Original subtitles

Hell of a way to go, falling down the stairs.

Yeah, wife died on the floor in the back bedroom.

- Horrible. - Sucks getting old.

When I go,

it's gonna be on my couch with a bowl full of ice cream,

maybe a little Keanu.

Matrix?

No. A walk in the clouds, of course.

Solid choice.

- How about you? - Bus.

Fast. Bam.

You don't even know it's coming.

Okay. Sorry I asked.

You want the husband or the wife?

- Wife. - All right. Let's do this.

Hey, margo.

Yeah?

Remind me to order more thymol when we get back.

- We're almost out. - Sure thing.

Can't wait to go home and take shower.

Me, too.

Aren't you miss popular? Which one is this?

It's not that. A guy, I mean.

Liar.

Hey, Randy.

Got anything on those records my brother sent?

The David Pearson stuff?

Nah, man, it's gonna take a little time.

- He give you any more context? - No.

- That's my brother for you. - All right, I'm not calling

about that anyway. I got a job for you.

- Okay, go ahead. - Owner of a company

named bio zone wants to hire you.

- Out of fort Wayne, Indiana. - What's bio zone?

Crime scene cleaners. Her employee's missing.

Margo Webster, age 28.

Just sent you a picture.

Her boss is really worried.

- How long has she been gone? - Since yesterday morning.

- Not too long. - No.

But the owner sounded a little more worried

than the typical boss.

Plus they're offering $10,000 for help.

- Want to check it out? - Yeah.

Send me the details. I'll get there as soon as I can.

Unattended deaths, drug labs, hoarders.

Some guy takes a bat to his wife, we clean it up.

Margo's been my right hand the last few years.

Just the two of us.

When did you first know she was missing?

8:00 A.M. yesterday.

Didn't show to clean up a triple homicide.

I called a bunch of times. No answer.

So I drove by her place, looked in the windows,

saw her phone on the table, but her car was gone.

I just... I knew something was off.

- You contact the police? - Sure.

But unless it's been 48 hours, they don't lift a damn finger.

So much for one hand washing the other.

Anyway, that led me to you.

Can I grab you a cup of coffee?

Sure. Yeah.

So, the last time you saw margo, two days ago?

Yeah, at the end of our gig cleaning up the harden house.

Okay.

An old couple, died of natural causes.

A pretty basic job, you know?

We brought the Van back, she,

she got in her car and left, that was it.

What do you think happened?

Well, I'm not sure if it's anything,

but her phone was blowing up after the job.

Some guy?

Yeah, a new guy she was seeing, I think.

- And did you get a name? - She wouldn't say.

Kept playing it off like it was no big deal yet.

- But you don't believe that. - No.

They met online a few months ago,

in some chat room about the toy box killer.

Like, who does that? It's weird, right?

Well, that's... It depends.

Well, that's margo for you.

But now, my god, I wish I had gotten a name.

Can you think of anything else, about that night?

- Anything at all? - Not that I know about.

She's kind of secretive about what she does after hours.

Really?

Why is that? Why-why was she secretive?

Well, for most people, the job ends when they clock out.

But margo really got into some of the jobs,

if you know what I mean.

Especially the grisly ones.

But strokes for folks, as they say.

So you're saying you think her interests

might have something to do with what's going on here?

I don't know what to think.

But something's really wrong,

and I'm not gonna wait for the police.

So... please.

Yeah, o-okay, I'll help you. Yeah.

Let me see what I can dig up.

- Okay? - Yeah.

Randy, you get anything on margo's phone?

That's a big negative, compadre.

Dead. Lot of calls and texts from Ruth

after she went missing, but otherwise no calls or texts

in the last 72 hours.

Doesn't make any sense.

That's exactly what I said.

No, her boss said her phone was blowing up

at the end of her shift.

Maybe she was using, an app, getting push notifications.

Certainly possible.

Maybe she was exchanging something scandalous

she didn't want anybody catching wind of.

Or maybe they were planning on meeting up.

- Can you look into that? - Yeah, I will do.

In the meantime, good news for you.

Yeah? What's that?

I got a hit on margo's car.

It's a silver 2010 sonata.

The plate popped up on the city's list of vehicles to tow.

Send me an address?

- Already did. - Thank you, Randy.

The document should be at the hotel when you arrive,

and you are all set for your client meeting

tomorrow morning.

Okay, will do.

Okay. Have a good night, reenie.

Reenie keeping you busy?

Yeah, she's in Houston, trying to land a big client.

Deep pockets.

Yeah. I can't imagine anyone saying no to her in person.

I hear that.

What are you working on?

At the moment, a case for colter.

It's a missing crime scene cleaner.

No way.

- Yeah. - What happened?

Don't know.

Cleaned a few dead bodies and then... poof... disappeared.

Weird.

Not that I think it's connected,

but she happened to be a true crime buff.

It's connected.

"What you seek is seeking you."

You just come up with that?

No. No, it's rumi.

It's just ran do leftover

from this poetry class I took freshman year.

It's supposed to be about good things,

but I think it-it works both ways, you know?

Well, that's dope.

But in this case I'm hoping it's not true,

'cause it looks like she was into some pretty heinous crimes.

Tell me more.

- Yeah? - Yeah.

All right.

I mean, the true crime subreddit is a classic,

- but it's kind of over now. - Okay, come on.

Give me a break.

All these fake accounts and fake names,

it's gonna take me a minute to track down where she's posting.

Well, try, crime con, crimehq, websleuths...

Murderpedia, too. That's a good one.

Damn.

- You're made for this one? - What can I say?

Everybody's got a gift.

Hi, reenie.

He canceled? Really?

Okay, yeah, just give me five minutes.

I'm gonna go check and call the other number he gave.

What's up, c? You, find margo's car?

Yeah, pretty sure this is where she was taken.

I found a phone in the car.

It's not the one you've been searching.-...

Baby girl's got a backup phone. I wonder why.

Maybe her other phone was issued by work?

Let's find out together.

Spot-on, colter.

Registered and paid for by bio zone.

So I'm guessing she ditched this at home after work.

Right, so this must be the phone that Ruth said was blowing up.

Margo had a second phone for privacy.

Can you tether into this thing?

Yeah.

Easy-peasy.

Seeing what I'm seeing?

Lots of texts.

Okay, this last text from margo's pretty interesting.

"Meet at the usual spot.

"Got something big for you.

Here's a tease."

A series of photos here she was trying to send,

but looks like the file was too big.

Got to love those budget data plans.

All right.

Where are you thinking this "usual spot" is?

Well, there's a restaurant across the street.

Pretty good place to meet up.

You figure out who she was texting?

I'm searching now.

Okay. It's coming back as a burner phone.

Yeah, nothing on her socials about any new guys.

- I mean... -Hold up. - Got an ID?

Nope, but the burner phone she was texting is pinging

20 miles away from you right now.

I just sent you the pin.

Thank you.

Hey, you can't be here. Get back.

I was hired to find a missing woman.

- I said get back. - I just need to know

if that's margo Webster, that's all.

I'm not gonna tell you again.

Okay, yeah, sorry.

Kash, you need to move your vehicle.

Copy.

Hey. Hey!

Hey, what's up, man?

Sent you a plate, I need you to run it.

- See where it's registered. - Okay, yeah, I got you.

It's a... wood-paneled buick station wagon.

This linked to our missing girl?

Was at the scene of a crime.

I dialed the number,

the guy got spooked, and I lost him.

Okay, got an address. Sending now.

Where is she?

Margo Webster. Start talking. That her?

- No. No, no. Th-this is... - these are 911 recordings, man.

It's white noise, okay? I'm just gonna...

- What'd you do to her? - Nothing.

I didn't do anything. I'm trying to find her.

Okay, all right.

You Gunther Decker?

Becker, yeah.

- And you were texting her? - Yeah, listen...

Yeah, I followed you to that crime scene.

Yeah, yeah, look. I-I heard the call come over the scanner,

and I just needed to know if it was margo, that's it.

- Why'd you run? - Well, I thought you were a cop.

I don't like cops, and they don't like me.

- Why'd you have a camera? - Because I take photos of crime scenes.

It's, it-it's sort of my job.

Who do you work for?

I don't work for anybody, that's the point.

I used to work as a stringer for the local paper,

but I thought that I could do better on my own.

I-I am a freelance enthusiast.

You photograph other people's pain, that's what you do.

- Right? - Okay, big guy.

I understand the judgment, I do.

But I provide a service.

The truth is very ugly,

but it's out there and I document it,

and people pay for that.

Don't do that.

Put that down. Put it down.

Okay.

- Anybody else here I should know about? - No.

- No. - Get over here.

- Come on. - Okay.

- What's your name? - E-Edward fong,

but you can call me Eddie, please.

Okay.

What the hell is this place?

Yeah, well, I-I collect crime scene memorabilia.

Don't.

- Looks more like you sell it. - W-Well...

It's-it's all legal.

There are a lot of fellow enthusiasts out there.

- Sometimes we just trade. - Okay.

Let me guess, you provide a service as well.

- There is a demand. - I'm sure.

So, what's the deal? You... margo...

She what? She gives you evidence?

No. No, no, no, it's not like that...

The three of us, we met online

in a true crime subreddit, and-and we just sort of...

We try to solve certain cases if they grab us.

Okay?

How do you know margo?

Her boss hired me to find her. Now, I need to know...

- Did she meet up with you two nights ago? - No.

W-Well, she was supposed to, but she didn't show, so...

We staked out her apartment, we went to her-her-her work.

Something bad must've happened.

I-I've been having premonitions about this.

Eddie, please, he doesn't care.

Gunther doesn't believe in my premonitions.

Margo was trying to send you these before your meet-up.

- Nothing? - No, I don't, I don't recognize it, but...

Margo always documents her crime scenes.

Obsessively, when she thinks she's onto something.

Yeah, or she-she would have sent these

because I-I do forensic photo analysis.

Based on the time stamp, these were from her last job,

the harden house.

Ring a bell?

Margo thought

the circumstances around that one were strange.

Yeah, listen...

So, I-I can do image enhancement on the photos,

but it would take me some time.

Yeah, I don't have time.

All right, I'm gonna head to the house.

Figure out what she's into.

W-We-we're coming with you.

- I work alone. - Wait! Wait, wait, wait.

We get that this is your thing,

but, we've been up for two days looking for margo.

And, nobody knows her better than we do.

I mean, I can tell you why she took certain photos,

and nobody knows crime scene timelines like Eddie.

He's also an entomologist.

Self-taught.

All right, guys. Come on. Let's go.

Okay.

Margo tell you what happened here?

Little bit, yeah.

So... Nancy harden was wheelchair-bound with dementia.

And her husband mort... that is his Walker

right there... he was her caretaker.

And he, took a really nasty spill down these stairs,

cracked his head open, deadsville.

And, Nancy died three days later.

She starved to death.

A-A neighbor found their bodies

a week later, but I-I actually clock it

at eight and a half days based on the varying stages

of blowflies in the photos she took.

And this was a case you were investigating?

We were gonna start.

So, when one of us flags a suspicious death,

the three of us agreed we'd do a deep dive.

Sometimes we get lucky,

and, margo gets called in to clean the scene.

They were living on the first floor.

Yeah, you know, hard to get up with a Walker.

Hey... This Mark here, is that from the fall?

Sorry.

Could be. Yeah.

Look at these marks here.

See how it's on the rise of the stairs?

That's not from somebody going down.

That's from somebody being dragged up.

Okay.

So margo suspects the hardens were murdered.

She takes pictures of the crime scene, right?

And then she just vanishes.

Guys?

- Who else knows about your group? - No one.

You post online about it?

Yes, but very carefully.

We don't use real names, masked ips, the works.

So, maybe the killer suspected you were onto him,

and all he had to do was figure out your real identities.

Well, that's weird, isn't it?

- Yeah. - Hold that, will you? Thanks.

The food in here, there's no mold on it, right?

Can't be more than a couple weeks old.

Based on the, larvae in here,

this was eaten around the time that Nancy harden died.

So somebody was here the whole time.

And they saw everything.

Your friend margo was right.

Hardens were murdered.

So the killer sat here, waited for his moment.

Well, wouldn't it be easier to just kill them and leave?

Yeah, I don't think it's about what was easier.

The killer dragged mort to the top of the stairs

just so he could push him down.

He comes in here and watches Nancy die.

Over the course of several days.

So the guy we're looking for is thorough,

well-prepared, and has a very specific kink.

Okay, why go after margo, though?

Maybe it has something to do with that.

Angel wings?

I feel like I've seen those before.

Where?

I don't remember, but...

We have a bunch of files we're downloading

to build our own crime database.

Yep. Okay. There we go.

That's... look, angel wings drawn in soot.

Yeah. What case is that?

This is the appelbaums.

A mother and daughter in whitley county.

They died of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Daughter was disabled and her mother was her guardian.

So margo must've realized these cases were connected.

Damn. Yeah, that must be it.

Any others?

Well, we could always check...

- No, no, don't, don't... - The mid west sleuths forum.

It's an older regional database run by a guy Eddie despises.

He stole a sample of Jeffrey dahmer's hair from me.

Yeah, he did, and you need to get over it.

Margo needs us.

Yeah. Come on, let's... Let's check it out.

Excuse me.

Okay.

Just one moment.

See, that's interesting.

Harry and Marie Rafferty.

It's a couple that died at home in 2018.

He had als, she was his caregiver.

So, all the victims are either patients or caregivers.

- The killer must have known them. - Yeah.

Right? Or at least run into 'em.

Yeah, but how do we find out where?

I got an idea.

Okay, so you want me to cross-reference

a bunch of dead people?

I need to know where somebody might have seen them.

Try hospitals, maybe rehab centers.

All right, let me... Just give me a sec.

All right. Give me something. Come on.

Yeah.

Come on. Yes. All right.

So, looks like your recently and not-so-recently deceased

were all clients at the vorhees physical therapy center,

and just a couple miles away.

Thank you, Randy. All right, I'm gonna check out

this clinic they're all connected to.

Okay, we-we're gonna keep digging,

see if we can find any other associated victims.

Sorry, all patient information is confidential.

I just need to know who the hardens and the appelbaums

might have been working with.

A woman's life is at stake.

I appreciate your situation, but I can't help you.

We could lose our license.

Okay. I understand. Thank you.

Can I ask you a question?

- Who are these two here? - Former patients.

They died in a house fire a couple months back.

Was very tragic.

Siblings.

One was the caretaker for the other?

That's right. One of them was paralyzed.

Who made this flyer? Do you know?

One of our aides... Francis.

He really goes the extra mile for patients here.

Francis. Okay.

Thank you.

Two sugars for you, mom.

And... You know what? Let's do two sugars for you.

There.

I'd offer milk, but...

Mom always says it tastes curdled.

Please let me go!

I won't tell anyone about you.

I really don't even know anything.

Come on, don't sell yourself short.

You're smart.

- Too smart. - Please!

I didn't see anything.

Margo, this, this will go better if you don't lie to me.

Smart girls who lie...

all sorts of bad things could happen.

Long, bad things.

I've been watching you, you know?

I know things about you.

Personal things.

But the-the reason I-I have you

is because of your posts online about the appelbaums.

How did you know that was me?

Well, it wasn't hard to figure out.

I mean, you left a digital footprint,

clues about your job.

The point is, you saw details that no one else did.

Details about my work.

So I just... I just had to figure out who you were,

get to know you, and, now here we are.

I mean, if you think about it, we, we like the same things.

No, it's just a hobby.

No.

It's more than that.

Do you remember what I said about lying?

You wanted attention, didn't you?

Yeah. Started posting about the hardens.

Clever things about how they died.

So I just had to follow you and see you work.

You were there when I was cleaning the house.

I was so close to you.

I could smell you.

You saw my drawing,

and that's when I knew what I had to do.

You killed that poor couple.

So, what, you could get off on their pain and suffering?

Hey, I saved them from all that.

I know what you're thinking.

And I won't stop you.

Go ahead.

Scream for help.

But I am gonna have to burn him alive right in front of you.

That what you want, margo?

Damn, man.

Angel wings are down there, too?

Yeah, they're here.

Called the police. They're on their way.

These bodies have been here for decades.

It's gruesome.

Any sign of margo?

No.

This is definitely where he was holding her.

I got his laptop now. Can I tether you in?

Yeah, man. Go for it.

All right, I'm in.

He's definitely been following her latest online activity.

Maybe he snatched her up because she found out what he was doing.

Hi... I just sent you something.

Patterns are never random.

Killer always has a "why."

Thanks for the assist.

Yeah, of course.

Hi, reenie.

Yeah, I'm still here.

Okay, yeah, gotcha.

I will send him the nicest gift basket there is.

No fruit, no alcohol. Copy that.

Reenie's new hire?

Yeah, that's Mel.

- How's it going? - She's great.

She just sent me a list of dual caregivers

and patient deaths in the region.

They're all ruled as natural or accidental.

Wow, man.

There's been a lot of these over the last 25 years.

Looks like our guy's been busy.

Yeah, looks that way, man.

From the looks of things,

Francis didn't leave too long ago.

I got to assume that margo's still alive

- because he's been feeding her. - Why is he keeping her alive?

I don't know. That's a good question.

You're hurting me.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry, but I just really need you to understand

what it is I do.

You think you're some angel of mercy.

That's why you draw wings.

Go on.

That's how you justify your actions.

No!

I don't have to justify anything, especially to you.

I watched my mother take care of...

Of my disabled brother.

Sacrificing her own health and happiness for nothing.

He was never gonna get better.

I mean, they were alive, but they weren't living.

So you decided for them.

Hey, I was there.

I suffered, too.

Mother was so busy caring for him,

making him tea, reading him books.

She barely noticed me.

Do you even know what true pain is?

No.

Of course you don't.

But I can show you.

Get in there.

Okay, bro, check me out.

Just found out that Francis grew up with a single mom

and a brother who had cerebral palsy,

but both his mother and his brother

just happened to vanish 25 years ago, okay?

No credit card use, no doctor's visits.

So those are the bodies that I found in the basement.

So he kills them, he keeps them there,

and sets up the scene like some sort of sick tableau.

Hey, margo's friends turn up any new leads?

He's using margo to get to Gunther and Eddie.

- That's why he's keeping her alive. - It's got to be, right?

Okay, well, at least you know where they're headed.

You got backup, right?

Colter?

I can't call the police in right now.

If Francis feels the pressure, he's gonna kill margo.

Look, I don't love this, man.

- Well... -No choice. - All right, man, just...

Look, I'm on standby if you need me.

- All right? - Yeah.

Wha... why are we here?

Well, because you couldn't just

keep your little discoveries to yourself.

You don't understand how important my work is, margo.

But how could you?

You're just a cleaning person.

A simple maid for the dead.

What are you gonna do?

I think you already know that.

I'm gonna take care of the mess you made.

You're taking me to meet your friends.

But my friends don't know anything about you.

I've heard every lie under the sun,

especially when death is right there.

It's what we do.

We lie and cheat right to the end.

Please, they have nothing to do with this.

Well, we'll see about that.

And when I'm done, you can clean up the scene.

I get to watch you work.

Again.

I'll try not to make it too messy.

- Where are you going? - No!

No! No!

Come on, come on, pick up.

The number you are trying to reach... 260-555-0179,

is not available.

- Please leave a message. - Eddie.

You got to get out of there. He's coming for you and Gunther.

Leave now.

Don't hang up. Help is on the way.

Man, I'm looking for more connections,

but I'm coming up empty.

This is why we need margo.

She's a magician with this stuff.

I'm gonna tell her you said that.

Help!

Someone help me, please!

- Someone help. - Hey.

Margo, you're all right.

- Who are you? - It's okay, I'm colter.

Your boss hired me to find you. Are you okay?

- Yeah. - Where's Francis?

You-you have to stop him.

He's gonna kill them!

He's gonna kill them... Gunther and Eddie.

Okay. Here. Call 911.

Let him go, Francis.

Let him go!

You're just in time to watch.

All this because margo had you pegged?

- You guys all right? - Yep.

- Yeah... - Yeah? You okay?

- Yeah, I'm great, I'm great. - All right, yeah?

Whoa. Yeah.

Dispatch, this is 22-Edward...

Thank you, Mr. Shaw.

- You're very welcome. Thank you. - Hey, you...

You should take the week.

No. No way. I'll see you tomorrow.

Hang on.

I'll be right back.

I can't believe she cared enough to hire you.

I think you mean an awful lot to her.

We were worried about you.

No, no, he-he was worried, and I wasn't worried

because I know you know how to take care of yourself.

I don't know how to thank you.

I think we should be thanking you.

You're the one who found the trail, right?

You three bagged a serial killer.

So much for armchair detectives.

You know, you're, you're-you're pretty good at this,

and we could use a fourth in our crew.

I don't know, I think you three got it handled.

By the way, I had to tell the police

about your, little museum in here.

But I-I told you all that was legal.

They didn't take anything, did they?

No, they didn't take anything.

I told them you were fans of the genre.

Thank you.

So, what's next for you?

Go where the job takes me.

Just putting it out there,

but we're always available for consultation.

Yeah? Might take you up on that.

Be good to each other, okay?

- Okay. - All right.

Sick.

- Hey, Randy. - Hey.

I'm glad everything worked out,

- even though you didn't have any backup. - Yeah.

Everything all right?

I-I'll let you decide.

You know the records that Russell sent over?

The David Pearson stuff?

- Find anything? - Yeah.

Maybe. Wheels inside of wheels.

But...

Think I got something that you might want to check out.

Okay. I'm listening.

Captioning sponsored by and Toyota.

Captioned by media access group at wgbh access.Wgbh.Org