911, what's your emergency?
Uh... There's a policeman, I think he's shot,
lying in the alley next to 484 Westrum.
I don't think he's gonna make it.
Sir, are you at that address now?
You want to show me a special route to that roadside crime scene?
You know when you were first in county way back,
someone once asked, "What's a guy like your brother
do in prison?"
I said, "Anything he wants."
And who might that person have been?
I believe it was Mom.
How are you?
You look good, bro.
You're not too bad yourself.
Come on, come crack a beer.
Claude Bolton. Where is he now?
I was thinking the same thing.
I made some calls, found out from his parole officer
that he'd been in to ask permission to leave the state.
Said he wanted to go hang with his brother in Tennessee,
town called Cecil,
- near Chattanooga. - Yeah, I've been there.
It's a diner, two bars, and a bunch of caves,
not much else.
Here's what I intend to do today,
by myself, if I have to.
If this entity, this Cuco, is in the process
of becoming Claude Bolton,
and your information puts him in this town,
I am going to go out there and try to isolate him.
Isolate him from...
Harm. Blame.
Because when it starts its killing,
Claude's forensics will be all over the victims.
I could be the witness who saves him from a prosecution.
I could be the witness who puts a spotlight on this thing's existence,
because a human being can not exist in two realities
at the same time.
When you discovered that footage of Terry in a hotel
sixty miles away from where he was supposedly
killing Frankie Peterson, it had to run,
because of the reinvestigation it knew had to happen.
I think it needs to stay in one place
for weeks at a time after it kills
to regain strength to complete the transformation,
but it had to run before it was ready
when it was too weak to fend for itself,
which is why it made a slave out of Jack.
So, what you're saying is that if you can vouch
for Claude's whereabouts before it strikes again...
and the police start looking at other suspects,
it will run again.
More desperate than before, weaker still.
- I need to keep the pressure on. - Then it'll get careless,
- show its hand. - Until, hopefully,
it... it'll expose itself to the world.
Okay, you're saying you need to keep the pressure on,
here's my question:
After it's done being Claude, how do we know
- who it becomes next? - It's turning in Claude as we speak,
so to be with him before this thing starts to kill in his name
- is the first step. - How do you know
it hasn't started its killing already?
Given the time gap between the killings,
I don't think it's strong enough yet.
It's in the last days of its transformation.
Well, you can go down there by yourself to vouch for him,
but I can imagine that if you or...
If he had more than one eye-wit to verify his whereabouts,
then it'd be... Look, what I'm saying is, um,
I'd like to go with you.
Hell, I've got some days off.
I'd like to see it through.
Yeah, I can't.
If I could, I would.
- Okay, so... - I'll go.
Okay.
Shouldn't you be out there working with them?
Yeah, I probably should.
It's gonna be big this year.
Always is.
So, you quit the Ass Crack, huh?
- Peach Crease. - Peach Crease.
Damn, I could never quit a job like that.
Well, as the saying goes, if God truly hates your guts,
then he grants your deepest wish.
If you say so.
I just felt like if I didn't leave that place...
leave that whole damn city,
then something really bad was going to happen.
Such as what?
Uh...
I can't ever seem to sleep these days.
I'm jumping out of bed a half a dozen times a night.
Double, triple-checking the locks on the door,
the windows.
It's like there's someone there in the apartment with me,
or right outside trying to get in.
- Ever catch anyone? - Nope.
It's like when you're in prison,
you know something's about to go down,
but you don't know what, where or when.
All you know for a fact is it's going to be as bad as it gets.
Yep, I hear ya.
Excuse me, bro.
You better not let your foreman catch you.
Shit. That was my foreman.
Look, it'll take some hours before everyone's ready to roll,
and a few more to get to where we're going,
and probably another few until we find him,
so if you think time is that critical,
let me call ahead and have him held until we arrive.
Nothing like a jail cell to account for his whereabouts.
Yeah, thank you.
You wanna ride with me?
I think I should ride with him.
Okay.
Andy, you gonna ride with me? We can swap war stories.
Yeah.
Don't tell me I missed yet another AA meeting,
Jesus Christ. Ralph.
Are you out of your mind?
Could be.
I worry about you sometimes, you know that?
- Um... I'm flattered. - No, I mean that,
in all sincerity.
Anyways, Glory has finally given me the go-ahead
to sue everybody in the town except the dogcatcher.
Okay, so you're here to serve me.
Hm. You ducked the bullet, my friend.
That's why I'm here to tell you, so that you and Jeannie
don't sweat it out when the hammer starts coming down
- all over the place. - I don't get it,
why... why am I so lucky?
She feels that if anyone can vindicate Terry, it's you.
Be careful, wherever you're going.
Are you going just to appease me?
- Certainly not. - Then why are you going?
'Cause if I had... If I had another lead,
- I wouldn't be. - Don't go.
- Why not? Wh... What? - Because you're blind.
You don't really believe in this thing, which means
you're not capable of seeing it for what it really is.
Could you imagine going into a battle with your eyes shut?
J, there's not gonna be a battle.
There will be.
And I... I couldn't survive losing you, too.
Blue Thunderbird at the steel warehouse.
Alpha 31, your meal break is approved,
Betty 12 will cover your sector until 1300 hours.
All units, we have an APB
for a John "Jack" Hoskins, male, Caucasian, 42,
Cherokee City detective,
wanted for discharging his firearm at a civilian
with intent to kill.
Suspect driving a Dodge Ram 1500 SLT, four-door,
black Georgia tags, HM11202.
Suspect is considered armed and dangerous.
If spotted, contact Central and wait for backup.
Do not approach without backup.
Fuck!
Just so you know, um...
apparently, Jack came back to town this morning.
He broke into his own place, stole his own car.
- Where were the police? - Yeah, good question.
You know, Jack...
he told me once over copious amounts of cocktails...
that all he ever wanted to do when he was a kid
was to, um, take his hunting skills
and become a sharp-shooter in the military.
Right? So, he enlists at 18, he goes through basic training,
where he tops his class in the firing range,
which qualifies him then to go to sniper school,
where, once again, he tops the class.
So, his life-long dream has become reality.
And he's waiting to find out where they're gonna deploy him
and all he has to do is go through one last round
of mandatory psych evaluations.
Please don't tell me.
Yeah.
Became a warehouse clerk in the Aleutian Islands.
You know, up there in the ass-end of Alaska.
"Could've swam to Russia in an hour and back,"
is what he used to say.
No wonder El Cuco wanted him.
Let's just say that you sold me on this El Cuco thing
- of yours, right? - Mm.
What does it want?
It wants what every organism wants,
it wants to perpetuate its own existence,
it wants to survive.
At all costs.
By turning itself into someone else,
right down to their DNA, torturing, killing children,
laying waste to families, um, framing the innocent...
and then disappearing, only to pop up
and do it all over again in some other city or country
twenty-odd days later? 'Cause that's not like
any criminal that I've ever heard of.
It's not a criminal.
It's not even human.
I knew you were gonna say that.
Slow down. Cross over there.
Scoot 'em, scoot 'em, man.
- Go get 'em! - Let's go.
- All right! - Oh!
- Home sweet home, my man. - All right!
Man.
Oh, damn it, Seale. You haven't changed a thing
since Daddy died.
Well, no, that armchair's new.
Still doing your jigsaws, huh?
Every boy needs a hobby.
- What is it? - Who knows?
Well, what's the picture on the puzzle box?
I pride myself on not looking.
Well, how the hell do you know
where all the little-bitty pieces go in?
And therein lies a challenge.
Oh, man, you're unreal. Too much time on your hands.
So, you're a believer?
A believer? In what?
- El Cuco. - Oh.
I believe in Holly.
"Wither thou goest," and all that.
So, you guys are a thing?
A "thing"?
- Not to pry. - Nah, it's not a problem.
Yeah. Man, I sure hope so.
She's a very unique person.
Yeah, unique she is.
I'm assuming you're aware of some of her... gifts.
Yeah, she put on a show or two.
Did you know that she can walk into a room full of people...
and pick out the ones that are gonna die soon?
Right.
I'm serious, man. I've seen her do it.
When she's reading you and she senses your time is nigh,
at first, she can't take her eyes off you,
then she can't bear to look at you.
Same thing with her hands, at first, she's reaching out for you,
and then, she pulls away immediately
as if you were radioactive.
She hasn't behaved like that with you, has she?
You are one bullshit-talking,
Twilight Zone - assed ballbuster, aren't you?
Oh, Lordy! I'm sorry. I'm sorry, man,
I just... I couldn't resist!
You had me going there for a second.
- I... I was worried. - Yeah, I'd say more like ten.
Why are you coming?
Same reason you are.
Looking for answers.
You know, some detectives I've known would, uh...
When a homicide gets under their skin and they, um...
they just keep hitting a wall over and over...
I mean, they will resort to stuff that is so desperate,
so crazy, and afterwards they won't tell a soul about it,
for fear that they're gonna be laughed out of the squad.
- Is that a fact? - It is indeed. Yeah.
And now, you're so desperate to solve
the Frankie Peterson homicide, the Terry Maitland murder,
that you are reduced to checking out the boogeyman.
- Something like that, yeah. - Mm.
I know you're still fighting it.
I get it.
I mean, why wouldn't you be?
Indeed.
But for... for some reason...
I feel more grounded around you than I do with anyone else.
Well, that's a mystery for the ages.
You challenge everything I say.
Sometimes, I need that more than I need believers.
So, how long can you put me up?
It's your house, too, bro.
What about the anger management class, you still goin' to that?
Now, I'm supposed to say something funny like I quit it
because it pissed me off. But, truth is, I'm...
I find it very helpful.
Might even sign up for a second helping.
Well, that's good.
I believe I'm improving on that score something fierce.
Look at her, man.
Like she couldn't wait to blow his ass up.
Hm. The family Bolton.
Keep back 200 yards.
Give us a second, bro.
Hey, where're you going?
I'm going to Burger King.
Bring me back some fries.
Shit.
What the hell?
May I ask what the problem is, officer?
There's been a complaint.
A complaint? About what? With all due respect,
- I ain't even... - Mr. Bolton?
What I need for you to do, sir, is to step out of the car,
it's fine right where it is, lock it up,
come with us.
All right.
Done this before, have we?
I'm still waiting to hear why I was brought in.
Sirs, I would tell you that I know my rights,
but the last time I said that to a peace officer,
I got a solid left to go with those aforementioned rights.
Could I get my phone call at least?
If it's not too much trouble?
Thank you.
I, um... I feel a little awkward saying this, but...
I didn't know about your son.
Hey, you know what? I got one for you.
- I got one for you. - Mm-hm.
So, the night that he was born, okay, my son,
I'm driving back from the hospital to my place
to pick up some things for Jeannie,
she's in the hospital.
And, as I'm driving, I, um, I start talking to my mother,
you know, in my head. You know, stuff like, um,
uh, you know, "Wish you could see him,"
and, "He's a beautiful boy and I wish you got"
"to hold your beautiful baby grandson just once," and, uh...
She died about 15 years earlier, I would've been 16 at the time.
And, on her last day on earth, which I remember very well,
she was at home, she was laying in bed,
and she started talking about this song that she liked
when she was a teenage girl, you know?
And it was an old, jazzy banjo tune called.
"Washington Square" by The Village Stompers.
Now, as she's talking, I'm thinking I remember seeing this
somewhere in her record collection down in the basement.
And I run down, I'm looking through her records,
you know, her old 45s,
and I couldn't have been gone more than ten or 15 minutes,
I come back up, she's passed.
Um... And then I go into the living room,
I get the record player,
I bring it back into the bedroom,
and I just sit down on the bed and I...
I play it for her anyway.
And, uh... after that, I called my dad, to tell him the news...
- You're a good son, Ralph. - Thank you, but... but...
But... wait, because here's the thing.
- Mm-hm. - I only heard that song...
the one time that I played it for her, after which...
I didn't hear it for 15 years,
until the night that I was driving,
talking to my mother about my son,
and wouldn't you know it, right then and there...
"Washington Square" comes on the radio.
Fifteen years. Fifteen years.
So, what do you make of that?
Sounds like a coincidence to me.
That's it?
'Cause, uh... Damn, I thought that was one, uh...
- one hell of an anecdote, myself. - No, no, it... it was.
It was good.
Oh! Oh, dear.
Oh, my mom would have loved that.
Man, there was this one girl we had dancing for us,
Princess Sheena. Oh, my God!
She left us to play quarterback for the Kansas City Kitty Kats
in the all-girls Sugar and Spice Football League.
- The what? - Man, I'm telling ya.
They played in bikini bottoms and garter belts,
with shoulder pads and a helmet on, of course.
- Sure. - Get out of here...
I ain't shittin' you though, man. That girl, she had an arm,
like a...
- What are you holdin' him on? - Hey, Seale, easy, man, easy.
You lower your God damn voice at me, Bolton.
Holdin' him for what?
If you don't wanna go join him in the cell,
- I suggest you... - Do what?
What the fuck are you gonna do to me, Handy?
You Forrest Gump-ass-lookin',
- pine-top motherfucker! - Hey, Seale, calm down, man,
it's all good.
I'm gonna ask you once last time,
lower your voice and start coming correct in here.
Really?
Shit.
If you really wanted to piss my man here off, Bolton,
what you shoulda called him was a motherfuckin' Barney Fife.
Yeah, 'cause I see Forrest Gump as a kinda role model.
Shut the fuck up.
First, you hold an innocent man without a cause,
then you sneak up and tase a man from behind,
'cause you don't like the way he's inquiring you about it.
Makes y'all pansy-ass little bitches in my book.
Man, you really prefer a life on the inside, don't ya?
Fuck.
Oh, my gosh, you guys got to hear this.
This is so cool. It says here in one of the caves,
they found 35,000-year-old saber-toothed tiger footprints.
My guess is that's the one they call.
- Sabertooth Cave? - How did you know?
Oh, and, it has a squeeze-hole you have to pass through.
So small, it's called the Sphincter.
You should definitely try passing through it, Sam.
Don't worry, I will.
- Sorry. - What?
Pass it back.
I need to eat.
You just did.
He was full of cancer.
Well, he doesn't have to worry about that anymore.
I need to eat.
What are we gonna tell him?
Well, not the truth. He'd never believe you.
Yeah, it's true. If they did, they'd run for the hills.
So, what are we gonna tell him?
- Hm. - The truth.
How are you today, officer?
We're here to pick up Claude Bolton.
Nobody told me.
Hey, Claude, how's it going?
- Who the hell's this? - We'll have you outta here in no time.
Lieutenant, I believe your jurisdiction ends
at the Georgia state line.
May I ask on what charges he's being held?
I...
- We were told to detain him... - Told... by Captain Becker,
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation?
Yes, sir.
He'll explain.
No, sir, this is Officer Drayton Counsel in Cecil.
Yes, Cap, he's right here.
Claude.
What, just me?
What about my brother?
I'm not leaving without my brother.
Assaulting an officer.
I didn't touch him, man.
You're the one that snuck up and zapped my ass from behind.
That's the way they like to answer any inquiry
you might put forth around here.
Like I said, I'm not leaving without him.
We're gonna need him.
Tell me why you didn't go with 'em.
Like I said before, Howie, it's work.
Because when people started volunteering to go,
I tasted copper on my tongue.
Meaning?
When I was in Iraq, and we had to go on patrol,
my mouth always felt like it was stuffed with pennies.
That was like 14 years ago.
And this morning, when she started rallying the troops,
for the first time since then...
I had that taste in my mouth again.
So...
I ain't goin' on anymore foot patrols, man.
Yeah, I gotta stay home on this one.
Fuck.
Hey, welcome to Cavestock.
- Do you have a reservation? - Yes, ma'am.
I like your, um, earrings.
Whoa.
You are in row six, slot 12.
- Okay. - Do you know where the Sabertooth Cave is?
Well, I'll tell you, there's over a hundred caves
around here, so the best I can say is "somewhere." Have fun.
I could've bought my own cave for this much.
Well, thanks, I guess, for whatever shit that was.
It's y'all that had him picked up in the first, wasn't it?
The fuck for?
We need to go somewhere and talk.
Hell with that.
We need to go somewhere and talk.
Fellas, that's not a request.
Um... I know what I just told you
might sound a little insane.
Insane don't even come close.
How have you been feeling lately?
Fine.
Bad.
Uh... Like someone's been trying to get inside your head?
My head, my house,
in the mirror looking right back at me.
Oh, shit. Now this thing's turning into me?
It looks like it, yes.
Hold the damn phone.
Y'all are punkin' me, right?
I'm being punked!
How the hell they get you in on this, huh?
This is some whack shit you're puttin' on my head.
We had you picked up for your own protection.
As long as you were in police custody,
you had police vouching for your whereabouts.
Which is why we have to stay with you
until we can figure out a way to keep you safe.
- What, stay here? - Unless you want to come
- to Cherokee City with us. - Hell no.
I'm not going back there.
That's where all this shit started.
No, shit. We don't need y'all.
I can vouch for him on my own.
With your sterling pedigree?
Go home.
It's more than what your wife was saying about you standing in our way.
If you can't get yourself to really believe in this thing,
then you're not only an obstacle,
but you're a danger to everyone else.
I don't respond to ultimatums.
You need to step off. Let me come at it at my own pace.
Which is what I've been trying to do.
If that's not good enough for you...
I can be back across the state line before you blink.
- How's that work for you? - Try harder.
Come to it faster.
Please.
Well, we could go this way, or...
- I'm hungry. - Okay.
- Go ahead. - I need to see that. Okay?
- Go ahead, buddy, yeah. That's all right. - Okay.
Well, let's get a cold beer.
I love that.
Nice grouping.
Yeah, Seale said he didn't want to patch it up
'cause it's a daily reminder for him not to clean guns
- in the house. - Mm-hm.
What about the other two holes?
- You don't like puzzles? - I don't like elephants.
What's up?
I should've gone with 'em.
You are fucking kidding me.
Holly's out there putting her ass on the line
and I'm too spooked to go and watch her back?
In terms of her ass and her back,
she's out there right now with three police,
who have probably got 50 years' experience between 'em.
You go out there and join them, you'll probably get arrested
for parading without a license.
I know you're right.
I just can't help...
I can't help feeling like we abandoned her. You know?
Man, I want these motherfuckers outta here.
So, how long are y'all intending to stay?
Shouldn't be too long.
He's about ready to spring up somewhere and drop enough of your chemistry
to nail you to a cross. We just have to be there with you
when that happens.
Oh, hell, I can't put up but one of you,
and that's on my piece of shit couch.
You guys gotta find somewhere else to sleep.
Where else are they gonna go, Seale?
Every where's booked up full for Cavestock.
This fine porch of yours is okay with me.
- I don't mind it either. - Well, that's two down.
- I can sleep in my car. - Sure?
Won't be the first time.
- Where you going? - I'm gonna check out something
I saw as we were driving in. I'll be back soon enough.
Well, I guess the old shitty, old couch in there, that's me.
Hey, Seale, what about that old air mattress?
I lost the blow dryer to pump it up.
Sorry about that.
Deb, after 15 years of us coming to this thing,
I think I can say in full confidence,
I'm officially bored to shit with it.
We go for the kids.
Oh, I believe they're bored with it too.
- Not Sam. - Deb, you know I love young Sam to pieces,
but you have got to admit the boy's a bit of a nerd.
You lookin' for anythin' in particular?
A cave.
Well, that narrows it down.
It's got 35,000-year-old saber-toothed tiger footprints.
Well, I don't know about that one.
There's this one cave around here
that's got prehistoric claw marks in the chamber of the ceiling.
- What kind of animal? - Bears.
See, back in the time of your saber-tooths,
bears landed 12 to 15 feet.
Twice the size of the biggest ones we got now.
- I know, I read it in a book. - Well, there's this one cave,
the bears used to get up on their hind legs,
and sharpen their claws on the roof of the chamber.
Really is somethin'.
You should see it for yourself.
- Want me to show ya? - Sure.
Come on, then.
Well, I believe I'm gonna have to disperse those boys.
If you do, she'll never talk to you again.
- And therein lies the dilemma. - Mm-hm.
That's a cool mask.
Hey, Sam?
Where are you going with him?
Hey!
He has my brother! Someone!
Stop! Get away from him!
Stop that guy!
Someone please help!
What's the problem?
That your kid?
Hey!
Hey, where you going?
Somebody stop him!
Call the police!
Hey. Hey, are you okay?
Are you okay?
Yeah. Yeah.
Well, there's nothing much happening here at the moment, so...
So, there's no need for you to...
I'm not sure how long.
Of course, if nothing happens, then...
You know what, hon, let me call you back.
I appreciate your hospitality, but if you could hold off on that
until we're out of your hair...
Shit, man, it's just weed. Practically in the damn Bible.
- Oh yeah? - Oh, hell yeah! When they discovered.
King Solomon's burial chambers,
guess what they found on his night table.
We need to make a run for some things.
You mind if I hijack your car?
- It's the only game in town. - Have at it.
Thanks.
Want a hit?
- What? - Hm.
I'll be back in a minute.
How are you this evening, young lady?
Good, thank you.
Fancy meeting you here.
I thought you were a Catholic.
Any port in a storm, right?
Yeah.
God, I'm so terribly tired.
Thanks a lot, Mike.
- We'll give you a call. - Thank you.
Go get 'em, guys. Thank you.
Wanda.
How are you? Detective Hidalgo.
Hi, pleased to meet you. Go ahead, sit down.
Won't take long, I'm just gonna ask you a few questions.
So, you feeling okay?
Good.
Been a lot of police in this house over the years.
But never one sleeping over.
Thought I'd document the occasion.
Jesus Christ. Hey. What?
You too cheap to spring for a room?
- Jesus Christ. - I swear to God,
I never met a cop who didn't hate a nickel
because it wasn't a dime.
- That's amazing. - Amazing, it is.
Fuckin' cops.
How'd you two lovebirds make out last night?
- Asshole. - Fuckhead.
Gettin' a little crowded in here, ain't it?
Whatever you're here for, I didn't do shit.
Glad to hear it, we're looking for your brother, Claude.
- What the hell for? - Just wanna talk.
- Morning. - Morning.
Morning.
Why don't you go inside and let us handle this, okay?
Okay?
Can we come inside?
How about we just talk out here? Okay?
Well, um, whatever it was that happened last night
with an individual trying to snatch a kid at the festival,
um, I can personally vouch for Claude Bolton
being here, um, with me from yesterday afternoon
till now.
What's going on, fellas?
Jesus Christ.
He's here.
Sorry?
It's here.
Is there anything more that you could tell us
about this man?
Weird eyes.
He's hungry.
And now, hungrier still.
He's in a cave, waitin'.
You people know anything about stopping this thing?
Because it's gonna come for my brother next.
You have no idea what you're dealing with.
What if it doesn't cotton to being contained?
Then we kill it before it can kill us.
What if it can't be killed?