1.11 "Silence of the Lamb"
Aired Jan 04, 2005
Details
[Note: This episode was originally scheduled to air before "An Echolls Family Christmas," but was postponed a week because that Christmas-themed episode had to air before Christmas.]
Mars kitchen: Veronica greets Keith, who doesn't respond. He frowns as he reads a newspaper. He shows Veronica the headline which reads, "E-String Strangler Strikes Again." He explains that a twenty-year-old female washed up dead on the beach. Veronica recalls the original case. She says she thought they caught the guy in Oakland, two years ago. Keith bitterly says that everyone wanted to believe that the Oakland Strangler was responsible for the Neptune crimes. Some things didn't quite fit, but the Neptune mayor and Chamber of Commerce wanted to put it all behind them.
school: Wallace and Veronica talk about how people are freaking out about the killer. An 09er, Jackson Douglas, comes over to ask Veronica to dig up dirt on his overly strict parents. He says he will pay her. They are interrupted by a string quartet playing the Beatles's version of "Birthday" for Madison Sinclair. Madison blabbers about how she loves her parents while she hands out invitations to her birthday party. She gasps in spoiled-child delight when a waiter brings out a birthday cake and and she blows out the candles.
Mars Investigations office: Veronica is looking up info on Jackson's parents. Sheriff Lamb and the mayor walk in and ask to talk to Keith. Veronica informs Keith of his visitors and ushers them into his office. She closes the door behind them and waits at her desk. After some time, the mayor and Lamb come out. The mayor thanks Keith, who says he'll see Lamb tomorrow. The two men leave. Veronica asks what tomorrow is. Keith replies that it's the day he goes back to work at the sheriff's department. Veronica is stunned.
Opening Credits
Mars Investigations office: Keith tells Veronica the mayor hired him back temporarily, to work on the E-String Strangler case. Keith says he is the closest thing they have to an authority on the case, and it's a priority for the mayor. He has to work with Lamb. Veronica is excited, telling Keith that now he'll have access to the Lilly Kane files. He will be able to get the Crime Stoppers Hotline recording so that they can find out who the anonymous tipster was who fingered Abel Koontz. Veronica is disappointed when Keith refuses.
girl's room: Veronica gives Jackson the dirt on his parents. Jackson is amazed and grateful.
lunch outside: Another 09er, Crystal, approaches Veronica. She too is looking for dirt on her parents.
sheriff's department: Keith is giving info on the case to the deputies. Lamb interrupts several times, making stupid or obvious statements. Keith shows remarkable restraint in dealing with Lamb. The two previous victims were attractive undergrads on break. They were found with high levels of alcohol in their blood and abducted on Friday nights. Their bodies were found in the bay with single nickel-plated guitar string tied around their necks. The latest victim, Amy Polk, was found in the same way. A deputy, later named as Leo, asks if the girls were strangled. Keith replies that they were asphyxiated; the guitar string is just the killer's mark. The girls seem to have been contained in a small been space for 48 hours, leading to suffocation. Keith says the weekend killings suggest the killer has a day job. Lamb says that a crime lab is trying to decipher a phone number written on Amy Polk's hand.
girl's room: Veronica gives dirt to Crystal and later, to another 09er, Jasmine. Mac overhears this last exchange while washing her hands.
Mars Investigations office: Mac comes in with a business proposition for Veronica: she wants to partner up with her to create a website where they charge kids to get dirt on their parents. Veronica says she is swamped but will think about it. Mac also wants Veronica to look up info on her parents. She says they don't understand her and are very different from her. She offers to pay, but Veronica isn't interested in money from Mac. Veronica looks up info on Sam and Natalie Mackenzie. She comments that Mac just had a birthday a couple days ago. Mac says that means in one year she can leave home. Veronica sees only one unusual thing: the Mackenzies won a million-dollar lawsuit from the local hospital in 1992. Mac asks Veronica to look into this.
library: Veronica is looking up old newspaper articles on microfilm, trying to connect the settlement to something. She's just about to give up when she discovers an article on a baby-swapping case. The hospital settled the case after five years, for $1 million per family. Both sets of parents agreed to keep their non-biological children.
Evermore Guitars: A band is playing loudly in the back of a guitar store. Keith and Lamb try to find someone to talk to. A guitarist comes to talk to them. He isn't very helpful until Keith tells him this can be done here or at the sheriff's department. The guitarist, Gabe, goes to the entrance to the room where the band is and slides the glass door shut. The noise is muted. Keith asks him about the guitar string that was found on Amy's neck. It is in a plastic bag and Gabe takes it, examining it carefully. After some sarcasm about how it's a very special string, he tells Keith and Lamb that it's a normal string, like every other guitar string. They leave, after Lamb and Gabe exchange insults.
Mackenzie home: Veronica comes over to talk to Mac. Mac's very blonde brother is being a typical, pesky little brother. Mac's very blonde mom enters Mac's room with food for her and Veronica, then leaves. Veronica tells Mac that what she discovered is "life-altering big" and that she suggests forgetting it and moving on with her life. Mac, however, insists on finding out. She asks if she's adopted. Veronica tells her that she was sent home from the hospital with the wrong parents. Mac is stunned. However, there is more. Another family was also awarded $1 million dollars. The family had a baby girl, born a day later, and she went home with Mac's biological parents. Mac starts to process this, puts two and two together, and realizes that she was switched at birth with Madison Sinclair.
sheriff department's interrogation room: Keith and Lamb are interrogating the bartender of the bar Body Shots, where Amy Polk was last seen. Keith shows the bartender, Vic, a picture of Amy Polk. Vic says he can't tell the girls apart anymore. He swears. Keith asks him to tone down on the language. Vic isn't very apologetic and puts his feet up on the table. He sees Veronica through the window and comments that he would have remembered her. Keith turns and sees Veronica holding up a bag lunch for him. He says that's his daughter. Vic makes a nasty remark, and Keith knocks Vic and his chair over.
sheriff's office: Veronica approaches the front desk where the new deputy is sitting. She introduces herself and says she's Keith Mars's daughter. He introduces himself as Leo. She drops off food for her dad, they flirt, and he invites her to come back to visit him. She agrees and as she walks away, says in her VO that Leo might as well have handed her a map and a key.
interrogation room: Keith and Lamb are still interrogating the bartender who suggests they talk to the Worm, a guy who tapes videotapes girls and sells the tapes to "Girls Gone Bad."
The Worm's place: Keith and Lamb show up and are about to knock on the door when they hear a porno tape. Keith knocks, and the noise ceases. The Worm, also known as Eddie LaRoche, answers the door looking scraggly and unkempt. Keith and Lamb show him a picture of Amy Polk, asking if he recognizes her. Eddie denies having seen her. Lamb peers into Eddie's room and sees several stacks of videotapes and a guitar. Lamb and Keith leave. Lamb is angry with Keith for not arresting Eddie right then, since the guitar was in plain site. Keith explains that he didn't want to scare Eddie. If so, he might destroy the tapes before they could come back with a warrant.
school outside: Mac has an 09er party flier and asks Veronica if she wants to crash a party with her. Veronica thinks this is a very bad idea. Mac says it's her chance to see how the other half lives, especially since she should have been the other half.
Sinclair home: Veronica, Mac, and Wallace crash the party. Madison is surprised and not happy to see them there. Wallace stays and distracts Madison. Another 09er, Bud, wants Veronica to dig up dirt on his parents. Veronica tells him to find her on Monday. In the meantime, Mac has wandered off. She looks around and sees several pictures of the Sinclair family's world travels.
Sinclair library: Mac enters the library and sees a little girl, Lauren, who looks an awful lot like Mac. Lauren tells her she's Madison's sister. Mac sits next to her, and they discuss the book Lauren is reading that they both love, The Westing Game. Madison comes in, followed by Veronica. Madison tells Mac to leave because she doesn't belong there. Mac starts to tell her otherwise, but Veronica interrupts her and pulls her away. They leave.
Veronica's car: Veronica and Mac are sitting in Veronica's car in front of Mac's home. Veronica's VO says she could say she understands, but she doesn't. When she had the option of learning the truth about her own paternity, she chose ignorance. Mac is bitter about not living with her real family and not knowing her biological sister. She asks Veronica to keep researching what happened to the million dollars that her parents won from the lawsuit.
sheriff department's parking lot: Keith tells Lamb that the "Girls Gone Bad" producers have never heard of Eddie LaRoche. They split the tapes between them to see if the victims appear on them. Leo comes over to them and tells them the strings used on the victims match those of Eddie LaRoche's guitar.
sheriff's office: Veronica enters with pizza. She says she's shameless in her VO but whenever she feels guilty, she thinks of Lilly and remembers her mission. She greets Leo cheerfully. They flirt quite a bit while eating the pizza. After a while, Weevil comes in and starts complaining to Leo about the noise level in his neighborhood. This adequately distracts Leo so Veronica can find the key to the Evidence Room and get the Crime Stoppers Hotline CD. She quietly sits back at Leo's desk. Weevil, noticing this, wraps up his conversation with Leo and leaves. Leo apologizes. Later, Leo is surprised to learn that Veronica is only 17. Leo is 20 himself. They continue to talk and flirt, and Leo tells her that he's in a band.
Veronica's bedroom: Veronica listens to the Crime Stoppers Hotline CD using earphones. She gets more and more frustrated while listening to the calls, most of which are ridiculous or pointless. Finally, she hears a distorted voice saying that Abel Koontz killed the Kane girl and that he lives on a houseboat on the marina.
Mars home: Keith pauses the tape when he sees Amy Polk on one of Eddie's videos.
sheriff's office: Keith tells Lamb to arrest Eddie. Lamb says he already has him in the interrogation room, since another victim was on one of the tapes Lamb watched.
interrogation room: Lamb tries to get Eddie to confess to killing the girls. Keith asks him why he lied about knowing Amy. Eddie says there have been so many girls. He wants to go home. Lamb hands him a pad of paper and a pen and tells him to start writing. Keith asks Lamb if he can talk to him outside.
sheriff's office: Keith says they only have circumstantial evidence on Eddie and that he obviously has some mental problems. Lamb isn't worried, but Keith says he doesn't think Eddie is their guy. He has nowhere to hide the girls, since the walls of his apartment are too thin and he doesn't own any other property. Lamb sees that Eddie is writing, so he tells Keith he'll handle it from there and that they'll send Keith a check.
interrogation room: Lamb reads Eddie's confession. He wrote, "I want a lawyer."
Mars Investigations office: Veronica tells Mac she just emailed her a sound file. She says the voice has been digitally altered and wants to know if Mac could strip it down. Mac says she'll try. She also tells Mac that the million dollars from the lawsuit was used to start a business that went bankrupt after two years. It was bought out and her dad is a salesman there now.
Mac's car: Mac in her car, on the phone with Veronica, promises she won't do anything stupid.
Sinclair home: Mac gets out her car, walks up to the front door of the Sinclair home, and rings the doorbell. Mrs. Sinclair answers. She also looks a lot like Mac. The two of them stare at each other for a moment. Mac says she thinks she left her purse there during Madison's party. Mrs. Sinclair invites her in. Lauren says hi to Mac and Mrs. Sinclair sends Lauren to get Mac's purse from the library. Mrs. Sinclair and Mac make small talk until they are interrupted by Madison, who is very rude to Mac. Lauren returns with Mac's purse. Mrs. Sinclair still tries to talk to Mac, but she suddenly decides to leave. Mrs. Sinclair stares after her.
sheriff's office: A woman comes in, very distraught. Her daughter didn't come home after going out the previous night, and she's sure the killer has her. Keith is still there. Later, Keith is unpacking his things. He tells Lamb he's staying on the case, since another girl is missing. Deputy Sacks comes in and tells them that the number on Amy Polk's hand was traced Vic Sciaraffa, the bartender at Body Shots. Two deputies have already been to his apartment, but Vic isn't there and his car is gone as well. Everyone leaves except Keith. He calls Veronica's cell phone, but doesn't get a response. He leaves a message saying he needs to know where she is.
Keith's car: Keith leaves another message for Veronica, telling her he's tracking her phone and for her to call him as soon as she gets the message.
warehouse-type place: Keith approaches the building and can hear music playing. He bangs on the door, but there is no response. He goes to another door and kicks it in, entering with his gun drawn. The guitarists stop, surprised. Leo, as the drummer, is also surprised. Veronica introduces them to her dad. Keith asks her if she's okay. She replies that she is, although embarrassed. He tells her that another girl is missing. The killer is probably still on the loose and he might be someone who likes her and doesn't like him. It dawns on him that Leo is there, and he is surprised that they know each other. Veronica sheepishly asks if she forgot to mention that. However, Keith ignores that when he sees some padding on the walls. He asks Leo if they did that themselves. Leo says yes, since they were getting noise complaints. Keith asks the guitarist to follow Veronica back to the sheriff's department. Keith asks Leo if he has his gun, which he does. They leave.
Evermore Guitars: Keith radios in say that he and Deputy D'Amato are checking out the guitar shop. He reads the sign that says the store is closed on Saturday and Sunday. While looking for a way in, he finds a wrist band from Body Shots on the ground. Keith grabs a crowbar from his trunk and tells Leo to stay there and keep watch. He breaks into the store, then into the back room where the band was playing before. It is very dark and as he searches for a light, he turns on a color disco ball. He also bangs into a drum set which causes a cymbal to crash. A girl yells for help. Keith sees what looks like a safe, and uses the crowbar to break the padlock off. He opens the door, and the girl falls out but then screams. Gabe is about to crush Keith's head with a weapon, when Leo tackles him. Gabe and Leo wrestle, with Gabe getting the better of Leo. He starts to choke Leo, but stops when he hears Keith cock his gun and say he'll shoot him if he doesn't stop.
sheriff's office: Leo is packing up his things. Veronica thanks him for saving her dad's life. Veronica notices what he's doing and asks if everything is okay. He tells her that he got suspended because the Evidence Room was left unlocked during his shift the other night. Someone must have snuck off with the key. He looks at her and asks if she knows anything about that. She doesn't answer but looks guilty. He says he was warned and leaves. Veronica's VO says that she fell for him but got what she deserves. Mac calls. She decoded the file and asks Veronica to come over early the next morning to listen to it.
Mackenzie home: While her family gets ready for their biannual camping trip, Mac plays the recording for Veronica at three different speeds. On the third try, Veronica claims she knows who it is.
outside the Mackenzie home: The Mackenzies are just about ready to leave. Mac sees Mrs. Sinclair in a car across the street. She goes over to it. Without words, they gaze regretfully at each other. Mac puts her hand against the car window and Mrs. Sinclair does the same on the other side. Mrs. Mackenzie asks Mac what she is doing and Mrs. Sinclair drives away. Mac smiles, asks where they're going this year, and gets into the camper with her family.
Mars Investigations office: Veronica puts a telephoto lens on her camera. Her VO says that she knows this may not be the smartest thing to do, but she wants him to know what it feels like.
office: A secretary gives a brown envelope to her boss. The envelope contains several photos of the man, including one with Jake Kane. The man tells his secretary that he wants her to find out who paid for the package to be sent, today. He then goes his office. The door is labeled, "Kane Security: Clarence Wiedman." Veronica's VO says, "You send target photos of me to my mom. You call in the Abel Koontz tip. Two words for you, Clarence Wiedman: game on."
Closing Credits