The Hunter

Mart knocks on Cal’s door and tells him that the Ardnakelty men have decided that Johnny has overstayed his welcome. Cal goes with him to see what the men plan to do to Johnny. At the Reddy house, Sheila tells Trey that two men from Ardnakelty took Johnny away. Trey explains that she retracted the story about the men outside their house. Sheila tells Trey that she saw that Johnny was dragging Trey into his schemes, and she did not want to lose another child. She explains that she killed Rushborough to protect Trey because she did not want her to get mixed up with him. Trey asks Sheila why she did not kill Johnny, but Sheila says that she made vows to Johnny, and she would not betray them. Sheila knows that Cal will take care of Trey, and Lena will take care of the small children. Sheila tells Trey that she called Rushborough on Johnny’s phone that night, claiming that she had $15,000 saved for Trey to go to college that she would give to him to pay off Johnny’s debts. She told him to meet her in the shed at their house. When he came into the shed, he bent over to get the money out of the toolbox. She hit him with a hammer, then stabbed him.  Afterward, she put his body in a wheelbarrow and dumped the body on the road where everyone would find it. Trey knows that Rushborough’s DNA must be in the shed. She asks to see the clothes that Sheila was wearing when she killed him so they can destroy any evidence.

Mart, Cal, and a group of Ardnakelty men take Johnny to a field. One of the men gives him a shovel and tells him to dig. Johnny tries to laugh it off, but the men are serious. At the house, Trey and Sheila get the children and Banjo into the car. As they drive away, Trey picks up a can of gasoline and goes toward the shed. In the field, the men goad Johnny toward digging more. Johnny tells him that he will pay them back their money, but Mart says that they do not want his money. Johnny digs, covered in sweat. At Lena’s house, Sheila shows up with the children. Lena brings them inside and Sheila says that there is a fire in their shed from one of Johnny’s cigarettes. At the shed, Trey sets everything on fire. As the fire engulfs the shed, Trey jumps down from a wall, but she lands awkwardly and twists her ankle.

As Johnny digs, Cal wonders if the Ardnakelty men plan on killing him or not. Cal gets a text from Lena that Trey is at the Reddy house, and he needs to get her. Cal looks up toward the Reddy house where he sees a large plume of smoke. Cal tells one of the men to call the fire department and runs toward his car with Johnny.

Cal and Johnny pull up to the house, and Cal searches for Trey. He sees her walking slowly and runs toward her. He carries her back to the car and examines her leg. As Cal tries to get Trey into the car, Johnny tells her that he never meant to come back home this way. He says that Cal will be able to provide for her. Johnny tells Trey to tell everyone that he got lost in the fire. Trey agrees to stick to this story, and Cal gives Johnny money from his wallet. Johnny takes the money, promises to send Trey a postcard from wherever he ends up, and flees down the mountain.

Cal gets Trey into the car. Trey tells Cal that she retracted her story and told Nealon that she saw Johnny leave the house that night. Cal asks if this is true, and Trey shrugs. Cal tells her that he is taking her to her mother and siblings, but Trey says she wants to go home with him, which makes Cal happy.

Cal calls Lena and tells her that Trey is with him. They both know that Trey must have started the fire but agree to keep it a secret. Cal tells her that he gave Johnny money because he skipped town. Cal says that he does not think Johnny killed Rushborough. Lena agrees, but she thinks that it is nice that he is going to take the blame for it. After she hangs up, Lena tells Sheila that Trey is with Cal. She explains about Johnny, and Sheila feels relieved.

Trey recovers at Cal’s house. He tells her that he will not ask her anything, but she can always talk to him if she needs to. Mart comes over, and Cal tells him that Johnny left. Mart seems satisfied with this because Nealon believes that he killed Rushborough, so it solves the problem of both Nealon and Johnny for Ardnakelty. Cal asks Mart if they were going to kill Johnny, but Mart does not answer. After Mart leaves, Trey stands with Cal outside. She looks at the burned mountain and realizes that she will never find Brandon’s grave, but she feels at peace with that. It starts to rain, and Cal and Trey watch the mountain together.