[♪♪♪]
[engine shuts off]
Are you Mrs. Totino?
Yes. Melba Totino, that's me.
You made a call to 911 about a missing person?
Not one person. Three!
My daughter, her husband,
my granddaughter.
They're gone.
They're all gone! Disappeared into thin air!
[glass shattering]
[Melba gasps]
[♪♪♪]
[clattering]
[♪♪♪]
Meow!
[exhales, relieved]
It's a cat.
[♪♪♪]
AURORA: See, I disagree with the definition.
A "date" implies a pre-arranged meeting,
but we just grabbed food and stopped here on impulse.
But sharing of food
automatically qualifies a meeting as a date.
Hmm. Cite your source, please.
My source is the very astute Aurora Teagarden herself.
Mm.
Doesn't this feel like a date, Aurora?
Yes, Martin, it does.
But I think you could make a trip to the dentist
feel like a date.
[laughs]
That's 21 dates!
You're counting?
That's so sweet.
I keep count
because your mother has a rule about
when we can officially be considered a couple.
Ha! Very astute of you.
No, my mother has rules of etiquette
for everything.
Including not being late
for an appointment with her.
We have to go!
[♪♪♪]
What?
Four more dates, Miss Teagarden,
and you will officially be my girlfriend.
Five more minutes and I'm gonna be
an ex-daughter, if we don't get going.
So you do this every month?
Aida takes you off, looking at houses?
Well, if there's something new on the market.
I've been wanting to find a real home
ever since I got that inheritance
from my friend, Jane Engle.
Oh, yes. You're a woman of means.
Hmm, well, means enough to buy a house,
but I haven't found
anything that feels right yet.
I have visions of us
shopping for a house together,
one of these days.
[laughs] Um...
I don't think we can have that conversation
until at least 50 dates.
That's okay. I'm a patient man.
But to help move things along,
how about you have dinner with me
when I get back from this business trip?
Now, that is a date.
[♪♪♪]
Did you see the new listing on Elm Street?
Yeah. It's very cute.
I showed it yesterday.
All the windows-- oh, my gosh, it's so light and airy.
That's the thing. Too many windows.
[laughs] There's no such thing.
Aurora, you can't be anti-light.
No, more "pro-wall".
I need lots of walls for my bookshelves.
You know how many books I have.
Well, maybe if you got rid of the dreary ones
about murders and such,
you could have light.
This one has plenty of wall space.
[Gasps] Ooh! And there's a little reading nook!
That would make a perfect library.
It's not my listing.
Besides, it's completely inappropriate for a woman alone.
Why? It's charming.
It's also five miles out of town.
Not to mention old!
Do you know how much it would cost
to heat that thing?
Mother...
Show it to me. Pretty please?
[♪♪♪]
It's so nice and quiet out here.
I believe the word you're looking for
is "isolated".
Ohh! And that porch!
Oh, can't you just imagine a porch swing right there?
You know, something about this house
looks familiar.
That's because you've been staring
at a photo of it for the past 20 minutes.
No, that's not it.
You've always been stubborn.
Always.
Oh, this house is wonderful!
Oh, the view from the master bedroom!
[gasping deeply]
Do you know how many bookshelves I can build in here?
But it is so far from town.
You'd have to commute.
W-- Oh, town is 10 minutes away, Mother.
No, I... I think this is it.
Yeah, I think this is the house
I've been looking for.
Yeah, I think we should look at a couple more.
N-- No. No.
We've been looking for months.
No. This is it.
Yeah! I want to make an offer.
[sighing heavily]
You know, even if the owner accepts your offer,
you still have three days to change your mind.
Oh, no, I'm not gonna change my mind.
[chuckles]
This looks familiar, too.
The stove.
Oh! I got it.
Oh, it was in the newspaper.
Do you remember that family that disappeared?
Like, three or four years ago,
they went out to dinner with a friend,
and they never came back?
I have no idea what you're talking about.
Yeah. The Julius family!
Yeah! It was in the newspaper,
and the grandmother,
she took a picture right here.
Huh! This is the Julius House.
No, the owner's name is Totino.
Yeah, that was the grandmother's name.
Well, if some tragedy happened here,
the listing agent should have disclosed that information,
and I should just rip up this offer.
No, Mother,
nothing happened in the house.
The theory is that
they got in the car, they ran off the road,
and disappeared down a ravine somewhere.
If the house is on the market,
I wonder if they ever found the bodies.
You've always had a morbid curiosity.
Always.
All right.
[♪♪♪]
A lot of people believe
jealousy was the motive
for Hawley Crippen to kill his wife
and bury her in the cellar.
And Cora was carrying on with one of their lodgers.
But Dr. Crippen was anything but faithful.
He was, in fact,
in love with a typist named Ethel Le Neve.
The Julius House? Really?
[♪♪♪]
John, you were so right about the Crippen case.
I hear that tourists in London
still go looking for that house.
Wouldn't you, if you found yourself in London?
Oh, Roe doesn't have to cross an ocean
to look for a famous murder site.
She might be moving into one.
Huh?
She's trying to buy the Julius House.
Remember the family
that disappeared four years ago,
just outside of town?
And-And they weren't murdered.
Well, no one really knows, do they?
I remember the story.
Ex-Army officer,
moved down here from Spokane, right?
Yeah! The daughter, uh...
What's her name? Uh, Charity.
She went to my high school.
A lot of people think foul play was involved.
Well, the police did close the case, though.
Still. Kinda cool to be setting up digs
in a house with an unsolved mystery, Roe.
Oh, I don't care about any of that.
Aurora Teagarden doesn't care about a mystery?
Do you have the flu?
I'm just excited about the idea
of having my own house!
You know, I want to paint walls,
and build bookshelves and--
[cell phone rings]
Hi, Mother.
I suppose I should say congratulations.
I got the house?
AIDA: Mrs. Totino accepted your offer on the house.
[♪♪♪]
That's good work
on the schoolboard election, Sally.
Oh, thanks, Macon!
Ah, the Julius family.
Why are you looking them up?
Oh, my friend, Roe, just bought the Julius House.
I didn't know it was for sale.
Were the bodies found?
I don't know, but that's your byline, right?
You covered that story?
Yeah.
Just before I made editor.
It gave me a few sleepless nights.
The family heads out for dinner
with a so-called "friend from Spokane,"
and they just never come back.
I was standing with the photographer
when he shot this picture-- look at this.
Hope Julius was fighting cancer.
She had a couple of wigs.
Her mom told us
that this was her "fancy Sunday wig."
Still gives me a chill.
It's so sad.
You know what?
I want you to do a follow-up on the story.
Start with the house being sold,
then do a post-mortem on the missing persons case,
how it all ended up.
That could be a really interesting story.
It will be,
if you do your job right.
Thanks, Macon.
Mm-hmm.
[keys clacking]
[♪♪♪]
Ah! The seller meets the sellee.
Mrs. Totino, this is Aurora Teagarden, your buyer.
Oh! Mrs. Totino!
I didn't think that you would come
all the way here to sign papers.
Don't you live in Portland?
Yes, with my sister, Alicia,
but Mr. Rankart said that I should come.
To talk to the probate judge, Melba.
You have a lot of issues to work through in court.
So you go on back to the Peachtree,
and I'll get this sale tied up in a nice pretty bow, okay?
I'm so glad I got a chance to meet you.
The house is wonderful.
Well, I hope you don't change it too much.
I-In case they come back,
I want them to be able to recognize it.
Promise me, you won't change the house too much?
Well, thanks for coming in, Melba.
Let's, uh, let's make sure your cab is here, okay?
Oh, hi, Aida.
Hi.
I'll be right with you, okay?
AIDA: Oh, okay.
Who's that with Bubba?
One of the most haunted women I think I've ever met.
I do love a fast escrow.
My dear Bubba, don't we all?
Why did Mrs. Totino think that her family could come back?
I mean, how could she even sell the house
if they're not... dead?
Well, we petitioned the court
to have them declared "dead in absentia".
Had quite a time talking Mrs. Totino into it.
Oh. So the family hasn't been discovered?
Aurora, please
don't start talking about bodies again.
I'm just-- I assumed they had been found.
I'm surprised that they're still missing.
Well, legally, they're not.
And legally, ownership of the house
was transferred to Mrs. Totino,
who has now transferred it to you.
It's your house now.
And it's got a lot of history.
It was "the Zinser house" before T.C. Julius bought it.
That's right!
Walter Zinser built it!
He did, yeah, back when I was working
for him and Mrs. Zinser at their drugstore.
Whoo! The battles they had
when they were building that house.
You see, Mrs. Zinser,
she was a nut about symmetry.
And she had a closet built for her doll collection,
and then she decided
she didn't think she liked the placement of the door,
so-- [snaps]
She had it sealed up.
So there's a hidden closet in the house somewhere?
Yeah! Somewhere upstairs, if I remember right.
Oh.
I wonder if the police searched for it
when the family disappeared?
You just had to tell her that story,
didn't you?
Wha-- I'm making conversation, Mother.
No, you're looking for trouble,
which is your specialty.
[♪♪♪]
So I'll donate most of the furniture
to make room for mine,
but I might keep a few pieces.
Well?
[exhales deeply]
I go away on business for one week,
and come back to find you moving out of town.
[laughs] It's not that far.
Ah, I kinda liked driving past your house,
seeing your little car there.
Well, you can take the scenic route.
I just might do that.
Okay! But what do you think about the house?
I can picture the two of us
cozying up on the couch,
warming up by your fireplace.
I can see that, too.
I like your house, Roe.
I like the sound of that-- "my house."
I mean, I think it's mine.
I-I don't know what I would do
if the previous owners showed up.
Oh, right. You said they'd disappeared?
Mm-hmm.
Well, I still have contacts
in the intelligence community.
I could make a few inquiries,
at least rule out
the witness-protection angle.
Thank you, but no.
No. I am not going to borrow trouble.
I finally have my own house.
I have...
this great guy who's only four dates away
from being my boyfriend.
Well, actually, it's, uh, three dates.
My being here today,
that constitutes a date.
I thought we had to share a meal.
I'm sure I have a mint here somewhere.
[both chuckling]
A story on the Julius family?
I would love to read that when you're done.
That was a real stumper of a case.
Yeah, well, I was hoping
to interview one of the lead detectives,
if I could, to get some quotes.
Well, that would be Pete Lambert,
but he retired a few years ago,
moved to Costa Rica--
or was it Belize?
Anyway, I did a little work on it myself,
but mostly
just to rule out any kind of robbery.
Well, there must be somebody who
actually investigated the disappearance.
Yeah, there is.
The other Detective Smith.
Oh. Lynn.
Oh.
Is she, uh, in her office?
You betcha.
Okay. Thanks.
Yep.
No, Mrs. Totino did not know the name
of the man who took the family out for dinner.
She never lived in Spokane with them,
and she only moved here recently because her daughter was sick.
Oh, yeah, Macon did say
that Hope Julius was going through chemo.
All Mrs. Totino knew
was that they left in a white sedan
with this friend.
We never figured out who he was,
we didn't get anymore information on the car,
and we have no reason to believe
it was anything other than
an accident as yet to be discovered.
Well, surely, somebody would've discovered it by now.
Depends on the road they traveled.
There's some thick forest to the south and east of here.
Deep ravines.
No, we were right to close this case,
and I really don't know why you insist on revisiting it.
Oh! Because the house was sold.
Macon thought we should print a follow-up story.
Well, it's gonna be a really short story,
because there's nothing new to add.
You can go now.
Thank you for your time, Lynn.
All right, due back in three weeks.
Happy reading!
Oh, hey, Lillian.
Do you mind if I leave a little early?
I want to meet the contractor at my new house.
You didn't pick a very good time to move.
I'm going to be on vacation
three days next week.
Yeah, I know.
You can't expect me to rearrange my schedule
just because you bought a house.
I wouldn't expect you to.
I'm not gonna be here every time
you think you need to dash away.
But you're here now.
So do you mind if I go?
I suppose not.
Thank you!
I hope you have a good vacation.
Hmph.
[saw whirring]
Aurora?
There you are.
Your mother said you needed help,
but it looks like you already have a whole crew.
What I need help with is measuring this wall.
Bubba Rankart said
that there's a hidden closet on this floor somewhere,
and I want to find it
while I still have the carpenter here.
You know, it's your mother's birthday in a few weeks...
Yeah, I'm taking her to lunch.
I have a plan for that evening.
I'm going to propose to Aida.
That is, if I have your blessing.
John!
Of course, you have my blessing.
I know how much you adore her.
And I think she adores me.
But enough to marry me?
Well, she's a very independent woman.
I admire that she's independent.
I think we're well-suited.
You're exceptionally well-suited.
Hmm...
These dimensions aren't making sense.
There's too much room here.
About three feet.
I wonder if the closet's behind this bookshelf?
Well, maybe.
SALLY: Hey, Roe!
Are you ready to be interviewed for my story?
Hi, John. Whatcha doing?
She's looking for a sealed-up closet.
Hope you don't expect
to find the Julius family in there.
What? No!
I think I'm going to find some storage for my stuff.
These shelves are so oddly placed.
What's the key for?
I don't know.
[♪♪♪]
[click]
[shrieks]
[laughing] It's a doll!
It's just a doll!
[laughing]
It must be from Mrs. Zinser's old collection. Hmm!
Oh, Sally. A new friend!
Agh! You're hilarious.
Can you just sit down
and let me interview you, please?
Sure, in a sec.
Who else have you interviewed?
Finding out anything interesting
about the Julius family?
Unfortunately, no.
Hardly anyone even knew them.
They'd just lived in town for a few months
before they disappeared.
This head is loose.
Yeah, that's because it's old,
and creepy!
Can you get rid of it before it puts a curse on us?
[snap]
[blows air]
Oh.
Hey! There's something in there.
[♪♪♪]
[sets doll down]
It looks like torn page from a diary or journal.
"Harley"!
That's the name
of Charity Julius's boyfriend in Spokane.
This is from Charity's diary!
Looks like she wrote an entry--
she didn't finish it.
Look at the last words.
"Dad scares me."
Charity Julius was afraid of her father?
This is dated a week
before the Julius family went missing.
You know what this is telling me?
The Julius family didn't disappear by accident.
You know what this is telling me?
You're going to try and find them.
"Dad makes me sit here with Mom.
"We watch old movies, but I am so bored.
"I just want to see you, Harley,
"but when I ask Dad if you can come down, he says,
"'Ask again later,'
"so I do, and he gets mad at me for asking too much.
"He was hoping I'd forget you once we moved back,
but that'll never happen."
You said this was
a "disturbing" diary entry.
This sounds like normal teenage complaining.
"I feel so alone.
"Grandma's only worried about Mom,
"doesn't care about me.
"If they don't let you come see me,
"I'll hitchhike to Spokane to see you.
"But that'd make Mom worry, then Dad would blame me,
"and I don't know what he'd do.
Dad scares me."
Charity Julius wrote this journal entry
and hid it one week before she disappeared.
She says she feels alone, that she wants to run away,
that she's afraid of her dad.
How does this not shed new light?
Yeah. How?
[sighing heavily]
We already knew that Charity and her father
had disagreements.
Grumbling about her strict dad doesn't tell us anything new.
Then why are you treating that like new evidence?
In a case that's supposedly closed?
I'm just humoring you.
Can I quote you on that?
No.
Look.
There wasn't any reason to keep this case open.
Pete Lambert and I
didn't find a single sign of foul play.
Trust me, we went above and beyond on this one.
[♪♪♪]
Not only did we search this house,
from top to bottom, three separate times,
but we searched the entire grounds.
We looked under every rock, every bush.
We looked at Internet logs, phone records,
banking records.
We interviewed
dozens of people--
About those people.
The paper said the last person to see the family alive,
besides Mrs. Totino,
was Harley Dimmoch.
Charity must've gotten permission
for him to visit her.
Yeah, Macon said
that Harley didn't want to talk to any reporters.
He was too upset.
But you must have spoken to him,
so I was--
well, we were wondering if--
You'd better not be asking me for interview notes.
Of course, I know better than to ask.
But if you're offering...
What I am doing
is assuring you
that nothing about this family, or their time in Lawrenceton,
was out of the ordinary.
Except that Charity was afraid of her father.
[sighs wearily]
If you come up with
any legitimate new evidence,
please don't hesitate to call me. Okay?
Oh, I won't!
I just got a text message from Macon.
Apparently...
Harley wasn't the only person here that day.
T.C. had just gotten around
to having concrete poured in that pad in the back,
And we know who
the concrete guy in town is, right?
Parnell Wilson.
Yeah, I mean, Lynn must have talked to him back then,
but who's to say he wouldn't share something new now?
He might be more open to talking to someone
who isn't on the police force.
John, how well do you know Parnell?
Fairly well.
Okay, go talk to him
about the day he poured the pad.
And Sally, go see if you can find
contact info for Harley Dimmoch.
What are you going to do?
Chat with Mrs. Totino.
I'm glad you came by.
I was just boxing up a housewarming present
to send to you.
Oh! That is so nice of you.
They're placemats Hope bought for the house.
It was the least I could do
to say "thank you" for buying the house.
Mr. Rankart said
it would take months to sell.
Well, I wasn't sure I should sell it at all.
If T.C. came home and found it sold,
he'd have a fit.
Oh, your son-in-law-- he was a man with a temper?
Oh, I'd call him more a man with an iron will.
He liked to get his way.
Well, that must have made your granddaughter
resentful at times?
Charity?
Oh, I suppose so.
But then, she was a moody thing.
I remember she didn't want
to go out with her parents and their friend that night,
she wanted to stay and visit with Harley,
but T.C. sent the boy off.
Well, that must have upset Charity.
I was more worried about her mother.
Hope wasn't feeling well.
she'd been in bed most of the day.
But she still went to dinner?
If only I... I'd been paying more attention
where they were going with that gentleman from Spokane.
Okay, I know that the police
have asked you this a million times,
but what can you remember about the man?
Well, the problem was I never met him.
I'd taken my supper
back to my apartment over the garage
before he arrived.
I just saw the car out the window
and the man walk over and shake hands with T.C.
What did he look like?
I only saw his back.
He-- He was dark-haired, I think.
Hope said they knew him from church,
or maybe it was the hospital.
It's my fault they haven't been found.
If I'm only I'd been paying attention...
Oh, no, no, no!
I-I don't think you have anything to feel guilty for.
You're too kind.
I hope you enjoy the placemats.
Just one more question, Mrs. Totino, please?
Bubba Rankart said that there is
a boarded-up closet in the house.
Do you recall your son-in-law
talking about it?
What-- What room it was in?
I'm sorry. I have no idea what you're talking about.
I'm-- [voice breaks] Excuse me.
[♪♪♪]
All right. Thank you.
John!
Oh, ho!
I just left a message for you,
asking you if you wanted to have lunch with me.
Oh, you did?
Yes.
Ah, yes, I see you did.
I must have been on the phone
to Parnell Wilson's office.
Concrete?
Does this mean you're gonna finally
lay the foundation for that shed
you've been talking about?
No, I, was, uh...
looking to talk to Parnell.
Well, it must have been very important
if you didn't even know that I was calling you.
[phone rings]
Aurora's calling you?
Um...
[Sighing]
I know what it's like when the two of you
start putting your heads together.
She's become obsessed with the Julius family,
hasn't she?
And you're encouraging her, as usual.
[sighs] Hello, Roe.
No.
Parnell's out on a job,
he won't be back until tomorrow.
I have to do damage control with your mother.
Try Martin.
AURORA: Hey, can you help me move this chair?
So when I was deciding where to build the bookshelves,
I noticed this.
When you called and asked for my help,
I had no idea it would be
to find another phantom closet.
Not a "phantom". Listen.
Sounds hollow.
Yeah. It sure does.
[knocks]
Do you think you can pry these boards off?
Okay.
Hey, Roe. Got your message. What are... you doing now?
[Thud]
I think I found another hidden space.
Why are you so determined to destroy your new house?
[♪♪♪]
These boards aren't nailed in very well.
SALLY: Oh! I just got goosebumps.
I don't think I could look in there.
I can.
SALLY: Please tell me there are no dead bodies in there.
Or dolls.
[♪♪♪]
No, I don't see anything like that.
This one's only nailed on with one nail.
Oh, be careful!
MARTIN: See anything?
Please say no, please say no, please say--
AURORA: No, it looks pretty empty.
Yes!
[gasps] Wait.
Hey, there's some towels or rags.
It looks like they're...
[gasps]
It looks like they're covered in blood.
[♪♪♪]
AURORA: Could be blood!
Yeah. Well, it could be a lot of things.
Just in case, we'll get a forensics team here,
and go through that closet.
You're not gonna be moving in in the next few days, are you?
Not when I know that room could be a crime scene.
You do not know that.
Dirty towels are not evidence of a crime.
Still. I'm not moving in yet. Just in case.
Okay. Well, thank you for the prompt call, Roe.
We'll be sure to let you know if the tests turn anything up.
Why would some of these boards
be held on by just a single nail?
Looks like that closet was pretty hastily boarded up.
Yeah, like someone left in a hurry,
after cleaning up blood.
[sighs]
What looks good tonight?
I think I'll try the fresh catch.
You're an interesting woman, Aida.
You agree to come out to dinner with me,
and at the same time,
you want to give me the silent treatment.
It's called rejecting the sin,
not the sinner.
Is it really such a sin
to help Aurora look into an unsolved mystery?
Oh! [Scoffs]
But Aurora doesn't just "look into" a mystery.
She hunts it down, grabs it by the throat,
and then shakes it into submission.
True, but--
Do you know how many times
she's nearly gotten killed,
by chasing it too far?
Well, isn't that a good reason
that I should help her?
Make sure she doesn't go it alone?
Give her an extra layer of protection?
You know that, by appealing
to my protective mother instincts,
that was the only way to win this argument.
So then it's, uh, working?
[chuckles]
Mother is really okay
with you driving to Spokane with Sally?
No, it's almost three hours away.
I can't get that much time off work,
with Lillian on vacation.
Yeah, but Parnell's gonna come by the house tomorrow.
Okay! Thanks. Bye.
Marshaling your team
to take on this investigation.
Oh, if I were really marshaling a team,
I would ask LeMaster Cane from the Real Murders Club
to get involved,
and Perry Dell.
That might not be a bad idea.
Maybe it's not such a good idea, either.
Why would you say that?
We found blood today.
Which should give you pause, not make you hit the gas.
[chuckles dismissively] Okay, wait.
Is this Martin Bartell, former CIA agent,
who told me he thinks we're alike,
and admires my suspicious mind?
Yes, we are alike,
but I can also tell you that I have been burned before,
thinking I'm looking into a cold case,
and then finding out it's still very, very hot.
Well, tomorrow,
I am gonna work a six-hour shift at the library,
and then talk to the nice man
who poured a concrete pad
at my house four years ago.
That's it!
That's it, huh?
So why do you have that look?
What look?
Let's call it
the thrill-of- the-chase look.
Oh, I think I've seen you have that look a time or two.
Stop trying to distract me.
You've been lucky before.
You've caught the bad guys
without ever having to pay too steep a price,
but luck doesn't always hold.
Promise me you'll be careful.
Yes, Martin.
I promise. I will be careful.
[♪♪♪]
SALLY: 2-0-2-0. This is it.
I wish Harley had called me back
so I wouldn't feel like we were surprising him.
Nah, it's always better when they don't see you coming.
Roe definitely knew what she was doing
when she sent Perry with us.
Yeah. I'll get the guy to talk.
WOMAN: Can I help you?
Oh, Mrs. Dimmoch? Hello?
Yes?
Hi! I'm Sally Allison,
with the Lawrenceton Times,
and this is my, uh, associate, John Queensland.
Good to meet you.
And my, um...
Uh, photographer. Perry Dell.
Yeah.
I called and left a message
for your son, Harley,
I was hoping to interview him
for a story I'm writing?
Oh, yes. I gave him the message.
Didn't he call you?
I haven't heard from him, no,
and since I'm on a deadline,
we thought we'd just drive up, and see if he was home.
I'm so sorry, he should have called you.
Harley moved away years ago,
to Vancouver, Washington.
Maybe we could have
a few minutes of your time anyway?
Sure. Come on in the house.
Thank you.
[♪♪♪]
That was Harley and Charity, at his senior prom.
Weren't they the cutest couple?
Yeah, they were.
Oh.
So, Harley was the last person
to see the Julius family the day they disappeared?
Yes, and what a burden to him.
The local police showing up here,
then the Lawrenceton police,
the state police.
Even some TV people came to interview him.
So you remember that day,
the day that Harley went down to visit Charity?
Oh, like it was yesterday.
Harley was so excited to see his sweetheart.
Thought the world was gonna end when she moved away.
PERRY: Yeah, I bet he did.
She was a babe.
[clears his throat]
JOHN: What time did he go to Lawrenceton that day?
Oh, well, he left right after breakfast.
And what time did he get back?
About 9:00 that night.
I asked him how the visit went,
he said it went fine,
although he didn't get much time alone with Charity.
He ended up helping her father build
those wooden frames you pour concrete in...
[muted conversation]
It was really hard to say goodbye to Charity that day.
He told me that
as soon as she graduated,
he was gonna swoop down and marry her.
When did Harley
realize she was missing?
The next morning he called her
and left a message.
She didn't call back,
which wasn't like her,
because she was always calling him.
He started calling and texting and texting.
I'm sure she's fine.
Said he planned to take the next day off work
and drive down there again.
And then came
that knock at the door,
police asking for him.
That's how we found out that the whole family
had simply disappeared.
It's so hard to see your child suffer.
SALLY: I can only imagine.
MRS. DIMMOCH: He stopped eating,
he stopped going to work,
until, finally, they fired him.
He didn't care.
It was a terrible time.
It sounds terrible.
I knew that the only way that he could move on
was to go someplace
where there were no memories of that girl.
A friend of his offered him a job in Vancouver,
and off he went.
He's doing much better now.
We talk every Sunday.
Does he still mention Charity?
Not much, not anymore.
He says he has a new girlfriend.
As hard as it was,
I was just so glad
that he was able to accept that Charity had passed away.
So Harley believed she and her family had died?
MRS. DIMMOCH: Of course.
He knew she would contact him
if she was still alive.
Did Harley mention anything
about problems between Charity and her father?
A person didn't have "problems" with T.C. Julius.
You did what he wanted, you did it his way,
and that was it.
Problem solved.
[♪♪♪]
Hey. Do you remember that you offered
to look into the witness protection angle
on the Julius family?
Yeah...
and you weren't gonna "borrow trouble".
Yeah, well, it would save me trouble
if you could rule that out as a possibility.
Okay, um, I'll make a few calls
after I'm through with this meeting.
What are you up to?
Oh, I'm just waiting for Parnell Wilson to get here.
The concrete guy.
Oh, the perfect place to hide a few stray bodies.
Wet concrete.
Yeah, I remember the Julius job.
Of course, I do.
I only had to tell Pete Lambert about it five times.
Okay, well, my first question is.
Is there any possibility
that family could have been hidden
under that concrete?
[Chuckles] I guess you don't know
how quickly concrete can set on a warm day.
You could've walked on it
by the time I left.
Yeah, someone would need a jackhammer
to make space for a person,
and then pour new concrete on top.
No, that's not where they ended up.
Does spook me, though.
How ordinary that day seemed.
Shouldn't you get a sense of something strange
before a whole family disappears?
I got here about 2:00 in the afternoon.
Charity Julius came out to meet me,
said her father had to go to the hardware store,
but the forms were set,
and said I should start pouring,
which I did.
[♪♪♪]
Just took about an hour, or hour and a half,
and then I left.
Wait. You didn't see T.C. Julius at all that day?
No. He didn't get back before it was done.
AURORA: You didn't find that was strange?
PARNELL: No. A lot of times,
folks are at work when I come out to pour, so...
I mean, I suppose
I'd expect a man as particular as T.C. Julius
to be out here, give me his two cents, but...
Okay. So you saw Charity?
Did you see anyone else?
Her mother, her grandmother?
Uh, yeah, I saw both of 'em,
through the window to the kitchen,
cleaning up.
Did you talk to them?
Uh, nope, but Hope did give me
a wave in the middle of mopping up.
I remember thinking, if she's mopping up,
then, you know, she must be feeling better
than when I saw her a few weeks earlier.
I came out to give 'em a quote,
and she could barely move then.
So Hope Julius was mopping?
Yeah. Yeah.
I was happy to see her bouncing back a bit.
I was glad to see she was getting ready to go out.
Why'd you think she was going out?
Oh, she had her fancy wig on.
Yeah, I'd seen her wear it
in church.
[♪♪♪]
[phone ringing]
Oh.
Hey, Roe.
We just got back from Spokane.
So what did you learn from Harley?
Well, he doesn't live there anymore,
so we talked to his mom.
It was heart-breaking
to hear what Harley went through when Charity disappeared.
Well, where's Harley now?
He moved
to Vancouver, Washington, a little while ago.
But, you know, we all got a really weird vibe
about T.C. Julius from Mrs. Dimmoch.
There's definitely something off about that man.
Well, there is something strange about this whole case.
I just talked to Parnell Wilson,
and he said that Hope Julius was wearing her Sunday fancy wig
the day she disappeared.
Well, she was going out for dinner, though, right?
Right.
But if you saw a photo of her fancy wig on her dresser
the day after she disappeared,
and if they supposedly
ran off the road on the way to dinner...
Then what was that wig doing in her bedroom?
Exactly! Hey, will you double-check on that photo?
I want to ask Mrs. Totino about it.
I'm on it.
I'm not sure what you're asking me.
If you remember what wig
your daughter was wearing
when she went out to dinner that night?
Because Parnell Wilson
said he saw her wearing her fancy wig earlier that day,
but that wig was found on her dresser the next day.
I do remember her wearing her nice wig that day.
She was trying to make herself feel better.
Yeah. That's the other thing.
You said that she was feeling sick that day,
but Parnell said that he'd seen her mopping,
that she was doing better than he expected.
Well, what does he know about it?
Did he see her taking a break every two minutes to sit?
Did he see me trying to take away the mop,
talk her into going back to bed before she fell down?
No!
I'm so tired of people
who think they know things they don't know.
One woman here said she was sure they'd been abducted by aliens.
I can't take it anymore.
Just please leave.
Please leave. Please.
Hmm!
Seems even sweet old ladies
find you and your questions irritating.
Thank you for making what I have to do
even more difficult.
Why? What do you have to do?
I have to ask Mrs. Totino
for a DNA sample,
to see if there's a family match.
The towels in the closet?
Soaked in blood.
Only you
would buy a house
that turned out to be a crime scene.
Only you.
[♪♪♪]
Hi!
Hi. Sorry I'm late.
My meeting ran over.
Oh, that's okay.
My meeting just got started.
What meeting?
Well, I hope you don't mind,
but I invited
some of the Real Murders Club members
to join us for dinner.
[chuckles weakly]
Well, until I saw Lynn today
and got the confirmation of the blood,
I wondered whether T.C. was even more set against
his daughter seeing Harley Dimmoch
than any of us thought.
Maybe he moved here to separate them,
and then once Harley showed up at the house,
T.C. decided to whisk her away so Harley wouldn't find her.
It's an interesting theory.
Yes, but if what people say about T.C. Julius was true,
he'd have had no trouble scaring the kid off
if he didn't want him around.
Yeah, and the blood in the closet--
if it's the Julius family--
that would be very unlikely.
Nah. T.C. was a bad dude,
but what I'm thinkin' is
whoever that guy in the white car was--
he killed them in that new house of yours,
and took the bodies with him.
I believe the answer to this mystery
probably does lie in Spokane with the man in the white car.
Well, I'm happy to drive back up there
and spend some more time in Spokane.
What is it you'll be doing in Spokane?
Mother!
Aida.
I had no idea you were here.
So I noticed.
I was just finishing dining
with my good friend, Bubba--
And getting me to agree to sell my old place
instead of looking for a new renter.
You two know, uh, everyone here?
Oh, yes. Yes.
The little murders club.
Hey, how's Mrs. Totino doing?
She must've been really upset
to hear about the blood we found in the closet.
It was a shock.
But I think it gave her some hope
the police might come up with some answers.
You know, it's not knowing
where her loved ones are
that really tortured her the most.
Oh, yeah, I seem to have struck that nerve
when I talked to her earlier.
She didn't say anything.
No, I know the probate process has been trying on her,
but the money she'll get in the next week or so will help.
Wait. I thought she already got
the money from the sale of the house.
No. The house is just a drop in the bucket.
She gets all the life insurance,
along with everything else in the Julius estate.
Oh, I didn't know.
[♪♪♪]
I didn't know that your little murder group
was now meeting weekly, Aurora.
[chuckles]
Good night.
[overlapping] Good night, Aida.
LeMASTER: I can't go to Spokane,
but I can look into whatever business dealings
T.C. Julius might have been part of.
Maybe I'll find a lead to some kind of business partner.
PERCY: I can work the Charity angle.
I know some people who had classes with her in high school.
You okay?
What's up?
Um... Bubba just told me
that Mrs. Totino is going to get a lot of money
from the Julius estate.
Don't even suggest
that that nice old lady could possibly have k--
Oh! I couldn't live in a world
where grandmothers kill their kids and grandkids for money.
She's supposed to be small, right?
How'd she even do it?
But the bigger problem is, why make the bodies disappear
if she wanted the money?
It would be better to have them found.
She would've received the money years ago.
John? What do you think?
I think, uh...
I should try and go catch up with your mother.
Aida!
I'm glad I caught you.
Well, I'm glad you noticed me.
Eventually.
I apologize for that.
Because I don't want you to think
you are ever a second thought to me.
Or that the Real Murders Club
is more important to me than you.
Oh, please, John,
you don't have to make any grand declarations.
Yes, I do.
In fact, I was going to save this for your birthday,
but maybe a spontaneous proposal will prove
how carried away I am by you.
John Queensland, please tell me
that you're not going to propose to me
in the street.
Yes, Aida, right now, and right here,
I'm gonna get down on one knee.
Aida Teagarden...
will you marry me?
No.
[♪♪♪]
[car engine starts]
[snap]
I hope you're not put out with me
for letting everyone crash our date.
Oh, no, I was well entertained.
Well, I thought
that you would throw in a few theories
about what happened to the Julius family
but you didn't.
I gather that's how
you approach mysteries in this club.
You sit at a removed distance,
spin out theories,
then go look for evidence to prove them.
I think you just called me an armchair detective.
[laughs] No, no.
I know you have a magnificent mind for murder.
But my experience in the field
has taught me that
the mind isn't always as important as the gut.
What? CIA agents don't sit at restaurant tables
and spin theories?
No, they do.
But the good ones know
that theories can lead them in the wrong direction.
If it was me,
I'd go back to the scene.
Take it all in.
I wouldn't so much look for the answer
as I'd let it to come to me.
Well, then let's go back to the house.
Tomorrow, we'll go after work.
We'll take another look.
It'll count as another date.
Sold.
I'll meet you at your house tomorrow after work.
[Cell phone rings]
Oh, it's John.
He's probably calling to spin theories.
I'll let you get back to it.
See you tomorrow.
[ringing]
Hi, John.
You what?
You-- What? She did?
John proposed, and you said no?
Did he really tattle on me?
[scoffs] Mother.
I know you love John,
and he worships the ground you walk on.
That's no reason to get married.
Then what is?
Being able to imagine a contented life
with that person.
Now, please.
I already worry enough about my daughter
putting herself in the line of danger
with her crime-solving escapades.
I'm not going to worry about my husband, too.
[exasperated sigh]
Oh, this can't be about the Real Murders Club!
Of course it can.
You know that we help people.
I mean, we've caught bad guys,
we've kept people alive.
You and John,
you think it's all up to you,
even though we have a perfectly capable police force,
and I don't understand that.
Well, then let me explain it to you.
No, that's all right. You've explained many times.
I've made peace with the fact that you do it.
I'm even proud
that you've saved lives with your clever efforts.
Thank you! And John has--
Helped you, every time.
And he'll continue helping you.
And for that, I'm eternally grateful,
but I'm not gonna marry him.
You're going to make him choose between Real Murders and you?
I want something different, Aurora.
Is that so hard to understand?
[♪♪♪]
[Aurora yelps]
[both grunting]
MARTIN: Hey! What's going on? Who was that?
I don't know! He just grabbed me!
Are you all right?
Yeah! Yeah.
[car engine starting, car speeding off]
You all right?
Yeah.
So, you were chasing this truck,
but you didn't get a license plate number?
Sorry, my bionic eye is on the fritz today.
Roe, there are no signs of a break-in.
Are you sure that the front door was locked when you got in?
Yeah. I-I think.
I don't know.
You've had control of the house
the past few days.
MARTIN: Who cares how he got in?
The important question is,
why is he after Aurora?
Yeah, and that's exactly what I'm trying to figure out.
Was he already here when she got here?
He could've been a burglar, and he surprised him.
You see what I mean about theories
distracting you
from what's really going on?
Okay, you're assuming
that this assault was connected to whatever
may or may not have happened in that closet,
but don't even think--
I remember!
That truck was parked outside the library
when I left work today.
It was halfway in the handicapped spot,
that's why I noticed.
You're saying he's been following you?
He must be.
LYNN: But why?
And to do what? And to stop you from what?
Guess it's your job to find out.
[sighs wearily]
Roe, why do you think he was after you?
I don't-- I don't know.
I just-- I want to go home.
No, that's the last place you should go,
with somebody after you.
You need to stay somewhere safe tonight.
AURORA: All right. I'll stay with Sally.
So you think the guy who followed you
had something to do
with the disappearance of the Julius family?
I can't imagine another reason why.
[Sally sighs]
Well, what if he finds you here?
I don't have a baseball bat
or anything else I could hit him with.
You know, I told myself months ago,
that if I was gonna keep hanging out with you,
I would need to invest in a baseball bat.
[poof!]
[Gasps] Oh!
My story about the Julius family
is gonna be in the newspaper tomorrow.
What if he comes after me, too?
Oh...
Well, Martin said he'd give me self-defense classes.
You can join in.
Oh, okay. Yeah.
So who do you think tried to grab you?
The guy who killed the Julius family,
or the guy who doesn't want them to be found?
I don't know. I'm trying not to come up with theories.
You always have a theory. You're a theory-making machine.
I know, I see a question mark,
and I come up with theories,
but they're not getting me very far this time,
so I'm trying to wait for an answer.
Who are you,
and why do you look like my friend, Roe?
No! I'm serious.
None of these puzzle pieces are fitting together.
The man in the white car.
The fancy wig.
The blood in the closet.
And when I was standing in front of that closet today,
I had this feeling,
like the answer was just poking in the back of my mind.
You know, this feeling like
the bodies still had to be there.
Because, the killer,
he wouldn't just throw the bodies in the closet
and let them decompose.
Ew! Roe!
Where could you hide bodies?
[Phone rings and Sally yelps]
[laughs] It's Martin.
He said he'd call to check on me.
Hi, Martin.
No, I'm fine,
but I'm not so sure about Sally.
Okay, thanks, Ellie. I appreciate it.
I thought you were going to help Aurora.
Really protect her.
What happened? Is she all right?
That was Ellie from the police station.
She just asked me how Aurora's feeling after being assaulted.
Someone attacked her? I'm gonna call her right now.
No, no, no, she obviously doesn't want me to know.
Now can you understand why
I can't possible marry someone
who encourages these activities?
It's way too dangerous for you, for her, for me.
Are you saying
that if I wasn't part of the Real Murders club,
you'd reconsider my proposal?
Are you saying that if I asked you to quit, you'd quit?
[♪♪♪]
I have your final documents for your house,
but what I really want to talk about is that--
Oh, how is John doing?
Is he still broken-hearted?
John's fine, but I'm not.
I got a call from Ellie down at the police station,
and she told me that you were attacked
yesterday at your house,
and I said, "Oh, no that can't possibly be true,
"because if it were,
I would've been the first to know."
So, is it true?
Oh, so what's this?
It's a transfer tax declaration.
Don't change the subject!
Mother, I don't want to upset you,
or give you any more reason
not to marry the man I know that you love,
so please, let me change the subject.
Someone tried to hurt you?
Well, I don't know what he was trying to do.
Maybe just scare me,
but I'd rather not
give him the satisfaction.
So what's this?
It's a roof-inspection waiver.
What? I waived my roof inspection?
Well, there's no need for one.
T.C. Julius had a new roof put on
right before they moved in.
So no one's been on the roof since the family disappeared?
[♪♪♪]
[frustrated sigh]
You had me pulled from a meeting
so I could hold a ladder for you?
No! Because you made me promise
that I wouldn't come back to the house without you.
Are you coming up?
You gotta be kidding.
I don't see anything.
Well, if you're gonna spin theories,
this is a good one.
Bodies on a roof!
No.
This was not a theory.
This was a gut reaction,
a feeling that things aren't adding up.
[♪♪♪]
Wait a minute.
There's one dormer up in the back of the house.
Yep. Two on the front. So?
Exactly!
Bubba Rankart said the original owner
was obsessed with symmetry.
She wouldn't have put just one dormer in the back.
[♪♪♪]
[gasping and shrieking]
I think I just found the Julius family.
[♪♪♪]
[police radio crackling indistinctly]
Okay, so this brilliant idea to look up on the roof--
where did it come from?
Just a feeling
that if the family had been killed
in the closet,
the bodies would've been hidden nearby somewhere,
and then when I saw that the roof hadn't been inspected
when I bought the place,
I figured it was worth a shot.
You know, I was in charge
of this search four years ago.
It never even occurred to me to look on the roof.
Well, I only thought to go up to that dormer,
because Bubba had told me
of Mrs. Zinser's design sensibilities.
I mean, you can't access it from the attic,
it's a faux.
[sighs heavily]
Great. Now I get to go and tell Captain Burns
that I missed three bodies.
Three.
Detective Smith?
A word, please. Now!
Would you both mind sticking around?
We need to get a detailed statement.
Hey, Roe!
Hey, Martin.
Macon sent me over to cover the story.
You guys found the bodies of the Julius family
on the roof?
Well, one of the bodies
had a wig,
so I think it's Hope Julius.
Sneaky spot to hide some bodies,
I got to say that.
Yeah, but who would...
Why would they--?
I think it's time
for some good old-fashioned
theory spinning.
I talked to the girl
who sat next to Charity in English.
She said that all Charity talked about
was how she planned on marrying her boyfriend
the minute she graduated,
and her father would never see her again.
I think we should consider
Harley Dimmoch a suspect.
Mm. If it was just T.C. Julius that had been murdered, maybe,
but he wouldn't kill Charity.
He was a frustrated young man,
and young men tend to lose their tempers.
Yeah, you never know when we'll pop a gasket.
If you'd talked to Harley's mother,
you'd know how devastated he was
when the family disappeared.
Could've been a guilty conscience.
SALLY: I still think the answer lies in Spokane.
The man in the white car.
Yeah, wasn't John supposed to be the one going back there
and asking around, anyway? Where is he?
I don't know. I'll find out.
You know, we're all so sure
that the man in the white car is from Spokane,
but that was just Mrs. Totino's assumption.
I mean, it doesn't mean that it's true.
I hadn't considered that.
Well, still, it seems to me
you'd have to go back to Spokane to know for sure.
Yeah, maybe I should go back to talk to Mrs. Totino.
[sighs]
Poor Mrs. Totino.
I wonder how she took the news that her family's been found.
SALLY: Hi, John?
Is that you?
[Whispers] Why are you whispering?
John: [hushed] Because I'm with Aida.
No, I can't go to Spokane right now.
Maybe in another day or two.
Well, what's Roe's latest theory?
[gasps]
[Whispers] Who are you talking to?
Sally.
[♪♪♪]
According to Lynn,
they're not gonna get the DNA results back
for another week on the skeletons
or the blood in the closet.
So I thought that I would go back up to Spokane,
see if I can find out some information
about the man in the white car.
Are the police looking
for this so-called man in the white car?
Well, they did look for him four years ago.
I don't know if they're looking for him now.
So why are you wasting your time there,
when you know the police hit a dead end years ago?
Oh, because I was talking to Roe Teagarden,
and some others,
and we thought that it would be--
Some others?
As in the true-crime addicts from the Real Murders Club?
As a matter of fact...
Sally.
I respect pro-active thinking.
But we report the news,
and we get news about crimes from the police department,
not from the minutes from your club meetings.
Okay. Go and talk to Detective Liggett Smith.
If she says they're taking their investigation to Spokane,
then you can go to Spokane.
Okay.
[♪♪♪]
Bubba! Hi!
I was just going to talk to Mrs. Totino.
I wanted to offer my condolences.
Uh, yeah, well, she's not there.
What?
The innkeeper said she packed up her things
and left, middle of the night.
Oh. Did you know she was leaving?
No.
We had an appointment for her to sign some papers,
and she never called to cancel.
I guess the discovery of those bodies
must have hit her pretty hard.
Yeah. Must have.
Well...
guess I better FedEx these to her in Portland.
It's good to see you, Roe.
Hey, uh--
-Bubba? -Yeah?
Do you mind sending me her address in Portland?
I want to send her a card.
Yeah, you bet. I'll text it to you later.
-Okay. -See ya.
[Knocking at door]
Martin! Hi.
Hi. I got your message.
What's this about you going out of town?
I'm going to Portland to find Melba Totino.
Mm-hmm. Well, not alone, you're not.
I'm coming with you.
[♪♪♪]
So, Mrs. Totino lives here with her sister?
Alicia.
Yeah, this is the address Bubba gave me.
Wonder which one of them rides the bike?
Oh, well, my guess is Alicia probably has a grandchild.
[Knocking]
Oh, hi. My name's Aurora.
Young man, how many times have I told you,
don't open the door to strangers!
Can I help you?
Yes. We're looking for Melba Totino?
Who?
Oh, I'm sorry.
We were given this address for Melba Totino
or her sister Alicia Minault?
Alicia. Uh, yeah. This is her house.
I rent it from her.
But Alicia and her sister don't live here?
No.
Alicia gets her mail here,
and I guess I've seen some come
for someone named Totino, too.
But my son and I,
we're the only ones who live here.
Did you just move in?
No, we've lived here almost four years.
Oh, that's right when the Julius family disappeared.
Ma'am, do you know where
we might find Alicia or her sister?
Uh...
I have no idea.
I never see Alicia.
Everything gets taken care of by Drew,
her handyman.
He comes by once a week to grab the mail
and fix stuff.
I don't like him. He yells at my son.
How do you get in touch with him?
I call him. Do you want his number?
AURORA: Yes! That would be fantastic.
Might not be such a good idea to call him.
It'd be too easy to hang up
on someone asking too many questions.
We might have more luck face-to-face.
[♪♪♪]
Ma'am?
I'd like to help your faucet spring a leak
so you have to call Drew to come and fix it.
What would make that worth your trouble?
[chuckles]
You don't have to pay me.
I would be happy
to cause that man to go out of his way.
I mean, honestly, he yells at children.
[♪♪♪]
So we just park down the street
and wait for him to come?
Oh, but Miss Teagarden,
there is so much more to a stakeout than just that.
Oh, really?
They have stakeout classes
in spy school, do they?
Of course!
Stakeout strategy's a big part of the curriculum.
Oh, really?
Well, then please, teach me everything you know.
This is called "scrunching."
It's a basic stakeout technique.
What do you think?
Mm. I don't know.
It's pretty advanced.
It was developed by
high-level operatives in the field,
to help the stake-er
avoid being seen by the stake-ee.
Mm, except I think
there's a glitch in your technique,
because now I can't see the stake-ee either.
Well, that can be helped
by the second technique.
It's called... neck-stretching.
[laughing]
[joins in laughter]
Man, the truth is, stakeouts are boring,
and a big reason why I switched careers.
Oh, I am anything but bored.
Thank you for coming with me.
And for passing along all your spy wisdom.
Oh, you mean all my little
lessons learned from time in the field?
Well, you helped me
look at this mystery from a different angle.
I'm glad I was able to add to
your already-impressive sleuthing skills.
Yeah, but you also gave me a sore neck
from all that scrunching.
[playfully] Oh, no!
Oh!
That's the green-and-white truck!
That's the truck that followed me
from the library to the house.
Yeah. It sure is.
Boy, that truck gets around.
We're 200 miles from Lawrenceton.
That must be the guy who grabbed me.
Yep. And I'm gonna go knock him out.
No! Wait! Wait, wait.
I know him. Um...
I've seen his picture. Sally showed me.
That's Harley Dimmoch!
That's Charity's boyfriend.
[♪♪♪]
Harley Dimmoch attacked me?
Why?
I'm gonna go ask him.
No!
We have to think about this.
Okay. If Harley is working for Alicia,
Mrs. Totino's sister,
then does that mean
that Harley killed the Julius family
and convinced Mrs. Totino to stay quiet
for the money she'd inherit?
Maybe Mrs. Totino agreed
to split the money with her sister.
But why would Harley kill Charity,
the woman he loved?
Roe, you're spinning theories again.
You're right.
We don't need theories. We need answers.
Okay.
We need to wait for him to leave again,
and then follow him.
Yes, ma'am.
[♪♪♪]
Oh! Detective Smith! Do you have a minute?
No.
Okay, Lynn. I know you have a job to do,
but so do I,
and Macon wants to run an update on this case
each and every day.
Your problem, not mine.
Well, I think keeping the public of informed
of your progress on this case
is your problem, too.
And as soon as I get progress, I will let you know.
Okay. Lynn...
can you just tell me if you're planning
on going to Spokane to look for the guy in the white car?
Call me crazy,
but our first step is to confirm the identity of the bodies,
then, mm, I don't know, come up with a cause of death.
When I quote you, how should I describe your tone?
[sighs]
Call it frustrated.
Off the record?
This case has been a bitter pill to swallow,
because I know it might have been solved years ago
if I had only been more thorough.
I just-- I'm not used to second-guessing myself, and...
it's humbling.
I can't believe I'm telling you this.
Neither can I.
If you put one word of this in print--
ARTHUR: Lynn!
Captain Burns needs to talk to you right away.
The coroner just called.
[sighs]
[♪♪♪]
BURNS: This case is getting bigger by the minute.
LYNN: Well, this definitely puts everything into question.
Nice try, Sally.
You know, I gotta say
you are turning into a true dogged reporter.
Really? You think so?
Oh, yeah, absolutely.
I mean, your editor's gonna be very proud.
Why, thanks, Arthur!
Goodbye, Sally.
John, it's Sally.
I'm at the police station,
and the coroner just dropped a bomb on them,
but I couldn't find out what it was, so what do I do?
What would Roe do?
Roe would go talk to the coroner.
LeMaster plays golf with him every week.
I'll call him,
and we'll meet you at the coroner's office.
The coroner's office?
I thought you were gonna give all that up?
Aida, I love you,
but I don't think I'll ever be able
to resist the call of solving a mystery.
[♪♪♪]
[sighing]
Sally told me that Harley lives
in Vancouver, Washington,
right across the river from Portland.
That should've been a red flag for me,
seeing how close he lives to Mrs. Totino.
MARTIN: Or where you thought she lived.
AURORA: Well, right.
I mean, we still don't know where she is.
Well, if you're not gonna let me
beat it out of the guy,
we should call the police.
They'll haul him in and make him talk.
Yeah, that might be our best option.
Okay, but should I call the local police,
or should I call Lynn?
Oh. Here he comes again.
Let's see where he goes.
Wait, wait.
Just leave me here.
Why would I do that?
Because I want to look around.
I want see if I can find anything that tells me
where Mrs. Totino or her sister are.
Roe, I'm not leaving you here--
Yeah, but if you stay on Harley's tail,
then I'll be safe.
Plus,
you can beat him up without me stopping you.
Tempting, but--
Look! He's leaving! Go.
Follow him. You don't want to lose him.
You tricky little--
[truck rumbling]
Ted! We were just coming to see you. How're you doing?
Oh, LeMaster. Good to see you.
I'm busier than normal, and a little boggled.
Well, that's why we're here.
You remember John from the golf course?
Oh, sure, hello, John.
Ted, nice to see you again.
And this is my friend, Sally Allison,
from the paper.
Ah, Miss Allison.
Hi. I think I've interviewed you for a story before.
Mm-hmm.
Sally was just at the police station,
and heard you'd made a surprising discovery.
Oh, they've released that information already?
Uh, yes. Detective Liggett Smith said
that your findings would change everything.
Ah. A third of everything, anyway.
Well, the first two skeletons,
they were definitely
that of a middle-aged man and woman,
consistent with T.C. and Hope Julius.
And the third skeleton?
It wasn't at all what we thought it would be.
The third skeleton...
well, it didn't belong to a young woman,
as we expected.
It belonged to an elderly woman.
That doesn't make any sense.
No, it doesn't to us, either.
I'm on the my way down to the morgue now.
I've gotta come up with a plan on how to identify this woman.
Okay, well, thanks for your time, Ted.
Thank you!
[♪♪♪]
Oh, no, it can't be.
What do you want?
You're Charity Julius, aren't you?
I have no idea what you're talking about.
No, wait, no.
I know you're her. I know you're Charity.
I've seen your picture,
but you're supposedly dead.
You are crazy.
No! No--
-Oh! -[slam]
Hey!
Charity!
Open the door!
You shouldn't have come here.
You'll ruin everything.
Charity!
Charity! Open the door!
[♪♪♪]
Now, who are you?
Alicia Minault
or Melba Totino?
[click]
Charity, come on!
[Aurora pounding]
[lock engages]
My phone! I don't have my phone.
Hey, Charity?
Do you know how excited
everyone in Lawrenceton's
gonna be to find out that you're still alive?
Shut up! I hate Lawrenceton!
Well, everybody's so worried about you.
I said, shut up!
I'll see you later at your house.
"River Taxi"...
[phone ringing]
Harley?
You have to get back here now.
Someone came to the door and recognized me.
Yeah, I locked her in the closet.
[♪♪♪]
Oh, that's not good.
[starts engine]
I don't know what to think.
If the third body isn't Charity Julius,
then who?
Elderly woman...
Maybe we should do
a little searching on Melba Totino?
Couldn't hurt.
[keys clacking]
"Alicia Minault, left, and Melba Totino, right,
"show off their third-
"and first-place ribbons from the Tigard Garden Festival.
"The sisters often
compete with each other in the flower-show circuit."
That's not Mrs. Totino on the right.
She's on the left.
Unless the woman we know as Mrs. Totino
is really her sister?
Well, what happened to this sister?
Oh...
[♪♪♪]
[footsteps]
She's still in there.
HARLEY: Who is it?
I don't know, some lady.
[cocks hammer]
[♪♪♪]
[thud]
[both grunting]
Don't move!
Oh, no.
It's the lady that bought your house,
the one Alicia sent me to get rid of.
Alicia?
[♪♪♪]
What are you waiting for? Just shoot her.
Just make sure you don't shoot
the CIA agent standing outside your front door.
What CIA agent?
The one who told me where to find you.
No. She's lying.
Go and see.
Look out the window.
Charity, look.
Did you see any CIA people when you drove up?
No. There aren't any CIA people out there.
[crashing]
[thud]
[♪♪♪]
Oh, I knew you'd be there.
Thank you for being there.
Well, we know this is Harley Dimmoch.
Who's this?
That is Charity Julius.
If Harley tries to tell you this was all my idea,
don't you believe him.
He was the one
who got into a fight with my dad
and hit him over the head with a hammer,
and then when my mom came to see
what the yelling was about--
He panicked
and hit her, too?
Right there
in the closet Harley was helping your Dad build.
Who told you that?
Was it my Aunt Alicia?
Well, I bet she didn't tell you
that it was her idea to kill my grandmother, did she?
And pretend to be her
so you could all could get the money?
And then make up a story
about a man in a white car coming to get you to dinner?
No, she didn't tell me that. You just did.
All three of them were dead before Parnell
came over to pour concrete, weren't they?
And you put on your mother's wig in the kitchen
so he would think that you were her.
She was gonna die anyway.
That's what Alicia said.
It made me feel better for awhile.
[♪♪♪]
AURORA: Hey, Lynn.
You might want to think about driving down to Portland.
Well, it just so happens, I'm already in Portland.
Oh, let me guess.
You found out
that one of the bodies is not a teenaged girl,
but an older woman?
And you know this how?
Let me give you
an address nearby,
and I will tell you everything.
[Sighing]
[Police radios crackling]
Thanks for calling us, Roe!
I'm glad there's some resolution to this story,
even if it's an awful one.
Yeah, family members turning on each other.
Terrible decisions
made in the heat of the moment.
Yeah, and money makes it even worse.
LYNN: I just spoke with the taxi company,
and we have several officers tracking Alicia Minault down--
-...Right now. -Do you mean--
...the River Taxi company?
Oh, no. Keep going! Keep going!
Stop that cab!
All right. Let's go.
Can you guys get your cameras and take some pictures?
Yeah. Yeah, sure.
[cuffs clicking]
Alicia Minault, you are under arrest.
You have the right to remain silent,
anything you say can and will be used
against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney--
This is all your doing.
I should have never sold you that house.
If you cannot afford an attorney,
one will be provided for you.
There you go.
[door shuts]
Well, you did foil their plot,
with your sheer dogged determination
to get to the truth.
Well, I did have
this amazing spy-school teacher
who helped quite a bit.
I'm worried I might have a crush on him, though.
Oh, do you, now?
I guess we'll have to discuss that
when we get back home then, won't we?
Mm. I guess we will.
[radio crackling]
I think that we're gonna be very happy here.
"We're"?
I'm!
I said "I'm," didn't I?
No, you didn't, actually.
Oh, I must have misspoken then.
My dear Miss Teagarden,
you don't ever misspeak.
Well, then, have I told you
how glad I am
that you don't make me choose between what I love to do
and who I love?
Oh, your mom and John will be fine,
they'll work things out,
even if they don't get married right now.
I hope so.
Wait, did you just say you love me?
You don't miss a thing, do you?
Not when it comes to the girl that I love.
I just remembered.
Remembered what?
The rule that states
anytime the word "love" is used,
the date counts as double.
We have hit 25 dates.
Then that makes us official.
[♪♪♪]