- William is called in by Gary Smith to help his piano prodigy daughter Rebecca kick her addiction to meth. But the biggest hurdle may be Rebecca's control-freak mother Erica. Elsewhere, Swenton goes back on the drugs.
- SPLIT SCREEN: A piano prodigy tickles the ivories while, on screen two, her parents stare into space. The music might be wonderful, but there is clearly something amiss in suburbia. And, wouldn't you know it, that problem is drugs.
The piano player, a teenage girl, bats her eyes and asks dad for money. One gets the feeling she has been doing this for quite some time. "No, don't," mom says, flashing her husband a stern look. Too late. Dad opens his wallet. "Last time," he says.
The girls wraps her arms around her father, whispering "Thank you, daddy!" Then she calmly walks outside and buys drugs from a man parked in the driveway (in broad daylight, no less). Back inside, she shuts the door to her room and smokes. Dad, standing outside his daughter's room, hangs his head in shame.
You know what I think? I think it might just be time to call ... the Cleaner.
Speak of the angel, William is busy putting out a fire at home. Lula has lost her cell phone which, by convoluted teenage logic, means that her chances of winning a spelling bee championship are suddenly in jeopardy. Other than that, things seem to be pretty peachy on the ol' Banks homestead.
William arrives at the garage to find his OTHER family: Akani, Arnie and Darnell. They bicker among themselves until piano girl's dad enters. He carries a small piece of paper that he found in the house. Is it used for drugs? "It's how dealers wrap their rock cocaine," William explains.
Dad is sad ... but not entirely surprised. "Rebecca is always asking for money," he says. "She's stealing. From school, my neighbors." Lil' Rebecca also has a boyfriend named Tom, who drives a vintage Corvette. We've seen that car before, of course -- parked in the Smith family driveway.
"Mr. Smith, I have to ask," William says. "Does your wife know you're here? She needs to know. And as far as Rebecca is concerned, no more money."
Rebecca, meanwhile, crawls through the doggy door of a neighbor's house and starts rifling through the drawers. She hears a siren and makes a break for it.
The Cleaner's team is already hard at work. William decides to pay a visit to Mrs. Smith at the gym. He raises the issue of drug use, but mom wants nothing to do with the conversation. Denial ain't just a river in Egypt. Next, Arnie visits a pawn shop, flashes a picture of Rebecca and discovers that she recently sold a digital camera. The camera, of course, came from the neighbor's house. Arnie comments that the camera is "hotter than Eva Mendes in 'Training Day.'" Funny, but Arnie doesn't look quite himself ...
Back at the Smith household, Rebecca screams at mom and begs dad for more money. So, basically, nothing much has changed. But wait! This time, dad refuses to indulge his little darling. Rebecca flies into a rage ... and then storms out of the house. Dad looks like he might throw up.
Mr. Smith -- Gary to his friends -- pays William a visit at the garage. "She ran," he explains. "She hasn't come home, hasn't called." The Cleaner sympathizes ... and then brings up the subject of Mrs. Smith, whose refusal to face the situation isn't helping matters.
Gary explains that the problem comes down to music. His wife has always been an incredibly talented player but Rebecca is in another league entirely. Mrs. Smith pushed her daughter to the point that playing piano became a job -- and not a fun one at that.
"It sounds like somewhere along the way, your little girl wasn't allowed to be a little girl," William observes. "Help me help your wife, so I can help your daughter."
Rebecca could certainly use some help at the moment. Boyfriend Tom, an older man, has a camera set up in the bedroom of his house. He coerces the 17-year-old to remove all her clothes. "That's my girl," he says. "Keep going." Yikes -- whatta creep.
Gary confronts Mrs. Smith -- Erica to her husband -- at the gym. Erica has been running on the treadmill for two hours. You might even say that she is running from something. "Our daughter is on drugs!" Gary screams. Heads turn but Erica STILL doesn't want to hear reason. She argues that she has "done everything" for Rebecca. Gary plays the trump card: "You push her and push her for one reason: Because you weren't good enough!" That tears it. Erica gets back on the treadmill and starts running like a mad woman.
A short time later, Erica is at the treatment center for "severe dehydration." But that's not the real problem and both William and Gary know it. Gary sits down by his sleeping wife and pledges to do anything he can to help her solve her denial and control issues.
Darnell calls: He has found the boyfriend. The big guy and Akani go to pay the drug-dealing pervert a visit. Darnell busts down the door to Tom's apartment to find the sleazebag watching Rebecca strip on video. Akani throws a well-aimed, closed-fist punch to the face.
A short time later, William arrives to find Tom tied to a chair (he suggests Akani use an open-hand next time -- this one is going to leave a mark). The boyfriend insists that Rebecca told him that she was 23. William doesn't have time to argue. He tosses the degenerate the phone. "Call her!" he growls.
Somewhere across town, Rebecca wanders through a market. She is higher than the highest kite that ever flied high and doesn't answer her phone. Time is running out.
Tom is arrested and William sits down with Gary at the treatment center. "Don't worry, we're going to find her," the Cleaner tells pops. "Before the police."
Turns out that William spoke a little too soon. Arnie, who was in charge of finding the girl before the police did, arrives with bad news. "The cops got to her before I did," he says. "She's in jail. I'm sorry ... I know I haven't really been on my A-game."
"Yeah, no s***," William barks. Oh, Cleaner, can't you see what's wrong with Arnie?
William cannot -- and decides that he has to handle the situation himself. He approaches Mr. Stanton, the Smith's neighbor and a well-connected lawyer. The man, fed up with the sticky fingered girl living next door and her oddball mom, says he is pressing full charges. William urges him to reconsider.
"Rebecca and her parents, I don't trust them," Stanton says.
"You don't have to," William says. "I'm asking you to trust me ... let me help her Mr. Stanton. Please."
The man relents. Before you can say "the Cleaner wins again," Rebecca is at the same treatment center as her mother. "The thing is, Rebecca, is that you have a lot of people who love you," William says.
And wouldn't you know it: One of those people -- mom to her daughter -- is sitting in the lobby. "I'm getting some help with learning how to give up control," Erica says. "The point is I'm going to try. I promise." Then mom presents her daughter with an acceptance letter to Julliard. She begins pushing again ... hard.
"Mom, I don't want it," Rebecca cries. "I really, really don't want it!"
Erica suggests they talk about it when Rebecca is "feeling better." The woman has a long way to go. William and Gary, meanwhile, watch from a distance. "Sometimes beating the physical addiction is the easy part," the Cleaner explains. "The real fight will come later." Gary sighs. There are no quick fixes -- but he is willing to fight.
Arnie, meanwhile, is battling his own demons. He talks to himself. He accuses himself of being a junkie. "HE knows you're blasting," says Arnie's ghostly reflection in the mirror. The real Arnie reaches for a pipe ... and lights up. The proverbial wagon pulls away -- one passenger lighter.
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