01x04 - The Restauranteur's Ruin

[bunniefuu]

[UPBEAT LATIN MUSIC]

♪

[LAUGHTER]

♪

♪

[CHILDREN LAUGHING]

♪

[CHILDREN CHEERING]

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

[MUSIC SLOWS AND BECOMES DISTORTED]

[MUSIC PICKS UP AGAIN]

♪

♪

[PHONE NOTIFICATION PINGS]

♪

[MUSIC SLOWS AND BECOMES DISTORTED]

[MUSIC STOPS]

♪

Oh, glorious! Homemade croissant.

Just something I whipped up.

Mmm!

You know, over the years,

I have noticed an uptick

in your baking triumphs

whenever a draft is proving

a challenge.

No, it's going swimmingly!

Hmm! Terrific!

Now, I'm wondering

if you might want to meet

with some other writers.

Oh, I don't have time.

I'm writing too much to mentor anyone.

No, what I meant was

more of a consultation.

You know, to help

expand your readership.

I have a vast and loyal readership.

I am k*lling it in the 40 to 85 demo.

You said it yourself, Sarita.

Yes, but darling, this isn't me asking,

it's the publisher, who

loves other demos, too

say 25 to 39?

- Millennials?

- Mm-hm!

Ugh, they don't even read!

What are you talking

about? All we do is read.

I am talking about books, not Reddit!

And what are you wearing, anyway?

Slob-chic is not a thing anymore.

Look at those shoes! What is happening?

SARITA: Oh, Darby!

Shouldn't your mom meet

with younger authors,

just to see if we might

refresh Bryn Martell

for a younger audience?

Definitely.

- Good idea, Sarita.

- Thank you.

You should try that, Mom.

You know, something new.

Maybe it'll help you stay relevant.

SARITA: Great!

I'll set it up today.

I have the perfect candidates.

You have to keep the

publisher happy, love.

Right?

[PHONE BUZZES]

Hey, Antonio!

Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Whoa, whoa what's wrong?

[VIDEO] Oh, great, now you're crying?

Are you seriously crying

like a little girl right now?!

I can't believe you!

What are you, stupid?

Brain-dead or something?

[VIDEO] This is a workplace!

Can you hear me?

[YELLING] This is a

professional workplace!

And you've got no business being here

if you can't take the heat!

What are you doing?!

That never happened.

That that's not me.

I-I would never say stuff like that.

[SIGHS] Okay.

This could k*ll me.

We've only been in

business for eight months.

How can anybody even fake this?

I'll send it to Alastair.

I'll get us answers ASAP.

Oh my God

The review!

We're getting our first major review

by Alder Bluffs Life next week.

If any of this ends up there, it's over.

VICTORIA: Don't worry.

I've got your back.

I'll help you figure this out.

Absolutely.

We will help you figure this out.

ANTONIO: Thank you.

Thank you both.

I-I didn't know who else to turn to.

- [DOOR OPENS]

- Oh, no, Zane is here!

Hannah, go distract him!

Okay, we cannot tell him about this.

[IN A WHISPER] Nobody.

Why on Earth not?

Because Zane is so protective!

You know he will go overboard.

He will, you know, interfere.

DARBY: Oh, definitely.

Zane is extra when his

loved ones are threatened.

It's intense.

Hey!

BOTH: Hi!

Did I miss the group

text about a team lunch?

Oh, no, no, no. We just

We came in to "hi," and we did!

- So, now we're saying "bye."

- Yeah!

- There you go!

- Thank you.

DARBY: I have to go to

- The hairdresser.

- A new client.

Both. The

She cuts my hair.

Yeah, it's a mystery 'cause

her scissors keep getting lost,

so we've just gonna

Solve it. Goodbye!

Okay, have a good day!

- ZANE: Okay.

- VICTORIA: Bye!

All right, off you go!

Protect and serve!

Right.

Okay.

♪

[SIGHS]

[THEME MUSIC]

♪

♪

♪

[VIDEO] I can't believe

you. What are you, stupid?

That is definitely a deepfake.

You see how the facial hair is smudged,

especially under the chin?

And the shark eyes.

- Very Uncanny Valley.

- But how was it made?

The artificial intelligence

pulls video, pictures,

audio samples, and then creates

forgeries from that data set.

Check it out.

ANTONIO: [VIDEO] Here it

is. My beautiful kitchen.

Just had the range installed. Yes!

- I remember that.

- Yeah, we've seen that one.

But that video was posted

prior to the bistro's opening.

VICTORIA: Mm-hm.

Between this and the other

videos he's posted online,

I think Antonio gave the

perp exactly what he needed

to create the deepfake.

I'm so sorry Do you want something?

Like, you know, some

Italian sparkling water?

Oh, yes! You know me well!

- Thank you so much!

- Okay.

Yeah, I'm a little thirsty, too.

Excuse me.

So who has this kind of technology?

Hacker collectives?

Russian troll farms?

Well, yeah, maybe.

Um, or, you know,

someone with a smartphone.

You know, some time and creativity.

Well, that could literally be anybody!

Yes, which makes it

incredibly difficult to trace.

VICTORIA: Yeah, but who would benefit

from ruining Antonio's reputation?

A neighbouring competitor?

An angry neighbour?

Hey, Antonio, did you have a neighbour

who complained about the bistro?

[IN A WHISPER] It's so good!

DARBY: Uh-huh.

Okay, sounds good.

His next-door neighbour

complained to the city

when he applied to expand the patio.

He's gonna text me the name.

Well, that sounds promising! Let's go.

Thank you so much.

Anytime, Victoria. And

I will keep digging.

[CLEARS THROAT]

"Anytime, Victoria. And

I will keep digging."

Idiot!

♪

♪

DARBY: Okay, neighbour's name is Clive,

and apparently he had a temper tantrum

at a public consultation meeting.

- MAN: Augh!

- I take it that's Clive.

DARBY: He looks angry.

If he gets belligerent,

I'm gonna hide behind

you like a human shield.

[ANGRY GRUMBLING]

Hello, Clive!

CLIVE: Stupid piece of crap!

- [GRUNTING AND BANGING]

- Clive, uh ?

Are are you Clive? Hello?

Yeah, who wants to know?!

Hi.

We're following up on the

public consultation meeting,

for the bistro's back patio permit.

You had some concerns?

You heard about that?

Oh, man, I'm totally embarrassed!

- Really?

- Yeah.

Once Antonio actually

had the patio going,

he put up noise-cancelling baffles,

he kept the music and

the hours reasonable.

He even put up a suggestion box

on his website to keep up with feedback.

- Sounds like Antonio, all right.

- Yeah!

And I'm in anger management.

Oh, good for you.

Although it's

early days.

Is that so?

I'm a regular of Antonio's now.

I'd feel terrible if he knew

I was once dead set against the patio.

Me and some buddies

are even talking about

starting a trivia night there.

Oh! Well, we'd hate to

ruin that kind of fun,

so just carry on!

Nice to meet you.

[LAUGHS POLITELY]

Okay, I have to go home.

What?

We're just getting started.

You're the one who thinks I

need a Millennial consultant.

[LAWNMOWER ENGINE REVVING]

with onion and garlic

to seal the grain in.

Only then do we add the boiling

water so glad you like it!

So sorry to interrupt!

- Any luck?

- No!

Your neighbour, Clive,

he's your biggest fan now.

So maybe don't let him know that

you knew about the complaint.

Got it.

- Who else would have done this?

- I don't know.

Do you have a rival or a jealous ex?

No.

Did you have a major

falling out with somebody

that I don't know about

for some weird reason?

Wait

I know somebody who might

hate me enough to do this!

Oh, that's

good news?

Well, no, but

[IN A WHISPER] It's Randy!

- Randy?

- Yeah.

Yeah, Randy was the old

head chef at La Camargue.

Oh, the place in

Hamilton where you worked

- before you opened this one?

- Exactly.

I've got time before

the dinner rush starts,

so let's go there now

and see if anybody knows

what happened to him.

We can take my car.

Yeah. All right, see you out front.

Okay.

♪

What the hell?

♪

♪

It's such a treat to

meet with another writer

and just chat, peer to peer.

Oh! Well, not exactly

peer to peer, but yes,

it's it is nice.

Anyways, I've whipped together

a comprehensive data

analysis of all your books.

Every Bryn Martell

book has been tracked.

Oh!

Results show she often solves

the case in the same way.

Well, there is a bit of a pattern

in the structure of a mystery novel

Or you could just do better.

ASHLEE: Here's the pitch!

Bryn Martell is just

graduating from college!

So she's a mature student?

No. She's, like, 22.

Twenty-two? Um why?

Because then people

would care about her.

Wow.

BRENT: [SIGHS]

I don't know

Maybe Bryn's inaccessible

to a younger audience

because she's so [SUCKS ON TEETH]

privileged?

[LAUGHS AWKWARDLY]

♪

ANTONIO: Hey, Jake!

JAKE: Antonio!

Oh, man, it is so good to see you again.

Good to see you, too.

Oh, and you came at the perfect time.

Like, lunch and dinner

rushes have been crazy.

Good, good!

So tell me, who's EC now?

[TO DARBY] Executive chef.

I had to step in.

But I am no Antonio Pereira.

Come off it!

He's just being humble.

No, no, no! This guy here, a legend.

JAKE: I mean, we had reservations

literally months in advance!

Celebrities coming in,

Antonio's winning awards

- all over the place!

- ANTONIO: Oh, stop!

Oh my God, hi!

- Oh, excuse me.

- Yeah.

ANTONIO: How are you?

So Jake, I don't know if

you saw it or heard about it,

but there was a deepfake video

online that targeted Antonio.

Yeah, yeah, one of the staff showed me.

But there's no way that's Antonio!

Oh, believe me, I know.

Um, we're actually looking

into an ex-employee of yours,

Randy Weisbrock.

Do you remember that guy?

Randy

Do you happen to have a

forwarding address for him?

Yeah, of course.

You don't think it could be him, do you?

Maybe.

Were you the one who fired Randy?

Yeah.

Yeah, I took my eye off the

ball and didn't see how toxic

the culture in the kitchen

had become under him.

What was he like?

Well, let's just say

that Randy got away with

a lot of bad behaviour for too long.

And then ?

When I hired Antonio, he was clear:

the culture needed to change.

Harassment seminars, more female chefs.

Randy fought it and he got pushed out.

Antonio took his place as EC.

So, Randy blamed Antonio for everything.

Doesn't surprise me that

he'd still have a grudge.

Ah, here we go.

I didn't think that Randy was

a very tech-savvy kind of guy,

but I do remember him saying

he was gonna make Antonio pay.

Thank you.

course I'm writing!

What else do you think I'm doing?

SARITA: [ON PHONE] Great.

Because the publishers

are being so difficult

since they haven't seen any pages.

VICTORIA: Well I have my process!

SARITA: Hey, I have an

incredible opportunity.

Sheldon Marcasczy is stopping

in Toronto on his book tour.

How about you set aside

some time and meet with him?

VICTORIA: The Langum Prize,

Washington Irving Medal,

Pulitzer-Prize-winning

Sheldon Marcasczy?

Isn't he more of a historical novelist?

SARITA: Mm-hm!

Well, I'm not writing a

500-page novel about Iwo Jima!

SARITA: He's in town.

And he's a powerhouse.

His agent owes me a favour.

He'll do it.

Will you?

Okay, fine, if you stop

making me take these meetings!

SARITA: I promise. I'll leave you alone.

But you will be calling to thank me.

- Doubtful.

- [PHONE NOTIFICATION PINGS]

Oh, that's Darby. I have to meet her.

Byeee!

[SIGHS IN DISGUST]

♪

♪

VICTORIA: Hey, Antonio. Where's Darby?

ANTONIO: Oh, she's inside.

She thought she might

get more out of Randy

if she talked to him alone.

VICTORIA: Hmm, not her worst idea.

ANTONIO: Right!

VICTORIA: See you in a minute.

ANTONIO: [VIDEO] Are

you seriously crying

like a little girl right now?

This is a professional workplace!

And you've got no business being

here if you can't take the heat!

[LAUGHS] Pretty sweet.

Sucks to be him, I guess.

Karma's a b*tch.

So you had nothing to do with it?

No, but thanks.

Made my day.

I'd just glad somebody

revealed that weasel

for what he truly is.

Antonio stole my job,

then he wouldn't give me a reference.

I couldn't work anywhere

that didn't have chicken

fingers on the menu.

- Is that what I smell?

- Screw him.

And screw you, too, lady.

Very charming.

Seems to me your getting

fired wasn't Antonio's fault.

And that is not my fault.

But what's great about

it is that he's finally

getting a taste of what it's

like to be hated by everybody.

♪

♪

Well, I appreciate

you both coming with me

on that wild goose chase.

VICTORIA: Yeah, I wish I

would've stayed with you

in the parking lot. I cannot unsee that.

I think we should tell Zane what's up.

No! No, no, no, I can't do that.

Okay, listen: we are over-leveraged

on our investment in the restaurant

and I may not have given Zane

the full scope of how bad it is.

- Really?!

- I know, I know, I'm horrible,

but listen Zane is already

feeling anxious about it.

If he gets involved with

this, he will go overboard.

Guaranteed.

- ZANE: Hey.

- Hi.

Your staff was wondering

where you disappeared to.

Uh Oh, look at that!

I am, uh, late for the

dinner prep!

I See you later!

So, where did you go?

- A local

- The farmer's market.

beekeeper's to get wild honey.

- At the farmer's market.

- Yeah.

VICTORIA: At the farmer's

market, where it was fun.

They had a stand.

Okay. Well, I hope it was worth it.

♪

- It was.

- [SIGHS]

♪

Bryn Martell walked

happil

[KEYBOARD CLICKING]

She stormed

Crept silently

Ugh!

♪

♪

[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

ANTONIO: Perfect. There you go.

Antonio?

- Antonio, hi.

- Yes?

I need you to come see

something in the kitchen.

- Yes, just a second, Hannah.

- No

Oh, Table 14 needs some champagne.

- Could you handle that, please?

- No, I can't.

- It's really important.

- Hi!

- Seriously, come see this.

- Hannah, I will get to you.

Whatever it is, I'm pretty sure

it can wait some more minutes.

- No, it can't, it can't.

- [SQUEAKING AND SKITTERING]

[PEOPLE EXCLAIMING IN HORROR]

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

[MUFFLED SQUEAKING]

ANTONIO: Uh

MAN: Oh, that is disgusting.

ANTONIO: Folks, I am so

sorry for this disruption.

I can assure you that

we're talking care of everything, okay?

Just enjoy your meals.

Please.

- [SQUEAKING]

- [PEOPLE SCREAMING]

[CHAIRS AND CUTLERY BANGING]

[PANICKED SHOUTING]

MAN: Let's go!

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪

♪

ANTONIO: How did the rats get in?

I've never had a rat problem before.

Well, this fresh air vent

is supposed to have

a mesh screen thingy.

That's probably how they got in.

No, no, no, no, this

doesn't make any sense!

I just had my mid-year

inspection last month.

That's the kind of thing that

the Health Inspector checks,

and it was fine then!

BRENDON: Look, I don't

know what to tell you, man.

I've laid down some traps,

I'll come by and check

on them tomorrow, okay?

The mesh screen thingy

does it look like this?

Yeah, exactly.

Well, what's it doing

all the way over here?

Looks like someone took it from there

and put it over there on purpose.

Will you give me a call

after you check the traps?

Oh, for sure! Yeah,

I'll give you a call

No, but, like 'cause I

want to know about the rats.

- Rats?

- Yeah.

Got it.

- [LAUGHS]

- No, but ugh!

You really thought I wouldn't

learn about the deepfake?

The debunked deepfake.

I'm just gonna give you some space.

And now I'm guessing the same

person that got you closed down

is trying to ruin your credibility

with a rat infestation?

I think so. I'm sorry, Zane.

- Why would you hide this?

- I

I'm not even gonna start with you two!

VICTORIA: It wasn't me.

It was 100% Darby's

idea to not tell you.

- I can't believe you.

- What?!

Why would you say that?

I don't know, to try something new,

be honest, be relevant?

If this is about

yesterday, you started it!

You called me a slob.

Don't you have some

famous author to go meet?

Zane! Where are you going?

ZANE: I'm looking for evidence.

ANTONIO: Sir, you forgot your box!

DARBY: Zane, I'm sorry, okay?

I wanted to tell you, but

Antonio asked me not to.

He said that you might

worry because, you know,

you do tend to

overreact when the people

you care about are threatened.

No, I don't.

Grade 10. Brian Colossi.

You trapped him in a

bathroom stall with duct tape.

That's because he dumped you!

[LAUGHS]

♪

[SIGHS]

Yeah, well, maybe Antonio

was onto something.

[CHUCKLES]

[JINGLING AND CLICKING SOUNDS]

♪

DARBY: That's weird.

I thought Antonio sent

everyone home already.

Let's see where she goes.

Well, it's an honour

to meet you, Sheldon.

Sarita tells me that you

may be able to provide

some insight as to how I

could appeal to Millennials.

Oh, Millennials.

Throw in a past trauma

and climate change,

you got a bestseller!

Nice place if you like frou-frou.

- You got any coffee?

- Yes.

So I hear you got a problem, Vicki.

Uh, the name is Victoria.

Your output.

Terrible.

Uh [SCOFFS] Right.

Well, I've only written 44 novels.

Look, don't get down on yourself.

You can still turn it around.

And you? Many significant awards,

but you've written,

what, eight, nine books?

Eight. Under Sheldon Marcasczy.

But then there's my nom de plume

Shandra Mabrey.

You're Shandra Mabrey?

The best-selling thriller novelist?!

Well, bravo.

No kidding.

♪

Hannah was the one

who saw the rats first.

Now she's sneaking around the restaurant

when it's supposed to be empty?

She had the key. She could

have planted the rats.

Exactly!

See, you could be an

honorary Spencer Sister.

♪

DARBY: Hello! Who's this now?

♪

See, this is why surveillance is creepy.

Yeah.

♪

♪

Okay, Vicki

What are the five

things you need to know

to get to work on your novel?

Uh, it's Victoria, and

"Character, Setting,

Problem, Plot, Solution"!

Wrong! Boring.

Okay. What?

Here's what's important

money.

Oh, I don't really handle

that. My agent does.

I'm quite comfortable. I

write for love, not money.

No, no, no.

M.O.N.E.Y.

It's a mnemonic to

remember the following.

M: Misfortune.

What's your character's problem, flaw?

Something your judgey readers

would like to make them feel superior.

O: Orgasms.

Are they having any?

N: Nifty Gizmos.

What cool tools are they

using to solve the problem?

A direct line to the Pentagon?

A flamethrower in a lipstick?

E: Envy.

What do the characters have

that the readers will envy?

A jawline that cuts diamonds?

Legs for days?

A yoga instructor lover in Tahiti?

That would cover off O as well.

Y: Yahoo!

What do they do that makes

the reader say, "Yahoo!"

in the end?

Well, um, Sheldon, I don't

really have the answers

to any of those things

right this second.

That's your problem.

My problem is I'm too prolific.

That's why I'm constantly

reinventing myself.

As Shandra Mabrey, as Shane Massimo

You're Shane Massimo, too?

Of the Jack Hogan franchise?

Yeah. Just inked a new trilogy deal.

Whoa.

Well, I don't think your system

would work for me, honestly.

I start with a spark, an inspiration.

I see that.

I just read your last three books.

You could really use some inspiration.

Hmph!

♪

Okay

Okay.

So she doesn't have a criminal record,

but she did get a suspicious

parking ticket yesterday.

Wait, does that say "heating needs"?

It's an HVAC company.

She got the guy to put the

rats in the ventilation!

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Zane!

Zane?

Zane!

Hey, Hannah!

Hey, Zane.

Darby What are you doing here?

- Who's the HVAC guy?

- Yeah.

Were you spying on me?

- No.

- Yes.

Oh, okay.

Well, the HVAC guy is my boyfriend,

and I was just asking if maybe

he could get an inspection

for Antonio, to see

if there any more rats.

ZANE: Don't buy it.

Why were you sneaking

out of the restaurant

after Antonio sent everyone home?

I wasn't sneaking, I was

returning a bottle of wine!

- That you stole?

- No, I was just

I was getting together with

some friends and I borrowed

a bottle of wine from the wine rack.

But I bought a new one. I returned it.

- I have the receipt.

- There's more.

You in the habit of not

paying parking tickets?

I just got that yesterday!

And the parking spot was in

front of a Humane Society.

Maybe that's where you

got some rats huh?

Yeah, that's what I thought.

I had to put my cat down.

Oh, no, Zane.

I think we're "duct tape

in the bathroom" territory.

You guys think I did this?

I can't believe this!

I defended Antonio!

No, no!

You can tell him I quit!

[LOUD CHOPPING]

Hello.

You seem to be feeling

stabby.

I just needed an outlet.

There's a reason why stabbing victims

are never stabbed just once.

Okay ?

Feels too good for the stabber to stop.

Right

So how was the famous author?

Oh, opinionated about my new manuscript.

Whoa, that's a lot of crossed out words.

What are all the Z's for?

It's for every time he

said he went to sleep.

Why didn't you tell

this guy to take a hike?

You were happy to get rid

of all the Millennials.

Because I'm stuck.

My last two novels were flops

and I'm afraid that's it!

Ride's over!

I'm not relevant anymore.

♪

Unless you're making

a watermelon smoothie,

I think you can

stop with the chopping.

You know what, I've had

enough criticism for today,

especially from you.

I wasn't criticizing, Mom.

Oof, not good.

♪

♪

♪

Hey, I thought you finished

your shift a while ago.

Where were you?

Darby and I went to talk to Hannah.

And

she might have quit.

Oh my God, Zane!

That's it, that's it.

This day could not get any worse.

It's gonna be okay.

Well, is it?

Babe, we just suddenly lost one income,

and I don't know for how long.

And now we've got

interest on the bank loan

and our mortgage, daycare.

We might have to sell the condo.

What?

It can't be that bad.

Yeah, um the thing is, I

kind of maxed out the line of credit

when I was doing the patio reno.

I'm sorry! I'm so sorry.

But now with the interest,

there's no way that we can

This was all just a huge mistake.

Keeping the truth from me was a mistake.

But the bistro

it's your dream.

I love that you're ambitious,

that you take risks.

Well, maybe I'm reconsidering that one.

Maybe we can ask my parents

for a loan in the meantime.

No. No, no, no, I can't do that.

I can't. I'm sorry, there's no way.

So it's better for us, for

our daughter, to lose her home?

You might have to let go of your pride.

- My pride?

- Yeah.

This it's not my pride.

It's this is my responsibi

You know what? I need

to get some fresh air.

♪

[SIGHS]

♪

♪

[PHONE BUZZING]

Darby Spencer.

Brendon?

Oh, rat guy!

[SIGHS]

Brendon, you know, I'm really

just not into dating right now.

No, my sister is not available either.

How about those rats, Brendon?

Can we talk about it on the phone?

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY.

Uh

Okay, "Misfortune."

"Bryn has been struck by malaria,

but must still learn who's behind

the tiger poaching in the Serengeti."

O: "Orgasm."

The rats from the

bistro are Norway rats.

They're clean, they're domesticated

If you want a pet, the answer is no.

- It's always been no.

- The rat guy called!

Oh, my future son-in-law?

We're eloping; you're not invited.

He said the rats that normally

infest buildings around here

are black rats. Which

means these rats

Are from a store or an animal shelter!

[TRIUMPHANT MUSIC]

VICTORIA: Okay, let's hope

this is lucky number 11.

Excuse me, do you sell rats?

Uh, live or frozen?

I'm getting tired of saying this, but,

live rats, please!

Uh, what kind of snake do you have?

Do we look like snake owners to you?

Uh, yeah, I sell live rats.

But I'm sold out.

Sold out? Huh!

Did you happen to sell a bunch

of them to someone recently?

Are you two cops?

Provincial Animal Welfare Services.

Also known as PAWS.

Uh, yeah, some guy left a message

asking to reserve them,

and came at night to pick them up.

I'm sure you already know this,

but you have to have signed

paperwork to buy a live animal.

Do you have that?

Mm-hm. Do you?

Yeah.

[PAPERS RUSTLING]

Here you go.

Randy Weisbrock.

- That dirty

- Do not say it, please.

RANDY: I already told you it wasn't me.

Well, this is your

name, and your address.

We got this from the store

where you bought those

fine Norway rats last night.

And then you drove to Antonio's bistro,

somewhere between midnight and 8 am,

and you placed those poor,

innocent rats in a vent.

No.

That's my name and address,

but that's not true.

You already told us you hate Antonio.

We spoke to a neighbour of yours.

He said you were gone all night.

Where'd you go?

How'd you get that hand injury?

Maybe it was pulling a

metal grate from an air vent

to put rats inside.

No! I got loaded at the

bar and got into a fight.

I cut my hand open.

I spent eight hours in Emergency.

You got any other crazy theories?

Yes, but they're even

flimsier than this one, so

All right, you want any food or not?

What's the Prairie Dog like?

I guess I'm a terrible writer

and a terrible detective.

That's definitely not true.

But you are a terrible driver.

Ah Oh!

[SIGHS] Really?

Wait do that again.

What? I've already proven

I'm bad at omelettes.

What more do you want?

No, no, the saucepan flip

in Antonio's deepfake video,

it was done by someone very experienced.

ANTONIO: [VIDEO] Are

you seriously crying

like a little girl right now?

I can't believe you!

What are you, stupid?

♪

See? There.

Someone with real chef skills did that.

And, he's left-handed!

VICTORIA: And Antonio is right-handed.

Hmm!

♪

Aww!

Are you sure I can't pay you for this?

I mean, prosciutto-wrapped scallops!

They'll be awful if I freeze them.

Better they get used today or tomorrow.

Wow, this is very generous of you.

I mean, come on, at least let

me give you a couple bills.

No, of course not.

But listen

there is a favour I'd like to ask you.

Any chance you need help around here?

I'll do whatever,

sous-chef, chef de cuisine

I'll do the dishes if you need me to!

Oh, wow.

I am so sorry.

I totally put you on the spot there.

You know what, just forget I asked.

No, no, no

You can have your old job back!

- Really?

- Yeah.

Yeah, are you kidding me!

We can be just like old times!

Big crowds. Stellar reviews.

Not an empty seat in the house.

Guys, Antonio's comin' back!

- [STAFF CHEERING]

- Ha-ha!

Oh my God, thank you.

Thank you!

[EXHALES]

You know, this whole

thing, at the very least,

it's reminded me who

my real friends are.

Come on, come on, let's

go make some scallops.

Yeah, sounds good!

What do you mean, "It's

Jake"? I thought it was Randy!

He bought the rats using Randy's name,

and the handwriting on that paperwork,

it matches the note

that he gave to Darby.

DARBY: Antonio is right-handed

but the person in the

video is left-handed.

And when Jake wrote down

Randy's address for Darby,

he used his left hand.

Really? Okay.

Antonio is there now.

- DARBY: What, where?

- With Jake!

He's he's there dropping off food.

[GESTURING SILENTLY]

No, I see. Okay, thank you.

Guys, I just spoke to

the restaurant owner.

He said that Jake was trying

to be the chef and the manager,

and he was failing at both.

Well, Antonio just sent me a text.

He's he's accepted his old job back.

Okay, we'll call him next.

We're headed there now.

Okay, I-I'll ask the

neighbour to come over

and look after Lucy

and I'll meet you there.

DARBY: Great.

Hang on to your hat.

- Go!

- [CAR ENGINE REVS]

I can't believe we're

gonna work together again!

You know, I I can't thank you enough.

Of course.

I mean, I won't be able to start you

at the same salary, but

but we'll get back there.

- [PHONE BUZZES]

- Oh!

Sorry.

I'll get this.

Hi.

Antonio, are you okay?

Uh, yeah, of course I'm okay.

DARBY: Listen to me it's Jake!

Jake is the one who made the

deepfake and planted the rats.

No way.

DARBY: Yeah, I just got off the

phone with the restaurant owner.

He said that Jake was about to be fired!

He's lying, so be careful!

Um, sure!

Yeah, okay, if if Lucy

won't settle, just try her

Sorry Try her dinosaur stuffy.

- DARBY: Is he right there?

- Yes.

Yes, that or her blankie.

One of those should work.

You know what?

It's fine, I can pick her up early.

No, no bother at all.

Okay, ciao.

Uh, so thank you for the wine,

but I have to get going.

Oh, man, we're celebrating!

Come on, we got paperwork to sign.

It it's fine. Uh, I'll come back!

I work here now! [LAUGHS]

Okay, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

Who was that on the phone?

Hmm?

Uh, that that was Lucy's daycare.

She's being fussy, so I

really have to go pick her up.

I thought you said she was with Zane.

No, I didn't.

Did I?

All right, your campaign to ruin

Antonio's reputation stops now!

JAKE: Who are you?

Victoria Spencer.

One half of The Spencer

Sisters, private investigators.

- Sisters?

- See?

No one buys it!

ANTONIO: Now I get it.

Jake asked me back a few months ago,

right after I opened the

bistro, and I turned him down.

I can't believe you did that to me!

I thought we were friends.

Yeah, I thought so too.

But you screwed me over!

[GASPS] Whoa.

And I worked so hard!

We were finally getting

somewhere and you deserted me!

You have no loyalty.

You're off enjoying your new adventure

and I-I'm left with, with

VICTORIA: The frustration

that you maybe never

even had any talent?

That you're Salieri to Antonio's Mozart?

Yikes!

Choose your moments, Mom!

- What?

- Jake, it's over.

- No.

- Yeah.

- No.

- You have nowhere to go, okay?

You're surrounded. Give

it up. Put the knife down.

[POLICE SIREN IN THE DISTANCE]

DARBY: Come on.

[POLICE SIREN IN THE DISTANCE]

You're not going anywhere!

I'm a bad-a*s pickleball player

and I will show no mercy to your face!

ZANE: You're under arrest

for defamatory libel

and animal endangerment.

Man, we we had such a good thing,

and you just threw it away!

Some friend you are!

You okay?

- Now I am.

- Yeah, okay.

[SIGHS] God.

Yeah.

You're probably good

to set down the wok.

Fair enough.

We're wokking.

Let's wok, hon'.

Oh, God, you had to say it, didn't you?

VICTORIA: It's a joke.

DARBY: I know.

[SIGHS]

[LAUGHTER]

Hi.

- Hey.

- I'm so happy she's back.

What did Antonio do to swing that?

He made me apologize to her

and do my best grovelling.

Also, I sent her a case

of the wine she liked.

Oh, well done!

[LAUGHTER]

And thanks to you two,

it looks like Antonio and I might

be able to retire someday after all.

Lucky you.

So, the review just came out.

Turns out Alder Bluffs Life

loves me!

Look, look, look, look, look!

- Oh, it's so good!

- [CHEERING AND APPLAUSE]

Thank you. Thank you so much.

You and Victoria can eat here free.

- For life!

- We will!

And a round of drinks on the house!

- For everybody!

- [PEOPLE CHEERING]

And there goes a chunk

of our retirement.

I'm really sorry I lied to you, Zane.

Well, I hear what you

and Antonio were saying

about me going a little overboard

when my loved ones are threatened, so

There are worse impulses

that a person can have.

Namely?

- Early rising.

- Okay.

Shameless singing.

Wearing revealing nighties

in front of family.

So where is Victoria, by the way?

SHELDON: No, no, no, you

just don't understand.

VICTORIA: Okay, maybe I'm

more of a visual thinker.

SHELDON: See, there's

your problem: thinking!

Don't think. Just do.

Or maybe you just don't understand

what I'm trying to teach you, Vicki.

It's Victoria.

Where is MONEY? Show me MONEY!

I don't know why I bother.

Most women don't

understand MONEY, anyway

DARBY: Okay, relax, mansplainer!

You don't get to bully

and belittle my mother

in her own home with

your stupid acronyms

and your paint-by-number formulas.

You have no idea how hard she works,

how dedicated she is!

It isn't just about how

many books she can spew out.

She actually cares about

her readership and about

offering her readers

books that are meaningful.

[INHALES IMPATIENTLY]

- Does she care too much? Maybe.

- Darby

Does she get paralysed by doubt?

- Sometimes.

- Darby

Does she take it out on her daughter?

- I think so.

- Darby!

What?

It's my turn.

You know what?

You can take your tips,

your tricks, your fake names,

and all of your awards, and shove 'em!

As for MONEY, here's what I got.

M for "Misfortune," for having

to spend my precious hours

with a creep like you!

- O, "Orgasms."

- Hmm!

Plenty, and they're none

of your damn business!

Ooh, TMI!

N, "Nifty Gizmos."

A direct line to Alder

Bluff's police department

if you don't get the

hell out of my house.

And E, "Envy,"

for having the smartest,

most fiercely loyal daughter

who would be the envy of anyone I know.

Y, "Yahoo!"

[BOTH LAUGH]

♪

♪

[KEYBOARD CLICKING]

♪

[TEXT MESSAGE NOTIFICATION PINGS]

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

[INSPIRED, HOPEFUL MUSIC]

[KEYBOARD CLICKING]

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪