"The big old owl flapped his wings and yawned.
It's much too late and too many creatures about.
She will surely get a scary fright.
Where the alligators romp and the frogs grow fat and orange...
...the field mouse sings to the owl kings...
...with a voice like a squeaky door hinge...
...there lived a girl who's sunny sweet...
...and the children call her Sticky Feet.
With almond eyes and golden curls...
...she knew that swamps are not for girls."
Claire, the dreams are getting stronger.
All I'm saying, Claire, is you gotta stop avoiding it.
It's time we started to really deal with this. It's important.
Are you taking your medication?
Doesn't help.
It's evolving.
I'd like to try hypnosis, a change. We're ready.
Is this a man-made problem...
...or possibly the result of global warming?
Check into any inn or bed-and-breakfast in Westmoreland...
...and you'll notice a serious decline in hunters and birdwatchers alike.
But is it from their own doing?
The blue-winged warbler hasn't been seen here...
...since last summer in Westmoreland County.
Perhaps this once-flourishing...
- Claire? - Mrs. O'Shea.
Mercy, and this is Heidi.
Welcome to Rose Marsh Farm.
We don't get too many guests this time of year, so...
Here's your living room.
There's wood and kindling over there.
Should keep you warm.
The fireplace is working. It's pretty straightforward.
We get photographers and birdwatchers in the summer.
So if you'll follow me, I'll show you the upstairs.
- You're a writer? - Yes.
Well, you'll have lots of peace and quiet, and plenty of space.
I can guarantee you that.
This is the master bedroom.
There's extra linen in the closet.
And here's the studio.
The Manvilles and the Roses settled the whole area.
We call him Old Mister.
And that's the marsh.
Yeah, I'd steer clear of that, if I was you.
You can get lost in there pretty quick.
If you need anything, I'm the first house on the way into town.
"The big old owl flapped his wings and yawned.
What is a girl doing in a swamp at night?
It's much too late and too many creatures about.
She will surely get a scary fright."
How do you make up your stories?
I start by asking the question, "What if?"
- Oh, sorry. - I'm sorry.
- I didn't see you. - It's all right. I'm so sorry.
- Are you all right? - Yes.
All right, well, good morning,
Good morning.
Noah, Noah Pitney.
That's the great thing about being from a small town...
...is you can introduce yourself to anyone you bump into.
- Right, Ernie? - That's right.
- Claire Holloway. - Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Holloway.
Nineteen fifty, miss.
No, no, no, allow me, please. This is country manners in action.
Ernie, I just want to remind you there's a game tonight.
- Got it. - I'll see you then.
Oh, and please, put this on my tab.
- This is for you. - You don't have to do that.
No, please, take it. I've already read it.
Help you get accustomed to the town.
Editor's got some pretty eccentric views...
...but, say, I bet he'd love an interview with you.
- You really that short on tourists? - Come on, Claire, I have three nieces.
"Star children's author hits Westmoreland."
That's pretty big stuff around here.
I'm flattered.
But?
But I think I'm going to pass.
That's all right. I'll just have to interview yet another bingo winner.
- You're the editor. - I am, yeah.
Also the local historian.
Actually, I brought out a book last year.
I only, you know, only printed 250 copies, but...
- That's what my first one was. - Really? So there's hope for me.
Okay.
Listen, if you need anything...
...my number's on the back of the paper, if you wanna call me.
Bye.
What if...?
What if, what if, what if, what...?
I could get used to this country living.
Yeah, well, I can... I can appreciate that.
I remember there was a time when I covered crime...
...for all the big dailies all over the country.
How did you end up here?
It's weird. I always told myself that I was never gonna come back.
And then the editor's job came up...
...and Philip Manville asked me to do it and I said yes...
...and I guess it just felt right to come back.
You know, I have my farm and got a horse.
And it's good. It's a good life.
There. It's not perfect, but it'll work.
- You know Ernie well? - All my life.
- He's always lived here? - Yeah. Why?
I should go.
That's quite enough of you, Sticky Feet.
Ernie, have we met before?
I don't think so.
They say the same face can turn up on different people. Isn't that so?
Yeah, I guess so.
Enjoy your book.
Get back!
You forget something, Claire?
Did you forget something, miss?
No.
Hi.
Morning.
Good morning, Claire.
Good morning.
Was it the storm? You okay?
Yeah, I'm fine.
I bought your book.
So you're the one.
Fascinating history this place has.
Listen, you wanna find out more, I'll take any excuse to skip church.
Please?
So the Manville School for Boys closed its doors in the late 1800s...
...and the Westmoreland Elementary School opened...
...at the beginning of the last century.
How nice of the county to invite the girls out to play.
From what I know of the boys' school...
...the girls might have been happier at home.
- Scary. - Good fodder for a new book.
I just read The Swamp to my niece...
...and I gotta tell you, I found it quite creepy.
All the great children's books are dark.
Brothers Grimm, Aesop, Roald Dahl.
"Ring Around the Rosy" was about dying from the plague.
Scary monsters in the deep dark marsh. Oh, scary.
Fairy tales and nursery rhymes...
...tap into the primal, subconscious fears of the young mind.
So you're saying that all kids like to be creeped out.
Didn't you?
You ever hear any stories about this place?
Like what, like creepy ones?
Creaking boards, slamming doors, whistling winds...
You writers.
I'll tell you what.
I'll tell you everything that I know over dinner tomorrow.
Platz! Platz! Platz!
Platz. Platz.
- Normally, he's a pussycat. - Could have fooled me.
- Are you Geoffrey Hunt? - Hunt.
- Everybody calls me Hunt. - Claire Holloway.
He hasn't blown his top like that in a long time, Claire.
Only one reason he does that.
Oh, yeah? What's that?
- He smells a ghost. - What?
Think of it like vapors from the other side.
I don't believe in ghosts.
Neither do I.
I'll follow you.
So this place, huh?
- You've been here before? - Three years ago.
What was her name? Grace?
- Mercy. - Yeah.
So you're a paranormal consultant who doesn't believe in ghosts?
I believe in people.
I mean, people are water and energy.
If water can transform from ice into steam, into mist...
...and energy transforms them, why can't people?
What happened with Mercy?
She got a little spooked, that's all. Noises and such. Nothing major.
These kinds of energies can be very particular.
They can reveal themselves to one person and not to another one.
Why me?
You tell me, Claire.
He was in there?
Port.
Port?
It's the access point for them to come in.
The computer's another good one. I'd leave that off for now.
How long has this been here?
A couple of days. Why?
On the other side...
...doors can be both symbolic and literal at the same time.
Taking one down...
...can be a way of stopping someone from coming across.
So when you put the door back up...
You're inviting them back in.
There's a definite increase in energy. That's for sure.
- But why? - People are weird.
They die, they get weirder.
Question is, why do you care?
Because I've seen...
I've seen that little girl before, and not just in this house.
Do you have any idea what you're dealing with?
It's a different world. They don't play by your rules.
I lost my wife and my little girl seven years ago.
I went looking for answers. I never found them.
So you need to think about that...
...before you go looking for answers on the other side.
You wanna be amongst the living, trust me.
There's a motel in town.
If I were you, I'd check in to it.
Why make this your battle?
My father used to say, "Hunt"... He called me Hunt.
He could be rather impersonal, my father.
He'd say, "Hunt, you can dodge the draft, you can cheat on your taxes...
...but never desert a damsel in distress."
Let's get this party started.
What do they want from me?
Don't know.
But one thing's for sure.
It's you that they want it from.
Can you imagine?
Can you imagine, if Mercy had seen what you seen...
...she'd be living in another country under an assumed name.
Can you stand there for a second? Just for a second, please. Thank you.
You are very photogenic.
I hope you can see them too.
Unless they're camera-shy...
...we'll get them.
So where did you grow up?
All over.
Oh, you're a military brat, huh?
- No. - Little sip.
No, my parents were teachers.
Where they from originally?
Well, they weren't my birth parents.
Well, how old were you when you were adopted?
- Eight. - Eight?
I bet you were a pretty little girl, weren't you?
Don't lie. You were a cute one, weren't you?
Unless you just sprouted up all of a sudden...
...and became just what you are right now.
My parents were killed in a car accident.
I see.
You expecting someone?
- Hey. - Noah, I'm sorry.
- I should have called you. - Why? What happened?
Hunt, Noah.
Hunt's been helping me.
- How's it going, Pitney? - Hello.
Let me guess.
This has to do with those creepy things you were talking about.
I'm gonna go and get some logs for our fire.
Sorry about dinner. Maybe we can do it another night?
You know what I can do is I could stick around...
...and help you with this scance or whatever.
We don't need any help.
Okay.
I was looking forward to having dinner.
Me too, but it's okay.
You know, we can do it another time, right?
Good luck, good luck with this.
- I'll see you around. - Later.
Hunt. Hunt.
Hunt!
Who are you?
Can you tell me your name?
Can you tell me something?