[theme song plays]
♪ Demons come from every side ♪
♪ In the darkness is the light ♪
♪ Out of the shadows of my life ♪
♪ In the darkness is the light ♪
♪ Surrender will win the fight ♪
♪ This girl's walked on fire and ice ♪
♪ But I come out ♪
♪ On the other side of paradise ♪
♪ Paradise ♪
[Fi] Ever notice how the older you get,
the more time you have to spend keeping track of birthdays,
anniversaries, and all kinds of other dates that have become important?
But sometimes certain dates seem to mark themselves,
a sign of unfinished business with the past.
Take the story about the Alamo ghost boy.
He's supposedly the spirit of a kid who was evacuated
during the famous siege of the Alamo in 1836.
The rest of his family didn't make it out.
People say he reappears in one of these windows every year
during the first week of February, the date he last saw his family.
I don't know if it's true,
but it makes me wonder about why he'd come back.
Is he just replaying what happened,
or is it possible he's trying to find out why it did?
Oh, thanks, babe.
-How's it going? -One more load.
-Have you seen Sam yet? -He's not in the lobby.
He said he was going to be here at 10:00.
Honey, he called you 50 times to come home for a visit.
He's not going to stand you up.
-Have you seen my guitar? -[Ned] Not recently.
Uh, Carey's got it. He's going to practice his solos.
I wish he'd told me.
I'll give him a time-out.
[Molly] Do you know he's been doing this since he was five?
-So, did you reach Jack? -Sort of.
I talked to Gabe's dad, Seth,
who says that Gabe is taking Jack around to meet all of her friends.
Seth says he thinks they're totally in love.
-You miss him? -Yeah.
It's tough having one kid gone and one kid here who's not really here.
-Fi's still not talking to you? -No.
Molly, I love you, you know that, but you kept a big secret from her.
I think the ball's in your court here.
Seen Sam yet?
Not yet, Neddy.
♪ Looking for another world ♪
♪ I'm not sure we should ♪
♪ I'm not sure salvation lies there ♪
♪ There is bad as well as good ♪
♪ Let us love each other now ♪
Hey.
♪ As if this world is all... ♪
Your dad had such a beautiful voice.
I don't know what I fell in love with first,
his face or his voice.
Ah, look, Fi, I know you're angry I didn't tell you about your dad,
about how he was into all these paranormal things like you are.
"Another World."
You know, I've been listening to this song my whole life.
Is that what it's about? Weird stuff?
I think that's part of what it's about, but it's also--
I'm going up to the room, Mom.
Come on, Fiona--
[man] Look, I don't have time to talk about it.
It's my job to keep the citizens of Missoula informed.
Hey, they're just ducks, right? It's not front page news.
-Ho! -Hey, Sam!
Ned! You dog.
[laughing]
-Irene. -Hey.
Hey, I can't believe you're really here.
Oh... Man, it's been a long time.
Hey, you've got to meet my boss; Molly Phillips, and her daughter, Fiona.
Hey, Sam. We've heard a lot of things about you.
All lies. Fiona, is it?
Nice to meet you, sir.
Uh, Lewis Pelt, with the Missoula Beacon.
I'm working on a great human interest story on your buddy here.
Oh, you'd be, uh... Ned Bell.
Have we met?
It's my job to get the background when I'm doing a story.
Story?
Your pal Sam, here, took a header out of a second-story window.
-Sam, were you hurt? -Just my pride... [mumbles]
Doing some carpentry work out at old man Gilmore's place,
and... slipped and landed in the duck pond.
-Scared those birds silly. -[laughing]
Now there's a whole crew of Audubon boys in waders
trying to coax them back home.
That's what I love about this place; this is news in Missoula.
That's me, public enemy number one for waterfowl.
[laughing]
Of course, the coincidence of the date in question is interesting.
Thirty-five years ago this week, isn't it?
Maybe you'd like to talk about that for my article?
Uh, look, you'll have to excuse us, we got a lot of catching up to do.
Ah... sure thing.
But, um... I'll be around.
What was all that about?
When we were kids, there was an accident.
-This boy, Pete Wills. -What happened to him?
He fell.
Look, it's ancient history, nothing to worry about.
Hey, hon, we're going to go grab some breakfast before sound check.
-You'll be OK for a couple hours? -Mm-hmm.
You old rascal.
-Can you, um, help me with the luggage? -Yeah, sure.
The freaky part is the way he brought it up out of the blue like that.
You haven't been thinking about what happened?
No. I mean, not really.
-My place there. A fixer-upper. -Nice.
[Sam] I figured I could whip us up some eggs.
-Well, anyway, it was an accident-- -[boy] Sammy! Help me!
[Ned] Why that reporter would even wanna dig it up...
-Pete! -Sammy, I'm going to fall!
[yelling]
-Sam! -[horn honking]
Sam!
Sam, what's wrong? Are you OK?
You didn't... you didn't hear him?
-You didn't see him? -See who?
Ned, that spill in the duck pond.
I was try... I was trying to get away from Pete.
Pete?
When I moved back here last year, I didn't think it would bother me so much,
you know, what happened when we were kids.
The anniversary got closer,
I... I can't tell you why. I started feeling scared.
That's why I called you. Yesterday, I... I saw him.
Pete. Standing there, just like the day he died.
Looking at me.
Sam, when you work outside like you do,
sometimes the sun, it can play tricks on your eyes.
You think it's all in my head, huh?
[sighs]
Yeah, maybe the sun is driving me batty.
Let's get some breakfast.
Here we go.
"A local boy died yesterday." Died?
"Pete Wills, ten years old. Fell to his death.
Wills suffered the fatal injury jumping into the Madison River.
The accident was witnessed by two local boys,
Sam Hodge and Ned Bell."
-Got you curious, huh? -You scared me.
Did you know Sam Hodge was seeing that boy, Pete Wills, around town?
Seeing him fall?
Sounds to me like a man with a guilty conscience.
What kind of reporter are you?
What does any of this have to do with your story?
Maybe nothing. Or maybe it's the key to a story
that should have been written 35 years ago.
About how little Sammy Hodge just stood by and let Pete wills fall to his death,
-while Ned Bell watched. -That's not true.
Ned would never cover up a thing like that!
How do you know? Has Ned talked about what happened?
He doesn't have to. I trust him.
[soft chuckle] Yeah.
Well, talking from experience, you've got to be careful who you trust.
You'd make a good reporter, kid.
Just don't expect it to make you popular.
People would rather shoot the messenger than face the truth.
-Who was that guy? -A reporter.
Carey, do you know where your dad is?
-Yeah, he's at Sam's house. Why? -I need to talk to him.
Wait, I've got to get my flip-flops.
[Sam] I'm glad you kids came over.
I've got some photo albums in the living room, and...
You know, your dad looked just like you when he was your age.
That... that's uncanny. Wait right here.
-Dad? Is everything OK? -Sure. Why?
That reporter guy, Lewis Pelt, came back. He thinks Sam could've saved Pete
that day at the river, but he let him fall.
Yeah, well, he doesn't know what he's talking about.
Then, Dad, what did happen?
[sighs]
Pete loved that river, the Madison.
There was this one spot where they had a cable rig that went across,
with a basket for checking water samples.
And we used to cut school sometimes and go out there.
We'd take the basket out over the river
and jump out into the deep part in the middle.
That day, I went first. Then it was Pete's turn.
The basket got stuck.
It was too close to the rocks on the shore to jump out.
I'm coming back on the cable.
No, stay there, Pete, you're going to fall.
[Ned] Pete decided to try to get back to the platform
going hand over hand.
I guess he wasn't strong enough.
[grunts]
[yelling]
No!
Pete fell...
just short of the water.
I remember standing there in the water, just before he fell.
I was so scared, I couldn't move.
Maybe if I'd climbed up on the platform...
I could've hung on to Sam, and Sam could've saved Pete.
I've never told anybody that story.
Dad, it's OK.
Hey, Ned, you won't believe this shot of you and the...
No, stay away from me. Stay away!
-[yelling] -[glass shattering]
Sam?!
Oh, Sam.
It was him. It was Pete.
Is Sam OK?
-It's a miracle he didn't kill himself. -He's got a cracked rib.
Nothing we can do except wrap it up.
This is his second fall he's had this week, isn't it?
[Ned] Yeah.
Well, try and keep him on the ground for a while.
I don't know if he'll be so lucky the third time.
Thanks for coming out, Doc.
So what happens to Sam now?
Yeah? Is he, like, crazy or what?
-Carey. -Sorry.
[Fi] I don't think he's crazy.
I think Pete Wills is back because he's looking for something.
[Ned] Fiona, please.
I've got enough problems here. This is not the time for ghost stories.
[Sam] No, I think she's right.
Pete has come back. He wants something.
Maybe he wants to even the score.
Sam, Pete is not haunting you.
Why don't you come back to the hotel with us?
We'll talk about what happened, figure this out.
I already figured it out.
Now I just need to decide what to do about it.
Don't worry. I'll be OK.
Hey, baby. Need some help?
No.
-Here, try this. -I want to use my finger.
OK.
I'm going to go get a paper.
Mom? Does this weird stuff scare you?
Yeah. Yeah, it does.
Did it scare Daddy?
Well, your father thought some of it was really cool,
like you do, but some of it wasn't so great.
How could you keep this stuff about him a secret?
Fi... after your father died, I was so hurt.
I was broken.
I just wanted it all to go away, forever.
And then when you started doing the same things he did...
I guess I just started to hold my breath, and I never let it out.
I never knew him.
He's like this big hole in my life. It's getting bigger all the time.
I try to fill it up.
I even started a list of things people tell me I have in common with him.
You did?
I've always had this feeling like I'm supposed to...
I don't know, like I'm supposed to connect with him or something.
Even now.
And to find out we've had this giant connection
you've been hiding for years...
How could you do that?
Honey, I thought I was doing the right thing.
Maybe the right thing changed somewhere along the way,
and I didn't notice it.
But, Fi, I'm sorry. Honey?
I'm really, really sorry.
Can you check the toast?
Yeah.
[knocking]
[Ned] Molly!
Hey, Ned, come on in.
-Have you seen Irene? -She went to the gym.
-Why? What's up? -I went by Sam's house today.
The door was wide open. Nobody's there.
Did you call the doctor? Maybe his rib was bothering him.
Nobody's seen him. Should I call the police?
I have looked everywhere I can think of.
Maybe Sam's gone to look for Pete.
Hey, I don't know if Pete's haunting Sam, but Sam thinks so.
[straining]
Sam!
-What are you doing? -It's Pete.
He wants that day to happen all over again.
Pete? Pete, are you here?
Sam, I know you feel guilty, but... but it was an accident!
So, this is where it happened.
What did you say to him? What's he doing up there?
All I've done is ask questions.
He's not up there because of me.
He's up there because of his conscience.
[Pete] All right, it's my turn. I'm going.
Ned! Did you hear that? It's Pete!
-Pete, what do you want from me? -It's stuck, Sammy!
Pete...
I'm coming back on the cable!
No... don't, Pete. Stay in the basket!
You're going to fall!
What's he doing?
Pete! Don't do it!
Nobody's there, Sam! Come down!
Maybe we're finally going to learn the truth
about what really happened that day.
-I gotta stop him. -Ned, be careful!
Go back, Pete.
Sammy, I'm scared! It's too far! I can't reach you.
Was that true, Sam? Did you even try to save him?
This is what you wanted all along, wasn't it?
That's why you kept badgering Sam.
You wanted him to come back here and relive this, didn't you?
I just want the truth.
-Hang on, Pete. -I can't hang on. Sammy, help me!
I can't! It's too far!
Is that all you did that day, Sam? Just watch your friend fall?
Sammy, my fingers are slipping. Give me your hand.
Sam, stay away from the edge!
What really happened that day, Sam? What was in your heart?
Did you even want to save him?
It's not true, Pete. You were my friend.
Help me, Sammy.
You don't have to prove anything. Everybody knows you loved Pete.
If he loved him, why'd he leave him hanging there to die?
Because I was afraid!
I was afraid I'd fall, too! I didn't want to die!
[Pete] Sammy!
Pete!
I believe you, Sammy.
[both] I believe you wanted to save me.
[Ned] Sam? Sam?
He knows, Ned. He knows I loved him.
I thought I was going to lose you, too, man.
Hey, where'd that reporter guy go?
I don't think we're going to be seeing any more of Lewis Pelt.
-[door opens] -[computer beeps]
[door closes]
[Molly] Hey.
-Hey. How's Sam doing? -He seems fine.
Whatever happened to him at the river seems to have given him some peace.
-What's that? -My anagram game.
Wait a minute. You think Pelt was Pete Wills?
I looked up the Missoula Beacon employee directory.
No Lewis Pelt.
Well, maybe they haven't updated the directory.
-What about the names? -You can't be sure of the spelling.
Mom, if you don't buy my theory, then who was Lewis Pelt?
[laughing]
What?
It's just that sometimes,
when your energy is completely focused on making me believe something
that I'm having trouble believing, you look just like your father.
[soft chuckle]
-I'm going to go get ready for bed. -Night.
[boys laughing]