Murph takes Summer and Ellie to the water, ignoring Ellie’s anger and promising to help her in a few minutes. He points out a slab of concrete in the ocean—part of an old bridge—which is considered the southernmost point in the United States. He then says that he has a story to tell them.

Murph talks about his wedding. He got engaged to Marie shortly after becoming a priest and graduating from the Academy. A government organization with no name recruited him to work for a new agency. In his first job, he went to a church that was trafficking children. He confronted one of the men and was shot several times. For months, Marie nursed him back to health, with their wedding delayed for over a year.

He married Marie, with Bones as their officiating priest and his best friend, Roger, as the best man. As Murph tells the story, he uses his real first name—David—and can see that it shocks Summer; however, he ignores her as he tells the story.

Throughout the ceremony, Marie seemed hesitant, but Murph ignored it and insisted that he wanted to marry her. Then, at the reception, Roger gave a toast. He told all the guests to look under their chairs, where they had manilla envelopes. Inside were photos of Roger and Marie together the night before in a hotel room.

Before Murph could figure out what the photos meant, Marie fled. He then beat Roger repeatedly until Bones finally pulled him off.

Murph spent the next year looking for Marie, using all his resources to try to find her. When he finally did, at a high-rise hotel, he got to her room and found that there was a note there for him. Marie had jumped off the balcony and ostensibly died by suicide.

On the seven-year anniversary of their marriage, Murph returned to his hotel one night, and Marie knocked on his door. She admitted to faking her own death to get him to stop pursuing her. She told him that the relationship with Roger started when Murph was in the hospital. He had convinced her that Murph would not survive and that a new relationship with him would help her heal. Murph listened and then began sobbing uncontrollably, eventually falling asleep. The next morning, Marie was gone again.

When Murph finishes his story, he tells Ellie that she isn’t “alone” in her pain. Ellie reacts with anger, insisting that he knows nothing about her. Murph asks her for the ring from the letter, which she wears around her neck, and she angrily throws it at him.

Murph tells Ellie that the ring is one that he had made specially for and gave to Marie. However, after he woke up and Marie was gone again, he found a note. This time, she went out into the ocean, where she tied a bucket filled with concrete to her. She left him a video saying goodbye and then jumped overboard. He is certain that she is dead.

Murph then spent most of the next year drunk throughout the Keys. One day, he found himself at the spot they are in now. He heard a voice asking him what he knew about sheep and then turned to find Bones standing over him.

Bones took him to an apartment nearby and spent months getting Murph sober. However, Murph only got angrier. One day, Bones told him that he had a choice: to “learn to love again” or to live in “bitterness” (263). He insisted that love was the only thing that could never be taken from humanity. He then whispered the word Apollumi, telling him that “the needs of the apollumi outweigh the needs of the ninety-nine” (264). He insisted that Murph had to choose what he was going to do, calling him by his full name, David Bishop.

Murph then began to write. He would come each day to this spot, write in dozens of notepads, and then bartend nearby for money. One night, a woman asked about his writing and then read his work. She asked to see the other notebooks he had written. She then told him that she was a publisher and wanted to publish his work. She insisted that his writing had the power to “heal” like nothing she’d ever read. He agreed, but only if she kept his identity a secret. With all the money from his book sales, Murph and Bones started Freetown.

As Murph finishes his story, he tells Summer and Ellie that he is done writing. Fingers—a stand-in for Bones—and Marie both die in the final novel, which will be published soon. He burned all 14 books and put the ashes in the orange box on the boat. He insists that writing has been a way to heal from Marie, but it doesn’t work anymore. Instead, he still finds himself unable to love anyone else.

Murph wades out into the water with the orange case. He takes the wine out and dumps it into the ocean, along with the ashes. When he turns back, Summer and Ellie are standing behind him.

Murph, Summer, and Ellie return to the hotel. Summer prepares for her date with the man, who tells her that he is going to take her out on his boat. Summer has a list of code words to use if she’s in danger.

As Murph returns to the boat to prepare it, he finds Ellie there. He offers to get her a plane, but instead, she asks to go to Colorado.

As Clay, Ellie, and Murph wait for word from Summer, Sister June walks up to them. She insists that she needs to show them something. Murph is hesitant, not wanting to take his attention away from Summer, but he can also see how desperate Ellie is.

Murph drives the boat back to Sisters of Mercy. As he docks, he gets a picture from Summer of the boat she is getting on, as well as a name. He sends both to Bones, who tells Murph that he is already tracking her boat via satellite.

Sister June leads them to a different cottage. In a bedroom, they find a frail-looking woman in a bed, hooked up to an oxygen machine. She greets Ellie.

The woman in the bed is Marie. Murph is shocked and begins crying as she pulls him to her and kisses him. She then grabs Ellie’s hand.

Murph’s phone goes off: It is a video from Summer. It shows the boat’s speedometer, climbing to over 80 miles per hour. It then shows Summer, passed out and drugged, lying across chairs. Murph hears a man laughing as the video ends.

Marie can see the panic in Murph’s eyes and insists that he leave. He still hesitates, but Marie tells him that Ellie can stay and talk with her. Murph decides that he has to go. He asks Marie who Ellie’s father is, and Marie tells him that he is.

As Murph accelerates as fast as he can in his boat, he talks with Bones. Bones is still tracking the other boat as they head out toward the Tortugas.

As Murph drives, he puts on a face mask, an armored vest, and a black shirt. He also grabs an assault rifle and night-vision goggles. In the distance, Murph sees a large yacht with its lights on and people on the deck. The man’s boat, Daemon, pulls up alongside it. They carry a body off the boat and onto the yacht. Just then, Murph’s phone rings. It is Angel. She tells him that she is tied up and wants to get off the boat. She asks Murph to tell her mother that she’s sorry, and then the line goes dead.

Murph swims several hundred yards to the yacht with Gunner. When he gets close, he sees the name Pluto written on its side. Murph ties the anchor of a smaller boat to Pluto, making it difficult for either boat to leave.

Murph makes his way onto the yacht. He finds the kitchen, where he sets a propane tank on a burner. He then waits until it explodes, blowing a hole in the upper part of the deck, which triggers a second explosion lower in the ship. The yacht breaks out in chaos as people flee.

The Pluto tries to leave, but so does the boat that is tied to it. The two fight for control, with neither able to move.

The man who took Summer appears on the deck, carrying a young girl. Murph tries to stop him, but he gets kicked in the stomach and falls. The man holds his gun to Murph’s head, but it doesn’t fire without the pin. Before Murph can recover, the man kicks him again, jumps onto his boat, and leaves.

Murph asks the girl how many other captives are on board, and she guesses 15. He puts her in a life vest and instructs her to jump overboard if anyone else shows up.

When Murph turns the corner, he is shot in his breast plate and slammed into the wall. Gunner attacks the shooter, momentarily distracting him; however, Gunner is then shot twice. Murph manages to kill the man as well as several others before making his way deeper into the ship.

Murph finds the anchor room, where Summer is. Murph is shot two more times and knocked to the ground. He kills the shooter but notes how much red is in the water on the floor of the room. Summer is conscious, and she helps Murph open the door to the next room. They hear girls screaming, but their voices are muffled by water.

Murph finds SCUBA gear, which he uses to swim through the water ahead. He finds a collection of girls huddled in an air pocket. He leads them out and up the stairs, back onto the deck.

Murph then searches everywhere for Angel but can’t find her. He shows her photo to the girls, but none of them recognize her.

A park ranger boat arrives, and Murph helps the girls onto it. He also retrieves Gunner, who is still breathing. He then realizes that he is bleeding from several bullet wounds.

Murph gets stitched up by a park ranger and Summer. The ranger tells him that the girls are all relatively healthy. Murph makes him promise to care for them, especially their mental health, as many were likely on the boat for a long time.

On his way out, Murph hesitates and then takes Gunner with him, realizing that there likely isn’t a vet nearby. When Murph gets to his boat, Summer joins him. She insists on going with him to find Angel.

On the boat, Murph calls Bones. Bones tells him that the man who took Summer is still nearby. He is on Loggerhead Key, the central landmark of which is a tall lighthouse. Murph sees its light rotating in the distance. Murph then tells Bones that Marie is alive. He can tell by Bones’s reaction that he already knew. Murph demands to know how long he has known, and Bones admits that he learned in confessional that Marie faked her death by suicide in the video. Bones admits that it still doesn’t “justify” not telling Murph, and Murph angrily hangs up.

When Murph gets to the shore, he sees the Daemon and a sea plane. He realizes that he has no weapon, so he grabs a crossbow from the boat. Summer tries to get off with him, but he insists that she needs to wait on board and call Bones if he doesn’t return. She extends her hand, and they touch fingertips.

As Murph approaches the lighthouse, he sees a man coming out with a tied-up, struggling girl. As the man bends to her, Murph shoots him through the groin with the crossbow. He goes up to the girl and discovers that it is Angel. He then hears the man who took Summer behind him.

Murph realizes that he is exhausted from everything he has been through. He tries to fight the man but gets stabbed in the leg. The man begins to choke him. Murph hears movement and then sees Gunner bite the man in the hamstring. The man turns on Gunner, stabbing him, but then Summer hits him over the head with an oar. He drops the knife. Before anyone can react, the man says the name “Allie” and then rushes to the plane and takes off.

In the lighthouse, they find several other girls. Murph frees them all and makes sure they’re okay. Murph picks up Gunner, who is still barely breathing, and then gets on the boat with Summer and the girls.

Murph speeds toward the mainland. He calls Bones, who tries to apologize, but Murph interrupts him. He tells him to find the plane. Twenty minutes later, Bones calls back to tell him that it’s at Murph’s hotel. Murph has him instruct a vet to go to Sisters of Mercy.

At Marie’s cottage, Murph finds that Ellie is gone. Marie tells him that she went back to the hotel to take pictures. Murph leaves Gunner, Summer, and all the girls at her cottage.

When Murph gets back to the hotel, he finds Clay injured on the ground. Clay tells him that the man took Ellie and left. Murph goes out onto the street. He sees commotion up ahead and yells for Ellie. When he hears her yell “Daddy,” it affects him deeply, panicking him and sparking him to move faster.

Murph catches up to the man just as he turns on his Porsche in the garage. Murph punches through the window, grabbing the man’s head and leg—where Gunner bit him—and then pulling him through the window. The two fight on the ground, with Murph using the last of his energy to free himself from the man’s grip. The man stands, warns Ellie that he will always hunt her, and then flees out of the garage. However, he is stopped by Clay, who knocks him out with a punch.

The paramedics come and help Murph. He wants to go with them to the hospital, ready to rest, but Sister June appears. She directs Ellie and Murph to a Cadillac, insisting that Marie needs to see them.

When Murph gets to Marie’s bed, she is finishing his last book. He starts to speak, but she insists that he has told her everything she needs to know in his books. She tells him that she saw him often on the Keys but never had the courage to speak to him again. She left him because she never thought she was “worthy” of his love.

Marie asks Murph to give her communion and baptize her before she dies. He carries her to the ocean. He gives her bread and wine as Sister Jane and Ellie look on, crying. In her final moments, she asks Murph to forgive her, but he insists that he has “nothing” to forgive her for. She tells him to spread her ashes where they fell in love. Murph then submerges her body as the life leaves her eyes.

Over the next several days, everyone recovers. Murph spends the first few days in and out of consciousness, always noting that Gunner is nearby and also recovering.

Murph says goodbye to Ellie, Clay, Angel, and Summer. They board a plane for Colorado. Murph promises to visit each of them, giving Ellie his Rolex again to reassure her.

Murph then goes to the beach where Gone Fiction is docked. On it is the orange case, now holding Marie’s ashes. His editor waits for him. She asks him if he wants her to hold the publication of the book so that he can finish his story. He hesitates, insisting that he doesn’t have it in him to write anymore; however, she tells him that it will help. They board the boat for the 600-mile ride back to where Murph and Marie fell in love.

When Murph gets home, he spends several days writing. He decides to write the ending he wants for himself and Marie. When he sends it to his editor, she is ecstatic with what he produced.

Murph recalls the story that Ellie told him, after she learned it from Marie. After seven years apart, Marie returned to Murph, and the two had sex for the first time. The next morning, she filmed the video of her dropping into the ocean. However, 20 feet down, the knot came undone. She hesitated in the water and then decided to swim toward the light above, feeling a “change” in her body. She was too ashamed to return to Murph, feeling as though she wasn’t “worthy” of him.

Marie then moved to the Hamptons, where she waited tables for the next nine months before putting Ellie up for adoption. Shortly after Ellie’s birth, Marie got sick. She learned that she had a virus that was attacking her heart. She was given months to live, so she sought out the convent and befriended Sister June.

As Marie lived in Key West, she came across Murph writing one day. She snuck into his apartment and read his work. Enthralled, she sent it to an editor in New York, demanding that she come to the bar to see Murph. Shortly thereafter, his work was published.

When Murph came to the convent, she initially declined to see him. However, when she saw Ellie with him, she knew she needed to tell them her story.

Now, Murph stands in the ocean with Marie’s ashes. He pours them into the ocean and watches as they mix with the water, making their way into the freedom of the Gulf Stream.

Murph goes up to the church a few days later. He etches the names of Summer, Angel, Casey, and Ellie into the wall. A few hours later, he returns and etches both “Murphy Shepherd” and “David Bishop” into it.

Unsure how to continue to live his life, Murph decides that he has to go to Colorado. He wants to see Summer again, as he is unsure if he truly loves her or if it was just a connection formed from their “trauma.”

When he arrives at Freetown, he goes to his cabin. Looking through his binoculars, he watches Ellie and Angel sing, dance, and cook dinner together. Suddenly, he feels Summer’s arms wrap around him from behind.

Murph tells Summer that he had no heart for years. He lost it to Marie and then turned away from love so that he could stay detached from the work he did. Now, he feels like he is unworthy of Summer. She interrupts him, insisting that she loves him, too, and they kiss.

After Summer leaves, Murph goes into the living room and finds Bones standing there. Murph is still angry at Bones because he didn’t tell him about Marie. Bones shows him his phone with a young girl on it who was just kidnapped. Murph dismisses him, but Bones insists that he still has work to do. He tells him that he must choose between going to dinner with Summer or heading out to find the girl.

Murph grabs Bones by the neck and lifts him off the ground. He angrily tells him that “love matters,” and Bones agrees. However, he again tells him to choose between the girl and dinner. Murph puts Bones down but warns him that, one day, he won’t release him.

Murph angrily stomps outside with Gunner following him. He crosses to Summer’s cabin. He looks in as she gets out of the shower, noting how the scars on her back have healed. He hesitates but then turns away and goes to his car.

In his car, Murph finds Clay. He tries to tell Clay that it will be dangerous, but Clay dismisses him, insisting that he wants to go with him. Gunner happily licks both Clay and Murph. As they start the drive, Clay tells Murph that he has a story to tell him.