[Mike is in a motel room with an arms dealer, looking at sniper rifles]
LLawson
Good bolt-action rifle, if you jammed it, I'd wager you were setting out to do so. Which brings us to the M40: tried and true, battle-tested. Essentially, the same rifle used by marine snipers since 1966. It's light, accurate, good for soft targets in the 800 to 1,200-meter range. [Mike inspects it] You seem to know this one.
MikeOh, yeah. You could say that.
LLawson
That's the A1 model. There's not much change from the original. Biggest difference is the stock, it's fiberglass instead of wood. They changed it over in 1970 or so.
Mike
Good. Wood warped like hell. You get it wet, you put it in the sun, gone. Somebody probably shoulda figured that out before they sent it into a damn jungle.
LLawson
Yeah. Probably. [beat] Well, if these aren't to your liking, I could get my hands on a few more.
Mike
No. I've changed my mind. Thank you, I don't need anything at this time. [holds out money] For your trouble.
LLawson
Oh, it's no trouble. I make my living on repeat business. When you need what I'm offering, you know where to find me.
[Mike drives to the El Michoacan restaurant after alerting the police of Tuco's location. As he pulls into the parking lot, he hits Tuco's car. Tuco and Nacho notice this and stop their deal inside the restaurant.]
What the fuck? Did you see that?
That old man... just hit my car.
[Mike comes inside while Tuco stares him down.]
Mike
Let me see. Um... give me the #4. The pollo, por favor. That's to go.
Hey, you. Hey, gramps! You just hit my car.
Mike
You're talking to me?
[laughs; to Nacho] Check out Mr. Magoo here. [to Mike] Yes, sir. You see that car that you parked your piece of shit next to? That's mine. You just ran into it.
Mike
No, I don't think I did.
Mike
Uh, no.
Hey! I saw it, too. You gonna stand there and deny it?
Mike
I offered to do this the right way. If you can't accept that, then I can't help you. [Tuco takes his keys and throws them to Nacho] Aw, come on, guys!
I'm gonna make this real simple for you. Give me your wallet and maybe you'll walk away from this.
Mike
[pause] I'm not giving you a damn thing.
No, homes? [reveals gun underneath his shirt to Mike] Give me your wallet!
Mike
Let's just stay calm here.
[laughs] You see me sweating, bitch? [shoves Mike] Wallet! [Mike looks to his right] Wallet! Wallet.
[Mike reluctantly takes his wallet out of his back pocket]
[snatches wallet from Mike's hand and takes out cash] There's like, 400 here!
[Nacho hears sirens in the distance]
You got some crazy lip on you, old man! Your life, worth 400 bucks?
Hey, Tuco! Time to bounce!
[Nacho drops the keys, then gets in his van and drives off]
You... are one lucky old man. [Mike suddenly grabs Tuco's boxing gloves necklace] The hell? Let go!
[Mike knocks Tuco's gun away, and the two start a fist fight. Tuco throws several punches at Mike. Mike notices two cop cars pulling into the parking lot as Tuco beats him]
OOfficer
Hands up! Now! On the ground!
Mike
[bloody-faced] That all you got?
OOfficer
Get on the ground!
[Tuco laughs madly and lands a punch to Mike's eye]
[Mike is sitting at a diner when Hector Salamanca walks in and approaches his booth.]
[Hector sits across from Mike. Fran, the waitress, comes to the booth.]
FFran
Hi. What can I get you?
FFran
It's coming right up.
[Fran leaves. Hector observes the bruises on Mike's face left by Tuco.]
Mmm. He really did a number on you.
Mike
Sorry, I know you?
The young man who did that to you is my nephew. Hothead, always has been. He thinks he's a boxer. He should have shown you respect. I apologize to you on behalf of my family.
Mike
Apology accepted.
And you know what? He should go to jail. Best thing for him, teach him respect for his elders. But not for eight years. Less, much less.
[Fran comes back to pour Hector's coffee.]
You see where I'm getting at?
Mike
Not really.
The gun charge, that's eight years he's going away, maybe ten. Aggravated assault, the gun, plus he got your wallet.
Mike
That's right.
I would like for you to tell the police that the gun was yours.
Mike
Would you?
Eh, you're both a little hot under the collar about whether you bump his car or not, but there was a scuffle and uh, he got your gun.
Mike
My gun?
Your gun from your pocket, he got it and that's how his prints got on it.
Mike
Then I'd be subject to the gun charge.
You're an ex-cop. They go easy on you.
Mike
So, you're a psychic.
I even twist Tuco's ear, make him apologize, and he serves for battery, nothing else. [beat] I'm looking for the best possible outcome for everybody... and, for your trouble, you take home $5,000.
[Hector rises from his seat, leaves a tip, and begins to walk away]
[Mike is brought to the Salamanca hideout and put before Hector and the Cousins.]
Tomorrow, you go to the district attorney and you explain to him that my nephew's gun was yours. The DA will ask you why you didn't say anything before. You tell him you forgot, you were rattled. Make up anything you want, I don't give a shit. But it's your gun.
Mike
Let's discuss my payment.
Mm-mmm, that time is past. No five thousand for you.
Mike
The price is fifty.
How about the payment is you get to live?
Mike
Not enough.
Now you think you can negotiate with me? I say the word, my nephews go to a certain motel, pay a visit to your daughter-in-law and your little granddaughter. What do you think happens then? Consider your position carefully.
Mike
I get my money, or neither of us walk out of here.
[Mike reaches into his jacket, causing a reaction from the Cousins. Hector signals them to stand down.]
You're willing to die for this?
Mike
Maybe I need the fifty thousand more than you do.
[Hector chuckles]
[to Nacho, in Spanish] I told you, right? Giant balls. [to Mike, in English] How you manage to live so long with a mouth like that? Hmm? Fifty thousand, and the gun is yours.
[Mike opens his door to find Nacho with Hector's money]
Mike
He sent you?
I volunteered. Only safe way for us to talk.
[Mike lets him in and counts out the money]
You really pushed it in there. That thing we did? He finds out, we're both dead. You get that, right?
Mike
[playing dumb] What thing we did?
[Nacho nods and goes to leave, but stops when Mike holds out some money]
Mike
Twenty-five thousand.
Mike
We made a deal, I didn't hold up my end. Your problem is coming back sooner than we expected.
[Jimmy represents Mike at the DA's office when he goes to change his testimony]
I regret to inform you that, with the benefit of hindsight, Mr. Ehrmantraut will be amending his original statement a tad.
A wee bit. He's decided that he can no longer, in good conscience, claim that the gun found at the crime scene belonged to Tuco Salamanca.
AEADA Ericsen
So, whose gun was it?
Who's to say? You know how many guns there are in Albuquerque? Somewhere between the number of rattlesnakes and grains of sand, so, a lot.
AEADA Ericsen
Was it your gun, Mr. Ehrmantraut?
No, he's not saying that-
AAADA Assistant
Can we hear it from Mr. Ehrmantraut?
Mike
The gun wasn't Salamanca's, that's all I can tell you.
AEADA Ericsen
You told us it was. You said Salamanca pulled it and pointed it at you.
Mike
...Well, he didn't.
AAADA Assistant
Why are you changing your story?
AEADA Ericsen
Look, there was only one set of prints on the gun: Salamanca's. How's that gonna happen if it wasn't his?
That's not really for my client to say, now is it? He's not a forensics expert. Who knows, maybe it, uh... fell from a passing bird's beak and Mr. Salamanca caught it, tried to throw it away. [Mike rolls his eyes] I mean, the possibilities are endless.
AAADA Assistant
Did Salamanca threaten you, Mr. Ehrmantraut?
AAADA Assistant
We wanna put this guy away for years. The gun makes all the difference, you know that. You gonna let this person victimize you twice?
Forget about the gun, alright? The gun was not Salamanca's. If you try to introduce it in evidence, Mr. Ehrmantraut will make himself available to the defense and he will set the record straight, categorically and unequivocally.
AEADA Ericsen
...Did he threaten you or pay you off?
[acting offended] Whoa! Okay, that's it! We're done.
[Jimmy gets up and holds the door for Mike. They stand in front of the elevator]
You're doing the right thing. This Salamanca character? Maniac. I had my own... thing with him. I didn't wanna say anything before because conflict of interest, yadda yadda, but yeah, he's nuts. [whispers] I'm talking, he had me hogtied in the desert with a gun to my head, broke two guys' legs right in front of me. If I hadn't talked him down, he probably would've... I'll spare you the gory details, but it was a deal and a half, not something you forget.
Mike
And you're telling me this, why?
Don't be too tough on yourself; like they say, discretion is the better part of valor. I would've done the same thing. Hey, today? It's on me, no charge.
[The elevator opens, but Mike pushes Jimmy away before he gets on]
Mike
You take the next one, and bill me.
[Mike meets with Nacho at their usual place]
I've got something I need to know, and I need to know it fast.
Mike
What's that?
We got hit the other day. A truck headed south got hijacked. Someone stole a quarter of a million. Now Hector's flippin' out, lookin' for who did it. Thing is... I think it was you. They left the driver hog-tied, not a mark on him. Anyone in the game would've capped him without a second thought. But this driver? He's still breathin'. I thought to myself, "Who's the guy who'll rip off a couple hundred thousand in drug money and leave a witness? Who's the guy who won't pull the trigger? You." I'm not here to squeeze you. You wanna rip off the cartel, that's your business. But here's the thing. I'm picking up that driver, Hector's orders. We're gonna see what he knows, and if he knows you, that's bad for both of us.
Mike
That shouldn't concern you.
But he was in on it, right?
Mike
The driver had nothing to do with it.
Mike
Just me.
You're telling me you did this without someone on the inside? Not possible. How did you know about the truck? How do you know about the tires?
Mike
All I can tell you is, you guys aren't half as smart as you think you are.
So the driver doesn't know anything?
Mike
Not a thing.
Mike
No.
Right now, Hector's looking at the competition, but he hears the driver say it was some old gringo...
Mike
He didn't hear me. He saw a guy with a ski mask, that's it.
Mike
Yeah.
You better be right. [starts to walk away]
Mike
Why wasn't it in the papers?
Mike
The truck robbery, the cops keeping it out of the papers?
The cops? The cops don't know shit about it.
Mike
How's that?
Is that... what this is about? You wanted to put the cops onto Hector? Why?! You are nothing to him! He forgot all about you!
Mike
I haven't forgotten him.
You put me in the shit... just 'cause you got it in for Hector Salamanca? [reaches for his gun] Listen, you put the cops on him, you put them on me. Doing it for the money, I get it, but this shit? That's insane.
Mike
You need to calm yourself down... and you need to take your hand out of that pocket.
[Nacho moves his hand away and rubs his head in frustration]
Mike
And just so you know, it's over. I'm done with your boss.
[sighs] Whatever. [starts walking away]
Mike
Why wasn't it in the papers?
[stops] 'Cause we cleaned it up.
Mike
How's that?
We got lucky. After you left, a good samaritan came along and said "Oh my god, oh my god." He cut the driver loose. The driver calls us, we came out, got the truck... made it like it never happened.
Mike
...And that good samaritan?
Hector shot him in the face. We buried the guy out in the desert. Like I said, we cleaned it up.
Mike
Alright, this is what you're gonna do: You're gonna go inside, buy a cup of coffee, a meal, whatever and sit in a booth. Sometime in the next ten to fifteen minutes, a guy in an old green Chevy Blazer is gonna pull into that parking lot. He'll take a knapsack and he'll go sit inside. I need you to keep an eye on the knapsack. Let me know what he does with it; does he take anything out of it, does he switch the bag with someone? Does he leave something from the bag inside—
Right, right, right, I got it.
Mike
Green Chevy Blazer, black top.
Yeah, what's in the bag? Is it money? It's gotta be money- Drugs, is it drugs? Something else? Well, I'm guessing money. Tell me I'm right.
Mike
He is gonna be here any minute. Now, I need you inside. You gonna do the job or not?
Fine. I'll do the job. You charmed me into it.
[Mike kicks the gas cap and answers the ringing cell phone in the middle of a deserted road.]
Mike
Yeah.
May I assume that you are armed?
Mike
Yes.
I do not wish to see your gun. And if I don't, I promise you won't see mine. Are we in agreement?
Mike
We are.
Expect two cars momentarily.
[Mike is approached from two directions by two SUVs. Victor emerges from one car, while Gus Fring and Tyrus Kitt emerge from the other. Mike presents the "DON'T" note to Gus.]
Mike
You care to elaborate?
It's not in my interests for Hector Salamanca to die... at this time.
Mike
Who is he to you?
An associate of an associate.
Mike
Hmm. How very specific.
Mike
We had a disagreement. He threatened my family. I'm not gonna let that go.
But... you had let it go. You'd taken his money. Your family was no longer in danger. And yet, still, you robbed his truck. Shouldn't that have settled the matter? Most men would have walked away. But instead, you made an attempt on his life. Why? [beat] I understand that a civilian found the driver after you robbed the truck. Hector murdered this civilian, correct?
Mike
...He wasn't in the game.
I can't allow you to kill Hector. However, I am not completely unsympathetic to your... sense of justice. You hurt Hector when you robbed that truck. You hurt his business. His pride... quite effectively. And if you were to hurt him in the same manner again, I would not stand in your way.
Mike
You want me to rob another truck.
Mike
I'm done with that.
Then our business here is finished.
Mike
That's it?
Mike
No more tracker, no more of your minions following me? Just like that?
Just like that. Of course, I trust that you are done with Hector Salamanca? [Mike nods] Goodbye, Mr. Ehrmantraut.
[Gus turns to leave.]
Mike
Wait. [Gus turns back to face Mike] You want his trucks hit because you wanna disrupt his supply line. Hector's your competition.
Mike
Because I'm not done with Hector Salamanca.
You sent back the payment we agreed upon.
Mike
What I did, I didn't do for you.
The man. The one killed for helping the truck driver. If I may make an observation, perhaps you were trying to correct something which cannot be corrected.
Mike
It's not the kind of thing I want to take money for.
But the fact remains that your actions benefited me more than you can know.
Mike
That's your business. I'm just glad to have Salamanca out of my head.
Well, perhaps in the future, you will consider working for me.
Mike
[pause] Could be. That'd depend on the work.
[Gus nods and turns toward his car, then turns back around]
Would you care to know why I stopped you from killing Hector?
Mike
Like you said, it wasn't in your interest.
A bullet to the head would have been far too humane.
Mike
You mind if I ask? I really don't mean to pry, but—
AAnita
Let me guess. You have another construction job you need my help on.
Mike
No, but if I do, you'll be the first person I call.
Mike
You said you kept your husband's uniform. Was he on the job?
AAnita
"On the job"? Oh, you mean the police. No, Alan was a Navy man. He was well out of the service when I lost him. I'm sorry, the group has heard my story over and over.
Mike
Well, that's what we're here for.
AAnita
Well... Alan loved to hike. We even opened a camping supply store, I helped him with the mail-order side of it, and then... This was eight years ago. He went hiking in Gila National and never came back. They found our car, but they never found him. And I don't know if he slipped and fell or had a heart attack or met someone didn't like the way he looked... I don't know. And even after all these years, not knowing how he passed or where he is? I wish it didn't matter... but it does.
Mike
He called me... for obvious reasons.
Look, I'm not here to rip him off. He has the stuff, right?
Mike
I need to know what you're planning.
Mike
I know they're for Salamanca. Nitro pills. Your boss has heart problems.
You already got it all figured out. Why are you asking?
Mike
How are you going to make the switch?
[sighs] Hector keeps the pills in his coat pocket. When he hangs up his coat, I'll make the switch.
Mike
Hm. He goes down, then what?
His heart goes out, that's it.
Mike
Lot of eyes on Salamanca. You do this, how are you going to stop them from finding out it was you?
Are you trying to tell me not to do this?
Mike
I'm not telling you anything. Just want to make sure you know what you're getting into.
I'm not "getting" into anything. I'm in it. I've got no choice. Hector wants to use my dad's business. My dad is a straight-arrow, he won't stand for it, which means he goes to the police, which means... he's a dead man. And that's not happening.
Mike
You get caught, it could get worse.
You don't think I know who I'm dealing with?
Mike
No. I don't.
[Mike goes to Nacho's van and takes out the gas cap]
[Mike pries open the gas cap to find nothing inside, then puts it back]
Mike
There are more people than the Salamancas to worry about here. Now, if you manage to pull this off without a bullet to your head, and switch those pills... then switch 'em back.
Mike
Anyone gets an itch about the medicine not working, they're gonna check those pills. You do this - switch them back.
...So. You gonna let us make this deal?
Mike
You got the money? [Nacho takes an envelope out of his pocket] Good. Now, before we do this, I'm gonna need one more thing from you.
[Mike takes out his notebook and clicks his pen]
[Mike visits Los Pollos Hermanos and talks to Gus in his backroom office.]
Mike
I've got a problem I think you can help me with. I've got cash I can't spend, about $200,000. If anything happens to me, my family will never see it. Now it seems to me, you opened this place to solve a similar problem.
And you think that solution... could be applied to you?
Mike
As a one time arrangement.
It would be unwise for us to be publicly associated, wouldn't you agree?
Mike
Because of the Salamancas.
If they were to take notice, there will be consequences for both of us.
Mike
I'm thinking a paper transaction.
Even so. Perhaps there is a way: one with a degree more... difficulty, but one I may be able to arrange.
Mike
Would twenty percent overcome this difficulty?
I would not take money from your family.
[After a beat, Gus stands up and extends his hand. Mike shakes it.]
Better Call Saul · 283 quotes
