Run for Your Life

Wait up.

We're only, like, 20 feet away, mom.

You ready?

Ready as I'll ever be.

I don't get why you want to be in a play.

Plays are so fake.

It's theater.

You're supposed to suspend belief.

So, if you get this part,

I'm supposed to believe you're Peter Pan?

No way, Jose.

You're ignorance is showing, Isabel.

Amanda.

My name is Meredith redmond

and my life is a scary place.

I'm hoping to change that today.

This is my story.

Do you feel like you know all your lines?

- Yeah. - Good. Alright.

- Alright. - Love you. Bye.

- Bye. - Mwah!

Bye, honey.

Alright, have fun, and break a leg.

That's so mean!

Isabel, it means "good luck" in the theater.

Yeah.

Sweet.

- Bye, mom. - Bye.

- Meredith? - Yeah.

Kevin barker.

Hi, Kevin. Thanks for seeing me so quickly.

There's no time to waste.

Thank you.

Can I get you something?

- Coffee? Water? - No. I'm good, thank you.

I've reviewed your file.

Have you seen this man?

I don't know.

Who is he?

His name's lon Philips.

Your ex hired him.

He's a professional hitman.

What?

From these photos,

it looks like your husband

came pretty close to killing you himself.

Having failed,

he's hired someone else to do the job for him.

Robert has obviously found you.

All that done in the name of "love."

I've never met Robert,

but I know him.

Guys like him are all the same.

Cowards.

They don't have the cojones

to confront their own weaknesses.

The only way Robert can feel like a man

is to exert his power over you.

He uses you as his punching bag

because he knows you won't hit back.

And what happened

when you went through the Canadian legal system?

Robert has connections in very high places,

including judges.

After he had abused my oldest girl,

they still gave him joint custody,

so I left the country to protect my girls.

I presume you have

an outstanding arrest warrant in Canada?

Yes. I violated a court order,

but I was willing to accept the consequences

to get him as far away from my kids as possible.

What about getting a restraining order here in the U.S.?

A restraining order doesn't work.

I've tried it many times.

All it will do is result in my being sent back to Canada

and losing custody to Robert.

Well, as I said...

Robert has found you and, this time, he has help.

He is sending you a message

that he won't rest until he gets rid of you,

so he can have the kids.

That's why I'm here.

The system turns its back on women

because it's domestic.

And then once the boyfriend or the husband

finally kills her,

there's a moment of hand-wringing,

and then back to business as usual.

Tell me what I don't know.

I assumed,

you know, from these public-awareness campaigns,

that domestic violence had declined over the years.

Yeah, but you found it hasn't significantly changed

in decades.

No.

So tell me what I can do

to free myself of Robert,

and I will do it.

Honestly? Very little.

Guys who have some respect for the law,

or who fear of it,

will obey a restraining order.

We will get rid of lon Philips...

But your husband will hire another lon Philips,

and another.

If need be, he'll kill you himself.

Are you saying there's nothing you can do for me?

I wish I could.

But the unfortunate truth is...

You're running out of options.

So that's it?

Unless you vanish.

There is an underground, of sorts.

You mean go into witness protection?

Similar,

but without the protection of the government.

I can't raise my girls like fugitives.

They've had it hard enough.

There is another option.

In a court of law,

I would deny ever having said this.

You can kill the son of a bitch before he kills you.

Not what I expected to hear...

Turn the girls into fugitives, or kill their father.

My god.

Which choice should I make?

The broadhurst school between market and carver.

Hi. It's me.

I'm headed to the office,

and I really need to speak to you.

It's important.

Neal.

What's up?

Not here, not here.

What? Hey. We're journalists, right?

People like us

need to be in the thick of things,

not hiding underground like fugitives.

I'm all out of options, Neal.

How else am I gonna protect my kids?

You could kill the son-of-a-bitch.

I wouldn't be much good to them behind bars.

Look, mer, you can't run and you can't hide.

I mean, Robert's not gonna give up until you're dead.

You said so yourself.

God, I know.

And the leading security expert in the country

already warned you that if you don't kill him,

he's gonna kill you.

I feel sick.

Mom!

Mom! I got the part! I'm Peter Pan!

Congratulations! I'm so happy for you.

They're gonna put up rigging

so I can fly over the audience.

Cool!

Wait. Wait. No, no. Hold on.

That sounds really dangerous.

Mom. You can't be Peter Pan and not fly.

You could be famous one day, Amanda.

I don't care.

I just want to be unforgettable.

Well, I am so proud of you, honey.

I think this calls for a celebration.

Sure!

Yeah? Okay. Come on.

You can't disappear

and keep a byline in a major newspaper.

I mean, how are you gonna support yourself?

I have no clue.

I mean, I've never done anything outside of journalism.

It's just, I feel like

I'm letting you down.

Being a coward.

Not having the guts to kill Robert myself.

That's crazy, Neal.

Gosh.

I'm late for my meeting. I have to go.

Can you just do me a favor?

'Kay? Promise me you won't do anything

until we've carefully thought this thing through.

Listen. The best way you could help me

is just stay out of it, Neal, okay?

No. Lookit. I...

I'm sorry, but I can't do that.

'Kay? Friends don't let friends get murdered.

Why can't we go to Jones?

Because, Isabel, it's my celebration,

and I want to go someplace cool.

Well, I'll call around

and see where I can make reservations.

What about a pizza place?

- No. Don't, okay? - Daddy!

Wait!

My god. Look at you two.

You're all grown-up!

Come and give your old man a hug.

Don't!

You have no idea how much I missed you guys.