Grissom, Nick, and Warrick investigate a jogger who was killed by a vicious dog in the park. The case gets complicated when they discover that the jogger's liver was surgically removed after he was killed. Meanwhile Sara and Catherine investigate the death of a six-year-old girl at a carnival ride, which gets Catherine emotionally involved.
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - DAY] [EXT. LAS VEGAS HIGHWAY (STOCK) - DAY] [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. PARK - DAY] (A man is out jogging in the park. He follows the trail as he jogs.) (As he runs, he hears a low growl. He stops moving, then turns around.) [SLOW MOTION CAMERA] (A growling dog, teeth bare and aggressive, jumps and attacks him.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. PARK - NIGHT -- LATER] (The man is on the trail, dead.) (Police Officers are there along with other emergency personnel. An Officer leads GRISSOM, WARRICK and NICK to the body. He takes one look at the body and reacts to it.) Officer: Aw, jeez. (The Officer leaves. GRISSOM glances at him then turns back to the body.) Warrick: (to the OFFICER) All right, Guy? (NICK kneels down next to the body and looks back up at GRISSOM and WARRICK.) Nick: I guess he won't be eating dinner tonight. (He snaps a photograph. GRISSOM looks around and sees something. He grabs WARRICK'S hand holding the flashlight and points it up to a point beyond the body.) Grissom: I think running man was attacked up there and then dragged or slid down here. (Up on the hill nearby are drag marks toward the body. NICK continues to snap photos of the body.) Warrick: Look at those wounds. Nick: He picked the wrong time of day to be running alone. Dusk is when the animals come out. Warrick: Yeah. From what I hear they carved out a piece of this valley when they made the park. (DAVID works on the body; GRISSOM continues to examine the wounds.) Warrick: (continues) Some mountain lion probably didn't like getting relocated. Mountain lions are brutal. Grissom: And smart. (He holds the cut shirt away from the wound to show them what he's talking about, then turns to look back innocently at them.) Grissom: This one evidently knows how to use a scalpel. HARD CUT TO END OF TEASER ROLL TITLE CREDITS [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - HALLWAY -- NIGHT] (GRISSOM walks through the hallway heading automatically to his office. As he reaches the doorway, CATHERINE walks out of his office and they almost bump into each other. He's surprised to see her there.) Grissom: Catherine. (CATHERINE looks at GRISSOM and doesn't say anything. It's his office she's walking out of. GRISSOM picks up on ... something.) Grissom: What are you doing? Catherine: (not asking) The carnival case. I'm taking it. Grissom: The carnival case? Catherine: A six-year-old girl died on a ride at the carnival over on Washington. The paperwork's on your desk. (He nods and glances at his office behind her.) Grissom: Did you straighten up my office while you were in there? Catherine: You think I overstepped? (He shakes his head slightly.) These people come to town, they commit crimes and they leave. I just want to get there before the carnival moves on. Grissom: Okay. Take Sara with you. (She's one step ahead of him.) Catherine: (sighs) She's meeting me there. (CATHERINE walks past GRISSOM and leaves him standing in the hallway. He turns to watch her leave.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- NIGHT] (GRISSOM walks into the autopsy room. WARRICK and NICK are already with DR. ROBBINS. GRISSOM walks up to the table where they're going over the autopsy findings.) Warrick: So, Doc, how big of a cat are we actually dealing with here? Dr. Albert Robbins: We're not. Grissom: (surprised) We're not? (ROBBINS turns to look at GRISSOM.) Dr. Albert Robbins: You ever owned a kitten? When you play with them, they don't just bite-- they scratch. Doesn't matter whether they're tabbies or tigers. (GRISSOM turns to look at the victim's body.) Dr. Albert Robbins: And there's no signs of claw wounds on the victim. Nick: So what are we dealing with? Dr. Albert Robbins: Forget whiskers. Think spot. Teeth marks look canine. (Quick CGI POV to: Camera quick zoom into a dog's open mouth and teeth bare. Cut to: Camera extreme close up of the dog's teeth sinking into flesh with lost of blood spurting out.) Dr. Albert Robbins: (V.O.) Bit him right through the jugular. (End of CGI POV. Resume to present.) Grissom: I was wrong about the species. Dr. Albert Robbins: I'll make a mold of the bite. If we're lucky we can narrow it down to breed. (GRISSOM looks over at WARRICK and NICK, both acting strangely.) (WARRICK turns away.) Grissom: What? (WARRICK and NICK look at GRISSOM.) Nick: Most people don't admit when they're wrong. Grissom: (shrugs) I'm wrong all the time. That's how I eventually get to right. Dr. Albert Robbins: You weren't wrong about the scalpel. Whoever removed this guy's organs knew how to handle one. Nick: So a dog killed him, then someone came along and cut him up. Grissom: Someone with two legs and a medical degree. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CARNIVAL - TUNNEL OF LOVE -- NIGHT] (The carnival is in full swing. Camera shows the different rides, the crowd milling about, then the Tunnel of Love ride that's still.) (CATHERINE and SARA walk under the crime scene tape toward the body of the little girl on the ground.) Sara: Thanks. (The CORONERS, kneeling down next to the body, puts down a bright blue body bag to gather up the body.) Catherine: Stop. (The CORONERS look up at CATHERINE.) Catherine: (firmly) What are you doing? That bag's been used 100 times. Get her a new one. Sara: (puzzled) They get washed every time, right? Coroner's Assistant: Yeah-- with disinfectant. (CATHERINE puts her kit down. SARA watches her a little concerned.) Catherine: What if it was your kid? (CATHERINE walks into the open back of the CORONER'S van and pulls out a brand new body bag.) Catherine: She gets this one. (She hands the bag to the CORONER. He takes it, stands up and steps aside.) Coroner's Assistant: Yes, ma'am. (CATHERINE kneels down next to the body and looks at it. The little girl is dead on the ground with her eyes wide open. CATHERINE gasps and closes her eyes.) Catherine: (exhales) She looks scared. No six-year-old should have to go through that. Sara: (concerned) You okay? (CATHERINE turns to look at SARA who is watching her steadily.) Catherine: Why don't you go find the mother and talk to her. I'll take the crime scene. Sara: Okay. (SARA turns to leave. CATHERINE stands up and heads for the ride.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. CARNIVAL - NIGHT] (CARLA DANTINI, the mother of the little girl, is crying and relaying the story to SARA. Her boyfriend, HUGH YOUNG, has his arms around her.) Carla Dantini: I don't know what happened. One minute Sandy was laughing, holding my hand, and the next ... the next, sh ... oh, my god. (She turns her head and cries.) (Quick flashback to: CARLA and SANDY are in the Tunnel of Love car as it enters the tunnel. CARLA has her arm around SANDY'S shoulders as it moves. They both giggle and laugh.) (Several cuts of CARLA and SANDY enjoying the ride.) (Cut to: Suddenly, SANDY falls into the water with a splash.) Sandy Dantini: Mommy! (Cut to: CARLA is still in the car around looking for SANDY.) Carla Dantini: Sandy! CARLA DANTINI: Sandy, where are you? (CARLA dips her arms into the water looking for SANDY.) (End of flashback. Resume to present.) Carla Dantini: (stopped crying) I ... I got out of the car ... (she swallows) ... but I couldn't find her. By the time I got the operators to stop the ride ... she was dead. Hugh Young: How can this happen ... at a carnival? [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. PARK - NIGHT] (NICK and WARRICK are back at the park where the jogger's body was found. They're each carrying a flashlight.) Nick: "Go back to the crime scene. Collect the dog's scat." (WARRICK laughs. NICK looks around.) Nick: I didn't realize how many dogs take their walks up here when I said that. (WARRICK looks around at the ground.) Warrick: Yeah, but I bet Grissom did. (It starts to rain.) Warrick: (frustrated) This sucks! (They continue to look around and complain while they do.) Warrick: But it's evidence, right? Nick: No, hair and fiber is evidence, Warrick. This is combat duty. (WARRICK leans in for a closer look. He sees something.) Warrick: Yeah, it's somebody's "doody". (NICK turns to look at what's gotten WARRICK'S attention.) Nick: Don't even waste your time. That's cougar. Warrick: How do you figure that? (NICK reaches out and picks it up. He shines the flashlight on it.) Nick: See the rabbit hair in the feces? Don't you remember the seminar? Warrick: (huh?) Seminar? (NICK looks up at WARRICK and shines his flashlight on his face.) Nick: Julie? Warrick: (remembers) Julie. Oh ... a CSI should not be that fine. (NICK chuckles. They continue to look around the area. They see something behind them.) (WARRICK reaches out and picks it up.) Warrick: What is that? (NICK looks at it.) Nick: Looks like dirty ice. Warrick: Yeah, well, I'm taking it into evidence. Nick: It's evidence of a picnic, Warrick. (WARRICK puts the ice in a container and holds it up as he looks at it.) Warrick: Yeah, well ... we'll see. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. CARNIVAL - TUNNEL OF LOVE EXIT -- NIGHT] (CATHERINE interviews THOMAS PICKENS as she stands over the Tunnel of Love car.) Thomas Pickens: We've never had a problem with this ride. This is the safest ride we got. Catherine: Not anymore. So you didn't know that anything was wrong until this car came out of the tunnel, right? Thomas Pickens: As soon as the mom started screaming, I stopped the ride. (CATHERINE reaches inside the car and grabs the seat belt. She tugs on it a couple of times, then drops it back into the car.) Catherine: Seat belt's loose. Thomas Pickens: (not looking at her) I check those every morning. Catherine: Did you check this one? Thomas Pickens: Yeah. Catherine: So do you strap the riders in, or do they do it themselves? Thomas Pickens: Lady, it's the Tunnel of Love, not Colossus. People like to get up close and personal on this ride. Catherine: So you keep the belts loose on purpose. Loose enough for adults to get close or six-year-old kids to slide through? (CATHERINE picks up her kit and walks away.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. CARNIVAL - TUNNEL OF LOVE -- NIGHT] (CATHERINE walks into the Tunnel entrance and looks around. She puts her kit down and takes out a camera. As she walks through the tunnel, she snaps photos.) (CATHERINE walks into the water and sees something in the car rail. Camera zooms in to show the fresh markings on the car rail. She snaps a photo of the markings.) (CATHERINE looks around and finds a hammer in the water. She picks it up and knows why it's there.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. CARNIVAL - OUTSIDE - NIGHT] (THOMAS PICKENS sits miserably on his seat with the OFFICER in front of him when CATHERINE walks up to them.) Catherine: Officer, give us a minute. (The OFFICER stands up and leaves. CATHERINE pulls out his chair, but remains standing.) Catherine: You tampered with the evidence. Thomas Pickens: Ma'am, I don't know what you're talking about. Catherine: Spare me the hee haw routine. You run this nightmare on wheels. I found this in there. (She shows him the hammer. He looks nervously at it.) Catherine: You sent one of your employees into that tunnel to fix the track where that little girl was killed to cover your ass? Thomas Pickens: Glad you found that, 'cause puppy's been missing since I rolled into Vegas. Look, I, uh ... I'm sorry as the next jim-jim about what happened, ma'am but ... (He absently scratches his arm. CATHERINE sees the movement.) Thomas Pickens: ... I ain't got nothing to do with it. (CATHERINE walks to the booth nearby and grabs a cup. She holds it out to him.) Catherine: Field test for drugs. I'm sure you've done this before. (He shakes his head and leans back in his chair.) Thomas Pickens: You can't make me take a drug test. (SARA walks up to them and listens.) Catherine: Oh, before you came to Nevada you should have looked up the law. Mandatory drug testing wherever there's been an accident. Pee now, and don't tell me you're shy. (He stands up right in front of CATHERINE, grabs the cup from her and grins. He walks past her toward the OFFICER.) Catherine: (to the OFFICER) Stay on him. (They leave.) Sara: Mandatory drug testing? Catherine: Yeah, well, there should be. And I don't have to wait for results to know that guy's coked out of his brain. Sara: Cocaine bugs. (Shakes her head in disgust.) Catherine: Oh ... crawling all under his skin. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE] (GRISSOM sits in his office behind his desk holding a piece of molding. He odes to it as he looks at it.) Grissom: Like David Crosby said, big fella: "If I'd known I was going to live this long I'd have taken better care of my teeth." (GREG SANDERS appears in the doorway and leans against the door frame.) Greg Sanders: Right you are, Mr. Crime Scene Investigator. (GREG walks into the office.) Greg Sanders: You know, most dogs have 42 teeth but, as you've discovered, your Cujo only has 41. Woof-woof. (GREG sits down in front of the desk.) Grissom: Did you ever hear a dog say "woof-woof," Greg? (GREG shrugs his shoulders.) Grissom: I mean, what is the origin of that? And what do we sound like to them, I wonder. Greg Sanders: I don't know. Probably blah, blah, blah. Grissom: Did you come here with some particular "blah, blah, blah" for me? Greg Sanders: Yes. Two words. Paw prints. Your dentally-challenged killer left them all over the vic's clothes. Grissom: Greg, you know that paw prints are not the same as fingerprints. Greg Sanders: True, and even if they were, we don't have the database. But they can tell you the size of the dog. Grissom: And? Greg Sanders: And, according to my sagacious calculations, this is a big dog. At least a hundred pounds. Grissom: Now if we can just figure out where he went to medical school we'll be home free. Greg Sanders: (confused) Huh? Grissom: The, uh big dog is a Great Dane-Mastiff mix. Greg Sanders: (disappointed) So my paw prints didn't even help. Grissom: No, odontology did. Dr. Robbins' dental mold. But, uh it's always nice to have a visit with you, Greg. Greg Sanders: Thank you. So now you think you're going to find this dog? (He looks at the file in front of him.) Grissom: (reading) "The array of the bite the squarish impression of the jaw are unique to a Dane or Dane mix." And there are only 40 registered in the greater Las Vegas area. So if one of them is owed a visit by the tooth fairy ... yes ... I think I can. (GRISSOM takes off his glasses and stands up to leave the room with the file in his hands.) [SCENE_BREAK] [NT. CSI - TRACE LAB] (NICK and WARRICK are working in the lab. NICK is looking through the microscope presumably examining the dog scat they've collected at the park.) Nick: Corn. Hamburger. Rawhide. But no human cellular tissue in this sample. (NICK stands up and grabs a container.) Warrick: Only thirty more jars to go. (WARRICK and NICK are unaware that GRISSOM walked into the lab.) Warrick: This is rough, man. We should be pulling better cases by now. Millionaire murders, casino heists. Grissom: It's interesting how we categorize evidence in terms of what it means to us as opposed to what it might mean to the case. Warrick: Uh, we're supposed to like scat patrol? Grissom: Sometimes we deal with bugs, worms, waste or worse. But, as scientists, we look beyond the possibly offensive qualities of these things to what they might tell us about the puzzle we're trying to solve. (WARRICK glances at NICK and scoffs at what he just heard.) Warrick: Yeah. Nick: (laughs) Man, do you turn it on like this at your seminars? Grissom: People actually pay to go to my seminars, Nick. We've I.D.'d the dog. Nick: Well, if he's got bits of jogger hanging out of his mouth, cuff him. (SGT. O'RILEY appears in the doorway and holds up a file.) Sgt. O'Riley: I pulled those rap sheets. Called around. Grissom: And? Sgt. O'Riley: The one with the missing tooth is no angel. He attacked a gas man checking a meter. Took a chunk of thigh and severed a testicle. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. DR. SUSAN HILLRIDGE'S RESIDENCE - FRONT PORCH - DAY] (GRISSOM and SGT. O'RILEY walk up the porch. SGT. O'RILEY rings the doorbell. A dog barks from inside.) (The door opens and a woman is standing there.) Susan Hillridge: Can I help you? Sgt. O'Riley: Are you Susan Hillridge? Susan Hillridge: Yes. "Doctor" Hillridge. (The dog in question barks and trots over to the two men in the doorway. It's a huge dog. He barks again and jumps on GRISSOM, his paws resting comfortably on GRISSOM'S shoulders, standing on his hind legs and bringing his face directly in front of GRISSOM'S.) (SGT. O'RILEY automatically reaches for his gun. So do the other OFFICERS in the background standing out in the front yard.) (GRISSOM holds the dog's paws while trying to avoid the dog's enthusiastic face licks.) Grissom: Is this your dog Doctor? Susan Hillridge: (amused) Yes. Simba. Grissom: Well, you have a problem. (She doesn't seem surprised by this.) Susan Hillridge: Oh, no. Not again. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. HILLRIDGE RESIDENCE - DAY] (GRISSOM and SGT. O'RILEY question SUSAN HILLRIDGE outside in the front of the house.) Susan Hillridge: What makes you think that Simba had anything to do with that jogger's death? Grissom: There have been complaints about your dog in the past. Sgt. O'Riley: Your meter reader's singing soprano. Susan Hillridge: Oh, I get it now. You're talking about my old dog, Dickie. He was aggressive. That's why I put him down. Simba just gets out of the yard a lot. (She indicates this dog being held in check by two OFFICERS.) Grissom: The dog we're looking for is missing a tooth. I noticed that Simba is also missing a tooth. Susan Hillridge: Okay, he is missing a tooth. But he just gets out and wrestles with neighbors' garbage cans. He's not a violent dog. Grissom: That may be. We still have to take him into custody until we can determine whether or not he had any involvement in this homicide. (SGT. O'RILEY turns and calls out to the OFFICERS.) Sgt. O'Riley: Officers, go ahead. He's all yours. (The two OFFICERS lead SIMBA away.) Susan Hillridge: You're making a mistake. Grissom: You said that you were a doctor. May I ask your specialty? Susan Hillridge: Nutrition. My patients are mostly professional athletes. Grissom: Do you ever consult with amateur athletes? Like marathoners? Susan Hillridge: You mean like that jogger? What was his name? Grissom: Terry Manning. Susan Hillridge: Doesn't ring a bell. And I'm very good with names, Mr. Grissom. You'll let me know when I can pick up Simba. Grissom: You're assuming a lot. (She takes a step back.) Susan Hillridge: So are you. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. DNA LAB - DAY] (CATHERINE is in the DNA lab while GREG is getting her test results.) Catherine: So you did the tox screen on my carny? (GREG pulls back from the counter he's leaning on and stands back, hands in his pockets.) Greg Sanders: Roger that. You know, I have seen guys drink, like, five gallons of water to try and dilute their urine. It's the old straight flush. But all bad boy Sanders has to do is just test their specific gravity and-- blammo! -- I can still catch their toxic butts. Catherine: Mm-hmm. So? Greg Sanders: So your guy didn't do that. Catherine: Great. What did he do? Try and mask it? Greg Sanders: No. Catherine: Oh, come on. That creep tested clean? Greg Sanders: Yeah. For someone who's on the pill. Catherine: What? (GREG points to the monitor.) Greg Sanders: He's got synthetic estrogen in his urine sample. Should modulate his mood swings. (CATHERINE closes her eyes and sighs.) Catherine: Oldest trick in the book. Somebody else's urine. Probably keeps a stash in his trailer and that uniform was too green to look for it. Greg Sanders: Isn't that in the constitution somewhere? A man's inalienable right to pee in private? (SARA opens the door to the lab and walks inside. She lingers in the doorway.) Sara: Hey, I just got off the phone with OSHA. Our carnival has violations in eight states. Catherine: What a surprise. Sara: But that's not all. More than half these guys have records. And Pickens, the boss? His real name is Roger Peet. He's a convicted s*x offender on parole. Catherine: Let's go. (CATHERINE and SARA head out of the lab. GREG waves them bye.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM - DAY] (CATHERINE, SARA and BRASS interview THOMAS PICKENS/ROGER PEET) Thomas Pickens: How was I supposed to know she's 16 and a half? From the neck down she was all grown up. (He looks over at BRASS and smiles.) Thomas Pickens: You know what I mean? (BRASS, arms crossed and leaning against the wall, doesn't smile back.) Brass: I have a teenage daughter. So, no, I don't know what you mean. (THOMAS PICKENS sits back in his seat and crosses his arms.) Thomas Pickens: Jerry Lee Lewis, man. Same thing happened to him. What's all this got to do with the little dead girl, anyway? Sara: You tell us. Thomas Pickens: I was walking down the midway (Quick flashback to: [EXT. CARNIVAL-DAY] THOMAS PICKENS walks outside the carnival looking at the people around him.) Thomas Pickens: ... and I seen this woman come whishing out of the tunnel, screaming for her daughter. (The doors to the Tunnel of Love open and CARLA DANTINI is standing in the car.) Carla: (screaming and crying) My baby! My baby! My baby! (End of flashback. Resume to present.) Thomas Pickens: Me and Joey -- he's the operator -- we hit the kill switch, stopped the ride, ran in the tunnel and looked for the kid. And I seen her laying facedown in the pool of water. That's it. Catherine: What did you do? Thomas Pickens: I didn't do nothing. She was dead. I didn't come within two feet of her. I'm sorry about what happened. But that's all that I know. (Again, he sits back in his seat, arms crossed in front of him. CATHERINE leans in forward toward him.) Catherine: If you so much as breathed on this child, the evidence will tell me. You can dope your urine change your name compare yourself to Elvis himself, but if you harmed Sandy Dantini, I'm going to get you. (CATHERINE turns and storms out of the interview room. SARA follows her.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - HALLWAY - DAY -- CONTINUOUS] (CATHERINE walks out of the interview room and into the hallway. SARA closes the door behind her.) Sara: You worried you tipped your hand in there? Catherine: No. Sara: Look, don't bite my head off, but any chance you're going after this guy because you're a mother? (CATHERINE stops and turns around to look at SARA.) Catherine: Pickens is a drug addict and s*x offender operating a two-ton kid magnet. Sara: Yeah. Catherine: Did you take a look around that carnival? Sara: Maybe. Catherine: Did you notice anything about those other rides? Ferris wheel-single cars in the open. Zipper-single cars in the open. Himalaya-group cars in the open. How come Pickens was hanging around the only ride that takes kids into the dark? (SARA nods as she listens.) Catherine: What if he pulled that little girl out of the car? (SARA thinks about it.) Sara: You have anything to support that? (Without another word, CATHERINE turns around and walks away. SARA turns and calls out after her.) Sara: Hey. (mutters) We aren't going to lunch, are we? [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE - DAY] (GRISSOM sits in his office and shows the mold to NICK.) Grissom: Simba's mold's still damp, but you can see it's a perfect match to the bite mark on the jogger. Nick: Does this mean Simba's going to the big dog pound in the sky? Grissom: No. We need to build some more evidence. Find some jogger in Simba's stool. Nick: Well, I can tell you we found a unique sample at the crime scene. Great dane-sized scat containing bits of premium pet store kibble. Grissom: How premium? Nick: Sirloin, rice -- nothing artificial. Grissom: We need to find out what Dr. Hillridge feeds her dog. (GRISSOM stands up, grabs his jacket and heads out.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - HALLWAY - DAY - CONTINUOUS] (WARRICK is heading through the hallway. He meets up with GRISSOM and NICK.) Warrick: Just coming to see you. You remember that ice we found at the crime scene? (GRISSOM puts his jacket on and picks up the container in WARRICK'S hand to look at it.) Grissom: There's nothing in here. Warrick: It didn't melt. It evaporated. Nick: Dry ice. Frozen co2 sublimates into invisible gas, not water. Warrick: The jogger was missing some organs. Grissom: Surgical teams use dry ice to pack organs shipped for transplant. Warrick: It just so happens the dog's owner is a doctor. Nick: Surgeon? Grissom: Nutritionist. But all medical residents have surgical rotations. Fellas, we have a doctor's appointment. Warrick: Yeah. (They all head out.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT./INT. HILLRIDGE RESIDENCE - KITCHEN -DAY] (NICK is in the backyard checking the ground.) (WARRICK is inside the house examining the living room. He looks behind the painting, leans down and opens the drawers of the table. He looks inside the cabinet, then looks around the living room.) (In the backyard, NICK crouches down and finds a sample of dog scat on the ground. He opens the container and pauses just before picking up the sample. He puts the sample inside the container and looks around.) (Cut to: GRISSOM walks into the kitchen where SUSAN HILLRIDGE is putting items into a blender. Her back is to him.) Grissom: Would you mind if I looked in your freezer? Susan Hillridge: I have a patient coming in exactly twenty minutes so if you want to rifle around until then, fine but I will not leave my place of business. Grissom: No one's asked you to. (She glances over her shoulder at GRISSOM.) (After a moment, she returns to her blender.) (GRISSOM turns and opens the large stainless steel refrigerator and looks inside. There are stacks of plastic containers neatly stacked and labeled. Every shelf is well organized.) (He closes the door.) Susan Hillridge: You're very organized, Dr. Hillridge. I imagine you're upset about your dog -- having to put him down if it comes to that. (She turns and looks at him to correct his thinking.) Susan Hillridge: I don't hold onto things. I accept the evolution of change. We live, we die, we replenish the earth. (She nods, then turns back to her blender.) Grissom: Man's best friend ... but not yours, huh? Susan Hillridge: None of us gets out alive. I would think, in your job, you'd know that. (She turns around and takes a step toward GRISSOM. In one hand, she holds a beet. In the other hand, she grabs a large cutting knife and holds it up, point toward the ceiling.) Susan Hillridge: But if we treat our bodies like a temple we can cheat time. (She stares at his eyes ... ) Susan Hillridge: Your eyes ... Grissom: (startled) What? Susan Hillridge: The lower rims are pale. You're deficient in folic acid. You're not eating your beets. Two beets have 54% percent of the RDA. (She nods, then turns back to the counter. She puts the beets on the cutting board and cuts it expertly as GRISSOM watches. She puts the pieces in the open blender.) Grissom: May I ask you what medical school you attended? Susan Hillridge: Will that help with your investigation? Grissom: I just thought, the way you handled that knife... Susan Hillridge: (realizes) Oh, the knife. (shakes her head) No. I was in the CIA. Culinary Institute of America. (She turns back to her blender and mixes the drink.) (When she's done, she gets a glass and fills it up.) Susan Hillridge: Tell me, Mr. Grissom, how does a man choose death as his profession? Grissom: It chose me, actually. Susan Hillridge: Will, I guess one man's corpse is another man's candy. (She holds out her shake toward him.) Care for a sip? It's full of folacin. Grissom: No, thanks. (WARRICK walks into the kitchen. SUSAN HILLRIDGE takes a sip of her drink.) Warrick: Gris, can I show you something? (He nods, then excuses himself from her.) Grissom: Excuse me. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. HILLRIDGE RESIDENCE - LIVING ROOM - DAY -- CONTINUOUS] (WARRICK gingerly carries a long thin box. He shows it GRISSOM and reads the small plaque on the cover.) Warrick: Surgery equipment. "Emory Medical Supplies, Boston, Mass., 1875." (He opens the box and inside there are surgery equipment. Warrick: Antiques. (GRISSOM takes out one of them and holds it up to the light.) Grissom: Boy, these are well maintained. Warrick: Exactly. What I find interesting is that she keeps them near the door, not in the office. In case she needs to break out and go do some work. Grissom: Maybe she makes house calls. (There's a light knocking on the front door. It opens and a man walks in.) Grissom: May we help you? Edwin: Yes. Dr. Hillridge around? I'm here for a 4:00. (From the kitchen, SUSAN HILLRIDGE walks out. She looks up at EDWIN and smiles.) Susan Hillridge: Edwin. You look great today. How did the race go? Edwin: I finished in three hours and ten minutes. Susan Hillridge: You can do better. (They both turn and head out of the room past GRISSOM and WARRICK. She turns and looks back at them, then follows EDWIN.) (They leave.) (WARRICK turns to GRISSOM.) Warrick: She gives me the willies. Grissom: We can't arrest her for that. Warrick: Yeah, well, maybe we can link these to the crime. Her dog may have eaten that jogger but he can't harvest the organs. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- DAY] (DR. ROBBINS goes over the findings with CATHERINE and SARA.) Dr. Albert Robbins: No question about it -- the cause of death is drowning. Catherine: How tall was the victim? Dr. Albert Robbins: Three feet, give or take an inch. Catherine: The water was a foot and a half deep. She could've easily climbed out, unless she was unconscious. Sara: Maybe she had a minor concussion, or was stunned. That could explain why she couldn't get out. Dr. Albert Robbins: I checked, believe me. She didn't. The only injury I could find on this little girl was a fractured forearm. Catherine: Spiral or straight? Dr. Albert Robbins: X rays just came back. Let's see. (They all turn and head for the x-ray table. DR. ROBBINS puts the two x-rays on the table.) Dr. Albert Robbins: Spiral. That's not from a fall. Catherine: Somebody twisted that little girl's arm hard enough to break it. (Quick CGI POV of the bone in the arm breaking. End of CGI POV.) Sara: Perimortem? Dr. Albert Robbins: Swelling takes at least two to four minutes of active circulation. There's no swelling, so it had to happen moments before she died. Sara: So someone did yank her out of that car in the dark. (Quick flashback to: Inside the Tunnel of Love, THOMAS PICKENS grabs SANDY DANTINI out of the car. She yells for her mother.) Sandy Dantini: Mommy! (CARLA steps out of the car.) Carla Dantini: Sandy! (End of flashback. Resume to present.) Sara: Wait. Pickens yanks her out just so he can drown her? Catherine: He's a s*x offender. He was going to take her someplace. Sara: Not without someone seeing him. Catherine: You read the OSHA report. How many emergency doors were operational? Sara: None. Catherine: He was trapped like a rat. (Quick flashback to: Inside the Tunnel of Love, THOMAS PICKENS tries to get the door open and it's stuck. He's carrying SANDY in his other arm. She's crying.) (End of flashback. Resume to present.) Catherine: He did the only thing he could -- he hid the evidence. (Quick flashback to: Inside the Tunnel of Love, THOMAS PICKENS has water up to his elbows. End of flashback. Resume to present.) Sara: Drowned the little girl. Sara: (nods) I'm going to go call Brass. (SARA leaves. CATHERINE turns to look at DR. ROBBINS.) Catherine: You're going to enter this as a homicide, right? Dr. Albert Robbins: Technically, it's somewhere between accidental and undetermined. Catherine: It's a homicide. I'm going to get your proof. So write down that "accidental" in pencil. (CATHERINE turns to leave.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY - HALLWAY - DAY - CONTINUOUS] (CATHERINE walks out of the autopsy room and takes off her mask and smock. In the back of the hallway, CARLA DANTINI turns the corner and makes her way toward CATHERINE. She walks up to CATHERINE.) Carla Dantini: Can you help me? I need to find out when my daughter's going to be released. Catherine: I'm not a coroner. What's your daughter's name? Carla Dantini: Sandy Dantini. Catherine: (inhales) Oh, Mrs. Dantini. I'm Catherine Willows, from the Crime Lab. You've spoken with my colleague, Sara Sidle. I'm so sorry. Carla Dantini: Um... did you find out what happened at the carnival to my baby? Catherine: Actually, I'd like to ask you a few questions. Is it possible that someone reached into your car and pulled out your daughter? Carla Dantini: I ... thought it was an accident. You read all the time about how dangerous amusement parks can be. You think it can never happen to you. You think you can protect your kids. Catherine: Well, when you went in the water to try to save Sandy did you hear anything? Did you... sense that anyone was there... in the dark? Carla Dantini: I-I-I don't know. I mean, well, you know, it all happened so fast. I was ... focused on finding Sandy. Do you ... do you think someone else was there? Catherine: I'm not ruling anything out. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. DESERT HAVEN MORTUARY - DAY] (GRISSOM is at the mortuary speaking with RANDY GESEK, the funeral director.) Randy Gesek: Look, I didn't do anything wrong. I may have recycled a few caskets but you're talking about a whole different ball game, here. Grissom: Mr. Gesek, I'm not accusing you of anything. I'm not even here officially. Think of yourself as a consultant to the Las Vegas Crime Lab. (RANDY GESEK turns to look at GRISSOM.) Randy Gesek: Do I get paid? (GRISSOM doesn't bother answering the question.) Grissom: What do you know about organ theft? Randy Gesek: Oh, if I was in that business I wouldn't worry about getting paid. You know, there are places overseas that'll pay 50 grand for one lung? Sixty for a heart? Grissom: And you know this because...? Randy Gesek: Not firsthand. Not even secondhand. At the last funeral directors' convention ... you'd be amazed what you hear. But, you know, it takes a lot to keep a business afloat. Grissom: Tell me about the local market for organs. Randy Gesek: Well, we're talking about life and death. It's probably pretty good. Grissom: If someone was disemboweled and their liver taken what would that go for? Randy Gesek: Menu, everything a la carte. Corneas, $5,000. Kidney, $20,000. Liver, 40. Bowel, 30. Pancreas, 18. Grissom: It's amazing what you can learn at a convention. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - TRACE LAB - DAY] (NICK walks from the hallway into the lab looking for WARRICK.) Nick: Warrick. I got a match. Warrick: Yeah. You want to hand me those filter papers right there? (NICK hands him the papers.) Nick: The scat I found at the crime scene and the scat from the doctor's house are the same, except for one difference. The stuff from the backyard -- full of human cellular tissue. Jogger DNA. Warrick: So we got the right dog. Well, let's see if the owner cut the vic up. (WARRICK holds up the scalpel.) Warrick: Reactive agents. One part leuko-malachite. (He adds drops of the first agent to the filter paper.) Warrick: One part hydrogen peroxide -- used by blondes everywhere. (He adds drops of the second agent to the filter paper. NICK smiles. They both watch as the filter paper changes color.) Warrick: Blue. Nick: Weird, isn't it? Warrick: What's that? Nick: To prove the presence of heme -- the stuff that makes blood red ... Warrick: ... turns the swab blue. Nick: Yeah. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. CARNIVAL - DAY] (THOMAS PICKENS argues with CATHERINE and SARA out in front of the Tunnel of Love.) Thomas Pickens: I own this attraction and it's going with me to the next town. Catherine: It's evidence. It's not going anywhere. Nothing is. (He takes a couple of threatening steps toward CATHERINE.) Thomas Pickens: What, says you two string beans? Catherine: It's going to take a lot more than vegetable insults to get us to move. Thomas Pickens: Lady, you don't know who you're messing with. Catherine: Oh, I know exactly who you are, Mr. Pickens. And if you so much as look at me in the wrong way, I will personally lock you in a cell with someone who's going to do the same thing to you that you've been doing to those little girls. (BRASS approaches the group accompanied by two officers.) Brass: Whoa, whoa. What, you start the party without me? That could get dangerous. Thomas Pickens? Thomas Pickens: Yeah. Brass: I got a court order. These rides stay in Vegas and you're coming with me. Thomas Pickens: You pullin' my pud? Brass: You know, the thought never crossed my mind. Come on. (BRASS, the two OFFICERS leave with THOMAS PICKENS. SARA turns around and smiles at CATHERINE. Clearly, she's enjoying this.) Catherine: What? Sara: Nothing. This is fun. Catherine: As compared to what? Sara: As compared to a more scientific approach. (It takes a moment, then CATHERINE smiles also.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. GRISSOM'S OFFICE - DAY] (GRISSOM sits behind his desk delivering the bad news to NICK and WARRICK.) Grissom: I'm sorry, guys. If she cut up that jogger she didn't use that scalpel. Nick: But we found evidence of blood on it. Grissom: I had Sanders run a degradation on that same sample. The blood is 50 to 200 years old -- antique, like the scalpel -- ruling out the possibility it was used in the murder of our jogger. (GRISSOM'S phone rings. He answers it.) Grissom: Yeah. I'll be right out. (He hangs up.) I have a visitor. (GRISSOM stands to leave the office.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - HALLWAY - DAY -- CONTINUOUS] (SUSAN HILLRIDGE looks at the various items in the display case. Through the mirror, she sees GRISSOM walk past behind her. She turns around and taps him on the shoulder. She holds up a container of pills for him.) Susan Hillridge: Hi. I have folic acid. I was worried about your eyes. (GRISSOM takes the container.) Susan Hillridge: I assume my surgical instruments came back clean, or relatively clean. Grissom: Are you here for a nutritional consultation or to eavesdrop on my investigation? Susan Hillridge: Actually, my house felt a little crowded -- all those men you sent. (Behind them, a group of OFFICERS walk in past them carrying arm loads of paper bagged evidence.) Grissom: The, uh, police sent them. Susan Hillridge: But you dictated the scope of the warrant. They're taking everything from my kitchen and office. Grissom: You have three prior complaints in three separate states for owning vicious dogs. Susan Hillridge: And? What else do you know about me? Grissom: Each complaint is from a mountain state. Susan Hillridge: Is it a crime to like the mountains? Grissom: No. Only if we find other joggers have turned up dead. What's a liver go for these day Susan Hillridge: What? Grissom: Terry Manning was missing several key organs-- healthy organs. Susan Hillridge: You disappoint me. I thought you were smarter than that. Coenzyme q-10 could help with mental acuity. (She takes a couple of steps toward the door, then turns around.) Susan Hillridge: "The last act is bloody, however, fine the rest of the play." (Quotes always piques GRISSOM'S interest.) Grissom: Pascal. Very impressive. I prefer Buddha, though. "Even death is not to be feared by those who lived wisely." Susan Hillridge: One request. Ask them not to leave my house a mess. You know how I like order. (She turns and leaves. GRISSOM watches her go.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - LAYOUT ROOM] (In the layout room, WARRICK and NICK have all the items taken from SUSAN HILLRIDGE'S place spread out on the table. They're both busy spraying luminol on the items when GRISSOM walks into the lab and sees what they're doing.) Grissom: What, are you guys working in bulk now? Nick: Hey, you're the one who said that lady doc keeps skipping town. Warrick: If the jogger's blood is in any of this stuff, we need to find it now. Nick: This is only part of the kitchen-- the rest is in those bags and boxes. (NICK points to the items on the counter behind GRISSOM who turns around to look at them.) Warrick: I'm ready, Nick. You want to hit the lights? Nick: Yeah. (NICK turns off the lights. They start looking for any signs of blood.) (GRISSOM walks around the table and reaches out for the blender, the bottom of which is glowing. He turns and looks both at WARRICK and NICK.) Grissom: She made a protein shake in this yesterday right in front of me. Warrick: Why would she do that? Grissom: Get this to DNA --see if this is the jogger's blood. Warrick: I'd place a bet on it. (WARRICK picks up a package to put the blender inside. GRISSOM picks up a drinking glass that's also glowing. He holds it up.) Nick: (surprised) Whoa, whoa. So she's not selling the organs on the black market ... she's eating them? Grissom: Possibly drinking them. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. CARNIVAL - NIGHT] (Someone drops a dummy on the ground behind CATHERINE and SARA. They both turn around and look at the Tunnel of Love. There are cops and techs everywhere.) Catherine: I want four techs in there. Let's try to pull the girl out from every conceivable angle. Officer: You got it. (Cut to: SARA snaps a photo.) Sara: Okay, based on our theory a loose seat belt enabled Pickens to yank the little girl out of her seat. (SARA takes another photo. CATHERINE moves and takes a seat inside the car.) Catherine: Mom was on the left. Where's my dummy? (The tech walks up carrying the dummy.) Catherine: Forty-two pounds? (The tech nods and helps put her into the car next to CATHERINE.) Sara: Just like little Sandy. (SARA continues to take photos. CATHERINE puts on the seat belts.) Catherine: And, just like ... the loose seat belt. (SARA presses the button and starts the ride.) (The car enters the Tunnel of Love.) (Cut to: SARA watches the monitors as the techs inside try to yank the dummy out of the car.) (The first tech tries. The second tech tries. The third tech also tries. All are unsuccessful.) (The ride ends.) Catherine: The belt wasn't loose enough to yank the girl out. Forget Pickens. Sara: The only person who could have done it, then is the person that was in the car with her-- the mother. Catherine: Her eyes were pointing in the wrong direction. Sara: (shakes her head) I'm sorry. What? Catherine: Carla Dantini was looking left when she told me about the accident. (Quick flashback to: [CSI HALLWAY - DAY] Camera is in slow motion as CARLA DANTINI talks. Her eyes open and shift toward her left. End of flashback. Resume to present.) Catherine: When a person is remembering, they look right and when they're creating, they look left. Sara: And by creating, you mean fabricating. Neurolinguistics programming -- human behavioral science. Catherine: Call Brass and tell him to meet us at the mother's house. (SARA sighs. CATHERINE is just stunned.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM - NIGHT] (GRISSOM and SGT. O'RILEY interview SUSAN HILLRDIGE.) Susan Hillridge: Mr. Grissom. You're looking grim. I'm afraid I don't have a supplement for that. Grissom: We found blood in your kitchen blender. The lab has matched it to the dead jogger. Susan Hillridge: It had to happen eventually. Grissom: Why? Susan Hillridge: You're the scientist. I should have thought you'd figured that out. Grissom: I haven't. Susan Hillridge: Think of the bugs, Grissom. Cycle of life. Angels versus insects. When we die the fable we tell ourselves is we go toward a white light and angels. But you and I both know the hard reality is that insects arrive immediately and begin turning us back to earth. Grissom: Yes. But the insects haven't killed anyone. Susan Hillridge: No. But they'd die if they didn't have bodies to feed off of. And so will I. (GRISSOM looks at SUSAN HILLRIDGE.) Susan Hillridge: Porphyria. Grissom: The madness of King George. Susan Hillridge: Or the Legend of the Vampire. Which makes it a real hard disease to have. But it's real for me. Grissom: It's genetic. Susan Hillridge: The only thing my father ever gave me. The first time it presented was after a minor sunburn. My lips receded -- so did my gums. I increased my glucose intake and I was fine ... for a while. I began a drug regimen but they only treated the symptoms. I had my spleen removed because it absorbed my blood. But nothing helped. Lesions started forming on my face. That's when I bought my first dog. Bullets and poison leave residue in the blood. Dogs kill clean. Imagine what I'd look like by now without them. (Quick CGI POV of: Camera close up of SUSAN HILLRIDGE as she is now. Then slowly her face morphs and her skin wrinkles, legions form. End of CGI POV. Resume to present.) Grissom: You could've tried intravenous hematin. Susan Hillridge: Human blood is the richest source of heme. Grissom: And so you extracted the organs with the most blood-- the liver, the spleen, the heart. Susan Hillridge: If you lock me up, I'll go mad. Grissom: Unfortunately, a symptom of your condition. But you've been killing people, doctor. Susan Hillridge: I'll die in prison. Grissom: Yes, but the people you'd be feeding off of will still be alive. Cycle of life. (She smiles at him as he throws her own words back at her.) Grissom: (to O'RILEY) Sergeant. (SGT. O'RILEY stands up and walks over to her. He puts the hand cuffs on her.) Officer: You're under arrest for the murder of Terry Manning. (GRISSOM sits stoically in his chair. SUSAN HILRIDGE stops as she passes GRISSOM.) Susan Hillridge: You have one more question. How could I consume raw organs? Not morally -- aesthetically. I dried them and ground them into powder. Grissom: Protein powder. (She turns and leans in close to GRISSOM. There are tears streaming down her face, knowing that she's going to die and exactly how it's going to happen. Nothing matters now. She gives it all up to him.) Susan Hillridge: You want an empirical experience? There's a fresh shake in my fridge. (O'RILEY leads SUSAN HILLRIDGE to the door where he hands her over to an OFFICER standing just outside in the hallway.) Sgt. O'Riley: Let's go. Officer. (He closes the door and turns back to GRISSOM.) Sgt. O'Riley: She is nuts, right? (GRISSOM turns and looks up at SGT. O'RILEY.) Grissom: She's a cold blooded killer. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. DANTINI RESIDENCE - PORCH - NIGHT] (BRASS and CATHERINE walk up the front porch. BRASS knocks on the door.) Catherine: You got the warrant, right? Brass: Yeah, but it's limited in scope. The boyfriend's an attorney so we can't toss the place. (SARA joins them. CARLA DANTINI and HUGH YOUNG walk up to the door and she opens it.) Sara: Mrs. Dantini. Carla Dantini: You have news about Sandy? Sara: We may have a lead. Catherine: We need to see the clothes that you wore the day that your daughter died. Carla Dantini: Why? Hugh Young: It's okay, honey. (to CATHERINE) I'm Hugh Young, Mrs. Dantini's attorney. Carla's grieving. We both are. Can't this wait till after the funeral? Catherine: No, it can't. Brass: Here's a warrant. Where's your bedroom? [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. DANTINI RESIDENCE - BEDROOM - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS] (Spread out on the bed are the clothes that CARLA DANTINI wore. CATHERINE and SARA look through the items.) Catherine: So this is everything that you wore at the carnival last night? Carla Dantini: Yes. (CATHERINE picks up the watch.) Catherine: Your watch is waterlogged. (Camera zooms in to the face of the watch to show the beads of water clinging to the inside of the glass. Resume normal view.) Carla Dantini: Yes. I went into the water after my daughter. Sara: So, you jumped in the water. Carla Dantini: Yes. Catherine: How come your shoes are dry? Carla Dantini: Well ... it was yesterday. Of course they're dry. Catherine: The lining's blue. If they'd gotten wet the indigo dye would have bled onto your white socks. Sara: You never went in the water. Catherine: If you didn't go into the water how did your watch get wet? (HUGH YOUNG turns and looks at CARLA.) Carla Dantini: (nervously) Like I told her, reaching for my daughter. Catherine: You reached for her all right. (cc) To hold her under. (Quick flashback to: Inside the Tunnel of Love, the car ride starts. Cut to: CARLA DANTINI has her hand in the water. Cut to: Just before the ride ends, she takes her hand out of the water. She readjusts herself in her seat, then prepares for her performance.) (The car exits the ride.) Carla Dantini: My baby! (End of flashback. Resume to present.) (CATHERINE nods. SARA, takes it one step further.) Sara: And when she managed to grab onto you, you broke her arm. Catherine: And you held her under while you sat in that car until you drowned her. Hugh Young: Carla is any of this true? (CARLA looks coldly at CATHERINE and SARA. She takes a deep breath.) Carla Dantini: I want you to leave. (CARLA heads out of the bedroom. CATHERINE follows her out into the hallway, angrily lecturing. CARLA doesn't stop.) Catherine: You took your daughter to the carnival 'cause "kids get hurt there all the time". You thought the blame would leave town with the ride. Well, you should have planned better. (CATHERINE catches up with CARLA and grabs her arm to stop her. CATHERINE stands in front of CARLA.) Catherine: What did you actually think? That you and your boyfriend would run off like newlyweds? No kid? No cares? (SARA and HUGH catch up with them.) Hugh Young: I never thought anything like that. Catherine: She did. (to CARLA) Didn't you? (CARLA doesn't say anything for a moment.) Carla Dantini: (coldly) I'm going to need a new lawyer. (Disgusted, CATHERINE heads out.) Catherine: (to SARA) Bag the evidence. (to BRASS) Arrest her, Jim. (SARA turns and follows her.) (In the living room, CATHERINE grabs her jacket when SARA catches up with her.) Sara: Hey ... (CATHERINE turns around.) Sara: ... you all right? Catherine: Yeah. Sara: Since we skipped lunch, you want to get something to eat? Walk it off? Catherine: I got to go home. (SARA nods.) Thanks. Rain check? Sara: Mm-hmm. (CATHERINE leaves. SARA turns around and heads back to the hallway.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT] [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. RESIDENCE - NIGHT] (CATHERINE drives up and parks her car. She cuts her engine and hurries up to the front door. She knocks on the door.) (The front door opens and PAUL NEWSOME stands there in his robe.) Paul Newsome: You got my call. (She nods and sighs.) Catherine: It couldn't have come at a better time. (He holds the door open for her. CATHERINE steps inside and stops next to him. He leans forward and they kiss.)
Justice is Served