The Desperate Hour

On Friday, September 24, 2021, recently widowed mother, Amy Carr, decides to take a personal day off work. She waves goodbye to her young daughter, Emily, who boards a school bus, but discovers her teenaged son, Noah, still in bed complaining he is sick. Amy takes a jog through the woods, navigating through several routine calls while running. Shortly after meeting several police cars traveling hurriedly, Amy receives a bulletin on her cell phone reporting all area schools are in lockdown. Desperately trying to find out more information, Amy places several calls, the combination of which gradually allow her to piece together details. She learns there is an active shooter at the high school who has taken the life of a girl. Further, she concludes Noah is not home, but instead went to the high school after his truck is seen in the parking lot. A mechanic, whose shop is near the school, tells Amy the police are searching Noah's truck. He later adds that four other vehicles, besides Noah's, are also being searched. A police officer, via a 911 dispatcher, asks Amy questions about Noah which leads her to wonder if Noah is the school shooter. In a subsequent call, the police tell Amy that Noah is not the shooter, and the shooter is not a student.