Reflections Part IV

## Official Summary

The cell begins its investigation of Chester, Illinois. Mitch finds the town both familiar and strange, suspecting that perhaps he himself is what has changed... and not for the better.

Their search for any information concerning Hailee Pennington yields rumors of an insufferable-sounding group of would-be ghost hunters, and they get in contact with the local sheriff, who demonstrates that he may become a problem for the cell if they aren't careful.

## Detailed Recap

Having arrived in Chester, Mitch suggests that they start at the Braddock House, but then hesitates, and changes his mind, deciding they should go to her parents' house first. They find the house easily. Pierce says they need a cover story, but Mitch intends to play it straightforward, and Pierce resigns himself to this and says he'll come up with bullshit if necessary. Kiera asks Mitch if *his* parents are in Chester, and he becomes flustered and then still, unsure how to answer.

The front door is opened by a 9-year-old boy, blond with freckles, who introduces himself as Georgie Parker. He says his parents aren't home, but his dad is the sheriff so they shouldn't "do anything bad." They ask if he knows Hailee, and he says no. Pierce tells the boy not to open the door to strangers, and makes a pretend-scary face, which Kiera scolds him for. Georgie sticks his tongue out at Pierce and closes the door. Pierce suggests that they push their way into the house and look around, wondering if Kiera has psychometric powers, but Kiera says all she could do is read the boy's mind, which would likely be pointless. Pierce looks up the home on Trulia, and sees that it sold in 2008 for a price much less than market value. Mitch explains that a woman died there.

They agree to talk to the sheriff. Pierce and Kiera try to explain to Mitch that they might need to concoct a false identity to explain why they're asking questions, but again, Mitch plans to simply be fairly honest and say he's looking for information about his friend Hailee. Once more, Pierce agrees, planning to BS their way out if it goes south.

They go to the sheriff's office, which is quiet and dull. Mitch introduces himself to Ricky, the deputy, who says the sheriff is out on patrol but should be back soon. Kiera asks if anything weird has happened lately, and Ricky says nothing weird ever happens in Chester. She asks for a local ghost story. Pierce rolls his eyes and says she's addicted to Stranger Things. Ricky says they should talk to "those ghost-hunting jackoffs" who have rented out the Braddock House from the city. They call themselves the Chester Paranormal Research Society, and are hosting an event there on the upcoming autumn equinox to launch their TV shows. Ricky says there are lots of local ghost stories about the Braddock House, but thinks the ghost-hunters are just dumb kids. He mentions Kevin and Neveah Stevens and Chad, who's a huge douche with spiked hair and MMA shirts. Pierce asks if there are any paranormal stories associated with the mental hospital, and Ricky suggests that nothing interesting happens there and seems unaware of any breakouts. Mitch and Pierce check out the missing persons posters. Mitch sees one for Travis Shoemacher, who went to school with him and was one of Jeremy Stockton's hangers-on.

Sheriff Parker returns to the office, sending Ricky to get coffee for everyone. Mitch greets the sheriff and explains that he grew up in Chester and lost track of his old friend Hailee Pennington. The sheriff says the Penningtons had trouble in their marriage, sold their house, and moved away, and then he bought their house. Hailee ran away from home before her parents left town. Mitch also asks about Jeremy, and the sheriff says he was an intern at the department when Jeremy was injured terribly and "went real nuts." Pierce asks the sheriff about the Braddock House, and he dismisses the ghost stories, attributing it just to the place's creepy appearance. He heads back to help Ricky get coffee for everyone, and Kiera notices him rub his left shoulder in a strange, automatic way.

Pierce and Mitch withdraw toward the bathroom, and Pierce suggests that they investigate the sheriff's office later to discover what they're hiding. Inside the bathroom, Pierce hears a voice through the air vent on the ceiling, and it sounds hushed and urgent. He goes back out to the hall and tells Mitch to go in and listen. He hears the sheriff's voice, one half of a phone conversation, asking someone what he should do. He tells the person on the phone that it's "your show" and the person "needs to handle this." He ends the conversation with the phrase, "the Three in One."

Mitch comes back to the front of the office, where Pierce is drinking coffee and chatting up Ricky. Mitch notices that the sheriff's body language is tense, no longer swaggering, and that he's glancing at Mitch too much. Mitch says aloud to Pierce that he agrees the sheriff is hiding something from them. Pierce tries to smooth it over, but the sheriff is furious, denying that he's keeping anything from them, and tells them to leave. Kiera takes offense at the sheriff's tone with Mitch, and tells him they stopped by his house earlier and spoke to his son, and he needs to teach his son not to speak to strangers. Kiera takes this opportunity to read his mind, and sees that he is terrified that they talked to his son. He is also worried about Mitch, and so is someone named Howarth, who has thought Mitch might come back to Chester and "ruin something."

Outside the station, Pierce scolds Kiera and Mitch for being crazy with the sheriff. Kiera and Mitch share what they learned. Pierce sends a message to ORPHEUS and asks for phone records from the sheriff's department so they can learn who he called. Mitch drives Kiera and Pierce to a park with a Popeye statue, and Mitch tells them the story of the fight against Long Legged Larry and the Hook family bat.

## Quotes

* "Is this guy some kinda fuckin' robot?" - Sheriff Parker
* "You guys did go through basic training, right?" - Pierce

## Music Credits

* Three Chain Links - Magic Hour
* Kevin MacLeod - I Knew a Guy
* Kevin MacLeod - Deadly Roulette
* Kevin MacLeod - Spring Thaw
* Kevin MacLeod - Ghost Story
* Kevin MacLeod - Backed Vibes Clean
* Kai Engel - Melancholy Aftersounds
* Kai Engel - Thaw
* Opening and Closing Themes by Nathan Kross and Rob Stith