The Sinner (2017) s01e04 Episode Script

Part IV

1 It sounds like PTSD psychosis.
The memory replays like a hallucination.
So, she's somewhere else, and she's stabbing someone else.
[screaming.]
[wailing.]
Heroin.
I would sleep with guys for fixes.
Cora's my wife.
What did you do to her? You don't know shit, do you? [stammering.]
Cora.
God doesn't listen.
[soft music.]
She disappeared in July 2012, but two months later, she turned up out of nowhere at a detox center in Poughkeepsie.
I want you to show me how you shoot up.
You don't know how to do it, do you? It's not true none of that, that you thought you went through, was true.
[exhales.]
Then what happened to me? How are you feeling today, Cora? [dramatic music.]
Look, all I did was sit down and try to talk to this guy.
And then out of nowhere, he comes and he attacks me.
And he's like this.
The guy is like this.
He's done it before.
All witnesses at the bar say that you provoked him.
No [stammers.]
This guy did something to my wife.
Okay? This whole thing is because of him.
So, do you know Cora Tannetti? Yeah, from the news.
So you've never had direct contact with Mrs.
Tannetti.
Well, I wish I did.
She seems like a fascinating woman.
He is a drug dealer, okay? He deals cocaine.
He deals heroin.
I don't understand.
Just charge him, and then you get him to talk about Cora.
They know each other, okay? They know each other.
Cora told you his name, the car that he drives It's him.
How did you know she told us that? [quietly.]
Ah, shit.
That thing you said to her husband Yeah, she, uh, "still like three guys at once?" Right.
That's an odd thing to say, considering you've never met her.
I was inspired.
[dramatic tones.]
Women inspire me.
You know what the real odd thing is? Cora Tannetti mentioned your name.
[exhales.]
[moans softly.]
Well, she's not exactly the most reliable source, is she? [exhales.]
That's good.
[moans softly.]
This is Mr.
Lambert's lawyer, Mr.
Harding.
I don't understand why my client was held overnight.
You realize he suffers from Lyme disease? That's a health hazard.
We're done here, pretty much, anyway.
He's all yours.
The lawyer you know this guy? Hedge-fund type runs over a pedestrian, he comes and defends him.
"Scumbag millionaire" is his thing.
So, JD brings a gun to a knife fight.
More like a cannon.
Piece of shit.
[clears throat.]
Um, Lieutenant Ambrose, I I misjudged which information should and should not be shared with Mason Tannetti, and I'm really sorry.
Personal relationships can't interfere with work.
You know that.
Yes, sir.
Just make sure he keeps his head down.
Yes, sir.
[tense music.]
[door thuds shut.]
You know my favorite thing about our dear neighbor Kevin's girlfriend? I've seen her with another boy.
Drops her off down the block and then she walks over to Kevin's.
She's a shameless harlot.
- You know what that means? - Stop.
Kevin's fair game.
And I could watch it all from here.
Cora you won't even think about it? [man and woman moaning.]
How 'bout that? [Phoebe chewing loudly.]
Her boobs are weird.
How is anybody supposed to actually want that? - [moaning.]
- If you weren't such a prude, - maybe you'd find out.
- You're so mean sometimes.
Hmm.
You're annoying.
You can go out, do anything you want.
But you'd rather stay home and pretend you're a nun.
[moaning continues.]
[footsteps approach.]
[laptop snaps shut.]
[door clicks open.]
[ominous music.]
I'm sorry.
I didn't know how to tell you.
Is Mason right? Is JD Lambert part of this? [sighs.]
Cora, you're gonna have to trust me if I'm gonna help you.
I lost my virginity to him.
Did he ever hurt you? I don't think so.
Is he the one that shot you up? No, we did drugs together, but not heroin.
He was the one I was with on 4th of July weekend.
He was the blond guy at Carl's Taproom.
So there was no pregnancy, no suicide attempt there was no Frankie.
There was just JD Lambert at that bar, that night.
And then We drove to somebody's house.
Like I told you.
[quietly.]
What happened there? [moans.]
[ominous music.]
I had sex.
I-I don't know who with.
And and then it just all goes blank.
What's the next thing you do remember? Waking up in the street.
In Poughkeepsie? Two months later? [very quietly.]
Holy shit.
Why can't I remember? [knock knock.]
Hi, Dr.
Chang.
What do I have to do to hear back from you? Hi.
I got your voicemails.
Oh, good.
- And so - Look.
When you start bringing in fringe psychology like hypnosis and recovered memories into a case, judges just roll their eyes.
So, I'm not sure what your angle is.
But you did that memory recovery stuff back at Berkeley, didn't you? Sometimes, real memories are recovered.
Sometimes, it's just the patient's imagination.
We can't tell the difference.
Look, Cora Tannetti has some very significant trauma that she can't remember.
And it's in there.
It's in there somewhere.
I don't work with people who are unstable.
They can get retraumatized.
You know her case.
She's got nothing else going for her.
Right? Okay.
Talk to her today.
Let's get it started.
[cell phone rings.]
Hey.
Hey.
Detective Ambrose told me what happened last night.
Are you all right? Yeah.
Yeah, I'm fine.
So, you and JD talked.
[sighs.]
Yeah.
[sighs.]
We dated for a few months before I met you.
That's all that it was, and I didn't tell you because maybe he did something to me.
[stammering.]
I just I'm not sure, and I can't remember.
What do you mean, you can't remember? I-I-I just can't.
I'm trying.
Detective Ambrose is trying to figure it out.
Cora, why are you talking to him? These cops don't give a shit about you.
Trust me, all they wanna do is put you away.
No, no.
He's helping me.
No, that's what he's telling you.
But he's sitting on JD, and he's gonna turn on you.
I know how these guys are.
Just Just, you can't you can't say anything to them.
You understand? [mellow pop music plays.]
Oh You all right? Yeah I just left my glasses.
It's fine.
Oh, look at this! [chuckles.]
Is this how you remember it? [chuckles.]
It's nice of you to bring me here.
Thank you.
[chuckles.]
I was trying to remember the first time we came here.
You were driving back from White Plains.
Hmm, right.
After we found out about the baby.
About Mel.
Oh Right.
You saw this place, you pulled in.
You sat me in the sun.
[stirring music.]
You ordered lobster.
You knew exactly what I needed.
And then, you said "When you're ready, we can try again.
" I'm sorry I didn't remember that.
[softly.]
It's all right.
Two sessions, a few days apart, so you can recover.
That's all I've got.
Detective Ambrose requested this? Yes.
He also wants transcripts of the sessions, which requires your consent.
Personally, I don't recommend any of this.
Revisiting trauma can be destabilizing.
I wanna try it.
[soft music.]
This is like a guided meditation.
I'm going to be talking to you throughout.
You just let the images come to you and we'll see what happens.
Okay.
Close your eyes.
[soft percussive music.]
Deep breath in.
Let it out.
In out.
Imagine you're standing on the edge of a body of water.
[low rushing sound.]
I'm going to count down from ten.
As I do, you're going to walk into the water.
Ten nine The water is warm at your feet.
[echoing.]
Eight seven six you're descending deeper.
Five four You're almost in.
Three two you can breathe.
- [gasps softly.]
- You're safe.
[gasps.]
Now let the first memory of July 3, 2012 come to you.
[water bubbling.]
[echoing.]
What do you see? [lightly edgy music.]
I think it's a water tower in the distance, on the top of a hill.
Where are you? I can't move my feet.
I'm stuck.
It's like a a swamp in the woods or something.
How do you feel in this place? Hopeless.
Like I may never get out.
[gasping.]
Okay.
Let's move on.
Let's go to a moment that you enjoyed that night.
Try to find a moment of pleasure.
[dark music.]
I'm kissing JD.
[echoing.]
And? And he tastes like gasoline.
Where are you? We're at the bar at the Taproom.
[overlapping chatter.]
That's right she's there too.
- Who? - Maddie, JD's ex.
She hates me.
[ominous music.]
Why? Because of him.
[whispering.]
JD has has a plan.
And she's in on it.
What's the plan? I don't know.
They're not telling me.
[chilling music.]
I'm confused.
Now I'm waiting for the bus, and I'm I'm a kid.
It left me.
[sobbing softly.]
I'm I'm sorry.
I-I-I'm not sure why this is coming up.
It's okay.
The mind makes associations, like in a dream.
It doesn't always make sense.
Try going back to that night.
[inhales, exhales shakily.]
[sighing.]
Oh, gasoline Oh, they're siphoning gas because JD's on empty.
He always keeps a gas can behind the front seat of his car it always rattles when he drives.
Where are you going? I don't know.
Oh, I shouldn't go.
[echoing.]
Shouldn't? Why? I know what you're doing, so you can just stop.
What am I doing? [echoing.]
You're trying to get rid of me.
And then you're just gonna go meet up with him anyway.
You want me to die.
Something's wrong with her.
Cora! - Why won't you go to her? - [sobbing.]
[wailing.]
Cora! [whispering.]
Because I hate her.
[inhales sharply.]
I wanna hold her under water.
And I wanna break her into pieces.
Why? [discordant music.]
Because she won't let me go.
That's Madeline Beecham.
She's 21 years old.
No current address.
And she's mentioned in JD's vice file, because her landlord reported a theft and blamed JD and Madeline, also known as Maddie.
Okay, and? And we're tracking down the landlord.
But from what Cora said in her session, on July 3, 2012, she started out at Carl's Taproom.
This we knew, right? But she was with JD and Maddie.
They siphoned gas into this can that he keeps behind his front seat, right? It's one of those emergency things A thin one that looks like a briefcase.
How many gallons does that hold? One gallon worth of gas.
JD drives a 1983 SUV 14 miles a gallon, tops.
Okay, so 14 miles in any direction from that bar, and their second destination that night is somewhere inside that circle.
Okay? Now, Cora said that she remembers a water tower in the woods.
There are two water towers inside that circle.
And the one in the woods is right there.
The, um, the shrink said that these memories are real - all of it.
- Yeah.
Okay, some of them.
Uh hopefully, so Shall we go? So, she has this memory maybe.
- Right.
- Of a water tower.
Maybe of a night where maybe something happens to her that maybe made her kill some dude.
I'm not getting Lyme disease from all these maybes, so you can pick me up after you do it.
- There you go.
- Thank you.
[engine turns over.]
[soft music.]
[lullaby plays distantly.]
[knocking.]
Hey.
Is JD in? He's not here.
He won't be back till tonight.
Oh [clicks tongue.]
Did you text him? Nah shit.
That was stupid.
- Who are you? - Oh, sorry.
I'm Mike.
I know JD through Jordan and his girlfriend.
Well, listen, um I was heading out of town, and I was hoping to pick up some supplies before I left.
I don't know if that's anything you can help me with, or I'm just trying to beat the traffic.
[chuckles.]
It's a little hard.
[mobile playing lullaby.]
Great.
Well, thanks.
- Smells good.
- Thanks.
- So, how do you know Jordan? - You know, I forgot how.
Just from around, you know.
We know a lot of the same people.
- In common.
- So, what exactly did you want? Oh, yeah, just blow.
You know, maybe three? If you got it.
- Okay, Stay here.
- No problem.
So, you grew up here too? - Yeah, in Dorchester.
- Huh.
Are you sure we never met? You look really familiar.
No I mean, I don't go out much or anything, so - [laughs.]
- Yeah, me neither, since the baby.
Oh, yeah, right.
- Ah.
- That'll be 250.
- [cell phone buzzing.]
- No problem.
Hey, babe.
I texted you.
Your friend Mike's here.
Mike? Like, rocking chair Mike from - Uh, no, Jordan's friend.
- [indistinct.]
[dark music.]
So, I don't know who the hell's in our house, but [continues, indistinct.]
Get over here now.
Who are you? I-I told you, I'm Mike.
You know, I'm friends with Jordan.
- What do you want? - Nothing here.
- Here's your money.
- Put it on the table! - On the table.
- Okay.
It's all there.
No problem.
Get out! Get out! Get out of my house! Okay.
It's all good.
Sorry.
So, you knew both Maddie and JD.
I did.
She rented the back house for about six months.
You pressed charges against them both and dropped them.
Why? I decided I wanted to be done with the whole thing.
So, you knew Maddie a little better than you knew JD.
She would come over, knocking in tears, late at night wanting advice.
I took an interest.
So, how much of an interest? We became involved.
I wasn't looking for it.
And JD? They told me that polyamory was their thing.
And I believed them.
Did they fleece someone new? [stammers quietly.]
This is a murder investigation.
Did he kill her? - Why do you ask? - Uh he had this control over her.
When I said to Maddie I thought maybe JD had stolen my things, she panicked.
She cried, she begged me not to confront him.
A few weeks later, she was gone.
- Moved out? - No, she was gone.
But her makeup, her clothes, her jewelry she left them.
She left them all.
And when was this? 4th of July weekend.
[engine idling.]
[sighs.]
What's going on? [packet rattling.]
What are you doing? I don't want this.
- Listen I bought it - Put that way.
Put that away! I bought it from his girlfriend.
Her prints are all over it, and I recorded the whole conversation.
You can arrest her, or him, or something.
[whispering.]
I should've known better.
What are you talking about? This is what you do.
You use people.
Yeah, it's even worse if you don't remember.
Caitlyn, what do you mean? I wasn't using you.
You it [stammering.]
We were having fun.
You screwed me in the photo lab, and then you wouldn't look at me in public.
So, no no, that wasn't fun.
This is some crazy illegal shit you're pulling.
Okay? You could get [sighs.]
You could get me fired, and get yourself killed, so just stop.
[tense music.]
[music intensifies.]
I'm your neighbor.
Yeah, I know.
So? I was wondering about something.
[edgy music.]
Well? Go ahead.
I had two orgasms.
[gasps, squeals.]
Tell me everything.
So [approaching footsteps.]
[door clicks open.]
Hi, Cora.
Detective Ambrose would like to sit in this session.
I have made it clear I don't approve, but ultimately, the choice is yours.
You gave us some good pieces of the puzzle last time, and I thought if I could be here, maybe I could head us to some of the missing pieces.
You don't need to be polite.
It's just private.
I don't know what we're gonna find when we do this, and you could use it against me.
I'm on your side.
I think I proved that already.
Why do you care so much? It's just, I can see some light at the end of all this, if you just trust me.
No.
It's not good enough.
I am showing you everything.
You at least have to tell me why.
Um [stirring music.]
Maybe it's that swamp.
You know, that you described your last session.
I how you felt like you were gonna be stuck there forever.
[music swelling.]
[whispering.]
I know that swamp.
Okay.
Any comments you want to make, you write them down.
No talking.
Sure.
Exhale.
You're standing at the edge of a body of water.
Ten nine eight seven six five [echoing.]
Feel the water hold you up as you sink deeper.
Whispered something in your ear [slow indie rock.]
It was a perverted thing to say I don't I don't understand.
Maddie's touching me.
Where are you? - But I said it anyway - I'm on the dance floor.
She can barely stand up.
Made you smile [ominous tones.]
[earrings jingle.]
I don't want to go, but Maddie's already in the truck.
Why don't you want to go? [hoarsely.]
Because something horrible's gonna happen, I can feel it.
Where are they going? I'm not sure.
[ominous string music.]
[echoing.]
I can't breathe my heart - [gasping.]
- Okay, okay.
You're okay.
Everything's okay.
They poisoned me.
[sobbing.]
Can I go home now? - What - [gasps.]
What's that? It's a it's a searchlight.
They're looking for us.
How did you get that Who? Can you see them? [gasping.]
Come on.
[gunshot, girls scream.]
They're hunting us.
Why are they hunting you? [shouting indistinctly.]
- I don't know.
- [gunshot, girls scream.]
Something we did.
[stammering.]
I don't I don't understand what's happening.
It's the school bus again.
The same school bus as before? - Yeah, and it's - Don't worry about the school bus.
Just, just where did you go with Maddie? [dark tone.]
Are you coming? She wants me to come to the basement.
Where are you? Um I'm in the house, I think.
Where we drove to from the bar.
[bright rock song playing.]
What are you feeling? [sobs.]
It's the song from the beach.
Okay.
Let's just ease off.
Pushing and shoving Hugging and kissing - I don't wanna do this anymore! - You can, you can.
You're right there.
You're right there.
- [crying, gasping.]
- Just a little bit closer.
- Just a little bit more.
- [cries.]
[breathing tearfully.]
[eerie music.]
[tearfully.]
There's a light at the bottom of the stairway.
Go down there.
[hoarsely.]
I don't wanna go.
That's what you did, though, isn't it? I'm sick.
I feel sick.
- Just stay with it.
- We need to stop this, right now.
- [bell ringing.]
- I don't wanna do it.
- I can't do it anymore.
- You can.
I can't do it anymore.
[bell ringing, bright rock song playing.]
Push through.
- [crack.]
- [gasping.]
- [gasping.]
- Just breathe right now.
- [breathing rapidly.]
- Focus on the breath.
- [breathing rapidly.]
- Easy.
- [breathing slows.]
- You have to go now.
So, you have no idea who he is.
No.
No, he's wearing a mask, and it's covering his whole head.
And there was this wallpaper Old-fashioned, like like the design on a on a dollar bill.
And it's everywhere.
It's on every wall.
So, the wallpaper, guy in the mask that's everything.
Nothing else.
Yeah, that's it.
Do you treat everybody like this, or is it just me? - What? - I am trying to answer all your questions.
I'm spilling my guts.
And you just act like nothing is good enough.
Look, uh I appreciate the You're being very candid, and I know, I So, I thank you.
And you're married? Trying.
Please don't give up on me.
[stirring music.]
I won't.
[indistinct conversation.]
[soft music.]
- 13 A.
- [indistinct.]
All right.
Come on.
What are you doing up? Are you all right? Don't go over there, Dad.
Well, Dede called.
Water's pouring out from under the sink and she can't figure out how to turn it off.
Please? Don't go.
[gentle music.]
Go to sleep.
This is nothing to get upset over.
I was thinking we could keep our separate lives.
- Uh-huh.
- You know? Do the things we want to do our own things.
- Uh-huh.
- And then come back home, together, but not needing so much.
Sure.
I think you should take that trip.
You should I think you should go wherever you want to go.
[chuckles.]
We should still go somewhere together too, though.
Don't you think? Harry? [ominous music.]
Um Harry? Just hold on a minute.
Harry.
[panting.]
[music swells.]
Harry! [mysterious music.]
[overlapping chatter.]
Detective Ambrose.
You should see this.
[edgy percussive music.]

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