Fargo

Mom?

Right.

Jeez.

Hey, Chief.

-Thought we said 9:00. -(CLEARS THROAT)

Yeah.

But new chief showed up early.

Wants to gather the department together first thing.

So, since the department is you and me,

I figured I'd come and get you.

-Ooh, is that coffee? -Mmm.

Is that the box you took from Ennis'?

Uh-huh.

Nathan at his dad's?

Hopefully.

Oh.

Do you think this Thaddeus Mobley fella

had something to do with the murder?

I should say so,

seeing as how Ennis Stussy

and this Thaddeus Mobley are one and the same.

Come again?

How's it you're in my kitchen again?

Oh, the chief... Well, the new chief.

Oh, right. The department.

Well... (EXHALES)

Let's go see if I still have a job.

You going by the autopsy later?

They glued his nose and mouth shut.

Are we thinking cause of death is somehow a cliffhanger?

Guess not.

Did you canvass the local?

Any reports of strange customers?

Well, Earl at the Gas N Go

intimated he might have had a weird one.

Weird how?

Uh, Ron? It's... Hello?

Hello. -It's me.

Hello?

-Ron? Can you hear me? -Is this you, Gloria?

I wanted to check on Nathan, make sure he was getting...

Ah, I can't quite hear you.

-Ron, it's Gloria. -Hello?

-Hold on, I'll call you... -What's that?

Gosh.

Does yours do that?

Who?

Every time I make a call,

it's like I'm in a silent movie.

Hold up, forgot my gun.

I'm here, right? You see me.

Is that a trick question?

"Keep it."

That's what he said.

This V.M. Vargas?

Yes. And we should have...

At the time when we needed the loan,

we should have come to you.

Any idea what the V.M. stands for?

You borrowed $1,000,000 from a man

without knowing his first name.

-I know how it... It's not a question.

I'm just assessing the level of stupidity.

-Hey, hey. -Irv, come on,

we don't have to...

You get a lot of business from us.

Which, boychik, will stop the moment

they arrest you for money laundering.

At which time, all your business

goes to a criminal attorney.

And might I recommend Bruce Lipshits

in our Minneapolis office?

-We're not asking for... -Irv, stop screwing around.

I need you to do some digging on this guy, his outfit.

Now, we gave you his card

and the card his reps gave to us last year.

You have the loan document,

on which is a phone number and a mailing address.

There's also a corporate ID number!

So unless you got the brains of a monkey,

you should be able to friend

this cocksucker on Facebook, and reel him in.

And then?

Then we get him to take his money back

and forget he ever met us.

How's Stella?

Yeah, she's good.

You think I was too hard on him?

Irv?

Ray.

At the anniversary party.

Look, he... It's been a long time coming,

you saying no to him.

-Haven't I always... -Nuh-nuh-nuh. (LAUGHS)

Like a Swiss watch. Reliable. That's you.

-So he should have no... -Yeah, but...

-Lookit, don't go... -(SIGHS)

We've been friends a long time.

Don't go getting soft here.

We talked about this. It's for his own good.

A man like that,

used to blaming others for his...

Maybe I should just give him the stamp.

To what end?

You think that'll fix it?

Next thing he's going to want is interest.

It's envy, the green monster.

-Your brother's a loser. -He's not a loser.

Well, he's doing a pretty good imitation.

And you're the goddamn Parking Lot King of Minnesota.

He doesn't want the stamp, pal.

He wants your life.

Deb?

What's it doing?

You hit "Enter"?

What's "Enter"?

It's a... (SIGHS)

Now what do I...

Wait!

What happened?

Did I...

What did I...

I don't know.

-It just went. -Uh-huh.

I'll check mine.

Mine's out, too.

Is it the power?

I mean, the lights are on.

I'll call the IT kid that Shirley knows.

Zdraveyte, as the Bulgarians say.

Pardon?

Ni hao is the Chinese.

The Corsicans use the simple salut.

And guten Tag, if German's your thing.

Is that... Are they with you?

Surmise.

What?

Because we arrived together, we are together. Surmise.

-Well, are ya? -Yes.

Can't park that here.

We got... City's got an ordinance.

No, it's perfectly fine.

Mr. Stussy himself gave me permission.

Who?

Your employer.

You do see the sign above which you stand,

and how a man with a keener sense of reason

might extrapolate a connection

with the name I just mentioned.

Your boss.

-Look, mister... -We're done here.

Okay then. Just... It's fine.

Like he said, he's got permission.

No, I won't say "from Mr. Stussy."

I'm not gonna create

the implication of foreknowledge.

Of... Knowing before the fact.

They have permission. They can park there.

Thanks.

Did you see this bullshit in the paper?

Some old-timer out in the country,

they push in his front door, tie him up.

He runs a general store, and some hopped-up junkie

thinks he takes the register money home.

Ennis Stussy.

Eighty-two years old.

Not the Minnesota I grew up in,

I'll tell you that.

It's a tragedy.

Do you need something?

Oh, uh... There's...

Maybe a problem, not sure yet.

Just, this Vargas fella...

I got a call from the Oakbridge lot.

The raised one?

No. Ground lot, under the highway.

-Doesn't get a lot of traffic. -Right.

Why'd we buy that one again?

Sprawl-wise, you thought it'd be

a good investment long-term.

Maybe turn it into condos one day.

Right.

We should talk to Stan Grossman about that.

Test the waters.

Yeah. I'll make a note.

Anyway, it seems there's a big rig parked there now.

-In the lot? Mmm-hmm.

Well, that's against code.

Well, okay. There's that, too.

But more to the point, what's in it?

And I'm a little troubled by the escalation.

Money loaned is one thing, but this?

A truck full of...

Well...

It could be anything. Booze, guns...

The kind of demeanor this fella has...

You think maybe it's...

I don't even wanna say it out loud.

Slave girls?

What? No.