OPENING THEME

Luke goes on a a run around Manhattan as Trish Talk plays in the background.

TRISH: If you're just joining us, this is Trish Talk and we are discussing the recent events that have the residents of Harlem confused, and some even frightened. Line one. Sophia, you're on the air.

SOPHIA: Luke Cage is turning the neighborhood upside down and giving it a good shake. Trust me, no one wants to see what falls out.

TRISH: Are you suggesting we turn a blind eye to the problems in our city?

SOPHIA: No, but I seen the news.
The man is so strong, he doesn't have to answer to anybody. Can you trust a person like that? Let the police do their jobs. That's what I say.

TRISH: Some would argue the boys in blue don't exactly have a sterling reputation these days.

SOPHIA: Oh, yeah, missy? Well, the next time trouble comes banging at your door, maybe you should call Luke Cage instead of 911.

TRISH: You know what, Sophia? I just might. Uh, let's take another caller. Line two. Hi, Amir.

AMIR: Hey, Trish, I want to respond to that lady 'cause she's got it all wrong. I know Luke. He comes into the fish fry. Always treats my wife and me with respect. Last week, two kids started a fight, Luke took care of it and nobody got hurt.

TRISH: I think it's noteworthy that the only people I've spoken to that criticize are the ones who don't know him personally. So many others have merely read about him or saw him on the news and jumped to conclusions.

AMIR: Trish, Luke is good people and he belongs right here in Harlem.

TRISH: And I think it's important for all of us to realize something. We are witnessing a massive shift in the boundaries of possibility. But what is scary to some inspires hope in others. I, for one, would like to thank Luke Cage for all the work he's doing in Harlem. Those of us below 110th see the good work he's doing and we hope he's doing well.

THE WATERFRONT

Cottonmouth, sans minions, meets Scarfe.

COTTONMOUTH: I never thought I'd be happy to see your ugly face.

SCARFE: Well, we all can't be as pretty as you.

COTTONMOUTH: Ain't that the truth. You got the goods?

SCARFE: You know me. I always come correct. It's all piled up in there, just waiting for you.

COTTONMOUTH: So we're squared up?

SCARFE: Mmm, nah. We ain't square. We a few zeroes off. About $100,000 worth.

COTTONMOUTH: I'm not givin' you another dime.

SCARFE: Good. I don't need another dime. I need $100,000. No cash, no guns. No guns, no Domingo. The ghetto CNN is workin' overtime. If you don't make it straight with Domingo, you're done. Plus I got all your cash in lockup. Oops.

COTTONMOUTH: Think about how you want to spend the rest of your life, Detective.

SCARFE: Shit! Man, your juice is water since Luke Cage punked your peacock ass.

Cottonmouth punches Scarfe in the face. Scarfe tries to take out his gun, but Cottonmouth forces it out of his hand and shoots him in the gut.

SCARFE: You shot a cop!

A MAN ACROSS THE RIVER: Hey, what's goin' on over there? Hey, man, you all right?

COTTONMOUTH: When I catch you, I'm gonna use my hands, bitch.

Cottonmouth gets in his car and drives away.

IN FRONT OF MARIAH'S BROWNSTONE

Mariah is recording something for television.

MARIAH: I believe in Harlem. You know, my Harlem is saturated with jazz, and good food, and the pure genius that permeates the streets. Harlem is risin' like a phoenix out of the ashes. I mean, that's what all of my various complexes is about, is restoring that luster.

Luke Cage approaches Mariah from across the street.

CAMERAMAN: Fantastic. Uh, you mind if we go in now, Madam Councilwoman? The crew needs to set up for later.

MARIAH: Yeah, of course, of course.
Go on.

LUKE: Your new VH1 show? "Criminal Spinsters?

MARIAH: Who you callin' a spinster? I'd wear your narrow ass out. What's this about?

LUKE: Your cousin. I'm shutting him down. You, too.

MARIAH: Are you threatening me?

LUKE: Never that.

Luke puts his hood up and walks away. The cameramen return.

MARIAH: Ah! Come on. Let's go inside.

SOLEDAD'S DINER

LUKE: I ain't no barber, Bobby.

FISH: Neither am I, Luke. But we both agree that Harlem is a better place with the shop open.

LUKE: As soon as I put Cottonmouth in handcuffs, I'm ghost.

FISH: You could make a career out of robbing bad guys. Huh!

LUKE: That would be the perfect grind, wouldn't it?

FISH: You ever think about playing for the Giants? You could make that squad easy.

LUKE: Being hood famous is bad enough. I couldn't be in the public eye on that kind of level. Nah, man.

FISH: Wear a mask.

LUKE: What for? I ain't no hero.

FISH: That's a great slogan. "I ain't no hero. Pay me." You could market that shit.

COTTONMOUTH'S OFFICE

MARIAH: What do you mean you shot him, Cornell? Cornell! How could you be so stupid? You didn't have to shoot him.

COTTONMOUTH: And just let him stick me for a hundred large? Hell no. It wasn't like I went to the meeting strapped. It was his gun that busted off.

MARIAH: But you went there alone because you knew you were wrong. This is insane. If he lives, everything that you have built will come crashing down. And you are not dragging me down with you. You hearin' me?

COTTONMOUTH: My guys are pickin' up the guns right now. We'll hand them over to Domingo tonight.

MARIAH: I don't want the details. I just want results.

COTTONMOUTH: You want results? I don't work for you.

MARIAH: Okay, forget the cops. The cops are bad enough. What about Luke Cage?

COTTONMOUTH: Isn't your interview today? That's where your focus should be. Givin' off that Geoffrey Canada vibe, for real. That's where the money is.

MARIAH: Oh, forget the money, Cornell. Forget the club. Sell it! Walk away from all this shit. People are still talking about how tall you stood at Pop's memorial.

COTTONMOUTH: I'm proud of you, cousin. I really am. But I can take care of myself.

MARIAH: You need to take his ass out.

COTTONMOUTH: It ain't that easy. Cage is bulletproof. I've seen it myself. It's real.

MARIAH: Does the n***a have gills?

COTTONMOUTH: Excuse me?

MARIAH: Drown him. Can he burn? Can you poison him? What about a woman? You know he got one with his fine ass. You find his weakness and you squeeze.

COTTONMOUTH: You soundin' a lot like Mama Mabel. Don't worry about Cage. His days are numbered. I got something for him. That's my word.

THE STATIONHOUSE, PEREZ'S OFFICE

HIS OFFICE

COTTONMOUTH: My n***as loaded up the stash right before the cops arrived.

PEREZ (over the phone): What the hell happened?

COTTONMOUTH: Detective Scarfe tried to squeeze me for 100 grand. You put him up to that shit?

PEREZ: Hell no. Of course not. Let me, uh, let me speak to him. Where's he at?

COTTONMOUTH: Bleedin' and in the wind.

PEREZ (over the phone): You know what you just did, right? There's no easy way out of this, man.

COTTONMOUTH: Why do you think we're talking?

SOLEDAD'S DINER

Claire comes in and speaks to her mother by the door. Luke and Fish are still eating.

CLAIRE: This is why you need to learn how to text.

SOLEDAD: You always think the worst.

CLAIRE: What do you need, Mami?

SOLEDAD: Not me, you.

Soledad indicates Luke and Fish at their table. Claire heads over to them.

CLAIRE: Luke?

LUKE: Yes?

CLAIRE: Oh. You probably don't remember me, do you? Your girlfriend had me take care of you when you were brought into the hospital? In Hell's Kitchen?

LUKE: Hey. Hey.

FISH: Bobby. Bobby Fish.

CLAIRE: I'm sorry. Claire. Very nice to meet you.

FISH: Well, Claire, you you are far too beautiful to ever apologize for anything. You remember that.

Bobby lays down some money for his food and leaves.

CLAIRE: May I?

LUKE: Please...You didn't have to do what you did for me.

CLAIRE: Have you ever saved anyone's life before? More than once I'm betting.

LUKE: So?

CLAIRE: So, the only thing you can think about afterwards is if they're okay. That's all I wanted to know.

LUKE: Well I'm still here.

CLAIRE: How? That shotgun blast alone should've turned your brain into mush.

LUKE: So I'm a freak.

CLAIRE: No. You're amazing.

LUKE: I don't wanna be different than anybody else.

CLAIRE: Why hide it? I mean, what are you gonna do with it?

LUKE: I gotta go.

Luke leaves, and Claire gets up to leave too.

SOLEDAD: Text me later.

CLAIRE: Okay.

THE STATIONHOUSE

CAPTAIN: Listen up! I'm hearin' a lot of whispers and rumors concerning Detective Scarfe and what he might've been into. Kill that noise. We need him back alive. There was a trail of his blood at the scene. His car riddled with bullets. We don't know what the hell happened. Focus on that. I'm putting out an APB. We're closing streets, tunnels, puttin' up road blocks. Whatever it takes. But remember something. This belongs in our shop. No one else's. Now, there's already too many new faces here, far as I'm concerned. And there're only gonna be more. We need to be the ones to bring him home. Let's do it.

Misty drifts over to her photo wall.

PEREZ: How, uh how you holdin' up?

MISTY: I'd be doin' a lot better if people would stop starin' at me like I'm dirty.

CAPTAIN: What do you know, Detective? Scarfe must have told you something. There's evidence that guns from the junkyard shoot-out were in that warehouse.

MISTY: Stolen from our evidence locker?

PEREZ: Your partner is my top suspect.

MISTY: It doesn't mean Scarfe did it. He probably got a lead, and went to go and check it out.

CAPTAIN: Alone. Without pulling you in on a single detail. Are you sure you don't know where to find him?

MISTY: If I knew, I would tell you. So is that how we're playing this, Captain? Like Scarfe is a suspect and not a victim?

CAPTAIN: He could be both or either. We won't know until you guys bring him in.

MISTY: Us?

CAPTAIN: I need my best on this, Detective. That was you and Scarfe. Now I need you and Perez to find our boy.

MISTY: Yes, ma'am.

OUTSIDE THE BARBERSHOP

Luke and Claire are walking together.

LUKE: You can disappear. The whole point of livin' in New York, no one cares about anybody.

CLAIRE: A building fell on you. People are shooting at you. And you walk around without a scratch. Who's gonna ignore all that?...What's wrong?

LUKE: It's supposed to be locked. Bobby? Are you in here, man?

Luke notices a trail of blood and follows it into the back room. Scarfe is collapsed against the washing machine.

LUKE: Scarfe?

SCARFE: No cops. Not even Misty.

LUKE: Why me?

SCARFE: 'Cause you don't trust us.

CLAIRE: We need to get him to a hospital.

SCARFE: No, I can't go to the hospital. They'll kill me. Just like they did Chico. They found him, they'll find me.

CLAIRE: He's lost a lot of blood. Help me get him into the chair. Now.

close up of Claire cutting fabric away from Scarfe's wound. Luke places something at her side.

CLAIRE: Just right here, thank you.

LUKE: Bobby just bought these chairs. He's gonna be pissed.

SCARFE'S APARTMENT

Misty pictures Scarfe coming into his shappy, empty apartment and grabbing a beer. Cut back to reality: she and Perez are investigating the apartment.

PEREZ: You are a weirdo. People at the precinct talk about you like you are curandera or some shit. Like you see things.

MISTY: You remember Where's Waldo? That was me as a kid. And I could find Waldo faster than anybody. That's what a photograph does for me. A photograph freezes time. It allows you to look at things, slow down, think about what's out of place, and then fill in the blanks. That's how you find Waldo.

PEREZ: Maybe you should work for Kodak. That was deep.

MISTY: Whatever. His clothes are still here, right?

PEREZ: Yeah.

MISTY: So, if he wasn't taken, there's a chance he might come back. We should stake it out for a while.

PEREZ: Never would have thought Scarfe would be cute as a kid.

MISTY: That's not Scarfe. That's his son, Earl.

PEREZ: Never knew he had a kid.

MISTY: Earl's dead. Scarfe forgot to lock up his gun one night. Earl found it and accidentally shot himself...Scarfe cracks a lot of jokes, but he rarely smiles. There's a difference.

MARIAH'S BROWNSTONE

Mariah is nervous, getting ready for her interview. She accidentally jostles a photo of Mama Mabel.

MARIAH: Oh! Shut it! Dusty old bitch.

She gathers herself and goes back to putting on her lip gloss.

THE BARBERSHOP

CLAIRE: Okay. I can remove the bullet from his thigh but the shot in his side is worse. If the bullet pierced his liver, he's gonna have internal bleeding, and I can't do anything about that here.


LUKE (to Scarfe): Give me one good reason I shouldn't dump you at the 29th.

SCARFE: I told you, man. They're trying to kill me.

CLAIRE: No, no, no. Don't move. Don't get up. Stay right here. Hold.

SCARFE: Who the hell is this?

CLAIRE: I'm the woman trying to save your life.

SCARFE: Thank you, whatever.

Claire holds a lighter over a pair of tweezers and gets ready to take the bullet out of Scarfe's thigh.

CLAIRE: Well, this is gonna sting a lot.


SCARFE: Ah! God! I think I'm gonna have to stay, lay low here for a little while.

LUKE: No. Not until you tell me what's goin' on.

Claire is still rooting around in Scarfe's thigh.

SCARFE: I can't tell you anything right now.

Claire finally gets it out.

SCARFE: Okay. It was Cottonmouth. He was behind everything.

LUKE: So you've been working for him the whole time?

SCARFE: Yeah. I got his guns out of lockup for him, and then he turns around and tries to kill me. Go figure.

LUKE: What makes you think I can protect you?

SCARFE: You survived a drive-by and a building fallin' on your head. I'd say you're overqualified.

LUKE: You mentioned Chico before you passed out. What happened to Chico?

SCARFE: I told you. They killed him.Don't lie to me. Not now.

SCARFE: Okay...I killed him.

Luke grabs Scarfe by the throat and starts to squeeze.

CLAIRE Luke. Don't. Please. You're not a killer, are you?

Luke reluctantly lets go.

LUKE: We're done. Let's go.

SCARFE: Hey, Cage! Cage! Wait! I'm an asshole! There's no disputing that. I am a despicable human being. But Cottonmouth is a hell of a lot worse! And I have got what it takes to put him behind bars for the rest of his life!

LUKE: What did you say?

SCARFE: I can take him down.

LUKE: What do you have? [

SCARFE: Notes. Detailed notes of murder investigations I covered up to save his ass. How he uses Spurlock's Mortuary to dispose of the bodies. Why do you think you never found Tone? Or Chico? Plus I've got the name of every cop on Cottonmouth's payroll. That ought to be plenty to send him on a nice permanent trip.

LUKE: Where are these notes? Tell me. Now.

SCARFE: My apartment.

Luke zips up his hoodie and takes to the street.

MARIAH'S BROWNSTONE

MARIAH: Alex, no one goes in the back. And make sure these people don't scuff up my floors.

ALEX: They will stay immaculate, Madam Councilwoman.

THEMBI: So, since this will be a live interview, we'll try to keep things spontaneous. But are there any topics you want to focus on?

MARIAH: Well, Harlem. How to shape it, how to elevate it, and...how my complexes will help

THEMBI: Boring. We've heard that speech from you a million times and a half.

MARIAH: I told you I do not want a fluff piece.

THEMBIE: Not fluff, fun. There's a difference. Remember when Obama sang Al Green?

MARIAH: You wanna watch me whip and nae nae, Thembi?

OUTSIDE SCARFE'S APARTMENT

Perez is sending text after text.

MISTY: You're a popular man.

PEREZ: Oh, uh the ex-wife. Took all my money and she still needs the dick.

MISTY: Glad to see chivalry isn't dead.

PEREZ: Look, look, look, Scarfe's not comin'. He's not gonna show up just to get arrested.

Two people outside Scarfe's apartment get into a heated altercation.

MISTY: Look at these two...I think she's about to...

PEREZ: She's gonna knock him out.

MISTY: Maybe you should go arrest them.

Using the argument as a cover, Luke cage slips into Scarfe's building. He breaks the door handle and leaves it swinging open. He busts open the door to Scarfe's apartment in the same way.

MISTY: I don't know if you remember me ten years ago, when I first got bumped up off patrol?

PEREZ: Yeah. It didn't seem like you belonged. No offense.

MISTY: None taken. A lot of people wrote me off back then. But not Scarfe. He took me under his wing. He taught me how to police for real. I have no idea what he saw in me back then, but he has had my front and my back.

Luke makes his way through Scarfe's apartment, eventually finding the loose floorboards that hide his notes.

MISTY: If he's clean or not I wanna be the one to bring him in, ask him his side of the story. I owe him that much.

PEREZ: We're wasting our time. Let's go.

Misty notices the swinging door.

MISTY: Somebody's in there.

PEREZ: No, no way Scarfe got past us.

MISTY: Well, somebody did.

They rush up the stairs and get into the apartment just as Luke jumps out the window and lands with asphalt-shattering force in the alley below. Misty looks out the window in time to see him running away.

MISTY: Hey! Hey!

Misty and Perez leave the apartment and head back down the stairs.

THE BARBERSHOP

CLAIRE: Hey, hey, hey, don't fall asleep, okay? You need to stay conscious. We're gonna move soon.

Luke comes in the door. Claire has a weapon ready but lowers it when she sees who it is.

LUKE: The cops just saw me at Scarfe's place, they'll be headed here any minute.

SCARFE: Misty?

LUKE: Yeah it was her.

CLAIRE: He can't really walk.

LUKE: I'll carry him.

CLAIRE: Where?

LUKE: The only place this evidence makes a difference. I just need to get a car. I'll try and grab a cab.

CLAIRE: No, no, no, I have a better idea.

LUKE: Claire...

CLAIRE: Mami, ¿Cómo estás? I texted you. Did you get it? Our ride's here. Yeah. No, no, no, just come around the back. No. Around the back. Okay.

Luke picks Scarfe up and carries him to the back exit, where Soledad's catering van is waiting.

CLAIRE:Here's our ride.

LUKE: You gotta be kidding me.

Luke drops Scarfe in the back

SCARFE: Oh! Careful, man.

SOLEDAD (to Luke): The van is one thing. If my daughter gets scratched, I'll kill you. I don't care how bulletproof you are.

LUKE: She's safe with me. I promise.

CLAIRE: Can we drop you at home?

SOLEDAD: No, I'm fine.

CLAIRE: Muchas gracias, Mami.

SOLEDAD: De nada.

LUKE: You good?

CLAIRE: Yeah.

LUKE: I'll drive.

CLAIRE: Obviously.

They start driving. Scarfe seems to be getting worse.

CLAIRE: He really needs surgery. How far are we going?

LUKE: Downtown to One Police Plaza.

CLAIRE: Police headquarters?

LUKE: Yeah, I'm gonna hand him and the evidence over. The DA can take it from there. Get him round-the-clock protection until he can testify against Cottonmouth.

SCARFE: I'm dying back here. You're still thinking about Cottonmouth?

LUKE: Yeah, you should be, too. If he's got as many cops working for him as you say, he'll have them in the streets looking for us. Call an EMT you can trust to meet us there.

MARIAH'S BROWNSTONE

THEMBI: I want to remind the viewers that we're live. Call us using the number at the bottom of your screen. I know the councilwoman would love to answer your questions. Madam Councilwoman, your home is stunning.

MARIAH: Oh, thank you, Thembi. That's why people are paying millions of dollars for brownstones like this one on Convent Avenue. I mean, these buildings must be preserved and protected.

THEMBI: Let's talk politics. Let's talk Damon Boone.

MARIAH: Yes. That Stanford-educated carpetbagger has been saying things about my voting record, about campaign finance, that simply are not true. My complexes will do for black-owned real estate what Geoffrey Canada has done for education uptown. I'm just setting the record straight.

THE BARBERSHOP:

Perez and Misty are surveying the makeshift clinic.

PEREZ: Someone saw a green van parked around the back. We got partial plates.

MISTY: Well, let's hope we get a hit on it.

Perez's cell phone starts to ring.

MISTY: Otherwise, I'm not sure where else to look. And what in the hell is taking those damn unis so long to get here?

Perez waits for Misty to leave the shop before he answers the phone.

PEREZ: Yeah?...I get that. I get it, but we ran into a problem.

Cut to Cottonmouth on the phone in his office.

COTTONMOUTH: And what the hell was Luke Cage doing with Detective Scarfe? Do I need to remind you? If Scarfe talks, I ain't the only one going down, Lieutenant Perez. Half the department's coming with me. Find him!

Cottonmouth throws his cell against the wall.

ZIP (from the doorway): Where's Shades?

COTTONMOUTH: I don't know.

ZIP: Let me step up. What you need?

COTTONMOUTH: And how'd that work out last time?

ZIP: You got a choice?

COTTONMOUTH:Put the word out on the street. A hundred large for Detective Scarfe. I want him dead. Dead. Dead. Look for a green van. Plate's 69-somethin'.

ON THE ROAD

Some of Cottonmouth's people are out looking for the van.

DIONTEY: We're near the barber shop. We'll head that way. Bring him to you or Mr. Stokes?

ON A DIFFERENT ROAD

LUKE: Traffic sucks.

CLAIRE: There's a police checkpoint up ahead. Next couple of blocks, actually.

LUKE: Scarfe's people are looking for us. They're probably closing the whole island down. Bridges, tunnels...

SCARFE: That's the way I would've done it.

CLAIRE: Don't take 128.

LUKE: Which way?

CLAIRE: Make a sharp right...Hang on.

DIONTEY: Hold on. You seen that? Hold on, I think that was it...Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Zip I think I just saw the van.
And the name was right. What color did Cottonmouth say that van was, though? -

DRIVER: Blue.

DIONTEY: Green, n***a. Yo, I'm on them right now.

LUKE: Looks like we got company.

SCARFE: Is it a squad car?

LUKE: Black SUV. I'll slow down and see if he passes.

When Luke slows down the SUV drives up along side them and riders fire into the car. Luke turns down a side street.

DIONTEY: Back up! Move!

LUKE: Hold on back there!

DIONTEY: There he is! Stay on him!

Eventually Luke slides into an alley.

LUKE: Kill the lights.

However, Diontey and crew still see them.

DIONTEY: There he is!

They get out a bunch of guns and all empty their clips into the parked van.

DIONTEY: Light his ass up!

They open up the van only to find that Luke busted through the side of the van and into the adjacent building.

DIONTEY: Shit! I'm gonna circle around. You three, through the hole. Go, go, go!

A STAKEOUT

PEREZ: What are we doing? We should just head back to the precinct.

MISTY: No. If we hear something, I wanna be ready to go, not stuck behind some damn desk.

PEREZ:Can we at least go to Wendy's? I dig them Frostys, man.

MISTY: Your stomach can wait.

DISPATCH: 10-13 near Bowery. Repeat, shots fired near Bowery.

MISTY: That's right near One Police Plaza.

PEREZ: If they're running, why would they go down there?

MISTY: Maybe they're not running.

Misty turns on their siren; Perez turns it off.

MISTY: What the hell are you doing?

PEREZ: Why do you wanna rush down there?

MISTY: He might need my help.

PEREZ: Shots fired means he resisted arrest. They probably lit his ass up. If he's dirty or not, you don't want to see that. He's still your partner.

Misty answers her phone.

MISTY: Detective Knight.

PEREZ: What's going on?

MISTY: Yeah, I'm trying to head down there right now, but Perez is stopping me.

PEREZ: Who's that?

MISTY: Okay.

PEREZ: Why? Who is that?

MISTY: Okay. I'll do that. Yeah, I'm glad you're okay.

PEREZ: That was Scarfe, wasn't it? What'd he say?

MISTY: Not to trust you. That you're in on all of this.

PEREZ: What? Hell no! You can't believe that rat! He's lying. He's in Cottonmouth's pocket much deeper than I am. Bet...bet you didn't know that, hmm?

Misty holds up her phone and all reveals her recording app.

MISTY: No one was on the phone. Microphone check, five-o. She points her gun at Perez.

PEREZ:You're too smart for your own good. You know that?

MISTY: Yeah, I'd rather be a smart-ass than a dumb-ass. Now give me your gun.

Perez tries to overpower Misty and take her gun. They scuffle, and Perez manages to fire her gun out of the window, but Misty wins out.

MISTY: Uh-huh. Okay, okay. Okay, okay. Now cuff yourself, you piece of shit!

MARIAH'S BROWNSTONE

CAMERAMAN: Roll the video.

MARIAH'S VOICE (from earlier recording): You know, my Harlem is saturated with jazz, and good food, and the pure genius that permeates the streets. Harlem is risin' like a phoenix out of the ashes. I mean, that's what all of my various complexes is about, is restoring that luster.

MARIAH (now): This is great.

MARIAH'S VOICE: I believe in Harlem.

MARIAH (now): This is great. Thanks for taping that earlier. You said you wanted something different. This is it. I mean, you can you can see it all right there. And I don't just represent Harlem. I am Harlem.

CAMERAMAN: And we're live.

THEMBI: Which Harlem is you?

MARIAH: Pardon me?

THEMBI: There are actually two Harlems. The one shown to us in that video. Historic, hardworking and hopeful. But in this next video, we see an entirely different Harlem. A historically corrupt Harlem.

The video is of Mariah's family photos.

THEMBI: Your grandmother, the notorious Mabel Stokes, and her brother-in-law, Pistol Pete Stokes, shown here, were major players in it. The boy in that photo would grow up to be Cornell Stokes, aka Cottonmouth, a man whose name rings out in both legitimate and criminal circles.

MARIAH: Oh, that's a that's a personal photograph. You you really, uh, have no right to show that one.

THEMBI: Well, how about this one?

Video from a news report about the Crispus Attucks attack.

THEMBI: Somehow a brutal assault that took place at the Crispus Attucks Houses didn't make the news. Even stranger was the millions of dollars in cash found on the premises in your office. There's some people on the scene even describe a man who, under a barrage of gunfire, managed to beat down a number of criminals, some of whom may have worked for your family. So you can see how it might be difficult to decipher which Harlem you stand for.

MARIAH: Despite these unwarranted attacks on my character, I have always tried to make clear what I want which I can't say for you, Thembi. It's very clear what you and the rest of your media friends want. You want a story. Not the news. Not the truth. Just a story that you will do anything to sell. Shut it down! Stop. Alex!

THEMBI: Thank you for your time.

MARIAH: You get your ass out of my house.

A CONSTRUCTION SITE, UNDERGROUND

Claire and Luke are carrying Scarfe between them.

LUKE: How long before we get to police headquarters?

SCARFE: I think we're near city hall.
Ah, it's cold. Is it cold, or is it just me?

LUKE: We're close. They'll warm him when we get there.

Diontey and the rest catch up with them and begin firing. Luke blocks the way with his body as Claire and Scarfe keep going.

The gangsters struggle to reload as Luke turns and advances on them.

LUKE: Now you're just pissin' me off. My turn.

The gunfire continues as we cut to Claire and Scarfe.

CLAIRE: We're gonna go up, okay? Come on. One more step.

SCARFE: I'm so tired.

CLAIRE: How far is it to One Police Plaza?

SCARFE: I gotta...I gotta stop now.

CLAIRE: Yeah, we can stop as soon as we get there and we're safe.

SCARFE: I gotta see my son.

CLAIRE: You can see your son and anyone else you want to when we get there.

They emerge into an alley. A car advances on them with the intent to mow them down. Claire braces herself, but the car crashes against something else. She opens her eyes at the same time that Misty arrives on the scene. They both see that Luke Cage stopped the car, crumpling its whole front.

LUKE: You okay?

CLAIRE: Yeah.

LUKE: At least I kept one promise. No scratches on you.

Scarfe crumples to the ground. Misty rushes to his side.

CLAIRE: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold his head.Hold my hand. Look at me. Look at me. Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.

MISTY: Hey! Hey. Listen, Scarfe. Okay, you've...you've got a lot of explaining to do, okay? And you're not getting out of it.

SCARFE: You better...You better let me do the interrogation, partner. I'm better...I'm better at it.

MISTY: Oh, you're better at it? No, you're not.

SCARFE: I got rapport.

MISTY: Yeah, you got rapport.

SCARFE: I'm sorry.

MISTY: Rafe, no. Rafe, no. No. No, Rafe. No. No, Rafe, no. No, Rafe, please!

HARLEM'S PARADISE

Misty arrests Cottonmouth in his office.

MARIAH'S BROWNSTONE

Thembi and her cameraman are talking intently in Mariah's living room.

MARIAH: Get the rest of your shit and bugger off.

THEMBI: Councilwoman Dillard, can you comment on the arrest of your cousin, Cornell Stokes, at Harlem's Paradise tonight, on charges of police corruption, extortion and murder?

MARIAH: ...Alex!

THEMBI: Is it true that he's responsible for the murder of decorated Harlem police detective Rafael Scarfe?

ALEX: Thank you for your time!

Alex shepherds them out of the house. Mariah stands frozen.

THEMBI: Councilwoman, can we get a comment? Councilwoman, can we get just one comment? Councilwoman! Councilwoman!

The door closes on the crew.

MARIAH: Shit! Shit!

THE STREETS OF HARLEM

CLAIRE: You need to get some new clothes.

LUKE: I have some stuff back at the crib. This is beginning to become a habit.

CLAIRE: Swiss cheese shirt. Car bounces off of you. Punching through steel and concrete. Just another day, right?

LUKE: You're safe and your mom's van is insured. That's all that matters to me.

CLAIRE: After all that, you can't say you're not special.

LUKE: I'm still not sure what I am.

CLAIRE: You know exactly who you are. And what you need to do.

LUKE: Pop used to say the same thing you're saying to me. I did right by him. Cottonmouth's in jail and I'm done.

CLAIRE: You're moving on?

LUKE: I think so. It's time.

CLAIRE: There's things with your powers you haven't even tested. There's so many good things that you could still do. Maybe I could help.

LUKE: You have ideas?

CLAIRE: Yeah.

LUKE: Why don't we start by getting some coffee first?

CLAIRE: ...I'm not sleeping with you.

LUKE: Whoa! Did I say anything about that? Why can't coffee just be coffee, huh?

CLAIRE: Okay, you didn't even touch your coffee this morning. you drank the orange juice. Okay? You don't drink coffee.

THE STATIONHOUSE

Misty looks at a photo of Scarfe on her desk. In another room several white men and Captain Audrey are conferring. The Captain leaves and stands by Misty.

CAPTAIN: Cowards.

MISTY: What's going on?

CAPTAIN: They're afraid of the headlines. Police corruption. A crime boss who's related to a prominent city councilwoman. And the only person to tie it all together is a corrupt cop. A dead one at that.

MISTY: Then I'll be the one to tie it together.

CAPTAIN: You're on the wrong side of the glass for that, baby girl. First Fisk, then Cottonmouth. This is huge. But they're over there and we're right here.