Pines

A man wakes with a crushing headache and aching ribs, his left eye swollen shut. He is lying next to a river, across from which a large cliff looms, pine trees running along the top. He stands to find he is in a field adjacent to a small town nestled in a valley, surrounded by mountains. Checking the pockets of his black suit, he finds no identification, keys, or phone, just a Swiss army knife.

The man doesn’t know who he is, and as he walks into town, he wonders if one of the houses is his. The houses all feature unnaturally vivid, lush gardens. He keeps walking, in search of a hospital—beyond the enormous bruise on his left side, his injuries seem superficial, indicating he’s been in an accident of some kind. He decides to wait before going to the police, wondering if he’s committed a crime.

On seeing a mailbox that reads “Mackenzie,” the man realizes that the first syllable evokes a deep fear. He is drawn next to the smell of brewing coffee. Whatever else he doesn’t remember about himself, he loves coffee.

Inside the coffee shop, the barista flinches when she sees him; when he sees his injured reflection in the mirror behind her, he understands why. The man asks if he’s been there before. The barista, surprised, says no. She tells him he is in Wayward Pines, Idaho, and gives directions to the hospital, the mention of which elicits that same dread again. On his way out the door, the man notices that a boy and his mother seem to recognize him.

Finding a listing for a Mack Skozie in the phone book, the man decides to visit him for answers. The older man who answers the door confirms that he is Mack, but he doesn’t know the man. At this news, the man’s vision fades, and he falls off the porch; as he faints, an image of a truck grille, emblazoned with Mack, flashes across his mind. He slips into a memory of being in a car with another man named Stallings just as a Mack truck slams into them.

The man wakes to a beautiful nurse leaning over him, calling him Mr. Burke. Her nametag says “Pam,” and he thinks he remembers her. She confirms his memory of a truck crashing into his car, and his memory begins to fill in the gaps. He asks after Agent Stallings and learns that the other man has died. Now realizing that his own name is Ethan Burke, he asks for his phone.

After waiting all day to see the doctor, Ethan calls Pam into his room and asks again for his phone and briefcase, telling her that he is a Secret Service agent. Deciding to leave, Ethan puts his suit back on and is comforted to find his Swiss army knife in the pocket. He feels the impulse to sneak out. Although he doesn’t know why, Ethan leaves without attracting attention and heads to the sheriff’s office.

As Ethan walks to the office, he takes in his seemingly perfect surroundings. Again, he reflects that something darker must be underneath; otherwise, a federal agent like him wouldn’t be here. The sheriff’s office is closed, and as the sun falls behind the mountains, the temperature drops. Ethan walks to the local hotel and convinces the desk clerk to give him a room, despite the fact that he doesn’t have money or identification. He leaves to find food and stumbles on a pub, where he convinces the bartender, Beverly, to feed him.

When Beverly asks why he is in town, Ethan explains that he’s investigating the disappearance of two other agents—one of them, Kate Hewson, is his former partner. Before he leaves, Beverly gives him her address in case he needs help. Ethan returns to the hotel. He wants to call home, but he can’t remember the phone number of his wife, Theresa. Tomorrow, he decides, he’ll call her, get his possessions from the sheriff, and get in touch with his supervisor, SAC Hassler.

The next day, the desk clerk kicks Ethan out of the hotel, no longer believing his story. Ethan’s splitting headache worsens as he returns to the sheriff’s office, so he stops at a pharmacy along the way. The pharmacist, however, refuses to give him an aspirin. In his pocket, Ethan finds Beverly’s address; he decides to go to her house for aspirin.

As he walks by a playground, the children pause their play to stare at him. He arrives at Beverly’s address but finds the house is long abandoned. He climbs the decrepit porch steps, finding nothing inside but moldy furniture and cobwebs. He follows a strange smell to the back of the house. A rotting corpse is handcuffed to a rusty bedframe. Ethan realizes that it is Agent Evans, one of the two federal agents he is tasked to find.

Outside, Ethan gulps fresh air. His clothes stink from being in the room with the body. He walks to the sheriff’s office and, leaving his jacket and shirt outside, goes in. The receptionist’s eyes widen at his injuries and lack of shirt. Ethan introduces himself as a Secret Service agent and asks to see the sheriff, Arnold Pope.

Sheriff Pope exemplifies a cowboy sheriff, kicked back in his chair with his boots on the desk. He is reluctant to shake Ethan’s hand. The sheriff reports that witnesses saw a tow truck hit Ethan’s car, but nobody has found the truck or the driver. As they talk, Ethan suddenly remembers Theresa’s phone number and quickly writes it down.

Pope doesn’t have Ethan’s possessions; he claims that the EMTs must have them. When Ethan asks to use the phone, the sheriff says he’s already called Theresa, becoming confrontational, wanting to know why he wasn’t made aware of a federal investigation in his town. Ethan tells him the investigation revolves around a reclusive billionaire named David Pilcher; while Pope recognizes the name, he doesn’t understand the connection to Wayward Pines.

When Ethan tells Pope about Agent Evans, Pope’s attitude changes. He apologizes for Ethan’s treatment and offers the use of his phone. However, Ethan’s calls to Theresa and Hassler go unanswered. Pope leaves to check the body in the abandoned house, telling Ethan to visit him the next afternoon, at which point they’ll get his car.

Ethan returns to the bar and asks for Beverly, only to be told that she doesn’t work there. He is caught off guard by another wave of pain in his head. When he comes to, he is outside the bar, bent double, with vomit at his feet. Night is falling, and Ethan is confused and frightened. The hotel won’t take him back, so Ethan returns to the hospital. On the way, he grows too weak to continue, and a woman helps him. Though he can’t see her face through the pain, her voice sounds familiar.