REPORT: LIFELINE
FILE #: 412

The episode begins with Jarod being chased by Miss Parker and Broots in Newark, New Jersey. Jarod is wearing coveralls and a hard hat like a maintenance worker of some kind. Jarod, while running enters that apartment window of a young woman who is meditating … in the nude. Jarod is rather surprised to see her in her birthday suit and is quite a bit embarrassed. She puts a robe on and tells Jarod that she’s working on her karma, but he doesn’t know what “karma” is. She tells him that “every good deed comes back to you … like a boomerang… only you don’t throw it. Before he leaves, she reads his palm and tells him that his lifeline says that he’s been alone, but there are these families coming together, that he brings other families together… and that he is going to meet someone just like him … a kindred spirit.

Jarod ducks into an alley to change his clothes and as he is doing that, he sees a woman standing in a doorway farther down the alley … doing the same thing! When she leaves the alley, looking completely different, she avoids a man who has been following her … but Jarod follows her instead, to the Johnson Arms Apartments … where she bolts inside. Jarod waits outside and 15 seconds later she runs back out, looking the way she did before she did the quick-change in the alley. As she runs past Jarod to a waiting cab, she drops her purse and then retrieves it … but a little makeup bag falls out of it. Jarod tries to give it back to her, but she’s already in the cab and doesn’t hear him.

Jarod sees that she left the door to her apartment open and goes inside… the apartment is empty except for a few moving boxes and bits and pieces of paper. The man who was following the woman walks in and Jarod hides behind a wall. The man sees the clothes the woman used as a disguise to elude him lying on the floor – curses and leaves. Jarod looks inside the makeup bag and finds a picture of the woman with a little girl. He finds a business card for the Pritchard Gun works … the name on the card is Jenna McGann. There is also a child’s drawing a girl with her grandpa that says, “I miss you, Mom.” Jarod hears the voice of the naked girl, telling him that he brings other families together and is troubled by what he has just seen.

Jarod is standing in front of the Pritchard Gun Works, in Newark, eating an ice cream cone. He watches Jenna and a man pull up in a car, get out and walk inside. He notices the surveillance camera on the building, tosses the ice cream cone away, and pulls a hammer out of his.

Jarod uses the hammer to smash the back window of the car … the alarm goes off and someone comes running. Inside the man who owns the gun works sends someone out to see what the noise is about. Jarod approaches the man who came running to the car … because the man is smoking, Jarod coughs and tells him that secondhand smoke is a killer then he hands him the hammer.

Back inside, the phone rings, the owner answers it and Jenna tells him that he’d better come to her office. The man the owner sent outside hears someone pounding from inside the trunk of the car with the broken window, turns around and runs back inside and into Jenna’s office. When he enters, the owner tells him to meet Jarod Grey. Jarod is standing there, tossing the hammer in his hand. The owner tells him that Jarod is with their security company and that he was testing the security. The owner tells the man that the guy in the trunk is now the night watchman and Jarod is the new head of security. The man, whose name is Sam, isn’t happy about it because of some upcoming deal in New Brunswick, but the owner doesn’t care. The owner introduces Jarod to Jenna, who says that he looks very familiar. Jarod smiles and says he just has one of those faces.

At the Centre, Miss Parker is standing with Sydney in an office with her new brother in an incubator. She asks Sydney if her brother is going to be okay. Sydney tells her that his lungs were underdeveloped, but the oxygen should help. Mr. Raines comes in, clutching his bible and wheeling his oxygen, and says, “That’s my boy … God’s greatest miracle. Then he bends over, looks at the child and says, “Google.” Miss Parker and Sydney exchange glances of surprise, but neither says anything.

Raines tells Miss Parker that the real miracle would be for them to “turn the other cheek.” Miss Parker tells him that the Bible says something about “an eye for an eye.” Sydney jumps in, saying that Jarod sent a gift and hands Miss Parker a card. The card says, “I Corinthians 15 … Even a child is known by his doings.” But Miss Parker misreads it and says that it says, “Corinthians 15, 25” … then asks Mr. Raines if it rings a bell. Mr. Raines doesn’t answer … just says “Bless you all,” and leaves, telling Willie the sweeper that their work there is done.

Later, in the hallway, Miss Parker tells Sydney that it wasn’t Corinthians at all, it was Proverbs. She doesn’t believe that Raines has “found God” because he didn’t catch the discrepancy. Sydney reads the actual verse, which says, “For he must reign until hath put all enemies under his feet.” Miss Parker believes that Jarod was trying to warn them that Raines was still Raines after all.

Back at the gun factory, they’ve checked Jarod’s references and believe that he is a retired policeman who is now in personal security. Jarod learns that Jenna and Pritchard are supposed to get married after the New Brunswick thing on Saturday. Pritchard tells Jarod that he wants the Buick “swept and secured” to be ready for the trip. After Jenna leaves, Pritchard tells Jarod that she means everything to him and that Jarod is to “take a bullet” for her before even thinking of taking one for him. Jarod says he hopes it doesn’t come to that at all.

The next morning, while Jarod is “sweeping” the car, he notices a guy drive by in an old truck, looking hard at the place. Just then, Jenna comes out of the building … she is on a cell phone and is arguing with someone – telling them that she needs to see “her.” She breaks off the conversation when she sees Jarod there and they talk about the life that Pritchard will make for Jenna after they are married …Jenna asks Jarod if he believes in “happy endings” and then the guy in the truck comes back. This time though, he fires a gun, trying to shoot Jenna. Jarod falls between the cars, taking Jenna with him – and saves her life. Afterwards, as Jenna is getting checked out by the paramedics, the man that was following her at the beginning is sitting in his vehicle, taking pictures of everyone. He wonders to himself (aloud) who Jarod is. Jarod looks at the picture of Jenna and her daughter and recalls what he heard of her phone conversation… “I have to see her … she’s at St. Charles.”

At St. Charles church, a group of catechism children are taking communion. Jarod is in the loft, watching. He looks at the little girl’s stick-drawing of herself and her grandpa and picks Jenna’s father out from the people sitting in the pews. As Jarod watches the man who was following Jenna comes in, flashes a badge at her father and says a few words to him … “she’d better honor it if she knows what’s good for the kid.” The short conversation visibly upsets Jenna’s father.

Back at the Pritchard Gun Works, Jarod confronts Jenna with the pictures that he has from her dropped makeup purse. He shows her a picture of the man who has been following her … Agent Dennis Alonzo. He tells Jenna that Alonzo followed him to her daughter’s first communion rehearsal at St. Charles. He tells her that Alonzo was “strong-arming” her father and wants to know if Alonzo is trying to get her to testify against her fiancée. To his surprise, he learns that Jenna is an agent herself, working for the ATF, and has been undercover for 12 months and 13 days!

Broots and Miss Parker are at an outdoor basketball court, in a barrio somewhere. Broots tells Miss Parker that the chapter and verse that Jarod sent are a code for Raines’ computer and that every day for the last 6 months, Raines has been meeting with one of the guys playing basketball. It turns out that Miss Parker knows him from high school – he was her date once and when he got fresh, she broke his finger.

Miss Parker pushes Broots back out of the way and strides up to the man … she’s wearing a very short skirt, very high boots, a very tight blouse and a long coat. She gets right in his face as he’s toweling off. They chat a bit and then he asks her to wait as he finishes putting on his clothes. He turns around and he’s wearing a priest’s collar! When Broots sees the collar, he is relieved not to have any new competition for Miss Parker’s affections and grins a lot.

At the gun works, Jenna is explaining to Jarod how she ended up undercover. The ATF traced some guns back to there and she went in as Pritchard’s assistant – the whole operation was supposed to take three months. It snowballed into a full blown relationship and a yearlong assignment. Jenna tells Jarod that Alonzo forced her to “go with it.” Jenna asks Jarod if he’s ever been under cover and he tells her once or twice. Then Jarod looks at the picture of Jenna and her daughter again and Jenna asks Jarod if he’s seen her. Jarod says that he has and that both her daughter and father look well. Jenna says she hasn’t seen her in two months. She used to go every week, but Alonzo put a stop to it. Jarod asks her if she’s getting too involved in the cover up and Jenna starts yelling at him that she knows that Cassie needs her, but she can’t stop now – what if Pritchard finds out about her? Jarod tells her to keep her voice down. Jenna explains that Pritchard isn’t the real target… after all this time; they still don’t know who all the money washing is for. The meeting with the “fat cat” on Saturday should tell them what they want to know. Jenna gives Jarod a ring that belonged to her mother and tells him that she wants Cassie to have it if things don’t work out. Jarod assures her that things will work out. Jenna is still concerned. She tells Jarod that she doesn’t know who she is anymore.

Back at the playground, Miss Parker is astonished that Giuseppe is a priest. She tells him they used to call him “shifty G” and says it’s no wonder that he is Raines’ priest. Giuseppe said that “Father Jarod” said Miss Parker would come. Apparently, “Father Jarod” is the Bishop’s favorite envoy. Giuseppe tells Miss Parker that Mr. Raines is studying to become a Deacon. Giuseppe says that Mr. Raines deals with many demons, but he is a child of God, so he will be given absolution, no matter what his sins. Miss Parker cannot accept that. She does not think he should be forgiven for killing her mother. Giuseppe tells Miss Parker that Raines is profoundly sorry for the pain he has caused her … but he cannot say anymore because he cannot betray what Raines told him in confession. Giuseppe said that Jarod was curious about something he overheard Raines talking to an associate about, in a parking lot … the Veritas Project. Miss Parker accuses Giuseppe of getting around betraying confessional faith by saying he overheard something in a parking lot. She says he is worse than Raines and that “anger” is her religion.

Back at the gun works, Jarod is dropping off Pritchard and Jenna… and Alonzo is taking more pictures. Jarod tells Pritchard and Jenna that he’ll be right in, then calls Alonzo on the cell phone in his car! Afterwards, Alonzo and Jarod talk. Jarod tells Alonzo he’s in over his head … Alonzo tells Jarod to stop jeopardizing his operation. Alonzo says the best they can figure, the people trying to kill Pritchard are clients … because Pritchard is skimming on the money laundering. Alonzo tells Jarod that about a year ago, just after Jenna went under cover, they found one of Pritchard’s gun suppliers dead in the woods. The word was that the guy double crossed Pritchard, but they could never find a gun that matched ballistics. Jarod is appalled that Alonzo is letting Jenna stay with a killer and is keeping her from her daughter. During the conversation, Jarod steals Alonzo’s badge and he uses it as a means to approach and speak to Jenna’s father and daughter. He tells Cassie that her mother misses her very much and promises that Jenna will be there for her first communion. Then he gives her the ring that Jenna gave him to hold in case things didn’t go right.

At the gun works again, Jarod is watching people during target practice when he notices a man who seems to be looking for someone rather than practicing. He sees the man watching Pritchard and Jenna, recognizes him from the drive by shooting from the truck, and yells for them to get down, just as the man tries to shoot them. Jarod disarms the man, saving Jenna again.

In Raines’ office at the Centre, Miss Parker walks in on Raines as he is bathing Willie’s feet. It obviously disgusts her so Raines sends a somewhat amused Willie away. She and Raines talk … she tells him that she thinks the “saint” routine is wearing a bit thin … he tells her that she can believe what she must, but if she forgives him his past sins, she will find inner peace. Miss Parker is still wearing the shortest skirt known to man, and as she sits in the chair that Willie vacated, she is taunting Raines with her legs. It’s not entirely clear whether Raines was being enticed by her legs or the prospect of washing her feet. But before we could find out Broots calls on the phone and tells her that he found out what the project that the priest mentioned is. The project is an experimental airborne toxin that was developed by The Centre and Raines is resurrecting it. Miss Parker appears almost happy to find that Raines isn’t reformed – tells him to stop coveting her and leaves.

Pritchard is thanking Jarod for saving his life and for saving Jenna’s life. Jarod says he is just doing his job and asks what the word is on the gunman. Pritchard says he’s going to find out from the cops and leaves – giving Jarod the chance to speak privately with Jenna again. He tells her that she is showing genuine concern for Pritchard’s welfare and that it’s “emotional assimilation” an effort of long-term undercover work. When Jenna doesn’t deny it, Jarod tells her to remember that the man she is engaged to is a killer. Jenna just laughs at him and Jarod realizes that Alonzo never told her about the gun supplier that was murdered. Jenna says that even if Alonzo is a killer, it’s just one more reason for her to “stay under” … she doesn’t want anything to happen to her little girl.

That night, trying to find out where the meeting in New Brunswick is going to be held, Jarod breaks into Alonzo’s safe. To his surprise, he finds a file on Jenna … Alonzo knows all about her being with the ATF!!

At the Centre, Broots and Miss Parker are tracking down the place where Raines’ toxin is kept. They open a vault door and Broots is momentarily exposed to the toxin. It knocks him to the ground and puts him in immediate respiratory distress. Miss Parker gives Broots orders to find out anything else he can about the gas, because she’s going to go track down Father Giuseppe … then, as an afterthought, tells him to have Sydney take a look at him.

Jarod is arguing with Alonzo again … chastising him for not telling her about the murdered gun supplier and that she has been compromised because he found her personnel file in Pritchard’s gun safe. Alonzo is shocked, but won’t pull Jenna out. Jarod threatens him, saying he’d better pray that Pritchard doesn’t hurt Jenna. Jarod lets Pritchard know that he knows about the money laundering operation … he also tells Pritchard that Jenna is ATF. Pritchard tells Jarod that he’s in love with what Jenna can give him — she’s his “get out of jail free card.” He plans on letting her turn in the “fat cat” and then the two of them, he and Jenna, will enjoy life on the beach in a country that doesn’t have extradition. When Jarod wonders if Jenna will go for that plan, Pritchard says he knows she will … and shows Jarod a picture of Cassie.

Miss Parker is trying to get Father Giuseppe to tell her what Raines said about the toxin in confession. The Father says that Raines did not talk about that — but Miss Parker does not believe him and reminds him that as a teenager he wasn’t so holy that it stopped him from groping her in the church. Father Giuseppe turns the tables and reminds Miss Parker that their conversation isn’t about what teenagers do and says that it was Miss Parker who came on to him in the church, not the other way around. He tells her that it was he who rejected her and that she has rewritten history, created a new reality in her mind because she needed that to survive. He tells her that anger is her religion and she needs enemies like himself and Mr. Raines to fuel her faith. Miss Parker tells Father Giuseppe that Raines is a monster and that he is not his priest, he is his co-conspirator. The Father tells her that if she does not forgive, she will surely be doomed to a life of eternal suffering. Miss Parker tells the Father that God forgives, she doesn’t.

Jarod is arguing with Jenna now, trying to talk her out of going with Pritchard. Jenna says she has to go, has to finish it and know that Pritchard is behind bars, because it’s the only way that Cassie can be safe. She tells Jarod that he can’t talk her out of it.

That night, as Pritchard and Jenna are getting ready to leave, Pritchard asks Jenna where Jarod is and she says that she sent him home. Pritchard asks her why and she tells him that she has a confession to make. Before she can say anything more, however, Jarod shows up and tries to get her to change her mind. But Jenna isn’t listening and tells Pritchard that she knows that he knows who she is and it doesn’t matter … she’ll do whatever he wants … she’ll help him out of the country … only he has to promise not to hurt her daughter. Jarod tells Jenna that no matter what Pritchard says, he’s still going to kill Cassie. Enraged at Jarod, Pritchard pulls his gun and shoots Jarod three times in the chest. Jarod falls to the ground and there is blood on his hand. Pritchard drags Jenna toward the car and tells her that it’s too bad because he really had fallen in love with her, in a way. Then Jarod walks calmly around the corner … and he’s fine! Pritchard can’t believe it and fires at Jarod again and again. Jarod beats him up, disarms him and tells him that he put blanks in his clip. Jarod takes his gun and tells him that the people at the ATF have been trying to make a ballistics match on a gun that killed a man … and now that he has Pritchard’s gun the ATF will be able to make that match! Jenna tells Pritchard that she had feelings for him, but he threatened her little girl and that was a bad decision … then she throws the engagement ring at him. Jarod tells him … Karma. Ain’t it a bitch!

Jarod radios Alonzo and tells him that Jenna is safe and sound … then asks Alonzo if he ever got the “fat cat” … Alonzo says that he did, but that he didn’t get Pritchard. Jarod tells Alonzo where he can find Pritchard and tells him that he left a little present for him under his seat. When Alonzo looks, he finds his badge there.

At the Centre, Broots and Sydney are explaining to Miss Parker what Veritas does … it relaxes the lungs to the point where they can no longer take in oxygen. Broots says that it’s one of the theories behind sudden infant death syndrome. Miss Parker suddenly remembers her baby brother and takes off to check on him. She finds Raines there … doing something to the incubator. She tells him to get away – and takes her brother out. But the baby is just fine and Raines tells Miss Parker that he used a diluted version of Veritas to clear up baby Parker’s lungs. He pulls the oxygen off the incubator and says that the baby won’t need that anymore … unlike himself.

Miss Parker tells him that she saw the testing room. Raines tells her that there are many villains at The Centre and that he knows she needs them to survive, but he can’t be one of them anymore … and he leaves her standing there with a healthy baby in her arms.

At St. Charles church, Cassie is having her first communion … and Jenna arrives in time to see it. Jarod watches the happy reunion from the loft … gets all choked up to see the family back together again …And the screen fades to black…