Original subtitles

Tonight on The Center. Inspector Reeves thinks we're dealing with a highly

skilled professional with a lot of technical knowledge.

Like an arsonist for hire?

When you're an arson investigator, everybody is a software.

Basically, it's rocket fuel.

How the hell could somebody get their hands on rocket fuel? You gonna bust me?

Did he have anything to do with the rocket launchers? Yeah, he was a

firefighter.

I don't think this is just about money. This guy loves to make things burn.

We gotta get out of here!

In the jungles of Peru, the fight for survival heightened his senses.

Now, Detective James Ellison is a sentinel in the fight for justice.

Seeing before others see.

Sensing what others can't.

An ever -vigilant watchman in the war against crime.

Look, Sandberg, I've been working all day and all night.

I'm tired and I'm hungry. At 3 a .m., I just want to stop at the first place

that's open.

Jim, trust me, it'll be worth it.

Tony's 24 -Hour Grill's got some of the best food that you will ever taste. If

we ever get there. It's right around here somewhere.

You've been saying that for the last 20 minutes.

You smell that?

What?

Smoke.

Ah, that's Tony's Grill. I told you it was on this street.

No, no, no.

Whatever's burning, it's cooking a lot more than food.

There's somebody inside that warehouse.

Jim, shouldn't we wait for the fire department? There's no time. Call for

We're going to fire at Gershwin's Furniture Warehouse, 3rd and Mission.

may be somebody trapped inside.

This way.

Got it.

Some more hot spots over here, sir.

We'll catch him.

Got that, sir?

What do you think for that guard when you came along?

One of my guys tells me you're a cop.

Jim Ellis, Major Crime.

This is Blair Sandberg. Dan Mattson. How you doing?

It didn't seem like your hoses did much good. Yeah, well, that was one hot fire.

We could barely contain it.

I've seen a lot of fires before, but this one was pure white.

Did you say white?

Correct.

What about the center of the fire? What color was it?

Kind of blue.

Oh, I know. It was black.

Kind of jumping the gun, huh, Deb?

I already know how to go down.

No poor pattern, no trace of any common accelerant.

And look at this.

Piece of the concrete floor.

Whoa. That fire became so hot it melted it into glass.

Tell me something, hero. How'd you just happen to be in the vicinity?

We were driving around looking for a place to eat.

Is that your truck over there?

Yeah, that's right.

Any objection if I have a look inside?

He's a cop.

That's all right. Knock yourself out.

Thank you.

What was that about? Deborah Reeves. She's an arson investigator.

You know her? I've seen her working out at the gym a couple times.

She's kind of cute in a pitbull sort of way.

Well, she has the tendency to rub people the wrong way, but she's very good at

her job.

What'd she want with the truck?

When you're an arson investigator, everybody is a suspect.

All right.

Let's go, Chief.

Did your lungs still hurt from last night? My lungs, my eyes, and nose.

I had similar experience in the military when they were testing napalm.

Now, you think there's chemicals in that balloon?

Awesome.

Can I see you a minute, please?

I think you two know Inspector Reeves.

You here to arrest me, Inspector?

Just doing my job, Detective.

I'm putting you in charge of the criminal investigation for last night's

Looks like we're dealing with a serial arsonist here.

If we're right, we've already had two fatalities.

Plus, the guard from last night is still in critical.

This is the fifth super hot fire in the Northwest in the last two years.

What's the connection?

Most fires burn around 1 ,500 degrees Fahrenheit.

Whoever's doing these fires is using something a lot hotter. It's reaching

to 5 ,000 degrees.

The only explanation is an HTA.

What's HTA? High temperature accelerant.

Inspector Reeves thinks we're dealing with a highly skilled professional with

lot of technical knowledge.

What, like an arsonist for hire?

All the fires were industrial warehouses with big time insurance payoffs, right?

On the other hand, I don't think this is just about money. This guy loves to

make things burn.

He's getting more daring. These fires are getting closer together.

You said each warehouse had a big payoff.

How much was last night's? Gershwin Furniture stands to make two million in

insurance. I'd say that's a good place to start.

Sir? Jim.

Captain?

You'll be working with Inspector Reeves on this case. Sir?

Mayors, I do.

Zoe?

Yeah.

Please, come in.

I'm always happy to help out the authorities in any way I can. I feel

old friends, Mr. Gershwin.

A Couch King movie fan.

Oh, yeah. Ever since I was able to stand past my bedtime.

And you, detective, you look familiar to me.

It's a police athletic league fundraiser. Two years ago, we shared a

You were with your wife. Very attractive brunette. A police technician, as I

recall. That's quite a memory of yours. I have a photographic memory.

And how is your wife?

Well, now that she's divorced me and moved to San Francisco, just fine. Oh,

I've been married four times.

My view is I'm going to keep doing it until I get it right.

Excuse me.

I'd like to ask a few questions.

Mr. Gershwin, is it true that your company lost over half a million dollars

quarter? Oh, just a temporary slump. I mean, the furniture business is

Our sales have been up significantly in the last three months. I see. Is that

why you increased your fire insurance twice in the last year? I increased my

insurance because, as you should be aware, we had a large fire just three

from here. Right. That was eight months ago. You increased your insurance the

first time ten months ago. So what?

Deborah. Mr. Gershwin, are you aware that arson for profit is a serious

Are you accusing me of a crime? There is a security guard at County General in

critical condition.

If he dies, you will be involved in a murder investigation. So if I were you,

I'd come clean as soon as possible. Or you could still cut a deal. This is

unbelievable. You come into my store.

Maybe we ought to just settle down. I think you ought to just get the hell out

of my store.

Mr. Dershowitz. Now!

Very good, sir.

Good day.

I'm still a huge fan.

Call me over sensitive, but don't you think it's a bit premature to slap him

with a felony accusation?

I was just trying to get some information, not become his best friend.

here is to get people to trust you. Well, I find it works better to keep him

balance. The only thing that's off balance here is your approach.

I misjudged him, okay?

At least we agree on one thing.

you doing here? I'm looking for a new sofa.

I figure it's about time we get rid of that old monstrosity in the living room.

Pardon my daughter's manners. Mitch Reeves. Ah, Jim Ellison, Cascade PD.

How you doing? Blair Semper.

You must be here about that warehouse fire. Was it arson?

Dad, you know we can't talk about an ongoing investigation.

My own daughter. We were in the same department. She won't tell me a thing.

else am I supposed to get my thrills?

How long were you farming?

21 years.

I got bit.

But I could tell you some stories. Dad, we're a little busy right now.

Okay, okay, no stories.

Well, I'm off to buy a couch. Nice to meet you guys.

See you around.

Happy shopping.

See you later.

Well, it seems like your dad's got some manners.

I'm going to check in at the office. I'll hook up with you guys later.

Hey, Sam.

Jim. This is Blair Sandberg. He's a consultant to the department.

Yes, we've met.

Sam and I know each other socially.

Yeah, at least we did until Blair stood me up at a sushi restaurant.

I got the dates mixed up. Yeah, that's what happens when you overbook.

Ouch.

Sam, any idea what this mystery accelerant is that we're looking for?

Well, if pumping water on the blaze made it worse, sounds like we're looking for

an oxidizer, which is a chemical that creates its own oxygen.

Is that possible?

Let's do a little experiment.

Blair, would you please put that in the sink?

Okay, now put some water from the tap on it.

Whoa!

What, are you trying to kill me?

You did that on purpose.

Oh, it's just a harmless chemical reaction.

Kind of like your feelings for me.

Hey, so what you're saying is that the more water the fireman put on the fire,

the hotter it got.

Exactly. Instead of putting it out, it was feeding it.

See, but the problem is coming up with something that burns at the kind of

temperature you're talking about. I mean, 5 ,000 degrees is one intense

You know, while it was burning, I smelled something that reminded me of

I mean, it wasn't the same, but it was similar.

Just give me a couple of days to do some research.

Is there anything else you got while we're at it? Well, unfortunately, there

not much left of the warehouse to examine.

But we found this right outside on the pavement.

It seems to be some kind of wax material.

Now, it could have been blown out by one of the explosions.

We're still doing some tests to determine what it is.

This is Mr. Zogg's sex wax. Sex wax?

Whoa, whoa, easy, Chief.

It's what surfers use to coat their boards for traction in the water. This

coconut scented.

Thanks. You just saved me a couple of days' worth of work.

Anything I can do to help.

Call me when you confirm that, will you? Great. Nice work.

Yeah, I'm coming.

Nice seeing you again, Blair.

Drop by any time.

So what's the deal with you and Samantha?

Can you believe that?

She must still really like me. Like you?

She wanted to blow your face off.

It's just her way of showing affection, like the way lions bat each other around

before they mate. Let me tell you something. If she likes you anymore, you

better buy her some life insurance.

Bye.

No, that's great.

Thanks, Jim.

You were right about that wax. That was forensics. Mr.

Zog's sex wax.

We've been cross -checking local surf shops, local surfers, hangers -on,

wannabes with known arsonists, and so far we've come up empty -handed.

I had no idea there were so many surfers in Cascade. Have you shared this

surfing area with Inspector Reeves yet?

Um, well, to tell you the truth, I don't think our investigative styles are very

compatible. Jim.

I want that forensics report in her hand by the end of the day.

Why don't you deliver it to her personally?

Mr. Ellison, how are you?

Fine, thank you, sir. I stopped by Deborah's office, but she wasn't there,

they gave me this address.

Oh, well, you're at the right place. Debbie moved in to help me out after my

accident. Come on in.

Ah, she just went to the store. Come on in. All right. Come on.

Hey, how are you?

Not too bad.

Detective Ellison. Oh, Captain.

Dan Mattson. Yeah, we met at the fire.

Jim's the guy who pulled that security guard out. Yeah, that's right. Nice to

see you again.

I understand you're working with Deb on this case.

Are you ready to kill her yet?

I heard that. That's the one doll you were talking about.

I'd bounce her on my knee, Mitch. I know who she is.

It's just like her old man. I've been wanting to kill him for years.

Dan's a go -way back, even before the department.

We're like family.

Except Dan's a politician.

Speaking of which, I gotta meet the chief at the yacht club. Some kind of

charity deal.

You better run along like a good little fireman.

You blow it out your ear. Good to see you, Allison.

Nice to see you, too.

So tell me, how's the investigation going?

Well, we're making progress.

You know how investigations go.

Sure, don't need to bore you with the details. You got better things to do. I

got to get back to the station, take care of some business.

Debra will be here in a minute.

Just tell her I stopped by.

Appreciate the beer. Back to where she is now.

Hey, babe, we got company.

Hi. Hi.

What are you doing here?

Actually, I was just leaving.

Staying for dinner.

Fine by me.

There you go.

How are you?

So, the whole room's full of smoke as I go in.

And there's this old woman sitting in the corner, all dressed up.

And she says, is that you, Frank?

I say, no, ma 'am, it's the fire department.

Your building's on fire.

And there's this pause.

And then she says, just my luck.

My first date in seven years and some jerk starts a fire.

I need another bottle of wine.

I think I'll make coffee, Dad.

That sounds good.

Come on.

I want to show you something in the backyard.

These days, this is where I spend most of my time.

Doing what?

Two years ago, I was in a burning building when it collapsed.

I got trapped and almost got fried.

Lost most of the skin on my back.

This is what I was wearing at the time.

See, your basic fireman's turnout coat only keeps you cool for a couple of

minutes. Then it only works up to about 2 ,000 degrees.

Try it on.

It's pretty light.

Made of Kevlar with titanium stitching. I designed it and had a company in

Colorado make it.

Hold out your arm.

It's all right.

Slider and handles higher temps than the department standard.

Trouble is, it only works up to about 3 ,500 degrees.

My goal was 5 ,000.

I went to the department for funding.

They said no.

Said I wasn't an accredited research facility.

Only research I ever did was in the belly of the beast.

Two years of skin grafts, but I don't know about fire.

You don't seem like the type that would give up too easily.

Hell no. I got a couple of new full -body suits coming in on Friday.

They're the ones.

I know it.

Look at him.

Look at him. Lives.

Not watches you.

See, most people don't understand.

Fire's a living thing.

I know my own.

I thought I'd find you guys in here.

Coffee's ready.

Thank you for a very lovely dinner. You're welcome.

I hope my dad didn't trap you into staying. He thinks I don't have a social

life. But he means well.

It seems like you can take care of yourself.

I like to think so.

The real reason I came by... Is that an island rhino?

Yeah. I haven't seen one of these in quite a while.

Yeah, my dad got to know the designer Chance Taylor back in the early 60s. You

know, the Beach Boys, Janice, The Doors.

Of course, he can't go out much anymore.

Not a bad stick.

You surf?

Once a surfer, always a surfer, you know.

The only board I still have left from the old quiver is a ten -foot step -deck

nose rider that I got at Rocky's down in Surf City, C .A. Well, maybe we can go

down to Cascade Beach sometime.

Yeah, that'd be nice.

That'd be nice.

You were about to tell me why you came over.

Oh, yeah, right.

This is the department's forensic report on that warehouse.

Great. Thanks for bringing it over.

All right.

Good night.

Well, I think I know what your arsonist has been using to make his fire. It's

burned so hot.

I made the delay out of surf wax.

It burns brighter than most candles, and twice as bad.

Well, that's what I smelled at the warehouse.

It's magnesium.

I added it to control the burn.

Napalm uses aluminum salt.

You're the first person I've ever met who can smell it in that state.

Yeah, he's a real sensitive guy.

Unlike his friend.

5 ,200 degrees, and that's just using a two -ounce solution.

So what is this stuff?

I synthesized it, but basically, it's rocket fuel.

The arsonist is using rocket fuel?

Something close to it.

How would somebody get their hands on rocket fuel? Well, you could make it

I did, but you'd need to be a pretty accomplished chemist with a fairly

sophisticated lab at your disposal, or you could buy it.

But there's only one company in Cascade that manufactures an NUD government

clearance to get it.

Over the phone, you said something about Mitch having a beef with the department

over his injury?

Yeah, well, after the accident, he was really PO'd. They put him on the

list because he didn't want to take full visibility.

He thought he was coming back.

Sit down. Thanks.

Do you think he could have come back?

Physically, even today, I'd take Mitch Reeves over half the guys I have at the

station. But the department wouldn't reinstate him?

After they wouldn't fund his fire suit research, Mitch had a couple of beers

with a reporter and said some things he shouldn't have said.

He admitted he wasn't too good of a politician.

Well, he was never very big with authority.

I mean, one time he told off the fire chief at Vandenberg Air Force Base,

lost his job.

Mitch was at Vandenberg?

Mm -hmm. Did he have anything to do with the rocket launches?

Yeah, he was a civilian firefighter at the launch pad.

Stuff will melt the hairs in your nose.

Or send a man to the moon. I use it to test my fire suits.

Since when can you buy rocket fuel over the counter?

My next fireman.

Got my sources.

Why? You gonna bust me?

Should I?

I hear you've been asking questions about me.

You know, people have been destroyed by suspicion without proof.

Mitch, I'm not in the business of destroying innocent people's lives.

Then we're on the same wavelength.

But I have a job to do.

Even if it involves people I like.

You and Deborah.

So sure of yourselves.

I used to feel that way.

Then I got older.

Saw all the mistakes I'd made.

So the world wasn't really what I thought it was.

When I realized it isn't about being sure.

right thing.

Jim, you gotta admit, the evidence is pretty thick.

Maybe it's thick, but we don't have enough to arrest him. Jim, Jim, look, I

talked to the ATF.

The feds have traced a wire transfer of a hundred grand that Burt Gershwin made

to an offshore bank three weeks before the warehouse fire.

Gotta run.

Good, good, good, good, good.

It's time to pay another visit to Gershwin.

All right, man.

Gershwin's still inside?

Looks like he's working late. That's his caddy parked out front.

Um, hey, who's this?

Sound like for customers, isn't it?

That looks like Mitch from what's behind the wheel.

And that looks like Gershwin.

You stay here. I'm going to get closer.

Listen to me. It's very simple. You're going to prison for a long time.

What? What do you want more, honey? It's not what I want.

What do you want from me?

What's that sound? What?

The reports point to a rocket fuel -like substance as the cause of the

explosion. And then there's some of the leaked onto the pavement when the van

pulled out of the parking lot.

The department is going to proceed along the lines that Mitch Reeves is our

arsonist. So you're closing the case?

Jim, you're the one who found rocket fuel in this home. You also heard

offering him more money. What I heard was Gershwin offering him a bribe.

Mitch wasn't going to take it.

He knew we were on to him. Simon, something had to ignite that fuel.

Well, according to forensics, the type of fuel that was found in Reeves' van is

extremely unstable.

The tiniest fart could have set it off. Or the tiniest detonator.

Just before the explosion, I heard some beeping sound going off somewhere, sir.

And if there was a detonator, the heat from the explosion would have destroyed

it. Why wasn't any of this in your report?

What you're saying is that Mitch did this on purpose.

What, to kill himself?

I think he was murdered by the real arsonist.

Who is?

I don't know yet.

What's going on?

That's a ceremony that surfers have when one of their own dies.

Right. In the Fiji Islands, they have a similar ceremony when a chief dies.

I don't think Mitch ever wanted to be a chief.

I think he just wanted to fight fires.

Deborah.

Give her some time.

She's still pretty angry about her father being a suspect. She has every

to be. Her father's dead.

Isn't that Mitch's board?

Uh, no, it's mine.

We bought identical boards a couple years ago.

Well, he didn't get to use his very much, did he?

Me and he and I used to have good times together.

Trestles, Rincon.

You know, I have to tell you, I've known Mitch Reeves 25 years.

It's hard for me to believe he set those fires.

It's hard for us all.

Excuse me, Deborah.

I'm sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to talk to you. It's pretty important.

We're glad you came.

Something you should probably see.

Found those at my father's desk.

You were right about him.

They're on newspaper clippings.

Personal ads from the classifieds. They date back two years.

First message is always the same.

Light my fire.

A few days later, an answer appears.

Called Prometheus.

Followed by a number.

I checked the date.

All the ads appeared just before the HTA fires.

You know, after my mom died.

And then the accident.

I knew he was twisted up inside.

I guess I just didn't know how much.

This material does not mean that your dad was guilty.

There might be another explanation here.

I think Mitch was running his own investigation.

Because I think he was on to who the real Prometheus was.

Oh, my God.

Why wouldn't he tell me that?

Your dad is not the type of man to go around ruining somebody's life and

without the proper proof.

What are you doing?

Prometheus uses the way fuse made from surf wax into the signature.

Okay, how does that help prove my dad's innocent?

Your dad used strawberry -scented surf wax.

Prometheus uses coconut.

This is strawberry.

You know who it is, don't you?

Jim, come on. You have to tell me this guy killed my father, okay?

First, I want to be absolutely sure about this before I do anything.

And your dad would blow it the same way.

Dan Mattson is at the top of a short list for fire chief when old man

retired. I know, sir. Mattson also used his Mr. Zog's coconut scented surf wax

down in the board.

Surfers are very particular about the kind of wax that they use.

Jim, you can't arrest the city's next fire chief for murder based on the type

wax he uses.

Sandberg and I did some checking. It seems as though Mattson had some

problems stemmed from a balloon mortgage payment that he couldn't meet.

It turns out that a couple of days before they were going to foreclose on

house, He miraculously comes up with the dough. Which was exactly two weeks

after the first HTA fire.

Right. Matson was also a civilian firefighter at Vandenberg, and so was

Reeves. He knew about rocket fuel, and he damn sure well knew about fire.

All right, but what about the conversation you heard between Mitch and

And what were they even doing meeting in the first place?

I think Mitch was pressuring Gershwin to cut a deal and testify against

Prometheus. What I heard was Gershwin offering Mitch a bribe, and Mitch didn't

go for it.

So we figured that Matson found out about the deal and decided it was the

perfect opportunity to get rid of Gershwin and make Mitch the fall guy.

So he murdered his friend of 25 years?

It's either that or get out for the crime, sir. Mitch was closing in and

knew it.

Okay, look, even if I buy your theory, there's no way that we have enough

evidence to go to the DA with this. If you'd allow me, I have an idea that I'd

like to play out.

How dangerous an idea.

Well, sir, let's just say if I'm wrong, the department won't have to worry about

those retirement benefits. It's going to owe me.

Wait a minute.

Quick question. Actually, two.

One, what's this idea? And two, how involved in it am I?

Well, you're my partner, right?

Yeah. Say no more. Thank you, sir.

Got our response in this morning's paper.

I already checked out the phone number. It's a cell phone registered to a phony

address, so there's no way they can trace it.

I can't believe he answered the ad.

Why take the chance? I mean, everybody thinks he's dead. Why not just lay low?

Arrogance. He figures no one's going to be able to catch him. Or maybe he's

hooked on what he's doing and he can't stop.

This is Prometheus.

What's the address?

387 9th Street.

Deposit $50 ,000 in Grand Cayman Bank account number 557

-3309 by 5 o 'clock.

After the deposit is confirmed, the job will be done.

When the job is finished, deposit another $50 ,000 within 24 hours.

All right. And remember, if you don't make the payment... Like the building,

burn.

A .T .S. will have the money credited to the Prometheus account by 5 o 'clock.

How are we doing on that 9th Street warehouse?

Well, when Prometheus checks it out, he'll find that the owners filed for

bankruptcy last month, sir.

We got our surveillance team already set up. Everything else is in place there,

just like we talked about.

Sandberg and I are taking the night shift.

Where's Mattson now? He's at home. We got a surveillance team there as well.

what about Deborah?

Are we going to bring her in on this? I don't know. If she thinks that Mattson

killed her father, who knows what she'll do.

No, I agree.

Let's keep her out of it for her own protection.

Okay, smell seekers, it's time for you to call it a night. We'll see you in the

morning.

And it's been three days. He's just playing with us.

The Lakers move.

Hey, Brown, how are you and Rafe doing over there? Any action?

It's Matt's day off. He just got back from the golf course at about three.

The TV's on in the front room. Looks like he's watching the game, which is

something we should be doing.

Copy that.

Got some snacks?

No, no, not quite.

I thought you were Mr.

Outdoors, huh? All that time spent out in the wilderness?

Yeah. Most of it was in the jungle.

The jungle's hot, remember?

The thing I don't understand, I mean, you're Mr. Height and Senses.

How come the cold isn't bothering you?

It's not that cold.

Are you kidding me?

Madsen doesn't get here pretty soon.

I'm gonna start a fire myself.

What, you've never seen one of these before?

You know, a lot of primitive tribes, they believe that fire is a living

The Indians consider it a sacred provider of warmth and protection.

And to the Polynesians, it's a god.

I remember once I was on the Fijian Islands.

I saw this fire dance.

Jim, there was this dancer there.

She had the best body.

You know, it's becoming crystal clear to me why you were drawn to anthropology

in the first place.

One track mind.

Don't cheapen it.

Hey, Jim, come on. It's freezing. Whoa, whoa. Just be quiet.

There's somebody inside that warehouse.

Brown, is your boy still at home, Clayton?

His car's in the driveway.

And the TV's still on in the living room.

I want you to stay here.

I'm going to go and check things out, all right? Mm -hmm.

If somebody's here, all right, call Brown Arm Wreck. I'll be calling that

consultant.

Hi,

this is Dan.

I can't come to the phone right now, so leave a message and I'll call you back.

I don't think he's there. Let's move.

What the hell are you doing here?

I know you're after Dan Matten, okay?

I followed him. You did what?

I saw your man up front, so I waited around the corner.

He hopped over the back fence and took off in a van.

I lost him, but I'm pretty sure he's in here.

Jim, you there?

Yeah, I go.

Looks like Matten slipped the surveillance team somehow.

How fitting.

Jim, can you hear me?

Hey, Brown, you there? I think we got some trouble here.

God, those are my dad.

Thought they might come in handy.

Yeah, thanks.

There's a place in New Zealand in Capri Beach.

Supposed to have great waves.

I've heard of it.

Dad always talked about going there.

Even after his accident, he said he doesn't care if he can't surf it, he

wanted to see it.

I doubt he would have wanted to have seen this today.

It's like a lake out there.

No kidding.

It looked like a lousy day to go out, didn't we?

You always got a call for the surf report. Rule number one.

Somewhere, he is definitely looking down on us.

Laughing big time right now.