Without a Trace (TV Series)

The Bus (2003)

Anthony LaPaglia: FBI MPU SSA Jack Malone

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Quotes 

• Jack Malone : Look, it'll be great. It'll be all the same kids as last year.

  Kate Malone : But I don't like all of them.

  Jack Malone : That's all right, sweetheart. You just play with the kids that you like and you ignore the other ones. Right, Hanna?

  Hanna Malone : Right.

  Jack Malone : Now, there's Mrs. Subble. She's gonna take you into the classroom. Okay?

  Kate Malone : You're not coming in with us?

  Jack Malone : No, sweetheart, I gotta go to work.

  Kate Malone : Will you pick us up later?

  Jack Malone : No. Mommy's gonna do that. But I'll be at dinner tonight, okay?

  Hanna Malone : If mom lets you.

  Jack Malone : I'll be there. I'm back, all right? It's not a day to day thing.

  Hanna Malone : Come on, Kate.

  Jack Malone : [offering a goodbye hug]  Hey, forgetting something?

  Hanna Malone : How about lunch money?

  Jack Malone : I know for a fact that your mother gave you lunch money, you little thief. Get in there.

• Vivian Johnson : Where are you?

  Jack Malone : Dropping the kids off at school. What's up?

  Vivian Johnson : A school bus went missing in Armonk.

  Jack Malone : A bus?

  Vivian Johnson : Uh-huh. It was headed to the high school, never made it. Nobody's seen it.

  Jack Malone : How many kids?

  Vivian Johnson : At least ten. We're headed over there now.

  Jack Malone : All right, I'm on my way.

• Jack Malone : Do we have an accurate head count?

  Samantha Spade : 13 kids, aged 12 to 16.

  Jack Malone : How many of them had cell phones?

  Samantha Spade : Eight, two BlackBerrys. All the parents tried to make contact. We're assuming the kidnappers confiscated them.

  Jack Malone : What about the bus driver?

  Samantha Spade : Bus driver Bernard Griffin, 42, African-American, divorced, no record. We're running a full background check, and I'm headed over to the bus barn.

  Jack Malone : Okay, I want you to take Martin with you.

  Samantha Spade : No, Jack, I can do this on my own.

  Jack Malone : Yes, I know. I want you take him anyway. And what else?

  Samantha Spade : Local PD and FD are forming search parties. We've got road blocks at every major artery and a dozen choppers in the air. We've also grounded all the other school buses in the county. If they're still on the road somewhere, we want to make sure they stand out.

  Jack Malone : You know what? It's been three hours since that bus has gone missing. They could be 200 miles away by now. I want you to contact the Defense Department, see if we can use their surveillance satellite, okay?

• Bob Carroll : You want to search my home?

  Jack Malone : Well, if your sons are involved in this somehow, we want to know what they were doing.

  Bob Carroll : My sons are not involved.

  Vivian Johnson : Then there's no harm is us searching their rooms.

  Bob Carroll : No. I think you should spend your time and your resources in a more effective way.

  Jack Malone : [he shuts the door in their faces]  Everybody's an expert.

  Vivian Johnson : I bet he's searching their rooms as we speak.

  Jack Malone : Yeah, I bet.

• Laura Randall : That's my daughter's shoe.

  Jack Malone : Are you sure?

  Laura Randall : Yes.

  Tech Agent : Then here's the only voice.

  [playing the file] 

  Tech Agent : The voice is too far away to isolate it.

  Vivian Johnson : Can we get rid of some of that echo?

  Tech Agent : Not with the way it was transmitted.

  Laura Randall : Can't we send her a message of some kind?

  Jack Malone : No, not without risking the phone ringing and giving her away.

• Jack Malone : Is your daughter a fighter?

  Laura Randall : Oh, since the day she was born.

  Jack Malone : Then the chances are she'll call us again when she can.

  Laura Randall : Can I wait here, then?

  Jack Malone : Sure, but you'll have to wait in the reception.

• Vivian Johnson : There are no bus seats.

  Jack Malone : I don't think they're on the bus anymore. The way they're all huddled together like that, they're in some kind of enclosed space.

• Jack Malone : [finding a custom-made first-person shooter on one of the boys' computers]  Have you seen this?

  Bob Carroll : No.

  Jack Malone : You get bonus points for killing teachers. And girls. Do you keep guns in the house?

  Bob Carroll : No.

  Jack Malone : What about your boys?

  Bob Carroll : No.

  Jack Malone : Would you even know?

  Bob Carroll : You probably ought to have more information before you go ahead and judge me.

  Jack Malone : We're running a trace on your phone right now. If you've had any conversations with your boys, you should tell me.

  Bob Carroll : They haven't done anything wrong.

  Jack Malone : You haven't answered my question.

• Jack Malone : They were suspended at the end of last year. What were they doing during the summer?

  Bob Carroll : I really don't know. They both went off to summer camp.

  Jack Malone : Any trouble there?

  Bob Carroll : Yeah. They went on a couple of panty raids. Is that a federal offense?

• Jack Malone : We've looked at your sons' e-mails. It would appear that they harbor some resentment toward you.

  Bob Carroll : Yeah. I know, it's terrible; me giving them everything they've asked for.

  [seeing Jack's look] 

  Bob Carroll : Well, what is your point? That they kidnapped their friends so they could get my attention?

  Jack Malone : They're also asking for $5 million.

  Bob Carroll : You know, you look around here all you want, but... you're way off base.

• Bob Carroll : So, they called yesterday afternoon. They said forget about the five million. It was just a ruse to distract you guys. What they really wanted was a million from me.

  Jack Malone : Why you?

  Bob Carroll : I don't know. Maybe they thought I could afford it, I could get it to them quickly. They said if I told you, they'd kill everybody. Yeah, I was just trying to do the right thing.

  Jack Malone : So, what, you decided to go there with half the money and bargain with them?

  Bob Carroll : I don't give a damn about the money. I was... I just wanted to get some of those kids out of there.

  Jack Malone : [sarcastic]  Yeah, it was a great plan.

  Bob Carroll : So, what the hell would you have done?

  Jack Malone : Well, considering that there were twelve kids' lives at risk, I would have consulted the FBI, who have some experience in this area.

  Bob Carroll : If your agents hadn't shot those men, maybe we'd have a chance of finding those kids.

  Jack Malone : If my agents hadn't shot those two men, you'd be dead. They saved your life.

  Bob Carroll : My life. My life isn't worth anything if you don't find my kids.

• Samantha Spade : Did you get anything out of Bob Carrol?

  Jack Malone : Not much. Pretty much back to square one.

  Samantha Spade : Okay, so where do you want me?

  Jack Malone : You know I'm gonna need to take your gun.

  Samantha Spade : [handing it over]  Yeah, I know. Want my badge and credentials, too?

  Jack Malone : Come on, you know it's just standard procedure.

  Samantha Spade : So, how long 'til we get this straightened out with OPR?

  Jack Malone : I'm not sure. But you did the right thing. You made the right choice.

  Samantha Spade : Yeah, I know. I know, that's why I wanna get this straightened out as soon as possible. I mean, when can I... when can I get back in the field?

  Jack Malone : Go home.

  Samantha Spade : Jack, I'm fine.

  Jack Malone : I'm not asking you.

  Samantha Spade : I'm fine. I'm just...

  Jack Malone : I'm not asking you. Go home.

• Jack Malone : Your son is lying to us. You've got to convince him to tell us the truth.

  Anne Atkins : I don't understand. If you have Ned and that other man, can't they tell you where the children are?

  Jack Malone : Those two men are dead.

  Anne Atkins : Oh, my god.

  Jack Malone : Now, there is a bunch of children trapped in a cargo truck with no air. They're gonna suffocate and die unless you convince your son to tell us the truth. Please.

• Jack Malone : All of these rooms have microphones, that are extremely sensitive. Extremely sensitive.

  [playing a tape recorder] 

  Anne Atkins : Hey, babe. I just want you to know I'm going to get you out of this okay?

  Johnny Atkins : You knew Ned was going to do it, didn't you?

  Anne Atkins : Johnny, you really think I'm capable of that? Don't you know me? Look, you just keep quiet and let me take care of this, okay? Say the words, Johnny. Promise me.

  Johnny Atkins : I promise.

  Anne Atkins : I'll be right back. I love you, sweetheart.

  Jack Malone : [stopping the tape]  He never said where the truck was. You did.

• Jack Malone : All right, Mrs. Atkins, let me swing it together for you. Here's what I think happened. Ned moves in, seduces you, convinces you to get involved in his kidnapping plan. Gets you to make the anonymous tip to the high school, the phone call, except it's an audio tape. Ned's voice.

  Anne Atkins : No. That was Carl's voice.

  Jack Malone : Oh, really.

  Anne Atkins : You just don't get it, do you?

  Jack Malone : Get what?

  Anne Atkins : What it's like in that town, with their cars, their houses, their pools, the way they look at you like you're beneath 'em. Why shouldn't I have what they have, huh? Why shouldn't my son?

  Jack Malone : Oh, you did this for your son. What you did was put your son through hell. You've made him lie for you from the beginning.

  Anne Atkins : He wouldn't have had to lie. If Ned had worn the mask, none of this would've happened!

  Jack Malone : Stay here, please.