Henry looks at Matthew's coffin as the pastor speaks the eulogy. As he listens, Henry suffers from another bout of tinnitus. The coffin is lowered into the ground.
In the guest house, the Kid dresses and looks through the boxes of old things. He finds letters from Matthew and a series of video tapes. He plays them back and watches as Matthew films a young Henry walking through the forest.
Henry looks around and sees the two men--Willie and Odin Branch--from the commemorative ceremony. When they notice that Henry has seen them, they get into their RV and drive off. The pastor asks Henry if he wants to say anything, and Henry says goodbye to his adoptive father.
Alan pounds on the guesthouse door until the Kid comes out. The ex-sheriff tells the Kid that they sold it to a house in Syracuse, and asks why they need it. The Kid insists that he go to Syracuse to get it, and says that he can't explain in words that Alan would understand. When Alan demands an explanation. The Kid tells him that time is Ruth's enemy. Getting the message, Alan leave for Syracuse.
Later, the Kid goes into the Deaver house and puts on a record. He stares at a space on the wall, and then notices his reflection in a mirror. The Kid sits down on the bed and looks at himself, tapping his feet to the music. He then lies back on the bed.
Alan and Ruth meet with Dr. Vargas, who tests her Ruth's Alzheimer's. Afterward, Alan takes Ruth home and says that he has some business to take care of and when he comes back, they'll fix her up good as new. Ruth goes in and takes out the chess set, and looks at the pieces.
Harry meets his son Wendell as he gets off the bus from Texas. They hug and Wendell goes back to his video game. They then go into the Deaver house and Henry takes Wendell to his childhood bedroom. Henry says that it will mean a lot to Ruth that Wendell is there, and Wendell says that not visiting runs in the family. When his father calls him on his comment, Wendell eventually apologizes and Henry takes him to Ruth. Ruth hugs her grandson and then leaves with Henry to make lunch.
At the shirt factory, Molly is trying to sell some property. She dismisses the fire as just smoke, and the buyer asks if Castle Rock is safe for kids. Molly hears a noise at the window and turns to see a faceless man in a priest's uniform watching her there.
As Henry makes lunch, Wendell reads Matthew's funeral program and Ruth stares at one of the chess pieces. As she goes to the window, Ruth sees the Kid out on the lawn, staring at her. She says that they buried Matthew in the suit that the Kid is wearing, and Wendell asks who the Kid is. Henry says that it's his client, and the Kid walks away as Henry makes a call.
Later, Henry goes to the guest house and finds the Kid watching the old videos. The video shows Matthew having Young Henry leading him through the forest. Henry turns off the TV and tells the Kid that he made some calls and has good news. As the two of them leave in Henry's car, the Kid looks back and sees Ruth watching them from the window. They drive to Juniper Hill Psychiatric Hospital, and Henry tells the Kid that they'll help him out. Birds fly around the main building, and one of them crashes into the ground nearby, killing itself. The Kid stares at the body, and the nurse assures him that they'll take care of it before leading him inside.
That night, Henry approaches Wendell and apologizes for having to leave earlier. Wendell confirms that Henry was 5 when he was adopted, and asks why the Deavers didn't have their own kid. Henry explains that they tried and lost a baby in labor, and didn't want to try again. His son asks what Henry's real parents were like, and Henry insists that Ruth and Matthew were his real parents. Henry then knocks at Ruth's door, and she invites him in. Ruth says that she's fine, and Henry looks out at the guest house. He then asks Ruth what he and Matthew used to do in the woods. Ruth says that they camped and hunted, and Henry asks about if Matthew ever mentioned the sound that he's been hearing. His adoptive mother abruptly tells him to ask his father, saying that she wouldn't know.
The next day, Henry goes to the backyard and looks out at the wood. He remembers leading Matthew through the forest as Matthew asks him if he hears the sound. Henry hears a tapping noise and goes to investigate, and finds Jackie putting up a for-sale sound at nearby house. Jackie directs him to Molly, who is in the back, and he asks if she ever saw them go out into the woods. Molly hesitantly says that she might have, and Henry wonders why Matthew drug him out there and why he doesn't remember anything. Molly says that she knows Henry hears things, and that Henry hated Matthew. She tells Henry that she was there the night that Henry disappeared, via her Shining, and all she knows is what Henry felt. Young Henry felt afraid and then relieved, and that he wanted Matthew dead. That's why she went to Matthew's room, even though it felt like a dream, and she pulled out Matthew's respirator tube. Molly says that they killed Matthew together, her acting on Henry's thoughts. Henry says that she's crazy and walks off.
In Syracuse, Alan goes to an auto junkyard.
Henry arrives at home and finds Ruth and Wendell playing chess. Once he leaves to deal with something, Wendell asks Ruth what the deal is with the missing chess pieces. She swears Wendell to secrecy and then says that they've had the same conversation before and will again. Ruth describes how she has become unstuck in time and never knows where she's going next. She puts a chess piece in every room in the house. If she finds a chess piece in a specific place then she knows where it is.
Henry walks through the woods using the video to follow the trail his younger self traveled decades ago. The battery goes dead.
Alan looks around and hides as a guard drives by. The ex-sheriff continues his search but doesn't find what he's looking for. He gets back in his truck and starts it up. The radio announcer mentions a fire that broke out at Juniper. Fourteen people died, and four dangerous patients escaped. A truck goes by with several junks, including the car that he's looking for. Alan goes over and offers to buy the car from the driver. The driver refuses to sell, saying the cars belong to Fat Tony. When the driver orders him off the truck, Alan draws his gun on the man and says that the woman he loves is sick and the car is his.
At home, Ruth spills her pills. As she picks them up, the Kid comes in and takes off his jacket and shoes.
As night falls, Henry walks through the woods. He comes to a fire and sees Willie sitting at it. There are two pokers heating up in the fire, and Willie grabs one of them as Henry approaches him. Odin claps his hands to get Willie's attention, and then signs to him. Willie translates, explaining that Willis is his interpreter and protégé. Henry points out that they were at the cemetery, and Odin explains that the forest was Matthew's church. He says that he and Matthew shared similar interests in philosophy, physics, and acoustics. They're out there to listen, just like Henry, and to correct Willie. Odin says that he's listening to what Matthew called the Voice of God.
They sit at the fire and Odin tells Henry that some people can't hear the Voice at all, and some hear it once and never again. A lucky few hear it constantly, and Matthew believed that he could hear "the Music of the Spheres", or what Odin now calls the schisma. The schisma is the sound of the universe trying to reconcile all possible past and presents. Odin picks up the other poker and holds up the red-hot tip. When Henry starts to leave, Odin tells him that to some, the schisma sounds like a ringing in the ear. He asks if Henry has heard it, and says that the schisma is eternal but has been getting louder for the first time in decades. Odin tells Henry that the most committed of them do more, and during the last amplitude crest Matthew created a device he called "the Filter". He never got to build it, but Odin eventually did. Odin then gestures to the nearby RV.
The three men enter the RV and Odin shows Henry the Filter's sound-dampened anechoic chamber. Inside the chamber is total silence, and only the schisma is left. Odin explains that Henry only hears a rumor, and in the Filter Henry will hear the truth. Henry refuses to go in, and Odin tells him that it's his choice. However, he figures that Henry is searching for what kind of men he is. Odin asks if Wendell truly knows Henry, and says that if he can't if Henry doesn't. He tells Henry that he made himself "perfect" by deafening himself, and the schisma is all that he hears. After that night, Willie will be corrected as well. When Henry steps into the chamber to look around, Willie slams the door shut on him.
In the darkness, Henry gasps for breath. The schisma rings in his ears and Henry remembers images from the past.
Alan drives back to the Deaver house and finds the Kid waiting for him. He says that he got Dale's Lincoln and the truck will be there with it in the morning. Alan asks the Kid what they do next, and the Kid tells him that it will be a monument to Dale and everyone that helped put him in the cage. The ex-sheriff sees the blood on the Kid's hands and asks where Ruth is, and the Kid asks him why he left him in the trunk of Dale's car. Alan runs into the house yelling for Ruth, but finds no one in the ransacked house. There is blood on the walls and the food is burning on the stove.
Written by Gadfly on Aug 18, 2018