"Synchro: jayson.sosweet It's not miniature golf, son." "There are no curbs surrounding the windmill to bounce the ball back into play." "There..." "You go, nothing to it." "You can do it?" "All it takes is practice." "Practice and a good teacher." "You're dreaming, dad." "There's no way that I'm going to practice for a game that I honestly don't give a damn about." "Wrong again, son." "The only person who's dreaming here is little wifey." "Whatever you say." "I used to go to a pro for a while." "I can give you his number." "He's in Tampa." "He runs a week-long course." "Make a vacation out of it." "Take the whole family down there." "And, hell, do it!" "Do it as soon as you wake up." "It's not like there's anything standing in the way of your going." "Dad, it's the middle of the school year." "And I know you think that I'm not doing anything, but I'm actually out there looking for work." "Besides, Allison and I don't have any money right now to take a vacation." "All right, so don't go to Florida." "But do yourself a favor." "Take a little holiday." "You're as nervous as a whore in church." "How 'bout a car trip?" "You can go to California." "Check out universal." "Disneyland?" "Why this sudden urge to travel?" "What are you trying to pull?" "I'm not actually trying to pull anything." "I am just suggesting as forcibly as possible that you and yours get out of town this week." "and, while I'm suggesting, don't answer that phone." "Don't worry, I can't." "I'm here on the driving range with you." "That's right." "Just let it ring." "Damn." " What's the matter?" " You answered it." "Mom, I can't tell you how much I appreciate this." "I swear to you, you'll have every cent back the instant I get work." "Mom, you know you're welcome to visit us anytime you want." "This week?" "Sure." "What?" "She's bringing the money that I asked to borrow." "Besides, it's not like we have anything else to do." "I was thinking about maybe taking the kids to Disneyland." "Mom?" "I'm sure that it's fine, but," "You know we're, three hours earlier here." "Just let me run it by Allison when she gets up." "I'll call you in a couple hours." "Disneyland?" "It wasn't my idea." "Is grandma coming to visit?" "Yeah, it looks that way." "What are you doing up?" "I had a nightmare." "Couldn't sleep." "Are you okay?" "Fine, just weird." "You don't have to be up for another hour." "Try to get some rest." "Are you going to answer that?" "It's the third time they've called." "There." "All gone." "What's her name?" "It's not a her." "Trust me, it's not a her." "She's back." "The fire department?" "You cheating on me with a fireman?" "Knock it off." "It's too early for your kind of comedy." "Then tell me what's going on?" "Nothing." "The phone's ringing, I'm not answering it." "Oh, my god." "It's tuesday." "I heard a rumor about this." "You're part of this tuesday thing." "None of your business What are you talking about?" "It's completely my business." "If this is what think it is, it's what my whole day is going to be about." "Why don't you just tell them you're sick?" "That's the plan, isn't it?" "Isn't that how the "blue flu" works?" "One day all the cops in Phoenix are magically sick." "Angry tax payers call the mayor." "The next day the contract negotiations with the city take a whole different turn." " Hey, look around." "I'd like a bigger place." "I'd like a nicer car." "Is that a crime?" "Where you going?" "It's barely 7:00." "Girls!" "Three minutes!" "I'm taking you to school." "Mommy's got a meeting." "Listen, after I drop the girls off," "I'm going to stop by the grocery store and pick up couple things I know that my mom wants." "You're doing the Cynthia meeting here, right?" "Yeah, I can't go to her office." "I'm her big secret." "Remember?" "She's bringing the check." "I told you she's bringing the check, right?" "$10, 000." "She had to sell a couple bonds to get it." "Joe, I'm not upset your mother's coming." "I'm nervous." "I haven't seen this woman since all this stuff came out about me." "No, it's not okay." "If one of my children was married for almost 15 years and I thought I knew this person, and then suddenly one day this thing comes out in the paper." "This thing that is central to who they are as a person?" "I don't know, I would feel... hurt or... or angry." "I don't hear that." "Not on the phone." "She just sounds excited." "Sounds like she just really looking forward to seeing us all." "I hope you're right." "Somebody check the temperature in hell." "I think I see one of Phoenix's finest actually out doing his job." " Thanks for leaving your sick bed." " Nice to see you, too." "My god." "This is awful." "I still can't be sure it's a crime." "How do weknow whoever this is didn't just fall asleep with a cigarette?" "Or a joint or a crack pipe?" "We don't." "Just seems highly unlikely to me that somebody would cover themselves, the walls and the drapes in accelerant, and then go roll themselves a doobie." "This fire was set, detective." "Good morning." "I like Phoenix." "But I'm goingto have to get busy or they'll put me on a plane to Denver or Albuquerque, anywhere they can make money off me." "Which would, of course, be the end of our little arrangement." "So, I was wondering whether you could have a look at these." "These are unsolved cases from our Ameritips office here in Phoenix." "Missing people, missing things..." "Tell me whether you, you get a twinge." "A twinge?" "A twinge, an orgasm, a hot flash, I don't care." "I'm just trying to create some churn, some activity." "So..." "I want you to look at this stuff, live with it for a bit, and... let's see if we can't drum up a little business for ourselves here in Phoenix?" "Owen?" "Principal Reed needs to see you." "I just kept telling myself it didn't mean anything." "Just a weird dream." "Do you want to tell me about it?" "The dream?" "No." "The point is that, today, when I was in world themes, the principal came and, and pulled the boy that I dreamt about out of class." "I saw them in the hallway and he was telling Owen something and," "Owen started crying." "Then I heard that his mom had died." "Is that what happened in your dream?" "I guess I just don't get it." "You don't get what, honey?" "Why?" "Why did I dream that dream?" "Was I supposed to do something or say something?" "Could I have stopped it?" "You're a 15-year-old girl." "I have to believe that if your dream could have saved a woman's life it would have been dreamt by somebody a little more... a little older, a little more sure of themselves." "Mom!" "Dad!" " Look what we made!" " Wow, look at that!" "That is quite a piece of handiwork." "Girls, that is beautiful, but daddy and I already decided that, grandma's going to stay in Ariel's room." "What?" "Ariel, I need you to go sleep in your sisters' room on the air mattress." "Why do I have to give up my room?" "Bridgette and Marie really want grandma to stay with them in theirs." " No, because grandma is too old to share a room." " You don't know that." "She likes sharing." "She's always telling me to share." " Girls..." " I say we have a vote." "Everybody in favor of grandma sleeping in our room, raise your hand." "Sorry, girls, this is not up for a vote." "But I thought we lived in a democracy." "Actually, here in the Dubois household, we live in what I like to think of as a "benign dictatorship."" " What does that mean?" "That means that mommy and mine are the only votes that count." "But what about the sign?" "Now we have to redo the sign." "I know, I'm the lowest of the low, a public servant who won't serve the public." "What do you want from me?" "The other 1100 people I work with don't feel the same way." "Frankly, you and your friends at city hall don't make it easy." "You won't negotiate." "You won't give us a raise." "When we go on strike, you tell us we're breaking the law." "don't, it's not after midnight yet." "I'm still not supposed to be answering calls." "Lee Scanlon's phone." "No, I'm sorry." "He's sick." "Really sick." "Can't keep anything down." "I finally got him to bed." "I can give him a message." "Sure, I'll write it down." "Mary Stacey." "Sure." "So it was her house that burnt down." "Her and her husband's." "And it was her remains this morning." "Got it." "Separated six weeks ago." "She filed for divorce." "Hubby moved out, okay." "Neighbor saw the husband's car in front of the house last night, heard a loud fight in the driveway." "Ten minutes later the fire started." "Got it." "Absolutely." "I'll be sure and give him your best." "All right, thank you." "What are you so happy about?" "Case closed." "First thing in the morning I pick up the husband." "Who knows?" "I put this thing to bed fast enough, maybe no one will even notice" "I was in school when I was supposed to be playing hooky." "Need a date?" "Free for the rest of the night?" "Do you mind if we went to my office?" "There's no one there, it's... perfectly safe." "I'd rather not look for a hotel room." "Nice." "What do you do here, sweetheart?" "Oh, my god." "I love this." "Are we going to do it in the chair?" "Actually," "I'd really like that." "I hear that dentists have really good drugs." "Any truth to that?" "I thought you'd never ask." "That's kind of big." "Don't you got anything I can swallow?" "Don't worry." "We'll get around to that eventually." "What you doing?" "And what's in that box that can't wait till morning?" "These." "This." "This is good." "This is very, very good." "This little girl's been missing for about nine months, mommy and daddy are probably just coming to terms with the idea they're never going to see her again, and... they get a call from me saying I've got a new lead." "Maybe I can even renegotiate our fee." "I told you, she was working as a prostitute." "That sure beats being dead." "There's no crime to solve if she's dead." "There's no fee to collect if she's dead." "I wonder if you would look after this stuff, while I go to the little girls' room." "Hi." "You don't know me, but I hear this is the number to call if you need cheap legal help." "Is this who I think it is?" "You'd be stunned at how cheap you can get me." "Excellent." "'Cause I've actually got a case and I could use some paralegal assistance." "A little paralegal or a little paranormal?" "Can you meet meat police headquarters, 1:00?" "You just try to keep me away." "Got a lot of stuff here, mom." " You sure you're only staying a couple days?" " Just a quick visit." "I promise." "You didn't haveto buy the whole mall." " The girls just enjoy spending time with you." " That's nice of you to say, but I'm a grandmother." "I'm supposed to spoil my grandkids." "Besides, it's my money and I'll spend it any way I want to." "You can't take it with you, you know?" "At least that's what I hear." "Is that what you hear?" "She feels funny that we never told you." "I feel funny that I never told you." "How could she have told me?" "How could you have told me?" "If the day isn't going bad enough." "Relax." "Our old friend Manuel Devalos has himself a case." "He asked me to meet him here and give him a hand." " Excellent." "I could use a friendly face around here." "So what have you been working on?" "A couple of things." "Got a murder case." "I'm about to interview the number one suspect." "It's pretty open and shut though." "Guy didn't like his wife so he set his house on fire." " With her in it." " Oh, nice." "You haven't had any good arson dreams lately, have you?" "You wouldn't happen to be looking for a horny dentist?" "Yeah, they love me." " What's that all about?" " I don't know." "Something going around the precinct, I'm the only one who didn't catch it." "I think they're all jealous." "I don't see Manny." "Anyway, I got me a scumbag to interrogate." "A mr." "Graham Stacey." "Don't let me keep you." "Be sure and tell our old boss hello for me." "Will you?" "I'll definitely do that." "Mr. Stacey, my name is detective..." "This is sure going to be interesting." "TO ALISON:" "THE EAGLE HAS LANDED" "I thought we might as well get this out of the way right now." "You're going to get every cent of this back." "Plus interest." "I'm your mother." "I don't charge interest." "I'm your son, and I don't accept charity." "My wife called me at my hotel room around 8:00." "We're in the process of getting a divorce." "Not my idea." " I haven't been living at the house for a while now." " But you still have a key?" "Yes, I do." "It's still my house, too." " What was the conversation about?" " She said she was rethinking some things." "She said she missed me, would I come over." " What happened?" " I went over." "Your neighbors reported hearing a loud argument around 9:00." "Would it be fair to assume that that was you and mrs." "Stacey?" "Yes, I'd say that's a fair assumption." "I really don't know how to explain this, but," "I got to the house, and it was... like a different woman had phoned me." " She wasn't happy to see you?" " No, she wasn't." "I only got to the garage before we started fighting." "Then what happened?" "Nothing." "We argued maybe five minutes, and I left." "You left?" "Just like that?" "She was out of control." "Screaming." "I knew my attorney wouldn't have wanted me over there in the first place, so, when I saw how angry she was, I got out of there." "Back up." "So you're saying you never went in the house?" "I think my client's been fairly clear on that point." "Thank you, counselor." "You fought in the garage, and then you left." "That's your story." "That's what happened." "Not to be labor the obvious, but... to the best of your recollection, your wife... she was alive when you drove off?" "Of course." "So, yes?" "You didn't smell any smoke, you didn't see any flames?" "I smelled no smoke, I saw no flames." "If I had, I wouldn't have left." "She was my wife." "I still loved her." "Is that all, Lee?" "Not quite, no." "What would you say if I told you that we obtained a warrant to retrieve the clothing that you sent down to the hotel laundry that night?" " On what grounds?" "What if I told you that we found traces of an accelerant, that matched the kind that was used to start the fire in your house?" "What would you say to that?" "I'd say I believe that." "Like I said, we were in the garage." "It got heated." "There was a glass jar." "It hit the wall and smashed." "I thought it was turpentine." "Is there anything else, detective?" "Because if not, I think my client would appreciate some rest." "He's had an extraordinarily harrowing day." "Not as tough as his wife's." "Detective..." "You know what?" "I think I'd like to take a short break." "Can I talk to you outside in the hall?" "Me?" "In the hall?" "What do you think?" "What do you see?" "What do you mean, "what do I see?" I'm not the new kid in school here." "I saw you staring at him." "I know how this works." "Is anything that he's saying matching up to what you're seeing?" " Somebody want to tell me what's going on?" " Nothing..." " Just two old friends having a chat." " That's fine, but let me just remind the one old friend who's in my employ that there's this little thing called attorney-client privilege, and let me remind the other old friend..." " Excuse counselor but..." " you'd be hard-pressed... - doing what you're doing, I'll have to report you, to find a judge who believes, attorney-client privilege extends to..." " Did you see something in there?" "Did you have a dream?" " I asked you first." " She works for me!" " Don't force me to bring you in for questioning!" "Excuse me?" "Are you folks coming back in?" "Am I supposed to just sit in here?" "You said this wouldn't take very long." "That there's no grounds to charge me." "Please give us a moment." "We'll be right back in." "Thank you." "I don't know what to tell you, either one of you." "I saw what you saw, I heard what you heard." "And the only thing I'm dreaming about is a runaway girl selling herself as a prostitute, and the fact that my mother-in-law is coming in town for a visit, and I really can't tell you which one" "scares me the most." "I'm sorry." "I'm really sorry." "Hi, mom." "Grandma's teaching us how to sing in french." "I see that." "Welcome." "It's wonderful to see you." "It's wonderful to be seen." "Did you get some dinner?" "There's plenty left." "Grandma made fondue." "It's gooey!" "I don't want to miss that." "It's official." "I must be on the fritz." " I'm sorry." "You must be on the what?" " The fritz." "I was at this meeting today." "One of Devalos's clients was being questioned, and we're all sitting there, trying to figure out if this guy's telling the truth." "And then I see... nothing." "So that means you must be on the fritz?" "It's not like you always see something." "It's not like this has never happened before." "I know, but just, they were so counting on me." "And then tonight, your mother." "You know, I had a dream, a premonition that this visit was something should be avoided, something we should run away from." "And then I get home, and she's so great with the kids." "And she's lending us that money." "And she seemed so serene." "I know." "When I picked her up from the airport, I had prepared myself." "I think deep inside, I was dreading this visit, 'cause..." "Here I am, I don't have a job, and..." "I'm borrowing money from my mother, plus all that stuff with you..." "She didn't mention that once today, not once?" "She couldn't have been more understanding." "She couldn't have been sweeter." "Maybe we're all on the fritz." "Why do you have these?" "It's something I'm working on." "A case I'm helping mr." "Devalos with." "Why?" "This is her." "This is the woman from my dream." "This is Owen Kearns's mother." "Ariel, let me see that." "Are you telling me this is the woman you saw kill herself?" "She poured gasoline all over herself and lit a match." "I don't understand." "If this woman did this to herself, why do all these articles say it was murder?" "Just curious, but when exactly were you going to tell me that our daughter saw a woman burn herself to death in a dream?" "The woman in this picture's name is Mary Stacey." " Ariel just said thather last name is Kearns." " Yeah, it was, when she was married to her first husband." "Devalos is working for her second husband, Graham." "The police believe he's the one who burned her." "But if Ariel's dream is right, if she did it herself..." "For what it's worth, she didn't mention you'd be here, either." "Must be something good if she's willing to risk a replay of this afternoon." "Question is, good for you or good for me?" "Coffee, black." "You are so eager to convict my client, aren't you?" " Only 'cause I know he did it." " And I know he didn't." "All I know is, back in the day, the only question you'd be asking yourself is whether or not to go for the death penalty." "All I know is, back in the day, you were never so desperate to please the man you worked for that you wouldn't be willing to look at all the evidence before rushing to judgment." "Give me five minutes alone with your client, I'll show you a rush to judgment." "Sorry I'm late." "No, that's okay." "Gave us a chance to patch things up." "Suicide?" "I'm just telling you what Ariel told me." "I'm just telling you what Ariel saw." "A broken marriage, a knock-down drag-out with the man you once loved." " Maybe it all just got to be too much for her." " You may want to hold up there a second, dr." "Phil, 'cause I talked to all her friends and family members." "None of them said anything about her being depressed about the divorce." "Some people are very good at covering up how they really feel." "I'm not one of them, and I got to tell you, this whole suicide theory just doesn't add up for me." "First off, nobody sets themselves on fire." "Not when there are pills in the medicine chest, when there's a perfectly good gas oven in the kitchen." "Fire hurts." "You don't mess with it unless you're a monk with a war to protest." "And what happened to the container?" " What container?" " The one she supposedly used to douse herself with." "That one, what happened to that?" "'Cause they couldn't find one anywhere near the body." "Nice try, counselor." "Folks?" "We're closing." " So?" " Don't ask." "Why did Ariel dream that dream?" "I don't know." "Maybe it's because you were overbooked." "What are you talking about?" "You know... what with the dentist and that runaway." "If a dream has to be dreamt, and you're not there to dream it..." "You making fun of me?" "Not even a little bit." "I think it's nice." "Daughter picking up the slack for mom." "Dipping her toe in the family business." "Kind of like Sanford and son, except with females." "I'm going to bed." "Who knows." "Could be the beginning of an american dynasty." "Took a lot of work to get you up to speed, young lady." "Plaque..." "Tartar..." "Gingivitis..." "You really... put me through my paces." "Aren't we the early bird?" "I don't understand." "You're telling me this man you keep dreaming about picked up our runaway, offered her money for sex, drugged her, and then, once she was unconscious, performed dental work on her?" "Very extensive dental work." "I can't explain it." "It was truly vicious." "It was like he was working on her whole mouth." "And this man, this dentist, seemed to be very pleased with himself." "Okay what?" "30 years in this line of work and..." "I thought I'd heard it all." "Feet, underarms, but..." "A dental fetish?" "I guess it takes all kinds to make a world." "That's it?" " That's your reaction?" " I'm sorry, but what would you like my reaction to be, Allison?" "This isn't a terribly useful piece of information." "We're already looking for Sally." "We're already canvassing the area for, for dentists." "So some teeth were pulled, a few cavities were filled." "It's hardly a game changer." "I know you want to impress me." "I know the money I give you is the only money that's coming into your household right now..." "I didn't come here at dawn to try and impress you." "I came here because I had a dream and I thought it was important." "Discovering that our victim is in fact a toothless hooker hardly seems to help in that regard." "Does it, Allison?" "Listen, I'm not paying you to dream about just anything." "I'm paying you to dream things I can use." "Thanks for stopping by." "You wanted to see me, principal Reed?" "I wanted to ask you a favor." "I see you're in world themes with Owen Kearns." "We're putting together a package of schoolwork to send to his house and I was wondering if I could ask you to grab his resource file when you go to class next period." "Sure." ""My darling Owen." "This is my favorite place in all the world." ""I only wish you were here with me." "Perhaps someday soon." "Mom."" "You looking for me?" "I certainly am, detective." "It's, come to my attention that while others in your precinct chose to stay home the other day in an illegal act of defiance against the city, you, chose to come to work." "I'm impressed, detective." "Strikes me you're thinking like a a man who wants to get ahead, wants to make a name for himself." "Honestly, I wasn't thinking about any of that." "Is that how you got involved with this, Stacey case, this thing where this man set his wife on fire?" "Yeah, that was the same morning." "I was the only guy they could find." "Lucky me." "And are you aware that our old friend Manuel Devalos is representing the number one suspect in this case?" ""Our old friend"?" " Yeah, I knew that." "Why?" " Because I'm not about to let the man I replaced get the best of me in this matter." "Why isn't this mr." "Stacey behind bars?" "Why isn't any given suspect behind bars?" "We can't prove it." "To begin with, there's no motive." "Weren't they getting divorced?" "If the collapse of a marriage was grounds for murder, half the men in the world would be behind bars." "Let me be clear, detective." "I want a reason for this man to be locked up." "I want this case closed." "I want the honorable mr." "Devalos on the losing side in this matter." "Go find me some evidence." "Go find me a motive." "Graham, yes, I got your messages." "Frankly, I was hoping to have something concrete to report before I called you back." "Trust me, mr." "Stacey, you are absolutely getting my undivided attention." "Frankly, at the moment," "I don't have any other clients to divide my attention among." "No, I don't think that's true." "The lead detective is an honest man." "He has no interest in sending someone who's innocent to prison." "I understand how you feel." "You have to trust me." "Of course I have a plan." "Of course I have a strategy." "Your wife, your... your late wife." "Did you ever know her to be despondent?" "Did she ever seek therapy, use any kind of prescription antidepressants?" "Did she ever mention suicide?" "Really." "An enormous passion for life, loved to travel, loved good food, good wine." "Yes," "I will call you in the morning." "Hopefully I'll have better news." "Good night." "You asleep?" "Don't think so." "You know, it's easier to do with your eyes closed." "Thanks for the tip." "You want to tell me about whatever it is?" "You want the good news or the bad?" "I want you to get some sleep." "I'll start with the bad." "Our acting district attorney wants me to help him crush Manny in court, which is a problem because I really like Manny and I, really hate our acting district attorney." "That leaves the good news." "I think the guy Devalos is representing is innocent." "Then there's nothing to lose sleep over, is there?" "I got you into this, didn't I?" "You pointed me towards the diving board, but I'm the guy who decided to jump." "I got a confession to make." "It felt good." "I liked being the only cop with balls big enough to go out there and do his job when no one else wanted to." "Then why aren't you sleeping?" "I can't tell you why." "It's just in the air." "Everything's about to turn to crap." "I can feel it." "I think we ought to offer to hire your mom as our cook." "You ever taste fish like that?" "I've never tasted fish like that." "I've never seen our kids eat fish that didn't come as a stick or a cracker." "I think your mom's still awake." "I haven't had a real conversation with her since she got here." "I've done nothing but talk to her since she got here." "If you're not back in five, I'm gonna come get you." "Do yourself a favor." "Don't go in there." "What are you doing here?" "The same thing I was doing a couple of nights ago." "I am trying to warn you." "Did you see her with my children tonight?" "I'm dead, I see everything." "Which is why I would think you would listen to me." "You're not actually here to tuck me in, are you?" "I wanted to thank you." "For the money and, for the gifts and..." " For just being here." " For showing up uninvited on virtually no notice?" "No, don't be silly, you're always invited." "You're sweet." "It must be... nice being able to go places on a whim." "From what I've read, it's not as if my showing up would have surprised you anyway." "We need to talk about that." "It really doesn't work that way." "Because, frankly, if it did," "I would have known we would have this, awkward moment and I would have told you years ago." "I am really sorry I didn't." "It's okay." "I'm not sure what I would have made of it all those years ago." "I guess things happen for a reason." "I guess." "If you need anything, you know we're right across the hall." "There is one thing." "I'm not actually here on a whim." "Could I take you into my confidence?" "Joe can't know what I'm about to tell you." "I'm pretty sick, Allison." "It's not hopeless." "There's treatment, an operation." "I'm flying to Minneapolis when I leave here, to the Mayo clinic." "My odds are 60%." "I know, I look pretty good for someone with 60% odds." "I feel pretty good for someone with 60% odds." "Anyway, I..." "When I heard that number, I thought of you." "If I going to the hospital knowing that I might not come out, then, obviously I'd do some things differently." "I don't know how this works." "I wish so badly I had something to tell you." "Who knows?" "Maybe before you go in." "Yeah, who knows?" "Not a word to Joe?" "Not a word to Joe."