Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector

Previously on "Lincoln Rhyme"...

Nobody starts killing three people in a day.

So we find his first kill or he made a mistake.

30 years ago, Barry Rothko goes jogging.

- Never comes home. - I have a condition.

- Agoraphobia? - I wanna get out.

- I just can't. - You're a gift, Danielle.

What have I done to deserve you?

- I found these today. - Jane.

- Come with me. - It'll all be okay.

You're the Bone Collector?

I am.

I tried to shield that from you.

You're insane.

The first Bone Collector killings...

we were together. Do you remember?

You were horrified, but you... understood.

Some people are built differently than others.

You said that. Not insane.

Built differently.

Do you believe that now?

I don't know.

I am the man you know.

But...

There are parts that...

That I've hidden.

It's...

just something I do.

It soothes me.

But you're not soothed.

You're agitated.

I can see it.

But...

you're gonna kill me, aren't you?

I found him.

It's him.

- It's the Bone Collector. - What did you find?

It's an anonymous card written to Barry Rothko's mother

a week after he disappeared.

It's written in Latin.

"Requiem requiem Ultima Ratio Regum."

Claire, the note from the Bone Collector.

What does it mean?

- "Rest, rest. - The Last Argument of Kings."

The handwriting is the same.

It's him.

- We found him. - Yes.

He left them a clue and they didn't even realize.

"Ultima Ratio Regum."

"The Last Argument of Kings"

was engraved on all cannons produced in France

under the reign of Louis XIV.

'Course. He's telling me where to find the body.

How does that help us find the body?

This case is Westchester County.

If I recall, Dobbs Ferry was a strategic encampment

for Washington's troops.

At the start of the Revolutionary War,

France gave the Continental Army supplies,

including cannons.

- Check this out. - There's a monument

to that battle in a field on the edge of town.

So if we're right,

Barry Rothko was buried somewhere in that field.

And his body could be a clue to his killer.

Find that body, we find a link to the Bone Collector.

- Let's go. Now. - Good boy.

You really think we're gonna find something

after all this time?

Okay. We're coming up on the monument.

Are you seeing this, Lincoln?

I see it.

It's here.

This has to be it.

Hey, I found something!

The body's gone.

Yeah, this hole's been dug up recently.

A day ago. Maybe two.

- Can't get ahead of this guy. - How the hell does he know

what we're doing?

For those who crave living

in a totally managed environment.

Even in the construction phase, every Vaughn property

is exclusive, private, and secure.

Retrofitted with ultramodern luxury,

and an address that's so desirable,

my family will be the first residents.

Ah, speaking of which...

You'll know my wife Linda, of course.

And this is Simon.

They're here just about every day, checking on the progress

- of the penthouse. - Hey, Dad?

- If you'll excuse me. - I promised my son

a little ice cream, but please, feel free to look around,

and security will let you out downstairs.

All right. What flavor do you want, pal?

Mr. Vaughn.

This was just delivered here for you.

Here?

Strange, we're not forwarding the mail here yet.

- Greg, what is this? - I don't know.

Looks like a digital recorder.

Hello, Greg.

I have a small favor to ask.

But first, let me get your attention.

Search for the Bone Collector's on hold.

Listen to this.

Greg and Linda Vaughn.

You must admit the full extent of your corruption and greed.

At 6:00 p.m. today, you're to appear on live TV

from Brooklyn Borough Hall. The very courthouse in which

you lied and claimed no fault

in the Richmond Hill apartment fire of 2015.

Admit that the blood of the people who died there

is on your hands. Obey my instructions,

or another Vaughn property will burn.

And more people will die.

Four of the Vaughn's investors were killed

in the blast today.

But it could've been a lot worse.

The next building will not be as empty.

Well, maybe we start with figuring out how the hell

the guy planted the bomb in the first place.

The site's on complete lockdown.

I mean, key fobs track down everyone entering and exiting.

Cameras on the outside cover every possible entrance.

Every employee's accounted for, and before the Vaughns

and their investors arrived, the site was completely empty

- for weeks. - A locked room mystery.

Did you know the first modern detective story was about

a murder in a locked room impossible to enter?

- Predates Sherlock Holmes. - Edgar Allen Poe.

That's right.

The killer was a trained orangutan who climbed through

a fourth-story window.

So unless the Bronx Zoo is looking for a primate,

we've got quite a puzzle to solve.

Well, we can start with what he wants.

His demands suggest a clear vendetta against the Vaughns.

We go after whoever the evidence tells us to go after.

Well, technically, the demands on the voice recording

are evidence.

Bomber mentioned the Richmond Hill apartment fire.

Killed over 40 people... lotta families filed lawsuits.

Yeah, but the Vaughns were cleared of any negligence.

Fire was sufficiently ruled accidental.

Well, our guy's not buying the official story.

Which means we need to find every family member and person

with a motive. But first...

Crime scene.

Okay, got it.

Good. Walk the grid one step at a time

using all your senses.

Ughh.

Glad I wore my street clothes for this.

Necklace to the left.

It's hard to tell what's evidence and what's not.

Everything is burnt to a crisp.

This building's current renovation

works to our advantage. They've already removed

the flooring and walls, which likely had decades

of wear and tear and dust

and the skin cells of thousands of people on them.

What's a little fire compared to all that?

Three cheers for gentrification.

Head to the far corner behind you.

If the debris landed there, we need to find

where it came from.

I'm no expert, but that looks like a point of origin to me.

Well, I am an expert, and yes, it does.

And that looks like pieces of bomb shrapnel.

Move closer, please.

Huh.

This is odd.

Show me the other side again.

Our bomber left us something behind

that might lead us to him.

Look, I was testing the soil from the empty grave.

The Bone Collector took the body, but he may have left us

- his DNA. - First, go to the lab,

run the trace Amelia found in the high-rise.

Blood evidence, DNA, prints. Find a link to the bomber.

Felix.

Running all complaints against the Vaughns.

It's a long list.

Look, whether or not she finds the Bone Collector's DNA,

it's him.

- Has to be. - Agreed.

Killed Barry Rothko and left him there 30 years.

Until we sent for the case files from Westchester.

- Yes, someone tipped him. - Someone on the inside.

- Who? - I don't know.

I have Internal Affairs on it.

Well, they should be able to identify a data breach.

- Who would do that? - Someone trading information

for cash. Someone with a vulnerability.

Or maybe...

the Bone Collector is another cop.

He's meticulous, knowledgeable about forensics...

Knowledgeable about you.