" Is it supposed to bubble?" " The frosting?" "Don't screw up Ava's birthday cake." "Maybe it's Ava's fecal cloud that's making it bubble." "Those aren't bubbles." "They're lumps." "Keep mixing." "We have to go." "I promised Ron I'd be home by 11:00." "Honey, what's "Cl"?" "She doesn't want you to forget Ava's party favors." "She would forget." "Bonnie, "CI."" "CI is Conservation International." "Finally, a deduction." "I'm sorry." "I guess we should have stayed on top of the record keeping." " We had more important things to do." " That's true." " See you tomorrow at 2:00." " Yes." " A little sleepy baby." " The bubbles are gone." "Good." "I'm going to go over to Debra Salsman's... and thank her for bringing dinner last week." "You leave those cakes there another 10 minutes before you try to frost them." "I might get bored and eat all the frosting." "Yeah, well, that's why we made a double recipe." " Hi, Marty." " Hi, Jamie." "Hi, beautiful." "Ava, it's your cousin Marty." "Look." " Any word yet?" " No." "But I'm sure we're just being ridiculous." "She's only been gone three hours... but we called the neighbors, and she never got there." "With her being sick and everything..." "It's gonna be okay." "I'm sure it's nothing." "But I'm glad you called." "Yeah." "Come on." "You're sure she didn't have any meetings this afternoon?" "A doctor's appointment?" "Something with the Garden Club?" "Why would she say she's going to Debra's if she wasn't gonna go there?" "You know Aunt Bonnie, maybe she forgot about it until she got into the car." "No, she would have called me." " And you called the police?" " I talked to the police." "I talked to the hospitals." "I called everyone we know." "I know this is difficult." "Look, I'm sorry, Marty." "It's just that it's scary." "She's been busy." "Yeah, she's been feeling really good." "We've rounded the corner." "So, I stopped by Argosy Travel... and picked up these." "Your final treatment's in, what, nine weeks?" "Something like that." "Yeah, and you're going to need a week to get back on your feet." "So I figured that we'd leave the following Saturday." "Be sort of like an early anniversary trip." "Wow, that beach is white." "Kind of matches my legs, right?" "Oh, come on." "I'm pale." "You can admit it." "Oh, honey, what is it?" "When you were first diagnosed, I was so scared that maybe..." "But we made it." " Everything's okay." " Yes, it is." "We were really looking forward to that trip." " Who's Joel?" " I don't know." "Why?" "It's probably just a friend." "That's going to be a colleague of mine." "She's going to help out here." "Do you mind if I borrow this?" "Just don't lose it, she'll need it when she gets home." " I won't." " Good." " Hey, thanks for coming." " Hi." " How you doing?" " Good." "Anything?" " No." " Put an APB out on the car?" "Yeah." "So far, nothing." "It's really weird." "I don't know what to think." " Is this her?" " Yeah." "She has a nice face." "She's..." "She's 53." "She's a nurse at Johnson Memorial Hospital." "She's married, got two kids and a granddaughter." "She was diagnosed with breast cancer seven months ago... and she's been going through chemo." "She's doing pretty good." "She likes plants, and she makes a hell of a snickerdoodle." "It's..." "What can I do?" "My cousins are in the kitchen." "Why don't you talk with them... and I'll see what else I can find." " Okay." "Is it just through..." " Yeah, right through there." "All right." " Hey, Sam." " Yeah?" "Thanks for coming." "I know it's your weekend." "You're welcome." "And you're sure he wasn't provoked?" "No one else was there, but Ricardo's well liked by the other residents." "I don't know why he would lie about your father hitting him." " How's Ricardo?" " A bruise on his cheek." "I gave him the day off." "I don't think he'll pursue the matter." "What about my father?" "He broke a small bone in his hand, but Dr. Raker says he's gonna be fine." "She's doing rounds in the other wing." "I know she'll want to come and talk to you." "I'll be here." "Thanks." "Hey, Dad." " What's the matter?" "Don't you knock?" " You left the door open." " What happened?" "You get fired?" " What are you talking about?" "No." "They let cops wear their hair like that?" "For the 500th time..." "I'm not a cop, okay?" "I'm with the FBI." "You look like a hippie." "Yeah, it's nice to see you, too." "She's been feeling really great." "She wanted to have all of Ava's little friends over for this party... and she's been running around all week." "There hasn't been anything unusual?" "Unexplained absences, phone calls from strangers, anything like that?" "No." "Have you noticed anyone unfamiliar hanging out around the house?" "There was someone here yesterday." "He was in the back yard with Mom." "She said it was no big deal, but it looked like they were arguing." " Hey, Mom." " Jamie." "What's going on?" "It's the guy from J and L Gardens." "He's upset that I'm actually making him go back and get the stuff I ordered." "Is Ava inside?" "Yeah, she's covered in juice." "She opened her sippy cup in the car." " That's my girl." " Yeah." "What's J and L Gardens?" "The nursery where Mom gets all her plants." "That's pretty." "She gave it to Ava for her birthday." "Here, I'll take her." "There you go." "Was there anything that you noticed between your mom and this man... that made you think something might be going on?" "What, like an affair?" " No." " No." "No, there's no way." "Mom and Dad are totally in love." " Sam." " What is it, Marty?" "It's okay." "So what'd you find, Marty?" "My aunt's got a real green thumb... but it looks like she's interested in more than just flowers." "Apparently, my aunt's a real stoner." "There's 20 plants in there." "It's a lot more than one person needs, even if she is sick from chemo." "Jamie saw a man from the nursery here yesterday... giving your aunt a hard time." "I was thinking affair, but..." " No." "Not likely." " Maybe business partner." "Will you go over to the nursery and check it out?" " Yeah, sure." " Okay." "Thanks." "No one here matches that description." " Anybody drive a red pickup?" " No." "And our company trucks are yellow." "Did she ever come in here with anybody other than her husband?" "No." "Well..." "What?" "She was in here yesterday." "I heard her talking on the phone." "It sounded pretty intimate." "I need to see you." "How about this afternoon?" "Roger's at work." "Okay." "Love you, too." " Do you know who she was talking to?" " Didn't hear a name." "Mrs. Toland doesn't seem like the kind of lady who'd be fooling around." "And with her being sick and all." "Well, people do strange things." "Especially when they're sick." "Thank you very much." "I thought Dr. Levin was treating her." "Dr. Levin retired in January." "I took over his cases." "Yeah, I noticed in her appointment book that you saw her last week." " Yes." " Did she come in with her husband?" " No." " Anyone else?" " No." " Did you notice anything unusual?" "I'm sorry, without Bonnie's permission, I can't..." "Dr. Komatsu, I understand your reluctance to talk to me... but there are a lot of people who are worried about her." "Let's put aside the fact that I'm an FBI agent." "This is my aunt we're talking about here." "She was responding to the chemo." "We were all very optimistic." "Some abnormalities showed up in her lab work, so I ran some tests." "The scan showed lesions on your left humerus and radius." "I found others on your right coxal bone." "And there were shadows that I couldn't diagnose on your T7 and T8 vertebrae." " The cancer's spreading." " It explains the elevated calcium." " Have you called Dr. Levin?" " I thought you might want to do that." "So, what do we do?" "I got materials for you to take home." "You should think about how you'd like to proceed." "Obviously, we can treat the cancer with chemotherapy, radiation... try to stem the advancement." "Or, if you prefer, we focus on palliative care." "Palliative." "Bone metastases can be very painful." "I know this is bad news, Bonnie." "I'm sorry." "How long does she have?" " Averages aren't facts." " How long?" "A couple months, I hope." "I'm still waiting on the cell-phone records." "But her credit card and home phone do not point to an affair." "That's good." "Their finances are a little bleak because of the medical expenses... which might explain why she was growing marijuana in the back yard." "Martin." "Hey, do you want to talk about it?" "She knew for a week and didn't tell anyone." " You gonna tell your uncle?" " I'm not sure." "You know, I was at their house last Friday for dinner." "She must've seen the doctor that afternoon." "Can I get you anything else, Marty?" "No, I'm stuffed." "It was good, though." "The turkey was perfect." "No, Tofurky." "Let's not dignify it by calling it turkey." "Come on, tastes just the same." "Just without the hormones." "I forgot." "I ran into Francie Newman at church this morning... and she sends her love." "Francie Newman." "Isn't she married to..." "Was." "He died." "Roger." "After I'm gone... that's who you should marry, Francie Newman." "She would never cook you Tofurky." "Now will you stop that?" "You know I hate it when you talk that way." "Just put those on the counter." "Sorry about the turkey." "What, are you kidding?" "It was delicious." "Okay, so I smothered it in your famous mashed potatoes." " What's wrong?" " I just..." "I kind of worry about Roger, that's all." "With his high cholesterol and blood pressure..." "I just want to make sure there's someone to look after him." "You're not going anywhere." "She didn't say anything straight out, but she was hinting at it." "I should have picked up on it." "You were just being hopeful." "Nothing wrong with that." "Maybe you're right." "Maybe she is getting comfort from somebody else." "And that could be where she is right now, in which case... it's not my business." "What if she just couldn't deal with her prognosis?" "What do you mean, suicide?" "No, no way." "And certainly not without saying goodbye to her family..." "But, Martin, if she were to do that, she's a nurse... she knows what to do." "She knows what pills to take." " Maybe she went to a hotel..." " Sam, that's not what happened." "If we were investigating a stranger... you would have to consider this possibility, Martin." "That's my fax." "What're you doing?" "Calling hotels." "Okay, I got your aunt's cell-phone records." "That call she made from the nursery... that was yesterday around 2:00." "Now, according to this, she was talking to a Joel Kemper." "She calls him a lot." "Looks like at least once a day." "Do you know who he is?" " "Bald is beautiful."" " What?" "I was hoping it was nothing." "How long have you known Bonnie?" "About six months." "Since she was diagnosed." "I run a support group for people battling cancer." "Are you two having an affair?" "Come on." "She's not exactly my type." "We're friends." "Right." "Was she in any kind of trouble?" " Not that I know of." " You sure?" "A witness saw her arguing with a man in her back yard yesterday." "We think it was about drugs." "Marijuana." "Her greenhouse is full of it." "There's enough in there to suggest intent to distribute." "You've got to be kidding me." "Bonnie?" "About the only things she's distributing..." " are homemade pies and gardening tips." " So what?" "She was going to smoke all that pot herself?" "No." "The plants are mine." "She lets me use her greenhouse." "I grow it for people in my support group." "People in a lot of pain." "People like Bonnie." " Has it been bad for her?" " Brutal." "Brutal enough for her to want to end her life?" "People who are suffering like Bonnie often consider suicide." "Yes." "And if she was considering suicide, do you know where she might go to do it?" "If I knew that, I would be there right now." "You okay?" "My parents used to travel a lot when I was a kid... for work and stuff." "So I'd hang out at my aunt and uncle's place." "Even spent a couple of summers there." "So they became like second family." "My parents, they see the world in a very specific way." "But with my aunt, everything, you know... everything always seemed possible." "You know I was supposed to go into politics?" "Yeah." "So when I decided to do this... my aunt was the only one in my family who really encouraged me to go for it." "She's always been there for me like that." "And now I can't do a thing to help her." "You just keep at it." "Like we always do." " What the hell is that?" " It's just me, Dad." "What're you doing in there?" "I'm looking for something to eat." "There's nothing in here." "What do you do, eat out every night?" "Yeah, the girl hasn't got back from the market yet." " What girl?" " The girl." " She goes to the market for me." " Dad, there's no girl." "You know everything." "Well, I know that I pay the bills, and there's no girl." " Hi, I'm Dr. Raker." " Sure." "Come in." "I'm sorry I'm late." "Hey, Mr. Malone, how you doing?" "Ask my son." "He's the expert." " Let's have a look at that hand." " It's all right." "I'm fine." " Let her look at your hand." " Mind your own business." " May I have a word with you?" "Privately?" " Sure." "Thanks for taking care of him." "I know he can be a real pain in the ass." "Actually, your father's been very sweet to me." "Sometimes, though, I think that's because he's confused me with someone else." "He was talking about some girl that goes to the market for him or something." "His confusion's consistent with some other things I've seen." "Disorientation, memory loss, he's not really changing his clothes." "Yeah, well, that's just because he's stubborn." "He's very set in his ways, he's obstinate." "Actually, it's more than that." "Your father's in the early stages of Alzheimer's." "And, you're..." " You're sure?" " All the signs are there." "How long will it be before... before he needs someone to look after him?" "It's impossible to know." "We'll both just have to watch him." " Have you told him yet?" " I will if you want me to." "No..." "I'll tell him." "I'll tell him." "Thank you." "Thanks a lot." "Bye." "That was Dr. Levin." "He's in Florida for a couple days playing golf with his daughter." "He says he doesn't know anything." "But if we need him, he'll come back." "I'm not sure we do." "I just spoke with Johnson Memorial." "There were no reports filed regarding missing medications." "But they had this patient, Wallace Atwood." "He was diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer." "He was released six months ago, and died two days later at his home." "His son went to the police... claiming that his mother hired someone to euthanize his father." "Do we know who?" "They never got that far." "His mother denied the allegations." "Sam, my aunt was one of his nurses." "If a doctor did help Wallace die, she'd know who it was." " Do we know the name of the wife?" " Yeah, Rose Atwood." "Like I said on the phone... we wanted to ask you some questions about your husband's death." "I've already told the lawyers and the insurance people... and the doctors everything that there is to tell." "Wallace died in his sleep without help from anyone." "All right, look, Mrs. Atwood... we have no desire to get you into any kind of trouble, okay?" "Then why am I here?" " Do you remember Bonnie Toland?" " Yes." "She walked out of her kitchen this morning to go visit a friend." "She never got there and no one has seen her since." " Bonnie's missing?" " Yeah." "You see, she has cancer." "And we think that she may have gone to see someone to help her die... maybe the same doctor who helped your husband and we need to know who that is." "Mrs. Atwood, please." "It wasn't a doctor." "It was Bonnie." "Can you tell me what it is you wish?" " I wish to die." " Okay." "Wallace, if you can, will you please read this... just to make sure you understand everything?" "Here." ""I, Wallace Atwood..." ""give this request that my life..." ""of intolerable suffering..." ""be ended in the most humane and painless manner."" "Wallace, do you understand what you just read?" " Yes, I do." " And you, Rose?" " I understand." " Okay." "Is there anything either of you wish to add?" "Thank you." "Thank you very much." "So Bonnie killed your husband?" "No." "Cancer killed my husband." "Bonnie just helped end his suffering." "So you think this man's son did something to Mom?" "The son has an alibi, but the relative of someone else she's helped might have." "Someone else?" "How many people are there?" " We have no idea." " This is ridiculous, Marty." "There's no way Bonnie would be involved with something like this." "She wouldn't hurt a plant." "If she was involved in this, she wasn't doing it to hurt anyone." "Look, you may be right." "This may be just some crazy story." "Okay?" "But if it is true... and there are others, it might help us find your wife." "And the woman said that before her husband died..." "Bonnie videotaped him making a disclaimer." "Now, if there are other people, then there's probably other videos." "We didn't find anything when we were searching the house." "So does she have a safety-deposit box?" "Someplace at work she might have kept them?" "A friend's house?" " I know where they might be." " You do?" "A few weeks ago I was looking for some gum in Mom's purse." "Hey, is this the tape that has Ava walking for the first time?" "I never got to see it." "Jamie says it's hilarious." " No." "It's not." " Okay." "Sorry." "It's a friend's." " A friend?" " Yeah." "He runs the cancer support group at the hospital." " I thought you weren't doing that." " I'm not." "He just gave it to me." "He said it might help." "I didn't ask his name." "I'm sorry." "You lied to us, Joel." "This is a copy of a search warrant for your apartment." "There is an agent on his way here right now with four videotapes... he found in your bedroom closet." "We haven't looked at them yet." "But I'll bet you that they're interviews with people that Bonnie helped die." "I don't know what you're talking about." "We understand you didn't want to get your friend in trouble... but you gotta come clean now." "If she helped someone and their relatives got pissed off... who knows what they could've done to her, or are doing to her right now." " What do you want to know?" " Everything." " Do you know where she is?" " No." "All I know is she was planning on helping someone else." "I don't know who, but... she was having second thoughts." "What do you mean?" "I mean maybe I shouldn't have agreed to do this one." " Why?" " Because maybe it isn't right." "Maybe living is more important than anything." "But dying is a part of living." "Bonnie." "What you do... for these people is incredible." "You help them pass on... without being poked and prodded and humiliated." "You give them dignity, and, in the end, peace." "Oh, no." "That was supposed to make you feel better, not make you cry." "My chemo isn't working." " What?" " I'm dying." "Oh, honey, come on." "It's all right." " I haven't even told Roger." " Oh, sweetie." "I feel like I've failed him." "I wasn't strong enough or brave enough." "But you are." "You are so brave." "I'm tired of being brave." "I don't want to be positive." "I don't want to wear these stupid scarves anymore." "I don't want to... put on makeup or do yoga." "I'm weak and... sick and in pain." "And I..." "I want the people who love me to tell me that's okay." "It's okay." "After all she's done for people... she felt so alone." "Joel, why didn't you tell us this before?" "I assumed she'd gone off to end her life, like she'd helped other people do." "I wanted to respect that." "What are you doing?" "I'm making you something to eat." " Why?" " Because..." "I don't think you're eating enough." "I think you're forgetting to eat." "Forgetting to eat?" "Who the hell forgets to eat?" "Look, I just..." "I don't think you're taking very good care of yourself, that's all." "Is that what the doctor told you?" "Yeah, you know, she said that you were getting a little confused." "This tastes like crap." "Oh, jeez." "She just..." "She said something about your clothes and..." "This is a brand-new shirt." "Yes, I know it's a brand-new shirt." "But it's clear that you haven't changed it in days." "You have Alzheimer's." "What does she know?" "She probably went to med school in Grenada." "Did you hear what I said?" "I'm not talking about this." "You have Alzheimer's." "Must be fun for you, huh?" "Finally the big dog." "What the hell are you talking about?" "You ungrateful son of a bitch." "Everything out of spite." "Your whole life, you've done everything to spite me." "That's what my whole life's been about?" "To spite you?" "Look, I gave you a great education." "You saw the world." "How many other kids your age went to Asia and Europe?" "I gave you an education on the world, and you turn around and spat in my face." "What, because I did what I wanted to do?" "Because I lived the life I wanted?" "That's how I spat in your face?" "I'm surprised you even give a crap what I do." "Ever since I can remember, you have been nothing but self-involved, indifferent..." "You've bullied this family from..." "I want you to listen to me." "Because I'm here now." "And pretty soon you're gonna be gone." "Do you understand me?" "I'm gonna walk through that door... and you are not even gonna know what my name is." "So whatever it is that we have to say to each other, let's say it now." "Get out of here." "Get out." "Get out of here!" "'"I, Sally Lee..." "'"give this request of my own free will..." "'"that my life of intolerable suffering be ended... '"" "Okay, Sally Lee died of pulmonary disease December last year." "She's survived by her husband, Tom Lee... who moved to Shaker Heights, Ohio." " So he's out." " Yeah." "No children." "Who's next?" " '"I, Erica Clemens... '"" " Erica Clemens." "'"...give this request of my own free will... '"" "I still can't believe my aunt was doing this." "'"...of intolerable suffering be ended. '"" " Stop it." "You can't do this." " What, what's wrong?" "I won't let you kill my wife." "I mean it!" "You touch her, and I'll kill you!" "Just turn that camera off." "Okay, Erica Clemens is still alive." "What do you got on her husband?" "Michael Clemens." "Lives with her in Mount Vernon." " Run his DMV record." " Okay." "He owns a truck." "How much do you want to bet it's a red pickup?" "Mr. Clemens, FBI." "Open up." "Doesn't look like anybody's home." " No, I'll go ahead and check around back." " All right." "Mr. Clemens." "FBI." "Get out of the truck with your hands up." "Get out of the truck." "Let's go." "Get out." "Keep your hands where we can see them." "All right, turn around and face the truck." "Bonnie was here, but she left hours ago." "I don't know..." "I saw you on tape threaten to kill her." "I didn't know what I was doing." "Is that why you showed up at her house yesterday?" "You finally figured out the right way to threaten her?" " No." " Then what were you doing there?" "I needed her help." "And I can't turn her over because it hurts too much, so she's getting these sores." "And I try to put the stuff on, but the lotion, it hurts so much." " I don't know what to do." " Mike, I'm so sorry." "I was wrong." "Erica wants to die, and I stopped you... and now she's crying all the time, and I just don't know..." " Could you please come back?" " I can't." "Why?" "I just have a lot going on." "I just can't do it." "Last night, I picked up a pillow to put over her face... and I looked at her, I could see in her eyes she wanted me to do it... but I couldn't." "I just stood there, and I couldn't make myself..." "I'm so sorry I stopped you." "How about tomorrow?" "I'll come by in the morning." "Thank you." "She came by this morning, like she said she would." "But something went wrong." "I waited too long." "I'll be right back, Erica." "All right?" "Mike, I'm sorry." "I can't help her." " What do you mean?" " She can't swallow." " What are we going to do then?" " We have to get her to the hospital." "She doesn't want to go to the hospital." "She is suffering." "If we get her to the hospital... at least they can make her comfortable." "It is the only thing we can do." "She doesn't want to go like that." "She doesn't want to go like this." "I'll call 911." "You go over there, and you explain to Erica what's going on." "And you let her know that you are ready for her to go." "You tell her that she doesn't have to hold on anymore." "And then you tell her that you love her... and that you will take care of everything." "It's what she needs to hear." "Okay." "She died an hour ago." "I just came back from the hospital." " Did Bonnie go with you?" " No." "Can you tell us where she went?" "I don't know." "After she called 911, she made another call." "Do you know to who?" "I don't know." "I couldn't hear what she was saying." "Thank you." "I'm very sorry for your loss." "My guess is this scene here hit a little too close to home." "She leaves without even calling her family and telling them where she's going?" " Maybe she needed to clear her head." " She needed to tell us the truth." " She didn't need to run away from us." " She's dying, Martin." "She's dying." "Like Joel said, she doesn't want to disappoint anyone." "Yeah?" "You got an address?" "631 Acorn Avenue." "Got it." "That call she made from the Clemens house was to Dr. Levin's home." "That's her car." " All right, I'll take the front." " All right." " Bonnie!" " Bonnie!" "Sam, she's around back." "Oh, thank God." "Call 911." "She's alive." "It's okay." "I've got you now." "I got you." "Thank you, Doctor." " So what happened?" " It wasn't suicide." " What was it?" " Her kidneys have shut down." "It could be from the chemo, but more than likely, it's from the cancer spreading." " I'm sorry." " Marty." " Is she okay?" " Yeah." "I think so." "Where was she?" "What happened?" "We found her at Dr. Levin's house." "What was she doing there?" "I think she just needed someone to talk to." "And you know how close she is with him." "But why?" "Bonnie's fine." "Everything's fine." "No, it's not." "The cancer spread." "She's dying." " No, she's not." " I talked to her doctor." " Does she know?" " Yeah." " She's known for a week." " A week?" "I think it's just because she loves you so much... that she couldn't bear the thought of leaving you and the girls." " So she couldn't tell you." " God." "She's in that room over there." "She's resting right now." " What do I do?" " Take her home." "Tell her that you love her and that you'll be there every step of the way." "Yeah." "And that it's okay to be scared, because you're scared, too." " Thanks, Marty." " Yeah." "It's okay." "Are you done with the sports pages?" "Thanks."