(gentle music)
- [Wayne] Letting the theater kids operate
a half-ton chandelier was
as safe as letting a toddler fly a plane.
- Come on, don't listen to--
- [Kai] Years of squandered funding, dangerous stunts,
and underwhelming performances make me wonder
if it wouldn't be better
to cut the theater program altogether.
- That's how journalists talk these days.
- While she was backstage,
I could hear notorious egomaniac Tuesday loudly rehashing
her toxic romance that no one has ever cared about.
- Tuesday, you know we love hearing--
- Karina wrote that she wouldn't be surprised
if I killed Noah myself!
- She said she wouldn't be surprised if someone did it.
Not everything's about you.
- You know what?
I'm angry too.
We put our hearts into this, but--
- Everything she said is kind of true.
- So what?
Yeah, we've had better performances,
but we always bounce back.
Let's do this for Noah.
Together.
Who's with me?
Seriously?
Come on, nobody?
♪ Are you who you say you are ♪
♪ 'Cause you're someone else in the dark ♪
♪ Someone else ♪
♪ You're someone else in the dark ♪
(gentle music)
- Hey Mikey, who's The Black Bishop?
- Karina did it.
- Just because she said your play sucked
doesn't mean she did it.
- You're just excited Karina mentioned you.
- Poised in the face of tragedy.
- Three major news outlets
have already re-posted the article.
We need to figure out how low Karina stooped
for this minute of fame.
- Or maybe she just hated Noah and wanted to kill him.
What?
She's got crazy eyes.
- What are crazy eyes?
- Open your selfie-camera.
Maybe she did it for fame.
Maybe she's a psycho killer.
Either way, it's weird she showed to a rehearsal.
- She knew it'd be more hectic than opening night,
giving her the chance to climb the catwalk unseen.
Listen up, here's the plan.
Delia, Roxie, you're my spies.
Break into Karina's office and dig up any dirt.
Just don't kill each other.
Mikey, you're on library duty.
Go through Karina's old articles
and see if there's anything
to your theory that she hated him.
- So you're saying I'm the brains of the operation?
- Yeah, sure.
- [Delia] What if she catches us?
- [Lizzy] Don't worry about that.
I'll distract her.
- Karina?
What were you thinking?
- Insinuating in your article
that somebody tried to kill Noah?
- I'll handle this, Brian, but yes.
I'm putting you on journalistic probation.
- So much for freedom of the press.
- There's enough on my plate after the accident.
I don't need you causing a mass panic.
- Go ahead.
Yell at me.
I'm sure you want to.
I know I would.
- No, I thought your expose was great reporting,
and actually I have another story for you.
(camera shutter clicking)
- What is wrong with you?
- Oh, I don't know.
Maybe having to bear the weight
of our school's emotional well-being?
- We're trespassing and you're documenting it live.
- Could you be a little more pleasant?
Not like I wanted to spend my day with you.
- Oh, because I desperately wanted to spend mine with you.
- People need to see me being strong in Noah's time of need.
- You can drop the martyr act.
I see you for what you are.
A shallow, narcissistic, vain, selfish--
- I didn't know you knew so many adjectives.
(suspenseful music)
- If I were a library, where would I be?
Yes!
- Noah and Kai were enemies?
And?
- Well, they would send each other really vile texts,
like "I hope you die."
- Even if that were actual news,
I wouldn't be allowed to publish it.
- Wait, wait, wait.
I've got something else.
The ghost of Crown Lake is back.
- I'm listening.
- What am I possibly going
to find digging through the trash?
That she had a sinus infection?
Ew.
- Pipe down and do your job.
- I know what this is about.
You're still upset about our little prank from 6th grade.
- Little prank?
You locked me in the crypt.
I was 10.
- You got out.
- 18 hours and a broken collarbone later!
- No way it was 18 hours.
- You lied about it to Chloe.
Let everyone think I made it up like some crazy person.
- How'd you break your collarbone anyways?
- Busting down the door.
I thought you were my friend.
- It wasn't my idea.
- Stop talking.
- Boring article.
Boring play review.
Oh, Mikey, you've done it again.
- [Librarian] Shh!
No talking in the library.
- No talking in the library.
- Doors opening on their own.
Flickering lights.
Falling objects.
- So the chapel burned down 60 years ago.
Five students died in the fire.
And you think now one of them is out for vengeance?
- The other day I saw a shadowy figure go
into the prop room, but nobody was inside.
- I don't know, Lizzy.
(sighs)
- Did you really mean all those things you wrote about us?
- As a writer, I can't be afraid to hurt people.
(metal crashes)
(Karina gasps)
- Sorry!
Lost a screw.
(eerie music)
- What do you want me to say?
I'm sorry, really.
- Quiet.
- [Roxie] Jeez.
- No, I found something.
Look.
(eerie music)
- This is just a copy of the article Karina released today.
- [Delia] Look at the date.
- Wait, she wrote this 6 months ago?
- [Delia] Couldn't find the library?
- Not only did I find the library,
but I also discovered that Karina--
- [Delia] It's Lizzy.
Abort!
Karina come now.
Bad if find you.
- Cave woman.
(people laughing)
- Look, it was nice talking to you,
but I could really use some space now.
- Yeah, gotcha.
- Hurry, come on.
- [Karina] What are you doing?
- Shin splints.
So painful.
(dramatic music)
- [Karina] May I ask what you're doing in my office?
- [Roxie] Yeah, how do you explain this?
- You submitted your expose
to the Observer's writing contest 6 months ago,
but they said it was boring.
- And that it needed something juicy.
- So you decided to try to kill Noah,
giving your story credibility.
And Mikey, you found something too, right?
- Yeah, explain this.
- Butterscotch the gerbil found dead
under fallen keyboard in Crown Lake Chronicle office.
- What?
Don't you see the connection?
- It's true.
I've been sitting on this article for months
since it got rejected.
But I didn't need to kill for a spicier story.
You gave me one all on your own.
I was in my seat the whole time.
- Prove it.
- [Karina] Right from when the chandelier fell.
- You took all these pictures?
- Yep.
And despite this massive invasion of my privacy,
I'm impressed by your sleuthing skills.
- Please don't turn us in.
- What's in it for me?
- Name your price.
- Okay then.
If you bozos manage to find anything more substantial
during this investigation, you come to me first.
- When you say bozos, are you including me in that?
- This might be a lead.
I've been receiving Noah hate mail
from an anonymous kid who calls himself The Black Bishop.
- That's the kid who's been posting psycho emojis
on all my pictures.
(suspenseful music)
- [Announcer] Next up on Stage Fright.
- [Mikey] Which one do you think is The Black Bishop?
- [Karina] Could be anyone.
- [Mikey] If I can beat you in 10 moves,
I can ask you a question.
- Maybe there is a phantom.
- The only phantom in this theater is Kai.
- Don't ever bark at me like that again.