Original subtitles

Friends and neighbors.

Though we haven't been neighbors long, I hope I may call you friends.

When the work we begin here today is finished, the hills about us will be

transformed. Where once there was only barren earth, new life will arise.

New streets, new homes.

Los Pinos Canyon Estates. 46 family homes.

Three bedrooms plus bonus room. Four bedrooms at your option. Price from the

500. A new community.

Soon to thrive with new friends and new neighbors.

And speaking of those of you who own businesses here in the canyons, and

Bill will back me up on this, new friends, new revenue. That's right,

Newman, don't.

Don't call me a friend.

Bastards like you don't have friends, just victims. Nobody asked your opinion,

Jerry. Maybe that's because our newest resident here hasn't bought my opinion

the way he's bought a few other dudes I could name.

What is that supposed to mean?

You figure it out, Mayor Bill.

Jerry, why don't you just go find a shade tree somewhere? Hey, Newman, I saw

your lawyer today.

We talked about my house.

Oh, really? Should I care?

Well, yeah, I mean, you know my house. You know, it's up there, smack in the

heart of what will be downtown Los Pinos Canyon Estates.

After you bulldoze my place.

Your man offered me three times market value for my old shack. In fact, he said

that since I was the last holdout, I could pretty well name my price.

Are you sure he worked for me?

I told him I don't have a price.

I've already got what I want, my private piece of paradise.

And I will be damned if I'll sell paradise to a dung maggot like Chris

Hey, hey, Jerry's right.

Some things matter more than money.

Like what?

Like the ecosystem, you junk!

Stop it.

Sally, just stay out of this, okay?

Leave her alone!

Don't you tell me what to do with my own daughter! Do you want a piece of me,

Mayor Bill? Do you, Mary? Come over here! Stop it!

How long does she go?

Sorry, Dr. Sloan. I was just chasing my dad's tire.

Okay, you missed me.

I knew Brown University had a well -rounded curriculum. I didn't know it

included auto mechanics.

How are you, Sally? I'm good, I'm good.

Good to see you.

So, what brings you here? Oh, just getting supplies.

Medical? No, edible.

Steve got the day off. Jessie came out to see the ball game with me. Oh, so you

get some fat -free potato chips. Not if I want to make it past the first

quarter.

You know, I'm kind of surprised to see you. You should be back east. This is

your junior year, isn't it? Yeah, I just, you know, I took some time off.

Everything all right?

Yeah, there was just a lot of pressure dealing with that magna cum laude.

And as you and everyone else in town knows, Valley doesn't deal well with

pressure. Well, that's why everyone in this town is so proud of you.

After the rough time you had losing your mom.

Yeah, and my little excursion into drugs.

And don't be so hard on yourself. Look where you are now.

Yeah. Thanks to Jerry.

I mean, if he hadn't shown me that love, life, and death are part of nature's

cycles, I don't think I'd still be here.

Sounds like Jerry, all right.

Yeah, do you know his poetry?

Yeah.

A red, green, gold, yellow, orange, bed of not roses,

mystic mandala of leaves and limbs and mucus, dreams

of tongue -wet mornings.

Mao Zedong died on a Sunday.

Isn't that amazing?

Yeah. If your thought process has stopped in 1974...

It was really nice to see you, Dr. Stone. I should go in and wash up.

Will you tell Steve I said hi? I'll do that.

She's a lovely girl, Bill. Even with all that grease on her.

Yeah. So, what's your opinion about all this new development in the canyon?

Well, pretty good for some people, not so good for others.

Mark, towns have got to grow.

So do the daughters.

So how's Friday night's poster club doing without me?

That's right. You swore you'd be back after the election.

Or is that your first broken campaign?

You just mistaken my money, that's all. Oh, I played the pleasure, not the cash.

But I notice Father Bosley kind of misses your money. Oh, I bet he does.

The truth is, I've just been too busy to get there.

Mark, you're stealing my grapes.

Why don't you go buy something?

And you'll give Steve my best.

I will.

I'll give him your drinks.

Hi, Mark.

Oh. Nice to see you again. You too, Howard.

You know, there's just one problem with having the only general store in this

canyon.

You know what that is?

What's that, Bill? You can't control what walks through the door.

Fine, don't take my money.

Oh, I'll take your cash. I just don't want your rubber checks.

I've about to check once in my life.

Oh, did you hear that?

He ruins half the families in this canyon.

But gotta say this for Howard Purcell, never passed any bad paper.

Honestly, Bill, you know, I never intended... I thought you were going to

shop someplace else.

A lot of people lost a lot of money in this canyon because of that man's crazy

stock trading schemes.

I know. It was one of them.

That was six years ago, Bill.

Well, Dad had some trouble with the concept of live and let live.

There's a fire in the hills.

Believe me!

Well, better go call 911.

All right, we got a dozen big bore IVs, two cases of ringers, lactate, a dozen

burn packs, splints. We got two cases of sulfur sulfadiazine. Okay, let's get

another case of the ringers and another dozen of the boosters just to be safe.

Really? You think Mark is going to need all this stuff out of the first aid set?

It's hot and it's dry, Jesse, and there are a lot of homes up in Suvat Canyon.

With a fire like this, it's better to be safe than to be sorry.

Okay, maybe I should get some extra burn packs.

Good idea. I'll talk to the medevac guys and see if I can round up some off

-duty nurses and see what I can do about an emergency supply restock.

All right, the COTS and the exam tables are on their way. The affordable oxygen

and the crash carts are on the truck.

Is all this stuff going, too?

And this stuff.

There's not going to be room for me on that truck.

We'd better go, Jesse. I've got a volunteer fire brigade probably

around lost.

Steve, you're already a cop. Why do you have to be a firefighter, too?

It's my home out there.

Yeah, let's go.

every available resource to try and save homes and lives. And from the look of

things, it won't be easy.

This is Rebecca Fleetwood on the scene at Tremont Community Store, which has

been designated a staging area for volunteer firefighters and other

personnel. It feels like every year there's another fire in the canyons, and

every year half these folks have to be evacuated. I don't get it. It just seems

like if any of these people had half a brain, they'd lose somewhere else.

No, I know. I didn't mean that. I wasn't talking about you. I know what you

mean. Living in a fire zone doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

But you don't have to worry about safety where you're going to go.

Kansas has got tornadoes. Texas has got floods.

Florida's got... Disney World.

These canyons have long been a living example of culture diversity.

Shelters that fascinate your advocates and hide away for the rich and

For example, here's Peter Gray slaying the fire line.

Mr. Gray.

How long before you lose everything? No, I'm great. I'm a doctor.

I'm a medical.

That's Peter Gray, always lending a hand.

Still check everything, will you, Sally?

When we get up there, the situation on the ground will tell us how many teams

need. When we do split up, remember, stay close to your team, don't take any

unnecessary risks.

When you're in a smoke, keep your eyes on your air regulator and your ears open

for sounds, human or animal.

Means we can ignore Howard, right? Unit 51, come in. I came here to help, guys.

I used to be a member of this brigade, remember?

Ancient history.

Even a smart guy like you ought to understand by now nobody here wants your

help.

All right, we're up. Branch fired one of the lower canyons.

Valley? Everybody.

What lower canyon?

Spider said Regal Canyon. My house is in Regal Canyon.

Your house was in Regal Canyon.

Doesn't pay to take a bite out of Mother Nature. She bites back.

Shut up. You take what's hers, she'll take what's yours. I say let it burn. Go

to hell.

You've got to save my house. We'll do everything we can.

That's not good enough.

Your house is not the only one at risk. We'll do what we can.

Let's go.

and risk their lives to rebuke contracts.

My dog!

What dog?

My 15 -year -old vine varietal.

Get back in there. You've got to save my house.

You're done.

There's nobody in there, Chris.

The neighbors must have got him. Yeah, right.

Jerry. Who cares where he is? Get him out of here.

Come on.

We're doing everything we can.

Clear.

I'm so sorry.

Stop it.

You hated him when he was alive. Don't pretend you're sorry now that he's dead.

to Rage unchecked, we have reports of six homes destroyed and several local

residents hospitalized.

And tragically, the death of one volunteer firefighter. The dead man has

identified as volunteer firefighter Jerome Grail, a longtime resident of the

area. A writer and sometime movie critic, Grail is best known for his

1974 essay, Politics and Rage, Why Kids Are Always Right.

Amanda?

Why wouldn't I be?

Maybe it's because you're in a path of a raging fire. Six fire battalions from

two counties can't seem to get under control.

The sun sets in, what, two hours, the winds are picking up, and if that fire

jumps Pacific Coast Highway, you're going to be trapped between it and the

ocean. Now, I'm not going to worry about it. You're not going to worry about it.

Why aren't you worried about it?

I hide it well.

Listen, I need you to do an autopsy for me.

Mark, look, I don't know how things are in your room, but we're a little

overbooked here.

A demon, Jerry Grail's lungs, or something very odd about the way he

Okay, I will have a preliminary report ready for you in about a half hour after

I receive the body.

That would be great, Amanda.

Only if you agree to be out of here before sunset.

That's the plan.

Thanks, Amanda.

Okay.

Grail's tank.

Like I told you, it's full.

That can't be right.

I think she'll be full of air.

Look at there.

The empty tank alarm's been disabled.

And the gauge is broken, too. No matter how little air in there, it's going to

show full.

Yeah, but even if he ran out of air, he wasn't in that house long enough to die

of smoking. You're absolutely right.

So you're saying that the beam that fell on him killed him? No, no, no. His

injuries weren't that bad. He suffocated all right, but from lack of air in that

tank, not from smoking.

So whoever rigged this tank had to make sure that Jerry used it.

And they started a fire in the hill because they knew that Jerry was

here. That makes it arson.

It also makes it murder.

Grail was the only threat left to Chris Newman's development of Los Pinos Canyon

Estates. Well, the fire started in Los Pinos, so it could have been Newman.

But, well, you know, killing a man and endangering that many homes, that's an

act of revenge.

You don't have to do this. Get out!

Sally, look, there's no way to handle this.

You don't know anything about it. Just leave me alone.

I can't just leave you alone. And yes, I do know a little bit about this. I hate

this. Well, that's one thing that I do know.

I'm real glad that he's dead. Everyone in this stupid damn town.

They're out there celebrating.

Come on, you don't believe that.

Jerry had the one thing in this canyon that everyone wanted but couldn't have.

It was true freedom.

And they all hated him for it.

Especially my father.

That's not why I hated him.

Oh, no, you just hated him because of the AIDS thing, huh? That's all that

mattered to you.

I hated him because he took advantage of you.

All right, look, guys, we're all a little... He was there for me when Mom

Is that taking advantage?

In Jerry's case, yeah.

I don't want to hear it anymore. You know what he was doing, don't you?

Look, guys, why don't we go outside, sit down, have a cup of coffee? I saw it!

For 25 years, I saw it. That hippie, touchy -feely, pseudo -sympathetic crap.

Stop it, Dad! Every young woman who ever fell in love with this stupid poetry

reading... Dad, Dad, stop it! So many notches on his bedpost, I thought his

was going to fall to the ground.

I am not a joke.

my daughter and you deserve love and loyalty

something that jerry grail was never capable of giving you

you don't know what you gave me or what i needed

you never bothered to ask

A lot of people are going to be wiped out by this.

Just finishing off what I started, right?

I didn't say that.

It didn't happen.

Their eyes already did.

Why'd you come back here, Howard?

You know, Steve, I don't think you'd believe me.

The last time I saw you after the trial, I never saw a man so angry.

I blamed everyone for what happened.

Banks, stock market, SEC, and Jerry Grail. I blamed Graham.

Most people, when they receive a dividend check for a stock they're sure

don't own, they either send the money back or they pocket the cash.

Jerry Grail called the SEC.

You were using client accounts like his to hide your insider trading.

And the SEC confiscated those accounts.

Clients lost their savings, and I spent the last six years, six years in federal

daycare.

You must have really hated Jerry Greer.

Jerry didn't ruin my life, Steve.

There's two.

That's why I came back.

To make amends.

If only they'd let me.

Somebody sabotaged Jerry's safety equipment.

You have a motive.

And you're at the staging area when we load it up.

I wasn't the only one then.

Guys with plenty of other people around here that wanted Grail dead.

Like Chris Newman?

Like everybody's favorite grocer.

Mayor Bill Tremont.

Find anything?

No, not yet.

No telling what set it off.

Could be a cigarette out the window.

Weed whacker hitting a rock, sending up a spark.

Sometimes it's a little piece of glass. Sun hits it just the right angle. Yeah,

well, I don't know.

San Dimas in 93 was firecrackers.

Sunland in 94 was a homeless guy, campfire.

Then it was Pacoima in 90. You wouldn't believe how that thing got started.

Well, you could see any place burn like this.

Don't blame the fire.

It's nature's way of cleaning house. Sort of like cleansing the pallet, you

might say.

Setting the stage for new growth.

New life.

Rebirth. You take Yellowstone, 89, the way that place came back. Excuse me.

Think nature put this here?

I hate people.

All right, guys.

We got arson.

We're looking for a gas can.

Who knows where this crazy might have tossed it.

I'll get this to forensics.

You know, you might want to pack it up. Looks like the wind's shifting again.

You've got a good eye.

Forget the can. We're leaving.

It's not going to go anywhere. I'll see you down below.

As you can see back in the studio, the fire is really threatening to jump the

Pacific Coast Highway now.

Officials have been especially worried about this because it's going to make

access to the upper stretches of houses along the beach. Hey, Mark, they just

said that the fire is about to jump the Pacific Coast Highway. I was afraid that

was going to happen.

Mark, you're worried about your house?

It ain't just a house.

Yeah, but it's full of furniture and memories.

I can buy new furniture and the memories are all up here. Well, he smokes in the

sun.

Excuse me, Dr. Song? Yes.

Who are Steve is?

Last I remember, he was headed for Los Pinas Canyon to meet you.

Yeah, he did, but then we found the gas gap and he was headed back down.

So then it was definitely arson.

I'd hate to try and catch his firebugs. Might be your neighbor, might be your

boss. We even nailed the volunteer fireman.

I really hated that. I remember it was Laguna 94.

You said Steve was headed back.

Yeah, it was about 30 minutes ago when the wind picked up. He isn't here? No.

No, he isn't.

Yeah, this guy was raking all kinds of toilet paper, putting it in a big pile.

Well, I got to, uh, doctor.

Yeah.

There was a finger bite.

Not in there.

Mark, we found Steve's truck.

But he's nowhere around.

Over.

You know, Bill, maybe he headed for the coast highway on foot. Over.

Yeah, maybe.

But there's only one road out of that canyon. I think we would have seen him.

Over. Maybe he went cross -country, Bill.

Yeah.

I doubt it, though.

Wait a minute. I think I see something.

Bill, what is it? Is it Steve?

It's the fire shelter.

He was able to crawl in before the fire went up the hill. Hang on.

Bill, what's happening?

I hope I can get some oxygen.

Let's go.

Oh, there you go.

Coming through. Right here.

Steve? They start up an IV ringer's lactate. We need to hydrate them.

Mark?

Yeah, I'm all right. Let's check him for injuries.

Okay, he's got first and second degree burns on both hands.

Contusion 15 centimeters above the right ear.

No apparent fracture of any kind.

Probable concussion. His heartbeat is irregular. He may be going in shock.

All right, let's get him on medevac. Community general.

You just lie still. You're going to be all right.

Where's that medevac?

About a gas can.

Tire tracks.

Ball tire.

Somebody hit me.

Did you see who it was?

No.

Came to him.

Gas can was gone.

Tracks gone.

I promise you, we'll find out who it was.

Get him out of here.

Surgery burns?

No, probably concussion.

Is he conscious?

Well, in and out.

Order him a CAT scan and try to keep him in bed, will you?

Can I use restraints?

How'd the Jerry Grayle autopsy come out?

Oh, he had a demon in his lungs, all right, but not what you'd expect from

inhalation.

Did you check his airways?

Mm -hmm, swollen shut.

He had asthma?

Mm -hmm. I never saw him use an inhaler. I pulled his records. He never used

one. He controlled his disease by using theophylline tablets and

bronchosteroids. Which he kept hidden. You know, Jerry was always very vain

about his health.

Well, his vanity killed him. If he had had an inhaler with him, he could have

counteracted the effects of the smoke, and his throat wouldn't have swollen

shut. Jerry'd still be alive.

Although, you know, if he had theophylline in him, his lungs would

fine. Well, maybe he stopped taking it.

Or maybe he stopped taking it and didn't know he had stopped.

Medivac's here with Steve.

Mark, don't worry.

We'll take good care of him. I know you will, honey.

Thanks, Amanda.

Now, which one of them knew?

Them knew what?

Jerry Grail had asthma.

And he was out there fighting fire? That's not too smart.

He never was one to let common sense get in the way of whatever he wanted to do.

The question is, who knew he had asthma and who wanted him dead?

What about Chris Newman?

I mean, Grail's house was the last thing standing in the way of that new

development. Yeah, sure, Chris is glad to see him gone, too, but what about

Howard? Howard Purcell spent six years in prison because Jerry fed him to the

SEC.

I got caught in the middle of a fight Sally Tremont had with her father about

Grail. And you have no broken bones?

Actually, they ignored me.

Lucky you.

Yeah. You know, I think that Sally was the only one in this town who actually

liked the guy, and she probably would have wanted to kill him if she knew that

he'd been cheating on her.

What'd you hear there?

Her father told her while I was standing there.

So... Every one of them had a motive.

The thing is, who had the opportunity and who was it who knew that he had

asthma?

Why don't we work on this later? I mean, they've asked us to evacuate the

canyon. Oh, I better hurry.

Hurry? Where are you going?

Mark, where are you going?

Stephanie, we're located here...

unit near the Malibu Pier. And we understand that the police department

ordered further evacuations of the area as the fire moves even closer to the

highway.

Hey, Mark.

Could I watch for a minute? They say it's getting pretty close to my house.

yeah. Sure.

Thanks. I'm just going to check this last bit of stuff around the guys on

Any news on Steve?

No, nothing new.

I wouldn't worry about it.

Everything's going to be okay.

Listen to me.

I'm telling you not to worry about your son. That seems to be all I do is worry

about my daughter. What we fathers do.

Yeah, I guess.

All right, look.

You lock up as soon as you leave, okay?

Okay. And try not to stay too long.

Don't worry. I'm right behind you. Okay.

Only thing about pickups, they don't run without cheese.

What are you doing?

I'm checking your pharmacy computer for any information on Jerry Grail.

I thought he might be getting his prescription here. I was right.

Well, if you wanted to know something, why didn't you just ask?

You might not have told me, Bill.

Jerry Grail had asthma, and he hid it from everybody except you.

You filled his prescription.

That gives you knowledge?

and the means to kill him.

Yeah.

And the motive.

The only thing is, I didn't.

Sally's mother died.

As much as I hated Jerry Grail, I would never do anything to add to her misery.

One more thing.

Just about anybody who ever worked here would know about Jerry Grail's

condition.

Like I said, lock up when you're finished, Dr. Sloan.

Take over. I've headed out for Jerry Grail Town.

Mark, something crazy. The fire was halfway down that end of the canyon.

Mark! Take these two engines.

I have another division we want you to kill.

What do you think you're doing? Let me explain the concept of bed rest. Amanda,

I don't need to be here.

Is that your professional medical opinion, doctor?

Where are my clothes?

How many fingers do I have up?

Two. Good guess.

How many do I have up now?

All right.

Granted, I'm a little woozy.

That's one way to put it. Now, lie down.

Not until I talk to my dad, Amanda. I need to talk to him. Okay, okay. I'll do

the dialing. You don't move.

That's a good idea.

I wouldn't want to injure myself on the buttons.

Dr. Sloan, please. It's urgent.

This is his son.

Call for Dr. Sloan.

Over here.

Steve, it's Jesse.

How are you doing?

I'm fine, Jesse. Listen, let me talk to my dad.

Uh, he's lying down.

I'm in a hospital, Jesse. What else would I be doing?

Look, he's on his way to Jerry Grail's house.

What?

Grail's house is on the north end of Los Pinos Canyon.

The last time I looked, that's exactly where the fire was heading.

I know, I know. Look.

It's okay. The sheriff's deputies think that they can actually get to Grail's

place by cutting cross -country, but they're going to have to wait for the

to shift, so... Steve?

Steve!

Where do you think you're going?

Malibu. I don't think so. Watch me.

Lee, sit down, please.

Amanda, either get me my clothes or I'm going in this gown.

And I need your car keys.

Oh, you're not going anywhere.

My dad is headed to Jerry Grail's house. Do you know where Jerry Grail's house

is? No.

It's right there.

Now give me your keys.

No.

I'm driving.

With

only

a half hour of daylight left, the fire has now crossed Pacific Coast Highway.

Celebrities from all walks of life find themselves fleeing before the raging

inferno, leaving behind accumulated memorabilia of a lifetime in the public

Stealing themselves to watch it all go up in smoke.

Of course, disasters such as this, my comrades, have been the most offensive

stars. And they have all been gathering today in small groups to provide comfort

to each other.

And now I see pop star Whitney Houston has arrived to help with the evacuation.

Whitney, is your house still standing at this fearful hour? What are you talking

about? I'm not Whitney Houston. Trying to remain anonymous, just one of the

helpless victims who's come to aid your neighbors. Who are you?

Steve, what are you doing here?

My dad's back from Jerry Grail. No.

I mean, the thing is... The thing is what?

He can't get back.

The fire's crossed PCH.

The coast highway is shut down. Los Pinos Canyon is completely shut off.

I mean, no one can get in. No one can get out.

Are you okay?

You want an interview with Whitney Houston?

You're not going to find it, Dr. Sloan.

This is what you're looking for, right, Jerry Theopolis?

I mean, it isn't Theopolis, is it?

You switched the pills with, what, aspirin?

Antacid?

Allergy pills.

Yeah, Jerry wondered why the ragweed wasn't bothering him this year.

Weren't you a little worried he'd get suspicious when you put the mask on him

and there was no air in it?

No.

See, I left enough air in the tank that Jerry would think everything was all

right at first.

And then when he walked into a smoky area... He ran out of air.

Wouldn't have been enough of the offline in his system to keep the smoke from

tricking another asthma attack.

Pretty clever.

Yeah, well, with Jerry, you had to be.

Sally, when did you first learn he was cheating on you?

About a month ago.

Some woman called over to the house. She wanted to know when Jerry's next poetry

reading was.

She had such fun that night.

I'm so sorry.

Well, don't be. I'm tired of pity.

Why did you risk coming back here?

The same reason you did.

I knew that Steve would tell you that he found bald tire tracks on the road. And

you knew that I'd eventually remember that I saw you changing a bald tire on

your father's truck.

And I knew that you'd find out about Jerry's asthma sooner or later. So you

back here to hide the tire and get rid of the pills.

You know, you could have waited for the fire to do it for you. I had to be sure.

Fires can trick you sometimes.

Why start the fire at all? This is your home, Sally.

And this is also his house.

Jerry loved this canyon more than he loved anything else.

But Jerry's not the only one who lives here. Lots of people are losing their

homes. Yeah, a lot of hypocrites.

They all knew.

They all said that they wanted to help me.

They tell me about Jerry, no.

They were just laughing at me.

And now they're paying for it. Tell me don't do this.

I got him, Mark.

Yeah,

get in there. Yeah, get in here.

You all right?

I don't know about you guys. I'd like to get out of here. Couldn't agree more.

I feel so sorry for her. I do, too.

Too much happened to Sally much too quickly. She just couldn't handle it.

caused a lot of destruction, though, even if they do finally have that fire

contained. Yeah, I know.

You know, I have the feeling the people around here are going to blame Jerry

Grayle for this whole thing and not Sally.

Well, look at that.

Now, there's something I thought I'd never see.

Howard's going to put Bill Tremont in touch with his lawyer.

Was that very wise? I mean, Howard spent six years in prison.

I hope you're not going to argue with me about getting you back to the hospital.

No. No argument in the hospital, but that sounds pretty good right now.

Oh. Lieutenant Sloan, is now a good time?

Uh, no.

Actually, it's not. Well, you did promise me an exclusive interview in

for a helicopter.

You did promise. I heard you. You always said a man should honor his promises.

Am I right?

You are absolutely right.

Be my guest.

What?

Whitney, I know this has been a terrible time for everyone, but your public

needs to know.

Is your multi -million dollar home in cinders?

I'm not, Whitney. You sing.

Hey, does anybody need a ride back? I don't think that that helicopter's going

to Malibu. It's Michael J. Fox.

Michael J., is your home a pile of smoldering cinders?

Smoldering? No.

Uh, singed, yes.

And, uh, smoky.

Real smoky.

Oh, it's so impressive the way you handle disaster.

You got a moment?

Oh, here you go. How are you doing down there, sir?

So, uh, how are you keeping up with Nick?