Chase Episode 1.05 Above the Law

Jimmy takes Luke hunting. Luke’s quick on his feet, but when it comes to firing his gun, he still hesitates a little. Meanwhile the prosecution’s case against Adam Rothschild just got stronger. Audiotape of Adam gleefully recounting how he screwed innocent victims out of pension money sends the court into hysterics. The judge calls for recess as Adam’s victims hurl obscenities at him. Adam is cocky, but when his lawyer says Adam might face serious time, Adam goes pale. In the bathroom, Adam gets in a scuffle and badly injures one of his victims, Brett Armstrong. Seeing he’s worse off than ever, Adam sneaks out of the courtroom and escapes.

At H.E.A.T., the team discusses Adam Rothschild, the fugitive who fled 15 minutes before his trial went to jury. He swindled over 200 million dollars from pension investors and almost got away with it until prosecution played audiotape of Adam bragging about his scheme. Before Adam disappeared, he took out his rage on victim Brett Armstrong, sending the poor guy into a coma. Adam’s assets are frozen, but the crew fears he’ll put his pilot license to good use. No money, no passport – but he could be with his wife Emma who also disappeared during the trial. Marco enters with a clue. He scoured Adam’s accounts and found that Adam was paying a property management company for a fancy apartment at the Clifton. It’s rumored to be a “dollhouse,” a place rich guys keep their mistresses. The team decides to check it out.

At the Clifton, Annie discovers that Adam’s a quirky rich guy: he likes cologne strips from magazines, listens to ZZ Top and Damn Yankees, and doesn’t have nearly as many toiletries as one would guess based on his stylish appearance. Annie finds Emma Rothschild hiding in a closet. Emma claims she’s Adam’s victim, not his accomplice. She had no idea he would disappear and only came to the Clifton to investigate Jessica, some gorgeous girl Adam texted. Emma says she’s the spurned wife, not a criminal. Her assets are frozen too so she intends to sell a valuable etching. Emma says she knows little about Adam’s parents or his upbringing.

Adam interrupts a fashion shoot to pick up his mistress Jessica. He tells her he won his trial and wants to take her to the Caribbean right away. Annie and her team brainstorm ways to capture Adam. He’s got no family or friends. All they were able to confirm is that Adam went to Harvard. Annie suspects Adam’s hiding something but can’t put her finger on exactly what. Meanwhile Adam and Jessica withdraw money from her account and close it. When a security guard recognizes Adam, Adam panics. Adam punches the guard and shoots him. Jessica screams as Adam runs out of the bank.

At H.E.A.T. Annie and the gang learn that Adam skipped town with Jessica’s car and cell phone. Her account was actually funded by a Grand Cayman account worth $286 million. That’s quite a bit of hidden money Adam’s got at his disposal. Annie decides to monitor the account rather than shut it down. Adam only withdrew $40 thousand from Jessica’s account; that won’t take a rich guy like Adam very far. Suddenly bounty hunter Ben Crowley arrives at H.E.A.T. hoping he can convince Annie to let him interview Jessica. He’s also after Adam and offers to trade info with Annie. Under Jimmy’s watchful gaze, Annie tells Ben to get lost. Daisy arrives with word that they’ve tracked down Jessica’s cell phone. It’s time to get Adam.

The H.E.A.T. team finds Jessica’s abandoned car. Daisy finds Jessica’s cell phone inside and notices it’s loaded with videos. Marco searches the nearby premises for past associates of Adam’s and discovers that one – Harvard grad Bo Cottrell – lives nearby. Meanwhile at Bo’s house, Adam says he’s going to take down Bo unless Bo helps him out. Adam’s made tons of money for Bo, and now it’s time for Bo to repay the favor. When Bo resists, Adam shoots him dead. Upstairs Bo’s wife Nina sees the shooting and calls the police for help. Annie gets on the line and urges Nina to jump out of the second story window. Nina takes Annie’s advice and narrowly escapes. The U.S. Marshals arrive moments later but Adam’s already fled on Bo’s motorcycle.

At H.E.A.T., plays videos of Adam saved onto Jessica’s cell phone. One video shows a drunk Adam speaking like a country hick – a far cry from his rich guy persona. Annie guesses that Adam actually grew up poor. Luke enters and shares Adam’s motive for killing Bo; Bo’s company owns a Gulfstream V. Annie tells Luke to call the tower to make sure the private jet doesn’t leave the tarmac. At the airport Ben Crowley pretends to be Adam’s pilot. Adam intuits that something’s wrong and flees, driving off in a fancy car checked into the airport valet. Annie arrives moments later and blames Ben for flubbing Adam’s capture. Annie cuffs Ben to a urinal, nabs his cell phone, and tells him to stay out of her way.

Annie discovers that someone has wired $6 million from Adam’s Grand Cayman account and placed it into Emma Rothschild’s account. In order to get Emma to talk, Annie has Marco get a warrant for Emma’s arrest. Annie and Daisy find Emma trying on expensive clothes at an upscale store. When they threaten to arrest Emma, she finally offers a clue. One time at a baseball game a high school friend of Adam’s called him “Adam Smurl.” Adam pretended not to know the guy but Emma never forgot it. At a Sealy Texas laundromat Adam changes out of his fancy clothes and changes into jeans and a t-shirt. Is he transforming from Adam Rothschild into Adam Smurl?

Annie tracks down the car Adam stole. It’s in a rough part of Texas near Adam’s rundown hometown. Marco guesses that Adam’s on his way to his grandmother Judy’s trailer home. Adam shows up at his grandmother’s trailer home and finds another tenant living there. The tenant says Judy died years ago. Overcome with grief, Adam cries. A nearby onlooker named Missy notices Adam’s meltdown and offers him help. Missy tells Adam that she was Judy’s caretaker, and that up until the end, Judy never stopped talking about Adam and his fancy education. Seeing Adam’s pain, Missy offers Adam a meal. Moments later, Annie arrives at Judy’s former house. Annie correctly guesses that Adam might be hiding out with Missy. Annie decides to check out Missy’s family farm nearby.

At Missy’s family farm, Missy cooks Adam a meal. The two connect as Adam says he finally appreciates the quiet country life. Suddenly Adam hears the U.S. Marshals outside. In a panic, he runs out the back door. The U.S. Marshals barge into Missy’s home but it’s too late. Missy gave Adam the keys to her father’s crop duster. He could be long gone by now! Out on the field, Annie and her team spot Adam in the crop duster. As the crop duster’s gaining speed, Annie fearlessly jumps onto its wing. She fires at the propeller, thereby foiling Adam’s escape! Back at H.E.A.T., Jimmy serves venison chili as the gang celebrates Adam’s capture. Ben calls Annie to arrange a date but Annie rejects the offer. Still, a huge smile spreads across her face.