The Sinner

Hey.

Hi.

I'm sorry.

I know I'm not easy to be with right now.

I'm just...

trying to figure things out.

Figure what out?

Everything, I guess.

You think maybe,

what you're going through

is about the baby?

Becoming a father?

You know, all that shit with your dad,

and then your mom passing.

And it's all got to be coming up.

I think you should talk to somebody.

Do you believe in God?

Do you really believe in some higher power

who has some grand design?

I want to, but...

do you feel like you know why we're here?

Or what happens when we die?

We don't.

It's all a total mystery. We don't know anything.

But in spite of that, we're going to have a child?

We're going to bring a baby into this fucked-up existence

that we don't even understand?

And then at some point, break it to them

that they're going to die.

That they have no choice.

Why would we do that to our child?

Jamie, we are having a baby

to have more love in our lives.

Or are we doing it because we're scared of dying,

and we feel like this will make our lives

have some kind of meaning?

Like a spiritual Band-Aid.

We feel better, but the child still has to face death alone.

We just kick the can down the road.

So, what are you trying to say?

You don't want to have our baby?

I am giving birth...

in days.

Jesus Christ, you don't get to do this.

Not now.

It's not like I'm choosing to do this.

You are choosing.

You know who did not have a choice?

My dad.

My dad, who hauled cement 60 hours a week

in Jamaica for shit.

He didn't even have time to think.

You, this...

this is privilege.

Don't. Don't put that on me right now.

- That's not fair. - Life's not fair.

You still got to pull it together and deal.

What? So I don't get to have a moment because I'm white?

You're walking away? We're talking.

No.

We're not talking.

We will talk when you get some help.

Hey.

It's you.

I thought you were that policewoman.

You spent the night?

Most of it, I guess.

- That's kind of you. - Yeah.

I at least slept a few hours

knowing that someone was out here.

I brought this for whoever.

I was a photographer at first,

so I like to shoot a lot of reference.

Some models even sit for me, which is nice.

Always men?

Mostly.

For some reason, I see them more clearly.

He looks familiar.

That's Tom from the Gulf station.

And...

Nick Haas and Jamie Burns,

they never modeled for you?

I wouldn't forget that, no.

And you never met them outside of work?

I keep asking myself that.

That's what's been keeping me up at night.

- No. - It's just hard to believe

that they'd dig a grave on your property for no reason.

Well, what did Jamie Burns say?

He says he doesn't know anything about it.

He was in the car.

That doesn't necessarily mean

that their motives were aligned.

What does it mean?

Yeah.

You keep looking at me like you think I'm hiding something.

It's just...

there has to be a reason.

I agree,

and I don't exactly feel comfortable

sitting here waiting for the guy, Jamie Burns,

to come back and finish what he started.

You don't have someone you could stay with for a while?

I have deadlines. This is where I work.

I can't just uproot everything.

Well, don't you have some kind of security system here?

You got cameras or something, right?

I have an old shotgun in the shed.

Well, you ought to have some kind of security anyway, right?

I mean, your paintings...

you get a pretty good price for them.

You've been researching me.

I'm working a case, so...

Shit.

Excuse me, sir.

You're kind of taking up two spots.

You can fit.

All right, one.

Tickets, please.

Thank you very much.

You got a problem, bro?

What the hell?

Fuck this.

There you are.

You're okay?

Yeah, yeah, fine.

Just a little bit of sciatica.

It comes and goes.

Yeah. Yeah, my dad had that once.

Got laid up for months.

You got anything for the pain?

Pills make me too drowsy.

What do you got?

Forensics, they found fibers and hairs at the site.

- You talked to Burns? - Yeah, yeah.

He said he didn't know anything about a grave.

Think that's bullshit?

How long on the DNA?

A couple of days. I don't know.

Anything from college?

Yeah.

Jamie left school mid-term on his own.

But he was in the middle of a disciplinary hearing.

Apparently, he attacked his roommate.

Well, we should track that guy down.

I did.

He's a dermatologist.

He works in the city.

I'll have to head down there later today.

Okay, good, good.

You want company?

Well, no, I'm fine.

- I'm fine. - Got you.

Yeah, who dreams of becoming a dermatologist, right?

Yeah, how much fun could that be?

Okay, don't forget to take a look

at the early writings of Winston Churchill.

We'll go over that next time.

I'm so sorry, Mr. B.

I didn't want my parents to say anything.

I didn't even want to show them the letter.

But my mom was being like a crazy person...

- It's okay. - I'm so pissed at them.

I need to talk to you.

But not here.

Meet me at Three Brothers over on Lexington at 3:30.

Off-campus?

Well, I have model U.N. at...

You're skipping that. 3:30.

Okay...

see you there then.

Jamie Burns.

Does he know that we're speaking?

I mean, is he going to find out?

I'm just trying to get some background information

for context, so no.

Well,

when we were roommates sophomore year,

everything was fine.

We were friendly, but not too close.

Just perfect roommate distance, you know?

So we re-upped junior year,

and that's when he completely changed.

Why was that?

It was this guy he started hanging out with,

Nick Haas.

He's a weird guy... dark.

Jamie kind of fell under his spell.

They were inseparable.

Jamie got really distant. He wouldn't speak to me.

And I'd catch him looking at me sometimes

like he hated me.

He ever threaten you?

No, not really.

But then, one morning,

it's maybe 6:00 a.m., I wake up.

I find him sitting on the floor covered in dirt,

his hands bloody, just staring at the wall.

He wouldn't speak.

Drugs? Something...