The Shards (2026) s01e02 Episode Script
Don't You Want Me
1
[lively music playing]
Can we light some candles or something,
you know?
Make it a little more romantic.
Since this is a double date?
- Ooh, that's a nice idea.
- [Susan] Thanks.
[Bret] I'd like to keep the lights on.
And maybe we should, you know,
move the party inside.
[Thom] Why?
The home invasions.
There was another one last Sunday night.
And the houses were dark
when the home invasions happened?
I mean, that's why people broke in?
I don't know, but I'm assuming
with the lights on, it's a deterrent.
A deterrent.
- A deterrent.
- Whoever is doing it
also steals people's pets,
their cats, their dogs.
Uses them ritualistically.
[stammers] Do you remember, Susan,
the school mascot
on the first day of school?
- Cult.
- Another girl is missing, too.
- Who?
- Julie Selwyn from Marymount.
It's been almost eight weeks
since she disappeared.
Maybe she just ran away.
Okay, guys,
let's stop trying to creep ourselves out.
I wanna talk about the party.
- The party?
- Yes.
I'm going to throw a party
for Robert Mallory.
It's going to be at my house,
and I think we should all throw it
together, the four of us, to welcome him.
And we'll invite everyone
in our senior class.
- [Thom] Totally awesome.
- Cool. Fun. Love it. [Sniffs]
Wait, why?
Why throw him a party?
I think we should make him feel welcome.
I think he had some hard times,
and I think he needs to feel welcome.
Hard times?
What were the hard times?
[Tense music playing]
I was
in Principal Croft's office yesterday…
He spent some time
in a developmental center working on his…
[Susan] Dr. Croft asked me
to throw this party.
He said he was worried about Robert
and that my responsibility
as student body president
was to make everyone feel
as welcome as possible.
I totally agree.
- It seems that…
- What?
Robert was institutionalized.
In an asylum? You've got to be kidding me.
Croft said it was more
of a developmental center.
He was treated for depression
and some other issues.
Great. So the guy's been locked away
in a loony bin.
That's a little dramatic, Bret.
You always embellish everything.
- I'm a writer. It's my job.
- Look, no biggie.
The guy went through some shit,
his parents' divorce and whatnot,
his mother's death.
I feel sorry for him.
Robert Mallory needs a friend
and I intend to be one.
- Me too.
- Me three.
[Debbie] Wanna toot, Thommy?
[Thom] No thanks, Debs.
I gotta get up early tomorrow to practice.
- [Debbie] So that'll keep your body tight?
- I'm already tight.
- I'm keeping it tight.
- You know what? I feel like some red wine.
- Anyone for a nice cab?
- Please.
He's a liar, guys.
He lied about seeing me
at the movie theater
last summer during The Shining.
I do not trust him and neither should you.
Bret, it's just a party.
No, Susan, it's a validation.
Hey, guys,
it's getting a little tense in here.
- Maybe we should hot-tub it.
- [gasps] Let's hot-tub it. Come on.
- Let's go to the hot tub. Okay? Come on.
- [screams]
Come on. [Chuckles]
[Playful music playing]
Jesus ♪
Another day goes by ♪
[Debbie screams]
[Debbie, Susan giggling]
[no audible dialogue]
[chuckles] Look,
we were in a mall. Remember?
- [twig snaps]
- [Susan] No.
[owl hooting]
Oh, no.
What's that? The killer?
[Debbie, Susan laugh]
[Thom laughs]
Bret, please become a wino.
You are so much more fun
when you drink. [Chuckles]
Okay, so we'll do a Saturday.
My house. Robert's party.
- It's settled. Settled.
- It's settled.
- What?
- Scheduled. [Chuckles]
Guys, just to state the facts.
He followed me to the mall.
That's funny because he told me
that you were the one following him.
- How do you know? Did you talk to him?
- [Susan chuckles]
["Don't You Want Me" playing]
- [Debbie gasps, chuckles]
- Oh, my God!
I love this song. [Shrieking]
[laughs]
Turn it up!
Whoo. Go, Susan.
Are we getting a show? Whoo.
Yes! Susan.
Oh, Thom.
You're in for it. You're in for it.
- Prepare.
- She's right behind me?
[Debbie] Oh. [Chuckles]
Now five years later on
You've got the world at your feet ♪
Success has been so easy for you ♪
Come.
Come on, give us choreography.
[Susan giggling]
Don't, don't you want me? ♪
You know I can't believe it
When I hear that you won't see me ♪
Don't, don't you want me? ♪
You know I don't believe you
When you say that you don't need me ♪
It's much too late to find
You think you've changed your mind ♪
You'd better change it back
Or we will both be sorry ♪
Don't you want me, baby? ♪
Don't you want me? Oh ♪
Don't you want me, baby? ♪
Don't you want me? Oh ♪
[gasps] Oh, Bret,
please get drunk every night.
[moaning]
[panting]
[both moaning]
[Song ends]
[birds chirping]
- [Debbie chuckling]
- [inhales sharply]
Hi, sexy.
You were amazing last night.
I was, wasn't I?
Matt called.
- Who?
- Matt.
From school?
What did he want?
Oh, you were so knocked out,
I didn't wanna wake you.
He said to stop calling.
[Tense music playing]
What's that supposed to mean?
No idea. [Chuckles]
I'll see you tonight.
[Bret] One of the hallmarks
of the early 1980s
for a young person in Los Angeles
was you had to survive things
to become an adult.
Real-life boogeymen
known as serial killers were a threat.
[siren wailing]
[Bret] And so were cults.
[bird squawks]
[Bret] The cult that terrorized
Los Angeles in 1981,
when I was a senior in high school,
was bloodthirsty, terrifying
and had similar habits to The Trawler.
[glass shatters]
[Bret] In fact,
law enforcement would suspect that this
cult was involved in The Trawler murders
and that the vicious ritualist killings
plaguing the city
were done not by one member,
but by several.
[Eerie music playing]
[door creaks]
[Bret]
The city had never truly recuperated
from the Manson killings a decade earlier.
And like Charlie and the Manson girls,
the Riders of the Afterlife,
as they called themselves,
reigned from Ojai
to the San Fernando Valley.
[cult members murmuring, screaming]
[Bret] This group of young,
barely-articulate hippies
formed out in the Mojave,
acolytes of a leader only referred to
as Bruce,
who turned out to be a high school
English teacher from Lancaster,
fired due to sexual improprieties
with female students.
[exhales]
[Bret] The cult did drugs,
acid, tranquilizers
and their activities
quickly accelerated that year
as Bruce became more addicted
and messianic.
[screaming continues]
Yeah.
Well, maybe I should ask for the recipe
so that I can make it for you.
Honey?
[Ominous music playing]
[partner 1] Oh, my God.
Is that blood?
[partner 2] Go inside and call the police.
[Bret] Then came break-ins
in Hancock Park and Silver Lake.
They wanted to unify through fear.
- And then things got worse.
- [grunting]
[Bret]
The home invasions escalated to violence.
The victims who survived
those early attacks
said the intruder wore a black ski mask
and matching jeans and turtleneck.
He was a terrifying shape-shifter.
And then the first murder occurred.
[gasps]
[news anchor 1] …as authorities continue
to hunt for The Trawler,
the serial killer targeting young people
throughout Los Angeles.
Police fear The Trawler will strike again.
Police are warning residents
throughout Los Angeles to remain vigilant.
A gruesome discovery in Brentwood tonight
after a home invasion turned deadly.
[Bret] Between nightly news reports
of The Trawler murders,
two other young people were now missing,
and then reports
of the Riders of the Afterlife attacks.
The city was on edge and so was I.
Every night, I kept thinking
I heard someone in the house.
I was at my desk working on my novel,
and whenever I stopped typing
I would feel a presence
either lurking outside the house
or somewhere within it.
[doorbell ringing]
[doorbell continues ringing]
[Eerie music playing]
A number of times
I thought I heard the doorbell
or the chiming
that announced the garage doors opening.
For weeks I crept through the house
clutching a weapon.
But no one was there.
Not yet.
But I could tell they were coming.
[Sinister music plays]
[sighs] Goddamn it, Liz.
[grunts] Mom!
["Déjà Vu" playing]
Mom!
Long ago ♪
How can it be? ♪
That's my Lancôme.
You're not allowed
to wear eye shadow at school.
I'm going out.
I'm almost done.
[Debbie breathes deeply]
I'm going to La Scala
with Joanie Carson and Jackie Collins.
Going out with Bret tonight again? [Huffs]
Yes, Mother, we're in love.
Being with each other whenever you can is
what being in love looks like. Remember?
You wanna look good for your man.
I get it.
[breathes deeply] Oh, honey.
Men. [Scoffs]
All your meaningless flirtations
you think will get you somewhere
- and make you happy.
- Just give me the compact
and have another Chablis, Mom.
There's just so much
you don't know about them.
There's just so much you don't know.
I know you're so cool and so clever
and so naive about so many things.
- You're so jealous.
- [scoffs] Jealous?
Jealous of the trainer at the stables?
That dumb guy your father cast
in that absurd roller-disco movie?
And now Bret?
- What's wrong with Bret?
- He's very aloof.
And seemed more interested
in that book he's writing
than coming to his girlfriend's party
and staying like a gentleman
through the movie.
Well, he came, didn't he?
We had sex before he left.
And how was that?
A change of pace?
Just focus on getting Dad
to wanna touch you again.
[scoffs]
[sighs] If you keep this up,
you're not going to be very happy.
- Because then I'll end up like you?
- [scoffs]
Look in the mirror.
You are me.
I keep remembering you ♪
Déjà Vu ♪
[song ends]
["Video Killed the Radio Star" playing]
[Bret] How are we even getting
into this club?
It's opening night.
The VIP list must be enormous.
[Debbie] My dad knows the owner. Duh.
- [Bret] I'm excited about this.
- [Debbie] Me too.
Music videos are gonna be, like,
the new great art form.
They tell a narrative device
in, like, under five minutes
and take you inside
the mind of the musician.
Make you understand in some cases
what the song is really about,
- subtextually.
- Oh, Bret.
You're so smart about stuff like the arts.
You have an enthusiasm for it,
unlike my father
who just wants to be rich.
[Bret] Hmm.
I met your children ♪
Oh-wa, oh-ah ♪
What did you tell them? ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
Pictures came… ♪
Oh. I'm gonna get a drink.
- Do you want something?
- Uh, whatever you're having.
- On you.
- [both chuckle]
[Debbie] Hi, two vodka sodas, please.
And you remember
The jingles used to go ♪
Oh-wa, oh-ah ♪
You were the first one ♪
Oh-wa, oh-ah ♪
You were the last one ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
In my mind and in my car ♪
We can't rewind, we've gone too far ♪
Oh, ah-ah-ah, oh ♪
- Come on, let's go.
- Go where?
To say hi to the owner, my dad's friend,
Mike something.
I-I wanna watch the video.
Just meet me back here in five.
This is all so cool, right?
Totally.
We can't rewind, we've gone too far ♪
Put the blame on VTR ♪
[song ends]
["Tusk" playing]
Why don't you ask him
If he's going to stay? ♪
Why don't you ask him
If he's going away? ♪
Hey.
I bet you think I followed you here,
don't you?
- Did you?
- No, I didn't.
- I was invited.
- By who?
By Debbie. You know, your girlfriend.
Thom's coming too.
I think the whole gang
wants to get to know me a little better
before the party you're throwing
in my honor.
Oh, okay, great.
Hey, I'm sorry to hear about
what happened with Matt. He told me.
- He told you what?
- He told me you guys had a falling out.
He told you that?
Yeah.
You talk to a lot of people,
don't you, Robert?
Everybody needs someone to confide in.
[inhales deeply] Well, you misunderstood,
about Matt and I.
We didn't have a falling out.
Now I just have a girlfriend,
we don't see each other as much anymore.
Maybe you were too clingy.
- You turned him off or something.
- Maybe you should go fuck yourself.
[chuckles] There he is. That's my guy.
- Is Susan coming?
- No, she has to study or something.
But I wish she was coming.
Did you guys ever date?
No.
Why not?
Because we were always just best friends
since we were little.
You never wanted to fuck her?
No.
I do.
I'd love to fuck her.
Taste her sweet little pussy.
Fuck her in the ass.
Make her scream, make her beg for it.
[Song continues]
[Bret] I remember thinking later
that I should've stayed
in the room with Robert
and talked him through all this
so I could have a better inkling
of what his plans
for Susan Reynolds actually were,
because I knew he was gonna act on them.
I also knew she was gonna throw a party
for him I could not stop.
She had found him electrifying.
She was gonna let herself
get lost in his madness
and everything would get ruined.
Tusk ♪
[song ends]
[gears shift]
[engine turns off]
["Rasta Roots Man" playing]
They sing ♪
Watch them making love ♪
On a tiny… ♪
[Song fades]
Why do you keep calling me?
- What are you talking about?
- Why do you keep calling me?
I'm not calling you.
So you're telling me you're not calling
and breathing into the phone?
- Matt…
- You've been rather insistent, Bret.
That isn't me.
Whoever the fuck is doing that isn't me.
Dude, it's been going on all week.
I know it's you.
I swear,
I-I was with Debbie when you called.
I only called to tell you to knock it off,
and tell you that this isn't funny,
what you did here.
- What did I do?
- You came into my house when I was gone
and d-drained my fish tank
and put… and put this weird sign
on my Foreigner poster.
[Ominous music playing]
- I didn't do this.
- [chuckling] It was you, dude.
Did you ask your mother or housekeeper?
Matt, what did Robert Mallory talk to you
about the other day in the parking lot?
He introduced himself to me.
He said my dad knew his aunt.
- What did you tell him about us?
- I didn't tell him anything.
You're drugged out all the time.
You're disoriented about everything.
The fish. The phone calls.
You live in the guest house.
You never see your parents.
Does Robert Mallory
know something about us?
Because he asked a couple
of interesting questions about you.
Like what?
I didn't know the answers
to those questions.
I think you're making this all up.
I think you drained the aquarium
because you got so stoned,
and you painted the pentagram.
And you said things
to Robert Mallory about me
that you can't even remember
because you're always high as fuck.
I think you need to stay away from Robert.
I think there's something very wrong
with him.
Why won't you tell me
what he asked you about me?
About us.
Don't come over here anymore.
Don't. Don't ever do that again.
- What?
- Try and kiss me.
[stutters] This was never a serious thing.
- Why are you doing this right now?
- [sighs]
I'm upset.
And I didn't wanna be alone.
So I drove over here…
To see you, Matt.
You know… [scoffs]
I don't even know why you keep calling.
Or keep showing up here.
What?
You think we're gonna be
boyfriends or something?
Huh?
Are you fucking crazy?
Huh? That's a legitimate question.
Get away from me.
Go.
Now!
[door opens, closes]
[Tense music playing]
[sniffles, breathing heavily]
[engine starts]
[tires screech]
[Bret] I drove home carefully
because I kept crying so hard.
Matt had never felt about me
the way I'd felt about him,
which would be a recurring theme
for the rest of my life.
[screams]
But of course, I didn't know this
on that hot September night in 1981
when I was 18 and still navigated on hope.
[bird squawks]
- Thanks.
- Enjoy.
[Piano playing]
[Bret] The fake IDs that Debbie got us
always came in handy.
One vodka and grapefruit juice coming up.
Hey, Bret.
Terry's over at Morton's
just finishing up a deal.
He loves a dreary biopic.
He should be here shortly.
Oh. Okay. Thanks, Steven.
You wore your school uniform
just like I told you.
Very nice.
Terry will be pleased with that.
Terry really appreciates this.
And how kind you were when his wife
threw her little alcoholic tirade
at Debbie's party the other night.
That one's a mess.
Liz, not Debbie.
I understand.
Liz has a problem and needs help.
I was just being nice to her, that's all.
Okay.
Well, I'll leave you to it.
One more thing, though. [Sighs]
I would be…
Careful, Bret.
Pardon me?
Everyone has an agenda,
and sometimes these agendas don't connect
with what we actually want
or what we're gonna get.
[door opens]
And here he is.
Right on cue.
[Pensive music playing]
[Bret] I remember Terry Schaffer
was wearing custom silk
with a two-tone gold and silver
crocodile belt.
[Terry] Hey, how you doing, Bret?
You look nice.
But you're 18, you always look nice at 18.
Our table's ready.
[Bret] He smelled like Rive Gauche cologne
by Yves Saint Laurent.
Every gesture was
efficient and immaculate.
He was a professional, an adult,
something to emulate and aspire toward.
He was someone I wanted to be.
Hey, Bruno. We'll have the salmon tartare
and two white wines.
Of course.
This restaurant is the only place
on the entire West Coast
which serves salmon tartare.
I thought you'd like to try it.
I would, yes. Sounds amazing.
[Amusing music playing]
So, have you seen
any movies you like lately?
Debbie tells me you're a movie buff.
Um. Yeah, I loved Stripes.
Me too. Huge Bill Murray fan.
I'm meeting with him next week.
[chuckles]
- Allan.
- [chuckles] Terry.
I won't interrupt, I just want to say hi,
and I hate you for that tan.
- Where'd you get it? [Laughs]
- [chuckles] From the sun, Allan.
[chuckles] From the sun.
Bret, this is Allan Carr,
a dear, dear friend.
So nice to meet you, Mr. Carr.
- Hello.
- Allan produced Grease.
Uh, and Saturday Night Fever,
you bitch. [Chuckles]
And you're about to start Grease 2,
- right?
- [Allan] Mm-hmm.
- Who's the lead?
- Lorna Luft.
Oh, God, Terry.
I'm so… [chuckles] …I'm so excited.
So excited.
Anyways, you, uh, boys enjoy your lunch,
all right? [Chuckles]
Jesus. He's as big as a house.
And he's into male hookers
and pink cocaine.
You stay away from him, Bret.
He will try and take advantage of you.
We'll have the lemon sorbet, two spoons.
[Bruno] Of course.
So, tell me about this book.
Would it make a good movie?
Yes.
Yes, I think so.
It's about a group of young people
Does it have sex in it?
Because movies need that nowadays
to be popular.
Everything's about sex.
Everybody loves a coming-of-age story.
Yes, it's that too.
Mmm. [Smacks lips] Autobiographical?
[stammers] I don't know. It's complicated.
My story, it-it's kind of…
Well, it's inspired
by the work of Joan Didion in a way.
I've been reading a lot of Joan Didion.
I know Joan and John very well.
When you're finished with this book,
I think I'd like to option it.
- Wait, really?
- Really.
So let me know
when I can read the galleys.
[chuckles] Wow. Sure.
Wow, great. Okay.
So, how are you and Debbie, Bret?
Are you serious about her?
- Serious?
- Mmm.
- Yeah, I think we're pretty serious.
- I'm just curious.
There's no reason to be alarmed
or worried.
I just want to make sure
that she is happy.
I understand.
I want her to be happy too.
- Do you like guys as well?
- [coughs]
I'm sorry, what?
Well, I think you heard me.
Do you swing both ways?
Well, I'm not
limited.
I mean, it depends.
What about Thom Wright?
You find him hot?
I mean, I'm jealous with the amount
of time you get to spend with him.
[sighs] He's pretty fetching.
Although, I'm sure his tastes
are more limited than yours.
What do you mean his tastes
are more limited than mine?
You can tell me.
Did you ever fool around with Thom?
You know, get a little drunk,
get a little high,
sleep over, you get horny, you need to
No, that's never happened.
Not with Ryan or any of them?
I mean, you guys
take showers together. [Chuckles]
- They're available, right?
- They're not available.
Okay. Whatever you say.
Terry, what does your wife think about…
Conversations like this?
You having lunch
with your daughter's boyfriend,
does Liz know?
[inhales deeply, exhales]
Well, you're smarter
than that, Bret. [Scoffs]
I'm under the impression
that we have an understanding.
An arrangement.
What about Debbie?
Does she know about your proclivities?
I think I should be going.
You barely ate.
Though I heard you had a cocktail
before I arrived at the bar.
So it probably dulled your appetite.
Listen, please don't say
anything to Debbie
about anything
that we discussed here today.
Wouldn't that be a little weird?
Isn't everything?
Don't say anything.
I don't think you will.
Thanks for lunch, Mr. Schaffer.
I'll have Steven call and set up a meeting
so we can talk about that script
I want you to write for me.
I want us to start collaborating
right away.
Okay.
Okay, I'd love that.
[Upbeat music playing]
[Rock music playing]
[Debbie] Did you guys hear
that Rena Kalina [chuckles]
During dodge ball, she fell on her face.
- Hey, Bret.
- Oh, hi.
You know, Bret, if you're on the committee
to throw me a welcoming party,
you should actually
make a little bit of an effort
to become my friend and welcome me.
[Debbie chuckles]
- Or else what, Robert?
- Bret.
Bret, come on, be cool. [Chuckles]
Or else we're gonna have a very long
and unpleasant senior year.
I don't think anyone wants that.
[Debbie, Thom chuckle]
Are you okay?
Matt Kellner is missing.
[Thom] Who?
School stoner?
Wait, what do you mean missing?
Well, I was just
in Principal Croft's office,
and he told me
that later today at assembly,
I have to read this kind of plea
to the student body about Matt Kellner.
Aren't you friends with him, Bret?
Friends?
No, he-he sold me pot
a few times, I think.
- W-Where did he go?
- [Susan] Don't know.
And neither do his parents.
He's officially been
missing for five days.
Apparently he lived
in the back pool house,
real posh setup,
like a cool bachelor pad kind of deal.
John and Sheila, those are his parents,
told the police that Matt's schedule
was as routine that week
as it had always been since he moved
into the pool house in 10th grade,
which coincided with
when he got his driver's license.
He'd get up early, swim some laps.
Sometimes they would hear reggae music
coming from the pool house
at that hour
when he was getting ready for school.
Wouldn't he go into the main house
for breakfast or anything, get some food?
I guess not.
He always ate at the McDonald's
in Sherman Oaks.
- Gross.
- [scoffs]
[Susan] Matt wasn't involved in sports
or any extracurricular activities,
so he was usually
back at his pool by 4:00 at the latest.
On some nights, Sheila Kellner would
glimpse the guest house from the window
of the second story bedroom,
and the only light
would be coming from the aquarium,
or the candles that Matt had lined up
on one side of the pool.
Apparently he liked to swim
right before bed.
This story… [chuckles] …is the reason
they made those creepy TV commercials.
"Parents, it's 10:00 p.m.
Do you know where your children are?"
[Susan] Okay, you guys.
Yesterday, John Kellner
took Matt's 280Z in for a checkup.
And when he went to tell Matt,
Matt wasn't in the pool house
and there was no note.
So they called the school,
and Principal Croft told them
Matt hadn't been at school for three days.
They hadn't seen any lights on
in the pool house
or heard any reggae music
since the Friday before.
And oddly, clearly,
he left his car at home.
So, yeah, five days.
Isn't it so strange how his parents
spend so little time with him?
Is it?
I mean, I haven't seen my father
in, like, six months.
Oh.
Bret, aren't your parents still in Europe?
Yes. Yes, they are.
What are you supposed to say at assembly?
So, please, if any of you have heard
from Matt Kellner or seen him,
please tell me or Principal Croft
or any teacher about his whereabouts.
- Thank you.
- [student 1] Whoo-hoo.
Thank you, Susan,
for yet another outstanding job.
[Ryan whistles]
Hi.
Hi.
- How are you?
- Uh, freaked out. Matt's still missing.
Did you know him?
Bought weed from him.
I think…
You think what?
I think it's scary how young people
in this town keep just going missing.
You think the cult did this?
That's one theory.
I think it could be something else.
What? Matt just said, "Fuck it,
I'm going to go to Big Sur
and open my weed business."
I think it could be The Trawler.
Who?
The serial killer?
The serial killer that's hunting
in our area.
[sighs] Doesn't he only target girls?
So far, but who knows. [Stammers]
It's t-terrifying, just snatched away
in the dead of night. Tortured.
How did you know he was tortured?
They haven't even found him yet.
I don't.
I'm talking about the girls.
The girls The Trawler butchered.
I'm glad we're talking.
I miss talking.
They found something.
I just heard from Principal Croft.
- His body?
- His backpack.
[sea gull squawking]
[Susan] A ranger found it in a parking lot
in Crystal Cove State Park.
There was blood all over it
and it had a name and address
tied to it on a small ID tag
that proved it belonged to Matt.
Does anyone know if Matt was with someone?
Does this lip gloss make me look fat?
[engine revs]
[brakes squeak]
[engine turns off]
[Eerie music playing]
[waves lapping]
[suspect] Eat it.
[Matt] Wh-What? [Panting]
[suspect] Eat it.
[whimpering]
[Matt] But they're alive.
[suspect] Eat it!
[Matt whimpering] I'm afraid.
- [suspect] Eat one.
- [Matt sobbing]
[suspect] Eat!
Eat one.
[Matt] I can't.
[sobbing, gaging]
I'm-I'm sorry.
- [suspect] Eat it.
- [Matt gags]
[gagging, coughing]
- [suspect] You will eat them all.
- [Matt] Oh.
["Year of the Cat" playing]
- [Matt whimpering] Please.
- [suspect] Sing the song.
[Matt sobbing] Please.
[suspect] Did you like sucking the cock?
[Matt sobbing] Please.
Please.
[breathing shakily, groans]
[yelps]
[grunts]
[coughs]
God.
Right.
[Bret breathes heavily]
[Matt sighs]
Right.
You go strolling through the crowd
Like Peter Lorre ♪
[Bret breathes heavily]
[suspect] Eat them all!
[Bret gags]
[gaging, coughing]
She doesn't give you time
For questions ♪
As she locks up your arm in hers ♪
And you follow till your sense
Of which direction ♪
Completely disappears ♪
By the blue tiled walls
Near the market stalls ♪
There's a hidden door she leads you to ♪
These days, she says, I feel my life
Just like a river running through ♪
The year of the cat ♪
Well, she looks at you so coolly ♪
And her eyes shine
Like the moon in the sea ♪
She comes in incense and patchouli ♪
So you take her
To find what's waiting inside ♪
The year of the cat ♪
In the year of the cat ♪
[lively music playing]
Can we light some candles or something,
you know?
Make it a little more romantic.
Since this is a double date?
- Ooh, that's a nice idea.
- [Susan] Thanks.
[Bret] I'd like to keep the lights on.
And maybe we should, you know,
move the party inside.
[Thom] Why?
The home invasions.
There was another one last Sunday night.
And the houses were dark
when the home invasions happened?
I mean, that's why people broke in?
I don't know, but I'm assuming
with the lights on, it's a deterrent.
A deterrent.
- A deterrent.
- Whoever is doing it
also steals people's pets,
their cats, their dogs.
Uses them ritualistically.
[stammers] Do you remember, Susan,
the school mascot
on the first day of school?
- Cult.
- Another girl is missing, too.
- Who?
- Julie Selwyn from Marymount.
It's been almost eight weeks
since she disappeared.
Maybe she just ran away.
Okay, guys,
let's stop trying to creep ourselves out.
I wanna talk about the party.
- The party?
- Yes.
I'm going to throw a party
for Robert Mallory.
It's going to be at my house,
and I think we should all throw it
together, the four of us, to welcome him.
And we'll invite everyone
in our senior class.
- [Thom] Totally awesome.
- Cool. Fun. Love it. [Sniffs]
Wait, why?
Why throw him a party?
I think we should make him feel welcome.
I think he had some hard times,
and I think he needs to feel welcome.
Hard times?
What were the hard times?
[Tense music playing]
I was
in Principal Croft's office yesterday…
He spent some time
in a developmental center working on his…
[Susan] Dr. Croft asked me
to throw this party.
He said he was worried about Robert
and that my responsibility
as student body president
was to make everyone feel
as welcome as possible.
I totally agree.
- It seems that…
- What?
Robert was institutionalized.
In an asylum? You've got to be kidding me.
Croft said it was more
of a developmental center.
He was treated for depression
and some other issues.
Great. So the guy's been locked away
in a loony bin.
That's a little dramatic, Bret.
You always embellish everything.
- I'm a writer. It's my job.
- Look, no biggie.
The guy went through some shit,
his parents' divorce and whatnot,
his mother's death.
I feel sorry for him.
Robert Mallory needs a friend
and I intend to be one.
- Me too.
- Me three.
[Debbie] Wanna toot, Thommy?
[Thom] No thanks, Debs.
I gotta get up early tomorrow to practice.
- [Debbie] So that'll keep your body tight?
- I'm already tight.
- I'm keeping it tight.
- You know what? I feel like some red wine.
- Anyone for a nice cab?
- Please.
He's a liar, guys.
He lied about seeing me
at the movie theater
last summer during The Shining.
I do not trust him and neither should you.
Bret, it's just a party.
No, Susan, it's a validation.
Hey, guys,
it's getting a little tense in here.
- Maybe we should hot-tub it.
- [gasps] Let's hot-tub it. Come on.
- Let's go to the hot tub. Okay? Come on.
- [screams]
Come on. [Chuckles]
[Playful music playing]
Jesus ♪
Another day goes by ♪
[Debbie screams]
[Debbie, Susan giggling]
[no audible dialogue]
[chuckles] Look,
we were in a mall. Remember?
- [twig snaps]
- [Susan] No.
[owl hooting]
Oh, no.
What's that? The killer?
[Debbie, Susan laugh]
[Thom laughs]
Bret, please become a wino.
You are so much more fun
when you drink. [Chuckles]
Okay, so we'll do a Saturday.
My house. Robert's party.
- It's settled. Settled.
- It's settled.
- What?
- Scheduled. [Chuckles]
Guys, just to state the facts.
He followed me to the mall.
That's funny because he told me
that you were the one following him.
- How do you know? Did you talk to him?
- [Susan chuckles]
["Don't You Want Me" playing]
- [Debbie gasps, chuckles]
- Oh, my God!
I love this song. [Shrieking]
[laughs]
Turn it up!
Whoo. Go, Susan.
Are we getting a show? Whoo.
Yes! Susan.
Oh, Thom.
You're in for it. You're in for it.
- Prepare.
- She's right behind me?
[Debbie] Oh. [Chuckles]
Now five years later on
You've got the world at your feet ♪
Success has been so easy for you ♪
Come.
Come on, give us choreography.
[Susan giggling]
Don't, don't you want me? ♪
You know I can't believe it
When I hear that you won't see me ♪
Don't, don't you want me? ♪
You know I don't believe you
When you say that you don't need me ♪
It's much too late to find
You think you've changed your mind ♪
You'd better change it back
Or we will both be sorry ♪
Don't you want me, baby? ♪
Don't you want me? Oh ♪
Don't you want me, baby? ♪
Don't you want me? Oh ♪
[gasps] Oh, Bret,
please get drunk every night.
[moaning]
[panting]
[both moaning]
[Song ends]
[birds chirping]
- [Debbie chuckling]
- [inhales sharply]
Hi, sexy.
You were amazing last night.
I was, wasn't I?
Matt called.
- Who?
- Matt.
From school?
What did he want?
Oh, you were so knocked out,
I didn't wanna wake you.
He said to stop calling.
[Tense music playing]
What's that supposed to mean?
No idea. [Chuckles]
I'll see you tonight.
[Bret] One of the hallmarks
of the early 1980s
for a young person in Los Angeles
was you had to survive things
to become an adult.
Real-life boogeymen
known as serial killers were a threat.
[siren wailing]
[Bret] And so were cults.
[bird squawks]
[Bret] The cult that terrorized
Los Angeles in 1981,
when I was a senior in high school,
was bloodthirsty, terrifying
and had similar habits to The Trawler.
[glass shatters]
[Bret] In fact,
law enforcement would suspect that this
cult was involved in The Trawler murders
and that the vicious ritualist killings
plaguing the city
were done not by one member,
but by several.
[Eerie music playing]
[door creaks]
[Bret]
The city had never truly recuperated
from the Manson killings a decade earlier.
And like Charlie and the Manson girls,
the Riders of the Afterlife,
as they called themselves,
reigned from Ojai
to the San Fernando Valley.
[cult members murmuring, screaming]
[Bret] This group of young,
barely-articulate hippies
formed out in the Mojave,
acolytes of a leader only referred to
as Bruce,
who turned out to be a high school
English teacher from Lancaster,
fired due to sexual improprieties
with female students.
[exhales]
[Bret] The cult did drugs,
acid, tranquilizers
and their activities
quickly accelerated that year
as Bruce became more addicted
and messianic.
[screaming continues]
Yeah.
Well, maybe I should ask for the recipe
so that I can make it for you.
Honey?
[Ominous music playing]
[partner 1] Oh, my God.
Is that blood?
[partner 2] Go inside and call the police.
[Bret] Then came break-ins
in Hancock Park and Silver Lake.
They wanted to unify through fear.
- And then things got worse.
- [grunting]
[Bret]
The home invasions escalated to violence.
The victims who survived
those early attacks
said the intruder wore a black ski mask
and matching jeans and turtleneck.
He was a terrifying shape-shifter.
And then the first murder occurred.
[gasps]
[news anchor 1] …as authorities continue
to hunt for The Trawler,
the serial killer targeting young people
throughout Los Angeles.
Police fear The Trawler will strike again.
Police are warning residents
throughout Los Angeles to remain vigilant.
A gruesome discovery in Brentwood tonight
after a home invasion turned deadly.
[Bret] Between nightly news reports
of The Trawler murders,
two other young people were now missing,
and then reports
of the Riders of the Afterlife attacks.
The city was on edge and so was I.
Every night, I kept thinking
I heard someone in the house.
I was at my desk working on my novel,
and whenever I stopped typing
I would feel a presence
either lurking outside the house
or somewhere within it.
[doorbell ringing]
[doorbell continues ringing]
[Eerie music playing]
A number of times
I thought I heard the doorbell
or the chiming
that announced the garage doors opening.
For weeks I crept through the house
clutching a weapon.
But no one was there.
Not yet.
But I could tell they were coming.
[Sinister music plays]
[sighs] Goddamn it, Liz.
[grunts] Mom!
["Déjà Vu" playing]
Mom!
Long ago ♪
How can it be? ♪
That's my Lancôme.
You're not allowed
to wear eye shadow at school.
I'm going out.
I'm almost done.
[Debbie breathes deeply]
I'm going to La Scala
with Joanie Carson and Jackie Collins.
Going out with Bret tonight again? [Huffs]
Yes, Mother, we're in love.
Being with each other whenever you can is
what being in love looks like. Remember?
You wanna look good for your man.
I get it.
[breathes deeply] Oh, honey.
Men. [Scoffs]
All your meaningless flirtations
you think will get you somewhere
- and make you happy.
- Just give me the compact
and have another Chablis, Mom.
There's just so much
you don't know about them.
There's just so much you don't know.
I know you're so cool and so clever
and so naive about so many things.
- You're so jealous.
- [scoffs] Jealous?
Jealous of the trainer at the stables?
That dumb guy your father cast
in that absurd roller-disco movie?
And now Bret?
- What's wrong with Bret?
- He's very aloof.
And seemed more interested
in that book he's writing
than coming to his girlfriend's party
and staying like a gentleman
through the movie.
Well, he came, didn't he?
We had sex before he left.
And how was that?
A change of pace?
Just focus on getting Dad
to wanna touch you again.
[scoffs]
[sighs] If you keep this up,
you're not going to be very happy.
- Because then I'll end up like you?
- [scoffs]
Look in the mirror.
You are me.
I keep remembering you ♪
Déjà Vu ♪
[song ends]
["Video Killed the Radio Star" playing]
[Bret] How are we even getting
into this club?
It's opening night.
The VIP list must be enormous.
[Debbie] My dad knows the owner. Duh.
- [Bret] I'm excited about this.
- [Debbie] Me too.
Music videos are gonna be, like,
the new great art form.
They tell a narrative device
in, like, under five minutes
and take you inside
the mind of the musician.
Make you understand in some cases
what the song is really about,
- subtextually.
- Oh, Bret.
You're so smart about stuff like the arts.
You have an enthusiasm for it,
unlike my father
who just wants to be rich.
[Bret] Hmm.
I met your children ♪
Oh-wa, oh-ah ♪
What did you tell them? ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
Pictures came… ♪
Oh. I'm gonna get a drink.
- Do you want something?
- Uh, whatever you're having.
- On you.
- [both chuckle]
[Debbie] Hi, two vodka sodas, please.
And you remember
The jingles used to go ♪
Oh-wa, oh-ah ♪
You were the first one ♪
Oh-wa, oh-ah ♪
You were the last one ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
Video killed the radio star ♪
In my mind and in my car ♪
We can't rewind, we've gone too far ♪
Oh, ah-ah-ah, oh ♪
- Come on, let's go.
- Go where?
To say hi to the owner, my dad's friend,
Mike something.
I-I wanna watch the video.
Just meet me back here in five.
This is all so cool, right?
Totally.
We can't rewind, we've gone too far ♪
Put the blame on VTR ♪
[song ends]
["Tusk" playing]
Why don't you ask him
If he's going to stay? ♪
Why don't you ask him
If he's going away? ♪
Hey.
I bet you think I followed you here,
don't you?
- Did you?
- No, I didn't.
- I was invited.
- By who?
By Debbie. You know, your girlfriend.
Thom's coming too.
I think the whole gang
wants to get to know me a little better
before the party you're throwing
in my honor.
Oh, okay, great.
Hey, I'm sorry to hear about
what happened with Matt. He told me.
- He told you what?
- He told me you guys had a falling out.
He told you that?
Yeah.
You talk to a lot of people,
don't you, Robert?
Everybody needs someone to confide in.
[inhales deeply] Well, you misunderstood,
about Matt and I.
We didn't have a falling out.
Now I just have a girlfriend,
we don't see each other as much anymore.
Maybe you were too clingy.
- You turned him off or something.
- Maybe you should go fuck yourself.
[chuckles] There he is. That's my guy.
- Is Susan coming?
- No, she has to study or something.
But I wish she was coming.
Did you guys ever date?
No.
Why not?
Because we were always just best friends
since we were little.
You never wanted to fuck her?
No.
I do.
I'd love to fuck her.
Taste her sweet little pussy.
Fuck her in the ass.
Make her scream, make her beg for it.
[Song continues]
[Bret] I remember thinking later
that I should've stayed
in the room with Robert
and talked him through all this
so I could have a better inkling
of what his plans
for Susan Reynolds actually were,
because I knew he was gonna act on them.
I also knew she was gonna throw a party
for him I could not stop.
She had found him electrifying.
She was gonna let herself
get lost in his madness
and everything would get ruined.
Tusk ♪
[song ends]
[gears shift]
[engine turns off]
["Rasta Roots Man" playing]
They sing ♪
Watch them making love ♪
On a tiny… ♪
[Song fades]
Why do you keep calling me?
- What are you talking about?
- Why do you keep calling me?
I'm not calling you.
So you're telling me you're not calling
and breathing into the phone?
- Matt…
- You've been rather insistent, Bret.
That isn't me.
Whoever the fuck is doing that isn't me.
Dude, it's been going on all week.
I know it's you.
I swear,
I-I was with Debbie when you called.
I only called to tell you to knock it off,
and tell you that this isn't funny,
what you did here.
- What did I do?
- You came into my house when I was gone
and d-drained my fish tank
and put… and put this weird sign
on my Foreigner poster.
[Ominous music playing]
- I didn't do this.
- [chuckling] It was you, dude.
Did you ask your mother or housekeeper?
Matt, what did Robert Mallory talk to you
about the other day in the parking lot?
He introduced himself to me.
He said my dad knew his aunt.
- What did you tell him about us?
- I didn't tell him anything.
You're drugged out all the time.
You're disoriented about everything.
The fish. The phone calls.
You live in the guest house.
You never see your parents.
Does Robert Mallory
know something about us?
Because he asked a couple
of interesting questions about you.
Like what?
I didn't know the answers
to those questions.
I think you're making this all up.
I think you drained the aquarium
because you got so stoned,
and you painted the pentagram.
And you said things
to Robert Mallory about me
that you can't even remember
because you're always high as fuck.
I think you need to stay away from Robert.
I think there's something very wrong
with him.
Why won't you tell me
what he asked you about me?
About us.
Don't come over here anymore.
Don't. Don't ever do that again.
- What?
- Try and kiss me.
[stutters] This was never a serious thing.
- Why are you doing this right now?
- [sighs]
I'm upset.
And I didn't wanna be alone.
So I drove over here…
To see you, Matt.
You know… [scoffs]
I don't even know why you keep calling.
Or keep showing up here.
What?
You think we're gonna be
boyfriends or something?
Huh?
Are you fucking crazy?
Huh? That's a legitimate question.
Get away from me.
Go.
Now!
[door opens, closes]
[Tense music playing]
[sniffles, breathing heavily]
[engine starts]
[tires screech]
[Bret] I drove home carefully
because I kept crying so hard.
Matt had never felt about me
the way I'd felt about him,
which would be a recurring theme
for the rest of my life.
[screams]
But of course, I didn't know this
on that hot September night in 1981
when I was 18 and still navigated on hope.
[bird squawks]
- Thanks.
- Enjoy.
[Piano playing]
[Bret] The fake IDs that Debbie got us
always came in handy.
One vodka and grapefruit juice coming up.
Hey, Bret.
Terry's over at Morton's
just finishing up a deal.
He loves a dreary biopic.
He should be here shortly.
Oh. Okay. Thanks, Steven.
You wore your school uniform
just like I told you.
Very nice.
Terry will be pleased with that.
Terry really appreciates this.
And how kind you were when his wife
threw her little alcoholic tirade
at Debbie's party the other night.
That one's a mess.
Liz, not Debbie.
I understand.
Liz has a problem and needs help.
I was just being nice to her, that's all.
Okay.
Well, I'll leave you to it.
One more thing, though. [Sighs]
I would be…
Careful, Bret.
Pardon me?
Everyone has an agenda,
and sometimes these agendas don't connect
with what we actually want
or what we're gonna get.
[door opens]
And here he is.
Right on cue.
[Pensive music playing]
[Bret] I remember Terry Schaffer
was wearing custom silk
with a two-tone gold and silver
crocodile belt.
[Terry] Hey, how you doing, Bret?
You look nice.
But you're 18, you always look nice at 18.
Our table's ready.
[Bret] He smelled like Rive Gauche cologne
by Yves Saint Laurent.
Every gesture was
efficient and immaculate.
He was a professional, an adult,
something to emulate and aspire toward.
He was someone I wanted to be.
Hey, Bruno. We'll have the salmon tartare
and two white wines.
Of course.
This restaurant is the only place
on the entire West Coast
which serves salmon tartare.
I thought you'd like to try it.
I would, yes. Sounds amazing.
[Amusing music playing]
So, have you seen
any movies you like lately?
Debbie tells me you're a movie buff.
Um. Yeah, I loved Stripes.
Me too. Huge Bill Murray fan.
I'm meeting with him next week.
[chuckles]
- Allan.
- [chuckles] Terry.
I won't interrupt, I just want to say hi,
and I hate you for that tan.
- Where'd you get it? [Laughs]
- [chuckles] From the sun, Allan.
[chuckles] From the sun.
Bret, this is Allan Carr,
a dear, dear friend.
So nice to meet you, Mr. Carr.
- Hello.
- Allan produced Grease.
Uh, and Saturday Night Fever,
you bitch. [Chuckles]
And you're about to start Grease 2,
- right?
- [Allan] Mm-hmm.
- Who's the lead?
- Lorna Luft.
Oh, God, Terry.
I'm so… [chuckles] …I'm so excited.
So excited.
Anyways, you, uh, boys enjoy your lunch,
all right? [Chuckles]
Jesus. He's as big as a house.
And he's into male hookers
and pink cocaine.
You stay away from him, Bret.
He will try and take advantage of you.
We'll have the lemon sorbet, two spoons.
[Bruno] Of course.
So, tell me about this book.
Would it make a good movie?
Yes.
Yes, I think so.
It's about a group of young people
Does it have sex in it?
Because movies need that nowadays
to be popular.
Everything's about sex.
Everybody loves a coming-of-age story.
Yes, it's that too.
Mmm. [Smacks lips] Autobiographical?
[stammers] I don't know. It's complicated.
My story, it-it's kind of…
Well, it's inspired
by the work of Joan Didion in a way.
I've been reading a lot of Joan Didion.
I know Joan and John very well.
When you're finished with this book,
I think I'd like to option it.
- Wait, really?
- Really.
So let me know
when I can read the galleys.
[chuckles] Wow. Sure.
Wow, great. Okay.
So, how are you and Debbie, Bret?
Are you serious about her?
- Serious?
- Mmm.
- Yeah, I think we're pretty serious.
- I'm just curious.
There's no reason to be alarmed
or worried.
I just want to make sure
that she is happy.
I understand.
I want her to be happy too.
- Do you like guys as well?
- [coughs]
I'm sorry, what?
Well, I think you heard me.
Do you swing both ways?
Well, I'm not
limited.
I mean, it depends.
What about Thom Wright?
You find him hot?
I mean, I'm jealous with the amount
of time you get to spend with him.
[sighs] He's pretty fetching.
Although, I'm sure his tastes
are more limited than yours.
What do you mean his tastes
are more limited than mine?
You can tell me.
Did you ever fool around with Thom?
You know, get a little drunk,
get a little high,
sleep over, you get horny, you need to
No, that's never happened.
Not with Ryan or any of them?
I mean, you guys
take showers together. [Chuckles]
- They're available, right?
- They're not available.
Okay. Whatever you say.
Terry, what does your wife think about…
Conversations like this?
You having lunch
with your daughter's boyfriend,
does Liz know?
[inhales deeply, exhales]
Well, you're smarter
than that, Bret. [Scoffs]
I'm under the impression
that we have an understanding.
An arrangement.
What about Debbie?
Does she know about your proclivities?
I think I should be going.
You barely ate.
Though I heard you had a cocktail
before I arrived at the bar.
So it probably dulled your appetite.
Listen, please don't say
anything to Debbie
about anything
that we discussed here today.
Wouldn't that be a little weird?
Isn't everything?
Don't say anything.
I don't think you will.
Thanks for lunch, Mr. Schaffer.
I'll have Steven call and set up a meeting
so we can talk about that script
I want you to write for me.
I want us to start collaborating
right away.
Okay.
Okay, I'd love that.
[Upbeat music playing]
[Rock music playing]
[Debbie] Did you guys hear
that Rena Kalina [chuckles]
During dodge ball, she fell on her face.
- Hey, Bret.
- Oh, hi.
You know, Bret, if you're on the committee
to throw me a welcoming party,
you should actually
make a little bit of an effort
to become my friend and welcome me.
[Debbie chuckles]
- Or else what, Robert?
- Bret.
Bret, come on, be cool. [Chuckles]
Or else we're gonna have a very long
and unpleasant senior year.
I don't think anyone wants that.
[Debbie, Thom chuckle]
Are you okay?
Matt Kellner is missing.
[Thom] Who?
School stoner?
Wait, what do you mean missing?
Well, I was just
in Principal Croft's office,
and he told me
that later today at assembly,
I have to read this kind of plea
to the student body about Matt Kellner.
Aren't you friends with him, Bret?
Friends?
No, he-he sold me pot
a few times, I think.
- W-Where did he go?
- [Susan] Don't know.
And neither do his parents.
He's officially been
missing for five days.
Apparently he lived
in the back pool house,
real posh setup,
like a cool bachelor pad kind of deal.
John and Sheila, those are his parents,
told the police that Matt's schedule
was as routine that week
as it had always been since he moved
into the pool house in 10th grade,
which coincided with
when he got his driver's license.
He'd get up early, swim some laps.
Sometimes they would hear reggae music
coming from the pool house
at that hour
when he was getting ready for school.
Wouldn't he go into the main house
for breakfast or anything, get some food?
I guess not.
He always ate at the McDonald's
in Sherman Oaks.
- Gross.
- [scoffs]
[Susan] Matt wasn't involved in sports
or any extracurricular activities,
so he was usually
back at his pool by 4:00 at the latest.
On some nights, Sheila Kellner would
glimpse the guest house from the window
of the second story bedroom,
and the only light
would be coming from the aquarium,
or the candles that Matt had lined up
on one side of the pool.
Apparently he liked to swim
right before bed.
This story… [chuckles] …is the reason
they made those creepy TV commercials.
"Parents, it's 10:00 p.m.
Do you know where your children are?"
[Susan] Okay, you guys.
Yesterday, John Kellner
took Matt's 280Z in for a checkup.
And when he went to tell Matt,
Matt wasn't in the pool house
and there was no note.
So they called the school,
and Principal Croft told them
Matt hadn't been at school for three days.
They hadn't seen any lights on
in the pool house
or heard any reggae music
since the Friday before.
And oddly, clearly,
he left his car at home.
So, yeah, five days.
Isn't it so strange how his parents
spend so little time with him?
Is it?
I mean, I haven't seen my father
in, like, six months.
Oh.
Bret, aren't your parents still in Europe?
Yes. Yes, they are.
What are you supposed to say at assembly?
So, please, if any of you have heard
from Matt Kellner or seen him,
please tell me or Principal Croft
or any teacher about his whereabouts.
- Thank you.
- [student 1] Whoo-hoo.
Thank you, Susan,
for yet another outstanding job.
[Ryan whistles]
Hi.
Hi.
- How are you?
- Uh, freaked out. Matt's still missing.
Did you know him?
Bought weed from him.
I think…
You think what?
I think it's scary how young people
in this town keep just going missing.
You think the cult did this?
That's one theory.
I think it could be something else.
What? Matt just said, "Fuck it,
I'm going to go to Big Sur
and open my weed business."
I think it could be The Trawler.
Who?
The serial killer?
The serial killer that's hunting
in our area.
[sighs] Doesn't he only target girls?
So far, but who knows. [Stammers]
It's t-terrifying, just snatched away
in the dead of night. Tortured.
How did you know he was tortured?
They haven't even found him yet.
I don't.
I'm talking about the girls.
The girls The Trawler butchered.
I'm glad we're talking.
I miss talking.
They found something.
I just heard from Principal Croft.
- His body?
- His backpack.
[sea gull squawking]
[Susan] A ranger found it in a parking lot
in Crystal Cove State Park.
There was blood all over it
and it had a name and address
tied to it on a small ID tag
that proved it belonged to Matt.
Does anyone know if Matt was with someone?
Does this lip gloss make me look fat?
[engine revs]
[brakes squeak]
[engine turns off]
[Eerie music playing]
[waves lapping]
[suspect] Eat it.
[Matt] Wh-What? [Panting]
[suspect] Eat it.
[whimpering]
[Matt] But they're alive.
[suspect] Eat it!
[Matt whimpering] I'm afraid.
- [suspect] Eat one.
- [Matt sobbing]
[suspect] Eat!
Eat one.
[Matt] I can't.
[sobbing, gaging]
I'm-I'm sorry.
- [suspect] Eat it.
- [Matt gags]
[gagging, coughing]
- [suspect] You will eat them all.
- [Matt] Oh.
["Year of the Cat" playing]
- [Matt whimpering] Please.
- [suspect] Sing the song.
[Matt sobbing] Please.
[suspect] Did you like sucking the cock?
[Matt sobbing] Please.
Please.
[breathing shakily, groans]
[yelps]
[grunts]
[coughs]
God.
Right.
[Bret breathes heavily]
[Matt sighs]
Right.
You go strolling through the crowd
Like Peter Lorre ♪
[Bret breathes heavily]
[suspect] Eat them all!
[Bret gags]
[gaging, coughing]
She doesn't give you time
For questions ♪
As she locks up your arm in hers ♪
And you follow till your sense
Of which direction ♪
Completely disappears ♪
By the blue tiled walls
Near the market stalls ♪
There's a hidden door she leads you to ♪
These days, she says, I feel my life
Just like a river running through ♪
The year of the cat ♪
Well, she looks at you so coolly ♪
And her eyes shine
Like the moon in the sea ♪
She comes in incense and patchouli ♪
So you take her
To find what's waiting inside ♪
The year of the cat ♪
In the year of the cat ♪