- ATHAN
- This episode was Guest Directed by Airdorf.
- SFX
- clatter of keys
- SUSAN
- Come on.
- SFX
- struggling with the door
- SUSAN
- Stupid piece of shit… Come on!
- SFX
- door gives
- SFX
- footsteps
- SUSAN
- The hell?
- SUSAN
- Alex, what the hell are you doing back here? Waltzing in like you own the place, leaving your shoes in the middle of my floor?
- SUSAN
- I thought you said you were gone for good this time. Remember last week? That's what you screamed at me.
- SUSAN
- ‘I'm done, Suze.’
- SUSAN
- ‘I'm fucking done.’
- SHOELESS MAN
- Suuusaaan…
- SUSAN
- So what is it now? Did you forget some more of your precious golf clubs? Or are you here to tell me how everything is my fault again?
- SFX
- anxious music cue
- SUSAN
- (To herself) Ugh, he’ll be in the kitchen eating all my leftovers…
- SFX
- footsteps
- ???
- Suuusaaan...
- SUSAN
- Alex?
- SFX
- door creaks
- SUSAN
- Alex, what kind of game are you playing?!
- SFX
- ominous creaking
- SUSAN
- Alex, this isn't funny anymore. I’m—I’m calling the cops.
- SHOELESS MAN
- Suuusaaan…
- SUSAN
- Who's there?!
- SFX
- beeps of a phone being dialled
- SUSAN
- (Terrified) Please don’t, no, no, no… Stay away from me!
- SFX
- sounds of Susan being strangled
- INTRO
- Intro theme
- SFX
- bag being unzipped, shuffling
- JACOB
- Fuck, do you...
- JACOB
- Is this thing supposed to...
- ELI
- Here, it's like this. Red light means it's active.
- SFX
- affirmative beep
- JACOB
- Got it. Thanks.
- ELI
- Did you get everything else handled today?
- JACOB
- Almost. Closed bank accounts, canceled credit cards, killed the phone plan. All as Jordan, handling my dead brother's affairs.
- JACOB
- Only thing left is to handle the lease, using Jordan's card.
- ELI
- Right.
- JACOB
- Obviously.
- ELI
- Yeah, good deal.
- SFX
- affirmative beep
- ELI
- Max, Hedy, perimeter's almost set up. We're about to make our final sweep for blind spots.
- HEDY
- (Radio) Roger that. Still canvassing from the north end of the block.
- MAXWELL
- (Radio) Kane, did you remember to calibrate the motion sensors this time? Or should I expect them to trigger every time a squirrel scratches its acorns?
- JACOB
- I—yes, they are calibrated.
- MAXWELL
- Great.
- JACOB
- (Whispering) Are they calibrated?
- ELI
- I'll—I’ll double check.
- ELI
- Oh, did you read the file?
- JACOB
- On the Shoeless Man?
- ELI
- Yeah?
- JACOB
- Yeah. Most of it. Took forever to find, though.
- JACOB
- There are thousands of files in Jordan's tablet, and I don't understand the organization at all.
- JACOB
- He's got files labeled A-1, A-2, A-3…
- JACOB
- All up the phonetic and numeric lines until through Z-100 something. And when I opened them, they'd been anything from grocery list to medical records.
- JACOB
- And then when I searched Shoeless Man, it popped up a bunch of pictures of feet. But then I realized I was using an online image search, so that was my bad.
- JACOB
- But the onboard search function didn't help much either. It pulled results scattered across completely unrelated files.
- JACOB
- It's like Jordan deliberately made this thing as hard as possible to navigate.
- ELI
- But you found it, right?
- JACOB
- Yeah, I found it.
- ELI
- Okay.
- JACOB
- The Shoeless Man file was under S-4, which at least starts with the right letter. But that was probably just coincidence since S-3 is a case notes about child vampires and S-5 is a recipe for tortellini soup.
- JACOB
- Soup is great, by the way.
- JACOB
- Anyway, yes, I read the file. We've been tracking this thing for, what, two years now?
- ELI
- Two and a half, yeah. Our first case involved 4 victims in three weeks, and they were all found hanging upside down by sets of shoelaces.
- JACOB
- And there was another case.
- ELI
- Yeah.
- JACOB
- And another. And another.
- ELI
- And the fourth case was when we first identified the pattern. Set of shoes appears in the home, Oxford dress shoes, black leather.
- JACOB
- And if the occupant hears their name whispered, that indicates that they're its target, right?
- ELI
- Exactly. Unless they move the shoes. I mean, we've interviewed seven survivors across six cases. Everyone either fled the house completely or transferred the shoes to someone else's property.
- JACOB
- Which just activated the haunt at the new home.
- ELI
- (Sighs) We learned that on the fifth case, victim moved the shoes to her neighbor's porch. Six hours, neighbor's dead.
- ELI
- This time, though, we're going to use this (opens car boot) to contain him for good.
- ELI
- Hedy designed this containment chamber specifically for the Shoeless Man.
- JACOB
- Uh, that's...
- JACOB
- …That's a cooler?
- ELI
- No, it's a containment chamber.
- JACOB
- It says Yodi on the side.
- ELI
- Okay, yeah, whatever, it's a cooler. Filled with salt water.
- ELI
- Haunts and salt don't mix well. The Shoeless Man seems to have some kind of sympathetic connection to the shoes, so submerging the shoes will cut off access to its anchor point. In other words, the entity will be permanently contained.
- ELI
- Basically, plan is, we find the shoes at the home of the next target, we take the shoes back here, reactivating the haunt away from any civilians, then, once the Shoeless Man materializes, the shoes go in the—in the cooler.
- SFX
- affirmative beep
- JACOB
- Seems kind of elaborate.
- JACOB
- Sure this thing's gonna work?
- ELI
- Hedy says she's sure. Plus we got this rad cooler, so yeah, pretty sure.
- JACOB
- So… why do we call him the Shoeless Man? He has shoes.
- ELI
- Uh, he isn't wearing them.
- ELI
- He's shoeless.
- JACOB
- Right. But he has shoes. Like. Just because you aren't wearing shoes doesn't mean you don't have shoes, right?
- ELI
- I—I don't know.
- JACOB
- Or if you have a house, but you aren't in your house, that doesn't make you homeless.
- JACOB
- I—I just don't get it.
- SFX
- radio clicks on
- MAXWELL
- (Radio) Yeah, this street's a bust.
- MAXWELL
- (Radio) Moving to Pine.
- ELI
- Roger that.
- JACOB
- So, Max, is he always so… hostile or–
- ELI
- (Sighs) No–
- JACOB
- –Did I do something?
- ELI
- No, it’s—its’ about Silas.
- JACOB
- Silas. I remember you mentioned him on my, uh, first day?
- ELI
- Yeah, they were partners for years before Jordan and I joined the unit.
- ELI
- Then about a year ago, Jordan and Silas left on a case and never came back.
- ELI
- Just, poof, disappeared without a trace.
- ELI
- I mean, we spent weeks searching for him. Max was a wreck.
- ELI
- I mean, we all were, even Valentine, but when we requested backup, additional resources, proper equipment, orders came down to suspend the search and move on to new cases.
- JACOB
- Is… that normal?
- ELI
- Is what normal?
- JACOB
- Your employer just… abandoning your team like that.
- ELI
- I don't know. This was new territory for us, but we had nothing to go on, so we just… went back to work.
- JACOB
- That must have been hard.
- ELI
- Eh… Not for Jordan. He didn't even question the orders. Said we needed to ‘prioritize active threats over presumed casualties’.
- JACOB
- Oh. Yikes.
- ELI
- Yeah, Max took that as a kind of betrayal. And things have been real tense since then.
- ELI
- And now, with the Chadwick situation being so similar, it's making it worse.
- ELI
- I mean, they were both well-liked by the team. Like, Silas taught me half of what I know about this job, and Chadwick… he was getting good. You know, like, really good.
- ELI
- (Sighs) Look, Max might not be much of a people person, but he isn't a bad guy.
- ELI
- If anyone on the team has reasons to be jaded, it's him.
- ELI
- He's been through the wringer with this job, and right now, he sees two empty chairs, and…
- ELI
- He blames you for both.
- NEIGHBOR #1
- Sorry I couldn't be more help. Hope you find the killer!
- MAXWELL
- Yep.
- HEDY
- We're running out of houses. Two more on this block, then we move to the last street.
- SFX
- knocking
- SFX
- door opens
- MAXWELL
- Evening. We're here investigating–
- RICHARD
- Thank God you were here.
- RICHARD
- I was just about to call you people.
- RICHARD
- There is someone in my house.
- MAXWELL
- Er… you sure?
- RICHARD
- I heard them whisper my name and I tell you what, it wasn't the Good Lord.
- MAXWELL
- Oh yeah?
- HEDY
- Did you see any shoes inside? Any you don't recognize?
- RICHARD
- What? Shoes?
- RICHARD
- No, aside from my loafers.
- MAXWELL
- Well (clears throat), for your safety, we need you to leave the house.
- RICHARD
- Oh, oh man.
- RICHARD
- Oh dear.
- RICHARD
- Oh, okay.
- RICHARD
- Oh, oh gosh.
- HEDY
- Can we search your home?
- RICHARD
- Well, yes, of course. You got guns, right?
- RICHARD
- I would hope you got guns.
- MAXWELL
- Oh, you betcha.
- MAXWELL
- Reyes, I think we got it. 6845 on Pine. Resident heard the whisper but hasn't seen the shoes. We're going in now.
- SFX
- radio beeps
- ELI
- Got it. On our way.
- MAXWELL
- Any other residents inside?
- RICHARD
- No, it's just old Richard here.
- RICHARD
- All on my lonesome.
- RICHARD
- Maybe one day though, right?
- MAXWELL
- Okay. We'll take it from here.
- RICHARD
- Yeah, right.
- RICHARD
- Should I—Should I leave?
- RICHARD
- Go sit in my car?
- RICHARD
- I got heated seats and everything.
- RICHARD
- Real nice, good, safe place to go.
- MAXWELL
- Sure, why not.
- SFX
- footsteps
- MAXWELL
- I've got upstairs.
- HEDY
- Okay. I'm first floor.
- SFX
- footsteps up a staircase
- HEDY
- Okay.
- HEDY
- Shoes. Shoes. Where are you?
- HEDY
- There you are!
- HEDY
- Max! In the laundry room!
- SFX
- footsteps
- MAXWELL
- Did you find 'em?
- HEDY
- Yeah–I think so.
- HEDY
- There's like… six pairs of shoes here.
- HEDY
- They're Oxford shoes. Real dressy.
- MAXWELL
- (Sighs) Fuck it. Just grab all of them and get them to Reyes. I'll take care of things here.
- SFX
- clatter of shoes getting picked up, quick footsteps
- HEDY
- Reyes, Kane, I got them. I'm heading your way.
- ELI
- (Radio) Roger that. We'll meet you halfway.
- SFX
- Richard singing to himself, knock on the car window, window lowers
- RICHARD
- Oh, sorry, I was—I had my jams on.
- MAXWELL
- All right, coast is clear.
- RICHARD
- You, uh… you didn't you didn't find anyone?
- MAXWELL
- Nope, looks like a false alarm.
- RICHARD
- False alarm?
- RICHARD
- But I—I heard someone whisper my name.
- RICHARD
- I don't understand.
- MAXWELL
- Yeah, you might want to check for a gas leak.
- RICHARD
- A—a gas leak?
- MAXWELL
- Sure. Natural gas can cause paranoid episodes. Sounds like you have a classic symptom of exposure.
- RICHARD
- But it sounded so... Someone… whispered my name.
- MAXWELL
- Oh yeah, that's a super common hallucination.
- MAXWELL
- It's the brain's way of, you know... Processing the chemicals.
- RICHARD
- I feel so stupid.
- RICHARD
- I just… I could have sworn someone was in my house.
- MAXWELL
- Eh, don't feel stupid. This kind of thing happens more often than you'd think.
- RICHARD
- Okay.
- RICHARD
- So, if I may ask, did your partner take all my shoes?
- MAXWELL
- Well, I need to get going. If you experience any more symptoms, well. Don't hesitate to call.
- RICHARD
- Wait, call who? You guys? The police? I–
- MAXWELL
- Sure.
- RICHARD
- I—Okay...
- SFX
- Hedy breathing hard
- ELI
- Hedy, we're here!
- HEDY
- Shoes!
- JACOB
- Whoa, are you okay?
- HEDY
- (Out of breath) Yeah, I'm—I’m more of a... …research and lab kind of person.
- HEDY
- Here, Kane, take...
- SFX
- Hedy starts handing shoes over to Jacob
- JACOB
- But—why did you–
- HEDY
- Here's this one.
- JACOB
- Okay–
- HEDY
- These...
- JACOB
- Why are there so ma–
- HEDY
- Here you go.
- JACOB
- Okay, hold on.
- HEDY
- This one's cute.
- JACOB
- Okay, yeah, these— these are nice.
- HEDY
- Just take them.
- JACOB
- Okay, okay, got them.
- HEDY
- Go! Go. I'll catch up.
- JACOB
- You sure?
- HEDY
- I'm fine. Just… go activate the haunt.
- ELI
- Yeah, okay, let's go, Kane.
- SFX
- Eli and Jacob walking away
- JACOB
- Okay, but—can you take some of these?
- ELI
- No, I gotta have my hands open.
- SFX
- Hedy catching her breath
- SFX
- door opens
- ELI
- Okay, drop the shoes in the master bedroom.
- ELI
- There are a few entrances there.
- ELI
- And keep eyes on them until I get to cooler.
- JACOB
- Got it.
- ELI
- Be right back.
- SFX
- Jacob sneezes
- JACOB
- Uh… Eli.
- ELI
- What?
- JACOB
- Oh, shit, shit, shit.
- ELI
- Uh, Kane, what?
- JACOB
- Uh, how many pairs of shoes were there? Five, right?
- ELI
- You were supposed to keep an eye on them!
- JACOB
- I had to sneeze! I–
- ELI
- Seriously, are there shoes missing?
- JACOB
- Uh, yep.
- JACOB
- Yep, the—the cute ones are gone.
- MAXWELL
- Did it work?
- ELI
- Uh, no, the shoes are gone.
- MAXWELL
- What?
- JACOB
- I was watching them, but then I had to sneeze!
- MAXWELL
- You had... to sneeze?
- JACOB
- You can't keep your eyes open when you sneeze! If you do that, your eyes will fuckin’–
- MAXWELL
- (Sighs) Unbelievable.
- HEDY
- I got the coo—containment device.
- HEDY
- What'd I miss?
- MAXWELL
- Oh, shit for brains lost the shoes.
- MAXWELL
- Tell her, stupid.
- HEDY
- What?!
- JACOB
- I sneezed! And then, poof, cute shoes gone.
- HEDY
- Oh no.
- HEDY
- One, two, three…
- HEDY
- It was the cute ones.
- MAXWELL
- So now what?
- ELI
- (Sighs) What do you think, Hedy?
- HEDY
- Okay, um… it's likely the shoes relocated when the haunt reactivated. The shoes are probably in the house somewhere. We just need to find them before the Shoeless Man manifests.
- ELI
- Okay, Max takes main floor, Kane takes the basement, I’ll search the second floor, and Hedy, keep tabs on the motion sensors and radio any movement that isn't us.
- ELI
- Listen, if anyone finds the shoes, bring them here, but wait until haunt manifests before putting them in the water. Otherwise, we risk warding it off instead of containing it. Got it?
- MAXWELL
- Yeah.
- HEDY
- Got it.
- JACOB
- Okay.
- HEDY
- (Radio) Remember, everyone, black Oxford shoes. They've got classy little buckles. They could be anywhere.
- JACOB
- Okay.
- MAXWELL
- (Radio) Kitchen's empty. Checking coat closets.
- ELI
- (Radio) Nothing in the master bedroom. Moving to bathroom.
- JACOB
- Basement's clear so far.
- SHOELESS MAN
- Jaaaacooob…
- JACOB
- Uh… Did you guys hear that?
- ELI
- (Radio) Negative.
- HEDY
- (Radio) Also negative.
- JACOB
- …Never mind.
- SHOELESS MAN
- Jaaaacooob…
- JACOB
- Hello?
- HEDY
- (Radio) Kane, stop moving.
- JACOB
- Guys, I'm not moving.
- HEDY
- (Radio) I think it's in there with you.
- SHOELESS MAN
- Jaaaacoooob
- JACOB
- Oh, shit.
- ELI
- (Radio) Get out of the house, now!
- JACOB
- (Running) You think?!
- SFX
- Jacob struggles to open the door, Shoeless Man walks up behind him, garroting Jacob with a set of shoelaces. Jacob yelps and begins choking
- MAXWELL
- Oh, got 'em.
- SFX
- Max submerges the shoes in the cooler. Bubbling. Shoeless man shrieks as he shrivels up.
- MAXWELL
- Damn, you didn't like that.
- SFX
- Jacob still choking on the laces still tightly wound around his neck.
- MAXWELL
- What's your problem?
- MAXWELL
- Oh.
- MAXWELL
- All right, hold still.
- SFX
- Max flips open a pocket knife.
- MAXWELL
- Man, this is on tight, huh?
- SFX
- Sawing, then a snap as the shoelaces break, Jacob coughs
- ELI
- What happened?
- SFX
- Jacob still coughing
- MAXWELL
- We got it.
- HEDY
- You all right?
- JACOB
- (Strained) Yep. Yep, never been better.
- HEDY
- You're… bleeding.
- JACOB
- Huh?
- JACOB
- Oh, it's—it’s fine.
- JACOB
- Max had to...
- JACOB
- Uh, the knife.
- HEDY
- Max!
- MAXWELL
- What?
- MAXWELL
- It was just a nick.
- JACOB
- No. No, it's fine. Thanks, Max.
- MAXWELL
- Fucking sneeze.
- SFX
- Max walks off
- HEDY
- Huh. I expected the salt water would contain the entity to the shoes themselves. But this...
- HEDY
- This is incredible. It completely desiccated the Aberration.
- ELI
- So it's dead-dead then?
- HEDY
- It appears so. But we should do a full analysis. This could change how we approach similar entities with sympathetic bindings.
- HEDY
- Plus, Riley will be bummed out if we don't let her see this.
- ELI
- All right, let's bring him back.
- HEDY
- I'll grab a body bag.
- ELI
- You're sure you're okay? I mean, that was a close call.
- JACOB
- In more ways than one.
- ELI
- What do you mean?
- JACOB
- It said my name.
- ELI
- It said…
- ELI
- Oh.
- ELI
- (Sighs) I should’ve thought of that.
- JACOB
- Yeah, me too.
- JACOB
- It's okay.
- JACOB
- Nobody else was in the room. Nobody heard.
- ELI
- Still, we need to be more careful.
- JACOB
- Yeah. No more sneezing.
- ELI
- That's not what I meant.
- JACOB
- I know.
- ELI
- (Imitating Shoeless Man) Jaaaacoooob.
- JACOB
- Stop!
- SFX
- both laugh
- OUTRO
- Outro theme
- JAMIE
- Thank you for listening to REDACTED.
- JAMIE
- This episode was guest directed by Airdorf, starring Jamie Petronis as Jacob Kane, Athan as Eli Reyes, Pixelvixx as Susan, the Joe Cliff Thompson as Maxwell Clark, Ishani Kanetkar as Hedy Hauksdottir, Landon Whisnant as Richard, James Spurney as Phil, and Rafael Suarez as the neighbor who is sorry he couldn't be more help.
- JAMIE
- If you're enjoying the show, consider giving it a rating on the platform of your choice or visit patreon.com/theredacted unit.
Transcript from the production script, matched to the final audio.
