Original subtitles

Lousy weather.

Well?

Papers have been filed.

No!

No.

To me?

To mine they dare do that?

You hear that?

Now I have to go.

I can't leave her with those people.

Not if she doesn't want to be there.

That's how I grew up, with strangers, and I hated it.

Write to her.

Ask her.

Then we can make some arrangements. I have to see it in her eyes. Don't you

know that?

Her eyes will tell me.

Insanity. This is your fault.

You should have presented me with some options.

You should have anticipated me.

Now I have to risk everything.

Then don't go.

You want my advice? Your advice? Your advice is too late and too dear.

Save it for the fools you haven't met.

If you leave, it will be very dangerous.

There are a lot of outstanding warrants against you waiting to be served.

Walter, you didn't have to come all this way to tell me that.

I should kill you for all the trouble you've caused.

That's not a smart thing to say.

Not to me.

The last thing you should want is for me to be frightened.

Frightened men are not dependable.

I'm sorry.

I didn't mean that.

Without me, you don't have a chance.

I've worked so hard to be able to stay right here.

I know.

Believe me, I know.

We've got to make some plans.

It's got to be safe.

There are only so many precautions we can take.

I want a list of all people who could interfere.

That won't be a long list.

We can buy some of them off, deal with them.

There's no reason anyone need know till after you leave New York. Here we go,

gents, especially the house.

Protein, amino acids, fructose, no carbohydrates, everything fresh.

Except for the pineapple and peaches.

Okay? The policeman will know.

Al, to think that he'll be aware of this is too far-fetched for consideration.

I think you've become obsessed with him since he chased you out of New York.

Chased me?

You don't anticipate. That's why I'm in this position right now.

It was better last time.

So what do you think?

You could kill him.

Carmine, the barrister wants to do violence because you made it better last

time.

Not Carmine. Kojak.

You said you wanted options. That's one of them.

Have you ever killed anyone?

Of course not.

Have you ever seen anybody killed?

No. What do you think, Carmine?

Would a violent death be something he'd enjoy?

Some do.

You never know.

So what do you think? Too much guava, right?

If necessary, I will kill him.

Either do that or do nothing.

He's probably forgotten all about you. Forget about him.

When the lion is asleep, you don't go over and smack him in the mouth.

That's exactly what you'd be doing.

Let him sleep.

Any attempt to neutralize him will be like announcing your arrival.

Oh, God.

What is it? What's the matter, sweetheart?

She looks lost.

Where are your parents?

Are you lost?

I think she's lost. I know she's lost.

Where are your parents?

If she knew, she wouldn't be lost.

I'm sorry, what did you say?

Do you speak English?

I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're saying.

It's something about her mama.

Do you speak English?

Yelling doesn't help. I'm not yelling, I'm asking. Asking is not yelling.

Does anybody here speak Spanish?

No,

that's not Spanish, that's Greek.

She says she wants a mother.

She's lost.

I'm sure she's lost.

Do you think we should call the police?

He is the police.

Oh, I'm so happy. Then he'll take care of her.

Listen, sweetie.

This man is a policeman and he's going to take care of you.

You don't look like a cop.

Oh, thanks.

What's a cop look like?

No,

I don't understand.

Four by six.

Poor thing. She looks scared out of her wits.

Her parents must be frantic.

What are you going to do?

I'm going to wait. They'll find us. Is there something we can do? Any way we

can help?

No, go on ahead and enjoy yourselves.

Catch up with you later.

Are you sure, Theo? I mean, we really don't mind.

No, go on. I'll stay with Ariana.

We'll get acquainted.

I'll buy her an ice cream cone.

And her parents will come along. She's too well cared for to be abandoned.

Okay. We'll be at the Riantic Bistro. All right, darling. See you later,

Serge. Bye-bye.

Hi,

I'm

Officer Whitley. This is Officer Granitz. How long have you been waiting

here, Inspector?

Half hour, give or take.

I hope they haven't shown up by now. Chances are they're looking in other

places. We can take it from here. We'll run her over to the seventh floor. No

matter where the parents finally go for help, they'll be directed there.

All right, little girl, no one is gonna hurt you.

All right, let me do my zizou.

All right, I'll ride along with you.

Radio on ahead.

Have someone from the Child Welfare Bureau who can speak Greek be there.

Yes, sir.

This is one for the books.

Kojak chasing lost kids.

You know this guy?

You remember the Tybalt case that they teach at the academy?

Is that Kojak? Yeah.

He used to be one hell of a detective.

Come on, let's get going.

You

jump

whatever way you want to.

It's your call.

Someone's gonna dangle.

Hey, it's the same to me either way. Yo, check this out, man. I can't be doing no

time. Then join up.

But check it out, man. What have I been saying?

Not enough.

All right, all right, all right. Look, I'm with him, sure.

But check it out. He's not going.

You understand?

Now check this out.

So it's these two other guys, right?

But do they walk?

No way, man. They playing.

No, hey, you're losing me.

Did you see him or not?

Yeah, but check it out, man.

Yo, I was in the paint, my brother. What's up?

Not even downtown could fill it up when he was standing. So he wasn't with you.

On it.

Say the words.

What? Say the words.

All right, check it out, my brother. I can say the words.

No. He wasn't with me, okay?

Thank you.

It's a story.

Blake, I need you.

Take someone else, Raz. My man here has got a song to sing. Get in the pocket. I

need you. Now.

Finish this up for me, will you?

Over here.

Look, Rusteliak has zero time. In three days, the grand jury's meeting on the

Festerian case.

I don't fool what I need to gather, he walks. This shouldn't take more than a

couple of hours.

What?

Inspector Kojak is here with a lost girl. I want you to find the parents. A

lost kid? You nuts! Hey, watch your mouth.

Hey, Blake, Captain.

You're asking me to drop Festerian to take some lost kid? I'm not asking you

to do anything. And it's not the kid, it's the parents. Come on.

I don't have time for this. You make time.

You want to tell me what else is going on? Like what? Like I don't know what,

but something, because you're making this very important. It's a little

unusual to assign a detective to chase lost parents, especially when that

detective is up to his neck in a very important case. Call it professional

courtesy. Call it a favor. Call it your job. I don't care what you call it. Just

get it done. Yeah.

Okay, you got it. Listen, for six months I've been trying to get someone downtown

to pay attention to my manpower request.

I bug them to the point where they won't even answer my calls. Now, I got an

inspector sitting in there who needs a favor.

Kojak could be the hook I've been looking for. We do him a favor, he'll do

one for us.

So we, which is to say you, are going to do everything possible to make Inspector

Kojak happy. You get my meaning?

You know, if you put the energy behind finding the parents instead of the

attitude, you'll probably have them before dinner.

That's funny.

Malfoy. I've just heard those words before.

I'm Gail Woodman.

I'm sorry the Bureau of Child Welfare wasn't able to find anyone who speaks

Greek, but it is Sunday, you know.

Hi.

How are you doing?

It's scary, isn't it?

Would you mind waiting around for a few moments, Inspector? I'm going to need

some basic information.

I'll do what I can.

How did you find her?

I just happened by.

And I was the only one around who spoke her language. Did she tell you anything?

Very little.

I mean, I'd ask her questions and she'd say, I just want to go home.

She's very frightened and very confused.

Inspector, if you could get her to answer any of these questions, it would

be very helpful.

Otherwise, we really have nothing to go on.

Whitley.

Whitley. Was there anyone else around when you responded to the call?

Well, the street was crowded, if that's what you mean. No, I mean, was there

anything different going on?

Is anyone with Kojak?

No, it's just him and the girl.

What are you getting at?

I don't know.

Nothing. Thanks.

Well, if anyone comes looking...

Have them call the 7-4 squad.

Ask for Detective Winston Blake.

Yeah. Thank you.

How's it going?

I'm getting nothing.

Try the Greek consul? Yeah, I tried the U.N. and every precinct in Manhattan and

Red Cross and probably they ain't nothing.

Come on.

So far, we're getting nothing.

It's like she doesn't have parents.

Check out hospitals, missing persons, et cetera?

Yes, sir. I checked the morgue, too.

Since no one's come forward to claim her, I'm going to have to make

arrangements for a place for her to stay.

And she's going to have to be examined for physical or sexual abuse.

It can be very rough on a little girl who's already been traumatized, but

there's no choice.

If you could take the time, I think it would be very helpful if you could be

with her.

Great. I'll make the arrangements.

It's the first time I ever wished I could speak Greek.

What he means is... I know what he means. What I mean is I've gone about as

far as I can unless we get something from the girl.

I don't know where to take this.

Hell, we don't even know her last name.

Anything would help, Theo.

She's got to remember something.

Maybe if she could tell us how she came into the country. By plane or by boat.

What was the last thing she remembers doing with her parents?

Were they staying with a friend?

A hotel?

Where else have they been? The zoo? The Statue of Liberty?

Since you're the only one here that speaks the language, anything you get

from her would be a help. Inspector Kojak knows better than anyone the need

for information. He also understands a badgering her isn't going to help.

I've located a temporary foster home where both parents speak Greek.

Well, I'm going to feed her, if there are no objections.

No objections.

Great.

I'm chasing my tail and he's going for a burger.

What the hell is the matter with you?

I tell you we need his help. I tell you I'm looking for a hook and you go out of

your way to prod him.

There's something funny about all this. You, that's what's funny.

I'm going with him.

Why? You've done everything you can.

Why not let child welfare take it from you? Besides, what about Festerian? Paco

would take care of that until I get back. You told him we'd find the

parents, so let's find the parents. I gotta get my jacket.

Deal?

Look, I'm sorry this thing is dragging out. I've asked Blake to stay on it.

He's a bulldog, you know. He'll find him if anyone can.

I appreciate it.

Look, Inspector.

I know I shouldn't be laying this on you right now, but we're short of everything

up here.

I'm sending my people out here every day, sometimes without a partner.

I got a computer system that's down all the time.

Always waiting for parts. I call maintenance. Sometimes it's a week

before we see anyone. We're looking at the busiest summer in years.

Every precinct is spread thin.

And every precinct commander is singing the same sad song.

I know that. Don't you think I don't know that? Look, I'm not trying to take

nothing from nobody else, but, hey, mine come first, you know? That's the way I

gotta play it. Of course. That's the only way to play it. I mean, all my

requests are sitting downtown gathering dust.

So, anything you can do.

Okay, Raz, but no promises.

Anything. Anything would be helpful.

Opa!

I didn't mean to have to pick on you. Yes, sir. I've seen you for two weeks. I

haven't seen you.

What have I done to make you so angry?

Who is this beautiful little child?

I am

honored that you are here. And she has

come to the right place.

Would you like some moussaka?

I said something special.

This was a good idea. She's starting to relax.

That's not why I brought her here.

I don't understand.

He needs information, and now he's getting it. Changed the place, changed

the mood. She'll talk.

Now, Ariana's from the village of Anoya.

She was on vacation with her mother, but wasn't here. And she doesn't know she

got here.

Inspector, sometimes a child will say things which are, well, fantasies. It's

not that she doesn't think she's telling the truth. It's just that her point of

view may have been distorted.

We can check it out. Detective, you got a name, you know her village, you got a

starting point.

Look,

Inspector,

I've got some work to do.

Although it's evening here, in Greece it's morning.

Now you keep me posted. I want to know everything that's going on.

Thank you.

Thank you.

This is Ed Koch, your mayor.

You know the sanitation department cannot sweep the street if you don't

move your illegally parked car.

So, how you doing, Bert?

Marguerite wants us to invest in the stock market.

Who's Marguerite?

My wife.

I thought her name was Tuesday.

She changed it. Said people don't take you serious if your name's Tuesday.

Especially if your last name's Herkowitz.

Tuesday Herkowitz.

Margarita Herkowitz. Well, she's got a point.

Detective Blake.

How's it coming?

We located the town. No report of a missing girl.

I'm still waiting on Interpol. Nothing from the embassies.

I wish I had more to report.

And I thought you'd be further down the line by now.

Yeah, me too.

It's difficult. Not only with the time difference, but with the languages.

Look, Inspector, my other line is ringing.

It might be something. You want to hold on, or should I call you back?

No, go on ahead.

But look, call me back in an hour.

Okay.

What the hell are you doing? You cannot withhold information from the inspector.

I can until I know where I'm spreading it.

I just want to be sure who's who.

You should have told them at least that the medical report said the girl was

drugged. You'll get a copy of it in a day.

You know, sometimes you've got to tell me I keep pulling this kind of stuff and

not be working nights in Bed-Stuy.

Blake?

We'll have someone there for the meter.

Thank you.

They've located the mother in Rome. You believe that?

She's flying in tomorrow night only.

What's her story?

She says she was on vacation.

There's her and a little girl.

Girl disappears while they're out shopping. Just like that. Gone.

They've been searching all over the streets of Rome.

Let me get this straight.

A kid is taken.

And she had to take him because there's no way she could get it by herself.

From the streets of Rome.

She's drugged.

Whoever took her, for some reason, brings her to New York.

Then loses her during some cockamamie fare at the South Street scene.

It sounds goofy when I say it.

A ransom.

Not so far.

Relatives, the father.

The scenes, too.

All right, the in-laws, maybe.

The grandparents, they don't like the way the kid's being raised.

They want to save on legal expenses, so, uh... Go on, finish it.

They take the kid from the streets of Rome, they bring her here, they lose

her.

And they don't even bother to look for her. You know, I can't get with any of

this, but what I get with least is, why the street fair? I mean, what the hell

is she doing there?

You got a call, Kojak?

Not yet.

Boy, I didn't know you were going to say that.

You know, it's not smart to play this too close, partner.

Right now, close is the only way to play this. You said it yourself.

None of this seems to connect it. We both know that it does.

Kojak could be the key.

What else have we got?

Huh? Ma'am.

Hi, Ralph. Good morning. Here's that file you were using. Oh, thanks. I

needed that.

Hey, fix your hair.

Pay up, Kelly.

Three, two, one.

Touchdown, Pamela. I love the tie, Gus.

Getting enough sleep now?

No, no, no.

Uh,

what's with the dog?

It's gonna attack some people last night. A couple of patrolmen brought it

in. I got more guts than brains.

Me, I would have shot it.

Animal control sends someone to get it.

Well, how about getting it off the chair?

I wouldn't go near that dog for anything.

It's a stone killer.

Morning, Inspector.

Morning, sir. Morning, Inspector.

usuals from overnight.

Anything usual anymore?

Do you think we should warn him he bites?

Warn him what you want?

Oh, what's your story?

The radio car brought him in. He bit some people.

Well, you probably thought you had reasons, right, boy?

Busy day, Inspector.

And don't forget, the reporter from the magazine will be here at 10.

Now what are you doing?

Background.

Wait a second. Those are police department personnel files, man. Why

don't you get in there?

Remember that hacker we busted once?

It's amazing how simple this is once you know a few tricks.

What are you looking for?

Kojak's personnel file.

I don't even know you, and I'm out of here.

You know something, man?

You go too far.

You go way, way too far.

Ariana, come here my doll.

Ariana, don't be upset.

Come, come.

You seem antsy.

No, no, I'm just distracted.

It's probably Luna.

Yeah, last week I was like this.

Now I'm like this.

I'm sure it's Luna. No.

No, it's just that you never know how kids are going to react.

Especially to something like this.

If I knew.

If I knew what she was going to say, I never would go through all this.

You know what I mean?

Look, just don't let the lawyer get soft on us, and don't go anywhere. You'll be

recognized, and be careful.

Whatever it takes.

I'll see you in New York.

Ciao.

We're going to be having serious manpower drains during the next week.

Almost every blue suit will be working double shifts.

The homeless are back in Tompkins Square Park and they're expecting trouble.

President Bush will be coming to the U.N.

And we're expecting an influx of pro-lifers next week. They try to take

over a clinic in Canarsie, our sources indicate this time. That'll be

Manhattan.

Inspector, the mayor's office is on line two.

You know what the city should do?

No, no, no. My position is still the same.

I don't see any reason for me to be there.

Why?

Because it's political.

And I just don't want to be involved.

Nope.

Well, you can call him.

Or have him call me.

My position is still the same.

Right.

Your Honor, you're welcome.

All right, Lieutenant.

Get on with it.

Has everybody heard about the Rentleys case?

Rentleys? As in Buddy Rentleys from the 2-9 precinct? Yeah.

Two days ago, his 15-year-old son OD'd.

Last night, he went to the schoolyard. A PS-74 braced a group of pushers.

There were words. He pulled a service revolver, put three in one of them, then

emptied it and did the other.

Kelly.

You take this one.

Give it to someone else.

Well, you got a reason.

I came on with Rentleys.

We both broke in on the 8-5. I'm too close.

Not good enough. Besides, in this situation, I would have done the same

thing.

Wrong answer.

You take it.

Sabian Anutsi's birthday's tomorrow.

Although he's been denied a permit, looks like he's gonna have a block party

anyway. That bum's just putting it in our face. I mean, he's trying to tell us

the neighborhood still belongs to him.

Just give me three or four radio cars, I guarantee you'll have a party I'll never

forget.

Inspector.

Now, don't make it personal.

Well, he already has.

It's an affront to the police department we let him win this.

Win? Now, what is this, a game? Is this a matter of winning or losing?

If he breaks the law, you arrest him.

If he's just busting chops, you forget about it.

You know, you've been around long enough to know the difference.

It'll make your life a lot simpler. Now, what is it?

It's 10.30.

So?

The reporter?

Yeah. She's been waiting.

All right, we've covered everything. Let's go.

Come on.

Hi, I'm Trish Van Hoken. I want to thank you for taking the time to see me on

such short notice.

What's the topic?

Narcotics. Pretty worked over subject, don't you think?

What we're doing is taking a different look at the problem which is ripping up

part of this city and a lot of other cities.

It's completely out of control.

Can I get you something? Coffee?

No, thank you.

What I'm saying is nobody knows what to do.

Ah.

Please sit down.

Okay.

So far, the only ones talking are the politicians, the DEA, and the

sociologists. I think it's time we heard from those in the front lines.

The cops.

All right.

Detective Blake.

Come on in.

Detective Blake, like you, Miss Van Hogan is looking for answers.

About? About why we're having so much trouble controlling drug traffic.

Did you tell him?

No, not yet.

Money.

Oh, I know.

The latest figures indicate drugs is a billion-dollar business.

Billion dollars.

I mean, nobody understands that kind of money.

I'm talking about personal money.

Like right now.

There's more drug traffic money out there. I mean, you can wade in it. It

comes up to your knees.

The young lady wants to know how it works.

Take her to school.

It goes like this.

While back, my partner and I are over on 3rd Avenue.

We spot a dealer.

They're very easy to spot.

The jewelry, the clothes, the car, the age.

They like visibility, the high profile.

So we decide to pull them over.

And for no reason?

That's police harassment.

Just letting them know we're around.

Beside them on the front seat, there's a gym bag.

You know the guy.

I say, what's in the bag?

Dealer says, I don't know. It's not my bag.

I say, then you don't mind if we go through it.

Dealer says, not at all, officer. Inside, rolled up in a sock, I spot this

big wad of money.

I say, what's this?

Money? Dealer says, it's not mine. How should I know?

I say, it looks like money.

Dealer shrugs.

I say, I wonder how much money is in here.

Dealer says, although it's not my bag, not my money, I would guess there's

maybe...

$57,310 in that sock?

I say, and it's not your money.

Dealer says, no.

I say, then you don't mind if we keep it?

Dealer looks up at me and says, please, officer, please, keep it.

$57,000.

Cash money.

We haven't called in and we stopped this guy.

There's no charges against him, no reports turned in, so who's to know?

Just you.

And the drug dealer.

Right.

My partner's married.

He's looking at his kid's education, new addition on the house. I'm seeing new

clothes, new car.

You didn't take it.

No.

Maybe it wasn't enough.

Maybe it wasn't.

And the dealer, did he just drive off?

We figured he wouldn't be offering the money unless he was dirty, so we tossed

him. He had this big stash of weapons in the back.

You arrested him?

We booked him, but he'd be out on the street long before the paperwork was

finished. Right.

So you see how it works, Miss Van Hogan?

$50,000 for a street cop for nothing.

Suppose it was for something, like maybe a judge or a prosecutor.

People think that it's all about narcotics. Oh, no.

It's also about money.

Drugs? Why not?

Maybe it's tough, but you can say no to drugs.

But can you say no to money?

Cash?

So how do you stop it?

Remove the profit. Yes.

You make the crime so expensive, that's not worth taking the risk.

Inspector, we have to talk.

Maybe I should leave.

Would you mind?

Little girl's been taken from the foster home.

Why didn't you tell me before?

I thought maybe you knew already.

What does that mean?

Let's go.

Okay, uh...

Everybody was out on the street.

Ice cream truck comes by.

Kids are lined up getting whatever.

A woman turns around, sees Ariana getting into a car. Getting in or being

forced in?

Getting in. She said getting in. But all she saw was a glimpse of a dress.

Door shuts.

She's gone.

We get maybe three digits on the license plate.

Car's a late model 10 sedan.

Anything about the people in the car? Man, woman, how many?

No. Nothing.

So, Inspector, what's your read on this?

I don't know enough to have an opinion yet. How about you?

Say, but you got some ideas.

Some. You want to talk about it?

Not yet.

All right, get a line on the car.

Somebody on the street might have seen something.

You keep me posted on anything.

Say, Inspector, I meant to mention it before.

That's a nice suit.

The older suits are nice.

Expensive?

Nice always is.

Is there anything else, Detective?

Not just now.

I got buckets.

You? You don't have the same.

This is wacko.

A lost girl kidnapped from foster care?

I think whoever snatched her from her mother in the first place found out she

was here and came and got her again.

That's a stretch.

Come on, I mean, how would they know she was here?

It could go like this.

They lose her on the street, right? Then they see her picked up by a patrol car,

follow her to the precinct, the restaurant, the clinic, then here, wait

their chance, grab her again.

Someone's got to go to an awful lot of trouble. For what?

There's no ransom note, Blake. There's no ransom note. What is it these people

want? I mean, the city is filled with millions of little girls. What is so

special about this one?

Let's see what we can turn up on the partial license plate number.

You do that.

There's something else I gotta do.

Oh?

I'm gonna pin a tail on Kojak.

Are you nuts?

That's a stupid question. Of course you're nuts. Blake, this man is an

inspector. He's an inspector with a big rep.

Even if he wasn't. Even if he wasn't, you don't gaslight the brass, man. You

just don't. He's still the only link to that little girl.

I'm working with a necklace.

Thank you.

Adios.

Don't do anything silly. I'm a police officer.

So am I. Move.

I don't appreciate the gun.

A lot of things about to happen to you, you're not going to appreciate.

Sit. What? Sit down.

So what's with the tail?

The tail was on someone possibly involved in a kidnapping, and at the

very least, a material witness.

And what have you found out about the little girl?

She was taken off a street in Rome while on vacation with her mother.

Have you located the mother?

She's on her way here.

What else?

Nothing solid.

Would you say that I'm involved?

Yes.

How? I don't know.

Come on, you got something spinning around in your head?

First of all, I spit on coincidence.

You, on the street, at the exact time the little girl is lost.

She can only speak Greek, and you just happen to be the only one around who can

talk to her.

I don't buy that for a minute.

So, the little Greek girl's kidnapped.

And she's put it my way intentionally so I can meet her and be concerned with her

welfare.

And then she's kidnapped again from a forced home.

Is that the case you're making?

Okay.

Ariana then wasn't kidnapped to have a lever against the parents.

Put that one against me.

I checked you out.

No wife, no kids.

Nothing. Somebody wants something from you, and they didn't think you'd respond

to, shall we say, direct pressure, so they put a little girl in your way, a

little lost Greek girl.

The connection's made, the girl's taken.

It's a very clear message. They figured pointing a gun at your head wouldn't get

them what they wanted, so now they're pointing it at the little girl's head.

They went to an awful lot of trouble.

They sure did.

Somebody wants something from me. Right. Something very important.

What?

Come on, detective.

You've come this far with it.

Now finish it.

I don't have those pieces.

Which was the reason for the tale?

I thought maybe you'd be contacted.

You want to read me my rights?

What? You think I'm dirty?

Whoever's behind this has put out a lot of money, gone through a lot of trouble,

and has a history with you.

A clean cop wouldn't usually deserve this kind of attention. So, yeah, you

being deep on somebody's pad was one of the options.

Oh, so you thought that maybe I had a business arrangement with some of the

wise guys or whatever?

Possible. But you don't think that anymore?

No.

What changed your mind?

If you'd been dirty, if you are dirty, you wouldn't be making this kind of

play.

Right.

Whoever's behind it went to an awful lot of trouble and is spending an awful lot

of money.

And you don't know why?

Nope.

Then you haven't been contacted.

Nope.

Lieutenant,

Inspector Kojak's on the phone for you.

Raz Deli.

Raz. I'm gonna put you on the speakerphone.

I've got Detective Blake with me.

Oh? And I want your candid opinion about him.

What did he do?

What kind of a cop is he?

Is he in trouble?

Come on, will you, Raz? Just answer the questions.

He's a good cop.

That's it? A good cop?

Well, uh, more than good.

Raz, don't make me work so hard for it.

Uh, look, Inspector, this is very difficult. If you could tell me what's

going on, then maybe I could, uh... Well, it just doesn't concern you.

All right.

He's better than good. That's why I put him with you in the first place.

What are his strong points?

He's, uh... He's intelligent, but not like a lot of brainy types who think too

much. Still the first guy down the alley, if you know what I mean.

He's resourceful, works hard. He's loyal.

Takes exceptional care in preparing evidence. He gets high marks from the D

.A. Oh, whoa.

I should have called the Boy Scouts.

Or maybe the Vatican.

All right, where does he fall short?

Well... Let me help you out.

He's pig-headed.

Oh, is he ever.

When he gets on something, he's like a dog with a bone. He just worries it to

death. And he thinks that's being tenacious.

Yeah, his word exactly.

He just doesn't know when to quit. How am I doing so far?

On the number. He thinks he's smarter than everybody else.

And he's the only one who's got all the answers.

And he's arrogant to the point of being disrespectful.

That's him.

So it comes down to this.

Do you trust him?

Look, Raz, without causing you a major inconvenience, I'm going to have

Detective Blake reassigned to this office temporarily.

Is that a problem for you?

You want him, you got him.

I'll send the paperwork through.

Blake. Yeah?

I'll leave a light on.

Thanks.

Well, you were right.

That meeting with Ariana?

It was a setup.

If you knew that, why'd you let her go into foster care instead of protective

custody?

I didn't see it quick enough. I blew it.

Who's behind this?

You must have some idea.

No. Oh, incidentally.

How you doing? Your progress in finding Ariana?

No. Never trace.

I know you know this, Inspector, but in a case like this, there's a good chance

the girl is already dead.

No, no.

Ariana's still alive. Her partner's not finished all of this.

We've got to find that little girl.

She's the solution.

He, she, they, whoever they are.

They've got Ariana in the city.

Why?

To keep the pressure on.

If they don't have her in the city, we'll never find her.

They want us to find them.

They want us to try.

Misdirection to keep us off balance.

Make it easy to drive to the hoop, slam dunk.

Even if you're right,

This is a big city.

No, not in the Greek community.

Look, get your stuff moved over here, okay?

I got some things to clean up.

See you in the morning. This address.

Yeah,

well... Can you believe this? First he busts me, then he transfers me to his

command.

I'm surprised he spotted you.

He was looking for a tail.

I should have figured that. What's he want you to do now?

Bird dog, root around in the bushes, maybe flush something out.

I'll tell you this.

He's a tough one to figure.

I mean, for a minute there when he threw down on me, I didn't know whether he was

going to squeeze one off or not.

I got to go. See you later, partner.

I'm here if you need me.

Hey, Blake, you got a visitor at the front desk.

Knock him dead.

Hi.

Took a chance to be here.

In another couple of minutes, I would have been out of here. What can I do for

you? Well, after thinking over what you said, some things occurred to me which I

would... I don't know. I would like to propose.

Is there someplace we could go, get some coffee?

I was just going out the door.

See, I want to change the focus of my article.

The story you told me, that kind of pressure, in addition to everything else

the policeman goes through, I want to do something on how it builds, on how it's

released.

What exactly do you want?

Talk to me about it.

Spend some time together.

I want to learn about you, understand you, not only as a person, but as a cop

as well.

I really... Come on, please don't say no.

Rejection makes my face break out.

Besides, it doesn't have to be totally unpleasant.

We can find ways to make these interviews comfortable and even fun.

It's time.

I just don't have the time right now.

A few minutes here and there. I'm very flexible.

See, that's the thrust of the article.

How the pressure and stress affects you on the job and carries over into other

parts of your life. At home, with friends, with your wife.

Not married.

Your social life. Not much time for that.

Now, see, this could be a very enlightening article.

It's also one that's been done before.

Yes, but from what you said, it's different now being a cop.

You got the temptations, the dangers. Look, I've been a cop for seven years.

And in just that time, it's changed.

So tell me about yourself.

Um... If you're gonna interview me, don't you need a tape recorder, a pad?

No, I've got a great memory.

Sure do.

You're not married. You already said that. And you went to a New York

college? Princeton.

Scholarship? No, my father paid.

That's a lot of money.

He's got a lot of money.

So then why... Why am I a cop?

Yeah.

I've always been something of an action junkie.

And this is where the action is.

Sorry, I gotta go.

We'll have to continue this later.

What about this weekend? Are you going to have any time?

I didn't think we could finish this in one session, so... When can we spend

some time together?

My days are pretty full.

How about your nights?

Lately, they've been pretty empty.

Mine, too.

This won't have to be in a while.

I'm very preoccupied right now. I'm sorry.

I gotta get out of here. The missing little girl?

Yeah.

No luck finding her? Not so far.

I'll call you.

I hope so.

Inspector Kojak!

Back here, Blake.

Okay, I put together all of these files, which I feel are appropriate.

Somewhere in here is what we're looking for.

You think whoever's behind this might be Greek?

Maybe, but not necessarily.

Here, you go through these.

A lot of names here.

With a lot of reasons to want to put some paint on you.

I don't see anyone so far that connects.

You working on something now?

No, not directly.

Whatever it is, it's personal.

I just can't connect it.

Let me say the obvious.

Just so it's in. Go ahead.

Everything about this smells like a setup.

You think maybe there's a contract out on it? Yeah.

What do you think?

Well, there better be something better than that.

Somebody wants me dead.

The line of suspects is too long, and it goes back too far.

Now, look, I got a couple of feelers out on Ariana.

Let's go see if anything paid off.

Bring it back my way, baby.

I'm here to meet somebody.

But if you're hungry, eat that spanakopita.

This is hummus. You eat it like a dip.

Let me ask you something.

When I was laying all the attitude on you, how come you didn't knock me on my

pants? Because you were useful.

See, you were stirring up the pot.

That's exactly what I wanted you to do.

This is Kostas Anastasopoulos. Now, he's been watching the neighborhood for me.

You know, whoever's holding Ariana is Greek. That doesn't mean the people

behind it are.

And I got a feeling there's a good chance she's still in the neighborhood.

The newcomer will be noticed.

Nothing like having friends.

Nothing new.

But something's still bothering me.

Whoever's behind this obviously knows your connection to the Greek community.

If someone wanted to connect you with the girl, why not take her to the Greek

Orthodox Church? The priest calls you. Bang. You're in it.

This whole thing with the street fair just seems so... random.

You could have been distracted. Somebody else could have spoke Greek. Anything.

Could have been anything at all.

It worked because it was random.

Let's say Father Zepos came up to me with a child.

I would have been... instantly suspicious this worked because i didn't

become suspicious until it was too late because it was random

and how's the hummus great probably come back here

with trish van hogan oh the uh the reporter yeah she stopped by she

wants to do an article on the pressures of being a cop and you're the cop right

what happened to your uh

Your theory is on coincidence.

What? You think she's a plant?

I don't know.

I mean, you tell me.

Somebody put her close to clock-out movements.

Got all the bases covered so far.

She hasn't even brought it up.

What, did you expect her to?

No.

I walked right into it.

A little tug on my vanity.

My guard comes down.

Yeah.

She caught me with my pants down.

Already.

Adriana's mother's coming into the healer, boy.

You want me to go?

No. I'll peddle it.

English. Where is Ariana?

She's missing.

But the man on the phone said she was safe.

And I could... She was. And I believe she still is. So please.

But you don't know where she is.

Whoever took her before has her again. Let me take you out of here. And I'll

tell you everything I know. What do they want?

I believe whoever took Ariana wanted me to learn to care for her. And believe

me, I do.

Then they took her again.

So I wouldn't get in their way.

She's what you call their insurance.

Someone would use my daughter against you.

I don't even know you, and neither does Ariana.

It's nothing you've done.

It's nothing that Ariana has done. She just happened to be convenient.

I was frightened before, but now I'm terrified.

Tell me, my child is going to be all right.

She's not going to be hurt.

I'll do everything I can to bring her home safely, I promise.

Tell me, she's going to be all right.

Tell me.

Hey, what a surprise.

How did you find me?

I'm a cop.

Of course. Come in.

Sit down. What can I get you?

Nothing.

Okay.

You never told me where this article was gonna appear.

It never came up.

It's up now.

New East Magazine, but they also own a chain of newspapers, so it'll probably

be syndicated.

What's going on here?

Don't you want to show me something?

Press card?

Tell me, what is it?

Let me handle the questions for a while.

Why don't you want to show me your credentials?

Here.

You're not satisfied?

Here.

My editor's name is Kay Anaba. Her home phone number is... Kay, that's not

necessary. No, you want to know, call her.

Trish, I'm sorry.

No way.

Too lame.

You know, I was starting to light up for you, you know that?

Been a while since I met a guy who was comfortable being himself and was doing

something he was proud of.

But I guess I was wrong.

There's the door.

How about the article?

The article?

Sure. Right here.

Right now, what you're witnessing is a job-related paranoia.

This is what you want to write about. Here it is.

I'm questioning everything.

I meet a woman.

I like her.

I think maybe she likes me.

Then I start to look for a motive, a reason, suspicions build, and pretty

soon you're tied into my case. You didn't snatch the kid, did you? No.

I knew that.

Yeah. I knew that.

I just ruined something terrific.

I blew it before it even got started.

Isn't this the story you wanted to write?

Damn, you're nuts.

I know.

You want some coffee?

What a save.

Hey, here's your change.

Keep it, keep it.

Thanks, man.

Have a party in New York.

I need what you got, man.

What I got?

You?

What do you think you're going to do?

I mean, you waved that little piece of nothing at me. For what?

You want to rob me?

Is that it?

Nah. First I'm going to kill you.

Then I'm going to rob you.

Something's really wrong.

Carmine didn't show. I waited for two hours.

Calm down.

What could have happened?

It doesn't matter.

But why didn't Carmine show up? He knew you were in New York.

Carmine's dead.

What? How do you know that?

Well, that's the only reason he wouldn't show.

Now just listen.

The body will be discovered and identified.

Someone, probably Kojak, will make the connection.

But how do you know all that?

I don't know it, you fool. I'm just trying to cover my rear.

Then the meeting's off.

No, no. Everything plays. Only now we move the Greek girl into a front seat.

The Greek girl?

Why do you think I went to all the trouble and expense?

To distract him.

No, no.

Only if everything had gone smoothly. There was always a chance it would

become a poker game.

Kojak didn't have an auntie to match mine, so I gave him one.

Now the pot's right.

Can we at least relocate the meeting with your daughter?

No, absolutely not.

She's only alone when she's traveling between her house and the school.

Otherwise, there are always people around.

Besides,

I want this to be as casual and relaxed as possible.

The location is perfect Just keep out of the way I'll make all the arrangements

from here on

A man named Carmine Reggio was murdered last night on the west side.

You read the report, then read the file.

This is our man.

Carmine Reggio was his bodyguard.

But, uh... Read the file.

It's kind of sudden, isn't it? From nothing to being this sure? No, I was in

the wrong pile.

I was looking for people who were caught and convicted.

This guy was never even booked.

Then why... Just read the file.

Oh, and check on whoever's babysitting the mother.

It's covered. I got my old partner Paco on it.

First,

young Carmine was a victim of random street crime.

If someone had wanted him dead, it would have been private because it sets off

all kinds of bells.

You're right about this guy.

He's the dance master.

All right, say the rest of it. He's a serious man.

He's up to his armpits in blood, murder, extortion, drugs.

Real slime.

Must have broken your heart when he got away.

Question is, why is he coming back?

And what does he want from you?

He wants me out of the way. The girl?

Just there to have me run around in circles.

Yeah, that changes now.

Now he's got your attention.

Little girl's more than a distraction.

She's a hostage.

So why is he coming back?

He's got money.

And since there's been no sign of him, he must have bought himself a very good

hiding place.

Poor man takes risks to get money.

Rich man takes risks to keep from losing it.

It's not about money.

It's more personal than that.

And whatever's between you and him, is that personal as well?

I killed his brother during a police stakeout.

Yeah, well, I could see how that could create a relationship.

No, no, no.

He was an armed psycho.

And he killed one of my men.

So why is he coming back?

He's not.

He's already here.

Why?

A meeting.

He could have a meeting anywhere.

Maybe the person who he was going to have the meeting with couldn't leave or

wouldn't leave.

Who would that be?

Business associate.

A relative.

Here are the personal effects you wanted.

Come on. And there's a call online, too. Wait.

All right, I want an up-to-date list on all known associates of Mr. Edson

Saunders. Current addresses, family members, although I think all he had was

an ex-wife. Go ahead.

Kojak.

Ah, bravo.

Evgaristo.

Ariana's been spotted.

Can you take a back up?

You go to that restaurant we ran last night?

As for Costas Anastasopoulos.

What about you?

We can't keep playing this from behind.

We've got to get in front of him.

Where's everybody?

Gone.

I need to know. What's going on? I'll tell you on the way down.

And you think it was just the woman and the little girl in the room?

Yes.

Did she make any attempt to keep you from looking in the room?

No. Come on.

It's probably a setup, but I want to check it out anyway.

I need your help.

Sure.

I wish we had some backup.

You tell the woman there was a mistake with the money. You need another $3.28.

Yeah. Wait,

I can't understand you.

Speak English.

Who is it? Here, let me have it.

I have to leave. Who is

it? What did they say?

Please, do not try to stop me. I must leave. This is my daughter, you

understand? It's my daughter. Okay, okay, calm down.

Let me make a call. If you stop me, the life of my child is going to be on your

hands. This is my business. Mine.

Nobody else's. Shh.

I'm going to make one call. Just one call.

Get me Inspector Kojak, please.

The inspector's gone.

Where? Staten Island.

Did you say why?

He said for you to meet him on the water bus if you can.

What time does the next one leave? Could you hold on a minute? I have another

call. Forget the other call. Give me the time.

Please hold.

No. Don't put me on hold.

Nicole!

Come on, come on, come on, come on.

The next one leaves in 18 minutes.

That's all the way across town.

Look, I can't help that. You want to leave a message in case he calls in?

No.

Let's go.

Thank you for waiting.

Let me talk to Blake.

He's not here.

Kojak. Not here either. Would you like...

Where are

you

going? Are you nuts?

Come on!

Police officer, I need the scooter.

Come on, I need it. Their lives at stake. This better not be some scam. I

just signed this scooter up.

How do you start it?

You ever driven one of these?

What's the deal? It's like a bike, right? How do you start this thing?

The key. Thanks.

Don't forget the helmet.

It's a law.

I don't believe this.

It's the worst.

The hell is going on?

I'm surprised you made it. I almost didn't. I missed the girl. She was gone.

She's on board.

A boat?

Mm-hmm.

With her mother and two of Sardis' people.

He's here too?

Not yet.

But he's coming?

Oh, yeah.

Why?

To see his daughter.

You know, his ex-wife died a couple of months ago.

And he's got a nine-year-old daughter who lives on Staten Island with the in

-laws. That's what this is all about? His daughter?

The in-laws have filed for legal custody, plus permission to change their

name. Why here? Why the ferry?

Well, the girl goes to a private school in Manhattan.

He knew she'd be aboard the boat today without the in-laws. My guess?

I'm just going to ask her to come with him.

I don't get it.

If he wants her, why not just snatch her? I mean, he got Ariana off the

streets of Rome. It seems to me if he wants her, he'd take her.

That would be disrespectful.

No, he wants her to come willingly.

That's the kind of a man he is.

That's what this is all about. All the money, all the trouble, one, maybe two

people dead because he wants to have a conversation with his daughter.

Hasn't he ever heard of the telephone?

There are some conversations for some people.

Not too important to trust the telephone.

Where's our backup?

If he sees a bunch of blue and white, you know it's liable to get messy.

So what's our play? All right, we get on board, we get it close, and we got a

winner in the clinches.

What's the opposition?

Four.

I see two.

Where are the others?

On board.

And they're on the lookout for you.

Yeah.

Uh, let's clear a path and get aboard the boat.

Any ideas?

Couple.

Hey, man, could you, uh, feed him?

Say, brother, why don't you give me some of your dollars, you know?

Feed it, you bum, or you'll be worse off than you already are.

Go check him.

Get him.

Get us out of here.

You know, I did a lot of planning to keep us from meeting.

But now I have to wonder if deep down I really wanted to play out like this.

Maybe I subconsciously wanted to rub your nose in it a little.

Or a lot.

Is that what's going to happen?

I've been thinking about you every day now for the last six years.

Oh, that's funny.

I haven't been thinking about you at all.

Everyone else?

I could cover.

Pay off.

Back up, but not you.

Oh, come on. You didn't have that button down.

If it wasn't me, it'd be somebody else.

Let me tell you what I want.

Oh, I know what you want.

Which one is your daughter?

That one standing up.

All right, now this could be very simple.

I want to talk quietly with my daughter.

Give her the choice.

If she wants to go, then she goes with me.

If not, then that's okay too.

Either way, I'm out of here.

Nobody gets hurt.

You'll never see me again.

Uh-uh-uh.

That don't play.

Then this could get very nasty.

From now on, it's gonna be whatever it's gonna be.

But you're not walking.

You don't think I'm serious?

That's not the point.

The little Greek girl and her mother will die.

They may die. Your daughter may die.

Other people may die.

But listen.

It all stops here.

You didn't come here to get your daughter involved in a shooting.

You didn't come here to see her die.

I don't believe you'd let that happen. And I don't believe you would either.

Now look, it takes this boat 20 minutes to get to Staten Island.

You take that time and talk to your daughter.

I may have to revise my opinion of this guy. Oh, why?

Because he loves his daughter?

He just shows he's human.

Just human.

Hello, Veronica.

I'm your father.

You know, my pop used to take this trip just for this view.

And he would talk about seeing it for the first time and what it meant to him.

Then he'd talk to me and say, never forget.

That's it, just, Theo, never forget.

And for the longest time, I didn't understand what he was talking about.

But now I do.

Thank you.