[street]

Ray: This neighborhood makes yours look like Astor Street.

Fraser: Well this was your recommendation, Ray.

Ray: Linc's the best bindlestitch guy in the world. You got a problem with your footwear, you bring it to Linc.

Fraser: I agree. These boots are as good as new. Probably the best $125 I ever parted with.

Ray: Yeah. That's something I'll never understand. Why anybody would spend $125 to fix up a stinky old pair of Mountie boots.

Fraser: Oh, Ray, Ray, Ray. Properly molded boots are a Mountie's prize possession. Well, that and his horse.

Ray: Well we're not picking up your horse.

Fraser: I don't have a horse. I mean, not here.

Ray: Well, you know, you ought to think about getting one 'cause I'm getting really tired of driving you around.

[gunshot]

Fraser: Ray, that was a gunshot.

Ray: Yeah. If we stop for every gunshot we hear in this neighborhood, we'll never get home.

[gunshot]

Ray: See?

[gunshot]

Ray: Agh! I'm off duty!. . . You're off duty! And unless somebody shot a moose, you have no jurisdiction!

Fraser: Oh, pardon me. Excuse me, young man, you're carrying a -

Ray: I'll get the shooter.

Fraser: I'll get the shootee. . . Hold on, hold on.

[Ray chasing suspect]

Ray: Give it up, man! I can run all day! Don't make me take you down, man!

[alley]

Fraser [to victim]: Who did this to you?

Victim: Nobody.

Fraser: Hold that there. . . [to passerby] Call 911!. . . [to victim] Come on, give me your hand.

[chase]

Ray: Oh, for God's sakes.

[street]

Fraser [to passersby]: Help. . . Sir, help. . . Is there a phone nearby?

[another alley]

Ray [to shooter]: Drop the weapon, unless you can fly. . .

Tyree: I hate this neighborhood.

Ray: Get your hands on your head.

[street]

Onlooker: Good work, Fraser.

Fraser: Thank you kindly.

Ray: Thank you kindly? Let's just hope my car is still there.

Fraser: Ray, this was worth it. We saved a life, you made an arrest, and the

neighborhood is a safer place. . . Oh, dear.

Ray: What?

Fraser: My boots are gone.

Ray: It's okay.

[apartment building - Fraser knocks on door]

Fraser: Excuse me, I'm looking for a pair of boots -

[door closes]

Fraser: . . . RCMP regulation issue, son. I suppose you wouldn't be familiar

[door closes]

Fraser: They're just like the man on the horse is wearing, only mine are somewhat older and therefore more faded. . .

[door closes]

[Dief barks]

Fraser: Well no matter what you may think, I remain undeterred. I am convinced that somebody took them in for safekeeping and they are spending as much time looking for me as I am spending looking for them.

[knocks on door]

Fraser [to passing resident]: Excuse me, sir, the residents of this unit would appear to be home yet they're not answering the door.

Resident: Well ain't that a shock.

Fraser: Were you home yesterday at the time of the incident?

Resident: Man, let me tell you something. I didn't hear a thing.

Fraser: Well, actually I'm looking for a pair of -

[door closes]

Fraser [to Dief]: Let's go. . . Are you deaf? I mean, I know you are literally deaf - oh, forget it. . .

[outside]

Fraser [to Dief]: All right, come on. I'm not having any success, let's see how you do.

[whine]

Fraser: Or would you rather go back to knocking on doors?

[whine]

Fraser: Yes, I see what you mean. These sneakers don't breathe quite the way my boots did. Okay, pick up the scent. That's it. Good boy. . . [to group of men] Good morning, gentlemen.

Man 1: You hunting moose or something?

Fraser: Ah, no. Boots actually. You wouldn't have seen someone wandering around -

Man 2: Check it. I can give you $200 Nikes for $50.

Fraser: Now that offer sounds almost too good to be true but I'm really only interested in boots. Thank you kindly. . . Diefenbaker, for God's sakes, you're tracking the wrong thing. You're tracking my feet, not my boots. I know my feet were there. My boots - oh, forget it.

Trevor [in car]: Yo!

Fraser: Good morning.

Trevor: Yeah, just get in the car.

Fraser: Well actually I don't need a ride -

Trevor: Look. Lou would like to talk to you, man.

Fraser: Do I know Lou?

Trevor: First you meet him, then you get to know him. Get in.

Fraser: Very well.

Trevor: Hey, hey! No dogs in here, man.

Fraser: He's a wolf.

[interrogation room]

Tyree: Man can't walk down the street in this part of town without getting harassed.

Ray: You were running.

Tyree: I didn't see no foot traffic speed limit.

Ray: You were carrying a gun and running from the shooting victim.

Tyree: He say that?

Ray: You know as well as I do he didn't say that.

Tyree: Look, I was carrying a gun so I wouldn't wind up a shooting victim.

Ray: Right.

[basketball court - practice]

Chatter: All right, baby. . . Here we go, here we go. . . Take a shot. . . Get that pick, baby. . . Here we go, now. . . watch him. . . Stamp drives up the lane. . . Oh, my God! A reverse lay-up!. . . Can anybody stop this teenage dynamo, Marv? I don't think so, Dick.

Lou: Play the game, Reggie, not the crowd, man!. . . Where ya'll find him? You see that?

Fraser: Fine play.

Lou: A hot dog. He's a punk. They'll be double-teaming him in 8 seconds.

Fraser: Are you their coach?

Lou: Huh. Hey, these kids? They're our hope. I watch out for them. I provide the balls, a few burgers, a place to stay if they need it. People look at me as a corporate sponsor. Check out the sweats I got 'em.

Fraser: Very magnanimous of you.

Lou: Magnanimous? Hey, I'm a magnanimous kind of guy. . . Inside, Reggie!

Look for the ball!. . . He's so dependent on his setup man. Hmph! He's not here, he just freaks.

Fraser: Where is his setup man?

Lou: You busted him.

Fraser: Ah.

Lou: So who are you, what do you want?

Fraser: Benton Fraser. I'm a Mountie.

Lou: Why do they call you that?

Fraser: Well, it's short for Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Lou: So, you're mounted.

Fraser: No. We mount horses, on occasion. Perhaps you're familiar with the Musical Ri-

Lou: Then in all factuality, aren't the horses the mountees, then?

Fraser: No, you see, we are mounted on top of horses. . . It's historical.

Lou: So, my peoples tell me you been snooping around where the shooting went down. You looking for something?

Fraser: As a matter of fact, yes. I'm looking for my boots.

Lou: We'll let you know if we find anything.

Fraser: It's been a pleasure speaking with you.

Lou: Get it in to Reggie! Reggie, Purdue see that garbage, you going to be sweeping up your pop's barbershop for a long time in your short stupid life!

[observation room - squad room - station corridors]

Fraser: Good news, Ray. He didn't do it.

Ray: No, not this time.

Fraser: No what this time?

Ray: Look, somebody shot someone, right?

Fraser: Yes.

Ray: And I have a responsibility to catch that someone that shot the other someone, right?

Fraser: Yes.

Ray: And if I catch that someone, it's good news, right?

Fraser: Yes.

Ray: Okay, now if that person turns out to be the wrong person, does that mean that there was no shooting?

Fraser: No.

Ray: Does that mean that no one was almost killed?

Fraser: No.

Ray: Does that mean there's one less bad guy in the world?

Fraser: No.

Ray: Right. It just means that the real bad guy is still out there instead of locked up somewhere safe. So by you coming in here and telling me that our guy is innocent, this is just not good news.

Fraser: I'm sorry. I see what you're driving at and I stand corrected. It is bad news. He didn't do it.

Ray: Look, Fraser, kids from that neighborhood, generally speaking, end up doing one of two things. Basketball or crime.

Fraser: Tyree plays basketball.

Ray: Well, they all start out playing basketball but if one of them is lucky enough, he'll make it to division one college ball. But if he's not talented enough, if he's not tall enough, if he's not dedicated enough, he's going to wind up like that kid and make life miserable for everyone else.

Fraser: Ray, please, look at this.

Ray: What's that supposed to be, evidence?

Fraser: The shooter wore this.

Ray: Well let's hope that's not all he wore. . . Gray. Different shade? Different material?

Fraser: Actually, no.

Ray: Then bag it and add it to my case file.

Fraser: Ray, left-handed.

Ray: What's left-handed? The thread?

Fraser: No, no. The shooter. . . Aren't you even interested in knowing how I know the shooter is left-handed?

Ray: Indulge me. . . What hand?

Fraser: I know what you're thinking. He hasn't made one right-handed shot.

Ray: Is this your way of admitting you're wrong?

Fraser: No. It's my way of suggesting the young man is extremely dedicated. He's practicing his weaknesses, not his strengths. He's making left-handed shots because he is right-handed.

Ray: All right, I'll buy that. Explain this. Ballistics report. Gun matches the bullet that went through the victim. The boy's fingerprints are all over the trigger.

Fraser: Well we know he held the gun, Ray, because we found it on him.

Ray: Turn the page. . . Paraffin test. Gunpowder blowback all over his hands. He fired that gun, Fraser. All the tests match him to the shooter, so for the next hour I'm going to treat myself to thinking that he's the guy.

Fraser: Ray, what -?

Ray: Look, sixty minutes, all right? Just don't talk to me for one hour.

[station corridors - outside]

Fraser: I'm not asking you to tell me the truth. If you had wished the truth to be known, then I think you would have been more forthcoming with the authorities, so obviously you have reason to fear the truth. I think you're in some kind of trouble - well, manifestly you're in trouble; you've been charged with a capital crime - but that's not the kind of trouble that I'm actually referring to. You know, it might help perhaps if you simply told us why it is you're not telling us the truth. And, of course, if you were to tell me why you are not telling us the truth, that would probably indicate what the truth might actually be, and you realize I'm not actually asking you to tell me the truth.

Tyree: Do you talk English?

Fraser: Canadian, actually.

Reggie: Yo, Tyree!

Fraser: Perhaps we could speak later.

Tyree: Don't count on it.

Fraser: All right.

Tyree: Hey, Reggie, thanks for the ride.

Reggie: Hey, it's the least I can do for a fine young man with a noble heart helping to assist his friend achieve personal greatness.

Ray: That was him.

Fraser: Yes.

Ray: He's out.

Fraser: Yes.

Ray: He made bail.

Fraser: Yes.

Ray: Where'd the punk get the money?

Fraser: I lent it to him.

[station corridor]

Huey: What's wrong with your pal, Vecchio? He can't think straight without his boots on?

Fraser: Well, I don't believe the loss of my boots has affected my ability to think, Detective Huey. However, now that you bring it up, if you should happen to see my boots in the course of -

Huey: You better hope I don't, Constable, cause you don't even want to think about where I'd like to put them.

Ray: Pipe down, Jack. . . In case you haven't noticed, your popularity rating around here is at an all-time low.

Fraser: The young man is innocent, Ray.

Ray: No, you think he's innocent, which is still no reason to bail him out by yourself. Now, the next time you do something like that, you want to notify me first?

Fraser: Well, I would have but you told me to stay away from you for an hour.

Welsh: Detective, thank you for taking time out from your busy schedule to confer with me.

Ray: Any time, sir.

Welsh: It must be even busier since your Canadian friend decided to release that dangerous felon that you worked so hard to incarcerate.

Fraser: I'd like to explain that, Lieutenant. You see, the young man has an extremely important basketball game scheduled -

Welsh: Oh, I see. So if Charles Manson had a kazoo concert scheduled, you would have bailed him out, too.

Fraser: I don't think so, sir. Furthermore, I believe that the evidence will support my theory concerning the young man.

Welsh: Well, why don't we let the courts decide that, Constable? You see, he's due for a prelim in a few hours, and if he doesn't show up, you are out a lot of money. [to Ray] And you're in for a long, long stay in my doghouse.

Understood?

[in store]

Reggie: You know what? You did Lou a good turn, baby. You his man. You know you're my man, baby. And the good times is going to roll in the club house tonight, Marv. Well, these fellas have earned it, Dick. . . What, man?

Tyree: You are such an idiot, Reggie.

Reggie: And you?

Tyree: I can afford to be an idiot. I ain't going nowhere. You got these college coaches liking your Nikes, man. You got a future. Me? All I got is a messed up shoulder. Now what coach is going to give me the time of day?

Reggie: Poor baby. Let's be out, man. Come on.

[Riv]

Ray: You see that, Benny? For the next 5 blocks down is the turf of the 2-4 Dragons. Now if you're not a member of that gang and you cross this street, you're going to wind up getting shot. Now that's what happened to Taylor Thomas, left-handed thread or not.

Fraser: Tyree was not the shooter, Ray.

Ray: Then why was he carrying a gun?

Fraser: I don't know.

Ray: Then why did he shoot the gun?

Fraser: I don't know.

Ray: Then why did he make me chase him?

Fraser: I haven't figured that out yet.

Ray: Ah, at least we're getting somewhere.

Fraser: Yes, it's encouraging, isn't it?

[basketball practice]

Chatter: Rebound!. . . Give it to me, dog. . . Here we go. . . Oh! That's too bad for you. . . Set it up for me, baby, set it up. . . Go ahead, man. . That's what I'm talking about right there. . . One-two punch!

Lou: Tyree, come here a minute.

[crime scene]

Fraser: The bullet was extracted from the wall here, which would mean that the gunman had to be where you're standing.

Ray: Because this is where you found the thread.

Fraser: It had rained earlier that day. The wind was from the southwest, yet the thread was dry. There was no sign of mold. Also, the footprints at the site would indicate that a man approximately 79.5 kilos stood there some time after the deluge.

Ray: Well, that could have been anybody. Now here's how I see it. . .

[flashback]

Tyree: What the hell you think you're doing? This is my hood. [bang, bang, bang]

[end flashback]

Ray: Tyree fired the first shot and misses. The victim fires back, misses by a mile, hits the garbage can. Tyree fires again and nails him. Ba-da bing.

Fraser: What did you just say?

Ray: What?

Fraser: You said 'ba da bing'.

Ray: Yeah. Don't they say that in Canada?

Fraser: No, no, just listen to the sound of that. Ba da bing.

Ray: What?

Fraser: Well, remember back to yesterday. The first two shots had the same sound. The third shot was the bing. See, your scenario doesn't hold up, Ray. The bing was the shot that hit the garbage can, not the second shot. That was a bang.

Ray: The judge is going to love this. Your Honor, we have no case because the bang is where the bing should have been.

Fraser: But sounds don't lie, Ray.

Ray: All right then. Tell me this. How does the bang being where the bing should have been -

Fraser: No, that's the bing being where the bang should have been.

Ray: But what does any of this mean that I busted the wrong guy?

Fraser: Perhaps Tyree was with a left-handed man.

[basketball practice]

Lou: And yet the Mounting just bailed you out, just out of the goodness of his heart?

Tyree: I don't know.

Lou: Hey, hey.

Reggie: Tyree ain't going to say nothing.

Lou: Anything.

Reggie: What?

Lou: Anything. Tyree ain't going to say anything.

Reggie: Oh. Right.

Lou: Reggie, go work on your jump shot. . . I'm worried, Tyree.

Tyree: Ain't got nothing to be worried about.

Lou: You're due in court.

Tyree: In a couple of hours.

Loou: I want you there. I was this over. I want you to just plead it out.

Reggie: Hey, we got finals tomorrow.

Lou: Go work on your jump shot, Reggie. Tyree ain't got to be there for you to show your stuff.

Reggie: Purdue's going to be there. Hey, Isiah Thomas is going to be there.

Tyree: Yeah, right.

Reggie: No, for real. Everybody says so.

Lou: Reggie, you are going to make us all proud. Tyree or no Tyree. This man got business to take care of, ain't that right, Tyree? Ain't that right?

Tyree: Yeah. Yeah, Lou.

Lou: Tyree, Junior, you're a juvie. You going to do light time, man. I'll look out for your mom, make sure she okay. And when you get out, it's you and me. Get you some protection, you'll be making big money. Isiah Thomas? You can meet Isiah Thomas some other time.

Tyree: Thank you.

[Fraser's office - knock]

Fraser: Ah, ma'am.

Thatcher: I received a call from Lieutenant Welsh of the Chicago Police Department.

Fraser: Good man. A fine commander.

Thatcher: He was less enthusiastic about you.

Fraser: Oh. I'm sorry to hear that.

Thatcher: He mentioned that you had bailed out a gang member who's been accused of attempted murder?

Fraser: Yes, ma'am. As a matter of fact, I'm on my way shortly to attend his preliminary hearing.

Thatcher: Is there a good reason why you're not standing at attention, onstable?

Fraser: I beg your pardon?

Thatcher: You heard me.

Fraser: Yes, I did.

Thatcher: Why did you do that?

Fraser: Do what?

Thatcher: You moved the garbage can in front of your feet.

Fraser: Did I?

Thatcher: Are you hiding something, Constable?

Fraser: No. No, no. . . Yes.

Thatcher: You're wearing sneakers.

Fraser: I lost my boots.

Thatcher: They're not yours to lose.

Fraser: I understand that, sir. It was in the process of saving a life.

Thatcher: With your boots?

Fraser: No. You see, the seams had become frayed and, to be frank, I was

less than enthusiastic about my prior cobbler's mastery of the bindlestitch-

Thatcher: Is this going to be a long story, Constable?

Fraser: Quite a long story, yes, ma'am.

Thatcher: The life you saved, was this person a Canadian?

Fraser: I shouldn't think so.

Thatcher: Then you're paying for the new boots yourself.

Fraser: Understood.

[courtroom]

Fraser: It was boom bang bing.

Ray: What?

Fraser: It wasn't bang bang bing. It was boom bang bing.

Ray: Look, Benny, I know what I saw. I know what I did. Now I'm going to have to tell that all to the judge and if it goes against the kid, I can't help that.

Fraser: Ray, please, just try to remember. The sounds are all stored in here. So just clear your mind. Imagine you're on an ice flow. You're thousands of miles from any conceivable distraction -

Ray: Is this an Eskimo trick?

Fraser: No. Innuit.

Ray: Oh.

Fraser: Close your eyes. . . Close your eyes. All right, now, put yourself back at that moment. What do you hear?

Ray: The entire Chicago Police Department laughing at me?

Fraser: Ray, please, humor me.

Ray: All right, all right.

Judge: In the matter of Illinois versus Tyree Cameron, case number J87965, how does the defendant plead?

Tyree: Guilty, Your Honor.

Ray: I was the arresting officer, Your Honor. He didn't do it.

Tyree: Yes, I did.

Ray: No, he didn't.

Judge: How do you know that, Detective?

Ray: Because, uh. . .

Fraser: It was boom bang bing, Your Honor.

[outside]

Tyree: What is wrong with you?

Ray: Fraser was right, kid. You couldn't have done it. The shots went boom bang bing.

Tyree: Are you out of your damn mind? Look, I shot that fool. Why won't you

let me pay for my crime?

Fraser: Because it's a crime you didn't commit. The boom was clearly from the PPK 380, which was Taylor Thomas' gun. He fired the first shot. The bang was from the .32, the shot that hit Mr. Thomas. The bing was the shot that you fired into the trash can from the same .32 because you needed to have your prints on the gun and you wanted blowback to be revealed in the paraffin test.

Ray: Who you covering for, Tyree? Who's the real shooter?. . . Fraser!

Fraser: You all right, ma'am? All right, I'll just, uh. . .

[down the block]

Trevor: Yo, Tyree, I think you and Lou need to talk. Move it.

[basketball court]

Lou: I'd like to protect you, Tyree, really I would. But you shouldn't have been walking away from that courthouse in the first place.

Tyree: Lou, it's the Mountie and the cop. They're not letting me take the fall for this. They're not leaving it alone.

Lou: That Mounter know something, Tyree?

Tyree: He don't know nothing. Not from me, he don't.

Lou: He been asking a lot of questions, you know what I'm sayin'? I mean, if he was to find out anything, that wouldn't be good. You going to let that happen to your friend?

Tyree: I'm not going to let anything happen. I'm going to do the right thing.

Lou: I don't know. You worry me, Tyree.

Tyree: Ain't nothing to be worried about, Lou.

Lou: They is one way you can eliminate my doubt and eliminate my worries. .

Trevor. Give him your piece. . . Show me where you stand. Do the Mountie.

[Welsh's office]

Welsh: Vecchio, you know sometimes it seems like you make a full time job out of destroying your career.

Ray: Well, I see how you can think that, sir.

Welsh: No, no, no. This is not a talking time. This is a listening time. . . Your job is to respond to crimes and arrest the offender, not to become a public defender. Now your friend Fraser bailing this kid out does not make any sense to me but I've learned to expect it from him. But you? Standing up in court attempting to have the charges dropped? That is nothing less than insanity.

Ray: Sir, insane's a very harsh word.

Welsh: Oh, no, no. The harsh words have not yet begun. You have not yet begun to hear how I feel about you being involved in a drive-by shooting in front of the courthouse.

Ray: Lieutenant, new information has surfaced suggesting that Tyree Cameron was not the shooter in the incident and that the shooting was in self-defense. I had to make that information known to the Court.

Welsh: And what would that new information be?

Ray: Well, at first we believed the shots to be bang bang bing, but after further reflection we came to believe that the shots were boom bang bing. . Sir, with a little time I now believe I can track down the real shooter.

Welsh: That's great, Vecchio, 'cause a little time is about all you got.

Ray: Ah, sir, are you going to eat all these cold cuts?

[Tyree's apartment]

Mrs. Cameron: Tyree's not here right now. This is his room but he hasn't been here since yesterday. Why did you have to arrest him anyway? Tyree's a good boy.

Ray: Mrs. Cameron, I may be old fashioned but the way I figure it, good boys don't carry hand guns.

Mrs. Cameron: I'm not defending Tyree having that gun.

Fraser: Does your son know Mr. Lou Robbins?

Mrs. Cameron: Everybody knows Lou.

Fraser: Mrs. Cameron, I understand your reticence -

Ray: Is your son a member of any gang?

Mrs. Cameron: He plays basketball.

Ray: This isn't the first time he's been in trouble.

Mrs. Cameron: Tyree lives by his own rules but he is a good boy. Only been arrested once.

Ray: Only once.

Mrs. Cameron: He fell asleep on the subway.

Fraser: That's a crime?

Mrs. Cameron: Oh it is if you wake up in Lake Forest and got to walk 5 miles through white neighborhoods. He tries. He works on that basketball court. He ain't got the body to play pro ball ever since his shoulder went out on him. He tried at school. But there even the teachers don't pretend a boy from here can make it to college. What's a young man to do but get frustrated?

Ray: Do you have any idea who he might have been with yesterday?

Mrs. Cameron: Yeah. He had a practice like every day. Lou takes them out for a meal afterwards.

Ray: Yeah, he's a regular prince.

Mrs. Cameron: It breaks me up inside to see that drug dealer being the only one who looks out for them kids. The only one who gets through to them. Now you tell me. If he doesn't look after them, who does? The government? The police?

Fraser: So you think it's possible that Tyree spent the day with Mr. Robbins.

Mrs. Cameron: Could be. It's a sure bet he was with his friend Reggie. Ain't nothing that separates those two but the need to shut their eyes every night. You talk to him.

[outside]

Ray: His own mother thinks he did it.

Fraser: She didn't say that.

Ray: She stands by her family.

Fraser: I suppose.

Ray: You see, some people stand by their family, and some people stand by their friends, and then there are other people who stand by complete strangers only to have their friends get reamed out by their lieutenants.

Fraser: Ray?

Ray: It's abandoned.

Fraser: Ah. . . Well, if it's any consolation, things aren't going very smoothly at the Consulate, either.

Ray: Consolation would have been you buying a new pair of boots instead of me taking you to my cobbler.

Fraser: Well, as I recall, it was you that insisted -

Ray: I thought you were the one who was apologizing.

Fraser: Oh, right. I'm sorry.

Ray: Now, I'm gong to go back at the crime scene and take a look around. You

coming?

Fraser: No, I think I'm going to go and talk to Reggie.

Ray: He probably won't talk to you.

Fraser: Well he may not have to, Ray.

[basketball court]

Reggie: Stamp, coming down court for it. . . For three! Ahh! Yes!

Fraser: Nice shot.

Reggie: You're that mounting guy, right?

Fraser: It's Mountie, actually.

Reggie: And why do they call you that?

Fraser: Well, that's a long story. . . Would you like to play some one-on-one?

Reggie: You'll lose.

Fraser: I think that's very likely.

Reggie: You're already down two, baby.

Fraser: Your friend Tyree is in trouble.

Reggie: Man, everybody around here got troubles. You're still trying to get him off. Fraser: Well, yes. You see, there are certain elements of the crime that don't make any sense. I don't think Tyree shot that young man.

Reggie: Oh, yeah, and how you figure that?

Fraser: To begin with, the shooter was left-handed.

Reggie: You know, it's hard to prove something like that.

Fraser: Well that's true. But it's also my belief that the third shot was fired to provide blowback on Tyree's hand and arm to make it appear that he was the shooter.

Reggie: Why would somebody do that?

Fraser: Well, friends protect one another, and I think he was covering for someone.

Reggie: Hey, Mountie, if Tyree said he did something, then he did it. I mean, it's that simple. You know, you live down here sometimes you got to shoot somebody in self-defense.

Fraser: If it was self-defense, the man in the alley would have had a gun.

Reggie: He had a gun.

Fraser: How do you know that? Were you there?

Reggie: No.

Fraser: No. Of course not. Because if you had been, then you would have had to protect your friend. . . Thanks for the game.

[Fraser's apartment]

Fraser: Oh, you're hungry, are you?

[Dief whine]

Fraser: Well perhaps you should learn how to use the stove.

[whine]

Fraser: Just joking.

[snarl]

Fraser: Hello?. . . [to Dief] Stay.

[construction site]

Tyree: Whoa!

Reggie: Man, it's me, man! Put that gun away!

Tyree: Man, don't do that!

Reggie: Look, I brought you some chips, man. . . Geez.

Fraser: Mind if I join you?

Tyree: Don't come any closer.

Reggie: Hey, be cool, Tyree.

Tyree: Reggie, go home.

Reggie: I ain't going nowhere.

Fraser: You were waiting outside my apartment.

Tyree: What if I was? Is it off limits? I ain't got a right to be in front of your building?

Fraser: Where you there to visit Mrs. Krezjapalov or Mr. Mustafi? Or were you there to visit me?

Tyree: Maybe I was.

Fraser: Well that's good, because we still have a lot of things to talk about. For one thing, I don't understand why you're prepared to go to prison for a crime you didn't commit.

Tyree: Man, don't try to get into my head. You and me, we ain't nothing alike.

[music blaring from passing car]

Reggie: Sssh! It's 2-4's!

Reggie: So you're Canadian, huh?

Fraser: That's right, son.

Reggie: So that means you been outside of Chicago.

Fraser: Yes.

Reggie: What's so different?

Fraser: Not that much. We have all the same stars, just more of them.

Reggie: So you grew up under the stars with the birds and weasels and wolves and trees and whatnot, huh?

Fraser: There was an abundance of wildlife.

Tyree: We got wildlife. They gunned down my daddy in front of me when I was four.

Fraser: My father was also killed.

Tyree: You don't get over that.

Fraser: No.

Tyree: Life sucks, don't it?

Fraser: What are you afraid of?

Tyree: Nothing.

Fraser: You're not afraid of death?

Tyree: Are you?

Fraser: Yes, very much.

[Fraser's apartment]

Ray: Fraser, open up. It's me. . .

[Dief whine]

Ray: What is it, boy?

[bark]

Ray: Is Fraser in trouble?

[construction site]

Reggie: You want to tell me what's going on, Tyree?

Tyree: Why don't you go home, Reggie? You got a game in the morning.

Reggie: You too. I need you, man.

Tyree: You don't need nothing. Look, you're going to be golden, so why don't you just go on home? I got some talking to do with the Mountie here, all right?

Fraser: You're not going to the game? This game you've practiced for all year? The game you love?

Tyree: It doesn't love me. In this neighborhood, who lives and who dies is all set at birth. Either you got the genes to hoop or you don't.

[alley]

[Dief bark]

Ray: Okay. . . Good boy. . . We'll rest here. . . Okay, maybe we won't rest here.

[construction site]

Tyree: Reggie here, he's good enough. He's got a future. The rest of us? We'll flip burgers for a while. We'll sell drugs for a while. We'll keep busy until we piss somebody off or we just happen to end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, which happens too damn often. And somebody steps up with a gun and they make you dead.

Fraser: Just because you have a gun doesn't mean you have to use it. You proved that tonight.

[Ray knocks over garbage cans]

Reggie: See? They coming, man. Tyree, come on.

Tyree: Man. . .

Fraser: Ray.

Ray: You okay?

Fraser: Yes, I'm fine.

Ray: You're sure you're okay?

Fraser: I'm fine.

Ray: Did you hear him? He's fine! What did you drag me all the way down here for?

Fraser: He's probably just crying wolf.

[game]

Lou: Young man's a talent, ain't he?

Scout: Yeah, he is.

Spectators and coaches: All right! Reggie! Double team my man down low, Reggie!. . . Damn, Reggie, where's the 'D'? Where's the 'D', man?. . . You got to impress everybody!. . . Be straight, Reg! Be flowing!. . .You hear me?. . .Oh!!. . . What's that? What was that?

Tyree: What's wrong with you?!

Reggie: Nothing, man!

Tyree: You're blowin' it!

Reggie: Then I blow it!

Tyree: Hell, no, this is my ass that's on the line for you.

Reggie: I didn't ask you to do that, all right?

Tyree: You didn't have to.

Reggie: You were going to kill that Mountie. . . Look, we can get out of this, all right? Both of us can.

Tyree: This is out of our hands. You do what you're told and I do what I'm told. I mean, nothing happens around here - nothing! - that Lou doesn't want to happen. He wanted you free and he wants the Mountie dead.

Reggie: All right, so what happens if he wants you and me dead, huh? We kill each other?

Lou: What the hell are you doing, Reggie?

Reggie: Playing ball.

Lou: You play it better! You check that attitude! You don't want to screw this up!

[stands]

Fraser: Ray, excuse me. I'll be right back. . . Good afternoon, gentlemen. You wouldn't have happened to see a fellow carrying a, uh. . . Oh, dear.

[game ends]

Lou: I'm impressed, Junior. I'm really impressed. That was a nice pass.

Tyree: Thanks.

Lou: Come on, game's not over yet. . . Coming through!

[outside]

Lou: You had a job to do but you ain't do it.

Tyree: We won, didn't we?

Lou: Hey, hey, you know what I'm talking about. The Mountie, Junior, the Mountie.

Tyree: The time wasn't right.

Lou: Oh, yeah, here's your chance. . . The time is right, Tyree.

Tyree: Man, who's he hurtin'?

Lou: He's been snoopin' around ever since the shooting.

Tyree: He don't know nothing, Lou.

Fraser: Actually, I do.

Lou: You hear that?

Fraser: But you're not going to shoot me.

Lou: Do it. Now.

Reggie: Tyree, stop!

Lou: Reggie, man, chill!

Reggie: There's no reason!

Lou: Reggie, step back!

Reggie: There's no reason. . . I did it. . .

Tyree: Reggie, don't do this -

Reggie: Tyree, it's over, man. It's over!. . . I shot Taylor.

Fraser: I know. Lou had taken you out for burgers after the practice and the three of you split up. Taylor was waiting for Reggie in the alley. He fired first but he missed. Then Reggie fired, resting his left arm on the wall. Taylor fell and the gun went into the dirt where he buried it. Tyree heard the shots. He ran back to help. He forced Reggie to give him the gun. Lou arrived, Then Tyree fired into the garbage can to get blowback on his hand and his arm. Then Lou and Reggie ran, leaving you, Tyree, to take the blame.

Reggie: He came at me, all right? I mean, I guess he figured he shoot me, he'd get his rag. It was self-defense. Tyree ain't do nothing.

Lou: Both of ya'll are fools. End it. Now.

[fight]

Lou: Get him, man

Tyree: That's enough, Lou.

Fraser: You're not going to shoot him.

Tyree: What did you say?

Fraser: You're not a killer.

Lou: Now, let's make this right.

Fraser: You're not going to shoot either.

Lou: 'Cause I'm not a killer?

Fraser: No, I think you're an evil psychopath. But if you try, Detective

Vecchio will blow your brains off.

Ray: Out.

Fraser: Out. I'm sorry, I stand corrected. He will blow your brains out.

Ray: Give me the gun.

[arrest being made]

Ray: I'll see what we can do for you downtown.

Tyree: You better be straight. Reggie don't deserve to go down for this.

Fraser: We know that.

Man: I heard you was looking for these.

Fraser: Yes. Thank you.

Man: I saw them in the streets. Looked valuable, so I took them in. This

isn't a safe neighborhood.

[basketball court]

Thomas: Hey.

Tyree: Hey!

Fraser: Hello.

Thomas: Everybody gone?

Tyree: Yeah.

Thomas: Oh, sorry I'm late. Bad weather. Plane got off a little late leaving

Toronto.

Tyree: Hey, can't change the weather.

Thomas: Did ya'll play today?

Fraser: Yes, and he played very well.

Tyree: Not well enough.

Fraser: For what?

Tyree: Play ball in college.

Thomas: You and almost everybody else on this planet. So what else you going to do?

Tyree: Nothing to do, if not play ball.

Thomas: You have to put your other assets to work.

Tyree: What other assets?

Thomas: This kid got any other assets?

Fraser: Well, apart from his loyalty, his integrity, and his brains, no, I don't think so.

Tyree: What about my dashing good looks?

Fraser: Well, we're talking about assets, not drawbacks.

Ray: All right, Tyree. I spoke with the state's attorney and she's considering dropping the charges. How you doing?

Thomas: Isiah. How you doing?

Ray: Yeah, I know who you are. Ray Vecchio.

Thomas: So we going to play today or what?

Ray: Well, yeah! Give me the ball! Let's go!

Thomas: Mountie, right?

Fraser: That's correct, Mr. Isiah.

Thomas: I was wondering, since I'm in Toronto now -

Fraser: Oh, we mount the horses. . . Do you play basketball?

end