[grunts]
[Victor LaValle] Aftermath. After. Math. Noun.
Definition, the consequences or aftereffects of
a significant, unpleasant event.
[siren wails]
[wailing continues]
[glass shattering]
[grunts]
[cell phone buzzes]
[unknown messenger] "They told you to ditch the phone.
Can you really quit me? The only one who knows what really happened.
They bathe it at dusk. They hide it with guile.
At home in the forest, forever lost in the wild.
They bathe it at dusk. They hide it with guile.
At home in the forest, forever lost in the wild."
[person on PA] ...passengers, this is the final call for boarding,
New York City Ferry at Pier 16.
All passengers, make your way to the gate.
Once again, this is the final call for boarding for New York City Ferry...
[speaks indistinctly]
Emma? Emma.
Come on.
We're gonna make it.
[beeping]
It's time. They're ready for you.
This is the only shot you've got to figure out if any of it is real or...
Or if I'm just like Mom?
Don't doubt me. Come with me. Come see.
You know what she said. You have to go alone.
- Please, Kim. Come with me. - Listen.
- I've gotta let you go... - No.
- ...to get you back, Emma. - [sobbing]
Please, Kim. Please. [sobs]
- I can't let you burn for this. - [sobbing]
[Kim grunts]
[Emma screams, gasps]
[Kim] I love you!
[gasps, breathing heavily]
[waves crashing]
[Cal] Welcome.
What happened to my son?
- Come with me. - [Emma] Don't touch me.
Where is he?
What did you see after you did what was asked of you?
You know what I saw.
And then you knew finally.
You weren't crazy. You'd been right all along.
What good does being right do if I still don't know where my child is?
It removes the torment. The illusion of his being here.
He is here. I feel him.
I just need you to tell me where.
We all think of our children as special.
Fuck you.
You told me that if I got rid of that thing,
all would become clear. I would get a second chance.
A second chance at your life.
Every woman here has felt the same way.
- We all empathize. - I'm going back.
I have to ask you not to put the women and children of this island in danger
by exposing us to the outside world.
Are you asking me or telling me?
A little of both.
You have your people take me back to the city right now.
I'm afraid that won't do. To have you go back
- when you're like this-- - [screams]
Let me go. [wailing]
Make her rest for a while.
[Emma] Let me go. [wailing, screaming]
[screaming, wailing]
I will find you. [breathes shakily] I will find you. [breathes heavily]
[door clinks]
[screaming]
You motherfuckers! You motherfuckers.
Don't-- Don't you dare touch-- [whimpering, groans]
This will help you feel better. [shushes]
[Apollo] "They bathe it at dusk. They hide it with guile.
At home in the forest, forever lost in the wild."
[creature growling]
[roars]
[inhales deeply]
[breathing deeply]
[sniffs]
[breathes deeply]
"They bathe it at dusk."
[keys rattling]
[door lock clicks]
[inhales deeply] You know, when a spouse loses their partner,
you become a widow or, uh, a widower.
An orphan, if you lose your parents.
I don't think there's a single word in the English language
for a parent who loses a child.
Why I wish we had a dictionary in our library.
How long have you kept me this way? [sniffs]
You hadn't slept in a very long time.
How long?
A while.
I'm losing time. [breathes deeply]
No one knows where they are taken.
[grunts] All your little secrets.
None of the women have ever, ever found their children.
And believe me, they've searched until their bones grew frail and--
and their hearts just couldn't take it anymore.
None found, including my own.
[breathing heavily]
Brian is different.
Until he's not.
If my husband is alive, he will find me.
No one short of a god could find this place.
Hmm. Well, then.
I need to know where this came from.
A library, you said?
Well, it's-- [sighs] it's modest, to say the least.
Any books on trees?
Are you gonna scream and make a scene?
No.
[Cal clicks tongue]
Come on, then. Let's go.
[Emma] Modest?
[Cal] Necessity's our priority.
[Emma] Hmm.
I can get you books.
Thank you.
But I prefer you just stay here and we get to know one another. Hmm?
Just until we're sure of you. You understand.
Just... [sighs] ...get to know some of the women.
Take a walk. Get some fresh air. Explore--
Emma, the first stage of grief is denial. It's normal.
Cal, you speak like you're doing a TED Talk,
and it's not only deeply patronizing, but irritating as fuck.
[laughing] Hmm.
The fuck is the boat?
Bitch.
Now for the fun.
In the woods there's a party.
In the dark, past the horses, the guests are dressed smartly.
The music is playing. The dancers move quick.
The child in their arms will never grow sick,
or old, or weak, or ever unloved.
Not as long as the stars shine up above.
The fairies will hold it close to their breast.
They won't give it back. They love it the best.
[Gayl's parent chuckling, mumbles]
[Gayl chuckles]
[Gayl's parent] A lot of boats... [indistinct, chuckling]
[Gayl] Okay, I'll take it.
[Gayl's parent] What do you think? [chuckling]
[Gayl chuckles]
- [chuckling] - Elephant.
- [Gayl's sibling chuckling] - Yeah. [laughing]
- [Gayl] Is this yours? - One more spoon.
[both speaking indistinctly]
I'm sorry.
These your two kids?
Yes.
Yeah.
Their, uh, middle sibling was
Rachel.
Where do they keep the boat?
- I don't know. - Liar.
[gasps]
[sniffs, sighs]
[whispers] It's okay.
[Emma sniffles, sobbing]
[sobbing continues]
[whispering] It's in a garage at the southeast end of the island.
Good luck.
[sighs]
[grunting]
[grunts]
[grunting]
[groans]
[strains]
[sighs]
[screams]
[Gayl's parent] Leave her be. You were her once too.
She'll never make it.
Well, at least she'll have tried.
[straining, panting]
[panting]
[grunts, panting]
[breathing heavily, straining]
[grunts, pants]
[gasps]
[Apollo] I am the god, Apollo.
- [chuckling] It's a boy. - [baby cries]
[Apollo, distorted] Sh-Should we name him Brian?
[gasps, whimpering]
[mouthing] "First comes love."
[hand dryer whirring]
[breathes deeply]
[whispering] To The Waters and The Wild. There you are. [breathes deeply]
[sniffs]
[news reporter 1] Police and paramedics found the child unresponsive,
and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The missing woman, Emma Valentine, is still unaccounted for
and presumed dead, her blood located at the scene.
The father, Apollo Kagwa, was rushed to intensive care
after he was found with extensive injuries.
No one short of a god.
Police are examining surveillance camera footage...
- [sighs] - ...from the surrounding area
- and how the disturbing pictures... - [siren wails]
- [gasps] - ...of the crime scene were leaked online.
[grunts]
[people chattering]
Well, well, well.
You came back.
I've got nowhere else to go until I know where to go.
You're the only other people in the world who've walked in my shoes.
And I promised books.
[gasps] Yes.
Thank you. Really.
A life without books is no life.
You'll get no argument from me.
"'Well, who are you?' asked the Caterpillar.
This was not an encouraging opening to a conversation.
Alice replied, rather shyly,
'I hardly know who I am, sir.
I mean, at present, at least I know who I was when-- when I got up this morning,
but I think since then I-- I must have changed several times.'
'What do you mean by that?' said the Caterpillar sternly.
The Caterpillar and Alice looked at each other in silence.
And at last the Caterpillar took the hookah out of his mouth."
You know what a hookah is?
- [Gayl's parent] Again? [chuckles] - [Gayl's sibling chuckles]
You can't read it that way. Close your eyes.
Boo! [chuckles]
Thanks for the books.
Can I ask you a question?
Hey, you wanna go read it to your brother?
- [Gayl] Yeah. - Take your sister to the big bed.
[Gayl's brother] Okay. [sighs] Let's go.
Did you--
[clears throat] Did you ever find anything
when the baby was with you?
Did you ever find anything in the crib?
Find anything?
It's a strange question. I know. But did you find any kind of piece of, like,
tree or plant or anything?
Yeah. It was weird.
I-- I would find dirt-- like soil-- all the time
and then...
a leaf.
One leaf... at the end.
Do you have it?
No, but it was a leaf.
Yeah. Yeah.
But I could draw it.
[sighs, exhales sharply]
[cooing, laughing]
Thank you, tree.
[grunts]
[LaValle] The Norway maple. An invasive species.
The aggressive roots girdle even the parent tree, choking itself to death.
It creates a canopy of dense shade,
preventing regeneration of other seedlings and wildflowers.
It is a sneaky bastard tree.
I'm coming for you.
I need the Internet.
[scoffs] There is no source of communication
that could be traced or tracked to this island.
You messaged me online.
We take a boat to South Brother Island and use prepaid burner phones from there.
- Then I'll have to take the boat again. - That is not safe.
I'm going whether you let me take it
or I pry it out of your freshly dead hands.
I'll bring more books.
[clicks tongue] All right.
But let me show you a better route through the city.
And, Emma, if the police catch you,
if you are arrested, you are alone.
We cannot help you,
and you never breathe a word about this island.
Emma Valentine.
Welcome! Wheels.
We're the "mole people" you convinced yourself were just a fun story
so you could spend a grand on sushi at Shuko.
I-- Yeah, I got nothing.
Out of sight out of mind suits us just fine.
I'm looking for my son.
Come, come. Morning is nimble. [blows]
Hot down here.
Steam pipes. Hundred degrees!
Perfect for cooking a nice, rare steak.
Climb aboard Old Ginny.
[horn honks]
Strap in!
What's that?
We got some ingenious bastards down here. All walks of life.
Managed to reroute the electrickery.
Built bona fide real deal home.
[rooster crows]
- [pig squeals] - That's a pig.
[Wheels] That's Henry. Welcome to the Grand Central community.
- Yep, you're under it. - [train rattling]
How long have you been here?
Ah, we've always been here, darling.
As long as there's an above, there's a below.
Overground and underground.
We got everybody: Black, white, Asian, Latino,
old, young, on drugs, off drugs,
straight, gay, trans, LGBTQ+, none of the above.
I wanna say it's like a representation of the city,
but these tunnels aren't segregated by race or class or gender,
and that makes us better than them.
You mightn't be able to get any lower than this.
But ain't no people higher in both senses of the word.
[chuckling]
We got rules, and we live by them, or you out.
Also, you gotta be invited to live down here by me.
- Gotta keep moving. Whoo! - [horn honks]
[engine rattles]
[Wheels] Number of people on the streets of New York City
higher than since the Great Depression.
Track 61. Know about it? Nope, you don't!
'Cause it's a secret. [chuckles]
I love history. This track was built for FDR.
It leads to a special platform with an elevator
that took him straight up and into the Waldorf Astoria's garage
'cause he had polio and was in a wheelchair.
And look at this.
Beautiful, ain't she?
Used to travel people up and down Broadway.
The cars came and gas money, and they made her obsolete. What a crime.
But now she's my house.
No taxes, no bills,
no time to invite you in for tea
and regale you with the gamut of my historical knowledge.
This is the Columbus Circle community.
- Hey! Got your water! - Pick it up on the way back.
- Water? - Three man-made waterfalls in Central Park
using the city's tap water.
Good clean drinking water for all us ne'er-do-wells.
The Columbus community goes up there at night and collects it for us,
and then we pay them in whatever we've managed to haul in.
Porn mags, cigarettes, candy.
Whoo! I just love Skittles.
Live tracks on the other side of this baby.
So, step lightly.
[train approaching]
Whoa! Make yourself a pancake!
[air hisses]
[chuckles] Forgot about that one.
Got the whole timetable up here,
but they added a late train, and I haven't filed it away yet.
Be a real Greek tragedy if I get you squished before you find--
- What's his name? - Brian. My son's name is Brian.
Hmm. You probably miss him very much.
Sometimes I imagine my mom might have searched everywhere
to find out whatever happened to me.
- [person on PA, indistinct] - Sad.
Okay, here's 181st. That's your stop.
All right. All casual-like.
I'll be waiting for you back behind that door.
Thank you for helping me.
Oh, you're easy. I've helped people do crazy shit,
but I ain't pro bono. I want something in return.
I don't have any money or--
The Travels of Pedro de Cieza de León, AD 1532-50,
Contained in the First Part of His Chronicle of Peru.
History buff.
- Move fast. Morning is-- - Nimble.
Hot on the heels of the moon.
[bell rings]
[blows]
[typing]
Okay.
Where do you come from?
- [door lock clicks] - [keys jingling]
[door opens, closes]
It's too early. Shit.
- [panting] - [printer whirling]
[Yurina] Yes. No.
Seriously, it's fine, Mama, okay? I'll be back later.
- [Yurina] We've been through this. - [door opens]
[door creaks, closes]
[Yurina] Yeah. It's stock count today.
They'll be here soon.
Okay. Love you. Bye.
[Yurina urinating]
[toilet flushes]
[door opens]
[faucet opens]
[faucet closes]
[hand dryer whirring]
[door opens, closes]
[breathing heavily]
- [Yurina screams] No! Don't shoot! - [Apollo] Don't scream. Stop.
[Yurina] Don't shoot! I don't know!
- [gunshot] - [gasps]
[librarians screaming]
[gasps]
- Yurina. - [librarians screaming]
- [Apollo] Fuck! [groans] - [Yurina gasps]
[sobbing]
- [Carlotta] Apollo, we're so sorry. - [Yurina crying]
[Apollo] Everyone's so sorry. Everyone's so sorry! Where is she?
- [Carlotta] We don't know. - [Sheryl] We don't.
[Yurina whimpering, sobbing] Please-- Please, just let us go. [whimpering]
[Apollo panting] People don't just disappear.
- [sirens wailing] - [Sheryl] They do. She did.
- Apollo, we don't know anything. - Apollo.
- [Sheryl] She kept saying that the baby-- - No, don't tell me she was fucking tired.
- She was-- - [Yurina sobs]
- [Sheryl] No, don't hurt yourself, Apollo! - [Apollo] I'm tired too.
- [lock clicks] - [panting]
- [siren blares] - [police radio chatter]
[police officer 1] Hey, stop! Police!
[police officer 2] NYPD! Stop where you are!
[pants]
[police officer 1] Police!
- [police officer 2] Go, go, go, go, go! - [pants]
[panting]
[police officer 1 grunts]
[groans]
- [police officer 1] Freeze! - [police officer 2] Hold it! Hold it!
Stop where you are, ma'am!
[police officer 1] Hey!
[panting]
[panting] Wheels. Go, go, go!
[police officer 1] Stop! Police!
[metal clanks]
- [Wheels] Thanks for the book. - [teapot clanks]
- Milk and sugar? - [inhales sharply] Uh--
Oh, you paused too long.
Protein...
- [bowl clanks] - ...and a dream.
- [Emma chuckles] - What now, Emma?
- Uh, I'll leave after dark. - [sniffs]
Deliver the books and then I'll come back.
I'm-- [clears throat]
[exhales sharply] Gotta find and check every Norway maple in the city.
- [Wheels] That's all you got to go on? - Yeah. That and a line from a kid's book.
- [Wheels] Mmm. - Mmm.
"They bathe it at dusk. They hide it with guile.
At home in the forest, forever lost in the wild."
- Nah, not a fucking clue. - [chuckles]
Welp, Norway maple.
- Mmm. [sips] - I'm gonna say it came from Norway,
- so start there. - [chuckles] Great.
Serious. Little Norway. New York City, baby.
- What? - I told you I was a history buff.
You weren't listening. [sighs]
That area there, Forest Hills in Queens, used to be called Little Norway.
First immigrants arrived in 1825. Got a forest too.
"At home in the forest. Forever lost in the wild."
Whoo! Go bid your adieus.
I'll meet you back here tomorrow night.
Yeah.
Oh, and if you think your mom never wondered where you were, searched for you,
then you're level 12 batshit.
If your mom's still alive, put her out of her misery, man.
[blows]
[children chattering]
Wow. [sighs] It's a real library now.
[Emma chuckles]
Mm-hmm.
If I find him--
You'll get a message to us.
Either way, you won't see me again.
I know that.
Have Wheels send someone back with it.
Cal, if I don't make it and my son does,
and somehow he comes looking for me.
Somehow.
This will give him comfort.
My husband was obsessed with it.
Apollo's dad used to read it to him when he was little.
Tell him-- Tell Brian...
that Apollo was so looking forward to doing the same.
You got it.
Have you thought about what happens if you don't find him?
- [chuckles] - [sighs] Where will you look?
Brian is in the forest.
[grunts]
I don't forgive you.
You drugged me.
You lost me precious time I could've used searching.
I bought you rest and a mind to think clearly.
There are always two ways to see things.
[sighs]
Good luck, Emma.
Mama's coming for you.