The Calling (2014) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

The killer, Peter (going by Simon), is attempting a resurrection ritual based on a Latin prayer called "Líbera." According to Father Price, this prayer requires the sacrifice of twelve souls, with each victim's twisted face representing one of the twelve syllables. Peter believes this ritual will bring his brother back to life.

Foreshadowing: Early scenes show the victims' mouths contorted into specific positions, foreshadowing the deliberate syllable arrangement that forms the prayer.

• libera prayer
• serial killer ritual
• resurrection
• sacrifices
• twisted faces

Simon is actually Peter, a man who was orphaned as a child along with his brother under Father Price's care at an orphanage. His brother committed suicide and was found dead in Peter's trailer. Driven by grief and a twisted sense of salvation, Peter believes he can resurrect his brother by performing the Líbera ritual, which requires killing twelve terminally ill people.

Foreshadowing: The mysterious man at the coffee shop offers to help a sick girl, revealing his pattern of targeting the terminally ill.

• simon
• peter
• orphan
• brother suicide
• resurrection ritual
• motive

Peter specifically targets people from an online forum for terminal patients who are seeking a way to end their suffering. He frames his killings as mercy killings, poisoning them with his tea, but his true purpose is gathering them as sacrifices for the resurrection ritual. He views their deaths as willing contributions to his sacred mission.

Foreshadowing: The scene where the girl with seizures survives reveals she was poisoned, establishing Peter's method of choice.

• terminal patients
• mercy killing
• poison
• online forum
• victims

Líbera is a Latin word associated with a Resurrection Prayer in Christian tradition. Father Price explains that Jesus' resurrection supposedly required twelve willing souls to participate. Peter interprets this literally, believing he needs exactly twelve victims whose faces can form the twelve syllables of the prayer to bring his brother back.

Foreshadowing: Father Price's explanation of the prayer's connection to twelve souls foreshadows the exact number of victims Peter needs.

• libera
• latin prayer
• resurrection
• twelve souls
• religious ritual

Hazel has been dealing with the recent loss of her baby, which has left her emotionally vulnerable and struggling with grief. This personal tragedy is what makes her susceptible to Peter's manipulation at the farmhouse, he appeals to her pain by offering tea that would allow her to reunite with her lost child through death. Her grief mirrors Peter's own desperation to recover what he has lost.

Foreshadowing: Hazel's emotional fragility is evident throughout the investigation, setting up her vulnerability when Peter confronts her.

• hazel
• baby loss
• grief
• emotional vulnerability
• personal tragedy

Peter and his brother were orphans who grew up under Father Price's care at a local orphanage. This childhood connection explains why Peter seeks out Father Price during his killing spree, and why Price becomes a potential target, Peter sees Price as part of his tragic past and the religious framework that shaped his obsession with resurrection.

Foreshadowing: Father Price's knowledge of the Líbera prayer hints at his deeper connection to the case than initially apparent.

• peter
• father price
• orphanage
• childhood
• religious connection

When Hazel refuses to drink the poisoned tea and confronts Peter with her own hard-won acceptance of loss, Peter cannot complete his ritual. Overwhelmed by the realization that his resurrection will never happen and unable to continue without the final sacrifice, he chooses to end his own life rather than continue his mission. His suicide represents the collapse of his entire belief system.

Foreshadowing: Hazel's earlier struggle with grief parallels Peter's inability to accept loss, making her rejection of his offer pivotal.

• peter suicide
• ending
• ritual failed
• acceptance of loss

After Peter kills himself, police raid his trailer but find it empty, no body of his brother, no victims, nothing. This ambiguous ending suggests Peter may have already completed some aspect of his ritual or moved the bodies, leaving the resurrection question unresolved. The empty bed implies his brother may have already been "prepared" or that the ritual's completion remains uncertain.

Foreshadowing: Ben's discovery of a body wrapped in formaldehyde-soaked bandages earlier hints at Peter's body-preservation methods.

• trailer ending
• empty bed
• brother body
• unresolved
• police raid

Peter contorts each victim's face into a specific expression designed to represent one of the twelve syllables of the Líbera prayer. By arranging the bodies to spell out the word, Peter believes he is constructing the ritual necessary for resurrection. The grotesque facial positions are not random torture but deliberate liturgical arrangement.

Foreshadowing: The first victim's face appears twisted "as if screaming in terror," establishing the disturbing pattern.

• twisted mouths
• contorted faces
• sacrifices
• syllables
• ritual arrangement

Peter drugs Hazel and brings her to the farmhouse, offering her poisoned tea that would kill her and complete his twelve-victim ritual. However, Hazel experiences a moment of clarity where she confronts her own grief over her baby's death and refuses to drink. Rather than force her, Peter chooses to kill himself, leaving Hazel alive. Her ability to accept loss rather than escape into death is what saves her.

Foreshadowing: Hazel's emotional breakdown earlier, where she gets drunk over her lost baby, sets up her pivotal choice at the farmhouse.

• hazel survival
• farmhouse
• poisoned tea
• refused to drink
• confrontation