The Outsider

When the body of an 11-year-old boy is found in the Georgia woods, detective Ralph Anderson launches an investigation into the gruesome murder. With eyewitnesses and physical evidence pointing to local teacher and baseball coach Terry Maitland, Ralph makes a very public arrest but is perplexed by Terry's seeming indifference to hiding his crime. After Terry's wife Glory calls their attorney Howie Salomon for assistance, a bewildered Terry produces an ironclad alibi during interrogation. Meanwhile, Howie calls in his PI Alec Pelley to look into Terry's side of the story.

During a surreptitious late-night visit with Terry, Ralph admits to being baffled by conflicting physical evidence. The next day, an unexpected tragedy throws the investigation into a tailspin, and ornery detective Jack Hoskins is forced to cut his hunting trip short to return to work and pick up the slack. Meanwhile, Glory tries to soothe her daughter Jessa, who says she's been visited by a strange man in her room at night.

Despite being on mandatory leave, Ralph continues to scrutinize the confounding circumstances surrounding the night of the murder. Frustrated by their lack of progress, Ralph and GBI detective Yunis Sablo meet with Alec and Howie, who suggest bringing in unorthodox PI Holly Gibney. Jack has a hair-raising experience at a remote barn where key evidence and a mysterious substance have been found. Glory deals with fallout at her daughters' school and with Jessa's increasingly concerning nightmares.

While retracing the Maitlands' recent family vacation, Holly pursues a possible connection to an eerily similar case and gains valuable insight from local former detective Andy Katcavage; Glory faces increased scrutiny in her daily life.

After returning from an eye-opening trip to New York, Holly searches for clues at several locations connected to the Dayton case. Jeannie finds herself shaken by an unnerving incident at work and delivers an ominous warning to Ralph. Jack is put on the defensive at Tamika's baby shower.

Holly presents her unusual theory about the connection between two other mysterious child murders and the Frankie Peterson case. While Ralph remains skeptical, a more receptive Yunis suggests they start looking into Claude, the last person to have contact with Terry. Jeannie's attempt to include Glory in their group of concerned citizens backfires.