Episode 2.9

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**Episode 2.9** is the ninth episode of the second season and the 19th overall episode of **Mindhunter**.

## Short Summary

The investigation zeroes in on a prime suspect who proves surprisingly adept at manipulating a volatile situation to his advantage.

## Full Summary

**Jackson Parkway Bridge, Atlanta**

The police are searching the water, looking for what Wayne Williams dropped. Holden tells one officer not to take his eyes off the water until they get a boat down there. Holden goes to Bill and tells him they haven't found anything. Bill says they can't hold Williams without a body. Holden says the can hold him while they search the vehicle and hope they'll find something in the car. Jim is talking to Williams, who says it's his uncle's car. He has it for work. He's in the music business. Holden asks for permission to search and gets it. He was out at night to go pick up a check. He's a photographer. Bill says he thought he was in the music business and he just says he's a renaissance man. He was heading to a woman's apartment, a Miss Cheryl Johnson. She gave him her number, said she's a singer worth hearing. Jim hands the number off to another officer and has him try the number. Holden finds a pair of underwear and asks Williams about them. He says they're his mother's, but they're garbage he's supposed to throw out. Bill asks if that's what he was doing on the bridge. He says he was just crossing the bridge. They say they heard a splash and ask if he threw something off. He says he didn't. Holden asks if he owns a dog. He says he doesn't and Holden notes hair on the backseat. He also asks about the rope and gloves. Williams says it's not his car. Bill takes Williams to the side so Holden can continue his search. Holden tells the recruit to log every piece of evidence and follows them.

Williams is in the backseat and Bill asks him why Cheryl was so special as to bring him out of bed at 3 AM. Williams says he doesn't know yet. They have a meeting in the morning, but he wanted to do a trial run driving there so he'd know where to go. She lives in Smyrna. The officer who called the number says with a four, it's disconnected. With a nine, there's no answer. Williams says that's the number she gave him. Bill asks for an exact address, but he doesn't have one, which is why he always gets a phone number. Bill goes to give an update, leaving Holden and Jim with Williams. Holden asks what he thinks his uncle used the rope for. Williams says he doesn't know and he doesn't touch any of his uncle's stuff. Holden asks how he knew why he was pulled over. He says it's the FBI in Atlanta. The story's always on TV. Holden asks if he knew any of the victims or their families. He says he doesn't know them. He's not like them, street kids. Bill comes to the window and asks Holden and Jim to step out with him.

Bill says the only question he got was if they have a body. They have to let Williams go because they don't have a body. Holden doesn't want to because of the rope and gloves. Bill says the admin agent was clear. Unless they can tie the rope to a specific crime, they have to let him go. Holden points out that he fits the profile, but Bill just opens the door and tells Williams he's free to go. Williams wishes them a good night and gets back in his uncle's car to leave. Bill and Holden agree they don't believe his story, but they can't prove anything. Holden asks the logging officer to see the rope. The officer didn't take the rope. He just wrote it down. He didn't think he had to tell the officer to bag everything. Bill goes to leave, saying he's going home for Memorial Day weekend. Holden says they should be searching the river for a body. Bill says to do that and let him know what they find.

Holden watches the boats search. They haven't found anything and Jim says it would have floated by now unless he weighted it. Holden says there will be a body. Jim reminds Holden that only one guy heard the splash, but Holden points out that the other three were probably sleeping. Wayne Williams fits their profile. Jim asks what would have happened if everything were the same, except a white guy had gotten out of the car. Holden says Williams isn't white. Jim asks with everything else being equal, what's the tipping point for matching the profile. He thinks Williams is worth pursuing, especially since they got an answer at that number and no one named Cheryl or Johnson lived there. Cheryl Johnson doesn't exist. They need to catch him in the lie.

Bill asks Nancy if there's breakfast. She says there's cereal if he wants. It's a nice day, but Brian's not playing outside. Nancy says he plays in his room now. She tried to make him a playdate over the long weekend, but everyone claimed to be going out of town. He's ostracized. It's their fault for keeping him there, but Bill doesn't want to move because of some kids. Nancy says it's more than just the kids. It's the parents, talking about them behind their backs. Nancy asks how many times they've moved because of his work. They've moved several, but they've never moved because she asked. He says he's only home for a few days. He just wants to get some rest. He says he'll consider it, he promises. He just thinks what's best for Brian is what's familiar. Nancy tells Bill to rest because they're taking Brian to the YMCA later.

Holden and Jim go to see Williams. Holden notices the car has been cleaned. They ask Williams to come inside and talk and he lets them in. Williams says his mom will be home soon, so he'll appreciate them being brief. Holden says they want to give him the chance to clarify the statements he made last night. They tell him the number he gave belonged to a cosmetics company. He says he gets people calling him all the time, pranking him, so it's possible she doesn't exist. Jim says he was confident enough to drive to Smyrna at 3 AM. They ask him about his day leading up to him being stopped. He says he slept late, played some ball, then went home, which is when his mother said a woman had called. Holden was under the impression that he had taken the call himself, since he had told them that his 4s look like 9s sometimes. He says he copied it down from where his mother wrote it. It was around 4. He had dinner then went to pick up a check he was owed. Then he went to a lounge to hear some music. He didn't stay long, then went to look for the place in Smyrna, which is when he was stopped. They ask if he lives with his parents and he says he does. He puts all his money into his work. He shows them his flyers, recruiting young talent. Holden asks what he does with the talent once he recruits them. He says he has them record a demo. If they're good, he manages them. If they're not good, he doesn't do anything with them. He finds the talent all over. He doesn't make much money of it. He says it's a grind. Holden asks why he's looking for young children and he says that's where the money is. Holden asks for his current clients so they can speak to them. He says he's between acts. That's why he was out late last night scouting. He didn't find anything. Holden asks if he likes children. Williams asks how he means. Holden asks if he likes their company. He says he's never touched one of them, but Holden asks if he likes their company again. He says he sympathizes with the kids who went missing as he's not much older than some of them. Black kids are out there dying. He thinks they should be looking into the KKK. Holden tells him that killers like that rarely cross racial lines, serial killers. Holden says he believes the killer achieves sexual gratification from choking and dominating the victims. Holden asks him about his statement that he doesn't have a girlfriend, which he confirms. Williams asks Holden if he thinks they'll catch the killer. Holden does. Williams wishes them luck and then gets up. He points Holden to the restroom when asked. Instead of going to the bathroom, Holden opens the door on the other side, where there's a dog who immediately barks. Williams says he said on the left. Holden reminds him that he said he doesn't own a dog. He says the dog is his dad's. Holden goes into the bathroom.

Holden and Jim talk to the record shop owner Melvin Ware, who confirms that Williams picked up a check. He gets them the invoice. Melvin says that Williams olds auditions there, but laughs at the notion that he's in the music business. Williams says he's always in there with people who picked up. They ask if he has any of the Williams' demos, but he says he doesn't have any demos. Mostly, they sit and talk. He's seen him sit in there with a kid for an hour, just sitting and laughing. It's not his business how people use their time as long as they pay for it. It's $50/hour. Williams gets a little discount. He uses his daddy's money to pay for it. Melvin feels bad for his father, because it's not like he has a lot of money anyway. Holden asks if he has any of the names, but he doesn't. He says they're usually 14-15. He also says Williams is polite, pays his bills, and cleans up after himself. He's a little different, but he's not violent. He came in with a bunch of cuts on himself a few weeks ago, but claimed he fell into a bush. Melvin says he has to get back to work and they thank him for his time.

**Fulton County, Georgia**

The boats finally pull a body out of the river, half a mile away from the bridge where they pulled over Williams. It's the same place another body was found. The timeline of Williams' scratches matches when Terry Pue was missing. Terry was known as a tough kid, a fighter. He had lacerations on his body, as if there'd been a struggle. Jim shows him a sketch of the many Lubie Geter was seen talking to before he disappeared. It looks like Williams.

Bill talks to Brian about grilling as he works. The phone rings, so Nancy goes to answer it. Bill lets Brian try to flip a burger, but he drops it. Nancy comes bank and tells Bill that it's Holden on the phone. Bill goes inside.

Bill tells Holden it better be good. Holden tells him about finding the body. They're meeting with the DA to talk about surveillance and warrants for Wayne Williams. Bill asks if they have enough evidence for that and Holden says they do. He tells Bill about Williams' flyers. Holden's sure it's him. Bill says he's on his way. He hangs up the phone and tells Nancy they may have the guy. Nancy says he has to tell Brian he's leaving because she won't. Bill watches Brian flipping the hamburgers.

Jim talks to the DA about the most recent body. Holden says the carpet fibers on the body are green and there's green carpet at Williams' house. They don't know if it's a match. There's also dog hair on the victim, which Holden also saw in the car and there's a dog at Williams' home. DA Slaton says he also owns a dog. Holden then tells him about the rope. Slaton asks if it matches the wounds on any of the victims, but Holden has to tell him the rope wasn't collected. Slaton is shocked that they didn't collect any evidence, even with permission to search the car. Bill says they didn't have a body or enough cause to believe a crime had been committed at the time. Now they have a body they can't connect to the suspect or his car. They have a splash, heard by a probably sleeping recruit, that they can't connect to the body. The victim is Nathaniel Cater. He's 27, much older than most of the other victims. Slaton asks why they want warrants for a child killer based on an adult. Holden says Cater was an alcoholic and a hustler, so he'd be easy prey for an adult. Slaton says they have no physical connection between the deceased and the subject. He won't issue warrants based on that. Holden says Williams fits the profile. He was stopped for impersonating a police officer and had a police scanner in his car. Slaton reminds them of the last time he issued warrants for them, for the plumber. Holden admits they were wrong that time and Slaton agrees. Bill says all they want to do is 24-hour surveillance and wiretaps. Slaton says the last time they wiretapped a black man in Georgia, it was not well-received. Jim says Williams is no Martin Luther King, Jr. Holden says he's confident they'll find evidence to validate his decision if he will given them the warrants. Slaton agrees to consider it.

Bill watches as Holden types up what they have. Bill tells him not to include the rope, because if the judge sees that, he'll shoot it down even if Slaton approves it. Jim thinks they have a 50-50 shot of getting Slaton's approval, but Bill thinks it's more like 30-70. Holden is more hopeful, but Jim reminds them it's an election year. It's about public opinion as much as it is about evidence. Holden asks him to turn up the news, which is Camille Bell talking about the case. She's gone to DC to talk about the cases. Holden answers the phone. When he's done, he tells Jim and Bill that Slaton approved the warrants.

Holden and Bill sit outside Williams' house. An agent goes to Williams' car and puts a tracker on it. Then he opens the car gets in. A light goes on in the house, so Bill tells him someone's up, but he's dropped the thing he needs to place. He finds it and goes to place it as more lights go on in the house. The agent says he needs more time. Finally, the porch light goes on, so Bill tells him to get out. The agent sneaks out and back to their car. They can track him, but they can't listen to him. They watch as Homer Williams brings his dog into the yard.

Williams is handing out flyers on a corner. A kid takes one and runs off.

Bill and Holden watch from a distance and talk about Williams' history as an arson photographer for the Department of Public Safety. He might still have press credentials. Holden wants to see if he photographed any of their crime scenes. They watch Williams get back in his car and follow him. Holden tells the others to hang back because they can see him. He thinks six cars and a plane is overkill. They don't want to attract attention. Bill thinks Williams can't know they're watching him or he wouldn't be distributing flyers, but Holden says he has hubris. Other things don't match up. He has no absent father or domineering mother. Bill says he met an Irishman who only drank milk. They follow Williams around another corner. They see that the other cars are still following, so Holden again tells them to stay back. They get to a light that's almost red, but go through it so they don't lose him. He makes another turn, but they can't follow him for fear of being made. They find Williams again and park near him. Holden tells the others to stay off that block. They talk about Williams' motive. Holden still thinks it's sexual, despite no sexual violation. Holden reminds bill that BTK's victims also didn't have signs of sexual violence, yet they know he gets off on it. Maybe Williams is like that. Bill wonders if it's shame. He strangles them from behind so they don't see him. His parents are nurturing, but seem conservative. They might not be accepting of a gay son. What if he hates what he is so much that he takes it out on the kids. Holden doesn't think Williams hates himself at all. He thinks he's a narcissist who considers himself smarter than ever other person. William's pulls back out to the street and stops across from them. Then he gets out and brings them the bag of food he got. He says he thought they might be hungry. He gets back in his car and Bill opens the bag and starts to eat. He says he thinks they've been made.

They're still tracking Williams' movements. Holden tells Bill that Williams photographed one of the crime scenes. Holden thinks following him is a waste of time now that the knows they are. Bill says people under pressure make mistakes. A man, Tim, comes out of his house, upset because there's a car blocking his way and he's late for work. He knows it's Wayne's fault, because he's always up to something. He keeps his neighbors up. He's spoiled rotten. He kept Tim up burning garbage at 5 AM Thursday morning. Tim asks Holden again to move the car so he can leave.

Slaton tells Holden and Bill that they don't know what he was burning and he'll never physical evidence to get a warrant. Bill says if they wait any longer, the physical evidence will go up in smoke. Holden wants to search for fibers and question Williams. If they bring him in, Holden is confident he'll talk to them. If he doesn't, they'll take him out the back. Holden understands the pressure he's under from the mayor to end it.

Jim is guiding the agents collecting evidence. They're towing the car and getting samples from inside the house, especially the green carpet. Jim goes inside and finds the carpet's not green anymore. He goes back outside and says he wants hair from the dog. They find a tiny patch of the green carpet in a room.

The car is taken apart and evidence is collected.

Williams himself is strip-searched as Holden and Bill watch through a window. Jim comes in and tells them about the carpet. The won't know anything until the labs come back. Bill says the process has rattled Williams some, but Holden says he's still very arrogant. He declined a lawyer and consented to a polygraph. Jim shows them the book "How to Beat a Lie Detector," which was found at his home. Bill tells him to find one called How to Abduct and Kill Young Boys," and they can all go home. He asks if Holden's ready to go in. They leave and enter the room with Williams.

Commissioner Brown and DA Slaton watch through the window as the interview starts. Holden turns on the tape recorder and asks about May 21st. He wants to know what Williams did before the bridge. He says he already told them twice. Holden points out inconsistencies in his story. After he was pulled over, he went home. Holden questions why he didn't continue to look for Cheryl Johnson. He says being questioned by the feds spooked him. They ask him about burning things that night. They continue to question him about his car and the things he has that make it seem like he's pretending to be law enforcement. He says he doesn't do that, but a cop might. He asks if they're looking into cops. They say they have a witness who saw one of the victims get into a car like his on the day he disappeared. The description of the man matches the man who was talking to Lubie Geter the day he disappeared. Bill shows him the sketch, which looks like him. Holden asks him about Patrick Rogers, who wanted to make it as a singer. Williams denies knowing him. He says he meets kids every day. That doesn't mean he killed anyone. Holden questions him about going to the other places kids disappeared from. Williams says the bottom line is that no one's seen him hurt anyone because he hasn't. He asks how they knew Nathaniel Cater. They show him pictures and say he was found just downstream from where he was stopped. The pictures don't disturb him, which they question. He says he's only 5'7", so how would he kill a grown man, drag him out of his car, and throw him off a bridge. Holden says Cater was intoxicated at the time. It's easier to kill a drunk man. Bill says the report shows strangulation without vertebral damage, so the killer probably wasn't very strong. They ask if he panicked while strangling Cater. Williams says he didn't kill Cater. Bill says Cater hustled at some gay clubs and asks if Cater was his boyfriend. Williams says he's not gay. Bill says a child talent scout with no money who makes no music sounds like a pedophile to him. Holden asks him about May 11th. He says he doesn't know where he was. He says he was probably at home alone. He asks about other dates. William can't give concrete answers. Holden tells him about the samples they took and sent to the lab. Holden continues to ask about other dates. Williams says if they believed he murdered all the kids, they needed to prove it or he'll be going home.

Slaton is upset that they can't tie him to any of the victims. He says it won't fly. Holden says he doesn't have a single alibi for any of the 28 dates, but Slaton says that's still not enough. He's facing pressure. The polygraph was inconclusive. Holden says he flatlined three times, which indicates deception. He didn't react differently to anything. Only sociopaths do that.

Williams is let out the back door. The commissioner makes an announcement that they still don't have a suspect and they won't release the name of the person they questioned. Williams watches from a distance. Holden walks toward Williams, but his father calls him to get in the car, so he leaves before Holden reaches him. Holden watches them drive away.

Holden gets up to a knock at the door. It's Tanya bringing him his paper. He opens it to find that the paper printed Williams' name and address. Someone leaked it. Tanya asks if it's him. Holden says he believes it is, but Tanya says he doesn't look like he could hurt anyone. Holden says he fits the profile. Tanya asks what that means. Holden explains that they were looking for a young black man. Tanya says that's who the cops look for for every crime. Holden says it's more complicated. She asks if they investigated the people who called to say where to find bodies. She's upset that he didn't look closer into those men. Holden tries to say again that he fits. She wants to know why they didn't arrest him then, because having his name in the paper will ruin his life. Holden says there's procedure. He isn't saying that Williams did all 29, but he definitely did some. Tanya is still upset with him. He invites her inside to talk about it, but she doesn't want to. She congratulates him. They came there to find a brother who fit the bill and they found one.

Holden reminds Bill that the press got the plumber's name, too, but Bill reminds him that the press didn't then call him the Atlanta Monster. Someone leaked it for a reason. It'll make Williams sweat. There are cars along both sides of the street outside Williams' house. They go up to Jim, who says he's peeked out a few times to count the cameras. The tip lines have been flooded with people who have seen Williams. They all have something to tell as long as they're in line for a reward, but there's one guy who may be worth their time. Williams suddenly comes out of his house and starts handing out copies of his resumé. He invites the press in on the condition that no one will show his face. Holden, Jim, and Bill leave quickly.

Holden, Jim, and bill watch Williams talk to a reporter on the screens. He says he just wants to be left around and believes he was arrested because they didn't want to arrest a white man. He claims the FBI has been threatening him. He says he doesn't know any of the victims. When asked if he wants to say something to the families of the victims, he says some of the kids are in places where they have no business being and that opens them up to all kinds of bad things. He says he voluntarily took a polygraph and it was inconclusive. Bill wonders what kind of suspect has a press conference with no lawyer and no preparation. Holden says someone who's certain he'll never be caught. Bill says it could be someone who's pissed at being wrong accused. He wants to go talk to the one potential witness.

Jim, Holden, and Bill talk to Wade Marcus, who says he plays ball with Williams and they sometimes do music on the side. He asks if he gets the reward if they use what he says. They suggest talking for a bit before seeing if they need to call the mayor. Wade then says Williams is not always like they see him. You never know which side of him you'll get. He can get angry sometimes. When someone came around collecting donations to find the missing kids, Williams told Wade not to waste his money because the dead kids were nothing but a bunch of prostitutes. He acted like it was good thing that they were dead, because they were drop shots and gave them all a bad name.

Bill and Holden discuss Wade's role in their case. He could give them a motive, like Williams is cleaning up the street. Holden says it might be personal. His parents had him late in life and gave him everything to succeed. He starts off nicely, doing well in school, but then everything dries up and he drops out of college. He doesn't reach his full potential. He thinks it's because he's seen as just another black kid and takes it out on poor black kids. He's trying to regain control, like other serial killers. He's ashamed of his failure to succeed rather than his sexuality. That's why he talks himself up and exaggerates about his success. It might be why he kills. Bill says it fits his narcissist theory, but even if Wade is telling the truth, there's nothing material there, no evidence and they won't get an arrest warrant based on that. Holden says that now that Williams is out there, he'll be constantly watched, so he won't be able to take another victim. Bill asks if Holden's disappointed about that and then says he's going to the bar to get a drink and asks if he's coming. Holden says he is. As Bill goes to leave, he sees something on the TV that stops him. Director Webster is talking about the FBI's work in Atlanta. The interviewer asks for specifics because the press has been told there's no actual suspects in the case. Webster says he's confident an arrest is imminent. He's putting them on a deadline.

Bill calls home and gets no answer. He tries again and again gets no answer, so he hangs up the phone.

Holden and Bill go back to Williams' house. He hasn't come out yet today, but his father came out and took pictures of the reporters. They talk about Webster's interview and Jim tells them the carpet from Williams' bedroom matches 14 of the victims and the dog hair matches five. Bill says it's a shame the DA doesn't like scientific mumbo jumbo. The reporters flock to Williams when he comes outside. Williams ignores them, getting in his car and driving away. A cop car immediately follows him. Holden and Bill also get in the car to follow. Jim calls another cop over and tells him to the call the station if Williams' father leaves the house.

Holden and Bill know that Williams enjoys the attention of having everyone following him. It's a waste of time that gets them no closer to an arrest. Williams also knows it's a waste of time. The motorcade continues to follow him. When he pulls over, all the other cars stop as well and the reporters get out. Williams starts to honk his horn and call out to the mayor, telling him to come look at the mess he made. Holden and Bill watch and comment that he has a funny way of demanding less attention. The mayor steps out onto the porch as William calls him out for what he did. The mayor goes back inside and Williams asks if he's going to call the police, because they're already there. Williams yells for him to come back out and look at what he's done.

Jim gets a call on the radio telling him that Williams' father, Homer, has left the house. Jim starts to follow him.

Jim has followed Homer to a private charter plane service. He watches Homer get back into his car after being inside.

After he's gone, Jim goes inside and asks what the man before him wanted. They say he was asking about charters to South America. He didn't purchase anything, but he did say they might be seeing him again soon. Jim thanks them.

Bill and Holden talk about their past subjects and how they acted and Bill says Williams has no self-preservation instinct, the way he's acting. Holden says it's his one chance to get the attention he feels he deserves. Whenever it starts to die down, he finds a way to get the attention back on him.

Jim finds them and they tell him about Williams going to the mayor's house. Jim says it was a diversion and tells them about the charter plane. Bill tells him to call Slaton. They can't give more evidence, but their main suspect is now a flight risk. Bill and Holden realize Williams' actions were strategic.

The press and FBI are gathered outside Williams' house. Bill says if they don't take flight risk as probable cause, they'll all be sitting there until the next body drops. Just then, two cop cars arrive. They go inside and arrest Williams. The press rushes to follow them. Holden, Jim, and Bill are confused.

Gunn tells them the DA was persuaded to change his mind and issue a warrant when Justice convinced him they could get a conviction based on the fibers matching. Slaton agreed to charge him with two of the murders, as long as his guys got to make the arrest. Bill says they don't care who hauls him in. Holden asks which two he's been charged with and Gunn says Cater and Payne. Holden notices that both of those are adults. He's not getting nailed for any of the children. Gunn says they'll charge him with any they think they can get convictions on. The important thing is that he's off the streets.

The mayor speaks to the press about Williams' arrest. He hopes the city can finally start to heal.

Bill tells Jim there's still a lot to clean up. Jim asks Holden about the kid he talked to that mentioned a house near the stadium. Jim had a recruit look through three years of convictions and look for red flags. They found a 63-year old black man. They got complaints of boys being given drugs and spending the night. There's no connection between him and the house in Lakewood, the white man. Jim says the recruit was on the call to the Lakewood house and swears there were black children among the polaroids, despite the evidence showing only white males. The recruit also said they pulled thousands of polaroids and only 300 to 400 were logged into evidence. Bill asks if the recruit would go on record with the DA. Jim says he doesn't want his name used. He's just given them something to look into. Holden says two of their kids went to the Lakewood outs and they have an unverified account of kids doing to a "stadium house". Bill says now that he has the manpower, he should start with those two houses and question the neighbors. Something will shake loose. Bill tells him to do it quietly. Jim says someone from Atlanta Police Department should have known to look into those guys all along.

Holden finds the mothers. Camille asks if he came to be congratulated. He says he came to say goodbye for now. He says he'll be back. The FBI is still working the cases. Camille says her son has been dead 20 months now. Everything he could have been is gone now and he's saying it's on account of Wayne Williams. Holden says yes. Camille asks why he hasn't been arrested for that or charged in the deaths of any of their babies. Holden says more charges will be filed, but Camille asks if it's because he's not sure Williams did it. Holden says he's not saying Williams did all 29 murders, but they have enough now to tie him to two. Given time, he's confident they'll be able to charge him with more. They have agents all over working the case. Camille wonders what will happen when they decide one scapegoat is enough. What will they be left with. Holden says they're not leaving and Williams will spend the rest of his life in prison. Camille says it won't be for Yusef's death or for the other boys. She says she knows in her bones that Wayne Williams didn't kill her son. They found themselves a black man, but he might just be the 30th victim. Holden promises her that's not true. She tells him to be careful about making promises. She points to the TV, where the mayor is speaking, and says it's a victory lap. It's supposed to be taken at the end of the race. Holden apologizes for interrupting and says he'll see them soon.

Holden and Bill arrive at their chartered flight. Webster's pleased with what they've done. They've closed the highest-profile case in the country. They're downgrading the case to pending inactive, which Holden dislikes. Gunn says they'll keep a few agents there for trial support and cataloging evidence. Holden asks what about the kids, but Gunn says it's up to the DA which cases get tied to Williams. The important thing is that from now on, they'll be first in. Atlanta has changed everything. He gets on the plane. Bill says they've done their jobs and have no control over anything else. He tells Holden to take a victory lap.

Wendy puts on a record. Then she finds the magazine Kay read the quiz out of. She throws it away.

Bill goes home and finds his house empty except for the couch Nancy said wasn't worth moving and Bill's things.

Holden is eating dinner. He goes to the sink to treat a stain on his shirt as the TV shows a report from the commissioner saying they're suspending all investigation in Atlanta due to Williams' arrest. He also says he'll only be charged with two murders for now. The children's cases will be handed to local police departments. They may not have enough to convict, but they have enough to close.

**As of 2019, none of the remaining 27 cases have been prosecuted**

**Junction City, Kansas**

In a motel room, the ADT serviceman is wearing a woman's slip. He puts on his mask and kneels near where he has a collection of things taken from victims and pictures of the murders. He puts a rope around his neck and leans into it to choke himself.

## Cast

* Holden Ford
* Bill Tench
* Wendy Carr
* Jim Barney
* Nancy Tench
* Tanya Clifton
* Ted Gunn
* Camille Bell
* Wayne Williams
* Recruit #2
* Recruit
* Melvin Ware
* Brian Tench
* DA Slaton
* Agent
* Homer Williams
* Tim
* Faye Williams (right)
* Larry Peterson (left)
* Commissioner Lee Brown (right
* Journalist #1
* Journalist #2
* Journalist #3
* Wade Marcus
* Recruit Matt
* William H. Webster
* Charles Reynolds
* News Anchor #5
* Mayor Maynard Jackson
* Sales Agent #1
* Sales Agent #2
* Morris Redding (fourth from right)
* Beverly Belt (right)
* Willie Mae Mathis (right)
* News Anchor #2 (left)
* ADT Serviceman Dennis Rader
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### Main Cast

* Jonathan Groff as Holden Ford
* Holt McCallany as Bill Tench
* Anna Torv as Dr. Wendy Carr
* Albert Jones as Jim Barney
* Stacey Roca as Nancy Tench
* Sierra McClain as Tanya Clifton
* Michael Cerveris as Assistant Director Ted Gunn

### Also Starring

* June Carryl as Camille Bell
* Christopher Livingston as Wayne Williams

### Other Cast

* Shane McNair as Recruit #2
* Darrin Giossi as Recruit
* Euseph Messiah as Melvin Ware
* Zachary Scott Ross as Brian Tench
* Beau Baxter as DA Slaton
* Nick Choksi as Agent
* Myles Cranford as Homer Williams
* Alton Fitzgerald White as Tim
* Rita Gregory as Faye Williams
* Trey Teufel as Larry Peterson
* Dohn Norwood as Commissioner Lee Brown
* Allie McCulloch as Journalist #1
* Andy S. Allen as Journalist #2
* Brian Byers as Journalist #3
* Rich Morrow as Wade Marcus
* Matt Ruffo as Recruit Matt
* Sean Cullen as Director Webster
* Circus-Szalewski as Charles Reynolds
* Logan Crawford as News Anchor #5
* Regi Davis as Mayor Jackson
* Amaris Davidson as Sales Agent #1
* Emily Berry as Sales Agent #2
* Gareth Williams as Chief Redding
* Siovhan Christensen as Beverly Belt
* Crystal Lee Brown as Willie Mae Mathis
* Mark Pettit as News Anchor #2
* Ashlee Payne as Journalist #4 (voice only)
* Sonny Valicenti as ADT Serviceman

## Cases

### Atlanta Child Murders

After stopping Wayne, they searched the river nearby for anything that looked like a body. They also questioned Wayne about why he was out that late. They found a rope and dog hair in the car, which he said was his uncle's, but the recruit failed to collect samples as evidence. They were forced to let him go when they told the case agent that they didn't have a body. They went to talk to Wayne about the number he gave them for the woman he was allegedly meeting, which they found belong to a cosmetics company. They asked him about his day leading up to being pulled over and he showed them flyers he uses to recruit young talent. They also found a dog in the house, despite his claim that he didn't own one. He said that the dog was his father's. They talked to the owner of the recording studio where Wayne would take the kids he found and learned that he never recorded demos there. He would just sit and talk with the kids. They also learned that he'd recently come in with scratches and the timeline matched when Terry Pue, who was known as a fighter and looked like he'd been in a struggle, died. They found the body downstream from the bridge. He'd been dead a couple days, but had dog hairs and carpet fibers on him that matched. They went to get warrants to search his house, but were denied. However, shortly afterward, they got permission to put a recording device in Wayne's car. They got a GPS tracker on, but not the recording device, before his father came out to walk the dog. Bill and Holden followed Wayne around, but so did several other cars, despite Holden telling them to hang back. They learned Wayne had seen them when he came up to the car to give them food. They talked to a neighbor about Wayne's life and his neighbor revealed that he'd burned stuff in his backyard after being pulled over. They asked for a warrant to search his house and bring him in to talk. They searched his house and found a small amount of green carpet in his room. They took samples for comparison. They also found a book on beating a lie detector. They brought in Wayne and strip-searched him. They asked him again what he'd done the day leading up to being pulled over. His story differed from the story he gave the night he was pulled over. They also noted that he used to have a car that looked like a police car. He also had a police scanner, which he claimed was for crime scene photography. They asked him about the murders and he denied any involvement. His polygraph was considered inconclusive, so they were forced to let him go. Despite their attempts to keep it quiet, the press got Wayne's name and address and published it. Wayne's house was surrounded by press and police. Wayne came out and used the opportunity to hand out his resume and invite them in to talk to him on the condition they didn't show his face. A lead came in in the form of Wade Marcus, who played basketball with Wayne. He said that Wayne sometimes would get angry. Like when someone came around collecting donations for the families, Wayne acted like the kids dying was a good thing. They figured out that he was probably killing the boys because he couldn't escape the image of being a black man. However, with him being watched, he wouldn't be able to snatch another kid. Webber then went on television and told press that arrest was imminent. The labs revealed that the carpet fibers from his house and the dog hairs matched some of the victims. When Wayne left his house, the cars followed him, but Jim had a hunch and asked someone to watch for Wayne's father to leave the house and notify him. The pack of cars followed Wayne to the mayor's house, where he made a scene yelling at the mayor. Meanwhile, Jim followed Wayne's father to a charter plane company, where he learned that he had inquired about private flights out of the country. Wayne was eventually arrested by Atlanta PD. They were charging him with two of the murders, two adults. After Wayne's arrest, Jim said he got a tip from a recruit that a child molester whose case file only had pictures of white children. The recruit was there when the collected evidence and said there were more photographs and there were photos of black children as well. They wanted to look more into that and follow the lead, but the investigation was completely closed and they were sent back to Virginia. An on-screen update notes that as of 2019, none of the remaining 27 cases have been prosecuted.

## Music

 "Watching the Wheels"
 "Intruder"
 "Tainted Love"
 "Guilt"

## Notes and Trivia

* The flyer Williams hands Holden is riddled with grammar and punctuation errors.

## See Also

 **#02** | "Episode 2.2"
 **#03** | "Episode 2.3"