S1 E12: Tightly Wound

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Hey, everybody. Hope you're enjoying the show so far. If you are, just know that we're in the process of working on season two right now, and we've actually got a merchandise store open for all of the How I Died stuff that you could possibly want. We've got Try Not To Die hoodies. We've got awesome logoed stickers. We've got... I couldn't be more excited. We're going to have a bunch of news soon, but I didn't want to start.

talking about it until we get closer to the end of the season because there's some spoilers in it uh some stuff you need to know going into season two so i can't wait so yeah head to howidiedpodcast.com Click on the tab that says merchandise to check out all of our stuff and help support the show. Thanks so much. Hope you enjoyed this episode. And as always, thank you so much for listening. No recorder today. Damn it. I must have left it at the lab.

You're not going to freak out and make us drive back, are you? No, it's fine. I'll just do it the old-fashioned way with some photos and handwritten notes. Good. So you remember how I said I'll never be surprised by how people die around here? I really don't like the sound of that. Why? Well, come on in. Smith's Refinery. What is this place? It's the largest twine processing plant around here.

Before the Springfield Corporation, this was the big moneymaker of the town. Refined twine, huh? Is that a big industry? It was what founded the town back in the- Never mind. This isn't a history lesson, Sean. Somebody died and that's why you're here. Okay. Now what? Well? Well what? I'm not seeing anything. Look down. I'm still not seeing anything. Jeez. You're more dense than usual, aren't you, spacer? Look, that's a spool spinner.

Yeah, the giant scary machine. I got it, but I don't see blood or a body anywhere. He's in the twine. What? Like a fucking cocoon. There's someone inside that monstrous ball. You're sure? Yeah. We got security footage. Can I see it? It's kind of graphic. I cut open dead people on a daily basis. I think I'll be fine. Fair enough. Okay. The office is right behind us.

You ready? Just play it. Okay. There's a guy loading up some machine. Is that him? Yeah. Keep watching. He's leaning over. There's someone behind him. Shit. We're getting closer. Oh my god, they pushed him in. So yeah. Do we know who he is? The owners identified him as Jackson Tunden, age 42. He's a manager here. Are there even night shifts here? Why was he here last night? Nope. There wasn't a reason for Tunden to be here this late. Especially not alone.

I'm going to climb down here and start cutting him out. But what we're trying to find is why he was here and who pushed him in, right? That's my job, yeah. And you're here to cut him out. I am cutting him out. Unless you want me to do it so you can go interview some more people. You could destroy crucial evidence or even nick the body. I'll just cut the cloth away slowly. Yeah. That was the joke, Spacer.

You do your job, I'll do mine. I've been trying to take over cases recently anyway. Jackson, or the victim's head and upper torso have been exposed through the wool. His eyes appear to be completely bloodshot, which is consistent with suffocation. There's also significant bruising around his nose, mouth, and forehead.

I imagine I'll find more bruising around his torso as this wool is wrapped very tightly around him. Moving down, I can actually feel a few cracked ribs near the sternum. These seem to have been broken during the wrapping process.

And you know what? No offense, Fran, but I was brought here under the pretense that we'd be working together, and you've been sidelining me since I started. We're not partners, John. You're an employee of the sheriff's department, and guess what? I'm the fucking sheriff. I don't get where this contention's coming from. I've done nothing to you, but- You've-

overstepped your bounds on multiple occasions so far. You're interviewing people and telling me information that I'm supposed to find out during the course of investigation. I've helped you solve so many cases already. And I appreciate that. But you can't just magically be better at this job than every other Emmy we've had.

And what makes a small-town sheriff qualified to solve homicides, huh? I bet you're great at stopping bar fights or catching corner store robbers. You watch your fucking mouth! I already didn't trust your bull- bullshit from the moment you got here. And what is that supposed to mean? You led me to a decapitated head on a spike a few weeks ago, John. How can you explain that? We followed a clue. A clue?

you convince me to follow do you know how much paperwork this shit has caused you're pissed off at me about paperwork we're solving murders you're making my job harder by putting more scrutinizing eyes on the department So yeah, I'm pissed off. I have hospital staff saying they hear you talking to yourself when they walk by your room. We've got fucking reporters coming around asking...

asking about you, about how you solved so many murders so quickly, and that damn Curtis guy is practically stalking us. Curtis again? Yeah, again. Dammit, why won't this guy leave me alone? That... That's what you pick up on from this conversation? You gotta be kidding me. Please. What was he talking about? I don't know. He's fucking crazy, John.

He was ranting on and on about some shit, like talking to you in the ER. Okay? I don't know. He's a conspiracy nut. The real problem is that more shit is coming our way, and it's because of you. And what do you want me to do? Not do my job? Oh, I want you to do your job. And I want me to do mine. Then we can leave it at that. You know what? Fine. I'll put my head down then, and if murders go unsolved, then so be it. No matter what you think of this place, I am damn good at my job, kid.

I have been solving cases long before you got here. And I will be solving them long after you leave. I need to examine the body. Good. Get to it. I'm going outside for a smoke. Ready to launch your business? Get started with the commerce platform made for entrepreneurs. Shopify is specially designed to help you start, run, and grow your business with easy, customizable themes that let you build your brand. Marketing tools that get your products out there. Integrated shipping solutions.

Shopify is made for entrepreneurs like you. Sign up for your $1 a month trial at shopify.com slash setup. I'm Amy Nicholson, the film critic for the LA Times. And I'm Paul Scheer, an actor, writer, and director. You might know me from The League, Veep, or my non-eligible for Academy Award role in Twisters. We come together to host Unspooled, a podcast where we talk about good movies.

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Asshole. I'm doing my job and helping her. She doesn't even want these cases solved. Well, that sounded hostile. Where did you come from? I've been here the whole time. But I didn't want to interrupt. How did you know I could hear you? Oh, I didn't. Not really. But it seemed rude to interrupt either way. A polite ghost. Now that's a change of pace. So I'm a ghost, am I?

That's my body in there? Yeah, I'm afraid so. Figures. I'm going to keep working if you don't mind. So if this place isn't open at night, what were you doing down here so late? I couldn't sleep. Couldn't sleep so you came to work? It might sound strange, but the worrying of the machines always helps me relax. Is this something you do often? Only every once in a while. Usually I'm stressed during the day and I can just relax and listen to the sound.

But tonight, it's just a little different. It's so quiet living out here. I can't sleep without the noise of cars or something. Yeah, I know what you mean. You're not from around here either? No, I'm not. I'm from Baltimore, actually. What made you move out here? My wife died in a car accident. Oh. I'm sorry to hear that. That's okay. I just needed to get away, and...

Oh, I'm dead now. So when do I see her? I'm not sure, actually. I really don't know how any of it works. You've never asked? I don't usually follow up with any of my patients. But I can understand the curiosity. If I'm being honest, I moved here to get away from something myself. I need to find my wife. Well, connecting with you didn't work, huh? I need to move on. If I could just ask you a few questions.

No, you can't. Wait, why? I'm sorry. I don't want to be here. Wait, wait, wait. Please don't go.

I don't know if I can cut him out right now. My mind's not in it. If I nick the body or I'm not super careful, this could be... Hello? Hello? Who's there? My name is Garrett. Garrett Sweeney. I think... I think I killed someone. Shit. Where are you, Garrett? Up here. Stay where you are. I'm coming up. Am I going to jail? I can't. Hold on. I'll be right back. Wait in this office. This is the last thing I need right now. Crowley!

What? There's a kid in here. He says he thinks he killed someone. I leave you alone for one second and you engage a witness again. I didn't. Barely talked to him. Don't worry. You better not have, or I'll be sticking your ass so far down in the lab, you won't see sunlight again till you quit. Come on. Hey, Garrett. I thought you didn't talk to him.

He told me his name. Hey, son. I'm Sheriff Crowley. This is Dr. Spacer. Do you know where you are? Yes. I... I told Dr. Spacer that I killed someone. Did he? He yelled it at me. I didn't say anything. What's your name, kid? Garrett Sweeney. Okay. Because of your age, we need a consenting adult or a lawyer here.

Now, it's just protocol. I'm gonna have to put you in handcuffs while we get you down to the station. You mind writing in my cruiser? Yeah, sure. Doc, you capable of finishing up here? Or should I go get Curtis to help? Yeah. I can handle it. Good. Thanks for coming to get me this time. Maybe you can learn after all. I'm parked outside. Let's go.

Jackson, you're not still here by any chance, are you? Figures. Why do all these ghosts keep disappearing so quickly? So frustrating. I don't even think I can find anything else on his body. Unless there's any other extenuating findings, the evidence, along with the video and potential confession, conclusively point to suffocation as the cause of death in this homicide.

I've got to remember to ask Crowley about the case number after the body's been moved back to the forensic lab. It just... It feels like there's definitely something weird going on around here. Something more than just a curse. I mean, first there was that weird radio static, then a voice of a person trapped in a bunker, and now this machine turns on just as someone falls inside.

I don't know much about geo or electromagnetic frequencies, but could that explosion from Springfield Corp really be what's behind all of these freak accidents? Who am I even talking to? I'm used to having that recorder on me all the time. So this episode is a fan favorite for those who have heard the rest of the season so far.

I think a lot of people really like the argument between Crowley and John and there's a lot of good substance here when it comes to escalating the plot. I also wanted to play up that idea that the ghosts are getting a little more restless and John is not able to do his job as well when he's distracted by it.

the kind of things that are going on with both Curtis and Crowley. So I hope you enjoyed this argument. It was a ton of fun to put together. Shayna, who plays Crowley, and I got to yell at each other back and forth for a couple different takes. So it was a good time. So I hope you enjoyed.

I hope you are eagerly anticipating the finale of the season. Then the show is done for the first season. But don't worry, we've got a season two already in the works. We're looking to get it out sometime early 2020. So I can't wait to start sharing some teasers and some behind the scenes stuff. with you guys.

You can check out teasers and behind-the-scenes stuff on our Discord, which will be linked in the description here. Or you can go to facebook.com slash howidiedpod or at howidiedpod on Twitter. We post a lot of stuff there. Get engaged. We want to see you guys. We want to say hi. want to talk about the show. So let's talk. And as always, let's get into the credits.

How I Died is an audio media original production, co-starring Vince Dijani as John Spacer and Shana Waring as Sheriff Fran Crowley. This episode featured guest performances by Brian Morgan as Jackson Tunden and Patrick Mealy as Garrett Sweeney. Audio editing and sound design was done by... Vince Dijani with mastering by Alexander Mark. Sound effects and Foley provided by freesound.org are created in-house at Audio Media. The How I Died theme song was created by Mike Lynch at silentmikemusic.com

And special thanks to all of our Patreon supporters. Without you guys, we wouldn't be able to continue making this awesome show and providing the additional content that we have, so we really appreciate not only your listens but also your support. Thank you to... Michael Lynch, Nathan Boyce, Paula Small, Ray Snoke, Roe Thorne, Ryan Koenig, SK Pac-Man, and Teresa Waring. Check it out, patreon.com slash howidied. Thank you again for listening, and until next episode, try not to die.

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