Lou is intrigued by the closed restaurant down the street, which turns out to have been the scene of a famous murder 25 years earlier. Animal is sent in for pictures, and becomes friends with the reclusive owner, the woman who found the celebrity's body 25 years ago.

The paper is on the scene of a series of brush fires in the California Valley. Charlie, who is on the verge of separating from his wife, makes a last ditch effort to save his home from the fires as well as his marriage.