The Capture of the Green River Killer

When I was in seventh grade,

my teacher gave me a book of poems.

"I am the master of my fate," the first one said.

"I am the captain of my soul."

No!

Damn it! Get back here!

Get back here!

Get in there! Get in here!

King county sheriff! Put down your weapon!

Man: Get on the ground!

Just stay down!

Dave? Yeah?

We're putting you on homicide backup

till your neck heals.

No, sir, look, I'm fine.

No, you're just lucky.

You could be dead.

I'm sick of your hot-dogging.

For the next two weeks, you're chained to that desk. Yes, sir.

You answer a call. You catch the case. Yes, sir.

But don't count on it.

Things have been very quiet.

Mariners lost, Dave. You owe me lunch.

Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.

Luck, fate, god, the magic 8-ball...

isn't it all the same?

Me, I didn't believe in fate.

I believed in luck and bad luck,

and sometimes I believed in choice.

Do you choose your luck?

Nah, it's just something that happens.

Hi!

Hi, my name's Helen.

I just moved in.

My mom, um, she calls me hel.

She says it's where I'm headed.

Cool.

You want to throw one?

Sure.

Oh! Give me another one.

Helen: Once in a while,

maybe someone chooses it for you,

like god, or...

I don't know.

I mean, who chose it for Wendy coffield?

She met her luck

when she disappeared from her foster home in early July

and they found her below the peck bridge.

She was 16. She was a hooker.

Man: Jim, want to bag that?

There's some paint on the victim's clothes.

So, where's your real dad?

Dead... he bought some bad drugs.

Where's yours?

I haven't seen him since I was 5.

Yeah, my mom goes through men like toilet paper.

Okay, see, this is the newest one.

He always has his mouth full, so I call him the grunt.

Hi, Wallace!

See?

Helen: But when god or someone else chooses your luck,

is that the same thing as fate?

How can we be masters of our fate

if we have nothing to do with choosing it?

Reichert.

Fae: They just pulled a woman's body

out of the green river.

It looks bad.

Where? Below mill creek near that rock base below the rapids.

You know the one?

Yeah. No, I know where it is.

Uniforms are all over it, but I think it's a homicide.

I'll be right there.

Man: Just like the one last month.

What do you mean?

Body down by the peck bridge...

different jurisdiction.

Natalie: Mom, this is Helen.

Hi, Helen. I'm Maureen.

Want a fried sandwich?

We're going out.

No thanks.

Come on.

Woman: She wanted that life...

said it was better than this.

Can't say I blame her.

I'll find your granddaughter's killer, I promise.

Dave: It's the second body discovered in a month

in the green river.

Both girls were prostitutes.

That's all we have at the moment.

Do you think he's a serial, like Ted Bundy?

I don't think so, no.

At least, I hope not.

No, I just mean I'm gonna be getting busy for a while,

so you might not be seeing too much of me.

You're not missing Angela's birthday party.

I'm not missing Angela's birthday party.

So, uh, you gonna be getting busy?

Yeah.

You gonna be getting busy busy?

Temptress.

How busy? You're gonna find out.

Oh, yeah? Yeah.

Yeah, why don't you tell me?

You're gonna find out right now. I'm gonna show you.

Hey!

Good morning!

Aah!

Aah!

Kids, come on! It's time for cake!

Come on!

Oh, I'm gonna get mine first!

No, you're not!

All right, everybody, get up here.

Ah, here it is!

Someone's gonna have to blow out the candles.

Look at this birthday cake!

I'm lighting the candles,

and someone's gonna have to blow out these candles.

Mom will light the cake.

Angela, daddy's got to go to work.

Angela: Oh, dad!

But I'll be home soon. Save me some cake.

Fae: When they got here, she was completely submerged.

These are the rocks he used to pin them down.

Do you think one guy could do that?

Who found them?

That guy. He says he saw a fisherman with a truck.

But he can't remember what he looked like,

and he's pretty upset.

Take some pictures.

So, he could... or they could be fishermen then.

It's a popular place.

You fish here?

I used to live here for three and a half months.

Where's the flash?

I got in a fight with my father,

and I decided I'm not gonna come home until he apologizes.

What did you fight over?

Money.

Must have been a lot of money to keep you away for that long.

It was a buck. That's the river.

Yeah, he sends me for gas, I come home a buck short,

and he starts to punch me.

He starts punching me in the head

until my mother hit him in the face with a frying pan.

Ouch.

Right?

So, did he?

Did he what?

Apologize.

No, but what he did do...

we got another one.

God!

We got another one!

She's just a kid.

Mike!

That makes five in the river.

Hi.

Natalie: Isn't this wild?

Ever been to a place like this?

No.

It's, like, famous, hel, the strip.

It's, like, known all up and down the coast...

like more even than mount rainier.

Hey! Hey! Get out of here!

You should be in school.

It's summer, stupid.

You think I give a crap?

It's my corner. Get off!

Nat, let's go. Nat, let's go!

Come on, nat!