Episode 69: Fair Game

Thursday, September 29, 1966

My name is Victoria Winters. Everyone here at Collinwood is concerned with the mysterious death of a friend—a concern shared by others, in other rooms in Collinsport.

Mrs. Johnson arrives at Burke’s hotel room. They discuss Bill Malloy’s death and agree it was murder. Burke suggests they can do something about it.

“You were very fond of him, weren’t you?” Burke asks her.

“I guess everyone in town knew that. Except, possibly, Mr. Malloy. He didn’t know it—because he didn’t want to.”

“How would you like to help me track the person who killed Mr. Malloy?”

She would.

Burke thinks the phone call the night of Bill’s death was to lure him to his death. He thinks Bill was going to hurt someone. Mrs. Johnson says he would never do that.

“Even if it was to help Elizabeth Stoddard?”

“Oh—her. Well, yes, if it was to help her, I guess he would have done almost anything.”

Burke and Mrs. Johnson go through what she knows about that night. Burke says she might have walked right past the killer. (Nice going, Burke.) He says Bill died at 10:45. That’s when his watch broke anyway.

“He loved that watch. It was given to him by his father. It’s a silly thing to cry over a broken watch—when the man himself is broken—killed—thrown into the sea to disappear—”

She thinks the body of Bill Malloy was trying to point the finger at his murderer.

Joe comes is summoned to Roger’s office and finds Carolyn waiting for him. 

She wants to go to lunch. 

Burke Devlin said some things to her earlier this morning that she just couldn’t stand. Joe wants to know what he said. 

Carolyn kisses him to try to distract him.

Burke asks Mrs. Johnson to join him in a conspiracy involving Collinwood. She says she’ll do whatever it takes to avenge Mr. Malloy’s death.

Carolyn tries to convince Joe to take the day off and spend it with her.

Finally, she tells him what Burke said—that Mr. Malloy was going to prove Roger was guilty in the hit and run.

Joe tells her that Roger’s wife was Burke’s girlfriend until she met Roger.

Carolyn wants Joe to take her to the beach and make her forget about Burke Devlin.

“Are you sure you want to forget about him?”

Burke tells Mrs. Johnson that Vicki is alibiing Roger. Mrs. Johnson says she must be lying—possibly to keep her job. She can tell he likes Vicki.

“Mr. Devlin, if you’re going to bring Mr. Malloy’s murderer to justice, you can’t let personal feelings enter in.”

He says they will assume Vicki was lying—or mistaken.

Mrs. Johnson is surprised that Roger showed up at the meeting. She wants to know who found the body the first time. Burke thinks it was Miss Winters.

“You see. That ties them together.”

Joe can’t find somebody to relieve him for the day.

Carolyn is not happy about this.

Joe receives a phone call.

Burke tells Mrs. Johnson he wants her to apply for a job at Collinwood. She thinks this will be difficult, as they haven’t hired anyone new in eighteen years.

Carolyn arrives and Mrs. Johnson hides in the kitchen.

Carolyn doesn’t think her uncle Roger is guilty.

“You just don’t know Uncle Roger the way I do.”

“And you don’t know him the way I do.”

Burke tells Carolyn the only one affected by Bill’s death as much as he is Mrs. Johnson. She needs a new job, not just for money, but to feel useful.

Carolyn would like to do something helpful, like getting her a job at Collinwood. “I’ll feel so much better just thinking I might be able to do something nice for somebody for a change.”

“Don’t give yourself a hard time, Carolyn. You do everyone a favor just by walking around and letting them look at you.”

After Carolyn leaves, Mrs. Johnson asks if he thinks the girl is involved.

“No, but anyone at Collinwood is fair game.”

“Even the girl?”

“Anyone.”

                                  Cast, In Order of Appearance

Victoria Winters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Alexandra Moltke

Mrs. Sarah Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Clarice Blackburn

Burke Devlin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mitchell Ryan

Joe Haskell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Joel Crothers

Carolyn Stoddard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Nancy Barrett

Fashion by Ohrbach’s

Directed by Lela Swift

Written by Francis Swann