The Ties That Bind

Buck Oliver is working hard to prove he has changed. Staying with Eugene and Katrina Meltsner while Whit's End recovers from a recent vandalism, he spends his afternoons preparing the front of the shop for a fresh coat of paint, with Connie's half-sister Jules keeping him supplied with lemonade. The peaceful scene sours when Vance King strolls up, sneering that Buck is only painting the shop to play people and secure his comfortable new life. Vance then pulls Jules aside for a private walk, where it becomes clear the two of them have a secret arrangement. Vance reminds her that the money is already in the bank and it is too late to back out, warning her not to let Odyssey's coziness make her sentimental. Jules tells him to stay away from Whit's End and promises to do her part, but she is clearly shaken.

Meanwhile, Emily Jones, Matthew Parker, and Jay Smouse are exploring Hangman's Hollow, where they are baffled to find a fence standing in the middle of nowhere. Private eye Harlow Doyle pops up behind them, convinced the area hides an antique smuggling operation, since the Hollow was once notorious for smuggling the usual goods: "gunpowder, liquor, and teeth." When Jay gets stuck burrowing under the fence, the others lift it and end up crawling through after him. On the other side they discover a genuine Old West ghost town, complete with a saloon, a telegraph office, and a hotel, though Harlow finds the perfectly swept main street very suspicious. Suddenly a moaning crowd shuffles toward them from every direction, skin dripping from their faces. Zombies! Just as panic sets in, a director yells "Cut!" The ghost town is a closed television set, and the kids have ruined the shot.

The producer, Brenda Lindelman, turns the intrusion to her advantage. She hires Harlow to investigate how the trespassers got past the fence, gives the delighted Jay a part in the show, and asks Emily and Matthew, as normal small-town kids in just the right demographic, to give advice about the series. The show is called Family Survivors, about an average family trapped in a ghost town fighting off zombies. But the more questions the producer asks, the stranger things get. Matthew admits his parents would never let him watch it, and when he asks why the family has two adults named Anna and Kim but no father, Brenda tells him his generation isn't supposed to care about traditional families. The cast includes Justin the singing heartthrob, shotgun-toting Kindred, and Madison, who is Justin's stepsister and Kindred's half-sister, leaving Emily to sigh, "I need an organization chart for this." Whenever the kids ask uncomfortable questions about what a real family looks like, Brenda changes the subject to marketing trends and action figures.

Back in Odyssey, trouble is mounting. Katrina gently tells Buck that his teachers call him gifted, but she worries he is volunteering for too much, as if he has to earn his keep or impress them, and assures him he doesn't have to. At Whit's End, Connie frets over the Let's Get Together Festival controversy that has been wearing Whit down, since he is the only business owner refusing to join. Then Eugene calls from the Business Association meeting with terrible news: Whit has collapsed and been rushed to the emergency room. Connie and Katrina hurry to the hospital while Buck stays behind to wait for Jules.

That evening Buck walks Jules home like a gentleman. She insists there is nothing between her and Vance, only a business arrangement, and warns Buck to be careful since she is leaving town soon and he is not. When Buck asks if she really knows what she is doing, Jules quietly admits, "I thought I did, but not anymore."

Walking home alone through the dark park, Buck is ambushed by Vance, who tries to recruit him into his scheme, declaring, "You're either with me or against me." Vance hints that people already suspect Buck of breaking into Wooton's house and even of vandalizing Whit's End himself. Buck refuses to be rattled. He tells Vance he has met plenty of manipulators like him and vows to do whatever it takes to stop whatever scheme he is running. Vance answers with a whistle, and his rough friends step out of the shadows. Reminding Buck that any fight could send him back to juvenile hall, Vance leaves him surrounded in the darkness with a mocking "Sweet dreams."