Ah. Morning. Did we have a meeting set?
No, but we needed to speak with you immediately.
We believe we've solved the case.
Excellent!
Last night, we gained access to this file called Project Aurora.
It's Brad Vinick's secret plan to remake Wheeler College.
Humanities departments shuttered, hundreds of faculty laid off,
historic buildings torn down.
There's only one person at Wheeler who could have both known about this
and had a motive to stop it from happening.
And that person…
is you, Mr. Berenger.
I… Excuse me?
Guys, no. He's the one who put the whole deal together.
Why would he sabotage it?
Well, that's what we couldn't figure out until we read the file.
Here's our theory.
After you and Vinick shook hands on the deal for his donation,
he must have told you what he was really planning.
This whole school would become a laboratory of efficiency,
churning out business leaders, innovators…
Right, but it'll still teach… music and theater, literature…?
No, all that crap is history. And so is history.
We have any more champagne?
You were worried because you were trying to parlay
this splashy donation into a job at Rycliffe University in Texas.
You'd already had several meetings there,
likely bragging about how well you'd done at raising money here at Wheeler.
Problem was, if word about Aurora got out,
the faculty and staff would revolt.
No university wants to hire a guy
who was chased out of his last gig by an angry mob.
You needed time to land the job
and make your escape before it all blew up in your face.
So, you created a fake account,
sent yourself a threatening email,
and stole your own laptop.
It was a false flag operation to make you look like the victim.
You hired us to "investigate," hoping it would slow Vinick down.
But it didn't work.
At the portrait unveiling, Vinick must have told you
that he was going full speed ahead with the announcement of his donation.
You panicked, again, threw the portrait in a garbage can,
and used the cigar Vinick handed out that night…
to delay the burning until you were on stage, giving the introductory speech.
Perfect alibi.
This is insane.
None of this is true.
Except for the part about Rycliffe, which is true. How'd you know about that?
Well, you've been spending a lot of time in Dallas.
And you were in such a good mood at Vinick's 50th reunion party.
Figured the deal must have gone through.
Okay, yes. I did take a higher-paying job at Rycliffe.
And, yes, I knew that Vinick had some "unorthodox" plans to reform Wheeler.
But I swear I had nothing to do with the blackmail or the painting.
And also, why would I leak my own sensitive information
to the campus paper?
To throw us off.
What matters is you are the only person that knew about Vinick's plan.
No. Uh… he's not.
Jack might be a craven, self-serving buffoon.
But he could never have pulled this off himself.
He's not nearly smart enough.
Thank you.
I know for a fact that he didn't do it, because…
I did.
-Well, I… I'm confused. -Oh, of course you are.
Oh, by the way, I'm very impressed.
Through this whole thing,
I thought you were merely a mediocre academic,
when in reality, you're also a mediocre detective.
You… How did you know about Project Aurora?
Well, I knew the deal was getting close.
So I came by to speak with Berenger
about securing some money for, uh, my department.
I waited in the hallway right here that connects to Holly's office.
You're not gonna recognize anything when I get through with this.
That's when I heard Vinick
explaining what he had in store for Wheeler College.
After they left, I searched for some hard evidence of the plot.
Failing to find any, I stole the laptop,
I created the Wheeler Guardian account, and sent the threatening email.
I had hoped it would be enough to force
Holly and Jack to cut ties with Vinick for good,
but it was not.
So… I left a more menacing note, stole the portrait,
and then set it ablaze,
using Vinick's cigar,
which gave me some time to escape.
At least I got one thing right.
Yes, you did. Well done.
You're half as accurate as a broken clock.
I can't believe you would do this.
But, Holly, I did.
And I can prove it.
President Berenger's computer.
And the fountain pen that I used to leave the note.
If you'll examine it carefully,
you'll find that it has a distinctive chipped nib.
Holly, they were bound to find out the truth eventually,
and my career was going to end one way or the other.
And now that I have confessed my crimes,
I resign from Wheeler College.
Effective immediately.
How the hell did they get a copy of Aurora?
It hardly matters.
You clearly misled us and the board,
so they voted to reject your donation.
You don't get to reject me. I reject you.
-Okay, that's fine. -I was trying to save this place.
Project Aurora would have churned out millionaires and billionaires,
kids who make real money in tech and business.
Maybe, but there are a lot of schools for that.
Wheeler has a different mission for a different kind of kid.
We value community and knowledge for knowledge's sake.
"Community, knowledge!"
"We're smart and broke!"
God, you're pathetic.
Well, this week sucks!
First, my wife asked me for a divorce, and now this.
-I'm sorry to hear that. -Thank you.
She's taking me to the cleaners. She's asking for 200k a month.
And she's gonna get it because she's prego,
and this country hates men.
The whole thing's a nightmare. I mean, she's hot.
But she's not 40-million hot.
Out of curiosity, who is 40-million hot?
Kaia Gerber, Sydney Sweeney,
1988 Elle Macpherson,
and Vanna White when she's facing the board.
Why am I the only good person in the world?
Well. Wheeler College owes you both a debt of gratitude,
which we literally have no way to repay.
Is the school gonna survive without his money?
I don't know.
But if we go under, better to end on our own terms.
Does either of you have, like, a rich, sickly aunt?
Worth a shot.
Well, you got the juicy case you wanted, and you solved it.
What's wrong?
The perp just confessed.
I didn't really solve the case.
Oh, God. No, that's crap.
A win is a win.
Take the win.
Okay, fine.
You're right.
I'm amazing.
Oh, can you do the debrief tomorrow?
I have to go see my mom.
Her and Apollo just broke up, and she's moving out.
Because she helped us?
No. No, no, no. It's been in the works for a while.
Apparently, a couple weeks ago, he said he wanted to have a baby with her,
and she was like, "I'm 67."
And he was like, "Age is just a number."
And she was like, "Not in this context."
-Yeah, probably for the best. -Yeah.
Already miss this place?
I do.
Well, I, for one, am glad you're going.
I have a job to do here, and seeing you in that suit is way too distracting.
You heard about Ben?
Honestly, I wasn't surprised.
But he'll be remembered as a hero.
Want to get dinner?
Tomorrow okay?
Calbert's having surgery.
It's important I be there to support him.
Hey. Wake up.
-What time is it? -10:00 a.m.
You slept longer than I did, and I had general anesthesia.
You missed C.J. He says to say hello.
Once I'm all healed up, we're gonna go see some baseball in the spring.
I'm so glad I did this.
Well, I won't say I told you so because I'm not a petty person.
I thought you might bring Mona. How's that going?
Good! Although we're entering uncharted waters.
She and I won't be seeing each other every day.
So I think I'm gonna cook her my famous chicken piccata
and ask her to go away for the weekend.
I think that's a good idea. Go do that.
Oh, I'm… I don't want to leave you here alone.
I'm fine. Scram.
Why are you so eager to get rid of me?
Am I interrupting?
Not at all.
Joy, this is my friend Charles.
He was just leaving.
Pleasure to meet you, Joy.
Not sure what you see in Calbert, but otherwise, you seem lovely.
Likewise.
I asked Calbert out to dinner.
He took a spill to try to get out of it, but I don't give up easy.
So this is our first date.
Not quite as romantic as I was hoping it would be.
Oh, I disagree.
I already got you in bed.
You're half naked.
This is fourth-date stuff.
I'll take good care of him.
I'm sure you will.
Best chicken I ever had in my life.
In 1970, Lavender Highway did an East Coast tour with Santana,
and that dude could cook.
Hey…
I want to ask you something.
What if you and I… had a little adventure?
Went away for the weekend?
I'm thinking Carmel, may… or, you know, if we're feeling saucy, Monterey.
I have a better idea.
We're moving to Croatia for a year.
Wait, who's "we"?
"We" is us?
Yes! I am going to Zagreb to teach a course
on Slavic influences in California folk music.
Another professor dropped out at the last minute,
so they offered it to me, and I said yes.
I leave in a week.
And you want me to go with you?
Just… drop everything and move to Croatia?
But I've got Emily and the grandkids and my job with Julie.
I'm sure both of us could think of a million reasons not to go.
But life is short.
We've both been to Monterey.
Have you ever been to Croatia?
No.
Well, neither have I.
Sweetheart, we have more summers behind us than ahead of us,
and I want to spend as many of those summers as I can
having new adventures.
Screw it.
Let's go to Croatia.
Ugh. I give up.
I'm so bad at this stuff.
Apollo used to handle all of it.
We got this. We don't need him.
I mean, I never needed him,
but he was very sweet and a great listener.
He tried to enter himself into a dog show.
No, we went to a dog show.
He wanted to see if he could run the course
faster than the Boston Terrier.
And he couldn't, and he was arrested.
-Fine, he was a loon. -Yeah.
It's just, the older I get, the more I appreciate companionship.
Well, I'm only 20 minutes away.
You have me now.
I do.
-Okay, get to it. -Oh no, these don't make sense.
Come on!
Great, okay, yeah. I'll speak with you soon.
Okay. Goodbye.
So… I just got off the phone with Holly,
and if I want it, the job is mine.
That's great.
I mean, I can't even believe how perfect it is.
They don't want anybody full-time.
I was like, "I don't want to work full-time."
And I get to take classes for free, so it's like a win-win-win.
In a few weeks, I'll be raising money for Wheeler College,
and then in a few years,
I'll be able to get my master's in social work,
and become a therapist.
Big changes.
For both of us.
Yeah, I mean, this is a bold move you're making.
It is.
Really is, yep.
-Dad. -Yeah?
Do you really want to move so far away?
I want to be with Mona.
You didn't really answer the question.
I know how incredible she is.
She makes you believe that anything is possible.
She's a real force of nature.
-Never met anyone like her. -Mm.
And I don't want to lose her.
But I also don't want to go to Zagreb.
I know.
We went to Santa Fe once.
You kept saying you couldn't get used to the time difference.
You know, a relationship can't work if decisions are made out of desperation.
You need to talk to her.
Yeah, I know.
Thank you.
So that…
that's where I stand.
Is there anything I can say to change your mind?
I don't think there is.
I understand why you want to do this.
I love that you're the kind of person
who does this kind of thing
at the drop of a hat.
It's just that I spent the last couple of years building this
whole new life for myself.
And I like that life.
I don't want to leave it.
So… there it is.
Wow.
I haven't been dumped since…
the '70s.
I forgot what this feels like.
I don't like it.
Okay, no more wasting time on sad breakups.
Let's raise a glass of Irish coffee and toast to our
former relationship slash
current friendship.
"Come what might, she would be wild, untrammeled, free."
James Joyce, Ireland's greatest writer.
"When you know, you gotta let it go…"
"'Cause the party ain't jumping like it used to."
"Even though this might bruise you, let it burn."
Usher, America's hottest man.
It ain't no use to sit And wonder why, babe
If'n you don't know by now
And it ain't no use to sit And wonder why, babe
It'll never do somehow
When your rooster crows At the break of dawn
Look out your window and I'll be gone
You're the reason I'm a-traveling on
But don't think twice, it's all right
So, no pain at all anymore?
Eh, it gets a little sore at the end of the day,
but all in all, it's a miracle.
Joy says when I'm done with PT, we're taking a trip to Costa Rica.
-Ah! -She wants to go zip-lining.
I told her I'd wait for her on the ground where humans are supposed to be.
I'm happy for you, buddy.
I know I said it before, but
thank you for pestering me about the surgery.
For your next trick, I need you to find a lady for yourself.
Someone smart and fun, so the four of us can double-date.
Maybe someday.
I'm still working through everything with Mona.
You miss her.
I do.
But I also know that we weren't meant to be.
I mean, just two totally different philosophies of life.
I look both ways before I cross the street.
She does cartwheels into traffic.
Well, someday soon, you'll find you're ready to try again.
Until then, third wheel it is.
Maybe you could open a can of tuna,
set it inside her AC vent, then park it back on the block.
I can do that.
Yeah.
You're going soft, Mars.
Ooh, that was a good one.
Yeah, it was. This show's great.
Are you still criticizing her detective work?
Her camera is too big. It's conspicuous.
Well, the girl who plays Veronica is very winning.
She ever do anything else?
I don't know.
It's the first TV show I've watched in 25 years.
Oh, when we're done with this, Megan said that we need to watch…
Pals…
-Friends? -Friends.
Okay.
Okay, I have to go.
I'm doing that thing with Charles.
-I'll see you next week? -Yeah.
Okay.
The client said her husband's there at 7:00 p.m. sharp.
Relax, we have time.
I just gotta grab the file.
Surprise!
What in the world…?
Charles Nieuwendyk, by the power vested in me by the State of California,
you are officially
a private investigator.
As of yesterday, you have enough hours to get your license. Congratulations.
Thank you.
Before I started working here, I… spent a lot of time alone.
My life got a whole lot richer when I got out into the world
and started connecting with people I care about.
So… thank you.
All right, which one's better?
"I'm Charles Nieuwendyk, PI."
Or…
"I'm Charles Nieuwendyk… PI."
Number one. You do it all at once.
-Yeah? -He's crazy.
The flip is the exclamation point.
It's like, "You thought I was just Charles Nieuwendyk," and then, bam!
Yeah, he's right. Forget what I said. Second one.
Okay, so from now on, it's gonna be,
"I'm Charles Nieuwendyk, PI."
Cool.
Thanks for coming.
Of course.
One question, why did you invite me?
Because it means a lot to Charles that you're here.
Oh.
And…
Because I wanted to apologize.
As you remember from Thanksgiving,
I had a lot of emotional issues that I hadn't dealt with.
I truly thought I had it under control, but,
shockingly, I did not,
and… it made me do some things that were pretty hurtful and callous.
-And weird. -And weird.
Yeah. But I'm getting better.
A work in progress, but I'm getting better, and…
I'm really sorry.
I accept your apology.
And I'm really happy for you and your mom.
Ironically, you were kind of right.
When I asked you to do background checks, I was actually playing a long game.
I hired you as an excuse to spend some time with you.
-Really? -I don't know.
When you came to the café after the Pacific View case ended
and you said those nice things about me, I thought…
maybe there was a vibe there.
Wow.
So I just misread that situation even more terribly than I thought.
Well, thanks for coming.
Really, dude?
I'm kidding.
Do you want to get a drink sometime?
-Yes. -Good.
Told ya.
Okay.
-I miss this place. -Gets under your skin, doesn't it?
Yeah, it really does.
How are the classes?
Ugh, kicking my butt.
Joel is such a godsend.
I get home late three nights a week, so we made the boys a chore schedule.
Watching Jace try to load the dishwasher is the highest form of entertainment.
But you're glad you took the job?
Oh God. Totally.
Everyone's so passionate.
My first week here, like 20 people stopped by my office
just to ask if they could help me out.
It's like everybody has the same goal, to make this school awesome.
It's genuinely moving.
You all right?
Yeah. You know, I just
figured something out.
Can I buy you a cup of coffee?
Yeah.
Charles, hi.
Wait, do you still work here?
I honestly forget.
Haven't been sleeping a lot.
Just visiting Emily. Thought I'd say hi.
How's Jack doing down in Dallas?
He's… really taken to the city.
Don't mess with Texas!
Can I ask you a question that's been bugging me about the case?
Oh. Sure.
I shouldn't have been surprised when Dr. Cole confessed.
I mean, he loved this place so much, he would have done anything to save it.
But there were other people who loved Wheeler College that way.
I'm sorry, what are you implying?
Ben Cole took the fall for you, Holly, didn't he?
What?
No, Charles, he did not.
I have no reason to blackmail Berenger.
I didn't even know about this Project Aurora
until you and Julie told me about it, after the heist.
You see, I don't think that's true.
I think that you found out
what Vinick was gonna do to Wheeler College that first night.
I think you realized that no one person was gonna be able to stop him.
In fact, I think there was a whole group of people
who conspired to save Wheeler College.
But… you were the ringleader.
And how do you know that?
I asked Julie to send me a scan of the NDA that you signed
with Kovalenko Investigations that day you walked into our office.
The pen you used had a very distinctive chipped nib.
Wheeler lost $400 million and one of its best professors.
There's no need to lose you too.
I'm not gonna say anything. I just want to know how you pulled it off.
Um…
Well, after years of courting Vinick,
flattering him, sucking up,
he and Berenger agreed to terms and shook hands.
They were a little drunk.
Kelseigh was… doing her thing.
-Baby, I'm taking off. -Yeah, yeah, whatever.
I was gathering my things next door.
They didn't even notice I was there.
Yeah, this place is gonna look a lot different in a year.
Ooh. La, la, la! I don't want to hear it.
Plausible deniability.
You can do whatever you want after this contract is signed.
That'll be the problem of whoever takes this office after I'm gone.
This office? I'm gonna knock this whole building down.
I'm gonna build myself a primo podcasting studio.
Brad, please, stop. What I--
You should be thanking me.
All these people should be thanking me.
Wheeler's a pit.
I can't wait to fire all these useless professors,
tear this place down to the studs, and build a real school.
After they left, I searched Jack's computer
for proof of Vinick's plan, but I couldn't find it.
I needed to buy more time, so I stole the laptop,
and I sent the threatening email to Jack.
So you don't want to call the police?
I'm being blackmailed.
We have to be able to control the narrative here.
I say we hire a private investigator.
You know what? I have a great idea. We're gonna hire a private investigator.
Great idea.
So you headed up the investigation in order to keep tabs on us.
I was hoping that you would uncover hard evidence
of Vinick's plan so I could leak it to the board and torpedo the deal.
Why burn the painting?
What did Vinick say that forced you to escalate things?
Well, actually, he didn't say it to me.
…so if you'd like to thank anyone in your remarks,
you should probably thank the entire art department.
First of all, thanking people is a sign of weakness.
And second, once I take over, the whole art department is gonna be…
So you and your friends might want to spruce up those résumés, sweetheart.
These mini empanadas are amazing.
Did you make these?
If you made these, you can stay.
Betsy, what are you doing?
Holly, he lied to us.
He's gonna fire me. He's gonna fire all of us.
I know. And I'm trying to stop him.
Do you want to help me?
-Yeah. -Good.
Okay. If anyone asks, and they will, you say this…
I just hope we didn't scare that guy away.
I know we're suspicious of corporate types around here,
but the museum could really use his money.
Welcome to the resistance.
At first, it was supposed to just be me and Betsy.
She's the one who sent Julie the text messages
from the Wheeler Guardian account.
But as things got more complex, we needed more and more people.
Can you leak these documents to the paper in a way no one can trace?
Oh, hell yeah.
-This is the best day of my life. -Really?
Yeah, my life stinks.
Been living in my office.
Had to sell my motorcycle. I carry the helmet 'cause it looks cool.
I get all my meals from the garbage.
Okay, we don't have time. Just leak the documents.
You got it.
Eventually, we had an entire team trying to take down Vinick.
I don't know if Nieuwendyk is coming to the James Joyce event,
but if he does, it's business as usual.
Keep an eye on him and see if he seems suspicious of anyone.
And a reminder,
do not give me any details about anything you have done so far.
I cannot and will not lie if Julie or Charles questions me.
Your ethical code is sexy as hell.
It's not happening, Slavoj. Move on.
All that time, questioning all those people,
trying to find the one person who did it…
Turned out they all did.
Mm, not all of them.
Mona was never involved because you and she bonded so quickly.
And there was one other person that I tried to keep in the dark,
but eventually…
Tell me the whole story.
What are you talking about?
Nieuwendyk just chased Andrea halfway across campus on a scooter.
And now the PI is grilling her near the turtle pond.
And you have ten secret meetings a week,
and you haven't invited me to a single one.
And, frankly, that hurts my feelings.
Now let me help you.
I told him the whole story, and he didn't say a word until I was done.
And then he asked me one question.
I assume you've gotten rid of the evidence.
Oh yeah, it's safe.
I stashed the computer and the pen in the old supply closet
in the basement of the science lab.
Good.
In a million years, I never thought he'd go get them
and do what he did.
He knew it was only a matter of time before Julie and I realized
that Berenger was innocent.
Next logical person would've been you.
Poor Ben.
This place was all he had.
He lives alone. He has no family.
Every day, I think about turning myself in so he could get his old job back.
If you did that, scandal would engulf the entire school.
Max, Betsy, Pamela… you'd all be fired.
Ben did what he did to prevent that.
Now, the best way for you to say thank you
is to stay here
and keep Wheeler safe.
-You went here as an undergraduate, right? -Mm-hm.
What did you major in?
Theater.
Well, you gave a hell of a performance.
Ah, good.
Charles Nieuwendyk.
Nice to see you too.
Got a sec?
How's retirement treating you?
I wake up, I walk, I read my books,
I… fall asleep, and I get up and do it all over again the next day.
Have you spoken to Holly?
Rarely.
The last thing I want is to be a burden.
Although she did call me this morning.
She filled me in on
a few
recent developments.
I'm glad she's there.
In these troubled times,
Wheeler needs her, you know, steady hand.
Mm.
Hm.
So, what brings you to my door, Charles?
I need you to do me a favor.
Deliver this for me. In person.
Oh, this is very cloak and dagger.
What's inside?
-Just a brief note. -Mm.
-Why can't you do this yourself? -Doesn't matter.
Just know the contents are important
and it needs to be delivered as soon as possible.
Well, I…
I suppose I do owe you one.
Consider it done.
Take care of yourself.
Goodbye, Charles.
I sincerely hope I never see you again.
I have a feeling you will.
Excuse me.
Are you Didi Santos Cordero?
I am. And you are?
Dr. Benjamin Cole.
A former colleague of mine asked me to deliver this to you,
although I have no earthly idea why.
"Didi, please take care of Ben."
"He's a very stubborn professor, and he needs your help. Charles."
Are you also a professor of engineering?
Oh, God, no.
No. I teach…
Well, I taught English literature
until quite recently when I…
Well, I…
I'm retired.
Well, thank you for delivering this, Ben.
Sorry, do you prefer Benjamin or Ben?
I prefer Dr. Benjamin Cole.
May I ask what's in the note?
I have been looking for someone to refurbish our library,
and Charles thought you might fit the bill.
-Could I show it to you? -Hm. Oh, yes, I suppose.
I do enjoy a nice library.
Ours is small by your standards, but maybe you could help us improve it.
We could get a coffee on the way if you like.
Or, actually, it's almost happy hour if you want to stay for a bit.
You know my love will not fade away
Not fade away…
So, how did everyone like the book?
What book?
I wasn't asked to read a book.
I was asked to read The Hunt for Red October.
-You got a problem with my choice? -Several.
The plot is preposterous, the dialogue juvenile,
and the sentence structure makes Hemingway look like a Marcel Proust.
For Christ's sake, I can't do this again.
We get rid of one pompous professor just to get another one right back in?
Did you like it or not?
I… I couldn't put it down.
My heart was racing.
I mean, my God, what a ripping yarn.
And now the dust jacket suggests Jack Ryan has further adventures?
Oh, yes, but don't read the books.
Watch the movies.
All the actors who play him are gorgeous.
Alex Baldman, Harriston Ford,
Jim… Office…
-Boston Batman… -Oh, well, excellent.
Perhaps we should form a cinema club as well.
No, Calbert will make us watch Caddyshack for the millionth time.
It's a classic.
How are you in this book club?
You don't even live here.
Shoo. Begone.
You know, I think you and I might get along after all.
Beat it, Jawbone.
My love is bigger than a Cadillac
I try to show you But you drive me back
Your love for me has got to be real
You're gonna know just how I feel
A love for real not fade away
Not fade away