"Joey?" "How'd you like to do me a favour?" "You kidding?" "You know it." "You take care of this for me till after the trial, okay?" "You got it." "Anything else?" "Oh, no." "Just put it in a safe place." "Sully will know where to pick it up when I want it back." "Don't worry about a thing." "Whenever you're ready, just ask for it and it's yours." "He's probably dumping those collection books on Joey." "See if you can pick it up." "We get our hands on those books, we got him nailed." "I'm gonna have to reload pretty soon." "Looks like action, Murray." "You getting it?" "Yeah, yeah, I got it." "You get that briefcase he was carrying?" "Yeah, I zoomed right in on it." "That's the Academy Award shot, Dad." "He's running, John." "Inspector 73 to headquarters." "I'm operating a stakeout vehicle and pursuing a felony suspect." "At the moment, I'm heading south on Third from 20th." "Pursuing a turquoise coupe," "California licence 883-Ida-Nellie-Baker." "Request backup units." "Move it." "Hold on, Murray." "Get away from it!" "He's gonna kill himself." "I gotta get him out of there!" " You can't, it's gonna blow!" " I've gotta get that briefcase!" "No." "No, no." "Okay, all right, so he got some evidence, but that doesn't explain all the craziness." "Does for me." "Doesn't it for you?" "No, not for a guy that's been working on the job for 32 years." "I mean, I wouldn't call it professional behaviour, that's all." "You know how long he's working to drop Al Royce?" " Mike, I know." " A year and a half." "One year and a half watching a cobra like Royce lie, buy, threaten his way out of one charge after another." "You've always told me, "If it doesn't fit, it wasn't a good collar."" "Wrong." "Dead wrong, buddy boy." "That bribery thing with the liquor licence?" " Yeah." " And the phoney pension fund?" "And what about last summer?" "That shylocking case they had on him." "Gold plated, wasn't it?" " Whatever happened to that one?" " What happened?" "The witness took a cab." "You figure it out." "No, I'm just saying that an old harness bull like John T. Connor, he's gonna think about what those things do to people." "How they feel about the law, how they feel about him." "Mike." "You all set?" "Sorry to hang you up." "Had to get an x-ray." "Got a sore rib." " Where you gave him the shoulder." " It was you?" "Felt like Dick Butkus." "I see why you hang around with him now." "That's it." "He's the brains, I'm just the muscle." "Mind if we push it?" "I wanna get to the courthouse." "Hey, muscle, you heard what the man said." "Let's get him to the courthouse." "Your obvious contempt for these proceedings, Mr. Royce, only demonstrates again how lightly you regard the rules the rest of us live by." "As a citizen of this community, every instinct I have is to let this case go to trial." "But I'm here as a judge, Mr. Capiello, and in that capacity," "I have to tell you that I am no longer moved by your promises to present additional evidence." "I hope you suggest to the district attorney that in the future, he waits until he has the evidence before he decides to prosecute this defendant again." "On the motion to dismiss, granted." "You mean if what was in that briefcase hadn't have been burned...?" "I don't know." " What happened?" " I got clobbered." "You heard him." "Look, I know what I heard, I still wanna know what happened." "You didn't come through, Connor." "You're all mouth." "You shoot blanks." "What do you want me to tell you?" "Listen, you got an indictment." " You didn't get that on fairy tales." " Who says I didn't?" "You?" "What do you know?" "What makes you think you even begin to know the bells that go off in this town every time you do your famous" ""I've got Al Royce dead to rights" number?" "Hey, except for the fact that he did it." "Nobody flaked him, pal." "He's guilty." "Now, how about that for something?" "Who's this?" "Another one of our merry pranksters from the police department?" "Why don't you admit it, Capiello?" "You blew it." "You couldn't cut it." "You really wanna know?" "I'll tell you what happened." "You came up with enough solid evidence to get a naughty boy expelled from school." "Plus a lot of cheap talk about more." "And your timing, Connor, your timing's terrific." "Just when everybody's making noises about appointing a special prosecutor, you walk in saying, "Hey, look what I've got."" "Okay, we took it to the grand jury, we did our little tap dance and here we are." "Now the case looks like a grandstand play, Connor." "Politics." "Maybe you could've turned it serious, and maybe I'm a jerk for believing that you could do it, but you didn't." "That's the last time I go up against Royce while some cop is out there" " barbecuing my case." " Yeah, well, you got an indictment!" "Come on, John." "He's just a wise guy." "He'll be glad-handing us like all" "Hey." " Hey, hey, you all right?" " Yeah, yeah." "Just dizzy, that's all." "Guess that shot I took this morning took more out of me than I thought." " You sure?" " Yeah, yeah, all right." "Maybe." "Mr. Connor, what you have is called an aneurysm." "Actually, that's a kind of a little balloon that sometimes occurs when the wall of a blood vessel becomes a little too thin." "A balloon?" "That bad, huh?" "Well, it's not good." "I knew I shouldn't have come up here for those x-rays." " Well, what do we do about it?" " Well, there's an operation." "You know, the trouble is, your little balloon should have been taken out a long time ago." "It's quite advanced." "And it happens to be in a part that is very difficult to get at." "Well, if you can't operate, you can't operate." "I didn't say we couldn't operate." "Just trying to explain the risks involved in your case." "You know, I showed this x-ray to two of the very finest surgeons in the business, Mr. Connor." " And?" " Well, they didn't like the odds." "Well, what else is there?" "I'm afraid there's not a great deal more." "What are you trying to tell me, doctor?" "The likelihood is that that little balloon I was telling you about, sooner or later, will burst." "And what?" "You die from it?" "Yeah." "Almost at once." "Oh, dear God." "Sooner or later, you said." "Well, it could be several months." "Look, the truth is, it could happen almost any time." "Well, you were talking about the operation." "Now, I mean..." "Well, if you were me, what would you do?" "Would you take it?" "Frankly, if it was me I think I'd get the most out of whatever time is left me." "Before I die." "Frankly, if it was me," "I think I'd get the most out of whatever time is left me." "Hey." "How about that, huh?" "Come on, sweetheart." "Give me the ticket, will you?" "Sully, you got about two hours." "Go over to the north side, check out Spots 1 and 3." " See what" " Over here, Al." "Then he gets in his car and he gets away." "And that's when I look and see that Sully," "God rest him, had been shot." "Terrible thing." "I told them all this last night." " You can't describe the car?" " No." "New, old, dark, light?" "Anything?" "Sorry, I can't help you, lieutenant" "What'd you say your name was again?" "Stone." "Yeah, yeah, Stone, that's right." "Well, like I was saying, Lieutenant Stone, I can't tell you a thing, but I want you to know, and I want you to tell the people downtown that I really appreciate everything you're trying to do." "We can't have people taking shots at our most influential citizens." "Are you trying to tell me that this...?" "This gunman was trying to kill me?" "Yeah, it crossed my mind." " But not yours?" " Not in a million years, no." "Well, just out of curiosity, you tell me why your driver was carrying a gun?" "Did he do that?" "He had a holster." "Well, I heard they didn't even find any gun." "Well, did you hear about the two spent shells?" "Two?" "Well, here I was, ready to swear the guy only fired once." "He did." "They were different calibres." "That's what they mean when they say eyewitness testimony's not reliable." "You know, you have enemies." "Who are they?" "Me?" "I don't have any enemies." "I don't mean people who hate your guts," "I mean people who wanna kill you." "As far as I know, I'm Mr. Loveable." "We'll let you know if we need you." "Yeah, beautiful, you do that." "I'll count on it." " Did you give them the cop?" " I didn't give them anything." "That doesn't mean I want them running around." " Hey, Al, a cop?" " What's the matter?" "Cops don't have accidents?" " What'd you say your name was?" " You liked that, didn't you?" "Nothing like letting us know what he thinks of us." "I'm not too choked up about him either." "Lieutenant, professional detachment, remember?" "Yeah, I remember." "I'll tell you, it's strange when you think about it." "You could argue that who's ever gunning for Royce is trying to do us a public service, and we're trying to stop him." "Now you know what got John T. so steamed up the other day." "Yeah." "Now, wait a minute." "That's the guy we ought to talk to." "He'd know if Royce crossed somebody, right?" "No way." "No way?" "I thought you told me John T. wrote the book on Royce." "He did." "But he's not here to read it to us." "Where is he?" "Had to go to Portland." "Some kind of family emergency." " He didn't leave a number?" " No, Shindler said he'd call the minute he got there." "So far, nobody's heard from him." "Come on, come on, I got you." "Remember Yosemite, Ro?" "Yeah." "Every minute of it." "I loved that." "You know, that's the best time I ever had in my life." "Why didn't I know it then, huh?" "Because it's not so, that's how come." " What's the matter, John?" " What?" "Nothing." "All I was saying was that I had it good and I didn't know it." " Now, what's wrong with that?" " Oh, no, come on." " You're saying that you're sorry." " No, I am not." "Or something." "Yes, you are." "You don't owe me anything." "Look, you said, "Let's get married," and I said, "Great idea."" "I knew what I was doing." "Yeah, and you knew what you were doing when you walked out on me." "That's the smartest move you ever made." " Is that so?" " Yeah, that's so." "Come on." "Don't hold it in." "Go on, say it." "You are something else, Ro." "You know, what I wanna tell you..." "You know all the times that I didn't show up and I didn't call you?" "You know, that had nothing to do with you." "Never another woman." " Why?" " What do you mean?" "Why are you telling me this now?" "Oh, I don't know." "I just wanted to tell you." "Listen, I knew there wasn't another woman." "I knew there was a job and me." "In that order." "I knew that." "Tell me." "Tell me, tell me, tell me." "Hey, hey, hey, I gotta get back to work." " I can't stay" " No, come on, let's go up to my place." " Let's go up." " No, I tell you what." "I'll come by this evening for dinner, we'll make an evening of it." " No, let's go now." " No, no, no." "I got something I've gotta do first." "Now, you stay right here and I'll get the car." " I'll go with you." " You stay here." "I'll get the car." "I'll be right back." "What's wrong?" "Johnny!" "John." "Johnny." " John." " The car." " Is the car gone?" " Yes." "Yes." "Are you all right?" "Johnny, don't move." "Oh, God." "Oh, God." "John." " I'm all right." " Take it easy." " I'll call an ambulance." " I'm okay." "No." " But you've been hurt." " Don't do anything." "You hear what I said?" "I'm okay." "Let's see." "I've got your name, address, age, residency." "Now, have you ever committed a felony?" "No." "Any history of mental illness?" "No." "That's a beauty, isn't it?" "It's one of the most powerful lightweight weapons made." " How much is this again?" " Three hundred dollars, plus tax." "Yes, fine." "Give me a box of shells too." "You have to give Royce credit." "He can really turn them out in style." "I thought the Mad Russian there was supposed to have retired and left town." "And there's Fast Freddie." "The one on the end there, that's Mammalakis." "Numbers and prostitution." "He and Royce are supposed to be having some kind of feud." "How bad?" "I don't think anybody will start shooting, but you never know, you know what I mean?" "Old John T.'s gonna get pretty sore if he finds out a young punk put Royce away before he could." "He'll get over it." "Be like Ahab finding out his white whale got landed by somebody in a fishing boat." " That's bad." " It's pretty bad, yeah." "Wait a minute." "Wait a minute, can you stop that?" "Yeah, here." " What did you see?" " I'm not sure." " Take it back the other way, will you?" " Okay, there you go." "Now, keep going." "Right there." "You see him in the car?" "No, you went too far." "Take it back the other way." "Freeze it." " Right there." " Hey, what's he doing there?" "It's him." "It's John T." "Thought you said he was in Portland." "Somebody in the family was sick." "Is that it?" "His sister." "He called me on the phone, he said he was at the airport." " He had to get her in the hospital." " Well, then he couldn't be there." "But he is." " Try his number." " Yeah." "Pretty good eye, buddy boy." "But right now you wish I was nearsighted." "I don't know why I didn't even see him there." "Because you were staked out on the funeral, not some car down the block." "He isn't there." "Murray." "Hey." "What's this, a stakeout?" " How was Portland?" " It's all right for ducks." " I'll take the fog over the rain anytime." " Come off it, John." "You wanna tell me that wasn't you sitting outside the church?" "Well, yeah, that was me." "How'd you find out?" "Well, it's kind of a long story, you see." "But the punch line is I found out about it along with half the department." "We were filming it, you know." "And later, I'm doing the blow-by-blow and pointing out the celebrities, and there's my partner." "Just sitting there like he belonged there." "And I'm standing in the squad room with my bare face hanging out, trying to explain why I didn't know anything about it." "That's it?" "That's what you're steamed up about?" "Yeah, I got a little frosty, but that's not half of what's bothering me right now." "You weren't even gonna tell me, were you?" "What's going on, John?" "Well, maybe you better tell me." "I gotta check with you before I do anything now?" "I came back, I heard about the funeral and I swung over to cover it, that's all." "Come on, man." "It's me, remember?" "You can do that number on somebody else's head, but not on mine, all right?" "Now, you went there alone because you didn't want me there." "All I'm asking you is, why not?" "This doesn't concern you, Murray." "Doesn't concern me?" "Man, I stay alive because I know what you do, how you do it and when you do it." "I can't count on that, I'm a dead man, John." "Now, you told me that when I first walked into your office and took off that blue shirt." "Before we even shook hands." "I think all these years buys me a straight answer, John." "I never gave you anything but a straight answer." "Now, this doesn't concern you." "What, you think I blew it with Royce?" "Did I do something?" "Drop the ball?" "What?" "It's got nothing to do with you." "This is something I gotta do alone." " That's the way you wanna leave it?" " That's the way I'd like you to leave it." "There's nobody else I'd buy that from." "You know that." "I'll be downtown." "I can't believe it." "Yeah, you look fine, Rosemary, just fine." "Oh, Mike." " It's been a long time." " It sure has." "I don't know, you just never get to see the people you wanna see and see too much of the people you don't wanna see." "True." "Besides, I didn't wanna make John T. jealous." " That'd be the day." " Have you seen him recently?" "You know, don't you, Mike?" "I'll be outside if you need me." "All morning, I kept feeling like I was the only one that knew that..." "How much did he tell you?" "He didn't wanna tell me at all." "I fixed dinner for him." " This was last night?" " Yes, it was." "Well, what else happened last night?" "While I was cooking, you know, he kept laughing and joking around." "But anybody who knows him as well as I do could tell that it wasn't natural." "And then later, he started to shake." "Shake." "You know, like he was cold." "He cried." "And I held him, told him that I loved him." "Because he cried." "Because it's human to cry." "And it's human to share." "And that's when he told me that he was going to die." "Now, wait a minute." "What's all this about dying?" " You didn't--?" " No, I didn't know." "I shouldn't have told you, Mike." "What's the matter with him?" "Why is he going to die?" "There's nothing you can do for him." "Just let him alone, please." "All right." "It'll be all right." "I'll take you home." "No, I don't wanna go home." " You're sure?" " Yes, I feel better here." "Mike, you came here for some reason." "Why?" "What was it?" "Well, I knew that he's been acting funny lately." "I couldn't put my fingers on it, I couldn't understand it, I" "Now I think I do." "Oh, yes." "Excuse me, but I'll keep in touch with you, Ro." "Johnny." "Hop out." "Grab a cab back to headquarters." "I don't know who's on duty, but whoever it is, tell them I want a 24-hour surveillance on Royce." " What?" " I'll fill you in later." "Oh, and listen, pass the word." "If anyone sees John T., tell them I wanna know about it." "Taxi." "Hello, John." " Oh, hi, Mike." "How are you?" " What is it, you're moving?" "No, I'm just getting these clothes down to the Goodwill." "You know how this stuff collects." "What can I do for you?" "If it's about this morning, I already talked with Murray." "I got up there and my sister wasn't as bad off as they thought so." "You know, I got a nurse for her and I shot on back here." "How about you, John?" "How are you doing?" "Oh, I'm fine, you know." "No complaints." " Why?" "What do you mean?" " I mean, I just talked to Rosemary." "She told me you've got some crazy idea you think you're dying." "Crazy idea, huh?" "Well, it's a fact, Mike, and I know it." "What do you know?" "Are you a doctor?" " I've been to a doctor." " Well, get yourself a specialist." "I've been to specialists." "What do you think I am, a dummy, Mike?" "Look, I appreciate what you're saying but this thing, no doubt about it." "I'm sorry, John." "You know, it's a funny thing." "When my father died, I remember, worst part about it was getting all his stuff cleared up afterwards." "You know, all the clothes and..." "So I just thought I'd get rid of these and..." "And then maybe I'll go and take that hunting trip." "The one I said I was always gonna take, and I never did get around to it." "John." "John, I really came to ask you about that shooting the other night." " Royce's bodyguard." " Oh, you on that, huh?" "Butcher Sullivan?" "Well, that could be almost anybody." "I figure the fellow was after Royce." "Sullivan got in the way." " Yeah, that's possible." " Where were you?" " Well, what kind of a question is that?" " A lousy one." "I hate it." "But I'm..." "I'm still gonna have to check the slug from your gun against the one they pulled out of Sullivan." "Hey, Mike." "That's right." "All right." "I took a shot at Royce." "So what?" "He's filth." "He spits on the shield." "If I had time, Mike, I'd put him away, but I don't." " Somebody else will." " Yeah, but I don't know that, see?" "And I'm not gonna take the chance." "I'm gonna kill him." "Because the way I figure it, that's the least I can do." "Now, like, who has nothing to lose?" "Mike, it makes sense." "Come on." "All you have to do is say you didn't find me." "Then I'll do it, I'll turn myself in to you." "I swear I'll do that." "What do you say?" "Don't make me answer that." "Yeah." "It's kind of stupid, isn't it?" "You're a good cop, Mike." "Okay, let's say that it's true." "I'm not buying it, but let's say that it is." "All I'm asking here is, let's not forget about who the man is." "I mean, 32 years in the department." "Now, that should entitle him to a little consideration." "Nobody likes it any more than you do, Murray." "Oh, come on, Steve." "I know where you're at." "You're saying he's a rogue cop." "Forget about what might be going through his mind." "Yeah, yesterday, he was one of the boys, one of the old-timers, one of the best, right?" "Today, you can't wait to crucify him." "Now, I didn't say that." "Well, what are you saying then?" "You feeling sorry for Al Royce?" "Well, I'm sorry too, man." "Everybody knows Al Royce is a victim of his environment." "What do you wanna do?" "You wanna issue Connor a hunting licence." "Did I miss something, or was there an announcement making us executioners, and John T. Connor gets to fire the first shot because of his long devoted service or something?" "Okay." "Okay, okay, now, okay." "What we've got to do is to find Royce before Connor does." "And, Murray." " I'm counting on your help." " To save who?" "Royce or John?" "Both." "The best thing any of us can do for John T. is to find Royce and get him undercover." "And Connor knows more about Royce than we do, that's all." "Well, let's get going, huh?" " Look, Steve" " Murray." "Murray, forget it." "There are just some things you can't forget, you know?" "I spent 12 years of my life handcuffed to that guy." "You think he wants to forget that too?" "Maybe what he's doing now, he doesn't want to rub off on you." "Come on." "Nobody home." "Suspect reported leaving the Yacht Harbor in a two-tone green Mustang." "Inspectors 8-1, 10-4." "Alert all units in the area." "Check, 8-1." " Get out of there, John T." " Okay." "He's still looking." " Where would he go next?" " Who knows?" "All right, check the list again." "St. Francis Barber Shop, zero." "Nickey's Hideaway, zilch." "Zilch." "Continental Baths, nothing." "Betty 'O. Wonder what that is." "Waterfront Café, zero." "Say, there's a horse called Betty 'O, isn't there?" "I'm sure there is." "Hey, yeah." "John T. told me that once." " Royce is into that." " What, he owns a horse?" "Well, it's not anything big with him, but it was something." "A piece." "That's what he said." "He owns a piece." "This must be the name he told me." "Well, come on." "Betty 'O." "Betty 'O, Bay Meadows, seventh race." "Come on, move it." "Ten-four." "San Mateo Police on the way." " You're looking for Royce, right?" " That's the idea." "Guy downstairs said I can get to the roof this way." " What's going on?" " Oh, I'm just looking for a guy." "Thank you." "There's his car, Mike." "Ladies and gentlemen, the results of the sixth race are official." "The winner, Number 4, Lucky Fellow, with Jimmy Nukham up, followed by Number 9, So Long." "The show horse, Number 6, Riot Red." "Say." " Where do the owners hang out?" " Clubhouse." "Or if they got a horse running, down by the paddock." "Steve, take the paddock." "Say, where's the other fella?" "Who?" "You mean the guy that just came through here" " a couple of minutes ago?" " Yeah." "What did he look like?" " About my age, grey hair." " Which way did you say he went?" "He went up to the roof." "That door right up there." "Ladies and gentlemen, the horses are now entering the track for the seventh race." "John." "Don't do it, John." "I gotta do it, Murray." "John." "What happened?" "Did I get him?" "Yeah." "You got him." "I'm sorry, John." " Think I'll ride in with him." " Sure." " Look who takes the limo." " So close." "Did it ever cross your mind?" "What?" " Oh, nothing." " No, go on." " Go on." " No, no, I was just curious." "Why?" "Did you think about it?" "No, no." "He's not immune, he'll get his." "But what happened back there, it really didn't have very much to do with justice." "But had a hell of a lot to do with the use of power." "A man and his gun." "It just isn't the answer." "Were you tempted?" "Buddy boy that's between me and John T." " But you know what?" " What?" "What Murray did is what I'd want you to do if that had been me."