05x17 - Scared to Death

[bunniefuu]

(CLOCK TICKING)

(PANTING)

(SOFA SCRAPES FLOOR)

(DIALING)

MAN: 911. What's your emergency?

You have to help me, please.
I only have a few seconds left.

Ma'am, what's your address?

250 Avenue C. Please hurry.

We'll send help right away.

- Can you tell me what's happening?
- (GASPS)

Ma'am, I need for you to tell me
what's going on.

(ELECTRICITY CRACKLING)

(GASPS) Oh, my God.

- Ma'am? Can you hear me?
- (PANTING)

(CRYING) The lights went out.

It's coming for me.

What's coming for you, ma'am?

(GASPS AND PANTS)

Ma'am?

Ma'am?

I'm gonna die.

Ma'am, are you there? Hello?

(CLATTERS)

Ma'am, are you there? Hello?

(WOMAN SCREAMS)



(WOMAN SCREAMS)

You hear that?

That call came in at 11:59
from our vic, Val Butler.

She's an ad exec downtown.
First responders came moments later.

That door was locked
and that couch was in front of it.

No sign of forced entry.

CASTLE: Wow.

She looks like she's been
scared to death. Literally.

Is that based on your vast
medical experience, Mr. Castle?

No. Based on the fact she looks like
an Edvard Munch painting.

Really freaky.

- So what was the cause of death?
- (CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS)

Well, there's no external trauma,
no puncture or s*ab wounds.

Once I get her on the slab,

I'll know more about
how she d*ed and who did it.

CASTLE: If it was a "who."

Meaning?

Meaning she said, "It's coming for me,"
not "he" or "she," but "it."

CASTLE: Look at what
she was researching here.

"How to keep away evil.
How to ward off evil spirits."

A book on urban legends.
Over by the door, horseshoes.

I've clocked two Indian wood chimes,
there and there.

These are things
used to ward off evil spirits.

Like Perlmutter.

I heard that.

What are you saying, Castle?
Oh, was the bogeyman out to get her?

I'm saying maybe
that's what she thought.

Why she said, "'lt's' coming for me,"
why the lights went out,

why she inexplicably d*ed
and why she looks so scared.

She was scared because she was
about to be k*lled by an actual person.

So we should spend our time
looking for that person.

Let's set up a canvass
and talk to everyone in the building

that might have seen
or heard something.

What happened to Val?

What's going on?

I work nights as a research assistant
at the college.

But I should've stayed home last night.
I knew something was up with her.

What do you mean?

She's been weird
the past couple of days.

She hadn't been eating or sleeping.

She was really paranoid,
always locking the doors.

Did she say what was wrong?

I asked, but she said
she didn't wanna talk about it.

Amanda, do you know of anyone
that would've wanted to hurt her?

Her ex-boyfriend.

Boyfriend's name is Freddie Baker, 31.
Quite the resume.

Resisting arrest, as*ault and battery.

- Sounds like a prince.
- RYAN: Yeah, Val wised up, though.

She filed a restraining order
against him after they broke up.

Esposito's checking into
where he was last night.

So what did we get
from Val's family and friends?

Just that they hadn't heard from her
in the last three days.

- She wasn't returning their messages.
- Three days.

That's how long Val's roommate said
she'd been acting strangely.

Yeah. So I dug into
the last 72 hours of her life.

Besides a credit card charge
for a train ticket to Greenwich,

there was nothing else unusual.

What was she doing in Greenwich?

I'm still looking into that.

But as far as abnormalities
for the last few days, that was it.

Uh, no, there's more.

The wind chime, the horseshoe,
the book on urban legends?

All bought online two days ago.

Almost as if Val thought some kind of
evil spirit was coming for her.

Castle, what she thought
was gonna happen

versus what actually happened
are two completely different things.

Yeah, because
if Val was a victim of anything,

- it's her lousy taste in men.
- (SIGHS)

Canvass popped. One of her neighbors

saw Freddie in the building
an hour before her death.

I would never hurt Val. I loved her.

Really? Then how do you explain

this restraining order
that she filed against you?

Was that a love letter?

A misunderstanding.

Well, we have a witness that saw you
in Val's apartment last night, Freddie.

But I didn't k*ll her.

Yes, I went over there,
but only because she begged me to.

Do you actually expect us to believe

that she invited you
over to her apartment

after she filed a restraining order?

It's true. She said
she wanted to get back together.

But when I got there,

all she did was accuse me
of sending her some package.

What package?

I have no idea.

But when I told her
I didn't send her anything,

she started freaking out.

How was she freaking out?

She kept saying, "It's real."

What's real?

I don't know.
She wasn't making any sense.

She kept asking me
if I believed in the power of evil.

I didn't wanna get in trouble
for breaking the R.O.,

so I got out of there,
went to hang out with friends.

But when I left that apartment,

Val was alive. I swear.

Freddie's alibi checks out.

Friends confirm
that he met them at 11:00,

they hung out at a club till dawn.

So he's not our guy.

Well, I'll just point out

that Val asked him
if he believed in the power of evil

and then was talking about
how it was real.

- I hate to say it...
- Then don't.

Did CSU find a package
at her apartment?

No, but they were looking for
evidence of the m*rder, not mail.

So maybe that's what freaked Val out.

She knew that that package
was coming from her k*ller.

BECKETT: Did you find anything yet?

Yes.

A closet with more stilettos than yours.
Didn't think it was possible.

How about you? Any luck?

Uh, yes, looks like the package she got

contained a CD or a DVD.
So be on the lookout for a disc.

Disc? Gotcha.

(CLICKS MOUSE)

(STATIC CRACKLES)

MAN: Help me.

(WHOOSHING)

(BUZZING)

Uh, Beckett?

- (LIGHTNING CRACKLES)
- (WOMAN SHRIEKS)

(BUZZES)

(GIRL LAUGHS)

- Beckett? Can you come here?
- (BAB Y CRIES)

(HEART b*ating)

(GROWLS)

MAN: You saw! Midnight,
on the third day...

You die!

You okay? Did you find something?

When did you say Val got that package?

Three days before she d*ed.

That was midnight on the third day.

She d*ed because she saw this disc.
(WHISPERS) And now I saw it.

Which means I'm next.

"Legend tells of a mysterious video

"that can harness the forces of evil
from the beyond.

"The disc is
a harbinger of grave misfortune,

"marking its watchers
and sentencing them

"to certain and unavoidable death."

I saw it, just like Val did.

That's why she said,
"It's coming for me."

That's how she knew
when she was gonna die,

why she was trying to ward off spirits,
because of the message on that disc.

How's a DVD gonna k*ll you?

Is it gonna come at you like a ninja star?
Cut your head off?

(SIGHS) The actual DVD
will not k*ll me, Esposito.

It will be the spirit inside the DVD,
just like in The Ring.

RYAN: Ooh, ooh...

The one with the creepy, waterlogged
little girl who crawls out of the TV.

I didn't sleep for days after that movie.

Yes, exactly. Thank you. That movie.

It's fiction. It's a horror story
in a book about urban legends.

Yeah. I mean,
because that's all it is, right?

A legend.

CASTLE: Many legends
are based in truth. I saw the video.

At midnight, in three days' time,
I will die.

Oh, Castle, that message wasn't for you.
It was a thr*at for Val.

And it wasn't made by spirits,
it was made by her m*rder*r.

So tracing the disc to whoever sent it
should lead us straight to him.

- Espo?
- Yep.

There's a P.O. Box on this airbill.

- Would you look into it?
- Yeah.

And Ryan, why don't you
take a look at this disc and see...

Oh, I'm sorry, what?

Et tu, bro?

What did you say about
the story being a legend?

Um, well, uh, Jenny and I,
we are trying to make a baby.

So we're abiding by
every superstition in the book.

Okay. Fine. Here, Espo.

Oh, nah, I can't. I can't watch that.

If I watch that, it's gonna
make my partner out to be a wimp.

And I can't have that.

- Thanks, bro.
- Yeah.

This is so pathetic. Fine, I will watch it.

Wait, no, what are you doing?

Castle, I'm doing my job.
Someone here has to.

Okay, think of the risks.

You may not think
there's anything to this,

but what if you're wrong?

You know, I appreciate your concern,
but it's just a DVD.

You can't just play it.
Let me take precautions here.

I don't want the whole precinct
suffering my fate.

(MOUTHS WORD)

(WHISPERS) Okay. Okay.

You wanna hold my hand?

Castle, I'm not scared.

- Well, I wasn't asking for you.
- Mmm.

Are you ready?

Does it matter?

(BEEPS)

(STATIC CRACKLES)

MAN: Help me.

What are those sounds?

Right? It gets worse.

(WOMAN SHRIEKS)

(GIRL LAUGHS)

- Wait for it.
- (ANIMAL SHRIEKS)

(HEART b*ating)

(WHOOSHING)

(GROWLS)

MAN: You saw!
Midnight, on the third day...

You die!

You're right. It is kind of creepy.

Thank you.

Because the k*ller
made it creepy, Castle.

(BEEPS)

Maybe these images
meant something to the victim,

clues to the relationship
between her and the k*ller.

(REMOTE BEEPS)

CASTLE: Wait.

Go back.

That one there, that's the, um...

That's the Tibetan Wheel.
It symbolizes rebirth.

Hang on.

That is the Masonic Compass. That's...

They felt it represented,
uh, resurrection.

- Your point being?
- Oh.

Rebirth? Resurrection?

This video obviously resurrects
something from the great beyond,

something dangerous,
something murderous.

I mean, what other explanation
can there be?

There are plenty of explanations, Castle,

and none of them are supernatural.

In fact, I bet Perlmutter
has our cause of death by now.

Those tox and autopsy reports
should be done.

PERLMUTTER: Ah, Detective Beckett,

and Defective Castle.

So, Perlmutter,
how was Val Butler k*lled?

It appears she d*ed of heart failure.

At 27?

Did she have heart problems?

Well, she certainly did
once it stopped b*ating.

What made it stop?

Is it possible that she was poisoned
or OD'd on dr*gs?

Nothing showed up on her blood panels.

What about what caused her, um...

Well, post-mortem contractions of
the facial muscles are not unheard of.

- You don't know what k*lled her.
- I wouldn't say that.

- Do you have a theory?
- Not at the present time.

That means you don't know.

And the only explanation is that
Val faced something so scary,

it stopped her heart and froze her face
in the last expression she had.

Terror. Admit it.

All I'll say, Mr. Castle, is that,
for now, cause of death is unknown.

Unknown. Hear that?

Not good.

What are you doing?

Checking my bucket list.

Seeing how many things
I can get done in two days.

Can either one of you
introduce me to Bill Shatner?

You know, finding who sent this disc

should make Castle feel
a whole lot better.

Yeah. But what if the worst happens
and Castle's right?

Do you think he put me in his will?

Dude, uncool.

What? I'm just wondering.

I mean, Castle's death
will be sad and all,

but his Ferrari
sure would lessen my grief.

You do realize that even putting that
out in the universe is bad karma?

Please. Castle's not gonna die.

We're not dealing with an evil spirit.

We're dealing with a guy
who has a return address.

RYAN: Uh-huh.

Why does everybody keep asking
about box 1135?

Wait, who else
has been asking about it?

Some brunette chick
came in here a couple of days ago.

Probably Val. What'd you tell her?

Nothing, brah.
It's against company policy.

Well, I think that this
trumps company policy.

So, who owns the box?

Ah, that's the weird thing.

The guy who owns it d*ed,
like, three months ago.

So he couldn't have sent that package
unless it was from the great beyond.

The box was last rented
by an Andrew Levine,

who d*ed of liver failure
three months ago.

Somehow I don't think
he's connected to this case.

So the k*ller covered his tracks.

He must have written a random
P.O. Box on the packaging slip.

- Or...
- No!

Ryan! There is no "or."

I'm just saying. Maybe the reason
we can't trace this package's origin

is 'cause it was sent from another realm.

Ryan is right.
It was sent from another realm.

New Jersey.

I looked into the airbill number
on Val's package.

Turns out, it's one in a sequence
of airbills all sent from the same guy.

Jason Bennett. Lives in Hoboken.

- NYPD!
- (g*n CLICKS)

(WHISPERS) Hey, bro,
I just want you to know...

(OBJECT CRACKS)

I just thought you should know
that I really value our friendship.

(WHISPERS) Okay. Thanks.

It's priceless to me.

Great.

But if we could put a price on it,
what would that be?

What are you talking about?

I just wanna know how much our
friendship would be worth if you were...

Dead!

We got to Bennett too late.

Yeah, uh, about two days too late.

That looks like about
how long he's been dead.

He couldn't have k*lled Val.

And he got a package with a disc in it,
just like Val, four days ago.

There was a blackout here, too.

Same M.O., same freaky-ass body.

CASTLE: Third day at midnight.

I knew I shouldn't have
let you watch that disc.

Now, in 48 hours,

we'll both be dead.

CSU just found a stack of airbills
at Jason's place.

So then the k*ller used one of them
to send the disc to Val.

Maybe we should make a copy of
the DVD and send it to someone else.

That's how they saved people
in The Ring.

Yeah, but all those people
who got a copy d*ed.

Yeah, and you'd just be passing
the buck off to someone else.

That's cold, bro.

Okay, does anyone have a better
solution? Because we need one.

If not for me, at least for Beckett.

Castle, that's so sweet.
You want me to outlive you?

Of course.

Who else is gonna tell my tale
of sacrifice and selflessness?

Okay, we won't be
telling anyone anything.

We're both gonna be fine.

How can you say that when we have
not one but two dead DVD watchers?

There's gotta be a better connection
between our two victims than that disc.

Ryan, can you check in
with Jason's family,

see if anyone recognizes Val?

Yeah, on it.

Espo, why don't you
cross-reference their records

and see if there are any similarities
between the two of them?

If there's going to be pictures of us
hanging up there,

we should really pick them out now.

You know, Castle,

we could always use the photo that
I took of you in bed the other night.

I don't know if that's
how I wanna be remembered.

Castle, I was joking.

There will be no photos of us
on that m*rder board.

By tomorrow, we are gonna find
a connection between our two victims

that will lead us straight
to a flesh-and-blood k*ller.

In the meantime,

(INHALES DEEPLY) it's getting
kind of late. Okay?

So why don't we just call it a night?

You know what, actually,

we could go back to my place tonight
and take some more photos.

(CHUCKLES) Well, I might be...
Whoa, wait a minute.

In every horror movie I've ever seen,

having sex pretty much guarantees
we will die.

So, for the safety of us both,
I say we just hold off.

(WHISPERS) Are you sure?
I mean, think about it, Castle.

This could be our last time.

That's... Okay.

What you're doing right now,
this is not helping.

I'm gonna remove myself
from temptation.

A good night's sleep
will give me some perspective.

(CLANKS)

(KE YPAD BEEPING)

- All right, this is...
- (CLATTERS)

(KE YPAD BEEPING)

(PHONE RINGS)

- CRAVEN: Hello?
- Wes! Hey, it's Rick.

Jeez, Rick, it's after midnight.

Yeah, sorry. I just, um...
I need some advice.

Is Stephen King b*ating you
at Texas Hold 'Em again?

(CHUCKLES) Yeah, right.

No, but, um, this is actually
about your movies.

I mean, the name Wes Craven
is synonymous with horror.

You've made a fortune
scaring the crap out of people.

My Soul to Take, all the
Nightmare on Elm Streets, terrifying.

So you call me up
in the middle of the night

to join my fan club, what?

(LAUGHS SARCASTICALLY)

No. I know that you've researched

evil spirits who reach out
from the beyond for all your films.

Of course.

I was just wondering if you knew how
to stop those pesky suckers.

Is this you making your own movie?

I mean, are you writing
a horror screenplay?

Yes. I just thought I'd give you
a little friendly competition.

Just got a little writer's block, is all.

Okay, what's the story?

Um...

A ruggedly handsome hero and
his notoriously practical lady friend

watch a disc that's k*lling its viewers
within three days.

Really? You don't think
that's a little derivative?

Yes, but I am hoping
to distinguish the ending.

You know, make the third act
a survival tale rather than a bloodbath.

I just can't figure out how
to get my heroes out of this mess.

So, the key is always
in the spirit's origin story.

Once you have that, you can start
to figure out the spirit's weaknesses.

If it's using the disc
as its portal into our world...

Then the disc would contain clues
as to the spirit's story.

Wes, thank you. Thank you.

Listen, buddy, it's late. I gotta go.

(BEEPS)

Friendly competition, my ass.

You guys have got to be kidding me.

We didn't find a single connection
between our victims?

No, the two were
as different as night and day.

Jason was a retired ex-army doc.
Val was a young Manhattan ad exec.

Val was born in Florida.
Jason grew up in lowa.

They didn't share any friends.
They weren't family.

And none of Jason's relatives
recognized Val's photo?

No. And nobody from Val's family
had ever seen or heard of Jason.

We're still looking through
their records, but so far, nothing.

So we're at a dead end?

Ah, maybe not.

After much reflection,

I realized the key to solving this is
figuring out the story on the DVD.

To that end, I crowdsourced one
of the images to my legion of followers.

And someone recognized it?

Oh, you betcha.
According to bedazzlecats39,

you're looking at
the Brunswick Inn in Port Campbell.

Bingo. Val's credit card records show

that she spent a few nights at the
Brunswick Inn in November, 2008.

Looks like Jason crashed there, too.
Also in November, 2008.

Okay, so both of our victims
stayed at that inn at the same time.

So, maybe they were having an affair.

Well, in 2008, Val would've been 24.

Jason would've been 66.
An affair would've been...

- Gross.
- I was gonna say unlikely.

Doesn't look like an affair.
They stayed in separate rooms.

Well, the victims were at the inn,
the inn was on the disc.

There's gotta be a connection.

The inn must be the place

where some unspeakable horror
befell the spirits. Think about it.

The Ring, Psycho, The Shining.

It's when we get to the creepy old motel

that everything starts really going south.

So, this must be the location
of the spirit's origin story.

Or somehow Val and Jason connected
with the human k*ller at that inn.

My version's better.

Why don't you look into
the Brunswick Inn,

see if there are any red flags,
past crimes?

Castle and I will go to Port Campbell
and see what we can find.

Maybe I should stay here.

I mean, the inn is just
one piece of the puzzle.

I should really check
the other images on the video,

see what I can figure out.

Whoa! You're volunteering
to watch that thing again?

Yeah, not like I can get any deader.

Hello?

- It doesn't look like there's anyone here.
- (DINGS)

Doesn't look like
anyone's been here this century.

You're not buying into Castle's
spirit craziness, are you?

No.

You think I'm afraid
of some old campfire story?

- I'm a grown-ass man.
- Need help?

Just so you know, um,
that was me being startled, not scared.

(SCOFFS)

- You run this place?
- 41 years now.

But you're in the wrong place.
We're closed for the season.

We just need to ask you a few questions.

Do you recognize these people?

Val Butler and Jason Bennett.
They stayed here back in 2008.

Long time ago, 2008.
Seen a lot of faces come and go.

They would've been here in November.

Do you remember anything unusual
from that period?

You wouldn't happen to know
their room numbers?

Yeah, uh, 213 and 313.

The 13s.

Those rooms, they're not normal rooms.

They're reserved for people
involved in trials at the courthouse.

Down at 1135 Elm.

1135, that's the same number
as the P.O. Box on that package.

That's got to be it, then.

The murders have to be
connected to a trial

held at the courthouse
in November of '08.

There was only one trial
took place in November, '08.

It was a terrible thing.

You remember a trial
from five years ago?

No one here can forget.

It was the trial of the century.

That man m*rder*d half a dozen people.

Who are you talking about?

Nigel Malloy.

The serial k*ller?

RYAN: This is all about Nigel Malloy.

It makes perfect sense.

The clock tower from the DVD.

It's the same clock tower from
the courthouse where he was tried.

The rooftop and the alley were the
scenes of his third and fourth murders.

Yeah. And Jason and Val,
both witnesses in his 2008 m*rder trial.

Okay, so somehow
Nigel Malloy must be taking revenge

against the people
that testified against him.

Uh, yeah, there's only one problem.

Nigel Malloy is dead.

He d*ed in prison three years ago.

Nigel Malloy,
they called him The Grim Reaper.

His signature?

Searing symbols,
like the ones we saw in the video,

into the flesh of his victims.

Turns out that Val and Jason

were witnesses to the kidnapping
of Malloy's first victim, Esther Alonzo.

He abducted her from
an amusement park in New Jersey.

Tortured her in his basement for days
before k*lling her.

Had the local police
running around in circles.

They even arrested the wrong guy
before capturing him, five bodies later.

Well, considering he d*ed in prison,

I'd say he has a pretty good alibi
for our two murders.

It's gotta be someone else.

Don't be so sure.

Take a look at what Nigel Malloy said

in an interview he did

- right before he d*ed.
- (BEEPS)

WOMAN: So, Mr. Malloy,

are you saying
you actually believe you can't die?

My victims gave me unique insight
into death, into its secrets.

Even when my body perishes,
my essence will continue on.

I will continue on.

You see, death is just the beginning.

(BEEPS)

Wow. That guy gives a whole new
meaning to the word "psycho."

Wonder if he did find a way
to let his spirit live on.

Like the k*ller in those Chucky movies,

who transferred his spirit
into that spooky doll.

Exactly. Only instead of a doll,
it's a DVD.

That explains the message,
"You saw. You die."

The witnesses saw his crimes,
so they must die.

Well, then given that logic,

we'd both be okay
because we're not witnesses.

You're a cop. I'm a cop. Helper.

I mean, you don't think
a convicted serial k*ller's

gonna have an a* to grind
with the NYPD?

Castle, Nigel Malloy is not involved.
He's dead.

But someone else
might be acting on his behalf.

Ryan, talk to the DA in Port Campbell.

Let's locate those other witnesses
and make sure they're safe.

- Yeah.
- The court records were sealed.

How would the k*ller know
who the witnesses were?

Uh...

Well, wait a minute. Um...

Nigel Malloy had a brother, Leopold.

The DA accused him
of helping dispose of the bodies.

- Yes. The defense said that
- (KE YBOARD KE YS CLICKING)

Nigel had an almost hypnotic hold
over his brother.

He was found not guilty
by reason of insanity,

and they shipped him off to an asylum.

- Is he still there?
- Yeah, I'm checking.

Oh, wait, this is interesting.

What?

The asylum that they sent him to,
it's in Greenwich.

That's where Val went
the day she got the DVD.

She went to see Leopold Malloy.

(THUNDER RUMBLING)

(BUZZER SOUNDS)

Uh, yes, that young lady did stop by
a few days ago.

Do you have any idea
what they talked about,

or what he might've said to her?

I'm afraid not, dear.
You'll have to ask Mr. Malloy yourself.

You know, not for nothing,
but what's he like?

I mean, on a scale
of one to Hannibal Lecter,

what are we dealing with here?

I'm sorry, but doctor-patient privilege

prohibits us from characterizing
or describing our patients' behavior.

No, that's okay. We understand.

Here we are. Let's go over the rules.

Please don't hand him any objects
or take anything from him.

Don't stand too close to the glass.

If you need any help, just press
the red button on the wall behind you.

Okay? Now, please, just sign here,

acknowledging that
you understand the rules.

CASTLE: Ew. (CHUCKLES)

I feel like I'm signing my life away.

- Well, let's hope not.
- (LOCK CLICKS)

(DOOR CREAKS)

- All right, thank you.
- (KE YS JANGLE)

(DOOR CLOSES)

(JANGLES KE YS)

Please, have a seat.
I so rarely receive visitors.

- (DOOR CLOSES)
- (LOCK CLICKS)

But you have received a visitor recently.

Val Butler.

Why was she here?

Oh, sweet girl. She came to ask me
if I'd sent her something.

And did you?

How could I?
I can't send anything to anyone.

You could've just gotten
someone else to send it to her,

just like you could've gotten
someone else to k*ll her.

And why would I do such a thing?

To perpetuate the myth
of your brother's immortality.

Or to avenge his death.

I am not my brother's keeper,
Detective Beckett.

I never was. And I don't share
his murderous impulses.

Yet, you're still in here.

For now.

But when my appeal comes through,
who knows?

We could all meet on the street one day.

On that day, I might cross the street.

I'm no danger to anyone.

I never was.

So why would I jeopardize my appeal
by being party to a m*rder?

Because you knew
you could get away with it.

You're locked up.

You have the perfect alibi.

I have the perfect alibi
because I'm innocent.

I don't have TV or Internet access.
I don't send or receive mail.

The only personal contact I have
is through visitors.

And Val is the last one I've had in years.

So who could I have sent
to dispatch her or the other witness?

But we never actually said anything
about the other witness being k*lled.

So how would you know
anything about that?

I think it's time for you to go.
I have nothing more to say.

Look, he told us everything.

That slip-up proves

that he's been talking with someone
about those murders.

There is one other way
he could've gotten that information.

He could be talking to his brother.

Castle, he was talking
with someone on the outside.

He hasn't been
communing with the dead.

Well, we can't be sure.
And we're running out of time.

So I'm gonna scratch off number 27
on my bucket list.

Do you remember that, uh,

blue porcelain vase
you had on your dining table?

Yeah, the one that the wind blew over.

Yeah, about that.

I was playing Wii Tennis
in the living room...

You broke my vase?

"Vase." Vase is acceptable, too.

You know what, you can stop worrying
about the spirits getting to you,

because I just might k*ll you myself.

Seriously? You wanna spend
our last day on Earth fighting?

(PHONE RINGS)

(PHONE RINGS)

Ryan.

BECKETT: Hey, we need you
to subpoena records from the asylum,

see who Leopold was in contact with
by phone or over email.

Yeah, sure. But, just so you know,
there's been a development.

What do you mean?
What kind of a development?

Well, while looking into the Malloys,

Nigel's name came up
on a police report.

What kind of a report?

He was, um, reported missing
a few days ago.

Missing? The guy has been dead
for over three years.

RYAN: Yeah, about that.

The groundskeeper at the cemetery
where Nigel was buried

noticed that his plot has been disturbed.

As in, dug up?

Not just dug up.

Nigel Malloy's body has disappeared.

It hasn't disappeared.

He's risen from the grave.

All right, let's hear it.

Hear what?

Your explanation for this.

If there's one thing
I can always count on,

it's you and your logic, so...

You want me to explain
the dead serial k*ller's missing body?

I don't know what happened here. Yet.

That's it? That's all you've got?

But I can assure you
that it has nothing to do with

Nigel Malloy rising from the dead.

It's his brother.
Leopold Malloy is behind all of this.

Yo, it doesn't look like
Leopold has anything to do with this.

No, that can't be right.

I think the guy's crazy,
but he was right about one thing.

He has no phone,
no email and no visitors besides Val.

There's gotta be some way of proving
that Leopold's behind all this.

I can't tell you how he did it,
but I can tell you who's next.

I checked into the court
documents on the Malloy trial.

I noticed a pattern.

Jason was the first person to testify,
and he was also the first one to die.

A day later, Val, the second
person to testify, was k*lled.

Okay, so they're being k*lled
in order of their testimonies.

Who's lucky number three?

Uh, Mark Heller. I talked to his girlfriend.

He received a disc three days ago.

That means he's due to die tonight
at midnight. That's in four hours.

- And where's Mark Heller now?
- That's the problem.

He watched the video,
he freaked out and left the house.

- Nobody knows where he went.
- I might.

Heller's financials show

that he bought groceries at a store
outside Kingston yesterday.

His family owns a cabin up there.

That's probably where he's holed up.

Okay. Esposito,
you keep digging into Leopold.

- Ryan,
- (KE YS JANGLE)

Find the other witnesses.
Make sure they're safe.

Castle and I will head off to Kingston
and see if we can get Heller.

CASTLE: We're going to a cabin in the
woods in the middle of nowhere?

Yeah. So?

So, it's like the coed checking out

the strange noise in the basement
in a slasher pic.

It's a recipe for disaster.

It's not a slasher flick.
It's a m*rder investigation.

And I'm going up to that cabin.
So, you coming or what?

- (ELEVATOR BELL DINGS)
- Well, I can't let you go alone.

But I need to make a stop first.

Okay. So I've got incense,
palaspas, bagua mirror.

This is a veritable w*r chest
for fighting evil spirits.

- Is that holy water?
- Yeah.

BECKETT: Where'd you get that from?

A priest blessed this for me
two years ago.

And you just keep it around?

Knew it would come in handy one day.

Now, what w*apon do you want?

I think I'll be fine with my g*n.

There's not just one tiny part of you
that wonders if I might be right?

(CELL PHONE RINGS)

(BEEPS)

- (DISTORTED VOICE) Hey, Beckett?
- Ryan?

Hey, Beckett?

- Hey, I...
- (STATIC CRACKLING)

Ryan...

I think we're in a bad area.
I'm having a hard time hearing you.

Okay, then, I'll make it quick.

I just finished with
the last of the remaining witnesses.

None of them got a disc.

So the k*ller only targeted
the first three witnesses?

Well, either that or he hasn't
gotten around to the others yet.

- Dude, you're breaking up.
- (CRACKLING CONTINUES)

- Hang on.
- ESPOSITO: Yo, check this out.

Looks like Val, Jason and Mark Heller
had something else in common.

Hey, Beckett...

(STATIC CRACKLING)

...not what we think.
- (LINE BUZZES)

Beckett? Beckett!

BECKETT: I can't get him back.
I don't have any reception.

(TURNS ENGINE OFF)

There's Heller's car. He's here.

Yeah, I haven't got any bars either.

BECKETT: (SIGHS) Yeah, well,
we are in the middle of nowhere.

CASTLE: Can this get any worse?

A dead serial k*ller has gone missing,

we've both seen a cursed disc,

we're at a cabin in the woods
with no cell phone reception.

I don't need Wes Craven to tell me
how this ends.

Well, think about it this way, Castle.

In all those horror movies,
someone survives.

Yeah. Someone. One of us.

And the other one is cursed with
being charming and funny.

I don't think I need to tell you

what kind of chances
the comic-relief guy has.

(KNOCK ON DOOR)

BECKETT: Mark Heller?

Mark Heller?

Jeez!

Can't say I'm a fan of the decor.

Yeah, well, neither am I.
But we're just here to find...

Unless you leave, you're gonna die.

Mr. Heller, I'm Detective Beckett. NYPD.

Well, then you won't mind
showing me ID.

Can't be too cautious.

Not with Malloy witnesses
dropping like flies.

Look, we know about the disc.

We're here to take you to the precinct
where we can protect you.

You can't protect me. He's back.

Look, Mark, if the pattern holds,
you got two minutes before,

you know,
so let's talk about this in the car.

You know, just being
in the same courtroom as Malloy

was enough to make
a grown man wet himself.

Psycho yammering about
death and rebirth and all that hoo-ha.

Okay, hoo-ha, we can be talking about...

You know, neither me nor Val nor Jason

wanted to testify against him
or the other guy.

What do you mean "the other guy"?
Are you talking about Leopold?

(ELECTRICITY CRACKLES)

MARK: (PANTS) Oh, God.

Time's up.

It's here.

Do you think it'll matter
that we still have a day left?

Or will it be like
a "three birds with one stone" thing?

Where are your circuit breakers?

Outside, by the tool shed.

Someone's out there.

Seriously?

What's it like? Is it ghastly?
Pale? Pissed?

I can't get a good look at his face.
Do you have a back door?

Yeah. Yeah. Through the kitchen.

Okay, Castle, you keep an eye on Mark.

I'm gonna head out back,

double around, see if I can surprise him.

CASTLE: What?
Wait, we're splitting up?

Yeah.

(BRUSH RUSTLING)

NYPD. Hold it right there.

(PANTING)

(RUSTLING STOPS)

Why can't he just leave us alone?
We suffered so much already.

The guilt nearly k*lled the three of us.

Why would you have guilt about
getting a serial k*ller convicted?

Because that's not the whole story.

We all have blood on our hands.

Blood? What blood?

Mark, talk to me. I need to know.
What blood is on your hands?

(WHISPERS) What does it matter?

He's come back for us.
We're all gonna die.

It matters because
if you did something wrong,

it could be the key
to getting out of this alive.

(PANTING)

(BRUSH RUSTLING)

Hey!

(PANTS)

WOMAN: Get off of me! Let me go!

(CLICKS)

You? Leopold's nurse.

Leopold. It was you.

No. No.

You're the one that's k*lling for him.

No. No. You don't understand.

That's how he got to the witnesses.
He was using you.

You don't get it.

I'm not here to k*ll Heller.
I'm here to save him!

What are you even talking about?

That's why Leopold sent me. I...

Step back! Step back!

All right.

He knew people would think
that he was behind the murders.

And then he wouldn't be able
to get out of the asylum.

I love him.
I was just trying to protect him.

We knew we had to stop the murders.
It's not us, I swear.

(PANTS) If it's not you, then who is it?

I don't know.

But I went to Nigel's grave,
just to be sure.

I dug it up.

He was gone.

No. Evil spirits don't k*ll. People do.

MARK: Before Nigel,
the police arrested someone else.

David Collier.
The guy had a history of mental illness.

Me, Val and Jason
had to pick him out of a lineup.

None of us were sure,
but the police, they...

They pressured you into saying
it was Collier.

What happened to him?

He couldn't take it.

The accusations,
what people were saying.

He smashed a light bulb in his cell,

and he used the wire
to electrocute himself.

So his heart stopped.

When did he die?
Mark, exactly when did he die?

At midnight.
Third night he was in prison.

"You saw. Midnight, third day, you die."

This isn't about Nigel. It's about Collier.

Mark, you gotta think.
Did he have any friends, any relatives?

Yeah, he had a daughter, Amanda.

Val's roommate's name is Amanda.

(FLOORBOARD CREAKS)

(WHISPERS) Someone's here.

(FOOTSTEPS APPROACH)

(FLOORBOARDS CREAK)

AMANDA: Your three days are up, Mark.

The same three days of fear
my father had.

(FLOORBOARD CREAKS)

Stop right there.

(CRACKLES)

MARK: Ow!

Right in my eyes!

- The g*n!
- MARK: I can't see.

Where is she?

(TASER WHINING)

This is for my father.

CASTLE: Ah!

BECKETT: Castle!

(THUDS)

(PANTS) See?

Told you this holy water
would come in handy.

So, according
to Amanda's psych records,

she suffered a mental break
about a year ago.

That must be when she started
fixating on revenge,

planning to punish all those
who wrongly ID'd her dad.

You know, she must've cozied up to Val
to find out where Jason and Mark were.

And she used this to knock them out.

The mug?

No, the taser. It's a modified taser.

It emits a disorienting light
and amplified voltage.

Enough voltage to stop a heart.

And make the facial muscles contract.

I guess Amanda wanted the people
responsible for her father's death

to suffer the same way he did.

So, three days of fear capped with
a dark, heart-stopping death.

Yeah, but how did she
get the power to go out?

She used this.

She attached it
to the cabin's circuit breaker.

It emits a magnetic charge
that interferes with the system.

So, I guess that there is
a logical explanation for everything.

Oh, I don't know. What about Nigel?

How did his body go missing
from his grave?

I can answer that.
Turns out he was never buried.

His body disappeared from the morgue
shortly after his death.

Police didn't wanna make it known,
so they buried an empty coffin.

But here's the odd thing.
His body was never found.

So, he could still be out there.

Somewhere.

(ESPOSITO SLURPS)

- Okay, so, here's to a job well done.
- (CLINKS)

And now you can finally get rid
of this bucket list of yours.

What's that look for?

"Be with Kate"?

That's your number one?
When did you write this?

Well, like, three years ago.
Ooh! I can cross that one off.

(HUFFS)

Um, um...

Sorry, still one minute till midnight.

Are you serious, Castle?

Yes, I'm serious.
I'm not taking any chances.

This is one deadline I want to miss.

You know, you're right. It would be
a shame if something happened to us,

because there is one thing
on my bucket list

- that I would like to accomplish,
- (ICE CLINKS)

And it involves
a little trick that I do with ice.

See, now that definitely sounds
worth living for.

Hey, Castle!

- I just...
- The ice is melting.

Okay, I just... In three, two...