Dallas 2.0:Sessions:20160604

It's 5:00am Sunday morning. Ricardo Hernandez is wakened by the sound of his phone. A frantic woman begins speaking in rapid-fire Spanish. "Theo, my husband, he's been arrested! They say he was in a big fight at some hotel! He is hurt, he's at the hospital, Baylor Hospital!" Ricardo is the recently-promoted foreman of a construction crew, and Theo Perez is one of his best workers. Unlike some of his other employees, Theo is a devoted family man and not a partier. He speaks calmingly to Señora Perez and assures her that he will do what he can to help Theo.

A little past 5:00am, before Nathan has quite fallen asleep, his phone rings. Clyde asks, "Are you a clairvoyant or something?" At speeds upward of 85mph, Clyde's driving on LBJ Freeway chasing a Ford sedan. "Two idiots just robbed my house! They covered up their license plates. I'm gaining on them... but I think I'll need your help! When I catch these idiots, I'm gonna kill them!"

"Hang on," says Nathan, and clicks over to another line, dials 911, and reports a drag race in progress on LBJ in Mesquite. Returning to Clyde, Nathan says, "If you can't catch those guys in two or three minutes, the cops will show up. Once the police stop them, tell them those guys robbed you."

Clyde gets right behind his quarry, then guns his Chevy and gives one corner of Ford's bumper a hard tap. As he expects, the Ford spins out and strikes the barricades in the median; its airbags deploy. As sirens sound in the distance, Clyde pulls over to the shoulder and parks. He sees the guy in the passenger seat jump out and yank the cloth coverings off of the Ford's license plates.

Both Dallas and Mesquite squad cars arrive on the scene. A Dallas cop walks up to Clyde's car and orders him to get out. Clyde hangs up his cellphone (cutting off Nathan's connection) and lays it on the console, then gets out. Clyde is handcuffed and placed in the back seat of the squad car. "Why'd you arrest me? They robbed me!"

Nathan phones Detective Mike Dallas. "Clyde got robbed and then chased after the robbers. When he comes in, can I prepay his bail? It's not that he doesn't have money. I just want someone to believe his story." He admits, "Yes, Clyde called me instead of the police." Dallas: "Is this related to the attacks at the hotel? Two of the attackers have died."

At Baylor Hospital's front desk, Ricardo describes Theo and is directed toward the Emergency Room. Someone there suggests he talk to Detective Dallas, who is talking on his cellphone. Ricardo waits politely until Dallas acknowledges him, then asks him about Theo Perez. Dallas says, "He attacked people with a knife at a horror convention. Right now he's in a bit of pain." Ricardo: "But we got work to do! He's my best counter man!"

A little past 6:00am an unmarked car pulls up and two plainclothes detectives step out. One of them, Detective Santana, leans in and tells Clyde, "Detective Dallas wants to talk to you. We've sent some Garland police to your house." Clyde gets into the other car.

Ricardo is allowed to see Theo. Theo looks bruised, bloodied, and glassy-eyed. Ricardo: "Theo, what did you do?" Theo's memory is very hazy. "Friday night, went out with the boys... some Anglo bought us beer... Manuel was with me... Anglo hired us for a job on the weekend... We were in a hallway, there was gunfire... Manuel, he got shot... They said I stabbed somebody; I didn't stab anybody! You know I don't fight when I drink!" He thinks the Anglo's name was Darren.

Ricardo phones Theo's wife and tells her Theo is alive. She cries, "He would never raise a hand against anybody!" "They're going to arrest him on charges, so you need to get a bail bondsman."

Detective Dallas shows Ricardo eleven mugshots. "Do you recognize any of these men?" Ricardo points to Theo and another of his men, Manuel ("Manuel, he's a slacker"), then three other construction workers he knows who aren't part of his crew, and one other man who looks vaguely familiar. Dallas hands him a business card. "Call that guy if you want to get them cleared." The card reads: Nathan Rahl, Rahl Investigation & Security. Ricardo reckons it's too early to call Mr. Rahl, so he drives to a diner on Highway 26 to eat breakfast.

Clyde has been waiting alone in an interrogation room for some time when finally Detective Mike Dallas enters. "You're one lucky SOB. They're claiming ignorance, but the cops found those license plate covers, and somebody's pulling the traffic cam footage in and out of your neighborhood. Is this connected to those attempted homicides at the hotel?" "I caught them ransacking my house, so I followed them." "They had a hunting rifle in the trunk. Your car's been impounded; soonest you can get it out is Monday morning. You owe me a favor."

Around 8:00am Nathan gets a call from Ricardo Hernandez. "Theo doesn't know what happened. He never carries a knife. The detective gave me your number to get Theo cleared." "Go to my office in two or three hours and we'll discuss it."

Kef has a repeat of her earlier vision but with significant differences. The timeframe is definitely Monday night, and the viewpoint is Orley's. She borrows a cellphone and texts Orley Are you awake? but there's no answer. She leaves a message on Rahl Security's office phone.

Clyde's possessions are returned to him and he is allowed to leave. He calls a cab.

Nathan's alarm goes off. He rises, showers, shaves, and goes to the office; Sara is already there. He tells her, "I've got another client -- Ricardo Hernandez."

Soon afterward, Ricardo arrives. Nathan greets him and shows him into his office. Ricardo explains, "Theo is not violent. He's a good guy. I don't want his wife and kids to suffer." Nathan agrees to do what he can for Theo, and Ricardo pays $500 as a retainer. Ricardo hands Nathan his business card: Ricardo Hernandez, Foreman, Mason Construction. "I last saw Theo on Friday. We're working in a new neighborhood up in Frisco. It looked to me like Theo was drugged. He mentioned an Anglo that was buying rounds. Maybe that Anglo drugged his beer."

Nathan's phone rings. Kef gives the address of an unfinished house in Frisco and says that Vicki Zann and Roberto Hansel will be found there dead Monday night, hanging from the rafters.

As it happens, the address is in the neighborhood where Ricardo has been working. Nathan and Ricardo drive to Frisco. Ricardo points out the house, which looks nearly finished on the outside but still requires inside work (including counters). Ricardo has a master key and unlocks the front door. Almost immediately, he can tell that someone has been prowling around in here, and he points out to Nathan scratches on the back door where someone has picked the lock. Orley arrives, and Nathan sends him to Home Depot to buy a couple of heavy doorstops.