WEBVTT - The Call That Went Silent

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<v Speaker 1>APPO Jay Production.

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<v Speaker 2>Hi, Welcome to Silent Secrets, a bedtime podcast for curious minds.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm Jay, I'm glad you're here. This is your time

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<v Speaker 2>to let go of today, to settle in and slow down,

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<v Speaker 2>and let curiosity gently carry you towards sleep. In each episode,

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<v Speaker 2>I'm going to share a true story of the unexplained,

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<v Speaker 2>not to alarm you, but to quiet your mind, to

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<v Speaker 2>remind you that the world is full of wonder and

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<v Speaker 2>some things we'll never truly understand. So take your deep breath,

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<v Speaker 2>feel your body sink into comfort, let the weight of

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<v Speaker 2>the day drift away. As we begin tonight's story, in

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<v Speaker 2>the early hours of a quiet night, on a rural

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<v Speaker 2>road in Minnesota, a young man makes a phone call.

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<v Speaker 2>His name was Brandon Swanson. He was nineteen years old,

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<v Speaker 2>and he was lost. It was late, no traffic, no lights,

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<v Speaker 2>just long stretches of road cutting through open land fields

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<v Speaker 2>on either side. It was dark and still. Branded had

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<v Speaker 2>been driving home a route he had taken before. Nothing

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<v Speaker 2>really unusual, nothing complicated, until suddenly something went wrong. His

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<v Speaker 2>car left the road, slid into a ditch, not violently,

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<v Speaker 2>just dramatically enough to stop him. He wasn't hurt. He

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<v Speaker 2>didn't panic. There was no urgency. He was just inconvenient.

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<v Speaker 2>It was the kind of situation you'd expect to solve quickly,

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<v Speaker 2>call for help, get directions, and find your way back.

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<v Speaker 2>So he called his parents. His dad answered, and for

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<v Speaker 2>a moment everything felt normal. I'm okay, he said, I

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<v Speaker 2>just need a bit of help. He explained where he

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<v Speaker 2>thought he was a road. He recognized there was a

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<v Speaker 2>town nearby, but when his parents tried to find him,

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<v Speaker 2>they couldn't. The location didn't match, the roads didn't line up.

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<v Speaker 2>Something was off, but Brandon wasn't worried, not yet. He

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<v Speaker 2>told them he could see lights in the distance, a

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<v Speaker 2>town maybe, or a house something. So instead of waiting,

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<v Speaker 2>he decided to walk. His dad stayed on the phone,

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<v Speaker 2>listening and guiding him, trying to piece together where Brandon

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<v Speaker 2>might be, And so Brandon walked through the dark. At first,

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<v Speaker 2>the conversation was steady and simple. He described what he

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<v Speaker 2>could see, or what he thought he could see, fences, fields,

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<v Speaker 2>the uneven ground beneath his feet. Sometimes he laughed, casual,

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<v Speaker 2>as if it wasn't serious, as if it was just

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<v Speaker 2>one of those things that would soon be sorted. But

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<v Speaker 2>As Brandon kept walking, the tone began to change. It

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<v Speaker 2>was subtle at first, a hesitation, a pause, a shift

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<v Speaker 2>in his voice, because the landscape around him wasn't changing,

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<v Speaker 2>the lights weren't getting closer. The ground became harder to follow.

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<v Speaker 2>Uneven and broken, he mentioned defense. He climbed over it,

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<v Speaker 2>then another, still moving forward, still searching for something that

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<v Speaker 2>never seemed to arrive. His father listened, trying to keep

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<v Speaker 2>him calm, trying to understand where he was, but it

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<v Speaker 2>was difficult because Brandon didn't seem to be where he

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<v Speaker 2>thought he was. The darkness around him was deeper than expected.

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<v Speaker 2>Everything started to look the same, every direction started to

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<v Speaker 2>lose meaning, and still he kept walking. Minutes passed, then more.

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<v Speaker 2>The call with his dad continued. At times there was silence,

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<v Speaker 2>not empty, just filled with the sound of movement, footsteps

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<v Speaker 2>and breathing, the quiet shift of the night around him.

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<v Speaker 2>His dad stayed there, listening, not wanting to lose him,

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<v Speaker 2>not wanting the line to drop, because as long as

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<v Speaker 2>they were connected, Brandon wasn't alone. And then, after nearly

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<v Speaker 2>half an hour, something changed. There was a moment, a

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<v Speaker 2>small moment that's easy to miss, but a slight shift

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<v Speaker 2>in his voice, as if something had just happened, and

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<v Speaker 2>Brandon said, oh shit, and the line went dead, just

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<v Speaker 2>like that, no warning, no explanation, no sound. The call

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<v Speaker 2>didn't disconnect, the phone was still connected, but there was nothing,

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<v Speaker 2>no movement, no voice, no indication of what just happened.

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<v Speaker 2>His father yelled out again and again, waiting for a response,

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<v Speaker 2>but there was nothing, only silence. Search teams were organized quickly.

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<v Speaker 2>The area that Brandon was believed to be at was combed, fields, roads, ditches,

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<v Speaker 2>every possible direction. But the problem was they weren't searching

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<v Speaker 2>the right place because Brandon hadn't been where he thought

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<v Speaker 2>he was. Days passed, then weeks, and still no sign.

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<v Speaker 2>It wasn't until years later that remains were found, not

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<v Speaker 2>far from where the call had ended. But even then

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<v Speaker 2>the answers didn't come, because the question remained. What happened

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<v Speaker 2>in that final moment? Did he fall? Did he misstep

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<v Speaker 2>in the dark? Did he see something ordered the ground

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<v Speaker 2>beneath him? Simply disappear? No one knows, And maybe that's

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<v Speaker 2>what makes it stay with people, not just the disappearance,

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<v Speaker 2>but the call, the fact that someone was there, listening

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<v Speaker 2>and present and connected right up until the end moment

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<v Speaker 2>it was a conversation. The next nothing In a single moment,

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<v Speaker 2>everything for Brandon's family changed tonight. As everything starts to

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<v Speaker 2>settle and the world grows quiet, just remember not everything

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<v Speaker 2>that disappears leaves behind an answer. Thank you for listening

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<v Speaker 2>to Silent Secrets. I hope tonight's story has given your

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<v Speaker 2>mind something soft to wander through as you drift towards rest.

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<v Speaker 2>But the quieter the night wrap around you now and

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<v Speaker 2>know that mysteries will still be here tomorrow. Close your eyes,

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<v Speaker 2>breathe deeply, and let's sleep take over until we share

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<v Speaker 2>another secret next time.

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<v Speaker 1>Good night, last.

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<v Speaker 2>Thanks for listening to this episode and supporting this story.

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<v Speaker 2>Independent storytelling that shapes the world is what pod shape

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<v Speaker 2>really cares about. Right now, There's thousands of people listening

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