The Freelancer

[ "Sympathy for the devil" plays ]
You ready?
♪ Made damn sure that pilate ♪
Well, now, that's a stupid question.
Monday, 9:07 A.M. examiner Hatch.
Subject... Elizabeth Scott Keen.
Here we go.
Before Monday of last week, did you have, or have you ever had, personal contact with Raymond Reddington?
No.
Did Reddington notify you before he surrendered himself to the FBI?
No.
Have you ever been convicted of a crime?
Convicted? Not yet.
Please answer "yes" or "no." Have you ever been convicted of a crime?
You're wasting valuable time.
Does Elizabeth Keen know why you surrendered yourself?
He's telling our people he wants immunity, that he's willing to cooperate, give us names.
What names?
He's got a list, alleges he can deliver us high-value criminal targets if the justice department grants him immunity.
What's his legal status?
The man sold secrets to the Hofstad network, to the Syrians.
He's not getting immunity.
Talk to me about containment.
Who knows we've got him?
Including us in this room... A total of 26 people.
Remember, he's been off the grid for over 20 years.
Yet he seems to know things even you don't.
About this, uh, Elizabeth Keen... says her father has some kind of criminal record?
Yes.
Polygrapher: Before Monday of last week, did you have, or have you ever had, personal contact with Elizabeth Keen?
No.
He's lying.
Polygrapher: Does Raymond Reddington know, or has he ever known, your husband?
His name's tom Keen.
Schoolteacher, 4th grade.
He's currently in a medically induced coma, was nearly killed last week during an altercation on a case Keen was working.
He gonna survive?
The situation is uncertain.
You're confident that the husband's not involved with Reddington?
No.
The truth is we don't have any idea who Reddington may be involved with.
Fowler: Then why should we trust him?
You're asking the wrong questions.
I'm trying to help you with a matter of some urgency.
It's your choice whether you listen to me or not, but there will be an incident at 11:00 this morning at the decatur industrial park.
I would send ambulances.
Cooper: We need to move quickly.
Woman: He's a prisoner.
He has no legal position to negotiate from.
Charge him under the patriot act.
See what he has to say then.
He'll only speak with Keen.
It's not up to him.
We decide who he speaks... I don't think you understand how delicately the situation needs to be handled.
Reddington has brokered some of the most comprehensive international criminal activity in the past 20 years.
He has access to targets we don't even know exist.
Now, he's telling us there may be some kind of an event about to happen at the decatur industrial park.
Fowler: I don't think you understand.
You don't run the criminal division of main justice. I do.
The Attorney General is not going to accept a deal.
Reddington is a criminal, and we're gonna take credit for catching him.
Our office will lay out the charges.
I hope you understand that from time t... there is... No... Deal.
Am I clear?
Yes.
Polygrapher: And have you been truthful to the best of your knowledge?
So, what do we got?
Swept the entire yard.
Got multiple teams working the property, k-9 units.
Nothing.
I mean, look around.
I got two city blocks of hiding places, and I don't even know what the hell I'm supposed to be looking for.
I need more information.
What's the specific tip?
Who did it come from?
We got an informant who's dicking us around.
Says we're gonna need rescue units here at 11:00.
It's already 11:20.
Give it another 20 minutes and wrap it up.
I want bomb squads, medics.
I want everybody out.
Man: We've got a problem.
A passenger train just blew through.
Come again?
What was that?
I said you have a passenger train coming in your direction.
It's over speed.
Clear the area.
Get everyone out.
Clear! Clear out! Get your men out of here! Clear! Those things I found under the floor, they're not yours, right?
He put them there... the gun and the passports.
Tell me Reddington did this, and not... I wish you were here so you could explain yourself.
60 people have been confirmed dead and dozens injured after a passenger train derailed this morning at the decatur industrial park. 60 people are dead because of you.
60 people are dead because you don't return my calls, Harold.
If you want to save lives and catch the bad guys, pay attention.
They're not going to make your deal.
That's unfortunate.
The next name on my list is an absolute snake.
The train.
How did you know?
I know lots of things.
But the train I didn't.
I knew the time, the place, but the train was a big surprise.
We've ruled out terrorism.
Look at the list of casualties, Harold.
You'll find some councilwoman from Albany.
Apparently she's been tangling with some rather cunning, powerful people.
You're saying the derailment was an assassination?
I'm not saying anything... Unless it's to Elizabeth Keen.
Tell me about the train wreck.
If you had any idea how far I've traveled to see you again, lizzy.
My name's "Liz," not "lizzy." To you, I'm agent Keen.
Now, I've heard all your demands, but I don't think you've heard mine, so let me tell you how this is gonna work.
I ask the questions, you answer them.
Screw with me, and I walk.
Understood?
How is tom?
They're never gonna give you immunity.
Not a chance.
Oh, I think they will.
Otherwise, what am I doing here?
I'm perfectly happy to go back to the boat.
Tell me about the train wreck.
What would you like to know?
Everything.
The train accident was no accident. You know that.
But what you don't know is the man behind it... Is quite prolific.
He's responsible for a slew of other premeditated killings just like this one, disguised as accidents.
Shall I go on?
Raymond: A building collapses in moscow, a ferry capsizes on the brahmaputra river.
These are the events we've come to expect on the evening news.
But in truth, there's always more to the story.
Hidden between the facts and figures, the victims and the heroes, there's always a murder.
The work of a man who disguises his killings in the headlines of everyday tragedies.
What proof do you have?
His work is difficult to detect, but the victims are there.
An appellate court judge in Ohio, a French diplomat who dies in a plane crash.
Look closer.
The pattern will emerge.
Over the last seven years, more than 3,000 innocent civilians have died, all collateral victims as a result of this man's unique methods.
In the 20-odd years I've been working my side of the tracks, I have not encountered another contractor who's had as significant an impact on the civilian population as he.
He's rivaled only by governments and terrorist organizations.
And you've never heard of him.
I have it on good authority that his next contract will take him to New York.
This is not an opportunity to ponder or deliberate, because once he's done, he's gone.
Cooper: This guy have a name?
They call him "the freelancer." And how do we find him?
You don't find him.
I do.
What, are you two pen pals?
You guys send each other, uh, coded e-mails?
I don't have e-mail or a phone or... An address.
I prefer to handle my business face-to-face.
You've met him.
Once.
I brokered a few jobs.
He works through an intermediary.
He might be for sale.
Perhaps I should set a meeting.
Maybe you should.
You should come.
Just the two of us... no wires, no clumsy agents in the bushes.
You want me to make an introduction, you need to trust me with my source.
Ah! What fun! You'll need a dress.
And where would this meeting be?
Montreal.
What do you know about the passports?
What passports?
You know what I'm talking about.
As far as I'm concerned, you put them there.
Put what, lizzy?
The box. The money and the gun.
The passports.
Who else have you told?
What? Nobody.
Have you told Cooper?
No.
Cooper: I want you to shadow Reddington to Montreal.
Contact our people in the royal Canadian mounted police.
I want complete surveillance.
Take them both down... Reddington and his liaison.
If you go to the police, they'll file charges.
If the gun's not registered, it's a felony.
The passports are 25 years each.
On the other hand, if you confront him, what good does that do?
He'll deny everything, and you'll continue to doubt him.
Either way, it's... An impossible situation.
Before we do this, let me be clear... I'm not here to socialize.
I have no interest in having dinner with you, nor do we have the time.
We meet your contact, we get the name of the freelancer's next victim, and we go.
Understood?
I agree with you completely.
But it is a restaurant, and it is dinnertime.
So, what does this liaison look like?
Let's not get ahead of ourselves.
Bonsoir. Ça va? Anyone asks, you're my girlfriend from Ann arbor.
Absolutely not.
Fine.
You can be my daughter.
Bonsoir. What would you like to drink?
I'll have wine.
Chardonnay?
S'il vous plaît, pour madame, un cocktail de I'aviation. This one. Here.
Bring that up.
Running facial recognition now.
No hits off the database yet.
Ahh. Oh, this isn't what I ordered.
Merci.
To the future.
Aviation cocktail.
Uh-huh?
It's from the '20s.
Tastes like spring, doesn't it?
Tell me about your job.
The profiling.
I'm fascinated.
How close to the truth do you think you can really get?
Where's your contact?
Tell me my profile.
Why would I do that?
You've heard the debriefs.
You've read Ressler's book reports. I so want to know how you... See things.
You're a loner.
You keep your distance.
You travel freely through foreign lands.
You're rootless.
You're very comfortable here with your glass of scotch, but you're just as comfortable sleeping in a cave with rebels or sharing dinner in some hole-in-the-wall noodle shop.
Your closest friends are strangers.
You understand that tight bonds can make you vulnerable, so you're careful not to have any.
And that's why you're so conflicted about me.
You need me.
And you hate that about yourself, because it makes you vulnerable.
Tell me about your husband.
Does he know you as well as you know him?
Your contact is late.
Does he know about you as a child?
It's been 35 minutes.
Does he know about the fire?
Why am I so important to you?
Did you know my parents?
I asked you a question.
Oui, monsieur? S'il vous plaît, apportez-nous une bouteille quatre vingt deux chateau latour.
Bonsoir. Are you gonna keep trying to impress me with your knowledge of French wine, or are you gonna answer my question?
What if I were to tell you... That all the things you've come to believe about yourself are a lie?
Please excuse me for a moment.
he's onto us! ♪ Oh, yeah go! Go! Move! Now! ♪ Power! Hands! Show me your hands! What did Reddington give you?! Tip! Do you understand English?! Yes! What the hell was that?
You sold him out.
You let him go.
I let him go?! Who notified rcmp?! You compromised an asset.
He's number 4 on the most wanted list, Keen.
What did you expect?! And now he's gone because of you! Hey, there, guys.
You planned this! You knew he would never show! Take a breath, agent Ressler.
You think I'm gonna fly all the way to Montreal for the cheese cart?
My contact was the first person I saw when I walked into the place.
I told you he would help, and he did.
The coat-check attendant.
I left payment in my hat.
In exchange, he left a photo of the assassin's next victim.
Floriana Campo.
The human-rights activist?
There you have it... a solid lead delivered exactly as promised.
Find Floriana Campo, you find the freelancer.
Not bad for a day's work.
Let's celebrate.
Hey, Donald.
How 'bout that cheese cart?
Floriana Campo?
Donald Ressler.
Elizabeth Keen. FBI.
We need to have a word with you.
We have reason to believe someone's planning an assassination attempt on your life.
Tonight's fundraiser needs to be canceled.
Oh, it can't be canceled.
It's a donor event, and I have my own security.
It's too risky. We can't guarantee your safety.
[ Chuckles ] Nobody can guarantee my safety.
I have many enemies... traffickers, cartels.
We know what they did to your husband, what you've gone through.
Your work, it's been an inspiration.
I wrote my senior thesis on your time in Kuala Lumpur.
I was going through a very bad time.
And in some ways, I think you helped me through it.
Do you have children, agent Keen?
Uh, Elizabeth.
And... If all goes well... There is no work more meaningful than being a mother.
I didn't have kids of my own.
This is my one regret.
But these girls that I'm trying to protect, they are my family.
Tonight is for them.
I won't cancel.
Look, we can't force you to accept our protection, but we need your help to find the man contracted to kill you.
To identify him, to capture him, we need you to cooperate... you're our only link.
Will you help us?
She spent 15 years with the u.N., stationed primarily in eastern Europe with small stints in north Africa.
In 2000, she helped pass the trafficking victims protection act.
Since that time, her nonprofit has raised over $35 million in her campaign to eliminate human and sex trafficking around the globe.
Three years ago, her husband was murdered by the Eberhardt cartel.
Eberhardt is the most ruthless human-trafficking cartel in Europe.
2008, their founder was killed leaving a power vacuum.
To this day, nobody knows who's actually running the outfit.
What we do know is that he's merciless.
Murdered rival cartel leaders to expand his reach.
Survivors tell stories of torture and forced addiction.
He killed Floriana Campo's husband, and he most likely hired the freelancer to kill her.
We're doing everything we can to disrupt the freelancer's plan.
We've changed schedules, travel routes.
And you've moved tomorrow night's event?
Yes, based on what we know about the freelancer, he takes months to plan these attacks.
If he had something planned for tomorrow, he's gonna need to pass through our security in order to pull it off.
What good does that do if nobody knows what he looks like?
Liz: I need your help.
You said you've seen this guy once.
We're compiling photos of the people who are scheduled to attend the event tomorrow, and... please understand I want more than anything to help you.
It's the reason why I'm here.
But I won't say another word until the terms of my deal are met.
I'm so sorry to bother you with these trivial details, but it's a simple yes or no.
Fowler: No.
His lawyers drafted this?
No. He did.
Reddington represents himself in legal matters.
A DARPA-tested, fully encrypted, 8-millimeter tag?
I don't even know what that is.
It's a tracking device.
And what's this about his "private security detail"?
He's given us a list of five names, wants us to pick two.
Which are the two least offensive?
Ex-freedom fighter from South Sudan.
Sources indicate he's Reddington's former bodyguard, goes by the name of "Dembe." Does Dembe have a last name?
No, ma'am. Just Dembe.
Like prince or Madonna.
The second is Luli Zeng.
Phd in economics from Stanford.
Dodged federal prison twice.
S.E.C. Says she's untouchable.
We think she's moving Reddington's money.
How would I justify this?
You don't.
It's off the books.
And he's what... our informant, slowly working his way towards immunity?
Which he's never going to get.
We have a chance to catch a mass murderer.
One condition... you bring in somebody I know and trust.
Meera Malik, CIA.
She can help navigate international waters.
Fine.
One day, you and I will be talking about this moment in front of a senate hearing.
God help us.
You got your deal.
Our turn now.
Compiled a list of the attendees for tonight's event.
Is this really the right approach?
Hey. I'm right here.
Talk to me.
Honestly, is this how the FBI does things... comb through the invitation list?
This guy didn't rsvp.
I've seen the man.
If he shows up tonight, if you're going to have any hope of identifying him, you need to put me in that room.
So, you want to go to the party?
Oh, I thought you'd never ask.
Dembe.
Luli, my dear.
Raymond.
Watch yourself with her, Donald.
She hates men, and cops most of all.
You, I don't know.
Meera Malik.
You look like the CIA.
Oh, yeah?
What's the CIA look like?
Attractive but treacherous.
I guess we'll find out.
This is gonna be a gas.
So you know, the way this works, we don't typically drink on the job.
No, thank you.
Your 7:00?
No.
Where's that woman with the mushroom puffs?
You okay?
Oh, yes. I'm fine.
A wonderful evening.
What's wrong?
I just got word that a shipment we were trying to track has gone missing.
Shipment?
Girls, more than 60 of them.
Where? There must be something the bureau can do.
Oh, it's too late.
They're gone.
Man: Ladies and gentlemen, if I may have your attention.
Anya: My name is Anya Kedrov.
I've been asked to say a few words.
I spent three years of my life in a 9'x9' room living in hell, forcibly addicted.
For all I survived, I still carry a daily reminder.
The people who took me, the Eberhardt cartel, they brand their servants by carving their symbol into the flesh on our backs.
But as bad as I had it, there is always someone who had it worse.
Truth is, it's only through acknowledging and claiming these experiences that we can really put a face on the crime that is human sex trafficking.
Tonight, I'd simply like to say thank you.
Thank you, Floriana.
Oh, thank you, Anya.
And thank you for coming tonight.
I'm sure you've noticed we're not at the met.
We had to relocate for security reasons.
Each one of you could have stayed home, succumbed to fear.
But you didn't.
You came. You're here.
You, I, Anya stand here in solidarity... with the people who cannot be here with us... Yet.
It's him.
What?
The waiter.
The freelancer.
I remember two years ago my late husband was in South Sudan.
Clear the area.
Now.
Stop! FBI! Man: Federal agent! Man ♪2: Clear the pool area! Liz: It's the waiter! He's heading towards the stairs! Stop! Woman: Watch out! Woman ♪2: [ Screams ] Close the door! We're heading east! I repeat, heading east on 59th! He's heading across town toward 63rd! FBI. Out of the car.
Liz: I'm heading in your direction. Give me an update.
200 west 57th. He's gonna be coming out the back.
My leg.
I need an ambulance.
Well, I need names.
Tell me about the Eberhardt cartel.
I don't know what you're talking about.
Who's in charge of the cartel?
Who hired you to take out Campo?
Sweep the floor.
Lock it down.
We're all clear inside.
He asked you a question.
I can't.
Last time.
Who hired you?
No! My friend here is with the FBI.
I'm from the CIA you know the difference, don't you?
Now, we haven't got much time because you have a compound fracture and you're bleeding internally, so we're going to expedite things.
I can't.
A name.
Reddington.
He hired me.
Thank you.
For everything.
[ Beep ] Don't leave your suite.
It was Reddington.
He hired the freelancer.
What? No.
How could he?
The coat-check attendant.
Think about it.
The coat check didn't leave the picture in red's hat.
Red left it for him. He was signaling the hit. Why?
Couldn't get close enough to do it himself.
I have my own security. So, you want to go to the party?
Oh, I thought you'd never ask.
It's him, the waiter.
Pointing out the freelancer was a diversion.
He wanted us to empty that party.
He wanted to get her alone.
How did you get in here?
Where's my security?
Your security is occupied.
This is because of you.
The threats, the FBI.
The FBI works for me now.
Why are you doing this, Raymond?
I offered to make you a partner.
My people came to you about the shipping routes.
You turned us down.
I've never liked you.
You never liked me because you're a wanted man living in the shadows, and I am not.
I run my business, and I'm being wined and dined by the city's elite.
[ Laughing ] I don't know how you do it... the duplicity.
How does the devil in you contend with the angel?
I would have kicked her out years ago.
You can learn a thing or two from me, Raymond.
I'm going to kiss that sweet, young FBI agent on the cheek and say, "good night," and then go down to docks and pick up my next shipment of girls.
Hey! Where's my agents?! [ Gun cocks ] Get out of my way.
Oh, Elizabeth! Thank God you're here! This is the man.
He's the one who wants me dead.
You hired the freelancer.
To do what?
Was it the champagne?
What's the headline gonna read?
"Italian dog born with two heads." No?
How about "humanitarian, exposed as fraud, commits suicide"?
What have you done?
I didn't do anything.
I think the assassin may have slipped her a lethal cocktail of the same barbiturates she uses to drug her children.
[ Gasps ] Liz: What are you saying?
She's not the woman you think she is.
You're a liar.
Who's lying, Floriana?
Shut up, Raymond! Ooh, that was a mistake.
You know him?
Everybody knows this son of a bitch! I need a medic! You don't need a medic.
I have the antidote right here.
Liz: Give it to me! I'd be happy to, as soon as she admits the truth.
Give it to me now! She's not breathing! Tell her the truth, Floriana.
This will help you breathe.
Madam Campo doesn't free children from slavery.
She imprisons them.
I don't believe you.
Don't be so naive.
Floriana Campo is the largest distributor of enslaved children in the eastern hemisphere.
Her foundation is a front to launder the profits of the Eberhardt cartel, which she runs.
She's been eliminating the competition.
Good God. The woman had her own husband murdered.
Liz: Give me the antidote.
All you have to do is tell her, Floriana.
A simple nod will suffice.
What is with you in hotel rooms and pens in people's necks?
What's happening?
Looks like she's dying.
Definitely dying.
You look tired.
Go home.
Get some sleep.
Unless you're avoiding your home.
What would you have done if the antidote had worked on time?
It would have exposed you as our informant.
There was no antidote.
We've confirmed that Floriana Campo was running a fortune through the kowloon bank.
You were right.
The woman ran the Eberhardt cartel.
Based on the information you gave us, we were able to intercept the shipment and rescue the girls.
She preyed on the weak and the innocent while dressed in the wings of a savior.
I detested everything about her.
I had no idea.
I mean, I just... I should have known.
We never really know anyone, do we?
What are you gonna do, lizzy?
About this situation with tom?
It seems you have two options.
Either you turn him in or confront him.
Or perhaps there's a third option.
[ Gasping ] Oh, my God.
Woman: Tell us a little about Elizabeth. Elizabeth? Uh, to me, she's always just been lizzy. Uh, I remember the first time she brought up adoption before we ever thought about coming to see you guys.
She was... she was so nervous. She tried to cook dinner, which was a complete disaster, because she's, uh, not the best cook. I think it was around my third bite of cold spaghetti, she just started to cry.
I, uh... I don't know. I think she was afraid of disappointing me. But she looked me in the eye, a-and she told me the truth... that she didn't want to have a biological child, not with so many children in need of a loving family.
She wanted to adopt. It was important to her.
In that moment, I just... I-I don't think I've ever loved her more. She's... she's gonna be a great mom. I mean, she really is. I know that.