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. Ricardo: "You think doorstops will stop people from killing? They'll just go next door." Nathan: "One problem at a time. Until I can either find Vicki, or find the people who have her, the best I can do is frustration. And frustration leads to mistakes." Ricardo: "You set the doorstops, and I gotta fix broken windows." Nathan: "Windows -- broken. People -- hanging from the ceiling. You choose." Ricardo: "Hey, I don't get involved in killing people. That's not me." Nathan: "It's a good thing I'm here, because I get involved." Ricardo: "Why not just call Murder Hotline and get some more information?" Nathan (chuckling): "Maybe she'll call."

An attractive brunette with a laptop bag slung from her shoulder approaches Kef's booth. Kef senses that the woman is confident and tightly self-controlled, but also nervous as well as curious about Kef. She asks, "You do readings? I'm engaged in something that's a little bit dangerous and chancy in my professional 'stuff' and I just wonder how it's going to turn out." Kef stares calmly into the woman's eyes. Several seconds pass and the woman begins to fidget, then she shrugs and asks, "Can you help me?" Kef motions for her to have a seat. "Lay your hands in front of me." The woman settles down, like someone who's used to waiting. "What do you want to know?" "Will my business endevor be successful?" After a brief pause Kef says simply, "No." The woman takes a deep breath; "I was afraid of that." "You're going about it the wrong way. You're not being honest with yourself." "Yeah... you're probably right, I... my partner is sort of... I just don't... yeah, you're right... I don't think I should trust him. Think he's gotten us in over our heads." "You've never trusted him." "Umm... mostly," she says, unconvincingly. "You're trying to cheat him." "I... well... he... The deal we've been running could be quite catastrophic. He's dealing with... he's a little bit out of his league, and I wasn't feeling good about this to begin with, and... now I'm afraid we're going to get attention in the dealings that's going to be really bad." "You're not being honest with yourself." "Probably. But why should I start now," she half-shrugs, then "So you think I can recover if I'm honest with myself and just go into it whole force?" "I don't think you're capable of it." "Well, I'm pretty good." "Then why aren't you honest with yourself?" "Well, something always seems to go wrong..." The woman's tone takes on an edge of hostility: "Are you a fortuneteller or a psychiatrist?" "You're the one who came to me."

The woman stands up. "I, uh, I saw you the other night, in the pub. [Kef is positive the woman was not there.] Then I asked around about you, and found out that you're ... a lot of times in places you're not expected. You seem to know a lot. They say you're one of the best fortunetellers they've ever seen. That you seem to read people like a book. (pause) Tell me, what did you read off the man you elbowed in that pub the other night?" "What do you think?" "I don't know. That curiosity is part of the reason I'm here." "Are you staying or going?" "You told me to be honest with myself, so I'm staying for now." "Then why did you stand up?" "To give you the impression I might leave if you don't stop, you know, talking like a psychiatrist instead of a fortuneteller. (dripping sarcasm) Or are they about the same thing?" Kef, levelly: "I'm not impressed. Go away now." The woman sneers, "You got a deal."

The woman slowly walks four or five steps away, then turns around. "Do I owe you anything for the 'information'?" "You came to me." "Well, I can't say I took anything from you. What's your standard fee?" "There is no standard fee." The woman pulls a $20 from her wallet, returns, and lays it in front of Kef, who doesn't even glance at it. "You lied to me." "Lied about what?" "The pub." The woman says, "All right, I wasn't there. He told me that you had elbowed him. He was willing to let it lie, but I wanted to find out more about the person who... messed that up. And then he got followed home. It just seemed too coincidental." "You're not only dishonest, you're a liar." "Hm. Do you work for Highland Tropics? Or, let me put it another way, have you done a reading for anybody that works for Highland Tropics? Things are going on with that... My companion and I are doing business with Highland Tropics, and... I thought it was concluded, but... things got weird in the last couple of days, and... I'm not sure they're going to continue to honor their deal. And... I figured if you were a true fortuneteller, you could tell me what was going on, or you might actually somehow be working for them." She glances around the Faire; "This isn't really corporate area here, but...." Kef: "You are a fool."

The woman admits, "I'm scared." "Yes, fear is rolling off of you. You think yourself brave, but you're afraid for your life. You're so desperate, you'd even come to a fortuneteller." "Yyyes, yes. You've got a point." She reaches into her bag, then lays down a business card beside the $20. On it, printed in bright red, is Salmon-Slip, followed by a URL and an email address. Then she says, "I play hunches, and my hunch was that somehow the woman that broke up what was about to happen... might could help me. I get those hunches from time to time, and I follow them, usually. Usually in my business. But this is about me personally. I just feel that something bad is going to happen... I'm not used to physical danger, with what I do. And there are some crazy people involved, I think. So I'm being honest with myself, and that probably means I'm going to need to rabbit. So if you need to get in touch with me, I check email quite frequently. Like I say, that's what I do; I'm quite good at it. I'm just following my gut feeling here... Kef. I don't mean to be informal with you, but that's all the name I've found out for you. So..."

Kef: "What's on the laptop?" Woman: "It's my business office. It's where I have everything. All my information, all my clients, everything. I never let it out of my sight." "What's in there that someone would want to kill you over?" "Generally... I don't know. Some information that I've come across in the last couple of weeks that a lot of people are... concerned about. And... I didn't think they'd kill me about it until just yesterday. Things have gotten... enough to scare me." "Are you being followed?" "Oh, I'm sure I wasn't followed here. I was very careful."

Kef, quietly: "You have less than 48 hours to live." The woman blanches, stares wide-eyed at Kef, then turns and runs away.