Archive 81 (2022) s01e05 Episode Script
Through the Looking Glass
1
It's just a mess out there
north of the city.
Scientists now say there may be a biological reason that [news theme playing.]
[announcer.]
Live from WABC7, you're watching The Morning Show with Len Huntsman, Gloria Francis, and Sheila Church with the exclusive AccuWeather forecast.
Now, here's your eyewitness news.
Good morning, New York City.
It's 6:00 a.
m.
and 32 degrees out there.
I'm Len Huntsman.
And I'm Gloria Francis.
An unidentified man was fatally struck by a train after falling onto the tracks late last night in Queens.
Authorities say there are no witnesses to the accident that happened at the Forest Hill 71st Avenue Station at approximately 3:05 a.
m.
Medics responded, but the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
[distorted.]
dead at the scene.
[static crackles.]
[ominous theme music playing.]
Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia! [man on TV.]
Chia Pets grow in practically no time.
Follow the simple directions.
[monitor beeping.]
Add water, and watch your Chia Pet grow right before your eyes! Great for decorating.
Use them again and again all year round.
No matter where they're seen.
In a kitchen window, on a table, a beautiful centerpiece, the office.
Just about anywhere.
[indistinct announcement on PA.]
[tense music playing.]
[man on TV.]
 Chia Pets make a perfect gift for you and your friends.
Start growing your own fun today with Chia Pets.
[tense music continues.]
[footsteps approaching.]
[footsteps stop.]
- Melody.
- [gasps.]
[gasps.]
[monitors beeping.]
[sighs.]
[ambulance siren wailing in distance.]
Beatriz? The man you saw.
The one that has a message for me.
Who is he? Is he someone from the building? Is he dead? If you could just look one more time.
Please.
No.
[sobs.]
No, no, no, no, no.
No! Don't let it out.
[demonic voice.]
Don't let it out! [monitor beeping rapidly.]
[breathing heavily.]
Dr.
Turner? Hello? [woman.]
Dr.
Turner's not here.
[Melody.]
Did his office hours change? I've tried calling and [woman.]
He's not holding office hours.
He's on leave.
[Melody.]
What do you mean he's on leave? [doorbell rings.]
Melody.
- What are you doing here? - I need your help.
Please.
It's important.
Here you are.
I think I'm being haunted.
And why do you say that? The day I moved into the Visser, I, um, started having these dreams, these conversations, with a man I didn't know.
And when I'd wake up, I couldn't remember his face or what we talked about.
- A few days ago, I went to this séance.
- A séance? Beatriz, the medium, she started repeating his conversations back to me, word for word, and suddenly I could remember everything.
What he looks like, what he sounded like, what we talked about.
Every fucking detail.
He said he was your son and that his name was Dan.
Your son's name is Dan, right? Danny, yes.
But he's eight.
He said I died in a fire.
And that I was in danger, and that I should get out of the Visser.
And now every time I close my eyes, I can see him.
Hey, what are you really doing here, Melody? I'm trying to ask you for help.
The department put me on leave.
Someone filed an anonymous complaint against me.
It wasn't you? No, why would it be? Well, the complaint states I violated university policy by posting about a student on an internet message board.
Did you post about me on a message board? No.
I mean, yes, but I didn't identify you by name.
All right, six months ago, a researcher put out a call looking for subjects.
He was studying a group of people who had certain sensitivities.
He called them "Baldung.
" Now, the markers he described were identical to yours.
The accounts of being pulled somewhere, of feeling that same kind of paralyzing terror.
And they all made drawings exactly like yours.
Same patterns, same lines.
He said they had all shown a genetic predisposition to unusual psychic perception.
Did you talk to him? I met with him, and we went over your case.
He said you weren't a match.
Look, I'm sorry.
I, uh I thought you came over here with some kind of crazy ghost story to get back at me.
So you're saying this could be real.
Melody, I try to always leave room for the unexplained corners of the universe.
But most likely, this is just anxiety or your subconscious urging you to abandon the search for your mother.
No, I'm not imagining things.
Okay.
I have it all on tape.
The séance, the cult meetings, everything that has been happening in that building.
I can show it to you.
Excuse me.
[car doors slamming.]
Look, I'm sorry, my family is here.
Here is a referral.
[door opens.]
Hey, honey, this is, uh, Melody, one of my students.
She came to drop off some research.
Nice to meet you.
[Steven.]
Do you need a ride back to the station? I'll send you those tapes.
[eerie music playing.]
[elevator dings.]
Hey.
Hey.
What's in the jar? Have you been with Beatriz? Is she gonna be okay? Did she get the flowers Samuel sent? She'll be fine.
Don't worry.
Seriously, what's in there? Where's it from? Sorry.
Client confidentiality.
[Melody.]
Is it for Samuel? Anabelle? [Anabelle.]
Anabelle and Melody are currently taking part in a secret government biosphere experiment.
Please leave a message and they'll be contacted by robot.
[beeps.]
Anabelle? Are you there? Pick up.
I really need to talk to you.
[sighs.]
Okay, just call me back.
I'm gonna page you.
[knocking.]
Hi, Ms.
Lewis.
Um, is Jess here? Yes.
Would it be all right if I asked her a quick question? Anabelle is gone, and I was hoping she might have seen her.
She's doing her homework.
I'll let her know you came by.
[tuning fork resonates.]
[Beatriz.]
Julia Bennett.
We call you now.
Melody is waiting.
Julia Bennett? We call you now.
Melody is waiting.
I'm sorry.
I'm afraid I don't sense her in the realm of the dead.
Wait.
[gasps.]
There's someone else.
[inhales sharply.]
"I can get out of your way.
" "Me too.
" [distorted voice.]
[static crackling.]
[distorted indistinct talking.]
[hissing.]
[muffled demonic snarling.]
[roaring.]
[gasps.]
What the fuck? "You died in a fire.
" "At the Visser, 25 years ago.
" "I'm sorry.
" "Are you crazy?" "It's your footage.
" "I'm trying to understand what happened to you.
" [Melody.]
Stop it.
I know where Anabelle is.
[knocking on door.]
Oh, darling, come in.
Have you been to see Beatriz? Poor thing.
Obviously, if I had had any idea she was so unstable, I wouldn't have asked her to do that reading.
I'm here to see Anabelle.
Anabelle? Jess told me she saw her moving her stuff into your apartment.
And that you told her not to tell me.
Would you like a cup of tea? Anabelle? You smother her, you know.
Excuse me? You need to let her emerge from the cocoon in which you keep her bound.
Give her the freedom to find herself, to fly.
I can't stand by and allow you to stifle Anabelle.
As my darling Eleanor was stifled by her family.
Where is she, Cassandra? She needed space to create, so I gave her an apartment I own on the sixth floor.
Which apartment? Which apartment? - This floor needs a key? - Oh, you know these old buildings.
6C.
[elevator dings.]
[dings.]
Anabelle? Anabelle! No, no, no, Mel! No, no, don't look.
Okay, stay back.
Don't look.
They're not ready yet.
Okay, I'm not looking.
[pop music playing on headphones.]
What are you doing up here? Isn't it amazing? This building, Mel.
This building is special.
It speaks to me.
I I feel connected to something here.
Don't you? I think we should leave.
Maybe your mom was an artist.
[laughs.]
Maybe she came to this building to create, to dream, to forge a passage to another world, just like Eleanor did.
Anabelle, we need to go home.
What? Back to Brooklyn.
Back to our apartment.
I thought you wanted to find Julia.
I do.
I I just don't think it's safe here.
You go.
I'm gonna stay.
I need to get ready for my show.
[scoffs.]
What show? The East Village Art Collective, Mel.
Someone dropped out last minute and Cassandra got me a spot.
You have to come.
Okay? Free wine, hot girls, hot guys, maybe ham sandwiches, but I have to check on that.
- When? Tonight? - Yeah, tonight.
Have you eaten today? I said there would be sandwiches and free wine, okay? I'm saving myself.
Goodbye.
I love you.
Just get the fuck out.
Anabelle! Anabelle, open the door.
Anabelle! [doorknob rattles.]
[sighs.]
[faint melodic chanting.]
[indistinct melodic chanting.]
[indistinct melodic chanting.]
[camcorder beeps.]
[whispering.]
So this is the sixth floor.
[bugs hiss.]
[gasps.]
Fuck.
What the fuck are you doing here, Melody? [melodic chanting.]
[gasps.]
[heavy breathing.]
[humming chant.]
[huffing rhythmically.]
[chanting continues.]
[huffing rhythmically.]
[all stop.]
[gasps.]
- Is it time? Did he send you? - What? Father Russo.
- I'm so sorry.
I shouldn't have - Wait.
Don't go.
I need your help.
Hey, get the fuck away from her.
Go! I told you to stay away from this floor.
Let's go.
- Who are those people? - None of your business.
Ever turn that thing off? - Why are they humming that song? - Song? That horrible fucking song that I keep hearing in this building.
- Are they part of the cult too? - Cult? What the fuck are you talking about? Why are they locked in? It's for their own protection.
What the fuck is that supposed to mean? It means they're addicts, and drugs are the only thing that matter.
He's trying to protect them.
Who is? Samuel.
[sighs.]
His sister was an addict.
She froze to death in the park when she was just a kid.
He said he didn't want anyone else picking out coffins for their sisters, so he rents out this floor for them, keeps them warm.
- Keeps them safe.
- [knocks.]
He's trying to do something good.
[suspenseful music playing.]
Dan? - Melody? - [gasps.]
Please, I need to talk to you.
- Get out.
Get the fuck down.
- Please.
Your friend said that I could trust you.
Anabelle.
- She said that you could help.
- Goddamn it, Anabelle.
She said you're looking for your mother, Julia.
We can help each other.
Please, just just let me in.
[camcorder beeps.]
Just say my name? [Melody.]
That's right.
Chris Lee.
How long have you been here? Two years, maybe 20.
I He doesn't He doesn't want us to leave.
He says he needs us to open a door.
Who needs you to open a door? Don't worry, I didn't give your friend a taste.
I wouldn't I wouldn't do that.
A taste of what? Stardust.
That's what brought us here.
That's what keeps us here.
What's Stardust? Heroin? The mold.
It grows here.
It shimmers.
Haven't you seen it? Running through this building like deep, dark veins.
The walls, the floors, the the lungs.
One hit? It's like another world opens up.
And there's no going back.
Did you know Julia? Did she live here? Was she an addict too? Uh, names are sort of whoosh.
Like something from the world out there, not the world in here.
What does she look like? I don't know.
Like me, I guess.
There was this woman.
She had your hair.
Same smile.
Same eyes.
But she's gone.
Where? Where did she go? Do you hear it? Hear what? There's something in this place that calls to you.
It It calls.
It calls.
And we call back.
[breathing heavily.]
[humming.]
- [Melody.]
Stop.
- [hums.]
Stop it.
Stop it, please! Can you help me find her? Julia.
He said he'd give me a bed.
Who? Father Russo.
He He came by a couple weeks back and said he'd send someone back with a golden ticket.
You know what that is? They give you a bed, free of charge, no questions asked.
Rehab.
I wanna get clean, but It It pulls you.
You know? If I don't get out of here real soon, the ferryman's gonna come and drag me to hell.
He's gonna drag us all to hell.
Get me a bed, and I'll help you find Julia.
Okay.
Let's go.
Let's go right now.
No! Fuck! No! He'll see me.
He'll come for me.
Who? I'm not supposed to leave.
I need a ticket.
Get me a ticket right fucking now! Or no deal.
[church bells tolling.]
What happened? Father Russo.
He's gone.
What do you mean, "gone"? Last night Late last night, he fell in front of the train.
What? I don't know why he was meeting someone so late.
He never went out that late.
But he was like that.
If someone was in trouble, he'd drop everything to help.
Excuse me.
[door clatters loudly.]
[whispering.]
Fuck.
I wouldn't take it if I didn't need it.
What the hell? [camcorder beeps.]
[eerie music playing.]
Holy shit.
"Pedestal sculpture, Greenstone, 14th Century, provenance unknown.
" "Entity known as Kaelego.
" Kaelego.
"Is cited as both god and demon.
" Oh my God.
"Samuel Grant.
" "Virgil Samuelson.
" Who the fuck are you, Samuel? "Alistair Spare.
" "Baldung Coven.
" What the fuck? [doorknob rattling.]
[door banging.]
[camcorder beeps.]
[woman.]
Can't get the door.
[man.]
Here, let me try.
[lock clicks.]
[chuckles.]
I am I'm so sorry to do this.
It's just, he borrowed the book several weeks ago, and I need to return it to the university.
I can't afford to replace it on an adjunct salary.
[woman.]
It's no problem.
He was such a wonderful man.
Mm.
And I know how much he admired you.
[woman sobbing.]
I think I think I'll just step out for a moment.
[Samuel.]
Of course.
[footsteps recede.]
[suspenseful music playing.]
- [woman.]
We're about to start the vigil.
- Oh.
I found it.
Thank you again.
[police sirens blaring in distance.]
[exhales.]
[line ringing.]
[car horn toots.]
- [girl.]
Hello, this is Emily.
- [boy.]
And this is Dan.
[both.]
You've reached the Turner residence.
We're not in right now, but leave a message and we'll call you right back.
Dr.
Turner.
Look, I'm sorry I just showed up at your house today, but The Baldung, they're witches.
It's a fucking coven.
And my mom's ring, it it has all the same markings.
Was she part of the cult? I'm sorry, I I'll try you later.
Melody.
Dan? [cars honk.]
Dan! [pager vibrating.]
[line ringing.]
- Hello? - [Anabelle.]
Mel, where the fuck are you? You said you'd come.
Get your ass over here.
I'm sorry.
Uh I forgot.
I'm I'm on my way.
["Dirty Boots" by Sonic Youth playing.]
All the girls They're playing on a jelly roll Time to take a ride Time to take it in a midnight eye And if you wanna go, get on below Melody! You fucking slut.
I can't believe you forgot.
I'm sorry, but I need to tell you something.
Oh, Gabby, Gabby, Gabby.
Mel, this is Gabby.
She's the genius curator who put on this show.
Gabs, this is my best girl, Melody.
Your friend is on fucking fire.
[chuckles.]
You can't come back to the Visser tonight, okay? You need to go home.
Well, home is where the heart is, and you are my heart.
- I'm serious.
- So We're leaving the Visser.
Both of us.
Tonight.
You ready to see my stuff now? Come.
See? Who is this? I don't know.
[indistinct whispering.]
[Melody.]
What do you mean? I don't know.
I But she's in there.
[Melody.]
What? In where? [Anabelle.]
I see her.
Okay, what is all this? You know what it is.
It's the other place.
The paint.
The paint lets you see it.
I am a Spirit Receiver now, Mel.
- Just like Eleanor.
- What? Can I borrow her? I promise to bring her back.
She's got fans to meet.
[camcorder beeps.]
Mold.
It's the mold.
[Tamara.]
Who the fuck is that? I don't know.
You tell me.
Cassandra had a painting of her hanging in the apartment.
One of Eleanor's crazy fucking spirit visions.
Maybe she gave Anabelle a peek.
I'm gonna get another plastic cup of garbage wine.
You want some? [Jess.]
Melody.
[Melody.]
What are you doing here? Samuel says I need to see more art if I'm gonna make art, so Cassandra brought me along.
Does your mom know you're here? I'm gonna go shoot some stuff.
She's not a child.
She's a bright young artist who needs stimulation.
Okay, a crowd like this could set her seizures off.
She's not an invalid, Melody.
Why can't you stop smothering? [punk music playing in background.]
[Anabelle.]
My paintings aren't for sale, okay? Fuck off! [Gabby.]
If you didn't want to sell, why the fuck are you even here? To share them! With the world! To show them where she is! Listen.
They paid in cash.
Okay? I don't care.
Give it back.
I can't.
The buyer wants to remain anonymous.
Oh, bullshit.
- Thief.
Fucking liar.
- Anabelle, it's okay.
Anabelle! [Gabby.]
Planning on reimbursing me my fucking commission? - Anabelle, calm down.
- These are mine.
Leave them.
 You can paint more.
Let's get the fuck out of here.
They're mine, okay? If you're not gonna help me fucking save them, - then just stay the fuck away! - [grunts.]
Cassandra's right.
You're always fucking smothering me! [patrons murmuring.]
[suspenseful music playing.]
[indistinct.]
Hold on one second.
[camcorder beeps.]
Did you buy those paintings? I'm sorry? Don't fuck with me, Samuel.
Did you buy the paintings? I'm sorry, I don't Anabelle's paintings.
At the gallery? At the fucking gallery? I just saw you there.
Cassandra asked me to stop by as a favor.
I didn't buy any paintings.
What is going on with you and Cassandra? What the fuck game are you playing? - Game? - I know about the sixth floor.
About the junkies you got locked up, all strung out on your fucking Stardust.
Singing that song over and over.
I have no idea what you're talking about.
What the fuck is going on in this building? Who are you? - Who am I? - Alistair Spare? Samuel Grant? Virgil Samuelson? Father Russo found you out, didn't he? All of your fake fucking names? And that's why you shoved him onto the tracks? - He met you last night, didn't he? - Turn it off.
Turn off the camera.
What about my mother? Was she part of your weird fucking cult? Did you murder her too? Stop, Melody, please.
You're clearly drunk or high or out of your mind.
Answer the fucking question! [screams.]
Somebody call an ambulance! [man.]
Holy shit.
[Melody.]
Oh my God.
[rhythmic huffing playing.]
[intense music playing.]
[machine clicks.]
What the fuck? What the fuck is going on here? I know you're watching this.
Watching me.
You fucking liar.
You were there.
 You were there! [shouting.]
Who the fuck are you? Samuel was my brother.
He had so much potential.
But he channeled it into all the wrong places.
Okay, what the fuck am I really doing here and why am I restoring these tapes? I believe Melody Pendras murdered my brother.
I believe the evidence is in that footage.
What are you fucking talking about? Samuel was charming, eccentric, prone to delusions of grandeur.
And yes, he did go down quite a rabbit hole with that occult nonsense.
But he was harmless.
He was leading some kind of fucked-up cult in that building! Wasn't real, Dan.
It was just a bunch of garage-sale knickknacks and some gullible people and Samuel's overactive imagination.
Bullshit.
Melody Pendras was a traumatized young woman who got it into her head that her mother had lived in the Visser.
When she couldn't find Julia Bennett, she lost her grip.
She took all of her loneliness and rage and pointed it right back at my brother.
That didn't happen.
That's exactly what happened.
She bought into his ridiculous fiction, decided Samuel was the cause of all her troubles.
So, she set fire to that building and killed my brother - and all those other people with him.
- No.
You seen anything to contradict what I'm saying? She wouldn't do that.
You sit here alone, hour after hour, watching a young woman share her intimate thoughts and experiences, her dreams, her pain.
- You think you know her.
- I do know her.
Melody clearly had grievances with my brother.
She wanted to hurt him.
She wanted to make him pay.
And if she could do something like that to him, who's to say she didn't do that to your family? To your father? Who's to say she didn't burn them all? Haven't you always wondered if it wasn't your father who set that fire? What if he's innocent, Dan? What if it was Melody Pendras? What if she murdered your family? That's fucking impossible.
Is it? Finish those tapes, Dan.
Find out what really happened.
Maybe we'll both get some closure.
[eerie music playing.]
Scientists now say there may be a biological reason that [news theme playing.]
[announcer.]
Live from WABC7, you're watching The Morning Show with Len Huntsman, Gloria Francis, and Sheila Church with the exclusive AccuWeather forecast.
Now, here's your eyewitness news.
Good morning, New York City.
It's 6:00 a.
m.
and 32 degrees out there.
I'm Len Huntsman.
And I'm Gloria Francis.
An unidentified man was fatally struck by a train after falling onto the tracks late last night in Queens.
Authorities say there are no witnesses to the accident that happened at the Forest Hill 71st Avenue Station at approximately 3:05 a.
m.
Medics responded, but the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
[distorted.]
dead at the scene.
[static crackles.]
[ominous theme music playing.]
Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia! [man on TV.]
Chia Pets grow in practically no time.
Follow the simple directions.
[monitor beeping.]
Add water, and watch your Chia Pet grow right before your eyes! Great for decorating.
Use them again and again all year round.
No matter where they're seen.
In a kitchen window, on a table, a beautiful centerpiece, the office.
Just about anywhere.
[indistinct announcement on PA.]
[tense music playing.]
[man on TV.]
 Chia Pets make a perfect gift for you and your friends.
Start growing your own fun today with Chia Pets.
[tense music continues.]
[footsteps approaching.]
[footsteps stop.]
- Melody.
- [gasps.]
[gasps.]
[monitors beeping.]
[sighs.]
[ambulance siren wailing in distance.]
Beatriz? The man you saw.
The one that has a message for me.
Who is he? Is he someone from the building? Is he dead? If you could just look one more time.
Please.
No.
[sobs.]
No, no, no, no, no.
No! Don't let it out.
[demonic voice.]
Don't let it out! [monitor beeping rapidly.]
[breathing heavily.]
Dr.
Turner? Hello? [woman.]
Dr.
Turner's not here.
[Melody.]
Did his office hours change? I've tried calling and [woman.]
He's not holding office hours.
He's on leave.
[Melody.]
What do you mean he's on leave? [doorbell rings.]
Melody.
- What are you doing here? - I need your help.
Please.
It's important.
Here you are.
I think I'm being haunted.
And why do you say that? The day I moved into the Visser, I, um, started having these dreams, these conversations, with a man I didn't know.
And when I'd wake up, I couldn't remember his face or what we talked about.
- A few days ago, I went to this séance.
- A séance? Beatriz, the medium, she started repeating his conversations back to me, word for word, and suddenly I could remember everything.
What he looks like, what he sounded like, what we talked about.
Every fucking detail.
He said he was your son and that his name was Dan.
Your son's name is Dan, right? Danny, yes.
But he's eight.
He said I died in a fire.
And that I was in danger, and that I should get out of the Visser.
And now every time I close my eyes, I can see him.
Hey, what are you really doing here, Melody? I'm trying to ask you for help.
The department put me on leave.
Someone filed an anonymous complaint against me.
It wasn't you? No, why would it be? Well, the complaint states I violated university policy by posting about a student on an internet message board.
Did you post about me on a message board? No.
I mean, yes, but I didn't identify you by name.
All right, six months ago, a researcher put out a call looking for subjects.
He was studying a group of people who had certain sensitivities.
He called them "Baldung.
" Now, the markers he described were identical to yours.
The accounts of being pulled somewhere, of feeling that same kind of paralyzing terror.
And they all made drawings exactly like yours.
Same patterns, same lines.
He said they had all shown a genetic predisposition to unusual psychic perception.
Did you talk to him? I met with him, and we went over your case.
He said you weren't a match.
Look, I'm sorry.
I, uh I thought you came over here with some kind of crazy ghost story to get back at me.
So you're saying this could be real.
Melody, I try to always leave room for the unexplained corners of the universe.
But most likely, this is just anxiety or your subconscious urging you to abandon the search for your mother.
No, I'm not imagining things.
Okay.
I have it all on tape.
The séance, the cult meetings, everything that has been happening in that building.
I can show it to you.
Excuse me.
[car doors slamming.]
Look, I'm sorry, my family is here.
Here is a referral.
[door opens.]
Hey, honey, this is, uh, Melody, one of my students.
She came to drop off some research.
Nice to meet you.
[Steven.]
Do you need a ride back to the station? I'll send you those tapes.
[eerie music playing.]
[elevator dings.]
Hey.
Hey.
What's in the jar? Have you been with Beatriz? Is she gonna be okay? Did she get the flowers Samuel sent? She'll be fine.
Don't worry.
Seriously, what's in there? Where's it from? Sorry.
Client confidentiality.
[Melody.]
Is it for Samuel? Anabelle? [Anabelle.]
Anabelle and Melody are currently taking part in a secret government biosphere experiment.
Please leave a message and they'll be contacted by robot.
[beeps.]
Anabelle? Are you there? Pick up.
I really need to talk to you.
[sighs.]
Okay, just call me back.
I'm gonna page you.
[knocking.]
Hi, Ms.
Lewis.
Um, is Jess here? Yes.
Would it be all right if I asked her a quick question? Anabelle is gone, and I was hoping she might have seen her.
She's doing her homework.
I'll let her know you came by.
[tuning fork resonates.]
[Beatriz.]
Julia Bennett.
We call you now.
Melody is waiting.
Julia Bennett? We call you now.
Melody is waiting.
I'm sorry.
I'm afraid I don't sense her in the realm of the dead.
Wait.
[gasps.]
There's someone else.
[inhales sharply.]
"I can get out of your way.
" "Me too.
" [distorted voice.]
[static crackling.]
[distorted indistinct talking.]
[hissing.]
[muffled demonic snarling.]
[roaring.]
[gasps.]
What the fuck? "You died in a fire.
" "At the Visser, 25 years ago.
" "I'm sorry.
" "Are you crazy?" "It's your footage.
" "I'm trying to understand what happened to you.
" [Melody.]
Stop it.
I know where Anabelle is.
[knocking on door.]
Oh, darling, come in.
Have you been to see Beatriz? Poor thing.
Obviously, if I had had any idea she was so unstable, I wouldn't have asked her to do that reading.
I'm here to see Anabelle.
Anabelle? Jess told me she saw her moving her stuff into your apartment.
And that you told her not to tell me.
Would you like a cup of tea? Anabelle? You smother her, you know.
Excuse me? You need to let her emerge from the cocoon in which you keep her bound.
Give her the freedom to find herself, to fly.
I can't stand by and allow you to stifle Anabelle.
As my darling Eleanor was stifled by her family.
Where is she, Cassandra? She needed space to create, so I gave her an apartment I own on the sixth floor.
Which apartment? Which apartment? - This floor needs a key? - Oh, you know these old buildings.
6C.
[elevator dings.]
[dings.]
Anabelle? Anabelle! No, no, no, Mel! No, no, don't look.
Okay, stay back.
Don't look.
They're not ready yet.
Okay, I'm not looking.
[pop music playing on headphones.]
What are you doing up here? Isn't it amazing? This building, Mel.
This building is special.
It speaks to me.
I I feel connected to something here.
Don't you? I think we should leave.
Maybe your mom was an artist.
[laughs.]
Maybe she came to this building to create, to dream, to forge a passage to another world, just like Eleanor did.
Anabelle, we need to go home.
What? Back to Brooklyn.
Back to our apartment.
I thought you wanted to find Julia.
I do.
I I just don't think it's safe here.
You go.
I'm gonna stay.
I need to get ready for my show.
[scoffs.]
What show? The East Village Art Collective, Mel.
Someone dropped out last minute and Cassandra got me a spot.
You have to come.
Okay? Free wine, hot girls, hot guys, maybe ham sandwiches, but I have to check on that.
- When? Tonight? - Yeah, tonight.
Have you eaten today? I said there would be sandwiches and free wine, okay? I'm saving myself.
Goodbye.
I love you.
Just get the fuck out.
Anabelle! Anabelle, open the door.
Anabelle! [doorknob rattles.]
[sighs.]
[faint melodic chanting.]
[indistinct melodic chanting.]
[indistinct melodic chanting.]
[camcorder beeps.]
[whispering.]
So this is the sixth floor.
[bugs hiss.]
[gasps.]
Fuck.
What the fuck are you doing here, Melody? [melodic chanting.]
[gasps.]
[heavy breathing.]
[humming chant.]
[huffing rhythmically.]
[chanting continues.]
[huffing rhythmically.]
[all stop.]
[gasps.]
- Is it time? Did he send you? - What? Father Russo.
- I'm so sorry.
I shouldn't have - Wait.
Don't go.
I need your help.
Hey, get the fuck away from her.
Go! I told you to stay away from this floor.
Let's go.
- Who are those people? - None of your business.
Ever turn that thing off? - Why are they humming that song? - Song? That horrible fucking song that I keep hearing in this building.
- Are they part of the cult too? - Cult? What the fuck are you talking about? Why are they locked in? It's for their own protection.
What the fuck is that supposed to mean? It means they're addicts, and drugs are the only thing that matter.
He's trying to protect them.
Who is? Samuel.
[sighs.]
His sister was an addict.
She froze to death in the park when she was just a kid.
He said he didn't want anyone else picking out coffins for their sisters, so he rents out this floor for them, keeps them warm.
- Keeps them safe.
- [knocks.]
He's trying to do something good.
[suspenseful music playing.]
Dan? - Melody? - [gasps.]
Please, I need to talk to you.
- Get out.
Get the fuck down.
- Please.
Your friend said that I could trust you.
Anabelle.
- She said that you could help.
- Goddamn it, Anabelle.
She said you're looking for your mother, Julia.
We can help each other.
Please, just just let me in.
[camcorder beeps.]
Just say my name? [Melody.]
That's right.
Chris Lee.
How long have you been here? Two years, maybe 20.
I He doesn't He doesn't want us to leave.
He says he needs us to open a door.
Who needs you to open a door? Don't worry, I didn't give your friend a taste.
I wouldn't I wouldn't do that.
A taste of what? Stardust.
That's what brought us here.
That's what keeps us here.
What's Stardust? Heroin? The mold.
It grows here.
It shimmers.
Haven't you seen it? Running through this building like deep, dark veins.
The walls, the floors, the the lungs.
One hit? It's like another world opens up.
And there's no going back.
Did you know Julia? Did she live here? Was she an addict too? Uh, names are sort of whoosh.
Like something from the world out there, not the world in here.
What does she look like? I don't know.
Like me, I guess.
There was this woman.
She had your hair.
Same smile.
Same eyes.
But she's gone.
Where? Where did she go? Do you hear it? Hear what? There's something in this place that calls to you.
It It calls.
It calls.
And we call back.
[breathing heavily.]
[humming.]
- [Melody.]
Stop.
- [hums.]
Stop it.
Stop it, please! Can you help me find her? Julia.
He said he'd give me a bed.
Who? Father Russo.
He He came by a couple weeks back and said he'd send someone back with a golden ticket.
You know what that is? They give you a bed, free of charge, no questions asked.
Rehab.
I wanna get clean, but It It pulls you.
You know? If I don't get out of here real soon, the ferryman's gonna come and drag me to hell.
He's gonna drag us all to hell.
Get me a bed, and I'll help you find Julia.
Okay.
Let's go.
Let's go right now.
No! Fuck! No! He'll see me.
He'll come for me.
Who? I'm not supposed to leave.
I need a ticket.
Get me a ticket right fucking now! Or no deal.
[church bells tolling.]
What happened? Father Russo.
He's gone.
What do you mean, "gone"? Last night Late last night, he fell in front of the train.
What? I don't know why he was meeting someone so late.
He never went out that late.
But he was like that.
If someone was in trouble, he'd drop everything to help.
Excuse me.
[door clatters loudly.]
[whispering.]
Fuck.
I wouldn't take it if I didn't need it.
What the hell? [camcorder beeps.]
[eerie music playing.]
Holy shit.
"Pedestal sculpture, Greenstone, 14th Century, provenance unknown.
" "Entity known as Kaelego.
" Kaelego.
"Is cited as both god and demon.
" Oh my God.
"Samuel Grant.
" "Virgil Samuelson.
" Who the fuck are you, Samuel? "Alistair Spare.
" "Baldung Coven.
" What the fuck? [doorknob rattling.]
[door banging.]
[camcorder beeps.]
[woman.]
Can't get the door.
[man.]
Here, let me try.
[lock clicks.]
[chuckles.]
I am I'm so sorry to do this.
It's just, he borrowed the book several weeks ago, and I need to return it to the university.
I can't afford to replace it on an adjunct salary.
[woman.]
It's no problem.
He was such a wonderful man.
Mm.
And I know how much he admired you.
[woman sobbing.]
I think I think I'll just step out for a moment.
[Samuel.]
Of course.
[footsteps recede.]
[suspenseful music playing.]
- [woman.]
We're about to start the vigil.
- Oh.
I found it.
Thank you again.
[police sirens blaring in distance.]
[exhales.]
[line ringing.]
[car horn toots.]
- [girl.]
Hello, this is Emily.
- [boy.]
And this is Dan.
[both.]
You've reached the Turner residence.
We're not in right now, but leave a message and we'll call you right back.
Dr.
Turner.
Look, I'm sorry I just showed up at your house today, but The Baldung, they're witches.
It's a fucking coven.
And my mom's ring, it it has all the same markings.
Was she part of the cult? I'm sorry, I I'll try you later.
Melody.
Dan? [cars honk.]
Dan! [pager vibrating.]
[line ringing.]
- Hello? - [Anabelle.]
Mel, where the fuck are you? You said you'd come.
Get your ass over here.
I'm sorry.
Uh I forgot.
I'm I'm on my way.
["Dirty Boots" by Sonic Youth playing.]
All the girls They're playing on a jelly roll Time to take a ride Time to take it in a midnight eye And if you wanna go, get on below Melody! You fucking slut.
I can't believe you forgot.
I'm sorry, but I need to tell you something.
Oh, Gabby, Gabby, Gabby.
Mel, this is Gabby.
She's the genius curator who put on this show.
Gabs, this is my best girl, Melody.
Your friend is on fucking fire.
[chuckles.]
You can't come back to the Visser tonight, okay? You need to go home.
Well, home is where the heart is, and you are my heart.
- I'm serious.
- So We're leaving the Visser.
Both of us.
Tonight.
You ready to see my stuff now? Come.
See? Who is this? I don't know.
[indistinct whispering.]
[Melody.]
What do you mean? I don't know.
I But she's in there.
[Melody.]
What? In where? [Anabelle.]
I see her.
Okay, what is all this? You know what it is.
It's the other place.
The paint.
The paint lets you see it.
I am a Spirit Receiver now, Mel.
- Just like Eleanor.
- What? Can I borrow her? I promise to bring her back.
She's got fans to meet.
[camcorder beeps.]
Mold.
It's the mold.
[Tamara.]
Who the fuck is that? I don't know.
You tell me.
Cassandra had a painting of her hanging in the apartment.
One of Eleanor's crazy fucking spirit visions.
Maybe she gave Anabelle a peek.
I'm gonna get another plastic cup of garbage wine.
You want some? [Jess.]
Melody.
[Melody.]
What are you doing here? Samuel says I need to see more art if I'm gonna make art, so Cassandra brought me along.
Does your mom know you're here? I'm gonna go shoot some stuff.
She's not a child.
She's a bright young artist who needs stimulation.
Okay, a crowd like this could set her seizures off.
She's not an invalid, Melody.
Why can't you stop smothering? [punk music playing in background.]
[Anabelle.]
My paintings aren't for sale, okay? Fuck off! [Gabby.]
If you didn't want to sell, why the fuck are you even here? To share them! With the world! To show them where she is! Listen.
They paid in cash.
Okay? I don't care.
Give it back.
I can't.
The buyer wants to remain anonymous.
Oh, bullshit.
- Thief.
Fucking liar.
- Anabelle, it's okay.
Anabelle! [Gabby.]
Planning on reimbursing me my fucking commission? - Anabelle, calm down.
- These are mine.
Leave them.
 You can paint more.
Let's get the fuck out of here.
They're mine, okay? If you're not gonna help me fucking save them, - then just stay the fuck away! - [grunts.]
Cassandra's right.
You're always fucking smothering me! [patrons murmuring.]
[suspenseful music playing.]
[indistinct.]
Hold on one second.
[camcorder beeps.]
Did you buy those paintings? I'm sorry? Don't fuck with me, Samuel.
Did you buy the paintings? I'm sorry, I don't Anabelle's paintings.
At the gallery? At the fucking gallery? I just saw you there.
Cassandra asked me to stop by as a favor.
I didn't buy any paintings.
What is going on with you and Cassandra? What the fuck game are you playing? - Game? - I know about the sixth floor.
About the junkies you got locked up, all strung out on your fucking Stardust.
Singing that song over and over.
I have no idea what you're talking about.
What the fuck is going on in this building? Who are you? - Who am I? - Alistair Spare? Samuel Grant? Virgil Samuelson? Father Russo found you out, didn't he? All of your fake fucking names? And that's why you shoved him onto the tracks? - He met you last night, didn't he? - Turn it off.
Turn off the camera.
What about my mother? Was she part of your weird fucking cult? Did you murder her too? Stop, Melody, please.
You're clearly drunk or high or out of your mind.
Answer the fucking question! [screams.]
Somebody call an ambulance! [man.]
Holy shit.
[Melody.]
Oh my God.
[rhythmic huffing playing.]
[intense music playing.]
[machine clicks.]
What the fuck? What the fuck is going on here? I know you're watching this.
Watching me.
You fucking liar.
You were there.
 You were there! [shouting.]
Who the fuck are you? Samuel was my brother.
He had so much potential.
But he channeled it into all the wrong places.
Okay, what the fuck am I really doing here and why am I restoring these tapes? I believe Melody Pendras murdered my brother.
I believe the evidence is in that footage.
What are you fucking talking about? Samuel was charming, eccentric, prone to delusions of grandeur.
And yes, he did go down quite a rabbit hole with that occult nonsense.
But he was harmless.
He was leading some kind of fucked-up cult in that building! Wasn't real, Dan.
It was just a bunch of garage-sale knickknacks and some gullible people and Samuel's overactive imagination.
Bullshit.
Melody Pendras was a traumatized young woman who got it into her head that her mother had lived in the Visser.
When she couldn't find Julia Bennett, she lost her grip.
She took all of her loneliness and rage and pointed it right back at my brother.
That didn't happen.
That's exactly what happened.
She bought into his ridiculous fiction, decided Samuel was the cause of all her troubles.
So, she set fire to that building and killed my brother - and all those other people with him.
- No.
You seen anything to contradict what I'm saying? She wouldn't do that.
You sit here alone, hour after hour, watching a young woman share her intimate thoughts and experiences, her dreams, her pain.
- You think you know her.
- I do know her.
Melody clearly had grievances with my brother.
She wanted to hurt him.
She wanted to make him pay.
And if she could do something like that to him, who's to say she didn't do that to your family? To your father? Who's to say she didn't burn them all? Haven't you always wondered if it wasn't your father who set that fire? What if he's innocent, Dan? What if it was Melody Pendras? What if she murdered your family? That's fucking impossible.
Is it? Finish those tapes, Dan.
Find out what really happened.
Maybe we'll both get some closure.
[eerie music playing.]