01x05 - What Lies Beneath

Episode transcripts for the TV show "The Whispers". Aired: June 2015 to August 2015.*
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Based on the 1951 Ray Bradbury short story "Zero Hour" from "The Illustrated Man", "The Whispers" explores what happens when a paranormal force begins a mysterious and quiet haunting of Earth by using the most unlikely and unsuspecting inhabitants on the planet – the children.
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01x05 - What Lies Beneath

Post by bunniefuu »

Previously on "The Whispers"...

Sean was not a perfect husband. I was not a perfect wife.

Do you love him?

No.

But you had to think about it.

We found Sean's plane thousands of miles away from where it was supposed to have disappeared.

Peter: What is that thing?

Wes: Fulgurite.

Drill says he can help you get what you want if you help him get what he wants.

Don't you want to know where your dad is?

He's experiencing some kind of memory loss.

Each of your tattoos, they represent a place?

I don't know until I get there.

What happens when you do?

Nothing good.

Sean is trying to cause a meltdown?

Flood the reactor.

Oh, my God, Henry. Henry? Henry?!

Henry: Daddy!

[Rumbling]

[Grunts]

Can someone tell me what the hell I just saw?

Three people just walked out of that facility.

They're clean. Whole area is.

Can you hear me?

It was supposed to be a secret between me and... Drill.

Henry.

Henry.

[Clicking]

You okay?

It's okay.

I'm right here, baby.

I'm scared, mommy.

It's okay.

It's okay. I got you. Hold on.

It's okay. I got you. Just look at me.

Everything's gonna be okay. I love you.

It's okay, baby.

No, no, no.

Mommy!

No, no, no, where are you taking him?! Henry!

Mommy! Mommy!

Henry!

Henry!

Frommer: Someone explain this to me.

Why would anyone want to undo a nuclear meltdown?

Not undo, sir... contain.

Imagine this possibility.

Somehow, through technology we're not yet familiar with, you're able to contain... trap, if you will... the energy of that meltdown.

We're talking the equivalent of four Hiroshimas.

To be used without the launch of a nuclear device.

The ultimate chemical att*ck.

Frommer: We need to know who's behind this, and we need to know now.

There's only one man who can answer all of our questions.

Sean Bennigan was there on someone's direct orders.

Question him, break him, and we'll get our answers.

[Machinery whirring]

[Buzzing]

Claire: Where's my son?

Kest: They should be bringing him in now.

Mrs. Bennigan, we ran a thorough series of tests on you and your son.

There is absolutely no evidence of any radiation exposure.

You should both be dead right now. Instead...

Instead, my son is hearing again, which we were told was not possible.

So how is all this happening?

I don't know.

But we're looking at a miracle.

Sorry, Doctor.

I don't believe in miracles.

Henry: Mommy?

Hi.

Mommy, are we dying?

No.

We are okay.

Henry, what you did, going into that place, that...

Drill told me to trust him.

He said it would be okay, and... He was right.

Drill...

You can't see him, can you?

No, he's just in my head.

And he helped you get into the reactor?

He said it was a game.

He said I would get a prize if I won, and I did.

I found daddy.

Do you know how he made the expl*si*n go away?

I don't know.

I guess the same way he gave me back my hearing.

How is that?

Magic.

Are you a captain in the United States Air Force?

I don't know.

[Beeping]

On the night of May 1st, did your plane crash in the Sahara desert?

I don't know.

Frommer: So far, your hope in Bennigan having all the answers is coming up short.

That's because he's not asking the right questions.

How did you gain entry into the nuclear power plant?

[Door opens, closes]

I don't know.

Everything just opened.

Wes: I'll take it from here.

Thank you.

Hello, Sean.

Do I know you?

This whole amnesia thing, it's very smart.

You think I'm faking it?

Why would I fake something like this?

Because maybe there are some things you don't want to come home to.

Why don't you tell me how we know each other?

Henry and Minx.

Did you choose them just to punish us?

I don't know what you're talking about.

I saved that boy.

If it wasn't for me, he'd have been washed away.

If it wasn't for you, that meltdown would never have happened, Sean.

Are you saying I caused a meltdown?

When you sealed off the pipe, you blocked the water from cooling the reactor.

No, that's not...

Sean, who's Drill? Is it a person?

A government organization? Are they state-sponsored?

I don't...

Who are they, Sean?

I don't know.

How many times do I have to say it? I don't know.

I don't know. I don't know!

Okay.

Look at me.

I have nothing.

No memories...

No past...

Barely a present.

And the future?

The mere notion of a future scares the hell out of me.

My shadow knows more than I do.

Okay.

Okay, Sean.

Why don't you tell me what you do remember?

The first thing I remember is the pain.

I had just woken up... somewhere in the desert.

I had this huge piece of...

Rock lodged into my back.

Now, I don't how long it had been there or how long I had been there, but I knew...

I knew that if I didn't get this thing out of me, that I was gonna die.

So I had a choice to make.

Give up, die with no name, or take it upon myself to live...

Live to find my answers.

And now here I am, sitting across the table from you.

It's pretty clear you and I weren't friends before, were we?

No.

I think that's fair to say.

There is one thing I can tell you.

Whoever's doing this, whatever this is, I feel it.

What?

This isn't over.

[Beeping]

[Electricity crackles]

[Whispering]

Don't worry, Drill.

It'll be done soon.

[Whispering]

[Birds chirping]

[Door opens]

Oh, thank God.

You got the wrong guy.

Yeah, I know.

That's why you and minx are leaving.

What are you talking about?

You're going to your parents.

Wait.

What about you?

I can't.

Whatever's happening, I have to stay here and stop it.

Wes, we're not leaving without you.

Minx was not chosen at random.

She was chosen because of my job, because of me.

So we'll protect her.

We can't even keep her in our own house.

She does exactly what this "Drill" thing wants.

Henry, Minx, they all do.

So until this is over, you will go to your mother's.

You can't just send us away.

Lena.

No, this is my home. You are my home.

If anything happened to you...

Wes, I'm not as helpless as you think I am.

That's not what I'm saying.

Yes, it is. And I get it.

I haven't always been...

But that's over.

We're not leaving.

[Birds chirping]

[Claire sighs]

Hey. You are supposed to tell me when... when you go out.

What are those men doing here?

I'm sorry.

I'm still getting used to hearing your voice again.

Those men are here to help keep us safe.

We'll have alarms and cameras. No one can hurt us.

You want to watch me, make sure I don't play with Drill.

No, that is not why, Henry.

Drill's the one who brought daddy home.

Aren't you happy?

Of course I'm happy.

I want to see him.

I...

Daddy can't come home right now 'cause he's a little confused.

People are trying to help him.

Can't we help him?

He needs experts first.

But then he's back for good, right?

Everything goes back to normal?

[Car door opens, closes]

That's my partner.

I have to talk to him for just a little, okay?

But I promise you, we will talk about this more later.

Okay.

Psst.

Go long!

Keep going! [Chuckles]

How you doing, Claire?

[Breathes deeply] Do you really want to know, or are you just being polite?

I really want to know.

They say we're fine. No radiation.

I'm really glad to hear that.

It's a brave thing you did.

What's happening at the office?

You know I can't talk...

Oh, come on. You're kidding me?

Come on, Bennigan.

You know you can't stay on this case.

[Sighs]

They sent me here to collect your files.

And you get a new partner.

Hey, I didn't ask for this.

I heard what you did.

Buying me time in the reactor to get to Henry.

Not according to my report.

Thank you.

I'll get you those files.

Just keep me in the loop.

He's my husband, Jessup.

Have you seen him yet?

D.O.D. hasn't cleared me.

Well, you have a pretty good friend there, don't you?

I'm sure it can be arranged.

Okay.

What?

What is it?

[Sighs]

Just thinking about how my wish came true.

Yeah, what did you wish for?

For Drill to make you and daddy love each other again.

Just let me know if you need anything.

There you are.

I told Mrs. Bennigan you'd be here any minute.

Thanks, Renee.

No, leave it open.

I need to see him.

He's still being debriefed.

There are a lot of unanswered questions.

Yes, I know, Wes, but...

But what?

Drill.

I don't think we're dealing with a "who."

I think we're dealing with a "what."

It's the only way it makes sense.

Henry says that he... he can't see Drill, he just hears him in his head. How else can you explain an invisible friend that makes our kids do things that...

They would never do on their own?

So, then, what is it?

I'm not sure yet, but that's why I have to talk to Sean.

Claire, he's not the same person.

He is.

He's just forgotten.

You're not just some FBI agent, are you?

My name is Claire Bennigan.

I'm your wife.

You don't remember anything...

About us?

I brought something...

That...

Maybe can help.

We look happy.

Were we?

We were married.

I know you're in there, Sean...

Somewhere.

Sir, we've been going over the readings from Bennigan's polygraph.

What does it show us?

That's just it.

We're not sure.

What's happening here?

Looks like a malfunction, right?

But the machine, the recording equipment, they all check out.

It makes no sense.

What is it, sir?

It's exactly the same.

How did we meet?

My father.

He set us up.

He'd drove his car into a ditch trying to avoid... hitting a deer, and it was dark out.

His phone wasn't getting any service, and...

Just when he thought he would have to spend the night sleeping in his car...

There you were.

On leave from training, in your uniform.

He said you looked like some...

Damn superhero.

Mm.

He had you over to the house for dinner later that week.

I knew...

I knew exactly what he was doing.

And I was determined to hate you.

But you didn't.

No, I did.

[Chuckling] I did...

At first.

I never saw myself as a m*llitary wife.

But I swept you off your feet.

Yeah.

Yeah, something like that.

I like that story.

I sound like a good guy.

You are, Sean.

I'm sorry. I don't remember.
[Children shouting]

Man: Welcome to the fun sphere.

Let's celebrate Jenny's birthday!

[Shouting continues]

[Up-tempo music plays]

How can such little people create so much noise?

[Chuckles]

Oh, Minx looks like she's having fun.

Yeah.

Yeah, unfortunately, I don't think we've solved our problem.

Thank you for recommending Dr. Rosen.

Wait. You didn't hear?

Hear what?

He was k*lled the other night.

Apparently some kind of freak accident.

I don't know all the details, but something about a kid jumping out in front of him just right on the street.

Dr. Rosen's bike slammed into a car.

A little kid?

Came out of nowhere.

Wait, d-d-did you see where she went?

Heather, where's Minx?

I don't know.

She said she needed to talk to a friend.

[Whispering]

It's got to be a coincidence.

You think that's a coincidence?

Well, I just...

The machine clearly malfunctioned.

And what if it didn't?

Sorry. I'm not following, sir.

Sean Bennigan's subconscious.

I mean, what if the machine was picking up something there?

That's not how this works.

I understand that, but... so far, everything about this entire operation has not gone the way it was planned.

We need to start looking at everything differently.

[Telephone rings]

Renee: Hello?

Honey, I think the problem with the volcano is what's underneath.

[Chuckles] Well, your friend's right.

It's the heat underneath the volcano that causes the eruption.

That's what pushes the lava up.

I'll stop on my way home and get a bigger battery.

It's underneath.

What?

Like lava formations... they're caused by the volcano erupting from the heat underneath.

The... the fulgurite. It's caused by heat.

It's not the crash site that's important.

It's what's underneath it.

[Children shouting]

Minx?

Minx, stop it! Stop talking to him!

What are you doing? You're embarrassing me.

[Cellphone ringing]

[Beep]

Wes.

I have to go back.

What? Where?

Mali.

To the desert, back where it all started.

You're leaving us?

I have to.

The answers that we need, they're... they're there.

I know it.

Wes...

Lena, are you... All right?

Did something happen?

No. Nothing's wrong.

Just, um, be safe, okay?

I love you.

I love you, too.

You want to know what happened?

This was the first one.

As I was waiting in a cave, not sure if I was gonna make it, I kept seeing this image, and I knew that it was important, and I couldn't forget.

After that, more images kept coming.

Some of them... told me things.

Some of them... brought me places.

These visions, you said that they led you to places.

Seville.

There was a train accident, some strange power outage, two people dead.

I couldn't save them.

Sean.

I had to... I-I had to keep going, though.

A dam in Bordeaux... more casualties.

And that's when I knew.

These visions, they were giving me a roadmap to destruction.

And for some reason, I was being asked to follow it.

And then...

Harper's tree house.

Nuclear plant.

A blackout.

A dam. A nuclear reactor.

All things...

Related to an energy source.

Energy.

What is that, that one?

"A.S. 33"?

I don't know.

I haven't solved that one yet.

Arsenic... atomic number 33, the only tattoo on Sean's body that he hasn't been able to solve.

And all the other ones?

Have led to some kind of disaster.

A.S. 33.

So, we're talking about a mass poisoning?

Worse.

You dose a nuclear w*apon with arsenic, and you get...

A salted b*mb.

Larger radioactive fallout, longer half-life.

The reactor wasn't the end game.

It was just the beginning.

No sign of any arsenic?

No missing inventory from any medical or research labs.

I'll move on to chemical warehouses.

I'm getting nada from the universities.

You're sure?

Nothing.

Well, there's got to be.

Expand the search beyond U.S. borders.

Sir?

Do it.

Lena: I shouldn't have taken her to that party today.

With everything that's going on, it was too much.

You thought she was missing, you panicked.

I would have done the same thing.

Well, that's just it, I didn't think she was missing.

I thought she was...

You thought she was what?

She and Noah had a playdate last week.

Did he mention anything about her?

No. Why?

What about the other moms? I know they like to gossip.

Lena, talk to me.

She's changing, Callie.

Minx... she's talking back, sneaking out of the house, doing things that...

What if she's turning into one of those kids?

You know, the ones we whisper about, the ones you make up excuses to keep your kid away from.

Do you remember why I asked for that therapist's number?

The imaginary-friend thing.

Well, it turns out he isn't so imaginary.

What? Have you met this friend?

Not yet. It's complicated.

Look, Lena, when it comes to protecting your family, there's no such thing as "complicated."

You do what you have to do.

Sorry, Claire, but without any concrete results...

Well, I know. It's just...

I really thought...

We'll keep digging.

I'll let you know if anything pops up.

[Birds chirping]

Oh, my God.

"A's."

Man: There's the thermal imagery.

As you can see, there's nothing underneath.

We've used gravity meters and magnetometers.

There's no evidence there's anything more to the site than what's visible.

But there's no way to be absolutely sure until we dig.

Digging takes money and equipment.

Given the information that we have, there's no rush.

We need time to evaluate the surface...

I don't think you understand.

I'm not asking you. I'm telling you.

Tangara: You will get your request, Mr. Lawrence, but... Whatever it is you expect to find...

You may study...

But you may not remove.

It belongs to my country, not yours.

Claire: I need to talk to Ethan.

It's important.

I don't know. I... I need to ask his mother.

So call her.

Now.

But in the meantime, I need to prevent an att*ck that's about to happen on U.S. soil.

So where is he?

[Indistinct shouting in distance]

Claire: Ethan...

Do you know someone named Drill?

[Sighs] Are you one of his friends?

It's okay.

You can talk to her.

Ethan, what are you building?

It's a volcano.

See, it's a mountain on top, but there's a battery.

So when I push this, it'll explode.

Can I ask you a question about Drill?

How do you know Drill?

He doesn't like grown-ups.

My son, Henry, he's a friend of Drill's.

Drill told me there were others.

Did he tell you how many?

Ethan...

[Sighs]

Did Drill ask you to build this?

Yes, he said I needed to make it...

And to call my mom if it didn't work.

I needed to call her at a certain time, and then she solved it.

I just needed a bigger battery.

I don't want anyone questioning my son without me present.

Mrs. Bennigan, what are you doing here?

Renee.

Renee...

Where's Wes?

[Clang]

[Groans]

[Gasps]

[Grunts]

[Clanging]

Stop!

We hit something!

[Indistinct shouting]

[Breathing heavily]

They found it.

[Indistinct conversations]

But it's impossible.

Our scans would have picked it up.

Everyone, please, step back.

Please.

Dig it out.

Claire: Come on, Wes. Pick up.

Damn it.

[Clatter]

[Dog barking in distance]

[Crickets chirping]

[Clang]

[Barking continues]

[Telephone ringing]

[Gasps]

[Beep] Hello?

Claire: Lena...

It's Claire Bennigan.

I'm sorry to be calling. I know... I know this is...

But it's about Wes.

Has he called you?

Why? What's going on?

I know that he's in Africa, and I've been trying to reach him.

There's another child being manipulated by Drill, like Henry and Minx.

I think that it has something to do with Wes.

What?

I think he's a target.

I think that Drill wanted Wes to go to Africa.

I haven't been able to reach him, and neither has Renee, and I just... I-I thought that...

I thought that you should know, in case he calls.

Uh, I-if he calls I'll... I'll tell him.

Lena...

Thank you for calling.

[Beep]

Wes, it's me.

If you get this, call me, please, as soon as you can.

It's important.

[Beep]

[Cellphone thuds]

[Beeping]

Jessup: Looks like she's in bed for the night.

Frommer: Let me know if that partner of yours goes anywhere.

Of course. I'll keep you posted.

Thank you, Agent Rollins.

Sir, I wanted to ask you something.

With all due respect, sir... what's this all about?

Does this have to do with what happened at the reactor?

Do you think that Agent Bennigan had something to do with it?

If I thought Claire Bennigan was responsible, you'd be doing more than following her.

Then why?

Do you watch the news, Agent Rollins?

I prefer to get mine from the papers, but...

I hear people say they hate watching the news on television.

It scares them, seeing all the madness in the world.

It's not the things I can see that scare me.

It's the things I can't see, Agent Rollins...

The unknown.

That's what this is about.

[Warbling]

[Electricity crackling]

[Indistinct shouting]

Up.

Take it.

Whatever it is, it's yours.

Just take it.

[Warbling]
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