"Tower, this is Starlight Leader." "We are in position to start evasive maneuver, over." "Roger, Starlight Leader." "Colonel Clayton says all systems go, over." "Roger, Tower." "Gentlemen, we have the green light." "Loop is complete." "All readouts indicate" "'Colonel Clayton had no comment as to his impending court-martial." "But an inside source stated that a review of the evidence left no doubt as to the colonel's culpability in the deaths of the five Air Force pilots." "In his words, 'The flight maneuver developed by Colonel Robert Clayton was improperly designed for an entire flight squadron."" "'Dear Mrs. Construction Worker:" "Your husband's insistence on wearing his tool belt and hard hat to bed is not, as he claims, just a healthy involvement in his work." "We suggest professional help.'" "Nice try, Francine." "What?" "I've already read it." "It doesn't sound good, Lee." "It isn't." "Any word from him?" "No, but that's no surprise." "After all, I'm only his nephew." "Thank you very much." "Billy, you just don't know the colonel." "Hello." "Hello, Amanda." "Hello, sir." "Are you, uh, working undercover today or the Yankees make you an offer?" "No, I'm on the way to the boys' baseball practice and I just thought I'd give these receipts to you, sir." "Now, one of them might look a little strange, sir." "Um...." "This one, it's for some perfume that Lee used." "Wait, hold up." "I told you I would pay for it." "That's what's different about you." "You've changed perfumes." "Oh, no, come on, it was for a job." "Yes, Francine." "A couple of weeks ago, Amanda had this spray thing" "Atomizer." "In my purse." "Atomizer." "In her purse." "I had to use it, so I dumped out the perfume." "I wouldn't say anything about it, except that it was French perfume and it was sort of expensive." "Mon Amour." "Sounds like a legitimate expense." "We'll take care of it." "Thank you very much, sir." "Here, I'll just give these to you and thank you very much." "I certainly am glad we've got that solved." "I think I'll get these printouts upstairs." "Those reports you're transcribing, we'll need next Tuesday." "Oh, right." "Unless that interferes with a PTA meeting." "PTA's on Monday." "Oh, what luck." "By the way, dear, Mon Amour is very passe." "I would, uh, stick Lee for a bottle of Les Trois Nuits this time." "Les Trois Nuits?" "You'll like it." "Couldn't the perfume story have waited?" "Look, I'm sorry." "I'm really sorry." "I just wanted to go ahead and turn it in." "Okay." "Scarecrow?" "Hmm?" "Call for you on 3." "Ah, thank you." "Hello?" "Yes, sir." "Yes, sir." "I" "No, sir, l" "Yes, sir, I read it." "Yes, sir." "No, gee, I can't." "I mean, I'd love to, but, uh, I've got a date that night and, uh, well, my girlfriend and I are having some troubles and, you know, she's really jealous of our time together." "Uh, no, sir, you've never met her." "Is she new?" "Uh...." "Well, actually, we have been seeing each other for some time now." "Amanda." "Amanda King, sir." "Um...." "Yes, sir." "All right, all right." "Uh...." "Yes, I can bring her." "Your club, 8:00." "Yes, sir." "Goodbye." "Uh...." "Amanda, I need you to do a little favor for me." "So I gather." "That was my uncle." "Oh, the colonel?" "Yeah, he's in town." "He wants to have dinner." "I told him I had a date, you know, thinking I could get out of it that way and, um...." "I'm stuck, so, uh...." "You think you could?" "Oh, Lee." "Look, I'm--Really, I'm flattered that you thought to ask me." "Oh, good." "I was desperate." "Well, thank you so much." "Uh, no." "I didn't mean it that way." "I mean, you know, if you come along uh, it'll make things a lot easier." "Sure." "All right." "You'll do it?" "Sure." "I'd love to meet your uncle." "Good." "When do you get your car back?" "Tomorrow." "Why did you have to take it to the shop anyway?" "It got a scratch." "Some guy parked next to me and dinged it." "Oh, Lee." "Eventually all cars get scratched." "I know that, Amanda." "I know that." "But my car was almost brand-new." "And some butcher comes along and mutilates it." "I swear the maniac did it on purpose." "I just don't understand why people can't learn to be more careful." "How long has it been since you've seen him?" "We had lunch in '82." "Lee, that's really terrible." "I told you we haven't seen much of each other." "Besides, Colonel Robert Clayton's a very busy man." "Did you say Colonel Robert Clayton?" "The Colonel Robert Clayton who's being court-martialed?" "You knew that." "No." "No, I didn't." "You've never said his first name." "You just called him the colonel or him or" "Something worse." "Yeah, well...." "Gosh, he's probably really gonna need you now." "He doesn't need anyone." "Oh, sure." "He's gonna need his family." "What family?" "You." "He raised you." "He didn't have any choice." "When my parents died, he was the only one left." "Oh, no." "He could have said no." "No." "Not the colonel." "It was his duty and he always does his duty." "Ooh." "That bad, huh?" "Hey, how many kids get to pass room inspection twice a week and learn the proper way to spit-shine shoes, huh?" "Hello." "Good evening." "Evening." "Hello." "Evening, sir." "Ma'am." "Yeah, uh, Clayton, party of three." "Ah, yes." "Uh, Colonel Clayton isn't here yet." "May I suggest that you wait at the bar?" "Sure." "Fine." "Uh, could we would have a window table?" "Very good." "This way." "Thank you." "Thank you." "You're welcome." "Thank you." "I don't believe it." "This is the first time that I have ever arrived before the colonel." "Must have forgot to synchronize his watch." "Oh, come on, Lee, you sound like you were raised by a machine." "Amanda, I was raised by a career military officer." "It amounts to the same thing." "Thanks, sergeant." "I'll be back at 2300, sir." "Oh, that won't be necessary, Sergeant Ballard." "We've all had a long week." "You and Lieutenant Mauntel take the night off." "But, sir" "It's all right, sergeant." "I'll be fine." "Yes, sir." "Thank you, sir." "Have a nice evening." "You too." "Thank you." "You know, sometimes your family's harder on you than anybody else." "But it's only because they love you and they expect so much of you." "I'm sure he really cares about you very much." "Oh, come on, Amanda." "The man called me Diaper Duty until my 16th birthday." "Ha-ha-ha." "Well, he must have done something right." "Look at the way you've turned out." "You're successful, hard-working, honest." "Any man would be proud to have you for a son." "Hello, skip." "Sir." "Uh, colonel." "Amanda, may I present Colonel Robert Clayton." "How do you do, sir?" "Colonel, Amanda King." "Delighted." "Shall we take our table?" "Oh, sure." "Excuse me." "Thank you." "Thank you very much, sir." "My pleasure." "Excuse me." "Sir." "I thought I asked for a window table." "The colonel preferred this table, sir." "Yes, of course." "Ma'am." "Thank you very much." "Sir." "Thank you." "Sir." "Thank you." "Would anyone care for a cocktail?" "Some wine, Amanda?" "Oh, yes, sir, that would be very nice." "A wine list, please?" "Sir." "The Pommard is very nice, especially the '81." "Excellent idea." "But I prefer the '82." "But the, uh, '81 is a vintage crop." "We'll have the '82 vintage." "Sir." "Thank you." "Well, I don't know about anybody else, but I'm really very hungry tonight." "I like a woman who speaks her mind." "Your taste is improving, skip." "'Skip'?" "Heh." "Later." "Oh." "Sir, I was, uh--Well, I'm very sorry about the court-martial." "What happened?" "Well, I wish I knew." "One minute, they were in a 180 rollover slipping into an inside loop..." "...the next minute, they were gone." "Hmm." "I heard the maneuver was dangerous." "That's a bunch of nonsense!" "I flew it myself." "Would anybody like to split an appetizer?" "Barry Austin and I alternated as flight leaders." "That could've been me." "I wish it had been." "When my men went down, I should have been with them." "Who's your attorney?" "I talked it over with General Patterson and I've decided to represent myself." "Excuse me, but do you think that's a wise decision?" "You'll need help building your defense." "I don't need a defense." "I haven't done anything." "Stuffed mushrooms look awfully good." "No, sir, I'm sure you haven't, but people are getting very, very upset about this." "To hell with them!" "I'm right and that's all that's important." "Sergeant Ballard is checking out some information he thinks will clear me." "Thinks will clear you?" "It sounds like you're basing your hopes on a pretty flimsy possibility." "I didn't come here to have you butt into my business." "Gee, the, uh, veal really looks very good." "What?" "The veal." "Oh, yes." "Ahem." "I know I have to go to that court-martial and tell the truth." "It's way out of hand, honey." "Pilots have been killed and Colonel Clayton could go to prison." "I have to open up about everything I know." "Listen, I'll call you tomorrow right after the proceedings, okay?" "I love you too, Elise." "Every night is New Year's Eve with the colonel." "Well, I think you handled yourself beautifully." "Thank you." "Lee?" "Hmm?" "What do you think will happen to him?" "He'll lose." "Everything." "The Pentagon's in an uproar right now." "The Air Force has lost too many planes in one year." "In the last month, single planes have gone down in Arizona, Utah New Mexico, California." "And then the colonel's squadron." "Why did they crash?" "Well, according to the investigative report, pilot error." "Review board rejected that in the colonel's case." "Well, that's an awful lot of planes for one month." "Hmm." "Is that normal?" "No, it isn't." "That's why people are so upset." "lt does seems strange, though, doesn't it?" "Hmm?" "I mean, maybe it is just a coincidence, but" "Maybe it's not." "He's so busy playing attorney, he can't see what's going on in front of his own face." "Hold on." "Where are we going?" "To the colonel's hotel." "Something funny going on." "He's gonna need help." "And whether he likes it or not..." "...it's gonna be mine." "Right." "Excuse me." "Sir?" "Colonel Clayton, what happened?" "Just doesn't make sense." "Sergeant Ballard jumped from the balcony." "Didn't have a care in the world." "Was getting married." "I spoke with him tonight." "He and Elise had planned to honeymoon to Hawaii." "He picked up the tickets." "Lieutenant, I'll finish up here." "We'll call Elise in the morning." "Yes, sir." "Well, I think you better go home with me then." "What for?" "This hotel is not safe." "For whom?" "Sir don't you find it a little too coincidental that nine planes flown by nine ace pilots all went down during the same month?" "And this sergeant, who supposedly has information relative to your case took a dive, and had two tickets to Hawaii in his pocket?" "I don't buy it." "You're reaching, Lee." "You've been playing James Bond too long." "Sir, if what I'm saying is true, then you are in danger." "I think you owe it to your men to stay alive and get to the truth." "Whatever it is." "All right, you win." "What?" "You win." "Huh." "Okay, then, uh...." "I'd better find you another place for tomorrow." "Oh, uh--The" "Uh, sir, you're very welcome to stay at my house tomorrow." "Mother and the boys will be at the circus and all I was gonna do was bake cookies for the scout jamboree." "More than welcome, really." "Honestly." "That's perfect." "What time are they leaving?" "They're supposed to go around 10:30." "Good." "I'll, uh, drop him off at noon." "Good." "Lee, you don't make up my mind for me." "I have been taking care of myself for almost 60 years and I don't want the two of you making my decisions for me." "Yes, sir." "I will be delighted to spend the day with you." "Oh, thank you, sir." "Pardon us, please." "Excuse me." "Thank you." "I don't know." "I just don't buy it, Billy." "Pilot error nine times in one month?" "You say they were all different planes?" "Yes." "I even checked the flight patterns." "Except for the colonel's, the maneuvers were all routine." "I know he's your uncle, but isn't it just possible that the maneuver was dangerous?" "Nobody knows better than I that the colonel has his faults but one thing I can tell you, he is a damn good commanding officer." "If he says the maneuver was safe, it was safe." "You got a great deal respect for him." "As a military man?" "Yeah, you bet I do." "His only sin is that he's an innovator in a profession that doesn't accept change." "He's a maverick." "Believe me, it's cost him a lot of promotions." "Homicide called with the coroner's report." "They found cuts and bruises on Ballard's face and arms." "He could have gotten those during the fall." "He landed on his back." "They also pulled O-positive blood type samples from Ballard's shirt." "Ballard was type B." "Are the police investigating?" "They're sending detectives to the hotel." "But they don't expect to find anything." "Hmm." "Because they don't know what to look for." "I doubt if they know the connection between Ballard and colonel's court-martial." "I'd like to look into this." "You should." "But keep the colonel in the background for the time being." "It's already taken care of." "I've got him stashed over at Amanda's." "I'm going there later." "Francine, could you take a look after, uh, Prince Hussad's reception this afternoon?" "Prince Hussad?" "Yes." "Oh, well, thank God I wore my designer original." "I think that was a yes." "Yeah." "Ahem." "And like Lee says, pilots that good don't make mistakes, Ted." "He's got a point." "Damn right he has." "Can you tie in those crashes out west with your squadron going down?" "Lee's working on that connection." "Let's hope he finds it." "You've got to get to the bottom of this." "You can count on that." "I lost five of the finest pilots in the military." "If someone else is responsible for their deaths, I'll see him hang." "I'll drink to that." "Listen, Bob, I'd like to help you out, but orders are hands off of this one." "I understand." "It's okay." "No, it's not." "You're one hell of an officer." "That means a lot." "I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it." "Lieutenant Mauntel." "General Patterson." "Lieutenant." "Well, I gotta take off." "My nephew, it seems, fears for my safety." "He's stashing me for the day at a friend's." "Sounds like a smart kid." "He's learning." "Thank you for your time." "My pleasure." "And let me know what you find out." "You'll be the first." "Okay." "Let's go, lieutenant." "Well, you're really pretty good at that." "Heh, heh." "I'm pretty handy in the kitchen." "Oh, allow me." "Thank you." "How'd they come out?" "They look gooey." "Good." "There you go." "Thank you." "All right." "Your boys do that?" "Yeah." "Mother's Day." "Must be tough raising two boys on your own." "You know, they ought to have a manual with the rules, instead of making them up as you go along." "Oh, that would be much too easy and not nearly as much fun." "Somehow I never thought of raising children as fun." "I guess you just do your best." "Well, sure, didn't you?" "Oh, it wasn't the same thing." "You should have seen Lee when he first came to me." "Seven years old and the first thing out of his mouth was 'no.'" "I can believe that." "Ha-ha-ha." "Boy, he was a tough kid." "I remember he had a little girlfriend" "Alice, I think her name was." "and a few of the boys were giving her a hard time and Lee took them all on." "My God, I was proud of him." "Two black eyes and a bloody nose and he never shed a tear." "Of course, he, uh, knew better than to do that." "Uh, yes, I guess he probably did." "I tell you, he fought me all the way." "Still does." "We can't be in a room for five minutes without fighting." "I have never met anyone as stubborn as he is." "Well, you know, he's, uh, all grown up now." "He's his own man." "He has his own way of doing things." "I guess he just has his own way." "And he is convinced that his ways are better than mine." "Now, look, I, uh, don't argue the fact that Lee has grown up." "I respect that." "You know, I bet he would very much like to hear you say that." "Yeah, well, that's not so easy to do, you know, because" "Oh, no, it's all over your" "I'm not so handy after all." "Look, why don't you just see if you can grab those up off the floor?" "I'll get this off before it stains." "Don't worry." "No, no, it's no problem." "I can do it." "You know, most people don't know that if you take a little bit of ordinary detergent and a little rubbing alcohol you can get a stain off if you get to it quickly." "I've got all the ingredients back here." "I can show you how to mix it up if you'd like, colonel." "Sir?" "Colonel Clayton?" "Sir?" "Oh, no." "Oh!" "Go." "Go." "What?" "Go, go, go." "What?" "Follow that car." "They kidnapped" "They kidnapped the colonel." "To the right." "Whoa, whoa!" "I don't believe this is happening." "I didn't even have it back one day." "Looks pretty bad, doesn't it?" "Well, a bullet in the tire and two in the radiator wouldn't make it look good." "Hi, I'm Pearl and here are today's tips." "Stay away from the cheesecake, it's tired." "The apple pie is a good bet." "I'll just have coffee." "No pie?" "No, thank you." "How about the missus?" "Just coffee, that's fine." "Just coffee." "Well, are you sure that's all you want?" "Yes, that's all, thank you very much." "Are you okay?" "Oh...." "I've gotta find out what's going on." "It is driving me crazy." "Look, you'll find out." "You really do care about him, don't you?" "Well, he is my uncle." "I know and he's" "Not too late to change your mind about pie." "No." "No pie, just coffee, thank you." "How could I have let this happen?" "It wasn't your fault." "I stashed him at your place." "That's because you thought he would be safe there." "We've gotta concentrate on finding him." "Now let's backtrack." "We arrived at your place approximately" "One-eighteen." "I put the first batch of cookies in the oven and I checked my watch." "Right, right." "Now, did he say where he'd been or if he'd talked to anybody?" "Not a word." "Lieutenant Mauntel dropped him off." "Mauntel?" "Yeah." "Didn't he take a cab?" "No." "Lieutenant Mauntel dropped him off." "Come on." "Let's go." "We're gonna have a chat with the lieutenant." "Other than Billy, he's the only one that would know where the colonel would be." "Oh." "Come on." "Okay, 1204, 1205." "It's down here." "Here it is." "Nobody's home." "You keep a lookout." "Right." "All clear." "It's gotta be right around here somewhere, sweetheart." "Oh, hello." "I've lost my contact lens." "Oh, darling." "Oh, let me give you some help." "Oh, thank you so much." "I'm good at this." "lt happens to me all the time." "My left eyeball is smaller than my right eyeball." "It's over here somewhere." "I can't see a thing." "There it is." "I see it there." "Oh, thank you." "Sweetheart, you are the smartest thing." "Well, thank you." "Thank you so much." "I really do appreciate your help." "No problem, ma'am." "Okay, have a good day now." "Thanks very much." "Ahem." "Goodbye." "Okay, what are we looking for?" "You'll know it when you see it." "Oh!" "You always say that." "I don't think I'll get used to breaking into people's rooms and going through their private things." "It's all part of the job." "Don't take it so personally." "Yeah, yeah, I know, it's just that, you know, I respect people's privacy and I expect other people to respect mine and I just know that if anybody broke into my room and--Lee." "What?" "Come here." "I think I found something." "Look, I think it's an address." "'1840 Panta River Road.'" "Right." "Well, there's no telling how long it's been on here." "Yeah." "Is there a notebook or any kind of stationery around?" "Um...." "None that I can see." "So if someone called you with an address..." "Yeah." "...you'd jot it down on whatever's available." "Sure, I would." "Good." "It might not be Mauntel's, but it's the only lead we've got." "Panta River" "Road." "Right." "All right." "You got it?" "Yeah." "Okay." "Let's go." "Wait." "Now, hold it." "We're not going anywhere." "I am." "You're going straight home." "Lee." "I may have to break into someone else's house and go through their personal things." "I wouldn't wanna put you through that twice in one day." "Right." "Call me in an hour." "I'm not going to" "Call me in an hour." "If you don't call me in an hour, I'll worry." "And if I worry, I'll probably show up there." "I know where it is." "I found the address." "All right." "Just so I won't worry." "All right." "All right, come on." "Thank you." "What?" "Amanda." "It's clear." "Are you sure?" "Positive." "Okay, good." "You're crazy." "I'll spot you three points." "Come on." "My bookie's even spotting me four points." "Yeah, but your bookie ain't making no money neither." "Okay, I'll take the three points this time, but that's the last time you railroad me." "Hey, you!" "Guess I should have called first." "All right, all right, all right." "You all right?" "Do I look all right?" "All right." "You two have a nice little reunion, you hear?" "It's no use." "I already tried." "Sir, I may know a trick or two that you don't." "Who do you think trained you suits in the first place?" "The military, that's who." "How'd you get here?" "I found the address in Paul Mauntel's hotel room." "Mauntel?" "What's he got to do with this?" "Heh." "Looks like plenty." "And next time, take a cab, will you?" "He's more than just an aide, he's a friend." "I know that." "And it looks like he's up to his bars in this." "And whoever owns this house." "I found a computer jamming device upstairs." "What kind of jamming device?" "The kind that you can lock on an aircraft's flight control computers and scramble them." "Think they used that on my squadron?" "That's what killed those boys?" "Yeah, that's what it looks like." "We gotta get out of here." "Somebody is gonna pay dearly for this." "Does anybody know you're here?" "Yeah, Amanda does." "Amanda?" "Yeah." "I promised I'd call within the hour, it's gotta be that right now." "Look, if I don't call, she's gonna know that there's trouble." "Are you sure?" "Yes, I'm sure." "I know Amanda, she's got a good head on her shoulders." "She's very resourceful." "Anyway I taught her everything that she knows." "Everything she knows, huh?" "Have a seat, Mrs. King." "All the loose ends, huh?" "Precisely." "Ted, I don't believe you're involved in this." "involved isn't quite the right word." "He set this entire operation up." "As a matter of fact the general here is responsible for all those planes going down." "He jammed the flight control computers which means a one-way ticket to the ground." "But those were our boys you killed, Ted." "Why?" "Oh, come on, Bob, take a look around you." "Did you think my salary could support this kind of lifestyle?" "Why, I've been giving out bits and pieces of information for quite a few years now." "Why Sergeant Ballard?" "Unfortunately, he came down with a bad case of remorse." "He demanded that I clear the good colonel's name, otherwise he would tell everything." "So you had him killed before he could expose you." "It seemed like the expedient thing to do, yes." "You make me sick." "First you corrupt my men and then you kill them." "Bob, you're taking this much too personally." "Well, now, if you'll excuse me, I have an appointment at Bergstrom Field." "It's time to deliver the merchandise." "Mrs. King." "Gentlemen." "We gotta try to get out of here." "I don't think he's planning on any witnesses." "Lee, there may be no problem." "You know those tennis lessons I've been taking?" "Yeah?" "Well, I flexed the muscles on my arms so that when I relax, I should be able to slip right out of these ropes." "Take it easy." "That's delicate equipment." "Yeah." "Take care of our friends inside and make sure their bodies aren't found." "Yes, sir, general." "Come on." "I knew it would work." "Lee was right about you, Amanda." "He said you were very resourceful." "Well, I just do the best that I can, sir." "These are very tight." "Oh, Lee, I'm really very sorry." "It's all right." "Just find something to cut these things with." "Yeah." "Oh." "Here." "Scoot your chair around." "Yeah." "Yeah, be careful with that thing." "Mm-hm." "Yeah, that's it." "Come on, sir." "Yeah." "Okay, good." "Bergstrom Field's a few minutes from here." "Let's get there." "Okay, come on." "Wait." "Get back." "Come on." "Well, there's no one around." "They must be inside." "Blast right in there." "We'll surprise them." "No." "It's better if I see what the situation is." "They're not expecting us." "Excuse me, but this is not some dogfight over Korea." "This is my territory." "If you don't mind, I'll give the orders." "Besides, I don't wanna endanger the life of a civilian." "All right, what do you want me to do?" "Just give me a chance to work my way inside." "I may need you to mop up." "Ready?" "Let's go." "Put it in here." "Gently, now." "Gently." "Lee...." "All right." "I'm going up over." "You go around the front." "The front." "Wait for me." "Okay." "Take care, huh?" "Okay." "You take care." "Open those doors." "I'm gonna fire her up." "Lee!" "And that's for the squadron." "Well, looks like you two make a pretty good team." "Well, I'd say we all do." "Yeah." "Not bad." "Excellent." "You were right, Lee." "'81 is a better vintage." "Now, there is something to drink to." "I've got a better idea." "Let's drink to family." "Hear, hear." "Why don't you two make a pact not to be such strangers." "You're right." "We shouldn't let another three years go by..." "... between visits." "Agreed." "Why don't you come to Washington for the holidays?" "Stay at my place." "You've already played host." "Come out to the air base and let me return the favor." "Uh, no offense, but an Air Force base isn't exactly my idea of a vacation." "Come on, my apartment will be more comfortable." "My bunk is fine." "You spent a good part of your life on them." "That's exactly why I don't wanna see another one again." "Come on, you're not putting me out." "I'll rent a rollaway bed" "Oh, no, you don't." "There's more than enough room in my quarters." "Now, listen" "Family?" "Hear, hear."