Meanwhile, the aptly-named Marshal Huntley, who we just met a moment ago, is on her way out of the office. A colleague named Raj hands her an iPod with a new playlist. "It's really motivating," he promises. Dork. He's all encouraging, saying she'll find them. "It's only been twenty-four days," he says. "It's already been twenty-four days," Huntley grumps back at him, slamming the door in his face. Jeez, isn't that what he just said?
Meanwhile, the RaderMobile is just passing into Bridgewater, Iowa, Population 23,827. I was surprised to find out that there actually is a Bridgewater Iowa, although just barely; the real town with that name scored 445 in the 2000 census. Which is about ten times larger than the town on the show is going to turn out to be, but I'm getting ahead of myself. The van pulls into a home's driveway, where a realtor in an overcoat and short skirt -- always a practical combo -- is trying to keep a flowerbox from falling off the porch railing. She waves at the family. Before getting out, Paul turns to everyone for a quick drill. "What's our last name?" "Holland," everyone answers. "First names?" "Kate," says the daughter. "Jason," grumps Henry. "Mikey," says the youngest. "Brenda," says Mom. "And I'm Jim," Paul says. Great, we just met these people and already they have four names each. "And where are we from?" Paul asks. "Philadelphia," says everyone except "Mikey," who answers, "Maryland." "Philadelphia," Paul reminds him seriously. "Philadelphia," "Mikey" repeats dutifully, hoping his dad has never seen A Simple Plan.
While the house may not look like much from the outside, the inside is a whole lot worse. Three bedrooms doesn't make it any less of a dingy little hovel. The realtor's giving them the tour, expositing that the house is fully furnished. A bathroom handle comes off in Henry's hand. "Break everything," "Kate" snarks at him. Thanks for the assist, missy. The realtor promises to send a plumber, and points out that one of the bedrooms has a handy little cubbyhole. Basically, it's a built-in cabinet with a door at knee-level, just the thing for the family on the run from the law to stash their cash, fake papers, and weapons. "This could be for the boys," Paul suggests. Okay, so much for my idea. Henry looks bummed. Some more. Get used to that.
As the realtor leaves, Paul hands her an envelope full of cash for the first month's rent and security deposit. She's also been proactive enough to not only get school info, but alert the school that the family is coming to town, so all they have to do is go down and sign up. Gosh, what could go wrong? She perkily hops off the porch and says goodbye to "Kate, Jason, Mike, Brenda, Jim." "Good memory," Paul tells her. "Like a trap," she answers before leaving, which I'm sure is just what Paul wants to hear.













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