the hell's going on over there?
Oh, they got some other business to take care of.
Come on. Let's go to the boat.
I won't be a bother.
You talked me into it.
What kind of a neighborhood is this?
Need an exterminator for these people down here.
The Royal Hotel, darling. I think we're close.
Let's ask this fellow. Uh, excuse me.
Uh, sir, could you tell us where the Royal Hotel is?
This is it.
That's the sundeck you're standin' on.
This here is the health spa.
I like it.
You think maybe you could tell us where the manager might be?
[Bell Dinging] [Exhales]
Okay, what can I do for you? Are there any letters for me?
Honey, now, I gave you your mail already.
We got a warrant to, uh, search Jake Pierson's room.
Is that for me? No. Uh, they're police officers.
Oh, my.
- With that gut? - Maybe it's bulletproof.
- I hope so. - [Chuckles]
To protect and serve.
What's the bag for? Therapy.
'Cause I can't afford a psychiatrist.
[Laughs] I'll get you Pierson's key.
Did Pierson ever mention anything about a room at the Excelsior?
Excelsior? Ha! Poor guy can't afford this place.
How long's he lived here? Oh, let me think now. Oh, about 10 years.
Hell of a place for a dealer. Yeah.
[Door Closes]
Who is this guy?
Or who was he?
Anybody see a litter box? Or this guy's eating cat food.
Sonny, look at this.
Oh, liver. My personal favorite.
"One Riot, One Ranger."
Read about this when I was a kid.
What's it mean?
This old man was a Texas Ranger.
Take a look at this derby.
Look, guys, there is no briefcase in this room.
Uh, there's a phone call from a Lieutenant Castillo.
I'll take it.
Wow.
Check it out.
This is how he paid for the Excelsior Hotel room.
He pawned a 1936 Colt Peacemaker this morning.
Whoo. This guy should open a museum.
These guys were legends.
And now they're cocaine cowboys.
Gotta change with the times, I guess.
Somethin' tells me that's not this old man's game.
Doesn't click. There's a piece missing from this whole thing.
Why would an old dude from a dump like this be doggin' a drug deal?
You're just hung up 'cause the old man was a cop.
Not just a cop. He was a captain in the Texas Rangers.
Was, man. Was.
Uh-uh, pal. When you're a Ranger, you're a Ranger for life.
These guys were handpicked by the attorney general ofTexas. They were heroes.
Guys like Bill McCulloch, Bigfoot Wallace.
Frank Hamer was the guy that got Bonnie and Clyde.
You're right. The old man was pretty cool when the hit from that van came down. He held his own.
I'm telling you. These guys could ride into hell with a bucket of water.
They used to send one Ranger in to clean up an entire town.
Backup was on his hip.
Now we find one peddling two keys of blow.
For what? His retirement fund?
If you really wanna know, why don't you just ask him?
I intend to. Where you gonna be?
I'm gonna be with Castillo, puttin' the squeeze on that chump that drove that hit van.
Make sure you ask him if he's got collision.
[Laughs]
The hit man's driver rolled all the way over before they took him into surgery.
What'd he give you? Everything.
Uh, the witness'll be out of surgery in two hours.
Four around-the-clock guards.
Thank you.
Take the Bolivian as soon as he surfaces.
We're not gonna try to get him with the 50 keys?
We got a murder one conviction off the driver's statement.
Well, what about the old man?
He goes down for possession.
Beautiful boat. Beautiful cars.
You're a beautiful lady.
Y'all kind of got life beat around here, don't you?
No. We're just trying to be good losers.
That ain't no life. [Phone Rings]
Yeah.
No. I'll tell you when and I'll tell you where, Rickles.
- Give us a little privacy. - It's a small boat.
Take a walk.
Yes.
Well, I'll be looking for you too, Rickles.
So what's the plan?
No plan.
I'm just gonna go visit a dead friend.
You won't be there, so what's it to you?
Just got the call from Rickles.
And? I don't know. Maybe he'll talk to you.
Yeah, he might.
What's your game, Pierson?
What the hell are you doing in my room?
I'm trying to survive.
You want to talk about surviving, you ought to wear one of these for a while.
Got a motto written on a statue in Dallas. You know what it says?
"One Riot, One Ranger." How'd you know that?
Read it in a book when I was a kid.
Did you also read we were the toughest lawmen in the world?
Well, sir, that was probably true back then.
But the game has changed, old-timer.
And this is Miami.
Around here, you can't tell the players without a program.
Hell, I've handled tougher customers than those fancy-pants dealers that you run around with.
[Laughs]
Yeah, I read about it. Uh, the Rujeros Gang. Is that right?
Yeah, me and my partner wiped 'em out.
They was bringing guns up from Juárez. We were just waiting for 'em.
Me and my partner stood toe-to-toe with seven of those boys.
All we had was our Peacemakers...
to load and fire, to load and fire.
Rujeros had one of those tommy guns he and his boys were trying to pepper us with.
Suddenly, Roy yelled, "Jake, look out!"
And he stood up, and he took the bullet that would've killed me.
I've spent the rest of my life trying to make that up to him.
Took care of his wife, raised his son like he was my own.
But part of me died with Roy.
I hear that.
Did a stretch in Southeast Asia.
I lost some pals there.
L-I lost everybody.
Is that why you ended up on this side of the law?
What's your excuse?
[Scoffs] I know your type, Burnett. You're a dealer.
You got two friends: Yourself and your gun.
And I know your type too:
A cop that sells out on his badge.
Well, sometimes the low road can take you places that the high road can't.
Where's this meet gonna take place?
Wrote it down over there on a pad.
[Gunshot]
[Engine Starts]
Look. He spilled some paint.
[Knocking] Come in.
You all right, Mr. Pierson? Yeah, I just slipped gettin' off the bus.
Hey, that wound looks pretty bad. It's okay. Do me a favor, will you?
Yeah, sure. Mail this envelope for me, and, uh, keep that for yourself.
Oh, this is not necessary. It's okay. I'm fine.
Hey, he took his costume and left.
I can just see him riding off into the sunset with a posse.
[Switek] At his age?
Damn it.
The old man's gone, the Bolivian's gone, the meeting's gone. Everything's gone to hell.
Not going too far. Old man lost some blood.
Here. He left this with the manager.
I must be losin' it.
"This badge belongs to Vince Wilson's father.
Please bury him with it."
Wilson. He was the narc from San Antonio with the Peterbilt truck.
He was working the Bolivian until he showed up dead two months ago.
That old man hasn't disappeared.
Vince Wilson was his partner's son,
and he's gone to shoot it out with the guys that killed him.
Where would he set the meet?
Said he was going to visit a dead friend.
Where'd they bury Wilson?
?? [Man Singing]
?? [Continues]
[Knocking]
Perimeter's in place, Lieutenant.
Hold your positions.
Synchronize, 5:20.
Did the old man show? We don't know. They were already in the cemetery when we arrived.
When are we going in? We're not.
If the Bolivian's not inside, we'll have to tail his people out.
What about the old man?
We're here for Mendez.
Then let me go in.
I'll let you know if the Bolivian's inside.
They're expecting Burnett, so I won't blow the tail.
That old man was a good cop, Lieutenant.
You wire.
?? [Continues]
He's here. Everybody move.
Hold it!
[Groans]
[Groaning Continues]
I'm a cop. I'm a cop.
I knew that all along.