Honestly, who gives a shit.
Why the hell should we let the client dictate how we do business?
Because he has something we call "money"
and because now his incredibly pretentious installation
on "trans‐generational trauma"
Will be done a week late‐‐ Hey, Yen, I'll call you back.
What is it now?
Ana, when was the last time you saw your mother?
- Why? - Those bodies we found in the crypt,
they were from St. Teresa's.
Of all the places in Portland,
you took me to the only one with shitty coffee.
Yeah.
But they have a pretty good biscuit‐wich.
A biscuit witch?
It's a local delight that hexes people with gluten sensitivities.
I just remember you always liked biscuits with gravy.
When I was seven.
My palate's a little more refined now.
Can I have the Fruity Surprise Platter
with cream cheese filling,
uh, and a biscuit‐wich, please.
I'm just gonna have the usual. Thank you.
The appalling amount of flannel here suits you.
You still look like someone pissed off a Patrick Nagel poster.
So, why do you want to see Mom?
I might need a kidney someday.
And you texted. I figured it must be pretty serious if you reached out.
I always reach out.
Holidays. Your birthday. You're the one who never responds.
And yet, here I am, responding.
In the flesh.
Seriously. How bad is she?
Bad.
The... thing that's got a hold of her,
her body can't take it much longer.
Is that why you texted?
Are you finally ready to let go?
Actually, I was thinking that maybe
we could try together to pull it out of her.
That's not how it works.
I could kill her. Is that what you want?
No. Of course not. I just‐‐.
Don't you want to know that we did everything we could to try and help her?
Even if... it's just for some kind of closure.
Closure?
It's dramatically overrated.
Stop.
It's me, okay.
We've been through things that no one else on Earth can understand.
I think I've been through a bit more than you have.
And if you'd ever care to open up about it, I'm right here.
I always have been.
Look. Dad's dead.
And Mom, when she's gone,
it's just gonna be the two of us.
It'd be nice if we had each other's backs
instead of just pretending like we're related.
Pretending is so much easier.
Well, maybe for you.
Meanwhile, I've been dealing with Mom
by myself for years.
That's your job,
as Mother's favorite little martyr.
Oh my God, you're unbelievable.
Why are you here?
A‐an‐and don't bullshit me.
I can always tell.
You wouldn't be here if you didn't want something.
You're right.
If Mom really is at the end,
there's some stuff I'd like to get off my chest.
And as it turns out, I don't have visitation privileges
like my dutiful older brother.
So I'm here,
very fashionable hat in hand,
to ask for your permission
to see her.
Alone.
I don't think that's a good idea.
I don't give a shit what you think.
You've had 20 years of one‐on‐one time with Mom
to unburden yourself.
I never did.
After everything we've been through, I think you owe me that.
You can see her tomorrow.
Thank you.
I'll call Dr. Hastings at the hospital
in the morning before my class and tell her you're coming.
Your class? What are you taking?
I'm a teacher.
Ethics.
Oh, "Ethics."
How awful.
If you need a place to stay, I have a guest room.
All due respect to your futon,
I booked a suite at The Nines.
It's not a futon.
It's a queen, actually, with memory foam.
It's a very nice mattress.
Perfect.
Holy shit.
What happened?
Hi‐hit and run.
I‐I need‐I need a...
hospital.
- What. - Three things.
Oh God.
First off... you sound miserable.
I bet you're making that face you always do.
Second,
you owe me more than your normal, paltry amount of gratitude.
Do I?
Yeah.
Because the artfully crafted suicide note I slipped onto Tate's
pancaked corpse worked.
Flawlessly.
What?
Now I'm thinking about pancakes.
Well, that's... ghastly.
- What's the third thing? - The third thing is,
you missed our client appraisal this morning.
Is this Attila the Hun's battle axe?
I don't know, because you're not here to tell me.
Yeah, I had something come up.
Oh.
Is that a euphemism?
No. Not this time.
I'm not gonna be in today. Or tomorrow, probably.
Okay,
well, you're being vague and cagier than usual.
What's going on?
Just I just have some personal shit to deal with.
What are you hiding from me?
Look, I'll be back when I'm back.
Okay, no bullshit, now I'm actually worried about you because you‐‐
Ana.
It's been a long time.
- Has it? - Years.
Ha!
I spoke to your brother this morning about your visit.
Good. I'd like to see my mother.
I told him it was a bad idea.
And what did he say?
I'm telling you it's not a good time.
Your mother had a rough night.
Then maybe letting me see her would cheer her up?
I think she's a little past "cheering up."
Well, we're not gonna know unless we try then, will we?
You've been failing her for two decades,
so it seems like the perfect time for a fresh start.
I don't know what sympathy play you used on your brother
or what your intentions really are,
but your mother is my patient.
I am not leaving you alone with her.
If you go in there,
I'm coming with you.
You know that if I want to see my mom alone,
there's nothing you can do to stop me.
Doctor.
There are security cameras everywhere.
Do you really think making a scene won't have repercussions?
If you want time with your mother,
I go with you.
That's the deal.
Just hang on! Okay?
The hospital's not far.
I told you she wouldn't be responsive.
I'm sorry.
I know it must be difficult to see her like this.
That won't work.
What a shame.
Here I thought she'd be so excited to see me.
Over the years, your brother has found a way
to connect with your mother.
Coax her out for a few minutes at a time.
Of course he has.
So how does he do it?
He brings up happy childhood memories.
Things you might've shared with her. You could try that.
Childhood memories?
Ana!
There's the Mother I know.
Hello?
Yes.
That's, um‐‐.
Sorry, Father.
What kind of phenomenon?
Oh.
Daimon.
Daimon!
You're insane, you know that?
Wh‐what were you thinking?
Daimon.
You hit Mom?
And I got tossed across the room for my troubles. Happy?
No, I'm not.
- Are you okay? - I'm fine.
I'm fine, too, thanks for asking.
Is there an explanation coming or‐‐
I was simply trying to get a response from what's left of our mother.
But let's face it, she's a sock puppet at this point.
I thought maybe you might have softened a little bit over the years.
But no, you're incapable of that.
And you're incapable of moving on.
Mom is in there clinging to the walls like a goddamn feral cat,
and you are what, wiping the spit off her lip?
That's just sad.
There is not an ounce of compassion in your body.
No empathy. You really remind me‐‐
Reminds you of what?
Never mind.
No.
No, no, go ahead.
Say it. Have the balls to say it out loud.
The only person you ever care about is yourself.
That's not what you were going to say.
Don't put words in my mouth. I wasn't gonna go there.
You know how to twist the knife in me better than anyone.
You come in here and you hit our mom.
Don't bring him up and then act like you didn't!
Both of you, stop.
Do I have your attention?
Good. This is my facility.
These patients are under my care.
So you will abide by my rules
while you are within these walls.
Do you understand me?
Yes, Doctor.
Daimon, there's a... situation that requires your attention.
We need to go.
Who let the church mouse in?
You must be Ana.
I must.
- And you are? - This is my associate, Gabriella Rosetti.
"Associate."
- Cute. - Don't even try.
She's a novitiate.
Just means she still has time to change her mind.
Gabby,
what happened?
Uh, there's been a,
an incident.
A bad one.
Daimon, we need to go.
This isn't exactly a great time.
There's a man dying, and he needs us.
Father Okamoto said he's possessed.
Okay.
Uh, just keep Mother sedated until we get back.
And you just, just stay away from her.
Oh, absolutely.
Pinkie swear.
Let's go.
So... your sister.
She seems pretty... um,
intense.
Ana didn't have someone like Hastings taking care of her
when she was growing up.
She went from being institutionalized into foster care.
Home to home. One shitty experience after another.
And... uh,
I‐I wasn't old enough to do anything about it.
I'm sorry.
We all have our baggage.
Can I ask you something?
No.
Maybe.
What you and your sister have,
where does that come from?
Our father.
Is he like the way your mother is now?
No, he was worse.
Much, much worse.
Shit!
God!
You asshole!
Why would you do that?
- Do what? - Creep around like Carhartt Nosferatu!
How did you even get in?
- I have a key. - Since when?
Since Ana gave me one.
Oh, wonderful.
She didn't tell me that.
Maybe you don't need to know everything.
Yes. Yes, I do.
Well, if that's the case, where is she?
Not here.
Obviously.
I thought you two were partners?
Partners, yes.
Doesn't mean I'm her keeper.
I'm just the guy who knows where the bodies are buried.
Trust me, you know a lot less than you think.
Anyway, Ana's not answering my calls.
And her loft is empty.
You have a key to that, too?
I need to find her, Yen.
It's important.
She hung up on me when I called.
Said she had some "personal" crap to deal with
and wouldn't be back for a few days.
She went to Portland.
Portland? Why would she‐‐.
Wait, to see‐‐.
Why would she do that?
We have a business to run.
Some things are more important than business.
Not to her.
This is a... fake by the way.
Shit.
One other thing:
Do you know if Ana took the skull with her?
What skull?
We should be there soon.
The priest, Father Okamoto, said what he saw was
unnatural.
Sure.
Just know that rattling off your "Greatest Hits,"
your Isaiah 41:10s, your Romans 12:21s
is not gonna do anything to protect you.
Why do you have to be so cynical?
I‐I'm genuinely curious.
I'm just being honest.
You've been behind the curtain. There's no secrets anymore.
You saw how well prayer worked against my mother.
Was she a woman of faith?
- Before? - Does it matter?
It might.
Belief in the Word is a powerful thing.
Sure.
Keep telling yourself that.
Sorry. I'm not trying to be a dick.
It's fine.
It's just,
are you sure you wanna be here after everything that happened with my mother?
I mean, you could be tucked up in some cozy convent somewhere singing your hymns‐‐
Do you even know what I was doing in Rome before this?
While I was studying at the Regina Apostolorum?
I worked with the Talitha Kum.
It's a group of Catholic sisters fighting to end human trafficking.
Sometimes, to get people out, we had to disguise ourselves.
Go into these...
dark places.
You know, women, children
trapped in these windowless rooms.
I'm not naive, Daimon.
I've already seen the worst humankind has to offer.
You alone?
My people are watching.
So, tell me what kind of a shit‐cyclone we're in this time?
That thing that got out in Colma,
it's bad.
How bad?
There was a Keeper in there.
Jesus.
You're gonna have to tell the others.
Where's the sister?
Ana went to Portland.
- She's looking into it. - Portland.
As in Oregon.
It's under control, Esther.
No, that means they're together, and that's a problem.
I know.
But I'm going after her right after we're done talking.
We got a place up and running there.
I'll text the address to you.
We turned a blind eye to her presence for years
out of deference to you.
You can't protect her forever.
And that's where you're wrong.
I'm protecting you
from her.
If she steps out of line, you know what has to be done.
And if you won't do it,
there are others who will.
Father?
Are you all right?
Gabriella?
Yes. This is Daimon Helstrom,
the man I told you about.
Then I pray you can help.
Depends. What happened here?
There was a wreck.
Two fatalities at the accident site, the drivers.
Why did they call you?
There's a lone survivor trapped in there.
He asked for last rites.
But when I arrived and bent down to say the Prayer of Commendation to him,
he bit me.
Sounds a little more like bath salts than possession.
And after that, a side mirror snapped off the car
and flew at me.
On its own.
So, not bath salts.
Where's the survivor now?
In there.
His name is Alex Tilden.
He's pinned in there, under the truck.
They tell me his femoral artery is severed.
The moment they free him, he'll bleed out and die.
He should be dead already.
He caused all this.
The survivor?
No. The thing inside him.
His family is on their way.
If your friend can really do what they say,
you need to free this man before he passes
or his soul is lost.
We'll do our best, Father.
May God protect you both.
You lie to other people, Ana, not to me.
I have to find out where you've gone from 'Taker? Really?
I'm worried about you.
Call me back.
No. Not a chance.
I don't care what he said.
I need to get back in there.
So you can hit her again?
I just want to have a chat.
About what?
It's none of your business.
Victoria is my patient. That makes it my business.
No offense, it's beyond your understanding.
I understand that you're angry at your mother.
But on some level, you have to recognize
she was a victim, too, Ana.
Do not try to psychoanalyze me.
All I'm saying‐‐ I'm not a victim.
And I'm not like my mother.
- She was weak. - You're wrong.
Victoria's a fighter.
She has been fighting for years just to get back to you and Daimon.
Otherwise, she'd already be dead.
I have rounds. Excuse me.
You know what?
You're right.
I shouldn't harbor this much anger against the maternal figures in my life.
See, I understand why
you didn't take me in like you did with Daimon.
I was damaged goods.
Though I wonder if Daimon would agree.
You did tell him about the decision you made, right?
Threaten all you want.
What you think you know? You don't.
Oh, enlighten me.
All I'm trying to do is keep you out of the deep end of the pool.
Because Mother will drown you.
Ha!
I'd like to see her try.
Wouldn't you?
Let her through. She's with the priest.
This one's old.
Strong.
Poor bastard.
His name is Alex Tilden.
And he has a family.
A wife and son.
They're on their way.
That's a bad idea. They shouldn't see him like this.
I know, but he deserves a chance to say goodbye.
Well, that's not gonna happen.
The demon is the only thing keeping him alive.
Once I get it out of him, this‐‐.
Alex‐is... dead.
- Hmm. Maybe it's gone? - No.
It's hiding. It knows we're here.
See that?
That's where it marked him.
Marked?
Only the oldest and most powerful entities,
the ones born of flesh and blood,
have the ability to mark their human host.
It allows lesser demons to inhabit their bodies.
But the toll that possession takes on the host is almost always fatal,
which is ultimately what the demon wants.
To absorb its victim's energy at the point of death.
Keep it for itself.
And grow stronger.
You mean it wants to steal his soul.
Call it what you want.
Well, all this, it's a cycle.
One we only break if we find out what marked him.
We do that and maybe we can stop it from happening again.
Like it did to my mother.
Careful.
He bites.
Works every time.
Come on out. I know you're in there.
Taunting her is not the best approach‐‐
I didn't ask for your opinion.
Go ahead. Hit me again.
I hardly felt it the first time.
That is not going to work.
Do yourself a favor.
Look at this as a chance to really speak to your mother,
whether she responds to you or not.
The mother I know was a fantasy that died a long time ago,
when she let him take me.
What's the matter?
Are you feeling shy all of a sudden?
You don't want to show off in front of strangers?
Maybe it'd be better
just you and me.
Did you kill these people?
- Of course. - Why?
Because it feels good.
Now get that light out of my eyes!
Hey, do me a favor.
Don't do that again.
Hardly seems like a fair fight, with me trapped under all this steel.
I'd lift it, but then this idiot's entrails would fall out,
and I'd be right back where I started.
Well, maybe you shouldn't have got your host crushed by a semi.
Oh.
I've missed this.
Truly.
Revisiting the sensations of life.
The sights, the sounds, if not the smells.
Wait, you were human once?
Oh. She's new.
- Hey, shut up. - Now, now, Daimon.
No need to be rude.
You were taught better.
You know me?
Of course.
We all do, traitor.
Okay, chatty Kathy, enough reminiscing.
My name's Magoth, traitor.
Hey, listen, I've had a real dumpster‐fire of a day
so if you could just tell me who marked you,
we can wrap this up.
Not yet.
Ca‐can we talk to him?
Looks like we have visitors.
Oh shit.
If you were ever truly human,
leave this man so he can have one final moment with his family.
Yes, please.
Bring them over.
You see, Alex here, he did some interesting things
when he was lonely on the road.
Like the occasional truck stop whore.
The wife will love that.
Don't try to reason with him.
They lie. They'll say or do anything to bring out the worst in us.
They feed off it.
He's right.
It's called embracing your true nature.
You should try it sometime.
At least your sister understands that.
Please thank her for sending us so many promising new recruits.
It's time to go.
Your anger won't bring her out.
Fine. We'll do this your way.
Want me to talk about a shared childhood memory?
I'm eight years old, and Dad comes home from a business trip.
I'm so excited to see him.
He gives me a big hug and... and a gift,
this pretty... emerald green pin.
He says he got it just for me.
Then, when you see it,
you slap it out of my hand so hard I start crying
until I can barely breathe.
And I don't know why.
But you did.
You knew and you still stayed.
That the sort of thing you were looking for?
Ana, I‐‐
What? Too candid for you?
- Are you all right? - I have to step out.
There you are.
Wrong.
You can't talk to Victoria.
Oh, I don't want her.
I came to talk to you.
What do you mean about my sister?
Honestly, Helstrom,
she's the least of your worries.
Look around you.
"Go forth, Christian soul, from this world,
in the name of God, the Almighty Father."
I told you, prayer won't work.
It might work on the man trapped inside.
"In the name of Jesus Christ, Son of the living God,
- "who suffered for you." - Shut up.
Traitor!
"In the name of the Holy Spirit..."
Not yet!
"...who was poured out upon you."
The monitors are over there.
I don't need to see your security footage.
I know my brother was here the night he died.
You're right, Mr. Tate.
He was here.
I also know he didn't commit suicide.
Really?
You sure a guilty conscience wasn't weighing him down?
And you're implying
what exactly?
That you helped him pick his victims.
And helped him do... other things.
I'd like to see you prove that.
Interesting proposition,
but I don't think that's necessary.
Thoughts?
Who the hell are you talking to?
Just give me a second.
Been a long time.
You come crawling back
looking for Mommy's love?
Not quite.
That's a shame.
Because, Ana,
deep down,
I think
your mother...
Hated you.
I know you set something loose on this world.
What was it?
The only thing this body set loose on this world
were two spoiled and ungrateful children.
Always mewling,
always blaming everyone else for their problems.
Emotional games are pointless with me.
If you don't wanna talk, I can make you.
And I'm not as gentle as Daimon.
You really think I'm that easy?
Disappointing.
You're just as weak as he is.
First generations always are, I suppose.
But I expected better of you,
...as the favorite.
Alex, I know you're in there.
Your family's here.
If there's anything you want to say to them,
you have to fight your way out.
"O glorious Archangel St. Michael,
"Prince of the heavenly host,
defend us in battle."
He‐help me.
Alex? Is that you?
My family. My, my son.
Tell him I love him.
That I'm proud. And, and my wife,
tell her I love her,
and I'm, I'm so sorry I wasn't‐‐.
I‐I'm sorry.
Tell them. Tell them. Please tell them.
I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I‐‐
Helstrom!
We need to get this out of him now.
A warning about the one who marked me.
It's coming. And getting stronger.
It walked the Earth long before any of us.
And it'll walk it long after we're gone.
Long after it's consumed you and your blood.
Best embrace its power and glory,
for your faith won't save you.
Neither will yours.
"In your hands, O Lord, we humbly entrust our brother Alexander."
"In this life, you embraced him"
"with your tender love,"
"now deliver him from all evil."
"And bid him eternal rest."
I'm so sorry for your loss.
Thank you, Father.
What did you tell them?
Only what they needed to hear.
Maybe someday they'll get closure.
Not everybody gets that.
What was it down in that crypt?
What did you set free?
I didn't send them to set it free.
I sent them to kill it.
To kill what?
I think you know.
He'll be so proud of what you've become.
Ana! What happened in there?
What did she say?
Ana?