🔴 Script 10:20 Arthur Hudson

 

Brief (Where we’re at):

In addition to leading the task force to the heart of his logistics/shipping empire, Red has now also led them to the heart of his intelligence network. In the process it has become clear, not only that the two are related ~ but that they are international in scope. Red has been dismantling this vast empire and handing it over to Cooper’s task force, at the same time as he has been making sure that the thousands of associates who have worked for him over they years will be well-provided for.

At the same time, the infatigable Congressman Arthur Hudson has pressured Ressler’s reluctant NA sponsee, Jonathan Pritchard, to place a wiretap on Ressler’s phone to prove his hunch that Raymond Reddington has been acting as a confidential informant to “task force 836.” Unfortunately, the tap captures the task force at the very moment when they are discussing the fact that Red is behind a network of bugs placed, not only inside the US government, but also within the governments of every major nation in the world. In fact, the wiretap has recorded Cooper wondering out loud whether the task force has been aiding and abetting Red in the very act of treason.

 
For S10 Episode 10:20 Arthur Hudson: 🎯 EW Recap ¤ 🌅 Photo Gallery ¤ 🎹 Music Videos ¤ 📒 Script link: https://wp.me/pDKwi-eDU [ “you are here” ]

 

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[ The office of Attorney General Stromberg. He is on the phone. In front of him are seated Congressman Arthur Hudson and Special Agent Jordan Nixon, who has been assisting Hudson with his investigation into the highly classified workings of FBI task force 836 ]
AG Stromberg: [ On phone ] Yeah, we’re on day eight of the fallout. For an incident no one’s supposed to be talking about, it seems to be all anyone is talking about with me. Mmm-hmm.
I have an 8:00 a.m. at the White House. POTUS and his damn progress reports. You know what, Walter, I already have an appointment in my office – even this early. Their hackles seemed raised. I’d better see to ’em.
[ He hangs up ]
AG Stromberg: Congressman Hudson, Agent Nixon, I wasn’t kidding about that meeting with the President this morning. The pair of you have 90 seconds of my time. Go.
Hudson: Well, sir, we’re here about an investigation I’ve been conducting into a clandestine bureau task force. What began as my initial look into what I thought was a misallocation of funds became a full-on scrutinization of what I presumed was rogue leadership–
AG Stromberg: Hudson, anyone ever tell you not to use four words when two will do?
Agent Jordan Nixon: Arthur brought to me what looked like a rogue task force. It’s gone deeper than that now.
[ AG Stromberg turns some pages in a binder ]
AG Stromberg: Task force 836. I’m aware of it. Something thrown together by one of my predecessors. Showed decent results over the years. Frankly, the whole thing seems generated above my pay grade.
Hudson: You’re the Attorney General.
AG Stromberg: Gentlemen, it isn’t rogue. It’s sanctioned by good ol’ Uncle Sam. Are we done here?
Hudson: Um– Did you know the criminal informant supplying intelligence to that task force is Raymond Reddington?
AG Stromberg: That’s classified information. You seem to know more than a congressman should, Mr. Hudson. Let me further educate you. The US government works with criminal informants all the time. Sometimes life is a little less Frank Capra than you seem to realize.
Hudson: How about we educate each other. That meeting you have with the President, would it have anything to do with the surveillance breach at the Capitol Building last week that the entire intelligence community is keeping under wraps?
AG Stromberg: Jesus, Hudson. ⋘⋙ Okay, go on–
[ Hudson hands AG Stromberg a manila envelope ]
Hudson: That’s a transcript of an authorized Justice Department wiretap of an agent on Task Force 836. I have the full recordings to back up all my findings.
Agent Nixon: I’ve heard them. They’re legit.
Hudson: Mmm-hmm. Right now CIA, NSA, pick your initials, all think we only found out about the breach at the Capitol because of 836 and their informant. But no one knows the whole story. General Stromberg, trust me, you really want to read this.
AG Stromberg: Go on.
Hudson, What about your meeting with the President?
AG Stromberg: The President can wait.

 
[ Miami, Florida ]
[ Heddie Hawkins, an associate of Red’s with a fondness for birds and a knack for accounting, is moving around some wicker bird cases in a storeroom. At first, she doesn’t notice Red ]
Heddie: Ah. Oh! [ Chuckles ] Raymond, you scared me to death!
Red: Spring cleaning?
Heddie: I’ve been meaning to air out this place and declutter it for years.
Red: I know the feeling – airing out and decluttering.
Heddie: So what are you doing here? I mean, you haven’t tapped me for much lately? You have something new for me?
Red: Heddie, it is still just the two birds you own, right?
Heddie: Oh, these? I– I collect them. They’re just for show, not for function.
Red: I’ve known a few people in my life you could say that about.
Heddie: So you didn’t answer my question. Why the visit?
Red: Well, funny enough, I was going through some boxes myself recently, seems spring is in the air for all of us, and I found something I’ve had for you for quite awhile.
[ Red holds out a brochure for a bird sanctuary ]
Heddie: [ Gasps ] The bird sanctuary in Costa Rica! I was the one who told you to go down there, remember?
Red: I do. I finally swung by during my time down in Guatemala and just loved the place, and I knew you did, too. And, so, I went ahead and I bought it.
Heddie: Okay, you did what now?
Red: Well, here’s the pickle though. I make it down there so rarely that, yesterday, I called an attorney I know in San José and had the deed transferred to your name. Congratulations. I think you’ll do wonders with it.
Heddie: Raymond – My God. No one’s ever done anything like that for me before. Raymond, thank you.
Red: Thank you, Heddie. For everything. You know what? I’ll give you a chance to repay me.
Hawkins: How could I ever?
Red: Buy me breakfast. There’s a place up the street that has the very best migas.
Heddie: And I love migas.
Red: I know that you do. [ Chuckles ]

 
[ The Post Office war room ]
Ressler: So just what the hell do we think Reddington’s up to.
Siya: Let’s step back. What’s the actual extent of what he’s given up?
Ressler: Well, so far, a shipping empire and most of his intelligence network.
Herbie: You know him best, Dembe.
Dembe: No one knows Raymond. Not really. I spent over 20 years by his side and never saw the full scope of his operation. He was always the central clearing house of it all, and the rest of us were compartmentalized.
Ressler: Well, he’s up to something. Reddington always has a card up his sleeve, and we can’t underestimate him.
Siya: He’s so streamlined now, who knows what he’s capable of?
Herbie: This is a fun game, you guys. It’s like throwing darts, in the dark, on a train going off a cliff. But I have a question, what does this mean for us?
Dembe: What do you mean?
Herbie: Well, for instance, is there still a Blacklist? And if not, is there still a task force? I mean, I just got here, you know? And I finally got my desk set up the way I like.
[ Herbie’s desk has a new electronic photo-frame that cycles through photos of his one-year-old daughter, Sue ]
Siya: Sadly, my status within the Bureau was just provisional, so I need to report back to MI6 if there’s nothing more for me to do here.
Herbie: Now Siya has to go home? This truly sucks.
[ Ressler’s cell phone chimes✨]
Ressler: I’m telling you, we need to be on high alert. This thing isn’t over yet. Not for us. Definitely not for Reddington.
[ Ressler has a voicemail; he steps aside ]
Herbie: Maybe we can find a way to keep the band together?
Siya: What do you suggest? Rent a van? Drive around solving crimes?
Herbie: I’ll be Fred if you’ll be Velma.
Dembe: Raymond told me never to repeat this, but – what if I happen to know where Jimmy Hoffa is buried?
Herbie: What?
⋘⋙
[ Ressler listens to the voicemail. It’s from Jill, wife of Jonathan Pritchard, the man he sponsors in Narcotics Anonymous ]
Jill (voice): Agent Ressler, uh, hello. You and I haven’t met, but my name is Jill. I’m Jonathan Pritchard’s wife. I got this number from Jon a few months ago. He told me to reach out to you in case of emergencies. I think this classifies as that. I haven’t seen or heard from him in over two days. I checked all our credit card statements, three ATM withdrawals and tabs at two different bars along K Street. All recent. I think this is really bad. Please, call me back at this number as soon as you can.
[ Ressler calls ] [ Line rings ••• •••• ]

 
[ Red is in his bath house apartment in New York. He sits across from a table from Mr Wallace Tine ]
Mr Tine: Right there, if you please.
[ Red signs some papers ]
Mr Tine: I’m amazed you have the county clerk records going back to 1910.
Red: Yes, and I discovered the building was briefly used as an infirmary during the Spanish Flu outbreak of 1918. It’s riveting stuff.
Mr Tine: The Conservation League of New York State thanks you, Mr. Homan. And just a reminder, we take ownership at the end of the month.
Red: Please make sure you treat her well, Mr. Tine. She’s a great piece of history. Can you find your way out?
Mr Tine: Absolutely. Thank you.
⋘⋙
[ Weecha walks over ]
Weecha: What was that all about?
Red: I wasn’t expecting you for another hour. I was securing a qualified custodian for this little gem of a building.
[ Red crawls onto the far side of the double bed and lays his head on one of the pillows ]
Weecha: Raymond – if you give this place up, where would you sleep?
[ Weecha sits and lies on her back alongside Red ]
Red: Oh, you know me. I can sleep anywhere, in a hammock, under a tree, in a cave that I’d share with a colony of bats. I’m off to chase the moon across the world. That’s why I asked you here. I want you to come with me – into the moonlight.
[ Weecha smiles ]
Weecha: Raymond, what are you doing? What is this all about?
Red: I guess it’s about life being a series of chapters, and this most recent one of mine maybe lasted a little longer than it ever should have.
[ Weecha turns on her side to face Red, propping her head on her hand ]
Weecha: Raymond – let’s say I go with you. How would we make that work? Hmm? We’re cut from the same cloth. We both understand each other. We both love each other. But we’re not going to change. We’d miss that pump of adrenaline, that feeling of peril. How many days before one of us gets restless and moves on?
Red: I don’t– I don’t have an answer to that.
Weecha: Maybe you should.
Red: Maybe it’s time we both entered a quieter, safer period in our lives.
Weecha: I have a job, working for Adolfo Santoro. Remember?
Red: It’s dangerous by his side.
Weecha: It’s just as dangerous by yours.
Red: Then I’ll make you a proposition.
Weecha: Raymond–
Red: I’m going to be at the jet later today. Meet me there. Edward and I will be wheels up at 4:00 p.m. You don’t have to make up your mind right now. But if you’re not there by 4:00, I’ll know your decision.

 
[ Harold Cooper’s office ] [ Knocking on door ✽ ✽ ✽ ] [ It’s Senator Cynthia Panabaker, formerly a high-ranking official in the Justice Department ]
Cooper: Cynthia, I didn’t know you were stopping by today.
Panabaker: Neither did I. We’ve both been summoned to the office of the Attorney General.
Cooper: Stromberg? When?
Panabaker: Now. This morning. I have a car out front for us.
Cooper: All right, let me, uh, tell the team I’ll be out for awhile.
Panabaker: Harold, I’ve learned to dread this question more than anything when I’m asking it to you. You have any idea what this is about? What are we walking into?
Cooper: Please close the door and sit down, Cynthia. We need to talk.

 
[ A motel ]
Desk Clerk: Mr. Pritchard’s room is just down here. Hey, if you’re here, and the FBI is looking for this dude– I should let my boss know, right?
Ressler: No, you should go back to doing your job and let me do mine.
[ The Desk Clerk lets Ressler into the room ] [ Lock beeps 🔅 and door unlocks ✽ ]
Ressler: Jon?

[ Sportscaster speaking indistinctly on TV ]

[ Door closes ✽ ] [ Ressler walks through the room: it’s a shambles: trash on the floor and empty bottles of beer and hard liquor. He walks out onto a veranda where he sees Jonathan Pritchard leaning back awkwardly on some steps ]
Ressler: Hey. Rough morning, Pritch?
Pritchard: [ Garbled ] I can’t get the bubbles to work.
Ressler: Yeah, it’s a damn shame.
[ Ressler helps him to his feet and together they climb the steps ]
Ressler: Come on. Watch your step. Watch your step.

 
[ Cooper’s office ]
Panabaker: Harold, this is insanity. The Capitol? I mean, I’d heard whispers around town like everyone else had this past week, some kind of data leak they were keeping under wraps.
Cooper: It’s a bit more complicated than that, I’m afraid. And it wasn’t just our government.
Panabaker: I cringe to ask. Who else?
Cooper: We have evidence of surveillance programs, wiretapping, bugging ops in major cities across Europe, Russia, Asia, the southern hemisphere. I could go on.
Panabaker: And it was Reddington? All of it?
Cooper: I could answer that question for you Cynthia, but you don’t really need me to, now do you?
Panabaker: Do you have any idea what the fallout would be if anyone knew that your CI was responsible for the greatest intelligence breach in US history? In world history?
Cooper: I’m not sure that’s ever going to happen. There’s more.
Panabaker: I don’t know if I can handle more, Harold. I should check my systolic pressure first.
Cooper: It was Reddington himself who directed us to the bugging operation at the Capitol that then led to the dismantling of his entire network.
Panabaker: Why would he do that?
Cooper: In all my years with this task force and all my time with Reddington, I’ve never seen anything like this. It would seem that he’s divesting or maybe he’s just downsizing. But I don’t know what that means for the Blacklist. None of us are entirely sure why he’s doing what he’s doing. But he’s handing us a lot of different keys to a lot of different locks, and there’s no playbook here.
Panabaker: Has there ever been a playbook?
Cooper: I used to think that was part of what made us successful. I’m not sure what to think anymore. But I can tell you with certainty that room 417 at the US Capitol, along with rooms just like it across the world, are no more and no longer. He shut them all down, Cynthia.
Panabaker: Maybe there’s a way to keep this under control. We’ll head to the AG’s office, answer whatever questions he has, but as far as the United States and any future grand jury is concerned, no one needs to know that Raymond Reddington was responsible for this intelligence breach. The two of us can take that information with us to the grave.
Cooper: As long as we keep Reddington’s involvement quiet, I don’t think anyone’s grave gets dug today.

 
[ Red and Agnes are having ice cream at an ice cream and candy shop ]
Red: Mmm!
Agnes: I didn’t think you’d make ice cream day this week.
Red: Why ever would you think that?
Agnes: Because of work. I know you’ve been really busy. Pops, too.
Red: Nothing is more important than you, sweetheart, to me and Pops. Well, maybe one thing–
[ Red steals a spoonful of Agnes’s ice cream ]
Agnes: No, Pinky! You picked peppermint stick. You’re stuck with peppermint stick!
Red: Mmm! Wow! [ Laughs ] I’m glad you got it. Actually, there is a reason that today is a special ice cream day. I have something for you. ⋘⋙ When she was about your age, your mother made a promise to herself to achieve something important, something special in her life. And she grew up, and she did it. She carried this with pride, and now I want you to have it.
[ Red gives Agnes her mother Liz’s FBI photo and badge ]
Red: Whatever you end up doing in your life, however high you reach, that will remind you of her effort and determination. You have all the best parts of her inside you. But maybe reach for something a little more fun than law enforcement.
[ Laughs ]
Agnes: Pinky, are you going somewhere? I’d miss you.
Red: Well, I’m always traveling, sweetheart. But I’ll never be too far. I’ll always be right there.
[ He presses his hand over her heart ]
Red: And right in here.
[ He plants a kiss on her temple ]

 
[ Jonathan Pritchard’s motel room ]

[ Sportscaster speaking indistinctly on TV ]

[ Ressler flushes drugs and liquor down the toilet in the bathroom. Then he goes over to Pritchard who’s half-awake on the bed ]
Ressler: This is what we’re gonna do. We’ll wait for you to sober up. Then, we’re gonna get your ass to the first meeting we can find, all right?
Pritchard: [ Mumbling ] I’m not going anywhere– You don’t tell me–
Ressler: It’s all right. I know that’s not you talking, Jon. That’s the junk in your bloodstream. What did you take? Huh? Did you mix? Do you remember?
Pritchard: [ Mumbling ] He made me– He made me do it–
Ressler: We’ll figure it out, pal, all right?
Pritchard: –wrong about Don– He’s– He’s salt of the earth– Salt of the earth– It’s your phone– Your phone–
Ressler: My phone? What about my phone?
Pritchard: They were listening– I– I– They made me do it–
Ressler: Who made you do what?
Pritchard: Hudson– Your phone– He’s– He’s listening, Don– I’m sorry.

 
[ Cooper and Panabaker are walking to the Attorney General’s office ]
Cooper: What are the odds we still have jobs on the other side of this meeting?
Panabaker: If I get cornered, I’m blaming everything on you.
[ Cooper’s cell phone ringing✨]
Cooper: I’m going to take this. Head inside. I’ll be right there. [ On phone ] Who is this?
Ressler: It’s Ressler. I can’t talk long.
Cooper: What number are you calling me from?
Ressler: A motel. I can’t use my own phone. But where are you right now?
Cooper: About to take a meeting with the Attorney General.
Ressler: Listen to me. That congressman, Hudson?
Cooper: What about him?
Ressler: I have reason to believe that he’s tapped my phone. That he’s been listening to my calls. Maybe for awhile now. But I can’t be sure.
Cooper: He did what? How do you know this?
Ressler: Well, let’s just call it a semi-reliable source, but if it’s true–
Cooper: There’s no way Hudson received authorization for that.
Ressler: Yeah, but if it is, sir, just think about all the things that we’ve been talking about over the phone in the last few weeks. If you’re at the Attorney General’s office right now, you could be walking into a buzz saw.

 
[ Cooper enters Attorney General Stromberg’s office. Stromberg, Panabaker, Hudson and Agent Nixon have already begun listening to one of the taped conversations ]

[ Recording: ]
Cooper: We stood by and offered him protection while he built out and strengthened a vast criminal network. We’ve protected him while he hardwired the US Capitol and intercepted a decade’s worth of state secrets. In a way, we’ve been his partners in treason.

AG Stromberg: Director Cooper, will you have a seat?

 
[ The Post Office war room ] [ The task force (except Cooper) are examining Ressler’s bugged phone ]
Siya: Well, it’s some seriously invasive software. We have no way of knowing how long it’s been there. But we used to use stuff like this all the time when I was with MI6.
Herbie: Whatever it is, it treated the encryption on your phone like a flimsy screen door. It’s definitely government. Maybe NSA?
Dembe: If they’re right about this and it is NSA equipment or something like that, then Hudson had help.
Ressler: And it means he had a warrant. If he has a warrant, he’s been listening, he’s heard us talk about the Capitol Building and about Reddington.

 
[ Snakes slither in glass aquarium cages that line a room where Red sits talking to his long-time impresario of persuasion (torture-master), Mr Teddy Brimley ]
Red: She can be a little hard to read sometimes. She says we’re alike, but am I like that? Am I hard to read? I just want her to at least show up at the jet. You know? Even if she doesn’t want to come along, I just want to hear it from her. You know what I mean? What do you think, Teddy?
Brimley: I barely know this woman. But I gotta tell ya, I’ve been married to my wife for 42 years. I love her with all my heart. And if it was my plane, I’d take off early.
Red: Oh, my God. Fine. You know what? Romance clearly is not your area of expertise.
Brimley: Doesn’t sound like yours either. So, you’re going traveling. When do you think you’ll be back?
Red: I don’t know. I haven’t really given it much thought, actually.
Brimley: Know what I think? I think I need to find a new job.
Red: You don’t need a job. You’ve saved every dollar, millions of them. You’ve got your lake here, the rods and the reels. You have your family.
Brimley: Exactly. I gotta get out of the house, move around, attach jumper cables to someone–
Red: That is all behind us, Teddy. Find a new hobby, a new passion. I don’t know, something that involves less screaming, at least. You remember Smokey and that dog grooming business we had? He did such a crackerjack job of promoting that place. What about something like that for you?
Brimley: Animals? What the hell do I know about animals?
[ Red motions at the snakes ]
Red: Oh, you’re right. Wherever would I have gotten that idea? All I’m saying, Teddy, animals shed their fur, reptiles shed their skin. Don’t be afraid to become something new. I’m not.
Brimley: You didn’t use to be this much of a fortune cookie, you know?
[ Red’s cell phone rings✨]
Red: Or was I always, and now I’m just a sweeter kind of cookie? [ Answering phone ] Dembe, what a nice surprise.
Brimley: Hey, send my regards.
Red: Teddy sends his best.
Dembe: [ On phone ] Donald’s phone was bugged the last week or two. There’s no telling what was heard.
Red: Bugged? By whom?
Dembe: That congressman–
Red: Ah, Mr. Hudson. He’s like a dog with a squeaky toy. Drives you crazy, and he won’t give it up.
Dembe: Cooper was called to a meeting with the Attorney General today. He’s there now. We think–
Red: Hudson’s leading the charge? Yes, I do, too. Thank you, Dembe. Keep me posted.
Dembe: Raym– [ Beeps🔅]

 
[ The AG’s office ]
AG Stromberg: That is your voice on the recording Director Cooper?
Cooper: Yes, it is, sir.
AG Stromberg: A scandal like this would stain the very foundation of our country. So how do we proceed?
Hudson: I’ll ask the first question. Director Cooper, uh, at what point did you know for certain you were collaborating high treason against the United States?
Panabaker: Hold on one minute! I’m sitting here listening to you all make accusations against Harold Cooper, my friend and colleague who is a patriot to his core. What you are choosing to conveniently omit, Mr. Hudson, are all the accomplishments this task force has made due to actionable intel provided by Raymond Reddington.
Hudson: As much as one might want to sit here and believe the defense of a sitting senator and an FBI director, it is my finding that Task Force 836 has reached a point where they are no longer working with Raymond Reddington, but rather for Reddington. I truly believe you don’t know which way is up anymore.
Cooper: You know, I’ve sat in so many of these rooms, answered so many of these questions. The revolving door of people asking, people wagging fingers, pointing fingers, the people change, but the questions stay the same. The carpet stays the same. I stay the same. And you know what? I- I don’t have an excuse left in me. I’m tired. I was a caretaker, a night watchman, to a cause that kept this world a little safer. It was in danger yesterday. It’ll be in danger tomorrow. The best I could do was look after it with the bit of time I was given. I can’t justify the actions of my team any longer to the very people who sanctioned that team to begin with. We did our best to look after the charter we were given. And I can sleep at night. If you want my badge – take my badge.
[ Cooper puts his badge on the Attorney General’s desk ]
Cooper: I’m done apologizing.
[ ⚡️Static⚡️buzzes⚡️ ] [ The three computer displays on the side of the room spring to life with the image of Reddington ]
Red: Hello? Hello? Is it working?
[ Red is sitting across a table from Tadashi Ito, Red’s go-to whiz kid ]
Tadashi: Y–
Red: Okay. [ Chuckles ] I’m sorry. Excuse me. I hate to barge in like this. But may I speak for just a moment? Because there’s a perspective you may not have considered. Mine.
Hudson: I don’t believe this. This is exactly what I’ve been talking about. This man has pirated himself into a closed-door meeting with the Attorney General. He’s out of control.
Red: Forgive me. You all can see me, but I can’t see you. Wh-Who is speaking?
Hudson: Arthur Hudson, Mr. Reddington. And it’s clear to me by this intrusion that you have more power than any confidential informant ever should.
Red: It’s funny. It seems you have more power than a congressman should. How is it exactly that you’ve anointed yourself the Inspector General of a clandestine FBI task force?
Hudson: Someone has to stand in your way.
Red: [ Chuckles ] Congressman, your conflict is with me, not the FBI. Everything we’re discussing here, the ongoing criminal enterprise, the invasive tactics taken at the Capitol, it’s all me. You need to redirect your fight.
Hudson: I need to put you behind bars.
Red: I’ve been, several times. It didn’t take.
AG Stromberg: Gentlemen, enough! I would like to see the results 836 has provided over the years. Let’s review the case files.
Red: About that. In the spirit of full disclosure, I had every mention of my name deleted from those files several months ago, so– Otherwise, they’re an exciting read.
Hudson: Do you see? Do you see the mockery he’s made of all this?
AG Stromberg: I honestly can’t believe what I’m hearing. I have to agree with Hudson here. Unless someone can convince me otherwise, I see this informant relationship as a bureaucratic failure.
Red: That’s a bit myopic, don’t you think?
AG Stromberg: How else am I supposed to see your actions in regards to the Capitol as anything other than high treason?
Red: You call it whatever the hell you want. That’s fine by me. But leave Harold Cooper and his people out of it. They don’t know the breadth of my operation. Not a tenth of it, not a hundredth. Even what we’ve touched on today is nominal to what I have set up around the world. I have more bugs in more rooms than your prosaic little mind could possibly imagine. I’ve forgotten more about surveillance and black bag ops than you could ever teach in every classroom in Langley and Quantico. But you know what’s truly inarguable? Harold Cooper and his team have lost and sacrificed, given their lives, and still delivered to you time and time again.
 

“You made a devil’s bargain.

Did you really expect me to stop being the devil?”

 
You want to blame someone, blame yourself and the others who proceeded you. Because you want your information from Raymond Reddington. You want to solve cases. You want to save lives. You want to have an effect. But you don’t want to be guilty of doing business with me, not in the harsh light of day. Well, shame on you. I am what I am. You made a devil’s bargain. Did you really expect me to stop being the devil? ⋘⋙ You know what?
[ Red makes a gesture and Hadashi cuts the feed ]

Hudson: You know what I think?
AG Stromberg: Nor do I care. May I have a moment to think — please?

 
[ The Post Office war room ]
[ Cooper steps off the yellow freight elevator. The task force members slowly approach ]
Herbie: What’s going on, boss?
Cooper: [ Loudly, as an announcement ] As of this moment, Task Force 836 has been shut down. [ Normal voice ] It no longer exists. We always wondered when this day might come. When we would be held to account for everything we’ve done with Reddington. That day is today.
Herbie: [ Sighs ]
Cooper: From this moment on, I encourage all of you to be candid and forthright in your answers.
Ressler: What answers? To what? To whom?
⋘⋙
[ Once again the elevator doors open: a dozen or so FBI agents and specialists pour out. Arthur Hudson is with them ]
Agent Jordon Nixon: Everyone, I need all personnel to step aside, relinquish your cell phones and your computers for a full audit of this site.
Herbie: What the hell is this?
Hudson: What he means is don’t touch anything. And keep your hands where we can see them. We’re in charge here.

 
[ A dozen or so specialists place the contents of desks, desktops, and storage cabinets into boxes and, at times, evidence bags; they collect the task forces’ cell phones ]
Agent Nixon: None of you are under arrest – yet. But I expect your full cooperation from here on out.
Ressler: So what, we’re being punished for spending a decade doing our jobs?
[ Dembe nods toward Arthur Hudson ]
Dembe: What is he doing here?
Siya: My question exactly. This is a classified installation.
Agent Nixon: The AG asked Congressman Hudson to observe this investigation.
Herbie: Why? So he doesn’t blab to the press. Ooh, the government keeps secrets. Let me collect my jaw off the floor for that one.
Agent Nixon: Cool it with the mouth, Hambright. The Congressman is here just to monitor. I’m the authority on this site until we complete our objective.
Ressler: And what is your objective?
Hudson: We’re here to locate and arrest the criminal, Raymond Reddington.
Agent Nixon: What my team needs from all of you is a list of known Reddington safe houses, modes of transportation, resources, aliases, associates, anything and everything.
Siya: You think we have even a fraction of that information?
Hudson: Then give us what you do have.
Agent Nixon: Look, I’m not here to butt heads with anyone. I just want to get my job done. And your support is the best chance we have of intercepting Reddington before he leaves the country, and bringing him to justice safely and without incident.
Ressler: Raymond Reddington doesn’t do anything without incident.

 
[ The task force members are interrogated, beginning with Siya ]
Agent Nixon: What is your operational status with this task force?
Siya: It was meant to be temporary. I sort of hung round.
Agent Nixon: Was that to continue your work with Reddington?
Siya: It was to continue my work with all these people you’re interrogating.
⋘⋙
[ Next, Dembe ]
Agent Nixon: You worked for Reddington. For years. How did you even get a job at the Bureau?
Dembe: I applied for it. I had an interview. And they hired me.
⋘⋙
Agent Nixon: Have you ever knowingly ever witnessed Raymond Reddington commit a crime?
Ressler: Are you for real?
⋘⋙
[ Among the confiscated cell phones, Ressler’s phone is buzzing: He’s missed 4 calls from Jonathan Pritchard ]
⋘⋙
Herbie: I hate to be a buzzkill, but I really need to leave by 4:00.
Hudson: Do you have any idea the kind of mess you’re in?
Herbie: Do you have any idea the mess I’ll be in if I lose the sitter?
⋘⋙
Cooper: Any other questions?
Hudson: Yeah, one. If you’d known what Reddington was up to at the Capitol Building before he led you there, would you have stopped him?
Cooper: My oath is to this country, not to Raymond Reddington.
Agent Nixon: So, that’s a yes? You would have stopped it?
Cooper: If I had to rip out every camera and microphone by hand myself.
⋘⋙
[ Arthur Hudson pulls out the electronic photo display that was on Herbie’s desk. It displays a selfie of Herbie making a goofy face while holding baby Sue. The photo was taken in front of Red’s airplane ]
Hudson: Mind explaining this? Can you tell me what you were doing on this private plane?
Herbie: Eating snacks and watching movies.
Hudson: Enough games. Whose plane was it?

 
[ Agent Nixon walks over to Arthur Hudson. The task force members sit glumly nearby ]
Agent Nixon: I heard from headquarters. The signal Reddington used to remote access Stromberg’s office earlier was traced to a 20-square-mile radius near Deep Creek Lake in Maryland. They couldn’t narrow it down any further for us.
Hudson: We can work with that. I had your man here enhance this photo. We got a clear view of the tail number. I think that’s Reddington’s plane and I want its transponder beacon. We know he was in Maryland, right?
Agent Nixon: Mmm-hmm.
Hudson: Can’t be that far. If he goes anywhere near that plane, I want him. He cannot leave US airspace.
⋘⋙
[ Dembe rises and walks over to an agent ]
Dembe: Excuse me, Agent–
Agent Ishwood: It’s Ishwood, sir.
Dembe: Agent Ishwood, I have to use the restroom. I’m sure I need an escort.
Ishwood: Yeah, sure. I’ll take you.
⋘⋙
[ They walk down a corridor ]
Dembe: Strange day, huh? Babysitting other Feds?
[ Dembe deftly removes Ishwood’s phone from his pocket ]
Agent Iswood: Between you and me? Not what I thought I’d be doing when I woke up this morning. No hard feelings. You all seem like good agents.
Dembe: You’re just doing your job.
[ Inside the rest room, Dembe locks the stall door and places a call ]
[ Line rings ••• •••• and clicks ✽ ]
[ He leaves a voice message ]
Dembe: They are onto the plane. They are onto you. If you’re not already gone, please, get out now.
⋘⋙
[ Sitting in his plane, Red receives the message, looks at his watch and seems concerned ]
⋘⋙
[ Once outside the rest room, Dembe slips Agent Ishwick’s phone back into his pocket ]

 
Agent Nixon: We located that transponder you were after. The plane is sitting on a runway at Brawer County Airfield. It’s a private, rural airstrip between DC and Deep Creek Lake where we triangulated Reddington’s video signal. I’ve got the airfield administrator on hold right now. The jet matches the tail number you found, and it just finished fueling up.
Hudson: That jet could be wheels up at any minute. We need to be there now.
Agent Nixon: Yeah, way ahead of you. [ On phone ] Brawer, you still with me?
Brawer: [ On phone ]: I’m here. I’ve just grounded all outbound air traffic on our runway.
Agent Nixon: Excellent. Continue to refuse clearance to anyone requesting to take off, but do not approach the aircraft yourself. We have HRT en route to you now. ⋘⋙ Ishwood?
Agent Ishwood: Yes, sir.
Agent Nixon: You stay behind, keep an eye on all our friends here. Don’t let them touch anything.
Ishwood: Yes, sir.
Hudson: What about me?
Agent Nixon: You stay, too. You’re not a field agent, no matter how much you want to be. Look, we’ll keep you apprised of anything that happens.
Hudson: Yeah.

 
[ Red is still in his plane, waiting for Weecha ]
Edward (the pilot): Sir, I’m being told by the tower here that we’re grounded. I believe something is going on.
Red: Then they found the beacon. That was to be expected.
Edward: Should we take off anyway?
Red: [ Sighs ] Let’s just wait a few more minutes.
⋘⋙
Edward: Sir, it’s my advice that we take off. It’s too risky to continue sitting here exposed.
Red: I guess she’s not coming. All right, Edward, you know what to do. Let’s go.

 
[ 🚨 Sirens wailing 🚨 ] [ Half a dozen FBI vehicles arrive at the airport ]
[ Red’s plane, however, has taken off ]
Agent Nixon: Hudson, the plane’s already in the air. We missed him.
[ Arthur Hudson is still at the Post Office ]
Hudson: We’re not out of the game. We’ve got the transponder. We can track it. That plane can’t fly forever. It has to land somewhere for fuel.
Agent Nixon: I’ll put our airports within a 3,000 mile radius on alert. And we’ll scramble up a couple of jets.
Hudson: Is that something we can do?
Agent Nixon: You bet your ass we can. The minute Reddington touches the ground, we’ll have him.
[ 💥🔥‼️ Jet explodes ‼️🔥💥 ]
Agent Nixon: Oh, my God. It’s Reddington’s jet. There’s been an explosion. The jet’s going down. It’s going to crash in the wooded area behind the runway.
[ The task force overhears and are stunned and and alarmed. Cooper rises ]
Hudson: No. No. No way. Y-You’ve got to get over there and see.
Agent Nixon: Over there? It’s an active crash site. I can see smoke, Hudson.
Hudson: And I want to see a body. Do you hear me? I want to know Raymond Reddington’s dead.
Siya: [ Emotionally ] Have some respect. Reddington wasn’t alone. There was a pilot on that plane. These are human beings we’re talking about.
Hudson: [ Scoffs ]

 
[ Somewhere along a country road, a 60’s style station wagon cruises along. Weecha is driving and Red is sitting next to her ]
Red: I love the fact that you kept me waiting. I do. You never want to show your hand too early. But 20 minutes late, Weecha?
Weecha: I had to know you’d stick around and wait for me. What would you have done had I not shown up to rescue you?
Red: The same thing. I’ve had that jet rigged for years.
Weecha: You’re telling me, every time I rode on that thing, there were explosives planted onboard?
Red: Every time. Fortunately, Edward’s an excellent pilot. Speaking of–
[ Huey Lewis & The News’ ♫ “We’re Not Here for a Long Time” plays ]
[ ⬇ Go to Full Lyrics ] or [ ♪ Tap square below to play ♪ ]

♪ Oh, yeah ♪

Red: You may want to pop the trunk.
[ Some distance ahead, standing confidently in the middle of their lane, is Edward, dapper and ready with his luggage ]

♪ There’s a party ♪

Red: Edward! Unscathed! Well done.
Edward: Thank you, sir. That was quite exhilarating.

♪ They’ve got rhythm
A little blues ♪

 
[ The Post Office is almost entirely empty. All surfaces have been cleared. A few people are still moving about, but almost all have left ]
[ AG Stromberg appears at Cooper’s office door ]
Stromberg: How much have you been told since the plane crash?
Cooper: Very little.
Stromberg: The crash site was located. But there were no bodies found. Which means Reddington was not on board. Which means he’s still out there.
[ Stromberg pulls Cooper’s office door closed ]
Stromberg: [ More relaxed ] You wouldn’t have anything to drink in here, would you, Harold? Pour me a finger, and I’m going to tell you what the deal is.
[ Cooper pours them each a glass of Scotch ]
[ Stromberg inhales the scent of the single malt ]
Stromberg: Yes, sir, that’s the medicine. [ Drinks ] ⋘⋙ I’m not here to break balls. We’re two old men. We don’t have the time or the patience. And forget about the pageant in my office earlier today. [ Clears throat ] I am putting Task Force 836 back on the case. You’ll help track down Reddington. No one knows him like you do. I believe you and your team are good agents who found themselves in an impossible situation. But good agents nonetheless. Now I want you to prove that to me.
Cooper: What about the Congressman?
Stromberg: [ Sighs ] Hudson is a Boy Scout. He doesn’t have the discretion or the caution for something like this. And besides, I gave Hudson and Nixon their chance and now we’ve got plane wreckage scattered across a field in Maryland. I want this done quietly. And your people specialize in quiet. What do you say?
Cooper: I’m not sure I’m being given a choice in the matter.
Stromberg: I didn’t set up this task force. I don’t particularly care about this task force. But I won’t have a scandal. Someone’s gonna take the fall for it. It won’t be me. It can either be you and your team, or it can be Reddington. You care about your team, don’t you?
Cooper: They’re family.
Stromberg: I’m gonna go give Hudson some decaf and buy you an inch of latitude. You go out there, find your man, and bring him in. Or I will recommend full prosecutions for every member of your team. I don’t want to. But my hands are tied.

♪ Rising from the shadows ♪
♪ Deep within– ♪

 
[ In a corner of the Post Office complex, Arthur Hudson talks to Agent Jordan Nixon ]
Hudson: I can’t believe Stromberg is putting these people back in their posts. What is he thinking?
Nixon: About results. You know what you do when you’re fighting an out-of-control wildfire? You set smaller fires. Suck away its oxygen. You let mayhem deal with mayhem.
Hudson: These people are thick as thieves. Someone warned Reddington. They should all be in Federal custody.
Nixon: Well, Stromberg has the last word and you heard him. We stand down.
Hudson: I’m not gonna rest until I know who tipped that bastard off.
Nixon: Yeah. I don’t trust them either. So we stand down and let them bring in Reddington. Or they try to help him – and we bring them all in.

♪ This could be
The end of days ♪

 
[ When he is finally able to reclaim his phone, Ressler discovers the voicemails from Jonathan Pritchard ]
Pritchard: [ Recorded voice ] Hey, Don, it’s me. I need your help. ⋘⋙ Please, Don. I’m sorry. I don’t know if I can hold on alone.
 

♪ The darkness will rise ♪
♪ So hold back the night ♪

[ Ressler rushes to Pritchard’s bedside ]
Ressler: Jon?
[ Pritchard is lying face down. Ressler feels for a pulse. Nothing, Pritchard’s eyes stare blankly ]

♪ The darkness will rise ♪
♪ So hold back the night ♪
♪ Hold back the night with me ♪

 
[ Harold Cooper arrives home late. He lays his phone on the kitchen counter and plays a call from Cynthia Panabaker ]

[ Recorded message: ]
Panabaker: Harold, it’s Cynthia. I don’t know when you’ll get this message. I’m not sure what the status of your team will be when you finally do. [ Sighs ] I meant every word of what I said today. Working with you, working with your people, accomplishing what we have these last years, has been the honor of my life. You’re more than just a night watchman. You’re a good man. And this might seem small, but it always made me feel safer knowing you were out there– looking out for all of us. Talk soon.

Red: It’s late, Harold. Almost first light out there.
[ Red sits in his usual spot, at the far end of the Coopers’ table ]
Cooper: I thought you’d be long gone.
Red: You’re my last stop of the day. Let me guess, they told you to find me and bring me in – or else.
Cooper: They were slightly more specific than that. The word “prosecution” came up quite a few times. Technically, an agent named Nixon is in charge, but it’s all hands on deck.
Red: Whose head is on the block?
Cooper: All of ours. ⋘⋙ Or just yours.
Red: It was when I called the Attorney General prosaic, wasn’t it? I got a little carried away. ⋘⋙ Don’t look so glum. It’s just cops and robbers, Harold. Always has been all these years. I’m just glad you’re the cop. I hope Donald’s still on the chase, for old times’ sake. Let’s have a little fun on the way out.
Cooper: What would you have me do?
Red: Catch me if you can. Vaya con dios, my friend.
[ Light switch clicks ✽ ] [ Agnes is up for school already ]
Agnes’ voice: Pops? Is that you?
Cooper: Just a minute. I’ll be right there, sweetheart.
[ When Cooper turns back around, Red has vanished ]
[ Door creaks 💫 ]

 
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❌❌❌ 10:20 End Arthur Hudson

 
For S10 Episode 10:20 Arthur Hudson: 🎯 EW Recap ¤ 🌅 Photo Gallery ¤ 🎹 Music Videos ¤ 📒 Script link: https://wp.me/pDKwi-eDU [ “you are here” ]

 

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Trivia: Vaya con dios can be translated literally “Go with God” or as a goodbye blessing, “God be with you.”

 

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🔴 Episode Songs

 
♫ ⋙ Check Tunefind for any additional music for this episode

♫ We’re Not Here for a Long Time
By Huey Lewis & The News

♪ There’s a party down on the corner, do you want to go?
They got rhythm, a little blues, and a whole lot of soul
I don’t care what you’ve got to say
You’re comin’ with me anyway
We’re not here for a long time
We’re here for a good time

♪ I know it’s hard makin’ a living every day
And I know how hard you’ve been workin’
But now it’s time to play
Tell that wolf waitin’ at your door
He’ll just have to wait some more
We’re not here for a long time
We’re here for a good time

♪ Some say the world is ending
It might just come to pass
Ain’t no use in pretending
Tonight could be the last

♪ Tell the mailman to hold the mail
Get ready to wag your tail
We’re not here for a long time
We’re here for a good time

♪ Some say the world is ending
Who knows if it’s true?
Ain’t no use in pretending
There’s not much we can do

♪ Leave a message for those who call
We’re out havin’ us a ball
We’re not here for a long time
We’re here for a good time

🎹 Return to where this song occurs in script above
Lyrics and Credits: https://tinyurl.com/mrpm7hw7
YouTube: https://youtu.be/27K6tr_pB0M

 


 

♫ Title
By Artist

♪

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Lyrics and Credits: http://bit.ly/^
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🔴 General

 
⭕ Script 10:20 Arthur Hudson https://wp.me/pDKwi-eDU Status: FINAL @NBCBlacklist #TheBlacklist My site: BlacklistDCd.com https://twitter.com/BlacklistDCd/status/1677672143293751297?s=20/photo/1

⭕ Easy-Search Scripts updated thru Episode 10:20 Arthur Hudson https://wp.me/pDKwi-e2T#hudson #TheBlacklist @NBCBlacklist My site: BlacklistDCd.com https://twitter.com/BlacklistDCd/status/1677672543358971904?s=20/photo/1

 
 

 
 

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