A Day of Judgment

The Reverend Cage leaves the church and goes to the local bank to negotiate the loan he has taken out. He learns he is a victim of usury at the hands of Mr. Sharpe, the bank's unscrupulous head. The encounter exposes the town's exploitation and sets the Reverend on edge about the institutions around him.

Late at night, as the Reverend departs the town, a cloaked rider on horseback brandishing a scythe passes by him on a covered bridge. The figure resembles the Grim Reaper, foreshadowing the deaths to come. The close brush with the omen unsettles him.

The following day, Mrs. Fitch, an elderly alcoholic, torments children playing on her property and chastises her housekeeper, Alma. Her disruptive behavior goes unchecked by a sheriff who refuses to intervene. Her cruelty demonstrates the town's moral decay.

That same day, Mrs. Fitch poisons the children's pet goat, removing a symbol of harmless childhood from the yard. The act underscores the town's hidden cruelty and its consequences. The incident foreshadows darker events to come.

George Clay dreams of selling the family service station and their home, eager to abandon his responsibilities. He tricks his elderly parents into signing a power of attorney with Griggs so he can take the business and send them to a poor farm. The scheme marks the beginning of the family’s unraveling.

Morgan visits the bank to cash out funds gifted by Jess Hill to buy seed for his crops. Sharpe refuses the withdrawal, and later the sheriff and bank repossess Morgan's house, leaving him homeless. The moment highlights the cold callousness of the town's financial system.

While Sharpe and the sheriff inspect Morgan's property, the cloaked figure traps Sharpe in a cellar and attacks him, killing him. The intrusion shows the Reaper’s reach into human greed and corruption. The death resonates through the town as a warning of consequences.

George's ex-fiancé Missy visits the service station with Griggs and finds George shaken, unable to speak. The scene ties his manipulative schemes to the people who care about him and hints that darker forces are closing in. It marks the emotional fallout of the town's corruption.

Harvey leaves town to buy a ring for his wife, Ruby, who is having an affair with Kenny. After an argument, Kenny pushes Harvey into a fireplace mantel, causing a fatal head injury. Ruby and Kenny place the body in Harvey's car and push it down an embankment, where it explodes in an attempt to cover up the crime.

That same night, Ruby is terrified by a figure at the window. A lightning strike sets the house aflame, and both Ruby and Kenny are burned alive. The gruesome end reinforces the serial nature of fate and punishment in the town.

Charlie Milford, driven by jealousy, kidnaps Sid Martin and Grace and drives them into the woods to execute them. Moments later, the Reaper decapitates Charlie, ending his campaign of harassment. The killings illustrate the Reaper’s control over human emotions and vengeance.

Each victim is led by the Reaper through darkness into hell, but they awaken in their own beds, terrified by the visions they just endured. The events are revealed to be nightmares rather than damnation, leaving them unsettled and wary. They seek absolution in the hope of escaping their guilt.

The townspeople attend church to hear the new Reverend's sermon, terrified of what they have experienced. He enters in a black cloak and then removes it, introducing himself and subtly implying he already knows some of them. The moment hints at a deeper, supernatural connection within the town.