ACT THREE

FADE IN:

EXT. LAS VEGAS (STOCK)

To establish.

INT. CASINO - NIGHT

A private poker table is roped off and who's playing draws a crowd: two poker pros, a millionaire, and three actors including the sweetheart of Hollywood, JONATHAN Massie. At the moment only Jonathan, another actor, and one of the pros are still in the game.

In person Jonathan Massie is a tall, fit man. He wears a long sleeve shirt and a jacket with the collar up. His skin has slight imperfections, but under the dim light of the table, it's hard to tell why.

Behind Jonathan the CASINO MANAGER approaches Jonathan's manager, Gabriel GAVESTON. Nick trails behind the casino manager as he watches the game.

CASINO MANAGER
This is Nick Stokes of the Las Vegas Crime Lab.
He asked to speak to you and Jonathan Massie.

GAVESTON
Is there something wrong?

NICK
I just need a few minutes to speak with
Jonathan Massie.

At the table Jonathan raises his bet, pushing the last of his chips in.

GAVESTON
About what?

Nick turns his attention to Gaveston.

NICK
I'm investigating the disappearance of a woman that he may know something about. And I need to ask him about his pets.

GAVESTON
His pets?

Someone calls and the players reveal their hands. Jonathan has lost, but he's a good sport about it.

JONATHAN
Good game. Thank you.

GAVESTON
He's busy now. You'll have to schedule an appointment.

Jonathan starts walking toward them, pausing to sign autographs. He notices Nick, but he's focused on his fans. Nick is in no hurry either.

NICK
This will only take a few minutes.

Jonathan reaches them.

JONATHAN
Police?

He motions at Nick's badge.

NICK
I'm Nick Stokes, from the Crime Lab. I was
hoping you could help me by answering a
few questions.

GAVESTON
Jon, you should wait for Lehman to be here.
Don't talk to him without him here.

JONATHAN
It's just a few questions. No harm in that.

NICK
The manager said we could use the VIP lounge.

He notices a group of teenagers come up behind Jonathan. One of them is a stocky TEENAGE GIRL who is giddy to be in the presence of her idol.

TEENAGE GIRL
Excuse me, Mister Massie. Can you sign these for us?

He turns and takes the stocky teenager girl's book and pen first. He smiles at her, almost flirts. Jonathan closes it and hands it back. Nick notices something is wrong with Jonathan's hands.

CSI POV

Signs of scabie tunnels run across his skin.

BACK TO SCENE

Nick doesn't make the connection yet.

Jonathan moves quickly through the other autographs and then the men walk toward the VIP lounge.

NICK
Did you attend the premiere and backstage
party of the Sweetheart Diaries?

JONATHAN
It was my movie, of course. Is this about that
missing woman again? I answered questions
about her already.

Jonathan stops to sign more autographs. Nick's attention is again drawn to Jonathan's hands and the marks on them.

INT. SUNRISE HOSPITAL - ICU 4 - NIGHT (RE-ENACTMENT)

Finished swabbing the inside of Natalie's cheek, Nick caps the plastic cover. He smiles at her.

NICK
Now the fingerprints. It won't hurt, I
promise.

Nick pulls out an inkpad and ten card. He picks up one of her fingers and notices marks and tracks across her skin -- signs of scabie tunnels.

BACK TO SCENE

He focuses on Jonathan, looking for more clues.

Jonathan stops to talk to a large woman, almost flirting with her. The three finally make it to the VIP lounge and Nick is the last to sit down at a table with the men.

NICK (CONT'D)
I noticed you have scabies. Must be why you
haven't put out any films for a while.

He motions to Jonathan's hands.

JONATHAN
Yeah, it is. I was on a shoot in England and
apparently there was an outbreak in this little
hamlet we were in. Been fighting them ever
since.

NICK
When was that?

JONATHAN
Not long ago.

NICK
How long ago?

JONATHAN
I don't recall.

NICK
You don't recall when you filmed a movie in
England? Must have been a really bad movie.

Jonathan smiles. He's about to shut Nick down -- he thinks.

JONATHAN
Perhaps I need to call my lawyer down here.

The CSI shrugs.

NICK
If you want. We're just chatting here, no
charges, no threats.

The two stare at each other for a moment.

NICK
Where did you get treated for your scabies,
Mister Massie?

JONATHAN
Didn't you have some questions about the
premiere party?

Nick pulls the photograph of Natalie from his vest pocket.

NICK
Do you recognize her?

JONATHAN
No.

NICK
Are you sure? Look closer.

Jonathan takes the photograph. Nick watches him, watches where he places his fingers on it. The actor hands it back and Nick is careful not to touch where he did. He slides it back in his pocket.

JONATHAN
Sorry. I don't know her.

NICK
I have a co-worker that follows your life like
some obsessed fan. I bet you get that a lot,
don't you?

JONATHAN
Sometimes. Are you an obsessed fan? Maybe
using your badge to get close to your hero?

NICK
You're not my hero by a long shot. I don't care
for your films.

Jonathan leans on the table, looking Nick directly in the eye. Nick doesn't blink, doesn't show any emotion. He knows what Jonathan really is, and no mask of a kind humanitarian is going to keep Nick from going after him.

JONATHAN
To each their own.

NICK
I agree. So she was telling me you haven't
really had a steady girlfriend, since, well... Ever.

JONATHAN
What does that have to do with this?

NICK
Nice guy like you, never able to keep a girl...
Maybe you just don't really like the type of girls
you're dating. Maybe you like your girls robust
and squeezable. I noticed you were flirting with
two out there, one that, by the way, is
underage. Just an FYI

JONATHAN
I was being nice.

NICK
So you said. I bet liking that type of woman
wouldn't go so well with your public, seeing
how Hollywood frowns on anyone much larger
than a size four.

JONATHAN
I show a little respect and kindness and you
treat me like I'm a jerk? They are people too.
True, losing the weight would be healthier for
them, but until society realizes they are addicts
just like some junkie on heroin, and take
extreme action to help them, they will continue
to have problems.

NICK
What kind of extreme measures do you think
should be taken?

Jonathan shakes his head.

JONATHAN
You are taking this out of context again.

NICK
Does extreme measures mean forcing them to
have surgery or starving them to near death?

JONATHAN
Are you accusing me of something?

NICK
I was just trying to define what your concept of
extreme measures is.

JONATHAN
I think I've become uncomfortable with these
questions. Next time we speak, it will be with
my lawyer present.

Nick stands.

NICK
I have just one more question, if you'll indulge
me. It's about your pets.

JONATHAN
My pets?

NICK
Yeah. I noticed you've licensed a few exotic
pets -- a chimpanzee and a couple cockatiels.

JONATHAN
I've had them for several years, and it was
required while I lived here.

NICK
Mind if I stopped by and saw them?

JONATHAN
Yes. I do. Good night, Mister Stokes.

NICK
Good night.

Nick turns and walks away

INT. CSI BUILDING - A/V LAB - NIGHT

While the computer is running fingerprints, Nick is reading through printouts of properties. Catherine walks up behind him, reading over his shoulder.

CATHERINE
Do you really think this actor is our guy?

NICK
I'd bet money on it. I'm seeing if there are any
priors on his prints before I move on his past properties.

CATHERINE
We don't have enough to get a warrant for his
current address?

NICK
Nope. The judge said to call him when I can,
and I quote, put a smoking gun in America's
most beloved actor's hand, and then he'll issue
a warrant because he refuses to be known as
the man that slandered the most humanitarian
person this decade on a few bugs and suspicion.
We can't link the DNA of scabbies that were on
Natalie without searching his property for the source.

CATHERINE
Which we can't do without a warrant.

NICK
Exactly.

CATHERINE
I showed a picture of Saint Mercy's John Doe
to Natalie. She said he looks familiar, but she
can't recall where she's seen him. His DNA
and prints didn't pull up anything, no trace, and
aside from the spider venom, there was
nothing unusual in autopsy or his tox.

Nick shakes his head.

NICK
This guy's an actor. He can't really have been
this careful!

CATHERINE
You forget he's also a serial killer. They are
notorious for having above average I.Q.s

The computer beeps and pulls up a record for Jonathan Massie. This gets their undivided attention.

CATHERINE (CONT'D)
He's Natalie's stalker? Why wouldn't Joseph
tell us that?

NICK
I doubt she ever told him who it really was. It
sounded like she was very careful to keep her
family and work lives separated.

CATHERINE
I can relate to that. Are these all of his past properties?

Catherine picks up the printouts.

NICK
Yeah, and he's moved around a lot since 1992.
My suspicion is that's when he started killing.

GREG stops in the door holding a sequined dress in a plastic bag.

CATHERINE
Cross dressing again?

Greg flashes him a smile.

GREG
Ha-ha. You have some visitors, Nick.

NICK
Who?

GREG
I don't know. The officer in reception asked me
to get you, it's kinda busy up there.

NICK
Thanks.

Greg hurries off with his evidence. Nick stands and gathers his case file together.

CATHERINE
I'll tell the judge about the stalking charge and
see if that's enough to get a warrant.

NICK
Maybe try explaining scabies again, too.

INT. CSI BUILDING - RECEPTION

Nick slows to a stop inside reception, stunned by what he's seeing.

There are at least a dozen people talking at once to LVPD OFFICER at the reception desk. He is doing his best to keep them calm and quiet them down. He spots Nick and points right at him.

LVPD OFFICER
(loud)
This is CSI Nick Stokes. He's the one that sent
out the composites; he's the one you need to
talk to.

All eyes turn to Nick -- this must be what a rabbit feels like before a pack of wolves pounces on it. In a flurry of voices and movement, the people surround Nick.

They start waiving newspaper clippings and photographs at him, demanding information. Some are crying. Most are angry. The commotion is nothing short of white noise.

Nick manages to snag a clipping and photograph from one of them. His face tells his horror -- the composite in the news paper and the photograph are nearly identical.

He looks up at the people. His hunch on the composites was dead on, and these people grieving over the lost loved one they recognized are the proof.

EXT. SoUTH CAROLINA PROPERTY - NIGHT

On a property in South Carolina, police officers are exhuming graves. Only starved, decaying corpses of dogs lay on tarps. The sick twist is that some wear expensive leather collars with personalized tags.

INT. CSI - INTERVIEW ROOM A - NIGHT

Nick sits with MR. PRICE and MRS. PRICE, an older couple. He has a notepad but is also recording the interview.

A printout of a composite sits next to a photograph of a woman. She's excessively overweight in the photograph, more than even the photo, but the similarities are close enough.

NICK
Tell me about the day Melissa disappeared.

MR. PRICE
It was about a year ago.

MRS. PRICE
She stopped by on her way to a benefit dinner
at the convention center. She'd won the tickets
at work.

NICK
Did she seem okay? Anything out of the ordinary?

MRS. PRICE
No. Her favorite actor was going to be there.
She was excited to go.

Nick's eyes drift to stare at them. He's heard a very similar comment before.

NICK
And this actor... Who was he or she?

MRS. PRICE
(smiling)
Jonathan Massie. She'd been a fan of his since
she was a teenager.

Nick doesn't smile. He notes this on his notepad.

Mr. PRICE
Who did this to our little girl? Who hurt her?

He knows, but he delivers the company line.

NICK
I'm sorry. I can't discuss an ongoing investigation.

EXT. KENTUCKY PROPERTY - DAY

In Lexington, Kentucky, five graves have been found, and a sixth is being dug up. Next to the five graves are the remains of starved, decaying chimpanzees.

From the sixth they recover the bodies of starved, decaying woman. The KENTUCKY OFFICER on scene covers his mouth, trying to collect himself before he makes a call on his radio.

KENTUCKY OFFICER
Officer 1041 to dispatch.

DISPATCHER
Go ahead.

KENTUCKY OFFICER
Connect me to that investigator in Nevada. We
found something.

INT. CSI - INTERVIEW ROOM A - DAY

HIEDI Vasquez and TOM Joaquin sit with Nick in the lobby. The officer at the reception desk is the only other person. Tom holds a composite and photograph of a large Latino woman and they are very close match.

Nick is about halfway through his notepad now, and the recorder sits on the floor between them.

NICK
She's your mother?

The two nod.

NICK (CONT'D)
You didn't file a missing persons report for her. Why?

TOM
We thought she went back to Mexico, back to
our father. We told her not to go, but she
always went when he called her. He'd beat her
up and she'd come back to America.

NICK
He called her before she disappeared?

TOM
A week before.

HIEDI
But she didn't talk about going back this time.
She met this man when she was at lunch a few
weeks before and they had become friends.

NICK
They were dating?

HIEDI
No. Just friends she said. He told her not to go
back to him.

NICK
What was her friend's name?

HIEDI
Jonathan.

Nick almost closes his eyes.

NICK
Jonathan Massie?

TOM
Yeah. That was his name. How did you know that?

NICK
(flat)
He's a very friendly person.

EXT. PARIS TEXAS RANCH - DAY

The ranch is in the middle of nowhere, with miles and miles of open grassland, a couple streams, and several gullies.

In a gully near the back of the property stands SHERIFF LOPEZ, watching a crew of two officers, a coroner, and three cadets carefully digging up a body.

In two graves next to them lay the remains of two starved women in red dresses and pearl necklaces. Officer Lopez radios in.

SHERIFF LOPEZ
Lopez to dispatch.

DISPATCHER
Go ahead.

SHERIFF LOPEZ
Cathy, get that investigator on the line, the one
in Vegas. Once you do that call William and
have him get some aerials of this gulch. Then
call Joyce, tell her drop whatever she's eating,
and pull up every missing persons we've got on
any woman over two hundred pounds. She
probably should send a bulletin to the other
stations and ask for theirs too. Doubt this guy
just hit near here.

DISPATCHER
How many are we talking about, Raymond?

Officer Lopez turns. Behind him, dozens of cadets, state and county officers, and several civilians are digging up graves.

SHERIFF LOPEZ
We're already at fifteen in this gully. Ted
stopped by a minute ago and said his team has
identified four graves in the gully north of us.

DISPATCHER
Jesus! Do you need more people?

He looks in the direction of the main house. It's a small dot on the horizon below him. There's a backhoe digging at something behind the house.

SHERIFF LOPEZ
Wouldn't hurt.

FADE OUT.

END OF ACT THREE