Original subtitles

(engine revving) (Resync by Chuck)

MAN (in distance): Let's go! Let's go!

(tires screeching)

ANNOUNCER: And it's Thunder Dan, the winner in the top category.

(cheering)

ANNOUNCER: Up next, the event you've all been waiting for,

the stock tractor drag racing finals.

That's Lou Comstock in the Texas Road Runner.

And behind the wheel of the Skyhawks Last Stand,

Buddy Skyhawk!

(cheering)

Oh, he's going to win. I just know he is.

He's one heck of a driver, all right.

I taught him to shift gears on that old tractor of mine.

He crashed into your barn the first time you let him solo.

(chuckles): Yeah.

I'm just so proud of Buddy.

I love him so much.

(engines revving)

(tires screeching)

(cheering)

ANNOUNCER: And the winner of the $10,000 first prize

is Buddy Skyhawk!

(thunder rumbling)

(cheering)

We did it, lady. You, me, and Blue Heart.

"Blue Heart"?

Yeah, Linda made it for my birthday.

Blue Heart was pullin' for me.

Always knew you had it in you, Buddy.

I guess you'll pay off your rig now.

That's right.

Well, let's all cash in a rain check and go celebrate.

You got it. Oh. Buddy.

Oh, yeah. I can't.

I got this great job tomorrow.

Big computer outfit, they're trying me out.

This could be the turning point for me, Walker.

No more chickens, no more sugar beets.

No more 28-hour days or 3-hour turnarounds.

That's great, kids.

C.D.: Well, we'll take a rain check on it.

All right, we got to get you out of the rain. Come on.

( country theme playing)

Hey, could you fill her up?

You got it.

(people chattering)

MAN: Hey, Skyhawk.

I heard you done real good today.

Yeah, fooled them again.

Listen, I'm lookin' for a load. I really need one today.

Got any ideas?

No, I'm lucky to have one myself.

There's a load of alfalfa cubes

looking for a ride to Wichita.

Just talk to Ben over at P&G Freight.

Yeah, I'll do that, Callie. Thanks.

Sure.

You still haulin' chickens for Riskin farms?

Maybe tomorrow, but not today.

I got a rafter load of computers from Bellwood Electronics.

All-night run down to Corpus Christi.

There's a major tie-up on the freeway,

just before the scales.

It's gonna be at least a three-hour delay.

Damn.

I got to be there by sundown.

Hey, no big deal.

Why don't you take the 171 cutoff.

That'll run you down through Hubbard.

Then catch the 31, it'll deliver you back to the 35

just north of Waco.

Thanks, Callie.

Hey, Buddy, what are friends for?

( suspenseful country theme playing)

Bird Dog to Hammer, we've got a fat rabbit running southbound.

( light rock action theme playing)

MAN (on CB): Rabbit's a half mile from the Hubbard cutoff.

He's changing lanes. Looks like we got a go.

( country drum theme playing)

Bird Dog to Dragnet. Rabbit's on the 171.

He's all yours.

What's going on, officer?

Bridge up ahead took some slight damage

during yesterday's storm.

What's your gross?

Fifty ton.

Ooh, son, I'm sorry,

but you're either gonna have to go back the way you came

or take the detour.

What's the detour?

The old quarry road here. It'll bring you back

in to the highway in about five miles.

Yeah, what kind of shape's it in?

Oh, we've sent quite a few rigs down it today.

You won't have a problem.

Okay, great. Thanks, officer. You bet.

( country theme playing)

Dragnet to Hammer.

Rabbit's on the platter and we're on the back door.

What the hell?

Get out!

Aw, come on, man.

I'm just a poor guy trying to make a living.

Well, you want to live through this, don't you?

Huh?

Frisk him.

Come on.

Don't shoot me.

Please, I got a wife, I got a kid on the way.

You're breaking my heart. (car approaching)

These guys, they've got a sad story to tell,

don't they? Huh?

Hey, these guys are hijacking my rig!

They're trying to kill me.

Really?

Well, if they don't, we will.

(gasps)

Lose something, Frank?

Why don't you walk

his sorry butt up to the edge of that cliff.

( suspenseful theme playing)

You guys aren't going to get away with this.

You know, they didn't even have truck rodeos

when I was pushin' a rig years ago.

I didn't know you drove trucks back then.

Yeah. Is that when they ran on steam?

Did I ever tell you about the time that I lost my brakes

on the St. George grate?

No, but I'm sure you're getting ready to.

Well, I had a load of sticks comin' out of Provo.

I hit the top of the gorge comin' down.

Excuse me, C.D. I'm sorry to bother you, Walker,

but it's about Buddy. What happened?

That's just it. I don't know.

He always calls to say when he's coming home.

He didn't call? No.

He should have been heading back

from Corpus Christi hours ago.

Maybe he broke down.

Not the way he keeps his rig tuned.

There's more.

I just got a call from the dispatcher.

He said that Buddy never delivered his load.

He was awful mad.

He said he was going to call the police

and report Buddy for hijacking it.

C.D. Shoot. He wouldn't do a thing like that.

I hate to say this, Linda,

but maybe he had an accident.

Could you check for me?

Yeah, I'll check. Look,

why don't you go sit by the phone

and we'll call you as soon as we find out anything. Okay?

Okay.

Don't worry.

Thanks, Walker.

TRIVETTE: All right. Yeah, thanks.

Highway patrol has no record

of any big rig accidents yesterday.

No Buddy Skyhawk in any hospital or jail

between here and Corpus Christi.

No record of Skyhawk's rig comin' through

the weigh station on the interstate either.

That means he had to turn off before he got there.

Why?

Gotta come through Austin,

that's a straight shot down the interstate.

Well, the only other route is the Hubbard turnoff.

Let's take a ride.

( slow country theme playing)

All right, why would he take the cutoff?

That would add two, what, three hours to the trip, right?

Look at this, Trivette.

There were flares across this road.

I'll call in and find out what accident they had out here.

Okay.

Yeah, this is Trivette.

DISPATCHER: Go ahead, Ranger.

Yeah, we're out at the 171.

You got any accidents in the last 48 hours out here?

Stand by, Ranger Trivette.

We'll run a search on traffic incidents.

No, Ranger. State police report nothing in that area.

No reports of accidents in this area.

A heavy rig went down this dirt road.

Why would it do that?

Let's find out.

The rig slammed on its brakes here.

Looks like they locked up.

Looks like the big rig was cut off

by another vehicle coming from the other direction.

The fatter tire's probably a pickup.

Four by four.

Judging from the footprints,

three men in it.

Four.

Hey, looks like we got another vehicle

stopping the rig from behind,

with two men in it.

Yeah, I know.

All right, that's seven men altogether.

But only one of 'em's wearing cowboy boots.

Buddy Skyhawk wears cowboy boots.

So do we, and half of Texas.

( country theme playing)

Trivette!

Is he alive?

Barely!

Get a medevac chopper here now!

Hang in there, Buddy.

(siren wailing)

He's a strong boy, honey.

And I'm sure... I'm sure he'll be okay.

You just wait here with me.

Did you find out anything?

Checked the police impound yards,

truck stops, maintenance centers.

No sign of the rig?

Like it vanished off the face of the earth.

How's Buddy?

They're still working on him.

(sighs)

Let's get out of here.

Nothing we can do.

You said "hot"?

That truly offends me, because I'll tell you why.

The fact is, my brother-in-law owns a pawnshop.

Business is booming. I'm just helping him out here.

Now, I got a terrific buy on an eight-speed blender.

Still in the box. No?

Okay, uh, how about a .45 automatic, huh?

Can't be too careful, a lot of bad guys around these days.

You, sir, you look like a portable CD type of guy.

Am I right? Am I right? Hey, take a look at this.

Where are you going? Hey, check it out.

We're just getting started.

What's the matter? Deer rifles.

Aagh!

Hello, Cobalt.

Oh.

Rangers Walker and Trivette. What a pleasant surprise.

Nice to see you again. Nice to see you again.

Uh, Y-You got my hand...

Right where I want it.

I thought we agreed you wouldn't do this anymore, Cobalt.

This was the last time.

Honest, sort of

a "going out of business" sale. Yeah, that's it.

How am I gonna explain this to your parole officer?

Because I think he's gonna be very unhappy with you.

Come on, Trivette, give me a break just this once.

All right? Up the trunk, please.

Soon as you tell us who hijacked a load of computers.

Computers? Gee, you got me.

Heh-heh. Yeah, we do.

Okay, okay, look. I was tellin' the truth, honest.

I know somebody that bought a bunch of computers

just this morning.

What kind? Bellwood Electronics,

top of the line.

Keep going. Ouch!

The Cuadroza brothers, all right? They got a trunkful.

They're gonna sell 'em on the black market in Guadalajara.

Where are they located?

I'll write the address down immediately.

Please let me, huh?

Aagh! Geez!

(men speaking indistinctly)

MAN: Hold on a minute, boys.

We're looking for Manny Cuadroza.

Texas Rangers.

Yeah? What do you want him for?

Well, if you're Manny,

we want to know who sold you these computers.

I've got nothing to say.

It's either here or downtown.

Haagh!

(glass shattering)

Now do you feel like talking?

Yeah. Yeah, sure.

I wanna know who hijacked those computers?

¿Quien sabes?

You know how it works on the street.

Some middleman gives you a call, cash changes hands,

and they tell you where to pick it up.

I never saw the hijackers.

What did you see? Nothing.

Only thing I know is they're bad.

And they're here to do big business.

( melancholy theme playing)

(heart monitor beeping)

(weakly): Walker, is that you?

Yeah, it's me, Buddy.

They took my load.

Yeah, I know.

How did they get you on the old quarry road?

Cops had a roadblock.

Cops?

Cops were involved?

I think it started at the South Fork truck stop.

I saw a green van out of my back door.

Okay, just take it easy, Buddy.

We'll check into it.

By the way, I've got something for you.

It saved your life, Buddy.

It stopped the bullet.

I told you it was good luck.

Yeah, you did.

Cops, roadblocks... Think he's delirious?

Well, maybe.

I think I know a way to find out.

Are you crazy?

What's so crazy about it?

All I'm asking for is a rig and 100 TV sets.

And where am I supposed to get the money?

From your sting fund.

What if they don't even take the bait?

I mean, how are they gonna know about this shipment?

Oh, no.

Not him again.

You know, that's... That's gratitude.

When I risked my life for you.

WALKER: Okay, Cobalt, here's the deal.

I want you to put the word out in the street

that you can broker 100 TV sets

and that your client is willing to pay top dollar

if he can take delivery by tomorrow.

Yeah. W-What's in it for me?

You get to have your merchandise back.

Hey, come on, man, look, I am a man of honor, okay.

Huh?

Hey, Earl, get "His Honor" out of here.

EARL: Come on, let's go.

So who's gonna drive the truck?

(mock crying)

WALKER: No, Trivette,

when you downshift, you have to double-clutch.

Okay, okay.

Okay, now apply the brakes gently.

(tires screeching)

Well, that wasn't too bad,

but your "gently" needs a little work.

How many times do I have to tell you?

Pretend like you're going uphill.

Don't yell at me!

You're making me nervous.

Who's making who nervous?

(horn honks)

You're doing all right.

But you can lose the horn.

(sighs)

Not bad, Trivette.

Well, is it over?

Now I'd like to see you back up.

Oh, I gotta back up?

Well, you should be able to. It's easy.

It's how easy?

Well, it's like, um...

rollerblading backwards through a revolving door,

carrying three sets of skis.

Walker, I got a comment and a question.

What?

One, I hate your guts.

Two, why can't you drive this tonight?

Because my face has been splattered all over the news.

Now, what's the first thing you do when you back up?

Pray.

Look in your rearview mirror.

You're late.

Sorry, Frank, I... "Sorry" is between

"spit" and "sympathy" in the dictionary, Callie.

You wanna be part of this outfit,

you damn sure better be here when the meeting starts.

So, what do you got for us?

Um, I got a reefer of pork, plumbing fixtures

and a load of steel, but that's iffy.

That's not good enough!

I told you I want things that I can turn over in 12 hours.

Keep your ears open for liquor and television sets, Callie.

I got major buyers waiting for both.

Okay.

Okay, well, what about those computers?

Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

Worked out real nice.

Here's your cut. Ten grand.

We pass out the shares at the beginning of the meeting.

Sort of an incentive to get here on time.

You didn't hurt that driver, did you?

Buddy Skyhawk, he's a nice guy.

Trust me, Callie.

He didn't feel a thing.

Oh, God, Frank, I...

Hey! You came to me with your sad story

about getting your butt pinched by guys

with initials for first names.

Welcome to the club, sweetheart.

Liquor and television sets, Callie.

You get that through your birdbrain, airhead?

Yeah.

Hey, good buddy, comin' up on a truck stop.

Okay, go ahead, and pull on in.

(gears grinding)

And don't hit the pumps.

(tires screech)

Easy for you to say.

Yes, sir?

Well, fill 'er up, good buddy. I'll be back in a second.

Got a load of TVs bound for San Antone in there.

(clicks tongue)

Okay.

♪ Yes, I'm an ol' cowhand ♪

Boys, the bears are bad out there tonight.

Seen at least 10 of 'em on my way in from Denton.

Yeah, them Smokeys are gettin' thick as thieves out there.

No doubt about that. Uh, what you hauling?

I got enough TVs on board to make couch potatoes

out of half of San Antone. (laughs)

MAN: Who you hauling for? Independent out of Tulsa.

Thank you very much, ma'am. What else can I get you?

Uh, could you wrap up a couple of bear claws

and fill that up for me.

Say, they got any extra loads you know about?

I really need one, I... I do.

Well, not that I know of.

Can you tell me the fastest way into San Antone?

San Antone?

Yes, sir, I haven't been out this way a long time.

I usually run into K.C.

Well, best way to get to San Antone

is just get on I-35 and go south

as far as you can get till you get there.

Hey, Chilton, you might wanna check with Farley.

I thought I overheard him saying something

about needing someone to ride shotgun with him tonight.

Oh. That's good, Callie. Thank you. Yeah.

Well, my friend,

keep them between the ditches.

Yes, sir, Chilton.

Your hat there.

Oh, thanks.

Well, you think those Smokeys were heavy south of Denton,

wait till you see them on the 35 between here and Waco tonight.

Is that right?

I'd avoid it if you need to make good time.

I do need to make good time.

CALLIE: Take the Hubbard cutoff.

You know, Highway 171 to the 31?

That ought to give you pedal to the metal

right into Waco.

Thank you.

I appreciate that. Here, keep the change.

Mm, thank you.

( suspenseful country theme playing)

Yeah.

Pleasure doing business with you.

And thank you.

Bird Dog to Hammer.

We got us a real fat rabbit.

Walker, that van is still following me.

Good. Looks like the hook is set.

I think the waitress at the truck stop's

the one that baited me.

Could be.

All right, the Hubbard cutoff's coming up in a half a mile.

What lane you in?

Middle.

Move over now.

All right.

(tires screeching)

(horn honking)

Trivette, get a grip.

You said "now."

Bird Dog to Dragnet, we got a go.

Rabbit's moving toward the cutoff.

Should be easy. He looks like he's drunk.

(siren wailing)

Bird Dog to Dragnet. Scrub the operation.

He's coming right towards you with a real Smokey on his tail.

What's going on up there?

A patrol car's stopping us.

All right, Buddy said cops were involved, so be careful.

All right.

(door opens)

DISPATCHER (on radio): West Hill Unit 1, Lincoln-Adam-David-Young-John...

(dispatcher continues indistinctly)

What seems to be the problem, officer?

License and registration.

Step down out of the rig, please.

Have you been drinking?

No, I haven't been drinking.

Straight line, heel to toe.

Great.

Great.

( pensive theme playing)

Stand square, put both hands out to your side.

Left hand, right hand, right hand, left hand.

Spell "Mississippi."

M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I.

Very good. Thank you.

No. Thank you, officer.

Guess you were telling the truth about not drinking.

Yeah, yeah.

But I am gonna write you up for reckless driving.

Have a good evening, you hear?

You... (engine starts) Oh.

What happened?

Got a damn ticket.

(sighs)

You didn't want me to blow our cover.

(sighs)

Bad break, dang it.

We probably scared them off.

So, what do we do now?

I'll think of something.

No chance. Absolutely not.

You blew your budget.

Alex, we were this close.

C.D.: Are you brain-dead?

What in the hell ever possessed you

to let him drive a truck in the first place?

Hey!

I mean, really. You broke my operational bank.

Five thousand dollars

on the truck and trailer rental,

plus $30,000 in damages from Phil the TV King?

Cordell, I should've been driving that truck.

You may not know this, but I can push one of them big rigs.

I never will forget one time

I was on a little old road in Arkansas,

just winding through the mountains,

slicker than a gut, rain everywhere...

C.D., are you sure you'd like to drive?

Oh, you bet your bottom dollar I would.

If you're willing to drive, I think I know where to get a rig.

Where are you gonna get the truck?

At the impound. Dallas P.D. just confiscated one this morning.

But there is just one other thing.

Yeah? What is that?

Didn't you just get a load of liquor?

Yeah, I mean... So what?

I'd like to load the rig with your liquor.

Oh, no... (chuckles)

W-Wait a minute.

If we lose that damn load of liquor,

I'm in hell of a lot of trouble.

Now, what's going to happen to the liquor?

You're gonna be driving.

If you're gonna be in the trailer...

why does it have to be loaded?

I don't wanna take it over the scale empty,

in case someone's watching.

Well, that... That makes... That makes sense.

Besides that, I'm not gonna be in back of the truck.

Trivette is.

No end to the persecution.

I'll be following you guys in my truck.

Trivette, you still have that tracking device

that you keep wanting me to use?

Satellite triangulation?

Yeah, I could follow a rat through a wall if I wanted to.

Well, it better.

I want to take down the whole operation

instead of just the hijackers.

Don't bust them on the road.

Bust them on their home turf.

You got it.

That's bright.

So why don't you two guys go pick up the rig

and load the liquor.

I'll talk to Cobalt about putting the word out, hm?

Cordell, wait just a minute, will you?

Now, you're sure that liquor's going to be all right?

C.D., nothing will happen to your liquor.

(people chattering)

(sighs)

Coffee and a few kind words, honey.

We'll start with some coffee. Thank you.

Can I top that off for you?

You bet.

Haven't seen you through here before.

I generally run west out of Denver.

Hm, who you hauling for?

Orsenoff Brothers.

The liquor wholesaler.

C.D.: I'm taking over for their southbound driver.

He's getting married.

This guy weighs about 120 pounds,

about 6 foot 4 inches tall.

Wouldn't make a racket trotting on dry leaves.

He's marrying this little old gal about 5 foot tall,

She weighs about 5 pounds less than a baby grand piano.

Life's funny, ain't it?

Yeah. You know, I just heard...

traffic's really bad.

It's a three-hour delay.

I hear it's like a parking lot up at the scales.

The scales?

It's bad.

Oh.

There is a way around it,

if you're interested.

Tell me about it.

Well, you just go down Route 131 to...

( suspenseful theme playing)

(van engine starts)

There's a green van on your back door, C.D. See him?

Yeah. Yeah, I got him.

Okay, I'm pulling out.

Cordell, they're sending me

the same place they sent Buddy and Jimmy.

CORDELL: Okay, I'm tracking him.

(on radio): Bird Dog to Dragnet.

The rabbit's on 171. He's all yours.

Returning to base.

Cordell, this roadblock looks good to me.

Okay, be careful, C.D.

Sorry for the inconvenience, sir,

but we have a damaged bridge up ahead.

What's your gross? Uh, about 20 tons.

(tracker beeping)

Oh, it's only about 3 miles.

I hope it's in good shape.

I got some expensive glass back here.

Oh, yeah, county maintains it. Yeah, you should be okay.

Good. Much obliged.

Okay, you guys be careful.

I'm gonna lay back and track you

to their base on the homer.

You guys be ready.

(people chattering)

How'd it go?

Smooth.

You're working out a lot better

than that lady in Abilene.

Who knows? You may last longer.

MAN: Hey, Callie,

what did that old Texas Ranger want?

What old Texas Ranger? Uh, you know,

C.D. Parker, the one in the green mackinaw.

Boy, he...

He was a pistol in his day. (mouthing words)

Ha-ha, he's still working for them sometimes, I understand.

( suspenseful theme playing)

Get out of the truck, old man.

Bird Dog to Hammer.

Scrub the mission. It's a setup.

The driver is a Texas Ranger.

Repeat. Scrub the mission.

(door opens) Too late for that.

Hammer to Dragnet, you hear that?

We copy.

Well, get in here and cover us.

Tell this Johnny-come-lately to cool it, will you?

You got somebody watching your back door, Ranger?

C.D.: You better hope somebody's watching yours.

Maybe they're inside it, huh?

Come on.

Walker, we've been made. They got C.D.

I'm on my way!

(tracker beeping)

HAMMER: We're opening up the door, Ranger.

Throw out your gun.

(snickering)

Get up inside there.

Drop it.

If you want him to live another day,

you throw that gun down.

(gun cocks)

Get this old man in there.

There's probably a couple more Rangers on our tail.

Check the rig. They're probably using a homer. Go ahead.

I got it.

(beeps)

(gunshots)

( ominous theme playing)

You be careful, Fiske. He may still be alive.

(grunts)

(grunts)

Where'd they go?!

I don't know! Wrong answer!

(screams)

Where'd they go?!

(grunting): Okay! Okay!

MAN 1: And clear that pallet!

MAN 2: Keep coming, keep coming!

MAN 3: Come on, let's go!

Sonny boy, you're gonna spend

a hell of a lot of time with Uncle Bud,

if you hang around this dough-bellied fella,

hijacking, kidnapping two Texas Rangers.

Yeah, well, there's going to be two less Texas Rangers.

(both grunting)

You all right?

Yeah, I'm okay.

You take them down to the old post road, cap them,

drop their bodies in that mine shaft

we used for the gas-truck driver.

It was almost a full minute

before I heard that dude hit bottom.

You think that was a fall? Let's see how hard you go down.

Don't do it, Jimmy, don't.

You the best thing they could throw at us?

Yeah, we'll be in business for a long time.

(chuckles)

( ominous theme playing)

What the...?

(men shout indistinctly)

(grunts)

No! No! Not that way!

(glass breaking) Oh, no!

No, not again, please!

(clicks)

He's out of bullets. Let's go get him.

(engine starts)

(grunts)

Cordell, just look what's happened

to that truckload of booze!

I'm sorry about that, C.D.

You promised me that nothing would happen!

Can't be right every time.

Looks like Eliot Ness has been here.

And, doggone it, don't y'all be running off anywhere.

I'm gonna get a whole carload of booze in

in just a few minutes.

I got California Coolers,

Texas white lightning,

Oklahoma Sooners back there.

(stuttering) MAN: See ya later.

We got chili, we got Buffalo wings,

you can shoot pool.

There are all kinds of things to do here...

Why are you smiling like a damn Cheshire cat?

C.D., I said I'm sorry. What else can I do?

Breaks my heart for them to go over to Flannery's.

Oh, they'll be back.

Good news. Buddy's out of the hospital.

And with Callie Spangler turning state's evidence,

Slattery and his gang will never see light of day.

This calls for a celebration.

With what? This place is as quiet as a buggy-whip factory.

Here we go again, C.D.

Jimmy, I lost a load of booze

in the line of service.

I should be compensated.

Well, the good news is is that the D.A. and the mayor

happen to agree with you.

Good. Yes.

And they are going to present you with...

Are you ready for this?

An official commendation

and a certificate of gratitude

personally signed by the mayor to C.D. Parker

for his selfless service and devotion to the community.

Oh. TRIVETTE: Hear! Hear!

Hear! Hear!

Are they gonna mail me a check?

C.D., it'll look great above the bar.

Nothing looks great above the bar

unless you've got booze beneath the bar!

Where in the hell are y'all going?

TRIVETTE: Flannery's.

For what? (Trivette chuckling)

For a drink. To celebrate.

Deserters. That's what they are.

Deserters.

(sighs)

(Resync by Chuck)

( upbeat theme playing)