Previously on Scream...
Oh, my God.
Mom, whose ultrasound is this?
Remember I told you that your dad and I were having problems?
You should have told me about this!
Why? Would you have wanted it?
What if the child that you gave up...
Is back?
Sometimes the guy next door is worshiping the devil.
Hey, I think there's something up there.
Holy Dexter's air conditioner...
We just got a hit on Mr. Branson's real identity.
Now we call the sheriff.
Seth Branson used to be Seth Palmer, when he had this affair.
But then she turned up dead.
Put out an APB on Seth Branson.
Seth?
Seth Branson! Don't move! Let go of the girl.
Take him in.
1x09 - The Dance
Hey, guys. It's Piper Shaw,
with a special Halloween podcast of Autopsy of a Crime.
So, in looking for a connection
between the Lakewood murders past and present,
I had to wonder about Brandon's mask.
Turns out, it disappeared from county evidence last year,
but was never reported.
If I were Sheriff Hudson,
I'd be looking into the chief suspect's whereabouts
around the time the mask went missing.
But even then, what's Seth Branson's,
or rather Seth Palmer's, connection to Brandon James?
Why become the monster behind the mask?
We found this knife in your classroom.
Any idea how it got there?
No.
It had traces of Will Belmont's blood on it.
It's not my knife.
Look, we know you're involved in the webcam spying.
With the evidence we have and your assault on Brooke Maddox...
I wasn't trying to hurt Brooke.
Because you cared about her, right?
Yeah, I... I got that.
Just like you cared about Olivia Findlay
when your name was Seth Palmer...
And she was found murdered?
I think I'm gonna wait for my lawyer.
Yeah, I thought you might.
I'm just really glad that you're okay.
You must've been terrified.
I was.
I can't believe that Seth could do any of those things.
Brooke, he's not who we thought he was.
He is literally a different person.
But that doesn't make everything about him a lie.
I wouldn't be so sure.
Why didn't you ever tell me?
Because I knew you would get all judgy.
Brooke, I am not judging you. After everything that we've been through,
I just want to make sure that you're actually seeing this clearly.
Are you?
'Cause after what happened to Will,
it seems like you just need to hold someone accountable.
I do.
But this isn't about me, this is about all of us.
Why do I feel so alone?
Brooke, you're not.
My mom's in rehab,
my dad's in prison,
my ex... Whatever-he-is is being held for murder.
And now I have to stay with Jake.
You know, if Jake drives you crazy...
You can always come and stay with me.
I might actually hold you to that.
Trick-or-treating ends at sundown.
For everyone's safety, we ask no masks be worn.
Also, this year's Halloween dance
will serve as a fundraiser for the victims' families.
You're really gonna have the dance after all of these murders?
Miss Shaw, we share your concern,
but we feel very confident that we have our man in custody.
That's all. Thank you.
Wow. Okay.
Sheriff!
I know this dance will be irresistible to this killer,
if it isn't Seth Branson.
We'll have security on site.
Having all these kids in one place
is safer than trying to cover a dozen house parties.
You sound defensive.
I'm just doing my best to keep the peace.
What are you doing?
Sorry, my mom went a little nuts at the Tommy Bahama outlet.
It's fine.
Extra towels are here, coconut water in the mini.
Wi-Fi password is "TheJakeStopsHere."
'Course it is.
How's the pain?
Did you take the extra Vicodin the doctor gave you?
Duh.
Well, let's see the damage.
Nice. Almost as good as mine.
Goodbye, arm modeling.
I don't know.
There's a hot chick from Top Chef and Tina Fey.
They rock the scars.
And they have nothing on you.
Thanks.
Okay. Well... Mi casa es su casa.
And...
Can I ask you a question, if you promise not to get mad?
I make no promises.
Why'd you go back to him?
Because I...
Felt like I had no one else.
You had me.
And FYI, if I ever caught Branson hurting you,
he would be dead.
Hey, Mom.
Hey! Oh, thanks.
So...
I've ordered a DNA panel on Seth Branson...
And a maternity test for me.
But the results will take a few days.
I know how hard that must be.
I want it to be over.
Mom?
Mom, I need to talk to Branson.
- No, we need to let Clark do his job. - I can't wait.
He's gathering evidence, deposing witnesses...
I am a witness.
If he did these things to hurt us...
Then he's gonna have a reaction when he sees me.
I need to look in his eyes.
I need to know.
Hello, Emma.
Hi, Mr. Branson.
What are you doing here?
You know what I'm doing here.
No, I don't.
They won't even tell me if Brooke's okay.
She's fine.
I know they're saying a lot of terrible things...
But I did not kill Will.
I don't even know where that knife...
I'm sorry, but my lawyer... I...
I can't talk about it.
Mr. Branson...
Whatever your name is...
Okay, my friends are dead,
my family has been targeted, and you know why.
Actually, I don't, Emma.
What is this?
What, do you guys think I'm gonna have some sort of, like, breakdown
and confess everything to one of my students?
He's not going for it.
Give them a minute.
Why are you letting him use you like this?
I asked to do this.
Oh, really?
Well, I'm a captive audience.
Clearly, you have something you want to say to me.
Did you find out the truth about who you are?
Is that why you came to Lakewood?
You mean why I changed my name?
Yeah, that's part of it.
I can't talk about my past, Emma.
What about my mother?
What about her?
She's...
Nice.
You look a lot like her.
You said that this ends with me.
So, is it over?
I have no idea what you're talking about.
But considering that I'm stuck in here...
I guess you'll find out soon enough.
Oh, my God.
Branson? Is your...
Oh, my God!
Hey, can you just stop saying that and help me?
It's a lot to take in, Em, and...
No offense,
but you were just kind of seeing Will's ghost around school.
Okay, this is not a delusion.
Could we just go back to the part where your mom,
who wears cardigans and drives an SUV...
Had a baby with Brandon James?
We got it.
The thing that I could never figure out
was why this killer was focusing on my family.
But... I mean, if Mr. Branson is my family,
then all of this makes sense.
Well, what happened when you sat across from him?
I want the fava-bean-by-fava-bean recap.
Well, he played it pretty cool.
That's why I need to know for sure.
Brandon's son...
Bran-son.
He picked that name. That redefines "hiding in plain sight."
There's still no connection between Branson and Rachel.
Maybe we just haven't found it yet.
The news reports don't even mention her name when they talk about the victims.
It's like they forgot that her suicide was staged.
Look, Audrey, I know you want the truth.
So let's find it.
Let's just prove it beyond a doubt.
Bi-curious and the Virgin are on it.
And the crime world trembled.
Piper, hey! Wow.
- We... - Were just leaving.
Right, yes.
And, you know, just for the record, totally not...
- Stop talking. Stop talking. - ...a virgin. Okay.
Go get 'em.
- Hey, Piper. - Hey.
So, it's a big day. You must be relieved.
The killer's behind bars, life can go back to normal.
It's huge.
Then why do you sound so disappointed?
A lead I was following up on didn't pan out the way I hoped it would.
What was the lead? What was it?
"It" was a "who."
Cassie James, Brandon James' mom.
- Whoa. You found her? - Mmm-hmm.
She changed her name, but I traced her
through her social security number.
She's living right outside of Warren.
Did you talk to her?
Well, she rambled, mostly. She's a little incoherent.
I was just hoping for an interview
that would tie the past and the present murders together.
But it was a long shot. I had to see for myself, you know?
Yeah, I know.
I think we might be able to help each other out.
Mrs. James...
Emma would like to ask you about Brandon. Is that okay?
You're just gonna tell a monster story. That's all they wanna hear.
No, no. I'm not a reporter.
My mother was your neighbor.
She was friends with Brandon.
She told me that he was very nice to her.
Brandon was my golden-years child.
I was nearly 50 when I had him.
Ed said the egg was old,
and that's why he had his issues.
And that boy suffered so.
Your mom was...
Daisy, the little blonde.
Of course. Now I see the resemblance, yes.
I saw you outside,
trying to get up nerve to come in and talk to me.
Talk about what?
Oh, you know.
I kept Brandon home to keep him safe.
He met you and he begged me
to let him get a job with the bowling alley.
'Cause you were sex.
Walking and talking.
He'd do anything for you.
You got him killed.
I... I didn't.
So much pain.
Why did you take him from me?
Why, Daisy?
I'm so sorry, we shouldn't have bothered you.
Oh, he loved that song.
He love... And so did his boy.
Loved that song.
Whose boy, Mrs. James?
Brandon's. Brandon's son.
He was here the other day.
Just...
- Brandon's son was here? - Yes.
Oh, when was that? Yeah, he was so handsome.
Do you remember his name?
Steve? No.
Keith? No, no.
Wait, was it Seth?
Yes, that's it. Seth. That was it.
Oh, he was so handsome.
Just like an old-time movie star.
And he wanted to know all about his daddy.
Yes.
He wanted to know all about Brandon.
Yes, Daisy. Daisy...
That was real, right? She said that Seth is Brandon's son.
Well, it's never gonna hold up in court,
but yeah, that's... that's what she said.
Well, it's good enough for me.
Thank you for doing this.
Yeah. You deserve peace.
- Bye. - Bye.
It's open.
Hi, stranger.
You really shouldn't leave your door unlocked.
It's over. Didn't you hear? They caught him.
Yeah, it's great news.
I really should've called you back.
You've had a lot on your mind. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.
I am.
I really am.
Kieran...
- After what happened to Will, I couldn't risk... - I get it.
I do.
So where does this leave us?
Well...
I'd really like to make up for lost time.
I like the sound of that.
Good.
So, should we do something to celebrate?
What did you have in mind?
I heard a rumor about some kind of Halloween dance or some such.
You game?
Only if we can shop for awkward couple costumes together.
I see you're gonna make me regret this.
Hey, do you want to come to dinner? My mom's ordering pizza.
I could eat.
Any luck?
- Maybe. - Listening...
Okay, so Rachel practically lived with her camera.
I mean, she documented everything.
Coming from you, that's kind of scary.
When I was trying to make her memorial video,
I went to access her video files,
but they'd all been wiped from her computer.
Interesting. Kinda like how Nina's spy-cam network just up and disappeared.
You think Rachel might have caught Branson doing something on tape?
Well, I mean, it might explain why he made it look like a suicide.
Wasn't part of the plan.
It was cleaning up loose ends.
But... if all the footage was deleted...
Rachel backed everything up to the cloud.
And I have the password.
Time for a raw footage film festival.
Yay!
Picked up your Porsche for you.
No scratches, minor tread wear.
What do we have here?
Huh?
We have a pervert who was watching me undress on my webcam.
What?
Are you sure?
Yeah, the light just turned on all by itself.
Was it you?
No.
The network's shut down, remember?
Yeah, well, someone was watching me.
And considering Seth is behind bars, I'm pretty sure it wasn't him.
God, why do you keep defending him?
Because everyone is making him out to be some sort of monster.
Yeah, and maybe he is.
I don't believe that.
And how do you know?
You still think you're the apex predator.
Sometimes you have to have faith in people.
Yeah, and that is really working out for you and the fam, right?
This was a mistake.
Come on. Where are you going?
I'm going home.
Great.
Remember the burner phone from Branson's classroom?
- Mmm-hmm. - Yeah.
I compared the call log to Emma's phone records.
These white pins are cell towers the calls pinged.
And?
And they all originated here.
The southern edge of Wren Lake.
Far from Branson's house and the school.
His lawyers will be all over that.
Yeah.
I could really use a witness tying him to these calls.
That part of the lake's pretty quiet after the summer season's over.
Yeah.
I'm gonna knock on doors.
See if I can find someone who can ID him.
Don't you have deputies for that?
Maybe I'm doing some penance.
Well... There's not gonna be another Riley Marra on my watch.
Hello?
Anyone home?
Terry, can you run a plate for me?
Go ahead.
Three, Union, Foxtrot, Hotel, eight, seven, two.
Copy that.
Sheriff's Department. Anyone here?
Sheriff's Department!
Anyone home?
Hey, Brooke. What's up?
Hey, change of plans.
Party at my place. I'm getting the good stuff.
Wait, I thought you were going to the dance.
Dude, in a rec center with no booze and wall-to-wall cops?
It's gonna blow.
Well, I told Kieran I'd meet him there,
but maybe we can come to yours after?
He's, not picking you up?
No, he had something he had to do.
Well, that's lame.
But hey, considering my ex-beau may be a mass murderer,
who am I to criticize?
Wait, Brooke, are you okay? Did something happen with Jake?
No, I just remembered who I am.
I have a reputation to uphold.
And I'm done being the victim.
Good. Kieran and I will definitely be there.
I'll text you from the dance. Bye.
Never thought the life and times
of a sexually-confused Catholic girl could be so dry.
You wanna feel the sting of this sexually-confused atheist's
- foot up your butt? - Hey, hey!
I made you microwave popcorn, okay?
Where is that?
Oh, it's a bar on Eighth Street.
Rachel loved sneaking in there with her hidden camera.
She got so much free drama.
Fights, flirts,
old men swapping stories from the bottom of a bottle.
Rachel loved all of it.
I know how much you miss her.
Yeah.
Rachel might be gone, but I'm going to make sure she is never forgotten.
Oh, crap. I gotta set up.
Yeah, I better change.
Hold on.
What?
Is that Nina?
And that's Kieran.
What the hell?
Brooke, where are you?
Come into the light, my children!
Let me hear you scream!
Hey, Mom. How's chaperone duty?
Uneventful, just the way I like it.
Wait, where's Clark?
I don't know.
He's not returning my texts. Must've gotten hung up.
Well, that seems to run in the family. Kieran is also very late.
Mrs. D, looking lovely, as always.
Jake.
One non-alcoholic drink, por favor.
Okay.
What did you do?
- You talked to Brooke. - Yes, I did.
She was at your house for half a day. What did you say to her?
I don't know. Some Jake-ass thing.
Well, she's not coming.
What?
I wore this stupid costume for her.
She's having an after-party.
Thank God, 'cause this drink is undrinkable.
Ah, yes.
A, proper Steampunk lady with a soupcon of goth.
And you're a master of ceremonies?
I was gonna be the Babadook, but then my mom made this cape.
I couldn't break her heart.
- That'so. - Yeah, well...
I should tell Emma about Kieran.
What? No, but Mr. Branson has to be the killer, right?
I mean, I led the cops to their best evidence.
Kieran was leaving a bar with Nina.
Then Nina got dead. And he saw Rachel filming him.
Yes, but we can't leap to conclusions like this.
Yeah, Kieran comes across a little mysterious, but he saved my life.
He's nice.
A stranger whose parents died mysteriously,
and who was at a bar with the first victim
and who seduced our young ingenue, the killer's obsessed with.
You mean that kind of nice?
Gotta warn Emma.
Noah! What?
He's not gonna kill her during the dance sequence.
Sorry I'm late.
This look was deceptively tricky to put together.
Well, you're rocking it.
Let's do this.
- Hey, Maggie. - Hey.
Two, please.
Oh, okay.
Everything okay?
Yeah. I've been calling your dad.
He should be here by now.
Yeah, he's not so great with the technology.
I can try him if you want.
- Would you? Thanks. - Yeah.
Hey, you guys were great. Extremely retro.
Thank you.
Oh, I'm sorry that I didn't call you yesterday.
Actually, now's probably a really good time to catch up.
What's wrong?
I went through Rachel's raw footage, a lot of it,
trying to find a connection to Branson.
And did you?
No.
I found something else.
What is this?
Nina and Kieran, yeah.
Rachel shot that. Kieran saw her do it.
Em, if she was the only witness to see him with Nina...
Audrey, Mr. Branson is the killer, okay?
The DNA is gonna prove that.
Kieran and Nina were at a bar together, so what?
The night before she died.
Emma, you can't trust him.
Why not? I trusted you.
We've all been caught on tape doing things that look bad.
Looking good.
Yeah, you too.
Did I do something to upset Audrey?
No, she's just being over-protective.
Of you, with me?
What's going on, Emma?
She was going through Rachel's footage, looking for a connection to Branson.
Yeah? My dad's been trying to fill in those same blanks.
Well, she found something.
It was a video of you and Nina at a bar.
Why didn't you tell me that you knew her?
I don't know her, okay?
I met her once. She didn't even tell me her name.
It was right before I started at school.
My dad and I got in this epic fight
and I went to a bar.
She was beautiful and bored.
A little drunk.
We talked.
She was insecure and trying too hard.
She said she was 23. She worked in IT.
Yeah. That was her bar story.
Yeah, see? You know her M.O.
Yeah, and I know that that story usually ended with her going home with the guy.
I asked if I could call her a cab.
But she kept insisting that she was gonna drive herself.
So I drove her home.
When we got there, she wanted me to come in.
I... I didn't.
And then she was murdered.
I... I am sorry.
I just don't understand why you didn't tell me or anyone else.
I should have.
But I didn't have any information that would've helped.
It was a no-win situation.
I really wanna believe you.
But you don't?
You know what?
If you can't hear me and trust me...
Then Branson won.
Even sitting in his jail cell, he beat you.
Hey, are you okay? Where's Kieran?
He left. I messed things up royally.
Or maybe he left because he did it.
Audrey, I know that you want justice for Rachel...
Yeah, I do.
And he is the only person I know of who would've wanted her gone.
So you want me to believe that he killed everyone else?
Nina, Tyler, Riley...
And Will.
Audrey, I can't believe that he did this
any more than I could believe that you killed Nina.
Then I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.
You two have fun together.
I'm crashing Brooke's and getting drunk!
They always fall for the costume flask.
You're a lot smarter than you look.
I bet you are, too, Andrea.
Ava.
Are you going to Brooke's after this?
I don't know.
Do you wanna be my arm candy?
They are nice arms.
You ever been inside a behemoth?
- Emma. - Piper, what are you doing here?
Hey, I'm so sorry to crash, it's just that...
Something Cassie said yesterday struck me as weird.
So, I just, I went back today.
- Is she okay? - Yeah, it's just...
I wanted to be sure about Branson,
so I took the school yearbook and I showed her his picture,
and that's not who came to see her.
Okay, so who did?
I showed her some shots from the vigil,
and she pointed out Kieran.
Is he still here?
No, he...
He just left.
Then we better find him.
What's going on?
Oh, my God! Is that Sheriff Hudson?
This is an all-points bulletin for an escaped prisoner,
Seth Branson from the Lakewood City Jail.
He is armed and dangerous.
Repeat, this is an APB for Seth Branson
who has escaped from the Lakewood City Jail.
He is armed and dangerous.