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INT. LARA'S INBOX
The voicemail box of Lara Campbell.
LARA You have reach Lara Campbell's Psychic Investigations. Please leave a message.
BEEP.
First message. ROSE BOONE. She's late 20s, vibrant, cagey, flighty. Lara's opposite, but also her equal.
ROSE Hi, um, Lara. This is Rose. Rose Boone? Yeah. Uh. Listen, I know it's -- been a while. But I really need to talk to you. Okay? I'm at my parents' house and there's something... Can you just call me? Please?
BEEP.
A middle-aged woman.
WOMAN Um, hi, my name is Deborah Lee. There have been some...things going on in my house that I can't quite explain.
BEEP.
Rose again. She sounds rattled, unsettled.
ROSE Hey. Lara. Me again. Thought I'd see if you got my other message. I just, um...God, this is awkward, I...I need you. Okay? I need you to hear it. Call me back. Please.
BEEP.
Deborah Lee again.
WOMAN We found this ouija board and things haven't really been the same since.
BEEP.
MITCHELL BOONE, 61, well-spoken, composed and confident, if a little worried-sounding here.
MITCHELL Hello, this is Reverend Mitchell Boone. I think you know my daughter, Rose? Well, I don't know how to say this, but Rose is missing, and I think you might know how to find her. Can you come to Charity right away? Please, we need you. Thanks. God bless.
TITLES
Music comes in.
JULIE (V.O.) Believer. Episode One: Charity.
Music ends.
INT. PETERSEN HOME - DAY
Lara sounds soft here, her voice smooth, soothing, almost meditative.
LARA Just one more time, please, Mrs. Petersen. Tell me what you saw. (off her hesitation) It's all right. Just take a deep breath.
Kathy takes a deep, nervous breath. She begins.
KATHY Um, well, it's happened a few times now. I wake up in my bed, usually around 2 or 3 in the morning, and I -- I see it. I see her.
LARA Who do you see?
KATHY A woman. She's glowing, indistinct. Dressed in a -- an old dress, with the high collars, you know? And there's blood. Dried blood. All over her neck.
LARA Does she speak to you?
KATHY No. No. She just...stares. With this look like...like she can see through me. And then I get this horrible feeling, like someone's sitting on my chest. Dread. And I can't move, I can't speak, I can't --
LARA It's okay, Mrs. Petersen. My protection charm is still in effect. She can't reach you here.
KATHY Are you sure, because I heard that you used to have a partner. Rose something?
LARA Uh -- she -- yes. I used to, um, but we're not, um -- it's fine.
KATHY She always seemed like such a sweet girl. Very in tune, they said.
LARA Um, yes, well, the spirits are with me now. I feel them all around us, Mrs. Petersen.
KATHY Kathy.
LARA Kathy. Of course. So after the floating woman looks at you, what happens?
KATHY She, um...she comes apart. Her neck, just, like a hinge.
LARA Her head comes off?
KATHY Yes. And then the rest of her just sort of unravels. Like when you pull a thread on a scarf or something. Except instead of thread it's just...nothing. Nothing inside her, disappearing into nothing, and -- except her eyes are still there, I can feel them just staring, like it's my fault, like there's something I need to --
She breaks off, emotional.
LARA Take a breath, Kathy.
KATHY What do I do? What does she want?
LARA I can feel her presence here. I believe I can commune with her, but I'll need you to step away for a moment while I make the connection.
KATHY Oh, you think I'm causing this?
LARA You're doing nothing wrong. Fear is understandable, but contagious, in a way. I'll just bring her out first, see if I can convince her to speak with you.
KATHY Oh. Okay. Sure.
LARA I want you to brew a pot of tea and take ten cleansing breaths.
KATHY Of course.
LARA Thank you.
Kathy leaves. Sound of door opening and closing.
Blip-bloop! Lara grabs her phone. The soothing meditation voice is gone. She's all business, dry, crisp, hurried.
LARA Look up "victorian woman images."
COMPUTER VOICE Here's what I found.
Sound of typing. Lara's narration breaks in.
LARA (V.O.) This is an old profession.
LARA I just need somebody who isn't famous.
LARA (V.O.) Not, you know, "the oldest profession." But there have always been people who see things, and people who tell everyone what that means.
Blip-bloop!
LARA Search "victorian woman stock photo blurry."
LARA (V.O.) They're just not always the same person.
LARA (under her breath) Just gotta get past the first page of search results...there we go. Okay, pop it into the app, and...there.
Just then, the door opens again and Kathy returns.
KATHY Can I -- is she here? Lara's psychic voice is back.
LARA Yes. She's quiet, but she's here. I know exactly what's going on.
LARA (V.O.) Hypnopompic hallucinations. You begin to wake up before you've finished your REM cycle, and so you see your dreams as if they're real life.
LARA You have a ghost.
KATHY I knew it.
LARA (V.O.) It's actually very common.
LARA Mrs. Petersen, this picture came to me. I've recreated it on my phone. Is this the woman you've seen?
Kathy inspects the photo. She gasps.
KATHY Yes! That's her! How --
LARA I thought so. This is Mildred Corrie. She lost her children in a typhoid epidemic 128 years ago.
KATHY Oh...oh no.
LARA (V.O.) Not a real person. Obviously.
LARA Yes. It was horrible in this area. She did her best to save her little boy, but...
KATHY That's awful.
LARA I sense you understand some of what might keep her here.
LARA (V.O.) It's an old house. Tragedy is a good guess. Besides, I do have google.
KATHY Grief. It pulls you apart. You want to hold onto them, you want to let go, you want to be...
LARA Nothing, sometimes.
KATHY Yes.
LARA (V.O.) We need stories. It's just how the human brain is wired. So...I make some up.
LARA She's attracted to your grief. She wants empathy, compassion. From someone who understands.
KATHY But how can I help her? When she appears I can't move, I --
LARA You can look her in the eyes. Take three deep breaths. And tell her with your mind that everything will be all right. She can forgive herself. Can you do that?
Kathy is moved, emotional.
KATHY Yes. Yes, I think I can.
LARA (V.O.) Look, I know her type. If I tell her she needs to take care of herself, she's gonna take one bubble bath. But if I tell her there's someone else here who deeply needs her help? She'll do what it takes.
LARA It may take a few visits before she trusts you, but I'm confident you can help each other.
KATHY Yes, I -- thank you. Thank you.
LARA Of course. Now let's perform a few cleansing rituals together. Take my hands...
FADE OUT
INT. LARA'S CAR - LATER
LARA (V.O.) It's not scamming, okay? I'm not a scammer. These people -- they believe it's a ghost. They want a ghost. They are not gonna listen to something that's not a ghost. So fine. Let's say the house is haunted.
A car door opens.
LARA (calling behind her) Okay, thank you! Yep. Nope. Yep. See you later.
LARA (V.O.) Sorry? Oh, did I believe? In what, in ghosts? Um...I...I used to. But it doesn't hold up, you know? And -- and you do this job long enough and you find you get the same results whether you believe in it or not. The thing that actually matters is that they believe it.
A little dog, SODAPOP, crawls over the seat.
LARA Hey, dude. Did you have fun with the babysitter? Are you a good boy? Yeah.
Sodapop pants happily.
LARA (V.O.) Sodapop. World's greatest dog. (chuckles) Rose named him. He was Rose's dog, really. But after everything that happened, um...it just made more sense for me to keep him.
LARA Yeah, bud, let's see if we can hear that voicemail again. Phone?
Blip-bloop!
LARA (CONT'D) Play voicemail from Mitchell Boone.
COMPUTER VOICE No messages found.
LARA What? Okay, um...
(Archie pants and whines throughout this sequence.)
Blip-bloop!
LARA (CONT'D) Play last voicemail.
COMPUTER VOICE No messages found.
LARA No. Okay, let me look at this, um...it's -- why is it not here? (sighs) Okay, uh, let's um... (Blip-bloop!) Phone, um, call Mitchell Boone.
COMPUTER VOICE Calling Mitchell Boone. (beat) I'm sorry. This call cannot be completed.
LARA Okay. Something's going on with my phone, bud! Alright, Sodapop...wanna go for a drive? It's fine, it's only...six and a half hours.
Sodapop jumps up and licks Lara's face.
LARA (laughs) Okay. Alright. Let's go pick up a couple things. Charity, Oregon here we come.
LARA (V.O.) I thought maybe taking him might help? You know, maybe he could find her, or she'd come back for him, or...I don't know, maybe I'd see her, and she'd see him, and....don't look at me like that. It's fine.
INT. LARA'S CAR - LATER
Sodapop whines in the back seat.
LARA I know, buddy. I know. Look, okay, we're almost there! See? Charity, Oregon. Population 5,000. Okay. And AirBnBs...just this one. Okay. I guess this is kind of in town.
The car slows, stops. She opens the door and steps outside.
EXT. JAKE'S HOUSE - AFTERNOON
Trees sway in the wind. We're right on the edge of the forest.
JAKE Hey! Lara opens the car door.
LARA Jake Talbott?
JAKE Lara Campbell. The Lara Campbell.
LARA Uh...
Sodapop barks and scurries out of the car.
JAKE Oh, he's fine. I love dogs. Anyway, like I was saying, you're Lara Campbell, right? The paranormal investigator?
LARA Oh, um, yeah. That's me.
JAKE Do you ever work with cryptids? Because there is a ton of Sasquatch activity out here.
LARA Um...I'm sure there is.
JAKE I'm actually working on a Sasquatch experience. The Squatch Walk? It'll go with my podcast, Squatch Talk. I'd actually love it if you could come take a look sometime.
LARA (overlapping) Where's the room? For my stuff?
JAKE Oh, of course. This way. Come on, Sodapop!
Sodapop makes barks happily and follows. Lara sighs.
INT. LARA'S COTTAGE - MOMENTS LATER
Lara and Jake look around. Sodapop races around the space, sniffing at things.
JAKE So this is it!
LARA Small.
JAKE Cozy.
LARA Right.
JAKE You've got a half-bath and kitchenette -- full shower and kitchen in the main house -- plus bed, desk, wi-fi and power. Watch this front door, the latch kind of sticks.
He jiggles the latch.
JAKE Just play with it a little bit, it'll come right open.
LARA Sure.
JAKE And seriously, if you want to see the tracks or hair that I've found, I would love to show you.
LARA I'm actually just here to see the Boones.
His tone changes. Jake goes quiet, awkward.
JAKE Oh.
LARA You know, because their daughter Rose and I used to work together.
JAKE No. I don't know anything about Rose.
LARA That's fine. I just heard she might be having some trouble, or --
JAKE I don't think we're supposed to talk about this.
LARA About what? Rose? The Boones?
JAKE Yeah, I -- I gotta go. I gotta go. Uh...yeah.
He jiggles the handle again, working the door open.
LARA Jake, what are we not supposed to talk about? Did something happen?
JAKE Yeah, yeah, so, uh, let me know about the Squatch Walk. I'd love to have you. I gotta go.
LARA Wait, Jake --
But the door opens and he beats a hasty retreat.
JAKE Let me know about the Sasquatch!
And he's gone. Lara stares after him.
LARA Well, that was weird.
Sodapop pants happily.
EXT. BOONE HOUSE - EVENING
Crickets chirp. Lara walks up, Sodapop at her side.
LARA Okay, Sodapop, this is the Boone House. Nice.
She laughs nervously. Sodapop whines.
LARA I know, buddy. It's okay. She's -- she's probably here. Yeah. (deep breath) Okay.
She knocks on the front door.
TERRI RUIZ-BOONE (56, a smiling, domineering, terrifying force of nature) opens the door.
TERRI Yes?
LARA Mrs. Boone? I'm Lara Campbell, and --
TERRI Nope.
The door slams shut.
LARA Uh...
She knocks again, louder this time. The door opens.
TERRI I told Rose I wasn't taking that dog.
LARA Oh -- no, Mrs. Boone, we're just here for a visit.
TERRI A visit.
LARA Yeah.
TERRI You want to visit Rose. Lara Campbell.
LARA Yeah...
TERRI Do you know what that girl was like before you? My little girl?
LARA Listen, Terri --
TERRI My friends call me Terri. You can call me Mayor Teresa Ruiz-Boone.
LARA Sure.
TERRI She was going to college, you know? She was so focused. So passionate. And then she met you.
LARA I know, I know.
TERRI And suddenly she can talk to ghosts. Her! A good Christian girl. The preacher's daughter. But you know what? She loved you. You. And I don't get it -- I really don't -- but you know, I tried. I really tried. But then -- you know what you did?
LARA I stopped believing.
TERRI (overlapping) No, you left her. You used her, and you broke her, and you sent her back to me. So no, I don't think she wants to see you right now.
LARA Wait. Can I at least talk to your husband? He said you needed my help.
Terri seems surprised.
TERRI Mitchell? When did you talk to him?
LARA He left me a voicemail message.
TERRI He called you?
LARA He said Rose was missing and I needed to come here.
TERRI When was this?
LARA A couple days ago.
Terri considers this.
TERRI Well, he's not taking visitors.
LARA I really think I should talk to him.
Terri considers. She sizes Lara up, makes a decision.
TERRI You want to see him? Sure. Right this way.
They step into...
INT. BOONE HOUSE - CONTINUOUS
Terri ushers Lara down the hallway. A loud wall clock ticks.
TERRI So this is the dog, huh?
LARA Yeah.
TERRI He house-trained?
LARA Yeah, of course.
Sodapop snorts.
TERRI Hm. They walk down the hall.
LARA So has Rose been, um...is Rose still...?
TERRI Let's talk to Mitchell first, shall we?
They walk into...
THE PARLOR
Where the rhythmic beep of a heart monitor takes over for the clock in the hall. Machines whir. Mitchell breathes, labored. This is the room of a very sick man.
TERRI Mitchell? You have a visitor. Lara stops, taking it all in.
LARA Um... Mitchell mumbles.
MITCHELL Mmm?
TERRI This is Lara Campbell. Lara? Reverend Mitchell Boone. I'll just leave you two to...talk.
LARA Wait, um --
But Terri just walks out. Lara hesitates. She approaches Mitchell, carefully.
LARA Okay, uh...hello, sir. Are you -- you're the one who called me. Right? You were worried about Rose. Sir?
On "Rose," he breathes hard, fast, getting excited. The beeps on the machine speed up.
LARA Sir are you, uh... Mitchell whispers.
His voice is labored, ragged. Speaking takes great effort.
MITCHELL Rose. Find...Rose.
LARA Right. Yeah. What happened? Did Rose leave?
MITCHELL She heard...the sound...
LARA What sound?
MITCHELL She heard...the voice...of God...
LARA Okay, Reverend Boone, just calm down.
MITCHELL Rose is...the key! Please...find Rose...
He starts to cough violently. Machines beep, alarms going off. Terri rushes back into the room.
TERRI Mitchell!
She hits a few buttons. The alarms stop.
TERRI What did you do to him?
Sodapop whines.
LARA Sodapop! Don't -- Mrs. Boone, what's going on with Rose?
TERRI Rose is fine. Mitchell? Honey?
Sodapop whines again.
LARA Has she been hearing things? Voices?
MITCHELL The darkness...nothing...reaching...
He breaks off into coughing again.
TERRI Mitchell. Honey. You need to stop talking.
Sodapop barks and runs out of the room. Lara follows.
LARA Sodapop!
TERRI Hey, don't -- ugh.
But Lara's already disappeared into --
THE HALL
She hurries down the hall.
LARA Now where did that dog...huh.
She opens the door into...
ROSE'S ROOM
And stops. Shocked.
LARA Oh my god. Um, uh...
Sodapop runs around, sniffing. Bloop-blip! Voice recorder on. She speaks quickly, quietly. She's rattled, scared.
LARA Lara Campbell, June 22nd, 3:00pm. -- Pops, don't touch that! -- Audio notes. I'm in Rose's room. And it's...Photos are on the phone.
Sodapop whines.
LARA The whole room seems to be disintegrating. It's crazy I couldn't see this from the outside. All the wood, the windowpanes, the walls, it's like...tissue paper. And there are...drawings. All over the walls. The floor. Under the desk. On top of the desk. It's hard to tell -- Pops, no! -- they overlap each other. The lines are erratic, frantic. When did she draw this? I think they might be animals? But they're...wrong. Too many eyes, all kinds of teeth, it's...
Sodapop sniffs and sneezes at something.
LARA Pops, don't...wait. Is that...Rose's phone?
The door squeaks open. Terri charges in.
TERRI What are you doing?
LARA Terri...what is going on in here?
TERRI You have to get out of here. We don't go in here. Get out!
She grabs Lara and pulls her back into --
THE HALL
She shuts Rose's door, quickly.
TERRI We don't go in there. Do you understand? We don't go into Rose's room.
LARA Mrs. Boone, where is Rose?
TERRI She's...she's camping.
LARA Camping.
TERRI Yes.
LARA And how long has she been camping?
TERRI Two weeks.
LARA Two weeks?!
TERRI Shhh! I just got Mitchell settled.
Lara lowers her voice, but she's just as intense.
LARA Was this before or after she drew creepy hell-monsters all over her room?
TERRI We don't go into Rosa's room!
LARA Mrs. Boone, your daughter goes missing for two weeks...
TERRI She's not missing.
LARA After hearing voices...
TERRI Mitchell doesn't know what he's saying.
LARA And tearing her room apart...
TERRI We don't go in there!
LARA And you don't think to call anyone?
TERRI She's fine! Okay? Everything is fine.
LARA How long has Mitchell been like that?
TERRI You shouldn't be here. You need to go.
She pulls open the heavy front door.
LARA Mrs. Boone...
Lara steps outside.
TERRI Leave. Now. Or I call the sheriff.
LARA That's actually a great idea.
TERRI And take the dog with you.
Terri slams the front door in her face. A beat. The clock ticks. Terri sighs.
TERRI (under her breath) Awful woman and her stupid dog...
Terri makes her way back to Mitchell. His machines hiss and whir.
TERRI You know she's going to catch it now.
MITCHELL (raspy breath) Good.
INT. LARA'S COTTAGE - NIGHT
It's late. Pitch-dark. Rain falls softly outside.
LARA (V.O.) Lara's phone was password-protected. I tried everything I could think of short of locking it forever, um... No, I mean, by the time I got back it was pretty late and, you know, driving all day, it's super dark out there, so...so that brings us to this next part...
Lara is in bed. She snores softly in her sleep. There's a soft knock on her door. Quiet, like someone doesn't want to wake her: knock-knock-knock-knock.
Knock-knock. The same soft knock. Lara sits up. She is tired, confused.
LARA Jake?
She waits a moment. Just when she thinks it's done...knock knock.
LARA Jake? What do you want? It's like three in the morning.
A pause, then knock-knock-knock-knock-knock -- louder, more insistent.
LARA Okay, God, I'm getting up! If this is a Bigfoot thing, I swear...
She clicks on a lamp. Nothing happens. She clicks it a few more times.
LARA Hey, Jake? I think the power's out. None of the lights are --
The knocking changes, coming faster, heavier.
LARA ...Jake?
The room erupts into knocking and banging sounds. Lara cries out, breathes hard, moves around the room.
CRASH! Something breaks the window. It plops onto the floor, wet and amorphous like a pile of spaghetti. Lara screams. The knocks and bangs continue, along with a strange whistling sound. The wet thing moves across the ground in a series of squishy splat sounds.
Lara runs to the door, pulls on it, but it doesn't open.
LARA Come on, come on, come on come on come on --
Lara wrenches the door open and races out into --
EXT. JAKE'S HOUSE - NIGHT
She scrambles over the gravel, turns, and... Nothing. The sounds have all stopped. Just the peaceful rain. Lara waits, breathing hard. But nothing happens.
LARA What...?
The back door to Jake's house opens. Lara jumps.
LARA Ah!
JAKE Lara? What are you doing out here?
LARA Um, I -- I think the power's out.
JAKE Well, all your lights are on...
Lara turns back.
LARA What the hell?
JAKE Are you okay?
LARA I think something...broke my window.
JAKE Oh. Okay. Let me take a look.
They walk across the gravel and grass.
JAKE Did you see what broke it?
LARA Um, no, I...oh my god. Sodapop?
Sodapop comes out. He yawns and shakes off.
JAKE Looks like he was sleeping.
LARA But...how could he...?
JAKE It's okay. I'll check it out.
Jake opens the door and enters the cabin. Sodapop jumps on him happily as he goes.
JAKE Good boy, buddy.
A beat. Lara fidgets in the grass. She stops, seeing something.
LARA (to herself) What...?
Jake calls out from the cabin.
JAKE (O.S.) I think it was just a branch. Lara?
No answer. He steps out of the cabin.
JAKE Lara? What...
He approaches her. Sodapop sniffs around.
LARA Are those footprints?
JAKE Footprints. Oh yeah, oh yeah, those are some giant footprints.
Lara groans.
LARA Oh, god. I'm gonna have to go on a Squatch Walk, aren't I?
FADE OUT
END TITLES
Music box style music plays.
JULIE (V.O.) Thank you so much for listening to the first episode of Believer. This episode was sponsored by Saunders & Associates, LLC, providing medical insurance consulting the beautiful state of Oregon and beyond. Believer is a brand new pod-baby and she needs your help in order to grow. So like, subscribe, review, but most importantly tell someone about the show. Word-of-mouth is how most people find their podcasts, so a recommendation goes a long way. For full credits, transcripts, extended thank-yous, and more information, go to BelieverPodcast.com. Episode 2 comes out on March 17th. Until then, if you hear any strange sounds in the woods, just pay it no mind. It's probably nothing.
Music ends.
END OF EPISODE