Mae?
-You all right?
Yeah, yeah. I must have overslept.
Well, it's Saturday. You're allowed.
A little light reading, huh?
So Dani has changed her mind on vanilla birthday cake.
Wants confetti now, which is apparently a flavor.
Got it, confetti.
She's looking for her pink ballet ribbons, if you see 'em.
Uh, rehearsal?
Uh, Helen dropped her off.
Jules has photos to take tomorrow, which I think she's nervous about.
Has been using the name Sebastian in every other sentence.
-What about Mae? -I think she's still sleeping.
-See you tonight. -I'll see you tonight.
There's Jules and Helen and Dani and Suzanne and Peter.
And I have my own room, and everyone's so kind here.
I think it's where I'm supposed to be.
Mae! We have to take those photos!
Dr. Mathis.
Oh, hey. Thank you for the heads-up this morning.
I forgot to put this shift in my calendar.
-I owe you one. -Now you owe me double.
Miss Clarkston is supposed to take risperidone once a day, right?
Not twice a day like you must've written by accident.
Yes, once a day. Sorry.
Got a lot on my mind lately.
Okay. I love you. Bye.
-Hello. -This is Dr. Hawkins returning your call.
Thank you for calling me back.
You said you had a patient with an upside-down, pentagram carving?
Yes, uh, yes-- Um, But she's actually not my patient anymore.
-I'm-- I'm her guardian. -Do you know where she got it?
She escaped from what I believe is an insular cult.
Um, a place called Amontown. Um…
Oh, no, I'm sorry. I cannot discuss this on the phone.
-I've gotta get back to my office hours. -Oh, uh, on a Saturday?
Well, that's academia for you these days. Good luck to you.
Can we find another time-- Oh.
This thing's pretty cool. You'll have to show me how to make 'em.
-I'd love to. -You seriously love toast way too much.
Let's do the keys. You sure about these?
It's my first. Only the elders had them.
Hmm.
Ooh, yeah. It's catching the light really nice.
They're fenugreek seeds. Here. They smell like maple syrup.
-Oh my gosh, they do.
Just let it filter through your fingers.
-Like this? -Yeah, perfect.
That looks really great. Okay, one more.
It was nice of your mom to give it to me. It wasn't even my birthday or anything.
That's great.
I'm gonna try to do something with the corn husk doll again.
Yeah, okay.
-What would your five objects be?
Definitely my camera.
And, um, maybe the T-shirt
from the Pink concert I went to with my mom,
though I can't find it anywhere.
Hey, Mae.
Sorry. It's just a really cool shot.
Have you never had your picture taken before?
Seriously? Okay, come with me.
Let's go raid mom's closet.
Come on.
Damn it.
-How was rehearsal? -I was the only one who knew my lines.
-Can we stop at Clumpies?
You know, what? I was thinking of going on a little road trip.
-I have an errand to run in Cleveland. -Okay, but only if we go to Arabesque.
I need toe shoes.
-For my birthday. Please! -Oh, okay. You got it, Dani-Bear.
Is Mae coming to my party?
Yeah. Is that okay?
You spend a lot of time with her.
Sometimes people just need a little extra attention.
-Okay, go. -Good? Okay.
Great. There you go. Hold the skirt out.
There. Okay. Yeah, that'll work.
Okay.
Uh…
Here, hold this.
No? Okay, that's fine. Um…
Go up on the steps. I'll take a picture of you from there.
Turn to face me while looking over your shoulder. Great. Okay.
There we go. Perfect. Okay, hold that.
How about right here?
On your shoulders, like the way we wanted--
Hold the dress out, so we can see the sparkles. There we go.
So pretty.
This is the developer. Sort of what brings the photo to life.
So cool.
We'll put that one right here.
You make everything more beautiful.
Stay here, I won't be long. Okay, honey?
Okay.
Hi. Uh, Dr. Suzanne Mathis. We spoke on the phone
-about the girl from… -Amontown.
I won't take up too much of your time.
I-- I just thought it'd be easier to talk in person.
Safer. You can never tell with those people.
Have a seat.
So, I've tried to find anything I can on Amontown.
Everything just seems like an urban legend.
I'm wondering if it might be a breakaway cult.
Well, Amontown would be a perfect example of a breakaway cult,
if anyone could find enough information to publish.
For a century, they've been isolated.
Very little is known about this community.
In the 1960s, a folklorist claimed he'd interviewed a member,
until the cult elders found out and destroyed the recordings.
Said they called themselves Sliocht an Diabhail.
-What does that mean? -It's Gaelic.
It means "The Devil's Own."
"The Devils Own"?
They're organized by something called The Book of Covenants.
No one ever leaves, except your girl.
Who, by guessing by the way they've marked her, is vital to them.
What do you think they're capable of?
The fact that I barely know anything about them
is the reason I predict they'll try to take her back.
And if they do try to take her, it's gonna be low profile.
They haven't lasted this long by drawing attention to themselves.
And-and how do you think I can help her prevent regression?
Your best bet is pure guidance.
You need to find someone else who escaped that cult.
At least it would show her there's a way to lead a life away from the cult.
Until then, she's susceptible to hidden triggers,
things laid deep in her programming that will make her come back.
Religious artifacts, ceremonial props, symbols.
There's a full moon coming up soon.
All of these things could have great significance to her.
She may be physically out of the cult,
but their ideology is still in her head.
I need to find someone else who escaped.
That's some creepy shit.
Brooks, is it?
Police Tech. But I finished my training,
I'm just waiting for an officer spot to open up.
You're the perp that brought those snickerdoodles I ate too many of.
Guilty as charged.
What do you think it means?
They're sigils. Ritualistic occult symbols.
The upside-down pentagram represents Satan.
This one here, Chenor, is the wish granter.
They're after favors from the big guy.
-Hey, do you think you can help me out? -Yeah, sure.
There's a pig farm near where Mae was found.
I followed a van from there to some community or compound.
-Identical vans unloading workers. -There are migrant camps in the area.
-They work at the industrial farms. -These are not migrant workers.
I need you to pull whatever you can find on the five farms in Amon County.
Ownership, service calls, complaints…
Anything to help get to the bottom of what happened to that girl.
You're taught the outside world will never accept you.
And without a job, education or family support,
how are you supposed to survive away from a cult?
And the cult leaders will lie to control the narrative.
They'll defame someone who left, say they weren't a true believer.
Different leaders have different fear-arousing themes and methods.
-Fear of outsiders… -Mom!
Sorry, sorry, sweetheart.
We're almost home.
…from the fear that they are experiencing to safety, to Paradise.
Dad, Mom got me toe shoes from Arabesque for my birthday.
Wow, that's a big present.
Dani's gonna have quite a party. Chardonnay?
Yeah, it's not for that. Um…
Fisk backed out of Windemere.
What? No, you were going into escrow weeks ago.
-I know. -What? How could you not tell me?
I'm sorry. I didn't wanna worry you, so I just…
That's why you met with Cheryl.
Yeah, she's got some prospects lined up. We're having an open house, so…
I wish you would have told me, then we could talk about it.
Yeah, I just felt, uh, shitty.
But it wasn't right not to tell you. I'm sorry.
I-- I understand.
You know, there's an anesthesiologist at work who's looking for a place.
Oh. Yeah, thanks. You know, Cheryl's-- Cheryl's got it.
I mean, we're gonna find someone.
Okay.
Hey, that dance store you went to, isn't that in Cleveland?
Yeah, Dani wanted to go.
This one is such a good photo. It's too bad we can't use it.
Why? Then everyone can see what a wonderful photographer you are.
It's just not one of your objects.
Mae? Oh, hi, Jules.
Oh, hi, Mom.
Jules, um, I-- I think I left the kettle on downstairs.
Would you mind turning that off?
Thank you.
Sorry we missed dinner. Dani and I ran an errand for her birthday.
-Hey, how are your classes going? -Fine.
You know, I started at a new school when I was around your age.
I left home and went to live with my grandma Helen.
Why?
Home wasn't a safe place for me.
Mae, do you know of anyone else who left Amontown?
There was a boy. Enoch.
He tried to leave, so Lucifer punished him and struck him down.
Is that something that you saw?
When did it happen?
During Taurids, when stars fall from the sky.
Oh, the meteor shower. Oh.
How old were you?
Seven. He was older though.
A teenager?
So they told you that Enoch tried to leave,
and that he died.
He broke the chain.
Did they have a funeral for Enoch?
No, they wouldn't desecrate our land with his body.
Do you think that Enoch was being punished getting struck down?
I don't know anymore.
I'll get it.
-Hey. -J Math. How's it going?
Good. Uh, how was your screening?
Citizen Kane is such a groundbreaking film.
You'd love it. You should come with next time.
Yeah, I-- I'd love to.
Uh, so I emailed you the explanations to go with the images of the objects.
-I can grab the photos. -Okay.
-Hi, Sebastian. -Hey.
-Here are the photos. -Oh, yeah.
-Jules did a wonderful job. -She's an amazing photographer.
Thanks.
-He really likes you. -Shut up. No, he does not.
Why does everyone take so many pictures?
So we don't disappear.
Do you feel like you're going to disappear?
All the time. Don't you?
-Not when I was home. Busy with chores. -Hmm.
I loved tending the garden, picking herbs.
But I broke the chain.
We "rely-upon."
If someone breaks the chain…
everybody suffers.
Well, I'm sure they're just fine without you.
Is that why you know about plants, from working in the garden?
I love them. They do all different things,
like you can make your clothes purple with red carnations and indigo.
-Really? -Yeah,
or, um, if you eat a lot of Bishop's weed, it puts you outside yourself.
-What? -Yeah.
This, uh-- This one girl, Avery,
she told everyone something private about me…
…so I ground some roots into a spice loaf for her.
And… everybody thought she was speaking in tongues.
Ugh. Remind me never to make you mad.
You'd never do anything to make me mad.
Well… …I should probably go to bed.
I'm really nervous about the column.
You can sleep here.
Really?
When I was little,
I used to sleep on the floor of Helen's room,
and then when I got scared, she would hold my hand.
Rely-upon.
Mae said the boy's name was Enoch.
He ran away during the Taurids meteor shower nine years ago.
Good start. What else do we know?
The elders told everyone that he died, but Mae said they never held a funeral.
So there's no body.
I think he might still be alive.
Do we have a last name? Date of birth?
No, no, but Taurids lasted about two months,
so we have dates, and Mae said that he was "struck down."
Maybe I can look at assault cases, car accidents…
If we can find Enoch…
…he might be able to help us with Mae's case.
That's a lot of files to go through.
I'll come and help.
I wish you could, but these are restricted to law enforcement.
Thank you for the leads. I'll look into this.
-Thanks, Alex. -All right.
If nobody likes it, then I'll go back to normal
because nobody cares about who I am anyway.
No, you have to do things then not think about it,
or the remorse will eat your belly.
Oh, my God. I can't look.
-Is that her? -Let me see.
Check it out. It's her.
I don't know how that picture got in there.
Me neither.
I must have put it in the envelope by mistake.
It has your scar. Mae, I am so sorry.
I didn't mean to share your private information.
What happened to your back?
Hey, Victoria.
What's happening?
My family was… s-strict.
How'd you get away?
I broke the chain.
-You're so brave. That column is fire.
It was all Jules. She took the pictures.
Maybe you could take some class president campaign photos for me.
Unless Isaac won't let you.
I'll do it.
-I can take your photos. -Come find us at lunch.
Oh, my God. I can't believe this is actually happening.
You deserve it, Jules.
-Beautiful property. -Thank you.
Hi. How are you?
-Looks great. -Thanks.
Coffered ceilings are a nice touch.
Most people would settle for beams. Impressive work.
I appreciate that.
Yeah, it took two years of blood, sweat and tears, but, uh, I got it done.
"He who withstands the long night will see the dawn."
-Well done. -Thank you.
Mallory and Tim Waldroop are very interested.
Oh, well, I'm very interested to talk to them.
-Let's go say hello. -Sounds serious.
Mm. Can't remember the last time I had a home-cooked meal.
-Sure you don't want any? -I'm good.
-I'm gonna eat all of it. -I have to save room for cake.
-It's my youngest's birthday today. -Oh.
-Wow. -Yeah.
Do you have any kids?
No, no. I mean, not yet. One day.
For now, it's just me and my dog Clark.
He's the best.
Only downside is I have to share custody with my ex-fiancée.
In Chicago?
-Wow, you remembered. -Bad habit. Why did you leave?
I was working a human trafficking ring, making headway,
then all of a sudden my evidence started disappearing.
When I told my boss someone had paid off someone in the department,
-they just told me to drop it. -And you couldn't?
I mean, I could have, but I didn't.
So… …here I am.
-A fresh start's not so bad, huh? -No.
You want more coffee?
Oh, I'm okay. Thanks.
I'm sorry. I'm turning into my mother.
That woman can drink coffee, let me tell you.
I don't think I saw her sleep once my entire childhood.
-Did you grow up in Chicago? -Yeah, mostly.
Immigrated from El Salvador when I was five.
My dad came out first, then my mom and I.
She worked the night shift at a factory so she could take care of me during the day.
Did you always wanna be a detective?
Yeah. But my mom, she wanted me to be a priest.
Just try and save people and all that.
Ah. I think you're doing a pretty good job of that.
-You too.
Oh, my God. I haven't had this much coffee since med school.
I thought it was a cop thing to drink this much.
I know.
-Spend a lot of time around cops? -Uh, well, my stepfather was a cop.
No shit. Where?
Back in Pennsylvania.
He's probably retired now. I don't-- I don't talk to him.
Mmm. What about your mom?
Oh, no.
Uh, I should get going.
Yeah.
-Thanks so much for this. -Oh, no. Thank you.
This is just a needle in a haystack.
I'll update you if I find anything.
What-- What is that?
That? A van I followed from an Amon County farm
down Route 917 till it turned down a dirt road at mile marker 64,
not far from where Mae was found.
Dirt road led straight into…
-Amontown? -Amontown, yeah.
I think they're using the vans to transport workers to local farms.
But, hey, they are the most ubiquitous vehicles around,
which is why criminals love them.
-I followed you on Instagram. -Thank you, I'll follow you back.
-Oh, what's your friend Mae's handle? -She doesn't have socials.
-Oh. -There she is.
-Hey. Ah! -We have a hit!
I actually didn't mean to include that portrait.
It has her, um, scar.
It's genius.
Great artists always push boundaries.
Stop by the Regal office so I can give you your staff pin.
-Mm-hmm. -Great work.
-Congrats on your column. -Oh, thanks. Isn't it cool?
-Yeah, I hope it's everything you wanted. -It is, actually.
Okay, so my mom got a room at Galaxy Karaoke
for Dani's birthday tonight.
-I could be coerced into a duet. -Awesome.
We'll find something Mae knows. I don't want her to feel left out.
You know what your problem is?
You always care about what everyone else thinks.
Isaac, she has been through a lot.
Okay, well, um, I'm gonna pass on karaoke. So, have fun with Mae.
-Come on, you're just jealous. -You know what?
I am jealous, but that's beside the point.
You've worked hard to branch out with your photography,
but somehow your 15 minutes is looking a lot like Mae's.
Big finish, here it comes.
-Jazz hands. -Nice.
-That's how we do it in the Mathis family. -That was amazing, Dani-Bear.
Dani, you nailed it. Dad, you were okay.
-Well, I commit. -Seriously, that was--
-I try to commit. -That was awesome.
-Thank you.
Hey, my parents wanna have you and Mrs. Mathis for dinner some--
-Dr. Mathis. -Uh--
Dr. Mathis for dinner at the club sometime.
-Sure, yeah. You bet. -Oh, good.
Sounds good. I'll be right back.
It's okay.
"Schuyler Sisters" trio?
-We're good. -Hard pass.
-I can sing. You guys can do backup. -Teddy, will you take a picture with us?
Yeah. Yeah… …that sounds great. Let's do it.
-All right. Like… -Here.
You sound so good singing that. Yeah, do that one.
I can't believe how many likes it's getting.
Everyone's liked it except Isaac.
If Mom let you have socials, you'd have a million followers right now.
Uh, Victoria invited us to a "kick back" this weekend.
-We're totally going.
What are we looking at?
Jules took a photo of me that was in the Regal, and they posted it.
-Oh. It has her scar. -I know.
Jules, do you realize how this exposes Mae?
I didn't even give it to Sebastian.
-How did it end up online? -I don't know.
-I didn't put it in the envelope. -I put it there.
Jules took such a good photograph, I wanted everyone to see it.
I'm so sorry, Suzanne.
It's okay, Mae. It's okay.
Um, I'll call the superintendent and have this taken down online.
Jules, delete this now.
Hey, it's gonna be all right, Mae. It's okay.
You know what? I think I'll go ahead and settle up for the room.
Oh, it's all taken care of, plus an extra hour.
Did my wife pay or…
No, some man came in. Didn't say his name.
Well, okay. I guess I'll-- Guess we'll stay another hour then.
Thanks.
Hey.
I saw what happened with Mae.
You going to accuse me of being a terrible person too?
The opposite.
Oh.
Thanks.
I don't think Mae is the friend you're looking for.
-You're joking, right? -She lied to you. Plus, she's working Mom.
I'm just saying, be careful.
For the first time, I have more than one friend,
-and you're trying to ruin it. -I'm trying to help you.
If you were trying to help me, you would acknowledge my existence in public.
Ever since you started hanging out with Teddy, you're, like, ashamed of me.
You act like I'm some dirty secret when I am, in fact, your sister.
If you need anything, just knock on my door.
-Okay? -Thank you, Suzanne.
I'm sorry I got us in trouble.
I just wanted everyone to see how special you are.
I just wish you'd told me.
I've never had a friend like you.
Me neither.
You coming up?
I'm going to study down here for a little while.
Okay. Well, if you need anything, just text me.
Rely-upon.
I don't think I will ever hear "Black Hole Sun" the same way again.
I know. I was considering starting up a band.
Oh! The open house, how did it go?
Oh, great. Cheryl thinks we should have some offers soon.
Great. There's a friend from med school I reached out to
-who, um, might be looking for-- -Suzanne, I-- I got it.
Sorry, I just--
I told you I was working on it. And I'm--
I know. I'm just trying to help.
I got us into this mess. I will get us out.
Okay.
-I'm here if you need me. -I know you are.
Oh, I got the superintendent to take down the online photo
with Mae's face.
That's nice of you.
Just trying to keep her safe.
These five farms in Amon County,
each one is owned by a different corporation
which has no other assets.
Shell corps.
And they all list the same primary contact.
William Untermyer, Esquire.
That's Malachi Dodd's lawyer. Let me guess.
Malachi is a majority owner in each company?
Bingo.
And all the land in Amontown has had the name Dodd on it
since the town was established in 1922.
Then they bought out the rest of the county and incorporated in 1954.
They got their own jurisdiction.
Your friend Sheriff Henry Wilkins
is the entire Amon County Sheriff's Department.
Hmm.
Mae Dodd isn't just some girl that escaped from a cult.
She's the daughter of their leader.
The chain shall not be broken.
Mae!
The chain shall not be broken.
-The chain shall not be broken. -Mae! Mae!
-The chain-- -Mae? Mae!
I don't wanna go back.
You don't have to.
But I'm special.
I'm-- I'm special.
I'm special there. I can't break the chain.
You don't have to be special there. You can be special here.
Come on. Let's get back inside.